MR PARK'S SECOND JOURNEY. 465 
five Europeans ; himself, Lieutenant Martyn, and 
three soldiers, one of whom was in a state of de- 
rangement. Although, however, his anticipations 
assumed now somewhat of a darker tint, yet his 
enthusiastic determination, and entire self-devotion 
to the cause, suffered no change. To Lord Cam- 
den he writes, " I shall set sail to the east, with 
c< the fixed resolution to discover the termination 
" of the Niger, or perish in the attempt and 
adds, " Though all the Europeans who are with me 
" should die, and though I were myself half dead, 
" I would still persevere ; and, if I could not suc- 
" ceed in the object of my journey, I would at 
" least die in the Niger." To Mrs Park he writes 
in a tone of much higher confidence ; but it is im- 
possible to say how far this may not have been 
prompted by the amiable wish of soothing her anx- 
iety. To her he never intimates the slightest 
doubt, that his voyage was to terminate in the 
ocean ; so that this plunging into the unknown 
depths of interior Africa, is called by him " set* 
" ting his face towards England." 
On the 17th November 1806, this great travel- 
ler set out on his adventurous voyage. Isaaco 
brought down his letters and journal to the Gam- 
bia ; but for some time no intelligence was received 
of himself. In the course of the year 1806, unfa- 
vourable rumours began to arrive, and these in- 
creasing, without any authentic intelligence to con- 
