| FACING PAGE | |
| Portrait of the Author | Frontispiece |
| The Preperanda | 8 |
| Polo at Lokoja | 8 |
| Kuka (Baobab) Trees | 14 |
| A Hausa Beauty | 14 |
| The Emir escorting us into Bida | 28 |
| Details of Gown Embroidery | 28 |
| A Typical Hausa Gown | 32 |
| Trouser Embroidery | 32 |
| A Camp on the River Bank | 40 |
| Roofing at Keffi | 40 |
| Native Drummers at Keffi | 54 |
| A Detachment of the N. N. Regt. | 54 |
| A Kano Street Scene | 76 |
| A Kano Mounted Messenger | 76 |
| A Kano Caravan Donkey Driver | 80 |
| Bringing in Fire-wood | 104 |
| A Kano Doorway | 104 |
| Mureji—A Caravan about to cross the Niger | 112 |
| A Steam Canoe on the Niger | 112 |
| The Emir’s Band, Bida | 124 |
| My ‘Palm’ Cat (Nandinia binotata) | 124 |
| ‘Fritz’ | 152 |
| Our Start from Bussa for Illo | 152 |
| Repairing the Bussa Residency | 170 |
| Balu (Serval cat) | 170 |
| The Steel Canoe in which we descended the Bussa rapids | 184 |
| The Tennis Court, Bida | 184 |
| The Great Salla | 190 |
| The Prostration | 190 |
| My Writing Table | 198 |
| The Residency, Bida | 198 |
| ‘Amelia,’ a young Giraffe brought home by the late Captain Phillips, D.S.O. | 210 |
| ‘Chuku,’ a Native dog, rescued during the Aro-Chuku Expedition | 210 |
| Our energetic D.S.C. training bullocks (Captain Burnside) | 236 |
| Giant Sunflowers at Bussa | 236 |
| Our Gardener at Play | 250 |
| ‘Jewel’ and ‘Brown Mouse’ | 250 |
| Mr. Lafone’s ‘White Mouse’ | 262 |
| Riding Astride—a locally made Skirt! | 262 |
| One of our Camps | 274 |
| The Mail-Cart, Bida | 274 |
About This Book
The author records several years spent in Nigeria and neighboring regions, combining travel narratives of journeys between coastal ports and inland towns with vivid descriptions of landscape, markets, and local customs. She describes camp life, the colonial residency, household routines, clothing and embroidery, domestic animals and gardening, and practical advice on dress and equipment, illustrated by many sketches and portraits. Chapters alternate episodic travel anecdotes with practical chapters on the home, household management, and outdoor life, offering observational accounts of people encountered, the challenges of climate and transport, and day-to-day experiences of life abroad.