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Chapter sixteen of the Crews of the Snark. This is
a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
For more information or to volunteer, please visit librevox dot org.
Recording by Catherine Oliver. The Crews of the Snark by
Jack London besche du Mer English. Given a number of
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white traders, a wide area of land, and scores of
savage languages and dialects, the result will be that the
traders will manufacture a totally new, unscientific, but perfectly adequate language.
This the traders did when they invented the Chinook lingo
for use over British Columbia, Alaska and the Northwest Territory.
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So with the lingo of the Krewe Boys of Africa,
the Pigeon English of the far East, and the beche
du Mer of the westerly portion of the South Seas.
This latter is often called Pigeon English, but Pigeon English
it certainly is not. To show how totally different is.
Mention need be made only of the fact that the
classic piece of China has no place in it. There
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was once a sea captain who needed a dusky potentate
down in his cabin. The potentate was on deck. The
captain's command to the Chinese steward was hey, boy, you
go topside catchee one piecee king. Had the steward been
a new Hybridian or a Solomon Islander, the command would
have been, hey, you fella boy, go look 'em. I
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belong you along deck. Bring'm me fella one big fella
Marster belong black man. It was the first white men
who ventured through Melanesia, after the early explorers who developed
beche de Mer english Men such as besche de Mer fishermen,
the sandalwood traders, the pearl hunters, and the labor recruiters.
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In the Solomons, for instance, scores of languages and dialects
are spoken unhappy the trader who tried to learn them all,
for in the next group to which he might wander,
he would find scores of additional tongues. A common language
was necessary, a language so simple that a child could
learn it, with a vocabulary as limited as the intelligence
of the savages upon whom it was to be used.
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The traders did not reason this out. Beche du meur
English was the product of conditions and circumstances, function precedes
organ and the need for a universal Melanesian lingo preceded
Beche de mer English. Beche de mer was purely fortuitous,
but it was fortuitous in the deterministic way. Also from
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the fact that out of the need the lingo arose
Beche de mer English is a splendid argument for the
esperanto enthusiasts. A limited vocabulary means each word shall be overworked.
Thus fela in Beche de mer means all that pieces
does and quite a bit more, and is used continually
in every possible connection. Another overworked word is belong. Nothing
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stands alone. Everything is related. The thing desired is indicated
by its relationship with other things. A primitive vocabulary means
primitive expression. Thus the continuance of rain is expressed as
rain he stop, sun he come up cannot possibly be misunderstood,
while the phrase structure itself can be used without mental
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exertion in ten thousand different ways, as for instance, a
native who desires to tell you that there are fish
in the water, and who says fish he stop. It
was while trading in Isabel Island that I learned the
excellence of this usage. I wanted two or three pairs
of the large clam shells measuring three feet across, but
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I did not want the meat inside. Also, I wanted
the meat of some smaller clams to make a chowder.
My instruction to the natives finally ripened into the following
You fella bring me fella big fella clam kai kai
he no stop he walk a. You fella bring me
fella small fella clam Kai kai he stop Kai kai
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is the Polynesian for food, meat, eating, and to eat,
but it would be hard to say whether it was
introduced into Melanesia by the sandalwood traders or by the
Polynesian westward drift. Walk About is a quaint phrase. Thus,
if one orders a Solomon sailor to put a tackle
on a boom, he will suggest that fella boom he
walk about too much, And if the said sailor asks
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for shore liberty, he will state that it is his
desire to walk about. Or if said sailor be seasick,
he will explain this condition by stating, belly belong me
walk about too much. Too much, by the way, does
not indicate anything excessive. It's merely the simple superlative. Thus,
if a Native is asked the distance to a certain village,
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his answer will be one of these four close up,
long way, little bit, long way, big bit, or long
way too much, long way too much. Such does not
mean that one cannot walk to the village. It means
that he will have to walk farther than if the
village were a long way big bit. Gammon is to lie,
to exaggerate, to joke. Mary is a woman. Any woman
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is a Mary. All women are Mary's. Doubtlessly, the first
dim white adventurer whimsically called a native woman Mary, and
of similar birth. It must have been many other words.
In beche de mer, the white men were all seamen,
and so capsize and sing out were introduced into the lingo.
One would not tell a Melanesian cook to empty the dishwater,
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but he would tell him to capsize it. To sing
out is to cry loudly, to call out, or merely
to speak sing sing is a song. A Native Christian
does not think of God calling for Adam in the
garden of Eden. In the native's mind, God sings out
for Adam. Savvy or catchee are practically the only words
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which have been introduced straight from p. Pigeon English. Of course,
picaninny has happened along, but some of its uses are delicious.
Having bought a fall from a native in a canoe,
the native asked me if I wanted pickaninny stop along him, fella.
It was not until he showed me a handful of
hens eggs that I understood his meaning. My word is
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an exclamation with a thousand significances could have arrived from
nowhere else than Old England. A paddle, a sweep, or
an oar is called washee, and washee is also the verb.
Here is a letter dictated by one Peter, a native
trader at Santa Anna, and addressed to his employer. Harry.
The schooner captain started to write the letter, but was
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stopped by Peter at the end of the second sentence. Thereafter,
the letter runs into Peter's own words, for Peter was
afraid that Harry gammon too much, and he wanted the
straight story of his needs to go to the headquarters
Santa Anna. Trader, Peter has worked twelve months for your
firm and has not received any pay yet. He hereby
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wants twelve pounds. At this point, Peter began dictation Harry
he gammon along him all the time too much. I
like him. Six tin biscuits, four bag rice twenty four
tin bullamacow me like two rifle me savvy, look out
along boat someplace me go man he no good he
kai kai along me signed Peter. Bullamacow means tinned beef.
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This word was corrupted from the English language by the Samoans,
and from them learned by the traders who carried it
along with them into Melanesia. Captain Cook and the other
early navigators made a practice of introducing seeds, plants, and
domestic animals amongst the natives. It was at Samoa that
once such navigator landed a bull and a cow. This
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is a bull and a cow, he told the Samoans.
They thought he was giving the name of the breed,
and from that day to this beef on the hoof,
and beef in the tin is called bullamacow. A solomon
islander can sa fence, so in beche de mer it
becomes fennis store is store and box is bacchis just now.
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The fashion in chests, which are known as boxes, is
to have a bell arrangement on the loch, so that
the box cannot be opened without sounding an alarm. A
box so equipped is not spoken of as a mere box,
but as a bocchis belong bell. Fright is the beche
de mer for fear. If a native appears timid and
one asks him the cause, he is liable to reply
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me fright along you too much? Or the native may
be fright along storm or wild bush or haunted places.
Cross covers every form of anger. A man may be
cross at one when he is feeling only petulant, or
he may be cross when he is seeking to chop
off your head and make a stew out of you.
A recruit, having toiled three years on a plantation, was
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returned to his own village in Malaita. He was clad
in all kinds of gay and sportive gold garments. On
his head was a top hat. He possessed a trade
box full of calico beads, porpoise, teeth, and tobacco. Hardly
was the anchor down. When the villagers were on board.
The recruit looked anxiously for his own relatives, but none
was to be seen. One of the natives took a
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pipe out of his mouth. Another confiscave the string of
beads from round his neck. A third relieved him of
his gaudy loincloth, and a fourth tried on the top
hat and omitted to return it. Finally, one of them
took his trade box, which represented three years toil, and
dropped it into a canoe alongside that fellow. Belong you,
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the captain asked the recruit, referring to the thief. No
belong me was the answer. Then why in Jericho do
you let him take the box? The captain demanded indignantly,
quoth the recruit me, speak along him? Say bacchis he
stop that fella? He crossed along me, which was the
recruit's way of saying that the other man would murder him.
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God's wrath when he sent the flood was merely a
case of being cross along mankind? What name is the
great interrogation of beche de mer it? All depends on
how it is uttered. It may mean what is your business?
What do you mean by this outrageous conduct? What do
you want? What is the thing you are after? You
had best watch out? I demand an explanation, and a
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few hundred other things. Coll A nadive out of his
house in the middle of the night, and he is
likely to demand what name you sing out along me.
Imagine the predicament of the Germans at the plantations of
Bougainville Island, who were compelled to learn beche de mer
English in order to handle the native laborers. It is
to them an unscientific polyglot, and there are no text
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books by which to study it. It is the source
of unholy delight to the other white planters and traitors
to hear the Germans wrestling stolidly with the circumlocutions and
short cuts of a language that has no grammar and
no dictionary. Some years ago, large numbers of Solomon I
Islanders were recruited to labor on the sugar plantations of Queensland.
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A missionary urged one of the laborers, who was a convert,
to get up and preach a sermon to a shipload
of Solomon Islanders who had just arrived. He chose for
his subject the Fall of Man, and the address he
gave became a classic in all of Australasia. It proceeded
somewhat in the following manner. All together, you boy belong
Solomon's you know, savvy white man me fella me savvi
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him me fella me savvee talk along white man before
a long time, altogether, no place he stopped. God, big
fella Marster belong white man him fella, he make 'em altogether. God,
big fella Marster blong white man. He make 'em big
fella garden. He good fella too much, a long garden
plenty yam, he stop plenty, coconut plenty, taro plenty, kumara
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sweet potatoes all together. Good fella Kai Kai too much.
Bid me by God, big fella Marster belong him, white man.
He make him one fella man and put him along
garden belong him. He call him this fella man Adam.
He name belong him. He put him this fella man
Adam along garden, and he speak this fella garden he
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belong you. And he look him, this fella Adam. He
walk about too much, him fella Adam all the same sick.
He know savvee Kai Kai. He walk about all the time,
and God he knows Savvee. God, big fella Marster belong
white man. He scratch him head belong him. God say
what name me, No savvee, what name this fella Adam?
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He want bim me my God. He scratch him head,
belong him too much, and speak me fella me savvee
him fella Adam him want to marry, So he make
Adam he go asleep. He take one fella bone belong him,
and he make him one fella mary along bone. He
call him this fella Mary Eve. He give him this
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fella evelong Adam and he speak along him, fella Adam,
close up altogether along this fella garden belong you to fella.
One fella tree. He tambo taboo along you all together,
this fella tree belong apple. So Adam, Eve two fella
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stop along garden and they two fella have him good
time too much bib ba bye. One day Eve, she
come along Adam and she speak more good you me too, fella.
We eat him this fella apple. Adam speak no, and
Eve she speak what name you know? Like em? Me
and Adam speak me like them you too much, but
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me fright along God and Eve she speak game on
what name God he knows? Savvy look along us two
fella allumn time God, big fella Marster. He gam on
along you. But Adam he speak no, But Eve she
talk talk Allie, talk Allie say Mary, she talk along
boil long Queensland, and make him trouble a long boy,
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and bi bye bye. Adam, he tired too much, and
he speak all right. So these two fella they go
eat him. When they finish, eat em my word. They
fright like hell, and they go hide along scrub. And
God he come walk about along garden, and he sing
out Adam, Adam he no speak, he too much fright
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my word. And God he sing out Adam. And Adam
he speak you call him me, God he speak me,
call him you too much. Adam he speak me sleeps
strong fella too much. And God he speak, you've been
eat them this fella apple. Adam he speak no me
no ben eat him. God he speak what name you
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gom on along you been eat him? And Adam he speak, yes,
me been eat him. And God, big fella marster he
cross along. Adam Eve, two fella too much, and he speak,
you two fella finish along me altogether. You go catch
'em boxes belong you and get to hella long scrub.
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So Adam Eve, these two fella go along scrub, and
God he make 'em one big FeNiS fence all around garden,
and he put 'em one fella Marster belong God along Penis,
and he give this fella Marster belong God one big
fella musket, and he speak. Suppose you look him, these
two fella Adam Eve, you shoot 'em plenty too much.
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End of chapter sixteen,