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My new friend, the captain of the Portuguese ship advised me to send for some money, that I had left in London, as you remember, for safekeeping to the widow of my deceased friend, captain of English ship. I wrote the widow a letter, asking to send me only the half of my money, about 100 pounds. My new friend advised her to send me the money in the form of English goods. When they arrived, I thought that my fortune was made. I sold the goods at a great profit for about four hundred pounds. As soon as I got this money, I bought myself a Negro slave.

I went on the next year with great success in my plantation: I raised fifty great rolls of tobacco on my own ground, more than I had disposed of for necessaries among my neighbours; and these fifty rolls, being each of above a hundredweight. And now increasing in business and wealth, my head began to be full of projects and undertakings beyond my reach.

After four years, I had learnt the language and made some friends among my fellow planters. I had not only learned the language, but had contracted acquaintance and friendship among my fellow-planters, as well as among the merchants at St. Salvador, which was our port. I told them of the trade in Negro Slaves on the African coast, known as Guinea and that, in my discourses among them, I had frequently given them an account of my two voyages: the manner of trading with the negroes there, and how easy it was to purchase upon the coast for trifles – such as beads, toys, knives, scissors, hatchets, bits of glass, and the like – not only gold-dust, Guinea grains, elephants’ teeth, but negroes, for the service of the Brazils, in great numbers. They listened always very attentively to my discourses on these heads, but especially to that part which related to the buying of negroes.

It happened, being in company with some merchants and planters, and talking of those things very earnestly, three of them came to me next morning, and told me they came to make a secret proposal to me; and, after enjoining me to secrecy, they told me that they had a mind to fit out a ship to go to Guinea; that they had all plantations as well as I, and were straitened for nothing so much as servants; they desired to make one voyage, to bring the negroes on shore privately, and divide them among their own plantations; and, in a word, the question was whether I would go with them in the ship, to manage the trading part upon the coast of Guinea; and they offered me that I should have my equal share of the negroes, without spending any money. So, I agreed to go. In short, I took all possible caution to preserve my effects and to keep up my plantation.