Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1895-07-29
A MILD ORIENTAL.

the case, it was the only thing that he
could do. But Pambe Serang had been
hanged by the neck till he was dead,
and nobody cared whether he was right
or wrong.
Three years ago, when the Elsass-
Lothringen steamer Saarbuck was coal
ing at Alden and the weather was very
hot indeed, Nurkeed, the big fat Zanzi-
bar stoker who fed the second right
furnace 80 feet down in the hold, got
leave to so ashore. He departed a
''Seedee boy" as they call the stokers.
He returned the full blooded sultan of
Zanzibar-his royal highness Sayyid
Burg gash-with bottle in each hand.
eating salt fish and onions and singing
the songs of far country. The food be-
| longed to Pambe, the serang, or head
man of the lascar sailors. He had Just
cooked it for himself, turned to borrow
some SALT and when he came back Nur-
keed's dirty fingers were spading into
the rice. A serang is a person of i'm
portance, far above a stoker, though the
stoker draws better pay. He sets the
chorus of 'Hya, hullal Heeah, heb, I"
when the captains gig is pulled up to
the davits. He heaves the lead, too, and
sometimes, when all the ship is lazy,
he puts ON his whitest muslin and a
big red sash and plays with the passen-
gers children on the quarter deck.
Then the passengers give him money,
and he saves it for an orgie at Bombay,
Calcutta or Pulu Penang.
''Ho you fat, black barrel, you're
eating my foodr' said Pambe in the
other hngua franca which begins where
the Levant tongue stops and runs from
Port Said eastward till east is west and
the sealing brigs of the Kurile islands
gossip with Hakodate junks.
Son Of Eblis, monkey face, dried
shark liver, pig man, am the Sultan
Sayyid Burgash and the commander of
all this ship! Take away your garbage, I"
and Nurkeed thrust the empty pewter
rice plate into Pambe's hand. Pambe
beat it into a basin over Nurkeed's
woolly head. Nurkeed drew his sheath
knife and stabbed Pambe in the leg.
Pambe drew his sheath knife, but Nur-
keed dropped down into the darkness Of
the hold and spat through the grating
at Pambe, who was staining the fore
deck with his blood.
Only the big white moon saw these
things, for the officers were looking
after the coaling and the passengers
were tossing in their close cabins. "All
right" said Pambe, and went forward
to tie up his leg, 1--WE will settle the
account later" He was a Malay, born
in India, married once in Burma,
where his wife had cigar shop on the
Shwe Dagon road; once in Singapore to
q Chinese girl and once in Madras to
Mohammedan woman who sold fowls.
The English sailor cannot, owing to
postal and telegraph facilities, marry
so profusely as he used to do, but ma,
tive sailors can, being uninfluenced by
the barbarous inventions of the western
savage. Pambe was q good husband
when he happened to remember the ex-
istence Of wife, but he was also very
good Malay, and it is not wise to offend
Malay, because he does not forget any
thing. Moreover, in Pambe case blood
had been drawn and food spoiled. Next
morning Nurkeed rose with blank
mind. He was no longer sultan Of Zan.
zibar, but very hot stoker. So he went
ON deck and opened his jacket TO the
morning breeze till a sheath knife came
like a flying fish and stuck into the
woodwork of the cooks galley, half an
inch from his right armpit He ran down
elbow before his time, trying TO remen'
Der what be could have said 10 the
owner Of the weapon. Al noon, when
all the ships lascars were feeding. Aur'
keed advanced into their midst, and be-
ing placid man with a large regard
for bis own skin he opened negotiations,
saying: "Men Of the ship, last night !
know that 1 hehayed unseemly 10 some
one or another Of you. Who was that
man, that may meet him face 10 face
and say that was drunk. "
Pambe measured the distance 10
Nurkssds naked breast II he sprang
at him. he might DO tripped up, and
blind blow at the chest sometimes only
means a gash on the breast bona Ribs
are difii0ult 10 thrust botWeen unless
the subject IL asleep So he said moth
ing, nor did the other lasoaTs. Their
faces Immediately dropped All expires
sion, a. is the custom " tho 0Flontals
when there is killing on tho carpet a.
any chance of trouble kgTkeed looked
long at the white oyehalls He waS
only an African and could not read
characters A big sigh, almost gToan.
broke fron him, and be went back 20
tho fuTnaoes The laseaTs took up ths
conversation whore he had Interrupted
lt They talked " the hasl meihods ~
cooking riee
Rarkead suffered considerably during
the gnn 81 bombay fTum Lack ~ fresh
.if 40 Only ealae oa deck ~ blealhs
whom al iha world Naa about, aud eyoA
ll,on q hesyy blook opoe dF0ppad fFon .
derrick within . fp0i ~ his bead ana pa
appsrsplly .aslsd gIaiina oa which Do
80 his f.i,a iaasn a. lgIn Nith Che laton
.oa a aI1ppiRs hlm oa ihs oAsaa oalso
lk foei LeleN, ald eas insuppoEtapls
alsli the silssihtnifs aFoppaa ffein li.s