Dhow Chasing in Zanzibar Waters - The Search For Mecca

104 DHOW-CHASING.
which she must have done in another hour had
her condition not been discovered.
On the 27th June we arrived at Seychelles,
and anchored in Port Victoria, at the picturesque
island of Mahe, the largest of the group.
Hitherto I have not given any description of
places visited, preferring to do so later, as,
when speaking of subsequent visits, I shall be
able to give some account of their present condition
and appearance, with a special view to
their suitability as depots or colonies for liberated
Africans.
A brief description of Seychelles, however,
may not be out of place here. This group of
islands was discovered by the French about the
middle of the eighteenth century, and taken
possession of by them.
The largest island was
called Mahe, after the name of the then French
governor of the Mauritius. They became ours
at the same time that the island of Mauritius
was secured to
us by treaty, and consequently
the "Code Napoleon" is still the law by
which they are governed.
The islands in this vicinity are of primitive