gallant style through the heavy waves. Her crew were numerous, and of
picked men, chosen at the different ports at which the ship had touched
since her departure from the pirates' haunt on the Madagascar coast, by
the experienced judgment of Captain Hearty. Several promotions had taken
place among the old hands. Climberkin, who had distinguished himself on
many occasions as a brave and skilful seaman, became second in command.
Boggle, though liable to confuse his understanding with abstract
speculations, was always to be depended upon in an emergency, and was
honest, persevering, and well acquainted with the management of a
ship at sea, and he was made second lieutenant. Loop was created a
midshipman. Oriel Porphyry had offered to settle Ardent in comfortable
circumstances in his native country; but he stated that having lost all
that made dear to him the land of his birth, and having found so many
kind friends on board the Albatross, he should prefer remaining in the
vessel in any capacity in which he could be of service, and as he was
known to be well qualified for the office, to him were assigned the
duties of purser and captain's clerk. As for Roly Poly, the offer of an
empire would not have induced him to resign the custody of the roast and
boiled; and he therefore continued absolute and undisputed sovereign
of the cook-house. He seemed to be getting fatter every day. His back
appeared to bend beneath the load of flesh it carried, and his huge
black cheeks had become so large as to threaten to close up his eyes. To
gain his good opinion, nothing was necessary but to praise his cookery;
but as soon as any poor fellow attempted to find fault with the viands,
or the way in which they were dressed, the abuse he received for what
was considered his presumption and ignorance, made him glad to make his
peace with the indignant cook upon any terms. For all this Roly Poly
was held in much estimation by his shipmates. The important service he
rendered with his mop was not forgotten; and though he was continually
relating in a manner peculiarly his own, the way in which he had
served out "dat ignorant jackmorass who sulted him by telling diclus
impossumbilities," the story was invariably received with the same
hearty laugh and boisterous praise that marked the first hearing.
Although the manners of Captain Hearty and his officers were rather
unpolished, the education which was common to all Columbians, and the
experience they had gained in their profession, made them perfectly
qualified to fulfil the duties they had undertaken; and the ship was
as skilfully navigated, as if under the superintendence of the most
gentlemanly officers in the service. As has before been stated, the
commercial character of the Albatross had been changed by skilful hands
for one of a more threatening aspect, nor was the alteration at all
displeasing to the taste of Oriel. The only pleasure he seemed to enjoy
with any zest, was in seeing the men exercised at the guns, practising
at a mark, or engaged in improving themselves in the use of the
broadsword; and in these pursuits he would join with intense interest,
encouraging those who seemed anxious to excel, and rewarding those who
evinced the most skill. His satisfaction at the arming of the vessel
was increased when he considered the possibility of being attacked
by pirates in the different seas that lay in the ship's course, who
might easily, as Captain Death and his associates had done, have made
themselves masters of the Albatross; but who would now find it a matter
very difficult to be accomplished.
"Come Zabra, I am plagued to death by my own thoughts. Cheer me with a
song:" said Oriel Porphyry to his young friend as they sat together in
the cabin.
"That you shall have, Oriel," replied the handsome musician, as his hand
ran lightly over the chords of the harp; "and I will try to humour your
martial feelings to keep you in good temper with yourself. Listen to
"THE SONG OF THE HERO TO HIS SWORD.
"'FOE SMITER! To the light thy blade I draw,
To gaze enraptured on thy glitt'ring sheen:
I see thee still, thou gem without a flaw!
Sharp, strong, and shining, as thou'st ever been
Since that proud day when first the spoilers came,
Reddening my own fair land with blood and flame,
With vig'rous arm I pluck'd thee from thy sheath,
And made thee drink the crimson draught of death!
"'DEATH DEALER! Here I have thee once again!
I see thy fatal lightning flashing near,
As round me rise the spirits of the slain,
And the dark shadows, shudd'ring, disappear.
Who ever stood unscathed before thy path?
Who ever lived to babble of thy wrath?
Annihilation must thy deeds proclaim,
And conquest grant thy memory to fame!
"'FAME WINNER! Let me grasp thee firmer yet;
New fields are to be fought, new foes to dare;
I must have glory ere the sun hath set;
I yearn new triumphs, noble spoils to share.
See where th' insulting enemy advance!
And as they come, with dark and scornful glance,
Waving thy brilliant steel I seek the fray,
And pierce the quiv'ring flesh that stops my way!'"
"By all that's glorious, 'tis a noble strain!" exclaimed Oriel, while
his brilliant eyes flashed with excitement; "a strain fit to stir the
heart to noble deeds. I feel my soul thrilled with an heroic spirit that
would do battle even with the fierce enemy--Death! Give me a fair field
and a good cause--a band of warlike brothers moved by the same mighty
impulse as that by which I am now excited--and let us have fit weapons
and enough of them, and we would sweep the oppressors of the world from
the earth, like rotten reeds before a whirlwind. Wisely did the ancients
honour their bards above all human greatness. Well was it that they
gave them precedence and dignity and wealth in abundance--the gold
chain round the neck, and the seat of honour near the throne. If they
possessed but the power you have evinced, they were worthy of the first
place and the richest gifts: for they must have been the leading spirits
of the age--the movers of armies--the winners of triumph. What nature,
with the common energies of manhood, could resist such a stimulus?
Stone walls, the crushing iron, and the penetrating steel--would these
be as obstacles in its way? Straws! Had I lived in those days, the
leader of a warlike generation, and heard a song such as you have sung,
I should have felt inclined to have exalted the bard above my own
dignity, knowing that his influence upon the dispositions over which I
ruled could be rendered far more effective for the purposes that gave
me supremacy, than my own."
"I expected it would move you in some measure," said Zabra, gazing with
affectionate interest upon the flushed cheek of his patron.
"Move me! would a mælstrom move me?" cried the young merchant. "It seems
to have stirred the sluggish blood in every hidden vein and artery. My
brain throbs as if it would move up the scalp in which it is confined,
and the pulsations of my heart appear to have acquired the action of a
boiling torrent."
"I am afraid I have done mischief," observed the musician anxiously; "I
did not count upon producing so violent an effect. Let me undo the evil
I have created by singing to you some lyric of an opposite tendency."
"Where got you this power?" asked his companion, fixing a searching
glance upon the lustrous eyes before him. "By what means gained you
the rare art which you practise with such wondrous effect? Your's is no
common skill for the ignorant to admire; it is an influence which the
most tutored in worldly wisdom must feel and worship. You never could
have gained it while employed in the laborious idleness of a page. You
are too young to have acquired it by study. What mystery is this you
have gathered around you which gives you such a mastery over the
affections of your associates?"
A slight tremor passed over the graceful form of the young musician: his
eyes shrunk before the earnest gaze of Oriel Porphyry, and, shaded by
their long dark lashes, were fixed upon the floor.
"I will tell you;" said he at length. "Although great care was taken
with my education, from a very early age I was left much to my own
inclinations; and being gifted with an extraordinary love for knowledge,
and a rare facility in its acquirement, and a powerful tendency towards
that knowledge which was most ennobling, I rapidly obtained a degree
of intelligence which was rarely found even in a more mature period of
life. There were two particular objects of study to which I for years
dedicated an intense degree of attention: these were music and poetry.
Music was a source of the most exquisite gratification to me at all
times, and I applied diligently to make myself master of all its
difficulties. In this, after constant application, superintended
by the best masters, I succeeded, so as to be able to create at
pleasure any effect I was desirous of producing. In the study of
poetry I had no teachers, excepting the only teacher capable of giving
instruction--Nature. I went amid the stir of leaves in the heart of the
primeval forest; I stood beneath the dazzling glances of the countless
eyes of heaven; I looked down upon the waters of the great deep, till
I knew how to interpret its mighty voices; and the whisper of the wind
to the blushing flower became to me a lesson full of an exquisite and
impressive eloquence. There was not a sound in the air--a light upon
the skies--a splendour on the earth--or a motion in the sea, that did
not assist me in my study; for there were beauty and truth and power;
and these are the constituents of all natural poetry. But there was
something still wanting to breathe the spirit of life into the new
conceptions that had been created in my nature. This I found; and
from that time there has been a gladness in what I knew, and a purpose
in what I did. Now let me remove the too powerful impression I have
produced, by something more in accordance with my own sympathies. You
shall hear 'The Poet's Song to his Mistress.'"
A symphony, full of the most touching interest, preceded a melody so
impassioned, yet so sweet in its expression, and harmonised in so
rich and masterly a manner, that the young merchant had soon all his
faculties engaged in deep and earnest attention.
"That I should love thee is not strange,
For excellence doth love create;
But that my love should die or change
Can never be--'tis not in Fate:
For as thy worth, in heaven's bright view,
Must ever hold its glorious stature;
Shall not that bliss which from it grew
Partake of its immortal nature?
"Nor can exist a taint of schism
In these fond feelings thou hast made;
For, like the colours in the prism,
They cannot change, they never fade.
Thus is it, then, sweet friend! my love
From thy fond worth Time ne'er can sever;
And must a natural goodness prove:
Things made from gold are sterling ever."
At the conclusion of this song, which Zabra sang with a thrilling pathos
which must have reached the heart of his auditor, the two friends were
interrupted by a message from the captain, to acquaint Oriel that a
pilot had come on board to conduct the vessel up the river to Canton;
and that if he wished to observe the Chinese coast, there was now an
excellent opportunity. All thought of poetry and music seemed forgotten
for the time; for the musician and the young merchant immediately
hastened upon deck.
The Albatross was passing Macao, and steering her course towards
Whampoa; and a group were on the quarter-deck noticing the appearance of
the country, the junks and other strange vessels they were passing, and
making observations upon what they saw.
"We are approaching a people," said Fortyfolios, "who, if they are not
the most ancient that exist, lay claim to an antiquity of which few
could boast. They are the most extraordinary race on the globe, and the
most unchangeable in their habits. Though they preceded the rest of the
world in the march of civilisation; though they invented the arts of
printing, and of manufacturing silk fabrics and porcelain goods; though
they discovered the composition of gunpowder and the use of the magnetic
compass; they have never progressed beyond these advances. Thousands
of years have passed--nations that were not then in existence, in
intelligence have left them far behind--and still they remain exactly
as they were, and are not only indifferent to the improvements around
them, but look upon all other nations as barbarians unworthy of their
association. In vain have they been conquered: conquest could make no
change in their habits or opinions. Among the most celebrated of their
masters were the Manchews, a people doubtless so called from their
attachment to cannibalism, by whom they were held in subjection for
several centuries; and the English, who made a conquest of their empire
when in the zenith of their greatness. Their subjugation by the latter
was caused by their own pride and insolence. The Chinese were so
impressed with an opinion of their own superior greatness, that they
behaved to all foreigners who visited their shores for the purposes of
traffic with humiliating insolence. They were only allowed to trade
at one port, their merchandise was subjected to the most arbitrary
duties, and their merchants were treated with every kind of insult.
This was borne for a considerable period by the mercantile world, in
consideration of the importance of their commerce, and the impossibility
of finding their exports in other countries. But toleration only
increased the audacity of the Chinese authorities. They proceeded to
acts of violence: several vessels were plundered, and their crews were
murdered, or carried away, and never heard of after. At last the
English, having endured this treatment without being able to procure the
slightest redress, determined on retaliation. From their possessions in
India they invaded the Chinese territory with a powerful army, and at
the same time ravaged their coasts with a naval armament that destroyed
their shipping, plundered their towns, and laid their defences in ashes.
The Chinese, as cowardly as they had been insolent, though possessed
of an immense population and extraordinary resources, made but a feeble
resistance, and were glad to purchase peace upon any terms they could
make; but the English had discovered the weakness of their enemy, and
had not forgotten the oppressions they had endured, and did not desist
from the conflict till they had annexed the mighty empire of China to
their immense dominions in India."
"All very true," added Tourniquet. "They were ignorant, bigoted, and
slavish, but for all that they were the most prosperous nation under
the sun, don't you see."
"Their prosperity was occasioned by the laws by which they were
governed," said the professor. "Industry was encouraged. Agriculture was
pursued as the most honourable occupation, as one in which the emperor
delighted; and obedience was inculcated as the first duty of a citizen."
"But what was the spirit of their laws?" inquired Oriel Porphyry.
"Every father of a family was despotic in his own household: the emperor
was regarded by his subjects with the same reverence that a family
looked up to its domestic ruler; and an offence against the monarch was
punished in a similar manner as an offence against the parent;" replied
Fortyfolios.
"I can imagine no state of things so arbitrary and so contrary to common
sense, don't you see;" observed the doctor. "By such a law, whether a
man be a drunkard or a profligate, a fool or a knave, he has unlimited
supremacy over his offspring; he can punish with death when he pleases,
and the poor wretches who acknowledge his relationship, dare not murmur.
He is a father; and fatherhood, like charity, covereth a multitude of
sins. There is nothing so ridiculous as this notion. No individual in
the great family of nature is entitled to the slightest respect, unless
he is respectable in his conduct. All relationship is an accident. A
father has no right to the obedience of his child, because he is his
father: that can only be the most absurd of claims; for he produced the
child to please himself, and at the time could have no sympathy towards
an object that was not in existence."
"That cannot be disputed;" replied the professor. "But I must maintain,
that obedience in a child, to a reasonable extent, ought to exist as a
natural consequence of the care and anxiety of parentage."
"Granted, with the limitations;" said the surgeon. "When a father brings
up his child with a proper affection, affection from the offspring
ought to be expected; but in no case has the parent a right to implicit
obedience, unless he has so acted, and the law he wishes to make
absolute is such as will not affect the welfare of the child. In many
instances the son possesses more intelligence than the father; and
yet, if parental subjugation were allowed, the wise must be held in
subjection by the opinion of the ignorant."
"I should imagine such a form of government likely to be very ancient;"
observed Oriel.
"It is unquestionably of great antiquity, and derived from the
patriarchal ages, when the oldest member of the family held supreme
authority over the rest;" responded Fortyfolios.
"About as much as the ocean has originated from the drops of rain that
fell from the sky, don't you see;" added the doctor.
"I maintain that the progenitors of the Chinese were a nomadic race;"
said the professor rather sharply.
"Granted; and what then?" inquired the surgeon, in his usual
good-humoured manner.
"That they were a collection of single families," continued
Fortyfolios.
"So are all nations at the present time, don't you see;" remarked the
doctor.
"Not in the manner which existed at the age to which I allude;" rejoined
his antagonist. "Every man dwelt in his own tent, surrounded by his
children and his children's children, and wandered with his herds and
flocks, to wherever he could find them sufficient pasturage. He governed
as a monarch with power of life and death, and the rules he found
necessary to preserve his government he transmitted to his successor;
till, the family increasing, it was found necessary that they should
separate into distinct divisions, each having its own father or ruler,
and, residing for mutual protection near each other, they constituted
tribes. The rules, which the experience of the first father had found
necessary for maintaining his authority, had been conveyed with
modifications and additions through his successors, till they became
possessed by the elders of the tribe, in whom all wisdom and government
resided; until the increase of their numbers, and the want of sufficient
accommodation, induced them to invade the more desirable territory of
other tribes; and then it was that he who distinguished himself most
in this warfare obtained supremacy over the rest, and having conquered
other tribes, and rendered himself by his superior bravery the object of
fear and admiration, he became king of all the people who acknowledged
his rule, and governed them by the laws that had existed previously in
his own particular family or tribe."
"A very plausible hypothesis, but nothing more, don't you see;" replied
the doctor. "Doubtless all societies originated in one family, the
supreme head of which did what he thought fit; but I doubt much whether
he exercised such an authority as could sacrifice a life for an offence
real or imaginary; or created any code of laws for the government of
his relations. He did only what he thought necessary for the time;
and whether that constituted a precedent or not, it is not easy to
determine. The punishment which would be necessary at one time, might
not be thought necessary at another, don't you see. Where the judge is
absolute, and has no constitution to guide him, it is the mood in which
he may be when called upon to judge, that makes the sentence severe or
mild; and every judge, being independent of any higher authority, and
liable to act from prejudice or partiality, would create nothing but
inconsistent decisions, which could never be tolerated as a code
of laws. It is opinion that creates law. The heterogeneous mass of
absurdities that the few promulgate to hold the many in subjection would
not be tolerated except in a state of perfect slavery. Where there
is any intelligence among the people, and intelligence must make its
appearance sooner or later, every law that is found existing passes the
ordeal of public opinion, and if it be unwise or unjust, it will not be
regarded or its abrogation will be enforced. The multitude have a better
notion of the difference between right and wrong, than is generally
supposed; and nothing is so productive of a clearness of distinction in
these things among the people than a proper simplicity and applicability
of the laws by which they are governed. It is intelligence that produces
opinion, don't you see--and opinion that creates law--and law cannot
long exist in opposition to opinion."
While the disputants were intently engaged in their argument, Oriel
Porphyry and Zabra had walked to another part of the deck, where the
captain and his lieutenant were giving orders about the management of
the vessel.
"Fine old country, this, captain;" said the young merchant.
"Yes, sir," replied Hearty: "fine old country, certainly. They do say
it's as old as Methusalem; but I never was in sight o' that coast,
therefore can't say what difference there may be between 'em."
"You have been in this part of the world before, I should suppose?"
inquired Oriel.
"Many times," responded the old man: "I knows the place well. I've been
afloat ever since I was a small craft as could hardly steer without
capsizing; and there arn't many seas in the world as I haven't been
over. John Chinaman and I are 'ticular acquaintances, because I've seen
a good deal on him. He's rather smart in his own notions o' himself,
but he makes a good reefer when aboard, and he'll carry like a steam
engine when ashore. Often when I've landed at this port from one or
other o' your father's ships, I've seen him bearing sich loads as 'ould
make a horse's back bone unkimmen ticklish. We're enterin' the river
now; and after sailing a few points west of north, we shall be nigh upon
the first bar, from whence we must steer due west to Whampoa, where we
shall cast anchor. You'll have then to go about ten miles to the
Factories, to which you must proceed in boats."
"What strange looking ships these are;" remarked Zabra, pointing to
several vessels they were passing.
"Ay, they are very queer shaped craft," said the captain. "But John
Chinaman's no great shakes at ship-buildin', although he thinks he's
wonderful. Look at that heavy lumbering junk. She looks like a great
thick-headed old muff, as does'n't know his helm from his taffrail. The
Albatross would take the conceit out o' her in no time. And look at
these here outlandish looking barges--there's no sense in 'em."
"The country has rather an interesting character;" observed Oriel.
"It's all accordin' to taste," replied Hearty.
"These here islands o' sand ar'nt 'ticularly lovely to my thinking; and
I can't abide the ugliness o' the craft."
"In what manner do these people now behave to foreigners?" inquired
Zabra.
"Why it ar'nt quite so bad as what I've read on in ancient history;"
said the captain. "They've had a sick'ner for coming that sort o' fun;
but they coil up their noses pretty stiffish even now. They allow
travellers to wander about and examine their notables, which they did'nt
use to do; but I should recommend any fellow, who's more nor ordinary
'quisitive, to look out for squalls. I have heard say as people ha' been
missed who was axing their way through the country; and not a spar or a
bolt-rope on 'em ever heard on again."