Appearance of the Coast to the North of Delagoa
Bay—Facility of Shipping Slaves—Slavers’ Signals—Rivers
Lagoa and Inhampura—Cape Corrientes—“Sail, ho!”—The
Chase—“Zambesi”—Ex-Governor Leotti—A Slaver Clears from
Cardiff—Inhambane—Products—Mineral Wealth.
Soon after anchoring in Delagoa Bay, and while the boat was getting
ready to take Captain Gordon and myself on shore, the Captain of an Arab
brig, lying at anchor opposite to the town, came on board the “Hermes,”
accompanied by some other Arabs. These Arabs or Moors recognized Mr.
Soares, to whom they appeared to be well-known, and they willingly took
charge of some dispatches for the Governor of Lourenço Marques.
The delivery of these dispatches was the only cause of our visiting the
bay, besides that of looking in to see if the “Minnetonka,” or some other
slaver, might not be loading with a cargo of slaves, provided for her
by the accommodating Governor Mochado, of whom we shall have to speak
further during this truthful narrative.
Finding the “Minnetonka” could neither be seen nor heard of at Delagoa
Bay, after a stay of only two hours, we proceeded in search of her to the
northward; steaming close in shore up to Cape Corrientes, which we had
heard at Natal was the point on the coast which she was to make.
Steaming along this coast, we remarked that all the trees, or rather
bushes (for they were not higher), close along the sandy beach, had an
inclination towards the south-west, showing the fury with which the
hurricanes, coming down the Mozambique Channel, strike this coast from
the north-east.
Numbers of the natives came down to the coast, and kept company with
the ship by running along the sandy beach. Along nearly the whole of
this coast, it is quite apparent that, if the native chiefs are willing,
slavers can easily ship their cargoes; for there are few places where a
vessel could not anchor, send the planks of her slave-deck on shore, and
with these construct a raft, and warp it, laden with negroes, from the
shore to the ship.
In all these parts the slave-dealers must have agents to procure the
natives they require to keep up a regular supply for the traffic. On
the high ridge of land running parallel to the beach, and at from three
to ten miles inland, might be observed fires lighted up to herald our
approach. At times we could almost imagine that we were overtaking these,
but when we came nearly abreast of the latest beacon, and were keeping
a bright look out for our anticipated prize, another and yet another
fire on the hills would tell how we were baffled, and how well the
slave-dealers were served. Of course this could only have been done with
the connivance of the native chiefs; and while it shows how fearfully
the Portuguese have abused their position on this coast, it convinces
one that they are not without influence among the natives, and that if
they can use it for such a purpose, they might be equally successful in
employing it in ameliorating the condition of the blacks, whom they now
use only as objects of barter with the man-stealer. The natives observed
on shore were armed with lances, and bows, and arrows; and viewing them
through the telescope, they looked a well-developed, warlike race. The
natives between Delagoa Bay and Sofala have always been a subject of
great anxiety to the Portuguese ever since their settlement in Eastern
Africa.
There are numerous rivers running down to the coast to the southward of
Inhambane, and indeed it is said to be one of the best watered portions
of this side of the great continent. Some of these rivers are navigable
for small craft; but all are more or less difficult of access in
consequence of the bars at their entrance, formed by their own deposit at
their mouths, being acted upon by the stream already named and the local
monsoons.
The rivers Lagoa and Inhampura, the former in latitude S. 25° 21′, and
the latter nine miles further to the northward, being in latitude 25°
12′ S., are both said to be navigable for some distance, and give a ready
access to a country abounding in the richest productions of this coast.
But the blight of slavery is on the whole district; and the knowledge of
the natives of this part regarding Europeans is that the object of the
white man in approaching them is to make slaves of them. For more than
three centuries the Portuguese have been located at the neighbouring town
of Inhambane, and during the whole of that time the unfortunate child of
Africa has been taught to believe this. Three centuries is a long time
for a barbarian people to hold such a belief. How much longer shall this
continue?
Coming abreast of Cape Corrientes early on the morning of the 11th of
July, we could see our approach heralded from hill to hill by the beacon
fires which were immediately lighted.
North and south the smoke of these fires was seen as far as the eye could
reach, alarming the whole coast.
Off Cape Corrientes nothing like a vessel could be seen, but, while
searching the bight of land between Cape Wilberforce and Barrow Hill, a
sail was reported from the mast-head.
“Where away?”
“Two points on the starboard bow, sir.”
“Port!—port the helm!”
“Port it is, sir!”
“The sail bears right ahead now, sir.”
“Very well. Steady as she goes, quartermaster!”
“Steady it is, sir!”
“Engine-room, there!”
“Sir.”
“Draw forward the fires under the spare boiler, and set on full speed!”
“Ay, ay, sir!”
“How is her head, master?”
“East-north-east, sir!”
“Steer very steady.”
“Ay, ay, sir.”
Such were the rapid questions and answers exchanged immediately after the
cry of “Sail, ho!” from the mast-head man.
The shovelling of coal, and banging of furnace doors, might be
distinctly heard from the engine-room, on the quarter-deck.
The whole ship was in a commotion. Cape Corrientes in sight, and a
strange sail reported to seaward.
The ward-room officers had just sat down to dinner, when the cry of
“Sail, ho!” made them all, with the exception of the doctor, who was too
fond of creature comforts, rush upon deck. The master repaired to the
steering-wheel, to superintend the steerage of the vessel.
The senior lieutenant walked quietly forward to the forecastle,
and cast his scrutinizing eyes on the “long gun,” and then on the
stranger. The second lieutenant, unbidden, bent his way up the
fore-rigging, his telescope slung over his shoulder, and perched
himself on the fore-topmast crosstrees. Over his head, leaning on the
fore-top-gallant-yard, he perceived Mr. Bliss, telescope in hand,
examining the stranger.
Mr. Midshipman Bliss, who had kept the forenoon watch, having dined, and
worked out the position of the ship, for want of some more interesting
occupation, had betaken himself to sleep, and was having a very
comfortable “caulk” when the cry of “Sail, ho!” had disturbed him in a
pleasant dream of home and promotion.
With a sort of instinct he rushed immediately to the mast-head, and
although only half awake, he was able to make out that the stranger was
long, low, and rakish.
To the lieutenant’s hurried inquiry, “What do you make of her?” Mr. Bliss
replied, “Well, sir, I do not know whether it is the haze or the sleep in
my eyes, but she appears to loom very large.”
After overhauling her with his glass, the lieutenant remarked that she
was “long, low, and rakish, but did not look much of a craft.”
Meanwhile, the steam was getting up in all the boilers, and the “Hermes”
was closing on the chase.
The gunner was moving mysteriously about the deck with priming wires,
vent bits, and detonating matches, evidently bent on mischief.
The watch below had all gone on deck, and the ship’s deck was crowded
with anxious faces directed towards the chase.
The senior lieutenant, who was no stranger in these waters, having served
as a midshipman in the ship of a well-known commodore on this station,
spoken of to this day as “Old Ben Wyvell,” suddenly turned round, and
facing the “bridge” on which the captain was looking out, exclaimed,
“She’s about, sir—the chase has tacked.”
At the same moment the middy’s voice from the mast-head was heard:—
“The chase is in stays, sir!”—indicating that she was going about on the
other tack.
Soon after, the stranger was observed to bear up, and crowding all sail,
to steer for the land.
The excitement throughout the ship was now at its greatest pitch.
Soon after it was reported that negroes in great numbers were observed
upon her deck.
Meanwhile, the chase was kept upon the same bearing, and, as the two
vessels neared each other, for we gained on the chase, they approached
closer and closer to the land.
We were now off the harbour of Inhambane; and it was evidently the
intention of the stranger either to beach herself, or to run into
Inhambane harbour, under the protection of the fort, when we could not
board her without the sanction of the Portuguese authorities.
The vessel was urged to the utmost, under the power of steam; but still
it was evident that the stranger sailed well, and, under her crowd of
canvas, it was feared that she might attain one of the two objects which
she had evidently in view.
During the whole of the chase, the “Hermes” displayed the British ensign
and pennant, but the stranger showed no colours.
At last, moments became hours, and the stranger stood boldly on to
destruction on the reefs, or safety under the Portuguese flag at
Inhambane.
“Clear away the ‘long gun,’ and load with blank!”
In a minute was heard the report, “The gun is ready, sir!”
“Very good—Fire!”
Bang went the fifty-six pounder, and when the smoke cleared away, the
stranger was seen holding on the same course.
Meanwhile we had shoaled our water, and the “leads-men” were ordered
“into the chains.”
Numbers of negroes might now be seen with the naked eye, on the deck of
the stranger, which was a large brigantine, evidently armed to fight her
way, as the muzzles of one or two guns were observed protruding from her
side.
“Forecastle, there!”
“Sir?”
“Load again—with shot!”
“Ay, ay, sir.”
“All ready, sir.”
“Who fires the gun?”
“Mr. Carr, sir, the gunner.”
“Tell him to drop a shot under the stern of the chase; but to be careful
not to strike her!”
“Now, Mr. Carr, you hear the order—‘Drop a shot under her stern, but do
not strike her.’”
“Very good, sir!” “Muzzle to the right,” “Muzzle to the
left”—“Well”—“Elevate”—“Lower”—“Well”—“Fire!”
Bang went the gun, and the shot was seen to strike the water close to the
taffrail; the water splashing over the quarter-deck of the chase. This
appeared somewhat to alarm those on board. A flag was hoisted abaft, but
being rolled up, it was impossible to make out what colours she displayed.
Still the stranger held on her course, every moment, apparently, hurrying
her and all on board to destruction.
“With shot, load!”
“All ready, sir!”
“Fire across her bows, but be careful you do not strike her!”
“Ay, ay, sir.”
In less than a minute, a fifty-six pound shot dropped under the bow of
the stranger, covering her bowsprit with a cloud of foam. This appeared
to bring her commander to his senses, for the anchor was immediately let
go, and amidst the din of the chain-cable rattling out of the hawse-hole,
and the most fearful yelling and shouting—interspersed with which might
be heard the stentorian lungs of a ruffian uttering the most awful oaths,
in the vilest of Portuguese—she came head to wind.
As for ourselves, the leads-men’s cry of a “half-three” told us that we
were just on the reefs. By stopping and reversing the engines quickly,
the “Hermes” was saved; but a few yards further, and we would have been
on the coral reefs outside of Inhambane harbour.
As soon as the safety of H.M.S. “Hermes” would allow, a boat, with a
lieutenant in command, was sent to board the stranger, which, now that
she was at anchor, was observed to display the Portuguese ensign and
pennant.
On the return of the boat, we learned that the stranger’s name was the
“Zambesi;” that her rig was that of a patacheo or brigantine; that she
was a vessel of war, belonging to His Most Faithful Majesty Don Pedro
the Fifth, King of “Portugal and Algarves;” and that she had on board
of her a Moor, who stated that he was in temporary command of her,
while embarked with him was no less a personage than His Excellency
the Ex-Governor of Inhambane. The Moor appeared to be entirely under
the orders of the Ex-Governor of Inhambane, who wore the uniform of
a Portuguese naval officer; and, when asked why he had not hove-to
and communicated with a steamer, which, from her English ensign and
appearance, must have been known at once for one of Her Britannic
Majesty’s cruisers, he referred the lieutenant to the Ex-Governor of
Inhambane. This officer, who was very much confused, could, or would
not, give any explanation of his personating a slaver, by which we had
lost valuable time, and perhaps a prize, and Her Majesty’s ship had been
greatly jeopardized.
We subsequently learned that the Ex-Governor of Inhambane was Señhor
Leotti, a Capitain de Corvette in the Portuguese Navy, and that he had
left Inhambane that morning, after an ineffectual attempt to usurp the
government from his successor, Major Olliveira.
It will be further shown, during the course of this personal narrative,
that this Captain Leotti, a commander in the Portuguese navy, had in the
“Zambesi” schooner, belonging to the Royal Navy of Portugal, communicated
with the “Minnetonka” slaver that we were in search of on the first of
July, the very day, it will be recollected, that we anchored off Port
Natal, in the “Hermes.”
It will be proved by the clearest evidence, taken on oath, in documents
laid before the British Parliament, that this slaver, the “Minnetonka,”
lay at anchor off Barrow Hill, outside of Inhambane harbour, flying
American colours; that while so lying at anchor off Inhambane, where she
had anchored for a cargo of slaves, the Portuguese schooner “Zambesi,”
with the ensign and royal pennant of Portugal flying, approached the
slaver “Minnetonka,” and instead of capturing her, as she was bound to
do by treaties with Great Britain (for the slaver was within gun-shot
distance of the beach), made arrangements for supplying the slaver
“Minnetonka” with slaves.
And it will be shown that when the British consul asked the
Governor-general of Mozambique for a copy of the sentence of the court
which had acquitted the Ex-Governor Leotti, and the Moor commanding the
“Zambesi,” of the charge made against them, the consul’s house was mobbed
by natives sent by the slave-dealers to endeavour to intimidate him;
and during the stoning, which was indulged in by the natives against
his house, his wife was wounded. All these things will be seen; and the
reader is only now advised to bear in mind what has already been seen of
the “Zambesi,” and those on board of her.
The harbour of Inhambane forms the mouth of a large river which has
hitherto been unexplored, and is by some believed to be the Limpopo.
Sufficient is, however, known to justify one in stating that it
communicates with the interior for a great extent, and that the country
through which it has its course is rich in all the products of Eastern
Africa.
Timber, of a large and superior quality, may be had in considerable
quantities, while the harbour offers every facility for loading vessels
with it. But, at the same time, it is proper to state that a cargo of
timber has not been sent from this harbour within the memory of man; the
only trade carried on being that in human beings.
Shortly before we arrived off the port, a large vessel had gone into the
harbour, partly laden with coals. While going in, it appears she struck
on the reef, and suffered considerable damage.
I was afterwards favoured with the history of this vessel by the
Governor-general of the province of Mozambique. His Excellency’s
statement was as follows:—
That a large three-masted vessel, under Spanish or English colours—he
was not certain which—had loaded with a cargo of coals at Cardiff, in
South Wales, in 1856, and had cleared for the Philippine Islands. As soon
as the master of the vessel found himself to the eastward of the Cape
of Good Hope, he commenced throwing the coals overboard, and arrived at
Inhambane with only sufficient coals to serve as ballast. On his arrival
in the harbour, he endeavoured to repair the damage sustained while
entering it, and for this purpose he placed the vessel on the beach.
While undergoing the necessary repairs, she was irreparably injured
in consequence of not having been shored up properly, and the captain
abandoned her. He had gone into Inhambane for the purpose of receiving a
cargo of slaves, arrangements for which, it appears, had previously been
made by parties in England.
I endeavoured to obtain the name of this vessel, in order to trace those
connected with her; but I was told that the name had been carefully
obliterated from her stern, and also from her main hatchway, where some
said they had seen it. The different names given to me as belonging
to the vessel were certainly English, but I was not able to satisfy
myself fully as to the truth of her being an English vessel. The
Governor-general told me that the captain said that he had destroyed all
the papers before visiting Mozambique, where he repaired after the wreck
of his vessel. The captain spoke English and Spanish fluently.
From the intimate acquaintance which some merchants in England have with
notorious slave-dealers at Mozambique, I am inclined to credit statements
which have been made relative to British capital being engaged in this
horrid traffic in our fellow-beings.
It will be seen in subsequent pages that I have brought under the notice
of the government that an English vessel was employed to seize natives in
the Pacific, and convey them to the French island of Réunion, where they
were sold at 40_l._ sterling per head.
The town of Inhambane consists of a few ill-built houses, thatched with
the leaves of the cocoa-nut tree, built along the margin of the harbour,
or interspersed among the cocoa-nut and mango trees growing along the
beach. Of these structures there are about one hundred and fifty,
containing in all about seven hundred persons, including Portuguese,
Canareens, Moors, and free blacks.
The governor is appointed by the King of Portugal or the Governor-general
of Mozambique, for the time being, and is supposed to have a company of
soldiers, numbering sixty, but he has seldom half that number for his
protection. The soldiers are picked out of those who misbehave themselves
at Mozambique; and as the garrison of that place consists of the refuse
of the convict regiments at Goâ, who are sent to Mozambique as a further
punishment, it may be imagined what a thorough set of scoundrels the
Inhambane company are. They are, from time to time, reinforced by the
natives, either degenerate Moors or Caffres, who are called upon to mount
guard, while the veterans take care of a building styled a hospital,
either as inmates, orderlies, or guards.
The malingerers and the recruits, forming the force called “the
garrison,” are commanded by a captain, lieutenant, and alfares, or
ensign; while the most thorough-going and boldest villain among the
convicts is picked out for a non-commissioned officer to awe and outwit
his comrades. Some of these Portuguese soldiers have outraged every
law, human and divine; on this side of the grave there is no hope for
them. Banished from their country to Goâ, they have there, in that sink
of iniquity, committed fresh crimes, for which they have been sent, as
an additional punishment, to Mozambique. Reckless of all consequences,
condemned to carry a musket for the remainder of their lives, on a
miserable pittance which, unaided, will not support life, they break
out of the fort at night, and continue the course of robbery and crime
which they had commenced many years previously in Portugal, until their
excesses deprive them of life, or lead to their detection; when they are
drafted off to Lourenço Marques, Inhambane, Killimane, or some other
of the Portuguese settlements on this coast. When corporal punishment
is inflicted, it is very severe, and usually with the intention of
depriving the culprit of life. The particulars are too revolting to be
communicated.
The church is also represented at Inhambane by a “Vigário,” or Curate;
who, besides his religious duties, engages in commercial pursuits. The
character of this “holy man” is aptly described, by one of his own
countrymen, as being “_Mais cobiçoso e avaro que os seculares, e mais
engolfado queelles na vileza dos vicios_;”—“More covetous and avaricious
than the laymen, and more deeply instructed than them in the vileness of
their vices.”
Justice is also represented; but not by the blind goddess of communities
less advanced than the people of Inhambane. Here, he who bribes highest
wins his suit.
In short, all the officers necessary for carrying on a good government
are appointed; some without salaries, and others with salaries which are
a mockery, and all without even a public place in which they can transact
business. Doubtless the imperial government of Portugal has supplied the
means for these buildings, and they exist, but only on paper. The funds
for erecting them having been embezzled by some Governor-general, and his
subordinates, who may now be basking in the sunny rays of the court of
Lisbon.
The principal edifice is a church, in a deplorable state of ruin; the
roof being thatched with the leaf of the palm, and within and without
bearing witness to the neglect of that religious faith which it was built
to propagate.
Leaving this melancholy picture of man’s degradation, let us proceed into
the country, beyond the limit of so-called civilization, and explore the
vast field which nature here unfolds to us.
In the district of Inhambane, the valleys, the mountains, and the rivers
abound in riches. Copper, gold, and iron are found in abundance; nuts,
roots, and even trees, are found producing dyes.
The juice of the India-rubber tree affords amusement for the little
black boys of Inhambane, who chew it until it becomes plastic, and then
inflating it with their breath, are pleased with the report which the
bladder makes on bursting. The same amusement may be witnessed among the
children of Europe. This is mentioned to show how plentiful India-rubber
is in the neighbourhood of Inhambane.
Oranges and lemons are found in great abundance, while grapes grow here
on trees, as on the married or grafted trees in Portugal. With these,
wine and vinegar are both made. The banana, plantain, and pine apple are
very delicious, and abound everywhere.
All the fruits of Brazil are found here as if indigenous to the climate,
and in equal perfection; while the country produces trees, herbs, plants,
roots, and nuts, having medicinal qualities (see Appendix).
Cocoa-nut trees, the coffee-tree, bearing a small berry, similar
in flavour to Mocha coffee, and the sugar-cane, are found in great
perfection; the last named being large, and affording abundance of
saccharine matter.
Cotton is growing over the whole country; and indigo is _everywhere_.
The Kaffirs bring in plenty of ivory, hunting the elephants with poisoned
bows and arrows, and sometimes digging pits for them.
The sea washes up large quantities of amber, while both descriptions of
turtle are found along the coast. The sperm whale may be seen in the
season off the harbour; and the sea and rivers abound with varieties of
delicious fish.
The natives are a warlike race, and appear to keep the Portuguese in good
order, but all their prisoners taken in war are supplied for the slave
trade. It is unnecessary to state that many of these wars are occasioned
by the demands of that inhuman traffic.
The huts of the natives of Inhambane are built square, instead of round,
like those of the Kaffirs, and are sometimes made of mud bricks, but more
commonly of wattle-dab, or palm leaves. Their manners and customs are
very much like those of the natives met with on the Zambesi, of whom we
purpose giving some account.