The Nigger Of The "Narcissus": A Tale Of The Forecastle

James Wait, is a dying West Indian black sailor on board the merchant ship Narcissus sailing from Bombay to London. Wait, suffering from tuberculosis, becomes seriously ill during the voyage, and his plight arouses the humanitarian sympathies of many of the crew, five of whom rescue him from his deck cabin during a storm, placing their own lives and the ship at risk. However, the ship’s master Captain Alistoun and an old sailor named Singleton remain concerned primarily with their duties to the ship and appear indifferent to Wait’s condition.