32 CASE OF VOLUNTARY SLAVERY. CHAP. I. 



heart, for the mere chance of acquiring a freedom, which 

 would probably be forfeited on his entrance into the first 

 native village, for the chief might, without compunction, 

 again sell him into slavery. 



A rather singular case of voluntary slavery came to 

 our knowledge : a free black, an intelligent active young 

 fellow, called Chibanti, who had been our pilot on the 

 river, told us that he had sold himself into slavery. On 

 asking why he had done this, he replied that he was all 

 alone in the world, had neither father nor mother, nor any 

 one else to give him water when sick, or food when 

 hungry ; so he sold himself to Major Sicard, a notoriously 

 kind master, whose slaves had little to do, and plenty to 

 eat. "And how much did you get for yourself?" we 

 asked. " Three thirty-yard pieces of cotton cloth," he 

 replied ; " and I forthwith bought a man, a woman, and 

 child, who cost me two of the pieces, and I had one piece 

 left." This, at all events, showed a cool and calculating 

 spirit ; he afterwards bought more slaves, and in two 

 years owned a sufficient number to man one of the large 

 canoes. His master subsequently employed him in carry- 

 ing ivory to Quillimane, and gave him cloth to hire 

 mariners for the voyage ; he took his own slaves, of 

 course, and thus drove a thriving business ; and was fully 

 convinced that he had made a good speculation by the sale 

 of himself, for had he been sick his master must have 

 supported him. Occasionally some of the free blacks 

 become slaves voluntarily by going through the simple 

 but significant ceremony of breaking a spear in the pre- 

 sence of their future master. A Portuguese officer, since 

 dead, persuaded one of the Makololo to remain in Tette, 

 instead of returning to his own country, and tried also to 

 induce him to break a spear before him, and thus acknow- 

 ledge himself his slave, but the man was too shrewd for 

 this; he was a great elephant doctor, who accompanied 



