found. All was suspense till the cry came from the dhow of "She's a
slaver, sir!" Three hearty cheers were given by the _Vulture's_ crew.
"How many has she on board?" asked the captain. "Two hundred, sir," was
the answer. A hawser was soon passed on board the slaver, and she was
hauled alongside. Then began the sickening task of transferring the
poor captives from the dhow to the ship. The British seamen behaved
nobly; even the regular grumblers forgot their complaints and came
forward to assist in transporting the weak and helpless creatures from
their prison. So cramped and emaciated were they that many had to be
carried in the arms of the men. Tenderly and carefully did these
strong, rough fellows bear their helpless burdens, notwithstanding the
filth which had accumulated on them during their long imprisonment in
the pestilential hold. Now and then a baby appeared, and was eagerly
lifted on board by the men. There were seven, and as the little ones
were borne along they opened their eyes with wonderment. One baby had
been born on board the dhow, and another had lost its mother during the
fatal voyage. Those who had suffered most were children whose ages
ranged from three to seven years. They had been evidently unable to
hold their own against the stronger ones in the scramble for food which
had taken place at feeding time; the stronger thrived, while the weaker
starved. Of the hapless cargo thirty were at death's door, and thirty
others little more than skeletons. Many of the unhappy beings had
scarcely tasted food during their imprisonment in the dhow. In they
poured, a living stream, until the ship's decks were covered with a
black mass of human beings of all ages, including women so old that it
was difficult to understand what object those dealers in human flesh
could have had in shipping such worthless articles for the slave-market.
At last the stream stopped. "They're all out of the dhow, sir,"
exclaimed the seamen who remained on board the vessel. "Have another
look and make quite sure," answered the commander. Well it was that
they did so, for in a dark corner of the hold, buried all but the head
in the sand which the dhow carried for ballast, lay a poor old woman.
She was dug out and borne on board.

In the meantime the Arabs came on board the _Vulture_, but these, having
suffered no privations, were able to walk, and as they came over the
side the ship's corporal and corporal of marines st