After A Siege Of Two Months, The Townspeople
Became Involved In All The Horrors Of Famine; And Whilst The King's
Army
were feasting in their trenches, they saw with pleasure the miserable
inhabitants of Sai devour the leaves and bark
Of the Bentang tree that
stood in the middle of the town. Finding, however, that the besieged
would sooner perish than surrender, the king had recourse to treachery.
He promised, that if they would open the gates, no person should be put
to death, nor suffer any injury but the Dooty alone. The poor old man
determined to sacrifice himself for the sake of his fellow citizens, and
immediately walked over to the king's army, where he was put to death.
His son, in attempting to escape, was caught and massacred in the
trenches; and the rest of the townspeople were carried away captives, and
sold as slaves to the different Negro traders.
About noon I came to the village of Kaimoo, situated upon the bank of the
river; and as the corn I had purchased at Sibili was exhausted, I
endeavoured to purchase a fresh supply, but was informed that corn was
become very scarce all over the country; and, though I offered fifty
kowries for a small quantity, no person would sell me any. As I was about
to depart, however, one of the villagers (who probably mistook me for a
Moorish shereef) brought me some as a present; only desiring me in return
to bestow my blessing upon him; which I did in plain English, and he
received it with a thousand acknowledgments.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 254 of 546
Words from 69120 to 69385
of 148366
