Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1860-10-15
Horrors of the sIave-trade- eveIatIons
of Negro SmuRRIer.

A narrative of the life Of Captain Phillips
Drake, said to have been an African trader
for fifty years, describes as follows the fate
Of the POneheeta, with 700 slaves on board,
just purchased at Badagry. The vessel was
commanded by Antonio Mendez, an old
slave smuggler
sour schooner was loaded beyond ca
pacity, and the deck had TO be fitted with
temporary platforms, or Shelves as high as
the taffrail. Above these, stiff netting was
drawn to prevent the shackled couples from
leaping overheard, to commit suicide. In
walking the deck, we some times trod on a
hand or foot thrust out from the lower tier.
Such was the condition of the Poncheetd's s
cargo, when we left the Blight.
ION our last night out, there was fright
ful battle among the slaves, for room and
air, although our matches were off. The
crew and overseers restored order by the
use of whips and hsndspikes, but not till
seventeen negroes had been choked to death,
or so badly gnawed in their throats by their
neighbors that we were obliged to drown
them. So tightly were the wretches wedged
below, that the sailors had to draw the dead
ones out by main pulling of their legs.
About week out we encountered a Sc
we're gale, which drove us furiously before it,
all our canvas being taken in. had, up to
this time, kept to my resolution of abstain
ing from drink while on shipboard; but the
close, sultry weather, and the stencil of the
negroes, sickened me, so that indulged that
| night pretty freely in potations of Jamaica
spirits until dropped Off to sleep. l was
awakened by crash, as if the skies were
falling, and a yell like thousand tigers.
Springing from my bunk, near the after
gangway, heard Captain Mendez calling to
his mates, while the men were running to
and fro like mad. Nothing was to be seen;
no light apeak or abeam and the night
rainy, and as dark as a VOLTS mouth. l ran
toward the binnacle-lamp, and found the
helm swinging loose, and at that moment a
| vivid fash of lightning, by which ] saw
| Captain Mendez, with face like his shirt:
Save yourself doctorl' cried he, the brig is
| sinkingP
81 rushed to midships, and heard the me-
| groes screeching on both sides, then back to
| the stern davits, where our men were lower
| ing the boats. How got in with the rest l
never knew, but ten minutes after this l
| found myself with Captain Mendez and half
the crew, in one of our boats, the rain dash
| ing on us; we rowed about for an hour, be-
| fore day appeared.
"The gale had lulled, but the heavy rain
was like water-spout. All this time we
could hear the slaves screeching on board
the Poncheetd. When morning broke we
saw her alec, her decks almost level with
the waters edge. We did not dare to pull
nearer but lay by till she went down, a little
| over two hours after the collision that caused
her to founder.
=" She had been struck on the beam by a
large vessel, which tore away her starboard
rail and netting the whole length, crushing
our chained blacks on their shelves, which
occasioned the dismal shrieks we had heard
The POncheeta sprung a-leak and filled grad.
ually till she sank, with nearly 400 liv-
ing human beings manacled on her slave
decks. One of our boats must have found
cred, with several of her crew. We were
| picked up by the vessel that had run us
down, and which had lain to during the fog.
II was an armed East Indiaman, the AerseV
bound for Zanzibar, and by her we were
landed at Kahenda, on the Guinen coast