Sambo

“ Especially angry was the man who played the big drum. This was a gigantic negro, named Sam, a kind-hearted fellow, constantly smiling, except when the thought of his own importance made him assume a particularly grave appearance. He was a general favorite, although the boys were rather afraid of him, for he was apt to get into a passion if any jokes were attempted upon him, and of all offences the greatest was to call him Sambo. ”

“ Having described the scene at the shop in the Strand, and explained my errand, which, of course, subjected me to some raillery, my request was acceded to, and Sambo was ordered to attend me to a private conference in the study. He was a stout good-humoured African, with rather more than the twilight intelligence allowed to the race by the late Monk Lewis; but with all the characteristic relish for a talk with Massa, ascribed to his brethren by the same pleasant authority. ”

“ But I was up again in a second unhurt, save, perhaps, for that scratch on my forehead, whence I could feel the blood flowing as I dashed into the shadow of the banyan tree. Merciful heaven! what was this? A glare as of noonday, and two radiant forms with a cowering woman between them! between the chaplets of skulls and the chaplets of flowers. And behind them was an empty plinth! Before I had time to realise what I saw, came shouts and cries, a mêlée and a scuffle. Armed men ran out of the shadows, and then Sambo's voice was insistent, "Run, sahib, run! 'Tis your only chance. ”

“ At last there was an echo of the closing words which seemed to come from a large gum tree beyond the tents, against which a ladder had been reared to the forks, used for the purpose of a look-out by Captain Leebrace.
Sambo paused, looked up to the gum tree, and said, "By golly, who's dere?" The echo was repeated, and then he wheeled about in real earnest, transfixed with horror, unable to move a limb. The blacks were close to him now, but even their colour could not restore his courage. They were cannibals, and were preparing to kill and eat him. ”

“ When he tumbled into the wash-bowl Weezy squeezed him out, and dried him over the register. When lie ravelled mamma darned him, and made him as good as new.
O, he nicest kind of a doll! and from his white sewing-silk teeth to his black stocking-yarn toes, Weezy loved every inch of him. Yet she did love to punish him. One morning when she found him in papa's boot she shook him till one of his bead eyes dropped out.
"What for Sambo run away and hide?" cried she. "Now mamma mus' tie Sambo, 'cause Sambo did n't mind." ”

“ The forehead is sloping, the nose rather thick. He has large dark eyes with tremendous whites, short woolly hair, high cheekbones, skin very dark and sallow. The whole countenance is long and the head angular; he has the clear characteristics of the half-cast. The general opinion is that Sambo is out of place in the shed. He ought rather to have been trained for a life on the stage ”

“ While Sambo hastened to arouse the men, he girded his cutlass and pistols around his loins, and taking down two huge blunderbusses from a beam in the ceiling of the cabin, loaded them heavily with musket balls. Thus armed he sprang once more upon deck.
The alarm was soon given, and the preparation became general, but neither among the watch, who slumbered in the forecastle, nor those who had turned into their hammocks, was there the slightest indication of confusion. ”

“ I made the dhursies put away their work and alter the six best shirts for Sambo. I meant it kindly, but I almost killed him. The night they were finished, he lay awake until morning, crying for joy, crying himself almost into a fever. I gave him the togas to match the shirts and he was very proud. I gave him two huge tartans that had done duty in Rob Roy. The natives came for miles to see the memsahib who had given her chokera “six shirt, six sari, and two shawl.” Dear old Ayah was as delighted as Sambo, though she had children of her own to whom I had usually given all our discarded garments. ”

“ Sambo got many a kick and cuff from the captain and mate when he could not help coming near them, but he kept out of their way as much as he could within the caboose, and cooked our meals without uttering a complaint.
“I had heard say that the pitcher which often goes to the well gets broken at last, and I could not help fancying, notwithstanding our long run of success, that such would be the fate of the slaver. ”

“ A young girl has prayed for the return of Martin Paz, for she has not forgotten that the young Indian protected her and risked his life for her. If the Sambo has any news of his poor son, or any hope of finding him, let him surround his arm with a red handkerchief; there are eyes which see him pass daily. ”

“ Eric jacketless, was left to face the rigour of our English winter in his shirt-sleeves.
Now that all his male rivals had been defeated, I expected that we should see an end to Sambo's ambition.
No such thing occurred. In an altogether unchivalrous manner, he began to wage war on Rose, the oldest and most beautiful of Janey's dolls, who was the only possessor of that much prized accomplishment of falling into a trancelike sleep whenever she lay down. ”

“ There dropped out of it a silver dollar, and a long, shining curl of fair hair,—hair which, like a living thing, twined itself round Legree's fingers.
"Damnation!" he screamed, in sudden passion, stamping on the floor, and pulling furiously at the hair, as if it burned him. "Where did this come from? Take it off!—burn it up!—burn it up!" he screamed, tearing it off, and throwing it into the charcoal. "What did you bring it to me for?"
Sambo stood, with his heavy mouth wide open, and aghast with wonder ”

“ Emissaries were constantly at work, endeavouring to inflame their passions, and poison the source of honour; but though the gallant tars were true to themselves, and to each other, they were also faithful to their country. Ben, as a matter of course, had joined his brother sailors in their equitable demands, and Sambo had very naturally followed the example. ”

“ After an altogether unreasonable amount of crying, even in so sensitive a child as Janey, Sambo's rights were acknowledged.
Sambo was a name for which Janey was not responsible. If she had been left to herself she would have called the doll IT, and nothing more. But Mary is one of those people who believe that all dogs should be called Rover and all canaries Dick. When Sambo arrived there was never any doubt in my mind as to the name ”

“ Boe!" howled Sambo, who had been quite forgotten during this scene.
"You still here, you black devil!" cried the pedlar, turning fiercely round upon the negro. "Am I to be deafened by your cussed croakin'? Don't mind him, ladies and gentlemen—pay no attention to him. Who cares about a nigger? He only cries out for his amusement. It's all his tricks and cunnin'; he'd like to git some more of my sarve on his black hide! He won't have any, tho'! Be off with ye, you stinkin' nigger!"
"Stinkin' nigga! Massa Yankee say stinkin' nigga!" ”

“ His first care now was to disencumber himself of his shoes and cutlass, which he gave in charge to Sambo, with directions to the latter to remain stationary on the sward, keeping a good look-out to guard against surprise. ”

“ Your whole carcass ain't worth one of the boxes of that precious 'intment. Ah, Sambo!"
"Boe! Boe!" howled Sambo in reply.
"What's the palaver about?" growled some of the Badgers and Buckeyes; "open the chests, and you'll see what harm's done."
"D'ye ye hear, Sambo?" cried the Yankee with the same immovable countenance; "you're to hold yer tongue, the gentlemen say; they're tired of yer noise, and no wonder. What's the use of boohooin' away at that rate? Helps you nothin'; you desarve what you've got. I'll thank you for your long knife, Mister. That'll do. That opens it, cuts in like rael steel ”

“ Sambo said he wished he had given him ten dollars, and let the lot go.
If you want to show kindness to a person, show it to him while you are living. I heard a man say that he didn't want people to throw bouquets to him after he was dead, and say, "There, smell them." ”

“ One day, in the midst of a great romp with the children, my husband broke a cup belonging to a rare set of old china that had been given me in Tokio. I shook him. Sambo, who was in the room, covered his face with his hands and fled, crying, “The sahib will kill the memsahib!” I think he was relieved when he found that I was permitted to live yet a little longer. But I fear that he never again felt for his master entire respect. He said to my nurse, “Hindoo woman shake Hindoo man, Hindoo man kill Hindoo woman. Little European woman shake big European man, he laugh. ”

“ It may be doubted whether any one has ever seriously advanced the notion that Sambo is formed from Sam or Samuel, or that there is a connection between Sambo and Uncle Sam. "This Negre Sambo comes to me," wrote R. Ligon in 1657, "and seeing the needle wag, desired to know the reason of its stirring" (True & Exact History of the Island of Barbados, pp. 49, 50, 54) . Before 1700 we read of "Sambo negro helping caring goods" (New England Historical and Genealogical Register, XXXIV, 98) . In the Boston News-Letter of October 2, 1704, an advertisement stated that "There is a Negro man taken up . ”

“ The emotion of the figure, in giving evidence of its materiality, had, more than all the signs of his master, contributed to allay the agitation of the old negro. When therefore Gerald, urged by his irrepressible curiosity, in a whisper declared his intention to penetrate to the rear of the house, he was enabled to answer.
"For Gorramity's sake, Massa Geral, nebber go dare. Dis a place all berry bad for e family. Poor Sambo hair white now but when he black like a quirrel he see all a dis a people kill—" (and he pointed to the mound) "oh, berry much blood spill here, Massa Geral. ”

“ We invade not the feelings of that moment: language has nothing to do with them. The Being who formed the heart of man, can alone judge of its emotions.
The maternal affection was not, however, long absorbed in the conjugal; and the half frantic Imihie recollected, that Samboe was not enfolded with her in the arms of Tumiáh. She loosened herself with difficulty from his embrace, to restore her child to his wonted protection within her own; but, at the moment she arose for the purpose, a tumultuous cry resounded through the ship, of “fire! fire! Loosen the slaves! loosen the slaves!” ”

“ He was busily engaged mending his shoes, when his master, the groom, introduced the young negro to his acquaintance. “There, Frank,” he said, “there is a companion for you, my lad; take care he don’t touch the horses, and mind he don’t run away. Lock him up when you come in for your supper: you may offer him some, but I don’t know what negers eat, I’m sure. Master should have told us that, I think, for I don’t expect they [122] live as we do. Eh! my lad, do ye mind me?” he added, with a raised voice, as he saw Frank take the hand of the timid Samboe, and ask him if he was tired. ”

“ This alligator was twenty feet long, with an enormous misshapen head and fearful rows of teeth that were terrible to behold. The monster did not submit to be captured, however, without a struggle; and the Negroes grew wild with excitement as they yelled and leaped madly about seeking to avoid its dangerous jaws and the blows of its powerful tail. After some trouble, a second lasso was thrown over the tail, which was thus somewhat restrained in its movements; and Sambo, approaching cautiously with an axe, cut a deep gash just at the root of that formidable appendage, which rendered it harmless. ”

“ We walk quietly, each man tired and melancholy.
Ahead of us the sun rises and its rosy light penetrates the white, heavy mists through which we can now perceive indistinctly the gray outlines of Old Sambor. ”

“ Previously to the calamity, the feelings of the wretched Imihie had been wrought up nearly to their utmost height; the sight of the quick-advancing flames, therefore, was sufficient to augment them to frenzy, and with a strength which frenzy only could impart, to a frame exhausted by want of nourishment and continual grief, she snatched the infant Samboe from the deck, upon which he had fallen, and where, unheeded by one pitying eye, he remained, without uttering any cry or attempting to move ”

“ Frederick Moreton, by the will of his deceased father; and whose humane treatment of his negroes had excited the displeasure of the young man’s guardian, Mr. Penryn, who firmly believed the African race created only to become the slaves of Europeans. Mr. Martin lost no time in complying with the request of his fair neighbour. He well remembered frequently having seen the little Samboe in attendance upon his imperious master, and never failed to admire his extreme docility, mildness, and intelligence ”

“ Tears of unfeigned joy and gratitude started into the eyes of Samboe, as he heard Mr. Llwellin assure Fitzhugh, he had no hesitation in saying, that if Samboe acceded to his proposal of accompanying him to Africa, he would be found a valuable coadjutor in the [160] projected work of mercy: “For he is,” continued the good old man, “not only fully capable of imparting the elements of general knowledge, but has a happy and peculiar manner of instructing others in those divine truths by which he regulates every action of his own life. ”

“ Years passed on in this progressive improvement, during which a regular correspondence was kept up between Charles Roslyn and his protegé, when an incident occurred which opened a field for the exercise of those attainments it had been the laudable and unremitted study of Samboe to acquire. ”