"Well, den, I go on. Suppose you hab one comfortable house, plenty pig dere, yam grow all round, orange tree blossom close to, plantain trow him cool shadow over all, bending heavily in de breeze, over de house; wid de fruit ready for drop into your mout, when you look up at him; de leetle guinea pig squeak here and snort dere; we hab pineapple and star-apple--oh, wery sweet--de great corn (maise dem call him) grow all round de house; pease cover him like one vine; and your servants are working and singing, and de comfortable sunshine is drying every ting, and closing all de beautiful flowers in him sleepy heat. You yousef are sitting in your chair, wid some small drop of grog, after you hab eat good dinner of goat, and maybe one broiled fis; and just when you take your pipe, light him, and put him into your mout--crack--one musket-shot sing over your head--you jomp--(who would not jomp?--Debil himself would jomp)--and before you can tink--flash--one sailor make blow at you wid him glass-clear cutlass. And ah, massa, suppose de worstest to come, and dese strangers to set fire to your quiet hut, after beating and bruising _you_; and de flames begin to crackle and hiss over de wery apartment where you know your wife is, and are consuming all your goods at de same time; and dem black people _were my goods_: for if you had left we to oursef dis morning, I should have got two hundred doubloon, and five hundred piece of check clot, from de Spanish captain, for dose one hundred and fifty slave; who," (his smile here might have been the envy of the Fiend himself,) "to prevent dem from being miserable as you call in Havanna, you hab sent to be happy in heaven." And he groaned in great bitterness of spirit. I was much struck with all this, and looked steadfastly at the poor creature, who was standing right opposite me with his arms folded, in all the dignity of a brave man, who considers his fate sealed. There was a long pause. When he next spoke, it was in a low melancholy tone.