A Few Days Before Our Arrival, They
Had Stolen Twenty Head Of Cattle, And On The Day Following Made A Second
Attempt, But Were Beaten Off, And One Of Them Taken Prisoner.
Here one of
the slaves belonging to the coffle, who had travelled with great
difficulty for the last three days, was found unable to proceed any
farther; his master (a singing man) proposed therefore to exchange him
for a young girl, belonging to one of the townspeople.
The poor girl was
ignorant of her fate, until the bundles were all tied up in the morning,
and the coffle ready to depart, when coming with some other young women
to see the coffle set out, her master took her by the hand, and delivered
her to the singing man. Never was a face of serenity more suddenly
changed into one of the deepest distress; the terror she manifested on
having the load put upon her head, and the rope fastened round her neck,
and the sorrow with which she bade adieu to her companions, were truly
affecting. About nine o'clock, we crossed a large plain covered with
_ciboa_ trees, (a species of palm,) and came to the river Nerico, a
branch of the Gambia. This was but a small river at this time, but in the
rainy season it is often dangerous to travellers. As soon as we had
crossed this river, the singing men began to vociferate a particular
song, expressive of their joy at having got safe into the west country,
or, as they expressed it, _the land of the setting sun_. The country was
found to be very level, and the soil a mixture of clay and sand.
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