The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1905-01-27
A BLACK KING

one night i'll August. IS, TO have
feast with King John. who ruled over
seven islands of the Paumotu group,
south Pacific. was left alone aboard
to keep anchor watch.
1t was about 6 O'Clock in the evening
when the men pulled ashore in the
yawl and the shouting and laughing
and the bonfires were evidences that
the entertain began almost at
once. 1t had just grown fully dark
when King John and about fifty Of his
subjects came alongside in their ca
noes and clambered on board Before
| could ask any questions l was knock
ed down and had my feet and ankles
securely tied. None of them deigned
to explain what was going on, but in
few minutes | picked up sufficient to
satisfy me that the men ashore had
been overpowered and that King John
proposed to get the brig up the river,
which emptied into the bay just there
There was water enough to float her,
but our captain had preferred an out
side anchorage for obvious reasons
King John played fair with the trad
ers only when there was no oppOrtuni-
ty for treachery.
The tide was running out rather
strong, but in their hurry to get pos
session the natives either overlooked
the fact or thought they were strong
enough to overcome it. A long two
inch rope, which they had either
bought or stolen from some craft, was
made fast to the briggs bows, and the
canoes took the free end; then they
began work at the iron cable; but, not
knowing how to unshackle it, they
presently grew impatient. and King
John ordered me cast loose to do the
work I cot hammer and drove out
the shackle pin.
The canoes were almost in line under
the cable, and, as it was unshackled al
most at the windlass and when out of
the hawser hole as if pulled by a steam
engine, five or six canoes were upset
and a score Of natives more or less hurt.
AS their tow rope Strengthened out
there was a grand yell for the canoes
to go ahead, but the brig started
down the bay stern first and pulled
| the lot of them after her. l sneaked
aft and put the wheel over and dashed
| it, and five minutes later the brig
swung around until her bows pointed
down the bay.
The natives were all more or less un-
der the influence of the keg of rum
| which went ashore with the crew, and
| when the brig started off with them
| they became at first hilarious and then
panic stricken. Pretty soon they all
| scrambled aboard and began to weep
| and howl like a lot of children. A ship
was mysterious thing to Them and
| that one should run away with them
without having sail set was something
to mystify them still further They
could have escaped to the shore in their
| canoes, but they did not want to aban-
don their prize. King John caught
sight of me and threatened me with in
slant death if I did not take the brig
back to her anchorage. told him that
| though knives and clubs were -four
ished, they finally decided to spare my
life.
An offshore breeze helped us down
the bay, and in half an hour we were
at sea. 1t was quiet night, but there
was big ground swell rolling in from
some storm at sea, and the brig hadn't
played seesaw very long before there
| was terribly sick crowd aboard. She
heaved and rolled with just the motion
to make landsman's stomach try to
run away from him. 1t struck me that
/ must keep the advantage that cir
cumstance had placed in my hands.
If our men had not been murdered out
of hand. there might be a way to save
them.
1t occurred to me that my first move
should be to hunt for rum We had
plenty of it aboard. as found in over
hauling the laZarette. and | broke out
keg and rolled it on deck Every ma
tive welcomed it with yell and could
not get at it's contents fast enough In
half an hour | saw that the whole
crowd would keep it up until dead
drunk. and 1 quietly withdrew and be-
gan to hunt up rope. At the end Of an
hour the last of the natives had Topped
down on deck, and then l spent full
hour tying the wretched lot hand and
foot. 1t was 10 o'clock at night ere
had finished, and / then went down to
the captains cabin and turned in and
slept through the balance Of the night,
knowing that the brig was all right
and that none of my prisoners could re-
lease themselves even if they sobered
Off. slept like a top until an hour
after daylight, when the first of the
natives sobered up and began yelling.
1t wasn't ten minutes before the whole
crowd was hooting away.
I orOt c11nh coil on Tho I1r;.r oe r Gould