extracts from his sable excellency's diplomatic correspondence. We can freely recommend his style to the European Kizellsour Malmsburies and Freres-or the paragraph writers of the East-as no bad models of conciseness and perspicuity. The following passage exhibits, among other things, the material difference between African and European princes.

'I went to Sumano with the head man I gave him the things you sent for him: he was glad, and all his people. I then showed them your letter. The young people were thankful for the word they heard, but there were some that did not like it. I then asked them, 'From the time your fathers began to sell slaves to this day, what have you got by it? Can any of you show me how much money you have; how much gold; how many slaves, and vessels, and cattle; how many people you have?' They said, none. Then I turned to their king: I asked him in what was he better than his people? He said he was the poorest: he said he only talked palavers when any one brought them to him to talk. I then asked him, what they gave him for his trouble? He said, nothing. I then told him, ‘Our king wants to make you rich; and you must hearken to what he says.' He said, that my king talked right; he wanted the country to be free. He then promised that he would give land for that good work, but that he cannot do any thing before he sees all the rest of the kings' p. 115.

Our diplomatist found himself, as happens elsewhere, counteracted by rival powers, viz. the slave-traders, whose interests were much endangered by his mission. The following account is humiliating to all who have real English feelings in their bosoms.

'I then went to Safer. There were 100 people there with the king. When I came, the first word was, 'Are you come? It is you that have got all the slave vessels taken out of our river. You are come to make war on us:' with much more to this effect. I told the king I was sent to him: why would he not hear what I had to say before he began to make these charges? There was a young man with the king, who said, Kizell, says he, is sent to you: why will you not wait till you hear what he has to say?' The king said this was right. I gave the governor's letter to him. He said, I should not read it to him: he had a white man that could read it to him. He sent for Crundell; and when he came, the letter was given to him. Crundell looked at it, and immediately cursed and swore, and raved: he told the king and his people that the governor was a nuisance: He is like Bonaparte: he wants to take the country from you. As for Kizell, he is the worst man the governor could pick out at Sierra Leone to send to you. Kizell is a troublesome, undermining man. The people of Sierra Leone want to take the country, as they have taken my goods from me,' (probably alluding to the capture of slave ships). I then got up and called Mr. Taylor, a mulatto man, who was present, to

bear witness to all that Crundell had said, as he would, sooner or later, be called to account for it. I told him I knew he did not want the slave-trade to stop: he wished to kill the people's children and to drink their blood. He said he did not know what I meant. As for selling slaves, God had ordered them to sell slaves: if God did not like it, why did he not put a stop to it? I told him that God had ordered him not to swear: why did he not obey him in this too? Mr. Taylor then told him, that what he had said against the governor was not right: the governor loved the people, and did not like they should continue in slavery: the letter he had sent was a friendly letter: if Kizell had not been a trusty man, the governor would not have sent him; Yet you, Crundell, tell the people not to hear him.' Crundell asked, why had they not rather sent him the act, and desired him not to sell slaves? but now he would sell slaves. I told him that he knew the law already, but that he wanted to fatten on the people's blood.' p. 116, 117.

In all his negotiations, Kizell found the utmost aid from the old treaty between the king of England and the Sherbro chiefs. But they did not fail now and then to complain of the British monarch for the slave-trading policy of his government. 'I told 'them,' says he, to look at Tasso: all the young people of that place had been sold: the town was now broken up, and had < none but old people in it. As I spoke, they all hung down 'their heads. They said, "All the letter says is truth: all you " say is the truth; we can say nothing against it." Then I said they must leave off these practices. They said, "They knew "that the kings of England and Sherbro were friends in the "old time; the old people had told them so: but the king of England had thrown them away, and had sent his ships to buy "them, although the agreement was, that they were not to be "sold, as they were his people." This was rather a home observation, and might have puzzled a more experienced and regular diplomatist. But our ambassador got out of the difficulty as well as Talleyrand himself could have done. He told them, I have heard so too; but it is a subject on which I can't 'give an answer. You must send a man to the governor, and he 'will give you an answer.' The following picture of the character and condition of the people, and of their king, is curious. We also see in it the effects of the slave-trade but too visibly.

I will now describe how the natives live in this country. They are all alike, the great and the poor; you cannot tell the master from the servant at first. The servant has as much to say as his master in any common discourse, but not in a palaver, for that belongs only to the master. Of all people I have ever seen, I think they are the kindest. They will let none of their people want for victuals: they will lend, and not look for it again: they will even lend clothes to each other, if they want to go any where: if strangers come to them,

they will give them water to wash, and oil to anoint their skin, and give them victuals for nothing: they will go out of their beds that the strangers may sleep in them. The women are particularly kind, The men are very fond of palm wine; they will spend a whole day in looking for palm wine. They love dancing; they will dance all night. They have but little, yet they are happy whilst that little lasts. At times they are greatly troubled with the slave-trade, by some of them being caught under different pretences. A man owes money; or some one of his family owes it; or he has been guilty of adultery. In these cases, if unable to seize the party themselves, they give him up to some one who is able, and who goes and takes them by force of arms. On one occasion, when I lived in the Sherbro, a number of armed men came to seize five persons living under me, who, they said, had been thus given to them. We had a great quarrel: I would not give them up: we had five days' palaver: there were three chiefs against me. I told them if they did sell the people whom they had caught at my place, I would complain to the governor. After five days' talk, I recovered them. Sometimes I am astonished to see how contented they are with so little; I consider that happiness does not consist in plenty of goods.

The king is poorer than any of his subjects. I have many a time gone into the houses of their kings. Sometimes I have seen one box, and a bed made of sticks on the ground, and a mat, or two country cloths, on the bed. He is obliged to work himself if he has no wives and children. He has only the name of king, without the power: hé cannot do as he pleases. When there is a palaver, he must have it settled before the rest of the old men, who are all looked upon as much as the king; and the people will give ear to them as soon as they will to the king.' p. 125-127.

So various is the condition of kings in different countries! From this and other parts in Kizell's letters, a king is in these tribes really regarded as a sort of evil or burthen; if we may use the expression-a bore. Thus he says, when a present comes to the king, he gets but little of it. If he is old, they will some' times tell him he has long eaten of the country, and it is time 'for the young people to eat as he has done. If the present con'sists of rum, they all must have a taste of it, if there is not more than a table spoonful for each. If tobacco, and there is not enough to give every one a leaf, it must be cut so that all may have a piece. If it is a jug of rum, the king gets one bot'tle full.' What a country this for poor kings to live in! The trade is really not fit for a gentleman. No revenue- no privy purse-no favourites no droits of admiralty-no sums for outfits, for fêtes, for separate households. Even the word of the poor prince goes no further than another man's; and, at a palaver, his promise is not listened to with more, if so much,

attention!

VOL. I. New Series.

So much for the king or prince. We also have some anecdotes of her majesty the queen, which we doubt not are sufficiently characteristic.

'I quitted that place, and went to Kittam to queen Messe. I gave her the articles you sent for her. All the old women and young people came to hear what I had to say. I then showed your letter to her. She said the present sent was not enough. I interrupted her, and said the governor did not send me to blind her eyes, but to open them; and to persuade her no longer to sell her people. On hearing this, all the young people gave a shout, and the women clapped their hands for joy. I saw she did not like it; but she said nothing. I told her it was she who had sold all her people, and that we meant to put a stop to it in the country if we could. All the young people shouted again, and said, 'the old people knew that they could not be sold, but that it was the young people who must be sold.' Then she said to me, if you come to stop the slave-trade, will you give me the old price for wood, rice, goats, and all other things, as in the old time?' I told her, I was not sent to fix prices; every man knew the price of his own goods: but as for you, you have changed the old price of your goods for that of your sons and daughters; the price you ought to have got for your goods you now get for your people.' The young people said, that was the truth. One old man got up; he said the letter was good, and they must give an answer. Then they appointed a day for me to come. On that day I went to meet them; but not one was to be seen, except three old men who were sick! I was much displeased, and told them to tell Messe, that as she and her people thought the governor not worthy of an answer to this letter, or of attention to his messenger, I would tell him of it: they had given us a great affront.' p. 141, 142.

Let us now see something of their parliaments and courts of justice. We have already had an opportunity of noticing how nearly they resemble some other countries in their love of long speeches. Every thing seems to be done thereby; and their length reminds us of the treason trials in 1794, when certain eminent lawyers were known to palaver (as it is called in Africa) eleven or twelve hours at a time. Kizell seems to have formed an high opinion of the eloquence and legal talents of his Sherbro friends. If,' says he, the people of this country had 'the same learning as Europeans, the best lawyer could not ex'cel them in words and speeches. They are a sensible people to 'talk to in their palavers. They will sometimes talk a palaver so well, that you would be both pleased and astonished with 'them. If you were to hear two of them speaking, and how ably 'they open a cause before they begin to enter into an argument about it, you would be surprised. In their palavers (councils or courts), they use a great deal of ceremony at the first; pre'senting mats, kola, or palm wine, to the old men. They then

"relate their story; the old men and the women sitting down to 'listen. A man stands by him who speaks, and repeats what he says as loud as he can; indeed, both speak very loud. When 'he has finished his speech, he sits down. His adversary then gets up, and begins, as before, with much ceremony, thanking 'the man who spoke against him for what he said. Having told 'his story, all the old men get up and say, they must retire and 'consider the matter before they give an answer. If the party 'losing the cause is unwilling to give it up, then the other will ask him, if he will go before the king to talk the palaver? If he says, Yes; then they must go to the king with their people. 'The old men are much respected: the king, with their ap'probation, appoints a time to hear the palaver; but before it begins, both parties must deposit a like sum (twenty, thirty, ' or forty bars) to await the king's sentence. Then the two men are called on, and all the old men and the women sit as before, 'while the accuser relates his complaint; another man repeating 'all he says after him. Every thing he says looks like truth, and ' very clear. But when he has done, the other party will get up ⚫ and deny all that has been said, and give to things a very dif 'ferent appearance. They have no jury, as we have; their old 'men settle all. Having heard all the pleadings, the old men go ' out in what is called the devil's bush,* and determine who is in the right.' (p. 131, 132.) We may remark, in this account, some of the etiquettes known in our legal and parliamentary oratory.

Beside these communications from the commissioners, the appendix contains extracts from the correspondence of Mr. Meredith and the missionaries, which are well deserving of attention; but we are prevented, by the length of the former extracts, from doing more than refer to them, as well as to all the parts of Kizell's correspondence which we have not noticed. A fact recorded by the worthy missionary we cannot refrain from noticing. He states, that in 1807, the number of slave factories on the Rio Porgas and adjoining rivers, was seventy-two; but that, in February, 1812, when he left Africa, this number had been reduced to eighteen, and it was supposed, that the operation of the slave-trade felony bill would soon put an end to the greatest part, if not the whole of these.

The report of the directors, after noticing the successful cultivation of many articles, as indigo, hemp, cotton, introduced into Africa by the care of the institution, concludes with a very interesting notice on the celebrated Mungo Park, and one

* A kind of consecrated grove.

† Mr. Brougham's bill, the 51st of the king.