Chapter XXI (1)

Richard Lander leaves Brass Town — The Natives’ idea of an Echo — Arrival on board an English brig in the river Nun — Reception — Disappointment of Richard Lander — Conduct of the Commander of the brig — Anxiety of Richard Lander — Arrival of John Lander on board the brig — Narrative of John Lander — Proceedings on board the brig — Attempts to leave the river — Perilous condition of the brig — A vessel of war — Arrival at Fernando Po — Description of Clarence — Natives of the island — The Gulf of Guinea — Tornadoes — The Calebar River — Ephraim Town — Passage to Rio Janeiro — Return to England.

_Wednesday, November 17th._—I had determined that one of our men should accompany me down the river; and at ten o’clock, having taken leave of my brother and the rest of our party, we embarked in King Boy’s canoe, with a light heart and an anxious mind. Although distant about sixty miles from the mouth of the river, our journey appeared to me already completed, and all our troubles and difficulties I considered at an end. Already, in fond anticipation, I was on board of the brig, and had found a welcome reception from her commander,—had related to him all the hardships and dangers we had undergone, and had been listened to with commiseration,—already had I assured myself of his doing all he could to enable me to fulfil my engagements with these people, and thought ourselves happy in finding a vessel belonging to our own country in the river at the time of our arrival. These meditations and a train of others, about home and friends, to which they naturally led, occupied my mind, as our canoe passed through the narrow creeks, sometimes winding under avenues of mangrove-trees, and at others expanding into small lakes occasioned by the overflowing of the river. The captain of the canoe, a tall sturdy fellow, was standing up, directing its course, occasionally hallooing, as we came to a turn in the creek, to the fetísh, and where an echo was returned, half a glass of rum, and a piece of yam and fish, were thrown into the water. I had never seen this done before; and on asking Boy the reason why he was throwing away the provisions thus, he asked, ‘Did you not hear the fetísh?’ The captain of the canoe replied, ‘Yes.’ ‘That is for the fetísh,’ said Boy; ‘if we do not feed him, and do good for him, he will kill us, or make us poor and sick.’ I could not help smiling at the ignorance of the poor creatures, but such is their firm belief.

We had pursued our course in this manner, which had been principally to the west, till about three in the afternoon, when we came to a branch of the river about two hundred yards wide, and seeing a small village a short distance before us, we stopped there for the purpose of obtaining some dried fish. Having supplied our wants and proceeded on, about an hour afterwards we again stopped, that our people might eat something. Boy very kindly presented me with a large piece of yam, reserving to himself all the fish we had got at the village, and after making a hearty meal off them, he fell asleep: while he was snoring by my side, the remainder of the fish attracted my notice, and not feeling half satisfied with the yam he had given me, I felt an irresistible inclination to taste them. Conscience acquitted me on the score of hunger, and hinted, that such an opportunity should not be lost; and accordingly, I very quickly demolished two small ones. Although entirely raw, they were delicious, and I do not remember to have enjoyed anything with a better relish in all my life.

There is scarcely a spot of dry land to be seen any where, all is covered with water and mangrove trees. After remaining about half an hour here, we again went forward, and at seven in the evening, arrived in the Second Brass River, which is a large branch of the Quorra. We kept our course down it about due south, and half an hour afterwards, I heard the welcome sound of the surf on the beach. We still continued onwards, and at a quarter before eight in the evening, we made our canoe fast to a tree for the night, on the west bank of the river.

_Thursday, November 18th._—This morning I found my clothes as thoroughly wet from the effects of the dew, as if I had been lying in the river all night instead of the canoe. This was disagreeable enough, but I had gone through as bad before, and a short time I flattered myself would put an end to all such trouble. At five in the morning, we let go the rope from the tree, and took our course in a westerly direction up a creek. At seven we arrived in the main branch of the Quorra, which is called the river Nun, or the First Brass River, having entered it opposite to a large branch, which King Boy informed me runs to Benin. The direction of the river Nun was here nearly north and south, and we kept on our course down the stream.

About a quarter of an hour after we had entered the river Nun, we descried, at a distance before us, two vessels lying at anchor. The emotions of delight which the sight of them occasioned are quite beyond my powers of description. The nearest to us was a schooner, a Spanish slave-vessel, whose captain we had seen at Brass-town. Our canoe was quickly by her side, and I went on board. The captain received me very kindly, and invited me to take some spirits and water with him. He complained sadly of the sickly state of the crew, asserting that the river was extremely unhealthy, and that he had only been in it six weeks, in which time he had lost as many men. The remainder of his crew, consisting of thirty persons, were in such a reduced state, that they were scarcely able to move, and were lying about his decks more resembling skeletons than living persons. I could do no good here, so I took my leave of the captain, and returned into the canoe.

We now directed our course to the English brig, which was lying about three hundred yards lower down the river. Having reached her, with feelings of delight mingled with doubt, I went on board. Here I found everything in as sad a condition as I had in the schooner: four of the crew had just died of fever; four more, which completed the whole, were lying sick in their hammocks, and the captain appeared to be in the very last stage of illness. He had recovered from a severe attack of fever, and had suffered a relapse in consequence of having exposed himself too soon, which had nearly been fatal to him. I now stated to him who I was, explained my situation to him as fully as I could, and had my instructions read to him by one of his own people, that he might see I was not imposing on him. I then requested that he would redeem us by paying what had been demanded by King Boy, and assured him that whatever he might give to him on our account, would certainly be repaid him by the British government. To my utter surprise and consternation, he flatly refused to give a single thing, and ill and weak as he was, made use of the most offensive and shameful oaths I ever heard. ‘If you think,’ said he, ‘that you have a —— fool to deal with, you are mistaken; I’ll not give a b——y flint for your bill, I would not give a —— for it.’ Petrified with amazement, and horror-struck at such conduct, I shrunk from him with terror. I could scarcely believe what I had heard, till my ears were assailed by a repetition of the same. Disappointed beyond measure by such brutal conduct from one of my own countrymen, I could not have believed it possible, my feelings totally overpowered me, and I was ready to sink with grief and shame. I returned to the canoe, undetermined how to act, or what course to pursue. Never in my life did I feel such humiliation as at this moment. In our way through the country we had been treated well; we had been in the habit of making such presents as had been expected from us; and, above all, we had maintained our character among the natives, by keeping our promises. This was now no longer in my power, as my means were all expended; and when, as a last, and, as I had imagined, a certain resource, I had promised the price of our ransom should be paid by the first of our countrymen, that we might meet with, on the best of all securities, to be thus refused and dishonoured by him, would, I know, degrade us sadly in the opinion of the natives, if it did not lessen us in our own.

As there were no hopes that the captain of this vessel would pay any thing for us, I went on board again, and told King Boy that he must take us to Bonny, as plenty of English ships were there. ‘No, no,’ said he, ‘dis captain no pay, Bonny captain no pay, I won’t take you any further.’ As this would not do, I again had recourse to the captain, and implored him to do something for me, telling him that if he would let me have only ten muskets, Boy might be content with them, when he found that he could get nothing else. The only reply I received was, ‘I have told you already I will not let you have even a flint, so bother me no more.’ ‘But I have a brother and eight people at Brass-town,’ I said to him; ‘and if you do not intend to pay King Boy, at least persuade him to bring them here, or else he will poison or starve my brother before I can get any assistance from a man of war, and sell all my people.’ The only answer I received was, ‘If you can get them on board, I will take them away, but as I have told you before, you do not get a flint from me.’ I then endeavoured to persuade Boy to go back for my people, and that he should be paid some time or other. ‘Yes,’ said the captain, ‘make haste and bring them.’ Boy very naturally required some of his goods before he went, and it was with no small difficulty I prevailed on him afterwards to go without them.

The captain of the brig now inquired what men I had; and on my telling him that I had two seamen, and three others, who might be useful to him in working his vessel, his tone and manner towards me softened a little. He agreed with me that they might be useful in getting the brig out of the river, as half of his crew were dead, and the other half sick, so I took courage and asked him for a piece of beef to send to my brother, and a small quantity of rum, which he readily gave me. I knew that my brother, as well as myself, much needed a change of linen, but I could not venture to ask such a thing from the captain with much hopes of success, so the cook of the brig, appearing to be a respectable sort of man, I applied to him, and he produced me instantly three white shirts. King Boy was now ready to depart, not a little discontented, and I sent my man into his canoe with the few things I had been able to obtain, and a note for my brother. I desired him to give Antonio an order on any English captain that he might find at Bonny, for his wages, and also one for the Damuggoo people, that they might receive the small present I had promised to their good old chief, who had treated us so well. At two in the afternoon King Boy left me, promising to return with my brother and people in three days, but grumbling at not having been paid his goods.

I now endeavoured to make myself as comfortable as I could in the vessel; and thinking that the captain might change his behaviour towards me when he got better, I determined to have as little to say to him till then as possible.

_Friday, November 19th._—This morning Captain Lake seemed to be much better, and I ventured to ask him for a change of linen, of which I was in great want. He readily complied with my request, and I enjoyed a luxury which I had not experienced a long time. In the course of the morning I conversed with him about our travels in the country, and related the whole particulars of the manner in which we had been attacked and plundered at Kirree. I explained to him how King Boy had saved us from slavery in the Eboe country, and how much we felt indebted to him for it. I endeavoured to impress this on his mind particularly, as I still hoped to bring him round to pay Boy what I had promised him. Having laid all before him, as fully as I was able, and pointed out to him the bad opinion Boy would have of us, and the injurious tendency towards Englishmen in general that would result from not keeping our word with him, which it was in his power to enable us to do, I asked him to give me ten muskets for my bill on government. He had listened to my story with attention, but I no sooner advanced my wants, than, with a furious oath, he repeated his refusal, and finding him as determined as ever he had been, I mentioned it no more. He moreover told me, in the most unkind and petulant manner, ‘If your brother and people are not here in three days, I go without them.’ This I believed he would not do, as the men would be of service to him, but I had Boy’s promise that they should be with me at that time.

In the middle of the day, the pilot, who had brought the vessel into the river, came on board and demanded payment for it, which gave me an opportunity of seeing more of the disposition of Mr. Lake. The pilot had no sooner made his business known than Lake flew into a violent rage, cursing him and abusing him in the most disgusting language he could use; he refused to pay him anything whatever, and ordered him to go out of the ship immediately. Whether Lake was right or wrong in this I know not, but I was shocked at his expressions, and the pilot reluctantly went away, threatening that he would sink his vessel if he offered to leave the river without paying him his due. I was rather surprised to hear such language from the pilot, and doubted his meaning, till I found that he had a battery of seven brass guns at the town on the eastern side of the river near its entrance, which, if well managed, might soon produce that effect. This town, as before observed, is named Pilot’s-town, being the established residence of those who conduct vessels over the bar.

_Saturday, November 20th._—Captain Lake continues to recover from his illness. This morning I asked him if he would take us to Fernando Po when we left the river. This he refused, saying that the island had been given up, that there was not a single white man on it, and that we could get no assistance there; but that if all my people should arrive by the morning of the 23d, he would land us at _Bimbia_, a small island in the river Cameroons, whither he was going to complete his cargo, and at this island he said I should find a white man, who keeps a store for Captain Smith. I was quite satisfied with this arrangement, feeling assured that I should get everything I might want from him.

My chief concern was about my brother, and I much feared that the vessel would sail without him, for there was no dependence on the captain, so little did he care for us, or the object of our visiting the country. I took an opportunity of begging him, in the event of my brother and the men not arriving by the 23d, to wait a little longer for them, asserting at the same time, that if he went away without them they would be assuredly starved, or sold as slaves, before I could return to them with assistance. I might have just as well addressed myself to the wind. ‘I can’t help it, I shall wait no longer,’ was the only reply he made me, in a surly, hasty tone, which convinced me that all attempts to reason with him would be fruitless.

In the afternoon, the chief mate and three Kroomen were sent away by his direction to sound the bar of the river, in order to know whether there was sufficient depth of water for the vessel to pass over it. The pilot, who had been dismissed so peremptorily yesterday, was determined to have his revenge, and being naturally on the look out, had observed the movements of the boat. So favourable an opportunity was not to be lost; and accordingly, watching her, he despatched an armed canoe, and intercepted her return at the mouth of the river. The mate of the brig and one of the Kroomen were quickly made prisoners and conveyed to the Pilot’s-town, and the boat with the remainder sent back with a message to the captain, that they would not be given up until the pilotage should be paid. Lake must have felt annoyed at this; but whether he did or not, he treated it with the greatest indifference, saying that he did not care, he would go to sea without his mate or the Krooman either, and that he was determined not to pay the pilotage.

_Sunday, November 21st._—Nothing remarkable occurred to-day. My thoughts were entirely occupied by my brother, and I felt very anxious for his return.

_Monday, November 22d._—My anxiety for my brother’s safety made me very unhappy, and I was on the look out the whole day for him and our men. Lake, observing the distress I was in, told me not to trouble myself any more about them; adding, that he was sure he was dead, and that I need not expect to see him again. ‘If he had been alive,’ said Lake, ‘he would have been here by this time; to-morrow morning I shall leave the river.’ Such unfeeling and inhuman conduct from this man only tended to increase my dislike for him, and without paying him any attention I kept looking out for my party. Such was my anxiety, that I was on the look out long after dark, and could not sleep all night.

_Tuesday, November 23d._—This morning, to my great joy and to the mortification of Lake, the sea breeze was so strong that it raised a considerable surf on the bar and prevented us from getting out. This was an anxious time, and the whole of the day my eyes were riveted to the part of the river where I knew my brother must come, without my seeing anything of him. The day passed away in tedious watching, and the night was far spent without my seeing him. About midnight, I saw several large canoes making their way over to the west bank of the river, in one of which I imagined that I could distinguish my brother. I observed them soon after land, and saw, by the fires which they made, that they had encamped under some mangrove trees. All my fears and apprehensions vanished in an instant, and I was overjoyed with the thoughts of meeting my brother in the morning.

The captain of the brig, having observed them, suddenly exclaimed, ‘Now we shall have a little fighting to-morrow; go you and load seventeen muskets and put five buck shot into each. I will take care that the cannon shall be loaded to the muzzle with balls and flints, and if there is any row, I will give them such a scouring as they never had.’ He then directed me to place the muskets and cutlasses out of sight, near the stern of the vessel, and said to me, ‘The instant that your people come on board, call them aft, and let them stand by the arms. Tell them, if there is any row, to arm themselves directly, and drive all the Brass people overboard.’ This was summary work with a vengeance, and everything betokened that Lake was in earnest. I saw clearly that he was resolved on adopting severe measures, and he appeared to possess all the determination necessary to carry them through.

I could not help feeling otherwise than distressed and ashamed of leaving the Brass people in this manner, but I had no alternative. There was no one to whom I could apply for assistance in my present situation except the captain of this vessel, and to him I had applied in vain. My entreaties were thrown away on him, and even the certainty of an ample recompense by the British government, which I had held out to him, had been treated with contempt. I had no hopes, therefore, from this quarter. Boy had refused to take us to Bonny, asserting that if he could not be paid here, he should not be there, and to go back to Brass-town would be deliberately returning to starvation; my last resource, therefore, was to put the best face on the business that I could, and as no other plan was left me, to get away by fair means or foul, and let the blame fall where it was incurred.

_Wednesday, November 24th._—This morning at day break I was on the look out for my brother, and observed him and the people get into the canoe. They were no sooner embarked than they all landed again, which I could account for in no other way, than by supposing that it was the intention of Boy to keep them on shore until he had received his goods. I was not long in this state of anxiety, for at about seven o’clock they embarked and were brought on board.

My brother’s journal, which here follows, contains an account of the events which fell under his notice at Brass-town, and his proceedings during the time we were absent from each other.

‘_Wednesday, November 17th._—This morning my brother, attended by one of our men, quitted this town with King Boy and suite, leaving the remainder of the party and myself behind, as hostages for the fulfilment of the conditions which we entered into with him in the Eboe country. For myself, though greatly chagrined at this unforeseen arrangement, I could not from my heart altogether condemn the framer of it, for it is quite natural to suppose that a savage should distrust the promises of Europeans, when he himself is at all times guilty of breach of faith and trust, not only in his trading transactions with foreigners, but, likewise in familiar intercourse with his own people. Forday is the cause of it, and he displays all the artifice, chicanery, and low cunning of a crafty and corrupt mind. Therefore, after a moment’s reflection, I was not much surprised at the step which King Boy has taken, nor can I be very angry with him; and I am resolved to wait with composure his return, and, consequently, my release from this miserable place, though I have begun to consider with seriousness what will become of us in the event of Lake’s refusal to honour the bill which we have sent him. Besides I am rather uneasy on our people’s account, for during these two or three days past they have had scarcely anything to eat, and we are now left entirely destitute, nor do I know where to obtain relief. The Damuggoo people are with us likewise, and they are interested in my brother’s return equally as much as myself. Instead of being our guides and protectors, these poor creatures have shared in our calamity; their little all has either been lost or stolen, or else expended in provisions; and, like us, they are reduced to great distress and wretchedness. They will remain here in order to receive the few things which we have promised them and their chief: but, should Lake object to part with his goods, we shall give them a note to the master of any English vessel at Bonny, whither they are destined to go, requesting him to pay the poor strangers their demands.

‘_Thursday, November 18th._—After a good deal of solicitation and importunity, we received this morning four small yams from the wives of King Boy, who informed us that the same number of yams will be given us daily. Our people, having nothing else to eat, make a kind of broth of this vegetable; at first, it was of course a most insipid mess, but, with the addition of a little salt, it is rendered more palatable. We sent to King Forday, in the afternoon, for a few plantains, or anything that could be eaten; but the gloomy old savage shook his head, folded his arms, and refused. All our people complaining this evening of hunger, languor, and indisposition. For myself I am fast recovering.

‘_Friday, November 19th._—The man that accompanied my brother to the brig in the river, returned this afternoon without him, and gave me the following letter from my brother, which is dated from

“_Brass River, November 18th_, 1830.

“Dear John,—You will be surprised to learn that I did not arrive here till this morning; when I came on board, I experienced a very cool reception from Lake, the master. He is apparently in the last stage of fever; but though in so alarming a state, he told me with an oath, after I had made my business known to him, that he would not give a —— flint for any government bill whatever; as for King Boy, he swore that he would rather send him to the —— than give him anything. You my guess my emotion on this intelligence; I knew not what to say or do. I wished to return to Brass with King Boy, and proposed his taking us to Bonny, where I told him that I had no doubt we should be more kindly received; but Boy answered that if Lake, who is in his own river, refuse to pay him, how could he expect to be paid in a strange country? Therefore he would not take me from the vessel. In this dilemma I remonstrated earnestly with Lake, who has at length agreed to tamper with Boy, and promises to enter into an arrangement with him for the payment of the debt, as soon as he shall have brought you and the people in safety to the vessel, but not till then. Poor Boy looked sullen and disconcerted at this proposal, though he has agreed to act as desired. My dear brother, I have little news to tell you from England, because the captain’s manners are uncivil and repulsive, and I do not like to weary him with superfluous questions in the present irritable state of his feelings; I can only learn, and I tell you of it with deep sorrow, that our good King George is dead. I herewith send you a piece of beef and a bottle of rum, which have cost me much pains to procure, but I knew how greatly all of you stood in need of something, and therefore I have sacrificed my feelings to necessity. I am sorry that I cannot fulfil my promise of sending you wearing apparel; a couple of shirts, which belonged to a seaman who died lately, is all that I can get. I suppose you will leave Brass-town to-morrow evening; in that case you will be with me on Saturday, and it is needless to say I shall wait your arrival here with impatience. Lake is extremely peevish and ill-tempered, but, as I have already told you, he is alarmingly ill, and therefore every allowance is to be made for him of course. His mate and great part of his crew have died of fever, and the others (except two) are either down with the same disorder, or slowly recovering from the effects of it.

“I am, &c., &c.—R. Lander.”

‘Nothing could exceed my regret and consternation on the perusal of this letter; and somehow, I almost dreaded to meet with King Boy. Well knowing how much it would influence his behaviour towards us, we had been careful to represent to that individual the thanks and cheering which he would receive from our countrymen the moment he should take us on board the English brig; that he would be favoured and caressed beyond measure, and receive plenty of beef, bread, and rum. His face used to shine with delight on anticipating so luxurious a treat; and he had uniformly been in a better humour after listening to these promises of ours, than anything else could have made him. The contrast between his actual reception on board the _Thomas_, to that which his own fancy and our repeated assurances had taught him to expect, was too dreadful to think on even a moment; and for this reason, as much as any other, I looked forward with something of apprehension and anxiety to an interview with this savage; because I knew, that after the cutting disappointment which he had experienced, he would be under the influence of strongly excited feelings and stormy passions, over which he exercises no control. I was convinced, too, that the whole weight of his resentment, and the fury of his rage, would fall upon me, for I am completely in his power.

‘The interesting moment at length arrived. We heard King Boy quarrelling with his women, and afterwards walking through their apartments towards ours, muttering as he went along. He entered it, and stood still. I was reposing, as I usually do for the greater part of the day, upon a mat which is placed on the seat of wet clay; but on perceiving him, I lifted my head without arising, and reclined it on my hand. He looked fixedly upon me, and I returned his glance with the same unshrinking steadfastness. But his dark eye was flashing with anger; whilst his upturned lip, which exposed his white teeth, quivered with passion. No face in the world could convey more forcibly to the mind the feeling of contempt and bitter scorn, than the distorted one before me. It was dreadfully expressive. Drawing up the left angle of his mouth on a parallel with his eyes, he broke silence with a sneering, long-drawn “Eh!” and, almost choked with rage, he cursed me; and in a tone and manner, which it is infinitely out of my power to describe, he spoke to the following effect:—“You are thief man; English captain no will! You assured me, when I took you from the Eboe country, that he would be overjoyed to see me, and give me plenty of beef and rum; I received from him neither the one nor the other. Eh! English captain no will. I gave a quantity of goods to free you from the slavery of Obie; I took you into my own canoe; you were hungry, and I gave you yam and fish; you were almost naked; I was sorry to see you so, because you were white men and strangers; and I gave each of you a red cap and a silk handkerchief. But you are no good—you are thief man. Eh! English captain no will; he no will. You also told me that your countrymen would do this, (taking off his cap and flourishing it in circles over his head,) and cry Hurra, hurra, on receiving me on board their vessel; you promised my wife a necklace, and my father four bars. But Eh! English captain no will; he tell me he no will; yes I will satisfy your hunger with plenty more of my fish and yams; and your thirst will I quench with rum and palm-wine. Eh! you thief man, you are no good; English captain no will!” He then stamped on the ground, and gnashing at me with his teeth like a dog, he cursed me again and again.

‘It is true, I did not feel perfectly easy at this severe rebuke, and under such taunting reproaches; but I refrained from giving utterance to a single thought till after he had concluded his abuse and anathematizing. Had a spirited person been in my situation, he might have knocked him down, and might have had his head taken off for his pains; but as for me, all such kind of spirit is gone out of me entirely. Besides, we had unintentionally deceived King Boy, and I also bore in mind the kindness which he had done us in ransoming us from a state of slavery. Most of what he had asserted was most unquestionably true; and in some measure, I was deserving his severest reprehension and displeasure.

‘The fury of Boy having been somewhat appeased by my silence and submission, as well as by his own extraordinary and violent agitation, I ventured mildly to assure him, on the strength of my brother’s letter, that his suspicions were entirely groundless; that Mr. Lake had certainly a _will_ or inclination to enter into arrangements with him for the payment of his just demands; and that when he should convey our people and myself to the Thomas, everything would be settled to his complete satisfaction. He half believed, half mistrusted my words; and shortly afterwards quitted the apartment, threatening, however, that we should not leave Brass till it suited his own pleasure and convenience.

‘It is really a most humiliating reflection, that we are reduced to the contemptible subterfuges of deceit and falsehood, in order to carry a point, which might so easily have been gained by straightforward integrity. But Lake’s conduct has left us no alternative; and whatever my opinion of that individual may be, he must surely be destitute of all the manly characteristics of a British seaman, as well as of the more generous feelings of our common nature, to be guilty, on a sick bed, of an action which might, for aught he knew or cared, produce the most serious consequences to his unfortunate countrymen in a savage land, by exposing them to the wretchedness of want, and the miseries of slavery;—to mockery, ill-usage, contempt, and scorn; and even to death itself.

‘_Saturday, November 20th._—King Boy has not visited us to-day, though we have received the customary allowance of four yams from his women. In addition to which, Addizetta made us a present of half a dozen this morning, as an acknowledgment for the benefit she had derived from a dose of laudanum which I gave her last night for the purpose of removing pain from the lower regions of the stomach, a complaint by which she says she is occasionally visited. People are in better spirits this evening, on account of the increased quantity of yams received.

‘_Sunday, November 21st._—This morning I dismissed the poor Damuggoo people with a note to the master of either of the English vessels lying in the Bonny river, requesting him to give the bearers three barrels of gunpowder, and a few muskets, on the faith of his being paid for the same by his Majesty’s government. They left Brass in their own canoe, quite dejected and out of heart; and Antonio, the young man who volunteered to accompany us from his Majesty’s brig Clinker, at Badágry, went along with them on his return to his country, from which he has been absent two or three years. He is brother to the present, and son of the late king of Bonny.

‘_Monday, November 22nd._—One or two crafty little urchins, who are slaves to King Boy, have brought us a few plantains to-day as a gift. They had been engaged in pilfering tobacco-leaves from an adjoining apartment, to which our people were witnesses; and the juvenile depredators, fearing the consequences of a disclosure, bribed them to secrecy in the manner already mentioned. Boy’s women have also been guilty, during the temporary absence of their lord and master, of stealing a quantity of rum from the store-room, and distributing it among their friends and acquaintance; and they have resorted to the same plan as the boys to prevent the exposure which they dreaded. One of them, who acts as duenna, is the favourite and confidante of Boy, and she wears a bunch of keys round her neck in token of her authority. She has likewise the care of all her master’s effects; and as a further mark of distinction, she is allowed the privilege of using a walking-stick with a knob at the end, which is her constant companion. This woman is exceedingly good-natured, and indulges our men with a glass or two of rum every day.

‘Last evening King Boy, stripped to the skin, and having his body most hideously marked, ran about the town like a maniac, with a spear in his hand, calling loudly on his _Dju Dju_; and uttering a wild, frantic cry at every corner. It appears, that one of his father’s wives had been strongly suspected of adulterous intercourse with a free man residing in the town; and that this strange means was adopted, in pursuance of an ancient custom, to apprize the inhabitants publicly of the circumstance, and implore the counsel and assistance of the god at the examination of the parties. This morning the male aggressor was found dead, having swallowed poison, it is believed, to avoid a worse kind of death; and the priest declaring his opinion of the guilt of the surviving party, she was immediately sentenced to be drowned. Therefore, this afternoon the ill-fated woman was tied hand and foot, and conveyed in a canoe to the main body of the river, into which she was thrown without hesitation, a weight of some kind having been fastened to her feet for the purpose of sinking her. She met her death with incredible firmness and resolution. The superstitious people believe, that had the deceased been innocent of the crime laid to her charge, their god would have saved her life, even after she had been flung into the river; but because she perished, her guilt is with them unquestionably attested. The mother of the deceased is not allowed to display any signs of sorrow or sadness at the untimely death of her daughter; for were she to do so, the same dreadful punishment would be inflicted upon her: “for,” say the Brass people, “if a parent should mourn and weep over the fate of a child guilty of so heinous a crime, we should pronounce her instantly to be as criminal as her daughter, and to have tolerated her offence. But if, on the contrary, she betrays no maternal tenderness, nor bewail her bereavement in tears and groans, we should then conclude her to be entirely ignorant of the whole transaction; she would thus give a tacit acknowledgment to the justice of her sentence, and rejoice to be rid of an object that would only entail disgrace on her as long as she lived.”

‘Our people are become heartily tired of their situation, and impatient to be gone. They were regaled with an extra quantity of rum last evening, by their female friend, the duenna; when their grievances appearing to them in a more odious light than ever, they had the courage to go in a body to King Boy, to demand an explanation of his intentions towards them. They told him indignantly, either to convey them to the English brig, or sell them for slaves to the Spaniards; for, said they, we would rather lose our liberty than be kept here to die of hunger. Boy returned them an equivocating answer, but treated them much less roughly than I had reason to anticipate. Afterwards, I went myself to the same individual, and with a similar motive; but for some time I had no opportunity of conversing with him. It is a kind of holiday here, and most of the Brass people, with their chiefs, are merry with intoxication. As well as I can understand, during the earlier part of the day they were engaged in a solemn, religious observance; and since then King Forday has publicly abdicated in favour of Boy, who is his eldest son. I discovered those individuals in a court annexed to the habitation of the former, surrounded by a great number of individuals with bottles, glasses, and decanters at their feet; they were all in a state of drunkenness, more or less; and all had their faces and bodies chalked over in rude and various characters. Forday, alone, sat in a chair; Boy was at his side; and the others, amongst whom was our friend Gun, and a drummer, were sitting around on blocks of wood, and on the trunk of a fallen tree. The chairman delivered a long oration, but he was too tipsy, and perhaps too full of days, to speak with grace, animation, or power; therefore, his eloquence was not very persuasive, and his nodding hearers, overcome with drowsiness, listened to him with scarcely any attention. They smiled, however, and laughed occasionally; but I could not find out why they did so; I don’t think they themselves could tell. The old chief wore an English superfine beaver hat, and an old jacket that once belonged to a private soldier; but the latter was so small, that he was able only to thrust an arm into one of its sleeves, the other part of the jacket being thrown upon his left shoulder. These, with the addition of a cotton handkerchief, which was tied round the waist, were his only apparel. By far the most showy and conspicuous object in the yard was an immense umbrella, made of figured cotton of different patterns, with a deep fringe of coloured worsted, which was stuck into the ground. But even this was tattered and torn, and dirty withal, having been in Forday’s possession for many years, and it is used only on public and sacred occasions. I had been sitting amongst the revellers till the speaker had finished his harangue, when I embraced the opportunity, as they were about to separate, of entreating King Boy to hasten our departure for the vessel. He was highly excited and elated with liquor, and, being in an excellent temper, he promised to take us to-morrow.

‘_Tuesday, November 23d._—It required little time to take leave of the few friends we have at Brass, and we quitted the town not only without regret, but with emotions of peculiar pleasure—King Boy, with three of his women, and his suite, in a large canoe, and our people and myself in a smaller one. Addizetta would gladly have accompanied her husband to the English vessel, for her desire to see it was naturally excessive; but she was forbidden by old Forday, who expressed some squeamishness about the matter, or rather he was jealous that on her return to her father’s house in the Eboe country, she would give too high and favourable an opinion of it to her friends, which might in the end produce consequences highly prejudicial to his interests.

‘We stopped awhile at a little fishing village, at no great distance from Brass, where we procured a few fish, and abundance of young cocoa- nuts, the milk of which was sweet and refreshing. Continuing our journey on streams and rivulets, intricately winding through mangroves and bramble, which have been already spoken of, we entered the main body of the river in time to see the sun setting behind a glorious sky, directly before us. We were evidently near the sea, because the water was perfectly salt, and we scented also the cool and bracing sea-breeze, with feelings of satisfaction and rapture. However, the wind soon became too stormy for our fragile canoe; the waves leaped into it over the bow, and several times we were in danger of being swamped. Our companion was far before us, and out of sight, so that, for the moment, there was no possibility of receiving assistance, or of lightening the canoe; but happily, in a little while, we did not require it, for the violence of the wind abating with the disappearance of the sun, we were enabled to continue on our way without apprehension. About nine o’clock in the evening we overtook the large canoe, and the crews both having partaken of a slight refreshment of fish and plantain together, we passed the “_Second Brass River_,” which was to the left of us, in company. Here it might have been somewhat more than half a mile in breadth; and though it was dangerously rough for a canoe, with great precaution we reached the opposite side in safety. From thence we could perceive, in the distance, the long-wished-for Atlantic, with the moon-beams reposing in peaceful beauty upon its surface, and could also hear the sea breaking and roaring over the sandy bar which stretches across the mouth of the river. The solemn voice of ocean never sounded more melodiously in my ear than it did at that moment; O! it was enchanting as the harp of David. Passing along by the left bank, we presently entered the “_First Brass River_,” which is the “_Nun_” of Europeans, where, at midnight, we could faintly distinguish the masts and rigging of the English brig in the dusky light, which appeared like a dark and ragged cloud above the horizon. To me, however, no sight could be more charming. It was beautiful as the gates of paradise, and my heart fluttered with unspeakable delight, as we landed in silence on the beach opposite the brig, near a few straggling huts, to wait impatiently the dawn of to- morrow.

‘_Wednesday, November 24th._—This was a happy morning, for it restored me to the society of my brother, and of my countrymen. The baneful effects of the climate are strongly impressed upon the countenances of the latter, who, instead of their natural healthy hue, have a pale, dejected, and sickly appearance, which is quite distressing to witness. However, the crew of the Spanish schooner look infinitely more wretched: they have little else but their original forms remaining; they crawl about like beings under a curse; they are mere shadows or phantoms of men looking round for their burying-place. No spectacle can be more mortifying to man’s pride than this; nothing can give him a more humiliating sense of his own nothingness. It is very much to be wondered at why Europeans in general, and Englishmen in particular, persevere in sending their fellow-creatures to this _Aceldama_ or _Golgotha_, as the African coast is sometimes not inappropriately called: they might as well bury them at once at home, and it is pleasanter far to die there; but interest, and the lust of gain, like Aaron’s rod, seem to swallow up every other consideration.’

My brother had now joined me, and my station during the time the canoe was coming from the shore to the vessel had been by the cannon; it was the only one on board, but it had been loaded as Lake had directed, and pointed to the gangway of the brig, where the Brass people must come. The muskets were all ready lying concealed where Lake had directed them to be placed, and he repeated the same orders that he had given me yesterday, respecting the part my people were to take in the business. Lake received my brother civilly, but immediately expressed his determination to dismiss Boy without giving him a single article, and to make the best of his way out of the river. A short time after his arrival, a canoe arrived at the beach with Mr. Spittle, the mate of the brig, as prisoner, who immediately sent a note off to the captain, informing him that the price of his liberation was the sum demanded for the pilotage of the vessel over the bar of the river. He said further, that he was strictly guarded, but that notwithstanding this he did not despair of making his escape if Lake could wait a little for him. The vessel had been brought into the river about three months before, but Lake would never pay the pilotage, and now all he did was to send Mr. Spittle a little bread and beef. The amount demanded was about fifty pounds worth of goods, which it was quite out of the question that Lake would ever pay.

Meanwhile King Boy, full of gloomy forebodings, had been lingering about the deck. He had evidently foresight enough to suspect what was to take place, and he appeared troubled and uneasy, and bewildered in thought. The poor fellow was quite an altered person; his habitual haughtiness had entirely forsaken him, and given place to a humble and cringing demeanour. A plate of meat was presented to him, of which he ate sparingly, and showed clearly that he was thinking more of his promised goods than his appetite, and a quantity of rum that was given to him was drunk carelessly, and without affording any apparent satisfaction.

Knowing how things were likely to terminate, we endeavoured to get Boy into a good humour, by telling him that he should certainly have his goods some time or other; but it was all to no purpose; the attempt was a complete failure; the present was the only time in his mind. We really pitied him, and were grieved to think that our promises could not be fulfilled. How gladly would we have made any personal sacrifice rather than thus break our word; for although we had been half-starved in his hands, yet we felt ourselves indebted to him for having taken us from the Eboe people and bringing us to this vessel. I rummaged over the few things left us from our disaster at Kirree, and found to my surprise five silver bracelets wrapped up in a piece of flannel. I was not aware of having these, therefore I immediately offered them to him, along with a native sword, which being a very great curiosity, we had brought with us from Yarriba with the intention of taking it to England. Boy accepted of these, and my brother then offered him his watch, for which he had a great regard, as it was the gift of one of his earliest and best friends. This was refused with disdain, for Boy knew not its value; and calling one of his men to look at what he said we wished to impose on him in lieu of his bars, both of them, with a significant groan, turned away from us with scorn and indignation, nor would they speak to us or even look at us again. Our mortification was now complete; but we were helpless, and the fault was not with us.

Boy now ventured to approach Captain Lake on the quarter-deck, and, with an anxious, petitioning countenance, asked for the goods which had been promised him. Prepared for the desperate game he was about to play, it was the object of Lake to gain as much time as possible, that he might get his vessel under way before he came to an open rupture. Therefore he pretended to be busy in writing, and desired Boy to wait a moment. Becoming impatient with delay, Boy repeated his demand a second and a third time, ‘Give me my bars.’—‘I NO WILL!’ said Lake in a voice of thunder, which one could hardly have expected from so emaciated a frame as his. ‘I no will, I tell you; I won’t give you a —— flint. Give me my mate, you black rascal, or I will bring a thousand men of war here in a day or two; they shall come and burn down your towns and kill every one of you; bring me my mate!’ Terrified by the demeanour of Lake, and the threats and oaths he made use of, poor King Boy suddenly retreated, and seeing men going aloft to loosen the sails, apprehensive of being carried off to sea, he quickly disappeared from the deck of the brig, and was soon observed making his way on shore in his canoe, with the rest of his people; this was the last we saw of him. In a few minutes from the time Boy had left the vessel the mate Mr. Spittle was sent off in a canoe, so terrified were the Brass people that a man of war would come and put Lake’s threats into execution.