176s.-
March.’
1 hurfday 3 r.
April.
Monday 4.
Tuefday ç.
April, a day which I now expected with great impatience,
especially as an-old drunken Serjeant was the mail refpefts.;
able perfon at the fort-. In the evening o f the 3 ift, a packet
of letters for him arrived here from Macaflar, which I con-
fidered as a good omen, and a pledge of his return at 'the
time appointed; but I conceived'very different fentiments'
when I learnt-that they were fent to him. I did not fufpedtr
that he was privy to any TuCh defign as had been intimated
to me by the letter ; but I could not help doubting, whether
he was not kept in the country that he might be out of the
way when it fhould be executed. In this ftateiof anxiety and.
fufpenfe I fent a meffage to-thC fort, de-firing that an exprefs.t
might be difpatcbed to him, to acquaint him that I wifhed'
to fee him immediately upon bufinefs of great importance,
which would admit of no delay. Whether my meflage was
forwarded to him or not, I cannot tell; but having waited
till the 4th of April, without having Teen him or .received any
anfwer, I wrote him a letter, requefting to fpeak with him,
in the moft prefling terms, and the next day he came on board.
A few minutes convinced me that he was wholly a ftranger
to any fuch defign as I had been made to apprehend; and he
was clearly o f opinion that no fuch defign had been formed.
He faid, indeed, that one Tomilaly, a counfellor or minifter
of the King of Bony, had lately paid him a vifit, and had
not well accounted for his being in this part of the count
r y ; and, at my requeft, he very readily undertook to make
farther enquiries concerning him and his people. The R,efi-
dent and his attendants took notice that the fhip was put
into a ftate of defence, and that every thing was ready for
immediate adtion; and he told us, that the people on; ihore
had acquainted him, before he came on board, with our vigilance
and adlivity, and in particular, with our having ex-
ercifed the fhip’s company at fmall arms every day. I in-
c formed
formed him, that we fhould, at all events, continue upon
our guard, which he feemed to approve, and we parted <---- ---- >
with mutual proteftations of friendfhip and good faith. “ ‘ y s'
After a few days, he fent me word that having made a very
ftridt enquiry, whether any other perfons belonging to the
King of Bony had been at Bonthain, he had been credibly
informed that one of the Princes o f that kingdom had been
there in difguife; but that of the eight hundred men who
were faid in my intelligence to be with him, he could find
no traces ; fo that, except they too, like the troops o f the
King of Brentford, were an army in difguife, I knew that
no fuch people could be in that country.
On the 16th, in the morning, the Refident fent me word, Saturday is.
that M. Le Cerf was returned from Macaflar with another
officer, and that they would come on board and dine with
me. When dinner was over, I afked Le Cerf, among other
converfation, while we were taking our wine, what was
become of his expedition to B a lly ; to which he anfwered
drily, that it was laid afide, without faying any thing more
upon the fubject. On the 23d, he returned to Macaflar by
fea, and the other officer, who was alfo an enfign, remained
to take the command of the foldiers that were ftill left at
this place.
The feafon now approached in which navigation to the
weftward would be again practicable, which gave us all
great pleafure 1 efpecially as putrid difeafes had begun to
make their appearance among us, and a putrid fever had
carried off one of our people.
On the 7 th o f May, the Refident gave me a long letter May.
from the Governor of Macaflar, which was written in Dutch, aturda)r 7“
and o f which he gave me the beft interpretation he was
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