The pacha called for coffee, and in a few minutes, accompanied, as
before, by Mustapha and the armed slaves, was prowling through the city
in search of a story-teller. He was again fortunate, as after a walk of
half an hour, he overheard two men loudly disputing at the door of a
small wine-shop, frequented by the Greeks and Franks living in the city,
and into which many a slave might be observed to glide, returning with a
full pitcher for the evening's amusement of his Turkish master, who, as
well as his betters, clandestinely violated the precepts of the Koran.
As usual he stopped to listen, when one of the disputants exclaimed--"I
tell thee, Anselmo, it is the vilest composition that was ever drunk:
and I think I ought to know, after having distilled the essence of an
Ethiopian, a Jew, and a Turk."
"I care nothing for your distillations, Charis," replied the other, "I
consider that I am a better judge than you: I was not a monk of the
Dominican order for fifteen years, without having ascertained the merit
of every description of wine."
"I should like to know what that fellow means by _distilling people_,"
observed the pacha, "and also why a Dominican monk should know wine
better than others. Mustapha, I must see those two men."
The next morning the men were in attendance, and introduced; when the
pacha requested an explanation from the first who had spoken. The man
threw himself down before the pacha, with his head on the floor of the
divan, and said,--"First promise me, your highness, by the sword of the
prophet, that no harm shall result to me from complying with your
request; and then I shall obey you with pleasure."
"Mashallah! what is the Kafir afraid of? What crimes hath he committed,
that he would have his pardon granted before he tells his story?" said
the pacha to Mustapha.
"No crime towards your state, your sublime highness; but when in another
country, I was unfortunate," continued the man--"I cannot tell my story,
unless your highness will condescend to give your promise."
"May it please your highness," observed Mustapha, "he asserts his crime
to have been committed in another state. It may be heavy, and I suspect
'tis murder;--but although we watch the flowers which ornament our
gardens, and would punish those who cull them, yet we care not who
intrudes and robs our neighbour--and thus, it appears to me, your
highness, that it is with states, and sufficient for the ruler of each
to watch over the lives of his own subjects."
"Very true, Mustapha," rejoined the pacha; "besides, we might lose the
story. Kafir, you have our promise, and may proceed."
The Greek slave (for such he was) then rose up, and narrated his story
in the following words.
STORY OF THE GREEK SLAVE.
I am a Greek by birth; my parents were poor people residing at Smyrna. I
was an only son, and brought up to my father's profession,--that of a
cooper. When I was twenty years old, I had buried both my parents, and
was left to shift for myself. I had been for some time in the employ of
a Jewish wine-merchant, and I continued there for three years after my
father's death, when a circumstance occurred which led to my subsequent
prosperity and present degradation.
At the time that I am speaking of, I had, by strict diligence and
sobriety, so pleased my employer, that I had risen to be his foreman;
and although I still superintended and occasionally worked at the
cooperage, I was intrusted with the drawing off and fining of the wines,
to prepare them for market. There was an Ethiopian slave, who worked
under my orders, a powerful, broad-shouldered, and most malignant
wretch, whom my master found it almost impossible to manage; the
bastinado, or any other punishment, he derided, and after the
application only became more sullen and discontented than before. The
fire that flashed from his eyes, upon any fault being found by me on
account of his negligence, was so threatening, that I every day expected
I should be murdered. I repeatedly requested my master to part with him;
but the Ethiopian being a very powerful man, and able, when he chose, to
move a pipe of wine without assistance, the avarice of the Jew would not
permit him to accede to my repeated solicitations.
One morning I entered the cooperage, and found the Ethiopian fast asleep
by the side of a cask which I had been wanting for some time, and
expected to have found ready. Afraid to punish him myself, I brought my
master to witness his conduct. The Jew, enraged at his idleness, struck
him on the head with one of the staves. The Ethiopian sprang up in a
rage, but on seeing his master with the stave in his hand, contented
himself with muttering, "That he would not remain to be beaten in that
manner," and re-applied himself to his labour. As soon as my master had
left the cooperage, the Ethiopian vented his anger upon me for having
informed against him, and seizing the stave, flew at me with the
intention of beating out my brains. I stepped behind the cask; he
followed me, and just as I had seized an adze to defend myself, he fell
over the stool which lay in his way--he was springing up to renew the
attack, when I struck him a blow with the adze which entered his skull,
and laid him dead at my feet.
I was very much alarmed at what had occurred; for although I felt
justified in self-defence, I was aware that my master would be very much
annoyed at the loss of the slave, and as there were no witnesses, it
would go hard with me when brought before the cadi. After some
reflection I determined, as the slave had said "He would not remain to
be beaten," that I would leave my master to suppose he had run away, and
in the mean time conceal the body. But to effect this was difficult, as
I could not take it out of the cooperage without being perceived. After
some cogitation, I decided upon putting it into the cask, and heading it
up. It required all my strength to lift the body in, but at last I
succeeded. Having put in the head of the pipe, I hammered down the hoops
and rolled it into the store, where I had been waiting to fill it with
wine for the next year's demand. As soon as it was in its place, I
pumped off the wine from the vat, and having filled up the cask and put
in the bung, I felt as if a heavy load had been removed from my mind, as
there was no chance of immediate discovery.
I had but just completed my task, and was sitting down on one of the
settles, when my master came in, and inquired for the slave. I replied
that he had left the cooperage, swearing that he would work no more.
Afraid of losing him, the Jew hastened to give notice to the
authorities, that he might be apprehended; but after some time, as
nothing could be heard of the supposed runaway, it was imagined that he
had drowned himself in a fit of sullenness, and no more was thought
about him. In the meanwhile I continued to work there as before, and as
I had the charge of every thing I had no doubt but that, some day or
another, I should find means of quietly disposing of my incumbrance.
The next spring, I was busy pumping off from one cask into the other,
according to our custom, when the aga of the janissaries came in. He was
a great wine-bibber, and one of our best customers. As his dependents
were all well-known, it was not his custom to send them for wine, but to
come himself to the store and select a pipe. This was carried away in a
litter by eight strong slaves, with the curtains drawn close, as if it
had been a new purchase which he had added to his harem. My master
showed him the pipes of wine prepared for that year's market, which were
arranged in two rows; and I hardly need observe that the one containing
the Ethiopian was not in the foremost. After tasting one or two which
did not seem to please him, the aga observed, "Friend Issachar, thy
tribe will always put off the worst goods first, if possible. Now I have
an idea that there is better wine in the second tier, than in the one
thou hast recommended. Let thy Greek put a spile into that cask,"
continued he, pointing to the very one in which I had headed up the
black slave. As I made sure that as soon as he had tasted the contents
he would spit them out, I did not hesitate to bore the cask and draw off
the wine, which I handed to him. He tasted it and held it to the
light--tasted it again and smacked his lips--then turning to my master,
exclaimed, "Thou dog of a Jew! wouldst thou have palmed off upon me vile
trash, when thou hadst in thy possession wine which might be sipped with
the Houris in Paradise?"
The Jew appealed to me if the pipes of wine were not all of the same
quality; and I confirmed his assertion.
"Taste it then," replied the aga, "and then taste the first which you
recommended to me."
My master did so, and was evidently astonished. "It certainly has more
body," replied he; "yet how that can be, I know not. Taste it,
Charis."--I held the glass to my lips, but nothing could induce me to
taste the contents. I contented myself with agreeing with my master (as
I conscientiously could), "that it certainly had more _body_ in it than
the rest."
The aga was so pleased with the wine, that he tasted two or three more
pipes of the back tier, hoping to find others of the same quality,
probably intending to have laid in a large stock; but finding no other
of the same flavour, he ordered his slaves to roll the one containing
the body of the slave into the litter, and carried it to his own house.
* * * * *
"Stop a moment, thou lying kafir!" said the pacha, "dost thou really
mean to say that the wine was better than the rest?"
"Why should I tell a lie to your sublime highness--am not I a worm that
you may crush? As I informed you, I did not taste it, your highness; but
after the aga had departed, my master expressed his surprise at the
excellence of the wine, which he affirmed to be superior to any thing
that he had ever tasted--and his sorrow that the aga had taken away the
cask, which prevented him from ascertaining the cause. But one day I was
narrating the circumstance to a Frank in this country, who expressed no
surprise at the wine being improved. He had been a wine-merchant in
England, and he informed me that it was the custom there to throw large
pieces of raw beef into the wine to feed it; and that some particular
wines were very much improved thereby."
"Allah Kebur! God is great!" cried the pacha--"Then it must be so--I
have heard that the English are very fond of beef. Now go on with thy
story."
* * * * *
Your highness cannot imagine the alarm which I felt when the cask was
taken away by the aga's slaves. I gave myself up for a lost man, and
resolved upon immediate flight from Smyrna. I calculated the time that
it would take for the aga to drink the wine, and made my arrangements
accordingly. I told my master that it was my intention to leave him, as
I had an offer to go into business with a relation at Zante. My master,
who could not well do without me, entreated me to stay; but I was
positive. He then offered me a share of the business if I would remain,
but I was not to be persuaded. Every rap at the door, I thought that the
aga and his janissaries were coming for me; and I hastened my departure,
which was fixed for the following day,--when in the evening my master
came into the store with a paper in his hand.
"Charis," said he, "perhaps you have supposed that I only offered to
make you a partner in my business to induce you to remain, and then to
deceive you. To prove the contrary, here is a deed drawn up by which you
are a partner, and entitled to one-third of the future profits. Look at
it, you will find that it has been executed in due form before the
cadi."
He had put the paper into my hand, and I was about to return it with a
refusal, when a loud knocking at the door startled us both. It was a
party of janissaries despatched by the aga, to bring us to him
immediately. I knew well enough what it must be about, and I cursed my
folly in having delayed so long; but the fact was, the wine proved so
agreeable to the aga's palate that he had drunk it much faster than
usual; besides which, the body of the slave took up at least a third of
the cask, and diminished the contents in the same proportion. There was
no appeal, and no escape. My master, who was ignorant of the cause, did
not seem at all alarmed, but willingly accompanied the soldiers. I, on
the contrary, was nearly dead from fear.
When we arrived, the aga burst out in the most violent exclamations
against my master--"Thou rascal of a Jew!" said he, "dost thou think
that thou art to impose upon a true believer, and sell him a pipe of
wine which is not more than two-thirds full,--filling it up with trash
of some sort or another. Tell me what it is that is so heavy in the cask
now that it is empty?"
The Jew protested his ignorance, and appealed to me: I, of course,
pretended the same. "Well, then," replied the aga, "we will soon see.
Let thy Greek send for his tools, and the cask shall be opened in our
presence; then perhaps thou wilt recognise thine own knavery."
Two of the janissaries were despatched for the tools, and when they
arrived I was directed to take the head out of the cask. I now
considered my death as certain--nothing buoyed me up but my observing
that the resentment of the aga was levelled more against my master than
against me; but still I thought that, when the cask was opened, the
recognition of the black slave must immediately take place, and the
evidence of my master would fix the murder upon me.
It was with a trembling hand that I obeyed the orders of the aga--the
head of the pipe was taken out, and, to the horror of all present, the
body was exposed; but instead of being black, it had turned _white_,
from the time which it had been immersed. I rallied a little at this
circumstance, as, so far, suspicion would be removed.
"Holy Abraham!" exclaimed my master, "what is that which I see!--A dead
body, so help me God!--but I know nothing about it--do you, Charis?" I
vowed that I did not, and called the Patriarch to witness the truth of
my assertion. But while we were thus exclaiming, the aga's eyes were
fixed upon my master with an indignant and deadly stare which spoke
volumes; while the remainder of the people who were present, although
they said nothing, seemed as if they were ready to tear him into pieces.
"Cursed unbeliever!" at last uttered the Turk, "is it thus that thou
preparest the wine for the disciples of the Prophet?"
"Holy father Abraham!--I know no more than you do, aga, how that body
came there; but I will change the cask with pleasure, and will send you
another."
"Be it so," replied the aga; "my slave shall fetch it now." He gave
directions accordingly, and the litter soon reappeared with another pipe
of wine.
"It will be a heavy loss to a poor Jew--one pipe of good wine," observed
my master, as it was rolled out of the litter; and he took up his hat
with the intention to depart.
"Stay," cried the aga, "I do not mean to rob you of your wine."
"Oh, then, you will pay me for it," replied my master; "aga, you are a
considerate man."
"Thou shalt see," retorted the aga, who gave directions to his slaves to
draw off the wine in vessels. As soon as the pipe was empty, he desired
me to take the head out; and when I had obeyed him, he ordered his
janissaries to put my master in. In a minute he was gagged and bound,
and tossed into the pipe; and I was directed to put in the head as
before. I was very unwilling to comply; for I had no reason to complain
of my master, and knew that he was punished for the fault of which I had
been guilty. But it was a case of life or death,--and the days of
self-devotion have long passed away in our country. Besides which, I had
the deed in my pocket by which I was a partner in the business, and my
master had no heirs,--so that I stood a chance to come into the whole of
his property. Moreover----
* * * * *
"Never mind your reasons," observed the pacha, "you headed him up in the
cask--go on."
"I did so, your highness; but although I dared not disobey, I assure you
that it was with a sorrowful heart--the more so, as I did not know the
fate which might be reserved for myself."
* * * * *
As soon as the head was in, and the hoops driven on, the aga desired
his slaves to fill the cask up again with the wine; and thus did my poor
master perish.
"Put in the bung, Greek," said the aga, in a stern voice.
I did so, and stood trembling before him.
"Well! what knowest thou of this transaction?"
I thought, as the aga had taken away the life of my master, that it
would not hurt him if I took away a little from his character. I
answered that I really knew nothing, but that, the other day, a black
slave had disappeared in a very suspicious manner--that my master made
very little inquiry after him--and I now strongly suspected that he must
have suffered the same fate. I added, that my master had expressed
himself very sorry that his highness had taken away the pipe of wine, as
he would have reserved it.
"Cursed Jew!" replied the aga; "I don't doubt but he has murdered a
dozen in the same manner."
"I am afraid so, sir," replied I, "and suspect that I was to have been
his next victim; for when I talked of going away, he persuaded me to
stay, and gave me this paper, by which I was to become his partner with
one-third of the profits. I presume that I should not have enjoyed them
long."
"Well, Greek," observed the aga, "this is fortunate for you; as, upon
certain conditions, you may enter upon the whole property. One is, that
you keep this pipe of wine with the rascally Jew in it, that I may have
the pleasure occasionally to look at my revenge. You will also keep the
pipe with the other body in it, that it may keep my anger alive. The
last is, that you will supply me with what wine I may require, of the
very best quality, without making any charge. Do you consent to these
terms, or am I to consider you as a party to this infamous transaction?"
I hardly need observe that the terms were gladly accepted. Your highness
must be aware that nobody thinks much about a Jew. When I was questioned
as to his disappearance, I shrugged up my shoulders and told the
inquirers, confidentially, that the aga of the janissaries had put him
_in prison_, and that I was carrying on the business until his release.
In compliance with the wishes of the aga, the two casks containing the
Jew and the Ethiopian slave, were placed together on settles higher than
the rest, in the centre of the store. He would come in the evening, and
rail at the cask containing my late master for hours at a time; during
which he drank so much wine, that it was a very common circumstance for
him to remain in the house until the next morning.
You must not suppose, your highness, that I neglected to avail myself
(unknown to the aga) of the peculiar properties of the wine which those
casks contained. I had them spiled underneath, and, constantly running
off the wine from them, filled them up afresh. In a short time there was
not a gallon in my possession which had not a _dash_ in it of either the
Ethiopian or the Jew; and my wine was so improved, that it had a most
rapid sale, and I became rich.
All went on prosperously for three years; when the aga, who during that
time had been my constant guest, and at least three times a-week had
been intoxicated in my house, was ordered with his troops to join the
Sultan's army. By keeping company with him, I had insensibly imbibed a
taste for wine, although I never had been inebriated. The day that his
troops marched, he stopped at my door, and dismounting from his Arabian,
came in to take a farewell glass, desiring his men to go on, and that he
would ride after them. One glass brought on another, and the time flew
rapidly away. The evening closed in, and the aga was, as usual, in a
state of intoxication;--he insisted upon going down to the store, to
rail once more at the cask containing the body of the Jew. We had long
been on the most friendly terms, and having this night drunk more than
usual, I was incautious enough to say--"Prithee, aga, do not abuse my
poor master any more, for he has been the making of my fortune. I will
tell you a secret now that you are going away--there is not a drop of
wine in my store that has not been flavoured either by him, or by the
slave in the other cask. That is the reason why it is so much better
than other people's."
"How!" exclaimed the aga, who was now almost incapable of speech. "Very
well, rascal Greek! die you shall, like your master. Holy prophet! what
a state for a Mussulman to go to Paradise in--impregnated with the
essence of a cursed Jew!--Wretch! you shall die--you shall die."
He made a grasp at me, and missing his foot, fell on the ground in such
a state of drunkenness as not to be able to get up again. I knew that
when he became sober, he would not forget what had taken place, and that
I should be sacrificed to his vengeance. The fear of death, and the wine
which I had drunk, decided me how to act. I dragged him into an empty
pipe, put the head in, hooped it up, and rolling it into the tier,
filled it with wine. Thus did I revenge my poor master, and relieved
myself from any further molestation on the part of the aga.
* * * * *
"What!" cried the pacha, in a rage, "you drowned a true believer--an aga
of janissaries! Thou dog of a kafir--thou son of Shitan--and dare avow
it! Call in the executioner."
"Mercy! your sublime highness, mercy!" cried the Greek--"Have I not your
promise by the sword of the prophet? Besides, he was no true believer,
or he would not have disobeyed the law. A good Mussulman will never
touch a drop of wine."
"I promised to forgive, and did forgive, the murder of the black slave;
but an aga of janissaries!--Is not that quite another thing?" appealed
the pacha to Mustapha.
"Your highness is just in your indignation--the kafir deserves to be
impaled. Yet there are two considerations which your slave ventures to
submit to your sublime wisdom. The first is, that your highness gave an
unconditional promise, and swore by the sword of the prophet."
"Staffir Allah! what care I for that! Had I sworn to a true believer, it
were something."
"The other is, that the slave has not yet finished his story, which
appears to be interesting."
"Wallah! that is true. Let him finish his story."
But the Greek slave remained with his face on the ground; and it was not
until a renewal of the promise, sworn upon the holy standard made out of
the nether garments of the prophet, by the pacha, who had recovered his
temper, and was anxious for the conclusion of the story, that he could
be induced to proceed, which he did as follows:--
* * * * *
As soon as I had bunged up the cask, I went down to the yard where the
aga had left his horse, and having severely wounded the poor beast with
his sword, I let it loose that it might gallop home. The noise of the
horse's hoofs in the middle of the night, aroused his family, and when
they discovered that it was wounded and without its rider, they imagined
that the aga had been attacked and murdered by banditti when he had
followed his troop. They sent to me to ask at what time he had left my
house; I replied, an hour after dark--that he was very much intoxicated
at the time--and had left his sabre, which I returned. They had no
suspicions of the real facts, and it was believed that he had perished
on the road.
I was now rid of my dangerous acquaintance, and although he certainly
had drunk a great quantity of my wine, yet I recovered the value of it
with interest, from the flavour which I obtained from his body and which
I imparted to the rest of my stock. I raised him up alongside of the two
other casks; and my trade was more profitable and my wines in greater
repute than ever.
But one day the cadi, who had heard my wine extolled, came privately to
my house; I bowed to the ground at the honour conferred, for I had long
wished to have him as a customer. I drew some of my best--"This,
honourable sir," said I, presenting the glass, "is what I call my aga
wine: the late aga was so fond of it, he used to order a whole cask at
once to his house, and had it taken there in a litter."
"A good plan," replied the cadi, "much better than sending a slave with
a pitcher, which gives occasion for remarks: I will do the same; but,
first, let me taste all you have."
He tasted several casks, but none pleased him so much as the first which
I had recommended. At last he cast his eyes upon the three casks raised
above the others.
"And what are those?" inquired he.
"Empty casks, sir," replied I; but he had his stick in his hand, and he
struck one.
"Greek, thou tellest me these casks are empty, but they do not sound so;
I suspect that thou hast better wine than I have tasted: draw me off
from these immediately."
I was obliged to comply--he tasted them--vowed that the wine was
exquisite, and that he would purchase the whole. I stated to him that
the wine in those casks was used for flavouring the rest; and that the
price was enormous, hoping that he would not pay it. He inquired how
much--I asked him four times the price of the other wines.
"Agreed," said the cadi; "it is dear--but one cannot have good wine
without paying for it:--it is a bargain."
I was very much alarmed; and stated that I could not part with those
casks, as I should not be able to carry on my business with reputation,
if I lost the means of flavouring my wines, but all in vain; he said
that I had asked a price and he had agreed to give it. Ordering his
slaves to bring a litter, he would not leave the store until the whole
of the casks were carried away, and thus did I lose my Ethiopian, my
Jew, and my aga.
As I knew that the secret would soon be discovered, the very next day I
prepared for my departure. I received my money from the cadi, to whom I
stated my intention to leave, as he had obliged me to sell him those
wines, and I had no longer hopes of carrying on my business with
success. I again begged him to allow me to have them back, offering him
three pipes of wine as a present if he would consent, but it was of no
use. I chartered a vessel, which I loaded with the rest of my stock;
and, taking all my money with me, made sail for Corfu, before any
discovery had taken place. But we encountered a heavy gale of wind,
which, after a fortnight (during which we attempted in vain to make head
against it), forced us back to Smyrna. When the weather moderated, I
directed the captain to take the vessel into the outer roadstead that I
might sail as soon as possible. We had not dropped anchor again more
than five minutes when I perceived a boat pulling off from the shore in
which was the cadi and the officers of justice.
Convinced that I was discovered, I was at a loss how to proceed, when
the idea occurred to me that I might conceal my own body in a cask, as I
had before so well concealed those of others.
I called the captain down into the cabin, and telling him that I had
reason to suspect that the cadi would take my life, offered him a large
part of the cargo if he would assist me.
The captain who, unfortunately for me, was a Greek, consented. We went
down into the hold, started the wine out of one of the pipes, and having
taken out the head, I crawled in, and was hooped up.
The cadi came on board immediately afterwards and inquired for me. The
captain stated that I had fallen overboard in the gale, and that he had
in consequence returned, the vessel not being consigned to any house at
Corfu.
"Has then the accursed villain escaped my vengeance!" exclaimed the
cadi; "the murderer, that fines his wines with the bodies of his
fellow-creatures: but you may deceive me, Greek, we will examine the
vessel."
The officers who accompanied the cadi proceeded carefully to search
every part of the ship. Not being able to discover me, the Greek captain
was believed; and, after a thousand imprecations upon my soul, the cadi
and his people departed.
I now breathed more freely, notwithstanding I was nearly intoxicated
with the lees of the wine which impregnated the wood of the cask, and I
was anxious to be set at liberty; but the treacherous captain had no
such intention, and never came near me. At night he cut his cable and
made sail, and I overheard a conversation between two of the men, which
made known to me his intentions: these were to throw me overboard on his
passage, and take possession of my property. I cried out to them from
the bung-hole: I screamed for mercy, but in vain. One of them answered,
that, as I had murdered others, and put them into casks, I should now be
treated in the same manner.
I could not but mentally acknowledge the justice of my punishment, and
resigned myself to my fate; all that I wished was to be thrown over at
once and released from my misery. The momentary anticipation of death
appeared to be so much worse than the reality. But it was ordered
otherwise: a gale of wind blew up with such force, that the captain and
crew had enough to do to look after the vessel, and, either I was
forgotten or my doom was postponed until a more seasonable opportunity.
On the third day I heard the sailors observe that, with such a wretch as
I was remaining on board, the vessel must inevitably be lost. The
hatches were then opened: I was hoisted up and cast into the raging sea.
The bung of the cask was out, but by stuffing my handkerchief in, when
the hole was under water, I prevented the cask from filling; and when it
was uppermost, I removed it for a moment to obtain fresh air. I was
dreadfully bruised by the constant rolling, in a heavy sea, and
completely worn out with fatigue and pain; I had made up my mind to let
the water in and be rid of my life, when I was tossed over and over with
such dreadful rapidity as prevented my taking the precaution of keeping
out the water. After three successive rolls of the same kind, I found
that the cask, which had been in the surf, had struck on the beach. In a
moment after, I heard voices, and people came up to the cask and rolled
me along. I would not speak, lest they should be frightened and allow me
to remain on the beach, where I might again be tossed about by the
waves; but as soon as they stopped, I called in a faint voice from the
bung-hole, begging them for mercy's sake to let me out.
At first they appeared alarmed; but, on my repeating my request, and
stating that I was the owner of the ship which was off the land, and the
captain and crew had mutinied and tossed me overboard, they brought some
tools and set me at liberty.
The first sight that met my eyes after I was released, was my vessel
lying a wreck; each wave that hurled her further on the beach, breaking
her more and more to pieces. She was already divided amid-ships, and the
white foaming surf was covered with pipes of wine, which, as fast as
they were cast on shore, were rolled up by the same people who had
released me. I was so worn out, that I fainted where I lay. When I came
to, I found myself in a cave upon a bundle of capotes, and perceived a
party of forty or fifty men, who were sitting by a large fire, and
emptying with great rapidity one of my pipes of wine.
As soon as they observed that I was coming to my senses, they poured
some wine down my throat, which restored me. I was then desired by one
of them, who seemed to be the chief, to approach.
"The men who have been saved from the wreck," said he, "have told me
strange stories of your enormous crimes--now, sit down, and tell me the
truth--if I believe you, you shall have justice--I am cadi here--if you
wish to know where you are, it is upon the island of Ischia--if you wish
to know in what company, it is in the society of those who by illiberal
people are called pirates: now tell the truth."
I thought that with pirates my story would be received better than with
other people, and I therefore narrated my history to them, in the same
words that I now have to your highness. When I had finished, the
captain of the gang observed:--
"Well, then, as you acknowledge to have killed a slave, to have assisted
at the death of a Jew, and to have drowned an aga, you certainly deserve
death; but, on consideration of the excellence of the wine, and the
secret which you have imparted to us, I shall commute your sentence. As
for the captain and the remainder of the crew, they have been guilty of
treachery and piracy on the high seas--a most heinous offence, which
deserves instant death; but as it is by their means that we have been
put in possession of the wine, I shall be lenient. I therefore sentence
you all to hard labour for life. You shall be sold as slaves in Cairo,
and we will pocket the money and drink your wine."
The pirates loudly applauded the justice of a decision by which they
benefited, and all appeal on our parts was useless. When the weather
became more settled, we were put on board one of their small xebeques,
and on our arrival at this port were exposed for sale and purchased.
Such, pacha, is the history which induced me to make use of the
expressions which you wished to be explained; and I hope you will allow
that I have been more unfortunate than guilty, as on every occasion in
which I took away the life of another, I had only to choose between that
and my own.
* * * * *
"Well, it is rather a curious story," observed the pacha, "but still, if
it were not for my promise, I certainly would have your head off for
drowning the aga--I consider it excessively impertinent in an
unbelieving Greek to suppose that his life is of the same value as that
of an aga of janissaries, and follower of the prophet; but, however, my
promise was given, and you may depart."
"The wisdom of your highness is brighter than the stars of heaven,"
observed Mustapha. "Shall the slave be honoured with your bounty?"
"Mashallah! bounty! I've given him his life, and, as he considers it of
more value than an aga's, I think 'tis a very handsome present. Drown an
aga, indeed!" continued the pacha, rising, "but it certainly was a very
curious story. Let it be written down, Mustapha. We'll hear the other
man to-morrow."