But Placing No Confidence In Their Words, We Asked What Place That Was, And Being Answered That It Was A Portuguese Castle At The Western Head-Land Of Cape Three-Points, We Hoisted Sail And Put To Sea, To Look Out For Some More Friendly Place.

We now resolved to have no more reliance on the kindness of the Portuguese, of which we had thus

Sufficient experience, and to make trial of the hospitality of the negroes; for which purpose we sailed back about 30 leagues along the coast, and coming to anchor, some natives came off to the boat, to all of whom we gave presents. By this we won their hearts, and the news of such generous strangers being on the coast soon brought the kings son to our boat. On his arrival, I explained our sad case to him as well as I could by signs, endeavouring to make him understand that we were quite forlorn, having been abandoned by our ships, and being almost famished for want of food, offering him all the goods in our boat if he would take us under his protection and relieve our great distress. The negro chief was moved even to tears, and bid us be comforted. He went then on shore to know his fathers pleasure regarding us, and returning presently invited us to land. This was joyful news to us all, and we considered him as a bountiful benefactor raised up to us by the goodness of Providence. We accordingly fell to our oars in all haste to pull on shore, where at least 500 negroes were waiting our arrival; but on coming near shore the surf ran so high that the boat overset, on which the negroes plunged immediately into the water and brought us all safe on shore. They even preserved the boat and all that was in her, some swimming after the oars, and others diving for the goods that had sunk. After this they hauled the boat on shore and brought every thing that belonged to us, not daring to detain the most trifling article, so much were they in awe of the kings son, who was a stout and valiant man, and having many excellent endowments.

They now brought us such provisions as they used themselves, and being very hungry we fed heartily, the negroes all the while staring at us with much astonishment, as the common people are used to do in England at strange outlandish creatures. Notwithstanding all this apparent humanity and kindness, we were still under great apprehensions of the negroes, all of whom were armed with darts. That night we lay upon the ground among the negroes, but never once closed our eyes, tearing they might kill us while asleep. Yet we received no hurt from them, and for two days fared well; but finding the ships did not come for us, as they expected would soon have been the case, when likewise they looked to have had a large quantity of goods distributed among them in reward for their hospitality, they soon became weary of us; and after lessening our allowance from day to day, they at length left us to shift for ourselves.

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