as possible a-head. She then up with her helm, attempted to run, but appeared in great confusion. We continued to throw the shot over, ahead and astern of her, without intention of striking, as we were positive of slaves being on board. After a short time she was increasing her speed. We then determined to put a shot into the ball, but with great regret, on account of the unfortunate beings on board. Shots were then thrown under her stern twice; a third was about to be fired, when we observed her round to. In about twenty minutes we came up and boarded her. The slaves were all below, with the hatches on; on turning them up, a scene presented itself enough to sicken the heart even of a Portuguese-the living, the dying, and the dead, huddled together in one mass. Some unfortunates in the most disgusting state of small-pox, even in the confluent state, covered from head to foot; some distressingly ill with ophthalmia; few perfectly blind; others, living skeletons, with difficulty crawled from below, unable to bear the weight of their own bodies; mothers with young infants hanging to their breasts, unable to give them a drop of nourishment. How they had brought them thus far appeared astonishing; all were perfectly naked-their limbs much excoriated from lying on the hard plank for so long a period. On going below the stench was insupportable. How beings could breathe such an atmosphere and live, appeared incredible. Several were under the loose planks which were called the deck, dying-one dead.” a Africanus ........Isemonger.. 183 London.. 12 July. ...... 315 London.. 1 Sept. From Accra and Cape Coast:- This unfortunate brig, named Dous Orinthia Fevereiro, sailed from Bahia fort, Benguela, with 510 slaves; of these, previous to her capture, she had lost 135. The Fawn carried her prize to Rio Janeiro. On the passage, and in the harbour, subsequently to her arrival, twenty-five miserable beings died of the sufferings they had undergone. Mr. Ouseley, the British minister at Rio, decided on sending the brig, with part of her cargo, for adjudication, to the nearest British colony. Notwithstanding the precautions taken, such as cleansing, fumigation, &c., the administration of wholesome food, and, where necessary, medicine, twenty more deaths were added to the number before reaching Berbice; making a total of 184, or 35 per cent., of the cargo embarked; nor will this appear surprising on perusing the following particulars of the limited dimensions of the vessel. ...Stanfield.... 197 London.. 14 July. Elizabeth........ .Bailey 126 London.. 15 July. To Accra and Cape Coast:Wm. Delannoy ..Pitt........ 87 London.. 3 July. Subscriptions and Donations are received by the Treasurer, J. Gurney Hoare, Esq.; 62, Lombard-street; Mess. Barclay, Bevan, and Co., 54, Lombard-street; Messrs. Coutts and Co., 59, Strand; Messrs. Drummonds, Charing-cross; Messrs. Hanbury, Taylor, and Lloyd, 60, Lombard-street; Messrs. Hankeys, 7, Fenchurch-street; Messrs. Hoares, 37, Fleet-street; and Messrs. Williams, Deacon, and Co., 20, Birchin-lane; and by the Secretary, the Rev. J. M. Trew, 15, Parliament-street. LONDON: Printed by THOMAS RICHARD HARRISON, of No. 45, St. Martin's Lane, in the parish of St. Martin in the Fields; and published by JOHN WIL LIAM PARKER, of No. 445, West Strand. Sold also by Murray; Rivingtons; Hatchard; Seeley; Nisbet; Richardson; Mason; and Madden; and supplied to order by all Booksellers and Newsmen in Town and Country.Monday, 2nd August, 1841. BY THE COMMITTEE OF THE SOCIETY FOR THE EXTINCTION OF THE In our eighth number we brought under the notice of our readers a Memorial, "addressed by certain proprietors of estates in Cuba to the Governor of that Island." Since the publication of this document, two others of a similar nature, and of at least equal importance, have been received from the same place. These are Memorials of "the Municipality of Havannah," and of "the (Havannah) Tribunal of Commerce," addressed to "the Provisional Regency" of the mother-country, and earnestly deprecating its interference in the Slavery-abolition question. We purpose to make a few remarks upon the first-mentioned * only of these papers, not having space to comment upon both. The object of the Corporation of Havannah is, to quote their own words, "to demonstrate the impossibility of resolving on the Emancipation of the Slaves, without compassing the destruction of the Island” (Cuba). It is not our intention to reply to the various crude and gratuitous assumptions, and unfounded statements, which pass, in the judgment of these memorialists, for sound reasoning, ex. gr., that "the abolition of slavery must lead to the extermination of the whites ;"that "the labouring classes of Europe are undoubtedly in a more unfortunate condition than the slaves of Cuba;"-that the liberation of the negro population "infers the removal of a great number of hands from the cultivation of the soil;"—that the negroes "would not be able to preserve their existence," as freemen, "without the perpetration of crime;"-and that "the melancholy condition of Jamaicat demonstrates how sad would be the prospects of Cuba," in the event of emancipation, even if its white inhabitants were not exterminated." Assertions such as these, which all experience contradicts, may safely be passed Our readers will find it at page 169. It should have appeared in our last number, had not a press of important matter compelled us to postpone its insertion. For a full and most satisfactory account of this "melancholy condition," see "A Winter in the West Indies, by Joseph John Gurney." VOL. I. M over without comment. They only prove the blindness and inveterate prejudice of those who have had the hardihood to put them forth. Had the document in question contained nothing more worthy our attention, we had passed it by without notice. But there will be found in it material of far greater value; nay, much that may well fill our hearts with joyful anticipations of coming good to the cause which it is our happiness to advocate. We allude to the strong and decided reprobation (not the less worthy of note that it is beside the memorialists' main design) of the African Slave Trade. We find it denounced as contrary to sound policy, as calculated "imprudently to augment the number of the coloured people,”-nay, as likely, if not repressed, "to produce the total ruin of the Island of Cuba." Nor is this all. We rejoice to discover a correct appreciation, on the part of these Spanish Colonists, of the guilt and wickedness, as well as of the impolicy of the Slave Trade. No language, in fact, that we ourselves might be disposed to employ, in reference to this painful subject, could be stronger than that which is now before our eyes. Let the reader note the following succinct but most emphatic expressions, and we doubt not he will agree with us :-"execrable traffic," "illegality,"—" delinquency,"-" abominable excess," "odious and clandestine," a traffic in every sense to be reprobated," and to crown the whole, "a disregard of the faith of treaties,"" a trade which the laws of the country and a solemn treaty with England have already prohibited." This it is, especially, which has induced us to make the Memorial before us the subject of our opening remarks in the present number. When, in the month of June, our attention was directed to a somewhat similar document, amidst much that afforded us gratification, we could not but be struck with the utter absence of all reference to the eternal principles of right and wrong. A just cause was advocated, indeed, but on grounds exclusively selfish. The Slave Trade was condemned, because its tendency was to endanger the safety of the colony; not at all because of its "execrable" character, and its violation of "the faith of solemn treaties." We humbly thank God that He is already giving us to see the dawning of a brighter day than our eyes have ever yet beheld. Nor is it less cause for gratitude that our beloved country has been the chief instrument in His hands of hastening its joyful approach. One word more. The Memorial speaks of "the pretended philanthropy of a civilized nation,"-meaning England; and attributes her efforts to suppress the Slave Trade to the unworthy desire of personal "aggrandizement." To this charge we shall attempt no reply. Happily, our shoulders are broad enough and strong enough to bear, not it alone, but as many more as may issue from the same quarter. We allude to it because it inculcates a salutary lesson, which, although familiar to us from our childhood, cannot possibly be enforced too often, that we must never relax in our pursuit of a virtuous object because of the ill-will of enemies, secret or avowed. When compelled to acknowledge the propriety of our conduct, we may expect to find them misrepresenting and villifying our motives. Our course through life must, if we "would see good days," be regulated by a higher principle than either the hope of man's approbation, or the terror of his frown. THE NIGER, ITS BRANCHES AND | interior, we find the usual characterisTRIBUTARIES. [Continued from page 150.] ALTHOUGH the Old Calabar river has itself a separate source, yet, as a probable branch of the Niger (the Cross River) joins it about 60 miles from the sea, it may be considered amongst the other waters of the Delta. The estuary of these two rivers is nine miles across, with deep channels scooped out by the rush of the waters. At the point of junction the Cross River has from two to seven fathoms water, and is known to be a magnificent stream from 400 to 1200 yards wide, up to the town of Erikok, beyond which it is reported to continue its course from the N.W., and to have deep water a great many days' journey upwardst. It is supposed to branch from the Niger both below and above Damuggo. The town of Erikok is situate on a high and almost perpendicular bank, shrouded in trees and bushwood, and surrounded by a fine and picturesque country, to the markets of which traders from the Bonny constantly resort for palm oil, which it produces in abundance. Duke's Town, about 60 miles from the mouth, annually exports 4,000 or 5,000 tons of oil, and great quantities of redwood. It was here that Colonel Nicolls prevailed on the chieftain, Duke Ephraim, to exchange the products of labour rather than the labourer himself, and had the satisfaction of securing a faithful friend in the person of an habitual slavedealert. He behaved with the greatest attention to the unfortunate Coulthurst, whilst on his attempted route to the Bahr-el-Abiad, and seems to have conducted his extensive commercial transactions with as much regularity as an English merchant §. Returning to the central outlet, the Nún, or First Brass River, which has hitherto been the chief channel to the The east point is situated in lat. 4° 23′ 42′′ N. long. 7° 5' 29" E. + Geog. Trans., vii., 197. See The Remedy, p. 411. § Colonel Nicolls says that the banks of these rivers are well adapted for cotton and sugar, with convenient landing-places everywhere, and not to be called unhealthy after getting up to the rising grounds. tic of a crescent-shaped bar, on which there are, however, two and three fathoms at low water. Within, the river is about three quarters of a mile broad, with an average depth of six fathoms; and vessels lying here with both points of the entrance open, so as to have the benefit of the sea-breeze, suffer comparatively little from the deleterious swamps around. Just at the mouth there is a village of about forty huts, irregularly built among plantain, cocoa-nut, and banana trees, where the negro pilots (whose characters have been very differently stated) reside. About nine miles from the bar King Boy (the hero of so many tales) has fixed his barracoon*, immediately above which the river divides into several wide and shallow branches, the principal one leading to the eastward to Brass Town and Bonny. For ten miles the navigation is difficult, and the channel exceedingly narrow, with an average depth of two fathoms. About 20 miles, however, up the stream, it deepens and widens, and the limits of the tide are marked by the disappearance of the deadly mangrove, the firmer consistence of the banks, now partially cleared for cultivation, and the proximity of the magnificent forests of a tropical clime. Farther on, villages appear, surrounded with plantations, and thickly clustered together, and the scene is enlivened by the numerous Brass canoes, laden with palm oil, slaves, or English goods. At every place where Oldfield or Becroft stopped, they found a strong disposition to trade, and the utmost good will on the part of the natives. The only spot at which hostile feelings have ever been manifested is Hyamma, where Lander, separated from his friends, in an open boat, laden with valuables, was mortally wounded. The river, however, is too broad and deep, and the power of these petty villages too insignificant, to cause any serious interruption. The banks are still crowded with huts and towns†, and at * Here Oldfield saw the skulls of a number of slaves lining the banks. + Between Ibú and the sea, Oldfield reckone l twenty-eight towns, each with its little fleet of M 2 canoes. from the river, upwards of seventy-eight canoes came off at the first signal to trade with Oldfield on his passage up. Here Laird was met by the formal embassy of King Obi, prior to his admission into the dominions of this powerful chief, to whom on the following day he was presented with considerable pomp. We have now arrived at the first state of real importance, and first great centre of trade in the Delta, which deserves, therefore, somewhat more particular attention. Egaboh, the first town built at a distance | Niger, the Benin, Nún, and Bonny, may, indeed, command the entire trade with the coast. It is gratifying, then, to find the most friendly disposition on the part of the King of Ibú towards the only European nation which has yet visited him. "The term 'gentlemanly' may appear misapplied to an untutored African Negro; but he displayed towards us the very essence of gentility, in the most lively attention to our wants and comforts. I found afterwards that he was equally attentive to us in our distress. He said, if we would only promise to trade direct with him, he would send his two sons to our country to learn white men's palaver*." Cowries form the medium of exchange from this point upwards, and were placed first on the list of articles which he wished Laird to procure for him. Ibú, or Eboe, the capital of the country of the same name, is a town of considerable size and population, built on a high bank, 120 miles from the mouth of the Nún. The houses are of a superior class, neatly built, with wellfenced gardens attached to each, and kept very clean. The natives are exceedingly expert in the management of their canoes, which are very large, and furnished with sheds and awnings, under which many of the people constantly live*. "It has, for a series of years, been the principal slave mart for native traders from the coast, between the Bonny and Old Calabar rivers; and for the production of its palm oil it has obtained equal celebrity. Hundreds of men from the rivers mentioned above, come up for the purpose of trade, and numbers of them are at present residing in canoes in front of the town. Most of the oil purchased by Englishmen at the Bonny and adjacent rivers, is brought from thencet." Laird is of opinion that Obi might also concentrate the ivory trade, if a regular intercourse were opened with him. They carry European goods, cloths, knives, looking-glasses, guns, powder, &c., up the river in all directions, even as far as Fanda, and from their position at the head of the great outlets of the "At day-break I was much pleased to see a fleet of canoes of all sizes leaving the town to collect palm oil, yams, and provisions, for it gave an assurance of the regular and industrious habits of the people. There could not have been less than from 100 to 150, and in the evening they came dropping in with their cargoes. It was the most gratifying proof of regular and honest industry that I had yet seen in Africa."-LAIRD, i., 98. + LANDER, ini., 183. The price of oil there is about £4 per ton. LAIRD, i., 103 Thirty-nine miles above Ibú and one hundred and fifty-nine from the sea, the gentle rise of the first hills, and the blackened surfaces of projecting rocks, announce the terminating point of the Delta, and the commencement of brighter prospects and air. purer "The surrounding scenery is extremely beautiful; the corn-fields were numerous, and yams and rice appeared to be grown by the natives in great abundance. The ground was covered with the richest verdure; the luxuriant foliage of the trees was diversified by gentle eminences, and it seemed as if nature had intended to form a striking contrast with the low flat country which lay between this and the sea sidet." At this point lies the town of Kirí, where a very large market is held every fourteen days. To this the Ibús resort in great numbers with powder, earthenware, guns, cloths, iron-bars, and knives, which they exchange with those from the north, for ivory, mats, horses, and slaves. They erect temporary houses on the sandbank, to which the vast number of fires gives the appear * LAIRD, i., 97, 271. "He is a particularly handsome man, stands above six feet high, with a prominent nose and an oval face, good eyes, and a pleasing expression of countenance, combining intelligence with good-nature."-i., 101. † OLDFIELD, ii., 138. Oldfield saw 300 gaily decorated canoes at one time going up the river, giving it the appearance of a regatta.ii., 178. Their boat songs are particu larly pleasing. |