348 SHIPWRECK OF THE MEDUSA. 
especially as it has its source in those philanthropic principles 
which I manifested in the abandoning of the raft of the Medu- 
sa, I resign myself in silence to my destiny." 
This letter, full of energy, although a little too firm, failed 
not to affect the feeling heart of the Minister of Marine, who 
wrote to the governor of Senegal to give my father some 
employment in the administration of the colony. But that 
order had either remained too long in the office of the minis- 
ter, or the governor of Senegal had judged it proper not to 
communicate the good news to us, as we did not hear of the 
order of the minister till after the death of my father, nearly 
fifteen months after its date. 
When my father had rendered his accounts, and installed 
his successor into the colony's office, he told me it would be 
quite necessary to think of returning into his island of Safal, 
to cultivate it ourselves. He persuaded me that our planta- 
tion suffered sorely from the want of our personal care, and 
that the happiness and tranquility of a country life would soon 
make us forget our enemies and our sufferings. It was then 
decided that I should set off on the morrow, with two of ray 
brothers, to go and cultivate the cotton at the plantation. We 
took our little shallop and two negro sailors, and by daybreak 
were upon the river, leaving at Senegal my fiither, my sister 
Caroline, and the youngest of our brothers and sisters. 
For the space of two m'onths I endured, as did my little 
brothers, the beams of a burning sun, the irritations of insects 
and thoi^ns, and the want of that food to which we had been 
accustomed. I suffered during all the day from a severe 
headache : but I collected from the ground which belonged 
to us the cotton, on which were founded all our hopes. At 
night my tAvo young brothers and myself retired into the cot- 
tage which Ave used in the island : the working negroes 
brought the cotton which we had collected during the day; 
after which I set about preparing supper. The children, ac- 
companied by the old negro Etienne, (the keeper of the plan- 
tation,) went and picked up some branches of dry wood. We 
lighted a large fire in the middle of the hut, and I kneaded the 
cakes of millet flour which were to be our supper, as Avell as 
what was to supply us the next day. My paste being prepar- 
ed, I laid each cake upon the fire which the children had 
lighted. Often, and especially when we were very hungry, I 
placed them on a shovel of iron, which I set upon the fire. 
This quick mode of proceeding procured us millet bread in 
less than half an hour : but it jnust be confessed that this 
