POUTER S JOURNAL. 



day. A signal was in consequence hoisted (as he informed 

 my officer) to permit us to depart. 



The governor is about forty-five years of age, a man of easy 

 and agreeable manners and friendly disposition. The utmost 

 respect is paid to him by all subject to his authority. No 

 one is ever seated in his presence ; and, whenever he leaves 

 his quarters, he is always accompanied by a guard ; when 

 on foot, he is preceded by a soldier bearing a halbert. 



During my stay I became acquainted with a Portuguese 

 merchant, a man of considerable intelligence and wealth, 

 and the owner of property in most of the islands. He was 

 about sending the before-mentioned schooner to the Bra- 

 zils, with despatches for the governor, for the purpose of 

 procuring a supply from that quarter, which, if they were 

 not able to obtain, he assured me they should be compelled 

 to leave the island, as the drought for the last two years had 

 prevented them from raising any corn, and that there was no 

 such thing as bread in the islands ; indeed, the governor's 

 table sufficiently bespoke the scarcity of it. He told me 

 that the island of St. Vincents affi)rded a much more com- 

 modious harbour, a more abundant and cheaper supply of 

 cattle, with fruits of every description inihe greatest quan- 

 tities, and fresh water in abundance, that could be procu- 

 red with ease. Being the possessor of most of the proper- 

 ty in the island, he gave me a letter to his overseer, (to be de- 

 livered in the event of my going there,) directing him to fur- 

 nish us with every supply we might need. 



The friendly attentions we met with in the port of Praya, 

 could not have been exceeded in any port of the United 

 States ; and, as the Portuguese are the allies of Great Bri- 

 tain, their attentions were as surprising as they were unex- 

 pected. I found, however, after 1 had been with them a 

 short time, that their attachments to the Americans, grow- 

 ing out of their commercial interests and concerns, were 

 very strong ; that the only British vessels that ever touch- 

 ed there were vessels of war, who came for supplies, with 

 the haughty, unconciliating conduct of thecommanders and 

 officers of which they were by no means satisfied. They 

 spoke of the prince regent as the slave, the tool of the Bri- 

 tish government, and were highly gratified with the ac- 

 counts I gave them of our little success over the ships of 

 that imperious navy. The governor assured me, he would 



