The First Book of Samuel by SAREJESS (epub read online books txt) 📕

a little first hand knowledge and centuries of superstition. Thus was the man of the early 17th century making a great step into the age of reason, for some of the great thinkers of reason had already been born and were making their first steps into the world with inquiring minds. Now as the ship traveled south, the days of illness were over, taken with a desire to live life to the fullest. Even as Samuel gained his sea legs, others began to weaken for at that time unknown to man the African mosquitoes which carried the deadly malaria sleeping sickness overtook those who had gone ashore along the coast of Africa and were stricken with the illness from which they suffered terribly. On occasion the victim of the illness would shiver as if in the depth of a winter storm while the next moment the poor victim would throw off their coverings and be bathed in sweat as if in a great fever.


1631 AD Some where on the open ocean of North Africa –Southern Europe.
The master of the Dutch East India company vessel Die Goed Hoop held sway over life and death. Everybody was aware of this. "Better not to tempt the fates and the master" was the old saying. When the bell had been rung both the crew and passenger on board had assembled on the deck. The captain Jan Van Eck stood on the poop dressed in his Sunday best red frock coat and maroon pantaloons. It was time for the Sunday service and reading. Next to the master stood the predekant bible in hand.

When everybody had been assembled, the captain began to speak. "Today we will give thanks for the completion of our voyage from Batavia. We will offer up to the Almighty our thanks that the pirates which perused us were beaten off. We will give thanks for the fact that the Almighty saw fit to bring us once again into Dutch waters and to our homeport of Amsterdam."

"Many among you have endured great hardships during this voyage without complaint and for this I thank you. It is due to your hard work that we have come this far. Soon we will be reaching our berth. Until that time I would ask you to continue to behave in a manner befitting good Dutchmen. Predecant Williams will now do the reading." The slight man stepped forward and began to read from the bible.

Samuel, standing with his head bowed began to think back over the course of the voyage. There had been days when he had been violently sea sick. He had seldom experienced sea sickness on such a scale. On rounding the Cape of Africa he had been allowed to go ashore for a few hours while the crew gathered fresh water. This had been a good thing for had they continued without stopping, Samuel doubted that he would have survived. It was paramount that he did for in his sea chests he carried a vast fortune which he had slowly been building up over the years in Batavia. To lose the fortune due to death would have meant a great deal of hard work had been lost, as he would never be able to recover the property from the Dutch East India company. Then there had been the incident with the pirates of the coast of North Africa when, for three whole days the merchant ship had run before the wind changing course as the wind changed, in the hope of out distancing the pirates. At one stage he had taken the spyglass and had looked in the direction of the pursuing ships. He was shocked to see the look of hatred and scorn on the faces of the pirates their cutlasses at the ready, the pirates had tried their utmost to capture the Dutch vessel, which experience had taught them carried great wealth. All aboard knew that if the pirates ever caught up with them there would be no mercy, all aboard Die Goed Hoop would be butchered like animals; men, women, and children.

Finally on the third day the captain had given the order that when night had fallen and the last vestiges of day had fled the open sea, all lamps and lights were to be extinguished before the ship was put about in a northerly direction in the hope of out witting the pirates. It was then when the most dangerous time had come, as the ship plowed its way northwards in absolute darkness. Should anyone drop some thing or speak, the sound would carry across the open waters alerting the pirates to the presence of the escaping merchant ship. The greatest worry of every one on board the ship was the fact that they might accidentally run into one or both of the pirate vessels in the dark. To this end the crew had been armed and stood ready to sell their lives dearly should the need occur. The ship had continued through the night with all sails spread. When the moon had eventually risen, they found themselves many leagues from their pursuers. Now all hands were called to be alert, in the event that just over the horizon, the pirates might be following. Extra watches were placed to keep a sharp lookout to the rear to see if any vessel was following in their wake.

By sun rise the ship was still moving in the direction of Europe. The Southern peninsula of Spain was sighted at mid day and the men began to relax, little knowing they were approaching home waters. During the beginning of the voyage south to Africa a number of passengers and crew had been taken ill due to some unknown malady. They would fall into sleeps, shivering at times, and then throwing off the blankets as their fever rose. A number had died but those who did recover were not in the best of health. It seemed to Samuel that this strange illness had first occurred when they had put in for provisions at Delgoa Bay. Here they had replenished their stores and water supply and done some trading with the friendly Portuguese who governed the place. Samuel had found the place abhorrent knowing that from this place many Africa people had been sold into slavery and sent to the far off corners of the world. Samuel had known slavery through out the ages but the difference was the current age of slavery treated people like nothing more then possessions to be used up. If a slave died what was to be done? Why buy another, after all the crops of cotton and sugar had to be planted. During the first thousand years of his life Samuel had seen slaves taken from their homeland and sold into nations from which their children eventually rose to become citizens. But there was little chance of that happening to these poor ignorant frightened black people who were loaded like so much cargo into the slaver ships and moved half a world away, to work out their days perpetually at the mercy of hard task masters. Why some of the slaves might even for a time believe they would be able to return one day. In the ancient world if a slave saved enough he might be able to buy his freedom but these poor fellows it seemed did not have this opportunity.

1632 AD Samuel and his Rembrandt
It was the 400th anniversary of the great painter’s birth. Samuel had been waiting for the right opportunity to display the painting. Thus far the opportunity had not presented itself, thus he decided that this was the perfect opportunity. Later when the painting was hanging in the lounge Samuel was entertaining a friend who happened to notice the marked similarity between the person in the portrait and Samuel. "Ah a distant ancestor" said Samuel before the conversation passed on to other matters. That evening Samuel went back and looked at the painting. He liked the new frame which he had bought for the painting. It complemented the fine brush work and added a classical touch. He remembered that when he had first thought of displaying the painting he had gone to the attic and found the painting which was packed away in several sheets inside a water proof bag. The dust of centuries fell to the floor as he removed the outer sheets. He worried that the painting might have been damaged by its long hiatus in the dark. Had the changing climatic conditions and age destroyed the painting? Had the paint begun to peel and pull away from the canvas? These were all questions he asked himself but he had nothing to fear, when the last layer of sheeting had been stripped away and the painting exposed to the light after almost two centuries it was clear that the long rest in the dark had done nothing to destroy the painting. The colors were as bright as the day that the master painter had first applied the brush. Now as he looked at the painting sipping his brandy he was drawn once more into the past.

It was the year 1632 and he had recently arrived in Amsterdam, after spending some time in the Far East. As a wealthy merchant and publican he wished his portrait to be painted and had sought advice from a senior merchant Mnr Van Groundling. "Well Samuel I can tell you there is a young painter who is making quite a name for himself here right now that you might try" said the fat man. "Oh and who might that be?” said Samuel to the merchant. "The man in question is young master Rembrandt. He has turned out a number of good works".

Thus Samuel had found himself making his way to the home and studio of the painter. On being admitted he was surprised to see that although the house was large and quite new that the master himself admitted him. "You will excuse the mess" said Rembrandt as he led his prospective client into the sun lit studio. "Quite in order Master Rembrandt” said Samuel. "May I ask if it is possible to see some of your work before I decide?" asked Samuel. "Certainly" said the painter, pulling a cover from a stand on which stood a canvas. The subject of the painting was from the Old Testament. The color and the natural light were quite striking. Samuel gasped, never had he seen work quite like it. Never, not even the work of the Italian masters, of which had a good knowledge of, were quite so life like. The light was so natural one could be forgiven for thinking that the scene was real.

"What would you want for doing a portrait of me in a Turkish costume within a room and some accouterments?" asked Samuel. "Ah that is a good idea, well let me see now?" said Rembrandt who quickly started scribbling on a piece of paper with a piece of chalk. After a few moments he stopped and said "Pray forgive me mynheer. I have quite forgotten to offer you some wine. Jacobus!" shouted the artist through an open door. Bring some wine" returning to the table on which the instruments of his trade lay, he picked up a piece of paper and said "I think that 16 guilders would about cover the costs". For a moment Samuel was about to say no but then his eye caught the reflection of the light on the painting and he decided that for a portrait of that quality he would pay a far greater price. "Done" said Samuel and the deal was struck over a glass of fine red Tuscan wine.

"So” master Rembrandt said. “When would you like to sit for the first time?”

"So mynheer