They, However, Pointed Out The Place Where The Boat Struck And The Unfortunate Crew Perished.

Even this, however, was done with caution, and as if by stealth, although in every thing unconnected with that affair, they were most ready to give the travellers whatever information they required, and in no part of Africa were they treated with greater hospitality and kindness.

The place where the vessel was sunk is in the eastern channel, where the river breaks over a grey slate rock extending quite across it. A little lower down, the river had a fall of three or four feet. Here, and still further down, the whole united streams of the Quorra were not above three-fourths the breadth of the Thames at Somerset-house.

On returning to the ferry, Clapperton found a messenger from the king of Youri, who had sent him a present of a camel.

The messenger stated, that the king, before he left Youri, had shown him two books, very large and printed, that had belonged to the white men, who were lost in the boat at Boussa; that he had been offered one hundred and seventy mitgalls of gold for them, by a merchant from Bornou, who had been sent by a Christian on purpose for them. Clapperton advised him to tell the king that he ought to have sold them, for that he would not give five mitgalls for them; but that, if he would send them, he would give him an additional present, and that he would be doing an acceptable thing to the king of England by sending them, and that he would not act like a king, if he did not. Clapperton gave the messenger, for his master, one of the mock gold chains, a common sword, and ten yards of silk, adding that he would give him a handsome gun and some more silk, if he would send the books. On asking the messenger, if there were any books like his journal, which he showed him, he said there was one, but that his master had given it to an Arab merchant ten years ago; the merchant, however, was killed by the Fellatas, on his way to Kano, and what had become of that book afterwards, he did not know.

Upon this, Clapperton sent a person with a letter to Youri. Mohammed, the Fezzaner, whom he had hired at Tabra, and whom he had sent to the chief of Youri for the books and papers of the late Mungo Park, returned, bringing him a letter from that person, which contained the following account of the death of that unfortunate traveller. That not the least injury was done to him at Youri, or by the people of that country; that the people of Boussa had killed them, and taken all their riches; that the books in his possession were given him by the iman of Boussa; that they were lying on the top of the goods in the boat when she was taken; that not a soul was left alive belonging to the boat; that the bodies of two black men were found in the boat, chained together; that the white men jumped overboard; that the boat was made of two canoes joined fast together, with an awning or roof behind; that he, the sultan, had a gun, double barrelled, and a sword, and two books, that had belonged to those in the boat; that he would give the books whenever Clapperton went himself to Youri for them, but not until then.

This is, however, not exactly what the sultan says, in his letter, of which the following is a translation: -

"This is issued from the prince or lord of Yaoury to Abdallah, the English captain - salutation and esteem. Hence your messenger has arrived, and brought us your letter, and we understand what you write; you inquire about a thing that has no trace with us. The prince or lord of Boossy is older (or greater) than us, because he is our grandfather. Why did you not inquire of him about what you wish for? You were at Boossy, and did not inquire of the inhabitants what was the cause of the destruction of the ship and your friends, nor what happened between them of evil; but you do now inquire of one who is far off, and knows nothing of the cause of their (the Christians') destruction.

"As to the book, which is in our hand, it is true, and we did not give it to your messenger; but we will deliver it to you, if you come and show us a letter from your lord. You shall then see and have it, if God be pleased; and much esteem and salam be to you, and prayer and peace unto the last of the apostles!

"MAHOMMED"

This may be considered as the conclusion of the information which was obtained respecting the fate of Park; although Clapperton expresses it to be his opinion, but founded on very slender grounds, that the journal of Park is yet to be recovered.

On leaving Boussa, Clapperton retraced his steps to the Cumbrie villages, and then turned to the south-south-west to another of their villages, named Songa, situated on the banks of the Quorra. About two hours above Songa, there is a formidable cataract, "where," Lander observes, "if Park had passed Boussa in safety, he would have been in danger of perishing, unheard and unseen." An hour and a half below Songa, the Quorra rushes with great force through a natural gap, such it seems to be, between porphyritic rocks rising on each side of the channel. Between Songa and this place, the river is full of rocky islets and rapids, and these occur occasionally all the way down to Wonjerque, or the king's ferry at the village of Comie, where it is all in one stream, about a quarter of a mile in width, and ten or twelve feet deep in the middle.

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