366 REMARKS ON 



The difficulty is not in keeping them in, but 

 in enticing them out of port, taking the chance 

 of capturing them afterwards ; and the following 

 plan has been found the most efficacious. 



I will take the Bonny river as an instance, as 

 being the best known and most frequented slave- 

 mart. In the New Calebar and Bonny rivers, 

 which have a common embouchure, there are 

 generally from six to ten slave-vessels waiting 

 for their cargoes. A British cruiser arrives upon 

 the station, and, after reconnoitring the port, 

 stands out apparently to sea, but in reality re- 

 mains off the port, standing off shore during the 

 night, and in during the day, until the entrance 

 to the port is seen from the mast-head, when she 

 immediately tacks to avoid being seen by the 

 slaver. By this plan every facility is given to 

 the shipment of the slaves, and the chances of the 

 capture of the slaver may be easily calculated 

 from the premium of insurance, which, allowing 

 four per cent, to cover the sea-risk and under- 

 writer's profit, leaves eight and a half per cent, 

 or one vessel out of twelve for the risk of capture. 



The simple plan is evidently to do away with 

 head-money altogether ; to anchor the cruisers at 

 the entrance of the ports, which would effectually 



