In a pivotal scene in the novella, the enslaved Babo offers to shave the face and neck of Captain Cereno, his apparent “master.” At first, Captain Delano is pleased with this scene, which seems to reflect a high degree of trust and affection between master and slave. However, various subtle details suggest to Delano that things are not as they seem. He uses a series of closely related metaphors that compare their behavior to that of actors in a play:
To Captain Delano’s imagination, now again not wholly at rest, there was something so hollow in the Spaniard’s manner, with apparently some reciprocal hollowness in the servant’s dusky comment of silence, that the idea flashed across him, that possibly master and man, for some unknown purpose, were acting out, both in word and deed, nay, to the very tremor of Don Benito’s limbs, some juggling play before him. Neither did the suspicion of collusion lack apparent support, from the fact of those whispered conferences before mentioned. But then, what could be the object of enacting this play of the barber before him?
Noting that there is something “hollow” in the behavior of both Captain Cereno and Babo, Delano begins to feel as if they are “acting out [...] some juggling play before him.” He imagines them as clownish entertainers who have put on a play for his benefit, acting out “this play of the barber” for him as their audience. Delano dismisses this thought, noting that there could be no “object” or goal of such an activity, though later events in the narrative affirm his suspicions.
When observing the surprising behavior of the enslaved individuals aboard the Spanish ship, Captain Delano uses a series of metaphors related to the police:
Some prominent breaches not only of discipline but of decency were observed. These Captain Delano could not but ascribe, in the main, to the absence of those subordinate deck-officers to whom, along with higher duties, is entrusted what may be styled the police department of a populous ship. True, the old oakum-pickers appeared at times to act the part of monitorial constables to their countrymen, the blacks [...]
Delano is surprised by what strikes him as a complete breakdown of discipline and hierarchy aboard the San Dominick. A Captain himself, Delano expects Captain Cereno to serve as the voice of authority on the vessel, assisted by a number of other Spanish officers who would help him control the enslaved people on board. Assuming that Cereno is either too weak or passive to impart much authority, Delano notes what he regards as “prominent breaches” of “discipline” and “decency” on the ship, including a violent attack on a white man by a Black man. Usually, Delano notes, the “subordinate deck-officers” on a ship serve as its “police department,” a metaphor that suggests that it is their duty to maintain order. In their absence, however, some of the older Black men onboard have come to serve as “monitorial constables” who police the other Black individuals on the ship. These metaphors suggest that Delano imagines the captains and officers of a ship as a form of at-sea law enforcement.
