Scottish geographical magazine . terial for building thus lies at hand, butthe people do not make use of it. In Union and above, except in Ikot Ana,the rudest, because the easiest, mode of house-building contents the rude wall is built of wattle, plastered with clay, but no pains arebestowed to make it smooth, as is done in Calabar. The clay is thrownon to the frame of sticks only on one side, and protrudes through the inter-stices. To support the wall, though it is built low, longer sticks, crookedand rough as they may happen to be when cut in the bush, are placedhere and there. The
Scottish geographical magazine . terial for building thus lies at hand, butthe people do not make use of it. In Union and above, except in Ikot Ana,the rudest, because the easiest, mode of house-building contents the rude wall is built of wattle, plastered with clay, but no pains arebestowed to make it smooth, as is done in Calabar. The clay is thrownon to the frame of sticks only on one side, and protrudes through the inter-stices. To support the wall, though it is built low, longer sticks, crookedand rough as they may happen to be when cut in the bush, are placedhere and there. The country ascends and presents a varied and pleasing aspect as onegoes up the river. At Akunakuna and above, the perpetual jungle of thelower courses of the river is broken in upon; low hills of rounded form,showing a sandstone formation, appear covered with Guinea grass, inter-spersed with trees, which reminded some of us of Jamaica. This grassforms the pastures of that island, and is so named from having been gotfrom this NOTES OF A VOYAGE UP THE CALABAR OR CROSS RIVER. 283 The industry of the tribes through which we passed is chiefly given tothe cultivation of their farms, in which they raise yams, plantains, maize,sugar-cane, grown only for eating, ground-nuts, etc. Large quantities ofyams are imported into Calabar, which does not grow sufficient for its ownsupport. These come through Umon, through which channel a considerablequantity of palm-oil is brought down. The oil-palm is not so plentifulinland as nearer the coast, so that I doubt if much increase of that articleof export is to be looked for from the up-country. We saw several grovesof this palm, but the upper regions are, for the most part, destitute of might doubtless be extensively cultivated, but the people take nothought to plant it. One thing which tells much against the advance of these tribes is thefree use of the fire-water with which our traffic floods the coast. Ithas penetrated into regions wh
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1880, booksubjectgeography, bookyear18
