We Now Laid _Bases[251]_ Into Both The Boats And The Skiff, Manning And Arming Them All, And Went Again

Towards the shore; but being unable to land on account of the wind, we lay off at the distance of

About 200 yards, whence we fired against the Portuguese, but could not injure them as they were sheltered by the hill. They fired upon us in return from the hills and rocks, the negroes standing by to help them, more from fear than love. Seeing the negroes in such subjection that they durst not deal with us, we returned on board; and as the wind kept at east all night, we were unable to fetch the Hind, but I took the boat and went on board in the night, to see if any thing could be done there; and as in the morning we could perceive that the town was overawed by the Portuguese like the other, we weighed anchor and went along the coast to the eastwards.

[Footnote 251: Formerly conjectured to be musquetoons, or wall-pieces. - E.]

This town of John de Viso stands on a hill like that of Don John, but had been recently burnt, so that there did not remain above six houses standing. Most of the gold on this part of the coast comes from the interior country, and doubtless, if the people durst bring their gold, which they are prevented from doing by the Portuguese, we might have got abundance; but they are under such subjection to the Portuguese, that they dare not trade with others.

While coasting along on the 11th, we saw a small town about 4 leagues to the east of that we last came from. About half a league farther was another town upon a hill, and half a league beyond that another large town on the coast, to which we went to try what could be done in the way of trade, meaning, if unsuccessful, to return to the towns we had left behind, in hopes that the Portuguese would leave them on our departure. All the way from the castle of Mina to this place, there were very high hills to be seen rising above other hills, all covered with wood, and the coast was lined with great red cliffs close to the sea. The boats of this coast are larger than those we had seen hitherto, as one of them could carry 12 men, but they were still of the same form with all the boats along the coast. About these towns there seemed few rivers, and their language seemed the same with that at Don Johns town, every person being able to speak a few words of Portuguese, which they constantly used to us. About five o'clock P.M. we saw 22 of the native boats or canoes going along shore to the westwards, on which we suspected some treachery; wherefore on the 12th we made sail farther along the coast eastwards, and descried more towns, in which there were some larger houses than any we had hitherto seen, and from these the people came out to look at us, but we could see no boats on the shore.

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