West African Islands.

Abstract

The island of St. Helena was discovered in 1501 by a Portuguese explorer, who seems to be called, Indifferently, Joao de Nova Gallego, Juan de Nova Castilla, Juan de Nova, or John de Niva, according to the taste of the writer. It was then densely wooded, and it l shores abounded with seals and turtle, but he made no attempt to colonise it, and the first inhabitants of the island were some deserters, who were put on shore from a Portuguese ship, some fifteen years after its discovery These men had, in accordance with the humane custom of those good old days, been punished by mutilation, having had their noses, ears, and right hands cut off; and, so runs the story, with them was a Portuguese of –good family, named Fernandez Lopez, who, having been guilty of some misdemeanour at Bombay, had been mutilated by order of Albuquerque, the Portuguese governor, and shipped for Portugal as a prisoner. This man, not caring to face dishonour in his native country, induced the captain of the vessel to land him with the deserters; the marooned men were given some seed, cattle, and provisions, and the ship continued its voyage to Lisbon. The family of Lopez, on ascertaining his whereabouts, sent him a variety of seeds and plants and a quantity of livestock; the exiles proved industrious, and four years later, when they were all removed by the Portuguese Government, there was a good deal of land under cultivation.