with those of anyone else. There were, thus, connections, but it was difficult to sustain ties to a community. Consider the cases of Gustavus Vassa, Muhammad Kaba Saghanughu and Mahommah Gardo Baquaqua. Vassa was possibly an exception, in that he mentions knowing other Igbo in London and deceiving his 'countrymen' on the Mosquito Shore, where he worked for Doctor Charles Irving and Captain Alexander Blair in establishing a plantation on the Rio Grande de Matagalpa. Vassa became associated with the community of radical thinkers and activists in London in the late 1780s and 1790s. He had earlier attempted to return to Africa as a missionary, and he was officially tied to the first Sierra Leone expedition, until his dismissal. Kaba was able to interact with and indeed provide leadership to a community on the coffee estates and livestock pens in Manchester Parish, Jamaica, but it is not known whether any of his own 'countrymen' were present there. He was associated with John Lewis, and helped the latter purchase his freedom. It is quite possible that Lewis came from the Upper Guinea coast and was also originally Muslim. Later, Kaba's sons were implicated and, indeed, executed for alleged involvement in the Christmas uprising of 1831-1832. Baquaqua was involved in the radical abolitionist agenda of the Free Will Baptists, including plans for an African Mission and lectures on the abolitionist circuit. His story is recounted herein by Bruno Véras. To be able to follow the lives of individuals who experienced slavery, in the detail that these accounts allow, requires careful reflection. We need to test the accounts for veracity, examine their context, critique the forms of transliteration and composition. Nevertheless, these are the voices of survivors. I include Kaba here; although he did not leave behind an autobiography, a lot of information has survived regarding his remarkable life. ${ }^{1}$