himself independent of his sovereign, had several villages subject to his authority, and received the duties for himself. The earth has a tolerable degree of stability; the dominion of it is in perpetual motion; and the tide of human affairs may one day bring Kajaaga under the rule of Galam.

The French have a fort, a factory, and warehouses, at Galam, and here the price of merchandise is settled with the king; but the vessels proceed higher up the river to Tamboocanee, which is the principal mart for ivory and slaves.

Above Tamboocanee, and about forty-eight miles from Galam, is the rock Felow, which intersects the river in its full breadth, and occasions a fall, said to be eighty feet in height. In the dry season this rock is nearly dry; but in the rainy season the waters rush over it with prodigious violence, and the roar of their fall is heard at a great distance. It is this accumulation of water which renders the Senegal navigable; and it has sometimes been productive of singular occurrences, two of which I shall mention.

A French merchant, of the name of Duliron, had a small establishment by the side of the river, about eighteen or twenty miles above Galam; and at one time the water came down upon him so suddenly, that he and his servants had only time to take refuge in a tree which grew near his dwelling; carrying with them the most portable of his effects, and some provisions for their sustenance. Here they remained perched, during three days, when a vessel happened to pass, and a boat was sent, which took them up.

As this anecdote shews the rapidity of the mass of waters, when it has burst over the barrier of the

rock, the other shews its extent. The Governor of St. Louis often mentioned, in one of his voyages to Galam, found the inundation so great and deep, that his vessel lost the line of the river, and sailed into the woods. Here he remained thirtysix hours at anchor, not daring to move, lest his vessel should strike against the trees that were under the water.

From St. Louis to Galam is a journey which has been performed by land, by a French agent, with a negro guide. The Damel gave the Frenchman an officer who accompanied him to the Boor by Jalofs, and this sovereign provided him with another. The latter officer was furnished with an ivory wand, with a knob of ebony, which caused him to be respected throughout the whole of his journey.

CHAPTER XII.

BAMBOUK. RETURN TO ST. LOUIS. NEGROES.

THERE is a country to the south of Galam, and only thirty miles from the banks of the Senegal, which may be called the head quarters of gold: it is the country of Bambouk. On my way to the Niger, I left it to the south; on my return from thence on the north; and in this latter route I passed so near it, that I saw the pits, and witnessed the washing of gold, at Satadoo, one of its out-posts. No danger that offered a chance of escaping it would have deterred me from visiting

this country; but its inhabitants guard its golden fruit with as much vigilance as the dragons of the ancients did theirs; and having experienced the taste which Europeans have for it, they will not suffer one to enter their territory. Five Frenchmen have, at five different times, between the years 1714 and 1744, succeding in penetrating into Bambouk; and from their observations the following account has been compiled:

The river Falemé, which joins the Senegal about twenty-four miles below Galam, forms the western boundary of Bambouk. The mountains of Tabaoora, which form a chain of more than a hundred miles in extent, occupy a considerable portion of the country; but they produce two principal rivers, and a number of smaller streams, which irrigate the low lands, and keep them in a constant state of luxurious vegetation. The large rivers are both called Colez; the eastern, which is Guyamon Colez, enters the Senegal at Bakayakooloo; the western, which is the Rio d'Oro of the Portuguese, joins the Falemé at the village of Nayemow.

Three remarkable events have occurred in the

history of Bambouk. About the year 1100, a Manding warrior, animated by the love of glory, and zeal for the Muhamedan religion, quitted his country, with 10,000 fighting men, and a number of marabuts and young women. Instigated by the love of glory and religion, he ravaged all the countries in his way, and advanced to Bambouk, where he massacred a part of the inhabitants, compelled the other to acknowledge the true religion, which in Africa is always that of the strongest, and assumed the regal dignity. The name of this valiant

INVASION OF THE PORTUGUESE.

205

and conscientious champion of Muhamed was Abba Manko. He reigned thirty years, and, at his death, divided his dominions among his three sons; giving Konkadoo to one, Satadoo to another, and Bambouk to the third, with some authority over the other two. It is said that, though the posterity of Abba Manko have, for many ages, ceased to reign, this distribution of authority still exists.

The second remarkable occurrence is the inva sion of the Portuguese. This the Bamboukahs place in the sixteenth century. They say that the Portuguese made themselves masters of all the countries of Bambouk, and massacred many of its chiefs and inhabitants; that they afterwards quarreled among themselves, and destroyed each other; that many of them perished with licentiousness and disease; and that being reduced to a very small number, the Bamboukahs conspired against them, and slew them all in one day.

These events are often related by the people of Bambouk; and every person who has visited them assures us that they entertain a great terror of white men in general, and an invincible hatred of the Portuguese. They know that this nation exists, and they dread its return to their country. There are yet to be seen in Bambouk the ruins of Portuguese forts and houses; and many words of that language are mingled with the language of Bambouk.

The third singular occurrence is the conspiracy of the marabuts. These priests of the Muhamedan law, who were very numerous in Bambouk, formed a design to murder the king and chiefs, and usurp the sovereign authority. Their plot was discovered; all the marabuts of Bambouk were

seized and put to death, in one night; and no marabut has since been suffered to enter the country. If by any means of deception a marabut gain admittance, he is put to death as soon as discovered. In this severity, the Bamboukahs are just, as far as regards themselves, and wise if they regard the conduct of these intruders in the neighbouring country of Foota Toro; where about the middle of the eighteenth century, the marabuts deposed the Siratick or sovereign, and established themselves, under the titles of Al Mami and his coun sellors.

The government of Bambouk is remarkable. The Siratick, or king, is the chief magistrate, and his rank is hereditary, with the exclusion of infants. He receives a tribute from every village, which is appropriated to the support of his family and dignity, and he possesses lands, which are cultivated for himself. If he be wise and good, and particularly if he be old (for these people have an unbounded veneration for age), his village tributes are more considerable; if he be neither respected nor loved, they are abridged. The Siratick can neither exact any thing from his subjects, nor permit others to do so.

The second rank is that of the Farims, or chiefs of villages. This rank is also hereditary, with the same exception as in the case of the Siratick. The Farims cannot be deposed by the Siratick, they pretend that, united, they could depose him. Each Farim is the sole merchant of his village. The people place in his hands whatever they have for sale; he makes the bargains, and would lose his credit, if he traded at a lower rate than his neigh bours. He pays his people the full price he re