As soon as we had viewed the country a little, got fresh water, and
furnished ourselves with some victuals, which we found very scarce here,
we went on board again with our stores. All we got for provision was
some fowls that we killed, and a kind of wild buffalo or bull, very
small, but good meat; I say, having got these things on board, we
resolved to sail along the coast, which lay N.N.E., till we found some
creek or river, that we might run up into the country, or some town
or people; for we had reason enough to know the place was inhabited,
because we several times saw fires in the night, and smoke in the day,
every way at a distance from us.
At length we came to a very large bay, and in it several little creeks
or rivers emptying themselves into the sea, and we ran boldly into the
first creek we came at; where, seeing some huts and wild people about
them on the shore, we ran our vessel into a little cove on the north
side of the creek, and held up a long pole, with a white bit of cloth
on it, for a signal of peace to them. We found they understood us
presently, for they came flocking to us, men, women, and children, most
of them, of both sexes, stark naked. At first they stood wondering
and staring at us, as if we had been monsters, and as if they had been
frighted; but we found they inclined to be familiar with us afterwards.
The first thing we did to try them, was, we held up our hands to our
mouths, as if we were to drink, signifying that we wanted water. This
they understood presently, and three of their women and two boys ran
away up the land, and came back in about half a quarter of an hour, with
several pots, made of earth, pretty enough, and baked, I suppose, in
the sun; these they brought us full of water, and set them down near the
sea-shore, and there left them, going back a little, that we might fetch
them, which we did.
Some time after this, they brought us roots and herbs, and some fruits
which I cannot remember, and gave us; but as we had nothing to give
them, we found them not so free as the people in Madagascar were.
However, our cutler went to work, and, as he had saved some iron out
of the wreck of the ship, he made abundance of toys, birds, dogs, pins,
hooks, and rings; and we helped to file them, and make them bright for
him, and when we gave them some of these, they brought us all sorts of
provisions they had, such as goats, hogs, and cows, and we got victuals
enough.
We were now landed upon the continent of Africa, the most desolate,
desert, and inhospitable country in the world, even Greenland and Nova
Zembla itself not excepted, with this difference only, that even the
worst part of it we found inhabited, though, taking the nature and
quality of some of the inhabitants, it might have been much better to us
if there had been none.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account