, 1886-06-24
CARGO OF SLAVES.
MERCHANTS STORY OF A MEETING
IN THE SOUTH ATLANTIC.

A Small Boat Loaded with Suffering Ne
gro Enthusiastically Of Portuguese
Dago-A Captains Unavailing Wrath
Only Twenty-Eight Years Ago.
A merchant said the other day, al
never see a colored crew with n white
mate going down the pier that ! don't
think OF my first trip to Rio and the slaves
| saw on the way there. 1t was in the
early part OF 1s49. It's hard to realize 1t
now, but the slave trade was hen a most
profitable business in spite of its difficult
les. The vigilance of the British cruisers
had driven the infamous Dagoes who
manned the slavers into all sorts OF de-
vices 10 escape detection, but the f~avorite
method Just hen seemed to be to resort to
small schooners and coasters which, on
account of their size, could be run up the
small creeks, where the slave marts were
located in Africa, out of sight of the
cruisers and there loaded safely and
quickly, and then sent to sea at the first
moment when the coast was clear. A
little schooner of some thirty tons once
escaped a British frigate in a calm by get
ting out sweeps which the slaves were
compelled to work.
an this voyage I'm telling you about we
had II fine run of luck, crossing the dold-
runs and catching the southeast trades
much sooner than we had expected. AL
though we there found the wind light.
every one was in good spirits over the run.
1t wac i"s. after ulnner one day, when a
man who was Selling some new chatting
gear on to the foretopmast rigging In the
wake OF the yards hailed the deck, and
said that a small boat seemed to be adrift
about three points on the weather bow,
and that a signal of distress was flying
over 1t.
FILLED WITH CHILDREN.
AS soon as attention was attracted to
it, it could be plainly seen from the
weather rail. The captain examined it
closely with n glass, and told the second
mate that there were three men on it
alive, and that there seemed to be others
lying under The ihwarts. TIL. boat APP
parently contained the last OF some ship
wrecked crew, and our captain at once
heade the ship up so as to bring the small
boat IA little OIL the lee. We were running
about live or six knots al hour, and in the
course OF fifteen minute we had ap-
preached so near the drifting boat that it
could be very plainly seen with the naked
eye. The captain had been growing ex-
cited as he looked at 1t, and finally put
down his glass and said with an oath that
the boat was from the wreck of a SLAYER,
and was filed with negroes. He declared
he would hang the white men TO the yard
arm. Just then one of the owners Of the
ship who, unfortunately, was making the
voyage with us, put his hand on the cap
tain's arm N said something that made
the captain bite his lip, but no more was
said about the hanging.
a \ $500 l.. l.-rl -. -. H.
time we saw the boat until one Of the
white men in it caught the end OF Il heav-
ing line and had dropped the boat under
the stern of our ship, where she towed
very comfortably. A more pitiful sight
never met the eye than the people of that
ships BOAT. Half the thwarts had been
taken out, and between and under those
that remained were forty children. rang
ing from about 8 to IA years of age. The
oldest Of them were girls. All were stark
naked, and apparently more then half
dead. 1t is useless to try to tell you how
much their sufferings had affected them.
Some Of them never looked up when the
talking was going on, while Others moaned
aloud. One of the white men asked for
supplies. He said he wasn't begging; he
was ready to pay. He hoped we would let
hiL.l have water. At that word many Of
the children raised themselves up with
eager looks, for he talked in Portuguese and
they were accustomed to 1t enough tc
know what was said. They began to talk
all at once, but the man picked up a bis
blacksnake whip and then they cowed
down instantly. But there were three or
four OF the children who were unable to
raise themselves up or TO realize that they
were near to help. One was a boy who
had been horribly beaten with the whip
and was dying.
CROSSING II ocRAS.
Our captain was for taking the entire
lot on board and delivering them to the