The Boy Slaves Part 20

CHAPTER FORTY TWO.

GOLAH.

In their journey over the sea of sand, our four adventurers formed part of a company of sixteen men and women, along with six or seven children.

All were the property of one man, the huge and dusky sheik who had won Sailor Bill and the three middies at "desert draughts."

It soon became known to his white captives that his name was Golah, a name which Terence suggested might be an African abbreviation of the ancient name of Goliah.

Golah was certainly a great man, not in bone and flesh alone, but in intellect as well.

We do not claim for him the gigantic mind that by arranging a few figures and symbols, by the light of a lamp in a garret, could discover a new planet in the solar system, and give its dimensions, weight, and distance from the dome of Saint Paul's. Neither do we claim that the power of his intellect, if put forth in a storm of eloquence, could move the ma.s.ses of his fellow-creatures, as a hurricane stirs up the waters of the sea; yet, for all this, Golah had a great intellect. He was born to rule; and not a particle of all the propensities and sentiments const.i.tuting his mind was ever intended to yield to the will of another.

The cunning old sheik, who had the first claim to the three mids, had been anxious to retain them; but they were also wanted by Golah, and the Arab was compelled to give them up, after having been fairly beaten at the game; parting with his sable compet.i.tor in a mood that was anything but agreeable.

The black sheik had three wives, all of whom possessed the gift of eloquence in a high degree.

For all this, a single glance from him was enough to stop any one of them in the middle of a monosyllable.

Even Fatima, the favourite, owed much of her influence to the ability she displayed in studying her lord's wishes to the neglect of her own.

Golah had seven camels, four of which were required for carrying himself and his wives, with their children, trappings, tent utensils, and tents.

The three other camels were laden with the spoils which had been collected from the wreck. Twelve of the sixteen adults in the company were compelled to walk, being forced to keep up with the camels the best way they could.

One of these was Golah's son, a youth about eighteen years of age. He was armed with a long Moorish musket, a heavy Spanish sword, and the dirk that had been taken from Colin.

He was the princ.i.p.al guard over the slaves, in which duty he was a.s.sisted by another youth, whom our adventurers afterwards learnt was a brother of one of Golah's wives.

This second youth was armed with a musket and scimitar, and both he and Golah's son seemed to think that their lives depended on keeping a constant watch over the ten slaves; for there were six others besides Sailor Bill and his young companions. They had all been captured, purchased, or won at play, during Golah's present expedition, and were now on the way to some southern market.

Two of the six were p.r.o.nounced by Sailor Bill to be Kroomen, a race of Africans with whose appearance he was somewhat familiar, having often seen them acting as sailors in ships coming from the African coast.

The other slaves were much lighter in complexion, and by the old man-o'-war's-man were called "Portugee blacks." All had the appearance of having spent some time in bondage on the great Saara.

On the first day of their journey the white captives had learnt the relations existing between the majority of the company and the chief Golah; and each of them felt shame as well as indignation at the humiliating position in which he was placed.

Those feelings were partly excited and greatly strengthened by hunger and thirst, as well as by the painful toil they had to undergo in dragging themselves over the sandy plain beneath a scorching sun.

"I have had enough of this," said Harry Blount to his companions. "We might be able to stand it several days longer, but I've no curiosity to learn whether we can or not."

"Go on! you are thinking and speaking for me, Harry," said Terence.

"There are four of us," continued Harry, "four of that nation whose people boast they never will be slaves; besides, there are six others, who are our fellow-bondsmen. They're not much to look at, but still they might count for something in a row. Shall we four British tars, belong to a party of ten, all enslaved by three men, black men at that?"

"That's just what I've been thinking about, for the last hour or two,"

said Terence. "If we don't kill old Golah, and ride off with his camels, we deserve to pa.s.s every day of our lives as we're doing this one--in slavery."

"Just say the word, when and how," cried Harry. "I'm waiting. There are seven camels. Let us each take one; but before we go we must eat and drink the other three. I'm starving."

"Pitch on a plan, and I'll pitch into it," rejoined Terence. "I'm ready for anything, from pitch and toss to manslaughter."

"Stay, Master Terence," interrupted the old sailor. "Av coorse ye are afther wantin' to do somethin', an' thin to think aftherwards why ye did it. 'Arry, my lad, yer half out o' yer mind. Master Colin be the only yin o' ye that keeps his seven senses about him. Suppose, all av ye, that the big chief was dead, an' that his son was not alive, and that the other nager was a ristin' quietly wid his black heels turned from the place where the daisies hought to grow, what should we do thin? We 'ave neither chart nor compa.s.s. We could'ner mak oot our reckonin'.

Don't ye see, a voyage here is just like one at sea, only it be just the reva.r.s.e. When men are starvin' at sea, they want to find land, but when they are starvin' in the desert they want to find water. The big nager, our captain, can navigate this sea in safety, we can't. We must let him take us to some port and then do the best we can to escape from him."

"You are quite right," said Colin, "in thinking that we might be unable to find our way from one watering-place to another; but it is well for us to calculate all the chances. After reaching some port, as you call it, may we not find ourselves in a position more difficult to escape from; where we will have to contend with a hundred or more of these negro brutes in place of only three?"

"That's vary likely," answered the sailor, "but they're only men, and we 'ave a chance of beatin' 'em. We may fight with men and conquer 'em, an' we may fight with water an' conquer that, but when we fight against no water that will conquer us. Natur is sure to win."

"Bill's right there," said Terence, "and I feel that Nature is getting the best of me already."

While they were holding this conversation they noticed that one of the Kroomen kept near them, and seemed listening to all that was said. His sparkling eyes betrayed the greatest interest.

"Do you understand us?" asked old Bill, turning sharply towards the African, and speaking in an angry tone.

"Yus, sa--a lilly bit," answered the Krooman, without seeming to notice the unpleasant manner in which the question had been put.

"And what are you listening for?"

"To hear what you tell um. I like go in Ingleesh ship. You talk good for me. I go 'long with you."

With some difficulty the sailor and his companions could comprehend the Krooman's gibberish. They managed to learn from him that he had once been in an English ship, and had made a voyage along the African coast, trading for palm-oil. While on board he had picked up a smattering of English. He was afterwards shipwrecked in a Portuguese brig, cast away on the sh.o.r.es of the Saara, just as our adventurers had been, and had pa.s.sed four years in the desert, a slave to its denizens.

He gratified our adventurers by telling them that they were in no danger of having to endure a prolonged period of captivity, as they would soon be sold into liberty, instead of slavery. Golah could not afford to keep slaves; and was only a kidnapper and dealer in the article. He would sell them to the highest bidder, and that would be some English consul on the coast.

The Krooman said there was no such hope for him and his companions, for their country did not redeem its subjects from slavery.

When he saw that Golah had obtained some English prisoners, he had been cheered with the hope that he might be redeemed along with them, as an English subject, to which right he had some claim from having served on an English ship.

During the day the black slaves, well knowing the duty they were expected to perform, had been gathering pieces of dried camels' dung along the way: this was to supply fuel for the fire of the _douar_ at night.

Soon after sunset Golah ordered a halt, when the camels were unloaded, and the tents set up.

About one quarter the quant.i.ty of _sangleh_ that each required was then served out to the slaves for their dinner, and as they had eaten nothing since morning, this article of food appeared to have greatly improved, both in appearance and flavour. To the palates of our adventurers it seemed delicious.

Golah, after examining his human property, and evidently satisfied with the condition of all, retired to his tent; from which soon after issued sounds that resembled a distant thunder-storm.

The black sheik was snoring.

The two young men, his son and brother-in-law relieved each other during the night in keeping watch over the slaves.

Their vigil was altogether unnecessary. Weak, and exhausted with hunger and fatigue, the thoughts of the captives were not of the future, but of present repose; which was eagerly sought, and readily found, by all four of them.

CHAPTER FORTY THREE.