SOUND SLEEPERS.Mr. Boyle says that it is one of the amusements of West Africa to show strangers how a Fantee boy can sleep. A friend of his wishing to rouse some servants and send them to close the shutters and lock the doors, said to him:“I’ll show you something which you wouldn’t believe on hearsay.”Thereon he grasped a boy by the heels, dragged him a yard or so, turned him over, and roughly lifted him to a sitting posture; the youth sat up, rubbed his eyes, scratched his head, and went to sleep again. To another he did the same, with a like result.Having thus got the two alongside, fast asleep, he dragged one on top of the other, and left them a moment; they slumbered placidly in that position. He then ran amuck at them, being in slippers, and upset the pair, and ordered them loudly to close the shutters. They both got up, eyes wide open, and apparently conscious; one walked gravely downstairs, the other retired, with all semblance of reason, to the pantry alongside.The one who went down came up again in two minutes, still with his eyes wide open, and leisurely lay down to sleep again; the other we found fast snoozing in the pantry on a stool. We took them up, and shook them violently; they rubbed themselves, and went to sleep again.Dragging them into the dining room, without a word, they silently set about their work, fastening shutters and doors.“Do you think they are awake?” asked my friend. “Tell them to get you something.”I did so. No response. I repeated the order. They quietly went back, their work completed, and dropped asleep upon their mats. Fast stupefied with sleep all the time!
SOUND SLEEPERS.Mr. Boyle says that it is one of the amusements of West Africa to show strangers how a Fantee boy can sleep. A friend of his wishing to rouse some servants and send them to close the shutters and lock the doors, said to him:“I’ll show you something which you wouldn’t believe on hearsay.”Thereon he grasped a boy by the heels, dragged him a yard or so, turned him over, and roughly lifted him to a sitting posture; the youth sat up, rubbed his eyes, scratched his head, and went to sleep again. To another he did the same, with a like result.Having thus got the two alongside, fast asleep, he dragged one on top of the other, and left them a moment; they slumbered placidly in that position. He then ran amuck at them, being in slippers, and upset the pair, and ordered them loudly to close the shutters. They both got up, eyes wide open, and apparently conscious; one walked gravely downstairs, the other retired, with all semblance of reason, to the pantry alongside.The one who went down came up again in two minutes, still with his eyes wide open, and leisurely lay down to sleep again; the other we found fast snoozing in the pantry on a stool. We took them up, and shook them violently; they rubbed themselves, and went to sleep again.Dragging them into the dining room, without a word, they silently set about their work, fastening shutters and doors.“Do you think they are awake?” asked my friend. “Tell them to get you something.”I did so. No response. I repeated the order. They quietly went back, their work completed, and dropped asleep upon their mats. Fast stupefied with sleep all the time!
SOUND SLEEPERS.
Mr. Boyle says that it is one of the amusements of West Africa to show strangers how a Fantee boy can sleep. A friend of his wishing to rouse some servants and send them to close the shutters and lock the doors, said to him:
“I’ll show you something which you wouldn’t believe on hearsay.”
Thereon he grasped a boy by the heels, dragged him a yard or so, turned him over, and roughly lifted him to a sitting posture; the youth sat up, rubbed his eyes, scratched his head, and went to sleep again. To another he did the same, with a like result.
Having thus got the two alongside, fast asleep, he dragged one on top of the other, and left them a moment; they slumbered placidly in that position. He then ran amuck at them, being in slippers, and upset the pair, and ordered them loudly to close the shutters. They both got up, eyes wide open, and apparently conscious; one walked gravely downstairs, the other retired, with all semblance of reason, to the pantry alongside.
The one who went down came up again in two minutes, still with his eyes wide open, and leisurely lay down to sleep again; the other we found fast snoozing in the pantry on a stool. We took them up, and shook them violently; they rubbed themselves, and went to sleep again.
Dragging them into the dining room, without a word, they silently set about their work, fastening shutters and doors.
“Do you think they are awake?” asked my friend. “Tell them to get you something.”
I did so. No response. I repeated the order. They quietly went back, their work completed, and dropped asleep upon their mats. Fast stupefied with sleep all the time!