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Updated: June 29, 2025
Their surprise was, however, great indeed, when instead of the proper person whom they expected would have received them, they were welcomed on shore by a man called Ducoo, who represented himself as the agent and confidential friend of the prince of Rabba, but their surprise was not a little increased on learning that a party of forty or fifty armed Fellata soldiers were also in the town.
They had not the means of purchasing the canoes of the chief of Patashie, as the king of Wowow had adroitly managed to exhaust them of nearly all their resources; but when they began to talk of prosecuting their journey in the canoes belonging to the chief of Patashie, the canoe men stoutly resisted their right: fortunately, however, for them, their busy, restless friend Ducoo interfered on their behalf, and soon silenced their remarks, by threatening to cut off the head of him who should presume from that time to set foot in either of the canoes; and in order to give his menace the greater weight, he stationed two of his men to guard the forbidden boats till the sun went down, with drawn swords, and during the greater part of the night, another of his men paraded up and down the banks of the river near the spot as a watch, and this man kept up a noise by continually playing on a drum.
With the most insolent effrontery in the world, Ducoo smiled at them, and replied, that they were entirely in his power that they should do as he liked, and quit the town whenever he thought proper.
Repairing, therefore, to a hut, in which they knew the chief passed the greater part of his time, they discovered him sitting on the ground in company with the artful Ducoo and the Nouffie messenger, and engaged in a very high dispute with both of them.
Ducoo treated them with the courtly politeness of a Frenchman, and was equally lavish in his compliments and offers of service; he walked with them to the chief of the town, to whom he took the liberty of introducing them, almost before he knew himself who or what they were; went himself and procured excellent lodgings for them, returned and sat down in their company to tell them some droll stories, and impart to them in confidence some very disagreeable news; then hastily arose, went out, and came back again with a sheep and other provisions, which he had obtained by compulsion from the chief, and finally remained with them till long after the moon had risen, when he left them to their repose.
The people were ashamed of themselves to see them labouring so hard, and to so little purpose, and Ducoo likewise, observing them, was convinced that they were in earnest, therefore, whispering a few words in the ear of the chief, they both came down to the spot, where they were toiling at the canoe, followed by a number of men; these, with the priest at their head, took the work out of their hands, and in less than two minutes the boat was floating on the water.
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