Newton Forster Part 20

Newton recovered his legs and his senses, and found himself alongside of a vessel. He had run stem on to a small schooner, which was lying at anchor. As the boat was drifting fast by, Newton made a spring, and gained the deck of the vessel.

"Ah! mon Dieu!--les Anglois--les Anglois nous sommes prisonniers!" cried out the only man on deck, jumping on his feet, and making a precipitate dive below.

The vessel, of which Newton had thus taken possession, was one employed in carrying the sugars from the plantations round to Ba.s.seterre, the port of Guadaloupe, there to be shipped for Europe (Newton's boat having run away so far to the southward, as to make this island.) She was lying at anchor off the mouth of a small river, waiting for a cargo.

It happened that the crew of the schooner, who were all slaves, were exactly in the same situation as Newton, when their vessels came in contact; viz, fast asleep. The shock had wakened them; but they were all below, except the one who had kept such a remarkably good watch.

Exhausted as Newton was, he could not but smile at his uninterrupted possession of the vessel's decks. Anxious to have communication with the people on board, he sat down, awaiting their coming up from below.

In a minute or two, a black head was seen to rise slowly and fearfully out of the fore-scuttle, then it disappeared. Another rose up, and went down again as before; and thus it went on until Newton reckoned ten different faces. Having individually ascertained that there was but one man, and that one not provided with any weapons, the negroes a.s.sumed a degree of courage. The first head that had made its appearance, the woolly hair of which was of a grizzly grey from age, was again popped up the fore-scuttle, with an interrogatory to Newton in French, who he was, and what he wanted? Newton, who did not understand a word of the language, shook his head, and opening his hands and extending his arms, to show that he had no means of defence, he beckoned to them to come up.

The man's head had again disappeared, and, after a little demur, nine or ten negroes crawled up out of the fore-scuttle, one after another, each with some weapon or another by way of security. They remained on the forecastle of the vessel until the last was up, and then at a nod given by their grizzle-headed leader, they advanced aft, in a body, towards Newton. Newton rose and pointed to the boat, which had now drifted about a quarter of a mile astern. He then made signs, to give them to understand that he had been wrecked.

"Apparemment c'est un pauvre miserable, qui a fait naufrage," observed the old negro, who appeared to have the charge of the vessel; "Gustave Adolphe, tu parles bien l'Anglois; demandez-lui les nouvelles,"

continued the old man, folding his arms across, and looking very _big_ indeed, as he reclined against the mainmast of the vessel.

Gustave Adolphe stood forward from the rest of the negroes. He was a short, fat, shiny-faced fellow, with his hair platted into about fifty little tails. He first bowed to his old commander, then placing his arms akimbo, walked up to Newton, and looking him full in the face, commenced his duty of interpreter; as follows:--

"I say--G.o.d dam--"

Newton smiled.

"Oui, monsieur, c'est un Anglois."

"Continuez, Gustave Adolphe," replied the old negro, with a majestic air.

Gustave Adolphe, with another bow, resumed:

"I say--where com?"

"Barbadoes," replied Newton.

"Monsieur, il vient de Barbadoes."

"Continuez, Gustave Adolphe," replied his superior, with a wave of his hand.

"I say--where go?"

"Where go?" replied Newton, "go to the bottom."

"Monsieur--il alloit au port de Bo---tom."

"Bo---tom," repeated the old negro. "Ou diable est ca?"

Here a general consultation was held, by which it appeared that such a port had never been heard of in the West Indies.

"Gustave Adolphe, demandez-lui si c'est un port Anglois."

"I say--Bo---tom--English port?"

"No," replied Newton, amused with the mistake; "I should rather call it _neutral_."

"C'est un port neutral, monsieur."

"Gustave Adolphe, demandez-lui de quelle ile."

"I say, what isle--Bo---tom?"

Newton, who was faint with hunger and thirst, was not inclined at the moment to continue the conversation, which otherwise would have been a source of amus.e.m.e.nt. He replied by making signs that he wished to eat and drink.

"Monsieur," said Gustave Adolphe to the old negro, "le prisonnier refuse de faire reponse, et demande a manger et a boire."

"Va l'en chercher, Gustave Adolphe," replied the old man. "Allons, messieurs," continued he, addressing the other negroes. "Il faut lever l'ancre de suite, et amener notre prisonnier aux autorites; Charles Philippe, va chercher mon porte-voix."

The negro captain walked up and down the deck of the schooner, a vessel about thirty feet long, until Charles Philippe made his appearance with the speaking-trumpet. He then proceeded to get the vessel under weigh, with more noise and fuss than is to be heard when the proudest three-decker in the English navy expands her lofty canva.s.s to the gale.

Gustave Adolphe, in obedience to the commands he had received, brought up to Newton a bunch of bananas, a large piece of salt fish, and a calabash of water. The latter was immediately applied to his lips, and never removed while a drop remained, much to the astonishment of the negro, who again sported his English.

"I say--very good--ab more?"

"If you please," replied Newton.

"Monsieur," said Gustave Adolphe to his commander, "le prisonnier a soif, et demande encore de l'eau."

"Va l'en chercher donc," replied the old negro, with a wave of his speaking-trumpet. "Charles Philippe, attention a la barre, [Mind your weather-helm] sans venir au vent, s'il vous plait. Matelots du gaillard d'avant," [Forecastle-men, haul aft the jib-sheet] continued he, roaring through his speaking-trumpet; "bordez le grand foc."

In the s.p.a.ce of two hours, the schooner was brought to an anchor, with as much noise and importance as she had been got under weigh. A boat, capable of holding three people, one rower and two sitters, was shoved off the vessel's deck, and the negro captain, having first descended to his cabin for a few minutes, returned on deck dressed in the extremity of _their_ fashion, and ordered the boat to be manned.

Gustave Adolphe accordingly manned the boat with his own person, and the negro captain politely waved his hand for Newton to enter, and then, following himself, Gustave Adolphe rowed to a landing-place, about twenty yards from the schooner.

"Gustave Adolphe, suivez en arriere, et gardez bien que le prisonnier n'echappe pas;" so saying, monsieur le capitaine led the way to a large white house and buildings, about two hundred yards from the river's banks. On their arrival, Newton was surrounded by twenty or thirty slaves of both s.e.xes, who chattered and jabbered a thousand questions concerning him to the negro captain and Gustave Adolphe, neither of whom condescended to reply.

"Monsieur de Fontanges--ou est-il?" inquired the old negro.

"Monsieur dort," replied a little female voice.

The captain was taken aback at this unfortunate circ.u.mstance; for no one dared to wake their master.

"Et madame?" inquired he.

"Madame est dans sa chambre."

There again he was floored--he could not venture there; so he conducted Newton, who was not very sorry to escape from the burning rays of the sun, to his own habitation, where an old negress, his wife, soon obtained from the negro that information relative to the capture of Newton, which the bevy of slaves in the yard had attempted in vain: but wives have winning ways with them!

VOLUME TWO, CHAPTER TWO.

What elegance and grandeur wide expand, The pride of Turkey and of Persia land!

Soft quilts on quilts, on carpets carpets spread, And couches stretch'd around in seemly band, And endless pillows rise to prop the head.