The domestic animals are goats, sheep, asses, horses, and cattle. The horses are small, but along the northern border they are large and of a good breed, which is derived from that of the Tuaricks of the Sahara, but it is not equal to the Arab breed. In these districts many camels are also raised. Poultry abounds. In some woody parts, especially In the neighbourhood of the swamps of Gondami, there are numerous wild animals. Iron is the only mineral : it occurs in many place., and a small quantity is exported to the countries farther east. In this region the rainy season sets in at the end of May or beginning of June, and continues to the middle of September. The fall of rain Is less, and is not so continuous, as in some other districts. Even in the height of the season, in August, there are several days without rein, and a continuation of rein for 24 hours is a rare occurrence. The prevailing wind changes regularly to all quarters of the compass. The diurnal change of the temperature is very great, the difference often amounting to 20 degrees, and sometimes to 25 and even 30 degrees, especially during the north-eastern winds. Tho natives keep fires all the year round in their huts.
The Plain of Central Minn extends from 10' E. long. to Lake Tchad and the river Shary, and from 14' to 10' 30' N. 1st, where it lies contiguous to a hilly country. This plain is probably the largest alluvial tract on the globe which occurs far inland, if tho plain sur rounding the Caspian Sea is excepted, which is of a different character. The alluvial plain of Widen is nearly a dead level. It is very fertile, but not easily cultivated, owing to the rank vegetation caused by the rains. The southern districts however are In general rather populous, and a considerable portion of them is cleared and cultivated, but the country on both sides of the river Yeou is not much cultivated, and it is exposed to the predatory Incursions of the Tuaricks, who inhabit that part of the Sahara which extends north of the plain. In many parts there are extensive forests. The soil is a dark clay, which cracks during the dry aeason. The climate of this region differs consider ably from that of the hilly region. It is in general much hotter, but the daily range of the thermometer is much less. The country there fore, notwithatanding the moisture of the air during and after the rainy season, is more healthy than in the hilly region. The mean annual temperature is 83.6°, that of the winter (December-February) 761', of the spring (March-May) of the summer 84.6°, and of the autumn 82'7°. From the beginning of March to the end of July the heat is excessive, but not uniform. The nights are oppressively hot, but towards sunrise the thermometer usually fella to 86° or 85°. Towards the middle of May the rains set in with violent tempesta of thunder and lightning. The rain pours down in torrents, and con tinues sometimes for two or three days. Up to the end of June the ground, having been parched during the dry season, absorbs all the rain, but towards the end of July the lakea and rivers begiu to over flow, and tracts of many square miles in extent are quickly converted into large hikes. The weather is without interruption cloudy, damp, and sultry; the wind hot and violent, and generally from the east and south. In October the rains are less frequent, the air mild and more fresh, and the weather serene ; the wiud blows from the north-west. December and January are rather cold. In February the heat increases
rapidly. The principal objects of cultivation are gussup, which is a kind of millet, maize, cotton, and indigo. Kasheia and mcloheia are two kinds of grass growing wild, the seeds of which are used as grain.
The domestic animals constitute the wealth of this country. Sheep, goats, cows, and oxen are numerous. In the lowlands, along the banks of Lake Tchad and the river Shary, many thousand head of cattle are pastured, and all over the country black cattle are very numerous. There is also a good breed of horses. Domestic fowls are very common ; they are small, but well flavoured. Beea are very numerous, and honey constitutes an important article of food. There are lions, panthers, tiger-cats, leopards, hyaenas, elephants, gazelles, antelopes, and other wild animals. The most common wild birds are pelicans, spoonbills, and Balearic cranes of largo size. Ostriches are found along the northern boundary-Iine. Fish are numerous in the lake and the lower course of the river.
largest river is the Quorra, which in the upper part of its course is called Joliba. This river is navigated in its whole extent, nearly from its source. Its course and its affluents are mentioned in the article Niaza, in which is also a notice of Lake Tchad, and of the rivers which flow into it.
population is composed of aborigines who belong to the negro race, and foreigners. The negroes are almost exclusively the inhabitants of the mountain region of Kong, but in the plain north of that range they live intermixed with Mandingoes and Foolahs. In the hilly region of Central Sedan the negroes con stitute the bulk of the population, but they are governed by Fell t. tabs, and in the eastern plain they are intermixed with Arabian tribes, which have here the ascendancy. These negroea live in small well-built huts, and generally wear a slight but decent dress, which is adapted to the climate. They apply themselves to agriculture, and in some parts the ground is cultivated with a considerable degree of skill. They manufacture great quantitica of cotton-cloth, only from 5 to 6 inches wide, but of good texture. They are also expert in forging iron. They make arms, agricultural implements, and even needles. They also make earthenware of a grayish colour. The foreigners settled in Sadao are Mandingoes, Felltitahs, and Arabian tribes. The Mandingoes are only met with in the plain north of the Kong Mountains, where they have settled as merchants. They have attained a superiority by their higher degree of civilisation, and by being Mohammedans. Their language is generally spoken in all that part of the country in which they have settled. The Felhitahs are the same nation which in Senegambia is known by the name of and they speak the same language. It appears that the ellsitahs first settled in considerable numbers in the negro towns, like the Mandingoes, but towards the end of the last century they entered the country as conquerors, under the conduct of Dan fodio, with a large army, and subjected in a few years the whole of Central Sfidan to their sway. After the death of Danfodio however the sheik of Bornou succeeded in expelling them from the alluvial plain, but in the mountain region south of DIandara they have main tained their footing. The Arabs settled in Sedan are only found in the neighbourhood of Lake Tchad, where they lead a wandering life, living on the produce of their cattle, and are known by the name of Shouaaa.