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The chief was, however, unwilling to part with a canoe under any consideration, yet as a token of his friendship and regard, he offered to spare them one for twenty thousand kowries, in addition to their own canoe, which they had brought from Patashie.
The hammock-men found their burden rather troublesome, nevertheless they travelled at a pretty quick pace, and between eight and nine o'clock, halted at a pleasant and comfortable village called Etudy. The chief sent them a fowl and four hundred kowries; but they stopped only to take a slight refreshment, and to pay their respects.
However, by the dooty's recommendation, Mr. Park was conveyed to Moorzan in a canoe, where he hired another canoe for thirty kowries, which conveyed him to Kea, where, for forty kowries more, the dooty permitted him to sleep in the same hut with one of his slaves. This poor negro, perceiving he was sickly, and his clothes very ragged, humanely lent him a large cloth to cover him for the night.
He was the same person also, who decamped with Captain Pearce's sword, and a large sum of money in kowries. The fellow, however, on being taxed with his dishonesty, made very light of his offence, and with the utmost effrontery begged every thing that he saw, so that the Landers lost their temper with the scoundrel, and turned him out of the hut in disgust.
These boys agreed for fifty kowries to transport me and my horse over the river, which was effected without much difficulty, and I arrived in the evening at Taffara, a walled town, and soon discovered that the language of the natives was improved from the corrupted dialect of Bambarra to the pure Mandingo.
Independently of these trifles, as he termed them, he wished to Obtain half a dozen rockets, and a rocket gun, with a soldier from Cape Coast capable of undertaking the management of it; and lastly, he modestly ordered two puncheons of kowries to be sent him, for the purpose of defraying in part the expences, he had incurred in repelling the attacks of the men of Porto Novo, Atta, Juncullee; the tribes inhabiting those places having made war upon him, for allowing Captain Clapperton's last mission to proceed into the interior without their consent.
At this place I hired a canoe for sixty kowries, and in the afternoon arrived at Kea, where, for forty kowries more, the dooty permitted me to sleep in the same hut with one of his slaves. This poor negro, perceiving that I was sickly, and that my clothes were very ragged, humanely lent me a large cloth to cover me for the night. July 31.
The conference being brought to a close, a kid, a calabash of caffas, and two thousand kowries were presented to the Landers, and cheered by a flourish of music, they laughed in concert as a mark of politeness, and shook hands with the king, and walked away to their own dwelling, which had been repaired, and thoroughly cleansed for their use.
One man had already refused, and he had to tempt another with a promise of forty thousand kowries unknown to the sultan, who kindly took much pains to impress upon Clapperton the necessity of his return within twenty-six days, on account of the capricious character of the people of the place.
It was probably owing to this unsettled state of the town that I experienced such a want of hospitality in it, for though I informed the inhabitants that I should only remain with them for one night, and assured them that Mansong had given me some kowries to pay for my lodging, yet no person invited me to come in, and I was forced to sit alone under the bentang-tree, exposed to the rain and wind of a tornado, which lasted with great violence until midnight.
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