Notwithstanding This Nuisance, Both Children And Grown-Up Persons May Be Seen Sporting In The Mud, Whenever The Tide Goes Out, All Naked, And Amusing Themselves In The Same Manner, As If They Were On Shore.

The Brass people grow neither yams, nor bananas, nor grain of any kind, cultivating only the plantain as an article of food, which, with the addition of a little fish, forms their principal diet.

Yams, however, are frequently imported from Eboe, and other countries by the chief people, who resell great quantities of them to the shipping that may happen to be in the river. They are enabled to do this by the very considerable profits which accrue to them from their trading transactions with people residing further inland, and from the palm oil which they themselves manufacture, and which they dispose of to the Liverpool traders. The soil in the vicinity of Brass is, for the most part, poor and marshy, though it is covered with a rank, luxuriant and impenetrable vegetation. Even in the hands of an active, industrious race, it would offer almost insuperable obstacles to general cultivation; but, with its present possessory, the mangrove itself can never be extirpated, and the country will, it is likely enough, maintain its present appearance till the end of time.

The dwelling in which the Landers resided, belonged to King Boy, and stood on the extreme edge of the basin, and was constructed not long since, by a carpenter, who came up the river for the purpose from Calabar, of which place he was a native: he received seven slaves for his labour. This man must evidently have seen European dwellings, as there was decidedly an attempt to imitate them. It was of an oblong form, containing four apartments, which were all on the ground-floor, lined with wood, and furnished with tolerably-made doors and cupboards. This wood bore decided marks of its having once formed part of a vessel, and was most likely the remains of one which, according to report, was wrecked not long ago on the bar of the river. The house had recently been converted into a kind of seraglio by King Boy, because ho had, to use his own expression, "plenty of wives," who required looking after. It also answered the purpose of a store-house for European goods, tobacco, and spirituous liquors. Its rafters were of bamboo, and its thatch of palm leaves. The apartment which the Landers occupied, had a window overlooking the basin, outside of which was a veranda, occupied at the time by Pascoe and his wives. The whole of its furniture consisted of an old oaken table, but it was supplied with seats, made of clay, which were raised about three feet from the ground. These, together with the floor, which was of mud, were so soft and wet as to enable a person to thrust his hand into any part of them without any difficulty whatever. In one corner, communicating with the other apartments, was a door destitute of a lock, and kept always ajar, except at night, when it was closed. One of the sides of the room was decorated with an old French print, representing the Virgin Mary, with a great number of chubby-faced angels ministering to her, at whose feet was a prayer on "Our Lady's good deliverance." The whole group was designed and executed badly.

When the tide is at its height, the water flows up to the doors and windows of the house, which may perhaps account for its dampness; it is, however, held in very high estimation by its owner, and was called an English house. In general the houses are built of a kind of yellow clay, and the windows are all furnished with shutters.

There were several huts opposite the town, where the people make salt, after the rains are over; the water at present was brackish from the effect of the rains, but according to the information given by Boy, in the course of two months it will be quite salt, when they will again commence making it. It is an article of trade, and appears to be taken in large quantities to the Eboe market, where it is exchanged for yams, the kowrie shell not being circulated lower down the river than Bocqua. The principal employment of the people consists in making salt, fishing, boiling oil, and trading to the Eboe country, for not a particle of cultivated land was to be seen. The people live exclusively on yams and palm oil, with sometimes a small quantity of fish. They bring poultry from the Eboe country, but rear very little themselves, and what they do rear is very carefully preserved, and sold to the ships that frequent the river.

A little palm oil would have been a great luxury to the Landers, but King Boy would not give them any. Their allowance consisted of half a small yam each day, but on the evening after their arrival, his majesty being out of the way, two of his wives brought them half a glass of rum each, and four yams; this was a great treat to them, but a considerable risk to the ladies, for had Boy discovered the theft, it is more than likely that he would have had them flogged and sold.

Wet and uncomfortable as was their dwelling, yet it was infinitely more desirable and convenient than their confined quarters in the canoe, for here they had the pleasure of reposing at full length, which was a luxury they could not have purchased on the water at any price.

The Spanish captain paid them another visit, and left the town in the afternoon, on his return to his vessel. He informed them that slaves were very scarce, and obtained with difficulty and expense.

Richard Lander was now invited to visit King Forday, and he accordingly complied with the summons. His house was situated about a hundred yards distant from that of King Boy, and on entering it, he found him sitting, half drunk, with about a dozen of his wives, and a number of dogs in a small filthy room.

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