This chief was clothed from the loins downwards, with a cloth of the country manufacture, wrapped about him and made fast with a girdle round his waist, having a cap of the country cloth on his head, all his body above the loins with his legs and feet being bare. Some of his attendants had cloths about their loins, while others had only a clout between their legs, fastened before and behind to their girdles; having likewise caps on their heads of their own making, some made of basket-work, and others like a large wide purse of wild beast skins. All their cloth, girdles, fishing lines, and other such things, are made from the bark of certain trees, very neatly manufactured. They fabricate likewise all such iron implements as they use very artificially; such as the heads of their darts, fish-hooks, hooking irons, ironheads, and great daggers, some of these last being as long as a bill hook, or woodcutters knife, very sharp on both sides and bent like a Turkish cymeter, and most of the men have such a dagger hanging on their left side. Their targets are made of the same materials with their cloths, very closely wrought, very large and of an oblong square form, somewhat longer than broad, so that when they kneel on the ground the target entirely covers their whole body. Their bows are short and tolerably strong, as much as a man is able to draw with one finger, and the string is made of the bark of a tree, made flat, and a quarter of an inch broad. I have not seen any of their arrows, as they were all close wrapped up, and I was so busily engaged in traffic that I had not leisure to get them opened out for my inspection. They have also the art to work up their gold into very pretty ornaments.
When the captain had taken his seat on the stool, I sent him as a present two ells of cloth and two basins, and he sent back for our weight and measure, on which I sent him a weight of two angels, and informed him that such was our price in gold for two ells, or the measure I had already sent him. This rule of traffic he absolutely refused, and would not suffer his people to buy any thing but basins of brass or latten; so that we sold that day 74 brass basins for about half an angel weight each, and nine white basins for about a quarter of an angel each. We shewed them some of all our other wares, but they did not care for any of them. About two o'clock, P.M. the chief returned again, and presented me a hen and two great roots, which I accepted, and he then made me understand by signs, that many people would come from the country that night to trade with me, who would bring great store of gold. Accordingly about 4 o'clock there came about 100 men under 3 chiefs, all well equipped with darts and bows; and when they came to us, every man stuck his dart into the ground in token of peace, all the chiefs having their stools with them, sat down, after which they sent a youth on board our boat who brought a measure of an ell, a quarter and a sixteenth, making us understand that they would have four times that measure in cloth for the weight in gold of an angel and 12 grains. I offered him two ells for that weight, for which I had before demanded two angels; but this he despised, and stuck to the four measures, being 5-1/4 ells. When it grew late and I motioned to go away, he came to four ells for the above weight, and as he and I could not agree we went back to the ships. This day we took for basins 6 ounces a half and an eighth of gold.
In the morning of the 6th, we well manned our boats and the skiff, being in some fear of the Portuguese, who had taken away a man from the ships in the year before; and as the negroes had not canoes, we went near the shore to them. The young man who had been with us the night before was again sent to us, and he seemed to have had intercourse with the Portuguese, as he could speak a little of that language, and was quite expert in weights and measures. At his coming he offered us, as before, an angel and 12 grains for four ells, giving us to understand, if we would not deal on these terms, we might go away, which we did accordingly; but before going away, I offered him three ells of rotten cloth for his weight, which he would not accept. We then went on board our ships, which lay a league off, after which we went back in the boats for sand ballast. When the chiefs saw that our boats had now no merchandise, but came only for water and sand, they at last agreed to give the weight for three ells. Therefore, when the boats returned to the ships, we put wares into both, and, for greater expedition, I and John Saville went in one boat, while the master, John Makeworth, and Richard Curligin, went in the other. That night I took for my part 52 ounces of gold, and those in the other boat took 8-1/4 ounces, all by the above weight and measure. When it grew late we returned to the ships, having taken that day in all 5 pounds of gold.
We went on shore again on the 7th, and that day I took in our boat 3 pounds 19 ounces[246], so that we had sold most of the cloth we carried in the boat before noon, by which time many of the negroes were gone, and the rest seemed to have very little gold remaining; yet they made signs to us to bring them more latten basins, which I was not inclined to, not wishing to spend any more time there, but to push forwards for Don Johns town. But as John Saville and John Makeworth were anxious to go again, I consented, but did not go myself. They bartered goods for eighteen ounces of gold and came away, all the natives having departed at a certain cry or signal. While they were on shore, a young negroe who could speak a little Portuguese came on board with three others, and to him I sold 39 basins and two small white saucers, for three ounces of gold. From what I could pick out, this young fellow had been in the castle of Mina among the Portuguese, and had got away from them, for he told us that the Portuguese were bad men, who made the negroes slaves when they could take them, and put irons on their legs. He said also that the Portuguese used to hang all the French or English they could lay hold of. According to his account, the garrison in the castle consisted of 60 men, and that there came thither every year two ships, one large and the other a small caravel. He told me farther that Don John was at war with the Portuguese, which encouraged me to go to his town, which is only four leagues from the castle, and from which our men had been driven in the preceding year. This fellow came fearlessly on board, and immediately demanded why we had not brought back the men we took away the year before, for he knew that the English had taken away five negroes. We answered that they were in England, where they were well received, and remained there till they could speak the language, after which they were to be brought back to serve as interpreters between the English and the natives; with which answer he seemed quite satisfied, as he spoke no more of that matter.
[Footnote 246: This is surely an error, as the troy or bullion pound contains only 12 ounces. We ought therefore to read 3 pounds 9 ounces--E.]
Our boats being come on board, we weighed and set sail, and soon afterwards noticed a great fire on the shore, by the light of which we could discern a large white object, which was supposed to be the Portuguese castle of St George del Mina; and as it is very difficult to ply up to windward on this coast, in case of passing any place, we came to anchor for the night two leagues from the shore, lest we might overshoot the town of Don John in the night. This town lies in a great bay which is very deep[247], and there the people were chiefly desirous to procure basins and cloth, though they bought a few other trifles, as knives, horse-tails, and horns; and some of our people who were on shore sold a cap, a dagger, a hat, and other such articles. They shewed us a coarse kind of cloth, which I believe was of French manufacture: The wool was very coarse, and the stuff was striped with various colours, as green, white, yellow, &c. Several of the negroes at this place wore necklaces of large glass beads of various colours. At this place I picked up a few words of their language, of which the following is a short specimen:
Mattea! Mattea! Is their salutation.
Dassee! Dassee! I thank you.
Sheke, Gold.
Cowrte, Cut.
Cracca, Knives.
Bassina, Basins.
Foco, foco, Cloth.
Molta, Much, or great plenty[248]
[Footnote 247: This abrupt account of a town, &c. seems to refer back to that of St John, which they had just left.--E.]
[Footnote 248: This language seems partly corrupted.--Hakluyt.
Two of the words in this short specimen have been evidently adopted from the Portuguese, bassina and molta.--E.]
In the morning of the 8th, we had sight of the Portuguese castle of Mina, but the morning being misty we could not see it distinctly till we were almost at Don Johns town, when the weather cleared up and we had a full view of the fort, beside which we noticed a white house on a hill, which seemed to be a chapel. We stood in towards the shore, within two English miles of Don Johns town, where we anchored in seven fathoms. We here found, as in many places before, that the current followed the course of the wind. At this place the land by the sea is in some places low, and in others high, everywhere covered with wood. This town of Don John[249] is but small, having only about twenty huts of the negroes, and is mostly surrounded by a fence about the height of a man, made of reeds or sedge, or some such material. After being at anchor two or three hours, without any person coming off to us, we manned our boats and put some merchandize into them, and then went with our boats very near the shore, where we anchored. They then sent off a man to us, who told us by signs that this was the town belonging to Don John, who was then in the interior, but would be home at sunset. He then demanded a reward, as most of these people do on first coming aboard, and on giving him an ell of cloth he went away, and we saw no more of him that night. In the morning of the 9th we went again near the shore with our boats, when a canoe came off to us, from the people in which we were informed by signs that Don John was not yet come home, but was expected that day. There came also a man in a canoe from another town a mile from this, called Don Devis[250], who shewed us gold, and made signs for us to go there. I then left John Saville and John Makeworth at the town of Don John, and went in the Hind to the other town, where we anchored, after which I went in the boat close to the shore near the town. Boats or canoes soon came off to us, shewing a measure of 4-1/2 yards, and a weight of an angel and 12 grains, as their rule of traffic, so that I could make no bargain. All this day our people lay off Don Johns town and did nothing, being told that he was still absent.