Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1895-01-19

| HUMP said Leonard to himself The
quotation seems very appropriate. If one
had faith in omens now, q man might say
that this was a good one. !" And in his
4 heart he believed it to be so.
Another hours journey brought them
\ to the point of the island along which
/ they had hecn travelling.
All, said Otter, now | know the
| path again. This is the right stream; that
to the left must be new one. Had we
| taken it we should have lost our way and
/ perhaps hare found it no more for days
or not at all
s'Say, Otter said Leonard, s'you es-
capped from this place How did you do it
in n boatF"
No, baas. The baas knows that 1 am
strong. Ny spirit who gave me ugliness
gave me strength also to make up for it,
and it is We'll for had been beautiful as
you are, baas, and not very strong, |
should have been a slave now or dead.
With my chained hands l ehoked him who
set to watch me and took his knife. Then
by my strength | broke the irons. See
baas, here are the scars of them to this
day. When l broke them, they cut into
my flesh, but they were old irons that had
been ON many slaves, so mastered them
myself into the water and dived, and they
never saw me more. Afterward l swan
all this way, resting from time to time on
the islands and from time to time running
along the shore where the reeds were not
too thick, till at length 1 escaped into the
open country. l travelled four days to
reach it, and most of that time was in
the water
"And what did you feed on?"
Roots and the eggs of birds. -
''And did net the alligatoIs try to eat
yous''
"One did, baas, but l am quick in the
water. l got upon the alligator's back
ali, my spirit was with me thenl-and
drove the knife through his eye into his
brain. Then | smeared myself over with
the blood of the alligator and after that
they did not touch me, for they know the
smell and thought that l was their broth
er
Say, Otter, are you not afraid of going
back to this place."
Somewhat, baas, for there is that he'll
you white people talk of. But where the
baas goes there l can go also. Otter will
not linger while you run; also, baas, l
am rot braye-no, no, yet l would look
upon that Yellow Devil again, yes, if l my
self must die to do it and kill him with
these hands"
And the dwarf dropped the paddle,
screaming, "kill him, kill him, kill himr'
so loudly that the birds rose in alright
from the marshes.
Be quiet you fool!' said Leonard an
grily. Do you want to bring the Arabs
on us?"
But to himself he thought that he should
be sorry for Pereira, alias the Yellow
Devil, if once Otter found a chance to fly
at his throat.
The next day, about an hour before sun
set they camo to the nest of the Yellow
Devil. The nest was placed thus: 1t stood
upon an island which may have covered
in all four or five acres of ground. OF this
area, however, only about ~ acres were
available for living space The rest was
morass hidden by growth of very tall
reeds, which, starting from great lagoon
on the northern and eastern sides, ran up
to the low inclosare of the buildings that
on these faces, were considered to be suffi-
GENTLY defended by the morass and the
wrle waters beyond. On the southern and
western aspects, however, matters were
very different, for here the place was
strongly fortified both by art and nature
iISlIl, " CflNdl Itlll FOuIlu THESE Two ldctS,
not very wide or deep indeed, but impass-
able, except in boats, owing to the soft
mud at its bottom. On the farther side of
this canal an earthwork had been con
structed, having its crest stoutly palisaded
and its sides planted with natural de
Tense of alocs and prickly pears.
So much for the exterior of the spot. Its
interior was divided into three principal
npl n Sso
was the site of the nest itself, long, low
thatched building of wood, in front and
to the west of which there was an open
space, or courtyard, with a hard floor,
wherein we've but two buildngs--a shed,
supported on posts and open from the
caves to the ground, where sales of slaves
were carried on, and farther to the north,
almost continuous with the line of the
nest itself, but separate from it, small
erection, very strongly built Of brick and
stone, and having roof made from the
tin Innings 0f ammunition and othor cases.
This was a magazine. All round this in
closure stood rows of straw huts of ma
tive build, evidently occupied as camp |
by the Arabs and half breed slave traders
of the baser sort.
The second inclosure, which was to the
camp. 1t may have covered half an acre
Of ground The only buildings in it were
four low sheds similar in every respect to
that where the slaves We're sold, only
much longer Here the captives lay pick
eted in rows to iron bars which ran the
length of the sheds and were fixed into
the ground at either end. This camp was
separated from the nest Enclosure by
deep canal 80 feet in width and spanned
at one point by a slender and primitive
drawb bridge that led across the canal to
the gate of the camp; also it was protected
on the nest side by a low wall and on the
slave camp side by an earthwork, planted,
as usual, with prickly pears. On this
earthwork near the gate and little guard
house a six FOUNDER cannon was mounted,
the muzzle of which frowned down upon
the slave camp, visible warning to its
occupants of the fate which awaited the
froward Indeed all the defenses of this
part of the island were devised as safe
guards against possible emeute Of the
slaves
Beyond the slave camp lay the garden
that could only be approached through it
1t also was fortified by water and earth
works, but not so strongly
Such is brief description of what was
in those days the strongest slavehold in
Africa.
CHAPTER V.
The road which Leonard and his COM
panions were following led them to the
edge of the main and southernmost canal
debouching exactly opposite the water
gate that gave access to the nest. But
Otter did not venture to guide them to
this point, for there they would be seen by
the sentries, and, notwithstanding their
masquerade dress, awkward questions
might be asked which they could not an
swer. So when they had arrived within
500 yards of the gate he struck off to the
left into the thick bush that clothed the
hither side of the canal Through this
they crn,yleff as best they might till finally