he Island of St. Louis. But what we cannot conceive is, that the
governor, after giving the French a good reception for some days, should
have required their troops to be sent away from the colony: and what were
these troops? wretches almost naked, worn out by the long fatigues and
privations which they had had to bear in the deserts; they were almost all
without arms. Did he fear the spirit of the colonists, and even that of the
negroes, which was not in his favor, and who saw with the greatest pleasure
the arrival of the French? This is not at all probable.

All the shipwrecked persons being assembled at St. Louis, as we have
already said, the governor, two days before his departure for Cape Verd,
thought of sending a vessel on board the Medusa, to look for a sum of
100,000 francs,[39] which was intended to form the treasure of the colony,
as well as provisions, which were in abundance on board, and of which there
was some scarcity in the colony. Very little was said about the men, who
had remained on board, and to whom their companions had solemnly promised
to send for them as soon as they should arrive at St. Louis; but these
unfortunate men were already hardly thought of any more. Mr. Correard says
that the first day that he took a walk in the town, he went to pay a visit
to the family of the governor. During the conversation, the vessel was
mentioned, that was going to be sent to the Medusa, as also the possibility
of recovering the 100,000 francs, provisions, and effects. Seeing that they
said nothing of the seventeen men who had remained on board the frigate, he
said, "but a more precious object, of which nothing is said, is the
seventeen poor men who were left!" "Pooh," answered somebody, "seventeen!
there are not three left." "And if there remained but three, but one,"
replied he, "yet, his life is more valuable than all that can be recovered
from the frigate;" and left the company in anger.

When in the first part of this work, we represented Mrs. and Miss Schmalz,
as alone unmoved when the frigate ran aground; and seeming to rise above
the general consternation, our readers may have given them credit for
uncommon greatness of soul, and more than manly courage. Why are we obliged
to destroy this honorable illusion which we may have caused? Why, when
these ladies, have carried indifference so far as to dispense themselves
from the most common duties of humanity, by refraining from paying the
smallest visit to t