For all this, a single glance from him was enough to stop any one of them in the middle of a monosyllable.
Even Fatima, the favourite, owed much of her influence to the ability she displayed in studying her lord’s wishes to the neglect of her own.
Golah had seven camels, four of which were required for carrying himself and his wives, with their children, trappings, tent utensils, and tents.
The three other camels were laden with the spoils which had been collected from the wreck. Twelve of the sixteen adults in the company were compelled to walk, being forced to keep up with the camels the best way they could.
One of these was Golah’s son, a youth about eighteen years of age. He was armed with a long Moorish musket, a heavy Spanish sword, and the dirk that had been taken from Colin.
He was the principal guard over the slaves, in which duty he was assisted by another youth, whom our adventurers afterwards learnt was a brother of one of Golah’s wives.
This second youth was armed with a musket and scimitar, and both he and Golah’s son seemed to think that their lives depended on keeping a constant watch over the ten slaves; for there were six others besides Sailor Bill and his young companions. They had all been captured, purchased, or won at play, during Golah’s present expedition, and were now on the way to some southern market.
Two of the six were pronounced by Sailor Bill to be Kroomen, a race of Africans with whose appearance he was somewhat familiar, having often seen them acting as sailors in ships coming from the African coast.
The other slaves were much lighter in complexion, and by the old man-o’-war’s-man were called “Portugee blacks.” All had the appearance of having spent some time in bondage on the great Saara.
On the first day of their journey the white captives had learnt the relations existing between the majority of the company and the chief Golah; and each of them felt shame as well as indignation at the humiliating position in which he was placed.