I Naturally Felt Grateful To Him;
And As His Chief Wished ALL My Companions To Go To England With Me,
And would probably be disappointed if none went, I thought
it would be beneficial for him to see the effects
Of civilization,
and report them to his countrymen; I wished also to make some return
for his very important services. Others had petitioned to come,
but I explained the danger of a change of climate and food,
and with difficulty restrained them. The only one who now remained
begged so hard to come on board ship that I greatly regretted
that the expense prevented my acceding to his wish to visit England.
I said to him, "You will die if you go to such a cold country as mine."
"That is nothing," he reiterated; "let me die at your feet."
When we parted from our friends at Kilimane, the sea on the bar was frightful
even to the seamen. This was the first time Sekwebu had seen the sea.
Captain Peyton had sent two boats in case of accident.
The waves were so high that, when the cutter was in one trough,
and we in the pinnace in another, her mast was hid. We then mounted
to the crest of the wave, rushed down the slope, and struck the water again
with a blow which felt as if she had struck the bottom.
Boats must be singularly well constructed to be able to stand these shocks.
Three breakers swept over us.
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