demands and keep the captains prisoners, till they comply

with them.

The river Gameron is about thirty leagues to the fouth of Old Calabar, but is frequented only by veffels of about one hundred and fifty tons burthen.

The river Gaboon is about eighty leagues to the southward of the river Cameron, navigable for large veffels four leagues up to Parrot Ifland, where they may be careened and repaired. The Dutch carry on the trade for negroes, wax, ivory, ebony and dyeing woods from feveral fmall rivers to the north of this place down to Cape Lopez, which is about thirty leagues to the fouthward of it, and where what is called the Bite ends.

Cape Lopez furnishes the fame commodities, but the trade of it is chiefly engroffed by the Dutch, who often buy negroes here and carry them to the Portuguese at St. Thomas's ifland, where for dispatch they fell them at 81. a head.

Majumba is about seventy leagues S. S. E. of Cape Lopez, where a great deal of redwood is annually purchased, though but few flaves and very little ivory.

Loango is about thirty leagues to the fouthward of Majumba, where the French purchase more negroes than both the English and Dutch together, and where they are to be had in great plenty.

Malemba is about thirty leagues to the fouthward of Loango; and Cabenda is about seven leagues to the south-ward of Malemba, where the trade is in the fame state as at Loango,

The

The late English African company had a fort at Cabenda, deftroyed by the Portugueze in 1723; but great part of the walls and mote round it ftill remain, and the natives acknowledge the ground the fort ftood on, and the land round it within cannon-fhot, to belong to the English.

The river Congo is about ten leagues to the fouthward of Cabenda, peopled on the north fide with inoffenfive, on the fouth with piratical negroes, who often cut off fhip's boats, and are therefore not much reforted to.

To the fouthward of this river no trade is carried on by any Europeans, but the Portugueze; who have a large city at Loango St. Paul's on the coaft of Angola, strongly fortified, in about nine degrees fouth latitude; from which place they have penetrated quite through the country to their settlements at, and fouth of Mozambique upon the eastern coast of Africa, where they have caravans constantly going and returning, and by that means carry on an extensive and advantageous inland commerce.

From this place to the Cape of Good Hope, being a seacoast of about seven hundred leagues, is but little known; and the few fhips, who have attempted to make discoveries, or commence a trade any where near the Cape, have been driven off the coaft by the fhips of the Eaft India company, under pretence of their encroaching upon their limits; whereas, by the act for extending and improving the trade to Africa, paffed in 1749, (the twenty-third of George II.) the limits are expressly declared to be from Port Sallee in Barbary to the Cape of Good Hope, both inclufive; these li

[28]

mits are confirmed by another a&t in 1751,

together with "all the islands adjoining to those coafts, to all regions, "territories, and places reputed part of any country within "the limits aforefaid." The limits granted by the act to fettle the trade to Africa in 1697, were "from Cape Blanco "to the Cape of Good Hope, both inclufive." The charter was not granted to the Eaft India company till the year after, 1698, and then they were allowed to trade" to all places in Afia, Africa, or America, beyond the Cape of "Good Hope to the Streights of Magellan :" fo that they were never to interfere with any traders on this fide of, or at, the Cape.

CHAP. IV.

A fhort HISTORY of the AFRICAN TRADE.

T

HE limits of the African trade being fo extenfive, and

the advantages refulting from it confeffedly fo great, it is neceffary towards fully understanding the subject, as well as interesting to future adventurers, to infert a brief account of the trade in general, and particularly of those royal African companies, which broke one after the other, and the management of their affairs was in 1750 configned over to the present company, or rather their committee.

The Portugueze first discovered the coaft of Africa in 1454, and built a fort foon after on the island of Arguin, and some time after, another at St. George del Mina on the Gold Coast, and a third at Loango St. Paul's on the coaft of Angola.

By virtue of these they claimed and enjoyed for a long time a right to these countries, and confifcated the fhips of all other nations that attempted to trade there. No English traders went there till 1544, which was ninety years after, and then at the risk of losing their ships, if taken by the Portugueze they traded then only for gold, ivory, &c. but not for negroes, the English having then no colonies to employ them in. Queen Elizabeth in 1587, being at war with Spain and Portugal, erected a company with exclufive privileges to trade to Senegal and Gambia for a certain number of years. In the reigns of James I. and Charles I. and during the ufurpation, merchants were encouraged to trade to any part of Africa. Accordingly they built a fort at Cormantine on the Gold Coast, and another in the river Gambia.

The Dutch, fenfible of the importance of this trade, erected a West India company in 1621, with great privileges and encouragements, and granted them all the lands they could conquer within certain limits in Africa and America. They gained several important conquefts in Brazil and Africa, and in 1637 took from the Portugueze the strong fortress of St. George del Mina, and foon after, all their other fettlements on the Gold Coaft, which were ceded to them by treaty in 1641. Now, though the English had a fort at Cormantine, the Dutch took the advantage of the distracted state of England, to feize and confifcate her fhips from Cape Palmas to Cape Lopez. Soon after the restoration Charles II. formed a company to oppose them, remonftrated to the states how unjust their pretenfions were, and demanded reparation for the da

mages

damages his fubjects had sustained; but finding this had no effect, he fitted out a ftrong fleet: then they began a treaty, but in the mean time fent fecret orders to their admiral De Ruyter, which he punctually obeyed; proceeded down the African Coast, confifcated all the English veffels he met with, took the fort at Cormantine, and put a Dutch garrifon in it. These wrongs and difhonours, meeting with no redress, occafioned war to be proclaimed against the Dutch in 1664, which fhews the value they then fet on the African trade, when they rather chose to risk a war with England, than admit her to any share of it. In 1667 a peace was concluded, and the English Royal African company had Cape Coast Caftle instead of their fort at Cormantine, which was left in poffeffion of the Dutch. The great charges the English company had been at, were faid to prevent their trade from fucceeding to their wishes; fo they affigned over all their rights and poffeffions to a New Royal African company, established in 1672, and the king granted them all places in Africa from Port Sallee in Barbary, to the Cape of Good Hope, inclufive, for the term of one thousand years, with the fole right of trade. The Dutch were now in poffeffion of St. George del Mina, and several other forts on the Gold Coaft. The English, to ftrengthen themselves, encreased their fort at Cape Coast Castle, and built others at Accra, Dixcove, Winnebah, Succondee, Commenda, Annamaboe and Whidah.

The French Senegal company was established in 1673, and in 1678 the French took Arguin and Goree from the

4

Dutch,