The
Middle Passage
This extract from Chapter Two of Olaudah Equiano’s autobiography,
entitled The Interesting Narrative,
describes his experiences on board a slave ship in the so-called ‘Middle
Passage’, a slave-trade route between Africa and the Americas. Equiano (c.1745-1797) describes his passage
between West Africa and the Caribbean island of Barbados in the Lesser Antilles,
an island filled with British sugar plantations.
Text from The Interesting
Narrative:
At
last, when the ship we were in had got in all her cargo, they made ready with
many fearful noises, and we were all put under deck, so that we could not see
how they managed the vessel. But this disappointment was the least of my
sorrow. The stench of the hold while we were on the coast was so intolerably
loathsome, that it was dangerous to remain there for any time, and some of us
had been permitted to stay on the deck for the fresh air; but now that the
whole ship’s cargo were confined together, it became absolutely pestilential.
The closeness of the place, and the heat of the climate, added to the number in
the ship, which was so crowded that each had scarcely room to turn himself,
almost suffocated us. This produced copious perspirations, so that the air soon
became unfit for respiration, from a variety of loathsome smells, and brought
on a sickness among the slaves, of which many died, thus falling victims to the
improvident avarice, as I may call it, of their purchasers. This wretched
situation was again aggravated by the galling of the chains, now become
insupportable; and the filth of the necessary tubs, into which the children often
fell, and were almost suffocated. The shrieks of the women, and the groans of
the dying, rendered the whole a scene of horror almost inconceivable.
Happily
perhaps for myself I was soon reduced so low here that it was thought necessary
to keep me almost always on deck; and from my extreme youth I was not put in
fetters. In this situation I expected every hour to share the fate of my
companions, some of whom were almost daily brought upon deck at the point of
death, which I began to hope would soon put an end to my miseries. Often did I
think many of the inhabitants of the deep much more happy than myself; I envied
them the freedom they enjoyed, and as often wished I could change my condition
for theirs.
Every
circumstance I met with served only to render my state more painful, and
heighten my apprehensions, and my opinion of the cruelty of the whites. One day
they had taken a number of fishes; and when they had killed and satisfied
themselves with as many as they thought fit, to our astonishment who were on the
deck, rather than give any of them to us to eat, as we expected, they tossed
the remaining fish into the sea again, although we begged and prayed for some
as well we cold, but in vain; and some of my countrymen, being pressed by
hunger, took an opportunity, when they thought no one saw them, of trying to
get a little privately; but they were discovered, and the attempt procured them
some very severe floggings.
One
day, when we had a smooth sea, and a moderate wind, two of my wearied
countrymen, who were chained together (I was near them at the time), preferring
death to such a life of misery, somehow made through the nettings, and jumped
into the sea: immediately another quite dejected fellow, who, on account of his
illness, was suffered to be out of irons, also followed their example; and I
believe many more would soon have done the same, if they had not been prevented
by the ship’s crew, who were instantly alarmed. Those of us that were the most
active were, in a moment, put down under the deck; and there was such a noise
and confusion amongst the people of the ship as I never heard before, to stop
her, and get the boat to go out after the slaves. However, two of the wretches
were drowned, but they got the other, and afterwards flogged him unmercifully,
for thus attempting to prefer death to slavery. In this manner we continued to
undergo more hardships than I can now relate; hardships which are inseparable
from this accursed trade. - Many a time we were near suffocation, from the want
of fresh air, which we were often without for whole days together. This, and
the stench of the necessary tubs, carried off many.
During
our passage I first saw flying fishes, which surprised me very much: they used
frequently to fly across the ship, and many of them fell on the deck. I also
now first saw the use of the quadrant. I had often with astonishment seen the
mariners make observations with it, and I could not think what it meant. They
at last took notice of my surprise; and one of them, willing to increase it, as
well as to gratify my curiosity, made me one day look through it. The clouds
appeared to me to be land, which disappeared as they passed along. This
heightened my wonder: and I was now more persuaded than ever that I was in
another world, and that every thing about me was magic.
At
last we came in sight of the island of Barbados, at which the whites on board
gave a great shout, and made many signs of joy to us.