Samboe; or, The African Boy Part 3

The maternal affection was not, however, long absorbed in the conjugal; and the half frantic Imihie recollected, that Samboe was not enfolded with her in the arms of Tumiah. She loosened herself with difficulty from his embrace, to restore her child to his wonted protection within her own; but, at the moment she arose for the purpose, a tumultuous cry resounded through the ship, of "fire! fire! Loosen the slaves! loosen the slaves!" The fire, however, spread with such violence, bursting from the spirit-room, that the sailors, apprehending that it was impossible to extinguish it before it would reach a large quant.i.ty of gunpowder on board, concluded it necessary to precipitate themselves into the sea, as offering the only chance of saving their lives.

However, they did first endeavour to loose the chains by which the slaves were fastened to the deck; but in the confusion the key could not be found, and they had but just time to loosen one of the fastenings, by wrenching the staple, before the vehemence of the fire so increased, that they simultaneously jumped overboard; when immediately, the fire having gained the powder, the vessel blew up, with every slave that was confined by the unloosened chain, and such others as had not possessed the power to follow the example of the sailors.

We hardly know whether to style it fortunate, that any circ.u.mstance should save these victims of avarice from a watery grave, after escaping that which, to the sense, seems more terrible. Providence, however, ordained that there should be some vessels in sight; which, putting out their boats, took up about two hundred and fifty of the poor souls that remained alive; but the most of them being those who had been fastened together with shackles, had, from the violence of the shock, and the confinement of the irons, experienced dreadful fractures of the limbs; which, inflamed by the struggles they had instinctively made, the heat, and the agitated state of the blood, quickly mortified, and ere they were scarcely sensible of their increase of calamity, released them, for ever, from all fear of it more. Among the number who thus yielded up his manly spirit, was Tumiah, rejoicing in the belief that his Imihie and Samboe were also removed to a land of spirits--a land where no man-stealer can enter, no treachery gain access, no violence invade. He might have adopted the words of the poet:

"Now, Christian, glut thy ravish'd eyes; I reach the joyful hour: Let, let the scorching flames arise, And these poor limbs devour.

"O Death, how welcome to th' opprest!

Thy kind embrace I crave; Thou bringst to Misery's bosom rest, And freedom to the slave!"

The fond belief, however, of the expiring Tumiah, that his wife and child had escaped the horrors of bondage, was fallacious. Previously to the calamity, the feelings of the wretched Imihie had been wrought up nearly to their utmost height; the sight of the quick-advancing flames, therefore, was sufficient to augment them to frenzy, and with a strength which frenzy only could impart, to a frame exhausted by want of nourishment and continual grief, she s.n.a.t.c.hed the infant Samboe from the deck, upon which he had fallen, and where, unheeded by one pitying eye, he remained, without uttering any cry or attempting to move; for, overcome by terror of the noise and brutality of the crew, the sight of the immense ocean, and the want of that nourishment which he in vain sought from the exhausted bosom of his wretched mother, the suffering child seemed unable to move, or even to utter any sound.

Imihie pressed him closely to her breast, turned a momentary and frenzied glance upon her enchained husband, and uttering a faint cry of terror, cast herself and precious burden into the foaming deep. But it was not decreed to become her tomb. Almost by miracle, she was thrown near a boat which had put off from a Spanish slave-vessel, and was picked up by the crew, with Samboe still closely entwined within her arms; without, however, exhibiting the smallest appearance of remaining life. But the vital spark was not yet extinct. She was immediately put on board the ship, and means of resuscitation used with both her and her child, as well as several other equally miserable victims of avarice. Heaven decreed these efforts to be effectual: and thus was the widowed mother transferred, by the sudden calamity, from one set of mercenaries to another, yet still doomed to slavery! The vessel had taken in her cargo at Rio Pongos, and was bound for the Havannah; but her stowage was too small to allow her, with impunity, to keep the increase occasioned by the casualty of the fire. She therefore put into a port, and disposed of them to a ship bound for Jamaica. This occasioned considerable delay; in consequence of which, when the transferred slaves were at length on their pa.s.sage, they were subjected to all the evils of improper seasons; water failed, provisions became spoiled and scanty, and many of the slaves the victims of disease, ere they entered the magnificent harbour of Port Royal.

Arrived at Kingston, they were put in store, until notice should be given of sale, which was immediately done by advertis.e.m.e.nt: "On Tuesday next will be put up for sale, in their store, fifty superb negroes of the coast; to the purchasers of which will be afforded all the facilities wished."

* * * "What man reading this, And having human feelings, does not blush And hang his head, to think himself a man?"

CHAPTER VIII.

"Authority usurp'd from G.o.d, not given.

He gave us over beast, fish, fowl, Dominion absolute. That right we hold By his donation: but men over men He made not lord; such t.i.tle to himself Reserving, human left from human free."

Milton.

Had Irving now seen the once attractive Imihie, and her playful boy, as he even beheld them in the slave-room of the African courtier, he would scarcely have given credit to any a.s.surance that she was the same individual. She then, recently a captive, peculiarly displayed in her person the characteristic feminine traits of her country--perfect symmetry of proportion, and beautiful, in as far as it did not consist in colour. Modest, affable, and faithful, these sweet feminine qualities emanated from her softened eyes, and an air of winning innocence in every look and gesture; while every word was p.r.o.nounced with an inflection of voice so sweet, so soft, so tender, that cold indeed must have been the heart that could withstand its eloquent appeal, or listen, unmoved, to its modulations. Such was the young Imihie. Now, alas! how changed! Emaciated for want of food, sinking with illness, shrinking from exposure; almost frenzied with the recollection of the past, the misery of the present, and the dread of the future; bearing, with difficulty, her infant, she was conducted, with her companions in misery, to the vendue, in the bare hope that she might be purchased for the sake of the boy; who, though suffering from the effects of the voyage and want of his natural nutriment, still evidently displayed great intelligence, and much natural vigour. The first day of exhibition pa.s.sed, and no purchaser was found for the sulky negress, (for such is the feeling term applied to the desponding.)

On occasions like this, it is a common thing to speculate upon the purchase of what are termed the refuse negroes, or those left from the first day's sale. Some are frequently in so weak and miserable a state, as even to be sold as low as for a dollar; some are taken to the mart almost in the agonies of death; and some are even known to draw their last sigh in the piazzas of the vendue master. It was on the second day's sale that Imihie was purchased by a planter for a very low sum, and carried into the country, with some others, whom he intended to retail. The situation of these wretched captives was but little ameliorated, by becoming the property of this man, who was of that cla.s.s of managers, who think that the safety of the family to which they are subservient, and the interest of the proprietor, renders severity indispensable, and oppression the only mode of subduing the refractory spirit of the African, whom they regard with the most sovereign contempt. With souls lost to all sense of compa.s.sion, they believe there can be but one mode of enforcing obedience, that of fear; and in the exercise of their delegated authority, they put in action, to the utmost, this ign.o.ble stimulus, by every means which a spirit of cruelty and ignorance can suggest.

Short, indeed, would have been the existence of the miserable Imihie, had she continued the property of this semi-barbarian. Confined in a narrow and unwholesome hut, without a single comfort; a hurdle for a bed, which rather served to torture than to ease her pained and wearied limbs, with scarcely sufficient of a coa.r.s.e linen to secure her frame from the scorching heats of the day, and the dangerous dews of night; in the midst of the richest bounties of nature, and the abundant luxuries of art, fed on salt beef and salt cod, and roots, with the injurious flour of the ca.s.sava, imperfectly prepared, and these in quant.i.ty scarcely sufficient to support existence; deprived of every enjoyment; condemned to perpetual labour, under the rod of an unfeeling master, there could be no chance of amendment of health, or of reconcilement to her destiny. But Providence ordained she should yet feel the happiness of sympathy. Her tyrant master, finding that her labour was very inadequate to the expences of retaining her, would have separated her from her child, and sold her for the smallest possible sum; but a neighbouring proprietor of a small plantation offered a satisfactory price for them together, and they were removed to a comparatively comfortable situation, in the hope that, with rest and better food, she might be enabled to become a house-slave to the wife of the purchaser.

It has been remarked, by observing travellers, that the women of the West Indies possess great natural kind feelings; but that the habitual view of oppression, and the free exercise of power over the slaves, renders them very insensible to the sufferings of the negro women, and totally regardless of promoting their happiness, or of studying to ameliorate their hard lot; and that the instances are by no means uncommon, in which they treat and have them punished with the utmost severity: that they can raise, to no gentle tone, their soft voices, and exert, with no little energy, their spiritless frames, when provoked by the awkwardness, or jealous of the influence of their sable captives. Ah! much to be lamented is that state of oppression on the one part, and debas.e.m.e.nt on the other, which can convert the expression of that distinguishing feature of beauty, of female beauty more especially, from that which indicates right feeling, to that which betrays a superiority the G.o.d of nature designed not. A woman's eye should melt with tenderness, sparkle with innocent animation, weep with those that weep, and beam with the rays of joy at the happiness of another.

Such was the expression which shed its consolation on the desolated Imihie, upon the visit of her new mistress to her lowly hut. This amiable woman was young, but her mind had been early matured in the school of adversity: a hapless fate had fixed her residence in a remote part of Jamaica, but she had also learnt, from precepts which will never lead astray, "in whatsoever situation she was, therewith to be content." From the same Master who had inspired this lesson of the apostle, she had also learnt the only cure for the rebellion of the mind; that force defeated its object; that it was the interest of those who possessed power over their fellow-beings, that they should be attached to life, for nothing could be expected from them, the moment that they no longer feared death. Guiding her conduct by this principle of enlightened reason, derived from a far higher source, the most genuine sentiments of humanity were in constant exercise, by a corresponding course of action. She could not, indeed, as an obscure and solitary individual, break or remove the yoke which oppressed her fellow-creatures; but she could render it easier to be borne, and could, sometimes, even for a time, dissipate the cruel sense of it, by promoting and favouring the natural tastes of her poor slaves. Their lodging, clothing, and food, were all attended to by persons she could depend upon, and regularly inspected by herself. Far from regarding the occupation degrading, she persevered in it as a commanding duty; and she reaped her high reward, by the grateful affection of her poor servants. By various simple methods, she roused from the apathy of despair, and awakened the sensibilities. Little festivals conducted with judgment, innocent recreations, and simple rewards, preserved her slaves from the continual melancholy, which had too just a foundation. She sympathized with mothers, and delighted to share with them the caresses of the children.

Her husband, although possessing not her intelligence and elevation of mind, nor actuated by the principle that directed the energies of his amiable wife, yet was induced, by her unostentatious usefulness, and evident success in her plans, to accede to most of the humane innovations she proposed to him; convinced, by her arguments, that it would be his interest to be humane. Hence, their plantation exhibited a picture of comfort seldom seen, and their slaves had every appearance of health. They were allowed wholesome provision in ample quant.i.ty, with as much fruit as they wished; they had the liberty of keeping poultry, and to cultivate a piece of ground with esculent roots; their huts were comfortable, and when sick they experienced the kindest attention; and they were frequently suffered to a.s.sociate with each other in little parties, for recreation and amus.e.m.e.nt.

Such were the proprietors of the poor Imihie and her hapless boy, who soon began to find the benefit of kind treatment; and it is probable, had Providence ordained that it should have been enjoyed, immediately after landing on a foreign sh.o.r.e, that the miseries of the voyage, and even the horrors of bondage, might have been overcome by youth, and that wonderful buoyancy of the human mind, that seems to force itself above the swelling waves of misfortune. But the arrow had sunk too deep: its barb had been too powerfully poisoned, for human effort to withdraw, or to antidote it. Imihie was evidently the victim of that disease which hurries to an untimely grave, so many individuals of her hapless country; and which, throughout the world, may be termed, although not yet cla.s.sed, a broken heart. The first symptom of this disorder among negroes, became evident; namely, the black and glossy skin a.s.sumed an olive hue, the tongue became white, and the poor sufferer became overpowered by such a desire to sleep, that it was found impossible to resist it, a deadly faintness preventing the smallest exercise. In fact, a languor and general relaxation of the whole wonderful machinery of the human frame, seems to threaten death day by day, yet the sufferer still survives. So great is the state of despondency accompanying this distressing malady, that those afflicted will suffer themselves to be beaten, rather than attempt to move or walk. Happy was it for Imihie that she had not a task-master's whip to dread; and that the loathing which she had for mild and wholesome food, was not attributed to obstinacy, but to what it really was, a symptom of the disease which was insiduously undermining the vital principles of life. It made rapid advances upon her delicate and youthful frame: her respiration became laborious and painful, the extremities became swollen, and suffocation seemed frequently to impede the action of the heart. In this state she languished and suffered several months; but Imihie had her consolations, under an infliction, the natural consequence of melancholy upon the organs of the human frame.

We have said, that the humanity and enlightened reason of the excellent Mrs. Delany, were derived from a high source; even from that source which exalts feeling to a principle: the one is frequently as transient as the excitement, the other is founded upon a firm basis; offering a permanent and pure incentive to action, by adding a value to existence, as connecting it with a future. Such is one of the many blessed fruits of a Christian faith. Mrs. Delany felt its commanding power: she was a Christian in deed. Hers was not a speculative creed, but a practical code: it was her daily, hourly study to act upon.

It is true, Jamaica, at the period of our narrative, enjoyed not the high privileges it now possesses of Christian instruction, and of Christian example; but Mrs. Delaney was one amongst the few, who, feeling and enjoying the light and the consolation of religion, were anxious to impart a portion of what cheered their own hearts--of that which directed their steps, to those who yet "sat in darkness and the shadow of death." Deeply interested in her hapless slave, from the moment she saw her, Mrs. Delaney had soothed, by truly maternal attention, her bodily sufferings, and her mental anguish. She inwardly deplored her total ignorance of that grand source of consolation, the knowledge of which was so open to those who despised it. She gently prepared the feelings and the understanding for the reception of that light, which she fervently prayed might be imparted to her benighted mind. She gradually led her docile steps, her mental view, to Him who invites the heavy laden to resort to him for rest; to seek Him who is the strength and the fortress of those that trust in him; to adore, with unfeigned humility, that transcendent mercy, which became poor that we might be rich. What heart is there, bereft of all earthly good, all earthly hope, but must expand with joy, to receive into its most inmost recesses the precious promises of Christianity?--of that mild and beneficent religion, which so tenderly sympathizes with every emotion of the weak, the frail, the lacerated bosom? Was it then surprising, that the poor Imihie, with feelings too powerful for utterance, hung upon the mild accents of Mrs. Delaney, as she described to her the sufferings of the Redeemer--the abyss of wretchedness from which he rescued mankind--the dreadful penalty from which he saved a rebellious world? Was it surprising, that, with an eager grat.i.tude, which gave a heavenly expression to her languid eyes, and displayed itself in every varying feature, she listened to the glorious truths of revelation, unfolded in terms suited to her expanding capacity; and that, with all the simplicity of unsophisticated nature, receiving the n.o.blest impressions of Deity, she bade Mrs. Delaney thank her great good G.o.d for his marvellous kindness to wretched captives, and for the unsearchable riches of his grace. Never was she wearied in hearing her kind instructress recount the sufferings of the incarnate G.o.d: tears, the offspring of genuine feeling, chased each other down her altered countenance, as Mrs. Delaney directed her imagination to the garden of Gethsemane, to the judgment-hall, where He, whose throne is heaven, and his footstool earth, was exposed to insult, contumely, and scorn; scourged, buffeted, spit upon; betrayed by one friend, denied by another, and abandoned by all; subjected to a painful, a cruel, and an ignominious death, in the presence of insulting foes: the very spirit clouded by the momentary abandonment of heavenly aid, forcing from the lips of the sufferer the agonizing exclamation: "My G.o.d, my G.o.d! why hast thou forsaken me?" and all this for the love he bore for those who became his murderers.

Thus would Mrs. Delaney, in language suited to the capacity of her pupil, recount the affecting history of our Redeemer, and gradually open her mind (aided by the Spirit of grace constantly implored to direct her) to the grand truths of the gospel. The soul of the dying Imihie imbibed the soothing balm, felt the powerful energy, and gladly received the consolation the religion of Jesus alone has power to give. Her tears, it is true, still flowed for Africa, and for Tumiah; but they were no longer bitter tears. The heavenly ray which had been communicated to her soul, had not only enlightened it, but stilled its perturbations; and captivity was deprived of its horrors, in the enjoyment of those lively instructions in the way of holiness and peace, so impressively imparted by her truly Christian mistress.

Often when administering some relief to her bodily suffering, Mrs. Delaney would ask her how she felt herself. She would say, with a serene smile, "weak, weak; but joy, joy here," laying her hand on her bosom, then pressing that of her compa.s.sionate benefactress. No murmur, no complaint, proceeded from her lips; but her mind appeared ever tranquil, and her soul happy. Sometimes, indeed, while caressing Samboe, the tear would swell in her eyes; but she had learned the comprehensive prayer, "Lord, let thy will be done!" and a frequent, affecting repet.i.tion of it, while she pressed her boy to her bosom, spoke volumes to the sympathizing Mrs. Delaney.

During this daily increase of spiritual strength, her frame gradually sunk under the pressure of her disease, which resisted every tried means of relief, and finally came to its usual termination; viz. suffocation. Thus closed the mortal career of the youthful Imihie, one of the many thousands of victims to a commerce, which, it is feared, the mercenary will always cling to; in which desperate men will ever be found to hazard; and, even in Africa, tyrants ever be ready to supply the horrid market; (Note Q.) while few, it is to be feared, will, like the poor Imihie, after a series of misery, find a Mrs. Delaney to soothe their sorrows, and point to realms where all tears shall be wiped away, and sorrow and sighing shall flee for ever.

To Heaven the Christian negress sent her sighs, In morning vows, and evening sacrifice; She pray'd for blessings to descend on those Who dealt to her the cup of many woes; Thought of her home in Africa forlorn, Yet, while she wept, rejoic'd that she was born: Enn.o.bling virtue fix'd her hopes above, Enlarg'd her heart, and sanctified her love.

With lowly steps the path of peace she trod, A happy pilgrim, for she walk'd with G.o.d.

Montgomery, (adapted.)

CHAPTER IX.

The spreading palm-tree o'er her grave shall wave, Emblem of bliss eternal!

"See on the grave in which she sleeps, The soften'd savage sits and weeps; And the sweet voice of grat.i.tude Oft names her in the desert rude."

The Missionary.

The infant Samboe, thus bereaved of his suffering mother, was yet too young to feel the full magnitude of his loss; yet his little heart experienced emotions he had no power to utter, when he was told she would never more awake to his call, nor could he feel happy, when, with expressions of joy, he saw the negroes of the plantation remove his "silent mother" to the burial ground, with every demonstration of joy. (Note R.)

An ever kind Providence has, however, made the griefs of children to be transient; and Samboe, the favourite of Mrs. Delaney, from his sweetness of disposition, great activity, and early intelligence, would probably have presented a pleasing exception to the unhappy lot of his enslaved countrymen--might justly have enjoyed the t.i.tle of the happy negro--had his benefactress been spared to bless the sable dependants on her kindness. But life, at all times and in all situations transient and uncertain, may be said to be peculiarly so in the West Indies; the progress of disease being so rapid, and the excitements to it so many. That dreadful visitation, the yellow fever, broke out in the district of the Delaney plantation: numberless were the victims to the "pestilence that walketh in noon-day;" and among them were Mr. Delaney and his amiable wife.

Those who were capable of appreciating their worth, who had felt their benevolence, had enjoyed the privileges they allowed, and knew how rarely they were found in the plantations, mourned them with unfeigned sorrow, their loss closing up the avenues of consolation and of hope; and those too young to feel how much they were deprived of, were quickly made sensible of a change from a system of Christian love and benevolence, to that built upon the mere hope of worldly gain. As it is not the custom in the English colonies, as in the French, for the negroes to be attached to the plantation, those of the Delaney estate were, upon the sale of it, dispersed amongst different purchasers; and the infant Samboe became the property of a cruel mercenary, who employed the poor child to wait upon him, when indulging in all the luxurious ease of an occidental despot. By those who have seen the various caprices of a temper altogether uncontrouled, the whims of a mind dest.i.tute of cultivation and obstinate in ignorance, the cruelty of a disposition formed by the possession of a precarious power over helpless individuals; by those, and those only, will the various species of suffering to which the innocent child was subjected be understood; and the terrors which were produced by the horrid imprecations, the unmanly abuse, and vulgar epithets of this brutal master, upon the gentle and timid character of the poor little Samboe. It was then he began to feel the loss, and to pine for the tenderness of his mother and his benefactress; and there is little doubt but he would have soon followed them to the tomb, had not an incident occurred, that emanc.i.p.ated him from the tyrannical controul by which he so acutely suffered. One day, while attending his master at breakfast, just as he handed the coffee his foot slipped, and it was thrown over a beautiful cimar, which the luxurious planter highly valued, as the gift of a lady to whom he was partial. He rose in haste and in anger, and aiming a blow at the now kneeling boy, missed the blow, and fell himself to the ground, striking his head by the fall against the edge of a sofa. Seeing him suddenly fall, some attendants in waiting rushed to his a.s.sistance, but in vain: the blow had been fatal, he had fallen to rise no more on earth! Happy was it for Samboe that there were witnesses, white witnesses of the scene, who could exonerate him from all intentional connexion with, or wilful provocation to the catastrophe. The alarm, however, of the unoffending child was distressing: the countenance of the planter at all times bore evidence of his ill-regulated mind and indurated heart, and the awful hand of death fixed them in an expression the most horrid. With little idea of such sudden death, the poor child thought he was but in a violent pa.s.sion, and, in the most piteous accents, clasping his hands together, besought "ma.s.sa to forgive poor Samboe, who would not break cup any more, would not spoil dress any more." But his supplication was alike unheeded by master and attendants, except by one, who kicking him as he pa.s.sed, said: "Get out of the way, ye little whining dog, or I'll make ye." Samboe crept from the apartment, and crouching under some furniture, felt all the bitterness of a life of slavery, of which nature, in its first fresh feelings, can be capable. Happily again for the infant captive, the wife of the planter could not bear to retain in her service the innocent cause of her husband's death; at least, secretly rejoicing at her own emanc.i.p.ation from his arbitrary disposition, she affected so to say: consequently, she expressed her wish of selling him to the manager of a neighbouring plantation, but as her recent loss rendered it impossible for her to have a personal interview, she thus communicated her wish by note to this person: "Unable to bear the sight of the young author of the death of the best and tenderest of husbands, Mrs. Williamson requests the favour of Mr. Martin to take charge of, and dispose of him, in any way he may judge most conducive to her interest, and to employ the proceeds in the purchase of a more effective, that is, laborious slave. Mrs. W. relies on the known kindness of Mr. M. to render this service to the disconsolate widow of his late friend." My young readers will doubtless be shocked, that Mrs. Williamson should thus profess grief for the loss of a man she married for his wealth, without either esteeming or loving him; but it is no fancied picture, and is presented to show, that, unless the heart is continually watched, and the mind sedulously cultivated, in situations favourable to indolence and self-indulgence, the moral feelings quickly become blunted, and the individual can easily, and without any self-reproach, a.s.sume any sentiments and any line of conduct which best suits the whim or caprice of the moment; and she hated the little Samboe, because she once overheard him, in a moment of unusual gaiety, telling a circle of slaves what merry dances they had at Delaney, when dear Missy Delaney danced with poor Samboe. Upon such trifles will envy condescend to feed its insatiate appet.i.te. Good, however, to Samboe, was educed from all this evil. Mr. Martin was the respectable and humane manager of the Moreton estate; (see "Twilight Hours Improved," page 85;) subjected to his superintendence during the minority of Mr. Frederick Moreton, by the will of his deceased father; and whose humane treatment of his negroes had excited the displeasure of the young man's guardian, Mr. Penryn, who firmly believed the African race created only to become the slaves of Europeans. Mr. Martin lost no time in complying with the request of his fair neighbour. He well remembered frequently having seen the little Samboe in attendance upon his imperious master, and never failed to admire his extreme docility, mildness, and intelligence; and he looked upon the circ.u.mstance of Mrs. Williamson's desire to sell him, as very fortunate, as he had, only a few days previous, received the commission to send to England a negro boy for his young master.

The purchase was soon made, and Samboe was once more under the roof of an indulgent master. Every attention was given, in order to establish his health, and improve his personal appearance, that he might credit the choice of his purchaser, and please the young eye of his future master. He only remained at Jamaica to effect these purposes, when he was consigned to the care of the captain of an English West Indiaman, with instructions to have him safely conveyed to Mr. Penryn's, Portman Square.

Samboe evinced the greatest reluctance to go on board; he clung to Mr. Martin, who himself conducted him, and trembled violently, declaring he could not go into great ship, or on great wide sea. No one could account for this extraordinary reluctance and evident terror; for they knew not that the young heart of the little negro was throbbing with recollections for which he had no name, and which he had no power to express. It is true, they were vague, like the confused remembrance of a troubled dream, but they were powerful; and it was with the utmost difficulty Mr. Martin soothed him, by gentleness, promises, and a.s.surances; and, after all, was obliged to leave him, when he had cried himself to sleep upon a coil of rope on the deck, no one being able to prevail upon him to go below, and Mr. Martin positively forbidding coercion.

The grief and terror of the poor boy were renewed, when he discovered he had been left by Mr Martin; but a series of kind treatment, and many little indulgences granted him, after a while reconciled him to his new situation; while his simplicity and quickness greatly endeared him to the sailors, with whom he became quite a pet. The voyage pa.s.sed in this manner without any particular occurrence; and Samboe was introduced, one evening, to the dining room of Mr. Penryn, filled with elegant company.

Had he been one of the wonders of the world, he probably would not have excited more attention, or elicited more remarks. The ladies admired his eyes and his teeth; the gentlemen enquired if he was a Molembo, or from the Kroo country, and began an animated debate on slavery, and the slave-trade. Each lady gave her opinion of the most becoming dress to contrast with the jet black of his skin. One asked him if was not glad to come to England; another enquired if he was sorry to leave Africa; a third enquired if they flogged him at the plantation; while a fourth, by way of compliment to the lady of the house, observed, he was a happy black boy, to have such a charming mistress. To all these remarks the poor child could give no reply; nor, it would seem, was it expected; and, much to his joy, he was dismissed to the care of the groom, until his apartment and employment about the person of his young master could be arranged.

The groom, however, was highly indignant that a vile neger boy should be committed to his care: "Did they fancy he would let a black get between his sheets? No, indeed; there was the hay-loft, the stable-boy should pull him a truss of straw in the corner there: surely that would be a better bed than most negers got. Sleep with me, indeed; no, I'd lose my place first, and tis'n't a bad one, neither. Had they told me to take Caesar the house-dog, or Neptune the Newfoundlander, I should not have so much have minded; but a neger boy! surely my master was half-seas over to think of it." This, and much more of the same refined objection, pa.s.sed in the kitchen of ---- Penryn, esq. and, according to the groom's kind arrangement, Samboe was indulged with some clean straw in the stable-loft.

The children of oppression and calamity quickly sympathize; a kindred feeling draws them together: thus it was with Samboe the African, and Frank the English stable boy. An orphan from his cradle, and a parish apprentice, Frank had been early subjected to every oppression--exposed to every temptation; but a certain buoyancy of spirit, and a persevering ardour of mind, enabled him to rise above the one; and the latter was rendered less dangerous, by his constant, unremitted love of employment. He was busily engaged mending his shoes, when his master, the groom, introduced the young negro to his acquaintance. "There, Frank," he said, "there is a companion for you, my lad; take care he don't touch the horses, and mind he don't run away. Lock him up when you come in for your supper: you may offer him some, but I don't know what negers eat, I'm sure. Master should have told us that, I think, for I don't expect they live as we do. Eh! my lad, do ye mind me?" he added, with a raised voice, as he saw Frank take the hand of the timid Samboe, and ask him if he was tired. "Oh yes, sir!" he replied, touching his fur cap, "I will be sure to take care of him."

Glad to get quit of the restraint which the charge imposed upon him, the groom was in high good humour with Frank, and promised, if he would attend to his orders, he would give him a shilling. Astonished at his unwonted generosity, Frank repeated his a.s.surances; and having made his new companion understand that he desired to make him comfortable, with the happy facility of children to be so when left to themselves, they quickly became acquainted. Frank found that negers could eat good bread and fresh meat; that they had no objection to tarts; and that even a custard, given by the cook as a treat to merry Frank, was equally relished by the neger boy. After this luxurious repast, during which, if it was not the "feast of reason and the flow of soul,"