The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African: Written By HimselfEquiano, Olaudah
History
The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African: Written By Himself
Equiano, Olaudah
Enslaved persons -- Great Britain -- Biography; Enslaved persons -- United States -- Biography; Equiano, Olaudah, 1745-1797
I did not long remain after my sister. I was again sold, and carried
through a number of places, till, after travelling a considerable
time, I came to a town called Tinmah, in the most beautiful country I
have yet seen in Africa. It was extremely rich, and there were many
rivulets which flowed through it, and supplied a large pond in the
centre of the town, where the people washed. Here I first saw and
tasted cocoa-nuts, which I thought superior to any nuts I had ever
tasted before; and the trees, which were loaded, were also
interspersed amongst the houses, which had commodious shades
adjoining, and were in the same manner as ours, the insides being
neatly plastered and whitewashed. Here I also saw and tasted for the
first time sugar-cane. Their money consisted of little white shells,
the size of the finger nail. I was sold here for one hundred and
seventy-two of them by a merchant who lived and brought me there. I
had been about two or three days at his house, when a wealthy widow, a
neighbour of his, came there one evening, and brought with her an only
son, a young gentleman about my own age and size. Here they saw me;
and, having taken a fancy to me, I was bought of the merchant, and
went home with them. Her house and premises were situated close to one
of those rivulets I have mentioned, and were the finest I ever saw in
Africa: they were very extensive, and she had a number of slaves to
attend her. The next day I was washed and perfumed, and when meal-time
came I was led into the presence of my mistress, and ate and drank
before her with her son. This filled me with astonishment; and I could
scarce help expressing my surprise that the young gentleman should
suffer me, who was bound, to eat with him who was free; and not only
so, but that he would not at any time either eat or drink till I had
taken first, because I was the eldest, which was agreeable to our
custom. Indeed every thing here, and all their treatment of me, made
me forget that I was a slave. The language of these people resembled
ours so nearly, that we understood each other perfectly. They had also
the very same customs as we. There were likewise slaves daily to
attend us, while my young master and I with other boys sported with
our darts and bows and arrows, as I had been used to do at home. In
this resemblance to my former happy state I passed about two months;
and I now began to think I was to be adopted into the family, and was
beginning to be reconciled to my situation, and to forget by degrees
my misfortunes, when all at once the delusion vanished; for, without
the least previous knowledge, one morning early, while my dear master
and companion was still asleep, I was wakened out of my reverie to
fresh sorrow, and hurried away even amongst the uncircumcised.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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