They Accordingly Pulled After Them As Fast As They Could, And They Were Following The Canoe That Had Attacked Them, With The Utmost Expedition, When They Were Hailed By Some People From A Large Canoe, Which Was Afterwards Found To Belong To The New Calabar River.

One of the people, who was apparently a person of consequence, called out lustily, "Holloa, white men, you French, you English?" "Yes, English," Lander answered immediately.

"Come here in my canoe," he said, and their two canoes approached each other rapidly. Lander got into the canoe, and put three of his men into his own, to assist in pulling her to the market. The people of the canoe treated him with much kindness, and the chief gave him a glass of rum.

On looking round him, Lander now observed his brother coming towards him, in the Damaggoo canoe, and the same villain, who had plundered his canoe was also the first to pursue that of his brother. The canoe in which Richard was, as well as the war canoes, hastened to a small sand island in the river, at a short distance from the market, and John Lander arrived soon afterwards. In a short time the Damaggoo people made their appearance, and also the chief of Bonny's messenger, having, like themselves, lost every thing they had of their own property, as well as of their masters.

The canoes belonging to the Landers had been lying at the island, but now the canoes were all formed into a line and paddled into the market-place before alluded to, called Kirree, and here they were informed that a palaver would be held to take the whole affair into consideration; and accordingly, a multitude of men landed from the canoes, to hold, as it may be termed, a council of war. The Landers were not suffered to go on shore, but constrained to remain in the canoes, without a covering for the head, and exposed to the heat of a burning sun. A person in a muhommedan dress, who they learnt afterwards was a native of a place near Funda, came to them and endeavoured to cheer them, by saying that their hearts must not be sore, that at the palaver which would be held, they had plenty of friends to speak for them. In the mean time about twenty canoes full of Damaggoo people had arrived from the various towns near that place. These persons having heard how the Landers had been treated, also became their friends, so that they now began to think there was a chance of their escaping, and this intelligence put them into better spirits.

A stir was now made in the market, and a search commenced through all the canoes for their goods, some of which were found, although the greater part of them were at the bottom of the river. Those were landed and placed in the middle of the market-place. The Landers were now invited by the mallams to land, and told to look at their goods, and see if they were all there.

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