Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1896-01-30
BLACK BOYS OF SAMOA.
Robert Louis Stevenson Describes tho
Plantation Workmcn.


Plantation Workmen.
There IRE here lot of poor peopls
who are brought to Samon from dis
tant lands to labor for the Germans.
They are not at all like the king and his
people. who are brown and very pretty;
for these are as black as negroes and as
ugly as sin, poor souls, and in their own
land they live all the time at war, and
cook ind eat mems flesh. The Germans
make them work; and every now and
then some run away into the bush. as
the forest is called, and build little
sheds of leaves, and eat nuts and roots
and fruits, and dwell there by them
selves. Sometimes they are bad, and
wild, and people whisper to each other
that some of them have gone back to
their horrid old habits, and catch men
and women in order to eat them. But
1t is very likely not true; and the most
of them are poor, half-starved, pitiful
creatures, like frightened dogs. Their
life is all very well when the sun shines,
rs it does eight or nine months in the
year. But it is very different the rest
of the time. The wind RACES then most
violently. The great trees thrash about
like whips; the air is filled with leaves
and branches flying like birds, and the
sound of the trees falling shakes the
earth. 1t rains, too, as it never rains at
home. You can hear n shower while it
is yet half mile away, kissing like
shower bath in the forest; and when it
comes to you the water blinds your
eyes and the cold drenching takes your
breath away us though some one had
struck you.
In that kind of weather it must be
one man alone by himself. And yop
must know that ii the lean man feels
afraid to be in the forest, the people of
the island and the black boys are much
more afraid than he; for they believe
the woods to be quite filed with spirits;
some like pigs and some like dying
things; but others (and these are
thought the most dangerous) in the
shape of beautiful young women and
young men, beautifully dressed in the
island manner, with fine kits and fine
necklaces, and crosses of scarlet seeds
and flowers. Woe beti1e him or her
who gets to speak with one of these!
They will be charmed out of their wits
and come home again quite silly and go
mad and die. So that poor runaway
black boy must be always trembling
and looking about for the coming of the
demons.
Sometimes the women demons go
| down out of the woods into the villages,
and here is a tale the lean man heard
| last year: One of the islanders was sit
| ting in his house, aud he had cooked
| fish. There came along the road two
beautiful young women. dressed as
told you, who came into his house and
asked for some of his fish. 1t is the
fashion in the island always to give
what is asked, and never to ask folks
name. So the man gave them fish and
talked to them in the island TESTING
| way. Presently he asked one of the
women for her red necklace, which is
good manners and their way; he had
| given the fish and he had right to ask
for something back. 81 will give it to
you by and by" said the woman, and
she and her companion went away; but
he thought they were gone very sud
denly, and the truth is they had van
ished. The night was nearly come, when
the man heard the voice of the woman
crying that he should come to her and
she would give the necklace. He looked
out, and behold! she was standing call
ing him from the top of the sea, on
which she stood as you might stand Oil
the table. At that fear came on the
man; he fell on his knees end prayed
and the woman disappeared.
1t was said afterward that this was
once woman, indeed, but she should
have died a thousand years ago, and has
lived all that while as an evil spirit in
the woods beside the spring Of river
Sau-mai-afe is her name, in case you
want to write to her. - Robert Louis
Stevenson, in st. Nicholas.