Iowa state bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1894-1916, 1899-04-21
An EtoJn Boy. u.

broke. and the storm abated . little,
the captain, six men and got ashore
III the long boat. Just as the poor Ar
row began to break up, for we could
see the waves beating into her and
rending asunder the decks. the inner
and outer sheathing. as II they couldn't
scatter the cargo fast enough far and
wide.
well, there we were, shipwrecked
In q Wild place on the west coast Of
Africa, at q part Of the Congo river
where the mangrove trees grow into
the water, and have their lower
branches covered with oysters and bar
nacles.
I'VE could see high blue hills In the
distance when the sun came up from
the cane swamps and the wild woods
which bordered; the river. and we sat
on the beach for 4 while looking rue-
fully at the wreck, of which little now
remained but q few timbers. till the
increase Of the morning heat drove us
for shelter into a grove Of oil-palms,
and there, Master Rodney. we found
tulips. lilies and hyacinths growing
wild, and six times larger than you
ever saw in England.
Some OF our men proposed that we
should repair the longboat-she was
partly stove in-and put to sea, or
creep IN along the coast until We were
picked up. We were without carpen-
ter's tools: but the captain had case
Of surgical instruments, and the first
use we made Of the saw was to cut Into
halves an iron buoy which had hoated
ashore from the wreck.
"Thus we had two kettles, In which
we boiled some seabirds and their
eggs. and made mess whereupon we
breakfasted Exhausted by the late
storm, the birds were easily knocked
down by stones as they sat with droop-
Ing wings upon the rocks near the sea;
but scarcely was our miserable meal
over when we heard loud yells, and,
attracted by the smoke Of our fire.
down came a whole gang Of ugly dar.
kies, all Mussolongos. wild and naked,
with rings or iishbones in their long
ears and fiat noses-all streaked with
war-paint and shouting like madmen
as they hrandished their muskets and
spears.
"They fired volley. which stretched
on the earth the poor captain and all
my shipmates. dead or dying. The lat
ter they soon dispatched with their
knives and spears. and left them to be
eaten by wild animals: but on finding
that had escaped their bullets, they
supposed that their fetish had pro-
tected me, and SO for time ! was safe.
For . whole week was forced to
help these savages in .he work Of TAX
ing all that remained Of the wreck to
pieces, though hundreds came from
the interior. and they wrought hard.
some men using even their filed teeth
to get all the iron and copper bolts.
which they priced more than the car
60. sails or spars, as they could fash
ion them into weapons and the heads
Of spears and arrows. But with every.
thing they could lay their dingy hands
upon, myself included. they made of
inland, just as vessel, which proved
to be q kings ship, came round the
Sharks Nose. and thus, with help.
protection and liberty at hand, ! was
more than ever q prisoner.
81 was in very low spirits, you may
be sure. fearing they only intended to
fatten me up, like stabilized OK, or a
turtle In q tub. before cooking and
eating me. or making me a sacrifice to
some idol carved Of wood; for many
times saw the whole 'tarnal tribeNon
their knees before the hgure-head Of
the Arrow. which had been washed
ashore. and was pronounced to be
fetish. t .@
''For three days we travelled among
deep and slimy-green swamps, thick.
Wild woods and immense painless
canebrakes, where In an hour saw
more tree leopards and xebras. howl
Ing jackals and antelopes, grinning
monkeys and chattering paroquets,
than ever were seen IN al the shows
at Greenwich fair, till we arrived ct 4
kraal Of q hundred huts for all the
world like pigsties, surrounded BY a
high palisade Of bamboos. and situated
in q forest Of palms.
II was now the slave Of q chief,
whose rigging wassrather queer, for It
consisted only Of . deep fringe. or kilt.
Of unplaited grass. q necklace Of lions
teeth and fishbones, and a cap Of leop-
ards skin. on which lowered plume
OF feathers. above q row Of human
teeth and sea shells. .1.s.
Being rope-ended by an inch-and-
a-half colt --aye, Or keelhauled once a
day front the foreyardarmwere Jokes
when compared to al this African
Niger made me undergo. In pestilent
swamps. where the very mir choked me,
% Il u had been In . ship With q foul
hold, for the slime In these canebrakes
was % thick as tar and black as old
bilge-water. B. t
One day he was soothing his ex-
element BY beating me with q heavy
bamboo. TIL my back and arms were:
covered with blood Close BY were ..
whole gang Of the tribe squatted un-5
der : palm tree, smoking bubbles
bubbles made ont OF nut shells, look
Ing on and laughing at the torture I !
Was undergoing; but In the midst Of
their sport We heard roar that made
our hearts tremble. and all ready to,
scamper Oh. Il
There was . mighty crashing and
swaying Of the wild canes n the adj
jacent brake, ana then ! great. square
headed and tawny-haired lion, q larsss
a a GOoi.sfxetl r,fnvs and nth = tnfts