At the end of the 18th century the Spanish island of Fernando Pô was almost abandoned. When the British undertook to put down the slave trade off the West African Coast, Fernando Pô became their head-quarters (in 1829); and for a time they were allowed to administer it by the Spanish Government, the British representative or “Superintendent” being made at the same time a Governor with a Spanish commission. But in 1844 the Spanish decided to resume the direct administration, and refused to sell their rights to Great Britain, though overtures were made to that end. Until about 1890 nothing was done to develop the resources of this densely forested, very fertile, but unhealthy island. From that time onwards, however, some encouragement was given to negro and European planters. From the island having been for so long under British control, there is a large population of English-speaking negroes, and English is understood in Fernando Pô much better than Spanish. These negroes are descended from a number of freed slaves from Sierra Leone. The indigenous inhabitants are a Bantu tribe of short stature and very lowly culture known as the Bube[85]. This tribe is distantly related to the people of the northern part of the Cameroons, and speaks an isolated Bantu dialect. Much development of cacao planting has recently taken place in Fernando Pô, involving the importation of foreign negro labourers from Liberia; but the interests of the Bube natives have been well protected by Spanish Dominican and British Primitive Methodist missionaries. ----- Footnote 76: In 1490. Footnote 77: Or the rock, or “Peñon,” overlooking the town, seized and garrisoned by Cardinal Ximenez in 1509. It was taken by Khaireddin, the Turkish corsair, in 1530. Footnote 78: Held by Spain from 1535 to 1574. Footnote 79: The following is a _résumé_ of the history of the first intervention of Turkey in Barbary. In 1504 Uruj (Barbarossa I), a pirate of mixed Turco-Greek origin, attracted by the rumours of American treasure-ships in the western Mediterranean, captured Algiers (1516) and Tlemsan (1517); but he was defeated and killed by the Spaniards coming from Oran. His younger brother Khaireddin (Barbarossa II) appealed to Turkey, which had just (1518) conquered Egypt, and received from Sultan Selim the title of Turkish Beglerbeg of Algiers and a reinforcement of 2000 Turks. He mastered almost all Algeria, was made Admiral of the Turkish fleet in 1533, captured Tunis in 1534, was driven out by Charles V, and retired to Turkey in 1535. His successors were sometimes Sardinian, Calabrian, Venetian, Hungarian renegades; but among the more celebrated was Dragut, a Turk of Karamania. Footnote 80: Susa, Sfax, and Monastir, which were lost to the Turks by 1550.