told his persecutors with a bold voice, that he was a warrior; that he had gained the most of his martial reputation at the expense of their nation; and was so desirous of shewing them in the act of dying, that he was still as much their superior, as when he headed his gallant countrymen against them; that although he had fallen into their hands, and forfeited the protection of the Divine Power, by some impurity or other, when carrying the holy ark of war against his devoted enemies, yet he had so much remaining virtue as would enable him to punish himself more exquisitely, than all their despicable ignorant crowd possibly could? and that he would do so if they gave him liberty by untying him, and handing him one of the red-hot barrels out of the fire. The proposal and his method of address appeared so exceedingly bold and uncommon, that his request was granted. Then suddenly seizing the red-hot barrel, and brandishing it from side to side, he found his way through the armed and astonished multitude; leaped down a prodigiously steep and high bank into the river; dived through it, `and ran over a small island, and passed the other branch amidst a shower of bullets; and though numbers of his enemies were in close pursuit of him; he got into a bramble swamp, through whi, though naked and in a mangled condition, he reached his own country

P. J. DUMONT.

AMONG the persons liberated by Lord Exmouth, on his glorious triumph over the Algerines, was a Frenchman of the name of Pierre Joseph Dumont, who had endured a

slavery of thirty-four years in Africa. He was one of the crew of la Lievre, which was wrecked by a storm on the coast of Africa, between Oran and Algiers. Sixty individuals perished in the waves; eighty escaped to land; out of these, about fifty were almost instantly massacred by the Koubals, a ferocious race, who were watching the effects of the tempest, and in the dead of the night, rushed down on the helpless mariners, armed with sabre, lance, pistol, and musket. All who escaped death from the first assault of the savages, were seized by them next morning, while vainly endeavouring to find a place to shelter along the sandy beach; each prisoner had his arms bound across, and was then attached with a long cord to the tail of one of the Arab's horses. In this manner the unfortunate captives were dragged along for eight days, without being allowed any other subsistence than bread and water. At length they reached the mountain Felix, and were brought before the Sheik Osman. He inquired what country they were of; and being told France, exclaimed, "Let them be chained," The order was put into inmediate execution. They were first stripped of their clothes, and supplied with nothing more than a sort of petticoat or trowsers. They were then bound together, two and two, to a large chain ten feet in length, and weighing about sixty pounds; and thus, half naked and in irons, they were taken to the prison appropriated for slaves.

"A little straw," says Dumont, "was allowed us to lie on, with a stone for a pillow, and permission to sleep, if we could.

Although I felt my wounds extremely painful, particularly one inflicted by a lance, I was compelled to

labour with the rest at six every morning, dragging along

my chain. Our food for the day was three ears of Indian corn, which were thrown to us as if we were dogs."

All the time the slaves were at work, the Koubals formed a circle around them, not so much to prevent their running away, as to protect them from the lions and tigers who would otherwise devour them. "There are always," says Dumont, "a hundred and fifty armed men to watch over the safety of an hundred slaves. Butt though the Koubals are incessantly on the look out, it will not prevent the lion from sometimes carrying off its prey, if greatly pressed by hunger. One remarkable circumstance is, that the shouts and outcries of men will drive the wild beasts back into the woods; whereas, peals of musquetry draw numbers of them out of the forest, as if curiosity formed some part of their instinct,"

"But nothing," continues Dumont, "could exceed the horrors of what we endured, one day, from the prison taking fire, with all the slaves shut up in it, Though no lives were lost, our beards and hair were partly consumed. The water intended for our use was turned off to extinguish the flames. The heat and the torrents of smoke were suffocating, so that we foamed at the mouth; and, at one time, we were in apprehension of being burnt alive. No one thought of unloosing us, probably from a dread of some confusion and disorder; and only the usual quantities of water were dealt out to us, at the usual times: nor was this all; for a liberal distribution of the Lamboo ensued, applied to some for setting fire to the place from negligence, to others, for not foreseeing the accident, aud to others, for an imputed criminal intention, as if they would take advantage of such an opportunity to effect their escape"

After being thirty-three years in slavery, Dumont was one of five hundred Christians who were exchanged for the two sons of Osman, taken prisoners by the Bey Titre. Dumont now became the slave of a new master, but received much better treatment; his irons were struck off, he was clothed, and had two black loaves, of five ounces each, and seven or eight olives, allowed him daily.

At Algiers he remained eight months. At length, the great deliverer, Lord Exmouth, appeared before Algiers and obtained the surrender of all the Cristian slaves of Dumont adds. every nation.

"We were taken in by a number of English boats, and there it was that our last chains fell off, not without the deep sighs and regrets of three thousand renegadoes, who despaired of obtaining deliverance, and lamented the day wherein they had apostatized from the Christian faith."

TRIUMPH OF HUMANITY.

THE piratical aggressions of the Algerines, and the cruel slavery to which they were for ages in the custom of dooming their Christian captives, had, at different times, provoked the indignation of European powers, and brought heavy inflictions of vengeance upon the barbarians. But to the united fleets of Britain and Netherlands, under the command of Lord Exmouth, was reserved the glorious task of completing the triumph of hu manity, by forcing the Algerine government to make a solemn renunciation for ever, of the practice of Christian slavery.

Most truly was it observed by Lord Exmouth, in his

official despatch, announcing the victory of Algiers, that "To have been one of the humble itstruments in the hands of Divine Providence, of bringing to reason a ferocious government, and destroying, for ever, the insufferable and horrid system of Christian slavery, could never cease to be a source of delight and heart-felt comfort to every individual happy enough to be employed in it.'

M. Salame, who accompanied the expedition in the capacity of interpreter, thus describes the anxiety of the slaves to escape from bondage.

"When the British boats came inside the Mole, 'the or twenty persons together. It was, indeed,' says M. slaves began to push and throw themselves in by crowds ten Salame, a most glorious and ever memorable merciful act for England, over all Europe, to see these poor slaves, when our boats were shoving with them off the shore, all at once take off their hats, and exclaim in Italian, Long life to the King of England, and the English Admiral who delivered us from slavery.'

The number of slaves liberated by Lord Exmouth, was in all, 3,003, viz. Neapolitans and Sicilians, 2,056; Sardinans and Genoese, 463; Piedmontese, 6; Romans, 184; Tuscans, 6; Spaniards, 226; Portugese, 1; Greeks, 7; Hamburghers, 4; Dutch, 28; French, 2; Austrians, 2; and of the English, 18.

What a noble consummation to the glory of the British arms! Thousands of captives restored to homes which they had probably despaired of ever seeing; to bosoms which they never hoped to press; many a father to the arms of a long-lost wife and children; many an only son to those of a widowed mother; and this after years of oppression, indignity, and indeed of ceaseless agony!