Round the World on a Man-of-War (continued).
THE AFRICAN STATION.
Its Extent—Ascension—Turtle at a Discount—Sierra Leone—An Unhealthy Station—The Cape of Good Hope—Cape Town—Visit of the Sailor Prince—Grand Festivities—Enthusiasm of the Natives—Loyal Demonstrations—An African “Derby”—Grand Dock Inaugurated—Elephant Hunting—The Parting Ball—The Life of a Boer—Circular Farms—The Diamond Discoveries—A £12,000 Gem—A Sailor First President of the Fields—Precarious Nature of the Search—Natal—Inducements held out to Settlers—St. Helena and Napoleon—Discourteous Treatment of a Fallen Foe—The Home of the Caged Lion.
And now we are off to the last of the British naval stations under consideration—that of the African coast. It is called, in naval phraseology, “The West Coast of Africa and Cape of Good Hope Station,” and embraces not merely all that the words imply, but a part of the east coast, including the important colony of Natal. Commencing at latitude 20° N. above the Cape Verd Islands, it includes the islands of Ascension, St. Helena, Tristan d’Acunha, and others already described.
Ascension, which is a British station, with dockyard, and fort garrisoned by artillery and marines, is a barren island, about eight miles long by six broad. Its fort is in lat. 70° 26′ N.: long., 140° 24′ W. It is of volcanic formation, and one of its hills rises to the considerable elevation of 2,870 feet. Until the imprisonment of Napoleon at St. Helena, it was utterly uninhabited. At that period it was garrisoned with a small British force; and so good use was made of their time that it has been partly cultivated and very greatly improved. Irrigation was found, as elsewhere, to work wonders, and as there are magnificent springs, this was rendered easy. Vast numbers of turtle are taken on its shores; and, in consequence, the soldiers prefer the soup of pea, and affect to despise turtle steaks worth half a guinea apiece in London, and fit to rejoice the heart of an alderman! The writer saw the same thing in Vancouver Island, where at the boarding-house of a very large steam saw-mill, the hands struck against the salmon, so abundant on those coasts. They insisted upon not having it more than twice a week for dinner, and that it should be replaced by salt pork. The climate of Ascension is remarkably healthy. The object in occupying it is very similar to the reason for holding the Falkland Islands—to serve as a depôt for stores, coal, and for watering ships cruising in the South Atlantic.
Sierra Leone is, perhaps, of all places in the world, the last to which the sailor would wish to go, albeit its unhealthiness has been, as is the case with Panama, grossly exaggerated. Thus we were told that when a clergyman with some little influence was pestering the Prime Minister for the time being for promotion, the latter would appoint him to the Bishopric of Sierra Leone, knowing well that in a year or so the said bishopric would be vacant and ready for another gentleman!
SIERRA LEONE.
Sierra Leone is a British colony, and the capital is Free Town, situated on a peninsula lying between the broad estuary of the Sherboro and the Sierra Leone rivers, connected with the mainland by an isthmus not more than one mile and a half broad. The colony [pg 203]also includes a number of islands, among which are many good harbours. Its history has one interesting point. When, in 1787, it became a British colony, a company was formed, which included a scheme for making it a home for free negroes, and to prove that colonial produce could be raised profitably without resorting to slave labour. Its prosperity was seriously affected during the French Revolution by the depredations of French cruisers, and in 1808 the company ceded all its rights to the Crown. Its population includes negroes from 200 different African tribes, many of them liberated from slavery and slave-ships, a subject which will be treated hereafter in this work.
One of the great industries of Sierra Leone is the manufacture of cocoa-nut oil. The factories are extensive affairs. It is a very beautiful country, on the whole, and when acclimatised, Europeans find that they can live splendidly on the products of the country. The fisheries, both sea and river, are wonderfully productive, and employ about 1,500 natives. Boat-building is carried on to some extent, the splendid forests yielding timber so large that canoes capable of holding a hundred men have been made from a single log, like those already mentioned in connection with the north-west coast of America. Many of the West Indian products have been introduced; sugar, coffee, indigo, ginger, cotton, and rice thrive well, as do Indian corn, the yam, plantain, pumpkins, banana, cocoa, baobab, pine-apple, orange, lime, guava, papaw, pomegranate, orange, and lime. Poultry is particularly abundant. It therefore might claim attention as a fruitful and productive country but for the malaria of its swampy rivers and low lands.