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Show 98 ON THE SLA VERY ANIJ CoMMERCF. fpirit of vengeance has entirely got the better of their avarice, and they have murdered, in cool blood, every individual, without difcrimination, either of age or fex. " The following is an account of one of thcfe fkirmilhes, as dcfcribed by a perfon, who was witnefs to the fcene. " I was fent, with fevcral others, in a fmall floop up the river Niger, to purchafe flavcs : we had fome free negroes with us in the practice; and as the velfels are liable to frequent attacks from the negroes on one fide of the river, or the Moors on the other, they are all armed. As we rode at anchor a long way up the river, we obferved a large number of negroes in • The writer of the letter of which this is a f:tithful cxtraCl:, and who was known to the author of the prcfcnt .Eff:~y, was a long time on the African coaft. He had once the misfortune to be 0\ipwrcckcd there, and to be taken by the natives, who conveyed him and his comp:1.nions a confidcrable way up into the country. The hard01ips which he underwent in the march, his treatment during his captivity, the fccnes to which he was witncfs, while he refided among the inland Africans, as well as while in the African trade, gave occafion to a fcries of very intcrcfting letters. Thcfc letters were fcnt to the author of the prefcnt EITay, with liberty to make what ufe of them he chafe, by the gentleman to whom they were written. " huts OF THE H u MAN SPECIES. 99 huts by the river's fide, and for our own iitfety kept a wary eye on them. Early next morning we £1w from our mafl:head a numerous body approaching, with apparently but little order, but in clofe array. They approached very fall:, and fell furioufly on the inhabitants of the town, who fecmed to be quite furprized, but neverthclefs, as foon as they could get together, fought fioutly. They had fome fire-arms, but made very little ufe of them, as they came directly to clofe fighting with their fpears, lances, and f.1bres. Many of the invaders were mounted on fmall horfes; and both parties fought fo~ about half an hour wirh the fierctfi animofity, exerting much owre courage and perfcverance than I had ever before been witnefs. to amongfi them. The women and children of the town clull:ered together to the water's edge, running flHieking up and down with terrour, waiting the event of the combat, till their party gave way and took to the water, to endeavour to fwim over to the Barbary fide. They were clofely purfued G 2 "" even |
