character of this black Prince from the following ftories of him, the truth of which is well established.

His father had feen fo much drunkenness among the English flave-traders on the coaft of Africa, that he concluded drunkennefs was very common in England, and in order to prevent his fon's falling into that abominable practice, he laid a command on him, (stating at the fame time the ground of his fears) that when he came to England, he should not be prevailed upon to drink fpirits of any kind, nor to drink more than a glafs or two of wine at a meal.

When young

Naimbanna found how strongly obedience to parents is enjoined in the Bible, he regarded this command of his father as facred, nor was he ever known to violate it.

Soon after he came to London, he was taken to fee St. Paul's, the grandeur of which it was thought would astonish him; but to the furprize of the gentlemen who went with him, in getting to the upper part of the building, terror feemed to swallow up every other feeling; he made the utmost hafte to defcend, nor did he ftop till he found himself fafely landed in the church-yard, when, in a very earnest manner, he thanked God for having fpared him. When asked the reafon of his ftrange conduct, he faid, that on looking down from the top of St. Paul's, he was fo ftruck with the nearnefs of death and judgment, that he loft fight of every other object; that he never felt before how much he

deferved punishment at the hands of God, and that he only thought of escaping, left such a fignal punishment as that of falling from the top of St. Paul's fhould overtake him.

He was prefent once in the House of Commons during a debate on the flave trade. He there heard a gentleman, who spoke in favor of the trade, fay fome things very degrading to the character of his countrymen. He was fo enra. ged at this, that on coming out of the houfe, he cried out with great vehemence, "I will kill that fellow wherever I meet him, for he has told lies of my country;" he was put in mind of the Chriftian duty of forgiving his enemies; on which he anfwered nearly in the following words:" If a man fhould rob me of my mo. ney, I can forgive him; if a man fhould fhoot at me, I can forgive him; if a man fhould fell me and all my family to a flave fhip, fo that we fhould pass all the rest of our lives in flavery in the Weft Indies, I can forgive him; but, (added he with much emotion) if a man takes away the character of the people of my country, I never can forgive him." Being afked why he would not extend his forgiveness to one who took away the character of the people of his country, he anfwered," If a man fhould try to kill me, or fhould fell my family for flaves, he would do an injury to as many as he might kill or fell, but if any one takes away the character of black people, that man injures black people all over the world; and when be has once taken away

Y

their character, there is nothing which he may not do to black people ever after. That man, for inftance, will beat black men, and say, 'O, it is only a black man, why should I not beat him? That man will make flaves of black people; for when he has taken away their character, he will fay, O they are only black people, why should not I make them flaves.' That man will take away all the people of Africa, if he can catch them, and if you ask him, but why do you take away all these people, he will fay, O, they are only black people, they are not like white people, why fhould I not take them?” That is the reafon why I cannot forgive the man who takes away the character of the people-of my country."

He was then told that it would be very wicked to kill this gentleman, or even not to forgive him, feeing the fcriptures faid, "Forgive your enemies,"" Vengeance is mine, I will repay, faith the Lord." This immediately quieted his rage, and he became as calm as a lamb, nor was ufed afterwards to exprefs the leaft anger againft the gentleman who had fo much offended him.

At another time, when he saw a man beat his horse about the head, and otherwise use it ill, he became very angry, and talked of getting a gun to fhoot the man, for he was fure he deferved it, and also of carrying a gun always about him to fhoot fuch bad people. As foon, however, as a paffage of fcripture which condemned fuch

violenee was mentioned to him, his anger ceafed, and he became forry for it.

The delicacy of his mind appears from the following circumftance: while reading a book to a lady, which had been recommended to him as a good book, he met with a word, fuppofed by him to convey an impure idea, on which he inftantly ftopt, and fhut the book without affigning any caufe. The lady foon after quitted the room, when his difpleasure, which her pre fence. had kept him from expreffing, broke forth; he dafhed the book, with a degree of fury which aftonished the gentleman who was prefent, against the wall of the room, declaring that the man who wrote the book, ought to be punished for deceiving people, and putting bad thoughts into their heads; and as for the book itself, that he fhould burn it wherever he might happen to meet with it. He was foon convinced of the impropriety of his warmth, but he continued to regard the book, and its author, as highly blameable.

He was fo concerned for the credit of his country, and fo fearful of the confequence of drawing contempt upon it, that, except with particular perfons, he was averfe from giving very minute accounts of the ftate of African manners, arts, cultivation, or fociety. On the fame account, he ftudioufly avoided ftrong marks of wonder at any thing he faw in England, left an inferrence fhould be drawn from it to the difadvantage of Africa. When he chofe, however,

to be unreferved in talking about his country, he was never known to violate truth in the accounts he gave.

Among the difficulties which his new view of ings laid upon him, one refpected his wives. He had two while in Africa, but he clearly faw the New Teftament allowed only one; his difficulty was, to know which of them it was right for him to keep. He thought, at first, it would be right to keep her whom he had first married; but then he confidered that she had borne him no child, and that the fecond (who was befides the wife of his affections) had brought him a fon; this laft circumftance feemed to have decided the question in favor of the fecond; he declared himself ready, however, to make a facrifice of his feelings, fhould it appear right to keep the first in preference.

In about a year and a half after his arrival in England, he could read fluently, (though, at firft, he knew little of the English tongue) and could write a letter. He had alfo made himfelf acquainted with common arichmetic, and the firft elements of mathematics, and had, befides, imbibed much general knowledge.

While he thus went on improving, the news of his father's death reached England, and called him fuddenly to Sierra Leone. He felt much anxiety when he was on the eve of returning, from the variety of new duties, which the deplorable ftate of his country feemed to lay upon him. He was very defirous that his future