St. Landry democrat., 1878-08-03
TIE AZOR.
S"ferings of tine Negro Ealsrants from
ShnrReAaON to Liberaa-..A Eepets-
tom of the Troubles. if not
Horrors, of the

y boh oF the Troubles. If not
Horrors, of the
9, Middle Passase.--Bad Faith of the Gal
q tain and Misconduct of the British
II CONSUL What the Officers
It OF the Associ alton Say.
( The narrative of the experience of tn
. Azor and her three hundred emigrant
d at Sierra Leone, contained in the lette
IS OF Mr.. Williams, published to-day, is a
interesting snd amusing in it's way, a
t the graphic description of the disease
: ridden bark from Charleston, given t.
the public on Saturday. Captain Holme
found that there would be a heavy in
g crease in the mortality of his passenger
: II he were becalmed or delayed in any
2 way between Sierra Leone and Monrovia
and he wisely determined to make ar
rangements to be towed to Monrovia by
the Ethiopia. The contract was regu.
larly made, but before the hour appointed
for sailing the Ethiopia quietly steamed
out of the harbor, her captain vouch,
sating no apology or explanation to the
dlsmayed and fever-stricken emigrants.
Mr.. Williams. with natural indignation,
characterizes the conduct of Captain
Slmrlons as & a piece of the most heart
less cruelty" Captain Simmons knew
the situation of the Azor, and that, ir
the opinion of the port physician a large
number OF the emigrants would die
IT they were kept aboard the ship
many days longer. In Sierra Leone his
conduct is denounced by his own
countrymen as "dirty." This is not
enough. 1t is the duty of the govern
ment to bring the behavior of Captain
Simmons to the notice of the British
government, in order that the facts may
be investigated. A country as ready as
Great Britain is to honor those who save
life, whether they be foreigners or British
subjects, will not be slow to condemn
and punish the commander of British
vessel, in an English port, who deliber.
ately breaks a formal bargain. and
ahandons to their fate hundreds eff those
emancipated Africans for whom England
has always professed peculiar sym pathy
and affection. Captain Simmons was not
governed by the commercial instincts of
the shopkeeper, or by the generosity of
the sailor, or by the charity of the
phllanthropist. In every way and sense
he was false to the honorable traditions
of the British merchant service. A
spotless record by his act is smirched
and stained. Fortunately for the Azor,
another steamer, not commanded by a |
Captain Simmons, ran into Sierra Leone |
on May 9Th, and by her, the Senegal,
the Llberian bark was towed to her
destination, casting anchor in the port
ot Monrovia at midnight on Sunday,
June I'd, forty-twe days from Charles.
ton. With fair weather the VOYAGE
could have been made in twenty.fiVe
days or less. The bad faith of Captain
Simmons gave Mr.. Williams an
opportunity to see the ins and outs
of Sierra Leone. Of this pecu-
liar town, with its three horses and two
hundred white inhabitants, its one-storv
houses, chatiering merchants and tower,
ing cocoa trees, he draws a faithful if
not fisttering picture. Politics the
colony has none, as the governor and
council are appointed by the crown.
There is newspaper in the town, which
sometimes opposes and sometimes sup
ports the colonial government. The
man who owns the press is hostile to
Governor Rowe the man who owns the
type IS Governor Rewe's staunch friend.
Type vetoes press, or press vetoes type
and the government is in or out of favor
accordingly as lead or iron have the
upper hand. 1t should be noted, how
ever, that diversity of interests and
affections, as represented in the owner>
ship and management of newspapers, I
causes dead-locks and seesawing in
other places than the west coast of .
Africa. The physical power of the
natives at Sierra Leone is most surpris- {
ing. There, as here, the thickness ofthe {
skull and the strength of the spinal {
column are turned to excellent account. ,
Wages are small, but living is cheap, l
md fruit sells at surprisingly low prices. 8
The judgment formed by Mr.. Williams t
If the alligator pear Gas a steady diet" =
s rash, and will not be confirmed bv
hose who have had larger experience
If its peculiar favor. On the other side.
t will be noted. in favor of Mr.. Wills $
Jams, that he admits that mangoes are I
delightful. A smack of the lips t
accompanied his remark that i
he mango has an aromatic, spicy taste, 7
to describe There in /
Africa, near the eaator, Mr.. Williams =
ound souvenir of his native city. The O
vater in Sierra Leone tastes Just like r
awny fluid drawn from the bosom of the !
historic "Jemes." The laboring classes b
Il Sierra Leone are respectful, faithful q
nd well-behaved. AS they must draw d
line somewhere, they, negro like, draw u
in the wrong place. They will stand v
nything except being called niggers," g
n ofense which is punished BY a fine G.
y the local magistrates. Nearly every. h
'ody in Sierra Leone, except the Mus +
ulmans, is more or less black, and the "
oc al relations are ,awfully mixed. To Fl
is horror, Mr.. Williams found himself, il
n the house ofone of the first merchants, u
t table with the merchants son and 81
aughter, both of them persons of color. q
'he daughter is an accomplished mu
|cian, is visited by the British officers o
nd their wives, and is leader of Sierra r.
,eone ton. In this respect Sierra Leone, Il
espite the large negro population, is no Il
etter or worse than England, or the W
ointment OF Europe, where the distinc. Il
ion that southerners naturally aud t,
ecessarily make between whites and Il
lacks is necessarily unknown. It was ii
OF pleasant sight in Paris, in the days ii
the second empire, to behold the En- rs
ress Eugene and the dainty DANES OF f.
1e court dandling, in public. the odorous ii
tile piccaninnies of hisimperial bighness 81
oulouque l., emperor Of Hayti! The E,
,nsations of Mr. Williams are best de- q,
'ribed by himself. 1t is reasonable to e,
resume tina! he accepted the situation. re
1hen the Azor was at Sierra Leone it cs
as ascertained that the passengers were a,
early penniless. The exodus associa- n,