Their Chief Commerce Of This Kind Is With The
French Traders On The Senegal River.
The Moors are rigid Mahomedans, and possess, with the bigotry and
superstition, all the intolerance of their sect.
They have no mosques at
Benowm, but perform their devotions in a sort of open shed or inclosure
made of mats. The priest is at the same time schoolmaster to the juniors.
His pupils assemble every evening before his tent, where, by the light of
a large fire made of brushwood and cow's dung, they are taught a few
sentences from the Koran, and are initiated into the principles of their
creed. Their alphabet differs but little from that in Richardson's Arabic
Grammar. They always write with the vowel points. Their priests even
affect to know something of foreign literature. The priest of Benowm
assured me that he could read the writings of the Christians: he showed
me a number of barbarous characters which he asserted were the Roman
alphabet, and he produced another specimen equally unintelligible, which
he declared to be the _Kallam il Indi_, or Persian. His library consisted
of nine volumes in quarto; most of them, I believe, were books of
religion; for the name of Mahomet appeared in red letters in almost every
page of each. His scholars wrote their lessons upon thin boards; paper
being too expensive for general use. The boys were diligent enough, and
appeared to possess a considerable share of emulation; carrying their
boards slung over their shoulders when about their common employments.
When a boy has committed to memory a few of their prayers, and can read
and write certain parts of the Koran, he is reckoned sufficiently
instructed; and with this slender stock of learning, commences his career
of life.
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