ontained, and now the riddle was solved. On arriving abreast of
the hulk we found that a small timber jetty had been constructed from
the shore to a point within fifty yards of the hulk, and we could see in
a moment that by easing off the moorings of the hulk, the current would
carry her fairly alongside this jetty, where, without doubt, she must
have been lying when we first hove in sight. The slaves had evidently
been marched straight on board her over the jetty, and her bow and stern
moorings then hove in until she had been hauled far enough away from the
jetty to render her capture by its means impossible.

After a little further conversation with Armitage it was agreed that the
Spaniards should be hailed and ordered to surrender, and this was
accordingly done. We had no very great hope of success, as we felt sure
the Spaniards must be fully aware of the difficulty we should experience
in capturing the hulk. As before stated, she towered so high out of the
water and her sides were so bare that the Spaniards, small as was their
number, could effectually resist all our efforts to capture her by
boarding; to fire into and sink her would only result in the destruction
of all the slaves on board her; and as she was moored with heavy chains,
instead of hemp hawsers, to cut her adrift and let her ground upon the
island was quite as impracticable as would have been any attempt to
board her.

We were therefore very agreeably surprised when the Spaniards, in
response to our hail, at once consented to abandon the hulk, provided we
would allow them to depart unmolested in their boat. This arrangement
suited us very well, we being just then anything but anxious to hamper
ourselves with prisoners, and the required promise was unhesitatingly
made. The Spaniards thereupon provisioned their boat, lowered her into
the water, and half an hour later disappeared round a bend of the river
on their way down stream. Taking immediate possession of the hulk, we
dropped her in alongside the jetty once more, and landed the slaves upon
the island. They were all, for a wonder, in fairly good condition,
having evidently been well taken care of, with the view of fitting them
as thoroughly as possible to withstand the terrible hardships of the
notorious Middle Passage.

Having at length cleared the hulk we next transferred the slaves in
batches to the boats, by which they were conveyed across the stream to
the mainland, where they were fr