A Voyage Round the World Part 8

With immense labour the guns were transported over the river, and conveyed to the height of the peninsula, where they were mounted on rough truck carriages. Thirteen African youths (attached to the United States Agency) were next exercised in the daily use of arms. A master of ordnance was also appointed to repair the small-arms, and to make up a quant.i.ty of cartridges, as well as to arrange minor details for service.

But their chief difficulties arose from the necessity of clearing the heavy forest from the neighbourhood of the town, and of keeping a constant nightly watch: a duty which required no less than the services of twenty men; but, arduous as these were, they were carried on with unremitting diligence by all whose health remained unaffected by the climate.

At the commencement of the third week after his arrival, the Agent was attacked with fever; and, a few days after, his wife, whose affectionate devotion had induced her to accompany him, was seized with symptoms fatally. The sickness, from this period, made so rapid a progress amongst the last division of emigrants, that, in a short time, there were but two of their number who were not on the sick-list.

Notwithstanding the domestic calamity, and the enervating debility which bowed the energies and spirit of the Agent, he continued, at every intermission of fever, to direct the operations of the colonists, and to organize such a plan of defence as he considered necessary to secure the safety of the settlement; so that, in the event of his death, they might not be deprived of their security.

To accomplish this purpose, five heavy guns were stationed at the different points of a triangle, which enclosed the whole town; each angle resting on a point of ground, sufficiently commanding to enfilade two sides of the triangle, and to sweep over a considerable extent beyond the lines. These guns were to be covered by musket-proof triangular stockades, of which two would be sufficient to contain all the settlers in their wings. The bra.s.s piece, and two swivels, mounted on travelling carriages, were stationed in the centre, ready to support the post exposed to the heaviest attack: these detached works were to be all joined together by a paling, intended to enclose the whole settlement; meanwhile, the Martello tower was to be carried on with all possible speed; and it was hoped that this, when completed, would almost supersede the necessity of the rest, and form an impregnable barrier to the efforts of any native force; while the tangled brushwood, and newly-felled trees, were to form a formidable and impracticable hedge forest side.

With all the details of this plan, the most intelligent of the colonists were made familiar, so that they might be carried into effect for the good of those who might happen to survive.

On the 8th of November, while these warlike preparations were still far from being completed, intelligence arrived at the colony, that King George, who, with his people, had previously evacuated the neighbouring town, and to whom the African youths had deserted, was advancing upon the settlement with a force, composed of such people, from among all the neighbouring tribes, as had the daring to set the authority of King Boatswain at defiance. Happily for the colonists, they had a means of acquiring intelligence of their enemy's deliberations and intentions, of which that enemy was little aware; a circ.u.mstance which enabled them effectually to guard against surprise, and of which the Agent took advantage to press the necessity of coolness and determination upon the attention of the men.

On the evening of November 10th, the army of King George made its appearance, at the distance of little more than half a mile to the westward of the settlement, where it encamped for the night. The number of warriors comprising this force, was generally estimated at nine hundred; but, as the chiefs were the only persons who could tell the exact amount, and each was afterwards interested to diminish the account of their individual subjects, it is probable that the force was much greater than it was allowed.

The most wakeful vigilance was kept up by the settlers throughout the night; but the out-piquet having imprudently ventured, in violation of their orders, to leave their station at the dawn of day, were immediately followed by the native force; who, suddenly presenting a front of ten yards in width, fired a volley, and then rushing forward, took possession of the post, towards which they had been so incautiously led, and from which the men were driven without having been able to discharge their guns. Had the enemy possessed the skill, or the self-denial to have kept their advantage, the colonists must have been utterly destroyed; but such was their avidity for plunder, that, abandoning every thing for the pillage of four houses in the outskirt of the settlement, they so far impeded and confused the main body of their army, that the colonists had time to recover from their panic, and, by keeping up a rapid fire with the bra.s.s field-piece, they brought the whole body of the enemy to a stand. A detachment of musketeers, with E.

Johnson at their head, was, meanwhile, despatched round the enemy's flank, which considerably increased their disorder, and, in about twenty minutes, the main front of the a.s.sailants began to recoil, but from the numerous obstacles presented to their rear, the entire absence of discipline, and the difficulty of giving a reversed order, without method, to so large a body, and added to all, the delay arising from their practice of carrying off their dead, their retreat was, for a time, rendered impossible; and the violence used by those in front, to hasten this measure, only increased the difficulties of its accomplishment. The colonists, perceiving their advantage, quickly regained possession of the western post, and brought their long nine-pounder to rake the whole line of the enemy, who, pressed together into so dense a body, that a child might have walked on their heads from one end to the other, remained thus defenceless, and exposed to the destructive fire that was poured upon them by a cannon of great power, at no more than sixty yards distance; every shot from this tremendous engine did immense execution, and savage yells filled the forest with horrible echoes. These gradually died away, as the terrified host fell back. At eight o'clock the well-known signal for their retreat was sounded, and immediately after, small parties were seen running off in different directions. One large canoe, employed in carrying a party across the mouth of the Montserado, venturing within the range of the long gun, was struck by the shot, and several men killed.

On the part of the settlers it was soon ascertained that considerable injury had been sustained. One woman who had imprudently, and contrary to express orders, pa.s.sed the night in a house outside the fortifications, and which happened to be at the point first attacked, received thirteen wounds, and had been placed aside as dead, (after incredible suffering she, however, recovered.) Another, flying from the house with two infant children, received a wound in the head, and was robbed of both her babes; but she herself providentially escaped. A young married woman, with the mother of five small children, finding their house surrounded, barricaded the door, in the vain hope of resistance. It was forced, when each of the women seizing an axe, held the barbarians in check several minutes longer; they were, however, speedily overpowered, and the youngest stabbed to the heart: the mother instinctively springing through the window to preserve her suckling babe, providentially escaped, but the babe recoiling through fright, was left behind and fell into the enemy's hands.

It was not possible to ascertain the number lost by the enemy, but it must have been very considerable, as it is calculated that the killed carried away by water alone amounted to not less than 150. Many others were conveyed along the beach on mats; and twenty-seven bodies were at one period found by a party of friendly Condoes employed by the Agent to remove them; and long after this action the offensive effluvia from the wood proved that the researches of these persons were still incomplete.

The numerical force of the settlers at this period amounted to 35 persons, including six native youths not sixteen years of age. Of this number, but one half were engaged. After this action it was determined to contract the lines, and to surround the central houses, and stores, with a musket-proof stockade, and before night more than eighty yards of this erection were completed.

The work was carried on with no other interruption on the following day, than the necessary one of burying the dead: and was so speedily completed that by the fourteenth of the month half the number of men were, by the contraction of the lines, relieved from camp duty: thus obtaining for each a larger portion of rest during the day, which enabled them to perform their night watch with renewed vigour. An additional gun was mounted and posted on the same day, and every hour witnessed some progress in the discipline or defences of the colonists.

It was at this period that a friendly message, accompanied by a small present, consisting of the country's produce, sent by Prince Tom Ba.s.sa, a chief of some distinction, inspired something like encouragement to the hopes of the desolate little band; but it cannot be denied that their despondency outweighed their hopes, on discovering that, exclusive of rice, there remained but fifteen days provision in store. Each individual was now placed on an allowance per diem, scarcely sufficient to sustain animal strength, especially when such constant demands were made upon their industry and vigilance. No supplies could be obtained from the natives, in whose hands seven infant children were retained as captives, added to which the enemy's troops, though repelled, had not dispersed, and the colonists remained in daily expectation of a fresh incursion upon their little territory; to complete all came the cruel conviction that their stock of ammunition was insufficient to maintain more than an hour's defence.

These considerations, as well as the fear that the infant captives might fall victims to their infuriated enemies, determined the Agent to make another attempt to open a treaty for peace with the hostile chiefs, and after great difficulty he succeeded in conveying a message to their council (then in the act of debating a second attack), descriptive of the wishes of the colonists to maintain peace, and of their equal determination to oppose an invasion, with measures still more destructive than those under which their a.s.sailants had already suffered. These negotiations being unsatisfactorily entertained for some time, a day of humiliation and prayer was set apart at the settlement, after which the preparations for resistance were carried on as before.

Fortunately, at this juncture a trading vessel touched at the Cape, from which the most pressing wants of the people obtained relief, and a few days after, a still more bountiful supply was received through the disinterested kindness of Captain Bra.s.sey of Liverpool, who, unsolicited and without prospect of remuneration, nearly exhausted his own stores to relieve the necessities of the sick and wounded, and presuming upon a long acquaintance with the people of these parts, he undertook to negotiate for peace; his efforts were however not successful; and immediately after the departure of his vessel a considerable army advanced upon the colonists; they, however, on their part were better defended than on the former occasion, and although the force against which they had to contend was more numerous and better disciplined than before, yet as the forest in the neighbourhood of the town was now converted into a wide plain, the a.s.sailants were obliged to approach under a fire from the cannon, the rapidity of which to them appeared like magic.

The natives sustained these destructive measures with surprising fort.i.tude and perseverance; several times throwing themselves on their faces to allow the shots to pa.s.s over them, and renewing their own fire immediately after each discharge. But a contest so unequal could not be long maintained--in seventy minutes from the commencement of the attack a final victory was accomplished; and the terrified fugitives dispersed as suddenly as they had appeared, many throwing themselves into the water and diving to avoid the shots that were fired after them. The loss on the part of the natives was supposed not to be greater than upon the former occasion, but its results were longer and more fearfully remembered. Three men belonging to the colony, serving at the guns on the eastern post were wounded, Gardiner and Crook dangerously, Tines mortally; the Agent received three bullets through his clothes, but providentially escaped without any bodily hurt.

There was at this time but little surgical knowledge, less skill, and no instruments at the settlement. Its dispensary was liberally furnished with James's powders and febrifuges; but for broken bones, and extracting pieces of pot-metal or copper ship-bolts from shattered limbs, there had been no provision whatever. A dull penknife or razor were subst.i.tuted for lancets; and for probes there was nothing to be had but pieces of priming wire; the sufferings of those compelled to carry in their cankering wounds the corroding metal, were indescribably afflicting; and served to exemplify, most completely, the cruelty of placing men subject to the casualties of war, beyond the reach of surgical a.s.sistance.

A movement on the following night, supposed to indicate hostility, induced the officer, on duty at the western post, to open a pretty brisk fire of musketry, with several discharges from the large guns. This, however, proved a most fortunate circ.u.mstance, for it was not only the cause of bringing immediate relief to the settlement, but was finally productive of the most beneficial results.

The English colonial schooner, Prince Regent, laden with military stores, having as pa.s.sengers Captain Laing of the Royal African Light Infantry, and a prize crew commanded by Midshipman Gordon, belonging to H.B.M. sloop of war, Driver, six days from Sierra Leone, bound for Cape Coast, was at the time in the offing (a little past the Cape). So unusual a circ.u.mstance as cannonading at midnight could not fail to attract notice, and the vessel lay to till morning, when a Krooman carried on board intelligence of the situation of the settlement, and was immediately despatched on sh.o.r.e with offers of a.s.sistance.

On the following day the officers landed, and kindly undertook to mediate on behalf of the colonists. An interview with the native Chiefs was without much difficulty procured, their warriors having dispersed, and themselves being overwhelmed with vexation and shame. After a little show of affected reluctance, they were easily induced to sign an instrument by which they became bound to observe an unlimited truce, and to refer all their future differences with the settlers to the arbitration of the Governor of Sierra Leone. It is scarcely necessary to remark that having no real grievances to submit, they never had recourse to this provisionary reference; from which time the colony has been considered invincible to native force, and consequently has been permitted to prosecute its plans in the utmost tranquillity, uninterrupted even by the semblance of war.

The death of the amiable and lamented Gordon, with eight out of eleven generous seamen, who volunteered their services to remain on the settlement to guarantee the truce settled by Captain Laing, was the first event that occurred to interrupt the general joy that prevailed after the consummation of peace; these gallant fellows all fell victims to the climate, within four weeks after the departure of the Prince Regent, on the 4th of December.

On the 8th of the same month, the colonists received fresh a.s.sistance through the friendly offices of Captain Wesley and his officers, whose vessel, a large privateer schooner, under Columbian colours, came to an anchor off the town. By the aid of mechanics, obtained from this vessel, the settlement was put into a superior state of defence, while the sufferings of the wounded were alleviated by the a.s.siduous attentions of a skilful surgeon. After conferring upon the settlers countless obligations during a term of four weeks, Captain Wesley's vessel sailed, bearing with it the sincerest wishes of a grateful people.

The Agent's health, which had promised improvement, sunk into a state of hopeless debility, and by the 16th of December, medicines utterly failed to produce any beneficial effect. It was at this period that a remedy of the most singular nature was presented to him by a French charlatan, who, accidentally touching at the Cape, offered his services; a drowning wretch it is said will catch at a straw, and from despair rather than hope the Agent submitted to his adviser, and consented to try the effects of his prescription. A potion, was accordingly prepared, of which one ingredient was _a spoonful of calomel_! Having administered this, the Frenchman proceeded on his voyage, leaving the patient to abide the consequences of his docility. Such, however, was the weakness of his system, that he could neither throw it off, nor take it into circulation for five days. The crude poison was then voided, and a distressing salivation ensued, in the course of which all other morbid symptoms disappeared: by the middle of February, he was restored to health and the active duties of his station. Two out of the number of captive children had been delivered up for a small gratuity; five still remained, for whose release an extravagant ransom was demanded, terms steadily rejected by the colonists. It speaks well, however, for the humanity of the natives, that their first object had been to place these young prisoners in the care of experienced nurses. These protectresses so entirely won the affection of their charges, that when the chiefs determined eventually to restore them unransomed to their parents, they were obliged to be taken from their nurses by main force.

The long illness of the Agent, had relaxed the principle of industry and order, which he had been so anxious to establish; and on his recovery he found that it required all his influence to rouse the colonists into those exertions, which were necessary to secure their comfort, and the safety of their stores, during the rainy season. The huts were still without floors, and except the storehouse there was but one shingled roof, so that through the thatch of nearly all, the rain could easily penetrate in continued streams.

The store of provisions was now consumed, and still remained unreplenished by any shipment from America, while the neglect of effective financial arrangement on the part of the Colonization Society at home, rendered it difficult for the Agent to make purchases from occasional vessels, and he had already a larger pecuniary responsibility, than as an individual he could justify either to himself or others; the productions of the country had been rendered available, but the few disposable goods which the settlers possessed were now all exhausted in their purchases.

Matters had arrived at this extremity, when, on the 12th of March, the welcome intelligence of the arrival on the coast of the U.S. ship Cyane, R.T. Spence, Esq. was announced, by a Krooman from Sierra Leone. By the judicious and indefatigable exertions of that officer, the hulk of the dismantled and long-condemned schooner Augusta, was again floated, and metamorphosed into a seaworthy and useful vessel, on board which Captain Spence placed a crew and a quant.i.ty of stores for the new settlement, under the command of Lieut. Dashiell. Not satisfied with these important services, he rendered the Agent's house habitable, and caused the Martello tower to be completed, chiefly by the labour of his own crew, before the 20th of April; and it is to be deeply regretted that the sickness which had begun to make fearful inroads in the crew of his ship, during her stay at the Cape, terminated in the death of no less than forty persons, soon after her return to America.

Dr. Dix, the surgeon of the Cyane, became the earliest victim of a too generous zeal for the advancement of the colony. The tears of grat.i.tude fell upon his grave, which was closed over his remains by the hands of a sorrowing community. The case of the amiable Seton is still more worthy of memorial, in him the blossoms of youth had just ripened into the graceful bloom of manhood, giving to a person naturally prepossessing, the higher ornament of a benevolent disposition, and accomplished mind.

He perceived that his services would be invaluable to the colony, and he became the voluntary companion of the solitary Agent. His conciliating manners, and judicious counsels, completed the conquest of public approbation, and rendered his decease (which took place on board the Oswego, five days after he had re-embarked for the United States), a subject of unmitigated grief to the whole colony.

The arrival of the above-mentioned vessel, bringing an accession of sixty-six emigrants from the middle states of America, with ample stores and a physician, terminated the difficulties of the colonists, and since that period, the settlement has continued rapidly improving in all those resources necessary to the comforts of peace; as well as in those means of defence which serve, at once, to repel, and even defy the incursions of war.

From this period the affairs of the colony have rapidly improved. In a short time after peace was restored, sixty-one new emigrants, and a supply of stores, under the charge of Dr. Ayres, augmented the resources of the colonists; but that gentleman was obliged, in consequence of the state of his health, to resign, at the close of 1823, the superintendance of the interests of the colony to Mr. Ashmun, who continued, until the period of his death, to act as princ.i.p.al Colonial Agent to the Society. To Mr. Ashmun's admirable management of the affairs of the colony, much of its contentment and security may be attributed. He purchased from its natural owners, all the territory he occupied; and as not an acre was taken without an equivalent, the natives were well pleased to cultivate an intercourse that was at once so profitable and desirable. In 1825, a number of fresh emigrants arrived, whose pursuits were of an agricultural nature, and as they desired to go into the jungle at once, and commence operations, a negotiation was opened with the neighbouring tribes for the purchase of land. The ground selected was a tract of about twenty miles, varying from one to three miles in breadth, lying on the navigable part of the St. Paul's river. The advantages of this accession of territory, consisted in the opportunity it afforded the settlers of dwelling on their plantations, instead of being compelled to live in the town, at an inconvenient distance from them; in the fertility of the soil, which was sufficiently rich to enable the emigrant to support himself and his family, a short time after his arrival; in making the agricultural settlement more available and compact; and in securing the trade of the St. Paul's river, which was an object of great importance. Subsequently to that period, other additions have been made to the possessions of the colonists; and, at present, the colony extends nearly 150 miles along the coast, and a considerable distance into the interior. The government of the colony commands eight trading stations, established on the purchased land for the convenience of, and intercourse with, the natives, from Cape Mount to Trade Town; and the prospects and advantages of the colonists, are every day improving.

The laws by which a colony so prosperous and happy is governed, must suggest a subject of deep concern to every man who is interested in any project, that has for its end the promotion of the well being of any section of his fellow-creatures. In this little colony, which has succeeded so effectually in securing the confidence and attachment of the natives, the utmost vigilance appears to have been exercised from the commencement, to prevent any dangerous precedents from being established, that might afterwards be cited for the defence of customs injurious to the interests of the settlers. One of the first principles adopted, even before the regulations by which the colonists were governed a.s.sumed the tangible shape of law, was that all persons born in the colony, or residing in it, should be free, and enjoy all the rights and privileges of citizenship known to the United States of America, which was taken as the model of the Liberian Const.i.tution in all respects, except that anomaly, the inst.i.tution of slavery. It must always continue to be a matter of surprise and regret, that a country which expended so much blood on the purchase of its independence, should sanction within its boundary the existence of slavery as a legal right.

The ermine is said to die if a single stain fall on its spotless skin, and one would suppose that the giant republic of the new world would be equally susceptible throughout her mighty frame of the taint of slavery; but, perhaps, there is a fine moral in the fact, to shew us that the works of man, even in his most elevated inspirations, must of necessity be imperfect. The wisdom and power of the G.o.dhead alone can produce perfection.

The colonists of Liberia resolved to avoid the error of the parent country. They began by banishing the very name of slave, and they have persisted in their resolution to keep themselves free. Under the provisions of their const.i.tution, the Colonization Society is empowered to make such regulations as may appear requisite for the government of the colony, until it shall withdraw its superintendence, and leave the colonists to govern themselves; the common law, as it is in force in the United States, is applied to the jurisdiction of Liberia. In 1824 a regular plan for the civil government of the colony was drawn up, and a digest of laws framed, which have been approved of, and are now in full operation. By this plan, the Agent is invested with sovereign power, subject only to the decision of the colonial board; munic.i.p.al and judicial officers are appointed; the choice of certain offices is vested in the colonists, subject to the approval of the Agent; and standing committees of agriculture, of public works, of colonial militia, and of health are appointed, whose duties are clearly defined and rigidly enforced.

The criminal code is singularly mild: the highest degree of punishment being expulsion from the colony, which is a very beautiful exemplification of the sense of honour and integrity that the colonists entertain, when, for the most flagrant violations of civil rights and good order, they deem it a sufficient disgrace and infliction to cast out the guilty person from all further communion, the property of the exile being given to his heir; or, in lack of an heir, reverting to the general stock.

The remarkable success which crowned the efforts of the settlers in Liberia, has subsequently led to the consideration of more extensive plans for the establishment of colonies for liberated slaves. Of course, in proportion as the circle of manumission is enlarged, the provision for the future welfare of the emanc.i.p.ated blacks must he increased:--with a double view, therefore, not only to prepare adequate settlements for their reception, but by the exercise of an active liberality to encourage the spirit of freedom which was found difficult of accomplishment at first, but which ultimately yielded to the energies of the opponents of the slave trade in America. Many attempts had been made in the United States to abolish, or at all events diminish the practice of slavery, bat in vain; for it appears, however startling and apocryphal the statement may seem, that the English Government, during the period that they exercised sovereignty in the Union, always refused to sanction the abrogation of slavery. Even so far back as 1698, the mother country rejected a proposition made by the a.s.sembly of Pennsylvania, to levy a duty of 10 per cent. per head on the importation of slaves; which was intended to operate as a prohibition. Indeed, one of the proximate causes of the Declaration of Independence (July 1776) was the unrestricted introduction of slaves. Soon after the American war had terminated, it was suggested as an appropriate measure, in fulfilment of views which had been so long defeated by the influence of English authority, to establish a colony on the coast of Africa, but the continued pursuit of the degrading traffic by almost all the powers of Europe, prevented the benevolent projectors from carrying their design into effect. Twenty years afterwards, the plan was revived, and the most strenuous exertions were made in the different States to organize a body of opinion, which should finally triumph over the self-interests and reluctant morality of the slave-owners. At this period, one of the difficulties which the philanthropic abolitionists experienced was the want of a suitable refuge for such slaves as they might be enabled to liberate. The legislature of Virginia, which contains nearly one-third of the black population of the Union, pledged itself to release all its slaves, if Congress would undertake to provide an adequate asylum for them. President Jefferson negotiated in vain for a territory in Africa, and the Brazils. The legislature of Virginia again renewed its pledge, and as much of the bigotry of former times had now been obliterated by the diffusion of enlightened principles, the renewal of the proposition was followed by the best results. General Mercer, familiarly designated as the Wilberforce of America, opened a correspondence with the princ.i.p.al advocates of emanc.i.p.ation, which ultimately produced the formation of the American Colonization Society, on the first of January, 1817. The labours of the Society were greatly facilitated by the laws of the Union, which left to each State the uncontrolled power of legislating for itself on the subject of slavery. The members of the Society had therefore merely to address themselves to the humanity and understanding of the slaveowners, in order finally to attain their purpose. The progress of moral truth, however slow, is always certain, and the issue of those proceedings has been such as the excellence of their object might have led us to antic.i.p.ate. Several of the States have already signified their willingness to forego all the pernicious advantages of slavery.

And the number of slaves offered gratuitously by owners in different parts of America, vastly exceed the present means of the Society to provide for them in Africa. The legislature of Maryland appreciate so highly the utility and importance of the settlement of Liberia, that they have voted in the first instance a considerable sum, to be appropriated annually to its support, and have subsequently, within the last six months, voted two hundred thousand dollars for the purpose of a.s.sisting in the formation of another settlement on the same principles.

It is, therefore, sufficiently evident, that what is now required to complete the united objects of manumission and colonization, is, not so much the consent of the slave-owners, as the power of carrying the design into operation. Mr. Elliot Cresson, of Philadelphia, an active and enthusiastic supporter of the cause, visited England in 1832, for the purpose of drawing attention to the subject, and of appealing to the well-known generosity of a country that has uniformly taken the lead in advancing the interests of civilization. A Society was formed, under the patronage of H.R.H. the Duke of Suss.e.x, with the view of extending colonization in Africa, on the same system which has proved so successful in the case of Liberia. The subject, unfortunately, did not excite the attention which might have been antic.i.p.ated, partly, I fear, because it was ill-timed, and was considered by the general body of Abolitionists, as a diversion tending to distract the public mind from the great question of emanc.i.p.ation, which was then undergoing anxious discussion; and partly, because it was considered by some, as a palliative likely to prolong the existence of slavery, in the same ratio as it diminished its evils. The selection of so unseasonable a moment for introducing the subject to the public, was influenced by the necessity Mr. Cresson was under of returning to the United States, but previously to his departure, the objections to the efforts of the Society were fully answered, and the important fact of the independence of each State, in reference to slavery, was stated in ample detail. From those statements it appeared, that the law of slavery, in some cases, prohibits--not only the emanc.i.p.ation; but the education of slaves, in order to render their bondage still more hopeless and oppressive: but that the efforts of the Society were gradually abating the rigour of those cruel restrictions. The Society has. .h.i.therto endeavoured, as far as its powers would permit, to extend the principle of colonization, by removing, invariably, with their own consent, such slaves as have the good fortune to obtain their freedom, to a spot where they were not only free from compet.i.tion with the white population, but where their education, imperfect as it might have been, rendered them the superior instead of the inferior cla.s.s: thus silently promoting the blessings of Christianity and civilization amongst the native tribes. Mr. Cresson, during his residence in England, distributed several ill.u.s.trative doc.u.ments, sanctioned by names of distinguished persons in the United States, and to which I am indebted for some of these particulars. From these doc.u.ments, were there even no other evidence, it may be fairly inferred, that Liberia affords uncontrovertible proof of the practicability of establishing colonies on the African coast, composed of persons of the African race, nearly, if not wholly, freed from the control of the whites; that the expense of establishing such a colony is moderate, not having exceeded, in the case in point, 4000l. per annum; that it is greatly favoured by the natives, with whom the colonists are rapidly extending their commercial and friendly relations to their mutual benefit; that it has not only placed a large number of manumitted slaves in a prosperous situation, but led to the emanc.i.p.ation of many, who must otherwise have still continued in bondage; and, finally, that it has completely put an end to the slave-trade in the immediate neighbourhood of the settlement, where that nefarious traffic was. .h.i.therto most extensively prosecuted. It is to be deplored, that although Great Britain has recently made a n.o.ble effort to abolish slavery in her own dominions, there are other countries which still sanction a usage so degrading to our age and religion. But a very short time since, several vessels were captured, the united cargoes of which amounted to a thousand slaves, and when we refer to the large proportion which the liberated Africans bear to the rest of the population in Sierra Leone, equal to about three-fourths of the whole, and consider the heavy expense at which this country endeavours to fulfil the serious responsibility it has taken upon itself in the liberation of these unfortunate captives, I am persuaded that all the particulars which can be collected respecting Liberia, will be deemed worthy of the most serious attention. My readers, therefore, will not, I trust, think that I devote too much s.p.a.ce to the subject, if I close my rapid sketch of the progress and fortunes of this settlement, with the latest information respecting it, which has been received in Europe. It is of a very recent date, and is from the pen of Dr. Mechlin, the Governor of Liberia:--

"The colony is daily adding strength and respectability to its character, and if even now all patronage were withdrawn, the colonists are fully capable of sustaining and defending themselves from any a.s.saults of the natives, and regulating their own concerns in such a manner as to secure the prosperity of the colony. A court, courthouse, and trial by jury, are established. At this moment, since the departure of Governor Mechlin, and until the new Governor arrives out, there are none other than blacks among the inhabitants of Liberia.

"The slaves who were captured and brought into St. Augustine, and Key West, after remaining in the United States from six to twelve months, were sent to Liberia, a quant.i.ty of land being granted to them there.

They have gone on to cultivate it in a manner equal, if not superior, to that of the colonists. They have been able to accomplish thus much from what experience they gained while in this country. These people arrived at Liberia naked; they have clothed themselves from the avails of their labour, and, what is rather singular, they have gone into the town to seek out for themselves wives, esteeming themselves too far advanced in civilization and refinement to form connexions among the natives, although they might obtain from among them much more comely persons than they are enabled to find among the very meanest of the colonists, from whom they are obliged to select. This fact alone shows, that but a small degree of civilization infused into this people, tends to the elevation of their character.

"The colonists of Monrovia are said to be much more inclined to trade than to cultivate the earth. The English and the French vessels which come there, have engrossed almost the whole trade of the colony, the Americans not being able to compete with them. Many of the natives come into the town, and are employed as labourers by the colonists.

The colonists also receive some of the children of the natives into their families, and send them to school. At different times the natives have made three or four attacks on the settlements, but have always been repelled with spirit; for the last year the natives have been very quiet and friendly. The colonists can bring into the field, if necessary, about 500 troops, which are considered a match for ten times the number of natives. Many tribes of these natives hold slaves, which are treated with much cruelty, and it is doubtful if even their masters are so well off or so happy as the slaves in our southern states. They are much less civilized and more ignorant.

"The people there called Kroomen, reside in the country. They come down to the sea-sh.o.r.e and pitch their tents, and launch their canoes, and, sailing all along the coast, they become pilots to the traders; and these are the men with whom the Spaniards trade for slaves. These Kroomen keep no slaves themselves, neither do they allow any of their own tribe to be sold as slaves; and they become of so much importance to the slave-dealers on the coast, acting as a sort of brokers, negotiating among the tribes for slaves, that they themselves, knowing their own consequence, do not hesitate to board a slave-vessel, and there is no instance of their ever being kidnapped."

The history of this little colony, which I have endeavoured to sketch from the information furnished by Mr. Ashmun, appears to me to afford matter for serious reflection. The principle involved in colonization is, I am aware, liable to some objections, and I am not indifferent to the arguments to which it has given occasion. But the strength of truth and reason seems to be altogether in its favour. The dogmas of Malthus maybe right or wrong, the statistical propositions of Mr. Sadler, and the philosophical deductions he derives from them may be right or wrong: with these querulous rhetoricians, I have nothing to do. But one thing is certain, that while the fertile earth, in any of its endless divisions, affords the means of sustenance, no human being ought to be suffered to want, because the notion of emigration does not square with certain opinions of a despotic school. That some countries are overpopulated in reference to the resources of their superficies is, I take it for granted, a fact above impeachment. That there is room enough on the surface of the earth for all the population it contains, is another truth which very few persons will be hardy enough to contest. The principles of Providence in the economy of s.p.a.ce appear, therefore, to be that the superabundant population of one place, shall seek in the uncultivated and scantily peopled regions of other countries, for those means of existence which are denied to them by the pressure of the demand on the soil at home. The immutable law of benevolence, drawn from the inst.i.tutes of Christianity, ordains the earth for the sustenance of man. But that law is perverted by those who resist emigration under the circ.u.mstances to which I have alluded. What is to become of the surplus population, if it be not allowed a s.p.a.ce wherein to fertilize the virgin soil, and supply its wants? If its own land denies it the means of life, must it die, that some philosopher may triumph in his doctrines?

It is very true that colonization frequently terminates disastrously, and that instances might be cited, in which emigrants have suffered terrible privations, and have even fallen beneath the insalubrity of unaccustomed climates. But these cases merely prove the necessity of adopting sufficiently precautionary measures, before the emigrant commits himself to a venture, upon which the happiness and interests of himself and his family altogether depend. If a man rashly goes out uncovered, and exposed, into a storm, he will surely run a chance of catching an illness: so too, if a man penetrate to the tropics, and carry with him the habits of England or France, he will certainly peril his life, for these habits are unsuitable to places where a vertical sun pours down its scorching rays upon the body. Every climate requires especial modes of conduct for physical const.i.tution. Brandy and water might be a very good beverage, and even a medicinal protective at the North Pole, but it would be ruinous if taken in excess at Sierra Leone.

It is because emigrants do not sufficiently study the situation to which they bend their steps, that they so often complain of failure. We have seen in the first expedition from the United States, that the project terminated fatally for nearly all the colonists; but why?

Because they went to a low marshy island, at the commencement of the rainy season, when disease in its worst horrors was just setting in.

How could they expect to escape a contagion, which they actually seemed to court?

If the example of the colony of Liberia were to be followed, if wholesome laws were laid down to regulate the movements of emigrants, and proper precautions taken, by which all the advantages of position might be seized, and the disadvantages avoided, I have very little doubt that colonization would ultimately prove a valuable safety-valve for society. The idle and wretched, who have no hopes or friends at home, might always be thus beneficially drafted off to infant states, where they could be made to labour, and where their recovered habits could be rendered subservient to the common good. At home they hang on the necks of the industrious; there they might be converted to useful members of the great community, improving the means of the social body, instead of deteriorating its morals, and wasting its resources.

---------- [19] This is a small bag filled with air, for the purpose of floating nippers that are attached to it, through which the line pa.s.ses, being intended to fasten itself to the line on the surface of the water the moment you check it on perceiving the lead strike the bottom, by which means more correct soundings are obtained.

CHAP. VI.

The Kroo Country--Religion of the Kroo and Fish men--Emigration of the Natives--Sketch of their habits and customs--Purchase of wives--The Krooman's _ne plus ultra_--Migratory propensities--Rogueries exposed-- Adoption of English Names--Cape Palmas--Dexterity of the Fishmen--Fish towns--The Fetish--Arrival at Cape Coast--Land with the Governor-- Captain Hutchison--Cape Coast mode of taking an airing--Ashantee Chiefs--Diurnal occupations--School for Native Girls--Domestication of Females--Colonel Lumley--Captain Ricketts--Neglect of Portuguese fortresses--A native Doctor