FURTHER PARTICULARS. 
373 
prising “plenty of clothes, plenty of books,” thus 
affording a strong presumption, that they were the 
property of Mr. Carr. It could not be learned in 
what dh-ection the Bassa men were going when cap- 
tured by King Boy, nor could they explain away the 
very suspicious circumstance, that if the Bassa people 
had murdered the unfortunate gentleman, how came 
the canoe with his clothes into Brass Creek, nearly 
sixty miles apart from where the transaction was said 
to have taken place. It seemed probable, that these 
witnesses had been prepared by their chief, with the 
necessary evidence. 
One thing was quite evident, their eager anxiety to 
exculpate their own tribe, and to fix the stigma on 
the Bassa people ; this induced Lieutenant Webb to 
go down the first Benin branch, under the pilotage of 
the prisoners, intending to make the fullest inquiry 
into the subject at Bassa Town. However, after pass- 
ing five or six miles down the river to the entrance of 
the creek, the vessel grounded on a bank; the channel 
was sounded, and found to be very narrow, but hav- 
ing inside of the shoal as much as five fathoms water. 
The breadth of the creek was not more than one hun- 
dred and fifty yards. A kedge anchor was laid out, 
and the vessel hove off with some difficulty. While 
thus employed, three very large canoes were observed 
coming down the creek ; and as their manoeuvres were 
suspicious, and the position of the ship rather critical, 
it was thought better to warn them off, by firing some 
