Chapter 2 Summary

Gemmy has a memory of lying on the beach, half in the water and covered with salt. Everything seemed to burn his body. There were naked, black women and children who had found him and given him water. He later found himself near a fire and dragged himself nearer to sit among the people. He found he could make faces to amuse them. They fed him some scraps and started preparations to break camp. When they left, he followed. They made camp later and he sat again with them. They watched him carefully, but made no effort to stop him.

Gemmy soon learned to live among them. He was fast and could grab food quickly and stuff it down when necessary. He could mimic and picked up their language rapidly. He realized how close they were to the land and how much they...