A KAKUAK VILLAGE. 371 space, with a smooth floor of red clay, used for house-work and dancing. The huts, which were much more roomy and larger than those in Fajelu, had walls of straw mats, plaited in the pattern of chess-boards, just like those I had formerly seen in Bufi; the roofs were bell-shaped. The thorn hedge which surrounded the village was overgrown with beans, one of which, having black seeds, appeared to be wonderfully fruitful, for each pod contained between fifteen and seventeen seeds. Yams were grown inside the zeriba. Goats, dogs, and fowls were the only domesticated animals visible. The goats were gaunt animals, having rather long legs and smooth nose and breasts. Most of them were white or brown; they are said to be very prolific. ‘The dogs were small, of a very compact build, with erect ears and tails, the latter being curled at the tips; they were mostly grey or tan-coloured. ‘The fowls were small, and had very bright feathers. 7 As the chief of the village was hors de combat, owing to a buffalo wound in his thigh, the sceptre was for a time in the hands of his first and very intelligent wife, who understood perfectly well how to command. All the beauties of the place, ornamented with masses of iron and a few leaves, honoured me by considerable attention, especially an old woman, who did all she could to attract my notice. I could not understand at first why she did it, but this was soon explained by my being told that the daughter of this old woman had been set at liberty by me in Amadi last year; she was one of the slaves I had found there, and she had returned to her mother. Before the huts were straw plates containing a great quantity of caterpillars, about two inches long, which, after being freed from their hairs and lightly roasted in the fire, are considered an excellent dish.

The brushwood near Abutti showed evident signs of a recent visit of elephants; they had certainly not improved our road, which, after leaving the village of Mbala, led past innumerable zertbas and villages. I had never seen so many buildings together except in Uganda, and the resemblance to that country was increased by the cultivation, for there were extensive fields of sweet potatoes, chiefly of the white-skinned species, and manioc grew everywhere, while bananas and tobacco were extensively