were not sufficient to direct them. All these
motions they observed with such quickness, as clearly
shewed them to be expert in their business. After
Mr Hodges had made a drawing of them, as they lay
ranged along the shore, we landed and took a nearer
view of them, by going on board several. This
fleet consisted of forty sail, equipped in the same
manner as those we had seen before, belonged to the
little district of Tettaha, and were come to Oparree
to be reviewed before the king, as the former fleet
had been. There were attending on his fleet some
small double canoes, which they called
Marais,
having on their fore-part a kind of double bed place
laid over with green leaves, each just sufficient
to hold one man. These, they told us, were to
lay their dead upon; their chiefs I suppose they meant,
otherwise their slain must be few. Otoo, who was
present, caused at my request some of their troops
to go through their exercise on shore. Two parties
first began with clubs, but this was over almost as
soon as begun; so that I had no time to make my observations
upon it. They then went to single combat, and
exhibited the various methods of fighting, with great
alertness; parrying off the blows and pushes which
each combatant aimed at the other, with great dexterity.
Their arms were clubs and spears; the latter they
also use as darts. In fighting with the club,
all blows intended to be given the legs, were evaded
by leaping over it; and those intended for the head,
by couching a little, and leaping on one side; thus
the blow would fall to the ground. The spear or
dart was parried by fixing the point of a spear in
the ground right before them, holding it in an inclined
position, more or less elevated according to the part
of the body they saw their antagonist intending to
make a push, or throw his dart at, and by moving the
hand a little to the right or left, either the one
or the other was turned off with great ease.
I thought that when one combatant had parried off
the blows, &c. of the other, he did not use the advantage
which seemed to me to accrue. As for instance,
after he had parried off a dart, he still stood on
the defensive, and suffered his antagonist to take
up another, when I thought there was time to run him
through the body.
These combatants had no superfluous dress upon them;
an unnecessary piece of cloth or two, which they had
on when they began, were presently torn off by the
by-standers, and given to some of our gentlemen present.
This being over, the fleet departed; not in any order,
but as fast as they could be got afloat; and we went
with Otoo to one of his dock-yards, where the two
large pahies or canoes were building, each of
which was an hundred and eight feet long. They
were almost ready to launch, and were intended to
make one joint double pahie or canoe. The
king begged of me a grappling and rope, to which I
added an English jack and pendant (with the use of
which he was well acquainted), and desired the pahie