The natives are black, with long straight hair, slender forms, and remarkable for their longevity. They are cunning and much disposed to plunder. Their religion is Mahomedan, though they practice many Jewish rites, such as sacrifice and burnt offerings, for which purpose they raise many cattle. They consider the white man a superhuman being, who can hold converse with the Almighty, who will speak to him as He will not to them. One day they stood looking with amazement at the mate, as he was taking the sun’s altitude with a quadrant. When he had finished his observations, he offered the instrument to several of them, all of whom refused it, saying, God would not talk to them as he did to white men!
I was much gratified, upon conversing with them, to learn that they had some faint knowledge of the true and living God, and believed Mahomet was only a mediator between God and man. A woman, who I least expected would possess any such knowledge, gave me to understand that she believed God dwelt above in the heavens, and that at some future time he would come to judge the world.
Wednesday was my day to go on shore, and Thursday the cook’s day. But being one day on shore, I learned that the following day was one devoted by the natives to sacrificial offerings, which I would not tell the cook, lest curiosity should prompt him to go to see them, and thus deprive me of a chance. So I paid him to stay and do my cabin work, and let me go on shore again that day.
This offering was to secure the blessing of their Hoker-barro, or God, on the king and his family. The sacrifice was performed in this manner: three poles, 15 or 20 feet in length, with shorter ones lying across them, were placed three feet above the ground. When this was done, the sacrificial bullock was brought to look upon it, after which he was killed, his blood caught in a calabash, or gourd, for a separate offering, and his flesh cut in pieces and laid upon the poles, under which a fire was kindled, around which the natives danced, clapping their hands while it was burning, the whole performance being accompanied by numerous ceremonies. The sacrifice ends with the sunset, but as my duty required my attendance on shipboard before that time, I did not witness its conclusion.
We remained in Madagascar three weeks to repair the ship, which was damaged at sea. While lying in port four of the crew escaped, and were concealed on shore by the natives; who afterwards came and betrayed them to the captain for a price. The mate, with a boat’s crew of Portuguese, was sent for them, with whom they not only refused to return, but severely cut and bruised them. Afterwards the captain, with the captains of five other vessels, then lying in port, went for them, conducted by the natives, who knew their place of concealment, in a native hut.
When he discovered them, the captain calmly told them he wished them to return with him to their duty on board the vessel, to which they readily gave their assent, saying they would have gone before had he sent Americans for them, but that they would not willingly submit to be fettered by Portuguese.
When they reached the ship, they were placed in irons, and put upon criminal’s allowance until the next morning, when it was expected they would receive their deserved punishment. Our captain did not wish to flog them, as he thought he could inflict some other punishment which would prove more salutary and efficacious; but, being pressingly urged by captain Burton, of the ship Sally Ann, and others, to do so, he finally flogged three of them, among whom was Smith; while one, who was not concerned in resisting the Portuguese, was suffered to go without his flogging. But before we were ready to leave Madagascar, this very man again escaped from the vessel, by lying upon a plank and paddling himself along with his hands, he having previously arranged with the crew of the ship to which he was going, to receive him on board and conceal him, which they did, until she was ready to sail for New London, whither she was bound, loaded with oil.
CHAP. XVIII.
We cruised around the coast of Africa for whales, but finding none, put into the port of Johanna, where we again met the ship Sally Ann, captain Burton, who had the reputation of being a very cruel man.