Captain Horn had not cared to keep many men with him in the camp, because
there they would have little to do, and all the strong arms that could be
spared would be needed in the boat. The three sailors he had retained
were men of intelligence, on whom he believed he could rely in case of
emergency, and Maka was kept because he was a cook. He had been one of
the cargo of a slave-ship which had been captured by a British cruiser
several years before, when on its way to Cuba, and the unfortunate
negroes had been landed in British Guiana. It was impossible to return
them to Africa, because none of them could speak English, or in any way
give an idea as to what tribes they belonged, and if they should be
landed anywhere in Africa except among their friends, they would be
immediately reenslaved. For some years they lived in Guiana, in a little
colony by themselves, and then, a few of them having learned some
English, they made their way to Panama, where they obtained employment as
laborers on the great canal. Maka, who was possessed of better
intelligence than most of his fellows, improved a good deal in his
English, and learned to cook very well, and having wandered to San
Francisco, had been employed for two or three voyages by Captain Horn.
Maka was a faithful and willing servant, and if he had been able to
express himself more intelligibly, his merits might have been better
appreciated.
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