In the course of these wars Drury took a Dean's daughter prisoner, and so had a Madagascar princess for his wife. It seems to have been no unusual thing to dispense with all wooing, and wed in this manner. By his own account he loved this wife dearly, and had good reason to love her, but his heart was set upon England, and the violence of Mevarrow's temper made his life in danger. This master, too, suspected his design of running away, and had employed a Umossee or conjuror to bewitch him. which have hung at his back, break it asunder; let his breast be tormented with pain, and his legs fettered as with parrapingos; and if he attempts to fly, join all your united forces, and break his legs, thing that lies in his way. Thus the old whenever he jumps, and steps over any dotard went on for a long time, but in a thod. He tossed his hands about, and more abrupt manner, and without any me changed his voice almost every minute; he made, in short, an hundred impertinent repetitions, and cant words of his own invention, and foamed like a fanatical enthu siast. When he had quite tired himself with preaching, he took off the charm, and made me lick every individual root. Now let him go, says he, where he will; the deinform where he is, and I shall acquaint his mons which regard these charms will soon master." against him, and Mevarrow in his passion would probably have killed him. Ry Nanno, a chief of gentler nature, who would once have willingly ransomed him, had given him directions how to make for Augustine's Bay. Accordingly he took leave of his poor wife, and set off. Afferrer, a dean whom he knew, received him at first with great kind After this ceremony he thought it absolutely necessary to make hisescape without delay, for should any sickness or common accident Away goes the fumbling old fool to befal him, it would have been imwork, scraping a root, and mixing several ingredients together, which, I was well puted to the conjuration: the insatisfied, had neither good nor harm intention would be considered as proof them (for I was afraid of nothing but his nose dropping into it); muttering all the time between his few broken teeth, words that neither he nor any one else knew the meaning of. When the dose was prepared, he called it the fermoner, and put it into some carravances, which were boiled on purpose, and it was given me in a calabash; but, before I took it, he hung several roots about me, one over my eyes, another at my back, one upon my breast. and one upon each leg, giving each of them a distinctness, and told him he should be a name; then scraping a small quantity from each of them, and putting it into the mess of carravances, I was ordered to eat it, which I did, without the least fear or reluctance; in the mean time he pronounced his curses, as well as prayers over me. Whenever (says he) he thinks of running away, remember, O thou, Dean Fermonner! how he has eaten what belongs to thee; and also, ye, &c. [Here he named all the spirits belonging to other charmed roots.] how he has eaten what belongs to you; and if he offers to run away, arise in his stomach, O Dean Fermonner, and make him so sick, that he shall be incapable of stirring: And ye, ANN. REV, VOL. VII. slave no longer; so far he kept his ន manage, and then proceeded with a fresh supply from what they had left. With this, wild honey, and faunridge, he was in no danger of famine. This latter is thus described. "Amongst the most wholesome as well as delicious fruits of the earth, and that which I first tasted of here, is their faun gidge; it grows (as my companions shewed me) in the thickest woods. They search first for the place, which is a tender creeper, or wild vine, that takes hold of a tree, or any thing near it, twining round the trunk, and shooting into several branches, like a vine. I never perceived that it bore any fruit, and was surprised, when they told me it was the root of this which produced the faungidge; however, instead of digging at the root, they went half a dozen yards at least from it, and struck the ground with the points of their lances, to observe where it sounded hollow, and digging there, they found the faungidge. The root spreads a great way under ground, and but few of the branches bear the faungidge; so that it would be to little purpose to trace it from the spot where it appears above ground. The first I saw was not much less in bulk than one of our gallon runlets: It is red, and very smooth without, and the coat is as thin as parchment; the inside is white, and has a milky juice; it eats as soft as a water-melon, but has no seeds in it; it is both meat and drink, very wholesome, and always eaten raw. "The verlaway, is of the same species, and in all respects much like it; with this difference, only, that the skin of the latter is thinner, but so tough that it must be pared with a knife. There is another kind, called the verlaway-voler, which is reckoned unwholesome: I once saw a man, who had tasted some of it, swell immediately, and was ready to die; but by giving him some melted fat to drink, he brought it up, and soon recovered. This verlaway-voler is easily known, for it is much more beautiful to the eye than the other; and the leaf which springs from it is very different." On the sixth night he was wakened by a disagreeable adventure, a fox (more probably a jackall) caught hold of his heel. Luckily his fire was not quite extinguished, he staggered the beast with the blow of a firebrand, and killed him with his lance. His howling brought three others to the spot, and he past a dangerous night in their company. The next day he travelled on, notwithstanding the wound in his heel; it was then swoln so much, that he found it necessary to rest six days; by this means, and by dressing it with beef fat it healed. His beef and honey failed him, and he lived wholly upon faungidge. On the eighteenth day he came to a river of considerable size. "As I was searching for a proper place to wade through, or swim over, I spied a large alligator: I still walked upon the banks, and in a short time saw three more. This was a mortifying stroke, and almost dispirited me. I went on till I came to a shallower place, where I entered the river about ten yards with a view to swim over the rest in four or five minutes; but seeing an alligator make towards me, I ran directly back. He pursued me till I got into very shallow water, and then he turned back into the deep, for they will never attack a man near the shore. It nettled me to be stopt by a river, that was scarce an hundred yards over. At length, I recollected that at Bengal there are the largest alligators in the world, and so bold, that they will take a man out of a shallow boat; insomuch that whenever we came off from the shore in the night, we made one small fire at the head, and another at the stern of the boat, which no alligator would ever come near. Distress puts a man's invention upon the rack, something, thought I, like this, must be done; for it was to no purpose to stay here, neither could I go back: So making choice of a stick for a firebrand, I cut it into long splinters, and waited till it grew dark ;-then, after I had bound my two fire sticks to the top of one of my lances, I went into the water, and recommending myself to the care of providence, I turned upon my back, and swam over with my two lances and hatchet in one hand, and my fire-brand burning in the other; my lamber being twisted, and tied fast about my lan CES. "The place where I pitched upon to swim over, had a gap through the thicket on each side one against another, which made it look like a common passage either often snorted for that purpose. I for men, or cattle. No sooner was I landed, but I heard some wild cattle grazing, whereupon I extinguished my fire immediately, and washed myself as silently as possible, that they should not smell me. stood some time close under the cover of a thick bush in the passage, expecting, that they would come to drink. The wind, as it luckily fell out, was with them, so that they could not scent me, though they I stood prepared with my lance, and did not wait long, before a numerous herd came running through the passage to the river; and as they passed by, I pushed my lance, with all the force I was able, into above forty of them; and used my utmost endeavours to wound them in the belly. They ran roaring away, fighting, and goring one another, to revenge, as it were, the blows they felt; for they expected no other enemies, than what were amongst themselves. I thought I had struck a sufficient number, and hoped some of their wounds would prove mortal: However, I would not run any hazard by night, and, therefore, sat down contented without roast meat, and secured myself from their attacks in a thick wood. The next morn ing I went to see what success I had met with, and I found one bull, and three cows dead upon the sand. I soon cut up the youngest and fattest, and carried it to my quarters, near which I made an oven to bake it. This is a common practice, though I never described it before; how ever, it is made after the following manner: A hole is dug about five feet in length, two over, and about three in depth: This is filled with wood, which is then kindled; on the top of the fire I put about a dozen large stones, each weighing about a pound. Whilst the fire was burning, I cut off the bark from a tree, called the succore, and took the outer part away, and the inner being pliant, and lying flat, it served for the ing pliant, and lying flat, it served for the cover of my oven. When the fire was burnt to ashes, I laid three or four green sticks across, that my beef might rest upon them; the stones being red-hot, I placed them about the bottom and sides: I laid likewise, more sticks over the top, and then the bark covered all, close with the earth. This is our method of baking meat in the forests. I broiled some for my breakfast, and then went out to see what further execution I had done, and found six more how beeves lying dead upon One night during the journey he "As we went homewards, some of our people climbed up tamarind trees, and gathered abundance of the fruit. I asked them what they did with it? Eat it, said they. I told them, it was impossible to eat much of it, without setting their teeth on edge. It is sour enough, indeed (said they), if we do not put ash es to it to make it sweet. I laughed at danger to which he was to be exthem for their ignorance; but when I posed. Before the army set off an came home, there were platters full, mix- Umossee was employed to discover ed with them, for our supper. The strings what success they would have. This of the tamarinds, which are white, ap juggler, after tossing some sand pearing in it when thus mixed, I could about and divining with it upon a pearing in it when thus mixed, I could not forbear comparing it to mortar with hair in it; but, when I tasted it, I found board, as fortunes are vulgarly told it was sweet beyond my expectations. I in England by means of coffee could not, however, be rightly reconci- grounds, ordered them to look for a led to it at first, being prejudiced, as men tree which was perfectly upright, too frequently are, even against the testi- and a black bald-faced cow. These mony of their senses. Dean Trongha being discovered, the cow was killperceiving that I did not much like my ed by the tree, and the Umossee mess, assured me, that this was always smeared it with her blood, invoking esteemed amongst them a pleasant dish, the spirits of Trongha's forefathers when they had the greatest profusion of and the Demons. other things: sometimes, indeed, said he, we have nothing else to eat. I have seen many odd things eaten, but nothing ever surprised me more than sour tamarinds, mixed with wood-ashes, becoming sweet and palatable. Let the chemists reason, and philosophize upon it at their leisure, I can assure them it is matter of fact, and can produce several gentlemen, now living in London, to testify the same, who have seen me mix it, did not rightly agree with me, indeed, the first time I ate it, but after I was used to it a little, I never found any inconvenience attend it afterwards." It Tamarinds thus prepared would certainly not be sour, but how can they be said to be sweet? the expression is not perhaps to be understood in its strict sense,-and the fact is affirmed by the best writers concerning Madagascar. Trongha received him with great kindness. This chieftain was a man of a superior mind, who despised the superstitions with which he was obliged to comply, and made no secret of his opinions to Drury. It was resolved that he should lead a body of men to the assistance of Dean Crindo, and Drury, notwithstanding his promises of protection, could not think of him into the country from which he accompanying had escaped, and to the very presence of Mevarrow without fear. Destined however he was to accompany him, and this was not the only Two men were then ordered to cut the tree down, the southward, giving stroke for one to the northward, the other to stroke, and if the tree fell towards the north, it was to be held for a bad omen. The thing was ill managed, for what little wind there was, blew from the south, and the tree fell in a wrong direction. Some to avert the omen and secure good new rites therefore were necessary fortune in the expedition; so away goes the Umossee, says Drury, invoking again and again, and conjuring till he conjured me into the wars. A variety of ingredients of great efficacy in the materia magiin a clout, and fixed on the top of ca of Madagascar were bound up a stick, about the length and bigcharm which was called the elodge, ness of a walking cane. This the army, but the only person quawas to be solemnly carried before lified to carry it must be one who island. had no relations living on the "Upon this declaration of his, (in my absence), says Dean Trongha, where shall we find a man without some relatiand they would never direct it, were ons or another; that, (says he), I cannot tell, but this is the mind of the demons, there no such man to be found; you must, therefore, recollect yourself. Now white man Robin, is the only man, I dare I think on it, (says he), there is your say, who is qualified for that important office; but then, says Dean Trongha, notwithstanding he may be such a man, yet it is not proper for him to go, besides, I have given him my word, he shall not go against his inclination. Why then, (says the umossee), you must find out some other person more proper, if you can. Having done his business, away he went, leaving the Dean in no small perplexity, who was a man of strict honour and a punctual observer of his word; whereupon, he sent for me, and told me, it was in my power to be very serviceable to the whole country, but more especially to himself, and that I should be gratefully rewarded for my compliance with his request; but he insisted first on my promise. If it be not to kill a man, (said I), I should be proud of an opportunity to oblige you. He then told me, ingenu ously, the whole story, and that it could not possibly be helped, or else he would not have asked it of me. I paused a while, but upon a short recollection, said, all I feared was, what I told him before, but since there was an absolute necessity for it, I should readily acquiesce. Hereupon, said he, I will protect you, and take as much care of your life and health, as of my own, and immediately ordered a slave to attend me, and all things necessary to be got ready for me. I was to carry this charm, called the elodge, in my left hand, at about three or four stones ct distant from the army, during their march, and at night, pitch it at the same distance from the camp, pointing it toward the enemy's country, then wash myself, and mix with the crowd wherever I pleased. This was to be done till we should have an engage. ment with Woozington's army; I was to have ten beeves and two slaves for my trouble. The vulgar imagine, that this charm has a poisonous quality, and that was the reason I was to wash before I came near any of them, but Dean Trongha told me privately, that he knew well enough I did not think it anywise pernicious. No, Sir, (said I), I am very well assured there is no harm nor good in it, and they shall see me lick it before their faces, if they please, which none of them would venture to do for an hundred oxen. I can never think, (says I), that you yourself have that confidence in it, as you tell them; but you see the ill conse quence of making use of these conjurors, for the common people are so strongly persuaded of their power over them by these charms, that was your life to be in danger, you must do what this imaginary prophet says his demi-gods direct, though you was to carry this yourself. What you say, (said he), is very true, and waś to refuse to let you carry it, they would refuse to march, or if they did, would charge me with every miscarriage conse quent upon it. Yes, Sir, (said I), but there is still a farther danger, for had this umossee but courage and cunning enough, you have put it in his power to make c ven yourself subservient to his directions, under the pretence of their being the or ders of the demons; and it is but his saying his demons or spirits have ordered such or such a thing to be done, though it be even against yourself, they durst not disobey his orders, for he has them all at his beck, if he did but know it. And here, I cannot but reflect, that not only Madagascar and other heathenish countries, are possessed with this vice of su perstition, but even Christian nations have been, and are yet, too much tainted with it; of his, and its mischievous consequences, there have been many flagrant instances. "Soon after we marched out of town, I had a slave, like other great men, to carry my mat and provisions for me, and I was furnished with every thing I could reasonably desire. Now came the umossee, and put the elodge in my left hand, and I marched in state before them." Superstitious as the people were, Drury contrived to make them take a few necessary precautions for his own security,-drive away the alli gators before he crossed a river, and, when he had once narrowly escaped an ambush, send a detach ment before him to clear the way. When the first engagement began he gladly rid himself of his troublesome charge. Dean Trongha was slain in this war, and shortly after Drury's return with the army, a force from another part of the coun try came against their town, and he was carried off prisoner. |