They couldn’t ask Kojo, because he had apparently gone into hiding. Or perhaps returned to his El Dorado for more gold.
On a tributary of the Lawa River, in Eastern Guiana
Afia ever so carefully transferred the remaining river sand, and a bit of water, to her smallest calabash. This one she had dyed black, to make specks of gold easier to spot.
Ama, Antoa’s wife, came up beside her. “Mena wo akye.” Good morning.
Afia bowed her head respectfully. “Yaa Ena.” Thank you, Respected Elder Woman.
She swirled the water around a bit, rinsing the sand.
“Ah.” In her hair she had several feathers from various Suriname birds. They weren’t there purely as ornamentation. The tips had been cut off and the hollows inside plugged with wild cotton. She pulled out one of these quills and unplugged it. Then, with wood tweezers, she carefully teased out the shiny grain of gold she had just spotted, and stored it inside the quill.
“Keep up the good work,” said Ama. She then showed the other Ashanti a sample of the sand that Afia had been panning.
* * *
“What’s this? What’s this?” asked Antoa. “Yes, it is gold.” He raised his voice, “Afia has found a fine nugget. Let us dam this creek, so we can dig into the mother-of-gold.” He meant the richest layer of gravel.
Ama put her lips beside Afia’s ear and whispered. “The hen knows when it’s daybreak, but allows the rooster to make the announcement.”
* * *
Elias finished writing his note, and left it where the master would find it. Hopefully not right away, however.
He swung the sack containing the last of his gear over his shoulder, and slowly opened the door a crack. He stuck his head out and looked both ways to make sure the coast was clear.
Then . . . he gurgled as the door was closed and held, trapping his head.
“Where do you think you’re going, young Elias?” And then his master’s hand closed on the nape of his shirt, and pulled him inexorably back into the room.
* * *
Elias sat on the floor in the corner of the room, eyes downcast, as Master Carpenter Lorenz Baum examined the contents of the sack. “It appears you are ready to embark on some great adventure. Care to tell me about it?”
The silence grew.
“If there’s anything a carpenter can find quickly enough, if needed, it’s a nice, long, hefty stick. . . .”
“Note.” Elias muttered.
“Note what?”
“I put a note in your Bible. Thought you wouldn’t find it until Sunday.”
“You’re in no position to be critical, Elias. Let me see . . . uh-huh . . . uh-huh . . . Very generous of you, offering to pay me double the usual apprenticeship release fee once you returned victoriously from the gold fields of the Marowijne.” He crumpled the note, and tossed it into Elias’ lap.
“Tell me, Elias, did you listen to Maria’s lecture on gold mining?”
A vigorous nod.
“I suppose I am not surprised; I remember it was well attended. It was doubtless more romantic sounding than the ones on rubber or bauxite. I can assure you that I paid close attention to what she said. I bet you’ve forgotten that she said that even in a gold rush, most miners made less money than they would have digging ditches.”
“But if you struck it rich—”
“Well, Elias, I’d bet my last thaler that it’s easier to get rich selling equipment to the gold miners, than trying to find it yourself.
“So this is what I propose. You tell me who is planning to go treasure hunting, and help me make and sell them wooden pans and rockers and whatnot. And once one of the colonists—not an Ashanti—finds gold, I will release you from your contract, if that’s still what you want.
“But for now, put this stuff back where it belongs, get some sleep . . . and don’t forget that we old master craftsmen are very light sleepers . . .”
* * *
Sometime later, the Patientia, a small Dutch fluyt, made its way up the Suriname River. The captain’s intent had been to make his New World landfall in the Windward Islands of the Caribbean. However, a hurricane had forced him to divert southward, out of harm’s way. He then decided to make just a short stop at Gustavus, for drinking water and fresh fruit.
But Lorenz and Elias had set up a stall in the market square, where they were selling dugout canoes, mining equipment, instructions, and maps.
Within twenty-four hours, the entire crew of the Patientia had bought prospecting gear, deserted, and crossed the Suriname like a swarm of locusts looking for crops to devour.
A day later, the first and second mates decided that the crew would not be reappearing any time soon, and joined the gold rush.