The Nemesis being uncertain whether her reception would be friendly or otherwise, slowly passed up beyond the fort, to explore the river, and great was the surprise of all the lookers-on, to see her move so easily through water so shallow, that they thought it could scarcely float one of their smallest slavers. They had little dreamed that so large a vessel could, if necessary, pursue even the boats of the slavers into their most secret haunts.
As she again descended and approached the fort, there was evidently some excitement, as if they doubted what would happen next.
An aide-de-camp soon came on board from the governor of the fort, to inquire whence the vessel came, and what her object might be in visiting such an unfrequented place; but neither he nor any one on board could make each other understood.
On the same day, the captain and some of the officers of the Nemesis went on shore, to pay their respects to his Excellency, who affected to be exceedingly glad to see them, and shewed them all possible civility and attention. This was, no doubt, politic on his part, for he had every reason to believe that the Nemesis was a man-of-war, and he also well knew, that had she been so, it would have been a difficult matter for him to exculpate himself from the charge of openly aiding and abetting the slave-trade, which was at that very moment being carried on under his own eyes, and within reach of his own guns. It was, moreover, sanctioned by the very flag flying at the peak of the slavers. Yet the same flag was hoisted on the fort itself, under the stipulations of a treaty, by which its exertions were to be used to prevent the continuance of the horrid traffic in the river. A slaver was, in fact, lying in the river, not far from the fort, and, as the steamer was passing up, it was easily observed that the crew were deserting her, and trying to make good their escape, leaving their craft at the mercy of a single boat's crew. But the Nemesis was not a man-of-war, and had no right to capture her; and it was therefore more politic not to seem to notice, in the first instance, what was very apparent to all.
For some time, there was a difficulty in communicating with the governor at all, no one knowing the language; but, at length, a Parsee merchant was sent for, who could speak Hindostanee as well as Portuguese, and as there was also a man on board who could speak Hindostanee, a regular cross-fire conversation was thus maintained, in a roundabout manner. One would hardly have expected to find a Parsee merchant settled in such a remote and unhealthy spot as Delagoa Bay, under the Portuguese government. But where will not the "auri sacra fames" tempt mankind to court the smile of Fortune, even with the grin of Pestilence and Death before them?
As a settlement, Delagoa Bay is of very little use to the Portuguese, of whom very few reside there; and without the stain of slavery, it could scarcely linger on. There is, however, a limited trade in ivory and gold-dust, and the coast is frequented by whalers, particularly Americans, who come into the settlement for supplies. The narrative of Captain Owen's survey on the coast gives a melancholy picture of the deadly nature of the climate, which very few, either of his officers or his men, were fortunate enough to survive.
The fact of a slaver lying under the guns of the fort, and other little evidences that the governor was very backward in carrying out the instructions he had received respecting the slave-trade, went hard with him afterwards. This case was mentioned to the governor of Mozambique, under whose jurisdiction Delagoa Bay is placed, and by whom the deputy-governor is appointed. It will hereafter be seen, that he was, at all events, sincere and energetic in his efforts to stop the trade. He became excessively angry when the circumstances were stated to him, and declared that it was in violation of his most strict and positive orders, and instantly directed that the deputy-governor should be removed from his post.
The slaver, which was a fine Portuguese brig, was subsequently visited by some of the officers of the Nemesis, and found to be regularly fitted out for the trade, the planks for the slave-deck being all ready, with boilers for their food, and shackles, &c. Her masts and spars were large, and of excellent stuff, and advantage was soon taken of this circumstance, to procure some necessary materials for the repairs.
It appeared that there were some excellent timbers lying on the beach, which had probably belonged to some large ship wrecked in the neighbourhood. They were precisely such as would best suit the wants of our vessel; and, as it was stated that they belonged to a Portuguese merchant in the town, inquiry was at once made about the purchase of them. Various excuses, however, were made, and unnecessary difficulty suggested. It was evident that there was a "screw loose" somewhere or other, or else that they wished to impose an exorbitant price for them. A message was therefore immediately sent, declaring that if the timbers were not given up at a fair valuation, within twenty minutes, the captain of the Nemesis "would go on board the slaver with his men, and take the masts and spars out of her, and as they appeared to be exceedingly good ones, they would answer her purpose rather better."
No talisman could have acted more instantaneously than this well-timed threat, which, moreover, would certainly have been put in execution. The whole community, from the governor downwards, were more or less interested in the affair; the report rapidly reached the master of the slaver; his alarm was natural enough, and his reasons for urging the immediate surrender of the timbers sufficiently evident. "Pray give them anything in the world they want," said he; "let me rather pay for it a dozen times over, than keep that strange-looking ship here. She will ruin us altogether; we must get rid of her in any way we can; give her, by all means, everything she wants, and let her be off, for mercy's sake."