PEG BOY
Authors: R. G. Berube
PEG BOY
BY
R. G. BERUBE
Text
copyright © 1983 R. G. Berube – All Rights Reserved-
Table of Contents
Many
unorthodox ways of life were allowed during the early days of the California
Gold Rush. The demands of the times and a great influx of races forced tolerance.
San Francisco became notorious for its lawlessness, its gambling casinos, and
its bordellos and madams. The Barbary Coast became a part of California’s
history and San Francisco’s heritage. The Barbary Coast was an area near the
waterfront that law enforcers found almost impossible to control. Those who
operated establishments there, refused to abide by the gradually encroaching
law and order being established by the other parts of town. For along the
Barbary Coast any vice could be bought.
There also, a
little-known vice guarded with great secrecy were the male houses of
prostitution. Some of the more clandestine operations offered young boys. Most
of these boys had few means of survival other than their wits and bodies. Known
as
peg-houses
,
[1]
the places provided boys as young as seven and as old as seventeen to those who
were able to meet the extraordinary prices. These houses were often operated by
unscrupulous and ruthless men who provided the boys with drugs, thereby chaining
them by their addictions. These could become hopeless addicts unable to
function as anything but subservient slaves to their masters.
An
international
slave trade
supplied these houses with boys who were
enticed or kidnapped from all over the world. Peg-houses were common in the
Orient. The custom was brought to the West by seamen who had grown fond of such
pleasures. Boys were trained to service customers by having their anuses
enlarged by wooden peg of gradually increasingly size. They would be offered
for selection while sitting on stools that displayed the properly sized peg
protruding from the bottom to indicate the size penis that each boy had been trained
to accommodate. This is the story of Santiago Cali, one such boy.
Author
T
he
year was 1848. The world, relatively peaceful at this time, was soon to be
rocked back on its heels by a discovery to be made in a remote part of the
Sierra foothills. A surge of madness would be unleashed that would tear
thousands from their homelands to face bitter cold, deprivations,
disappointments, and even death for the prospects of gold at the end of their
rainbows. That rainbow’s end was Sutter’s Mill.
In an equally
remote area of the Peruvian Andes another disturbance was to uproot a
population grown accustomed to shock and readjustment. The land itself was
continuously evolving, its shy-high mountains pushing even higher. Each surge
produced movements that sent shock waves of sometimes devastating destruction.
Earthquakes were expected catastrophes seen as an injection of God’s
displeasure. In a strange way quakes produced rejuvenation forcing the new to
replace the old.
The simple
people of the mountains adjusted with a perseverance that never wavered. They
were used to life and death and understood the balance that initiated an
unfailing will to survive in the face of disaster. With bent heads they prayed
and buried their dead. Some who survived lived to a very old age. The altitude
of the Andes demands an uncommonly strong constitution. At a young age people
walk the mountains paths and breathe the thin air that forges the heart into
rock.
On the morning
his son, Emelio, embarked on a routine journey to Lima, Don Emilio did not know
the day would change their lives forever. Going to Lima had become customary to
sell the furniture Don Emilio made in his shop. The merchants to whom Don
Emilio sold his pieces had been buying from the Calis’ for as long as anyone
could remember, a family tradition handed down from father to son so that no
one thought to do things any differently. It was understood that the oldest
boy, Emilio, would follow in his father’s trade and business. He had begun to
drive the cart filled with merchandise without his father, Don Emelio,
attending. Emilio was sometimes accompanied by his friend Fidel. The boys were
of the same age and neither could remember a time without the other.
Emilio and
Fidel had gone to Lima often. These deliveries took no more than a day and
sometimes the boys traveled by night to reach home. On one of these excursions
Fidel had returned after two days without Emilio. He had been accompanied by
the Lima police who informed Don Emilio that his oldest son had been killed in
a robbery in which Fidel had been wounded. Thugs had followed the boys from the
city into the countryside, believing them to be carrying a large sum of money.
Having
survived, Fidel felt an even closer bond with the Calis. He had known Santiago
from the boy’s birth and had watched him grow and had played with him. Emilio
had come to suspect Fidel’s inclinations and began to take advantage of their
friendship so that the friendship turned into a relationship of coercion and
intimidation. Fidel shifted his affections to Santiago who was so different
from his brother. With only two years separating them the brothers were vastly
different in emotions and outlook. Where Emilio was loud and forceful, Santiago
was gentle and kind. Where Emilio’s features were harsh, his brother was a
beautiful child and when children begin to lose their beauty as they come to
the awkward years, Santiago became more beautiful. The brothers grew further
apart as Emilio became abusive, resenting the attention given to his younger
brother because of his looks. Fidel saw the mistreatment and often came to
Santiago’s defense.
The two boys
spent much time together trying to avoid Emilio’s constant ill-temper. To most
of the village it seemed Fidel had adopted the young Santiago as his brother
because he had none of his own. But in fact, Santiago had accepted Fidel as his
lover in his twelfth year having had an attraction to him for as long as he
could remember. He had thought of Fidel at all times of the day and night and
his thoughts were those that boys do not have of other boys unless they are
maricones
.
A bonding was
forged in spite of how hard Fidel tried to suppress the feelings that he could
not seem to control. The friendship grew and with it came love. One evening as
they walked the high road that led them to a ledge that overlooked the valley,
Fidel ventured to talk about those feelings. He had taken notice of how the boy
took every opportunity to be with him and to touch him. Fidel sensed that
Santiago was feeling the same urges and yearnings that were sweeping though his
own body. He explained how he found himself drifting away from Emilio because
he had been forced to
do thing
that Fidel admitted he would have done
willingly. The intimidation had diminished his feelings for his Emelio. To
Fidel’s surprise Santiago did not appear disturbed. He did not know that
Santiago had been aware of their sexual activities and that having understood
the nature of this relationship; he had set out to seduce Emilio and had met
his goal.
The brothers
had always slept together. In the late hours when Emilio thought Santiago
asleep he would masturbate and awaken him with the movements of the rocking of
the bed, arousing the boy’s sexuality and making him hard. Santiago waited for
the right moment. One night when he knew Emilio was still awake; he began to
perform the movements on himself and allowed himself to be caught by his older
brother. He feigned embarrassment and begged Emilio not to tell his father or
mother, promising that he would do the movements on Emilio if he kept his
secret. Santiago made his brother think that each time he was forced to
masturbate him; it was being done through fear and with reluctance. This continued
up to the time of Emilio’s death. During these relations Santiago held the
image of Fidel in his mind. It was Fidel that he took into his mouth and Fidel
whom he stroked until the wetness came into his hand. He imagined Fidel lying
beside him and he yearned to embrace the body when he could not.
Now he felt
light-headed as he listened to Fidel speak of the very emotions and fantasies
he had himself wished. Fidel found the boy willing and wanting. They approached
each other cautiously, each recognizing the differences from those they had
experienced with Emilio. The first time was wonderful beyond belief. Each
amazed the other with the ardor and intensity of their passion. They expressed
love and found a deepened meaning to the word. Although their lovemaking was
not skilled and they wondered if the experience would change the nature of what
they felt for each other, they allowed themselves free reign and the
naturalness of their caring flowered into excitement and fulfillment. Without
thought each took the other as a man takes a woman and neither gave concern for
the implication of the behavior. Evenings, they would meet and walk to their
loving-place and sometimes, they did nothing but talk and laugh together.
Santiago had
shown aptitude with woodwork at an early age. He became to the father what his
brother could not be. Santiago took over the task of driving the wagon to Lima
whenever there were pieces needing to be sold. Fidel continued to help and was
happy to spend the time alone with Santiago. Don Emilio paid the boys a little commission
in hopes that Fidel’s parents’ would not object to his accompanying his son. He
also arranged for all payments for the goods sold to be deposited in a Lima
bank, where he would periodically retrieve the money himself. Don Emelio felt
relieved that the boys had become close friends and could see that they were
happy. He liked Fidel and saw him as gentle and sensitive.
The boys
looked forward to the Lima journey. It usually took them two days to complete
and offered time for them to be together and away from inquisitive eyes. In
Lima there was an inn at which his father had made a habit of staying. The boys
were never bothered. They were able to give to each other fully and the
wonderful feeling of going to sleep in each other’s arms was one that made them
eagerly anticipate the journey. It was this that Santiago thought of when he
doubled his efforts in his father’s workshop. It was because of this work that
he was able to get away with his lover where it would have been otherwise
impossible. Don Emilio was content to remain at home with his wife, having come
to see the boys as capable of their charge.
Florienda Cali
had been born in Cadiz, Spain and had never become accustomed to the Peruvian
climate. She found the winters to be especially taxing. The excessive
cloudiness and the moist air from the ocean caught in the dome that hung over
Lima for so many weeks of the year, caused her to feel ill. Her bones ached and
her disposition became sullen. After marriage to Don Emilio she returned with
him to his village. Deeply in love with his new bride, he turned all his
attention to her to distract her mind. He tried to keep her occupied with
social functions and with church affairs. Padre Lipolito understood her plight
and found many things for her to do.
After the
death of her eldest son Florienda seemed to quietly give up the little pleasure
she found in living. She seldom left her room and she slept through many hours
of the day and night. She could often be found wandering the house or in the
garden when everyone was asleep. Her mind was constantly occupied with
childhood memories of her convent days in Cadiz. Once, Santiago had come into
her room to kiss her goodnight before he went out to meet Fidel and had found
her sitting by the window with tears in her eyes as she looked beyond the
distant hills, her hand lovingly touching a map of Spain in the open gazetteer
in her lap. She did not hear him when he wished her well.
Don Emilio and
Florienda slowly drifted apart and became more silent with each other. His
affection for her did not grow less. He understood her retreat and allowed her
the memories without disturbing them. In a sense it was an escape for each –
she to her inner world and he to the bottle to which he had so recently become
attached at the close of each day. He stayed faithful to her but they no longer
lived as husband and wife. Santiago found the love he so desperately missed,
with Fidel.
The moon was
high and full. They had reached the last hilltop before starting the decent to
the city of Lima – all twinkling, a glow rising in the evening sky. The ocean,
like a sheet of silver, was reflected the moon’s brightness. Everything around
them was softened by night shadows. Santiago loved the feeling of being alone
with Fidel, able to share the magic he felt surrounding them. It was always a
private time when the final rays of the sun were gradually extinguished by the
horizon. The evening brought the togetherness he so treasured and he loved the
sense of comfort when they were together. He moved closer to Fidel and rested
his head on the older boy’s shoulder.
Santiago
thought about how they had shared so much in the past few months; how Fidel had
helped him endure the increasing distance that had come between him and his
parents. And he thought of how he had helped Fidel fill the void of Emilio’s
absence. He felt closer to his friend than he had ever felt toward anyone! With
an arm around the older boy’s waist, he held onto him tightly. Fidel turned to
kiss him and the exchange was kept private by the darkness. Only when they came
upon someone on the road did Fidel move discreetly away. But there were few
travelers on the road this night and their intimacy went uninterrupted. The
evening’s silence was broken only occasionally by the distant sound of howling
dogs. Something was disturbing the animals again. They had noticed a similar
response earlier in the day as dogs and birds seemed not at peace.
“Have you felt
anything, Fidel?” Santiago wondered if there had been another tremor they had
not noticed.
“Nothing! You
think they are howling for the same reason they did this morning?”
“I don’t know.
I just had a strange feeling. It may be my imagination. Father told me to be
particularly cautious, as he sensed the earth was about to move again.”
Fidel held
Santiago’s hand.
“No point in
worrying about it. My mother told me of the time she was caught when the earth
trembled badly and may were killed. She said nothing could be done but to go
outdoors. There, nothing can fall on you except a tree if you stay away from
buildings. What would you do if you were caught in an earthquake?”
Santiago
smiled. “I would never leave your side,” he said. “I think often of how
terrible it would be not to have you. That is when I realize how much I love
you!”
Talk of love
always made Fidel a little nervous. He acknowledged the depth of his own
feelings for the boy but he felt uncomfortable talking about them. It made him
feel less a man. Santiago had so much enthusiasm that he did not have
difficulty expressing himself. Sometimes the lack of words made no difference
and being close to Fidel and feeling his love was enough. So they said little.
They descended
into the plains of Lima. At this hour the streets still teemed with life. Señor
Diaz, the innkeeper, was happy to see them and prepared a room. The mule and
cart were locked in the stable. As soon as they had eaten they returned to the
room and there disrobed so quickly that all the clothing was left scattered
about the floor. Each felt the other’s passion as they threw their arms around
each other, the hardness between them demanding satisfaction. Fidel marveled at
Santiago’s beauty and each time he looked at him he was newly awed by the boy’s
exceedingly graceful body. He would look at this boy not yet a man, yet not a
boy – his body already showing the signs of a promising manhood. Santiago had a
child’s face; his eyes so dark that he seemed always deep in thought until his
passion was sparked and then they would fire and his face would take on an
intensity beyond his years. Santiago’s lips and pouting mouth were wonderfully
enticing when he smiled and showed his gleaming teeth. The smile never failed
to melt the hearts of all who saw it. Santiago’s body was slight in the hips
but his flanks were long and sensuous like a cat’s. His skin was like satin and
as Fidel sat straddling Santiago’s chest his passion mounted as he let his eyes
travel over the boy’s body. He loved the dark nipples that hardened when teased
and bitten. He adored the fine, soft hair that began at the boy’s navel and led
to the triangular patch of even softer down surrounding the thick penis. At
twelve, Santiago was endowed beyond his years. This had already been noticed by
the women of his village and he would feel embarrassed when they stared at the
place between his legs. His clothing fit snugly and it was impossible to hide
such a treasure. There was talk among the girls who speculated as to who among
them would be the first recipient of the impressive member. There was not a
woman in the village that had not compared his size with that of her husband’s,
and most found their men sadly wanting. Fidel knew he would be the envy of many
if they knew the boy to be his whenever he wanted him. No other youth in the
village or city was able to match Santiago’s looks.