FAREWELL ADDRESS AT LIVERPOOL.

NOTICE TO CORRESPONDENTS.

In reply to numerous applications, we have to state that THE FRIEND OF AFRICA is an occasional paper, and will not be published oftener than twice a month, unless when special circumstances require it; persons desirous of taking it in regularly, are requested to order it of their booksellers.

As the profits of the work, if any, will be devoted to the funds of the Society, all those interested in African Civilization are invited to circulate the paper among their friends and acquaintances.

On Sunday, the 13th ult., a sermon was preached by the Rev. J. HALDANE STEWART, minister of St. Bride's, Liverpool, to a crowded congregation, among whom were the greater part of the officers and seamen composing the Niger Expedition. The text was appropriately selected from 1 Samuel xi. 30, "Them that honour me I will honour;" and the venerable minister, in a very impressive address, took occasion, first, to explain the nature and objects of the undertaking with regard to Africa; secondly, to strengthen the faith and animate the zeal of all embarked in this righteous cause; and, thirdly, under the Numerous donations and subscriptions deepest conviction that no human device, having been received by the Bankers of however ably planned, can prosper inde- the Society, without any address, it is inpendently of the Divine favour and bless-tended in an early number to publish a ing, to implore that blessing on all connected with the Expedition, that they may be enabled so to carry out its vast designs in the spirit of the Gospel, that the Great Head of the Church may own and bless it to the advancement of His glory, and hasten the period when "Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands unto God."

A NATIVE MISSIONARY.

Mr. William de Graft, an intelligent Christian native, who accompanied the Rev. Mr. Freeman to this country last summer, from the Gold Coast, Western Africa, has kindly lent his services in the preparation of the vocabulary for the use of the Niger Expedition. He has furnished a long list of words, and questions and answers, in the Fanti language, which, as that language is substantially the same as the Ashanti, can scarcely fail to be of considerable use in the large markets in the interior. Mr. de Graft has recently returned to Africa, in company with Mr. Freeman and his band of missionaries, for Ashanti and the Gold Coast, and it is understood that he is henceforth to be wholly employed as a teacher of the Christian religion among his benighted country

men.

Many of our readers may not be aware that the well-tried and staunch abolitionist, Sir John Jeremie, sailed on the 20th November last, to assume his command at Sierra Leone, as Governor-General of the British Settlements in Western Africa. Sir John Jeremie's eloquent protest against Slavery and the Slave Trade on the platform at Reading was the last public act of that gentleman in England; before the close of that meeting he was in DowningStreet, and left London the same night to embark for Sierra Leone,

DONATIONS AND SUBSCRIPTIONS.

complete List of Subscribers; and in order to avoid mistakes, it is requested that all Auxiliary Societies, &c., will transmit a correct list of the funds they have collected, and of the names of the donors.

ARRIVALS AND SAILINGS.

From and to the Gambia:

Emily.

tons. Captain.

.176..Penlerrick.London.... 8 Jan. *Gambia ........214..Penlerrick .London....20 Jan. From and to Accra and Cape Coast:New Tunis......104.. Pilcher ...London.... 7 Jan. Catherine Boland.110.. Wylie.....London....11 Jan. *George Canning.167.. Barker ....Deal.......16 Jan.

From and to Sierra Leone :Wm. Rathbone...326..Davies.....Liverpool.. 8 Jan. Hector ..293..Freeman...London....24 Jan. From and to Fernando Po:Commerce...... .645..Wylie......Liverpool.. 2 Jan. *Harriet. ......396..Beech...... .Deptford...28 Jan. *Reliance........333..Howell.....London....10 Feb. * The Post-Office will dispatch letters by these vessels.

Subscriptions and Donations are received by the Treasurer, J. Gurney Hoare, Esq.; by Messrs. Barnett, Hoares, and Co., 62, Lombard-street; Messrs. Barclay, Bevan, and Co., 54, Lombard-street; Messrs. Coutts and Co., 59, Strand; Messrs. Drummonds, Charing-cross; Messrs. Hanbury, Messrs. Hankeys, 7, Fenchurch-street; Taylor, and Lloyd, 60, Lombard-street; Messrs. Hoares, 37, Fleet-street; and Messrs. Williams, Deacon, and Co., 20, Birchin-lane; and by the Secretary, the Rev. J. M. Trew (to whom all communications relative to the business of the Society may be addressed), at the Office of the Society, 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; and Madden; and supplied to order by

all Booksellers and Newsmen in Town and Country. -Friday, 15th January, 1841.

BY

THE COMMITTEE OF THE SOCIETY FOR THE EXTINCTION OF THE
SLAVE TRADE AND FOR THE CIVILIZATION OF AFRICA.

RECENT INTELLIGENCE FROM THE RIVER QUORRA.

By a vessel just arrived at Liverpool from the island of Fernando Po,
we have the gratifying intelligence that the steamer Ethiope, belonging
to the well-known enterprising merchant, Mr. Jamieson of Liverpool,
and commanded by Mr. John Becroft, had arrived there on the 16th of
November last, on her return from a voyage up the river Quorra, or
Niger, during which she succeeded in reaching Lever, of Lander, or
Layaba, a town on the right or western bank of the river, about
fifty miles above Rabbah, or thirty miles below Búsah, where, it will
be remembered, that excellent African traveller, Mungo Park, was
wrecked in the year 1805 or the beginning of 1806.

From the information we have been enabled to collect, which, how-
ever imperfect and without detail, is still of much importance, it appears
that the Ethiope entered the Benin, or Formoso, or great western branch
of the Quorra, on the 21st of April, and was eleven days endeavouring to
get up its central or northern branches, towards the main stream of the
Niger, but was unsuccessful. On her return to its mouth, she again
sailed on the 4th of May, to penetrate by the Warí branch into the Nún,
or central outlet of the Quorra, which, it seems, was reached below
Ibú, as Mr. Jamieson received a note from the "Steamer Ethiope, from
Benin, off Ibú, dated 21st of May."

This being the early part of the rainy season, and the rains having
been throughout unusually light, the Ethiope, which draws six feet of
water, was unable to proceed above the sand bank, which stretches across
the river a little above Ibú, till, as we understand, the middle of July,
when, upon the rising of the waters, she continued her voyage up the
river, and reached Layaba, twenty miles above Rabbah, where "the bed
of the river became so contracted and obstructed with rocks, that further
progress was stopped. Trade was attempted on all the leading towns on
the banks, but little could be done, although the natives, at all parts,
were friendly and favourable to commercial intercourse."

During the six months and a half that the Ethiope was in the river,

we regret to add she lost three men and two boys; but when we consider

that three months of this time were passed in the unhealthy Delta,

and during the rainy season, and two months of it, probably, at anchor

in an inactive state near Ibú, the mortality does not seem so great as

might have been anticipated.

VOL. I.

D

Of Lever, or Layaba, the highest | peared more elevated, and in some places it rose in gentle hills. We observed three remarkable and lofty hills on the eastern side, which rose very abruptly from the plain and were separated from each other only by a few yards of ground. Both banks of the river were overhung with large shady trees, between which we could perceive the land behind to be open and well cultivated; and if we may be allowed to form an opinion from the number of towns and villages which were scattered over the country, we should conceive it to be thickly inhabited also.

point reached in this expedition, and full fifty miles beyond what any steamer had before accomplished, all we know is from the LANDERS' Journal, in which it is described as an extensive town of great population, inhabited by people of the Nufi country; but what concerns us more is the description of the Quorra, for a few miles above and below this town. Quitting the island of Patashi, twenty miles above, in a native canoe, on the 30th September, 1830, Lander says,

"The current bore us rapidly along, but we regretted to find the river again broken up by rocks and numerous small islands, which spoil its appearance and render it unnavigable. A few miles below Patashi, are three islands abreast of each other, and by no means destitute of beauty or verdure, which are called, collectively, Raah. On one of them is a large trading town, and near it the canoemen landed to get some refreshment.

"We then continued our course for some time, without meeting any obstacle to embarrass us; but, afterwards, in order to get clear of a reef of rocks, we were obliged to make our way through an exceedingly narrow channel, overhung with the branches of trees, and more than half filled with rushes and tall luxuriant grasses. This brought us into the main river again, and having passed along in front of one or two towns on the banks of the river, we came in sight of Layaba, which was the place of our destination, and where we landed at one o'clock, after rather a short excursion from Patashi of three hours. Layaba may be distant from that island about twenty miles."-Vol. ii., P. 240.

After a few days' stay they again set out on their voyage down the Quorra. On the 4th October Lander continues ;

"The banks of the river near Layaba are high, being, according to our estimation, about forty feet above the river, and steep to the water-side. The river itself appeared deep and free from rocks of any kind; its direction nearly south. We ran down the stream very pleasantly for twelve or fourteen miles, the Niger during the whole distance rolling grandly along-a noble river, neither obstructed by islands, nor deformed with rocks and stones. Its width varied from one to three miles, the country on each side was very flat, and few mean dirty-looking villages were scattered on the water's edge. We then came to two small islands; the land ap

a

"At one o'clock P.M. we landed at a large and spacious town, called Bajiebo, which is inhabited by Nufi people, though it is situated on the Yarriba, or western side of the river."—Vol. ii., p. 258.

Such is Lander's description of this part of the river, and there is little doubt but that the narrow channel and reef of rocks mentioned in the former extract are those which prevented the Ethiope from making further progress; but that a small merchant steamer should have succeeded in reaching so far is highly creditable to the enterprise of her commander, and all who have taken a share in the work. This visit must have had a beneficial effect upon the natives, and, although we are constrained to confess that the information derived from what has been made public is but scanty, we are induced to hope that when the detailed accounts reach England, they will be found to contain the narrative of a Voyage of no common interest.

We do not hazard this as a conjecture without some reason, for while we write, a letter has most unexpectedly been laid before us, written by one of the common seamen who was on board the Ethiope, during this very voyage; and which, with merely suppressing the name, we have permission to transcribe verbatim: November, 1840.

"DEAR FRIENDS, I now write to you from Fernando Po, where we arrived yesterday after our voyage up the Niger; we went up nearly as far as the rocks which proved fatal to Mungo Park, some miles below Boosa, and nearly 500 from the sea.

"The climate up the river, after you get above the swamps, is very healthy, and the scenery is beautiful, and in some parts most grand, and the soil very productive; but the inhabitants have no in

ducement to labour, as the different | of Rabbah and Layaba will again see

nication in this direction may, with a short portage, extend to the important towns of Kashna and Kano, it becomes necessary to provide the means of transport adapted to these circumstances. We know, from the experience of Lander and Laird, that native canoes are extremely unwieldy, and cannot be depended upon. It seems, therefore, that the expedition must trust to its own resources; and perhaps we may venture to recommend, on the suggestion of Colonel Nicolls and Mr. Macgregor Laird, that four or six light Deal galleys, of about fifty feet in length, might answer the purpose better than any other description of boat. The natives would be delighted to paddle these fast boats. They would easily overcome the current; and, if rocks or rapids were met with, the boats could, with equal facility, be shouldered by their crews, and carried any reasonable distance.

A third point for consideration is connected with the different entrances to the Quorra, which it is well known reaches the sea by about twenty-two mouths;-now, from the imperfect accounts which have yet been made public, we are far from convinced that there may not be a better approach than that by the Nún-we give full credit to Mr. Becroft's examination of the Formoso or Benin branch, as far as it went; but we should like to hear of a thorough investigation of this point by a Government steamer, with a good supply of boats, anchors, &c., combined with the skill of some of our experienced surveyors, and deliberately carried on during the fine season-and this, should we succeed in establishing a regular trade with the Quorra, must be done sooner or later; but certainly not to risk at the commencement the health of the present expedition, which has far more important objects in view.

But these remarks have already extended too far. In conclusion, we may repeat that, upon the whole, the prospects derived from this the third voyage up the Quorra, and the first as high as Layaba, are cheering: they confirm the accounts of former travellers of the favourable disposition of the natives they give the impression, that, once out of the Delta, the country

is not unhealthy; and they show the very cordial reception of the English at the important trading town of Rabbah. Lastly, the execution of this voyage is very creditable to the commander and crew of the Ethiope, and highly honourable to its spirited projector, who has added another laurel to the wreath so deservedly due to the commercial enterprise of Great Britain.

THE MUTUAL DEPENDENCE OF
AFRICA AND THE WEST INDIES.

I PROPOSE, in the first place, to demonstrate that Africa is the hope of the West Indies, especially at the present crisis, when ruin is dreaded from the approaching competition with the sugar growers of the East.

The only item in which the East apparently has the advantage of the West, is the cheapness of labour; and labour is cheap in the East because food is cheap, and dear in the West because food is dear, and a large portion of the labour consequently directed to raise it.

Africa raises from its fruitful soil little beyond the consumption of its own inhabitants. Labour is in superabundance there, but there is no employment for it, and therefore the country languishes, and civilization and all improvement must remain paralyzed until demands for labour be created. Let any man consider himself placed where he had no motive to exertion, and he will feel that, like the poor African, he must inevitably lapse into indolence, or seek the stimuli of war, violence, and mischief.

From statements which I have read and heard touching the natives on the western coast of Africa, I feel assured that the disappointments hitherto experienced in the attempts to civilize that country, have mainly arisen from want of demand for the products of its industry.

In the West Indies there are sunk large capitals, which cannot be separated or removed from the soil. Millions have been expended there in the establishment of plantations, in buildings, in roads, in harbours, and in every convenience and accommodation for the cultivation and manufacture of its staple exports of sugar and coffee; which, unless used, must perish. It is a serious matter