the gun-room and midshipmen's berth, and throughout the ship, at the
prospect of some real work being done. In the midshipmen's berth,
perhaps, the satisfaction was more vehemently expressed.

"There's nothing like getting a real enemy right before you, and having
an honest slap at him," exclaimed Jack Rogers. "It is all very right
hunting down those slave-dealers and chasing slavers, but the scoundrels
are such slippery fellows, it is difficult work to get hold of them."

"Or to keep them if you have got a grip of them," observed Adair. "But
I say, does anybody know who it is we are going to fight, and what we
are going to fight about?"

"Something about the slave-trade," said Hobson, one of the mates.

"The blacks hereabouts want a thrashing, so we are going to lick them,"
remarked Lister, another midshipman, who was never very exact in his
notions.

Just then Murray, who had had the forenoon watch on deck, came below.
He was, on the point I have mentioned, a great contrast to Lister. He
was forthwith applied to. "As soon as I have taken the sharp edge off
my appetite I will tell you all I know about the matter," he answered.
The edge of people's appetites on the coast is not very sharp, in the
dog-days especially, so Murray was soon in a condition to begin.

"Now just look here," he commenced, collecting some crumbs and bits of
biscuit, which he began to place about on the table. "To the north and
east of us is the slave-coast. Inland, due north, or thereabouts, is
Dahomey, the king of which is something like a king, for he can cut off
his subjects' heads at pleasure; he has got several regiments of
Amazons, who fight most furiously, besides other troops armed with
matchlocks. To the east is the Yoruba country, and to the south,
further round the bay, is the kingdom of Benin. The Yoruba country is
between the other two I have mentioned. Its chief river is the Ogun.
At the mouth is Lagos, a large town, held by an independent chief or
king of considerable wealth and power. About seventy miles up is
Abeokuta. Abeokuta is a very remarkable place. About twenty-five years
ago the remnants of the inhabitants of a number of villages which had
been broken up by the attacks made on them for the purpose of carrying
away these people as slaves, betook themselves to a large cavern on the
banks of the Ogun about seventy miles from the coast. In this place of
concealment they remained for some time undiscovered,