The Drummer Therefore Recommended Them To Persevere In Their Inquiries, For He Had No Doubt That Something To Their Satisfaction Would Be Elicited.

At his own request, they sent him to the king immediately, desiring him to repeat their former statement, and to assure the king, that should he be successful in recovering the book they wanted, their monarch would reward him handsomely.

The king desired the drummer to inform them, that he would use every exertion, and examine the man, who was reported to have the white man's book in his possession.

On the following day, the king came to see them, followed by a man with a book under his arm, which was said to have been picked up in the Niger after the loss of their countrymen. It was enveloped in a large cotton cloth, and their hearts beat high with expectation, as the man was slowly unfolding it, for by its size they guessed it to be Mr. Park's journal, but their disappointment and chagrin were great, when on opening the book, they discovered it to be an old nautical publication of the last century. The title page was missing, but its contents were chiefly tables of logarithms. It was a thick royal quarto, which led them to conjecture that it was a journal. Between the leaves they found a few loose papers of very little consequence indeed; one of them contained two or three observations on the height of the water in the Gambia; one was a tailor's bill on a Mr. Anderson, and another was addressed to Mr. Mungo Park, and contained an invitation to dine. The following is a copy of it:

"Mr. and Mrs. Watson would be happy to have the pleasure of Mr. Park's company at dinner on Tuesday next, at half past five o'clock.

An answer is requested.

Strand, 9th Nov. 1804."

The king, as well as the owner of the book, looked as greatly mortified as they themselves did, when they were told that the one produced, was not that of which they were in quest, because the reward promised would not of course be obtained. As soon as their curiosity had been fully satisfied, the papers were carefully collected and placed again between the leaves, and the book as carefully folded in its envelope as before, and taken away by its owner, who valued it as much as a household god. Thus all their hopes of obtaining Mr. Park's journal or papers in the city of Boossa were entirely defeated.

At an early hour of Wednesday June 23rd, the king and queen paid the travellers a farewell visit, when the former particularly cautioned them against poison. They then expressed their acknowledgements to both the royal personages for all their favours and an hour or two after they had taken their departure, the Landers rode out of the city, accompanied by two horsemen as an escort, and a foot messenger to the sultan of Yaoorie. They journied along the banks of the Niger at an easy pace, and two hours afterwards entered a pleasant little walled town called where they were desired to halt until the following day the governor of Kagogie had been made acquainted with their intention, no less than three days before their arrival, yet no canoe had been got ready for their use, and when they expected to embark, "the king of the canoe," as the person who has the care of it, is ridiculously styled, informed them with the utmost unconcern, that it was out of repair, and that it would not be fit for their reception for some hours at least.

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