Butte record., 1855-09-22

llngton }"
Walking out the morning after his ar
rival, Mr.. Bard encountered tall trim
serious looking white man, who invited
him to his house. 1t was plain builds
ing of rough boards, containing a num-
Der of small rooms opening into a larger
one All around were hung portraits OF
the Qnren of England. A sleepy look
ing black girl, with an enormous head of
frizzled hair, was lazily sweeping the floor,
as they entered. Little did our wanderer
dream of the august presence into which
he was soon to be ushered.
'At word from the gentleman says
the narrative, "the torpid black gill dis
appeared for few moments, and then
came back with some cups and pot Of
coffee. | observed that there were three
cups, and that my host filed them all :,
which [ thought little singular, since
there were but two of US. A faint, mo-
mentary suspicion crossed my mind, that
the female polypus stood in some such
relation to my host as to warrant her in
honorine US with her company. But,
instead OF doing so, she unceremoniously
pushed open door in the corner, and
curtly calculated TO some unseen occu-
pant, Get up = There was a kind Of
querulous response, and direc ly thump-
ing and muttering, as of some person
who regarded himself as unreasonably
disturbed Meanwhile we had each fin
ished our fl st cup Of coffee, and were
proceeding with second, when the door
in the corner opened, and black boy,
or what an American would be apt to
call "a young dlrkey,' apparently nine
teen Or twenty years old, shufled up to
the table. He wore only a shirt, un-
buttoned at the throat, and cotton panta-
looms, scarcely bu;toned at all. He nod
ded TO my entertainer with drawing
Morning, Sir = and sat down to the
third cup OF coffee. Ny host seemed to
take no notice Of him, and we continued
our conversation. Soon after the sloven
youth got up, took his hat, and slowly
walked down the path to the river, where
l afterward saw him washing his face in
the strcam.''
In the course Of conversation the ar
tist remarked that he was very desirous
Of being presented to His Majesty the
King of the Mosquitoes. His host there
upon stepped to the door, and shouted to
the coloFed youth to return:
'Peihaps you are not aware that that
is the king" he said, as the boy ap-
preached,
George" " said the host, "this gentle
man has come to see you. Sit down."
This was the ceremony of introduction
to the Mosquito Monarch The tall,
thin white gentleman was Mr.. Bell, the
English resident George was nothing
more nor less than negro, with scarcely
a trace of Indian blood such fellow
as would be considered at the South to
be ga likely young fellow, worth twelve
hundred dollars as a body servant"
The Mosquitoes are a mongrel race
The original inhabitants Of the coast
were described by Fernando Columbus,
the son of the great navigator, as b ing
"almost negroes in color, bestial, going
naked" The buccaneers of every nation
made their shores a redezvouS, ,and ming
led promiscuously with the Indians. A
Spanish SLAYER was subsequently wrecked
upon the coast, and the brutal Africans
were added to the populat ton. Runaway
slaves from the English and Spanish
plantations swelled their number, until
finally the negro element came to pre-
dominate Nothing shows moro clearly
the African character of the Mosquitoes
than their funeral ceremonies. In read
ing the following account of funeral,
one might fancy that it was chapter
from Mung 2ark of Clapperton
GAS we came near, we heard the mo-
notonous beating of the native drum, or
tum-tum, relieved by an occasional low,
deep blast on large hollow pipe, which
sounded more like the distant believing
of an OK than any thing else l ever heard.
In the pauses we distinguished suppress
ed walls, which continued for minute
perhaps, and then were followed by the
monotonous drum and droning pipe On
advancing to the huts in the centre oi
the group, l found a small pitpam canoe
cut in half, in one part of which, wrap
ped in cotton cloth, was the dead body