236 NO PREJUDICE AGAINST COLOR. 



tinued some time, to the great admiration of my men, 

 whose ideas of the power of a cannon are very exalted. 

 The Portuguese flag was hoisted and trumpets sounded, as 

 an expression of joy at the resurrection of our Lord. Cap- 

 tain Neves invited all the principal inhabitants of the place, 

 and did what he could to feast them in a princely style. 

 All manner of foreign preserved fruits and wine from Por- 

 tugal, biscuits from America, butter from Cork, and beer 

 from England, were displayed, and no expense spared in 

 rendering the entertainment joyous. After the feast was 

 over, they sat down to the common amusement of card- 

 playing, which continued till eleven o'clock at night. As 

 far as a mere traveller could judge, they seemed to be 

 polite and willing to aid each other. They live in a febrile 

 district, and many of them had enlarged spleens. They 

 have neither doctor, apothecary, school, nor priest, and, 

 when taken ill, trust to each other and to Providence. As 

 men left in such circumstances must think for themselves, 

 they have all a good idea of what ought to be done in the 

 common diseases of the country, and what they have 

 of either medicine or skill they freely impart to each 

 other. 



None of these gentlemen had Portuguese wives. They 

 usually come to Africa in order to make a little money, 

 and return to Lisbon. Hence they seldom bring their 

 wives with them, and never can be successful colonists in 

 consequence. It is common for them to have families by 

 native women. It was particularly gratifying to me, Avho 

 had been familiar with the stupid prejudice against color 

 entertained only by those who are themselves becoming 

 tawny, to view the liberality with which people of color 

 were treated by the Portuguese. Instances, so common 

 in the south, in which half-caste children are abandoned, 

 are here extremely rare. They are acknowledged at table, 

 and provided for by their fathers as if European. The 

 colored clerks of the merchants sit at the same table with 

 their employers without any embarrassment. The civil 



