CHA P. fhew the fources of the flave-trade, near S. Leona, for the XI. two laft years, and the private misery, drunkenness and SIERRA LE- murder which it has caused. ONA. Condemna tions for alledged adultery, Feb. 1793. A native of some consequence applied for the governor's affiftance in redeeming his daughter, whom a creditor of his had just seized and fold to a flave-fhip lying off Freetown. The governor offered her price, either in goods or money, to the flave-captain, who refused both, obferving that flaves were now difficult to be got, and muft not be eafily parted with; and that, as the girl seemed a favourite, he ought to have two flaves for her; but that, in compliment to the governor, he would give her up for one prime flave. He added, that he had been much affected at an interview between her and her father, who had been on board that morning to fee her; but, he remarked again, that slaves were scarce. The governor, under all the circumstances, could not farther interefere. But the father went in queft of a flave, whom he seems not to have been able easily to get: for he did not return till long after, when the fhip was gone. 460. The two following are inftances of the decisions of the chiefs, in fuppofed cafes of adultery between their wives and inferior natives. (1.) One of our school-mafters brought to me a native, who implored our pro tection, having just escaped from the chief of the nearest town, who had confined, and threatened to fell him, for adultery with one of his wives, unless he would pay down a fum, which he could not command. He curfed the flave-factory as the cause of his mifery, and declared himself innocent. Here the chief, like feveral others who will be mentioned, acted by his own fingle authority, and feems not to have been amenable to any superior for his judgment, between himself and the people of his town. (2.) A native of S. Leona who has lived many years as a grumetta (or free labourer) at a neighbouring European flave-factory, has been fold, on a charge of adultery with one of the European flave factor's wives. The European fold him to a flave-fhip, avowing this as his reason, without even the form of a trial. 461. The following is a striking fpecimen of African justice. On one of the nearest rivers there is a chief and an European flave-factor in one town. The king, in his cups, talked of flogging the flave-factor, and would actually have made his people do it, if the factor had not got to his own houfe, and barricaded barricaded it. He demanded fatisfaction of the king when fober, who by way of CHA P. reparation, fold him two of his people. XI. 462. The natural alliance between drunkenness and the SIERRA LEflave-trade will alfo be exhibited by the fubfequent oc currence, (fee § 21). ONA. -Six or feven of the nearest chiefs renewed their applications for rum: their Drunkenness perfeverance is astonishing. By way of forcing us to comply, one of them faid he would go and pawn his brother to the flave-factory, for liquor. But the governor was firm, and explained to them his motive for refufal. They faid, there was no palaver (or caufe of quarrel) but they were evidently chagrined. Having, however, dined with us, they were brought into tolerable humour, and I hope these applications for rum will at length cease. 463. The following accounts, the Directors deem too important, to be withheld. (1.) A number of black mariners has been hired by fome French ships trading on this coaft. Six of the fhips have been captured, and the black failors, amounting to 19, though free men and receiving wages, have been all fold as flaves, a mulatto child excepted. It is painful to witness fuch acts. Why are not the French feamen put up to auction alfo? Or why is this difference between blacks and whites ? The French failors were at war with us, and are not fold; but the blacks are sent to the flave-factory and fold at public auction, with the goods that formed the cargo. One or two of them were free men of this neighbourhood, and fome not only free, but fons of chiefs; one of them fon of the king of Sallum. Indeed the British flave-factor who bought them, was fo good as to fay, he would not fend them off, fo that their friends might redeem them with other flaves when they thought fit. I am difpofed to believe him; yet it is dreadful to think of the contempt of justice here. At first I would not believe what I heard on this fubject; but I faw them knocked down myself, at about £20 a piece. (2.) Another French fhip has been taken, by a different captor, and three or four free natives found on board, have been fold to the neighbouring flave-factory. We remonftrated with the captain, on the impropriety of felling free people. He admitted it, but faid he must receive money for their ransom, or he could not part with them. We offered him money, but he then faid, No, he must have flaves for them, as he wanted flaves, and they must be four foot four inches high. (3.) Several free women, left as pledges on board a French ship, which was captured, were also fold. The captain of the British privateer, which took the ship, was formerly a slave-trader.-Moft of the free people, thus fold by the several captors, being natives of the neighbourhood, were eventually redeemed. But the Free blacks taken in French fhips fold for flaves CHA P. captors feem to have profited by their fale, and not to have promoted their redemp XI. SIERRALE ONA. Man tried by red water dies: his family made flaves. Witchcraft. fold. tion. 464. The difguft which will be raised by the next story, of which four different evidences are mentioned, feems not a fufficient reafon for withholding it; especially as it exhibits another fource of the flave-trade. -A grumetta (free labourer) was accufed of theft, by his mafter, a Britifh trader, a little to the north. The labourer demanded to be tried by the red water (which way is fufpected to be poisonous) and the effect of which is fuperftitioufly supposed to determine innocence or guilt. The trader, after fome time, confented. The king of the country was fummoned and appeared, with all his family and attendants. Preliminaries being adjufled, the poor man drank one draught, fwelled and foon fell down dead, his belly burfling. The king then folemnly gave fentence against him, and condemned all his family to flavery, who were feized and fold. During the trial, two men with clubs flood on each side of the accused, ready to knock out his brains, at the appearance of the fymptoms to which the natives attach guilt. The white trader, just mentioned, is confidered very much as an African chief, by the natives of this part. 465. The following anecdote shows the degree of superftitious ignorance in which the natives are immersed. —————-A man in a neighbouring town has been fold on the charge of having, by witchcraft, changed himself into a leopard, and of having, in that shape, carried off fome fowls and goats, from the town of the nearest chief to us. 466. The fucceeding relation fhows the extreme horror which some of the natives feel at being sent into flavery.. Man derangA free native mariner, on board our ship, Providence, seeing some rice come ed in his on board from the factory in Sherbro, while he faw no goods given in exchange, mind, by fear of being was dreadfully terrified left he fhould be fold for a flave, in barter for the rice. Full of this perfuafion, when the factor from the fhore was stepping on board, he endeavoured to ftab him, but miffing his aim, he leapt over-board. After fome difficulty he was recovered, and being asked the reason of his conduct, he explained it in the way juft mentioned. He ftill fhowed the greatest fear, and declared he would rather die than be fold as a flave. As it was feared he might commit fuicide, his hands were bound; but, on his intreaty, and promife to be quiet, they were, in a little while, loofed. At midnight, he got into a canoe along fide, and drifted down the ftrcam, to a town at the river's mouth, where he was feized and put in irons; but on application to a friendly chief, he got his liberty. The idea of flavery having entirely poffeffed his brain, he soon after jumped overboard, and was was given up for drowned. But getting on fhore, he was again recovered, and was CHA P. XI. brought to Freetown, where he is now employed. The phyficians think the terror of flavery must have caufed fome derangement of his intellects, which may occa SIERRA LE fionally return, in fome small degree. He is now much attached to the Company, and happy in their fervice. His friends fay his mind was never in the leaft difordered, before this fright. 467. The next occurrences come from an eye-witness of them. Their dates are various. young (1.) — -I have been to day on board a large flave-fhip in the river, with 250 flaves. The men were chained in pairs; the women were kept apart. The flaves were chearful; but the old ones were much cast down. At meals they are obliged to fhout, and to clap their hands, for exercise, before they begin to cat. I could then see shame and indignation in the faces of thofe more advanced in years. One woman, who spoke a little English, begged me to carry her home. She faid fhe was from the oppofite fhore of the river to Freetown, that her husband had fold her for debt, and that fhe had left a child behind her: at the mention of the child, fhe wept. (2.) ———————————I was this morning again on board a slave-ship, where I faw a woman who had been newly fold, and who seemed to have been weeping. On afking her the reason, fhe pointed to the milk flowing from her breasts, and intimated that the had been torn from her unweaned infant, which the captain confirmed. She was from one of the towns nearest us; and faid she had been fold for being faucy to the queen of it. (3.). In the neighbouring flave-yard, I saw a man about 35 years old in irons. He was a Mahometan, and could read and write Arabick. He was occafionally noify; fometimes he would fing a melancholy fong, then he would utter an earnest prayer, and then would obferve a dead filence. This ftrange conduct, I was told, was from his strong feelings, on having been put, for the first time, in irons, the day before. As we passed, he cried aloud to us, and endeavoured to hold up his irons to our view, which he ftruck very expreffively with his hand, the tear ftarting in his eye. He feemed, by his manner, to be demanding the caufe of his confinement. (4.) An American flave-captain has been telling us that he lost a very fine slave, a few days ago, by the "fulks."-" The man (faid he) was a Mahometan, uncommonly well made, and seemed to be a person of consequence. When he first came on board, he was very much caft down; but, finding that I allowed him to walk at large, he grew more easy. When my flaves became numerous, I put him in irons, like the reft, on which he loft his fpirits irrecoverably. He complained of a pain at his heart, and would not eat. The ufual means were tried, but in vain; for he rejected food altogether, except when I ftood by and made him eat. I offered him the best things in the fhip, and left nothing untried; for I had fet my heart on faving him. ONA. Scenes on board flave fhips, &c. CHA P. I am fure, he would have brought me 300 dollars in the W. Indies; but nothing XI. would do. He faid, from the firft, he was determined to die, and fo he did, after SIERRA LE- lingering 9 days. I affure you, gentlemen, I felt very sorry; for I dare fay, I loft 300 dollars by his death, and to such a man as me, that is a very heavy loss. ONA. for what? 468. The following dialogues fhow how plainly the enormitics of the flave-trade are acknowledged, fometimes even by the perpetrators; and that the Europeans, by familiarity with those enormities, have been brought to tolerate them, to accommodate their feelings to them, and to substitute, for the real principles of justice, a morality of their own-a morality, however, which, disavowing some horrible atrocities, is only a more deliberate fyftem of injuftice, cruelty and oppreffion. Shocking ex- I fhall give the fubftance of a converfation with an English flave-factor, who has ceffes, encou- lived fome years a little way to the fouth, and is well acquainted with all the practices raged by Europeans, and of the flave-trade. The factor, having mentioned the mulatto trader, (of whofe ravages the Proprietors have heard fo much) as a very gentleman-like, well educated, fenfible and refpectable kind of man; I was induced to ask, whether he had not been guilty of many exceffes all around.-Exceffes! No. He would make war fometimes on the head-men that owed him just debts, and sell fome of their people, if he could catch them; or he might perhaps carry off the inhabitants of a town, when the king or father of it gave him exprefs permiffion. He was a good man on the whole, and a man of humanity; for he did not fhed all the blood he might, nor fell every one he had a right to fell. For instance, the chief now living near Freetown, and all his generation, were adjudged to be his property; but the chief himself has never yet been fold, which is a mere act of forbearance in the mulatto-trader. But I confider the sentence ftill in force against him.Did not the mulatto trader order an attack on the neighbouring island, when the proprietor was killed in defending himfelf, and do not the friends of the proprietor confider this as an act of great injuftice?- -The proprietor well deferved to be attacked; for there is reason to think he was then intending to attack the mulatto trader.I understand this affair is not over, and that the fucceffors of this proprietor, intend to retaliate on the fucceffors of the mulatto chief, when they have an opportunity.—I believe they do; but it ill becomes them to question the mulatto chief's conduct; for they should confider how much worse things their own father did. For example, the old man has been known to fail up a river, with fome large craft, to land at a town under a great show of friendship. He has has then made a speech to the head-men and people, remarking how fhamefully all former traders had ufed them, and that he was come to trade |