Beginning around 1835, Fulbe immigrants streamed into the newly conquered territories in large numbers. By 1850, the Fulbe were firmly entrenched in northern Cameroon. Native populations were subjugated and placed under the rule of the local lamidos. Native populations were forced to convert to Islam, face enslavement, or flee. Fulbe merchants accepted salt and horses from North Africa in exchange for slaves for sale in the Muslim empires to the north. A smaller number of slaves went south for the trans-Atlantic market.