L. T. Meade

“ Mou-Setsé saw that little children would have no chance whatever in such a crowd. He wondered could they climb the wall, but its smooth, hard side, twenty feet high, he soon saw would be utterly impracticable.
Very sadly the children returned home, and most bitter tears did they shed in each other’s arms. Poor little children! they little guessed that never again would they kiss each other, or play together, or be happy with that innocent happiness that the good and loving God gives to little children. Cruel men who followed the devil, not God, were soon to part them the one from the other. ”

“ Such a life as this soon began to tell upon little Nanny, who had never been a strong child; but not the most earnest entreaties from her brothers would induce the hard-hearted man to allow her to exert herself less. It was a weary life for them all, and many a time when wreaths and bouquets were showered upon them by the applauding audience would they retire and burst into tears for very fatigue and sorrow.
Toni and Hans at last became seriously alarmed about their little sister. ”

“ Nanny clasped her hands, and bursting into a flood of tears, exclaimed, “Please, sir, oh, please not to send us back to uncle!” and Hans, trembling in every limb, begged them to have pity.
Toni was the only one of the three who remained calm, saying in a cheerful voice to his sister, “Do not be frightened, Nanny; the good God knows all.” ”

“ He knew before any one else of a fresh slave who was brought into the town, and he always attended the slave market. But he did more; he helped his brethren whose groans went daily—indeed, night and day—up to heaven. Many a poor mother, when she was torn from her child, went to Mou-Setsé’s store, and poured out her great trouble into his kind heart; and somehow or other, he managed to get tidings of the lost child, or the lost parent or husband. By degrees he made an immense connection for himself all over America, and no one knew more about the ways and doings of the black people than he did. ”

“ From the hour the Kakundans encamped round the city all was in confusion there. There was nothing thought of but the war. Now and then bands of men used to go out and fight with the enemy, but the Eyeo men had very few successes and many failures. As the days went by they grew weaker and weaker. Alas! famine was making them weak. Famine was beginning to tell on old and young alike in the unhappy city. Little Mou-Setsé’s fat legs grew thin, and his round cheeks hollow, while his bright, black eyes stared more and more out of his face every day. ”

“ Though he loved his mother best, yet it was the remembrance of his father that brought most strength to his poor little heart now; for his father had said to him often in his native language that a brave boy never wept—tears were for women and girls, but not for boys, who hoped to be warriors by-and-bye. Remembering these words of his father’s, little Mou-Setsé pressed back the tears from his hot eyelids, and endeavoured to wear an indifferent face. ”

“ Story 2--Chapter III. When they had gone a short distance, Hans, who had been looking rather grave, whispered into his brother’s ear, “Toni, do not say this to Nanny—but how shall we know where grandfather’s house is? We may wander among the mountains all day long and never find it.”
“God will lead us right,” answered the trusting boy, “and give us strength for the long journey. Only think, we have been up all night, and are not tired yet. But, Nanny,” he said, turning to his sister, “you must go to sleep now; lie down and shut your little eyes.” ”

“ This was very terrible news indeed; and great terror and great pain did it bring to the inhabitants of Eyeo. The poor mothers began to tremble as they clasped their babies in their arms and reflected on the dreadful thought that soon they and those little children so precious to them might be torn from each other. The fathers, too, brave warriors as they were, looking in the frightened faces of wives and children, felt some of those heart-pangs which make men resolute to conquer or to die. ”

“ Often, very often, these children and fathers and mothers never meet again. In these days no slaves are allowed to be kept in any English territory, and even in America the slaves are at last set free. At the time, however, when Mou-Setsé was a little boy, there were numbers of slaves in America, and indeed in many other parts of the world. Mou-Setsé had heard of slaves—for what tiny African boy had not?—and now he knew that he himself was going to be a slave. When he saw the flames rising up in Eyeo, and his beloved home being burnt to ashes, he knew that this fate was before him. ”

“ Toni replied; “but mother often talked about these things, and taught us to be kind to dumb creatures, and never to hurt even the smallest insect that God had made, because they can feel as well as we; and then she would tell us so many pretty stories of their different ways, that it makes me think sometimes they must have some sort of reason like human beings. But now step in, Nanny; we must not talk any longer, but go on our way, or we shall never reach grandfather’s.” The little one settled herself comfortably in the cart, her brothers harnessed themselves once more, and away they went. ”

“ They themselves would be exposed to the attacks of the enemy, while the city would be left defenceless. Hunger, however, had made these brave men desperate. Anything, they thought, was better than their present condition. So the warriors went out in a strong band, leaving the little children, the sick, and the aged behind them. Mou-Setsé’s father and mother both went away. They bade their children good-bye cheerfully, and little Mou-Setsé, as he clasped his arms round his mother’s neck, even laughed at the prospect of the good food they all might soon have. ”

“ I have said that sad days were not very far from poor little Mou-Setsé. They came when he was still only a little boy not more than eight years old.
The people of Eyeo had need of their high wall and their strong fortifications, for they were surrounded by enemies.
One day the news reached them that a strong neighbouring tribe, calling themselves Kakundans, were coming to attack them. The King of Eyeo had never done these people any harm, yet they wanted to conquer him, that they might take him and his subjects for slaves, and gain money by selling them to the Portuguese. ”

“ Mou-Setsé grew up to be a man, with a very fixed purpose in his heart. All his thoughts and all his desires were bent on its accomplishment; but, as I said before, he was reserved, and never spoke of this thought of his inmost heart to human being. ”

“ His father, his mother, his brothers, his sister, he was torn from them all; he did not know what had become of them; he might never hope to see them again; he might never learn their fate; their suffering might be even greater than his own. Poor little boy! and he knew of no God to comfort him, and had never heard of any hope beyond this world.
At last the canoe reached a place called Ikho. Little Mou-Setsé was again sold, and this time was sent to the fold, or the spot where purchased slaves are kept till there is an opportunity to send them off in vessels to other countries. ”

“ This proved very grateful to the hungry children, who had tasted nothing since their dinner with the good schoolmaster. Toni and Hans, tired enough by this time, were glad after their meal to stretch themselves on the grass and go to sleep, but Nanny, who had been spared all fatigue, ran about playing with the dog, going here and there, and looking with wondering pleasure at the trees and wild flowers, all of which were so new to her, and talking to the little birds that hopped from bough to bough twittering their pretty songs. ”

“ In their terror they told the poor slaves an untruth. They said that the people in the large ship wanted to eat them. All hands were set to work at the oars. Even little Mou-Setsé pulled with every inch of strength he possessed; for, though he was very unhappy, he did not want to be eaten. So eager and frightened were the poor slaves that ten men pulled at one oar. But all was of no avail.
Nearer and nearer came the great ship; and at last, after twenty-four hours of hard chase, she sailed up alongside the slaver, and all the negroes, were captured. ”

“ We may fancy our little friends, then, enjoying themselves under the shade of the trees. Many hours having passed since their mid-day meal, the loaf of bread was produced, and Toni cut a slice for each with his pocket-knife, spreading it with honey. ”

“ But retribution was at hand for those cruel traders who were so indifferent to the fate of the suffering human creatures they had bought and made their own. God sometimes punishes very soon, and in a very awful manner. This was the case on board the vessel where Mou-Setsé had endured his worst sufferings.
Through some accident the vessel, an old one and badly built, took fire. How terrible it looked in the dark night! How fearful were the cries of the terrified sailors! Mou-Setsé and the other rescued slaves saw the flames from the English vessel. ”

“ But Mou-Setsé had a dreadful time before him, for God teaches His lessons in the storm as well as the sunshine.
This suffering was to take place on board the Portuguese slave-ship to which he was shortly removed. No one can understand who has not witnessed it the miseries of a slave vessel. The negroes are placed on their backs, or fixed in a sitting position, on ranges of shelves, one above the other, and in dark, close places, where hardly any air and no light are allowed to enter. ”

“ Of course, like all African towns, it had a great many enemies, but it was supposed to be very well protected. The King of Yarriba lived in Eyeo. He had several wives, and his huts covered a whole square mile of the town. He was an idolater, and he had a council of some of the chief men to help him to rule. The king and his people had a very strange religion; each one of them had a god in his own house, and there were also two chief idols, one called Korowah and the other Terbertaru. One of these gods was for the men, and the other for the women. ”

“ That is to say, if an English ship saw another ship on the sea which was supposed to be a slaver, she might pursue it; and if slaves were found in it she might set them free. English vessels were kept cruising about the seas for this purpose. America, however, though calling herself a free country, had then in the Southern States upwards of two million suffering slaves, and she would not allow to England the right of search. Many slave-ships, therefore, falsely using the American flag, escaped uncaught.
The Portuguese brig on board of which little Mou-Setsé was had hoisted this flag ”

“ Women, carrying children in their arms, were trying to escape from the burning huts; sometimes they were entangled in a prickly bush and thrown down, or they were caught by the cruel enemy and tied together in gangs, so that they could not escape. Mou-Setsé stood quite still, and his brothers and sister, when they saw he could not fly, stayed near him. ”

“ At last, after a long, long journey, little Mou-Setsé and a long gang of other slaves found themselves at a place called Quorra. Here the Portuguese met them, and here they were to be really sold. A trader came to examine Mou-Setsé, and finding him strong and healthy, quickly bought him. He was now to be sold again. The trader, seeing that he was a fine boy and handsome, took great pains with him. ”

“ The warriors busied themselves in polishing their knives and sharpening their daggers and securing the handles of their axes. Even the little children tried to help. The elder boys cleaned and brightened the weapons, while the younger went out to pick fruit, rice, and corn, in case the enemy should shut them up and they should be short of food. Little Mou-Setsé was particularly busy in this way, and his active little feet were scarcely ever still. ”

“ The huts were nearly empty; parties of the enemy walked about the streets; the gardens, that used to be so beautiful, were torn and ruined; many aged men, who had killed themselves in their dread of slavery, were lying dead in the streets. A little farther on they heard the crackling of burning wood, and soon the flames of their beloved city burst upon their sight. The enemy had set Eyeo on fire.
Story 1--Chapter III. What “The Right of Search” did for Mou-Setsé.
No doubt, the children who read this story have heard of slaves; have heard how some little children are not free ”

“ In one of the small towns in the north of Austria there once lived a humble pair, as far as earthly goods and position go, but who were rich in what was far better—love to God and simple trust in His Fatherly care. ”

“ Thus they lie for weeks and months, sometimes brought up on deck to jump about in their chains for exercise, exposed to sea-sickness, disease, and to the rubbing of the rough boards on their naked bodies. Many die, and those who live are, on landing, wretched objects. In the vessel in which Mou-Setsé was, the men were packed away below deck, but the women and children were allowed to remain above. ”

“ They were not drawn by the attractions of Kansas; they were driven by the terrors of Louisiana. Happen what would, they all resolved to fly, never to return. Death rather than return was their invariable resolution.
Mou-Setsé, as I have said, had heard of this exodus. Profound secret as the negroes had kept it, yet it had reached his ears. He consulted his black brothers and sisters in St. Louis, and it was resolved that the strangers should be well received—hence the preparations in the churches, and hence the assemblage on the quays. ”