Page:A biographical dictionary of eminent Scotsmen, vol 2.djvu/255

Rh twelve o'clock at noon, calling me to his bed-side, he said 'Richard! I shall shortly be no more; I feel myself dying.' Almost choked with grief, I replied, ' God forbid ! my dear master ; you will live many years to come.' ' Do not be so much affected, my dear boy, I entreat you,' rejoined he; 'you distress me by your emotion; it is the will of the Almighty, and therefore cannot be helped. Take care of my journal and papers after my decease; and when you arrive in London, go immediately to my agents, and send for my uncle, who will accompany you to the Colonial office, and see you deposit them with the secretary. After my body is laid in the earth, apply to Bello, and borrow money to purchase camels and provisions for crossing the desert to Fezzan in the train of the Arab merchants. On your arrival at Mourzuk, should your money be expended, send a messenger to Mr Warrington, our consul for Tripoli, and wait till he returns with a remittance. On your reaching the latter place, that gentleman will further advance you what money you may require, and send you to England the first opportunity. Do not lumber yourself with my books, but leave them behind, as well as my barometer and sticks, and indeed every heavy or cumbersome article you can conveniently part with; you may give them to Malam Mudey, who will preserve them. Remark whatever towns or villages you may pass through, and put on paper any thing remarkable that the chiefs of the different places may say to you.' I said, as well as my agitation would permit me, 'If it be the will of God to take you, Sir, you may confidently rely, as far as circumstances will permit me, on my faithfully performing all that you have desired; but I hope and believe that the Almighty will yet spare you to see your homo and country again.' 'I thought at one time,' continued he, 'that that would be the case, but I dare not entertain such hopes now; death is on me, and I shall not be long for this world; God's will be done.' He then took my hand betwixt his, and looking me full in the face, while a tear glistened in his eye, said in a tremulous, melancholy tone: 'My dear Richard, if you had not been with me I should have died long ago. I can only thank you with my latest breath for your devotedness and attachment to me; and if I could live to return to England with you, you should be placed beyond the reach of want; the Almighty, however, will reward you.'

"This pathetic conversation, which occupied almost two hours, greatly exhausted my master, and he fainted several times while speaking. The same evening he fell into a slumber, from which he awoke in much perturbation, and said, that he had heard with peculiar distinctness the tolling of an English funeral bell; but I entreated him to be composed, observing, that sick people frequently fancy things which in reality can have no existence. He shook his head, but said nothing.

"About six o'clock on the morning of the 11th April, on my asking him how he did, my master replied in a cheerful tone, that he felt much better; and requested to be shaved. He had not sufficient strength to lift his head from the pillow; and after finishing one side of the face I was obliged myself to turn his head in order to get at the other. As soon as he was shaved, he desired me to fetch him a looking-glass which hung on the opposite side of the hut; and on seeing the reflection of his face in it, observed that he looked quite as ill in Bornou on his former journey, and that as he had borne his disorder for so long a time, there was some possibility of his yet recovering. On the following day he still fancied himself to be convalescent, in which belief I myself agreed, as he was enabled to partake of a little hashed guinea fowl in the course of the afternoon, which he had not done before during the whole of his confinement, having derived his sole sustenance from a little fowl soup, and milk and water.

"These flattering anticipations, however, speedily vanished, for on the morn-