em weltering in their blood, either to die of their wounds or to
be devoured by wild beasts. After travelling for upwards of twenty
days, the coast was reached, and they were embarked on board the dhow,
which ran in to receive them, taking many more at other places, till her
hold was filled. Having been detained by calms, they had been badly
fed, with a limited amount of water; and, an epidemic breaking out among
them, several had died, and not only they but others who appeared in a
dying state were hove overboard. He, being strong and active, had been
employed in assisting to carry food to the other slaves. He had,
moreover, learned a little Arabic.

When chased by the brig-of-war, he had overheard the Arabs talking about
what they would do should it become likely that they would be captured.
He understood that they intended to throw all the slaves overboard, so
as to pass for a legal trader. On finding this, he managed to creep
below, and to stow himself away in the place where he had been found.
Scarcely had he concealed himself when he knew, by the cries and shrieks
of his own countrymen, that the work of butchery had begun. He had
little hopes of escaping, but life even to him was dear, and he kept in
his hiding-place, hoping, at all events, to prolong it. His evidence
was clear and circumstantial.

Several of the Arabs were next examined, and had no valid excuse to
offer, except that the slaves were their own property, and they had a
right to do with them as they thought fit. As many had already died,
and as, probably, the greater number would have been carried off by
disease before they could reach their destination, this was probably
their real opinion, and accounted for their determination to murder the
whole of their captives in the hopes of saving their vessel from
condemnation.

Murray and Jack at once resolved to call on the Sultan, and to state the
case to him, on the possibility of its opening his eyes to the horrors
of the slave-trade, and inducing him the more willingly to assist in its
suppression.

As it was still daylight, and Hamed informed them that the evening was
the best time to see the Sultan, they at once pulled on shore. Going
through the dirty streets, they reached the Sultan's tumbledown-looking
palace, where His Majesty was seen seated in a half-open apartment
facing the street, furnished with divans and piles of mats. He was
surrounded by Arabs of rank, many of them dressed