Narrative,
of a five years’ expedition, against the
Revolted Negroes of Surinam,
in Guiana, on the WILD COAST of
South America;
from the year 1772, to 1777:
elucidating the History of that Country, and
describing its Productions, Viz.
Quadrupedes, Birds, Fishes, Reptiles, Trees, Shrubs, Fruits, & Roots;
with an account of the Indians of Guiana, & Negroes of Guinea.
By CAPTN. J. G. STEDMAN.
illustrated with 80 elegant Engravings, from drawings made by the Author.
——Vol. II.——
“O quantum terræ, quantum cognoscere cœli
Permissum est! pelagus quantos aperimus in usus!
Nunc forsan grave reris opus; sed læta recurret
Cum ratis, et carum cum jam mihi reddet Iolcon;
Quis pudor heu! nostros tibi tune audire labores!
Quam referam visas tua per suspiria gentes!”
Valerius Flaccus.
London. Printed for J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard, & J. Edwards, Pall Mall, 1796.
[[i]]
CONTENTS.
CONTENTS of the SECOND VOLUME.
[Chapter XVI.] Page 1.
A Reinforcement of fresh Troops arrives from Holland—Encampment on Mount Magdenberg, in Tempatee Creek—Remarkable Instance of Lunacy in a Negro—Mountains—Beautiful Views—The Sick sent to Europe.
[Chapter XVII.] Page 25.
New Instances of unprecedented Barbarity—Occurrences on Mount Magdenberg—Prices of Provisions at Paramaribo—Description of a new Animal—Great Mortality amongst the Troops in Tempatee and Comewina River.
[Chapter XVIII.] Page 48.
A Tyger taken in the Camp—Fatal Rencounter of a Party with the Rebels, who killed several of the Troops, and forced the rest back—Description of a Planter of Surinam—Contagious Distempers—Suicide—Scene of primitive Nature. [[ii]]
[Chapter XIX.] Page 65.
The Troops march to Barbacoeba, in the River Cottica—Frenzy Fever—Gratitude in an English Sailor—Description of the Government of Surinam—Some Account of the Emigrant Americans during the late War—Scene of unprecedented Generosity.
[Chapter XX.] Page 87.
A Rebel Negro described—Bush-fighting—Sentimental Expressions of the African Blacks—The Town of Gado-Saby taken by Colonel Fourgeoud—Superstition—Wonderful Expedients—Great Generalship in the Enemy.
[Chapter XXI.] Page 118.
Spirited Conduct of the Rangers and Rebels—A Skirmish—Scene of brotherly Affection—The Troops return to Barbacoeba—Plan of the Field of Action—A Slave killed by the Oroocookoo Snake.
[Chapter XXII.] Page 137.
Alarm in the Pirica River—A Detachment marches to its Relief—Ambuscade—Wonderful Effect from the Biting of a Bat—Scene in a Quagmire—Sketch of the Inquisition and Return of the Troops to Cormoetibo Creek. [[iii]]
[Chapter XXIII.] Page 160.
Second March to Gado-Saby—Account of a living Skeleton—Beautiful Landscapes—The Commander in Chief falls sick, and leaves the Camp—Some Rebels taken—Discourse on the Existence of Mermaids—Heavy Rains—Disease—Famine—Misery.
[Chapter XXIV.] Page 185.
Two Volunteer Companies raised, of free Mulattoes and Negroes—Description of the Arrowouka Indian Nation—Colonel Fourgeoud’s Regiment receives Orders to sail for Europe—Countermanded—Re-enter the Woods—Trade of the Colony—Description of a Cacao Estate—Sample of Sable Heroism.
[Chapter XXV.] Page 216.
Singular Method of detecting a Theft—Rencounter between the Rangers and Rebels—Amazonian Action of a black Girl—Wonderful Sagacity in wild Bees—The Regiment receives a second Order to return to Europe.
[Chapter XXVI.] Page 241.
The Troops on Board—Again ordered to disembark—Great Dejection—Mutiny—Insolent Conduct of an Owca Negro Captain—Near two hundred Sick sent to Holland—General Description of the African Negroes. [[iv]]
[Chapter XXVII.] Page 291.
The Rape of the Sabines—Shocking Execution, and African Fortitude—Description of an Indigo Plantation—The Spanso Bocko, a Punishment—The Troops again re-enter the Woods—The Expedition draws to a Conclusion.
[Chapter XXVIII.] Page 314.
The Rebels fly for Protection to Cayenne—Third March to Gado-Saby—A second Re-inforcement of Troops arrive from Holland—Shipwreck of the Transport Paramaribo—March to Rio Comewina—Dismal Picture of Distress and of Mortality—The Peace of the Colony restored.
[Chapter XXIX.] Page 345.
Some Account of a remarkable Negro—The Troops prepare for Europe—Description of a Coffee Plantation—Plan of Reform for the Increase of Population, and universal Happiness—One more Instance of horrid Barbarity; and Example of Humanity—The Regiment embarks.
[Chapter XXX.] Page 381.
The Ships weigh Anchor, and put to Sea—Review of the Troops—Account of the Voyage—The Arrival in the Texel—Description of the Pampus near Amsterdam—Final Debarkation in the Town of Bois-le-Duc—The Death of Colonel Fourgeoud—End of the Expedition—Short History of the late Scotch Brigade—Conclusion. [[1]]
NARRATIVE
OF AN
EXPEDITION TO SURINAM.
CHAP. XVI.
A Reinforcement of fresh Troops arrives from Holland—Encampment on Mount Magdenberg, in Tempatee Creek—Remarkable Instance of Lunacy in a Negro—Mountains—Beautiful Views—The Sick sent to Europe.
I now once more return to the principal object of my Journal, viz. Fourgeoud’s military operations. I have before mentioned, that a supply of fresh troops was expected to reinforce our decayed little army; and, on the 30th of January, 1775, the news came to Paramaribo that the transport ship Maastroom, Captain Eeg, was arrived in the river Surinam, and come to an anchor before the fortress Amsterdam, with Colonel Seyburgh and two divisions, consisting together of one hundred and twenty men, under his command, two more divisions being expected.
The following day I went down with a row-boat to welcome them; and having dined on board together, the [[2]]ship weighed anchor, and I sailed up with them till before the fortress Zelandia, where they moored, and were saluted by a few guns. Among the officers, I with pleasure recollected my old ship-mate, poor Ensign Hesseling, whom we had left behind us on the Helder, according to every appearance dying of the small-pox, when we sailed from the Texel, the 24th of December, 1772. This young man, who now joined us with rank of second lieutenant, had been peculiarly unfortunate since his recovery; for, soon after taking a passage on board another ship for Surinam, the vessel encountered a gale in the Bay of Biscay; when off Cape Finisterre, her quarter-gallery and rudder were beat away; besides which she lost her fore-mast and main-top-mast. In this dangerous condition, having the wind against her for Lisbon, the vessel run with difficulty into Plymouth. From this place Mr. Hesseling took a passage for France, on board a small sloop loaded with coals, with which he had no better success; for she ran, through the inadvertence of the master, on the Caskets, which rocks went through her bottom, and she foundered immediately. Before the vessel sunk, however, he had time to break open his chest, and take out some linen and other necessaries, with which he arrived in a crazy yaul at Brest. He now took shipping again for Amsterdam, on board a Dutchman; but the master ran the ship a-ground, and he had nearly been once more wrecked. Nevertheless he arrived safe at the Texel, whence he had twice in vain attempted [[3]]to set out for South America; and on this last passage it blew so violently hard, that all the boats, the sheep, the pigs, and the poultry, were washed overboard. Till this date I had been the oldest officer in the corps, excepting only Colonel Fourgeoud.
On the arrival of the troops, our commander invited them to a dinner, which consisted of salt beef, pork, barley, and hard pease, of which I had the honour to partake, to my no small amusement, when I observed the significant looks which were directed by these newcomers on their commander and his entertainment. In the evening we conducted them to the play-house, where the death of Cæsar, and Crispin Doctor, were performed, the one exactly as laughable as the other. I must however confess, that I was better entertained the next day, when the governor gave to all a superb dinner and supper, where the strangers seemed to be as much surprised with the magnificence of the feast, as they had been the day before amazed with Colonel Fourgeoud’s frugality.
Having met at this table with some excellent preserved fruits, among which was the guava, I will embrace an opportunity which is barren of incident to say something of it. The guaba, or guava-tree, grows to about twenty-four feet high, with leaves like those of a plum-tree. It is light-coloured, and the wood of little consequence; but the fruit, which is yellow, oval, and [[4]]about the size of a gold pippin, incloses a reddish pulp, full of small seeds; the pulp is very sweet, and may be eaten raw, or made into marmalade or jelly, and then it is delicious. There are two species of guava; that which is the sweetest has the smallest quantity of seeds.
On the 5th of February, the troops that were so lately landed were sent to the upper parts of the river Comewina to be encamped. I speak of the privates, for most of the officers remained to partake of a feast at the house of a Mr. Mercellus; by whose command (to crown the banquet) half a dozen negroes continued blowing the trumpet and French horn in the room where we dined, till the company were absolutely deafened by discordancy and noise.
View of L’Esperance, or the Hope, on the Commewine.
View of Clarenbeek, on the River Commewine.
London, Published Decr. 1st. 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
On the 6th, the whole corps, without exception, received orders to leave Paramaribo, and to encamp at Magdenberg, a mountain near the Tempatee Creek, in the upper parts of the river Comewina, to which, as I have just mentioned, the reinforcement was already dispatched. Having, therefore, prepared myself to set out on my fourth campaign, and taken leave of my little family and friends, I repaired to the water side, to set out in the same barge with Colonel Seyburgh, but who, erroneously supposing that the troops which came with him from Holland were a distinct corps from those arrived with Fourgeoud in 1773, made the negroes shove off the boat in my presence, when I was not a stone’s cast from it, and left [[5]]me on the beach, to my utter surprize and mortification. I knew Fourgeoud had swore that he should “dance just as much to his pipes as the youngest ensign in the regiment;” and in that he was perfectly right: I therefore strenuously supported the chief against his antagonist, and setting off immediately with another boat, soon overtook him, to his astonishment, when we all went ashore at the plantation Vossenburgh, in the river Comewina. The next day we came to the estate Arentrust, having passed the heavy barges that departed from Paramaribo on the 5th; and on the 10th we made the Hope, where having spent so many months, I here present the reader with a view of that estate, and of the estate Clarenbeek, where still our hospital was kept. This day Colonel Fourgeoud also came up the river, and slept at Wajampibo.
On the 11th, we arrived at the plantation Crawassibo, where we passed the night. Here the overseer, a Mr. De Bruyn, was so very impertinent, that, as I already had no abundance of affection for the fraternity of overseers, I gave him such a sound beating that, with a bloody face, he suddenly decamped from the estate in a small canoe with one negro, and in this trim, at twelve o’clock at night, like Banquo the ghost, appeared before the amazed Fourgeoud; who thought proper to give him no other consolation than to dismiss him with a hearty curse.
On the 12th we arrived safe at Magdenberg, viz. [[6]]Fourgeoud, the officers, and the barges with the privates. From the Hope, the estates now began to appear thinner; and after passing Goet-Accord, about ten or twelve miles farther upwards, not a cultivated spot was to be seen, the plantations having been all laid in ashes by the rebels in 1757, as I have already mentioned, a small place excepted, just below Magdenberg, which is, I think, called the Jacob, and where a few negroes are kept to cut timber. The river above Goet-accord becomes very narrow, being lined on each side with impenetrable brush-wood, like the river Cottica, between Devil’s-Harwar and Patamaca; and the Tempatee Creek, which may be considered as the source of the whole river Comewina, becomes also much narrower. Magdenberg, which is about a hundred miles from Paramaribo, was formerly an estate, but has now not a vestige of cultivation left, a poor old orange-tree excepted, and is at present neither more or less than a barren desolate mountain.
Here we found the surface of the earth in some places covered with a kind of strata, that had the appearance of mother-of-pearl, and lay scattered in small scales, about the size of an English shilling. In many places of Surinam are found the marks of fossils and ores, as I have already hinted. Indeed, iron ore is common, and I have no doubt but gold and silver mines might be met with if the Dutch would be at the expence, and persevere in making the discovery. I have already mentioned the Marawina diamond, and white and red agate, which are [[7]]often seen in the upper parts of the river Surinam. On this mountain we also found the air cooler and more pure, and of course more healthy than in any other part of the colony.
On the 17th the news reached us, that the transport ship, the Maria Helena, with the remaining two divisions of one hundred and twenty men, commanded by Captain Hamel, had also arrived in the river Surinam on the 14th instant. Thus the reinforcements together consisted of two hundred and forty men, and, on the 5th day of March, they all arrived in heavy barges at Magdenberg, where I may now say that Colonel Fourgeoud’s whole forces were assembled. The same day one hundred negro slaves also arrived, to carry the loads when we should march. One of the new negroes being missed from on board a military barge, and marks of blood discovered in it, the commanding officer, a Mr. Chatteauview, and a sentinel, were both put under an arrest to be tried for murder. On the same eventful day also, two of our captains fought a duel, in which one of them received a wound in his forehead.
On the 13th, a barge with provisions, coming from Paramaribo (shocking to relate!) found the negro that was missed on the 5th at the water’s edge, lying in the brushwood, with his throat cut from ear to ear, but still alive, the knife having missed the wind-pipe. This miserable apparition of skin and bone they took on board, and [[8]]brought to Magdenberg, where, by a skilful surgeon, Mr. Knolaert, the wound was sewed up, and the man surprisingly recovered, having lain nine days in that dreadful condition without any subsistence or covering whatever, and weltering in his own blood, even without a bandage. The week after I had nearly lost my own life by an accident. Two negroes of the estate Goet-Accord being employed in hunting and fishing for Fourgeoud, one of them, named Philander, proposed to me to accompany them in the wood, where we might chance to meet with some pingoes, or powesa; but a heavy shower of rain coming on, when we had only walked two miles, we determined to relinquish the project, and repair to the small spot called the Jacob for shelter, to gain which we were obliged to pass through a deep marsh. Having waded till up to our arm-pits, Philander, who was the finest man without exception that I ever saw, began to swim, as did his companion, with one hand, holding their fowling pieces above the water with the other, and desired me to follow them. This I tried, having nothing on but my shirt and trowsers; when, after swimming two or three strokes, I sunk to the bottom like a stone, with the weight of my musquet; but relinquishing it, I immediately rose to the surface, and begged that Philander would dive for it; who having secured his own to a mangrove, brought it up without difficulty. At this moment a thundering voice called out through the thicket,[[9]]—“Who somma datty? and another sooto sooto da Bonny kiry da dago? Who is that? Who is there? Fire! shoot! it is Bonny, kill the dog!”—and looking up, we saw the muzzles of six musquets presented upon us at a very little distance indeed. I instantly dived, but Philander answering that we belonged to Magdenberg, we were permitted to come on shore one by one at the Jacob, and found that these trusty negro slaves, having heard a flouncing in the water, and seeing three armed men in the marsh, took it for granted that the rebels were coming, headed by Bonny himself, for whom they had mistaken me, being almost naked and so much sun-burnt; besides my hair, which was short and curly, I entirely resembled a mulatto. Being refreshed with some rum, and having dried ourselves by a good fire, we now returned back to the Magdenberg, where I congratulated myself on my escape.
On the 19th, Colonel Fourgeoud being now supplied with fresh troops, sent a whole ship load of invalids to Holland, who sailed this day; and on February the 26th, my dear friend Heneman also sailed for Holland, in an extremely debilitated state.
Among the troops which sailed at the same time with Heneman were several officers, not very sick, but justly disheartened and disgusted at Fourgeoud’s injustice, in having stopped their preferment, as I have intimated in the end of the tenth chapter; while they now saw themselves superseded by raw youths, who were at school [[10]]at the time they were serving the colony in 1772. With this vessel sailed also the officers whom he had put under an arrest, the 16th December, 1774. Never was an hospital ship so ill provided with refreshments.
Blake Sculpt.
The Quato & Saccawinkee Monkeys.
London, Published Decr. 2nd, 1793, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
On the 21st, Fourgeoud reviewed with pleasure his recruited little army, where I was sorry the rangers did not appear. He now dispatched one hundred men as a patrole to reconnoitre the skirts of his new encampment, of which number I had the honour to be one. During this time nothing remarkable happened, except meeting with a large company of quatas, which being one of the most remarkable species of monkies in the world, from their affinity to the human race, I cannot tacitly pass over. One evening walking with my black boy Quaco without the camp, they came down so low to look at us, and threw small sticks and excrements at us, that we stopped, and I had an opportunity thoroughly to examine them. The quata, or quato, is very large, with an enormous tail: their arms and legs being covered over with long black hair, they make a very hideous appearance indeed; the more so, as the creature’s face is quite naked and red, with deep sunk eyes, which gives it much the appearance of an old Indian woman. It has short ears, and only four fingers without a thumb on its hands or fore feet, but it has five toes on the hinder feet, all of which have black nails. The extremity of its tail has a spiral turn inwardly; it is naked and callous, by its frequently [[11]]hanging to the branches of the trees; for when so employed, it serves the animal as a fifth limb. Most wonderful is the agility of these monkies in swinging from one tree to another, but I never saw them leap. Their throwing short sticks and excrements seems to be no more than a mimicking of the human actions without any purpose, as they neither have strength to throw far, nor dexterity to hit their objects, and if they befoul them it is by accident only. But what appears peculiarly remarkable is, that when one is hurt by a musket or arrow, the poor animal instantly claps its hand on the wound, looks at the blood, and with the most piteous lamentations ascends to the very top of the tree, in which he is assisted by his companions; where, hanging by the tail, he continues to bewail his fate, till by the loss of blood he grows totally faint, and drops down dead at the feet of his adversaries.
It is not so extraordinary that one of this species, when wounded, should be assisted by his companions in climbing; but that they should have so much knowledge in botany, as to procure vulnerary herbs, and chew and apply them to the wound, is what I cannot credit, though it is so confidently asserted by a late traveller: and as to the assistance they give in passing a river, by holding each other’s tails, and swinging till the lowermost is thrown up to the branch of a high tree, though I have a great opinion of Ulloa, who relates it, and has given a print of [[12]]it in a vignette; since he does not say he saw it himself, I must take the liberty to doubt this fact[1], and even what he says he witnessed.
I must here mention another monkey that I saw at Colonel Fourgeoud’s house, which is in Surinam called the wanacoe, and is covered over with long black hair, like the quato; but its limbs are shorter and more hairy, and its face is a kind of dirty white. This monkey is the only one of the species that is not sociable, being constantly found alone; and so despicable is this solitary animal, that he is continually beaten and robbed of his food by all the others, from whom he is too lazy to escape, though too cowardly to fight.
Of the long-haired monkies, the saccawinkee is the smallest; indeed, I may say of all the monkies in [[13]]Guiana, if not in the world, being not much larger than a Norway rat.
This is a beautiful little animal, with blackish grey frizzled hair, a white face, and very bright shining eyes; its ears are large and naked, yet they are not very perceptible, being covered by the very long and white whiskers that grow round the whole visage of this little creature: its feet are not unlike those of a squirrel, and its tail is bushy and annulated. So very delicate is the saccawinkee, and so sensible of the cold, that scarcely one of them is brought to Europe alive, and if they are they very soon pine and die. The Dutch call them the shagarintee, from their being chagrined at the smallest trifle. In the annexed plate, I have delineated both those monkies, the large quato, and the small saccawinkee, thus endeavouring to correct with my pencil the deficiency of my pen.
On my return to the Magdenberg, I narrowly escaped being crushed to death by an enormous tree, which dropped by age just at my feet. These accidents frequently happen in the forest; this, however, only slightly wounded two or three of our marines. During this trip we had much rain, and were obliged to cross over a small creek. We cut down one of the palm-trees on the water’s edge, which falling across the river formed a temporary bridge.
I now paid a visit to the miserable negro who had been found with his throat cut, and who was so well as to [[14]]be able to converse; when he declared to me, that he committed this violent action with his own hand. The suspected officer and sentinel were, therefore, instantly acquitted. I asked him by what reason he had been incited to suicide? and he answered—“None.”
“I have,” said he, “as good a master and mistress as I could wish, and a family of my own that I much love: I had slept sound during the whole night till about four o’clock in the morning, when awaking I took my knife to pick my teeth with it, and instantaneously cut my throat without knowing why; but the moment after repented of what I had done. I then rose from my hammock and got into the canoe to wash myself, and try to bind up the wound, but stooping over the side and bleeding very fast, I turned faint and fell into the river. I was now no more able to get on board, or to cry for assistance. However, by struggling, I made shift to get on shore, where I fell down and lay helpless, till I was picked up by a boat going to Magdenberg; during all which time of nine days I had my perfect senses, and saw a tamanoir or ant-bear come to smell the putrid blood about my neck, who, on seeing me move, retired into the forest.”
I gave the poor man some Boston biscuits which I had got from Paramaribo, a large calibash with barley to make him some soup, and also some wine. This negro appeared to be about sixty years of age.
I now to my sorrow received a letter from Mr. Kennedy, [[15]]who was preparing to visit Holland, requesting that my boy Quaco might be returned to his estate. I accordingly sent him down with a letter, offering to buy him of his master as soon as it should be in my power to pay him.
On the 2d of April, Colonel Fourgeoud ordered all the sick remaining in the colony to Magdenberg, where he had erected an hospital and a large victualling magazine. Thus all the invalids from Clarenbeck arrived here, with surgeons, apothecaries, attendants, &c.: and here, in fact, as I said, the air was more healthy. At this period the old gentleman was particularly ill-natured, and abused both friend and foe without distinction; swearing, that not a soul should be exempt from duty, provided they could but stand on their legs. About this time a strong detachment was sent to the estate Bruyinsburgh in Comewina, where an insurrection was expected, the slaves refusing to work upon a Sunday; to which, however, they were driven by the lash of the whip.
It was now in the midst of the rainy season, that Fourgeoud declared his intention of scouring the woods; and, in consequence, gave orders for two strong columns to march the next day. The reason for chusing this season was, that if he could now dislodge the rebels they must starve for want, which would not be the case in the dry months, for then the forest abounds with fruits and roots of many kinds. This was, however, in my opinion, a false piece of generalship; if it be considered on the [[16]]other hand, the dreadful havock which the wet weather must produce among his troops, of which he killed, I suppose, at the rate of twenty to one rebel negro.
Fourgeoud was himself of a very strong constitution, having been used to hunting and shooting the whole of his life-time: to which he added temperance, and the daily use of his beloved ptisan.
His dress consisted of nothing but a waistcoat, through one of the button-holes of which he wore his sword: on his head he wore a cotton night-cap, with a white beaver hat above it, and in his hand a cane; but he seldom carried his musket or his pistols. I have seen him all in rags and bare-footed, like the meanest soldier.
On the morning of the 3d of April, at six o’clock, the two columns set out upon their march, the one commanded by Colonel Seyburg, the other by Fourgeoud; to which last I had the honour to belong. Our poor men were now loaded like asses. They were ordered to put their fire-locks in their knapsacks, of course the muzzles excepted: this was to keep them from the rain, which absolutely poured in torrents. Our course was south by east, up among the banks of the Tempatee Creek, where we soon came to swamps, and were marching in the water above our knees.
During the first day’s march we met some very pretty squirrels, which are of several kinds in this country. Those that we saw were brown, with the belly white, the tail not so bushy; nor were they, upon the whole, so large [[17]]as those of Europe. There are also white squirrels in this country with red eyes, and flying squirrels. These, it is well known, have no wings, but a membrane between the fore and hinder leg, being a part of their skin, which, when they leap, expands like the wing of a bat, and by this, like a parachute, they rest upon the air, and in their flights are carried to a considerable distance.
On the 4th of April we marched again, our course south by east, till two o’clock, when we changed our course to south-south-west.
This day we passed by piles of fine timber, that were left there to rot since 1757, when the estates were demolished by the negro slaves who were in rebellion. Among these were the purple-heart-tree, the iron-wood-tree, and the bourracourra, known in England by the name of Brazil.
The purple-heart-tree grows sometimes to the height of fourscore feet, and thick in proportion, with a smooth dark brown bark; the wood is of a beautiful purple colour and an agreeable smell, and is much esteemed on account of its weight and durability.
The iron-wood-tree, so called from the gravity and permanent quality of its timber, grows to about sixty feet in height, with a light-coloured bark. It is much valued by the natives as well as the Europeans, on account of its hardness in particular (resisting even the hatchet), and for taking a most beautiful bright polish. This wood sinks in water. [[18]]
The bourracourra, or brazil, grows to between thirty and forty feet high, but not very thick, with a reddish bark. The heart only of this tree is valuable, after the white pithy part is cut away, though then it is much diminished. This wood is as truly beautiful as it is useful, the colour being a fine crimson, variegated with irregular and fantastical black spots, from which, by the French, it is called bois de lettres. It is heavy, hard, and durable, though rather brittle, and is capable of taking the brightest polish; this last is scarce in Guiana, but the others are more plentiful, growing on the highest grounds; where also is found ebony. The heavy trees, being shaped into timbers for sugar-mills, are chiefly sent to the English West India islands, and often sold for the price of fifty guineas each piece.
The word of command being again given on the 5th, we unslung our hammocks, then marched south-south-east, and south by east, through deep and dangerous marshes up to our breasts in water, and in very heavy rains; in which helpless situation we were suddenly alarmed, not by a party of rebels, but by a company of large monkies, which we discovered in the tops of the trees, knocking a kind of nuts against the branches to break them for their contents, with the greatest regularity, as it were keeping time alternately at every stroke, while some of them threw down their burthens; and a nut falling from a considerable height, broke the head of one of our marines. The sound of breaking these nuts, we had mistaken for the rebel negroes cutting wood with an axe. [[19]]
In the evening we encamped near the Tempatee Creek; where we made large fires, and built comfortable huts; thus this night we slept protected from the wet. Here we found the best water I ever tasted: and in the camp I saw two remarkable lizards, the one called the devil of the woods, and the other agama, in this country. The first is an ugly small lizard of a deep brown or blackish colour, which runs with amazing swiftness up and down the trees; it has no scales, a large head, and it is said to bite, which is supposed to be an uncommon property in a lizard. The other is called the Mexican cameleon, which is remarkably splendid; and, like others of the kind, is endued with the property of changing its colour; but of its nature and qualities I can say little more, having never had the opportunity of a close examination. In Surinam there is also a species of lizard, known by the name of salamander, which also I never saw.
On the 6th we marched again, keeping due west till twelve o’clock, through very heavy rain and deep water; when we changed our course to the north, and passed over very high mountains, by many supposed to be pregnant with treasure.
“Rocks rich with gems, and mountains bright with mines,
That on the high equator ridgy rise;
Where many a bursting stream auriferous plays:
Majestic woods of every vigorous green,
Stage above stage high waving o’er the hills.”
Thomson. [[20]]
The two highest mountains in South America, are that peak of the Andes called Chimborazo, which measures 20,460 geometrical feet above the surface of the South Sea; having, though under the line, 4000 feet of its summit continually covered with snow. The other is that, on the slope of which is built the city of Quito, at the height of 9,370 feet, and is thought to be the highest inhabited land in South America, if not in the world.
Sprig of the Arnotta, or Roucou Tree.
London, Published Decr. th. 1701, by Johnson St. Paul’s Church Yard.
We still continued marching north, on the 7th, over mountains, from which, at intervals, we had undoubtedly the most enchanting prospects, as well from the wildness of the country, as the beautiful variegated verdure displayed in so many different shades through this amazing forest. Here I saw a bird which is called a woodcock, which appears to have much of the colour of those in Europe, but which flew very heavily; I was however informed, that it can run with incredible swiftness. But the objects which most attracted my attention were the arnotta-trees, a few of which we met with: of these I have copied one of the twigs with great exactness. This tree, which is also called the rowcow, or the orlean-tree, and by the Indians cossowee, may rather be stiled a shrub, as it does not grow above twelve feet in height. The leaves are greener on one side than the other, and are divided by fibres of a reddish brown colour, as is also the stem; the pods, which are as large as a small hen’s egg, are bristled like the outer husk of a chesnut. At first they are a beautiful rose colour, which, as they [[21]]ripen, changes to a dark brown, when they burst open and display a rich crimson pulp, in which are contained seeds that are black, like those of a grape. The use of this pulp I have already described, when speaking of the Aborigines or Indians; and now I present the reader with a view of it, though from necessity on a small scale:—A is the leaf above; B the same below; C the pod before it is yet ripe; D the same ripe, and exposing the crimson pulp; E the black seed covered over with part of the pulp. Here again I must take the liberty to observe, that the rowcow plant, exhibited by the celebrated Madam Merian, is very unlike the original that I saw; and to my great surprize she says it grows on a large tree.
Having crossed an arm of the Mapanee Creek in the evening, we once more returned to our camp at Magdenberg; Mr. Noot, one of our officers, and several others, were so ill, that they were carried in their hammocks upon poles by the negro slaves, and a great number were so very weak that they could scarcely support the weight of their emaciated bodies; but to complain of sickness was to mutiny, till they dropped down almost ready to expire. During this expedition, in which we still perceived nothing of the enemy, I was remarkably fortunate, having neither suffered by fatigue, nor been persecuted by extraordinary bad usage. The succeeding day Colonel Seyburg’s column arrived, having, like us, seen no appearance of the rebels.
On the 9th, my boy Quaco returned from Paramaribo; [[22]]his master, Mr. Walter Kennedy, having, to my great joy, sold him to me for the sum of five hundred Dutch florins, amounting with the expences to near fifty pounds, for which Colonel Fourgeoud very civilly gave me a bill on his agent. The payment of this faithful servant’s ransom, of course revived my impatience for the long-wished moment of emancipation of my poor Joanna and her boy; from whose new master I had not yet received any answer.
While we continued here, a negro brought me a beautiful butterfly, which I copied with all the correctness I was master of; and which I saw since in Madam Merian’s collection, where it is coloured very ill. This fly was a dark blue tinged with green, and variegated with spots like a peacock’s feather, and on each wing it had a spot of pale yellow; the under part of the wings were a charming crimson and purple; the body a pale red.—The caterpillar is green and yellow; it is crowned with eight horns on the head, and has two on the tail. About the same time Captain Fredericy returned also from traversing the woods. He had a corporal drowned by slipping off a tree in crossing over a creek; which accident frequently happened, but the men were generally picked up, except this poor fellow, who sunk to the bottom instantly with all his accoutrements.
The Blue & Crimson Butterfly of South America.
The Groe-groe, or Palm Tree Worms.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
Another negro also brought me a regale of groe-groe, or cabbage-tree worms, as they are called in Surinam. [[23]]
This reptile is produced in a tree called the mountain-cabbage-tree, which is one of the palm species. The worm grows to the size and thickness of a man’s thumb, is produced from the spawn of a black beetle, and is extremely fat. However disgusting to appearance, these worms are a delicious treat to many people, and they are regularly sold at Paramaribo. The manner of dressing them, is by frying them in a pan with a very little butter and salt, or spitting them on a wooden skewer. In taste they partake of all the spices of India, as mace, cinnamon, cloves, nutmegs, &c. Several species of these worms are produced in all the palm-trees when beginning to rot, but some are larger than others. They are all of a pale yellow colour, with black heads. In the plate annexed are represented the above-mentioned fine butterfly, and the cabbage-tree-worm, both of the natural size, taken from the life. By the Indians and negroes they are called toecoema.
On the 13th, a detachment departed for La Rochelle in Patamaca, and the following day a captain was sent with a few men back to the Hope, in Comewina, to protect the estates in that river.
On the same day, the miserable old negro who had cut his throat on the 5th day of March, but had since recovered, was seen by some slaves to enter the wood with a knife, from which he no more returned, being soon after found stabbed to death. We were afterwards informed by his master, that for some time before [[24]]he had attempted to do the same almost regularly from month to month.
On the 17th, the detachment returned from La Rochelle, where the troops of the Society were all sick.
Colonel Fourgeoud now treated me with the greatest politeness. And at his earnest request I presented him, on the 20th, with various drawings, representing himself and his troops struggling with the hardships annexed to the service they were sent on; and which drawings he told me were intended to shew the Prince of Orange and the States a specimen of what he and his marines did undergo in the forests of Guiana.
He now gave me leave, for fourteen days, to go to town to wish Mr. Kennedy a prosperous voyage to Europe. Availing myself therefore of his good humour, I left Magdenberg within one hour, and made such dispatch that I came to Paramaribo on the 22d, where I found my friends and little family all well, at the house of Mr. de la Mare, to which they were immediately sent from that of Mr. Lolkens, who had, during my last absence, entertained them, and treated them with the greatest attention and hospitality. [[25]]
[1] It is most probable, that Ulloa took the account from Acosta’s History of the West Indies. This is his account, taken from a translation printed in 1604.
“They leap where they list, winding their tails about a branch to shake it, when they will leap farther than they can at once; they use a pretty device, tying themselves by the tails one of another, and by this means make as it were a chain of many, then do they launch themselves forth.”
Acosta does not say he saw this himself; but to the following he professes he was an eye-witness. These are his words—“I saw one in Carthagene, in the governor’s house, so taught, as the things he did seemed incredible. They sent him to the tavern for wine, putting the pot in one hand and the money in the other; they could not possibly get the money out of his hand before he had his pot full of wine. If any children met him in the street, and threw stones at him, he would set his pot down and cast stones against the children, till he had assured his way; then would he return to carry home his pot. And, which is more, although he were a good bibber of wine, yet he would never touch it till leave was given him.” [↑]
CHAP. XVII.
New Instances of unprecedented Barbarity—Occurrences on Mount Magdenberg—Prices of Provisions at Paramaribo—Description of a new Animal—Great Mortality amongst the Troops in Tempatee and Comewina River.
The first visit I now made was to Mr. Kennedy, to bid him farewel; I then paid five hundred florins for the black boy, for which he gave me a receipt, and Quaco was mine. About this time I fell ill with a fever, which however lasted but a few days. Walking out on the 1st of May, I observed a croud of people along the water-side, before the house of Mr. S—lk—r, where appeared the dreadful spectacle of a beautiful young mulatto girl, floating on her back, with her hands tied behind, her throat most shockingly cut, and stabbed in the breast with a knife in more than eight or ten different places. This was reported to have been the work of that infernal fiend, Mrs. S—lk—r, from a motive of jealousy, suspecting that her husband might fall in love with this poor unfortunate female. This monster of a woman had before drowned a negro infant merely for crying, as I have said; nay, she was accused of still greater barbarity, were greater barbarity possible. Arriving one [[26]]day at her estate to view some negroes newly purchased, her eye chanced to fall on a fine negro girl about fifteen years of age, who could not even speak the language of the country. Observing her to be a remarkably fine figure, with a sweet engaging countenance, her diabolical jealousy instantly prompted her to burn the girl’s cheeks, mouth, and forehead with a red-hot iron; she also cut the tendon Achilles of one of her legs, thus rendering her a monster of deformity, and a miserable object as long as she lived: the poor victim not knowing what she had done to deserve so severe a punishment.
Some of the negroes now representing to this lady the many cruelties she daily inflicted, and supplicating her to be of a milder disposition; it was reported that she instantly knocked out the brains of a Quaderoon child, and caused the heads of two young negroes, its relations, to be chopped off, for having endeavoured to prevent her; these heads, when she had left the estate, were tied in silk handkerchiefs, and carried by the surviving relations to Paramaribo, where they were laid at the feet of the governor, with the following speech:
“This, your Excellency, is the head of my son, and this is the head of my brother, struck off by our mistress’s command, for endeavouring to prevent her murders. We know our evidence is nothing in a state of slavery; but, if these bloody heads be a sufficient proof of what we say, we only beg that such pernicious acts may be prevented in time to come; in acknowledgment [[27]]of which we will all chearfully shed our blood for the preservation and prosperity of our master, our mistress, and the colony.”
To this humble and pathetic remonstrance the answer was, that they were all liars, and should, as such, be flogged round the streets of Paramaribo; and this most iniquitous sentence was executed with the greatest severity.
Such is the consequence of the law of the colony, that the testimony of a negro is never to be taken. Had any one white person been present at the above carnage, the evidence would have been good, but even then this fury would have escaped by paying a fine of fifty pounds for each murder.—But enough—my soul sinks within me while I dwell so long upon the subject.
On the 2d of May, being again perfectly recovered, I took leave of Joanna and her Johnny, for thus he was named after myself, though the ceremony of baptism could not yet be performed; they now continued at my friend De la Mare’s house, whilst I set out once more for Magdenberg in a tent-boat with six oars.
On the 3d, I called at Egmond, on my French friend Monsieur Cachelieu, and next day stopt at Oranjebo or Ornamibo, where I was heartily entertained by my old adversary Captain Meyland, with whom I had fought at the Wana Creek. But now this gentleman declared, that he loved me better than any man in the colony. He was just returned from a twelve days cruize through the woods. [[28]]
Among his men I recollected one Cordus, a gentleman’s son from Hamburgh, in which character I had known him, and who had been trepanned into the West India Company’s service by the crimps or silver-coopers as a common soldier. This corps, as I have already said, is composed of all nations, Christians, Gentiles, and even Jews; the latter, I must observe, devoured pork and bacon, without scruple or hesitation, as often as they could find it.
On this spot, which had formerly been a plantation, but was now choked with weeds, I met with some herbs which again I cannot pass unnoticed, though I have no other names for them than those given me by the negroes, one only excepted, which is commonly known by the name of the Siliqua hirsulæ, cow-edge, or cow-itch, and called by the black people crassy-weeree-weeree. I can only describe this as a kind of pea, or rather flattish small purple bean, growing in a pod from a slender creeping vine; these pods are covered with a kind of fine elastic spicula, which, when touched, cause an intolerable itching. This hairy coat scraped from the pod, and taken in a tea-spoon with jelly, &c. has been strongly recommended as a vermifuge. A sort of wood was also shewn me here by one of the slaves, which he called crassy-wood; this had the same itching effect when touched, but with respect to its general qualities I can say nothing further. The other shrubs that we found were what they called consaca-weeree-weeree; these grow [[29]]with large green leaves, which the negroes use for the cure of a disorder in the feet called consaca, when they can procure no limes or lemons, as I have already mentioned: this plant also makes an excellent sallad. The dea-weeree-weeree is a fine wholesome herb, and very much esteemed; but the cutty-weeree-weeree is amongst the most serious pests in the colony, being a kind of strong edged grass, which is in some places very plentiful; and when a man walks through it will cut his legs like a razor. Herbs in general are in this country known by the name of weeree-weeree by the negroes.
On the 5th, I arrived at Magdenberg. Here Colonel Seyburg, and what he called his officers, seemed to form a distinct corps from those of Fourgeoud. They appeared totally destitute of politeness, and treated each other with the greatest rudeness, while their colonel was most cordially hated by the commander in chief. This state of things contributed to render our situation still more disagreeable: I however had at this time little reason to complain, being for the present, at least, in the good graces of Fourgeoud, which, by a trifling accident, I had nearly again forfeited. Colonel Fourgeoud having purchased of some Indians a couple of most beautiful parrots, called here cocatoos, which were in a cage ready to be shipped off as a present to her royal highness the princess of Orange, I persuaded Monsieur Laurant, his valet-de-chambre, to take one of them out, that I might the better examine it, but the cage-door was no sooner [[30]]opened, than it gave a shriek, and disappeared in an instant, flying over the Tempatee Creek. The poor valet stood perfectly petrified, and could only pronounce “Voyez-vous?” whilst I took to my heels to avoid the approaching storm, but stopped near enough to observe Fourgeoud’s motions through the underwood. He was no sooner informed of the dreadful accident, than he began to storm, swear, and dance like a man totally deprived of reason; he next, by kicking it, killed a poor waddling duck belonging to one of our officers; and at last actually trampled his very wig under his feet, while I stood trembling, and the rest of the spectators were laughing aloud. In about half an hour his passion began gradually to cool, and then he had recourse to a stratagem which actually brought the parrot back into his possession. He placed the remaining captive on the top of its cage, tied by a small cord round its claw; this he set in the open air, putting a ripe banana inside, and leaving the door open, so that any other bird except the prisoner might come at it; the poor captive at last becoming very hungry, made such a noise and shrieking as to be heard by his mate, who returning entered the cage in quest of food, and was once more deprived of his freedom. I now ventured from my concealment, and was acquitted after a gentle reproof; though poor Laurant, as may well be imagined, did not escape without a thundering lecture.
The cocatoos are less than the parrots, and of a green colour, except the head and a few feathers in the tail, [[31]]which are of a pale red. This bird is crowned with a panashe or bunch of feathers, and which generally lie backward, but which it erects at pleasure, when it is irritated or afraid.
I have also seen in Surinam a parrot of a deep slate blue colour, though not like those that come from the coast of Guinea, which are rather of a lead-grey. This parrot is said to be very scarce, and only inhabits the deepest recesses of the forest, whence it is brought to Paramaribo by the Indians: this bird is less than the common parrot, but appears very strong and lively. The most common parrots in Guiana are those which Marcgrave calls ajurucura. These birds are not so large as those that come from Africa; they are green, with the breast and belly a pale yellow; on the top of the head they have a blue spot, and the feet are grey, with four toes like the rest of the genus, two before and two behind; in the wings they have some feathers of a bright blue, and some a deep crimson; they are more a nuisance than a pleasure in Surinam, where, in prodigious flocks, they perch amongst the coffee, maize, rice, &c. and commit great devastations; and what makes them a still greater nuisance, their shrieking noise is almost insupportable. They always fly in pairs, and very swift, towards the east, as I have observed, meeting the sun in the morning, and toward the west they follow it in the evening: they generally breed in remote places and lay two eggs. I brought down two of these parrots at a shot when I was [[32]]at Sporksgift estate; these animals not being quite dead, scratched me most terribly with their sharp claws, as they are very strong and tenacious of life. We had them dressed, and they made no bad soup; they may also do in a pye as rooks in England, but dressed in any other way they are tough and disagreeable. These green parrots may be taught to speak, laugh, cry, bark, whistle, or mew, but not near so well as those which come from Africa. It is said, they are often intoxicated by the seeds of the cotton plant. These parrots are also subject to fits, perhaps from their choleric disposition, yet longevity is peculiarly ascribed to them by the Indians: they have strong hooked bills, which assist them in climbing and cracking very hard nuts, and they sometimes bite very severely; they delight in swinging and balancing, hanging from the branches of trees, and in their wild as well as domestic state use one of their claws as a hand to take their food.
The Anamoe & Green Parrots of Guiana.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
In Surinam there are also some beautiful paroquets, which are a species of parrots, but smaller though not less common; the finest of these is of the size of a very small pigeon; they are of a lively green on the back and tail, but the head and neck are auburn, the feathers on the last being edged with a gold colour, which gives them the appearance of rich scollops or scales: the breast is of a leaden hue, the belly lilac, the wings tipped with orange and azure, and the bill of a very dark blue; the eyes are the colour of fire, and the feet quite black. The other [[33]]species are perfectly green, with a white bill, and a crimson spot on the head; these make an agreeable chattering, but are not so easily domesticated as the former.
I was presented this evening by a soldier with a bird of a quite different kind, which he had actually caught with his hands. This was no other than the annamoe, or Surinam partridge, and a finer creature I never saw: it was of the size of a large duck, extremely fat, and of a dark brown colour on the back and wings, and on the top of the head, the under part of which, the breast, the belly, and the thighs, were of a fine cream-colour, intermixed with orange feathers and very small transverse black bars. The body was exactly the shape of an egg, it had no tail, the neck was long, the bill short, but very sharp-pointed, and a little curved; the eyes were bright, and as black as jet; the legs short, of the colour of vermilion, with three small toes on each foot. This bird, it is said, runs with amazing swiftness, hiding itself amongst the grass and weeds, but flies very heavily on account of its plumpness, which was the cause of its being thus overtaken by the marine. We had it roasted, and indeed nothing could be more delicious. As I took a correct drawing of it, I refer the reader to the annexed plate; where he may also see the parrot of South America, as described above, besides a few curious nests, of which I have given an account in Vol. I. p. 375, but where I had no opportunity of placing them; and which, besides their curiosity, may serve to shew how much the public are imposed [[34]]upon; when, in Goldsmith’s Animated Nature, Vol. V. p. 253, that author asserts, that they are built on the banana and plantain trees, where he also describes the monkies, and numbers of large serpents as assembling. All this I here think it my duty to pronounce erroneous, as I consider it would be unpardonable in me to let such absurdities pass by unnoticed.
On the 9th, an accident had nearly befallen me, which must have caused me much poignant and lasting sorrow. My black boy, washing my cotton hammock in the Tempatee Creek, was suddenly carried to the bottom by the rapidity of the stream, and entangled in its lashings, so that both the one and the other disappeared; the boy, however, luckily extricated himself, though with great difficulty, and to my great joy, though more than half drowned, appeared once more on terra firma; when he had the presence of mind instantly to sink a large fish-hook, with a lead tied to a strong line, some yards below the spot, with which he actually brought up the hammock, to our astonishment, the stream running so swift that it rolled over the ground, and was liable to shift its station every moment.
The following day, as Captain Hamel was angling, his tackle got fast at the bottom of the creek, when, in diving to clear it, I struck my ancle with such violence against a rock, that it was several months before it was perfectly recovered.
These accidents appeared greatly to entertain Colonel Seyburg, while in return I could not help feeling a degree [[35]]of indignation at what I considered as unhandsome behaviour; but the most extraordinary circumstance was, that this disgust between Seyburg and myself seemed to gain me the favour of old Fourgeoud, almost as much as if I had destroyed half the rebel negroes in the colony.—During all this time strong patroles cruized between Magdenberg, La Rochelle, and the Jew Savannah; and on the 17th, the commander in chief marched to Patamaca with nearly the half of his troops, leaving me the command of those that remained on the mountain, for I was not able to accompany him, having by this time a dangerous mortification in my ancle.
As I had now the prospect of remaining some time at Magdenberg, I dispatched Quaco to Paramaribo for provisions, and orders to buy me a live goat.
Whatever may be thought of Fourgeoud’s manœuvres, in not being able to bring the rebels to a pitched battle, it is very certain that he exerted himself and his troops to the utmost; and that by his constantly traversing the upper parts of the rivers, and scouring the skirts of the colony, he prevented many depredations on the estates, which was undoubtedly a very essential service to the inhabitants, though at a dreadful expence of blood and money.
Being now the commander in chief at this post, the two negroes I have formerly mentioned hunting and fishing for me, brought me almost every day one or two pingos, which are the wild boars formerly mentioned, besides a [[36]]fish called newmara, some of which are as large as cod, and which I shall afterwards describe. With these dainties I regaled all the officers without exception, while I gave to the hospital all the plantains, bananas, oranges, and lemons, that were occasionally sent me as presents from the Jacob and the plantations in Upper Comewina; and never was a deputy-governor more universally beloved. Patroles were also daily sent out to every quarter; and the environs of Magdenberg were so completely scoured, that no invasion from the rebels could be practicable. These precautions were the more necessary, as they had formerly surprised and taken by storm different military posts for the sake of ammunition and fire-arms, which are to them of the utmost value, and their seizure of the most pernicious consequence to the colony. Indeed some posts had not only been attacked and plundered of their stores and ammunition, but were actually massacred to a man.
Mortified that it was not in my power to take a more active part at present, I availed myself of this leisure, by taking drawings of every animal, reptile, or shrub, that I thought could illustrate my little collection of natural curiosities, which I now began to form some idea of exhibiting to the public, if it should be my fate ever more to return to Europe.
One of my negroes, on the 24th of this month, brought me two curious insects; which, though I had no opportunity of drawing, I will endeavour to describe:—[[37]]The one (which seemed to have some small affinity to the grasshopper kind) was what is here generally called spaanse-juffer, and is without exception the most singular animal I saw in the colony. The body of this surprising creature, though not thicker than a quill, was no less than seven inches and a half in length, including the tail; it had no wings, and was mounted like a spider on six legs that were near six inches long; it had four antennæ projecting from its head, two being nearly five inches, and two much shorter; the head was small, the eyes large, black, and prominent, and the tail articulated like that of most insects: its colour was a brownish green, and, upon the whole, it seemed a monster. This creature is found near the marshy places, where its long legs appear designed to enable it to wade through the water, but not to swim (according to Mr. Farmine’s opinion) for which its feet are not calculated, as they terminate in two small claws like those of some beetles. The other was a large fly, which Madam Merian, who gives a drawing of it, calls the vielleur, but which I have generally heard called the scare-sleep by the Dutch. These words being extremely applicable, from the noise it makes towards the evening, which nearly resembles the sound of a cymbal, or that of a razor-grinder when at his work. This remarkable fly, whose grinding noise always begins at sun-set or six o’clock, is also called the porte-lanterne or lantern-bearer, from the light it diffuses after that time, and which is much stronger than that of any of the fire-fly species, [[38]]affording sufficient light for almost any purpose: these flies are above three inches long, and very thick, the body green, with four transparent wings variegated with little marks of all colours, particularly the under wings, on which are two large roundish spots not unlike those on the tail feathers of a peacock. Beneath the head of this insect is seen an inverted straight trump or tube like a needle, with which it is said to suck its food from the flowers. With the same instrument it is here supposed to produce that disagreeable, loud, and grinding noise, which I have already noticed. But, for my own part, I should rather ascribe the noise to the fluttering of its transparent wings, as is supposed to be the case with some flies in England: a large proboscis or snout striped red and yellow, and shaped like the first joint of a man’s finger, projects from the head, and makes one-third of the whole animal; this protuberance is vulgarly called its lantern, and emits that surprising light whence it takes its second name. I shall only add, that it is a very slow creeper, but flies with amazing velocity.
On the 26th, my boy Quaco arrived from Paramaribo with the following list of provisions, which he had purchased for me. In order to give the curious a just idea of the prices in Surinam when things are cheapest, I will here insert some articles as charged to my account, with the prices in English money, calculating at the rate of eleven florins to one pound sterling. [[39]]
These articles were as follow:
- 2 bacon hams, 31 lbs. at 15d. per lb.
- 1 small cag of butter, 10 lbs. at 1s. 10d. per lb.
- 1 small ditto of flour, 100 lbs. at 4d. per lb.
- 1 Dutch cheese, 11 lbs. at 10d. per lb.
- 2 quart bottles of vinegar, at 1s. 10d. per quart.
- 4 lbs. spermaceti candles, at 3s. 8d. per lb.
- 2 lbs. dried sausages, at 2s. 9d. per lb.
The prices of wine and spirits I have already mentioned in the twelfth chapter.
He also brought me a goat with its kid to supply me with milk, for which I paid twenty florins, or near two pounds sterling: these prices are at least double, and some treble, to what they used to be in England.
Goats are very common in all Guiana; they are not large, but very beautiful creatures, with small horns, and very short smooth hair, mostly of a dun-colour; they are as nimble as stags, and are kept on all the estates, where they breed fast and give much milk; they are also delicious eating when killed young.
I had now the disagreeable news, that all my letters for Europe were sunk on board Captain Visser, who was wrecked in the Texel roads among the ice. I was also sincerely grieved to hear that my good friend Mr. Kennedy, with his lady and family, had taken their final farewel of the colony, and sailed for Holland. This gentleman, Mr. Gordon, and a Mr. Gourluy, were the only Scotch; a Mr. Buckland, a Mr. Townsend, and Mr. [[40]]Halfhide, the only English; and Captain Macneal, the only native of Ireland, residing in this colony.
On the 28th, Colonel Fourgeoud returned with his command from Patamaca, much emaciated himself, and his men nearly exhausted by fatigue. He had left a great number behind him in the hospital at La Rochelle, but heard no account whatever of the rebels, although he varied his route every time. It was therefore pretty evident that they were routed, if latterly there had been any settled at all: but where to find them in this unbounded forest was the question. He however never despaired, and seemed as eager to discover the haunts of the rebels as he had been formerly in springing a covey of partridges, or discovering a nest of black badgers.
On the 29th, Mr. Matthew, one of our officers who had been out shooting, presented me with the Taibo, an animal that is here called the wood-rat. This creature was the size of a young hare, and of a reddish brown colour, being remarkably thin, with long limbs, a roundish head, and a tail not unlike that of a sucking-pig; the claws were exactly like those of a common rat, but larger in proportion, and so was the head, mouth, teeth, and whiskers; the ears were short and naked, the eyes black and prominent, with a white iris; it is said to run very fast: we had it dressed, and ate it, having been told that it was very good, and so we found it, sweet, tender, and even fat, notwithstanding its lank appearance. This [[41]]creature, on account of its size, reminds me of another animal, known in this country by the name of crabbo-dago, or the crabbed dog, for its matchless ferocity, as it kills and devours every thing that comes in its way, without exception, whether quadrupeds, fowls, or reptiles; and never seeming to be glutted with blood, it murders, even without being hungry, all it can vanquish, which, on account of its courage, activity, and strength, are not a few, though it be not larger than a common cat. From what I have said, I should apprehend it much resembles the ichneumon, but still more that animal mentioned by Mr. Allemand, in the Count de Buffon; (see Vol. IV. p. 266.) which he there calls the grison or grey-weazel, though this that I mention was rather larger; and he says, that notwithstanding its being a native of Surinam, none of the people coming from that country could give any account of it. If this be the same animal, (as I doubt not, and have therefore given it the name of the crabbo-dago or grison) I am happy to have had it in my power to give the reader some account of it. I shall now literally quote the Count’s own words, as extracted from Mr. Allemand, which will afford the best proof of its being the same animal, when compared with the annexed plate, where both the wood-rat, and the crabbo-dago or grison, are represented; and had I seen this account during the Count’s life, I would have most assuredly taken the liberty of informing him by a [[42]]letter, of what I now, though in this unconnected method, relate to the public.
“I received,” says Mr. Allemand, “the small animal represented in the plate[1]. In the catalogue it was called the grey-weazel, from which circumstance I derived the name grison, because I knew not how it is denominated in the country where it is found. The whole upper part of its body is covered with deep brown hair, having white points, which gives it a greyish brown colour: under the head and neck is a bright grey, because the hairs are very short, and the white part is of equal length with the brown. The muzzle, the under part of the body, and legs, are black, which singularly contrasts with the grey colour on the head and neck.
“The head of this animal is very large in proportion to its body, its ears almost form a semicircle, its eyes are large, and its mouth is armed with strong grinders and sharp tusks: it has six cutting teeth in each jaw, four of them hardly rising above the gums. Both the fore and hind feet have five toes, with yellowish claws; the tail is pretty long, and terminates in a point.
Barlow sculp.
The Wood-Rat of Surinam.
The Crabbodago, or Grisson.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
“The grison has a greater resemblance to the weazel, than to any other animal, but it belongs not to the weazel tribe; for its body is not long enough, and its [[43]]legs are too long. It is not mentioned by any author or traveller. I shewed it to several persons who had lived long in Surinam, but none of them knew it; hence it either must be a rare animal, even in its native country, or it must live in deserts and unfrequented places: the length of its body is about seven inches; I have not been able to learn any thing of its history.”
To this I shall only add my surprize.—It is true that this animal is very rare in Surinam, but it probably owes its not being described by naturalists to its extreme ferocity, which is without example, it being a very uncommon circumstance to take a crabbo-dago or grison alive.
Our old commander and I were now inseparable friends, to whose board being daily invited, he requested me to paint his portrait at full length in his bush equipage, which was to be engraved at the expence of the town of Amsterdam, and where he thought himself now as great a man as the Duke of Cumberland was in England after the battle of Culloden.
Having provided a large sheet of paper, and some China ink, I began to delineate this wonderful character in his own hut. While I was now looking full in his face, to examine the features of this first of despots, and laughing aloud, to think how he and I now sat staring at one another, the whole mountain was suddenly shook by a tremendous clap of thunder, while the lightning actually scorched the Colonel’s forehead; and, [[44]]what is very curious, broke all the eggs under a hen that was sitting in a corner of the room where we were engaged. The hero’s features being re-composed, I proceeded, and the picture was completed in a short time after, to his great satisfaction.
About this time the captive rebel, September, who was taken in the year 1773, died of a dropsy. Ever since his capture, when his companion was shot, this poor fellow was obliged to follow Fourgeoud like a dog through all his expeditions; the colonel always expecting that this negro would, one day or other, conduct him to different haunts of the rebels—but he was mistaken. The other negro slaves, suspecting that he had actually given some information, attributed his dreadful death to a punishment from God, for his want of fidelity to his countrymen, to whom they supposed he had sworn to be true.
The reader may remember, that I have stated it in the third Chapter, as an invariable article of belief among the African negroes, that whoever breaks his oath shall die miserably in this world, and be punished for ever in that which is to come.
By the 2d of June, the Hope in Comewina was become so very unwholesome for want of cleanliness, and being kept free from inundations (as it was much neglected by the newly-arrived troops which were now stationed there), that the commanding officer and most of his men were rendered unfit for duty by sickness, and many of them already buried. To this place Colonel Fourgeoud ordered [[45]]down Captain Brant to take the command, with a fresh supply of men, and orders to send, not to town but to Magdenberg, all the invalids he should relieve. These orders he gave to the above officer in such a brutal manner, and dispatched him so suddenly, that he had not even time to pack up his cloaths; while Colonel Seyburg deprived him of his only servant, whom he took for himself. This usage so much affected Captain Brant, that he burst into tears, and declared he did not wish longer to survive such galling treatment: he then departed to the Hope, truly with a broken heart.
Upon his arrival he was informed that Captain Brough, the late commanding officer, was dead. This poor man had been on hard service in the woods, and being very corpulent, could no longer support the fatigues and excessive heat; he melted down very fast, and a putrid fever at last occasioned his dissolution. Captain Brant was soon followed by Colonel Seyburg to the Hope, with orders to inspect the sick.—In this interval of inaction, I shall describe two fishes, which, though very different in size and colour, equally merit particular attention.
The first, and indeed the only one of the kind I ever saw, was caught by an angler. It was about the size of a large anchovy, and, the dorado excepted, was certainly the most beautiful coloured fish I ever saw. Its back and sides were divided in longitudinal bars of fine yellow and a deep blueish black, the belly was silver, the eyes were black and gold, and the fins a glowing transparent vermilion; [[46]]its shape was not unlike that of a trout, and the whole was covered with small scales; it had one dorsal fin on the middle of its back, with only the vestige of another near the tail, which was forked: under its belly were five fins, two pectoral, two ventral, and one behind the anus; the under jaw projected before the upper jaw, and made its mouth appear reversed; the gills were small. Having enquired concerning this little fish, the only information I could obtain was from a black man, who called it dago-fisee.
The Fresh-water Fish called Dago-Fissee.
The Rock Cod, or Newmara.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
The other is that fine large fish called by the English rock-cod, by the Indians baro-ketta, and new-mara by the negroes, which I have several times mentioned, but not described; they are taken plentifully in all the upper parts of the rivers. This fish is the size of a large cod, but covered with scales, and by some compared to a salmon; the back is a brown olive colour, the belly is white, the head is strong, with small eyes, of which the pupil is black and the iris grey; the mouth is very large, and beset with one row of sharp teeth like those of a pike, and, like it, this creature is extremely voracious; the tail is obtuse and dark olive; as also the fins, six in number, one dorsal, two pectoral, two ventral, and one abdominal. This fish is extremely delicious eating, and particularly esteemed by the white inhabitants at Paramaribo, where it is very scarce, though in the upper parts of the rivers they are taken in great abundance. I painted these two fishes very correctly, the dago-fish as [[47]]large as life, and the new-mara considerably less. The drawings were honoured in Surinam with the epithets of masterly performances.
Several officers who kept poultry and hogs at this period lost all the latter in the space of two days, being poisoned probably by eating duncane, or some other fatal weed that was unknown to us. And yet it has been a general observation, as I have said before, that all animals know by instinct to distinguish their food from their poison.
Mr. Seyburg now returned from the Hope in triumph, with Lieutenant Dederlin (one of Colonel Fourgeoud’s officers) guarded by a serjeant and six marines with fixed bayonets, for having been wanting in respect, as that gentleman pleased to call it.
On the 7th, the sick officers and soldiers also arrived from the Hope in barges; some of the latter, being too ill to bear removing, died on the passage without medicines, and without assistance. One of our surgeons died also this day in camp, and a number of the privates died daily. This was the consequence of having marched so much in the wet season, which was judged however by our chief to be the only season in which he was likely to root the rebels from the forest of Guiana. [[48]]
[1] The Dutch edition. Vol. XV. [↑]
CHAP. XVIII.
A Tyger taken in the Camp—Fatal Rencounter of a Party with the Rebels, who killed several of the Troops, and forced the rest back—Description of a Planter of Surinam—Contagious Distempers—Suicide—Scene of primitive Nature.
I have just mentioned that several officers kept poultry, numbers of which were now taken away every night by some unknown marauder; when a Captain Bolts (suspecting the coati-mondi, or crabbo-dago) made a trap of an empty wine-chest, only by supporting the lid with a stick fixed to a long cord, into which (having first secured all the other poultry) he put a couple of live fowls, the whole guarded by two negroes at some distance. They had not been many hours on their post, when hearing the fowls shriek, one negro pulled the rope, and the other ran to secure the invader by sitting on the lid: when this proved to be actually a young tyger, who would yet have cleared his way by beating against the box, but that it was immediately secured by strong ropes, and drawn along, with the prisoner in it, to the river; where, being held under water, he was drowned, under the most vigorous efforts, by beating against the chest to effect his escape. Captain Bolts ordered the skin to be taken off, which he kept in remembrance of so very strange a circumstance.
The Count de Buffon asserts, that there are no tygers [[49]]in America, but animals much resembling them, which go by that name. I shall however describe them, from actual observation, as I found them, and leave the reader to determine whether they are tygers or not.
The first and largest is that called the jaguar of Guiana. This animal, which has by some been represented as a despiseable little creature, not larger than a greyhound, is, on the contrary, very fierce, strong, and dangerous; some of them measuring, from the nose to the root of the tail, not less than six feet: and let us not forget the print of that enormous tyger’s foot, seen by myself in the sand, near Patamaca; though it may be allowed, that creature was of an extraordinary size, and the sand very loose.—The jaguar is of a tawny orange colour, and the belly white; on the back it is spotted with longitudinal black bars; on the sides with irregular rings, light-coloured in the center; and all over the rest of the body, and the tail, the spots are smaller, and perfectly black: its shape is in every sense like that of the African tyger, and being all of the cat kind, they need no particular description; but their size and strength being so much greater than that little domestic animal, they devour a sheep, or a goat, with the same facility as a cat would kill a mouse or a rat; nay, cows and horses are not protected from their attacks, for these they frequently kill on the plantations; and though they cannot carry them off into the forest on account of their weight, they tear and mangle them in a dreadful manner, only for the sake of the blood, with [[50]]which this ferocious animal is never glutted. It has even happened that the jaguar has carried off young negro women at work in the field, and too frequently their children. This contemptible animal, as it is called and misrepresented by some authors, will beat down a wild boar with a single stroke of its paw, and even seize by the throat the strongest stallion that ever was mounted in Guiana; while its savage nature, and thirst after blood, is such that it cannot be tamed: it will, on the contrary, bite the very hand that feeds it, and very often devours its own offspring; still this creature is not a match for the aboma-snake, which, when it comes within its reach, has the power of crushing it to a jelly in but few moments.
The next is the couguar, called in Surinam the red tyger.—This indeed may, with more propriety, be compared to a greyhound, for its shape, though not for its size; being much larger than the dog which it resembles in make, but it is not in general so large and heavy as the jaguar. The colour of this animal is a reddish brown; the breast and belly are a dirty white, with long hair, and not spotted; the tail an earthy colour, the extremity black; the head is small, the body thin, the limbs long, with tremendous whitish claws; the teeth are also very large, the eyes prominent, and sparkling like stars. This creature is equally ferocious with the former.
The Jaguar, or Tiger of Terra-Firma.
The Tiger-Cat of Surinam.
London, Published Decr. 2nd, 1793, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
Another of the same species is the tyger-cat, which is extremely beautiful. This animal is not much larger [[51]]than I have seen some cats in England: it is of a yellow colour, with small annotated black spots, which are white within; the belly is a light colour; the ears are black, with a white spot on each; the hair is smooth, and the skin is very much esteemed: the shape like that of the tyger. The tyger-cat is a very lively animal, with its eyes emitting flashes like lightning; but ferocious, mischievous, and untameable, like the rest of the kind.
In Guiana is still another of this species, called the Jaguaretta, of a blackish colour, with still blacker spots; but of this last I can say very little, having never seen one; and, indeed, the others but very seldom. Of the jaguar however, and the tyger-cat, I present the reader with a drawing. All these animals have long whiskers, like common cats; they sometimes climb trees, but generally lie in ambush under the verdure, whence they bound with uncommon agility on their helpless prey; which having murdered, they drink the blood warm, and never cease to tear and devour it till they are gorged; but when no longer animated by hunger they are cowardly, and may be put to flight by a common spaniel. Of fire also they are exceedingly afraid, which is the best guard to keep them at a distance, and as such, made use of every night by the Indians in Guiana. More than once it has been observed, that tygers had entered our camps for want of these precautions, but fortunately without committing any depredations.
As I now seemed to be on a friendly intercourse [[52]]with Colonel Fourgeoud, I one day presented the old gentleman with a plan and bird’s-eye view of all the encampment of Magdenberg, which pleased him so much that he sent this (as he had done the first) to the Prince of Orange and the Duke of Brunswick, as a specimen of his military manœuvres, &c. This present had the desired effect; for I not only became one of his favourites, but, declaring his highest esteem for the Scots and English, he even promised to recommend me in particular at court. I was so satisfied with this change in his behaviour, that I now took the blame of all former animosity on myself. His attention, however, was suddenly attracted by affairs of more consequence; since, on the 14th of June, the news arrived that some rebel huts were discovered near the sea-side; that Captain Mayland had marched in quest of the enemy, with one hundred and forty men of the Society troops, and had actually discovered them; but in wading through a deep marsh, had been first attacked by the negroes, who had killed several of his people (among whom his nephew, a young volunteer), wounded more, and beaten back the whole detachment, after they had already passed the marsh, and were mounting fast on the opposite beach to storm the village. From this news it was evident, that our sable foes were not to be trifled with; and since they were thus discovered, orders were immediately issued for all the troops that were able to march to keep in readiness, viz. Fourgeoud’s [[53]]marines, the Society regiment, and my favourite rangers, who wanted no spur, and now could hardly be restrained till the others were prepared. These troops were to be assembled at a certain place of rendezvous, while also a detachment marched to La Rochelle to give information. In consequence of these orders all was activity and vigour in the camp, in hopes that this decisive stroke would end the war, and their misery together; and this, therefore, was the time to lead them on to a spirited attack; but, for reasons best known to himself, our commander delayed his movement till the 20th of August, which was above two months.
In the mean time the disagreeable news arrived, that Captain Brant was almost dead with a violent illness at the Hope, which was at present the place where a number of the troops were quartered, though no better than a pest-house, by the inundations; and for the command at this place (as being one of his favourites) Fourgeoud now singled me out: declaring, that I might thank my sound constitution for bestowing on me this honour. From this conduct, I plainly discovered that all his friendship was entirely interested; and I felt my resentment involuntarily rekindled against him, for thus sending me to an inglorious death, when he had so fair an opportunity of employing me honourably on actual service.
On my arrival at the Hope, my orders were to send poor Captain Brant not down to Paramaribo, but to Magdenberg. This young man, however, frustrated the tyrannical [[54]]command; for, justly suspecting it, he had set out with a tent-barge to town a few hours before I came, where he was no sooner carried to his lodgings than he expired, from the effects of a burning fever, and a broken heart. No man could be more regretted than Captain Brant; nor did Fourgeoud ever lose a better officer, or I a sincerer friend.
This being the second commander dead in so short a time, I quietly took for my motto—
Hodie tibi cras mihi.
But I was happily mistaken, and continued still as well as ever I was in my life, following the advice of old Caramaca, and bathing twice a day in the river; while I despised shoes and stockings, as useless and unnecessary lumber.
On the 20th of June, a few days after my arrival, I had the honour to receive a visit from the governor, Mr. Nepveu, on his return from his estate Appecappe to Paramaribo, with whom I condoled on the loss of his lady, who had died very lately; I also received daily visits from several planters, who complimented me with refreshments from their plantations: and here I had an excellent opportunity of acquainting myself with the customs and manner of living of these West-India nabobs.
A planter in Surinam, when he lives on his estate, (which is but seldom, as they mostly prefer the society of Paramaribo) gets out of his hammock with the [[55]]rising sun, viz. about six o’clock in the morning, when he makes his appearance under the piazza of his house; where his coffee is ready waiting for him, which he generally takes with his pipe, instead of toast and butter; and there he is attended by half a dozen of the finest young slaves, both male and female, of the plantation, to serve him; at this sanctum-sanctorum he is next accosted by his overseer, who regularly every morning attends at his levee, and having made his bows at several yards distance, with the most profound respect informs his Greatness what work was done the day before; what negroes deserted, died, fell sick, recovered, were bought or born; and, above all things, which of them neglected their work, affected sickness, or had been drunk or absent, &c.; the prisoners are generally present, being secured by the negro-drivers, and instantly tied up to the beams of the piazza, or a tree, without so much as being heard in their own defence; when the flogging begins, with men, women, or children, without exception. The instruments of torture on these occasions are long hempen whips, that cut round at every lash, and crack like pistol-shot; during which they alternately repeat, “Dankee, massera,” (Thank you, master). In the mean time he stalks up and down with his overseer, affecting not so much as to hear their cries, till they are sufficiently mangled, when they are untied, and ordered to return to their work, without so much as a dressing.
This ceremony being over, the dressy negro (a black [[56]]surgeon) comes to make his report; who being dismissed with a hearty curse, for allowing any slaves to be sick, next makes her appearance a superannuated matron, with all the young negro children of the estate, over whom she is governess; these, being clean washed in the river, clap their hands, and cheer in chorus, when they are sent away to breakfast on a large platter of rice and plantains; and the levee ends with a low bow from the overseer, as it begun.
His worship now saunters out in his morning dress, which consists of a pair of the finest Holland trowsers, white silk stockings, and red or yellow Morocco slippers; the neck of his shirt open, and nothing over it, a loose flowing night-gown of the finest India chintz excepted. On his head is a cotton night-cap, as thin as a cobweb, and over that an enormous beaver hat, that protects his meagre visage from the sun, which is already the colour of mahogany, while his whole carcase seldom weighs above eight or ten stone, being generally exhausted by the climate and dissipation. To give a more complete idea of this fine gentleman, I in the annexed plate present him to the reader with a pipe in his mouth, which almost every where accompanies him, and receiving a glass of Madeira wine and water, from a female quaderoon slave, to refresh him during his walk.
Blake Sculpt.
A Surinam Planter in his Morning Dress.
London, Published Decr. 2nd, 1793, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
Having loitered about his estate, or sometimes ridden on horseback to his fields, to view his increasing stores, he returns about eight o’clock, when, if he goes abroad, he dresses, but if not, remains just as he is. Should the [[57]]first take place, having only exchanged his trowsers for a pair of thin linen or silk breeches, he sits down, and holding out one foot after the other, like a horse going to be shod, a negro boy puts on his stockings and shoes, which he also buckles, while another dresses his hair, his wig, or shaves his chin, and a third is fanning him to keep off the musquitoes. Having now shifted, he puts on a thin coat and waistcoat, all white; when, under an umbrella, carried by a black boy, he is conducted to his barge, which is in waiting for him with six or eight oars, well provided with fruit, wine, water, and tobacco, by his overseer, who no sooner has seen him depart, than he resumes the command with all the usual insolence of office. But should this prince not mean to stir from his estate, he goes to breakfast about ten o’clock, for which a table is spread in the large hall, provided with a bacon ham, hung-beef, fowls, or pigeons broiled; plantains and sweet cassavas roasted; bread, butter, cheese, &c. with which he drinks strong beer, and a glass of Madeira, Rhenish, or Mozell wine, while the cringing overseer sits at the farther end, keeping his proper distance, both being served by the most beautiful slaves that can be selected;—and this is called breaking the poor gentleman’s fast.
After this he takes a book, plays at chess or billiards, entertains himself with music, &c. till the heat of the day forces him to return into his cotton hammock to enjoy his meridian nap, which he could no more dispense with than a Spaniard with his siesta, and in which he rocks to and [[58]]fro, like a performer on the slack-rope, till he falls asleep, without either bed or covering; and during which time he is fanned by a couple of his black attendants, to keep him cool, &c.
About three o’clock he awakes by natural instinct, when having washed and perfumed himself, he sits down to dinner, attended as at breakfast by his deputy governor and sable pages, where nothing is wanting that the world can afford in a western climate, of meat, fowls, venison, fish, vegetables, fruits, &c. and the most exquisite wines are often squandered in profusion; after this a cup of strong coffee and a liqueur finish the repast. At six o’clock he is again waited on by his overseer, attended as in the morning by negro-drivers and prisoners, when the flogging once more having continued for some time, and the necessary orders being given for the next day’s work, the assembly is dismissed, and the evening spent with weak punch, sangaree, cards and tobacco.—His worship generally begins to yawn about ten or eleven o’clock, when he withdraws, and is undressed by his sooty pages. He then retires to rest, where he passes the night in the arms of one or other of his sable sultanas (for he always keeps a seraglio) till about six in the morning, when he again repairs to his piazza walk, where his pipe and coffee are waiting for him; and where, with the rising sun, he begins his round of dissipation, like a petty monarch, as capricious as he is despotic and despiseable.
Such absolute power indeed, cannot fail to be peculiarly [[59]]delightful to a man, who, in all probability, was in his own country, Europe, a—nothing.
But, in this colony, this is too frequently the case, where plantations are sold upon credit, and left (by the absent proprietor) to the appraisers, who, by selling cheap, have generally an understanding with the buyer.
These are the planters who are the pest of the colony; such as the fine gentleman just described, who, while he lives at the above rate, pays nobody, under pretence of bad crops, mortality amongst the slaves, &c. but like an upstart rascal massacres the negroes by double labour, ruins and pillages the estate of all its productions, which he clandestinely sells for ready money, makes a purse, and runs away. Exceptions, however, take place in every circumstance of life; and I have known many planters in Surinam as good men as I ever would desire to be acquainted with, which I have already mentioned.
As for the ladies, they indulge themselves just as much, by giving way to their unbounded passions, and especially to the most relentless barbarity. But while I can bear witness to the exalted virtues of such a woman as Mrs. Elizabeth Danforth, now Mrs. Godefroy, and a few more whose characters shine with treble lustre, I shall draw a veil over all the imperfections, too common to their sex in this climate. Before I drop this subject, however, I must attest, that hospitality is in no country practised with greater cordiality or with less ceremony, a stranger being every where at home, and finding his table and his bed [[60]]at whatever estate necessity or choice may occasion him to visit. This is the more to be regarded, as no inns are to be met with in the neighbourhood of any of the Surinam rivers.
To vary the subject a little, I will now describe three kinds of fish, with which I occasionally entertained my friends. The sun-fish, the snake-fish, and the spotted-cat. The first frequents both the salt and fresh water, like the salmon: it is about eighteen or twenty inches long, shaped not unlike a kite; and being covered over with scales of a golden colour, when it swims in clear water darts forth very bright beams, from which it has derived its name of the sun-fish. The snake-fish takes its name from its resemblance to that reptile: this is a black eel with a white belly, it is not large, and is very common in all the rivers. The spotted-cat is called so from its tabby colour, and long whiskers: this fish is formed not unlike a pike, with very sharp teeth; it has no scales, it is extremely fat, weighing sometimes above seventy pounds, but its flesh is yellow, and not esteemed the most delicate food: however, here excellent fish is seldom wanting, such as the new-mara, passessee, warappa, jackee, and many others already noticed. The Hope, with all this, was now truly a most shocking place of residence: here I much regretted my former cottage, and sweet companion, the one in ruins, the other at Paramaribo; while, at present, not a man was to be seen without an ague or fever, or some other wasting complaint. The dysentery [[61]]also began to make its appearance; and to add to our distress, we had neither surgeon, medicines, nor so much as a light, and very little bread left. I was moved with the situation of the troops, and again distributed all my biscuits, lemons, oranges, sugar, wine, ducks and fowls, amongst the unhappy sufferers, with a few spermaceti candles.
On the 23d I sent up to the hospital at Magdenberg two sick officers, Orleigh and Francen, with all the privates that could bear to be transported; and, at the same time, I repeated my humble entreaties to be soon relieved from so very disagreeable a situation (for the confinement to which there was not the least necessity), and requested to be one of the party to march against the rebels, but to no purpose; while the accounts came from below that a fresh nest of negroes were discovered, even close to Paramaribo, and the news came from above that the troops there were daily dying away; amongst others, on the 22d, expired a Captain Seyburg, brother to the Colonel. This was actually the third captain who died within the space of one month.
On the 26th two fine young officers arrived, unfit for service by ruptures, occasioned by the slippery state of the ground in the rainy season.
This evening one of our marines named Spanknevel, was missing, and was not found till the 29th, when he was discovered suspended by a nebee to the branch of a tree. Not one of his comrades would cut him down, he [[62]]having hanged himself; alledging, that to touch him, according to their prejudices, (being Germans) would render them as infamous as himself. Wherefore, by my orders, he was taken down, and interred by the negroes.
An order at last came for my relief, and I immediately set out for Goed-Accoord, in company with Captain Bolts; where the planter, Mr. de Lange, and his lady, received us with great hospitality. This sugar estate being the farthest that is cultivated in Rio Comewina, and consequently exposed to the neighbourhood of the rebel negroes, makes the slaves liable to their seductions; they are therefore treated with peculiar kindness and indulgence, to prevent their concurring in any insurrection, or being persuaded to leave their present situation.
Here we saw a great novelty indeed, the young negro women waiting at the table all stark naked, as they came into the world. I was at first startled at the unusual appearance; and asking the cause, was modestly answered by the lady of the house, that it was ordered so by their mothers and matrons, to prevent (by such means of detection, said they) their too early intercourse with the males, and child-bearing, which would spoil their shapes, weaken their strength, and cramp their growth. Indeed finer made figures I never beheld than were both the men (witness Philander) and the women on this plantation, whose beautiful shapes, liveliness, strength, and activity, were inferior to no Europeans.
Next day we departed for Magdenburg an hour before [[63]]sun-set, against the advice of Mr. and Mrs. de Lange, in a small barge, covered only with a loose awning. We had not rowed above two miles when not only night came on, but we were overtaken by such a shower of rain, as had nearly sunk us, the boat’s gunwale not being more than two inches above the water: however, by the help of our hats and calibashes, we kept her afloat, while a negro sat upon the bow, holding out a boat-hook straight before him to prevent us from being overset, by inadvertently running, in pitch darkness, against the roots of mangroves, &c. which thickly lined both the banks of the river all the way upwards.
In this state of wet and obscurity, at ten o’clock at night, we came to the Jacob, being just afloat and no more; for Bolts and I had no sooner leaped on the beach, than the boat sunk with all that was in her, the slaves luckily swimming ashore. Alas! amongst the wreck, was my poor box, with my journal, and all my paintings, which had cost me above two long years so much labour, care, and attention. I was truly distressed at this loss, when a skilful negro dived several times to the bottom, and at last brought up my little treasure, which, though thoroughly soaked, I was very happy to have again in my hands. Thus ended our shipwreck, when having drank some warm grog and slung our hammocks, we all fell asleep round a good fire, by which I made shift to dry myself, and, what was of more consequence, my papers.
The following morning we again set out, and rowed for [[64]]Magdenberg, but about half-way our voyage was once more obstructed by an enormous tree which had accidentally fallen across the Creek, so that we could neither drag the boat over nor under it. Thus we were again obliged to return to the Jacob, whence we now proceeded to Magdenberg on foot, through thorns, roots, brambles, and briars, and where we finally arrived wet and bloody; and my ancle, which had been nearly well, fresh wounded to the bone, the skin and flesh being quite torn away by the numberless obstructions to our steps.
Here we were acquainted that Mr. Orleigh, one of the two officers that I had sent up to Magdenberg from the Hope on the 23d, was no more. Thus died almost all our gentlemen, who had been during the last month upon the hopeless Hope, from which now scarcely one single private returned in health; and this, I am firmly of opinion, was greatly owing to the dry and burning month of June, when the sun suddenly scorched them, after marching and even sleeping in cold watery swamps, and constant heavy showers during the rainy season. However, I hitherto escaped by the strength of my constitution and good spirits, which I determined by every possible means to keep from depression, by laughing, whistling, singing, and (God forgive me!) sometimes swearing, while all the rest were sighing, bewailing, and dying around me. [[65]]
CHAP. XIX.
The Troops march to Barbacoeba, in the River Cottica—Frenzy Fever—Gratitude in an English Sailor—Description of the Government of Surinam—Some Account of the Emigrant Americans during the late War—Scene of unprecedented Generosity.
The rainy season being again approaching, Colonel Fourgeoud, having selected all the remaining healthy people, who now amounted to but one hundred and eighty in number, on the 3d of July, 1775, proceeded on his march for Barbacoeba, in the river Cottica; which spot he appointed for the general rendezvous, previous to the grand attack on the rebels. Of this party I had the honour to be one: but on the surgeon’s declaring that I should run the hazard of losing my foot if I marched in the woods, I was ordered to remain at Magdenberg, with liberty, if I soon recovered, to join Fourgeoud, and make the best of my way to Barbacoeba. My limb, indeed, was now so swelled, and my wound so black with the mortification, that an amputation was dreaded by Mr. Knollaert, Fourgeoud’s surgeon, and I could not even stand without excruciating pain.—I shall bear the mark of it as long as I live.
During this confinement I received daily presents from Philander and the other negroes, as I was always kind to [[66]]them. Among these was a dish of mountain-cabbage. This is the most esteemed of all the various sorts which grow, as I have mentioned formerly, on the different species of palm-trees; this tree grows sometimes near fifty feet high, the trunk of a brown colour, hard, ligneous, divided into short joints, and pithy within, like the elder: it is thick in proportion, streight and tapering like the mast of a ship; near the top the tree assumes a fluted form and a green colour, occasioned by the husky tegument that forms the branches; which, near the summit, diverge in a horizontal direction, like the crown of a pine-apple or ananas. These branches are covered over on both sides with strong pinnated leaves about three feet long, of a deep green colour, and sharp pointed, but folded and confusedly intermixed, not gracefully drooping like those of the manicole or cocoa-nut trees. The seed is inclosed in a brownish kind of spatha, that arises from the center of the branches, and hanging downwards consists of small roundish nuts, not unlike a bunch of dried grapes, but much longer in proportion to their circumference. If the cabbage is wanted, the whole tree must be cut down, when it is divested first of its branches, and next of that fluted green husky tegument that forms them; after this the heart or cabbage is taken out, white, and about two or three feet long: it is as thick as a man’s arm, and round like a polished ivory cylinder; it is composed of a kind of tender longitudinal white flakes, like silk ribbands, ready [[67]]to form the succeeding green tegument, but so close that they form a crisp solid body. This, when eaten raw, is in taste something like the kernel of an almond, but is more tender and more delicious; when cut in pieces and boiled, it eats like cauliflower: it may be also peeled in the above-mentioned long thin flakes, and then it makes an excellent sallad; but too much of it, whether eaten raw or dressed, is unwholesome, as it is apt to occasion a diarrhœa. It is in the cavity, after the cabbage is removed from it, that a black beetle deposits its spawn, from which the palm-tree worms are produced, which feed on the remaining tender substance when it begins to rot, till they acquire the size already mentioned; though those in the manicole tree, and other trees of the palm species, grow not so large, are less sweet, and are also differently shaped.
The maureecee tree, by the French called latanie, is certainly the tallest of all the palm-tree species; or, indeed, of any species in the forest of Guiana. And I can aver, that I have seen some of these trees whose lofty summits appeared to rise no less than a hundred feet from the surface of the earth, while the circumference of their trunks was about ten or twelve feet where thickest; the trunk of this tree is largest at about one-fourth of its height from the root, whence it tapers not only upwards but downwards also: this singularity has perhaps escaped all other writers. It is of a light brown or grey colour, and divided in joints all the way upwards to its branches, when (but at a great height, and near the top) it diverges in long [[68]]green arched branches, naked till near their extremity, when these again diverge or digitate in long broad leaves of a pale green colour, and disposed in an orbicular manner with great regularity, not unlike sun-beams, or a lady’s fan expanded. As the young branches spring up from the centre at the summit, the old ones fade at the bottom and hang downwards, shrivelled and dangling in the wind. From the heart of the green leaves the Indians draw out long white fibres or threads, as they do from the silk-grass plant: these, being equally strong, serve as cords when twisted to firing their bows, to make nets, or to be used as threads; from the middle of the branches appears the seed, hanging down also in the form of a large rope of onions. I have seen many prints representing palm-trees, but I must take the liberty to say that most of them are impositions on the public, having either been executed from fancy, or from a very bad description; but I can assure my readers, that all those which I represent were taken from nature, and on the spot: I speak of the cocoa-nut tree, the manicola, the mountain-cabbage, and the maureecee trees, whose branches and leaves are all extremely different from each other; and I have not confounded the species, as they are in too many publications. The two first the reader has already seen; and the two others I now offer to his view, where A is the trunk of the mountain-cabbage-tree; B one of its branches, separated from the rest, and C the seed or husky spatha inclosing it; D is the trunk of the maureecee-tree, and E one of its branches dropping [[69]]down. F is the beetle that produces the maureecee worms, G, which are not so large nor so delicious as those produced by the mountain-cabbage. Having had no opportunity of shewing in what manner the Indians and Africans ascend trees, by figure H I have represented a negro climbing a young maureecee-tree, to which they do not cling with their arms and legs, but taking the trunk between their hands, they place the soles of their feet against it, and thus walk up in a most astonishing manner; by this method they save their skin from the bark, but it must certainly require very great strength, activity, and practice.
The Mountain-Cabbage & Maureecee Tree.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
Having thus far dwelt on the palm-tree species, I must once more return to domestic occurrences.
I have said that all the officers and most of the privates who had lately been stationed at the Hope, had died, or were sent up dangerously ill, while I had escaped the contagion. But, alas! now it became my turn, having only had a reprieve, and no more: for on the 9th I was seized with the same burning fever that had carried off the rest; and even my black boy Quaco was very ill.
On the 14th, necessity forced me to give up the command to another officer, and depart from this inhospitable spot on my way to Paramaribo: I could however reach, no farther than Goet Accoord, and there, on the 15th, all expected my death; when an old negro woman found means to make me partake of some butter-milk boiled with some barley and melasses, which was the first food [[70]]I had tasted since I was taken ill. This certainly did me infinite service; and the day following I was again able to be transported: the black boy also was much better.
The evening of the 15th I reached Fauconberg, where I was met by a packet of six or eight letters from different friends, accompanied with presents of hung-beef, bullocks tongues, Madeira, porter, rum, and two gallons of excellent shrub, besides a fine bacon ham, and a beautiful pointer; both the last from the identical Charles Macdonald, the English sailor, which he had brought me from Virginia, in return for the little civility I had formerly shewn him so unexpectedly at the Hope. This mark of the poor fellow’s gratitude and generosity, the true characteristics of a British tar, gave me greater pleasure than all the things I received put together. But still I must except two letters, the one from Mr. Lude at Amsterdam, and the other from Mr. de Graav, his administrator at Paramaribo, acquainting me finally, and to my heartfelt satisfaction, that the amiable Joanna and the little boy were at my disposal, but at no less a price than two thousand florins, amounting, with other expences, to near two hundred pounds sterling, a sum which I was totally unable to raise. I already owed the sum of fifty pounds, that I had borrowed for the black boy Quaco’s redemption; but Joanna was to me invaluable, and though appraised at one-twentieth part of the whole estate, which had been sold for forty thousand florins, no [[71]]price could be too dear for a young woman, possessing so much excellence, provided I could pay it.
View of Magdenbergh, on Tempate Creek.
View of Calays, & the Creek Caswinica.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
Solomon well observes, “that as cold water is to a thirsty soul, so are good tidings from a distant country;” and this news, on its first arrival, had indeed the most reviving effect on me: but when reflection taught me how impossible it was for me to obtain such a sum of money, and while I was employed in giving all the presents I had received (except the ham and the dog) to Joanna’s relations at Fauconberg, who loaded me with adorations and caresses, I exclaimed, with a bitter sigh, “Oh! that I could have but found a sum sufficient to purchase every one of their freedoms!” I now found myself, though exceedingly weak, however so much better, that on the next day I went down so far as the estate Bergshove, whence the administrator, a Mr. Gourlay, humanely caused me to be transported to Paramaribo in a decent tent-barge with six oars; but relapsing, I arrived just alive on the evening of the 19th, having past the preceding night on the estate called the Jalosee, apparently dead.
I cannot leave the river Comewina without presenting the reader with a view of Magdenberg, from the Tempatee; and a peep at Calais, from the Hope, at the mouth of the Cosaweenica Creek.
Being now in a comfortable lodging at Mr. de la Mare’s, and attended by so good a creature as Joanna, I recovered apace; and on the 25th was so well, that I was able to walk out for the first time, when I dined with Mrs. Godefroy, [[72]]Mr. de Graav not being in town to concert matters relative to the emancipation of Joanna, who had now once more literally saved my life. At this table there was never wanting all the wholesome and refreshing nourishment that I stood in need of, with the best of fruits and wines. Among the articles conducive to the restoration of health, are reckoned in this country all the different kinds of pepper which it affords, and the no less efficacious acid of limes. Among the first are the cica pepper, the lattacaca, and the dago-peepee, as they are called in Surinam; for the negroes name each thing from the resemblance it bears to another: but these are known in Europe by the names of Cayenne, Pimento, and Capsicum. The first is properly called Cayenne from the French settlement of that name in Guiana; but the name cica or chica is derived from its round shape and size, resembling the insect called chiga or chigoe, already described; the next resembles rats excrements, &c. All the above species, besides some others, grow on low green shrubs, they all equally excoriate the mouth, have all the same fiery qualities, and when ripe are of a scarlet or rather a blood colour. The Europeans seldom eat any thing without it; but the blacks, and especially the Indians, swallow it I might say by handfuls, not only as a relish, but as a remedy in almost every disease.
The limes grow on beautiful trees like lemons, but the leaf and the fruit are much smaller; they are rather a brighter yellow than the lemons, have a fine thin shell, [[73]]and are extremely full of the richest acid that I know, which has a particularly fine flavour, and is a great blessing to the sick soldiers and sailors in this colony, who have them for the trouble of gathering; so that it is not uncommon to see the tars employing their leisure time in picking and carrying large hampers full to their vessels. In Surinam there are whole hedges of lime-trees, and all round Paramaribo they grow wild. It is much to be lamented that, among other articles of luxury, this fruit cannot be transported to Europe; but whole casks of this juice are frequently sent over, and they are also pickled and preserved in large jars by the inhabitants.
At the dessert, among many other excellent fruits, I observed one which is here called the mammee apple: it grows on a tree about the size of an orange-tree, with a grey-coloured bark; the wood is whitish, and coarse; the leaf very thick, polished, and of a triangular form, without fibres. This fruit is nearly round, and is about five or six inches in diameter, covered with a rusty coarse skin: the pulp has the colour and consistency of a carrot, enclosing two large stones with bitter kernels, but the fruit is of a delicious taste, sweet mixed with acid, and a smell superior in fragrance to almost any other fruit in the colony. There were also nuts of two species, usually called pistachios, and by the negroes pinda; one kind of them resembles small chesnuts, and these grow in bunches on a tree. The others are produced by a shrub, and grow under ground; both have sweet oily kernels: of the last there are two [[74]]in one pod; they are agreeable eating raw, but still better when roasted in hot ashes. To illustrate the above descriptions, I present the reader with the plate annexed, where A is a sprig of limes in full ripeness; B, the Cayenne or cica pepper; C, the pimento pepper or lattacaca; D, the capsicum called dago-peepee; E, the mammee apple when it is fully ripe; F, the leaf above, of a beautiful green; G, the leaf below, of a yellowish green; H, the pistachio nut in the husk; I, the ground pistachio in its dried state; K, one of the kernels belonging to the latter.
The whole of the above were taken from nature, though upon a small scale; yet I flatter myself they will be found more perfect copies of the originals than some of Mad. Merian’s, with all their boasted reputation.—I cannot dismiss this subject without a few other remarks on the incorrectness of this lady’s drawings. For instance, her leaf of the lime-tree is evidently too round; and if by her palisade branch, in plate XI. she means the manicole-tree, I must declare I never discovered such a leaf among the many thousands I have helped to cut down. Her cotton twig, and especially the pod containing the cotton, are also no true representation of those which are produced in Surinam.
Blake Sculpt.
Limes, Capsicum, Mammy Apple &c.
London, Published Decr. 2nd, 1793, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
In another place she declares, that grapes are common in Guiana—which I also must contradict; for it is well known, that no thin-skinned fruit can ever come to perfection in a tropical climate, such as grapes, cherries, currants, [[75]]strawberries, plums, apricots, and peaches, nor even common apples or pears.
From the above observations, I take the liberty to say, that allowing Mad. Merian due praise for her beautiful and valuable performance upon the whole, she has still fallen into very notable mistakes. To correct them is a duty incumbent on future observers; nor does it by any means imply a general censure on the elegant work in question, nor can it appear extraordinary that it should contain some errors, when we consider that it is above an hundred years ago since she presented her discoveries to the world. In the course of so many years therefore mankind, by long experience and continued investigation, have become more enlightened, and are more accurately informed.
Being now once more at Paramaribo, it may not be improper to divert our attention for a while from the animal and vegetable productions to the government of this fine colony; a topic which, I am persuaded, some of my readers have long since expected; but not having had a previous opportunity of gratifying their curiosity, I will no longer delay the necessary information, though to some the detail may appear dry and unentertaining.
I have already mentioned the nature of the charter, and stated, that at present two-thirds of Surinam belong to the town of Amsterdam, and one-third to the West India Company: also, that the judicial power is exercised by several different courts of judicature.—I shall now proceed to describe them in their proper order, as delivered [[76]]to me by the governor Mr. Nepveu. The court of policy and criminal justice claims the first rank in the order of precedence—this consists of thirteen members, chosen by the votes of the inhabitants, and each member continues for life. Of this court the governor is president, and the commandant or deputy governor first counsellor. The acting officers are therefore
- The governor.
- The commandant.
- The fiscal.
- The town clerk; and
- Nine counsellors.
To this court belongs the decision of all criminal matters, the governor exercising the power of reprieve from death, and even pardoning any convict by his own authority.
The court of civil justice consists also of thirteen members, but these are chosen by the above court only, and are renewed every four years. The governor is also president here, and the officers of this court are
- The governor.
- The fiscal.
- The town-clerk; and
- Ten counsellors.
By this court are decided not only the most important law-suits, but also petty offences.
The next is the subaltern college, consisting of eleven members, chosen also by the governor and court of policy; [[77]]and, like the other, renewed every four years, the town-clerk excepted, who sits for life. The members are selected from the late counsellors of justice, and are
- The deputy president.
- The town-clerk; and
- Nine counsellors.
The above court superintends the public buildings, streets, orange-trees, canals, &c. and decides all pecuniary disputes that are under twenty-five guineas; any sum above which must be referred to the court of justice.
Besides these, there is an orphan and insolvent debtors college, consisting of
- The commissaries.
- The town-clerk.
- The book-keeper.
- The treasurer; and
- A sworn secretary.
The public revenue offices are:
- The office of importation and exportation duties.
- The office of excise and small imposts.
- The office for head-money, or poll-tax.
- The office for public sales and vendues.
- The office for re-taking negro deserters, &c.
But these I shall more amply explain when I speak of the general revenue of this colony, and for the present shall only consider its government. I have formerly mentioned that the governor is at the head not only of the [[78]]civil but military departments; the other public employments are chiefly
- The secretary to his excellency the governor.
- The commissaries of the victualling-offices.
- Four inspectors of the exportation of sugars.
- One inspector of the melasses hogsheads.
- One supervisor of all the North American vessels.
- Two public auctioneers.
- Two serjeants or messengers of the court.
- Two sworn land-surveyors.
- Three measurers of the squared timber.
- One inspector of the black cattle, &c.
- One sworn overseer of weights and measures.
- Three Low-Dutch clergymen.
- One French clergyman.
- One Lutheran clergyman.
- Three public schoolmasters, &c.
The militia consists of eleven companies, with one captain, one lieutenant, one second lieutenant, one ensign, one secretary, and one cashier each. The captains are generally the sworn appraisers of the estates for sale on the different rivers, where they chance to have their department.
These are the principal functionaries in the government of Surinam; which is not originally upon a bad establishment, were it not depraved by sordid avarice, to the great detriment of this beautiful settlement in general, and to that of its inhabitants in particular. The [[79]]colony, by proper management, might be made a garden of Eden, not only for the European settlers, but also for their African domestics. It would not indeed be difficult to suggest improvements, nor even to carry them into effect. What has occurred to me upon the subject, I will candidly state on another occasion; and I have no doubt but a little attention even to one single point would be productive of the happiest consequences. Thus, if I cannot on the spot, like the good Samaritan, pour the balm into the wound of any one sufferer, at least I can leave the prescription, which, if properly applied, would, I am persuaded, afford relief to the complaints of thousands.
I have undertaken the unpleasing task of shewing how, by the desperate means of blood, the colony was frequently saved from total annihilation. How much more glorious would it be for those who have it in their power not only to save the colony of Surinam, but many other valuable West India settlements, by the help of a WELL-PLANNED INSTITUTION OF GENERAL AND IMPARTIAL JUSTICE, and the laudable example of humanity and benevolence!
Thus much for the political government of Surinam; which I will not leave without transcribing its motto, so very contrary to what they profess, being “Justitia—pietas—fides.” The arms are tripartite, which I apprehend to be some of those of the house of Somelsdyke, the West India company, and the town of Amsterdam, crowned and supported by two lions rampant, and with [[80]]these are stamped all their card money, &c.——But to proceed with my journal.
On the 30th I met the poor sailor, Charles Macdonald, and having just bought thirty gallons of Grenada rum, I gave him a handsome return for his bacon ham and his dog, besides a fine cork-screw (mother-of-pearl set in silver) as a keep-sake, he being to sail the day following for Virginia, on board the Peggy, Captain Lewis, who, at my recommendation, promised to make him his mate. As I am speaking of dogs, I must make two general remarks on these animals in Guiana, viz. that in this quarter of the world they lose the faculty, or at least the habit, of barking; and it is a known fact, that the native dogs never bark at all. In this country, it is observed also, that dogs are never seized with the hydrophobia, at least I never remember to have seen or heard of a mad dog in Surinam: and this is the more singular, as that dreadful distemper is generally attributed in other countries to the intense heat of the Caniculares or dog-days, as that appellation sufficiently indicates. The Indians or natives of Guiana all keep dogs, which they use in hunting; they are of a dirty white colour, meagre, and small, with short hair, a sharp muzzle, and erect ears: all these are very dexterous in finding game; but they possess all the mischievous qualities of the terrier. I ought not to forget that if the American dogs do not bark, their howl is very loud; on this account my Virginian dog was so troublesome, [[81]]that he got his brains knocked out by the neighbours within a fortnight after he was in my possession.
About this period several American families arrived at Paramaribo, on account of the war which broke out between the mother country and her colonies. For many of these I felt very much; and must ever declare, that no people could have a better heart or greater friendship for a British individual than they had for me, which they shewed on many different occasions.
On the 3d of August, Mr. de Graav being arrived in town, having finally settled affairs with Mr. Lolkens, the late administrator of Fauconberg, I now thought proper to take the first opportunity of settling matters with him, by proposing him to give me credit till I should have it in my power to pay the money for which Joanna and my Johnny had been sold to me, and which I was determined to save out of my pay, if I should exist on bread, salt, and water: though even then this debt could not be discharged in less time than two or three years. Providence however interfered, and at this moment sent that excellent woman, Mrs. Godefroy, to my assistance: for no sooner was she acquainted with my difficult and anxious situation, than she sent for me to dine with her, when she addressed me in the following terms:
“I know, good Stedman, the present feelings of your heart, and the incapacity of an officer, from his income only, to accomplish such a purpose as the completion of your wishes. But know, that even in Surinam [[82]]virtue will meet with friends. Your manly sensibility for that deserving young woman and her child must claim the esteem of all rational persons, in spite of malice and folly: and so much has this action recommended you to my attention in particular, that I should think myself culpable in not patronizing your laudable intentions. Permit me then to participate in your happiness, and in the future prospect of the virtuous Joanna and her little boy, by requesting your acceptance of the sum of two thousand florins, or any sum you stand in need of; with which money go immediately, Stedman, go and redeem innocence, good sense, and beauty from the jaws of tyranny, oppression, and insult.”
Seeing me thunder-struck, and gazing upon her in a state of stupefaction, without the power of speaking, she continued, with a divine benignity:
“Let not your delicacy, my friend, take the alarm, and interfere in this business: soldiers and sailors ought ever to be the men of fewest compliments; and all I expect from you is, that you say not one word more on the subject.”—As soon as I recovered I replied, “that I was at a loss how to express my admiration of such benevolence.” I said, “that Joanna, who had so frequently preserved my life, had certainly merited my eternal affection; but that my gratitude could not be less to one who had so generously put me in the way of redeeming that invaluable woman [[83]]from slavery;” and concluded with observing, “that I could not now touch a shilling of the money, but should have the honour to call upon her the next day; and immediately retired.”
I was no sooner returned home, than I acquainted Joanna with all that had happened; who, bursting into tears, called out, “Gado sa bresse da woma!”—“God will bless this woman!” and insisted that she herself should be mortgaged to Mrs. Godefroy till every farthing should be paid: she indeed was very anxious to see the emancipation of her boy, but till that was done, she absolutely refused to accept of her own freedom. I shall not here endeavour to paint the contest which I sustained between affection and duty, but bluntly say that I yielded to the wish of this so charming creature, and whose sentiments endeared her to me still more. Thus I instantly drew up a paper, declaring my Joanna, according to her desire, from this day to be the property of Mrs. Godefroy, till the last farthing of the money she lent me should be repaid; and, on the following day, with the consent of her relations[1], I conducted her to Mrs. Godefroy’s house, where, throwing herself at the feet of that incomparable woman, Joanna herself put the paper into her hands; but this lady having raised her up, no sooner had read the contents, than she exclaimed, “Must it be so? Then come here, my Joanna, [[84]]I have a spirit to accept of you not as my slave, but more as my companion: you shall have a house built in my orange-garden, with my own slaves to attend you, till Providence shall call me away, when you shall be perfectly free, as indeed you now are the moment you wish to possess your manumission; and this you claim both by your extraction and your conduct[2].” On these terms, and on no other, I accepted of the money on the 5th, and carrying it in my hat to Mr. de Graav’s, I laid it on his table, demanding a receipt in full; and Joanna was transferred from the wretched estate Fauconberg, to the protection of the first woman perhaps in all the Dutch West-Indies, if not in the world; and for which she thanked me with a look that could only be expressed by the COUNTENANCE OF AN ANGEL.
Mr. de Graav, on counting the money, addressed me in the following terms:—“Stedman, two hundred florins of this sum belong to me as administrator. Permit me also to have a small share in this happy event, by not accepting this dividend, as I shall find myself amply paid by the pleasure of having been instrumental in bringing about what seems so much to contribute to the enjoyment of two deserving people.”
Having thanked my disinterested friend with an affectionate shake by the hand, I immediately returned the [[85]]two hundred florins to Mrs. Godefroy, and all were happy. I must not omit, as a farther proof of Mrs. Godefroy’s humane character, that on hearing of the dejected situation of the sick at Magdenberg, she at this time sent them a present of a whole barge-load of fruit, vegetables, and refreshments of every kind that the colony could afford, for their relief.
On the 7th of April, matters being thus far settled, I wrote a letter to Mr. Lude, at Amsterdam, to give him intelligence, and to thank him for having parted with the most valuable property of his estate; and my ancle being now pretty well recovered, I also wrote to Colonel Fourgeoud, that I should have the honour to join him in a few days. This letter I directed to Barbacoeba, for there he still continued, while the intrepid and active militia captain, Stoeleman, was beating up the woods with a few rangers at another quarter, and who this day sent in four captive rebel negroes to Paramaribo[3].
On the 10th, finding myself sufficiently recovered, and ready once more to enter the forest, I bade farewell to my sweet family and friends, leaving the first still at Mr. de la Mare’s, at their request; and cheerfully set off with a tent-boat on my fifth campaign, in the hopes of accompanying Fourgeoud; who, having assembled all his remaining forces, and made the necessary arrangements to attack [[86]]the enemy, was now determined to march in a very few days.
On the 14th I arrived with a boat at Barbacoeba, in the upper part of the river Cottica, where formerly I was when I killed the aboma snake. I found here the old gentleman (who civilly welcomed me) ready to start the following day. I never saw the troops in such fine spirits, or so eager for service; which proceeded from different motives, as I had said before, some in the hopes of plunder, some from revenge on the rebels, and some from a wish to see the war at an end; while I believe in my soul, that others were tired of existence by continual illness and hard service; and heartily wished for a glorious end of all their miseries—as nothing can be more wretched than a soldier’s or a sailor’s life, perpetually soaking in the wet or scorching in the sun, surrounded by an unbounded forest, and in a tropical climate. [[87]]
[1] Without the consent of parents, brothers, and sisters, no respectable slaves are individually sold in Surinam. [↑]
[2] I have already mentioned that Joanna was by birth a gentleman’s daughter from Holland; and her mother’s family were most distinguished people on the coast of Africa. [↑]
[3] It is a maxim with the rangers to chop off the right hand of every rebel negro they kill, for which they receive twenty-five florins; and for every one they send in alive fifty florins; also for finding a town or village one thousand florins Hollands. [↑]
CHAP. XX.
A Rebel Negro described—Bush-fighting—Sentimental Expressions of the African Blacks—The Town of Gado-Saby taken by Colonel Fourgeoud—Superstition—Wonderful Expedients—Great Generalship in the Enemy.
On the 15th of August 1775, the rebels, flushed with their late victory over Captain Meyland and his party, whether with a design to brave Fourgeoud, or to intimidate his troops, being well apprised by their spies that he was at Barbacoeba, had the assurance to set fire to all the huts in two different camps which had been left standing by his patroles, while they continued shouting and hallooing the whole night within our hearing; but this only proved an incentive to action, and enraged our veteran commander so much, that he now declared he would have ample revenge at all hazards. During this night a large tiger also alarmed the camp, but did no damage of any kind.
An hour before day-break next morning, Colonel Fourgeoud, with his troops, were ready to march, and immediately entered the woods. They now amounted exactly to two hundred Europeans fit for service, the rest [[88]]being ill and unfit for service; but no rangers were as yet arrived, though they had been expected. The fact was, they were so much disgusted with Fourgeoud’s command, that they did not appear at all, which afforded this gentleman for once an opportunity of stigmatizing them as a band of pusillanimous rascals; and I confess I was myself extremely astonished at this wilful absence of my black favourites, who were at other times so eager to rush upon the enemy, and had declared their satisfaction at the hopes of a decisive engagement with their sable countrymen.
A Rebel Negro armed & on his guard.
Bartolozzi Sculpt.
London, Published Decr. 1.st, 1794, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
This whole day our course was due E.; and after proceeding about eight miles (which is a great distance in this country, where the pioneers with bill-hooks must constantly open a path), we erected huts, and encamped. Having frequently mentioned the rebel-negroes with whom we were now certain to have a rencontre, I present the reader with the figure of one of these people, upon his guard, as alarmed by a rustling amongst the bushes. At a distance are supposed a couple of our rangers, waiting the moment to take him by surprize. This rebel negro is armed with a firelock and a hatchet; his hair, though woolly, may be observed to be plaited close to his head, by way of distinction from the rangers, or any other straggling negroes, who are not yet accepted amongst them; his beard is grown to a point, like that of all the Africans, when they have no opportunity of shaving. The principal dress of this man [[89]]consists of a cotton sheet, negligently tied across his shoulders, which protects him from the weather, and serves him also to rest on; while he always sleeps under cover in the most obscure places he can find, when detached from his companions. The rest of his dress is a camisa, tied around his loins like a handkerchief; his pouch, which is made of some animal’s skin; a few cotton strings for ornament around his ancles and wrists; and a superstitious obia or amulet tied about his neck, in which he places all his confidence. The skull and ribs are supposed to be the bones of his enemies, scattered upon the sandy savannah.
The two rangers who make their appearance at a distance may be distinguished by their red caps; and here I must observe, that the rebels have many times availed themselves of seizing one of these scarlet distinctions, which by clapping on their own heads in an engagement, has not only saved their lives, but given them an opportunity of shooting their enemies.
Another stratagem of theirs has sometimes been discovered, viz. that fire-arms being scarce amongst them, numbers have intermixed in the crowd, with a crooked stick shaped something like a musket; and this appearance has more than once had the effect of preventing a proper defence by the plantation slaves, when the rebels came to ransack the estates; while with this show of armed numbers they have often struck such a panic, and so damped the courage of the former, that they have [[90]]been calmly permitted, after burning their houses, even to carry away their wives and daughters.
On the 16th we continued our march due E. upon a ridge or elevated ground. These ridges, if I mistake not, run generally in this country E. and W. as do also most of the marshes and swamps. Having advanced rather a less distance than we did the day before, we were ordered early to sling our hammocks, and to sleep without any covering, to prevent the enemy from hearing the sound of cutting the trees; nor were any fires allowed to be lighted, nor a word to be spoken, while a strict watch was kept round the camp. These, in fast, were all very necessary precautions; but if we were not discovered by the enemy, we were almost devoured by the clouds of gnats or musquitoes, which arose from a neighbouring marsh: for my own part I suffered more here than I had even done on board the fatal barges in the upper Cottica, as we could make no smoke to drive them away. In this situation I saw the poor men dig holes with their bayonets in the earth, into which they thrust their heads, stopping the entry and covering their necks with their hammocks, while they lay with their bellies on the ground. To sleep in any other position was absolutely impossible.
By the advice of a negro slave, I however enjoyed my rest.—“Climb,” said he, “massera, with your hammock to the top of the highest tree that is in the camp, and there go sleep; not a single musquito will disturb you, the swarm will be sufficiently attracted by the smell of [[91]]the sweating multitude below.”—This I immediately tried, and slept exalted near one hundred feet above my companions, whom I could not see for the myriads of musquitoes below me, nor even hear them, from the incessant buzzing of these troublesome insects.
This was the principal distress of the night; while, during the day, we had frequently been attacked by whole armies of small emmets, called here fire-ants, from their painful biting. These insects are black, and very diminutive, but live in such amazing multitudes together, that their hillocks have sometimes obstructed our passage by their size, over which, if one chances to pass, the feet and legs are instantly covered with innumerable of these creatures, which seize the skin with such violence in their pincers, that they will sooner suffer the head to be parted from their body, than let go their hold. The burning pain which they occasion cannot, in my opinion, proceed from the sharpness of their pincers only, but must be owing to some venomous fluid which they infuse, or which the wound imbibes from them. I can aver that I have seen them make a whole company hop about, as if they had been scalded with boiling water.
On the 17th we continued our march still due E. till nine o’clock, when we altered our course to the N. and had to scramble through great quantities of those mataky roots, or trumpeters already described, which proved that we were descending into the low grounds, and indeed the soil soon became very marshy; fortunately, however, though it was now the wet season, we had as yet very little rain. [[92]]
This evening we encamped about four o’clock. Colonel Fourgeoud being seized with a cold fit of the ague.
As I was slinging my hammock between two large branches, but not so high as the preceding night, my eye chanced to fall upon what I conceived to be the leaf of a tree, but which appeared to move and crawl up the trunk. I called several officers to see it: when a gentleman of the Society exclaimed, “C’est la feuille ambulante.” That is the walking leaf. Upon closer examination it proved to be an insect, whose wings so perfectly represent a leaf, that by many it has been mistaken for a vegetable production. This seemed to be a species of grasshopper, but covered over with four wings of an oval form, and about three inches in length, the two uppermost so folded together as to appear exactly like a brown leaf, with all the fibres, &c.
I now returned to my hammock; where, reflecting on all the wonders of nature, while the silver-moon glittering through the verdure added beauty to the scene, I fell into a profound sleep, which I enjoyed till near midnight, when we were all awaked in pitch darkness and a heavy shower of rain, by the hallooing and shouting of the rebel negroes, who discharged several muskets; but as the shot did not reach our camp, we were extremely astonished, the darkness rendering it impossible to form any just idea of their meaning. This disturbance continuing till near day-break, made us expect every moment to be surrounded, and keep a very sharp look-out.
In the morning early we unlashed our hammocks, and [[93]]marched due N. towards the place whence we conjectured the hallooing noise to have proceeded, being all much fatigued for want of rest, especially Colonel Fourgeoud, who could hardly support himself, so much was he weakened by the ague. We had not marched above two miles, I having the van-guard, when a rebel negro sprang up at my feet from under a shrub, where he had been asleep; but as we had orders not to fire upon stragglers, he escaped, running with almost the swiftness of a stag amongst the brambles. I no sooner made report to the old hero, than, swearing he was a spy, which I believe was true, he shook off his illness, and quickened his pace with redoubled vigour: but our pursuit was to no purpose, at least this day; for about one o’clock we got into a bog, from which we could hardly extricate ourselves, and were forced to return to our last night’s encampment, missing two privates of the Society troops, whom we supposed to have perished in the marsh.
This day we saw great quantities of arnotta-trees, with which this part of the forest abounds. In the evening a slave presented me with a bush-spider of such magnitude, that putting him into a case-bottle above eight inches high, he actually reached the surface with some of his hideous claws, whilst the others were resting upon the bottom. No creature can be more dreadfully ugly than this enormous spider, which the people of Surinam erroneously call the tarantula. The body is divided in two, the posterior part oval, and the size of an Orlean-plum; the fore-part square, with a figure somewhat [[94]]resembling a star upon it. This monster has five pair of thick legs, with four joints in each; is entirely black or dark brown, and covered over, legs and all, with thick and long black hair, like some caterpillars, while each leg is armed with a crooked yellow nail, and from the head project two long teeth with inverted pincers, resembling the claw of a crab, with which it seizes its prey; while its bite, if not fatal by the venomous liquid infused into the wound, always occasions a fever. It has eight eyes like most spiders, and feeds on insects of every species; nay, it is even asserted, that young birds do not escape it, out of which this spider sucks the blood: its web is small but very strong. Upon the whole, it is such a hideous creature, that the very sight of it is sufficient to occasion a tremor of abhorrence, even in persons most accustomed to inspect the deformities of nature. Innumerable indeed are the pests and dangers to which one is hourly exposed in the woods of this tropical climate; and though it is my present business only to make mention of such as I met with in this march, and which must appear new to the reader, yet a recapitulation of the names only of our numerous plagues may not be improper to refresh the memory of those who have a heart to sympathize with our sufferings. I have already mentioned the musquitoes, monpieras, patat and serapat lice, chigoes, cock-roaches, common ants, fire-ants, horse-flies, wild bees, and spiders; besides the prickly heat, ring-worm, dry-gripes, putrid fevers, boils, consaca, bloody-flux, thorns, briars, [[95]]alligators, snakes, tigers, &c.; but I have not yet spoken of the bush-worms, large ants, locusts, centipedes, scorpions, bats, and flying-lice, the crassy-crassy, yaws, lethargy, leprosy, and dropsy, with a thousand other grievances that continually annoyed our unhappy troops;—a particular description of which I must delay till a more suitable opportunity occurs for introducing them into this narrative.
Such were the pests that we had to struggle with in this baneful climate, whilst our poor men were dying in multitudes, without proper assistance, unpitied, and frequently without a friend to close their eye-lids, neither coffin nor shell to receive their bones, but thrown promiscuously into one pit, like heaps of loathsome carrion.
On the 19th, we again left our encampment, and after keeping a little S. marched E. till ten o’clock, when we were overtaken and joined by a party of one hundred rangers, with their conductor, Mr. Vinsack, to my great satisfaction. At this period we mustered three hundred men; and however little Colonel Fourgeoud affected, at other times, to value these black soldiers, he was now not at all displeased with their company, upon our near approach to an enemy with whom the rangers were well acquainted, and knew how to engage much better than the marines: while it will ever be my opinion, that one of these free negroes is preferable to half a dozen white men in the forest of Guiana; it indeed seems their natural element, whilst it is the bane of the Europeans. [[96]]
Colonel Fourgeoud now issued orders for our little army to march in three lines or columns, his own regiment in the centre, the Society troops on the right, the rangers or black soldiers on the left, all within hearing of each other, with a few flankers or riflemen outside the whole: thus formed we advanced till about noon, when we changed our course from E. to N. E. and continued our march over a biree-biree swamp, or quagmire: these are very common and dangerous in this country, being a deep soft miry bog, covered over with a thin crust of verdure, sufficient in most places to bear the weight of a man, and quaking when walked over; but should this crust give way, whoever breaks it is swallowed up in the chasm, where he must inevitably perish if not immediately extricated; thus it has frequently happened that men have been seen to sink, and have never more been heard of.
Quicksands are quite different, as they overwhelm by a gradual suction, whereas the effects of a quagmire are instantaneous. To avoid accidents, we opened our files as much as possible, which occasioned a very long rear; but even with this precaution several men sunk through it, as if the ice had broken under their feet, and some in my presence up to the arm-pits, but were fortunately, though with much difficulty, extricated.
In the afternoon we passed through two old cassava fields, which indicated our near approach to the rebel settlement; we afterwards fell in with Captain Meyland’s [[97]]path, which we knew by the marks cut upon the trees, as before explained. The evening being too far advanced to attack the enemy, we once more encamped a few miles from the swamp in which Captain Meyland and his party had been defeated.
Having had a long march, and the men being much fatigued, Colonel Fourgeoud allowed, during this night, both huts and fires; which surprized me greatly, being so near the rebels, though he had forbidden these comforts when we were at a very considerable distance from them. I however availed myself of his bounty, and having got some pigeon-peas from my serjeant, which he had picked up in the old cassava grounds, and laid hold of one of the kettles, I invited him, and a captain of the black corps called Hannibal, to a share; who having thrown their salt-beef and rusk-biscuit into the mess with mine, and stirred it round with a bayonet, we made a very excellent supper, though in a sad dreary night and heavy rain.
The pigeon or Angola peas grow on a shrub about eight or ten feet high; five or six of these peas are contained in a pod; they are flat like lentils, and of a reddish-brown colour: the negroes are extremely fond of them, and cultivate them in their gardens without any expence or much trouble.
Hannibal now observing that we should certainly see the enemy to-morrow, asked me if I knew in what manner negro engaged against negro? Having answered in the negative, he gave me the following relation, while [[98]]smoking his pipe under my hammock.—“Massera,” said he, “both parties are divided in small companies of eight or ten men, commanded by a captain, with a horn, such as this (shewing me his) by which they do every thing, and fight or run away. When they fight they separate immediately, lie down on the ground, and fire at the flash of each other’s pans through the trees; while each warrior is supported by two negroes unarmed, the one to take his place if he is killed, and the other to carry away the dead body, to prevent its falling into the hands of their adversaries[1].”
From this discourse I perfectly understood his meaning, which I have since seen put in practice; and for the clearer conception of the reader, I have illustrated it with the following plan, where the whole engagement is exhibited at one view.
Manner of Bush-fighting by the African Negroes.
Gradation of Shades between Europe & Africa.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
The two columns E and F are supposed to be first engaged, where No 1 in the column E commences the attack by firing at random in the opposite bushes; and instantly retires, by shifting his place to No 1 in the column C, where he re-loads; while No 2 in the column F, having fired at the flash of his pan, advances in the same manner, shifting his station to re-load at No 2 in the column D; and at the flash of whose pan No 3 fires in E, and receives the fire of No 4 in F, &c. &c. Thus continuing through both lines, till No 8 has fired in F, [[99]]when the whole have shifted their stations; and the same manœuvre is continued with the columns C and D, beginning again with the identical numbers 1, 2, 3, &c. at the top; while these lines, having shifted their places, still the firing is repeated by the lines A and B, and thus ad infinitum, until by sounding the horn one of the parties gives way in flight, and the battle is over. I shall only add, that when the forest is thick, instead of lying on their bellies, or kneeling, each negro skulks behind a thick tree, which serves him as a bulwark, and from which he fires at his adversary with more certainty and less danger, usually resting his piece against the trunk, or in the forked branches, like the Shawanese and Delaware Indians.
Captain Hannibal also informed me, that the famous chief Bonny was supposed to be in person amongst the neighbouring rebels; and that he was born in the forest amongst them, notwithstanding his being a mulatto, which was accounted for by his mother escaping to the woods from the ill treatment of her master, by whom she was then pregnant.
Having frequently mentioned the different shades between a black and a white, the same plate represents them to the reader at one view. From the above two colours the mulatto is produced; from the mulatto and black, the samboo; from the mulatto and white, the quaderoon, &c. &c.—This sable warrior made me also acquainted with the names of several other rebel commanders, [[100]]against whom he had frequently fought for the Europeans. Such as Quammy, who was the chief of a separate gang, and had no connection with the others; Coromantyn, Cojo, Arico, and Joli-Cœur; the two last being celebrated captains, whose revenge was insatiable against the whites, particularly Joli-Cœur’s, who had I confess great reason, as has been already stated. The noted rebel negro Baron, he believed, was now serving also under the great chief Bonny.
He next proceeded to tell me the names of the principal rebel settlements, some of which were already destroyed, some now in view, and some of these were only known to us by name. These appellations were all very expressive indeed; and as they may serve in some measure to elucidate our enquiries concerning the negro nations, I have thought proper to give them a place in this narrative, with their meaning in an English translation; viz.
| Boucoo | I shall moulder before I shall be taken. |
| Gado Saby | God only knows me, and none else. |
| Cofaay | Come try me, if you be men. |
| Tessee See | Take a tasting, if you like it. |
| Mele me | Do disturb me, if you dare. |
| Boosy Cray | The woods lament for me. |
| Me Salasy | I shall be taken. |
| Kebree me | Hide me, O thou surrounding verdure. |
[[101]]
The others were:
| Quammi Condre | From Quammi, the name of the chief. |
| Pinenburgh | From the pines or manicole-trees which formerly surrounded it. |
| Caro Condre | From the quantity of maize it afforded. |
| Reisee Condre | From the quantity of rice it produced. |
Such were the names of the negro warriors, and their settlements.
I now shook hands with Captain Hannibal, while my mind being occupied with the hopes of victory unstained by cruelty, and being very much fatigued, I soon fell profoundly asleep.
On the 20th in the morning, no one could awake in a more beautiful day and better spirits than I did, until they were damped by observing that at so critical a time, and even in the moment before the conflict, instead of that kind treatment which it would have been prudent to have shewn to those from whose exertions we were to expect a happy period to our sufferings, there was even then such discouragement of the subaltern officers and private men as involuntarily drew from me the reflection—That (if possible to avoid it) princes and ministers should never invest any one individual with unlimited authority, especially in a foreign country, without being perfectly well acquainted with the rectitude of their moral principles and disposition; no men being fit to command but those who are possessed of manly feelings, and whose valour is tempered with humanity; [[102]]since ’tis a truth that sterling bravery is incompatible with a cruel heart.
At six o’clock we advanced N. E. by N. towards the marsh, my melancholy evaporating with the rising sun.
About eight o’clock we entered this formidable swamp, and soon found ourselves above our middle in water, well prepared nevertheless for the warm reception we expected from the opposite shore, as the former party had so fatally experienced. After wading above half a mile, our grenadiers rapidly mounted the beach with cocked firelocks and bayonets fixed; the main body instantly followed, and also mounting the beach, the whole formed without the smallest opposition. We now beheld a spectacle sufficient to shock the most intrepid, the ground strewed with skulls, bones, and ribs still covered with human flesh, and besmeared with the blood of those unfortunate men who were killed with Captain Meyland.—That officer had indeed found means to bury them, but the rebels had dug them up for the sake of their cloaths, and to mangle the bodies, which, like ferocious animals, they had torn limb from limb. Amongst these, the fate of Meyland’s nephew, a promising young man, was peculiarly affecting. He came from the mountains of Switzerland in quest of military preferment, and met his fate in a marsh of Surinam just after his landing. His bravery was equal to that of his uncle, his intrepidity, voluntarily exposing himself to danger, knew no bounds.—Such is the enthusiasm of military ambition. [[103]]
“And ’tis most true, while Time’s relentless hand
With sickly grasp drags others to the tomb;
The soldier scorns to wait the dull command,
But springs impatient to a nobler doom.
“Tho’ on the plain he lies, outstretch’d and pale,
Without one friend his stedfast eyes to close,
Yet on his honour’d corpse shall many a gale
Waft the moist fragrance of the weeping rose.
“O’er the dread spot the melancholy moon
Shall pause a while—a sadder beam to shed;
And starry night amidst her awful noon
Sprinkle light dews upon his hallowed head.
“There too the solitary bird shall swell
With long-drawn melody her plaintive throat;
While distant echo from responsive cell
Shall oft with fading force return the note.
“Such recompence be valour’s due alone.”
* * *
This being the second or third heap of human bones we had met with in our march, I frankly acknowledge did not operate upon me as a stimulative to engage with negroes; yet these awful relics spurred on the common soldiers to take revenge for the loss of their massacred companions.
Having so frequently had occasion to speak of marching through a swamp, it may not be improper to illustrate [[104]]the description by the annexed drawing. The first figure represents Colonel Fourgeoud (preceded by a negro slave, as a guide, to give notice by his swimming when the water deepens) followed by myself, some other officers and marines, wading through the marsh above our middle, and carrying our arms, ammunition, and accoutrements above our heads, to prevent their being damaged by the wet.
In the back-ground may be seen the manner in which the slaves carry all burdens whatever on the head, and the mode of the rebel negroes firing upon the troops from the tops of high palm-trees, &c. A march of this nature, though occasionally necessary in Surinam, must be always very dangerous, being exposed to an attack from under cover of the surrounding bushes, without having the power of returning the fire more than once; for in such a depth of water no soldier can re-load his musket without wetting both the lock and the priming.
We now followed a kind of foot-path made by the enemy, which after a little turning led us in a westerly direction. Serjeant Fowler, who preceded the van-guard, at this time came to me pale, declaring, that the sight of the mangled bodies had made him extremely sick; and that he felt himself completely disarmed, being that moment, as it were, rivetted to the ground, without the power of advancing one single step, or knowing how to conceal his tremor:——I d—n’d him for a pitiful scoundrel, and had only time to order him to the rear.
March thro’ a swamp or Marsh in Terra-firma.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1794, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
[[105]]
“No force, no firmness, the pale coward shews:
He shifts his place, his colour comes and goes;
A dropping sweat creeps cold on every part,
Against his bosom beats his quivering heart:
Terror and death in his wild eye-balls stare; |  | |
With chattering teeth he stands, and stiff’ning hair, | ||
And looks a bloodless image of despair.” |
At ten o’clock we met a small party of the rebels, with each a green hamper upon his back; they fired at us, dropped their bundles, and taking to their heels ran back towards their village. These we since learned were transporting rice to another settlement for their subsistence, when they should be expelled from Gado-Saby (the name of this settlement) which they daily expected, since they had been discovered by the gallant Captain Meyland. The green hampers, which they call warimbos, were very curiously plaited with the manicole leaves. And when our men cut them open with their sabres, there burst forth the most beautiful clean rice that I ever saw, which was scattered and trampled under foot, as we had no opportunity of carrying it along. A little after this we perceived an empty shed, where a picquet had been stationed to give notice of any danger, but they had precipitately deserted their post. We now vigorously redoubled our pace till about noon; when two more musket shot were fired at us by another advanced guard of the enemy, as a signal to the chief, Bonny, of our approach. Major Medler and myself, with a few of the [[106]]van-guard, and a small party of the rangers, at this time rushing forward, soon came to a fine field of rice and Indian corn: we here made a halt for the other troops, particularly to give time for our rear to close up, some of whom were at least two miles behind us; and during which period we might have been cut to pieces, the enemy, unknown to us, having surrounded the field in which we were, as we were afterwards informed.
In about half an hour the whole body joined us, when we instantly proceeded by cutting through a small defile of the wood, into which we had no sooner entered, than a heavy fire commenced from every side, the rebels retiring, and we advancing, until we arrived in the most beautiful field, of ripe rice, in the form of an oblong square, from which the rebel town appeared at a distance, in the form of an amphitheatre, sheltered from the sun by the foliage of a few lofty trees, the whole presenting a coup-d’œil romantic and enchanting beyond conception. In this field the firing was kept up, like one continued peal of thunder, for above forty minutes, during which time our black warriors behaved with wonderful intrepidity and skill. The white soldiers were too eager, and fired over one another at random, yet I could perceive a few of them act with the utmost coolness, and imitate the rangers with great effect; amongst these was now the once-daunted Fowler, who being roused from his tremor by the firing at the beginning of the onset, had rushed to the front, and fully [[107]]re-established his character, by fighting like a brave fellow, by my side, until the muzzle of his musket was split by a shot from the enemy, which rendered it useless; a ball passed through my shirt, and grazed the skin of my shoulder; Mr. Decabanes, my lieutenant, had the sling of his fusee shot away: several others were wounded, some mortally, but I did not, to my surprize, observe one instance of immediate death—for which seeming miracle, however, I shall presently account.
This whole field of rice was surrounded and interspersed by the enemy with the large trunks and roots of heavy trees, in order to make our approach both difficult and dangerous; behind these temporary fortifications the rebels lay lurking, and firing upon us with deliberate aim, whilst their bulwarks certainly protected them in some measure from the effects of our fire, we having vast numbers of these fallen trees to scramble over before we could reach the town: but we still advanced, in defiance of every obstacle, and while I admired the masterly manœuvres of their general, I could not help pitying them for their superstition. One poor fellow, in particular, trusting to his amulet or charm, fancied himself invulnerable; he mounted frequently upon one of the trees that lay near us, discharged his piece, descended to re-load, and then with equal confidence and the greatest deliberation returned to the charge in my full view; till at last a shot from one of my marines, named Valet, broke the bone of his thigh, and he fell crawling [[108]]for shelter under the very same tree which had supported him just before; but the soldier instantly advancing, and putting the muzzle of his musket to the rebel’s ear, blew out his brains, while several of his countrymen, in spite of their spells and charms, shared the same fate.
Being now about to enter the town, a rebel captain, wearing a tarnished gold-laced hat, and bearing in his hand a torch of flaming straw, seeing their ruin inevitable, had the resolution to stay and set the town on fire in our presence, which, by the dryness of the houses, instantly produced a general conflagration, when the firing from the woods began gradually to cease. This bold and masterly manœuvre not only prevented that carnage to which the common soldiers in the heat of victory are but too prone, but also afforded the enemy an opportunity of retreating with their wives and children, and carrying off their most useful effects; whilst our pursuit, and seizing the spoil, were at once frustrated both by the ascending flames, and the unfathomable marsh, which we soon discovered on all sides to surround us, as in the Maccabees:
“Behold the battle is before us, and behind us, and the water of Jordan on this side, and that side, and the marsh, and forest, so that there is no place for us to turn aside.”
I must indeed confess that within this last hour the continued noise of the firing, shouting, swearing, and hallooing of black and white men mixed together; the groans of the wounded and the dying, all weltering [[109]]in blood and in dust; the shrill sound of the negro horns from every quarter, and the crackling of the burning village; to which if we add the clouds of smoke that every where surrounded us, the ascending flames, &c. &c. formed, on the whole, such an uncommon scene as I cannot describe, and would perhaps not have been unworthy of the pencil of Hogarth: this scene I have, however, faintly endeavoured to represent in the frontispiece—where I may be seen, after the heat of the action, fatigued, and dejectedly looking on the body of an unfortunate rebel negro, who, with his musket in his hand, lies prostrate at my feet.
In short, having washed off the dust, sweat, and blood, and having refreshed ourselves with a dram and a bit of bread till the flames subsided, we next went to inspect the smoking ruins; and found the above town to have consisted of about one hundred houses or huts, some of which were two stories high. Among the glowing ashes we picked up several trifles that had escaped the flames, such as silver spoons and forks, which we supposed, by the marks BW. to have been pillaged from the Brunswick estate in Rio Cottica. We found also some knives, broken china and earthen pots; amongst the latter one filled with rice and palm-tree worms fell to my share: as this wanted no fire to dress the contents, and as my appetite was very keen, I emptied it in a few minutes, and made a very hearty meal. Some were afraid this mess had been left behind with a view to poison us; but this suspicion, [[110]]proved however, fortunately for me, to be without foundation.
The silver plate I also purchased from the men that picked it up, determined to carry it off as a trophy, and I have used it ever since. Here we likewise found three skulls fixed upon stakes, the mournful relics of some of our own brave people, who had been formerly killed; but what surprized us most, were the heads of two young negroes, which seemed as if fresh cut off, these we since learned had been executed during the night of the 17th, when we heard the hallooing and the firing, for speaking in our favour.
Having buried all these remains promiscuously in one pit, we returned to sling our hammocks, under those beautiful and lofty trees which I have already mentioned; but here I am sorry to add, we found the rangers shockingly employed, in playing at bowls with those very heads they had just chopped off from their enemies; who, deaf to all remonstrance,
“Resistless drove the batter’d skulls before,
And dash’d and mangled all the brains with gore.”
They related that upon reconnoitring the skirts of the surrounding forest, they had found quantities of human blood in different places, which had flowed from the dead and wounded bodies the rebels had carried away during the action.
To reprimand them for this inhuman diversion would [[111]]have been useless, as they assured us it was “Condre fassee,” the custom of their country; and concluded the horrid sport by kicking and mangling the heads, cutting off the lips, cheeks, ears, and noses; they even took out the jaw-bones, which they smoke-dried, together with the right hands, to carry home, as trophies of their victory, to their wives and relations. That this barbarous custom prevails amongst savages is a well-known fact, which originates from a motive of insatiable revenge. And though Colonel Fourgeoud might have prevented their inhumanity by his authority, in my opinion he wisely declined it; observing, that as he could not do it by persuasion, to do it by power, might break their native spirit, and produce no other effect than alienating them from the service, so necessary were they to us, though so savagely revengeful, and so bloody.
About three o’clock, whilst we were resting from our fatigue, we were once more surprised by an attack from a party of the enemy; but after exchanging a few shots they were repulsed. This unexpected visit, however, put us more upon our guard during the night, so that no fires were allowed to be lighted, and double sentinels were placed around the camp. Thus situated, being overcome by excessive toil and heat, I after sun-set leaped into my hammock, and soon fell fast asleep; but in less than two hours my faithful black boy Quaco roused me, in the midst of pitch darkness, crying, [[112]]“Massera, massera! boosee negro, boosee negro!”—“Master, master! the enemy, the enemy!” Hearing, at the same moment, a brisk firing, with the balls whistling through the branches, I fully concluded that the rebels were in the very midst of our camp. Surprised, and not perfectly awake, I suddenly started up with my fusee cocked; and (without knowing where I ran) first threw down Quaco, and next fell down myself, over two or three bodies that lay upon the ground, and which I imagined to be killed. When one of them, “d—ning me for a son of a b—ch, told me, if I moved I was a dead man; Colonel Fourgeoud having issued orders for the troops to lie flat on their bellies all the night, and not to fire, as most of their ammunition had been expended the preceding day.” I took his advice, and soon discovered him by his voice to be one of our own grenadiers, named Thomson. In this situation we lay prostrate on our arms until sun-rise, during which time a most abusive dialogue was carried on indeed between the rebels and the rangers, each party cursing and menacing the other at a very terrible rate; the former “reproaching the rangers as poltroons and traitors to their countrymen, and challenging them next day to single combat; swearing they only wished to lave their hands in the blood of such scoundrels, who had been the principal agents in destroying their flourishing settlement.” The rangers “d—n’d the rebels for a parcel of pitiful skulking rascals, whom they would fight one to two in the open [[113]]field, if they dared but to shew their ugly faces; swearing they had only deserted their masters because they were too lazy to work.” After this they insulted each other by a kind of war-whoop, sung victorious songs on both sides, and sounded their horns as signals of defiance; when the firing commenced once more from the rebel negroes, and continued during the night, accompanied by their martial voices, at intermissions resounding through the woods, which echo seemed to answer with redoubled force.
At length poor Fourgeoud took a part in the conversation, myself and Serjeant Fowler acting as his interpreters, by hallooing, which created more mirth than I had been witness to for some time: he promised them life, liberty, victuals, drink, and all they wanted. They replied, with a loud laugh, that they wanted nothing from him; characterized him as a half-starved Frenchman, who had run away from his own country; and assured him that if he would venture to pay them a visit, he should return unhurt, and not with an empty belly. They told us, that we were to be pitied more than they; that we were white slaves, hired to be shot at and starved for four-pence a day; that they scorned to expend much more of their powder upon such scarecrows; but should the planters or overseers dare to enter the woods, not a soul of them should ever return, any more than the perfidious rangers, some of whom might depend upon being massacred that [[114]]day, or the next; and concluded by declaring that Bonny should soon be the governor of the colony.
After this they tinkled their bill-hooks, fired a volley, and gave three cheers; which being answered by the rangers, the clamour ended, and the rebels dispersed with the rising sun.
Our fatigue was great; yet, notwithstanding the length of the contest, our loss by the enemies fire was very inconsiderable, for which I promised to account; and this mystery was now explained, when the surgeons, dressing the wounded, extracted very few leaden bullets, but many pebbles, coat-buttons, and pieces of silver coin, which could do us little mischief, by penetrating scarcely more than skin deep. We also observed, that several of the poor rebel negroes who were shot, had only the shards of Spa-water cans, instead of flints, which could seldom do execution; and it was certainly owing to these circumstances that we came off so well, as I have mentioned before; yet we were nevertheless not without a number of very dangerous scars and contusions.
Inconceivable are the many expedients which these people employ in the woods, where in a state of tranquillity they seemed, as they boasted, to want for nothing, being plump and fat, at least such as we had an opportunity of observing. It should be noticed, that game and fish they catch in great abundance, by artificial traps and springs, and preserve them by barbacuing; while their [[115]]fields are even overstocked with rice, cassava, yams, plantains, &c. They make salt from the palm-tree ashes, as the Gentoos do in the East Indies, or frequently supply the want of it with red pepper.
We here found concealed near the trunk of an old tree a case-bottle filled with excellent butter, which the rangers told me they made by melting and clarifying the fat of the palm-tree worms: this fully answers all the purposes of European butter, and I found it in fact even more delicious to my taste. The pistachio or pinda nuts they also convert into butter, by their oily substance, and frequently use them in their broths. The palm-tree wine they have always in plenty; they procure it by making deep incisions of a foot square in the fallen trunk, where the juice being collected, it soon ferments by the heat of the sun; it is not only a cool and agreeable beverage, but sufficiently strong to intoxicate. The manicole or pine-tree affords them materials for building; they fabricate pots from clay found near their dwellings; the gourd or callebasse tree procures them cups; the silk grass plant and maurecee-tree supplies materials for their hammocks, and even a kind of cap grows naturally upon the palm-trees, as well as brooms; the various kinds of nebee supply the want of ropes; fuel they have for cutting; and a wood called bee-bee serves for tinder, by rubbing two pieces on each other; it is also elastic, and makes excellent corks; candles they can make, having plenty of fat and oil; and the wild bees afford them wax, as well as excellent honey. [[116]]
Cloaths they scorn to wear, preferring to go naked in a climate where the warmth of the weather renders every kind of covering an useless incumbrance.
They might breed hogs and poultry, and keep dogs for hunting and watching them, but this they decline, from the apprehension of being discovered by their noise, as even the crowing of a cock may be heard in the forest at a considerable distance.———I shall now once more proceed.
The rebels of this settlement being apparently subdued and dispersed, Colonel Fourgeoud made it his next business to destroy the surrounding harvest; and I received orders to begin the devastation, with eighty marines and twenty rangers. Thus I cut down all the rice that was growing plentifully in the two above-mentioned fields; this being done, I discovered a third field south of the first, which I also demolished, and made my report to Fourgeoud, with which he appeared highly satisfied. In the afternoon Captain Hamel was detached, with fifty, marines and thirty rangers, to reconnoitre behind the village, and to discover, if possible, how the rebels could pass to and fro through an unfathomable marsh, whilst we were unable to pursue them. This officer at length perceived a kind of floating bridge amongst the reeds, made of maurecee-trees, but so constructed, that only one man abreast could pass it. On this were seated astride a few rebels to defend the communication, who instantly fired upon the party, but were soon repulsed by the rangers, who shot one of them dead, but he was carried away by his companions. [[117]]
On the morning of the 22d, our commander ordered a detachment to cross the bridge and go on discovery, at all hazards. Of this party I led the van. We now took the pass without opposition; and having all marched, or rather scrambled over this defile of floating trees, we found ourselves in a large oblong field of cassava and yams, in which were about thirty houses, now deserted, being the remains of the old settlement called Cofaay. In this field we separated into three divisions, the better to reconnoitre, one marching north, one north-west, and the third west. And here, to our astonishment, we discovered that the reason of the rebels shouting, singing, and firing, on the night of the 20th, was not only to cover the retreat of their friends, by cutting off the pass, but by their unremitting noise to prevent us from discovering that they were employed, men, women, and children, in preparing warimboes or hampers filled with the finest rice, yams, and cassava, for subsistence during their escape, of which they had only left the chaff and refuse for our contemplation.
This was certainly such a masterly trait of generalship in a savage people, whom we affected to despise, as would have done honour to any European commander, and has perhaps been seldom equalled by more civilized nations. [[118]]
[1] The negroes have a savage custom of mangling and tearing the dead bodies of their enemies; some even devouring part of them with their teeth, like the Caribbee Indians. [↑]
CHAP. XXI.
Spirited Conduct of the Rangers and Rebels—A Skirmish—Scene of Brotherly Affection—The Troops return to Barbacoeba—Plan of the Field of Action—A Slave killed by the Oroocookoo Snake.
Colonel Fourgeoud, on finding himself thus foiled by a naked negro, was unable any longer to restrain his resentment, and swore aloud he would pursue Bonny to the world’s end. His ammunition and provisions were however expended, and if they had not, it would have been in vain now to think of overtaking the enemy.—To the surprize of most persons, our hero however persevered in this impracticable project, and dispatched Captain Bolts, with one hundred men and thirty rangers, besides a number of slaves, to transport a quantity of shot, and a week’s provisions from Barbacoeba, and at the same time issued orders for the troops to subsist upon half allowance, desiring the men to supply the deficiency by picking rice, peas, and cassava, and prepare them in the best way they could for their subsistence, and this was also my lot, as well as most of the officers; while it was no bad scene to see ten or twenty of us with heavy wooden pestles, like so many apothecaries, beating the rice in a species of mortars, cut all along in the hard trunk of a levelled [[119]]purper-heart-tree by the rebel negroes (being the only contrivance used by them to separate the rice from the husk) this was however for us a most laborious business, the sweat running down our bodies as if we had been bathing, while water was at this time the only beverage in the camp.
Among other vegetables we had the good fortune to find here great quantities of wild purslane, which only differs from the common, by growing nearer the ground, the leaves being less, and more of a blackish green; this vegetable grows wild in the woods of Guiana, and may be either eaten as a sallad, or stewed, without reserve, being not only a cooling and agreeable food, but reckoned an excellent antidote against the scurvy.
Here were also great quantities of gourd or calebasse trees, which are very useful to the natives of the country. This tree grows to the height of a common apple-tree, with large thick pointed leaves: the gourds it produces are of different forms and dimensions, some being oval, some conical, and some round, growing often to the size of ten or twelve inches in diameter; the shell is hard and very smooth, covered over with a shining skin or epidermis, which becomes brown when the gourd is dry and fit for use: the heart or pulp is a pithy substance, which is easily extricated by the help of a crooked knife. The uses are various to which these gourds are applied, they furnish bottles, powder-flasks, cups, basons, and dishes: I seldom travelled without one, which served me [[120]]as a bason, plate, &c. in the forest. The negroes generally adorn them by carving on the outer skin many fantastical figures, and filling up the vacancies with chalk-dust, which sometimes has a very pretty effect.
The rangers having been out to reconnoitre, returned on the afternoon of the 23d, and reported that they had discovered and destroyed another field of rice to the N. E. This pleased Colonel Fourgeoud very well; but when in the dusk of the evening I observed to him, that I saw several armed negroes advancing at a distance, he turned pale, exclaiming, “Nous sommes perdus!” and ordered the whole camp immediately under arms. In a few seconds these negroes were near enough to be discerned, and we now saw that several of them were carried upon poles, in hammocks. Fourgeoud then said, “We still are ruined, though not the enemy: ’tis Captain Bolts, beaten back, with all his party;” and this proved literally to be the fact, when that unfortunate officer (having delivered the wounded to the surgeons) made his report, that having entered the fatal swamp where Captain Meyland had been defeated, he was attacked by the enemy from the opposite shore, who, without hurting a single European, had made a dreadful havock amongst his rangers; that Captain Valentine, a brave young fellow, belonging to that corps, whilst sounding his horn to animate his countrymen, had it shot away, with his pouch also, and was himself most desperately wounded in five different parts of the body. In this situation he was met [[121]]by his brother, named Captain Avantage, who, upon seeing his mortal condition, a scene of such real fraternal affection ensued as is seldom to be observed in a civilized country:—kneeling at his side, and bending over the mangled Valentine, he sucked the blood and gore from his shattered breast and sides; then cherished him with the manly promise to revenge his death upon his foes, and the hopes that when he himself was killed he should meet him again in a better place.
Colonel Fourgeoud now found that the rebels had kept their promise of massacring the rangers; while Captain Bolts reported that some had fired upon his party from the tops of the palm-trees, and then sliding down with surprising agility, disappeared, whilst the rangers were foaming for revenge on their active adversaries, and could hardly be restrained from an immediate pursuit through the verdure.
Our mighty leader now found his absurd scheme of pursuing the enemy compleatly frustrated, and himself in danger of total destruction; being cut off from every supply, and having neither ammunition nor provisions left in his camp, with very few men, except the sick and wounded, to defend it. Thus he at last began most seriously to consider how to secure a safe retreat; to which he was urged likewise by the general and incessant murmurings of the troops, who were not only almost [[122]]starved, but indeed dreadfully harassed by daily fatigues and nightly watchings:
“They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way, they found no city to dwell in.
“Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.”
On the 24th, a detachment of one hundred and forty men, commanded by two field officers, were still ordered to destroy the fields, and the old settlement called Cofaay; of this party I had the honour again to be one. We soon performed the service we were sent upon, and also picked up, out of the marsh, several utensils, such as tea-kettles, iron pots and pans, &c. that the rebels had formerly pillaged from the estates, and had thrown into the water to conceal them from us, with an intention, no doubt, of returning to fish them up, as soon as we were gone from Gado-Saby.
Upon the return of the detachment in the afternoon, we immediately decamped, and began to retreat for Barbacoeba. Here I must remark in Colonel Fourgeoud an instance of bad policy, at least, though many have not hesitated to bestow upon it a harsher epithet. This evening, upon our return, when we entered the ominous swamp, he suddenly caught up one of the empty bread-boxes, and having stuffed a hammock into it, he carried it before him as a shield, crying aloud to his men, “Sauve qui peut!” At this moment a Walloon named Mattow stepped up to him, and said, “Mon Colonel, but [[123]]few can, and I hope fewer still will, follow your example. Drop your shield, and do not intimidate your soldiers: one brave man creates others, then follow thy Mattow, and fear for nothing.” Upon which he instantly threw open his bosom, and charging his bayonet was the first that mounted the opposite beach: this intrepidity inspired the rest, and they passed the marshy swamp without opposition; for which act of heroism this private marine was since made a serjeant. I should think myself deficient if I did not observe, that the Walloons in general behaved with great spirit, and were in every respect excellent soldiers. This evening we encamped upon the same ground where we had passed the night before the engagement, with excessive bad weather and very heavy rain.
Early on the morning of the 25th, we again marched, and proceeded on our return, having now a beaten path before us. It will suffice to say, that we reached our place of general rendezvous, Barbacoeba, on the afternoon of the following day, but in a most shocking condition; the whole of the detachment being mostly spent and wore out with fatigue, some nearly starved, others mortally wounded; whilst all the slaves were employed in carrying the sick and lame in their hammocks, on long poles, though these poor wretches were scarcely able to support themselves.—Such was the concluding scene of the taking of Gado-Saby. However, if during this expedition we neither captured any of the rebels, [[124]]nor gained booty, we nevertheless rendered the colony a very essential service, by rooting out this concealed nest of enemies, who being thus discovered and driven away from their capital settlements, never think (as I have already observed) of returning to live near the same spot. I might, indeed, pronounce our victory almost decisive; I say almost, for if we except the demolishing a few plantations for immediate subsistence, and from a spirit of revenge, the rebels were, by being driven from this settlement, so disconcerted and panic-struck, that from the present period their depredations were certainly less, as they soon afterwards retired to an inaccessible depth in the forest, where they neither could do any material injury, nor be joined by negro deserters.
To shew the masterly manœuvres of our sable foes to more advantage, I here present the reader with a plan of this extraordinary settlement, together with our different stages, after leaving our encampment on the borders of the Cottica River, viz.
Nos 1, 2, and 3, are supposed to be the general rendezvous at Barbacoeba, and the two succeeding nights encampment.
No 4. The spot where we heard the firing and shouting of the rebels, on the night of the 17th.
No 5. The latitude where the troops were joined by the black corps or rangers.
No 6. The night’s encampment previous to the engagement. [[125]]
No 7. The beach on the opposite side of the marsh, where Captain Meyland with his troops had been defeated.
No 8. The advanced post of the rebels, whence the first shot was fired at the troops.
No 9. The field with rice and Indian corn, entered without opposition.
No 10. The pass or defile in which the firing commenced.
No 11. The beautiful rice-field in which the action continued above forty minutes.
No 12. The town of Gado-Saby in flames at a distance.
No 13. The spot whence the rebels fired on the camp, and held the conversation, on the night of the 20th.
No 14. The ground of the old settlement Cofaay, with the floating bridge that covered the retreat of the rebels.
No 15. The fields with cassava, yams, and plantains, that were at different times destroyed.
No 16. The field of rice discovered and demolished by Captain Stedman on the 21st.
No 17. A field demolished by the rangers on the 23d.
No 18. The swamp or marsh which surrounded the settlement.
No 19. The quag-mire, or biree-biree, adjoining it.
No 20. The forest.
Having formerly described the manner in which we erected our huts, I shall here also add a small plan of [[126]]the mode of arranging them during our encampment in the woods of Guiana, which camps were generally of a triangular form, as being most secure in case of a surprize, and the easiest to defend our provisions and ammunition; but the situation of the ground would not always permit this, and then we encamped in any form, square, oblong, or circular, &c.—In the annexed plan,
No 1. Is the hut or shed of Colonel Fourgeoud, or the commanding officer, in the centre, with a sentinel.
No 2. The huts of all the other officers, in a small triangle, surrounding that of the commander in chief.
No 3. The angles of the outer triangle formed by the huts of the privates in three divisions, viz. the main body, the van, and the rear guards, with sentinels at proper distances, to cover the front of each.
No 4. Powder-chests, provisions, and medicines, with a sentinel.
No 5. The fires in the rear of each division to dress the victuals, and round which the negro slaves are lodged upon the ground.
No 6. A coppice of manicole-trees to erect the huts or sheds.
No 7. A rivulet or creek to provide the troops with fresh water. And,
No 8. The surrounding forest.
I must now return once more to my narrative, and observe, that Barbacoeba, instead of being in a state of sending provisions to Gado-Saby, as our chief had expected, [[127]]it could scarcely afford daily subsistence to his emaciated troops on their arrival; who having for many days lived on rice, yams, peas, and Indian corn, were now most violently attacked by the flux; for although that kind of nourishment will keep the Indians and negroes strong as horses, the Europeans cannot long subsist without animal food; which was at this time so very scarce, that even the Jew soldiers of the Society troops devoured salt pork as fast as they could catch it.
T. Conder Sculpt.
Plan of the Principal Field of Action between the Rivers Cottica and Marawina; with a Sketch of the manner of Encamping in the Woods of Surinam.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
I nevertheless continued among the few that still were healthy; which was almost a miracle, as I had fared very hard indeed for want of my private stores, and which I had left at the neighbouring estate Mocha: however, expecting leave now to bring them in person from that plantation, I was in good spirits also. But here I was disappointed, by Colonel Fourgeoud’s declaring he could not spare me one moment, while I was able to stand upon my feet. I therefore waited patiently for an opportunity of sending for them; in the mean time sharing with my black boy the scanty allowance of a private soldier, with the casual addition of some mountain-cabbage, or palm-tree worms, and perhaps a few warrappa fish.
As for the miserable slaves, they were so starved, that having killed a Coata monkey, they broiled it, with skin, hair, intestines and all, then tore it to pieces with their teeth, and devoured it like so many cannibals, before it was even half dressed. Of this animal they offered me [[128]]a limb; but, hungry as I was, my stomach could not relish this kind of venison.
A good constitution, sterling health and spirits, now supported me, or I must have sunk under the load of misery and hardships, which were at this time become so intolerable, that the rangers again forsook the camp; and Mr. Vinsack, their conductor, as brave and active a man as ever entered the wood, threw up his commission, as Mr. Mongol had done before, during Colonel Fourgeoud’s first campaign at the Wana.
In the beginning of September, the bloody flux raged in the camp to such a degree, that the colonel saw himself obliged to send off all the sick officers and privates, without exception, not to Paramaribo for recovery in the grand hospital that is there, but to linger and die on the banks of the rivers, where they relieved others to be encamped, and undergo a similar wretchedness; the sick of his own regiment being dispatched to Magdenburg in the Tempatee Creek, and those of the Society troops to Vreedenberg in Cottica.
Colonel Fourgeoud’s inhumanity to the officers was now actually become such, that he would not even permit those who were past recovery a marine to attend them, whatever price they offered; some of whom I have seen expanded between two trees, while the very filth, for want of assistance, was dropping through their hammocks. Of this number was Ensign Strows, who, in this dreadful situation, was ordered to be transported in an open boat [[129]]to Devil’s Harwar, where he died. At length Colonel Fourgeoud himself was seized with this dreadful malady, and his beloved ptisan proved to be of no more avail; yet he soon recovered, by the plentiful use of claret and spices, which he seldom wanted, and which his colleague Seyburg also employed as a preservative of his health, though by swallowing too copious doses he frequently lost the use of his reason. In such a situation, and in such a despicable encampment, our commander in chief had the vanity to expect a deputation from the court at Paramaribo, with congratulations on his victory: in consequence of which he had built an elegant shed, and sent for sheep and hogs to entertain them—but the expected deputies never yet arrived.
On the 5th, therefore, the hogs and sheep were slaughtered, and, for the first time in his life, he ordered one pound per man, bones and all, to be distributed among the poor emaciated soldiers: indeed the number able to partake of this bounty was at present very small.
On the following day a reinforcement of one hundred men arrived from Magdenburg, in Comewina; and from the Society post Vreedenburg, in Cottica, nearly as many. These confirmed the death of Ensign Strows, besides of a great number of privates, who had assisted at the taking of Gado-Saby, and who had expired in the boats during their removal from Barbacoeba.
Intelligence arrived at the same time that the defeated rebels had actually crossed the river Cottica below Pattamaca, [[130]]intent on immediate mischief, and that they were marching to the westward. In consequence of this information, a captain and fifty men were immediately detached, by water, to reconnoitre the banks near the Pinenburg Creek. This party returned upon the 8th, and confirmed the intelligence. Our indefatigable chief now again determined to pursue them; but the slaves who were to carry the ammunition and provisions had been sent home to their masters, nothing but skin and bones, to be exchanged for others, not yet arrived, and to be starved in their turn. I shall therefore relate what happened the two following days, until the arrival of these unfortunate beasts of burden; for so they might with propriety be called.
On the 9th were sold upon credit, and to the highest bidder, the effects of the deceased Ensign Strows, when the poor soldiers, regardless of price, and only wishing to obtain some cloaths and refreshments to keep (in the vulgar phrase) soul and body together, actually paid at the rate of 700 per cent. and this infamous debt was accordingly stated in their accounts. I have seen, for instance, a private marine pay five shillings for a pound of mouldered tobacco, that might be worth six-pence, and double the prime value for a pair of old stockings or shoes. A sick man paid one guinea for a couple of meagre chickens; and for a broken bottle-case to hold his lumber, another paid a similar sum. Thus were these poor dying half-starved wretches deprived of the little property they [[131]]had earned at the expence of their blood and sweat, while this miserable necessity might have been easily prevented by only supplying them with what was their due. A private marine, of the name of Sem, at this time, swore, in the heat of his resentment, that he would certainly shoot Fourgeoud, whenever he had an opportunity; which being overheard, upon condition of repentance, I bribed the evidence not to inform against him, and so literally saved this poor rash fellow from dying on the gallows.
Fortunately, all the world did not possess this chieftain’s insensibility, for this day the good Mrs. Godefroy once more sent up a flat-bottomed barge, with a fat ox, oranges, and plantains for the private soldiers, which was accordingly distributed amongst them. The same evening a small supply of provisions also arrived for me, from Joanna, with a few bottles of port wine; and though part was stolen, and part was damaged by the way, it made me very happy, and I gave nothing to Fourgeoud.
When we speak of provisions in the woods, we only mean sugar, tea, coffee, Boston biscuit, cheese, rum, ham, or a keg of sausages, since little else can be carried through the forest by a single slave, and we were now allowed no more. Shirts, shoes, and stockings were also usually accounted among the necessaries, but the last two articles I did not use, being accustomed to walk barefooted, which I had now practised for more than two years, and with great advantage to my limbs, when I [[132]]compared them with the diseased and ulcerated shanks of my ghastly-looking companions.
On the 12th, the fresh supply of slaves being arrived, the necessary preparations were made to pursue the rebels the next day, directing our first course towards the spot formerly called Jerusalem, mentioned in 1773, when I commanded the fatal expedition in Upper Cottica; and on the 13th, the baggage and provisions being sent before us by water to Jerusalem, escorted by the sick officers and privates, we at last decamped to follow them, and bidding a final farewell to Barbacoeba, re-entered the woods, marching S. and S. E. the whole day, then passed the night on the opposite bank of the Cassiporee Creek, where we encamped.
Nothing could be more diabolically cruel, than the persecution of the new slaves during this march; not only overloaded and starved, but beat like mules or asses by every ill-tempered individual—for instance, I saw Fourgeoud’s black favourite, Gousary, knock down a poor negro slave for not taking up his load—and the chief himself knock him down for taking it up too soon; when the wretch, not knowing what to do, exclaimed, in hopes of pity, “O massera Jesus Christus!” and was actually knocked down a third time by an enthusiast, for daring to utter a name with which he was so little acquainted.
During the last day’s march, a large drove of Warre hogs or wild boars broke through our line; several of them were cut down by our sabres, and stabbed with [[133]]the bayonets, the men having orders from the commander in chief not to fire at any game whatever. The animals that were killed were cut in pieces, and distributed among the troops, which proved, though small, a very seasonable dainty. It is certainly very remarkable, that if the first wild boar or leader passes through any danger, all the others stupidly follow, in hopes of a similar escape, which on the contrary, as I have said, frequently proves the cause of their destruction.
On the 14th we marched S. W. till about noon, and arrived at Jerusalem, which the van had reached about an hour before us, all thoroughly soaked with mud and heavy rains, and several men unhappily with ruptures in the groin, by falling over the roots of trees, large stones, &c. Here just arrived, we found again, to my astonishment, the identical Mr. Vinsack, with one hundred fresh rangers: he had heard, it seems, of the rebels passing Upper Cottica, and had been prevailed upon to resume his command by the governor; thus he now once more offered his service to Colonel Fourgeoud, who was very happy indeed to accept it.
Here, our camp being mostly overgrown with long coarse grass, one of the slaves was unfortunately bitten in the foot by a small serpent, called in Surinam the [1]Oroocookoo snake, from its colour, which resembles an owl. [[134]]In less than a minute the man’s leg began to swell, when he was seized with excruciating pains, and soon fell into convulsions. One of his companions, having killed the snake, made the patient drink its gall, mixed with half a glass of spirits, which I gave him. He seemed now (perhaps from imagination) to bear his misfortune better; but the fits soon returned with increasing violence, and he was instantly sent to his master’s plantation, where he expired. That the gall of adders, externally applied, is efficacious, I have often heard. In the Grand Magazine for April 1758, may be seen a letter, signed J. H. and dated 24th March, which treats systematically of the application of gall. But these investigations I must leave to the learned of the medical profession; and only observe, in general, that the smaller the snake, at least in Guiana, the more fatal the poison; as is justly and beautifully observed by Thomson:
“——But still more direful he
The small, close-lurking minister of fate,
Whose high concocted venom through the veins
A rapid lightning darts, arresting swift
The vital current.”——
In this grassy wilderness one of the rangers also killed a snake, called the whip-snake, from its resemblance to that instrument; it was about five feet long, and not very much thicker than a swan’s quill; the belly white, and the back a lead colour: concerning its bite, I can say [[135]]nothing. I was informed by the negroes, but I cannot speak from my own observation, that it has the power of giving a very severe stroke with its tail, like the lash of a whip, which it so much resembles.
I must also notice an amphibious animal which some of the negroes killed this evening, called by them the Cabiai; it is a species of water hog, and about the ordinary size of the land animal which goes under that name; it is covered with grey bristles, and armed with a number of very strong teeth; it has no tail; on each foot it has three toes, webbed like those of a duck. This animal, it is said, goes ashore only during the night, where it feeds on young grass, and other vegetables. I have been told it is good food, but never tasted it myself.
On the 16th, having rested one day at this place, Colonel Fourgeoud detached two strong parties to reconnoitre, viz. Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes, with 100 men, was sent to the Wana Creek in Upper Cormoetibo; and Colonel Seyburg, with an equal number, was ordered to the Creek Pinenburg, in Upper Cottica. The latter returned about midnight with two canoes, which he had found hauled ashore, on the opposite side of the river, a little below the mouth of the Claas Creek. This convinced us that the rebels were gone westward to plunder, and had brought their empty canoes down the Claas Creek, from the rice country, in order to send them back loaded with booty from the estates they intended to [[136]]pillage. In consequence, therefore, of this information, the proper preparations were immediately made to pursue them with alacrity. Never did the old warrior display more vigour than on this occasion, swearing aloud that he now would be revenged of them all, coute qui coute.
“Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.”
But how far his generalship on this occasion proved to be a match for that of Bonny, I must beg leave to reserve for the succeeding chapter. [[137]]
[1] This, I apprehend, is the snake which Dr. Bancroft calls the small Labora, and which he mentions as having killed a negro in less than five minutes when he was at Demerara. [↑]
CHAP. XXII.
Alarm in the Pirica River—A Detachment marches to its Relief—Ambuscade—Wonderful Effect from the Biting of a Bat—Scene in a Quagmire—Sketch of the Inquisition and Return of the Troops to Cormoetibo Creek.
On the morning of the 19th of September 1775, just before sun-rise, Colonel Seyburg marched with one hundred marines and forty rangers, who did me the honour to fix upon me as one of the party, and was upon the whole so polite, and his behaviour so contrary to what it had lately been, that I knew not at all in what manner to account for it.
Having crossed the Cormoetibo Creek, we kept course S. W. and by S. till we approached the river Cottica, where we encamped, having met with nothing on our first day’s march worth describing, except a species of ants, which were no less than one inch in length, and perfectly black. These insects pillage a tree of all its leaves in a short time, which they cut in small pieces the size of a six-pence, and carry under-ground. It was indeed entertaining to see a whole army of these creatures crawling perpetually the same way, each with his green-leaf in a perpendicular direction. So general is the propensity to the marvellous, that some have imagined that [[138]]this devastation was to feed a blind serpent under ground: but the truth is, that it serves for nourishment to their young brood, who cannot help themselves, and are sometimes lodged to the depth of eight feet in the earth. Madam Merian says, they form themselves in chains from one branch to another, while all the others pass over these temporary bridges; and that once a year these formidable armies travel from house to house, killing all the vermin, &c. that comes in their way; neither of which facts ever came within the limits of my observation: but that they can bite confoundedly I have found by experience, though their attack is not nearly so painful as the bite of that diminutive insect the fire-ant already described.
The following day we proceeded along the banks of the river Cottica, till we came near the Claas Creek, (where I formerly swam across with my sabre in my teeth) and early slung our hammocks; from whence I was detached, with a few rangers, to lay in ambuscade in the mouth of the creek till it was dark. Here, however, I discovered nothing, except that the rangers were possessed of the same superstition as the rebels, with regard to their amulets or obias making them invulnerable. They told me that the latter mentioned procured them from their priest, and that they themselves bought theirs from Graman Qwacy, a celebrated and cunning old negro, whom I shall in a proper place circumstantially describe.—When I asked them, “How came any of you, or of your invulnerable [[139]]adversaries, to be shot?” I was answered, “Because, like you, Massera, they had no faith in the amulet or obia.” This piece of policy in Mr. Qwacy, however, had the effect of making all his free countrymen so undauntedly brave, that I must confess their valour had often surprized me. However, this imposition, as shall be shewn hereafter, besides respect and veneration, procured this dealer in magic considerable both ease and wealth, which for a black man in Surinam was indeed not very common.
In the mouth of this creek I again saw a quantity of nuts floating on the surface of the water, such as I have before mentioned, when I was informed that they were the real acajow or cashew nuts, which I have partly described: to which I shall now add, that they grow on the edge of a pulpy substance like a very large pear, which is produced on a middle-sized tree, with a grey bark and large thick leaves. This excellent nut will bear to be transported to any part of the globe, and keep good for a considerable time; it is by some called the Anacardium Occidentalis. From the tree exudes a transparent gum, which when dissolved in water has the consistency of glue.
I also tasted here the eta-tree apple, of which the negroes seemed extremely fond. This tree is of the palm kind, with large leaves, but is less in size than the maurecee or the mountain cabbage-tree. The fruit or apples are round, and grow in large clusters resembling grape-shot. In the middle of each apple is a hard nut, in [[140]]which is a kernel, and this is covered near half an inch thick with an orange-coloured pulp, that has a most agreeable acid taste. They are seldom used till the apples by ripeness drop from the tree, when the Indians steep them in water, and by maceration convert them into a most healthy and agreeable beverage.
An express on the 21st arriving by water from Colonel Fourgeoud, informing us that the alarm-guns[1] had been fired in the river Pirica, we instantly crossed to the opposite or west shore of the river Cottica, where the rangers, with a party of marines, were again ordered to lie in ambuscade or under cover, in hopes of cutting off the rebels on their retreat, when they returned to cross the Cottica river with their booty. And this very afternoon a rebel negro was seen with a green hamper, who, startled by the smell of tobacco (for some of the rangers were smoking) stopt short of his own accord. He was instantly fired at by me and one ranger: when the warimbo or hamper dropped to the ground, but he himself escaped. This bundle we found stuffed with a dozen of the finest table linen, a cocked gold-laced hat, and a couple of superb India chintz petticoats, &c. the bulk of which I gave to my black companion, reserving only the chintzes for another friend at Paramaribo.
The free negroes now rushing forwards with unrestrained [[141]]valour, I asked Colonel Seyburg liberty to follow them; and calling for volunteers, a great number presented themselves, which, however, the Colonel thought proper to reduce to four only, with whom he sent me off; and having scrambled through thorns and briars woven together like a net or a mat, which tore one of my feet in a terrible manner, I overtook them at one mile’s distance from the camp: shortly after we discovered thirteen fresh huts, where the rebels, we conjectured, had slept but a few nights before. In consequence of this, I now dispatched a ranger back to Colonel Seyburg to give him intelligence, and ask permission for the rangers and myself to march forward to Pirica without delay, in hopes to meet the enemy: but the answer was a peremptory order instantly to rejoin him with all hands. We now returned disgusted back to the camp; my sable companions in particular extremely discontented, and making many shrewd and sarcastic remarks.
Here we found a reinforcement just arrived from Jerusalem, consisting of sixty men, black and white, with positive orders for us to break up and march early the next morning for Pirica River, while this whole night a strong party lay once more in ambush.
Accordingly at six o’clock, with the rising-sun, all was in readiness, but by some unaccountable delay it was very late before we left the camp; during which time we were informed that a canoe was seen crossing the river with one single negro in it, who was no doubt the poor [[142]]fellow at whom the ranger and I had fired the preceding day.
I cannot here forbear relating a singular circumstance respecting myself, viz. that on waking about four o’clock this morning in my hammock, I was extremely alarmed at finding myself weltering in congealed blood, and without feeling any pain whatever. Having started up, and run for the surgeon, with a fire-brand in one hand, and all over besmeared with gore; to which if added my pale face, short hair, and tattered apparel, he might well ask the question,
“Be thou a Spirit of health or goblin damn’d,
Bring with thee airs of Heav’n or blasts from Hell!”
The mystery however was, that I had been bitten by the vampire or spectre of Guiana, which is also called the flying-dog of New Spain, and by the Spaniards perro-volador; this is no other than a bat of a monstrous size, that sucks the blood from men and cattle when they are fast asleep, even sometimes till they die; and as the manner in which they proceed is truly wonderful, I shall endeavour to give a distinct account of it.—Knowing by instinct that the person they intend to attack is in a sound slumber, they generally alight near the feet, where while the creature continues fanning with his enormous wings, which keeps one cool, he bites a piece out of the tip of the great toe, so very small indeed that the head of a pin could scarcely be received into the wound, which is consequently [[143]]not painful; yet through this orifice he continues to suck the blood, until he is obliged to disgorge. He then begins again, and thus continues sucking and disgorging till he is scarcely able to fly, and the sufferer has often been known to sleep from time into eternity. Cattle they generally bite in the ear, but always in such places where the blood flows spontaneously, perhaps in an artery—but this is entering rather on the province of the medical faculty. Having applied tobacco-ashes as the best remedy, and washed the gore from myself and from my hammock, I observed several small heaps of congealed blood all round the place where I had lain, upon the ground: upon examining which, the surgeon judged that I had lost at least twelve or fourteen ounces during the night.
A. Smith Sculpt.
The Murine Oppossum of Terra-Firma.
The Vampire or Spectre of Guiana.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
As I have since had an opportunity of killing one of these bats, I cut off his head, which I here present to the reader in its natural size, and as a great curiosity, with the whole figure flying above it on a smaller scale. Having measured this creature, I found it to be between the tips of the wings thirty-two inches and a half; it is said that some are above three feet, though nothing like in size to the bats of Madagascar. The colour was a dark brown, nearly black, but lighter under the belly. Its aspect was truly hideous upon the whole, but particularly the head, which has an erect shining membrane above the nose, terminating in a shrivelled point: the ears are long, rounded, and transparent: the cutting teeth were four above and six below. I saw no tail, but a skin, in [[144]]the middle of which was a tendon. It had four toes on each wing, with sharp nails divided like the web-foot of a duck[2]; and on the extremity of each pinion, where the toes are joined, was a nail or claw to assist it in crawling, like those of its hinder feet, by which it hangs suspended when asleep to trees, rocks, roofs, &c.
One of the marines having this morning taken a murine or mouse oppossum, I shall also take the opportunity of describing it, and present it to the reader as I designed it from the life. This animal differs widely in some particulars from the description of the Count de Buffon:—For instance, it was much swifter than any of the oppossums that he speaks of, and had the whole tail covered over with hair instead of scales, to the best of my remembrance; if, however, my sight deceived me, I am not the only erroneous writer on the subject of this animal. Linnæus, Seba, and Mr. Vormeer, with the last of whom I am acquainted, consider it as common to both the old and new continent; whereas all its species are most assuredly inhabitants of America only. Linnæus is also mistaken when he asserts, that all bats have four cutting teeth in each jaw.—(See Buffon, Vol. V. page 282.)
This murine oppossum was not more than the size of a very large mouse. It was perfectly black, except the belly, the feet, and the extremity of the tail, which were all buff-coloured, with a buff spot above each eye, which [[145]]resembled those of a rat: the ears were long, rounded, and transparent: its toes were twenty in number, one on each foot being placed behind, and serving as a thumb. It had ten or twelve paps, to which the young ones stick fast, it is said, as soon as produced, when they are not larger than small beetles; but it wanted that pouch which is common to all other oppossums; in place of this there were two longitudinal folds on the inside of each thigh, equally adapted to preserve its offspring from every injury, which no tortures whatever, not even fire, will make it forsake. I have only to add, that it burrows in the ground, and often climbs trees; but it feeds like a mouse on grain, fruits, and roots. Of the other species I shall defer the description till chance affords me an opportunity.
Madam Merion mentions one kind of them, which, in time of danger, carries its young ones upon its back: but this animal, I confess, I never heard of in Surinam, and am persuaded of its non-existence.
I have already stated that, from some unaccountable delay, it was very late this morning before we left the camp; we, nevertheless, all started at last; I having the van-guard with the rangers, and the poor marines loaded each man with nine days provisions on his back. In this condition we had not proceeded long, when one of the rangers sounding his horn, they spread, and I among them, all instantly falling flat upon the ground, with our firelocks cocked, and ready to engage; but this, [[146]]however, proving to be a false alarm, by a stag rushing out through the foliage, we soon rose, and after marching the whole day through water and mire, at three in the afternoon encamped on a high ridge, where not a drop of water was to be found till we had dug a hole for that purpose, and this was so very thick and muddy, that we were obliged to strain it through our neckcloths or shirt-sleeves before we could drink it. Here I was once more accosted by the Lieutenant Colonel, who invited me to some supper in his hut, and treated me upon the whole with such very great civility as I could not account for after his former behaviour.
On the succeeding day we marched again, keeping course W. and N. W. with very heavy rain, while I had the rear-guard; and once more entered on a quagmire, which cost me three hours time to bring up the rear to the beach, this march being particularly distressing, as the negro slaves, with their burdens, broke through the surface every moment, while the loaded marines had enough to do to mind themselves, and I too weak by my late loss of blood to afford them any assistance whatever. At last, approaching the beach, I perceived the dead bodies of several rebel negroes scattered on the ground, with their heads and right-hands chopped off. These bodies being fresh, induced me to conclude, that they must have been very lately killed, in some engagement with the troops and rangers stationed on the Pirica river.—And here I must again remark, that had I [[147]]been allowed to pursue, on the 21st, with the rangers, when I was ordered to march back, the enemy would have been between two fires; in which case few could have escaped, and all the plundered spoil must have been re-taken. The reader will probably recollect a similar instance which occurred two years before, when I was stationed at Devil’s Harwar. Had I at that time been provided with men and ammunition to march, I might have rendered the colony a material service. These two capital blunders I am sorry to relate, but a regard to truth and impartiality obliges me to do it. Let not these remarks, however, fix a stigma of cruelty on me in the eyes of the world, since no man could more strongly feel at the sight of such manly youths stretched dead among the surrounding foliage; and finer bodies than two of them were in particular I never beheld in all my life.
“So two young mountain lions, nurs’d with blood,
In deep recesses of the gloomy wood,
Rush fearless to the plains, and uncontroul’d
Depopulate the stalls, and waste the fold;
Till pierc’d at distance from their native den,
O’erpower’d they fall beneath the force of men;
Prostrate on earth their beauteous bodies lay,
Like mountain firs, as tall and straight as they.”
While my mind was engaged by these and similar remarks, many of my loaded slaves still remained entangled and struggling in the quagmire, while the commanding [[148]]officer, with all the other troops, having got on a dry ridge, were quite out of sight and out of hearing, by which separation the rear-guard not only ran the hazard of losing all the provisions and the baggage, but of being cut to pieces, such was their critical situation.
Having not a single European that had sufficient strength remaining to overtake the party which had proceeded, I resigned the command to my lieutenant, a Mr. de Losrios, and ventured forward alone through the forest, till, greatly fatigued, I overtook them; when reporting the situation of the rear-guard to Colonel Seyburg, I requested “he would slacken his pace till they were able to extricate themselves and come up from the bog, without which I could not be accountable for the consequences.” To this the reply was, “That he would form his camp when he met with good water;” and I instantly returned to the rear, where having struggled until it was quite dark in a most distressed and dangerous situation, the last man was dragged out of the mud at seven o’clock at night, when we slowly proceeded on till we entered the camp.
My solicitude for the people, powder, and provisions, instead of procuring me commendation from the person under whose command I then happened to be, and who had lately been so very polite, brought me now into such difficulties, and produced a misunderstanding of such a serious nature, and so very distressing to my feelings, that it had nearly terminated my existence. The reader may [[149]]judge of my mortification, when I inform him, that, instead of receiving the approbation of my commander, as I certainly deserved, I was immediately on my arrival in camp put under an arrest, to be tried by a court-martial for disobedience of orders. Colonel Seyburg and I had never been on amicable terms; and though, during the former part of this march, he had treated me with apparent civility, yet from this step it was evident that he was my mortal enemy. I must not omit, that though a prisoner (strange to tell!) I was ordered to carry my own arms and accoutrements, till further orders.
On the 24th, we took our departure very early, and directed our course S. and S. by W. when we passed close by Pinenburg, a forsaken rebel village formerly mentioned—I still a prisoner, in the most dejected spirits.
On the following day our course was S. W. through a matakey or trumpeter morass, which was very deep, and which we entered when we were all in a violent sweat by advancing too fast while upon the hard ground: but the health of our men was not made an object during this expedition, though so much wanted to succeed.
Having got again upon a ridge, an accident had now nearly befallen me incomparably greater than all my former misfortunes put together; this was no less than, having fallen into a deep reverie, while I followed the rearguard, I imperceptibly wandered away from the troops, till I was entirely lost and by myself in an unbounded wilderness. Quaco no sooner had missed me, than, poor fellow, at [[150]]every hazard he rushed through the wood to recover his master, and by a miracle saw me as I was sitting under a tree, in the most dejected state of mind that it is possible to conceive, immersed in grief and abandoned to despair. I had this morning thought myself perfectly unhappy, but now would have given the world once more to have been in the same situation. Good God! entirely cut off from society, in a forest, surrounded by relentless savages! while a deluge of rain poured from the heavens, and tigers, famine, with every woe and every danger, stared me in the face. Farewell, for ever Joanna!—Such was the picture of my mind, when on discovering the boy, I started up from the ground, and a new life instantly diffused itself through my whole frame. Having now straggled backwards and forwards together for some time, I called to the lad that I saw a pool through which the troops seemed to have passed, the water being fresh clouded with mud; but to my utter disappointment, he observed, that this puddle was only occasioned by a Tapira[3], and shewed me the print of the animal’s foot in the surrounding mire. At this time the boy shed tears, crying, “Massera, we deade, we deade!” In the midst, however, of this distress, recollecting that, by the map, the river Pirica was due west from us, I determined to lose no more time, but to set forwards without delay. Thus having fresh primed my fuzee, I ordered Quaco to [[151]]follow me; but again to no purpose, my compass being with the troops, and not a glimpse of sunshine, owing to the heavy rain; till the black boy put me in mind that on the south side the bark of the trees was usually most smooth. This in fact was a fortunate hint, and we proceeded through thick and thin, till, overcome by fatigue and hunger, we both sat down, and looked at each other, exactly like two victims doomed to execution. During this last mournful silence, we heard a sound like coughing and the rustling of arms, which, thank Heaven! soon proved to be our own troops, luckily for us resting near an old encampment, where the pursuing party from the river Pirica had lately lodged. At this moment, notwithstanding my present situation, I enjoyed an extraordinary degree of mental happiness; which proves how much all good and evil are only of a relative nature. Having now been heartily welcomed by the other officers, I partook of some cold beef and bread, and a gourd full of grog, as did also my poor boy. After this regale the party rose, and pursuing our march, we once more entered a quagmire, or rather a mud-pool, the surface being too thin to carry us; through which having waded till it was pitch dark, we were obliged to encamp in the very middle of it, the troops by slinging their hammocks in the trees, one above another, and the slaves on temporary rafts made above the surface of the water, on which were also placed the powder, the victuals, &c.
On the 26th, the good Colonel having now drank his [[152]]coffee in his hammock, while he kept the troops standing round it in water above their middle, a whole hour before day-light, we again scrambled forward, keeping our course, first W. and afterwards N. W. when the road was so excessively bad, that many slaves let fall their burdens, breaking, wetting, and spoiling every thing that was in them. At last, having passed through a second deserted camp, we halted on the old cordon, or path of communication on which I formerly discovered the track of the rebels, when I commanded in Cottica river; and here, having erected slight sheds, we passed the night—I still a prisoner.
The Agouti, or Indian Coney.
The Paca, or Spotted Cavey.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
At this time a small quadruped running through the camp with incredible swiftness, it was cut down by one of the rangers with his sabre. This proved to be the Paca or Spotted Cavey, called in Surinam the Aquatic Hare. This animal is the size of a sucking pig, and extremely fat. The under jaw is short, the nostrils large, the eyes black, and the ears small and naked. It has five toes on each foot, a tail like the first joint of a man’s thumb, and whiskers like a cat; the colour is an earthen brown, with longitudinal rows of buff-coloured spots; the belly is a dirty white, the hair all over coarse and short. The Paca is an amphibious animal. On land it digs up the earth like a hog in quest of food, and when in danger flies to the water for its safety; notwithstanding this animal is so very plump and heavy, it runs swifter than most other animals of its size in South America, contrary to the account given of it in the supplement to [[153]]the Count de Buffon’s description[4], where it is said “not to be nimble, to run but seldom, and then with a bad a grace;” which may all be the case in a domestic state (for the Paca is capable of being tamed) but he is not sluggish in a state of nature. This I know to be true, having seen him run like a hare. We had this animal dressed for supper, and found him even more delicious than the wood-rat, or even the warra-bocerra: indeed, nothing can be better eating than the Paca or spotted Cavy.
The long-nosed Cavy, better known by the name of the Agouti Pacarara, or Indian Coney, is also very common in Surinam: this is the size of a large rabbit, its colour is an orange brown, the belly yellow; the legs black and slender, with four toes on the fore-feet, and three on the hindermost; the ears small, the eyes a bright black, the upper lip divided; it has whiskers, and its tail is like that of the Paca. This animal breeds very fast, and suckles its young, which are three or four in number, in concealed holes of old trees, &c. where it also retires for shelter if pursued; but it does not seek its food in the earth, like the former. The Agouti is easily tamed, and feeds on fruits, roots, nuts, &c. But its flesh, though very good, is not so delicious as that of the Paca.
In Surinam I have been told there is still another species of the Agouti, called the Indian Rat-Coney, on account of its having a long tail. This I never saw, unless it is the [[154]]same animal (which I apprehend it to be) that I have described under the name of the bush-rat.
On the 27th we again broke up, and finally arrived in the forenoon, and in a forlorn condition, at the estate Soribo, on the river Pirica, to defend the plantations against Bonny and his rebel negroes.
The river Pirica by its many windings is thought to extend about three-score miles. It is very deep but narrow, and has its banks, like all the others, lined with fine coffee and sugar plantations; its general course is from S. E. to N. W. We were scarcely arrived at this post, than I was accosted by several deputies from Colonel Seyburg, who earnestly intreated that I would only acknowledge myself to have been in fault, assuring me that I should then be set at liberty, and all would be forgotten. As I was conscious, however, of my own innocence, I could not in common justice criminate myself in an instance, where even my alledged crime amounted to no more than an anxious solicitude for the poor men and the provisions who were entrusted to my care. I was, therefore, placed under the guard of a sentinel, for what my commander was pleased to term unpliant stubbornness, and disarmed. In the mean time the marines caused me fresh uneasiness, and of the most poignant kind, by loudly threatening to mutiny in my behalf; nor could any thing have prevented them, but my decisive declaration, that as no cause could justify military disobedience and rebellion, I should be under the necessity myself (however injurious [[155]]to my feelings) of taking an active part against them, and seeing the ringleaders brought to condign punishment. I felt that at this time I could war with all the world, and nearly with myself—my heart was breaking apace—my life became a burden:
“Dependants, friends, relations, love himself,
Savag’d by woe, forget the tender tie,
The sweet engagements of the feeling heart.”
The day after our arrival in this station, we received the particulars of the Pirica news, which were, that on the 20th the estates Schoonhove and Altona had been pillaged by the rebels whom we had routed at Gado-Saby, but that at the plantation Poelwyk they had been beaten back by the slaves: that the rangers stationed at an estate called Hagenbos had pursued them on the 21st, overtaken them on the 23d, killed several, and brought back most of the booty: that on the same day another party of the rebels had made an attempt to seize the powder magazine at Hagenbos (which was no bad plan) but that (while the rangers were in pursuit of their associates) they had been repulsed by the manly behaviour of a few armed slaves, one of whom, belonging to the estate Timotibo, took an armed rebel himself, and next discovered their camp at the back of his master’s plantations; for which he was handsomely rewarded. From all which intelligence, there was now no doubt remaining that if Seyburg’s detached party on the 16th had marched [[156]]forwards instead of backwards, by his orders, the above mischief might have been prevented, and the enterprize of the rebels entirely frustrated. It was also evident from this narrative, that the man whom we fired at on the 21st was certainly one of the plunderers on the 20th, and that the bodies found dead on the 23d had been shot the very same day.
On the 29th, among other fruits, some dates were sent to me by a Society officer. This tree is also of the Palmeto species, but not extremely high; its leaves diverge from its summit, very thick, hanging down in the form of an umbrella. The dates appear in large clusters, being an oblong thin fruit like a man’s thumb, of a yellow colour, and the pulp, which is fat, firm, and sweet, adheres to a hard greyish-coloured stone, with longitudinal furrows.—I ought not to omit mentioning, that this day sixty rangers going to reconnoitre, discovered the old rebel camp at the back of Timotibo, which seemed to have contained about sixty armed men.
On the morning of the 30th of September, having nothing more to do in the neighbourhood of the Pirica River, we left it, and on the 1st of October came to Devil’s Harwar much fatigued, nothing remarkable having happened on our march. I had written on the preceding day to Colonel Fourgeoud, informing him, that I was weary of existence in my present state, and requesting that a court-martial might be immediately called; and this letter I had sent by a slave to the commander in chief. [[157]]On our arrival at this station, I indeed found every hard means employed to bring me to terms; and such was the severe usage I experienced, that one of the rangers, called Captain Quaci, exclaimed, “If in this manner these Europeans treat one another, is it to be wondered at that they should take a pleasure in torturing us poor Africans?”
At Devil’s Harwar, however, my stormy voyage drew to a conclusion. Colonel Seyburg was evidently convinced that he was wrong, and knowing what must follow, now only wished for a handsome opportunity of extricating himself from the effects of his unmanly passion. On the 2d of October, therefore, he asked me with a smile, “If I had a heart to forget and forgive?” To which I sternly answered, “No!”—He repeated the question.—I then said, “I venerated truth, and would never confess myself in an error, unless my heart coincided in the acknowledgment—that this was a concession I would make to no man living, and least of all to him.”—He here grasped my hand, begged me to be pacified, and declared, “That he would make peace on any terms;”—but I again drew back with contempt, and decidedly avowed, “That I could not agree to any compromise, unless he owned his fault in the presence of all the officers, with his own hands tearing from his journal every sentence that could reflect upon my character.” The journals were immediately produced, my arms were returned me, and my triumph was attended with every [[158]]circumstance that could add to my full satisfaction. I then, frankly and sincerely gave my hand to Colonel Seyburg, who gave a feast in honour of our reconciliation; and after dinner, to my utter surprize, produced the letter which I had written to Colonel Fourgeoud, which he acknowledged he had intercepted to prevent the affair proceeding to extremities: at the same time he acquainted me, that Fourgeoud was encamped at the Wana Creek, instead of Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes, who had fallen sick, and was gone to Paramaribo. A perfect reconciliation having taken place, and every thing being now adjusted, while the troops having had some rest, we set out once more on the 4th for the head quarters at Jerusalem; but I was obliged to leave poor Quaco, who was very ill, at Devil’s Harwar, under care of the surgeon; and that evening we encamped opposite the mouth of the Cormoetibo Creek.
On the following morning early, having crossed the River Cottica, the troops marched back to Jerusalem; where I now had leisure to reflect on the various evils which befal poor mortals, as well those who are innocent of the difficulties they are brought into, as those (which are the greater part) who have brought themselves into distress and even despair by their own indiscretions. These reflections arose from finding here, among others, a newly-arrived acquaintance, a Mr. P—t—r, who having squandered away in Europe above thirty thousand pounds, and lost a beautiful wife by elopement, was now [[159]]reduced to the income of an ensign in the Society troops. This gentleman having formerly possessed considerable property in this very colony, his present situation could not but be assuredly the more galling on that account.—Alas! unhappy young fellow: well might you exclaim—
“Privé de tout mes biens,
Dans un climat funeste,
Je t’adore & te perds,
Le poignard seul me reste.
Mais, Oh! je suis P—t—r,
Reservé pour souffrir;
Je sçaurois vivre encore,
Et faire plus que mourir.”
These are the words which he spouted with a sigh, throwing the last silver he had left among the slaves; and indeed nothing could be more applicable to himself than the lines he quoted, or more lamentable than this poor devil’s forlorn condition; which, however, created in me, during my present humour, no other effect—than a loud and immoderate fit of laughter. [[160]]
[1] By this is meant minute-guns, which are fired on the estates when in danger. These, being regularly answered by the neighbouring plantations, soon alarm the whole river, and bring assistance from every quarter. [↑]
[2] In Vol. IV. plate the 83d, by the Count de Buffon, a bat is represented with only three toes on each wing. [↑]
[3] By some called the Hippopotamus of South America, which I will describe in a proper place. [↑]
[4] See Buffon’s Natural History, Vol. V. page 39. [↑]
CHAP. XXIII.
Second march to Gado-Saby—Account of a living Skeleton—Beautiful Landscapes—The Commander in Chief falls sick, and leaves the Camp—Some Rebels taken—Discourse on the Existence of Mermaids—Heavy Rains—Disease—Famine—Misery.
On the 9th of October, 1775, Colonel Fourgeoud broke up the encampment at the Wana Creek to join us at Jerusalem, having sent down the half of his party sick in barges; and their number being greatly augmented by the invalids from this place, they were all together transported to receive the coup-de-grace in the hospital at Devil’s Harwar. The rangers also took their leave, and marched, with Mr. Vinsack their conductor, to guard the Pirica River.
Fourgeoud, during his last cruize, had discovered a hundred empty houses, and seen some straggling rebels, but he had taken none. He had also found a scalp fixed to the branch of a tree, which we justly conjectured to be the remains of the unfortunate Schmidt, who was lost[1].
On the 13th my black boy, Quaco, being perfectly recovered, [[161]]arrived, to my great satisfaction, as his fidelity to me was so steady and unshaken. At the same time we received an account that Captain Stoelman, with some rangers, had discovered a fresh settlement of the rebels by a great smoke appearing at a distance in the forest, but had not yet attacked them; that Captain Fredericy, with a party of black volunteers, was scouring the sea-side below Paramaribo; that the two men we had lost on the 18th of August had miraculously escaped, and found their way to the post at the river Marawina; and that no less than twelve fine negro slaves had just deserted from the Gold Mine estate to join the rebels.
This news so much exasperated Colonel Fourgeoud, that the indefatigable man again determined to persevere in pursuing his enemies. We accordingly entered the woods very early on the morning of the 15th, although he and his little army were at this time greatly reduced. He buried but the evening before one of his countrymen, a volunteer, called Matthew, and brother to the ensign: but death was now become so familiar to us, that upon losing a friend or relation, the first question generally was, “Has he left any brandy, rum, or tobacco?”—“Pauvre Laurant!” said I, to his shrivelled valet-de-chambre, “the brave Fourgeoud is like fire; he is to the colony an excellent servant indeed; but I think to both you and myself but a roughish master.” The poor fellow, shrugging up his shoulders, replied, with a grin and a heavy sigh, “Oui, par ma foi!” and then treated [[162]]me with a pinch of his snuff. I must not omit that, a little before our departure, seven more of our negro slaves did desert us, who went home to their masters perfectly broken-hearted, emaciated, and nearly starved; however, we proceeded, and marched directly N. E. during which nothing happened, except my box with all my bottles being dashed to pieces; and in the evening we encamped, though then unknown to us, near the Cassipore Creek, where the dry season having commenced, we dug a pit for water. Orders were also issued to the troops no more to build huts, sheds, &c. as the rains were now less violent.
On the 16th we continued our route, marching N. E. as before, and towards the evening arrived at the houses which Colonel Fourgeoud had lately discovered, which proved since to be only a temporary settlement, erected by the rebels as a shelter or asylum in their expected retreat, before they were dislodged from Gado-Saby; and to this little settlement they had given the name of Boossy Cry, that is, “the woods lament.” Here we encamped, and took much notice of Bonny’s house in particular, which was built like a watering machine, being elevated from the ground, with two doors, so that he might the better observe all around him, and prevent his being taken by surprize; it also had more air, and, of course, was better calculated for his health, he having in some late action received a very dangerous wound in the groin, as we afterwards learned from a rebel negro prisoner. Near to [[163]]Bonny’s house were the private baths, where his women washed themselves morning and evening, there being no river near this settlement.
In this encampment one of our slaves presented me with a land-turtle, which indeed we had met with several times before; but as I have never described this animal, I will now endeavour to give some account of it.—The land-turtle of Surinam is not more than eighteen or twenty inches in length, and of an oval form; the shell is more convex than that of the sea-turtle, and marked with thirteen elevated hexangular shields, dark brown and yellow, so hard that it will bear almost any weight without breaking; the under shell is a little concave, and of a light yellow: the head of this animal resembles that of other turtles; the tail is naked and short, but instead of fins or swimmers it has four feet covered with scales, and armed with sharp claws to assist it in crawling over the ground. When this poor creature sees any danger, it instantly shrinks within its shell. In this situation the Indians put it on the fire, where they broil it until it is drest, which is known by the under shell separating from the upper, which serves for a dish to hold the contents. A less barbarous way, and the way which I always followed, is only to provoke the animal by the heat of the embers to run away; when stretching out its head and neck, they are easily chopped off, and the food extracted without additional torture. I have known Mr. de Graaf keep three or four of these land-turtles for above four [[164]]months for transportation, during which time they lived without any apparent nourishment whatever, yet still remained vigorous, and even prone to copulation.
Another kind of land-turtle, called here the arlacacca, I have often seen; this is less in circumference, very flat, of a disagreeable greenish colour, and nothing like so good as the former.
On the 17th we continued our march N. and N. E. in hopes of more discoveries, but without success. We this day passed some ant-hillocks above six feet high, and, without exaggeration, above one hundred feet in circumference. We also saw great quantities of valuable timber, and, among the rest, the black-cabbage tree, the wood of which is of a deep brown, and is in high estimation among carpenters and joiners. The sand-booker tree was like-wise shewn me, which receives its name from the fruit, which being divested of its seed, is used as a sand-box by writers. It is of the shape of a large onion, with small holes in the surface; the seed is both laxative and emetic, but the juice of the pulp is a fatal poison. More than this I cannot say, having had neither the time nor the power of examining it with the accuracy of a professed botanist.
On the 18th we continued the same course for a few hours longer, when we found a beaten path, which, though circuitous, seemed to be a communication between Gado-Saby and Boossy-Cry. We followed this path, which led us due W. for a few hours, when a poor [[165]]rebel negro was found by me covered with branches of the manicole-tree, and indeed barely alive, being in appearance nothing but skin and bone, with one of his eyes almost beaten out of the socket. I put my bottle to his mouth, he swallowed a few drops of rum and water, and said with a faint voice, which we could scarcely hear, “Dank ye, me Massera!” but could articulate nothing more. Fourgeoud ordered this man to be carried with us in a hammock; and we soon afterwards encamped near a biree-biree swamp or quagmire. I ought not to forget that this day we saw some very fine locust-trees, being eighty or a hundred feet high, and prodigiously thick; the trunk is grey and very straight, with no branches till near the top, on which the leaves are disposed two to each stem: this is justly called the king of the forest, for a finer tree cannot be found. The timber is of a beautiful cinnamon-colour, and possesses every desirable quality of gravity, polish, grain, and durability.—But what particularly attracted our notice was its seed, like beans, three or four in number, enclosed in a broad light-brown pod, that lay flattered in quantities at the root of the tree, upon the ground, and tasted like some kinds of gingerbread. From the root of this tree a gum exudes, which, properly prepared, affords a varnish hitherto unequalled for transparency and effect.
Innumerable indeed are the various fine trees that this country produces, and which may be had for the cutting; yet, when we consider the distance they usually grow from navigable rivers, the great labour in felling and [[166]]working them, the vast number of slaves required to drag them through the forest, where no horses can be employed, besides the danger and loss of time, we may easily account for the enormous price generally paid for the best timber in Guiana.
This march undoubtedly afforded us the most enchanting prospects that can be imagined, in a luxuriant and ever-green forest, while the dry season contributed greatly to beautify the scene; and simple nature by far outshone the most strenuous endeavours of art. Here we met with immense savannas of the most lovely verdure, interspersed with meandring brooks of water, cool and clear as rock crystal; their borders adorned with flowers of every lively hue and fragrance. In some places we observed small clumps of elegant shrubs, or perhaps a single tree, whose beauty would almost induce one to think they had been designedly left growing to enrich the scene. The whole surrounded by a vast wood of lofty palm-trees, waving their sea-green foliage above the variegated copse of never-fading verdure, blossom, and fruit, as if to invite the panting wanderer under its cooling shade, till in the later hours he might enjoy the bracing pleasures of the limpid flood, and contemplate nature’s beauties undisturbed.—When universal silence reigned every where around, how often have I thought on my dear friend, and wished with her to glide through life in these Elysian fields!—But I must wave the pleasing recollection.
On the 19th we again marched, and fell in with our [[167]]old path, which we followed, leading directly to the fields of Gado-Saby, where quantities of rice once more appeared in full bloom, which we cut down and burned to ashes. Here, perceiving the poor rebel negro hopeless of recovery, not absolutely to bury him alive, he was overspread with moss, leaves, and green boughs; after which we slung our hammocks, being almost choaked with smoke.
In these fields I saw a lizard above two feet long, which the negro slaves killed and ate: they called it sapagala, it was of a brownish green colour, but did not resemble the iguana. Among the ruins of the consumed town we discovered some scolopendras, or centipedes, no less than eight or ten inches in length; this odious reptile is of a yellowish-brown colour, walks very fast backwards or forwards, and bites so severely, that the venom it infuses, though not deemed fatal, generally produces a fever. Some writers assign this reptile twenty pair of legs, others forty; I never reckoned them, and can only observe, that they appeared to me exactly to resemble the centipedes in Europe. Some of our gentlemen formed large collections of these curiosities, which were very valuable, whilst I contented myself with the drawings and descriptions only of those I thought most uncommon.
On the 20th, we marched to visit Cofaay, when I perceiving the unhappy negro captive still alive; after removing the branches, he was, at my earnest intercession, once more carried along with us; but the slaves, being [[168]]discontented with such a load, took every opportunity, in my absence, of torturing him, by knocking him against roots and stones, and dragging him through mud and water as they went along. Different patroles were now ordered out to reconnoitre the grounds, while the remainder of the troops encamped in the west part of Cofaay; and these patroles discovered no less than four beautiful fields in one chain, situated due west from Cofaay, well stocked with cassava, yams, plantains, pistachio nuts, with maize and pigeon peas: also were seen several human carcases, the relicts of our late engagements in August. We found here a species of medlars of a crimson colour, and of a taste very much like that of strawberries. This fruit grows on a large green shrub, and is cultivated in many gardens at Paramaribo. We also met with a kind of wild plum-tree called monpe: the fruit is yellow, oblong, and small; the stone is large, the pulp thin, and though of a sharp acid has an agreeable flavour.
On the morning of the 21st, all these and every useful vegetable were cut down, and again destroyed by fire; after which, returning to our last night’s camp, we found it also in flames, and were obliged to sling our hammocks in the east skirts of the woods. Here, recollecting that the poor disabled rebel was left alone, I ran back west to the burning camp to afford him assistance; but after seeking him in vain through clouds of smoke and darkness, I was forced to consult my own safety, by hastily returning [[169]]to my companions; some blaming me much for my temerity, others damning the skeleton, whether dead or alive.
The devastation being now compleated, we marched back to Jerusalem, where on the 24th we arrived perfectly exhausted, and Fourgeoud at last so ill with a phrenzy fever, that he was confined to his hammock, with small hopes of surviving the night. But he however still continued to command, and the next morning ordered a marine to be bastonaded, for asking shoes, although he was bare-footed, and his feet tore to pieces; while another was flogged for coughing, who had a severe cold; a captain was dismissed from actual service, and confined in Fort Zealandia, for having dared to marry without his consent.—Sickness and death now raged through the camp, and every thing was in the utmost confusion.
To compleat the whole, on the 1st of November, twenty-five more negro slaves ran away; and on the 3d we received intelligence that no less than fifty armed rebels had been seen swimming across the River Cottica, about a musket-shot above Barbacoeba.
In consequence of this information, Colonel Seyburg was detached, with the few men that remained able to carry arms, who through distress and famine were now almost ready to attack their own officers; and who being unsupplied with their favourite luxury, tobacco[2], sat [[170]]smoking grey paper, and chewing leaves and leather as a substitute for the want of it. Few men, however, were worse off than I was at this time; since, having neither provisions nor cloaths, I was almost naked as well as starved, with a running ulcer in my left foot, ever since the ambuscade and march to Pirica; nor had I a friend in the camp who could give me the smallest assistance. To compleat my misery, the little blood I had remaining was in two successive nights again nearly sucked away by the vampire-bat, or spectre: thus I fainted away in my hammock, and was almost sorry to recover, particularly upon being informed by a letter that Joanna and her boy were dying with a putrid fever at Paramaribo.
At last, on the 12th, Serjeant Fowler arrived from Mocha, with one of my boxes; when this poor fellow, notwithstanding my situation, made me laugh aloud by producing a letter from his mother in Europe, which made him extremely happy; and which I must beg leave verbatim to transcribe.
“Dair Shonny,
“I have relaved your girl from the Bridevail—and your shits from the panbroker—the baby is died—blessed be Goat, while I hop yow be living. I am your laffing mother tell death,
Maggy Fowler.”
The same evening Colonel Seyburg’s party returned, without having obtained any further intelligence.
On the 14th Colonel Fourgeoud was so dangerously [[171]]ill, that he at length was obliged to relinquish his command, and proceed to town for his recovery. Accordingly on the 15th, he set out by water for Paramaribo: thus, after having sacrificed all his troops, he became himself finally a victim to his unbounded ambition and obstinate perseverance in this worst of all climates, while by toiling less and living better both he and his soldiers might have rendered the colony, if not superior, at least an equal service.—A barge loaded with sick and dying was at the same time once more sent to the hospital at Devil’s Harwar.
The command of the remaining scarecrows now devolved upon the Lieutenant Colonel, who (strange to tell!) that very evening inherited the same distemper, as well as the chief command; the barge that rowed off the old hero having but just disappeared, when this gentleman was attacked also by the phrenzy fever; the above complaint was indeed at this time very common amongst all ranks and degrees who were broiling under a burning sun at Jerusalem; it being the dry season, when we ought to have been in the woods—but for those expeditions, as I have stated before, the rainy seasons were most unhappily preferred. Several officers would have before now thrown up their military commissions, could they with decency have taken such a measure, during an expedition on actual service; nor, in my opinion, ought such to be granted, cases of the very greatest necessity excepted. I could myself have wished to go for some time to Paramaribo, [[172]]but as this favour was not offered me, while all the others, and even the slaves, were relieved, I scorned to petition for it while I was able to stand.
On the 19th, however, my foot became so bad, that the surgeon reported me unfit for duty; yet I still remained in the camp, where I could be to none of any service.
A supply of fresh troops, slaves, and provisions being arrived on the 20th, Major Medlar, with 150 men, was detached to make new discoveries.
Among other plagues, the whole camp at this time swarmed with locusts, which appeared every where in most formidable troops, devouring every thing that lay in their way. Indeed the curse of Heaven seemed to visit us here in various shapes, and every vermin were so plenty at this time, that no exertion could keep us perfectly free. These locusts were brown, two inches in length, and shaped like a grasshopper; they did not fly, but crawled by millions on the very tables and seats as we sat at dinner, and at night they tormented us by crawling over our faces by scores.
The only desirable article we found at Jerusalem was fish, of which we seldom wanted plenty, particularly newmara and warrappa, also the patakee, and the old wifee, both very excellent; the former of which is about two feet long, shaped like a whiting, the other is the size of a large perch. A kind of needle-fish, called naaynaay-fisee, was found here in great abundance, these were very thin, and about one foot in length; also a kind of [[173]]dung-fish, about the size of a small herring, but these two last were only used by the negroes.
On the 3d of December, Major Medlar’s party returned, after fourteen days absence, with a captive rebel woman and her boy about eight years old, taken in a small field of bitter cassava. The poor woman was pregnant, and under great alarms, but was tenderly treated by Medlar, who was always a humane and well-disposed gentleman. He had, however, unluckily lost two of his best men, one Schoelar, a corporal, the other called Philip Van den Bos, a private marine, who having inadvertently eaten a few roots of the above bitter cassava were poisoned, and died during the same night with the most excruciating pain and convulsions: the antidote is said to be Cayenne pepper and spirits, neither of which were at that time to be procured.
The black woman confirmed the account that Bonny had been wounded; she also told us the poor starved negro we had found was called Isaac, and had been left for dead. That one Captain Arico had formed a new settlement near the sea, called Fissy-Hollo; while Bonny, she assured us, maintained the strictest discipline amongst his troops: he was, she said, absolutely despotic, and had executed two of his men but three days before we took Gado-Saby, viz. during the night of the 17th August, when we heard the firing and shouting, only upon suspicion of having hinted some few words in favour of the Europeans, and were the heads which we found stuck [[174]]on the stakes. She further assured us, that none of his people were trusted with arms, until they had first served him some years as slaves, and given him unquestionable proofs of fidelity and resolution. But these, she observed, were but few in number, when compared to his numerous vassals, who were bound to do without murmuring whatever he thought proper to command them; yet that he still was more beloved than he was feared, on account of his inflexible justice and manly courage.
On the 4th December, this poor woman and her boy were sent to Paramaribo, with Ensign de Cabanus, who had taken them: he had at the same time nearly seized a young girl about fifteen, who by her great agility, and being stark naked, slipped out of his hands:
——“Fugit ocior aurâ
Illa levi: neque ad hæc revocantis verba resistit:
Nympha, precor, Peneia, mane: non insequor hostis.
Nympha, mane.”——
Ovid.
It being proved at the court that the above woman had been forcibly carried off by the rebels, though many years before, the poor creature was pardoned, and joyfully returned with her child to her master’s plantation. It is remarkable, that when the boy saw the first cow or horse he almost fell into convulsions with terror; nor could he bear to be touched by any white person, whom [[175]]he never had seen before, and whom he constantly called Yorica, which in his language signifies the devil.
About this time a dead sea-cow, or manatee, by the French called Lamantin, floating past Jerusalem, the negro slaves fell upon it, like so many crows upon a carrion, swimming round it, some with a rusty knife, some with a bill-hook, and each carrying off a slice for his dinner; at last they dragged the stinking animal on shore, of which I instantly took a drawing. This manatee was exactly sixteen feet long, almost shapeless, being an enormous lump of fat, tapering backwards to a fleshy, broad, horizontal tail. It had a thick round head, a flattish snout, large nostrils, with strong bristles both on its nose and chin, small eyes, and auditory holes instead of ears. Instead of feet, it had two excrescences or fleshy fins, like those of the sea-turtle, projecting near its head; with these it swims, and moves awkwardly to eat the grass on the banks of the rivers, being an amphibious animal. The colour was a greenish black; the skin was hard and uneven, covered with large knobs, circular wrinkles, and with a very few stiff hairs thinly scattered. It had grinders but no fore-teeth, and a very short tongue. The sea-cow or manatee is, like the whale, a viviparous animal, the female suckling its young by the help of its swimmers. They are very numerous in the river Amazons; their flesh, it is said, resembles veal, and is very good food. This was, however, too far advanced in a state of putridity, for me to taste it. It had the marks of being [[176]]twice shot, which must have been by the rebels on the 27th, when we heard the report of two muskets at a distance.
As I am once more on the subject of natural history, I shall describe another amphibious animal, called the tapira, which bears some distant resemblance to the hippopotamus of the old continent, but it is a great deal less. This creature is about the size of a small ass, but much more clumsy. The head is not unlike that of a horse, but the upper lip much longer, projecting something like the proboscis of an elephant, and is also moveable, but too short to be of use, as is the trunk of that animal; the ears are short, the tusks strong, and sometimes visible, the mane is bristly and erect, the limbs are low and strong, with a kind of hoof divided into four claws, and the tail is thick and short, like that of the elephant. The skin of this creature is excessively thick, of a brown colour, and when young it is marked with white spots, like those of the stag or paca, proceeding in longitudinal rows. It feeds on grass, and other herbs that grow in watery places, and is so shy, that when alarmed by the smallest noise it plunges under water, also like the paca, for security, where it remains for a considerable time. The flesh of the tapira is delicate, being accounted superior to the best ox-beef.—See both the above animals in the annexed plate.
Barlow sculp.
The Tapir, or Hippopotamus of South America.
The Manati, or Sea Cow of Guiana.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Pauls Church Yard.
A Mr. Selefelder, of the Society service, at this time assured me, that he saw quite a different river-horse in the [[177]]River Marawina; and Major Abercromby, of the same service, declared, that a mermaid was lately seen in the River Surinam. Lord Monboddo also positively affirms the existence of sea-women and sea-men, while he asserts that they were seen so late as 1720. But, however respectable his lordship’s judgment and authority may be on other subjects, I can no more agree with him, as to men and women having fins and scales, than to their having tails.
The plain fact, in my humble opinion, is this, that in many rivers between the Tropics, both on the coast of Africa and South America, a fish sometimes appears half above the water, that bears a distant resemblance of the human species, but is smaller, nearly such as in 1794 was exhibited in London. The colour is of a blackish green; the head is round, with a deformed kind of a face; a strong fin runs from near the eyes to the middle of the back, which something resembles flowing hair: and the two supposed arms and hands, are two fleshy fins, or rather digitated swimmers; the female has breasts assuredly like a woman’s, being a viviparous animal; while the tail is exactly that of a fish, in most of which properties it agrees with the seal, but this last has no fin along the back, and is considerably larger, while it never appears erect above the water, like the former. The above information I had from several old negroes and Indians, who all agreed perfectly in the description; some added, that they sang, which I apprehend to be no other than a [[178]]grunting noise which they emit like most other tropical fish and amphibious animals.
They concluded by assuring me, that though they were scarce, nothing was more dreaded by their wives and children, than the Watra Mama, which signifies the mother of the waters; and by which name, strange to tell, they distinguish their Sybils.—So much for the monsters of the deep; and now I shall once more return to those infesting Terra Firma.
I have just mentioned, that, on account of a very bad foot, I had been returned unfit for duty by the surgeon, on the 19th of November; yet this day, December 5th, another surgeon, with two captains, and the adjutant, were sent to inspect both me and Captain Perret, who was also sick. The surgeon gave his declaration upon oath, that we were incapable of walking without danger, much more of undergoing fatigue; but Seyburg, who was still in his phrenzy fever, declared we should instantly enter the woods, though he should see us carried in two wheel-barrows. Poor Captain Perret complied to turn out, though he looked like a ghost, and could scarcely stand; but I solemnly swore that I would blow out the first man’s brains who dared disrespectfully to touch me: in consequence of which I was close guarded by a sentinel; while the whole camp, upon my soul, now seemed to be composed of none but madmen.
On the 11th we received intelligence that a number of armed rebels had been just seen opposite to Devil’s Harwar, [[179]]and afterwards informed they were upon their retreat from the Comawina River, where on the 5th they had burnt to ashes the dwelling-house of the estate Killestyn Nova, with Mr. Slighter the overseer in it, ransacked the whole plantation, killed and carried off thirty-three women, and chopped off the limb of a male mulatto child, to be revenged of its father; and that the Pirica rangers were in pursuit of them. Captain Fredericy also arrived this day, who had exchanged from the Society troops into Colonel Fourgeoud’s regiment of marines, and confirmed to us the above unhappy news.
About this time, after having starved four months, my remaining stores arrived at last from Mocha, but three-fourths rotted and destroyed by the blata or cockroaches: the remaining part I distributed among the sick people. But what proved truly acceptable, was the cheering account that Joanna and Johnny were past danger, and recovering at Paramaribo. This intelligence indeed so elevated my spirits, that the next morning I reported myself fit for duty, though God knows that I was not; and to this I was the more induced by the want of fresh air, of which I was perfectly debarred in my confinement, and stood so much in need. The same evening a boat full of Caribbee Indians rowed up Cormoetibo, for the River Marawina, by the communication of the Wana Creek.
In eight days more, which was the 20th of December, being actually recovered of the wound in my foot, and Seyburg of his phrenetic fever, another officer and I played him the following trick, for his bad usage. [[180]]Having invited this gentleman, with his adjutant, and a few more, to see us act a farce by candle-light, we affected to quarrel, and beating out the candle, the door being well secured, laid on in the dark with such success upon a certain somebody’s shoulders, that, calling out Murder! he leaped out at the window. Nothing ever gave me greater entertainment than to perceive his agility; but Colonel Seyburg declared he would never more to our play be a spectator.
At this time orders arrived from Colonel Fourgeoud, who was also better, to break up our camp at Jerusalem, and march once more to the Wana Creek. In consequence the sick were again sent down in barges to the hospital at Devil’s Harwar, which was nearly full, while several were labouring under a disease something like the tympany, called here the kook, being a prodigious hardness and swelling in the belly, occasioned, it is said, by drinking muddy water without spirits, which was indeed our daily and general beverage.
On the 22d, at six o’clock in the morning, we all decamped, and scrambled up along the banks of the Cormoetibo Creek, through a perfect bog, while one poor negro, who had his head fractured, was left behind, and another knocked over-board one of the barges, who was drowned.
We this day again saw great numbers of pingoes or warree-hogs, which as usual breaking through our line, were cut down by sabres and stabbed, while some ran off with the bayonets sticking in their hams. [[181]]
This march was peculiarly disagreeable, upon account of the heavy rains, which now began to fall down in torrents, overflowing the banks of all the rivers; and so cold were the damps in the morning, contrasted with the late warm days, that we frequently lay shivering in our hammocks as in frost, especially when sleeping in wet cloaths. This inconvenience, however, I obviated to day by marching half naked, like the rangers, and putting my shirt in one of the reversed kettles, during the rain—thus my skin soon drying, after a shower, I again put on my linen, and found myself much more comfortable than any of my trembling ghastly looking companions.
On the evening of the 23d, we encamped near a rivulet called the Caymans or Alligator Creek; where a tree called Monbiara afforded some excellent fruit, but this was entirely stripped by the slaves before I could either taste or even see it in perfection.
The rains continuing to pour down in a deluge, I again marched stripped on the 24th, and we slung our hammocks in the evening, near a brook called Yorica, or the Devil’s Creek, where we made huts or sheds to cover us, and stowed the provisions upon rafters.
On the following day we once more laboured through deep mud and water, in very heavy rains, and encamped at another small brook, called the Java Creek, three miles below the Wana.
On the 26th I was selected, with a small party, to reconnoitre the old camps at Wana Creek. In the evening [[182]]we returned, half swimming through mud and water, and having literally seen nothing, except some birds and curious trees, which I cannot pass unnoticed. The birds were called the Cromback, the Camawarry, and the Crocro. The first is a kind of large snipe, the size of a woodcock, with a crooked bill. The second is also a water fowl, but three times as large as the first: on account of their swiftness, and disappearing in a moment, I can give but a very imperfect description of them. The Crocro is something less than our ravens, and I believe of the same species, being one of the most voracious birds of the carnivorous tribe; in Guiana it is of a dark blue colour, has a remarkably strong bill and limbs, and croaks excessively loud and disagreeably, especially by night. The trees were what the negroes called the Matakee, and the Markoory. The first is remarkable for its roots, which spread above the ground in such a manner, that they will conceal a score of men from each other; nay so large are they sometimes, that a horseman may ride through between the interstices, and one single piece is sufficient to make a table large enough to hold twelve people.
For a better idea of this wonderful tree, I refer the reader to the annexed plate; where I have placed it upon the opposite shore of the encampment at Jerusalem. In the same plate, he is also presented with a fair-weather view of the camp at Java Creek.
Barlow sculpt.
View of the Camp at the Java Creek.
View of the Encampment at Jerusalem.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
The other tree, called the Markoory, is truly formidable [[183]]on account of its poisonous qualities, which are of such a subtle nature, that the very smoke of this wood, when on fire, is fatal to those animals that receive it into their lungs; this is always seen to grow by itself, as it infallibly kills every thing around it, nay even the slaves refuse to cut it down on the plantations, so much are they afraid of touching, or of even coming near to it. The Markoory is low, ugly, and uneven, with very few branches, and a pale verdure. I have been told that some of the Indians render their arrows fatal by dipping the barbs of them in its sap.
On the 27th, another patrole was sent out, but to no better purpose than the first. I have mentioned that my foot was recovered, and so it was, but I had now extracted out of my right arm two dreadful insects, which left behind them very deep ulcers. These are called in Surinam the bush-worms, and are the shape and size of the aurelia of the common butterfly, with a pointed tail and black head. They stuck extremely fast in the flesh, and were extracted with a lancet. They breed naturally in stagnated waters, in marching constantly through which they had attached themselves to my flesh.
My heart now began to sink with accumulated disasters; my mind was agitated and depressed with a constant train of tortures, to which I could see no end, and I became weary of life. In this dreadful situation I fell upon my naked knees, and invoked the malediction of Heaven to fall on me, if I did not separate myself from [[184]]my present commanders and this service, the first honourable opportunity that should offer itself;—how religiously I have persevered in observing this vow, shall be seen in the sequel of these pages, before I take my final farewell of my readers.
The place of our present encampment was now intolerable beyond every description, being constantly overflowed, so that the ammunition and provisions were stowed for preservation on wooden rafts; nor could we step out of our hammocks without being up to the knees in mud and water, where it was most shallow, while the gnats and other insects devoured us alive. The consequence of all which was, that another barge full of dying wretches was sent down the Cormoetibo Creek, bound for the hospital at Devil’s Harwar; among whom the poor old negro with his fractured skull, who had only yesterday rejoined us in his shocking condition. This floating charnel-house weighed anchor on the last day of the year 1775—with which I shall beg leave to conclude this gloomy chapter. [[185]]
[1] This was the more surprising, as we were at peace with all the Indians, and scalping was never practised by the negroes. [↑]
[2] All sailors, soldiers, and negroes are particularly miserable without tobacco: it keeps up their spirits, they say, and some almost prefer it to bread. [↑]
CHAP. XXIV.
Two Volunteer Companies raised of free Mulattoes and Negroes—Description of the Arrowouka Indian Nation—Colonel Fourgeoud’s Regiment receives orders to sail for Europe—Countermanded—Re-enter the Woods—Trade of the Colony—Description of a Cacao Estate—Sample of Sable Heroism.
To what good star I was obliged, in the midst of all our confusion and distress, I know not, but certain it is, that Colonel Seyburg having sent for me on the first day of the new year, not only solicited my future friendship, but declared he was sorry for all the ill-treatment he had ever occasioned me, for which he principally blamed Mr. Gibhart, his adjutant and spy; then taking me by the hand, as a proof of his real regard, permitted me from that moment to go to Paramaribo, or wherever I pleased, to refresh and refit until further orders; which had such an effect on me, that having instantly converted every drop of my rum into grog, we sat down, together with two other officers, and drowned all former animosity in oblivion, till we could hardly see each other. In this condition I took my leave that very evening of my new friend and the camp at Java Creek, and rowed down in the best spirits for Paramaribo. [[186]]
Next morning, having slept during most of the passage, I breakfasted at Devil’s Harwar, where I found that the unfortunate Gibhart had just set sail for the other world. In the evening we arrived at the estate Beekvlied, as my negroes had made extraordinary dispatch, summing wattra[1] all the time to encourage each other.
On the 3d I arrived at the fortress Amsterdam, where I was entertained with an excellent fish dinner, and where I must again intreat the reader’s patience, while I attempt to describe the different species, viz. the passessy, prare-prare, provost, and curema. The passary is above two feet long, and weighs sometimes twenty pounds: the head is broad and flat; it has two long barbs, and no scales, and is very delicate eating. The prare-prare is about the same size, and equally good. The provost is large, often five feet, and of a yellowish colour; the flesh of this is less agreeable, but the oil it produces comes to good account. As for the curema, this is a species of mullet, sometimes above two feet in length, with large silvery eyes, and the under jaw longer than the upper. Near this place are also found a kind of sea-snails, of which Madam Merian makes mention; and the fore-part of which exactly resembles those of a shrimp.
In the evening at six o’clock I arrived once more at Paramaribo, and found Joanna with her little boy perfectly [[187]]well, after having both been blind for above three weeks; with whom being now invited to lodge, at the house of my friend Mr. De Graaf, I was completely happy.
The following day I dined with Colonel Fourgeoud, who now also was as sound as ever, and who gave me a very indifferent meal of salt provisions[2], but an uncommonly hearty welcome. He acquainted me that two new companies of free mulattoes, and two of free negroes, all volunteers, had just been raised; that the Serameca and Owca negroes encouraged and favoured the rebels, and were deceitful rascals; that a few rebels had been killed in the Cassiwinica Creek; and that he was in hopes of rooting out Fissy Hollo; that Bonny, with his people, were almost starving in the forest, notwithstanding their late depredations, which could not last much longer; and that he was fully determined, if he should lose his last man, to make this rebel surrender, or harass him till he and his gang, through hunger and distress, should be obliged to quit the colony. I learned further from him, that a Frenchman had just escaped hanging for betraying the state of the fortifications, &c. to the governor of Cayenne; that he had pardoned Captain Tulling for his clandestine marriage; and that Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes was just entered into matrimony with a rich widow, a Mrs. Crawford. [[188]]
The Colonel, in a word, was now quite the reverse of what he had been before, and upon the whole so very agreeable in his manners, that I would never wish to spend my time in better company; but how I should become at once the favourite of both these rival commanders, was a secret I could never yet discover, unless it might proceed from a desire of gaining me from each other, as they still continued mutual enemies: be that as it may, I resolved to preserve the most inflexible neutrality, as I also did between them and the governor, where I was invited next day, and dined not on salt-beef, but found as usual a truly magnificent entertainment.
Thus I continued daily visiting my friends, viz. Mrs. Godefroy, the Demellys, the Gordons, the Mac Neyls, &c. I also spent a very agreeable day with the black Mrs. Sampson, or Zubly, who was now a widow.
I was present too at a mulatto ball, composed however not of slaves, but of free independant settlers. Here the music, the lights, the country dances, the supper, and, above all, the dresses were so superb, and their behaviour so decent and genteel, that the whole might serve as a model for decorum and etiquette to some of the fairer and more polished inhabitants.
On the 20th, observing a number of Indians and black people of both sexes swimming at the back of Fort Zelandia, young Donald Mac Neyl and myself compleated the groupe, by stripping and getting in among them; and I must confess I never beheld more surprising feats [[189]]of activity in the water, than were performed by the negroes, who fought a sham battle, by plunging or rather tumbling like porpoises, when they struck each other with their legs, as they never used their hands; while the Indians, who were of the Arrowouka nation, swam and dived like amphibious animals.
Being sufficiently refreshed, we sat down upon the beach, near the twenty-one gun battery, where I had an opportunity of examining the features and figure of one of their young females, as she approached us, like Venus rising out of the sea. These people being very different from all the other Indian nations that I have already described, I shall embrace the opportunity of fulfilling my promise, and giving a particular account of them.—In the first place, the skin of the young woman who was now emerging clean from the river, and divested of arnotta-paint, appeared much fairer than the copper-colour of the other Indians; neither were her limbs deformed by those strait-laced bracelets or cotton-bands so much in use with the rest; nor did her hair hang down, but was neatly plaited close round the crown of her head, and fastened in the centre with a broad silver plate[3]. Her only dress consisted, both during the time she bathed and after, of a small square apron made of beads, as I have mentioned before: in every other respect she was perfectly naked: nor could a finer figure be imagined—[[190]]erect, vigorous, active, young, and healthy, which convinced me that when the body is exposed, as it certainly was ordained by nature, the face is but little noticed.
“——Such as Arcadian song
Transmits from ancient uncorrupted Time;
When tyrant Custom had not shackled Man,
But free to follow Nature was the mode.”
In her features was displayed that beautiful simplicity, that native unsuspecting innocence, which cannot be put on where there is the slightest consciousness of guilt. Nor is the olive-colour incompatible with beauty, it is certainly the standard complexion of the human race, while the black and white are supposed to be only gradations, produced probably by the extremes of heat and cold. As this Indian girl was perfectly handsome, so she seemed to be perfectly happy.—“Happiness,” as the Abbe Reynal wisely observes, “is more frequently found in a pure state of nature, than in that of the most refined civilization.” To be sure an European woman would blush to her fingers ends at the very idea of appearing publicly stark naked; but education and prejudice are every thing, since it is an axiom, that where there is no feeling of self-reproach, there can assuredly be no shame.
Benedetti Sculpt.
Indian Female of the Arrowauka Nation.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1792, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
I remember to have seen an Indian youth, whose name was Weekee, at Bergen-op-Zoom, where he was brought over from the colony Berbicè with General Desalve, who cloathed and partly civilized him: amongst other things, [[191]]he learned cookery, and to be something of a taylor, at his own request, that he might be enabled to provide both for his back and his belly. After some time however, expressing a desire to return to the colony, he no sooner touched American ground, than stripping himself of his lumber, he launched naked into his native woods, where he ended his days as he had begun them, amongst his beloved countrymen and companions; like the Hottentot mentioned by Rousseau, in his celebrated Discours sur l’Inegalité & Conditions, &c.——But to return to the girl:—She had with her a live parrot, which she had stunned with a blunt arrow from her bow, and for which I gave her a double-bladed knife[4]. So wonderfully expert are the Arrowouka Indians at this exercise, that they frequently bring down a macaw in full flight, or even a pigeon.
I cannot conclude these remarks without adding a few words concerning the unspotted moral character of these people, who not only live in peace with most of the other Indian nations, but are peculiarly attached to the Europeans, while these in return profess for them the strongest esteem. [[192]]
As a proof of their gratitude, I will only relate one instance:—Some years ago an Indian woman being at Paramaribo, and far advanced in a state of pregnancy, a Mr. Van der Mey humanely ordered his servants to conduct her and her husband into his house, where, giving them a private apartment, and every other conveniency, he wished them good-night. Before the next morning the woman was delivered; but when the servants went in to renew their offers of friendship, neither man, wife, nor child were to be found, as they had before day-break quietly marched into the forest[5]. Various were at this time the conjectures concerning the boasted integrity of the Arrowouka Indians, until, no less than eighteen months after, the same Indian returned to Mr. Van der Mey, with a charming captive boy of the Accawau nation, that he had taken in battle[6]; and whom presenting to his benefactor, he only said, “That’s yours,” and without waiting for any answer disappeared.—For this slave the above gentleman was offered £. 200, which he refused, and treated him as well as if he had been free.
The education these people receive in their infancy being according to the dictates only of simple nature, their minds or their bodies are very seldom deformed, while a too nice attention to either is possibly as detrimental as a total neglect. The ingenious Dr. Bancroft is [[193]]of the same opinion, which he supports (I think needlessly) by a quotation from Quintilian.
Though the Arrowouka Indians live in perfect friendship and harmony with us, and indeed with most of their neighbours, they yet sometimes go to war when provoked, as I have just observed; in these combats they use bows and arrows, and the club called abowtow[7]; but they do not eat their prisoners like the Caribbee Indians, who even devoured the negroes whom they killed at the insurrection in Berbicè. Notwithstanding these people live at a greater distance from the sea than the Warrows, &c. yet they have canoes, sometimes fourscore feet in length, in which they paddle down the rivers. The Arrowouka Indians particularly are great herbalists, and for all external accidents have recourse to simples, with which the woods of all Terra Firma abound.——But to proceed:
On the 25th I was seized with a fever, and blooded in the foot, in which the orifice being struck too deep, for struck it was as they bleed the horses, I again became lame; during which time Colonel Seyburg arrived from the Java Creek to recover, he being at last also taken very ill.
In the mean time Colonel Fourgeoud, while he was just ready to renew his operations, having already sent a small detachment to the Jew Savannah for intelligence, received letters from the Hague, with express orders to [[194]]abandon the expedition immediately, and with his few remaining troops to sail for Holland without delay.
In consequence of these commands on the 27th, the transport ships were put in commission, and all the officers and privates received their clearance, which made them very happy; and indeed all at Paramaribo were alive with joy, except some of the inhabitants and myself.
On the 14th of February, ill as I was with a bad foot, a sore arm, the prickly heat, and all my teeth loose with the scurvy, I found means to scramble out on crutches, with a thousand florins in my pocket, which having divided between Fourgeoud and Mrs. Godefroy for the redemption of the black boy Quaco, and my mulatto, I returned home without a shilling in my purse; yet for this small sum of 500 florins, so inadequate to 1800 which I owed that lady, she was induced generously to renew her persuasions of carrying Joanna and the boy with me to Holland. This, however, Joanna as nobly as firmly refused, declaring, “that, independant of all other considerations, she could never think of sacrificing one benefactor to the interest of another; and that her own happiness or even mine, which was dearer to her than life, should never have any weight, till the debt of her liberty was paid by me, or by her own industry, to the utmost fraction, and which she did not despair to see one day compleated.” She added, “our separation should only be for a time, and that the greatest proof I could ever shew her of my real esteem, was now to undergo this little trial of fortune like a man, without [[195]]so much as heaving a sigh in her presence;” which last she spoke with a smile, next embraced her infant, then turned suddenly round, and wept most bitterly.—At this moment I was called to Mr. de la Mare’s, who was just dead, where my melancholy having surpassed all description, I at last determined to weather one or two painful years in her absence; and in the afternoon went to dissipate my mind at a Mr. Roux’s cabinet of Indian curiosities; where, as my eye chanced to fall on a rattle-snake, I will before I leave the colony describe this dangerous reptile.
The rattle-snake of Surinam is sometimes eight or nine feet long, and very thick about the middle, tapering towards the neck and tail. The head is dreadfully deformed, being flat and broad, with two large nostrils near the snout, and a large scale or knob like the alligator above his eyes, which are jet-black and sparkling; at the extremity of the tail are several thin horny shells joined together, which are very dry, and which, when irritated, the animal shakes, sounding much like a rattle, from which it derives its name. These shells augment, it is said, in the proportion of one every year, by which it is supposed its age may be ascertained. This whole snake is covered over with scales, which on the ridge of the back it erects. The colour is a dirty orange mixed with dark-brown and black spots, which last are also on its head, appearing like velvet, and marked in a very conspicuous manner; the belly is ash-coloured, with transverse [[196]]scales like most other serpents. When this animal is intent on mischief, it lies coiled like a rope, with the tail a little in motion, which having rattled, it launches forth upon its prey, making no farther reach than its own length; this done, it coils a second time, and again projects itself. The bite of the rattle-snake is accounted fatal, at least is thought very dangerous over all America; but with regard to the fascinating qualities of its eyes, such as the story of its causing mice, squirrels, and birds to run into its mouth, I reject them as fables; the supposed charm consisting in nothing more than this, that the poor animals, finding themselves surprized by the impending danger, are seized with such a trepidation and fear, that even the use of their limbs forsakes them, and they are rivetted to the place till they die, or in the act of leaping they are seized by their enemy[8].
The Green Butterfly of South America.
The Rattle Snake & Dypsas of Guiana.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
In this cabinet I also saw the blue dipsas of Surinam, which had almost the colour of ultramarine on the back; its sides were lighter, and the belly nearly white. I did not learn that the bite of this reptile was fatal, but that it occasions immoderate thirst in the patient, from which it took its name; the word dipsa signifying thirst in the Greek language. Another snake I also observed here, about three feet long, being annulated with different colours, and called amphisbœna, from the supposition of its having two heads; but the truth is, that from its cylindrical [[197]]form the head and tail so much resemble each other, that the error is almost pardonable; besides which, the eyes are nearly imperceptible. This is the snake which, being supposed blind, and vulgarly said to be fed by the large ants already described, is in this country honoured with the name of King of the Emmets[9].
Amongst Mr. Roux’s numerous collection of fine butterflies, one of a middle size I thought peculiarly beautiful; all its wings, both above and below, being elegantly streaked with transverse bars of velvet, black, and a variegated bright green. The amazing height to which they ascend, and the great velocity with which these insects fly, make them so rare, being, for these reasons, but very seldom caught. The caterpillar is a sea-green, and all covered over with hard feelers, not unlike feathers.—For a better idea of the above snakes, and this fly, see the plate annexed, where the last was improved from Madam Merian’s collection.
I have just said that we were ordered to leave the colony, and that all were overjoyed with the news, myself excepted. But on the 15th, by letters from Holland to our chief, our return was again countermanded for six months. My companions were therefore suddenly cast down with disappointment, while I was as suddenly revived, and now determined to save all my pay until Joanna’s redemption should be fully accomplished: but what [[198]]grieved me very much was the other news from Europe, viz. that the Scots Brigade had been invited to England by his Britannic Majesty, while I was lamenting that I could not possibly be one of the number[10]. I at the same time had the offer of an American company under General Washington, but this I refused without any hesitation, as may be supposed.
In short, on the 18th of February, the poor dispirited men were again sent up to Magdenburg, a large party still remaining at the Java Creek; whilst the temper of the officers was now so ruffled, that a Mr. Fisher of our corps fought no less than two duels in two succeeding days, dangerously wounding both his antagonists, who were both officers of the Society regiment.
As I was not yet recovered, I staid some time longer at Paramaribo, where at the house of a Mr. Reynsdorp, I saw a Portuguese Jew teaching his children the Christian religion, while the pious mother of the charity-house kept flogging the poor slaves daily, because they were, as she said, unbelievers. To one black woman, in particular, she wantonly gave four hundred lashes, who bore them without a complaint.
But to change the disagreeable subject;—while I have the leisure and the opportunity, I feel the inclination to state to the public a short account of the trade and intrinsic value of this blood-spilling colony; which still [[199]]might be richer, did they not follow the example of the woman in the fable with her golden eggs.
In the first place, in Surinam are computed to be about six or eight hundred plantations, producing sugar, coffee, cacao, and cotton, besides some indigo, and valuable timbers, &c.—The exportation of which four first articles only, and their value, may be seen at one view in the following table for four successive years.
| The Years. |
Barrels of SUGAR. |
lbs. of COFFEE. |
lbs. of CACAO. |
lbs. of COTTON. |
| 1771 | 19,494 | 11,135,132 | 416,821 | 203,945 |
| 1772 | 19,260 | 12,267,134 | 354,935 | 90,035 |
| 1773 | 15,741 | 15,427,298 | 332,229 | 135,047 |
| 1774 | 15,111 | 11,016,518 | 506,610 | 105,126 |
| Total | 69,606 | 49,846,082 | 1,610,595 | 534,153 |
| 69,606 barrels of sugar, at 60 florins per barrel, make | ƒ. | 4,176,360 | — | — |
| 49,846,082 lbs. of coffee, at 8½d. per lb. make | 21,184,584 | 17 | — | |
| 1,610,595 lbs. of cacao, at 6½d. per lb. make | 523,443 | 7 | 8 | |
| 534,153 lbs. of cotton, at 8d. per lb. make | 212,661 | 4 | — | |
| Sum total | ƒ. | 26,097,049 | 8 | 8 |
| Which makes in one year exactly | ƒ. | 6,524,262 | 7 | 2 |
| But this average produce was shipped off for the town of Amsterdam only. | [[200]] | |||
| If I now add what goes to Rotterdam and to Zealand, besides the home consumption, and the return of the rum and molasses, the indigo at 4 ƒ. per lb. and the timber from 5 d. to five florins per cubic foot, it will amount to as much more | 6,524,262 | 7 | 2 | |
| Thus altogether | ƒ. | 13,048,524 | 14 | 4 |
Which, supposing it was but 11,000,000 ƒ. makes a yearly income of one million neat in sterling money.
How the above sum is divided between the republic of Holland and this colony, shall be my business to state in the second place.
| The town of Amsterdam affords about fifty ships, at an average of 400 tons burtheneach, which receive, for importation freight of various commodities, the sum of | ƒ. | 6,000 | ||||
| For exportation freight of the above productions, which grow in the colony[11] | 32,000 | |||||
| Thus each vessel gets for freight | ƒ. | 38,000 | ||||
| Which, multiplied by the No of vessels | 50 | |||||
| Makes exactly | ƒ. | 1,900,000 | — | — | ||
| For Rotterdam and Zealand I calculate together about 30 vessels more of differentburdens: thus | 1,200,000 | — | —[[201]] | |||
| And for the brick that serves for ballast, passengers, &c. | 80,000 | — | — | |||
| Each Guinea ship, importing yearly from 250 to 300 negroes, lowest value, at | ƒ. | 120,000 | ||||
| Thus supposing the number of vessels[12] | 6 | |||||
| Amounts to | 720,000 | — | — | |||
| To all these I shall add the merchandize imported from Holland, such as wine, spirits,beer, salt-beef, pork, and flour, silk, cotton, and linen-manufactures; cloaths, hats,shoes; gold, silver, and steel ornaments; arms and ammunition; even masons and carpenterstools, &c. &c. at an average of about 50 per cent. profit. Besides correspondents charges, insurance, duty, store-house expences, portersfees, wharfage, and package, which last articles cost the inhabitants ten per cent. more. | ||||||
| Thus altogether | 1,100,000 | — | — | |||
| Which makes already the sum of | ƒ. | 5,000,000 | — | — | ||
| Still let me mention the interest of 6 per cent. for the national debt of five millions sterling, due by the colony, and what theyare defrauded of by usurers in Holland, where prodigious other charges are broughtin; and where those who have made their fortunes go to spend it; and the amount willbe found to produce at least | 1,000,000 | — | — | |||
| The whole of which items added together, produce no less a sum yearly than | ƒ. | 6,000,000 | — | —[[202]] | ||
| Which is clear profit to the republic, viz. principally for Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Zealand. Thus the inhabitants of Surinamget, for their share of the above treasure, only | 5,000,000 | — | — | |||
| Which make together, as I said, one million sterling, or | ƒ. | 11,000,000 | — | — | ||
In the third place, I shall now show in what manner the internal expence of the society of Surinam is defrayed by taxes; which amount to no trifle, as shall be seen.
Having already mentioned, when speaking of the government, that the public revenue officers were five in number, I will now point out how they collect the cash respectively each, for the support of the above expences.
The first of these is that of Importation and Exportation Duties.
| To this is paid, viz. | ||||||||||
| By all Dutch vessels, 3 ƒ. per ton |  | thus for tonnage, | ƒ. | 90,000 | ||||||
| By Americans, &c. 6 ƒ. per ton | ||||||||||
| By Americans, &c. for all imports and exports, 5 per cent. | 60,000 | |||||||||
| Sugar pays 1 ƒ. per thousand or barrel |  | in 1771 paid | 260,000 | |||||||
| Coffee 15d. per 100 lb. weight | ||||||||||
| Cacao 1 ƒ. 15d. per 100 lb. Do | ||||||||||
| Cotton | ||||||||||
| ———— | ƒ. | 410,000 | — | — | ||||||
| Thus receives yearly about the sum of | ƒ. | 410,000 | — | —[[203]] | ||||||
| The second is the office of excise and small duties. | ||||||||||
| To this is paid, viz. | ||||||||||
| For a barrel of beer | ƒ. | 3 | — | — | ||||||
| A Do of claret | 12 | — | — | |||||||
| A pipe of madeira | 23 | 10 | — | |||||||
| All wines, per quart bottle | — | — | 1 | |||||||
| The tax on publicans, is | 600 | — | — | |||||||
| Do on small retailers | 300 | — | — | |||||||
| And which amounts to a yearly produce of at least | 100,000 | — | — | |||||||
| Then follows thirdly the office for taxation on heads; which receives for all inhabitants,black and white, without exception, viz. | ||||||||||
| For or men and women ƒ. 2 10 |  | this produces yearly | 150,000 | — | — | |||||
| For boys and girls under 12, ƒ. 1 5 | ||||||||||
| Next comes the office for sales and slaves, which gets, viz. | ||||||||||
| For selling dead stock, including estates, &c. 5 per cent. | | thus, | 130,000 | — | — | |||||
| For selling newly-arrived or imported negro slaves, 2½ per cent. | ||||||||||
| And finally, the office for re-taking negro deserters, which was then erected, theother taxes not being sufficient; which produces yearly, viz. | ||||||||||
| By an additional tax on heads, black and white, at 1 ƒ. is | 80,000 | |||||||||
| By 4 per cent. of every profit got during the year upon oath, is | 400,000 | |||||||||
| Which makes exactly | 480,000 | — | —[[204]] | |||||||
| Still let me not forget what is yearly paid for what is called the support of thecommon or grass fields, viz. | ||||||||||
| For a house, according to its size. | ||||||||||
| For a coach | 20 | — | — | |||||||
| For a whiskey | 10 | — | — | |||||||
| For a saddle-horse | 10 | — | — | |||||||
| Which add to the above impositions again | 12,000 | — | — | |||||||
| And these, if summed together, make a yearly revenue of no less than | ƒ. | 1,282,000 | — | — | ||||||
Having now clearly demonstrated, partly by the assistance of Dr. Fermyn’s Tableau de la Colonie de Surinam, and partly by my own experience, that the intrinsic value of this settlement is worth yearly above one million of sterling money, which, by proper management, might be still increased; also that the greater part of it goes to the republic, while the people are thus burthened on their estates by almost insupportable taxation, which induces many to be rogues, who would perhaps otherwise be honest; I shall, by way of appendix, give some short account of the trade carried on in this colony by the North Americans:—These people arrive with small brigs, sloops, and schooners from Virginia, Rhode Island, New York, Boston, Jamaica, Grenada, Antigua, Barbadoes, &c. from which places they export flour, beef, pork, herrings, salt, mackarel, and leaf-tobacco for the negroes; also fir-boards, English rum, and other spirits; loaf-sugar[13], [[205]]spermaceti-candles, onions, &c. Besides each vessel is bound to bring in one horse[14], which they often supply by a head only; affirming, that they put on board a horse, but that he died on the passage. For the above commodities the American traders export all the melasses of this colony to distil into rum at home, and frequently ship-loads of other productions and merchandize, though this is done in a clandestine manner, by which both the seller and buyer are considerable gainers, being ready cash for the one, and a cheap bargain for the other. From the Leeward Islands these vessels also import private mulatto and quaderoon slaves, which being generally young and handsome, whatever may be their moral character, sell for considerable prices.
Having thus shewn, according to the best information I was able to acquire, in what the commerce and intrinsic wealth of this fine colony consist; I will now take my leave of the subject, and continue my narrative.
On the 21st of February, Mr. Reynsdorp, the son-in-law of Mrs. Godefroy, took me in his sail barge for change of air to Nuten-Schadelyk, one of his own coffee estates; where I saw a white man who had lately lost both his eyes in one night by the bats or vampires, as they are called; and the following day, sailing up Comewina River, we proceeded to the delightful Cacao plantation [[206]]Alkmaar, the property of the above lady; where the negro slaves are treated like children by the mistress, to whom they all look up as to their common parent.—Here were no groans to be heard, no fetters to be met with, nor any marks of severity to be seen—but all was harmony and content. The superb house and other offices of this charming estate, where pleasure and hospitality ever reign, I have already represented in plate No X.; while the fields and gardens, nay, even the negro houses, bore all the marks of perfect peace and plenty.
The cacao-trees are supplied from nurseries for the purpose, like orchards in England, and planted very regularly at ten or twelve feet distance from each other, where they grow to the height of our English cherry-trees. But these plantations must be well sheltered, both from the hard winds and scorching sun, when young; the roots not entering deep into the ground to succour them, nor can they at that time bear extraordinary heat; on which account the groves are filled up with cassava-shrubs or plantain-trees for their shelter, and which at the same time answer the purpose of killing the weeds, which grow so luxuriantly in all the tropical climates;—by these attentions the trees will bear fruit before they are three years old, when they afford two crops annually, but they are in the highest perfection at the age of twelve or fourteen. The leaf of the cacao-tree is above eight inches long, and nearly three broad, thick-pointed, ribbed like the laurel-time, and of a bright green-colour. [[207]]The fruit is about the same size, and when young resembles a cucumber; but when ripe it becomes yellow like a large lemon, with ribs like the melon, and tubercles which enclose the seed or nuts, near thirty in number: they lie longitudinally in the fruit, and when fit for use are of the size of olives, and purple-coloured. The trees are supposed to bear at each crop from thirty to three hundred pods, each containing about thirty nuts, weighing one pound, from which a calculation may be made how much will be the produce of each harvest. After a few days the nuts are extracted from the pods, and dried in the shade; during which time they undergo a very strong perspiration, when they are put into barrels and fit for transportation, to be converted into that well-known and agreeable beverage called Chocolate.
It is said the cacao-trees are natives of Guiana, and grow wild in large quantities near the river Amazon: be that as it may, Governor Chatillon’s son planted the first tree in Surinam in 1684, and the first crop was exported to Holland in 1733. A great advantage in cultivating cacao-trees is, that fewer slaves are required than in any other branch of the planting business. How considerable are the profits will appear by the accounts of the year 1774, when 506,610 lbs. were exported to Amsterdam alone, which produced 202,614 ƒ. Dutch money, being equal to £. 18,419 sterling. The prices have been fluctuating from 4d. to 9d. per lb. the average being [[208]]about 6½d. The best estates, of which Alkmaar is one, produce yearly above 80,000 lbs. weight.
In the plate annexed, A is the leaf above, B below[15]; C, the wood; D, the flower; E, the young pulp; F, the same in perfection; and G, the seeds or nuts to make the chocolate.
On the 27th we returned to town, where the day before a Society soldier was shot for mutiny; and the day following a ship was burnt in the roads. At this time the celebrated free negro Qwasi, who was the prophet, priest, and king of the rangers, &c. went to Holland on a visit to the Prince of Orange, with letters of recommendation from Fourgeoud, whose praises he was to resound, as well as to complain of the Governor for not treating him with due respect. This being the period for the sessions, another negro’s leg was cut off for sculking from a task to which he was unequal; while two more were condemned to be hanged for running away altogether. The heroic behaviour of one of these men before the court deserves particularly to be noticed:—He begged only to be heard for a few moments; which being granted, he proceeded thus:
Sprig of the Cocao, or Chocolate Tree.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
“I was born in Africa, where, defending my prince during an engagement, I was made a captive, and sold for a slave on the coast of Guinea by my own countrymen.[[209]]—One of your countrymen, who is now to be one of my judges, became my purchaser, in whose service I was treated so cruelly by his overseer, that I deserted, and joined the rebels in the woods.—Here again I was condemned to be a slave to Bonny, their chief, who treated me with even more severity than I had experienced from the Europeans, till I was once more forced to elope, determined to shun mankind for ever, and inoffensively to end my days by myself in the forest. Two years had I persevered in this manner quite alone, undergoing the greatest hardships and anxiety of mind, preserving life only for the possibility of once more seeing my dear family, who were perhaps starving on my account, in my own country; I say two miserable years had just elapsed, when I was discovered by the rangers, taken, and brought before this tribunal, who are now acquainted with the history of my wretched life, and from whom the only favour I have to ask is, that I may be executed next Saturday, or as soon as it may possibly be convenient.”
This speech was uttered with the utmost moderation, by one of the finest-looking negroes that was perhaps ever seen; to which his former master, who, as he observed, was now one of the judges, made the following laconic reply—“Rascal! that is not what we want to know; but the torture this moment shall make you confess crimes as black as yourself, as well as those of your hateful accomplices.” To which the negro, who [[210]]now swelled in every vein with indignation and ineffable contempt: “Massera, the tigers have trembled for these hands,” holding them up; “and dare you think to threaten me with your wretched instrument? No, I despise the utmost tortures you can now invent, as much as I do the pitiful wretch who is going to inflict them.” Saying which, he threw himself down on the rack, where amidst the most excruciating torments he remained with a smile, without uttering a syllable; nor did he ever speak again, until he ended his unhappy days at the gallows.
What good man can “reflect the tear-stain’d eye,
When blood attests even slaves for freedom die?
On cruel gibbets, high disclos’d they rest,
And scarce one groan escapes one bloated breast.
Here sable Cæsars[16] feel the Christian rod,
There Afric Platos, tortur’d hope a God,
While jetty Brutus for his country sighs,
And sooty Cato with his freedom dies!”
Having dined with Colonel Fourgeoud on the 8th of March, when we celebrated the Prince of Orange’s birthday, while Mr. Reyndorp gave a treat to all the soldiers, he acquainted me that the rangers were now alone encamped at the Wana Creek; that the pestilential spot Devil’s Harwar was at last entirely forsaken; and that the two lately [[211]]raised companies of sable volunteers had taken a few prisoners, and killed others on the Wanica path, behind Paramaribo. I was at this time a good deal better, but still, not being quite recovered, he who had formerly treated me so severely, now even insisted on my staying some longer time at Paramaribo: nay, gave me an offer to return to Europe, which I absolutely refused; in short, about the middle of the month, I was as well as ever I was in my life. At this time Colonel Fourgeoud and myself were daily visitors of the ladies, in whose company no man could behave better, while I could often not avoid disgust; indeed so languid were many in their looks, and so unrestrained were some in their conversation, that a Mrs. N—— even asked me, sans ceremonie, to supply the place of her husband; while she might as well have asked me to drink, for a relish, a tumbler of salts.
On the 17th, however, my eyes were better feasted, when, going to dine with Colonel Texier of the Society troops, I first took a walk in the orange grove and the governor’s gardens; here, peeping through the foliage, I soon discovered two most elegant female figures after bathing, the one a fine young Samboo, the other a blooming Quaderoon, which last was so very fair complexioned, that she might have passed for a native of Greece, while the roses that glowed in her cheek were equal to those that blossomed in the shrubbery[17]. They were walking [[212]]hand in hand, and conversing with smiles near a flowery bank that adorned the side of a crystal brook, in which they plunged the instant they heard me rustling amongst the verdure, like two mermaids:
“Then to the flood they rush’d; the parted flood
Its lovely guests with closing waves receiv’d,
And every beauty soft’ning, every grace
Flushing anew, a mellow lustre shed.”
Leaving them to enjoy their innocent amusement of bathing, I spent the remaining hour before dinner amongst the shady fruit-trees, blooming bowers, and serpentine gravel walks; where indeed I saw greater variety of European plants than I imagined were produced in a tropical climate, such as mint, fennel, sage, rosemary, golden-rod and jessamine, the sensitive plant, pomegranates, roses, figs, and even some grapes.—Of the pomegranate flowers, a specimen may be seen in plate, No XXIX. The figs are both within and without of a beautiful crimson colour; but the roses are rather pale. Here were some beautiful pine-apples and melons, which, though they are so generally known, I will nevertheless give some account of. The imperial fruit, called Anana or pine-apple grows in the centre of an elegant sea-green plant, on a stalk of the same hue, about eight inches in length, its leaves diverging near the surface of the earth, which are smooth, long, strong, pointed, and dentulated with hard prickles. The shape of this fruit is nearly oval, the size of a sugar-loaf, all over chequered, and of [[213]]a most beautiful orange or golden colour, being crowned with a sea-green tuft, of the same leaves as the mother plant, and which when put in the ground produces another pine-apple in the space of about eighteen months. The delicious taste and flavour of this fruit has in the space of half a century become so well known, that I have introduced it merely to notice its plenty in the country I write of; for so spontaneously indeed do the former grow in this climate, and of such different kinds, without any cultivation, that on many estates they serve as a common food for hogs.
The musk and water melons grow also plentifully in this country; the first is of a globular form, large, like the crown of a small hat, ribbed, buff colour, orange and green. The pulp is yellow, firm, sweet, and succulent; still it is eaten with sugar, but more frequently with black pepper and salt—the smell of this fruit is excellent.
The water-melon is of an oval or cylindrical shape, its colour is a bright polished green, and partly a very pale buff; the pulp of this fruit is a pink colour, and of a mellow watery substance; its taste is sweet, exceedingly cooling, and of a most agreeable flavour.
Both the above melons are of the cucumber kind, growing on rough stalks, with large leaves, that creep along the ground. It is remarkable that the water-melon, which may be freely eaten in all distempers without the least pernicious consequence, thrives best in very dry and sandy [[214]]places.—In the annexed plate may be seen the Anana or pine-apple, with the musk and water-melon, besides the seed from which this last is produced.
I sent about this period, to a Mr. Reygersman in Holland, a most elegant collection of Surinam butterflies, which are here caught in great abundance and variety, and by which alone some people make no small profit; but the very idea of pinning them alive to a sheet of paper, was sufficient to prevent me from becoming a fly-catcher:
“Lo! the poor beetle that we tread upon——
Feels a like pang, as when a giant falls.”
Now Captains Van Geurick and Fredericy, with Serjeant Fowler, were sent on an embassy to the Owca and Sarameca free negroes, if possible to procure their assistance against the rebels, which they always continued to promise (while Colonel Fourgeoud gave them presents) but never yet performed. A few of the other officers still stayed with us gallanting at Paramaribo, amongst whom were Major Medler and Captain Hamell[18], who had both been with General Desalve’s regiment, in the colony Berbicè, and previous to that the first was in the Prussian service. It was no small change of appearance [[215]]for us, who had so little a time before appeared like wild men, now to strut through Paramaribo, dressed like so many French marquees.
A. Smith Sculpt.
The Musk-Melon, Water-Melon & Pine-Apple.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
Being a particular favourite of Governor Nepveu, I one day was induced to ask him for a piece of uncultivated forest ground; when he readily granted me 400 acres: but when I inconsiderately asked it of him, I had not calculated how large a capital it required to clear away woods, purchase negroes, and provide other necessaries for such an undertaking; and when a little reflection convinced me how difficult it would be to find a partner of abilities to assist me, I declined accepting this mark of the governor’s regard.
Having on the 26th once more saved a poor black girl from receiving some hundred lashes, by replacing a dozen of china, which she had broken by accident; while another was stabbed by a Frenchman, who immediately cut his own throat from remorse, and his companion, an overseer, hanged himself; and having visited the poor negro whose leg had lately been cut off by law, I packed my boxes to set out next morning on my sixth campaign; and once more take the command of the River Comewina: at which moment arrived at my lodgings six loaded negro slaves with presents from my hospitable friends, of every kind that Guiana could produce, and the colony of Surinam could afford me. [[216]]
[1] That is, one of the rowers beating the water with his oar at every stroke, in such a manner that it sounds different from the rest, to which the others sing a chorus. [↑]
[2] This he absolutely held as the best regimen for health, notwithstanding he had brought three cooks from Europe. [↑]
[3] This, at other times, they supply by a shell, a fish-bone, or the tooth of a tiger, &c. [↑]
[4] The general traffick carried on between all the Indian nations and the Europeans consists in balsam-capivi, arroco-cerra, oil of carrabba, arnotta, and bees-wax, besides pieces of Brazil and ebony; the roots hiaree and varnillas, canoes, hammocks, slaves, monkies, parrots, and paroquets; for which they receive fire-arms, knives, hatchets, fish-hooks, combs, coral and glass beads, blue cotton, looking-glasses, &c. [↑]
[5] I have mentioned before that the Indians are exempt from pain in labour. [↑]
[6] This is however extremely uncommon, as a more peaceable people does not exist in the universe. [↑]
[7] The New Zealanders call their clubs pato-patoo; which affinity is remarkable, on account of their very great distance. [↑]
[8] See a letter to the editors of the New Universal Magazine for October 1787. [↑]
[9] How Madam Merian should call this reptile an oviparous viper, surpasses my comprehension. [↑]
[10] The King’s demand was negatived by the States of Holland. [↑]
[11] Sugar pays about 3 l. per barrel, and coffee about as much per thousand; other commodities in proportion.—N.B. This I insert unauthenticated, thus errors excepted. [↑]
[12] There are some years but four, and some ten, &c. [↑]
[13] I have said they can make no rum here; neither do they refine sugar. [↑]
[14] Mr. Hartzink mentions four horses, but this is a mistake. [↑]
[15] Drs. Bancroft and Brooke say, the leaf is light above and dark below, which in my original drawing is quite the reverse. [↑]
[16] The above names, with such as Nero, Pluto, Charon, Cerberus, Proserpine, Medusa, &c. are usually given to negro slaves, in exchange for Quacco, Quacy, Quamy, Quamina, Quasiba, Adjuba, &c. [↑]
[17] It is to be remarked, that though Europeans look pale under the torrid zone, the native inhabitants have often a freshness peculiarly engaging, particularly mulattoes and quaderoons. [↑]
[18] The latter gentleman, in the year 1783, sailed from the Texel to the Molucca islands; where, as commander in chief, he killed the king of Pongue, with his three sons, and 600 men; and dethroned also the king of Salangoo, whose land he captured for the Dutch East-India Company, besides taking 127 pieces of cannon, &c. [↑]
CHAP. XXV.
Singular Method of detecting a Theft—Rencounter between the Rangers and Rebels—Amazonian Action of a black Girl—Wonderful Sagacity in wild Bees—The Regiment receives a second Order to return to Europe.
On the 27th of March, 1776, adieu once more Paramaribo, my Joanna, and my boy!
This morning, a little before I sat out, I saw a Mr. d’Halbergh terribly bitten by a large iguana or lizard, at the very moment he was pressing me and my companions to stay a few days, to be present at the celebration of what he called his Silver-feast, being the twenty-fifth anniversary of his marriage; but after condoling with him upon account of the accident, we embarked in a tent-barge, and arrived that evening at the Sporksgift estate in Matapica. Here we were entertained two days by Captain Mac Neal, with the greatest hospitality. I was however nearly suffocated by the steam of some green coffee, which was spread on the floor of the lodge where I had slung my hammock.
Late on the evening of the 29th, we arrived at the Gold-mine plantation, where we found a negro boy and girl, suspended by each others side from a high beam, by a rope fastened to their thumbs, which were tied behind [[217]]their backs, this almost dislocated their shoulders, and must have occasioned the most agonizing tortures. Thus I cut the miserable victims down, without leave or ceremony, and swore that instant to demolish the tyrannical overseer who had inflicted this new mode of punishment, unless he promised immediately to forgive them; which he miraculously did in my presence.
On the 30th, a little before we landed at the Hope, I discovered that all my sugar, with the greatest part of my rum, was gone; and detected the thief by the following laughable stratagem (though not my own invention)—I told the negroes, six in number, that a parrot’s feather was to grow within six minutes upon the tip of his nose who was most guilty; at the same time pronouncing a few incoherent words, and making two or three circles with my sabre, I shut myself within the tilt: here, peeping through the key-hole, and observing the rowers with great attention, without their perceiving me, I soon saw one of them, at every stroke of the oar, put up his hand, and feel the tip of his nose; upon which I instantly ran up to him, and cried, “I see the parrot’s feather! Thou art the thief, thou rascal!” To which the poor superstitious fellow instantly answered, “Yaw, me massera!” then kneeling to the sorcerer for mercy, and the others also intreating me to spare him, I pardoned the credulous thief and his accomplices, who by their candid confession obtained a piece of salt beef for their dinner, and a gourd full of good grog in the bargain. [[218]]
Immediately on my arrival I took the command of the whole river, and now was once more the Prince of Comewina. I also built an elevated palace, in imitation of Prince Bonny’s at Boosy-Cry, on twelve strong stakes; which aerial habitation I found very necessary, the whole post being almost under water by the inundations, and by neglect become a perfect mire-pool, while of my former cottage not a vestige was to be seen. Here I found the marines in perfect misery, being almost naked, and having sold their very shoes for a mouthful of fresh provisions. These grievances, however, by my labour and intercession with Colonel Fourgeoud, whose favourite I now became more and more, were speedily redressed, and the Hope, in a little time, appeared like a paradise, when compared with its former state.
Shooting was now, as formerly, my favourite diversion; and on the 4th I brought home a kind of plover, a couple of red-breasts, and near a dozen grass-sparrows.
The plover of Guiana is the size of a pigeon, its colour a dark-brown and white, with transverse bars. The wet savannahs are full of them, and they are delicate eating. The red-breast is a kind of large bull-finch, with the upper part of its body a deep chesnut; and all the rest a blood-colour: this is reckoned as good as an ortolan, and abounds on all the plantations. The grass-sparrow, which I think is by some called the anaca, is a beautiful little creature, like a paroquet; these birds are perfectly green, with a white bill and red eyes. They do [[219]]much damage amongst the rice and Indian corn, flying in prodigious flocks upon the plantations.
At the Hope the trochulus, or humming-birds, were so thick among the tamarind-trees, that they resembled a swarm of bees; a Lieutenant Swildens daily fetching down several of them, by blowing small peas or Indian corn through a hollow reed.
Of all the tropical birds, this little creature is particularly worth attention, not only on account of its beauty, but for its diminutive size, being smaller than the first joint of a man’s finger; and when deprived of its feathers not larger than a blue-bottle fly. However, there are several species, and some twice as large. These birds vary much in their colour: in the shade they appear generally of a deep shining green; which, by the reflection of the sun, produces a splendid purple brown and azure. The head is crested with a small tuft of feathers, green, black, and gold; the tail and wings are a glossy black; the bill is not much thicker than a pin, it is long, black, and crooked at the end; the tongue is forked, and resembles a red silk thread; with this they sip the nectar or honey from the flowers, during which time they are stationary, exactly like bees, and this juice seems to be the only nourishment of these little creatures. They often make their nest on the leaf of a wild pine-apple, or dwarf aloe, which is constructed mostly of cotton, and not larger than the husk of a walnut; their eggs are about the size of peas, and only two in number. Madam Merian says, that the humming-bird [[220]]sits on four eggs; which, for my part, I never saw or heard of during my residence in Guiana.
In the annexed plate I have endeavoured to represent them and their little habitation in natural size; though I found it impossible to make the drawing more perfect, their motion upon the wing being so very quick, that the feathers are hardly perceptible; and this motion occasions that humming noise, from which this delicate little creature derives its name.
Here were also immense flocks of monkies: I have seen above two hundred of them in a field of sugar-canes, where they make great devastation. These wary animals place sentinels all round the field to give the alarm; and I myself have been a witness with what sagacity and fidelity they perform this duty, when the whole company hop into the forest, each with his plunder in his paw.
Swimming was another of my favourite amusements, which contributed to make me more healthy, and stronger than most of my companions; as it is beautifully expressed by the author of the Seasons:—
“This is the purest exercise of health,
The kind refresher of the summer heats:
————Hence the limbs
Knit into force, and the same Roman arm
That rose victorious o’er the conquer’d earth,
First learn’d when tender to subdue the wave.”
Barlow sculpt.
The Humming Bird, with its nest &c.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
On the 14th I shot an alligator; but returning from this excursion in a boat, a packet of letters from Colonel [[221]]Fourgeoud being reached me, unfortunately fell overboard into the water, and sank immediately; some officers, however, the next day coming to the Hope, informed me of the principal contents, viz. that Colonel Fourgeoud, being determined once more to scour the woods, had ordered me to send up all my spare men and provisions, as also the Society troops who were now at Oranjebo, the former to Magdenberg, and the latter to the river Pirica; which I performed, retaining only twelve crippled soldiers at the Hope, and as many at Clarenbeek, without either surgeon or medicines; nevertheless, with this small number, I made daily patroles by land and water—they also informed me of the death of ensign Van Halm, and that another ship with sick was ordered shortly to set sail for Holland.
Colonel Fourgeoud, though he himself remained still at Paramaribo, yet continued attentively to command. Thus, on the 23d, he ordered a detachment of one hundred men to reconnoitre from Magdenberg to the Wana Creek and Marawina river; but they returned without any new discoveries.
As I was now likely to be continued at the Hope for some time, I sent for my sheep and poultry, from the estate where I had left them, presenting Mr. Gourly with a ram and a ewe, as being of a breed superior to any in the colony; and I found with joy that my flocks had considerably encreased in numbers.
On the 26th one of my men brought me a snake, [[222]]which he had just killed; it was about four feet long, and not thicker than the barrel of a musket; when perceiving a knob near its middle, larger than my fist, I had the curiosity to cut it open, and an enormous frog made its appearance, perfectly alive and entire, a small spot on the back of its head and neck excepted, which was blue and slimy, as if beginning to putrify. For the sake of experiment, I fastened him with a string to his foot upon a grass-plat near the river for three days; when finding the poor animal hearty and well, I gave him his liberty, with a caution to keep a better look-out for the future.
On the 28th I paid a visit to Thomas Palmer, Esq. late King’s counsellor at Massachusett’s Bay, upon his estate called Fairfield. Here both the master and his slaves were perfectly happy and contented, chiefly owing to Mr. Palmer’s just and equitable administration to all around him; and such were the consequences of his wise government, that few plantations in the West Indies could boast of greater prosperity, either in point of produce or population; while the courtesy and hospitality of the gentleman-like proprietor to strangers, completed his happy character, which shone conspicuously throughout the colony.
Upon my return to the Hope I received a letter from the commander in chief, informing me that Mr. Vinsack with his rangers had killed several rebels, and taken eleven prisoners; but that another party of the rangers had been surprized by the enemy, and several of them shot dead while asleep in their hammocks. [[223]]
During these skirmishes, an instance of presence of mind was exhibited by a rebel negro, I think but seldom equalled:—A ranger having levelled his piece was just going to fire at him, when the man called out, holding up his hand, “What, Sir, do you mean to kill one of your own party?” Which the ranger believing him to be, replied, “God forbid!” and dropping the muzzle of his piece, instantly received a ball through the body from his adversary, which killed him; and who, having thus saved himself, disappeared like a flash of lightning. One of the captive negroes related, that the evening before they were taken, a rebel, who had formerly deserted from Fauconberg was cut to pieces with sabres, by Bonny’s command, as two others had been before we took Gado-Saby.
On the 6th of May it blew a violent hurricane, accompanied with thunder and lightning, so that many trees were torn up by the roots, and most of the houses on the Hope blown down or unroofed; my aerial palace, however, by good fortune, withstood this gale; and upon the 8th, Joanna, with her boy, arriving at this place, I promised myself a scene of happiness equal to that I experienced in 1774; especially as my family, my sheep, and my poultry, were now doubled; besides, I had at this time a beautiful garden, and if I could not with propriety be called a planter, I might at least claim, with some degree of justice, the name of a little farmer.
On the 9th we all dined with Mr. de Graaff, at his beautiful [[224]]plantation Knoppemombo, in Cassawina Creek, where this worthy man had foretold, before the birth of my boy, that both he and his mother should one day be happy and free. Here I saw the following roots and plants, which I have not yet observed.—The tayers, which are the hearts of a farinaceous green shrub, not above two or three feet high, with remarkable large leaves, in the form of a heart, the trunk something resembling that of a banana-tree. This plant being cut down, and with a knife divested of its outer tegument, has the appearance and consistency of a yam or potatoe, but is better eating, having a much finer grain. The tayers are of different kinds; the smallest is preferred, and made use of in the same manner as the above roots. I have here also found a kind of real potatoe, and in large quantities, but they are only used by the negroes, being inferior to the hog-potatoes in Great Britain.
The tobacco plant grows here with large downy leaves, full of fibres; it flowers almost continually, and will last for twelve or fourteen years, but is so inferior to the Virginia tobacco, that it is only used by the slaves. This plant derived its name from the island Tobago, where it was first discovered, in 1560.
They have here also a kind of wild tea, which is accounted very wholesome, but in my opinion is no better than English ground-ivy. I found plenty of tomatè, which being produced in many British gardens, I will not attempt to describe; but only observe [[225]]that the Jews are particularly fond of it, and stew it with butchers meat instead of onions.
The physic-nut tree is likewise to be met with here; this is a knotty shrub, that grows about ten or twelve feet in height, and very slender; the nut that it produces has a kernel like an almond, and tastes as well, provided it be deprived of a thin white skin that adheres to it, otherwise a violent vomiting and purging is the immediate consequence of swallowing it. They also shewed me several kinds of peas and beans, and other fruits growing in pods; such as the cassia, a shining hard yellow seed inclosed in a woody shell near sixteen inches long, and very small, with a black soft pulp as sweet as honey: this is considered as a very safe laxative: the cassia grows on a tree very common in Guiana, and which is called soete boonties and cotiaan. Another kind of pod, named seve-yaars boontie, is so called, because it is said to be in blossom seven years before it produces. The shrub called snakee weeree-weeree also grows here; they told me it was a sovereign remedy for fevers, and I take it to be the same as the serpentaria Virginiana, or Virginian snake-root. Lastly, I saw a vegetable or flower here called seven-boom, which is too frequently used by the young negro girls to promote abortion, as are also the green pine-apples, which are said to have the same effect.
Thus having spent not only an agreeable but an instructive day at Knoppemombo, we took leave of our very good friend in the evening, and rowed contentedly [[226]]back to the Hope, our boat being nearly loaded with presents of every kind, amongst which were some fine cocoa-nuts, that one of his slaves, after walking, I may say more properly than climbing[1], up the tree, had brought down in my presence, and after a fierce engagement with a black serpent upon the very top of it, which by the help of his knife he vanquished, and to our admiration dropped it down dead at our feet.
The slaves of the Hope and Fauconberg also testified their respect for Joanna and her boy, by bringing in presents of fowls, fruit, eggs, venison, and fish; and Mr. Palmer handsomely presented us with a large quantity of Indian corn to feed our poultry. Thus every thing seemed to contribute to our felicity, which was however considerably allayed by the disagreeable news we received on the 18th, informing me of the death of my dear friend, Mr. Walter Kennedy, shortly after his arrival in Holland[2]: it was now also confirmed that the Dutch had refused the Scots Brigade to his Britannic Majesty; which greatly surprized me, as I considered it as a claim not only from affinity, but also by treaty.
To amuse my mind from these unpleasing subjects, I now paid a short visit to my French acquaintance Monsieur [[227]]Cachelieu, at his plantation Egmond. Here, amongst other company, I met with an Italian, a planter called D’O—s, who had but one arm; with which, however, he took up a knife at table, and without the smallest provocation, as I sat next him, made a back thrust at me, to the astonishment of all who were present. Having fortunately parried the blow by beating up his elbow, which occasioned the point of his knife to pass over my shoulder, I started up, and was going to put him instantly to death; but this being prevented, I offered to fight him with one hand tied behind me, and with any instrument he chose, fist, bludgeon, sword, pistol, or even knife; this the cowardly assassin having refused, was kicked out of company, and sent home to his plantation called Hazard.
So violent was this unhappy man’s disposition, that some little time before, he ordered a poor negro woman, who was advanced eight months in her pregnancy, to be flogged, until her intestines appeared, and that only for breaking a tumbler. One of his male slaves, trying to evade his severity, was shot dead on the spot; and there was not a slave belonging to his estate but was cut by the lash of his whip from the neck to the heel.
Colonel Fourgeoud now sending a proper supply of men, with a surgeon and medicines, the Hope wore a more pleasing aspect, and health and content began to be visible in every countenance. Amongst other things, I encouraged the men to catch fish, which were here in abundance, and the negroes taught them how to make [[228]]the proper snares, such as the spring-hook, and mansoa or spring-basket. I have given a representation of both these in the plate annexed, where the spring-hook is expressed by the letter A, being a long elastic pole, like a strong fishing-rod, stuck in the ground under water, at the other end of which is fixed a double line, the shortest having fastened to it a small stick, ten inches long, and the other the same, but a little lower; while at the extremity of this line is hooked a small fish by the fins, in such a manner as to swim to and fro, and be a bait for the larger species. Two long sticks being next placed in the ground so as to appear above water, a third stick much shorter, forms them like a gallows; above this gallows is bent and fixed the elastic pole, by means of the double line and its beams; but in so very slight a manner, that upon the least touch the whole apparatus gives way, and the large pole erects itself, when the fish that occasioned the spring, by taking the bait, is suspended to the hook in the air, as exhibited by the figure B.
Manner of catching Fish by the Spring-Hook.
Manner of catching Fish by the Spring-Basket.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
The mansoa or spring-basket is much upon the same construction, and may be seen by referring to letter C, where it is represented open and under water, with the bait swimming in it. This basket is made of warimbo reeds, in the form of a sugar-loaf (the above apparatus being fixed to the middle) in the small end of which the elastic pole is fastened, while at the other end is an open trap-door, the whole being supported in an erect position [[229]]by a forked stick. No sooner has a large fish entered and taken the bait, than this pole, as in the former, erects itself with a spring, and the snap or trap-door shuts on the invader, and he is taken, as may be seen by letter D. This differs from the former, no hook of any kind being necessary. An idea of the ingenuity of the negroes may be formed from these constructions, as this mode of catching their fish requires no attendance, for the snaps being set at night, the fish is found in the morning, which is generally the newmara or barracota already described.
Among the variety of fish caught here was the siliba, a small oval fish, marked not unlike a pine-apple; the sokay, which is a large fish, and very good eating; the torro-torro, and another called tarpoen; the first three feet in length; the other, which is white, about two feet six inches.
On the 26th, I saw a most surprising display of activity, strength, and courage by a young female negro, called Clardina, at the Hope; where a wild stag having strayed from the flock, at the moment it came bounding over the foot-path she seized it in full speed by the hinder leg, but not being able to stop it, she suffered herself to be dragged to a considerable distance, nor until she was terribly wounded would she let go her hold.
The Hope was now truly a charming habitation, being perfectly dry even in spring-tides, and washed by pleasing canals that let in the fresh-water every tide; while the hedges surrounding the fields and gardens were [[230]]neatly cut, and produced fruit and vegetables of many species for our use. The houses and bridges were also all repaired, while the strictest adherence to cleanliness was recommended and enforced among the men: by these means not one sick person out of fifty was now to be found, where sloth, stench, and disease had so lately spread their destructive influence, and to which the land and sea-scurvy had given the most fatal assistance. Of the above scorbutic complaints, the former covers the body over with blotches, and the latter chiefly affects the teeth and gums.
I now enjoyed the greatest flow of health and spirits, while most of my old ship-mates were either dead or returned to Europe; not a single officer at this time being in rank above me, except only such as had been formerly inured to the West India climate.
But to return to my garden—this at present exhibited carrots, cabbages, onions, cucumbers, lettuces, radishes, pepper, cresses, &c. all thriving as well as in Europe; besides sorrel of two kinds, the common and the red, this last grows upon a shrub, and is excellent for making jam or marmalade. The jessamine also was found here of different species, that growing on a small tree being most admired: it is of a pale but beautiful red colour, and a most agreeable smell; the leaves are thick, shining, and filled with a milky juice. A species of sensitive shrub they call shame-shame, grew also here, as did the sleeping plant, so called from its leaves, which are set in pairs, [[231]]clapping close together from sun-set to sun-rise, and appearing as if the two were but one; but as soon as the sun is up they again open, and resume their double form. The above-mentioned shrubs were all dispersed through my hedges, besides pomegranates and Indian roses, which blow every day; while a few elegant red-lilies, which also grow wild in the savannas, adorned the banks of my canals, the leaves of which flower have a very bright and beautiful green polish.
Thus situated, we were visited, amongst others, by a Madame de Z—e, in company with her brother, and a Mr. Schadts, who were lately arrived from Holland; this lady was supposed the finest woman that even Europe produced, as well as the most accomplished. She spoke several languages, and was a perfect mistress of music and painting; she danced elegantly, and rode vastly well on horseback; she even excelled in shooting and fencing, &c. In order to make her perfect mistress of all the fashionable exercises, I offered her my assistance in teaching her to swim, which, however, with a smile, she thought proper to refuse.
My soldiers, and even negroes, seemed now completely happy, amongst whom the most perfect harmony subsisted; while I frequently indulged them with a merry evening, and a grey-beard of rum.
One night, in the midst of this festivity, I secretly ordered the sentinel to fire his piece, and cause a false alarm, as if the enemy were on the estate; when I had [[232]]the satisfaction to see them seize their arms, and rush out with the utmost order and intrepidity. This experiment I was the rather inclined to put in practice, as it was reported that the rebels intended soon to pay a visit to the River Comewina. But we soon experienced that no scene of perfect felicity can be lasting, for the dry season now suddenly setting-in, disease and mortality once more began to rage among us, ten or twelve men dying daily at the Java Creek and Magdenburg, while those under my command at the Hope diminished hourly.
On the 3d, the surgeon made me the following report, “That my Ensign, Mr. Decabanes, had his anchor-a-peek, and would certainly set sail for the other world with the ebb-tide;” which was really the case, for he died that very evening. This grieved me the more, as he had obtained his commission through my interest, and bore an excellent character.
On the 4th of June, the spring-flood broke down my dams while we were drinking the King’s health, and laid the whole post under water, which created vast confusion; and in this distress the overseer Blenderman refused to lend me any assistance, which occasioned so violent a quarrel, that he was glad to take to his heels, and make his escape from the plantation. I shall never have done mentioning the insolence of these savage brutes, who mostly are the refuse of the earth, brought up in Germany, or elsewhere, under the cane of a corporal. [[233]]“Well,” said one of these miscreants ironically to an old free negro, “don’t you believe that the monkies are a race of damn’d Christians, who have been thus transformed for shewing so much lenity to such as you?”—“No, sir,” replied the black man, “we do not think that the monkies are damn’d Christians; but I, and all of us, believe that many who call themselves Christians are a pack of damn’d monkies.”—Which pointed repartee afforded me infinite satisfaction.
Of the administrators I shall say nothing, nor of the appraisers of estates; having, I believe, already mentioned that the first got ten per cent. of all the produce, and many of the latter enrich the purchasers and themselves by selling under the value such property as is entrusted to their care.
On the 7th, Mr. Moryn, administrator of the Hope, being in a piece of newly-cultivated ground on the opposite shore, I rowed over to obtain satisfaction of the impertinent Blenderman, who was along with him; but this fellow’s cowardice being equal to his insolence and barbarity, he made every concession, and promised likewise to repair my dams, rather than run the risque of broken bones—thus a reconciliation was established.
Walking through these new fields, where a neat house was already built, I saw some beautiful birds, amongst which was the wood-pecker. I ought indeed to have described this bird before, and another, the name unknown to me, having had an opportunity of doing it when I was at Magdenburg, but I then took only drawings of them. [[234]]The wood-pecker is about the size of a thrush, and of an elegant cinnamon-colour, speckled with dark brown and yellow; near the rump it is entirely yellow; the head is crested with a fine crown of small feathers, of the same colour as the body: the tail is long and black; the bill is straight, and of a sea-green colour, as are the legs and iris of the eyes, under which on each side are two spots of beautiful crimson.
The anonymous bird, which, however, the negroes called woodo-louso-fowlo, from its feeding on wood-lice, is larger than the former, and uncommonly brilliant in its plumage; the head and upper part of its body being of a rich grass green; the breast and belly crimson, divided by an ash-coloured bar. The tail is long, and of a dark blue, as are the prime feathers in the wings, which are also divided from the green by another ash-coloured bar; the bill is yellow and hooked, being surrounded by a number of small black feathers, as are the eyes, the iris of which is of a blood colour. (Both these birds may be seen in the annexed plate.)—As I have already observed, however rich and beautiful the plumage may be which decorates the groves of Surinam, the melodious song there is but seldom heard. They had also here the tame galinas, or Guinea-hens, called tokay, which being so well known in England, require no particular description.
The Yellow Woodpecker & Wood-louse fowl.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
Among the plants which I saw here was the American aloe, above half a foot in thickness, and twenty feet high; it is an ever-green, pithy within and without, covered [[235]]with sharp-pointed follicles, growing less as they approach the summit. This tree has numerous thick leaves diverging at its base, like the pine-apple plant, which are very long, broad pointed, and dentulated with strong prickles. On the top grows a cluster of yellow flowers, whose pedicles contain the seed of future aloes, and which never fail to come to perfection in the space of two months.
In the skirts of the surrounding woods I saw also the vanillas, or banilla, which is a shrub that climbs up along the trunks of other trees, adhering to the bark like nebees or ivy, by the help of its tendrils: the leaves are prodigiously thick, and dark green, the fruit consisting of a triangular pod six or eight inches long, and filled with small polished seeds. These pods, being dried a fortnight in the sun, become brown, and have a fat rich aromatic taste, and most agreeable flavour; on which account they are used to scent the chocolate. There are different kinds of vanilla, but that is most esteemed which has its pods the most long and most slender. The negroes shewed me here also a small sweetish seed, which they called bongora.
As I returned to the Hope, I met Cojo, Joanna’s uncle, who had shot one of the howling baboons, which he brought to the Hope to shew it me. These animals are the size of a small bull-dog, and the colour a reddish-brown, with long hair; they have also a beard, and are upon the whole extremely ugly; but what chiefly distinguishes them from other monkies is their abominable [[236]]howl, which they perform in chorus whole groupes together, and so loud, that it may be heard above a mile; these discordant concerts, the negroes told me, they generally repeat, both night and day, at the time of high water, which, it is supposed, the baboons know by instinct.—When speaking of instinct in animals, I cannot omit relating the following singular fact; after which I shall return to the historical part of my narrative.
On the 16th I was visited by a neighbouring gentleman, whom I conducted up my ladder; but he had no sooner entered my aerial dwelling, than he leapt down from the top to the ground, roaring like a madman with agony and pain, after which he instantly plunged his head into the river; but looking up, I soon discovered the cause of his distress to be an enormous nest of wild bees or wassee-wassee, in the thatch, directly above my head, as I stood within my door; when I immediately took to my heels as he had done, and ordered them to be demolished by my slaves without delay. A tar mop was now brought, and the devastation just going to commence, when an old negro stepped up, and offered to receive any punishment I should decree if ever one of these bees should sting me in person. “Massera,” said he, “they would have stung you long ere now had you been a stranger to them; but they being your tenants, that is gradually allowed to build upon your premisses, they assuredly know both you and your’s, and will never hurt either you or them.” I instantly assented to the [[237]]proposition, and tying the old black man to a tree, ordered my boy Quaco to ascend the ladder quite naked, which he did, and was not stung; I then ventured to follow, and I declare upon my honour, that even after shaking the nest, which made its inhabitants buz about my ears, not a single bee attempted to sting me. I next released the old negro, and rewarded him with a gallon of rum and five shillings for the discovery. This swarm of bees I since kept unhurt, as my body-guards, and they have made many overseers take a desperate leap for my amusement, as I generally sent them up my ladder upon some frivolous message, when I wished to punish them for injustice and cruelty, which was not seldom.
The above negro assured me, that on his master’s estate was an ancient tree, in which had been lodged ever since he could remember, a society of birds, and another of bees, who lived in the greatest harmony together; but should any strange birds come to disturb or feed upon the bees, they were instantly repulsed by their feathered allies, and if strange bees dared to venture near the birds nests, the native swarm attacked the invaders, and stung them to death: that his master and family had so much respect for the above association, that the tree was considered as sacred, and was not to be touched by an axe until it should yield to all-destroying time.
On the 22d, a patrole arrived from Rietwyk, in Pirica, who informed me, that a party of our troops were just returned to Java Creek from a cruize to Vredenburg, at [[238]]the Marawina; and that, in conjunction with the rangers, they had during this campaign destroyed many fields of provisions belonging to the rebels: also, that for their faithful services, our sable allies had been complimented by the Society with new arms, and, for the first time, cloathed in green uniform jackets. I further learned that the ambassadors to the Owca and Serameca negroes were returned after a fruitless journey, as neither of these associations would lend the smallest assistance. In consequence of this refusal, Colonel Fourgeoud, being wearied himself, and having exhausted his troops in destroying most of the rebel settlements, at length determined to relinquish the whole expedition; which resolution he previously communicated to his Serene Highness the Prince of Orange at the Hague.
On the 23d I received positive orders to prepare and be ready on the 15th of July, to break up, with all the troops under my command, leave the River Comewina, and row down to Paramaribo, where the transport ships were put in commission to convey us back to Holland. This order I instantly read before the front to all my men, who received it with unbounded joy and three cheers—but I alone sighed bitterly.—Oh my Joanna! Oh my boy! who were at this time both dangerously ill, the one with a fever, the other with convulsions, so that neither were expected to survive. Add to this, that I ran a nail quite through my foot—thus was completely miserable.
During this scene of sickness and distress, the strix or [[239]]night-owl of Guiana regularly paid us his nocturnal visits, even in the apartment where we lay, pouring out his melancholy hootings, until be was killed by one of my black attendants. This bird is here called Ooroocoocoo, from its note, to which this word has some affinity. It is about the size of a pigeon; the bill is yellow, and hooked like that of a sparrow-hawk; the eyes are also yellow; the tongue is cloven; the ears very visible; the legs strong, short, and armed with sharp claws: the general colour of this bird is a pale brown, except the breast and belly, which are white, intermixed with some spots of amber. The superstitious negroes generally believe that where the night-owl makes his appearance mortality must ensue: which prejudice is the more excusable, as this creature only frequents the apartments of the sick; but the real cause which attracts the animal, I apprehend to be the lights that upon these occasions are generally kept burning all night, or possibly the morbid, and putrid air, which excites its appetite for prey.
An old Indian woman of Joanna’s acquaintance being now sent for to the Hope, I myself was soon cured by her skill and attention; but my little family continued so very unwell, that I thought it right to send them to Paramaribo before it was too late. And on the 10th of July I sent all my sheep and poultry to Fauconberg, one couple of fat ewes excepted, which I killed, and with which, by the addition of fish and venison, I entertained for two days following twenty-four of the most respectable inhabitants [[240]]in the river, while the white bread, fruit, and Spanish wines to help out the feast, I received as a present from my very worthy friend, Mr. James Gourland, at Berghoven.
On the 13th I ordered down the troops from Clarenbeek, where an hospital had been a second time erected, and they this evening anchored off the Hope.
On the 14th, an officer of the Honourable Society troops arrived to relieve me in the command of the river; and his men from that moment began to perform the duty.
I now removed my flag from the Hope to the barges; and in the evening took my last farewel of Joanna’s relations on the Fauconberg estate; who, crouding round me, expressed their sorrow aloud for my departure, and with tears invoked the protection of Heaven for my safe and prosperous voyage.
On the 15th we finally left the Hope, having marched my troops on board the barges at ten o’clock, A.M.; and at noon I fired my pistol as a signal to weigh anchor, when we immediately proceeded down the River Comewina for the roads of Paramaribo, to be embarked on board the transport ships for Europe. [[241]]
[1] See Vol. II. page 69. plate L. [↑]
[2] This gentleman a little before his departure shewed me a letter from the unhappy youth Campbell; which, after thanking him for every civility, and acquainting him with his dissolution (which he had felt approach) was signed, “Your’s to eternity, R. C.;” and to his father he had wrote the same. [↑]
CHAP. XXVI.
The Troops on Board—Again ordered to disembark—Great Dejection—Mutiny—Insolent Conduct of an Owca Negro Captain—Near two hundred Sick sent to Holland—General Description of the African Negroes.
On the evening of the 15th of July, we anchored off the estate Berkshoven, where I spent the night ashore with my friend Gourley; and in the morning we continued to row down the river, when I took my last farewel of Mr. Palmer. I passed the evening of the 17th with Captain Mac Neyl; and, on the 18th, the whole fleet, consisting of my own barges, together with three from Magdenberg, and those from the River Cottica, arrived safe at anchor in the roads of Paramaribo, where three transports lay ready to receive us, on board of which vessels I immediately embarked all the troops that had come down under my command.
This service being accomplished, I went ashore, and made my report to Colonel Fourgeoud; after which I went to visit Joanna and her boy, whom, to my great joy, I found very much recovered.
The following day I was again sent on board, to make the necessary arrangements for the voyage; and on the 20th I dined with Colonel Fourgeoud, where, to my [[242]]surprize, I found two species of fish, which I have never mentioned; the one is called the haddock, being much like ours, but rather larger and whiter coloured: the other the separee, which a little resembles the skait. At the dessert was a fruit called in Surinam zurzacka, which I believe by the English is called the sour-sap. It grows upon a tree of a moderate size, with a grey bark, and leaves like those of the orange-tree, but set in pairs; the fruit is of a pyramidical form, heavier than the largest pear, and all covered over with inoffensive prickles: the skin is very thin, the pulp a soft pithy substance as white as milk, and of a sweet taste, mixed with a most agreeable acid, in which are seeds like the large kernels of an apple. Another species of small zurzacka grows in this country, something resembling hops, but is of no use whatever. We had also the fruit called sabatille, which grows on a large tree, the leaves like those of the laurel. This fruit is the size of a peach, very round, and of a brown colour, covered over with a soft down: when cut in two, the pulp is not unlike marmalade, in which are found the seeds; it is such a luscious sweet, that to many palates it is even disagreeable.
On the 21st we once more received our clearance, but in card money, by which we all lost very considerably; however, I instantly went to Mrs. Godefroy, and again gave her all the money that was in my pocket, being no more than £. 40. This excellent woman now renewed her entreaties that I should carry my boy and his mother [[243]]with me to Holland, but to no purpose; Joanna was perfectly immoveable, even to a degree of heroism, and no persuasion could make the least impression upon her, until her redemption should be made complete by the payment of the very last farthing. In this situation we affected to bear our fate with perfect resignation, though what each of us felt in particular may much more easily be imagined than described.
The regiment’s colours were now carried on board on the 23d in great state, which put a final close to the expedition, but without receiving any honours from Fort Zealandia, not a single gun being fired, nor even the flag hoisted on the occasion, to the great mortification of Colonel Fourgeoud, though in effect it was chiefly owing to his own neglect, as he had never given the Governor official notice of his intended departure. The baggage was also sent on board the ships; and a gentleman of the name of Van Heyst entertained the marines at his private expence with three hundred bottles of wine, fruit, &c.
I have often remarked the hospitality and generosity of these people, which I now also once more experienced, receiving various presents of fruits and preserves from my numerous friends, to refresh me at sea while on the voyage; amongst the preserves were the female pappayas, the male bearing no fruit. This grows on a grey trunk, near twenty feet high, straight, and pithy within, the top being covered with a crown, and only fourteen or sixteen diverging leaves, extremely large and digitated. The fruit grows close to the trunk; the flower or blossom has [[244]]a most delicious fragrance. When ripe, it is the size and shape of a water-melon, and turns from green to yellow, but its pulp is more firm and solid: the inner pulp is soft and slimy, filled with innumerable seeds. This fruit at full maturity is cut in pieces and boiled, when it eats like English turnips; but they use it principally for confectionary and sweetmeats, when young, and with its blossoms being both extremely delicate and wholesome. I had also sent me some fine preserved ginger; this is the root of a kind of reedy stalk, that never exceeds two feet in height, with long, narrow pointed leaves. These roots are tuberous, flattish, small, and clustered in many different shapes, not unlike pig-potatoes, and of nearly the same colour in the inside, but fibrous, acid, hot, and aromatic; the smell is highly fragrant: it is well known to be not only an agreeable preserve, but in many cases an excellent medicine.——But to proceed.
On the 24th of July, the sails being bent to the yards, we at last proceeded in corps to take leave of his Excellency the Governor of the colony, who, while he still received us with the greatest politeness, yet gave our hero to understand, that were his colours now to be sent on board, they should most certainly be saluted with those honours which indisputably were their due. After which he sent the whole corps of Society officers to the head-quarters in state, to wish us a prosperous voyage to Holland; and in this contest of etiquette his Excellency most assuredly led the van; for hinting which, however, to some of Fourgeoud’s favourites, I had nearly engaged myself once more [[245]]in a serious quarrel. Our men, who had been on board since the 18th, being now joined by their officers, the poor remains of this fine regiment were thus finally embarked, and in the highest flow of spirits, expecting to set sail the following day for Europe; while (one alone excepted) every countenance wore the appearance of happiness and joy; and nothing indeed could equal the exultation of the few surviving troops, when the next morning the orders were issued for the ships to weigh anchor and put to sea.
But it was by fate ordained that their eager hopes and expectations once more should be blasted: for on the very moment of departure, a ship entered the river with dispatches, inclosing an order for the regiment immediately to re-enter the woods, and remain in the colony until relieved by fresh troops to be sent out from Holland for that purpose. The SINCERE THANKS of his Serene Highness the Prince of Orange were now read to the men from the quarter-deck of each vessel, “for the manly and spirited conduct they had displayed during so long a trial, and so many great and unprecedented hardships;” but as they concluded with orders for the troops to disembark, and remain in this dreadful service, I never saw dejection, disappointment, and despair so strongly marked: while at this moment I, who but just before had been completely miserable, was now in turn the only one who was not depressed with sorrow. [[246]]
In the midst of this gloomy scene, the men were ordered to give three cheers, which the marines on board one of the vessels absolutely refused to comply with: Colonel Seyburg, and unluckily myself, were in consequence ordered to compel them; which he undertook, with a cane in one hand, and a loaded pistol cocked in the other. Knowing his temper to be fiery and irascible, what did I not feel at this moment? I suddenly leapt into the boat that lay along-side, where, after haranguing those few that leaned over the gunwale, I promised the ship’s crew twenty gallons of Holland’s gin if they would only begin the melancholy chorus. Then mounting again the quarter-deck, I acquainted the Colonel that all were now ready and willing to obey his commands; we then re-entered the boat, and in shoving off had the satisfaction to receive three hearty cheers from the sailors, in which joined a few marines, but with such languid looks and heavy hearts as cannot be described.
At this time however the Prince of Orange’s goodness of heart appeared in a conspicuous light, as he ordered all private accounts due by the troops to surgeons and physicians to be paid by the treasury; which, however trifling it may appear, was no trifle to many of the officers, &c. and evinced an attention in his Serene Highness which is not always to be found in princes, while all knew his sorrow for the hard lot of his soldiers, but which could not yet be dispensed with, consistent with the general good. [[247]]
If our disembarkation distressed the troops, it afforded joy to most of the colonists; as indeed a petition, signed by the principal inhabitants, had been presented to Colonel Fourgeoud but two days before, “praying that our regiment might stay some time longer, and give the finishing stroke to the rebels, as we had so gloriously begun, and persevered in routing and harassing them;” which indeed was certainly true, for our regiment, in conjunction with the Society and rangers, had demolished most settlements the rebels possessed in the colony, and had driven them to so considerable a distance, that their depredations, and the desertion of slaves, were incomparably less than upon our arrival; and this was assuredly much better than the Dutch making a shameful peace with them, as had been done with the rebels of the Owca and Sarameca settlements before, yet which would probably again have been the consequence had we not landed in Guiana.
As an instance of the insolence of savages, when perfectly independant, I must relate a conversation which passed between one of this description and myself at Paramaribo, where the troops were allowed some time to refresh themselves before they again retook the field:—Dining one day at Captain Mac Neyl’s, who was now come to town from his estate, a captain of the Owca negroes, our supposed allies, came in to demand money from his lady; and being very importunate, I desired her in English to “give him a dram, and he would be gone;” which the fellow understanding, called me without the [[248]]door, and lifting up his silver-headed cane, asked me, “If that house was my own? and if not, what business I had to interfere? I am,” said he, in a thundering voice, “Captain Fortune Dago-So; and, if I had you in my country at Owca, I would make the very earth drink up your blood.” To which I replied, drawing my sword, “That my name was Stedman; and that if he dared to utter one insolent expression more, my weapon should find the shortest way through his body.” Upon which he snapped his fingers, and marched off, leaving me much displeased, and blaming Fourgeoud for shewing so much indulgence to such a set of banditti. In the evening, as I returned from dinner, I met the same black fellow again, who, stepping short up to me, said, “Massera, you are a man, a very brave fellow; won’t you now give some money to the Owca Captain?” This I sternly refused; he then kissed my hand, and shewed his teeth (he said) in token of reconciliation, promising to send me a present of pistachio-nuts, which, however, never did arrive, nor indeed should I have tasted.
Though we continued in Surinam some time longer, our future services could add but very little to its prosperity, as our numbers were now so very few, and out of this number, small as it was, nine officers and above one hundred and sixty privates, all sick and incurable, embarked again for Holland on the 1st of August. I was ill with an ague at this time, and had the offer of making one of the party, but declined it, being determined to see the end of the expedition if I could; I however availed myself [[249]]of the opportunity to send some presents to my friends in Europe; amongst these were a couple of beautiful parrots, two curious monkies, an elegant collection of fine butterflies, three chests of sweetmeats, and some pickles, all shipped on board the ship Paramaribo, and under the care of Serjeant Fowler, who was, poor fellow, one of the invalids bound for Amsterdam.
Major Medlar being quite emaciated with fatigue and hardships, now also sailed for Holland; thus, during his absence acting as major, I began to entertain an expectation that I should one day carry home the regiment myself, so very rapidly were our officers daily diminishing; and yet amongst those few who remained two had the courage at this time to venture upon matrimony, and married two Creole ladies, both widows.
Every thing now being peaceable and quiet, I recovered my strength so far as on the 10th to walk to Mrs. Godefroy, when I acquainted her that I wished much to emancipate at least Johnny Stedman; and requested her to become bail before the court, for the usual sum of £. 300, as he should never be any charge to the colony of Surinam. But this she peremptorily declined, though there was no risque, it being only a matter of form; at which I could not help feeling some astonishment, till I was acquainted that she had actually refused the same favour to her own son.
The mention of slavery reminds me of a debt which I seem to have incurred to my reader. I have from time to time given some account of the mode in which [[250]]slaves are brought to this market, and of the manner in which they are treated—But I feel that I have not been sufficiently full upon this subject; and I am the more disposed to bring forward all the information that I have gained concerning the negroes, because I flatter myself that I shall be able to bring some truths to light, that have hitherto been unobserved or imperfectly related, at least to the generality of Europeans.
In the first place, as to the complexion of a negro, this, as I have observed before, is I am persuaded entirely owing to the burning climate in which he lives, and an atmosphere still more heated by the sandy desarts, over which the trade winds pass before they reach the habitable parts. The Indians of America, on the contrary, who indeed live under the same degree of latitude, have this wind refreshed by the Atlantic Ocean, and are copper-coloured; and the inhabitants of Abyssinia, who receive it cooled by the Arabian and the Indian Seas, are entirely olive. Thus north of the great River Senegal the complexion changes from black to brown amongst the Moors, as it does toward the south amongst the Caffrarians and the Hottentots; and I am of opinion, that the woolly texture of their hair is an effect proceeding from the same cause. The epidermis or cuticle of the negroes I have seen dissected more than once; it is clear and transparent, but between this and the real skin lies a thin follicle, which is perfectly black, which being removed by severe flagellation, or by scalding, exposes a complexion not inferior to that of an European. [[251]]
On the estate Vossenbergh, in Surinam, were born two white negroes, whose parents were both perfectly black; the one was a female, sent to Paris in 1734; the other a boy, born in March 1738. And in 1794, a similar woman, Emelia Lewsam, was exhibited in England, whose children (though she is married to an European) are all mulattoes. The skin of these people is not of the European white, but more resembles chalk; their hair the same; their eyes are often red[1], and they see very little in the sun-shine, neither are they fit for any kind of labour; while their mental faculties, I have been told, usually correspond with the debility of their bodies.
With respect to the shape of the African negroes, it is from head to foot certainly different from the European mould, though not, in my opinion, in any degree inferior, prejudice being laid aside. Their strong features, flat noses, thick lips, and high cheek bones, may appear deformities to us, and yet amongst themselves may be esteemed the reverse; their bright black eyes, and fine white teeth, we are forced to admire; and one decided advantage in a black complexion is, that all those languid pale sickly-looking countenances, so common in Europe, are never exhibited among them, nor are the wrinkles and ravages of age equally conspicuous; though I must confess that when a negro is very ill, his black changes to a very disagreeable sallow olive. [[252]]
For exertion and activity, their shape is assuredly preferable to ours, being generally strong and muscular near the trunk, and slender towards the extremities; they have mostly a remarkable fine chest, but are small about the hips; their buttocks are more prominent, and their necks are thicker than ours; the thighs are strong, as also the arms above the elbow, but the wrists and lower part of the legs are very slender; and a good deal indeed of the Herculean make of the late Broughton the pugilist may be traced in the form of a vigorous negro. As to the crookedness of their limbs, it is to be accounted for by the manner in which they are carried whilst infants upon the mother’s back, their tender legs being tied close round each side of her waist, which occasions that unnatural bent, with which they are not born: nor are their children ever taught to walk, but left to creep amongst the sand and grass, until they gradually acquire strength and inclination to erect themselves, which they do very soon; by this custom, however, the position of their feet is much neglected, yet by exercise, and daily bathing, they acquire that strength and agility, for which they are so remarkable.
Another custom which, in their opinion, conduces much to their health and vigour is, that, during the two years in which the mothers suckle their children, they frequently make them swallow large quantities of water, after which they shake them twice a day, with much violence; they are then taken by a leg or an arm, and [[253]]tossed into the river, to be well scoured outwardly; nor are the females exempt from this mode of rearing youth, which renders them not inferior to the men, in size alone excepted, while some in running, swimming, climbing, and dancing, as well as wrestling, are even their superiors: thus, that it depends on education to form a race of Amazonian females, is a proposition of which I have very little doubt.
Nor are these hardy daughters of the Torrid Zone less remarkable for propagation. I knew a female servant at Mr. de Graaf’s, called Lesperanza, who actually bore nine children in the course of three years, the first year four, the next two, and the third three. They bring their offspring into the world without pain, and like the Indian women resuming their domestic employments even the same day. During the first week their infants are as fair as any Europeans, except that in the males there is a little appearance of black in a certain part, and the whole body becomes gradually of that colour. Their females arrive early at the age of puberty; but, as in the fruits of this climate, this early maturity is succeeded by a sudden decay. Many of the negroes, however, live to a very considerable age: I have seen one or two that were above one hundred; and the London. Chronicle for October 5, 1780, makes mention of a negro woman, called Louisa Truxo, at Tucomea, in South America, still living, at the surprizing age of one hundred and seventy-five years. In what tables of longevity is there such an European to be found? though most probably [[254]]this venerable person spent her youth in hard labour, like other slaves; which, though a negro can bear much better in a tropical climate than a native of Europe, yet cannot be natural, either on the coast of Guinea or Guiana, where, without toil, the necessaries of life are produced, and vegetation flourishes spontaneously for ever.
In the constitution of the negroes I have still observed this singularity, that while they bear the fatigue of labour in the hottest days, they can also bear the cold and damp better than an European, at least better than I could; sleeping all night on the wet grass, perfectly naked, without any injury to their health, while I have been glad, especially early in the morning, to have a fire lit under my hammock, and while the marines for want of it lay in a shiver. They also bear hunger and thirst, and pain or sickness, with the greatest patience and resolution.
I have formerly mentioned the names of more than a dozen of negro tribes: all these know each other by the different marks and incisions made on their bodies—for instance, the Coromantyn negroes, who are most esteemed, cut three or four long gashes on each of their cheeks, as represented in the face of the armed free negro or ranger, in plate VII.
The Loango negroes, who are reckoned the worst, distinguish themselves by puncturing or marking the skin of their sides, arms, and thighs with square elevated figures, something like dice. (See plate LXVIII.) These [[255]]also cut their fore-teeth to a sharp point, which gives them a frightful appearance, resembling in some degree those of a shark: and all their males are circumcised, after the manner of the Jews.
Among the strange productions of nature, a species of people known by the name of Accorees, deserves to be particularly noticed.—The Accorees, or Two-fingers, live amongst the Seramaca negroes, in the very upper parts of the river of that name. This heterogeneous tribe are so deformed in their hands and feet, that while some have three or four fingers and toes on each hand and foot, others have only two, which resemble the claws of a lobster, or rather limbs that have been cured after mutilation by fire, or some other accident. This deformity in one person would cause but small admiration; but that a whole community should be afflicted with this singularity, is certainly a most wonderful phænomenon. Having seen but two myself, and that at too great a distance to take a drawing of them, I cannot pretend to vouch for the truth of what I have only heard; but an engraving of one of these figures was positively sent to the Society of Arts and Sciences at Haerlem; while I beg leave to introduce, as a further voucher, the following extract from an old book of surgery and anatomy, procured me by the ingenious and learned Owen Cambridge, Esquire, of Twickenham.
“After Michaelmas term, in the year 1629, a body was brought from the place of execution to the College of Physicians, to be cut up for an anatomy; and by chance [[256]]the officer of the college brought the body of a cruel wretch, who had murdered the son of one Master Scot, a surgeon of good note in this city. This wretch was of a very truculent countenance and aspect; his hair was black and curled, not very long, but thick and bushy; his forehead little above an inch high; his brows great and prominent; his eyes set deep in their sockets; his nose crooked, with a round knob or button at the end, which also somewhat turned upwards; on his upper lip he had some quantity of black hair, on his chin very few, straggling, black and stiff; and his nether lip was as big as three lips. Such was his face: but the greatest deformity was his feet, and that almost to admiration; for they were both cloven, but not alike. One foot was equally divided between four and five inches deep into two toes, jointed like other men’s toes, but as large each of them as half the foot could make them, with nails proportionable. The left foot was divided likewise in the middle, but the division was not above three inches deep, or scarce so much; the one half, which was towards the body, made one large toe, with a nail proportionable, like the inward half of the right foot; but the outward half was compounded of two toes, yet growing close and fast together. This monstrous shape of a man I have thought good to give this relation of, from certain knowledge, for there were a thousand witnesses of it present.”
With the languages of the African negroes I am but [[257]]little acquainted; as a specimen, however, I will insert a few sentences of that called the Coromantyn, upon the credit of my boy Quaco, who belonged to that nation, together with a translation in English; and only observe, that they break off their words very short, in a kind of guttural manner, which I cannot easily describe:—For instance—“Co fa ansyo, na baramon bra, Go to the river, and bring me some water.”—“Mee yeree, nacomeda mee, My wife, I want some food.”—So much for the Coromantyn language, as spoken by the negroes on the coast of Guinea.
But as to that spoken by the black people in Surinam, I consider myself a perfect master, it being a compound of Dutch, French, Spanish, Portuguese, and English. The latter they like best, and consequently use the most. It has been already observed, that the English were the first Europeans who possessed this colony, hence probably the predilection for that language, which they have still retained. In this mixed dialect, for which I have seen a printed grammar, the words end mostly with a vowel, like the Indian and Italian, and it is so sweet, so sonorous and soft, that the genteelest Europeans in Surinam speak little else; it is also wonderfully expressive and sentimental, such as, “Good eating, sweety-muffo.”—“Gun-powder, man sanny.”—“I will love you, with all my heart, so long as I live, Mee saloby you, langa alla mee hatty, so langa me leeby.”—“A pleasing tale, ananassy [[258]]tory.”—“I am very angry, me hatty brun.”—“Live long, so long until your hair become white as cotton, Lebee langa, tay, tay, ta-y you weeree weeree tan wity likee catoo.”—“Small, peekeen.”—“Very small, peekeeneenee.”—“Farewel! Good-bye! I am dying, and going to my God, Adioso, cerroboay, mee de go dede, me de go na mee Gado.”—In this sample, many corrupt English words are perceptible, which however begin to grow out of use near the capital, but are still retained in the distant plantations; for instance, at the estate Goet-Accoord, in Cottica, I have heard an old negro woman say, “We lobee so lebee togeddere,” by which she meant, we love to live together; and at Paramaribo to express the same sentence, “Wee looko for tanna macandera.”
Their vocal music is like that of the birds, melodious, but without time, and in other respects not unlike that of a clerk performing to the congregation, one person constantly pronouncing a sentence extempore, which he next hums or whistles, and then all the others repeat the same in chorus; another sentence is then spoken, and the chorus is a second time renewed, &c.
This kind of singing is much practised by the barge rowers or boat negroes on the water, especially during the night in a clear moonshine; it is to them peculiarly animating, and may, together with the sound of their oars, be heard at a considerable distance.
As a specimen, I have tried to set the following words [[259]]to music, supposing a ranger going to battle, and thus taking leave of his girl:
Oan bus adiosi-o da so adiosso me de-go me loby so fighty me man o
One buss good-by o ’tis so good-by girl I must go I love for to fight like a man o
Amimba me dego na boosy o da so adiosso me do go.
Amimba I go to the woods o ’tis so good-by girl, I must go.
[ [[audio/mpeg]] | [MuseScore] ]
Such is their vocal melody; and of their instrumental music, and dancing, which is perfectly to time, I shall speak hereafter, having already given a short account of that which is practised by the Loango negroes. That these people are neither divested of a good ear, nor poetical genius, has been frequently proved, when they have had the advantages of a good education. Amongst others, Phillis Wheatley, who was a slave at Boston in New England, learned the Latin language, and wrote thirty-eight elegant pieces of poetry on different subjects, which were published in 1773. As a specimen, I cannot refrain here inserting the following extract from that entitled, “Thoughts on Imagination.”
“Now here, now there, the roving fancy flies,
Till some lov’d object strikes her wand’ring eyes,
Whose silken fetters all the senses bind,
And soft captivity invades the mind.
[[260]]
“Imagination! who can sing thy force?
Or where describe the swiftness of thy course?
Soaring through air to find the bright abode,
Th’ imperial palace of the thundering God.
“We on thy pinions can surpass the wind,
And leave the rolling universe behind.
From star to star the mental optics rove,
Measure the skies, and range the realms above;
There in one view we grasp the mighty whole,
Or with new worlds amaze th’ unbounded soul.”
What can be more beautiful and sublime?——
Ignatius Sancho, a negro, many years servant to the Duke of Montagu, whose sentimental letters, so generally known, would not disgrace the pen of an European, may also be mentioned on this occasion; and with regard to their powers of memory and calculation, I shall only notice Thomas Fuller, a negro, the property of a Mrs. Cox in Maryland, North America; and quote one singular anecdote, as it is related by Dr. Rush of Philadelphia, in a letter to a gentleman at Manchester.
“Being travelling,” says the Doctor, “with some other gentlemen of this city, through Maryland, and having heard of the astonishing powers of memory in arithmetical calculation possessed by Thomas Fuller, a negro, we sent for him; when one of the gentlemen in company asked him, how many seconds a man of seventy years, some odd months, weeks and days, had lived? He told the exact number in a minute and a half. [[261]]When the gentleman who had asked the question took his pen, and having calculated the same by figures, told the negro he must be mistaken, as the number he had mentioned was certainly too great. ‘Top, Massera,’ said the negro, ‘you have omitted the leap-years;’ when having calculated the seconds contained in the number of leap-years, and added them, the number was found exactly the same as that calculated by the negro. This same man multiplied nine figures by nine, by memory, before another company.” Another lately repeated the Alcoran from recollection only.—What amazing mental faculties in African negroes, who could neither read nor write! Yet that such things are, is well authenticated.
To what I have already advanced, I may add, that all negroes firmly believe the being of a God, upon whose goodness they rely, and whose power they adore, while they have no fear of death, and never taste food without offering a libation. In the rivers Gambia and Senegal they are mostly Mahometans; but generally the worship and religious ceremonies of the Africans vary, as do the numberless superstitious practices of all savages, and indeed of too many Europeans. Perceiving that it was their custom to bring their offerings to the wild cotton-tree[2], [[262]]I enquired of an old negro, why they paid such particular reverence and veneration to this growing piece of timber. “This proceeds (said he) massera, from the following cause: having no churches nor places built for public worship (as you have) on the Coast of Guinea, and this tree being the largest and most beautiful growing there, our people, assembling under its branches when they are going to be instructed, are defended by it from the heavy rains and scorching sun. Under this tree our gadoman, or priest, delivers his lectures; and for this reason our common people have so much veneration for it, that they will not cut it down upon any account whatever.”
No people can be more superstitious than the generality of negroes; and their Locomen, or pretended prophets, find their interest in encouraging this superstition, by selling them obias or amulets, as I have already mentioned, and as some hypocrites sell absolution in Europe, for a comfortable living. These people have also amongst them a kind of Sibyls, who deal in oracles; these sage matrons dancing and whirling round in the middle of an assembly, with amazing rapidity, until they foam at the mouth, and drop down as convulsed. Whatever the prophetess orders to be done during this paroxism, is most sacredly performed by the surrounding multitude; which renders these meetings extremely dangerous, as she frequently enjoins them to murder their masters, or desert to the woods; upon which account this scene of excessive fanaticism is forbidden by law in the colony of Surinam, [[263]]upon pain of the most rigorous punishment: yet it is often practised in private places, and is very common amongst the Owca and Seramica negroes, where captains Fredericy and Van Geurick told me they had seen it performed. It is here called the winty-play, or the dance of the mermaid, and has existed from time immemorial; as even the classic authors make frequent mention of this extraordinary practice. Virgil, in his sixth book, makes Eneas visit the Sibyl of Cuma; and Ovid also mentions the same subject, lib. 14. where Eneas wishes to visit the ghost of his father.
But what is still more strange, these unaccountable women by their voice know how to charm the ammodytes,[3] or papaw serpent, down from the tree. This is an absolute fact; nor is this snake ever killed or hurt by the negroes, who, on the contrary, esteem it as their friend and guardian, and are happy to see it enter their huts. When these sibyls have charmed or conjured down the ammodytes serpent from the tree, it is common to see this reptile twine and wreathe about their arms, neck and breast, as if the creature took delight in hearing her voice, while the woman strokes and caresses it with her hand. The sacred writers speak of the charming of adders and serpents in many places, which I mention [[264]]only to prove the antiquity of the practice[4]; for nothing is more notorious, than that the Eastern Indians will rid the houses of the most venomous snakes by charming them with the sound of a flute, which calls them out of their holes. And it is not many years since an Italian woman brought over three tame snakes, which crawled about her neck and arms: they were four or five feet long, but not venomous.
Another instance of superstition amongst the negroes I must relate; there is a direct prohibition in every family, handed down from father to son, against the eating of some one kind of animal food, which they call treff; this may be either fowl, fish, or quadruped, but whatever it is, no negro will touch it; though I have seen some good Catholics eat roast-beef in Lent, and a religious Jew devouring a slice from a fat flitch of bacon.
However ridiculous some of the above rites may appear, yet amongst the African blacks they are certainly necessary, to keep the rabble in subjection; and their gadomen or priests know this as well as the infallible Pontiff of the Roman church. These illiterate mortals differ, however, in this respect from the modern Europeans, that whatever they believe, they do it firmly, and are never staggered by the doubts of scepticism, nor troubled with [[265]]the qualms of conscience; but whether they are, upon this account, better or worse, I will not pretend to determine.—I however think that they are a happy people, and possess so much friendship for one another, that they need not be told to “love their neighbour as themselves;” since the poorest negro, having only an egg, scorns to eat it alone; but were a dozen present, and every one a stranger, he would cut or break it into just as many shares; or were there one single dram of rum, he would divide it among the same number: this is not done, however, until a few drops are first sprinkled on the ground, as an oblation to the gods.—Approach then here, thou canting hypocrite, and take an example from thy illiterate sable brother!—From what I sometimes throw out, however, let it not be understood that I am an enemy to religious worship—God forbid! But I ever will profess myself the greatest friend to those whose actions best correspond with their doctrine; which, I am sorry to say, is too seldom the case amongst those nations who pretend most to civilization.
If savage nations be commonly generous and faithful, they are not, however, without their dark shades; and among these, the most conspicuous is a proneness to anger and revenge. I never knew a negro indeed forgive those who had wilfully offended him. The strength of this passion can only be equalled by their gratitude; for, amongst them, it may be truly said, that [[266]]
“A generous friendship no cold medium knows,
But with one love, with one resentment glows.”
Their abominable cruelties also, like those of all barbarous nations, are truly shocking. In the colony of Berbicè, during the late revolt, they made no scruple of cutting up their mistresses with child, even in their master’s presence, with many other savage devices too dreadful to relate[5].—In the art of poisoning, not even the Accawaw Indians are more expert; they can carry it under their nails, and by only dipping their thumb into a tumbler of water, which they offer as a beverage to the object of their revenge, they infuse a slow but certain death[6]. Whole estates, as well as private families, have become the victims of their fury, and experienced their fatal vengeance, even putting to death scores of their own friends and relations, with the double view of depriving their [[267]]proprietors of their most valuable possessions. These monsters are distinguished by the name of Wissy-men, perhaps from wise, or knowing, and by their fatal genius carry destruction to a most dreadful length before they are detected.
All barbarous and uneducated people have indistinct notions of property; nor can we wonder that slaves, who in their own persons suffer the most flagrant violation of every right, should be disposed to retaliate. The slaves on the plantations are therefore too commonly thieves, plundering whatever they can lay their hands upon with impunity; nor can any bounds be set to their intemperance, especially in drinking. I have seen a negro girl empty a china-bowl at one draught, containing two bottles of claret, which I had given her by way of experiment, till she could no more stand.
I should not forget to mention that the Gango negroes are supposed to be anthropophagi or cannibals, like the Caribbee Indians, instigated by habitual and implacable revenge. Amongst the rebels of this tribe, after the taking of Boucou, some pots were found on the fire with human flesh; which one of the officers had the curiosity to taste, and declared it was not inferior to some kinds of beef or pork.
I have been since assured by a Mr. Vangills, an American, that having travelled for a great number of miles inland in Africa, he at length came to a place where human legs, arms, and thighs hung upon wooden shambles, [[268]]and were exposed to sale, like butchers meat in Leadenhall market. And Captain John Keene, formerly of the Dolphin cutter, but late of the Naimbana schooner, in the Sierra Leona company’s service, positively assured me, that when he, a few years since, was on the coast of Africa, in the brig Fame, from Bristol, Mr. Samuel Biggs owner, trading for wood, iron, and gold-dust, a Captain Dunnigen, with his whole crew, belonging to the Nassau schooner, which was her tender, were cut in pieces, salted, and eaten by the negroes of Great Drewin, about thirty miles North of the River St. Andrew’s; who having torn the copper off her bottom, burned the vessel.
But from these deformities of character I will now relieve the attention of the reader, and proceed in justice to dispel the gloomy cloud, by introducing the sun-shine of their virtues.
Their genius has been already treated of, so has their gratitude; which last they carry to such a length, that they will even die for those who have shewn them any particular favour. Nothing can exceed the fidelity and attachment they have for those matters who use them well, which proves that their affection is as strong as their hatred. Negroes are generally good-natured, particularly the Coromantyn, and those of Nago. They are also susceptible of the tender passion, and jealousy in their breasts has produced the most dreadful effects. The delicacy of these people deserves likewise to be noticed: I do not remember, amongst the many thousands I have [[269]]seen during several years residence among them, ever to have observed even an offer to kiss a woman in public. Maternal tenderness for their children is also natural to the females, for in general, during the two years which they usually suckle them, they never cohabit with their husbands; this they consider as unnatural, and prejudicial to the infants: and the case of Lesperanza (who bore so many children in a short time) is no exception, as her children died almost as soon as they came into the world. The cleanliness of the negro nation is peculiarly remarkable, as they bathe above three times a day. The Congo tribe in particular are so fond of the water, that they may, not improperly, be called amphibious animals.
The negroes are likewise spirited and brave, patient in adversity, meeting death and torture with the most undaunted fortitude. Their conduct, in the most trying situations, approaching even to heroism; no negro sighs, groans, or complains, though expiring in the midst of surrounding flames. Nor do I remember, upon any occasion whatever, to have seen an African shed a tear, though they beg for mercy with the greatest earnestness when ordered to be flogged for offences which they are conscious deserve to be punished; but if they think their punishment unmerited, immediate suicide is too often the fatal consequence, especially amongst the Coromantyn negroes, who frequently, during the act of flagellation, throw back their heads in the neck, and [[270]]swallow their tongue, which choaks them upon the spot, when they drop dead in the presence of their masters. But when negroes are sensible of having deserved correction, no people can be more humble, or bear their unhappy fate with greater resignation. The swallowing of the tongue, which they only practise during the moments of severe discipline, has of late been prevented in Surinam by the humane method of holding a fire-brand to the victim’s mouth, which answers the double purpose of burning his face, and diverting his attention from the execution of his fatal determination. Some have a practice of eating common earth, by which the stomach is prevented from performing its ordinary functions, and thus dispatch themselves without any immediate pain, but linger perhaps for a twelvemonth in the most debilitated and shocking condition. Against these ground-eaters the severest punishments are decreed by the laws, but without much effect, as they are seldom detected in this act of desperation.
After these general remarks upon the mental and bodily faculties of the African negroes, we shall next proceed to view them in a state of bondage, under all the oppression they are exposed to from the rod of barbarous tyranny; then, rescuing them from this horrid scene, we will next consider them as protected by impartial justice, and fostered by the mild hand of tenderness and humanity.
The reader may remember that I have already introduced [[271]]the slaves as landing from on board the Guinea ships, and generally shocking instances of debility and misery:—
“Their visage is blacker than a coal, they are not known in the streets, their skin cleaveth to their bones, it is withered, it is become like a stick.”
I have also observed, that under the care of some old negroes, appointed for that purpose, they soon become fat and sleek, and learn the language of the colony: they then are sent to work in the fields, to which they chearfully submit; though I have seen some instances of newly-imported negroes refusing to work, nor could promises, threats, rewards, nor even blows prevail; but these had been princes or people of the first rank in their native country, who by the casualties of war had the misfortune to become slaves, and whose heroic sentiments still preferred instant death to the baseness and miseries of servitude. Upon these occasions I have seen the other slaves fall upon their knees, and intreat the master to permit them to do the work required, in addition to their own tasks; which being sometimes granted, they continued to shew the same respect for the captive prince that he had been accustomed to receive in his own country. I remember once to have had a remarkable good-looking new negro to attend me, whose ancles and wrists being much galled by chains, I enquired the cause. “My father,” said he, “was a king, and treacherously murdered [[272]]by the sons of a neighbouring prince. To revenge his death, I daily went a hunting with some men, in hopes of retaliating upon his assassins; but I had the misfortune to be surprized, taken, and bound; hence these ignoble scars. I was afterwards sold to your European countrymen on the coast of Guiana—a punishment which was deemed greater than instant death.”
The history of Quaco, my black boy, was still more extraordinary:—“My parents,” said he, “lived by hunting and fishing: I was stolen from them very young, whilst playing on the sands with two little brothers; I was put into a sack, and carried for several miles. I afterwards became the slave of a king on the coast of Guinea, with several hundreds more. When our master died, the principal part of his slaves were beheaded and buried along with him; I, with some other children of my age, were bestowed as presents to the different captains of his army; and the master of a Dutch ship afterwards had me, in exchange for a musket and some gun-powder.”—Each loves his country best, if mild its laws, or rigid:
“The naked negro, panting at the line,
Boasts of his golden sands and palmy wine;
Basks in the glare, or stems the tepid wave,
And thanks his gods for all the good they gave:—
Such is the patriot’s boast, where’er he roam,
His first best country ever is at home.”
[[273]]
No sooner do these wretched strangers begin to flag at their labour, than whips, cow-skins, bamboos, ropes, fetters, and chains are introduced, until they are ready to sink under accumulated oppression. With some masters their tasks can never be performed, as they must toil on, day and night, even Sundays not excepted. I recollect a strong young negro, called Marquis, who had a wife he loved, with two fine children; he laboured hard, and generally finished his task of digging a trench of five hundred feet by four o’clock in the afternoon, that he might have some time to cultivate his little garden, and go to fish or fowl to support his beloved family: hard did Marquis strive to earn this additional pittance, when his humane master, apprized of his industry, for his encouragement informed him, that if he could delve five hundred feet by four o’clock, he could certainly finish six hundred before sun-set; and this task the unfortunate young man was condemned from that day ever since to perform.
In Surinam the slaves are kept nearly naked, and their daily food consists of little more than a few yams and plantains; perhaps twice a year they may receive a scanty allowance of salt-fish, with a few leaves of tobacco, which they call sweety-muffo, and this is all: but what is peculiarly provoking to them is, that if a negro and his wife have ever so great an attachment for each other, the woman, if handsome, must yield to the loathsome embrace of an adulterous and licentious manager, or see her husband cut to pieces for endeavouring to prevent it. [[274]]This, in frequent instances, has driven them to distraction, and been the cause of many murders.
It is in consequence of these complicated evils, that so many also destroy themselves by suicide, run away to the woods to join their countrymen in rebellion, or if they stay, grow sad and spiritless, and languish under diseases, the effects of bad usage; such as the lota, which is a white scorbutic spot that externally covers the body. The crassy-crassy, or itch, which with us comes from poorness of diet, is of course very common with them. The yaws, a most disagreeable disorder, by many compared to the venereal disease, which renders the patient a shocking spectacle, all covered over with yellow ulcers. To this last-mentioned loathsome malady most negroes are subject, yet but only once in their lives, in which, and being very infectious, it resembles the small-pox: indeed if a fly which has been feeding upon the diseased (and they are generally covered with them) lights upon the slightest scratch on a healthy person, it communicates this dreadful disorder, which always confines him for several months. The most general cure for the yaws in Surinam, is salivation and spare diet, with continual exercise to promote perspiration; and, during this process, the poor wretches absolutely look like decayed carcases.
Still more dreadful is the boassy, or leprosy, which is deemed incurable: the face and limbs in this complaint swell, and the whole body is covered with scales and ulcers; the breath stinks, the hair falls off, the fingers and [[275]]toes become putrid, and drop away joint after joint. The worst of which is, that though the disease is hopeless, the unhappy sufferer may linger sometimes for many years. The lepers are naturally lascivious, and the disease being infectious, they are of necessity separated from all society, and condemned to a perpetual exile in some remote corner of the plantations.
The clabba-yaws, or tubboes, is also a very troublesome and tedious disorder; it occasions painful sores about the feet, mostly in the soles, between the skin and the flesh. The usual remedy in this case is, to burn out the morbid part with a red-hot iron, or cut it out with a lancet; and then the warm juice of roasted limes is introduced into the wound, though with great pain yet with great success.
The African negroes are also subject to many species of worms, both extraneous and internal, owing to the wading much in stagnated waters, and to the crudity of their diet. Of the former species is the Guinea or tape-worm, which breeds between the skin and the flesh, and is sometimes two yards in length, of a shining silvery colour, and not thicker than the second string of a bass-viol. It occasions dangerous and painful swellings where-ever it inserts itself, which is mostly about the legs. The method of cure, is to seize the head of the worm when it appears above the skin, and extract it by winding it gently round a stick or card; this operation cannot be performed with too much caution, for if it breaks, the [[276]]loss of the limb, or even of life itself, is frequently the fatal consequence. Some are infested with seven or eight of these worms at a time.
Besides these dreadful calamities, peculiar to themselves, the negroes are subject to every complaint common to the Europeans; who, in their turn, are not exempt in Guiana from the afflicting and dangerous distempers I have just described.
It is therefore not to be wondered at if many of the plantations are crouded with miserable objects, left under the care of the dressy negro or black surgeon only, whose whole skill consists in administering a dose of salts, or spreading a plaister. As to the numbers who are excoriated from their neck to their heel, by constant whipping, they may cure themselves, or do their work without a skin, if they think proper.
Thus from accumulated miseries, some naturally succeeding from the climate and their poor diet, but more from the inordinate cruelty of managers, it must follow that numerous slaves become unfit for work, many from weakness and depression of spirits, and others from extreme labour becoming old before their time. But for all these evils, this plantation despot finds an infallible remedy, which is no other than to put them to death at once: the loss does not affect him but his master, and he is proud of shewing only such negroes as are able to do their task, assuring the owner that they mostly died by [[277]]the venereal disease; and the word of the human carcase-butcher is quite sufficient, as no negro is allowed to give evidence in any case whatever.
“Dictio testimonii non est servo homini.”
Yet should some fair European by accident prove the murder, the delinquent escapes, as I have observed, by paying a fine of £. 50 and the value of the slave, if the owner requires it; and for this price of blood he may slaughter the poor wretches whenever a temporary passion or a habit of cruelty, which is too commonly generated in this situation, prompts his rage.
They have moreover many stratagems to evade the penalty, should even the magistrates be present. I have known it happen when one of these scourges of the human race became tired of a negro, that he has taken him out with him a shooting; and ordering him to discover the game, the first bird that started he has shot the poor man dead upon the spot. This was called an accident, and no farther enquiry was made concerning it. Others have been dispatched by the following method:—A stake being fastened in the middle of an open plain, the slave is chained to it, and exposed to the burning sun, where one jill of water and a single plantain is brought him daily, until he pines to death. But this is not called starving, as his master declares that he neither wanted victuals nor drink until he expired—thus he is honourably acquitted. [[278]]
Another plan of murdering with impunity has often been put in practice. The slave is fastened naked to a tree in the forest, with his arms and legs extended, under pretence of stretching his limbs; but here he is left, and regularly fed, until he is actually stung to death by the musquitoes and other insects—a most infernal punishment, and such as may be with truth ascribed to the instigation of the devil! Drowning them, by kicking them overboard with a weight chained to their legs, is called accidental death. It has been known that by the orders of a woman, negro slaves have been privately burnt to death, miserably chained in a surrounding pile of flaming faggots. As to the breaking out of their teeth, merely for tasting the sugar-cane cultivated by themselves, slitting up their noses, and cutting off their ears, from private pique, these are accounted mere sport, and not worthy to be mentioned.
By such inhuman usage this unhappy race of men are sometimes driven to such a height of desperation, that to finish their days, and be relieved from worse than Egyptian bondage, some even have leaped into the caldrons of boiling sugar, thus at once depriving the tyrant of his crop and of his servant.
From these sketches can it be a matter of surprize, that armies of rebels are assembled in the forest, and at every opportunity thirsting for revenge?
I shall now conclude this dreadful scene by one general [[279]]remark, shewing how far population is affected by this most infamous treatment.
In Surinam there are, upon an average, about 75,000 negro slaves, as I have stated; from which if we subtract children, and superannuated men and women, there will not be found above 50,000 really fit for labour. There are from six to twelve Guinea ships, that import from 250 to 300 slaves each from Africa annually: we may therefore compute the yearly importation at an average of 2,500, necessary to supply and keep complete the above 50,000; so that the annual deaths exceed the births by the number of 2,500, though each man negro has a wife or two if he chuses, which is, upon the mass, just 5 per cent. and consequently proves that the whole race of healthy slaves, consisting of 50,000, are totally extinct once every twenty years.
Truth and justice however oblige me to declare, that the inhuman barbarities I have been just describing are not universal. Compassionate Heaven has ordained some exceptions, as I shall impartially shew, by reversing the picture: not, like some writers who have treated this subject, and carefully concealed the most pleasing touches of goodness and humanity, whilst only the darkest shades have been exposed to the public eye, but by candidly exhibiting both sides with equal justice and precision; and it is indeed with pleasure I can affirm, that the negro slaves on some estates are treated, in my opinion, as men [[280]]ought to be treated; and this mode of conduct might still be more general, by amending the laws, which ought not corruptly to invest human nature with what it is certain to abuse—an authority completely despotic. No master surely ought to be entrusted with the dangerous power of taking away the life of his slaves with impunity; and it ought to be considered an equal crime in the eye of the law to kill a negro or a white man, as it is equally murder in the sight of God.
Blake Sculpt.
Family of Negro Slaves from Loango.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1792, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
I shall now introduce to the reader’s acquaintance a negro family in that state of tranquil happiness, which they always enjoy under a humane and indulgent master. The figures in the plate are supposed to be of the Loango nation, by the marks on the man’s body, while on his breast may be seen J. G. S. in a cypher, by which his owner may ascertain his property. He carries a basket with small fish, and a net upon his head, with a large fish in his hand, caught by himself in the river. His wife, who is pregnant, is employed in carrying different kinds of fruit, spinning a thread of cotton upon her distaff, and comfortably smoking her pipe of tobacco. Besides all this, she has a boy upon her back, and another playing by her side. Thus, under a mild master and an honest overseer, a negro’s labour is no more than a healthy exercise, which ends at the setting-sun, and the remaining time is his own, which he employs in hunting, fishing, cultivating his garden, or making baskets [[281]]and fish-nets for sale; with this money he buys a hog or two, sometimes fowls or ducks, all which he fattens upon the spontaneous growth of the soil, without expence, and very little trouble, and, in the end, they afford him considerable profit. Thus pleasantly situated, he is exempt from every anxiety, and pays no taxes, but looks up to his master as the only protector of him and his family. He adores him, not from fear, but from a conviction that he is indebted to his goodness for all the comforts he enjoys. He breathes in a luxurious warm climate, like his own, which renders clothes unnecessary, and he finds himself more healthy, as well as more at his ease, by going naked. His house he may build after his own fancy. The forest affords him every necessary material for the cutting. His bed is a hammock, or a mat called papaya. His pots he manufactures himself, and his dishes are gourds, which grow in his garden. He never lives with a wife he does not love, exchanging for another the moment either he or she becomes tired, though this separation happens less frequently here than divorces do in Europe. Besides the regular allowance given him by his master weekly, his female friend has the art of making many savoury dishes; such as braf, or a hodge-podge of plantains and yams boiled with salt meat, barbacued fish, and Cayenne pepper. Tom-tom is a very good pudding, composed of the flour of Indian corn, boiled with flesh, [[282]]fowl, fish, Cayenne pepper, and the young pods of the ocra or althea plant. Pepper-pot is a dish of boiled fish and capsicum, eaten with roasted plantains. Gangotay is made of dried, and asosoo of green plantains. Acansa and doquenoo are composed of the flour of maize, and the latter is eaten with molasses. His common drink is the limpid stream, sometimes corrected by a little rum. If he is accidentally wounded or indisposed, he is cured for nothing; but it is very seldom he troubles the faculty, being tolerably skilled in herbs and simples, besides scarifying and puckering the skin, which serves instead of bleeding. The inconvenience of vermin he remedies without a comb, by plaistering up his hair with clay, which being dried on the head, and then washed with soap and water, makes him clean beyond conception; his teeth are constantly kept as white as ivory; for this purpose he uses nothing but a sprig of orange-tree, bitten at one end, until the fibres resemble a small brush; and no negro, male or female, is to be seen without this little instrument, which has besides the virtue of sweetening the breath.
So much for his body; and with regard to his soul, it is seldom troubled with any qualms of conscience, or fear of death, as I have stated, being firm and unshaken in what he was taught to believe, which is indeed little, but plain; and when he is no more, his companions or relations carry him to some grove of orange-trees, where he [[283]]is not interred without expence, being generally put in a coffin of the very best wood and workmanship, while the cries and lamentations of his surviving friends, who sing a dirge, pierce the sky. The grave being filled up, and a green turf neatly spread over it, a couple of large gourds are put by the side, the one with water, the other with boiled fowls, pork, cassava, &c. as a libation, not from a superstitious notion, as some believe, that he will eat or drink it, but as a testimony of that regard which they have for his memory and ashes; while some even add the little furniture that he left behind, breaking it in pieces over the grave. This done, every one takes his last farewell, speaking to him as if alive, and testifying their sorrow at his departure; adding, that they hope to see him, not in Guinea, as some have written, but in that better place, where he now enjoys the pleasant company of his parents, friends, and ancestors; when another dismal yell ends the ceremony, and all return home. Next a fat hog being killed, with fowls, ducks, &c. a general feast is given by his friends to all the other negroes, which concludes not till the following day. The nearest connections and relations of the deceased, both male and female, now cut their hair[7] and shave their heads, round which having tied a dark blue handkerchief, they wear this mourning for a whole year; after which, once more visiting the grave, they offer a last libation, and taking their final farewell, another hog and fowls being killed, [[284]]the funeral rites are quite ended by a second feast, which finishes with a joyful dance, and songs in memory and praise of their dear departed friend or relation.
No people can more esteem or have a greater friendship for one another than the negro slaves; they appear to have unbounded enjoyment in each other’s company, and are not destitute of social amusements, such as the soesa, which consists in footing opposite to each other, and clapping with their hands upon their sides to keep in time. So very eager are they at this animating play, in which sometimes six or eight couple are engaged at once, that the violent exercise having been known to kill some of the negroes, it is forbidden by the magistrates at Paramaribo. Awaree is an innocent amusement, consisting in pitching with a large kind of marbles, in defect of which they use the awaree nuts or large pebbles.
The men also cudgel and wrestle; yet at this I think them inferior to either those of Cornwall or Devon. Most negroes are strong and active[8]. But swimming is their favourite diversion, which they practise every day at least twice or thrice, promiscuously, in groupes of boys and girls, like the Indians, when both sexes exhibit astonishing feats of courage, strength, and activity. I have not only seen a negro girl beat a hardy youth in swimming across the River Comewina (while I was one of the party) but on landing challenge him to run a two mile [[285]]race, and beat him again, naked as they were; while all ideas of shame on the one side, and of insult on the other, are totally unknown.—I shall now say something of their instrumental music and dancing. I have already mentioned the singing and the dancing of the Loango tribe in particular; and will now describe that practised by the other negro nations in general.
Their instruments of music, which are not a little ingenious, are all made by themselves, and consist of those represented in the annexed plate; where
No 1, which is called qua-qua, is a hard sounding-board, elevated on one side like a boot-jack, on which they beat time as on a drum, with two pieces of iron, or two bones.
No 2, is the kiemba-toetoe, or hollow reed, which is blown through the nostrils, like the nasal flute of Otaheite: it has but two holes, one at each end, the one serving to sound it, the other to be touched by the finger.
No 3, is the Ansokko-baina, which is a hard board, supported on both sides like a low seat, on which are placed small blocks of different sizes, which being struck with two small sticks like a dulcimer, give different sounds, that are not at all disagreeable.
No 4, is the great Creole drum, being a hollow tree, open at one end, and covered at the other with a sheep-skin, on which they sit astride, and so beat time with the palms of their hands; answering the effect of a bass-viol to the qua-qua board. [[286]]
No 5, is the great Loango drum, being covered at both ends, and serves the same purpose as a bass drum.
No 6, is the Papa drum, beaten as the others.
No 7, is the small Loango drum, beaten together with the great one.
No 8, the small Creole drum, for the same use.
No 9, is called coeroema; this is a wooden cup, ingeniously made, covered also with a sheep-skin, and beaten with two small rods or drum-sticks, after the manner of the qua-qua board.
No 10, is the Loango-bania. This I thought exceedingly curious, being a dry board, on which are laced, and kept down by a transverse bar, different sized elastic splinters of the palm-tree, like pieces of whalebone, in such a manner that both ends are elevated by two other bars that are fixed under them; and the above apparatus being placed on
No 11, which is a large empty callebash to promote the sound; the extremities of the splinters are snapt by the fingers, something in the manner of a piano-forte, when the music has a soft and very pleasing effect.
No 12, is called by the negroes saka-saka, being a hollow gourd, with a stick and handle fixed through it, and filled with small pebbles and pease, not unlike the magic shell of the Indians. This they hold above their heads, and while they dance rattle it to measure.
Musical Instruments of the African Negroes.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
No 13, is a conch, or sea-shell, which by blowing they [[287]]sound, for pleasure, or to cause an alarm, &c. but is not used as an accompaniment to dancing.
No 14, is called benta, being a branch bent like a bow by means of a slip of dry reed or warimbo; which cord, when held to the teeth, is beaten with a short stick, and by being shifted backwards and forwards sounds not unlike a jew’s-harp.
No 15, is the Creole-bania, this is like a mandoline or guitar, being made of a half gourd covered with a sheep-skin, to which is fixed a very long neck or handle. This instrument has but four strings, three long and one short, which is thick, and serves for a bass; it is played by the fingers, and has a very agreeable sound, but more so when accompanied by a song.
No 16, is the trumpet of war, to command advancing, retreating, &c. and is called by the negroes the too-too.
No 17, is a horn used to supply the place of the other, or on the plantations to call the slaves to work.
No 18, is the Loango too-too or flute, which they blow as the Europeans do, after the common way. It has but four holes for the fingers, and yet they make it produce a variety of sounds.—Such are the musical instruments of our African brethren, to which they dance with more spirit than we do to the best band in Europe.
To what I have stated, I will only add, that they always use full or half measure, but never triple time, in their dancing music, which is not unlike that of a baker’s [[288]]bunt, when he separates the flour from the bran, sounding tuckety-tuck and tuckety-tuck ad perpetuum. To this noise they dance with uncommon pleasure, and most times foot it away with great art and dexterity.
“Saltantes satiros imitabitur Alphisibœus.”
Every Saturday evening, the slaves who are well treated close the week with an entertainment of this kind, and generally once a quarter are indulged with a grand ball, to which the neighbouring slaves are invited; the master often contributing to their happiness by his presence, or at least by sending them a present of a few jugs of new rum.
At these grand balls the slaves are remarkably neat, the women appearing in their best chintz petticoats, and many of the men in fine Holland trowsers. So indefatigable are they at this diversion, that I have known the drums continue beating without intermission from six o’clock on Saturday night till the sun made its appearance on the Monday morning; thus had passed six-and-thirty hours in dancing, cheering, hallooing, and clapping of hands. The negroes dance always in couples, the men figuring and footing, while the women turn round like a top, their petticoats expanding like an umbrella; and this they call waey-cotto. During this, the by-standing youths fill about the liquor, while the girls encourage the performance, and wipe the sweat from the brows and sides of the unwearied musicians. [[289]]
It is indeed upon the whole astonishing to see with what good-nature and even good-manners these dancing societies are kept up, of which I repeat it they are so fond, that I have known a newly-imported negro, for want of a partner, figure and foot it for nearly the space of two hours, to his shadow against the wall.
If to what I have stated relative to negro slaves, when under a candid and humane master, we further add, their never being separated from each other; parents seeing their children around them, sometimes till the third and fourth generation, besides the confidence that they are all provided for to the end of their lives;—then if we draw the comparison between this class of people, and the numberless wretched objects that disgrace the streets of Europe, we can assuredly not call those Africans who fall under the above description—unhappy.
And now, to sum up all I have to say on the subject of slaves in the fewest words, for the sake of the reader, and also for my own, lest I should seem to contradict myself, by having so frequently animadverted on the shocking cruelties of some masters, and occasionally done justice to the humane and liberal dispositions of others, I beg leave to say one word more on the projected abolition.—Could we persuade all our commercial neighbours to join in that measure, the case would be different: but since I have seen cruelties exercised so commonly in Surinam, which I never heard of in the British islands, and from my certain observation have declared the soil [[290]]of that country to be so much more rich and productive than our West Indies, shall we not drive our planters from their worn-out lands, to settle on the more fertile spot, under a government which will allow a free importation of negroes, while our object (if we knew how to compass it) is to reduce an unlimited infliction of punishment, which indeed our planters have by their own laws most humanely restrained[9]?
Such is indeed the love and confidence of some planters for their slaves, that they often entrust their infants to a negro wet-nurse, in preference to an European, where both may be had; and such the attachment of some slaves to their masters, that I have known many refuse to accept of their emancipation, and even some, who had their liberty, voluntarily return to dependence. No one is perfectly free in this world, all mankind is depending upon one another—while I will beg leave to conclude this laborious chapter, by this general remark, that all sublunary happiness exists only in imagination, and may ever be obtained, where health of body and peace of mind are not crushed by despotic oppression. [[291]]
[1] This is well known to be the case with many other animals, as rabbits, mice, &c. that are perfectly white, to have their eyes blood-coloured. [↑]
[2] This tree grows to a considerable height and thickness, very straight, and covered with a strong grey prickly bark. The boughs spread very much, with small digitated leaves. The cotton, which it produces triennally, is neither white nor plentiful, which, makes it little sought after. It bears some resemblance to the British oak, the largest of which it surpasses both in elegance and magnitude. [↑]
[3] This creature is from three to five feet long, and perfectly harmless; it has not the least apprehension of being hurt even by man; while the unparalleled brilliancy of its colours may be another inducement for the adoration of the negroes. [↑]
[4] See the 58th Psalm, ver. 4, and 5: “They are like the deaf adder, that stoppeth her ear; which will not hearken to the voice of charmers, charming never so wisely.”—Jerem. chap. viii. ver. 17,—and the Book of Ecclesiastes, chap. x. ver. 11, &c. [↑]
[5] It is a well-known fact, that a negro, having been ill-treated by the family in which he lived as a servant, one day took the following desperate revenge:—The master and mistress being from home, he, having locked all the doors, at their return presented himself with their three fine children on the platform on the top of the house. When asked why he did not give admittance, he only answered by throwing an infant baby to the ground: they threatened—he tossed down the brother: they intreated, but to no purpose, the third sharing the same fate, who all lay dead at their parents’ feet—then calling out to them that he was now fully revenged, leaped down himself, and dashed out his own brains amongst the amazed spectators.——Another stabbed the inoffensive husband to be revenged on the guilty wife; declaring, that to kill herself was only temporary, but to lose all that was dear to her must be eternal bitterness, while to himself it was the sweetest satisfaction. [↑]
[6] After the most scrupulous enquiry, and even ocular demonstration, I can assert the above as literally true. [↑]
[7] We are told Job did the same. [↑]
[8] Witness Jas Jackson, the equestrian rider, London, &c. [↑]
[9] By a law passed in the council of Jamaica, the punishment of a negro is usually limited to twelve lashes, but never exceeding thirty-nine. In Surinam I have known two hundred inflicted on a female; and was once the unfortunate occasion of seeing it immediately repeated. (See Plate XXXV. Vol. I.) [↑]
CHAP. XXVII.
The Rape of the Sabines—Shocking Execution, and African Fortitude—Description of an Indigo Plantation—The Spanso Bocko, a Punishment—The Troops again re-enter the Woods—The Expedition draws to a Conclusion.
Notwithstanding the successive defeats and repeated distresses of the rebels, news was brought to Paramaribo, on the 12th of August, that they had fallen upon the estate Bergendal, or the Blue Bergh, which is also called Mount Parnassus, situated in the higher parts of the River Surinam, and carried away all the black women, although a military post was stationed near the above place, but without committing any kind of cruelty, as too generally had been their custom. Upon this intelligence a party of the rangers was instantly detached thither to assist in pursuing them; and about this same time the long-projected cordon, or path of circumvallation round the colony, was also began to be cut, by seven hundred negro slaves; which path was henceforth to be manned with military piquets at proper distances, to defend the estates against any farther invasions from without, and to prevent desertion to the enemy from within.
Mount Parnassus, which was the scene of the late rape of the Sabines, is situated on the west side of the River [[292]]Surinam, distant from Paramaribo, if we include the windings of the river, above one hundred miles; and as the situation is pleasant, I present the reader with a view of it, in the plate annexed, as also of the village, called the Jews Savannah, which is distant from town, in a straight line, something more than forty, but by water above sixty English miles. Here the Jews have a beautiful synagogue, and keep their solemn fasts and festivals; here they also have their capital schools and seminaries, for at this village reside some very respectable Jewish families. These people possess particular rights and privileges in this colony, with which they were endowed by King Charles the Second, when the settlement of Surinam was English; and such are these privileges I never knew Jews to possess in any other part of the world whatever.
From Paramaribo, or rather from the fortress New Amsterdam, the River Surinam, like those of Cottica and Comawina, is beautifully bordered with sugar and coffee plantations, as are also several creeks or small rivers that communicate with it; such as the Pawlus, the Para, the Cropina, and the Pararac creeks; but above Mount Parnassus not a single estate, that may be so called, is to be found; neither is the river any longer navigable, even for small craft, on account of the prodigious rocks, and cascades or water-falls, with which it is obstructed as it winds through excessively high mountains and an impenetrable forest. While therefore they form an enchantingly romantic scene to the eye, these natural bulwarks [[293]]prevent the possessors of the colony from making such discoveries as might perhaps reward their labour with very considerable riches.
View of the Settlement called the Jew’s Savannah.
View of the Blue Bergh called Mount Parnassus.
London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
If, as I have just mentioned, cruelties were become less common in the rivers by the rebels, barbarities still continued in a shocking degree in the metropolis; where my ears were deafened with the clang of the whip, and the shrieks of the negroes. Among the most eminent of these tyrants was a Miss Sp—n, who lived next door to Mr. de Graav, and who I saw with horror from my window give orders that a young black woman should be flogged principally across the breasts, at which she seemed to enjoy peculiar satisfaction. To dissipate the impression this scene had left on my mind, I got into a whiskey, and rode out; when the first thing I saw was a negro girl fall naked from a garret window on a heap of broken bottles: this was indeed an accident, but she was so mangled, though not dead, that she exhibited a spectacle nearly as wretched as the other.—Cursing my unlucky fate, I turned the horses, and drove to the beach, as the only place to avoid every scene of cruelty and misery; but here I had the mortification to see two Philadelphia sailors (while they were fighting on the forecastle of their vessel) both fall over the ship’s bow into the stream, where they sunk, and were no more seen. On board another American brig, I discovered a little tar defending himself from the cross-trees with a hatchet, against a serjeant and four armed men, for a considerable time; till they threatening [[294]]to shoot him out of the rigging, he at last surrendered, and being brought ashore, was dragged to fort Zelandia, in company with two others, by a file of musketeers, where, for having been drunk on duty, they received a fire-cant each, at the captain’s request; that is, they were bastinadoed or beaten on the shoulders by two corporals with bamboo canes, till their backs were black, and swelled like a cushion. However arbitrary this mode of correction, the captain endeavoured to explain the necessity of it; the private American sailors being of a turbulent spirit indeed when drunk, although when sober they may be fairly classed among the best seamen in the world.
Early the next morning, while musing on all the different dangers and chastisements to which the lower class of people are exposed, I heard a crowd pass under my window. Curiosity made me start up, dress in a hurry, and follow them: when I discovered three negroes in chains, surrounded by a guard, going to be executed in the savannah. Their undaunted look, however averse I may be to the sight of cruelties, so attracted my attention, as to determine me to see the result, which was thus:—The sentence being read in Low Dutch (which they did not understand) one was condemned to be flogged below the gallows, and his accomplice to have his head struck off with an ax, for having shot a slave who had come to steal plantains on the estate of his mistress. The truth however was, that this had been done by that lady’s absolute command; but the murder being [[295]]discovered, she, in the hopes of saving her character, besides the expence of paying the penalties, gave up her valuable slave, and permitted the unhappy man to be thus sacrificed. He laid his head upon the block with great indifference, stretching out his neck; when, with one blow of the ax, it was severed from his body.
The third negro, whose name was Neptune, was no slave, but his own master, and a carpenter by trade; he was young and handsome, but having killed the overseer of the estate Altona, in the Para Creek, in consequence of some dispute, he justly forfeited his life. The particulars, however, are worth relating: This man having stolen a sheep, to entertain a favourite young woman, the overseer, who burnt with jealousy, had determined to see him hanged; to prevent which, the negro shot him dead among the sugar-canes; for these offences of course he was sentenced to be broken alive upon the rack, without the benefit of the coup de grace or mercy-stroke. Informed of the dreadful sentence, he composedly laid himself down on his back on a strong cross, on which, with arms and legs expanded, he was fastened by ropes: the executioner, also a black man, having now with a hatchet chopped off his left hand, next took up a heavy iron bar, with which, by repeated blows, he broke his bones to shivers, till the marrow, blood, and splinters flew about the field; but the prisoner never uttered a groan nor a sigh. The ropes being next unlashed, I imagined him dead, and felt happy; till the magistrates [[296]]stirring to depart, he writhed himself from the cross, when he fell on the grass, and damned them all, as a set of barbarous rascals; at the same time removing his right hand by the help of his teeth, he rested his head on part of the timber, and asked the by-standers for a pipe of tobacco, which was infamously answered by kicking and spitting on him; till I, with some American seamen, thought proper to prevent it. He then begged that his head might be chopped off; but to no purpose. At last, seeing no end to his misery, he declared, “that though he had deserved death, he had not expected to die so many deaths: however, (said he) you christians have missed your aim at last, and I now care not, were I to remain thus one month longer.” After which he sung two extempore songs (with a clear voice) the subjects of which were, to bid adieu to his living friends, and to acquaint his deceased relations that in a very little time he should be with them, to enjoy their company for ever in a better place. This done, he calmly entered into conversation with some gentlemen concerning his trial; relating every particular with uncommon tranquillity—“But,” said he abruptly, “by the sun it must be eight o’clock; and by any longer discourse I should be sorry to be the cause of your losing your breakfast.” Then, casting his eyes on a Jew, whose name was De Vries, “A-propos, sir,” said he, “won’t you please to pay me the ten shillings you owe me?”—“For what to do?”—“To buy meat and drink, to be sure—don’t you perceive I am [[297]]to be kept alive?” Which speech, on seeing the Jew stare like a fool, this mangled wretch accompanied with a loud and hearty laugh. Next, observing the soldier that stood sentinel over him biting occasionally on a piece of dry bread, he asked him “how it came to pass, that he, a white man, should have no meat to eat along with it?”—“Because I am not so rich,” answered the soldier.—“Then I will make you a present, sir,” said the negro; “first, pick my hand that was chopped off clean to the bones, next begin to devour my body, till you are glutted; when you will have both bread and meat, as best becomes you;”—which piece of humour was followed by a second laugh; and thus he continued, until I left him, which was about three hours after the dreadful execution.
The Execution of Breaking on the Rack.
London, Published Decr. 2d, 1793, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.
Wonderful it is indeed, that human nature should be able to endure so much torture, which assuredly could only be supported by a mixture of rage, contempt, pride, and the glory of braving his tormentors, from whom he was so soon to escape[1].
Though I never recal to my remembrance, without the most painful sensation, this horrid scene, which must revolt the feelings of all who have one spark of humanity, I cannot forbear exhibiting to the public the dreadful spectacle in the annexed drawing. If the reader, [[298]]however, should be offended with this shocking exhibition, and my dwelling so long on this unpleasant subject, let it be some relief to his reflection, to consider this punishment not inflicted as a wanton and unprovoked act of cruelty, but as the extreme severity of the Surinam laws, on a desperate wretch, suffering as an example to others for complicated crimes; while at the same time it cannot but give me, and I hope many others, some consolation to reflect that the above barbarous mode of punishment was hitherto never put in practice in the British colonies.
I must now relate an incident, which, as it had a momentary effect on my imagination, might have had a lasting one on some who had not investigated the real cause of it, and which it gave me no small satisfaction to discover. About three in the afternoon, walking towards the place of execution, with my thoughts full of the affecting scene, and the image of the sufferer fresh in my mind, the first object I saw was his head at some distance, placed on a stake, nodding to me backwards and forwards, as if he had really been alive. I instantly stopped short, and seeing no person in the savannah, nor a breath of wind sufficient to move a leaf or a feather, I acknowledge that I was rivetted to the ground, where I stood without having the resolution of advancing one step for some time; till reflecting that I must be weak indeed not to approach this dead skull, and find out the wonderful phenomenon, if possible, I boldly walked up, and instantly discovered the natural cause, by the return of a vulture to the gallows, [[299]]who perched upon it, as if he meant to dispute with me for this feast of carrion; which bird, having already picked out one of the eyes, had fled at my first approach, and striking the skull with his talons, as he took his sudden flight, occasioned the motion already described. I shall now only add, that this poor wretch, after living near six hours, had been knocked on the head by the commiserating sentinel, the marks of whose musket were perfectly visible by a large open fracture in the skull.
Vultures are compared by some to the eagle, though those of Surinam possess very opposite qualities. They are indeed birds of prey, but instead of feeding on what they kill, like the other noble animal, their chief pursuit is carrion; wherefore they generally resort to burial-grounds and places of execution, which they discover by their very acute smell, so much so, that by the negroes they are called tingee-fowlo, or the stinking bird. The Guiana vultures are the size of a common turkey; they are of a dark-grey colour, with black wings and tail; the bill is straight with a crooked point, and very strong; the tongue is cloven, the neck without feathers, and the legs very short. Besides carrion, these birds will often destroy and eat serpents, and indeed every thing that comes in their way, until they are so much gorged that they can hardly fly.
The bird called the king of the vultures is not very common in Surinam, though sometimes the Indians bring one or two to Paramaribo for sale, on account of its great [[300]]beauty. This is larger than any turkey-cock, with a naked head and neck, the skin of which is partly brown, yellow, and scarlet: round its neck it has a dusky, long, feathered collar, in which it can at pleasure withdraw, and so far hide its neck, that nothing but part of the head is perceptible. This bird likewise feeds on carrion, serpents, rats, toads, and even excrements.
Among the other birds of prey in the forest of Surinam, is found the crested eagle. This is a very fierce bird, and also very strong; the back is black, but yellowish at the base; the breast and belly white, with black spots, as are its thighs, and even the feathers of its legs; the rest of the body is entirely brown, and the claws perfectly yellow. The head of this bird is flat, ornamented with four feathers, two long and two short, which it can erect or depress at pleasure.
About this time the Hind, an English frigate, with her tender, were on the coast, looking out for American prizes.
The 24th, being the Prince of Orange’s birth-day, the whole corps of officers were entertained with salt beef, salt pork, barley puddings, and hard pease, by Colonel Fourgeoud. And this day (poor Joanna being inflexible in her resolutions) I ratified the agreement with the good Mrs. Godefroy, in presence of her mother and other relations, whereby the above lady bound herself “never to part with her, except to myself alone, as long as she lived; and that upon her death, not only her full liberty, [[301]]but a spot of ground for cultivation, besides a neat house built upon it, should be her portion for ever, to dispose of as she pleased.” After this she returned my remaining bond of 900 florins, and gave Joanna a purse with gold containing near twenty ducats, besides a couple of pieces of East India chintz, advising me at the same time “to give in a request to the court for little Johnny’s immediate manumission; which,” she observed, “was a necessary form, whether I should be able to obtain the bail usually required or not; and without which formality, even if I had the bail ready to appear, nothing would be done in the course of business.”
Having both of us thanked this most excellent woman, I went to sup with the Governor, where being transported with joy, I gave him my request in full form, which he coolly put in his pocket with one hand, while he gave me a hearty squeeze with the other; and shaking his head, told me frankly, “that he would lay it before the court; but at the same time was perfectly convinced my boy must die a slave, unless I could find the necessary bail, which he was at the same time well persuaded very few people would wish to appear for.” Thus, after spending so much time and labour, besides the expence of above a hundred guineas already paid, I had still the inexpressible mortification to see this dear little fellow, of whom I was both the father and the master, exposed to perhaps eternal servitude; as for Joanna, she was now perfectly safe, to my heartfelt satisfaction. [[302]]
One consolation, however, in the midst of this disappointment, most opportunely presented itself. The famous negro, Graman-Qwacy, formerly mentioned, who was just returned from Holland, brought the news, that partly by his interest a new law was there enacted, by which all slaves were to be free six months after their landing at the Texel; which, indeed, on application of their masters, might be extended to twelve, but not a single day longer on any account whatsoever.—Thus being persuaded that I should one day joyfully carry both him and his mother over the Atlantic, my heart was greatly relieved.
Of this Graman-Qwacy I will beg leave to give a short account, before I take farewell of the reader. Suffice it for the present to say, that the Prince of Orange, besides paying his out and homeward passage, and giving him several presents, sent him back to Surinam dressed in a suit of blue and scarlet, trimmed over with broad gold lace: on his hat he wore a white feather, and looked upon the whole not unlike one of the Dutch generals; which goodness made this king of the negroes, however, very proud, and even frequently very saucy.
On the 25th, the Governor of the colony gave a very sumptuous feast to several of his friends at his indigo-plantation, which was situated but a few miles at the back of his palace, where I had the honour to be invited as one of the party, and had the pleasure of inspecting the [[303]]process of making indigo, a detail of which will probably be acceptable.
In the first place, therefore, I shall present the curious with a drawing of the indigo plant, which is a knotty shrub produced from seed, which grows to about two feet from the ground, and comes to perfection in the space of two months. This plant requires a very rich soil, which besides ought to be kept perfectly clean from weeds. In the plate, A is the colour of the sprig; B, the leaves above; C, the same below; D, the seed inclosed in small brown pods; E, the size of the leaf as it grows; F, a piece of indigo ready made for use. The above sprig was designed from nature on the spot, but on a small scale: it has something the appearance of the tamarind branch, principally in the size of the leaf, which also grows in pairs, and is darker above than below; but at the extremity of each shoot in this shrub, one leaf grows single, which is not the case in the other. The young shoot in the tamarind-trees also appears at the extremity of the branches; but in this they spring forth, as may be seen, from the base.
The mode in which this plant is converted into indigo is as follows:—When all the verdure is cut off, the whole crop is tied in bunches, and put into a very large tub with water, covered over with very heavy logs of wood by way of pressers: thus kept, it begins to ferment; in less than eighteen hours the water seems to boil, and becomes of a violet or garter blue colour, extracting all the grain or colouring matter from [[304]]the plant: in this situation the liquor is drawn off into another tub, which is something less, when the remaining trash is carefully picked up and thrown away; and the very noxious smell of this refuse it is that occasions the peculiar unhealthiness which is always incident to this business. Being now in the second tub, the mash is agitated by paddles adapted for the purpose, till by a skilful maceration all the grain separates from the water, the first sinking like mud to the bottom, while the latter appears clear and transparent on the surface: this water, being carefully removed till near the coloured mass, the remaining liquor is drawn off into a third tub, to let what indigo it may contain also settle in the bottom; after which, the last drops of water here being also removed, the sediment or indigo is put into proper vessels to dry, where being divested of its last remaining moisture, and formed into small, round, and oblong square pieces, it is become a beautiful dark blue, and fit for exportation. The best indigo ought to be light, hard, and sparkling. In Surinam but little of it is cultivated, for what reason I know not, since one pound is sold for about four florins, which is about seven shillings in sterling money.
Sprig of the Indigo Plant.