Chap. XXXII. 
ATTEMPTS TO REVIVE TRADE. 
659 
both Senna and Kiliniane never tliink of standing to fight, but 
invariably run away, and leave their officers to be killed. They 
are brave only among the peaceable inhabitants. One of them 
sent from Kilunane with a packet of letters or expresses, arrived 
while I was at Senna. He had been charged to deliver them 
with all speed, but Senhor Isidore had in the mean time gone to 
Kfiimane, remained there a fortnight, and reached Senna again 
before the cornier came. He could not punish hun. We gave 
liim a passage in our boat, but he left us in the way to visit his 
wife, and, ‘‘ on m^gent private business,” probably gave up the 
service altogether, as he did not come to Kilimane all the time 
I was there. It is impossible to describe the miserable state 
of decay into which the Portuguese possessions here have sunk. 
The revenues are not equal to the expenses, and every officer 
I met told the same tale, that he had not received one farthing 
of pay for the last four years. They are aU forced to engage 
in trade for the support of then: families. Senhor Mhanda had 
been actually engaged against the enemy dming these four 
years, and had been Ingldy lauded in the Commandant’s des¬ 
patches to the Home Government; but when he apphed to the 
G overnor of Kilimane for part of his four years’ pay, he offered 
liim twenty dollars only. Mkanda resigned his commission in 
consequence. The common soldiers sent out from Portugal re¬ 
ceived some pay in cahco. They all marry native women, and 
the soil being very fertile, the wives find but Little difficulty in 
supportmg their husbands. There is no dfrect trade with Por¬ 
tugal. A considerable number of Banians, or natives of India, 
come annually in small vessels with cargoes of Enghsh and 
Indian goods from Bombay. It is not to be wondered at then, 
that there have been attempts made of late years by speculative 
Portuguese in Lisbon, to revive the trade of Eastern Africa by 
means of mercantile companies. One was formally proposed, 
which was modelled on the plan of our East India Company; and 
it was actually imagined that all the forts, harbours, lands, &c., 
might be delivered over to a company, wliich would bind itself 
to develop the resources of the comitry, build schools, make 
roads, improve harbours, &c., and after all leave the Portuguese 
the option of resuming possession. 
Another effort has been made to attract commercial enterprise 
2 u 2 
