hind me with fear, lest he should change his mind, and send some one after us to despatch me, for I could not think myself safe till I saw Rer Moume again.

As we walked along, my guards told me I was the first who ever returned alive from the place of execution; which I could not but impute to an all-wise and overruling Providence. They told me likewise, that he Stabbed one of his chief wives, though when his passion was over he repented it, for yielding to an effort of nature, whilst his head was in her lap with intention to sleep. Another instance of his inhumanity, though attended with some justice, was, in ordering one of his own sons to be extended on a mat, and his throat to be cut before his face, for being too free with one of his wives.

We could not reach to our journey's end this evening by two hours' walk, so we rested, and the next morning we set out early and arrived safely at our town; where the people were all surprised to see me thus bound and guarded. Some ran before to inform the prince, who, before we came within his palisade, was sitting with his wives and several others round about him in great expectation. As soon as the men were seated, they told their message; I stood all the while with my hands bound behind me. After he had examined into the affair, and found how the case was, his countenance fell, the tears one while stood in his eyes as he viewed me with pity; anon he frowned with indignation, the women too shared in my distress. "And is this all," says he, "the poor man has been so severely used for? Robin, come hither, I will show you how much I regard my father's advice in this case." Upon which he unloosed my hands, and ordered one of his attendants to fetch him a fine silk lamber, which he would make me put on directly; then taking my gun from the men, he gave it me again; and made me a present besides of six cows. I told him the messengers had been very civil to me, for which he not only thanked them, but made them a present of an ox. father, I own," says he, “who has done this: for that reason I shall restrain my resentment and say little of it;

"It is my

but had any other man, though a near relation, nay, my own son, acted in this manner, he should have felt the weight of my anger." My wife came and licked my feet, expressing both her concern for my ill treatment, and her joy for my return. This was about fifteen months from the first time I came to Rer Moume.

I was now possessed of nearly thirty head of cattle, and lived in affluence and ease. I killed a young bullock, and the part I kept to myself I flead, and salted after the English mode; of the tallow I made as good candles as I could. That part which I gave to my neighbours had the skin on, for we have the same friendly customs here as in other parts of the island, neither do their manners differ, except in the idle cus tom of the royal families killing cattle. Here they eat swine's flesh, and think it as good as other provision. Rer Chulu kept a pack of dogs on purpose to hunt wild boars, but they are not of the hound kind. Their religion is the same exactly, and their superstitious regard to unlucky days and hours, implicitly believing all the umossee tells them; insomuch, that numbers of poor children are privately murdered, who are born on an Alhaida or a Jumor, which are Sunday and Friday; for when I came on board the ship, I carefully remarked how the days answered with ours; and found that Alhaida was Sunday; Alletenine, Monday; Talewter, Tuesday; Alarrerbere, Wednesday; Comemeeshey, Thursday; Jumor, Friday; and Sarbuchee, Saturday. Though these denominations are used throughout the island, yet they regard no one day more than another, only as they imagine some to be lucky and others unlucky, for they have no notion of a sabbath amongst them. Rer Moume, having lost the use of his limbs, sent all over the island for the most famous umossees he could hear of, to consult with them for relief; they being physicians as well as prophets. One of them, during my stay here, confined him for two months, bathing, sweating, and cupping him to little or no purpose; however, hele hi ample satisfaction

for his trouble, as he did all others who did him any

service.

I lived with Rer Moume about two years and a half in all, at the end of which term, news was brought that two ships were arrived at Yong-Owl to trade. I was overjoyed to hear it, and flattered myself that W. Thornbury had not forgotten me. They stayed there several days, and slaves were sent to be sold, and guns and other goods were returned for them. I was at a loss how to break my mind to Rer Moume, hoping he would say something to me of his own accord; but as I was sitting with him one evening, two men came in with a basket of palmetto leaves sewed up, and delivered it to the prince; who opened it and finding a letter, asked the men, what they meant by giving him that? "The captain," they said, "gave it us for your white man; but we thought proper to let you see it first." "Pray," says he, "give it him all." "Here, Robin, your countrymen have sent you a present, what it is I don't know, but to me it seems of very little value." Accordingly I took the basket, and with the letter there were pens, ink, and paper, in order for my returning an answer. The superscription was this:

"To Robert Drury, on the island of Madagascar."

I was so astonished, that at first I had not power to open it, concluding I was in a dream; but at length, recovering my surprise, and after a little recollection I opened it, and found it came from captain William Macket. The contents whereof were to the effect following:

"That he had a letter on board from my father, with full instructions as well from him as his owners, to purchase my liberty let it cost what it would. And in case I could not possibly come down myself, to send him word the reason of it, and what measures he should take to serve me."

Rer Moume perceived that my countenance changed

whilst I was reading the letter, and asked me what was the matter? I told him, that the captain desired to speak with me, and that my father had sent for me home, and hoped that he would please to give his consent. "How do you know all this?" says the prince, 66 can you conjure?" Then turning to the messengers, "Have you, pray, heard any thing like this?" "Yes," said they, "it is all the discourse at the seaside, that Robin's father sent both these ships for him, and more than all this, the king your father expects him there with your leave, and desires to see him before he goes to the ship." Rer Moume took the letter, and turning it over and over said, he had heard of such methods of conveying intelligence to one another, but never actually saw it before, and could not conceive which way it could be done without conjuration. I endeavoured to demonstrate to him, as well as I could, how we learned in our infancy the characters first, and then we put them together. "But," says he, "I presume you have no inclination to leave us now, since you live here so much at your ease; you have several cattle and a slave, and if you shall want more you shall have them, you shall have too as many wives as you please, and be a great man." I begged him to make my case his own, and that he would please to consider whether he should not be desirous of seeing his parents and native country, had he been absent so long as I had? "I think I should," he said, "and therefore I will take it into consideration, and ask my wives' advice about it, and give an answer in the morning."

My readers may easily imagine what a night of disorder this was to my mind, agitated with hopes on one hand and with fears on the other; however, I took care to attend him as soon as ever he was stirring, and seated with his wives about him. After he had looked steadfastly on me for some time, "Robin," says he, "I have opened your affair to my wives here, and your mother Ry Anzackar, and one or two more, consent to your going, but the rest are all against it; however, let them speak for themselves, it is out of respect to

you that they are desirous you should continue amongst them." Up Upon this, I turned towards them, and without waiting to hear what they had to offer, begged them to consider, as they were mothers, whether or no, if a child of theirs was in a strange country, they should not have an earnest inclination to see him, and he them? Hereupon the prince told me, if I was willing to stay, he would all along, as he had hitherto done, treat me like his own son, but he would not make use of compulsion, so that if I was resolutely bent on going he would dismiss me. Moreover, he told me, that my slave should go with me; that as to my cattle, they were mine to dispose of as I pleased. I replied, if he was so good as not to take my cattle from me, though they were in fact his own, they might still remain there as they were marked for mine; for I was fully determined to make one voyage more here, in hopes of having it in my power to make him some amends for the great care he had taken of me, by bringing a ship to traffic with him; (and in this I was very sincere, and afterwards as good as my word.) I asked him if he thought proper to demand any consideration of the captain for my freedom. He answered, nothing; but if my friends would make him a present of a good gun, he should accept of the favour, and call it Robin in remembrance of me. This noble, generous answer, and so prince-like, gave me such transports of joy, that I immediately kneeled down, and licked his feet with the utmost sincerity, as justly thinking I could never express my gratitude enough to this good, this indulgent prince. He would not dismiss me instantly, but did in a day or two after; and ordered the messengers to be taken care of in the mean time. When the day of my departure came, I had one remaining difficulty to get over, and that was the parting with my wife, the women of the prince's family, and himself, which I did with as much reluctance, as when I left my natural parents at my departure from them, and they discovered an equally tender affection for me he would not, however, let us go empty-handed, but