HORRORS OF SLAVERY.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 156, 5 July 1887, Page 6

HORRORS OF SLAVERY.

I have heard a great deal about the! horrors of the slave traffic in days gone by, bub one of the most horrible in" stances of the man}'' which could be related occurred under my own eyes, and with the most appealing surround, ings. In the last days of the African slave traffic—l mean by this during the last voyages of tho vessels fitted out to buy slaves in Africa and land them in Cuba—l was a foremast hand on an English bark called the Foxshire, bound from. Liverpool to the Cape of Good Hope. We had an average fair run down to the equator, and there met what nearly every ship inevitably encounters, light winds, tedious calms, and a deal of work of pulling and hauling for the crew. We were well off the Gulf of Guinea when even the puffs and cat's-paws left us, and there settled down upon tho sea a mighty calm. Wo had kept moving a bit up to 10 o'clock in the morning, and we had in plain sight a brig which was making her way out of the gulf. We had been all the time approaching each other at an angle, but very slowly, and when the wind finally left us the two crafts were bowing and nodding at each other on the ground swell over a space of water which could not have measured more than half a mile. We had shown her one Hag tho evening before and she had replied by hoisting the flag of Spain. Long enough before the calm set in wo had our suspicions as to her character. Indeed, at sundown on the night before, an old Jack Tar in my watch had taken a long squint at her while aloft, and had come down to say: 'Lads, if that chap off there isn't a blackbird, then may I choke to death on my next mouthful of plum duff.' During my trick at the wheel I overheard the captain and mate criticising the sfcranger,and both were firm in their belief that she was a slaver. "When tho calm came, as I have described, all doubts were soon settled. The air was tainted with, tho horrible odour of a slave ship. I affirm that this odour came to us over that half mile of epen water, and it put all doubts at rest. Among our crow of twenty-two people were half a dozen who had scented slave ships in port, and one, an American, who had made several voyages. Tho minute this horrible odour came down to us he jumped clear off the deck, gave his leg a slap, and cried out: ' Gosh all fish hooks, but here's the real nigger smoll coming right abroad Of us ! That fellow has got 300 of 'em under hatches or hero's my head for a football.'

The smell of a slave ship was the most sickening of all odours. Carrion is not to be compared to it. The man ■who got one good sniff of it at close quarters was made sick for an hour after. I never could understand how the crews of the ships endured it, but as one can get used to everything I suppose the human nose may in time become accustomed to the foulest odours. Had our barque been a man-of-war there would have been a fine prize under her bowsprit, but as we •were only a merchantman, the Spaniard had no reason to fear us. As a matter of fact he could safely have been the aggressor, for we could see a couple of cannon on his decks, while we had none, and we knew that he was liberally supplied with muskets and cutlasses, while we had none. Captain and mate each had a revolver, but aside from these we had not a firearm of any sort. We made out a crew of sixteen men aboard the brig, and her general appearance indicated that she had nob been out of port many days. Well, there we lay, and there was the horrible odour in the air, and the sun seemed to make the sea boil. Hot! Why abare foot placed on thedeck would have been blistered in fifteen seconds, and out of mercy to the men, some of whom had stripped off everything but trousers an order came forward to suspend all work. We drew up buckets of water and dashed them over each other, but as for finding a cool place or for keeping cool, that was out of the question. About 11 o'clock we were all startled into activity by a most horrible din from the brig. It seemed as if two or three hundred voices were yelling in chorus, and the sound didnot cease until broken in upon by the reports of firearms. ' I'll tell you exactly what's taking place on board that fellow,' said the American, who had , been listening intently. ' He's short of water, and the niggers have been put upon half or quarter allowance. They are suffering and desperate, and the crew have had to shoot down some of the leaders. I've seen 200 likely black fellows go dead for the want of water, but they didn't die -without making a tremendous effort to take the ship. We'll hear from that chap again inside of an hour, and I'll miss my hoecake if he isn't alongside of us before 12 bartering for fresh water.' The man was a prophet. In about half an hour there was another chorus of shrieks, yells and curses, and we plainly heard the rattle of chains. Three or four muskets were fired, and then all was quiet again. But it ■wasn't yet 12 o'clock when the ' brig launched a boat, five men got into her, and in a very few minutes she was alongside, and a man who announced himself as the mate of the slaver was on deck. Everybody knew his errand. It was well known that we had plenty of fresh water, but would our Captain spare him a single pint 1 British sailors hated slavers as no other nation did, and our captain had gone aboμt that afternoon with round oaths falling off his lips to think that he had a slaver under his nose and was helpless. If he refused to spare the water, the

poor blacks would die; if he let it go, they would be saved for a life of slavery. The man who boarded us was an American, and he had an open countenance and a frank way. He didn't beat about the bush at all, but walked up to our captain, who was standing stiffly on the quarter deck, touched his hat, and said : ' I'm mate of the brig yonder, and am sent to see if you can spare us a few casks of water.' 'That brig's a slaver," exclaimed our captain, who seeemed filled with indignation. ' Certainly; and we've got 300 niggers aboard who want water the worst way.' 1 How came you in such a fix V ' Had our cargo all in, and were filling our water casks when a cruiser hovo ill sight, and we had to cut. But for this calm we should have been back on the coast two days ago.' ' D you, sir, you ought to be hung to the yardarm!' shouted the captain, as he paced back and forth. ' Every man to his own idea,' calmly replied the mate. 'The main thing now is to get water for the niggers. If we don't get it, not one of them will bo alive to-morrow night. . Our captain hung out for a while. If we had been armed so as to give us a fair show I have no doubt that ho would have attempted the capture of the brig. While he hated to save the blacks to the profit of the pirates, he was too merciful to be the indirect cause of their death, and he finally consented to spare five casks of water. Arrangements for the transfer were being made when the furious hubbub of half an hour before was repeated, only there was more savageness in it this time. It did not die away as before, but kept increasing in intensity and lasting so long that the mate leaped upon the rail and looked toward the brig and muttered : ' The devils are making a break at last. Why don't the men use the guns 1' His words were followed by the reports of a dozen muskets, and they were still cracking away when some one stood on the rail of the brig and waved his hat in our direction. 'The niggers are loose,' exclaimed the mate as lie had made for his boat. 'That signal is for me, but I'll return for tho water as soon as the outbreak is put down.' He was off in another moment, and his men pulled such a stroke that thenboat was carried to the brig's side in four or five minutes. She was run under the bows and the men scrambled up over the chains. We knew that the outbreak was serious, for the hubbub increased, and we could see the crew rushing wildly about. There was a continual pop of musketry, and Wβ became SO excited that every man in the ship, cook included, hurried aloft to look down upon the strangers' decks as we lay broadside to each other, and the distance was so short we could see all that took place. Despite the desperate efforts of tho crew, the negroes were finding their way on deck. They were shot and clubbed and hacked, but they came faster than they could be taken care of, and in half an hour from the time the mate's boat left us the blacks had possession of at least one-half the brig. They got hold of some of tho cutlasses, and they seemed to know how to use .the former as well as tho sailors. The forward gratings were pried off, and the hold emptied of its living cargo, and during all this timo there was fierce fighting in the waist of the brig. The blacks had no fear, and once loose, their savage natures were thoroughly aroused. When they got possession of half the vessel, they captured the water-button deck, and we saw them drinking with the bullets flying past their ears. The water seemed to add to their desperation, for soon after getting possession of it a hundred or more blacks made a grand rush, armed with every sort of weapon, and after a conflict of five minutes they had possession of the ship. Three of the crew saved their lives for the time being by running aloft, but all the others seemed to have been killed. You cannot suppose wo were quiet spectators of such a scene. We wanted to be called away to help slippress the outbreak, and under a French, German, or American captain , would have been. A British captain argued that slavers were worse than pirates, and that if a whole crew was exterminated by a cargo of stolen blacks it was an act of Providence. When our excitement had become intense, and some of the men were about to arm themsolves, the captain called out: ' It's none of our fight, lads. Those pirates might as well be killed now as to be hung hereafter. And, besides, we haven't been asked.' Certainly not, but it was because tho Spaniard knew that we wouldsooneraid in his capture. It cut us men,though, to see him making a fight of twenty to three hundred, and gradually falling back and fighting to the last, without asking for our help. When the grand rush was made, and the remnant of the crew driven aloft, a sort of groan went through our ship, and more than one man muttered against our captain's policy. When tho blacks got full possession,many.of them drank sea water, and it was only a short time before a cast of rum was broached and served out to all. When the vile stuff had begun to take effect, hell was let loose aboard the brig. Such a surging to and fro! Such jabbering and shouting and screaming ! The bodies of the dead sailors were strippednaked,kickedabout the decks and mutilated in the most horrible manner, and then flung overboard. At the very first splash we saw at least a dozen sharks make for the spot, and after that their dorsal fins were cutting•>■ the water in every direction.

I tell you we were an excited lot when the blacks got possession of the brig, and our captain soon realised that he had made a great mistake in not helping the Spaniard to put down the outbreak, slaver though lie was. The negroes could not distinguish between friend and toe, Spaniard and Englishman. The fact of the two crafts lying so close together was proof to them that both were slavers, and their'victory aboard the brig encouraged them to go further. It wasn't long before we were convinced that they meant to attack the barque. One of them stood on the rail and harangued the crowd for a few minutes, pointing our way and gesticulating fiercely, and there was more order aboard after that. As I told you before, three of the brig's crew escaped instant death by running aloft, where they were for a time forgotten. They went as high as they could go, and concealed themselves as well as possible. They daved not shout to us, but they implored us .by gestures to come to their relief. After the harangue, the drift of which they seemed to understand, they motioned us that the blacks supposed the barque to be loaded.with slaves, also, and that we would be attacked in an effort to set them free. They also gave us to understand that the negroes had a score of muskets and knew how to use them, and we could easily understand that a sharp cutlass in the hands of a desperate black would be a wicked weapon. 'Down with you, lads, and prepare to defend the ship with your lives!' called our captain, and every man responded with willingness. As I told you, we had no firearms of any consequence. Everything which could bo used as a missile or a weapon was speedily gathered, and every utensil in which water could bo heated was placed on the stove in the cook's galley. We opened the midship hatches and broke out of the cargo a lot of English pressed brick, which had been ordered by a contractor at the Cape. They weighed abont five pounds each, and we piled up a thousand or more at different points on the deck. We were •still handling the bricks when the blacks suddenly remembered the three sailors in the rigging of the brig, and eight or ten started aloft after them. We were amazed at the circumstance, but there was no sea on, the fellows were probably expert forest climbers, and there was nothing so very wonderful in their going aloft. The sailors called out to our captain for God's sake to come to their relief, and he answered them that our own position was so full of peril that he did not dare send off a boat. The blacks were very agile fellows, and as they drew near the sailors we saw that the latter were preparing to leap into the sea. The idea was appalling, not only on account of i the great height, but those wicked dorsal fins were cutting the water all about the slave ship in a way to make us shiver. The moment finally came when the first sailor dropped from the end of a yard, and he was speedily followed by his companions. Each struck the water with an awful splash, went out of sight, and nothing further was seen of them. If they were stunned by the fall,so much the better.

It was about 3 o'clock in the afternoon when the blacks made ready to attack us. The brig had three boats which they could get at, and each boat was crowded with men. They had muskets, cutlasses, capstan-bars, belaying pins, and other weapons, and while they were making preparations they kept up a yelling and whooping which would have done credit to Indians. Those who were to remain aboard defied and taunted us, and evidently considered us certain victims. I don't think any man of.us felt what people call fear as we saw the three boats leave the brig and pull toward but we could be forgiven for doubting whether we had the strength to beat them off. The boats kept together, and it was evident they meant to board on the same side. This was the better for us. Our bricks and other weapons were hastily moved, and while we were at this work the captain stood on the rail and shouted to. the blacks and warned them to keep off. In hopes some of them might understand English, he called out our nationality, and said we were friends and would help them back to the coast. The answer to this was a shot from a musket, and the bullet whistled so close to the cap* tain's head that we lost no time in getting off the rail. We saw then that we had to fight, and we wore as ready as we could be when they laid us aboard. Fortunately for us they had no strategy about them, but the three boats pulled together for our bows and hooked on in a crowd. The barque had very high bulwarks, and the blacks who were armed with muskets could do us no damage. We had but one point to defend, and a score of brickbats and a couple of pails of hot water took the sand out of the crowd pretty quick. In three minutes after getting under our bows they realised that they had cut out a larger job than they could manage, and they were a wellscalded set as they let go and pulled back to the brig.

Three-fifths of the crowd had been left on board, and the failure of the attack was greeted with such yells as mortal man never heard before. The boats were not hauled up at all, and the beaten blacks were no sooner got aboard the brig than a terrible fight took place, which did not stop until 25 or 30 people had been knocked on the head and flung over to the sharks. An hour before sundown the boats were filled with men again to attack us, but there was a great jabbering and gesticulating, and the plan was abandoned. Just at sundown the calm was broken, though the breeze which reached us was a' light one. The captain weighed all the circumstances in his mind, no doubt, and he came to the conclusion that it was the

best for us to continue our journey and hope to fall in with a cruiser. The blacks set up howls of vengeance as we made sail, and that we could not have made friends with them was proved by the fire of muskets which they kept up until we were out of hearing. The brig was turning round and round on her heel when we last saw her, and some of the blacks were aloft trying to loosen the sails. Ihirty hours later we met Her Majesty's ship Defiance, and gave her captain the brig's bearings; but it was a full year before I learned any further particulars. After a cruise of a week the Defiance found the brig bottom side up at sea, 75 miles from where we left her, with never a sign of a human being about her.