eed and left to shift for themselves,
the provisions found on board the hulk being distributed as evenly as
possible among them. Landed thus in a possibly hostile country--for
they were evidently a different race of people from those with whom we
had recently had so desperate a struggle--unarmed, and with only a small
supply of provisions, their situation was perhaps not very much better
than it had been when they lay prisoners on board the hulk, but it was
all we had it in our power to do for them under the circumstances, and
we could only hope that their wit would prove equal to the task of
steering them clear of the many dangers to which they were exposed, and
conducting them safely back to their own country. There were rather
more than eight hundred of them altogether, counting in the
piccaninnies, and the transfer of them to the mainland fully occupied us
until within half an hour of sunset. As we were by that time pretty
well fagged out, and as it was manifestly too late to make any progress
worth speaking of on our way back to the creek that night, we resolved
to remain until daylight upon the island, which we did without receiving
molestation or annoyance of any kind from anybody.

At eight o'clock on the following morning, having previously
breakfasted, we started down the river, keeping a bright look-out for
the French boat all the way down, and exploring all the most likely
creeks and indentations on the south bank of the river, without
discovering any trace of her. This protracted search so seriously
delayed our progress that we were two whole days making the passage back
to the creek, and on our arrival there we discovered that three
survivors of the French party had turned up on board the _Vestale_ the
previous day, reporting the capture of the boat by the natives, and the
massacre of all hands except the three who had managed somehow to slip
their bonds and make good their escape in a canoe. They had reported
that their capture was due to our _abandonment_ of them, it appeared,
and the insinuation, which Captain Vernon had indignantly repudiated,
had occasioned a very serious outbreak of ill-feeling between the two
ships, so much so indeed that the commander of the _Vestale_ had left
the river in high dudgeon on the morning of the day of our arrival,
refusing absolutely to co-operate with us any further. I was, of
course, subjected to a very severe cross-examination by Captain Vernon
on the subject;