transitory splendour of the button
belonging to the drummer's wife.

In a conversation with the king, he intimated to them that it would
be necessary for them to visit Wowow, previously to their going to
Funda, because the prince of that state had already made war on Kiama
on their account, and captured a few of the people. The king,
himself, repeated to them the promise which he had made to their
messenger, that he would furnish them with a canoe sufficiently large
to contain the whole of their people and themselves; but still some
doubts arose in their minds, and should a canoe be denied them, after
all that the monarch had said, it was their determination to take a
canoe of their own accord, and steal away from Boossa by night. The
king expressed his fears that the personal safety of the travellers
would be endangered by the Fellatas, who resided on each side of the
river; but Pascoe answered his majesty by telling him, that the
English were the gods of the waters, and no evil could befal them in
boats, even though all Africa, or the whole world should fight
against them. "I will, however," said the king, in reply, "go down
and ask the _Becken ronah_ (dark or black water, which the Niger is
every where emphatically styled) whether it will be prudent and safe
for the white men to embark on it or not, and I will be sure to
acquaint you and them of my success, be it good or bad."

The following day the king intended to question the Niger, and the
great hope of the Landers was, that the river would return a
favourable answer.

The Landers were not ignorant that a present to an African king will
generally effect wonders, it will even make the Niger return a
favourable answer to an inquiry which, but for the present, would
have been adverse. They therefore acted politically, and sent the
king as a present, one of those beautiful silver medals which were
cast during the American war, to which, was attached a large and
valuable chain of the same metal; assuring the sable king at the same
time, that he might now consider himself as the king of England's
most particular friend, and that he could not make a more suitable
return, than by assisting them them in their plan of journeying to
the salt water by way of the Niger.

The present had the desired effect, for on the following day the king
came to them with great joy, and informed them that he had been down
to the Niger with his mallam, and that the result of his visi