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CHAPTER 5.

PETER PONGO.

I forgot to say that Dickey Snookes was sent on board the prize to keep me company. He told me that the captain had called him into the cabin, and given him a long lecture about playing tricks, and that he had made up his mind to behave very circumspectly. I doubted that he would keep very long to his good resolution. I felt excessively proud when I first walked the deck of the prize as officer of the watch, though that fellow Snookes would declare that the old quartermaster who kept it with me was my dry-nurse, and that I was a mere make-believe. I know that I kept pacing up and down on the weather side of the quarter-deck with great dignity, looking up at the sails, and every now and then giving a glance at the compass, to assure myself that the man at the helm was steering a proper course. I should like to know what officer in the service, under the circumstances, could do more. We were ordered to keep the frigate always in sight, and as the prize sailed well, we had little difficulty in doing that. In the day time we collected the poor blacks to come on deck in fifties at a time, and walk up and down. We had a black man on board the frigate, who was now sent with us, and he understood the language of some of the slaves. I had not forgotten the poor boy whose mother I had seen die, and I got permission for him to attend at our mess. The other black seaman was able to explain to him what he had to do, and I set to work to teach him English. He learned with surprising rapidity, and could soon exchange words with me. I wished to give him a name, and succeeded in learning that his native one was Pongo. He, of course, had no Christian name, so I proposed calling him Peter, and he was always afterwards known as Peter Pongo. He soon became a capital servant, though he did now and then make curious mistakes. Once he brought our soup into the cabin in a wash-bowl, and another time emptied into a pail two bottles of wine which he had been ordered to cool in water. Snookes was for punishing him, but I saved the poor fellow, as I was certain that he had not done either of the things being aware of their incorrectness. He exhibited, in consequence, the greatest gratitude towards me, and evidently looked up to me as his friend and protector. He improved rapidly in his knowledge of English, and by the time we drew near the coast of South America he was able to explain himself with tolerable clearness. With the aid of the negro seaman I spoke of, I got somewhat of poor Peter Pongo’s simple history out of him. I cannot put it in his words, for though at the time I could understand them, yet you certainly would not if I wrote them down. One day I had gone forward, and when seated on the forecastle, under the shade of the fore-staysail, I listened to his narrative. “Ah! Massa Pringle, my country very good,” he began. He always called me Pringle, for he could not manage to pronounce my surname. “Plenty yams there– plenty denge–plenty corn–plenty sheep–tall trees–high mountains– water come gushing out of rocks up among clouds–so cool with foam–loud roar–make grass grow–bright ponds–many animals come and drink. Ah! no country like mine. My father have good house too–very warm–very cool–no rain come in–all built round square–high roof, hang long way over wall–room for walk up and down under it. Dere we all sit in middle of square, listen to stories–now we laugh, now we cry–sun go down, moon get up–star twinkle in dark sky, all so bright–still we talk–talk on–tell long stories–so happy–laugh still more. Ah! what is dat? Dreadful shriek–shriek–shriek–guns fire–we all start up– some run one way, some anoder–house on fire–flames rise up–fierce men come in–cut down some–kill–kill–take women, children–many young men–some fight–dey all killed–my father killed–mother, brother, and me all carried away together–hands tied behind our backs–hundreds– hundreds poor people, all drive away towards coast–then with long sticks and whips drive along–walk, walk–foot so sore–sleep at night under tree–all chained–up again before sun–walk, walk on all day– cruel men beat us–some grow sick. My brother, him grow sick–lie down under tree–men beat him with stick–he look up–say, Oh, no beat me– give one sigh, fall back and die. Dere he stay–many die like him–some lie down, and men beat him up again. On we go–see at last blue ocean– put into Barracoon–all chained to iron bar–no move one side nor oder– wait dere many days. Ship with white sail come at last–we all put on raft–carried to ship. Oh, how many–more, more come–ship no hold them–many sick–many die–thrown overboard–shark eat them. On we sail–oh, how hot–more, more die–many days no more–float on water like one log–den you come–white man, Spaniard, say you kill us–ah, no, no–you very good–we very happy–yes, massa, Peter Pongo very happy now.” Such was Peter’s brief account of himself. You will not consider it too much of a rigmarole. I was, I know, much interested when he told it me, and I had some little difficulty in making out what he meant. Soon after this we entered the magnificent harbour of Rio de Janeiro, which looks like a lake surrounded by lofty hills, the curious sugar-loaf rising above all. I have heard it said that it would contain all the ships in the world; but, large as it is, I have an idea that they would be very close packed if they were all brought together there. The city is large, built on level ground, or rather on a swamp, with mountains covered with trees rising directly behind it. There are numerous churches and fine palaces, and many large public buildings, but the white inhabitants are very brown and dirty, and the black, who seem to be very numerous, wear a remarkably small amount of clothing. Though the greater number are slaves, they are very merry slaves, and it was amusing to see one party meet another. They would stop, pull off their straw hats, make a series of mock polite bows, and some remarks which were sure to produce roars of laughter; how they would twist and turn about, and at last lean against each other’s backs, that they might more at their ease indulge in fresh cachinnations. I have never seen any but blacks twist themselves into such curious attitudes. I cannot give a more lucid account of this imperial city, because I was so very little on shore. We had a great deal of work in getting the schooner refitted. All the poor blacks were taken on board the frigate, for we could not trust them on shore lest the Brazilians might have spirited them away, while the schooner was thoroughly cleansed and fumigated. We then took in an ample supply of water and provisions, and prepared to recross the Atlantic. The Brazilians could not understand why we took so much trouble about a few miserable blacks, and thought that we should have done much more wisely had we sold them to them at half-price. Mr Talbot had still charge of the prize, and having Sommers as his lieutenant, with Dickey Snookes and me, he was ordered to carry her back to Sierra Leone. We flattered ourselves that both My Lord and Polly looked at us with a considerable amount of envy as we wished them farewell.