At the time that he had been so suddenly separated from his friend,
Barney had overcome many of his opponents, but at length he was
overpowered by numbers, and his arms were firmly bound; after which he
was roughly driven before them through the woods for several days, and
was at length taken to their village among the mountains. Here he
remained a close prisoner for three weeks, shut up in a small hut and
bound by a strong rope to a post. Food was taken to him by an old
Indian woman, who paid no attention at first to what he said to her, for
the good reason that she did not understand a word of English. The
persuasive eloquence of her prisoner's tones, however, or perhaps his
brogue, seemed in the course of a few days to have made an impression on
her; for she condescended to smile at the unintelligible compliments
which Barney lavished upon her in the hope of securing her good-will.
During all this time the Irishman's heart was torn with conflicting
feelings, and although, from the mere force of habit, he could jest with
the old woman when she paid her daily visits, there was no feeling of
fun in his bosom, but, on the contrary, a deep and overwhelming sorrow,
which showed itself very evidently on his expressive face. He groaned
aloud when he thought of Martin, whom he never expected again to see;
and he dreaded every hour the approach of his savage captors, who, he
fully expected, retained him in order to put him to death.
One day, while he was sitting in a very disconsolate mood, the Indian
woman entered with his usual dinner,--a plate of thick soup and a coarse
cake. Barney smiled upon her as usual, and then letting his eyes fall
on the ground, sighed deeply,--for his heart was heavier than usual that
day. As the woman was about to go, he looked earnestly and gravely in
her face, and putting his large hand gently on her head, patted her grey
hairs. This tender action seemed to affect the old woman more than
usual. She laid her hand on Barney's arm, and looked as if she wished
to speak. Then turning suddenly from him, she drew a small knife from
her girdle and dropped it on the ground, as if accidentally, while she
left the hut and re-fastened the door. Barney's heart leaped. He
seized the knife and concealed it hastily in his bosom, and then ate his
dinner with more than ordinary zest; for now he possessed the means of
cutting the strong rope that bound him.
He waited with much impatience until night closed over the Indian
village, and, then cutting his bonds, he tore down the rude and rather
feeble fastenings of the door. In another instant he was dashing along
at full speed through the forest, without hat or coat, and with the
knife clutched in his right hand. Presently he heard cries behind him,
and redoubled his speed; for now he knew that the savages had discovered
his escape, and were in pursuit. But, although a good runner, Barney
was no match for the lithe and naked Indians. They rapidly gained on
him, and he was about to turn at bay and fight for his life, when he
observed water gleaming through the foliage on his left. Dashing down a
glade he came to the edge of a broad river with a rapid current. Into
this he sprang recklessly, intending to swim with the stream; but ere he
lost his footing he heard the low deep thunder of a cataract a short
distance below! Drawing back in terror, he regained the bank, and waded
up a considerable distance in the shallow water, so as to leave no trace
of his footsteps. Then he leaped upon a rock, and, catching hold of the
lower branches of a large tree, drew himself up among the dense foliage,
just as the yelling savages rushed with wild tumult to the water's edge.
Here they paused, as if baffled. They spoke in rapid, vehement tones
for a few seconds, and then one party hastened down the banks of the
stream towards the fall, while another band searched the banks above.
Barney's heart fell as he sat panting in the tree, for he knew that they
would soon discover him. But he soon resolved on a bold expedient.
Slipping down from the tree, he ran deliberately back towards the
village; and, as he drew near, he followed the regular beaten track that
led towards it. On the way he encountered one or two savages hastening
after the pursuing party; but he leaped lightly into the bushes, and lay
still till they were past. Then he ran on, skirted round the village,
and pushed into the woods in an entirely opposite direction, from the
one in which he had first set out. Keeping by one of the numerous
tracks that radiated from the village into the forest he held on at top
speed, until his progress was suddenly arrested by a stream about twenty
yards broad. It was very deep, and he was about to plunge in, in order
to swim across, when he observed a small montaria, or canoe, lying on
the bank. This he launched quickly, and observing that the river took a
bend a little further down, and appeared to proceed in the direction he
wished to pursue,--namely, away from the Indian village,--he paddled
down the rapid stream as fast as he could. The current was very strong,
so that his little bark flew down it like an arrow, and on more than one
occasion narrowly missed being dashed to pieces on the rocks which here
and there rose above the stream.
In about two hours Barney came to a place where the stream took another
bend to the left, and soon after, the canoe swept out upon the broad
river into which he had at first so nearly plunged. He was a long way
below the fall now, for its sound was inaudible; but it was no time to
abate his exertions. The Indians might be still in pursuit; so he
continued to paddle all that night and did not take rest until
day-break. Then he slept for two hours, ate a few wild fruits, and
continued his journey.
In the course of the next day, to his great joy, he overtook a trading
canoe, which had been up another tributary of this river, and was
descending with part of a cargo of India-rubber shoes. None of the men,
of whom there were four, could speak English; but they easily saw from
the Irishman's condition that he had escaped from enemies and was in
distress; so they took him on board, and were glad to avail themselves
of his services: for, as we have before mentioned, men are not easily
procured for voyaging in those parts of Brazil. Three weeks after this
they arrived at a small town, where the natives were busily engaged in
the manufacture of shoes, bottles, and other articles of India-rubber;
and here Barney found employment for a short time.
The seringa, or India-rubber-tree, grows plentifully in some parts of
Brazil, and many hundreds of the inhabitants are employed in the
manufacture of shoes. The India-rubber is the juice of the tree, and
flows from it when an incision is made. This juice is poured into
moulds and left to harden. It is of a yellowish colour naturally, and
is blackened in the course of preparation. Barney did not stay long
here. Shoe-making, he declared, was not his calling by any means; so he
seized the first opportunity he had of joining a party of traders going
into the interior, in the direction of the diamond districts. The
journey was long and varied. Sometimes by canoe and sometimes on the
backs of mules and horses, and many extraordinary adventures did he go
through ere he reached the diamond mines. And when at length he did so,
great was his disappointment. Instead of the glittering caves which his
vivid imagination had pictured, he found that there were no caves at
all; that the diamonds were found by washing in the muddy soil; and,
worst of all, that when found they were dim and unpolished, so that they
seemed no better than any other stone. However, he resolved to continue
there for a short time, in order to make a little money; but now that
Martin had arrived he thought that they could not do better than make
their way to the coast as fast as possible, and go to sea.
"The only thing I have to regret," he said, at the conclusion of his
narrative, "is that I left Grampus behind me. But arrah! I came off
from the savages in such a hurry that I had no time at all to tell him I
was goin'!"
Having sat till day-break, the two friends went to bed to dream of each
other and of home.
Next morning Barney took Martin to visit the diamond mines. On the way
they passed a band of Negro slaves who encircled a large fire, the
weather being very cold. It was at that time about the end of July,
which is one of the coldest months in the year. In this part of Brazil
summer and winter are reversed,--the coldest months being May, June, and
July; the hottest, November, December, January, and February.
Minas Geraes, the diamond district, is one of the richest provinces of
Brazil. The inhabitants are almost entirely occupied in mining or in
supplying the miners with the necessaries of life. Diggers and
shopkeepers are the two principal classes, and of these the latter are
best off; for their trade is steady and lucrative, while the success of
the miners is very uncertain. Frequently a large sum of money and much
time are expended in mining without any adequate result; but the
merchants always find a ready sale for their merchandise, and, as they
take diamonds and gold-dust in exchange, they generally realise large
profits and soon become rich. The poor miner is like the gambler. He
digs on in hope; sometimes finding barely enough to supply his wants,--
at other times making a fortune suddenly; but never giving up in
despair, because he knows that at every handful of earth he turns up he
may perhaps find a diamond worth hundreds, or, it may be, thousands of
pounds.
Cidade Diamantina,--the City of Diamonds,--is the capital of the
province. It is a large city, with many fine churches and buildings;
and the whole population, consisting of more than 6000 souls, are
engaged, directly or indirectly, in mining. Every one who owns a few
slaves employs them in washing the earth for gold and diamonds.
The mine of which Barney had so unexpectedly become overseer, was a
small one, in a remote part of the district, situated among the
mountains, and far-distant from the City of Diamonds. There were only a
few huts, rudely built and roofed with palm-leaves, besides a larger
building, or cottage, in which the Baron Fagoni resided.
"'Tis a strange life they lead here," said Barney, as he led Martin down
a gorge of the mountains, towards a small spot of level ground, on which
the slaves were at work; "a strange life, and by no means a pleasant
wan; for the feedin' is none o' the best and the work very sevare."
"Why, Barney, if I may judge from last night's supper, the feeding seems
to be excellent."
"Thrue, boy, the Baron Fagoni feeds well, bekase he's the cock o' the
roost; but the poor Naygurs are not overly well fed, and the critters
are up to their knees in wather all day, washing di'monds; so they
suffer much from rheumatiz and colds. Och, but it's murther entirely;
an' I've more than wance felt inclined to fill their pockets with
di'monds and set them all free! Jist look, now, there they are, hard at
it."
As he spoke they arrived at the mine. The ground in the vicinity was
all cut up and dug out to a considerable depth, and a dozen Negroes were
standing under a shed washing the earth, while others were engaged in
the holes excavating the material. While Martin watched them his friend
explained the process.
The different kinds of soil through which it is necessary to cut before
reaching the diamond deposit are, first about twenty feet of reddish
sandy soil; then about eight feet of a tough yellowish clay; beneath
this lies a layer of coarse reddish sand, below which is the peculiar
soil in which diamonds are found. It is called by the miners the
_cascalho_, and consists of loose gravel, the pebbles of which are
rounded and polished, having at some previous era been subject to the
action of running water. The bed varies in thickness from one to four
feet and the pebbles are of various kinds; but when there are many of a
species called _Esmerilo preto_, the cascalho is considered to be rich
in diamonds.
Taking Martin round to the back of the shed, Barney showed him a row of
troughs, about three feet square, close to the edge of a pond of water.
These troughs are called _bacos_. In front of each stood a Negro slave
up to his knees in water. Each had a wooden plate, with which he dashed
water upon the rough cascalho as it was thrown into the trough by
another slave. By this means, and by stirring it with a small hoe, the
earth and sand are washed away. Two overseers were closely watching the
process; for it is during this part of the operation that the largest
diamonds are found. These overseers were seated on elevated seats, each
being armed with a long leathern whip, to keep a sharp look-out, for the
slaves are expert thieves.
After the cascalho had been thus purified, it was carefully removed to
the shed to be finally washed.
Here seven slaves were seated on the side of a small canal, about four
feet broad, with their legs in the water nearly up to their knees. This
canal is called the _lavadeira_. Each man had a small wooden platter,
into which another slave, who stood behind him, put a shovelful of
purified cascalho. The _bateia_, or platter, was then filled with water
and washed with the utmost care several times, being closely examined
after each washing, and the diamonds picked out. Sometimes many
platefuls were examined but nothing found; at other times several
diamonds were found in one plate. While Martin was looking on with much
curiosity and interest, one of the slaves uttered an exclamation and
held up a minute stone between his finger and thumb.
"Ah! good luck to ye, lad!" said Barney, advancing and taking the
diamond which had been discovered. "See here, Martin; there's the
thing, lad, that sparkles on the brow o' beauty, and gives the Naygurs
rheumatiz--"
"Not to mention their usefulness in providing the great Baron Fagoni
with a livelihood," added Martin, with a smile.
Barney laughed, and going up to the place where the two overseers were
seated, dropped the precious gem into a plate of water placed between
them for the purpose of receiving the diamonds as they were found.
"They git fifteen or twinty a day sometimes," said Barney, as they
retraced their steps to the cottage; "and I've hear'd o' them getting
stones worth many thousands o' pounds; but the biggest they iver found
since I comed here was not worth more than four hundred."
"And what do you do with them, Barney, when they are found?" inquired
Martin.
"Sind them to Rio Janeiro, lad, where my employer sells them. I don't
know how much he makes a year by it; but the thing must pay, for he's
very liberal with his cash, and niver forgits to pay wages. There's
always a lot o' gould-dust found in the bottom o' the bateia after each
washing, and that is carefully collected and sold. But, arrah! I
wouldn't give wan snifter o' the say-breezes for all the di'monds in
Brazil!"
As Barney said this he entered his cottage and flung down his hat with
the air of a man who was resolved to stand it no longer.
"But why don't you wash on your own account?" cried Martin. "What say
you; shall we begin together? We may make our fortune the first week,
perhaps!"
Barney shook his head. "No, no, boy; I've no faith in my luck with the
di'monds or gould. Nevertheless I have hear'd o' men makin' an awful
heap o' money that way; partiklarly wan man that made his fortin with
wan stone."
"Who was that lucky dog?" asked Martin.
"Well, ye see, it happened this way: There's a custom hereaway that
slaves are allowed to work on Sundays and holidays on their own account;
but when the mines was a government consarn this was not allowed, and
the slaves were the most awful thieves livin', and often made off with
some o' the largest di'monds. Well, there was a man named Juiz de Paz,
who owned a small shop, and used to go down now and then to Rio de
Janeiro to buy goods. Wan evenin' he returned from wan o' his long
journeys, and, bein' rather tired, wint to bed. He was jist goin' off
into a comfortable doze when there came a terrible bumpin' at the door.
"`Hallo!' cried Juiz, growlin' angrily in the Portugee tongue; `what
d'ye want?'
"There was no answer but another bumpin' at the door. So up he jumps,
and, takin' down a big blunderbuss that hung over his bed, opened the
door, an' seized a Naygur be the hair o' the head!
"`Oh, massa! oh, massa! let him go! Got di'mond for to sell!'
"On hearin' this, Juiz let go, and found that the slave had come to
offer for sale a large di'mond, which weighed about two penny-weights
and a third.
"`What d'ye ask for it?' said Juiz, with sparklin' eyes.
"`Six hundred mil-reis,' answered the Naygur.
"This was about equal to 180 pounds sterling. Without more words about
it he paid down the money; and the slave went away. Juiz lost his sleep
that night. He went and tould the neighbours he had forgot a piece of
important business in Rio and must go back at wance. So back he went
and stayed some time in the city, tryin' to git his di'mond safely sold;
for it was sich a big wan that he feared the government fellows might
hear o't; in which case he would have got ten years transportation to
Angola on the coast of Africa. At last however, he got rid of it for
20,000 mil-reis, which is about 6000 pounds. It was all paid to him in
hard dollars; and he nearly went out o' his wits for joy. But he was
brought down a peg nixt day, when he found that the same di'mond was
sold for nearly twice as much as he had got for it. Howiver, he had
made a pretty considerable fortin; an' he's now the richest di'mond and
gould merchant in the district."
"A lucky fellow certainly," said Martin. "But I must say I have no
taste for such chance work; so I'm quite ready to start for the
sea-coast whenever it suits the Baron Fagoni's convenience."
While they were speaking they were attracted by voices outside the
cottage, which sounded as if in altercation. In another minute the door
burst open, and a man entered hurriedly, followed by the interpreter.
"Your overseer is impertinent!" exclaimed the man, who was a tall
swarthy Brazilian. "I wish to buy a horse or a good mule, and he won't
let me have one. I am not a beggar; I offer to pay."
The man spoke in Portuguese, and Barney replied in the same language.
"You can have a horse _if you pay for it_."
The Brazilian replied by throwing a heavy bag of dollars on the table.
"All right," said Barney, turning to his interpreter and conversing with
him in an undertone. "Give him what he requires." So saying he bowed
the Brazilian out of the room, and returned to the enjoyment of his
black pipe, which had been interrupted by the incident.
"That man seems in a hurry," said Martin.
"So he is. My interpreter tells me that he is quite like one o' the
blackguards that sometimes go about the mines doin' mischief, and he's
in hot haste to be away. I should not wonder if the spalpeen has been
stealin' gould or di'monds and wants to escape. But of course I've
nothin' to do with that, unless I was sure of it; and I've a horse or
two to sell, and he has money to pay for it; so he's welcome. He says
he is makin' straight for the say-coast; and with your lave, Martin, my
boy, you and I will be doin' that same in a week after this, and say
good-bye to the di'mond mines."