A Voyage Round the World Part 20

_Sat.u.r.day, 5_.--The Eden's tender, Victoria, returned from the Old Calabar this afternoon. A heavy tornado this evening, but as it is almost a daily occurrence, it is scarcely worth noticing.

_Sunday, 6_.--The Eden's tender, Horatio, with Captain Harrison on board, returned this afternoon from a week's trading voyage for stock round the island. A seaman belonging to the Eden was drowned through carelessness, in upsetting a small boat on leaving the Horatio. The Victoria sailed this evening, under the command of Lieutenant Robinson, to blockade several slave-vessels that were daily expected to sail from the Old Calabar river.

_Monday, 7_.--The armourer of the Eden died this afternoon. I had been myself affected with feverish symptoms during the last fortnight, but, although so many persons were dying around me, I still maintained my cheerful spirits, to which circ.u.mstance I attribute the restoration of my health, which was now daily improving. I mention this solely for the sake of impressing upon others the importance which cannot be often urged, of not giving way to despondency in this insalubrious climate.

_Thursday, 10_.--The Fame, brigantine, arrived here on her way from the Camaroon river, bound to Liverpool with palm-oil, which afforded us an opportunity of sending letters to England: she sailed on _Sat.u.r.day_, on which day the Horatio filled, and sunk in Clarence Cove while in the act of heaving down. This event occasioned much trouble, and it required the a.s.sistance of two vessels to get her up again. The weather had been very unsettled throughout the past week, with a tornado during some part of each day or night.

_Monday, 14_.--The African sailed for the island of Bimbia to procure as much stock and vegetables as they could obtain. I regretted that a temporary indisposition prevented me from going, occasioned by a large boil in a highly irritable state, which is very common on this coast.

_Tuesday, 15_.--Mr. Mercer, mids.h.i.+pman of the Eden, who had sailed from hence in the Victoria, returned to-day in charge of the Elizabeth schooner under French colours, with upwards of 100 slaves on board. He had taken possession of her from the Eden's pinnace, while Lieutenant Robinson in the Victoria, went in chase of a suspicious vessel in another direction.

The Elizabeth was said to be from Guadaloupe, but from the testimony of her crew, and other circ.u.mstances, it appeared, that she had only got her French captain and papers from thence, and that she had sailed from St. Thomas's, under Spanish colours, where she engaged a part of her crew; the rest, with her Spanish captain, having previously joined her at Porto Rico. The Spaniard, who acted as captain in the outward bound voyage, remained at Old Calabar, to go back in another vessel, while he sent the Frenchman, with false papers, for the voyage home, knowing that the Eden's tender and boat were on the look-out for him at the mouth of the river.

_Wednesday, 16_.--Captain Owen employed himself in the examination of the papers and crew of the schooner brought in by Mr. Mercer. A short time before midnight, there was an alarm that a man had fallen overboard: every exertion was made to pick him up, without success. On inquiry, the unfortunate person proved to be Mr. Morrison, who had left England as schoolmaster of the Eden, and who, after the death of Mr.

Abbott, was appointed acting store-keeper to the settlement. For want of lodging on sh.o.r.e, he used to come on board every night to sleep. Upon this occasion, he had laid down in the hammock netting on the gangway, a favourite place with the young gentlemen, as most of the s.h.i.+p's company, as well as the Kroomen, and black labourers, slept on the deck. It is supposed, that on awaking, he intended going below, but being drowsy, he mistook the outside for the inside rail, and fell into the water. He struggled a very short time before he sunk, and it was therefore thought, that he must have struck himself against a gun, or the side of the vessel, in his fall.

_Thursday, 17_.--We this day hove the Horatio down alongside the Eden to a pinnace filled with iron ballast: the pinnace sunk during the night in a squall, in consequence of her iron ballast not having been taken out at sunset. Eighty-one adult female slaves, and some female children, were landed this afternoon from the Elizabeth.

_Sunday, 20_.--About two o'clock in the afternoon, Lieutenant Badgeley arrived in a Brazilian schooner, Ou Voador (The Flying-fish), which he had taken with 230 slaves on board.

_Monday, 21_.--The Victoria, Lieutenant Robinson, returned from Old Calabar to-day, without having met with any further success. Landed this afternoon, at the settlement, from the Voador, sixty male slaves, with forty-two women and children, who were to be employed, with an allowance of sixpence per day, and their provisions.

_Wednesday, 23_.--Fired a royal salute from Adelaide Island, in honour of St. George's day. The African returned with stock from the island of Bimbia. Landed sixty-four sick children, of both s.e.xes, from the Voador, their complaints being sore eyes, scurvy, craw-craws (itch), &c. The black mechanics and labourers, and their wives, shewed the greatest anxiety to take one, two, or more of these children under their protection, although they had been previously told that they would not receive any additional allowance for their support. One woman remarked, that as she had left her child at Sierra Leone, she wanted another in its place, to carry at her back; and before they obtained the Governor's permission for the indulgence of their wishes, they took the beads off their own necks to decorate their newly-adopted favourites. This philanthropic disposition was happily not confined to people of colour, (most of whom had fallen under the protection of the British flag, from similar situations, i.e. the holds of slave-vessels), as most of the naval, military, and civil officers, who resided on sh.o.r.e, also received boys under their protection.

_Thursday, 24_.--The Wanderer, transport, Lieutenant Young, agent, from Deptford, arrived this afternoon, with stores for this and Ascension island; and in the evening, the sloop Lucy, from Sierra Leone, with provisions for the settlement.

_Friday, 25_.--This afternoon, the two prizes, Ou Voador and Elizabeth, sailed for adjudication at Sierra Leone. The African left this evening for Old Calabar.

_Sat.u.r.day, 26_.--This evening the Victoria sailed to blockade the Old Calabar river.

_Monday, 28_.--The French captain of the Elizabeth, having offered his services to superintend one of the working parties of black labourers on sh.o.r.e, commenced the performance of that duty this morning. The last of the two horses brought from Sierra Leone, died to-day from a disease in the mysenteric glands. The Munroe, an American whaling brig, arrived this evening. Two men, who were taken ill with fever, were ordered on board the Eden, and there were still five of the Plymouth artificers ill with the fever on sh.o.r.e; one of whom was in a state of delirium. We had likewise several seamen suffering from fever on board.

_Wednesday, 30_.--Ware, a fine boy, about fourteen years of age, whom Captain Owen had appointed to attend me, was unfortunately taken ill with fever to-day, which gave me great uneasiness.

_Thursday, May, 1_.--Went on sh.o.r.e soon after daylight, with the working parties, attended by a new servant, and returned to breakfast. Went on sh.o.r.e again before dinner, this being my accustomed routine. I occasionally remained on sh.o.r.e the whole day, and sometimes at night; but I preferred sleeping on the deck of the Eden, where, on the top of the Captain's skylight, I weathered out many a tornado. In this situation, I was tolerably protected by the sloped awning from the violence of the wind and the heavy rain, by which it is always accompanied: but even a wetting, now and then, would have been preferable to sleeping in a close cabin, between decks, where, in spite of every precaution, the heat was intolerable.

_Sat.u.r.day, 3_.--We have had either a tornado, or heavy rain, with thunder and lightning, at some part of every twenty-four hours since I last noticed the weather. Another of the artificers departed this life.

We had cuc.u.mbers from the Garden of Eden for dinner.

The following is a list of the seeds that have been sown there by the order of Captain Owen, who gave it its poetical appellation.

Many of them were planted in December, 1827.

Early York Cabbage.

Emperor ditto.

American Cabbage.

Custard Apple.

Sour Sop.

Sierra Leone Plum.

Tomato.

Orchilla Weed, from St. Vincent's.

Do. St. Antonio.

Do. The Cape.

Do. Madeira.

Fruit Stones, from England.

Canna, or Indian Shot.

Large and small Pepper.

Balsams.

Pride of Barbadoes.

Madeira Broom.

Rose Apple.

Dahlia.

Sunflower.

Four o'Clock.

St. Jago Lilac.

Marigold.

Malta Turnip.

Spanish Onion.

Kidney Bean.

Lettuce.

Mustard and Cress.

American Cress.

Leek.

Cuc.u.mber.

Pumpkin.

Lime.

Lemon.

Orange.

Cocoa-nut.

_Sunday, 4_.--The American brig, Munroe, whaler, sailed to-day, on her return to her fis.h.i.+ng ground.

_Monday, 5_.--The African, schooner, arrived from Old Calabar, with a cargo of bullocks, seventy-six in number; also a small cutter from Sierra Leone, with rice, &c. for the settlement.

_Tuesday, 6_.--Captain Hurst, of the Wanderer, towed a very large fish on sh.o.r.e, and hauled it up on the beach for examination, the mate of that s.h.i.+p, after some difficulty, having killed it with a harpoon. The sailors called it a Devil Fish, because, perhaps, they had never seen one so ugly, or so large of its kind before. They endeavoured to describe it to me, as I was too late to examine it myself; many of our black labourers having carried away pieces of it immediately after it was brought to land. The head was formed like the concave of a crescent, with an eye near the end of each point, and a small orifice just behind each eye, like an ear. In breadth, it measured fourteen feet and a half, that is, from the extremities of the fins, or flaps, which resembled those of a skate; in length, seven feet in the body, and six feet in the tail.

A very pretty young native girl, about fifteen years of age, took refuge in our settlement this afternoon, and placed herself under the care of a fine strapping young Krooman, servant to Capt. Smith, of the African.

_Wednesday, 7_.--Forster, the marine, who was superintending a party on sh.o.r.e, was sent on board in a high fever to-day; and Thomas Welling, another of our Plymouth artificers, died this morning. We also found that our bullocks began to die very fast, without our being able to discover the immediate cause.

My poor servant lad has continued in a high fever ever since he was first taken; and this evening, about nine o'clock, his respiration became very low and quick (the rattles), and for a full hour no hope was entertained; but, at the end of that time, the alarming symptoms subsided; his respiration became more easy and natural, and after a composing sleep of several hours, he awoke with every prospect of recovery.

_Sat.u.r.day, 10_.--The Lucy, cutter, sailed this afternoon to procure stock from the opposite coast.

_Monday, 12_.--Forster, the marine, died last night, after five days illness; and, although the sailmaker was called to sew him up in his hammock before he was quite cold, the work of decomposition had already commenced, and the corpse was so offensive, that he had much difficulty in completing his object. This was a case of remarkable despondency. He entertained an opinion, from the moment he was attacked, that his illness would terminate fatally, and it was impossible to inspire him with the least hope; a state of mind which certainly tended greatly to the accomplishment of his prophecy.

The Victoria returned from Old Calabar to-day.

_Tuesday, 13_.--In the middle of the night, a heavy tornado came on; after which it continued to blow very hard from the eastward till noon, when the wind died away to a light breeze, and we had a very fine afternoon. In the evening, the Horatio sailed for Old Calabar.