Some of the other officials did not treat Vasco Guedes so well. As soon as they heard he was to be superseded, they behaved like Leotti, and wished to treat the Judge in the same way; but he went down to Killimane and other places along the coast, and by threatening the Governors with the utmost rigour of the law, he obtained from them his share, viz.—three dollars per head for every slave exported under any denomination.
The facts above stated may be easily obtained by a reference to the last Slave-trade Papers laid before Parliament, and are confirmed by documents in the possession of the British, Portuguese, and French governments. I state facts, without divulging any secrets, and I defy the Portuguese to disprove them. Inquiry will only elicit other circumstances which ought to be made public. As it may not be convenient for the reader to refer to the documents which have been laid before Parliament, I will here produce the evidence of the Portuguese ship of war “Zambesi” assisting the “Minnetonka” in obtaining slaves.
Extract from the deposition of Henry Batt, second mate of the late barque “Ocean Queen,” wrecked on the Bazarutto Islands, on the 3rd March, 1857:—[8]
“On or about the 1st June, the Portuguese schooner of war, ‘Zambesi,’ arrived at Santa Carolina with dispatches for the Governor of the Bazarutto Islands. She had on board, as a passenger, Major Olliveira, the new Governor of Inhambane, sent by the Governor-general of Mozambique to supersede the Governor Leotti. She left Santa Carolina on the 5th June, and in her myself, and the crew of the ‘Ocean Queen,’ were sent to Inhambane. About the 12th June we arrived at Inhambane, and remained there about three weeks.
“The ‘Zambesi’ returning to Bazarutto, we were ordered to go in her.
“29th June, weighed and stood for the bar; anchored in ten fathoms, abreast of Mafouroon Island. About ten, A.M., on the 30th of June, still at anchor; observed a clipper barque, painted all black, standing in for Barrow Hill; she stood off and on there till she clewed up everything and anchored off there about three P.M. The same afternoon the pilot came on board the ‘Zambesi;’ blowing strong from the S.W.
“Next morning weighed, and proceeded; after crossing the bar stood to the southward, and observed a boat lowered from the barque at anchor off Barrow Hill. This boat, with the boatswain of the barque and four men, came alongside of the ‘Zambesi;’ after she had been alongside about five minutes, and the boatswain of the barque had conversed during that time with the captain of the ‘Zambesi’ and the late Governor Leotti, of Inhambane, as a signal to the barque, a white flag was hoisted at the fore-top-gallant mast-head, and a similar one at the peak.
“The ‘Zambesi’ now stood for the barque, which immediately made sail, slipped from her anchor, and stood out to sea. The pilot, in his own boat, accompanied the boat of the barque to Inhambane, and we in the schooner proceeded to the Bazarutto Islands.
“During the time that the boat of the barque was alongside the ‘Zambesi,’ I had a conversation with one of the men belonging to the boat, who spoke English. He informed me that some time previous they anchored on the coast, further to the south, where the mate and an armed boat’s crew went on shore to obtain slaves; he believed that this party had been murdered by the natives. Observing a vessel to the southward, which they believed to be an English man-of-war, they slipped, and ran away to the northward and eastward, towards Madagascar, from which island they came to Inhambane. In reply to a question, he said, with a laugh, that he had quite forgotten the name of the barque, but that she was under American colours; the crew were principally Spaniards; they had plenty of powder on board; they were well armed, and could show fight; they had six guns, and were well armed for boarders; they had irons down below for the negroes when they got them on board, and a large stock of provisions, and a great deal of money for purchasing slaves. He had heard the captain of the barque say that he thought he would be able to get the slaves at Inhambane.
“When the barque made sail, the man with whom I had been conversing spoke to the boatswain about it, and he replied, ‘That is nothing, she will be back in a few days.’