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174-175 
178 CLARKSON'S MISSION TO AMERICA 1791-1792
The following is a copy of a letter addressed to the Right Honorable
Henry Dundas (one of His Majesty's principal Secretaries of State) and
intended to be sent to England by the first opportunity-
Sir
I have the honour of informing you of my safe arrival at this
place, with the Black people under my command-We sailed from Halifax on
the l6th day of January, in all fifteen vessels, having on board 1190
persons of Colour, coming hither as Settlers, of whom 65 died at sea,
chiefly old and variously diseased at the time of their embarkation-For
the first three weeks of the voyage, we experienced heavy gales of wind,
during which seven of the Transports parted company with me, and arrived
first at Sierra Leone-Having suffered myself, at sea from a severe fit
of illness, the effects of which I still feel in a great loss of memory
and much weakness I am prevented entering into those details which I should
otherwise have done-I am happy to say that none of the vessels which arrived
with me incurred any demurrage, those that came in before me were unavoidably
subjected to a short delay in consequence of the unprepared state of the
Colony to receive their passengers on shore-the whole amount of demurrage
incurred by such delay is as follows
Finding on my arrival here, that the people had conducted themselves remarkably
well upon the Passage, and their whole behaviour from the time I first knew
them having convinced me of their great attachment to His Majesty and the British
Government, I took upon me to give them by way of reward
179 CLARKSON'S MISSION TO AMERICA 1791-1792
for their good conduct, and of encouragement to their future exertions, the
surplus of provisions which remained in the different ships, after the termination
of their voyage, and I flatter myself that my conduct herein will fully meet
your approbation-
I have given the several Captains Certificates
of the due performance of their respective contracts, the form of which I send
you a copy (see Page ) which will entitle their Principals to receive the money
due to them from the Treasury
I have the honour to be
with the greatest respect Sir
Your most obedient Servant
John Clarkson
P.S. I should have sent you the form of the Several Charter
Parties, but knowing that they would he transmitted to you from Halifax I thought
it unnecessary
Having discharged all the vessels, and obtained receipts for the various provisions
Stores & c, landed in the Colony from on board the ships, agreeable
to my instructions from the Government of Halifax, I consider myself as
having performed all I agreed to do for the Sierra Leone Company and shall
therefore give a general account of the expenses incurred by me on their
account, for the completion of my mission up to the present day-The bill
which I have made out for my expenses from the 6th 1791 to
the present time, which includes the payment of my passage from London
to Halifax; the rent of house, and maintenance of Mr. Taylor and myself,
and wages of servants there, the traveling expenses of Mr. Taylor and
myself to Shelburne and other places; the payment of stationary, copying
and printing advertisements; the purchase of nautical Instruments for
the voyage, with that of money advanced to Thos Peters for his support
at New Brunswick and to make him and his family comfortable on their voyage,
and for Sea Stores for Mr. Taylor and myself for the voyage from Halifax
to Sierra Leone & c, amounts only to £287-
March 18th - This morning at daylight struck my Pendant having discharged
all the Nova Scotian vessels- Attended Divine Service on Shore-I feel
happy at being able to dismiss the Transports which arrived with me, without
putting Government to the expence of demurrage for I have uniformly been
as strenuous to keep down expence, and to prevent unnecessary charges
on their account, as I have been economical in the expenditure of the
Sierra Leone Com-
180 CLARKSON'S MISSION TO AMERICA 1791-1792
pany's money. I wish I could say that I feel equally satisfied at the thoughts
of my new appointment-but what can I do? I am not bound in honour to the Sierra
Leone Company, or to the Nova Scotians, to remain in Sierra Leone beyond a limited
time, because I did not engage with the former to do anything more, than to
collect the people in America & deliver them over to the Government of Sierra
Leone, and as to the latter I particularly mentioned to each individual, when
he applied to me to become a Settler, that I should not stay with them in Africa,
and that it was my intention to return to England, as soon as circumstances
would admit, after having landed them safe at Sierra Leone, and when I look
to the shattered state of my health, and contemplate the scenes before me (with
the heartfelt satisfaction that I have fulfilled all I had stipulated to do,
and that with some little credit to myself) and am now without the power of
controlling what I see to be wrong, I ought not to hesitate in doing justice
to myself and connexions, by returning to a Northern climate without loss of
time, as the only probable means of restoring me to health; as nothing but extravagance,
idleness, quarreling, waste, irregularity in accounts, insubordination, and
everything that is contrary to what is good and right, is practised by those
who are sent out to Govern, as well as instruct by example these poor people,
in forming a society upon good & virtuous principles, and completely at
variance with the advice I had given to the Directors in my letters from Nova
Scotia, on the absolute necessity of beginning well at first-On the other hand
the pressing letters I have received from the Chairman and Court of Directors
of the Sierra Leone Company, as well as private ones from Individuals, in the
direction, entreating as the unanimous wish of the Directors that I should not
return to England but accept the Government, if it were only for a few months,
to give them time to look out for a suitable person to succeed me, as I have
said before (for I had positively declared before I left England, that nothing
should induce me to extend my services beyond what I had offered) with such
flattering expressions of their approbation of my conduct, and the high sense
they entertained of the services I had rendered the Company and the cause in
general, added to the affection & regard I felt for the Nova Scotians for
their obedience and regular behaviour during the voyage, and my ardent zeal
for the civilization of the surrounding nations, and Africa in general, and
knowing that there could not be any people in existence, in every point of view,
better calculated for forming a new Settlement, than those I brought with me
from America, if properly managed, and being convinced, from what little I have
already seen of the Natives of Sierra Leone,
181 CLARKSON'S MISSION TO AMERICA 1791-1792
that an honest, open, conciliating, yet firm conduct towards them would
in time, encourage them, to place a confidence in the purity of our intentions
& c. Feeling additionally impressed with the conviction that if I
left the Colony, inevitable ruin must be the consequence, I was compelled
to sink all private considerations, and agree to remaining here; and though
I may be disgraced by blending my services with those of others, over
whom I have no proper control, I have made up my mind to take the consequences,
and accept the Government under its present objectionable form, and to
remain with the poor Nova Scotians till the Colony is established or lost-
174-175
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