22 NATIVES OF PORT PRAYA. 



of nature does not particularly strike one with 

 any idea of indelicacy ; and he will walk delibe- 

 rately by you in all the dignity of nature, his 

 limbs unencumbered with dress, proudly yet un- 

 consciously asserting his right to be considered 

 one of the lords of creation. I could not help 

 thinking, whenever I saw the men strutting about 

 in this manner, that a white man would cut but 

 a sorry figure under similar circumstances. It 

 did not excite much sympathy in me to see the 

 men driven to their work and obliged to perform 

 it, for they evidently did not get through one 

 fourth part of that which a labourer would do in 

 England ; but it was disgusting to the feelings to 

 see the women toiling up the steep ascent which 

 leads to the town, with heavy loads of salt upon 

 their heads, many of them being in a state cal- 

 culated to excite the sympathy of any one not 

 entirely devoid of feeling. 



There is a capital well behind the town, and 

 thither Dr. Briggs and I repaired for the purpose 

 of seeing the domestic slaves. They certainly 

 appeared to be a very happy and contented race. 

 I had often heard of African tongues, but no de- 

 scription could do justice to the confused clatter- 

 ing noise which these creatures made. We sat 



