Our hands being tied, we
could not beat them off, and we rolled over and over to get rid of
them. This made matters worse, for our whole bodies being covered with
raised blisters from the rays of the sun, our roiling over and over
broke the blisters, and the sand getting into the wounds, added to the
bites of the musquitoes, made our sufferings intolerable. We had
before prayed for night, we now prayed for day. Some prayed for death.

When the sun rose, we set off again, our conductors utterly
disregarding our anguish, and goading us on as before. In the forenoon
we arrived at a village, where our guards refreshed themselves; a very
small quantity of boiled corn was given to each of us, and we
continued our journey, passing by several small towns, consisting, as
they all do in that country, of huts built of reeds, round in form,
and gathered to a point at top. This day was the same as the
preceding. We were pricked with spears if we stumbled or lagged,
threatened with death if we had not strength to go on. At last the
evening arrived, and the fires were lighted. The fires were much
larger than before, I presume because the wild beasts were more
numerous, for we heard them howling in every direction round us, which
we had not done on the night before. The musquitoes did not annoy us
so much, and we obtained some intervals of broken rest. At daylight we
resumed our journey, as near as we could judge by the sun, in a more
easterly direction.

During the first two days we were badly received by the inhabitants of
the towns, whose people had been kidnapped so often for the
slave-trade; they hated the sight of our white faces, for they
presumed that we had come for that purpose; but as we advanced in the
interior, we were better treated, and the natives looked upon us with
surprise and wonder, considering us as a new race of beings. Some of
the women seeing how utterly exhausted we were with fatigue and
hunger, looked with compassion on us, and brought us plenty of boiled
corn and goats' milk to drink. This refreshed us greatly, and we
continued our journey in anxious expectation of the fate for which we
were reserved.

On crossing a small river, which appeared to be the boundary of two
different states, a multitude of Negroes approached, and seemed
disposed to take us from our present masters, but after a conference,
they agreed among themselves, and a party of them joined with those
who had previously conducted us. We s