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 TRANSATLANTIC SKETCHES, 
 
 COMPRISING 
 
 VISITS TO THE MOST INTERESTING SCENES 
 
 NORTH AND SOUTH AMERICA, 
 
 THE WEST INDIES. 
 
 WITH NOTES 
 ON NEGRO SLAVERY AND CANADIAN EMKjiRATION. 
 
 BY CAPT. J. E. ALEXANDER, 
 
 42jD ROYAL HIGnL ANDERS. 
 
 F.R.G.S. M.R.A.S. ETC. AUTHOR ot TRAVELS IN AVA, PERSIA, ETC. 
 
 PHILADELPHI4 : 
 
 KEY AND BIDDLE, 23 MINOR STREET, 
 
 18 3 3. 
 
m 
 
 -m 
 
 RUSSELL AND MAUTIEN, PRINTEIIS. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 In submitting these Sketches of Voyages and Travels in the 
 Western Hemisphere to the public, I beg to state the reasons 
 why I undertook them, and also to furnish an outline of the route 
 which I followed, in order that the reader may clearly under- 
 stand the nature of the work which he may think it worth his 
 while fo peruse. 
 
 In the beginning of 1831, being unattached to any regiment, 
 ind having already visited may parts of the Old World, I deter- 
 mined on an expedition to the New, previous to returning to full 
 p^y. I communicated my intention to the Secretary of the Royal 
 Geographical Society, and to other literary and scientific indi- 
 viduals, and volunteered to execute commissions for them in 
 America or the West Indies. I thus obtained a series of inter- 
 rogatories to answer, and in collecting information for myself, 
 had my attention directed to other matters of great interest, 
 which I might otherwise have omitted to notice. 
 
IV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Having provided myself with introductions for the various 
 places I intended to visit, I sailed from the Port of London for 
 South America, and in due time arrived at Slabroek. I spent 
 some time among the planters of the coast of Guiana, and made 
 inquiries into the state of slavery, and the present condition 
 and future prospects of this valuable colony. I also penetra- 
 ted into the interior, and saw Indian life on the banks of the 
 mighty streams which descend from the Andes, and under 
 the shade of the primeval forest almost untrodden by the foot 
 of the European. I collected in " the Bush" many particu- 
 lars regarding the wandering tribes in the South American 
 wilderness, and paid some attention to the animate and inani- 
 mate productions in general, which are here so different from 
 those of the Eastern hemisphere. I have condensed my in- 
 formation on these subjects as much as possible, and rendered 
 it in, I hope, a popular form. As my sojourn on the great 
 continent daily furnished me with something novel and inte- 
 resting, I have endeavoured to make my readers participate 
 in the pleasures I enjoyed. 
 
 I next steered for Barbadoes, made the tour of that ancient 
 settlement, and have furnished an account of the late dreadful 
 hurricane which swept across it with destruction on its wings. 
 
 I then visited in succession Tobago, the scene of the ship- 
 wreck and hermitage of the celebrated Robinson Crusoe; Trini- 
 dad, a most valuable island, but whose capabilities have been 
 as yet very partially developed; Grenada, that gem of the ocean, 
 the most beautiful of the Antilles; St. Vincent, with scenery 
 of the most sublime and magnificent character, and distin- 
 
iNTRODtrCTION. V 
 
 guished by a souffriere or volcano; and Jamaica, with it sblue 
 mountains, fertile savannahs, and deadly lagoons. 
 
 Whilst voyaging among the British West India Islands, the 
 reader will be furnished with the state of society and manners 
 among the Antilles. Military matters will be discussed, and 
 the condition of the negroes inquired into, about whom the 
 philanthropic in England take such interest; their condition 
 under British masters will also be noticed and compared with 
 that under other proprietors of negroes, _on_wliicli subject the 
 writer was sworn to give evidence at the bar of the House of 
 Lords. Having the honour and prosperity of our native land 
 at heart, an endeavour is made to show the value of our 
 Western intertropical possessions; — possessions, to obtain which 
 the blood of our bravest countrymen has been shed, and their 
 bones lie thickly strewn beside those of the rivals they dis- 
 placed. 
 
 One fact may be here mentioned: so far back as the year 
 1828, the value of the imports from the British West Indies 
 into Great Britain was £8,908,672. From the East Indies 
 and China the same year, £8,348,767. The exports to the 
 former £4,049,856, to the latter £6,388,330. 
 
 From Jamaica I sailed in a frigate for that splendid posses- 
 sion of Spain, Cuba. I there visited the tomb of the great 
 Columbus, and during my residence in Havannah, and in the 
 country, saw many strange sights and heard many strange 
 tales, which are faithfully recorded, 
 
VI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 I next sailed in a Spanish vessel for New Orleans, or " the 
 Wet Grave," and arrived there during the sickly season. 
 Whilst I was detained amongst the cane-brakes and cypress 
 swamps of Louisiana, I collected some information regarding 
 the neighbouring territory of Texas, which the reader will fmd 
 to be the garden of North America. 
 
 From New Orleans I sailed up the Mississippi, and, after 
 several adventures, some of a grave, and others of a ludicrous 
 nature, I arrived at Memphis; from thence I journeyed as a 
 sailor, partly on foot and partly in wagons, through the back 
 woods of Tennessee and Kentucky, to Louisville, at the Falls 
 of Ohio. 
 
 I next proceeded up the <' Queen of Rivers," the Ohio, by 
 Cincinnati to Wheeling, in Virginia ; then crossed to Lake 
 Erie, whence I went to Buffaloc, and saw the glories of Nia- 
 gara. I then crossed Lake Ontario to York, Upper Canada; 
 was present at a distribution of presents to Indians; then went 
 to Kingston. I thence proceeded, by the Lake of the Thou- 
 sand Isles, to the Ottawa, which I ascended to Bytown, on 
 the Rideau Canal, of which, and of the Welland Canal, a 
 
 I next descended the Ottawa, by the Rapids of St. Anne, to 
 Montreal, and then embarked on the St. Lawrence, for Quebec. 
 There I obtained information regarding the condition of the Cana- 
 dian emigrants; and, after visiting various interesting scenes in 
 the neighbourhood of the Canadian capital, arrived at New York, 
 by Lake Champlain, and the noble Hudson. 
 
INTRODUCTION. Vll 
 
 I then journeyed to Washington, by Philadelphia and Balti- 
 more, to see Congress opened, and had the honour of several 
 interviews with the President of the United States, General 
 Jackson. I returned to New York, and visited the Military 
 Academy at West Point, and the old and agreeable city of Boston; 
 finally, I embarked for Liverpool. 
 
 Perhaps, I ought not to confess that these volumes were 
 written, and about sixteen thousand miles were traversed, (in the 
 spirit of the motto of my people,) 
 
 " Per mare, per terrain." 
 
 by flood and field, in the space of a twelvemonth. Some will 
 exciaiiii, " What solid information can we expect from one who 
 hurries over so extensive a range of travel ?" To this I answer, 
 that I had very quick voyages to and from the New World, 
 To South America, three weeksj from North America, sixteen 
 days; and I was equally fortunate among the West India Islands, 
 I halted a month, a fortnight, or three days, at various places, 
 according to circumstances, and my observation being con- 
 tinually on the alert, I did all in my power to make up for the 
 want of a longer acquaintance with the people and scenes I have 
 attempted to describe. I therefore trust that I shall not be 
 censured for venturing to put forth these tomes. 
 
 J. E. A. 
 
 Berwick Barracks, 
 April 1833, 
 
TRANSATLANTIC SKETCHES. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Embark in a ship bound for South America. — Reflections on leaving England. — 
 Pleasing anticipations. — The General Harris East Indiaman. — Deal boatmen. — 
 Sail down Channel. — A wreck. — Awful catastrophe. — Custom-house regulations. — 
 The solitude of a ship highly beneficial. — A rattling breeze. — Reconnoitered by a 
 suspicious looking vessel. — The Elysian climate of Madeira. — Nautical supersti- 
 tions. — A night scene. — The Gulf stream. — The great Columbus and the sea 
 weed. — Tropical showers. — The Coast of Guiana. — Nearly run aground. — A black 
 Pilot. — The Essequibo River. — Appearance of Stabroek. 
 
 On a bright and balmy morning, the face of Nature smiling un- 
 der the mild influence of a vernal sun (in 1831,) I sailed down 
 the Thames to join the good ship Thomas King, James William- 
 son, R. N. Commander, bound for British Guiana, South Ame- 
 rica. 
 
 Having been so long a wanderer, the pang of leaving my father- 
 land was not severe, still a train of melancholy reflections intrud- 
 ed itself on my mind on again embarking on the changeful deep ; 
 I was leaving valued friends, many of whom it perhaps might 
 never be my lot to see in life again, and England ere long might 
 again be engaged in stirring warfare, and there might be scenes of 
 high excitement on the Continent of Europe, whilst I was about 
 to separate myself from them, and to plunge into the wilds of 
 America. 
 
 The Old World which I was leaving was rich in the pleasures 
 of memory, the New in the pleasures of hope and of anticipation; 
 in the former had been enacted glorious deeds, and the great men 
 of the earth had there earned an imperishable fame. The treasures 
 of ages were there accumulated, and the imposing monuments of 
 antiquity, the majestic cathedral, and the baronial castle, all bore 
 the impress of matured civilization, and of "the shadowy gran- 
 ,deur of the past." In America I was about to see Nature in her 
 pristine vigour, the virgin soil bursting with fertihty and abun- 
 dancej the mountains, lakes, and rivers, on ascale of magnificence 
 B 
 
10 PLEASING ANTICIPATIONS — DEAL BOATMEN. 
 
 far surpassing that of Europe; and her endless forests, many of 
 them nearly impenetrable and trackless from the wild luxuriance 
 and rankness of the vegetation. There was risk and uncertainty 
 before me, but mingled with many pleasing anticipations. 
 
 The ship lay a day at Gravesend, and a solitary stroll in Kent 
 was particularly interesting to one leaving his country, even for a 
 short season. The trees and hedge-rows were just beginning to 
 assume their verdant liveries; the spring birds were coyly wooing 
 their mates, and the villagers were busily employed in their gar- 
 dens; all around " Hope told a flattering tale," and gave promise 
 of abundance and plenty in the forthcoming autumn. 
 
 An Indiaman of the first class passed up the river between two 
 steam vessels, and I recognised in her the old General Harris, 
 which ten years before had borne thirty-six beardless youths be- 
 sides myself to '< the land of the sun." Over the bones of many of 
 these, who with me left England full of life and high in hope, the 
 sands of the Carnatic are now drifting, or the rank grass of the 
 Deccan waving over their early graves. 
 
 Whilst we lay at Deal, many boatmen came off to supply us with 
 sea stores. They seemed anxious for another war; for since the last, 
 their circumstances had been daily declining. No "free trade" 
 now; little smuggling, and no carrying of specie to the opposite 
 coast. Fortunes they had made, but these they had squandered by 
 imprudently investing their funds in ships and foreign stock; and 
 penury was now the lot of hundreds of these hardy seamen. 
 
 On leaving the Downs, myself the only passenger besides a 
 Master Lewis, we had heavy rain: this is considered a good 
 omen by mariners, and so it proved, for a favouring gale filled our 
 canvass, and we quickly passed the white cliffs on the coast of 
 Kent — how often gazed on with eyes moist with the salt tear of 
 both joy and sorrow ! 
 
 We had got about half way down Channel, when a wine cask 
 floated past us, followed by a dozen others, besides spars and 
 pieces of wreck. Finally a large vessel keel upwards, appeared 
 on the swell of the merciless deep, apparently a French ship, re- 
 cently wrecked. It was a most melancholy sight; the black hull 
 of the noble vessel, with the white crested waves dashing over it, 
 at one time was buried in foam, then it rose above the billows, and 
 showed its dark length. Most probably the crew had met with a 
 watery grave, for she seemed to have been run down. To what 
 painful reflections did not this give rise; the thick channel fog 
 causing the steersman to look round in perplexity, in dread, and 
 in continual apprehension of disaster. Suddenly a black cross ap- 
 pears towering above him — it is the foretop-gallant-mast of a large 
 ship ; the lower stratum of the dense vapour is rolled aside by the 
 
A WRECK SOLITUDE OF A SHIP BENEFICIAL. 11 
 
 broad bows, and rising fearfully on a mountain wave, she crashes 
 over the frail and sinking wreck, and hurries on her course with 
 the blast which bears after her the shrieks of the drowning crew, 
 
 " Then all is hushed, 
 Save the wild wind and the remorseless dash 
 Of billows." 
 
 The Custom-house regulations requiring wine and spirits picked 
 up at sea to be surrendered, our captain did not wait to secure any 
 of the casks floating so temptingly round us, but philosophically 
 bore away from them, and ere long we bade adieu to the last ves- 
 tige of England, the Lizard light. 
 
 Few contrasts are so great as that of one day moving in the 
 midst of a bustling crowd, madly pursuing pleasure and gain, and 
 the next finding oneself alone, and without companions on the 
 ocean ; few situations are so beneficial to the mind and heart, and 
 few so well calculated to fit man for fulfilling his various duties in 
 life, as quitting for a while the tumultuous scenes of a metropolis, 
 with its noisy enjoyments on one hand, and squalid misery and 
 heart-rending distress on the other, and seeking for a while repose 
 in the "solitude of retirement." 
 
 On the silent mountain's side, in the depths of forests, or 
 whilst navigating the great waters, the mind may regenerate 
 itself, and, freed from the artificial atmosphere in which it 
 may have existed, it has then opportunity for reflection on 
 by-gone scenes, on successful projects, or on hopes blighted ; 
 has then a chance of gathering wisdom from experience, can then 
 look inwardly with a rigid self-examination, and firmly resolve 
 on future well-doing. 
 
 So far from feeling melancholy or ennui during the voyage to 
 South America, it was the source of the greatest satisfaction to 
 me, and let no man delay or abandon an expedition for want of a 
 companion; if pleasure only is sought, companions are indispen- 
 sable, but on a journey to acquire information, they are quite un- 
 necessary. With books, and as many resources as possible with- 
 in himself, the solitary voyager* may hold on his way with a 
 cheerful spirit, and taste the joys of an Eden easily created in 
 his own breast. 
 
 'We stood away towards Madeira with a nine-knot breeze, and 
 a very heavy sea running; and though we shipped a good deal 
 of water over the bows, yet the captain was determined to 
 make a quick passage, ''cracked on" all the canvass our tight 
 little bark could bear, and more; for she was borne down on her 
 beam ends, and seemed frequently on the verge of upsetting; 
 with all this we made about seven hundred miles in three days, 
 
12 ELYSIAN CLIMATE OP MADEIRA. 
 
 and rushed onward through the seas crested with white and 
 sparkling foam. 
 
 Along the coasts of Spain and Portugal we saw some ships, 
 most of them appearing specks in the distant horizon, but after 
 we passed the latitude of Gibraltar, we had the vast expanse of 
 the Atlantic to ourselves. Two little birds of the finch genus re- 
 mained on board as long as the blowing weather continued, but 
 left us when we got into summer seas; and with the exception of 
 a shoal or two of porpoises, no living thing came near us during 
 the voyage. 
 
 One of the above vessels caused some speculation; the reason 
 was this — seeing us steering towards her, she clewed up her 
 mainsail, and backed her mizen-topsail, and lay across our bows 
 at the distance of a mile and a half; she was a rakish looking 
 man of war or pirate, corvette size, and as she rose on the swell, 
 she showed a straight sheer and broad tier of ports; we had only 
 two carronades on board, and should have fallen an easy prize to 
 her, and she certainly had a most suspicious look. She closely 
 reconnoitered us as we approached, and up went a tri-coloured 
 flag at her peak over a white and red ensign in four horizontal 
 stripes; she backed and filled for a time, seemingly undecided 
 how to act, but at last set her mainsail, and stood away to the 
 north-east. 
 
 What an Elysian climate is experienced in the latitude of that 
 last resort and faint hope of the worn-out invalid — Madeira! 
 How bright the sky, and how gentle and soothing blows the trade 
 w^ind near that favoured shore! "Fortunata Insula!" but how 
 painful it is to reflect on the many hundred fair forms and brave 
 spirits who have been compelled to seek its climate to avert for a 
 time the stroke of the fell tyrant — Death! How few with reno- 
 vated constitutions have been permitted to revisit their father- 
 land! Our captain had frequently taken out passengers to Ma- 
 diera; young women adorned with every personal grace and 
 highly cultivated minds, but on whose cheek was painted the 
 fatal hectic flush; and young men, ornaments to their professions, 
 but afflicted with a sepulchral cough, which told too plainly that 
 their days were numbered, and that they were shortly to repose 
 in the shade of the myrtles of the Funchal cemetery. 
 
 " The genius of the isle that showers 
 His germs of fruits, his fairest flowers, 
 Hath cast his robes of vernal bloom 
 In guardian fondness o'er their tomb." 
 
 In the evening, when the ship was under easy sail, a few of 
 the hands would sit in a group in the waist, and as usual tell their 
 
NAUTICAL SUPERSTITIONS — NIGHT SCENE. 13 
 
 favourite ghost stories. It is vvoiulerful what superstition t.iere 
 is among seamen, and how easily they are frightened with any 
 thing that savours of the supernatural; sometimes they are so ex- 
 cited by tales of terror that they are afraid to look roimd, to 
 leave the group, or to go to their berths. I made a small collec- 
 tion of naval anecdotes of the above stamp, one may serve as a 
 specimen of the whole. 
 
 A ship wassailing in the North Sea, and black clouds hurrying 
 across the welkin, and collecting in heavy masses, indicated to 
 the careful commander that a storm was brewing aloft; the haul- 
 yards were let go preparatory to reefing the topsails, but the 
 main-topsail-yard would not come down on the cap, and two 
 hands were sent up to "overhaul the tie;" they had just got into 
 the main-top, when a coffin tumbled out of it, and fell on the 
 quarter-deck. The captain immediately went to his cabin, loaded 
 his pistols, called the hands aft, and ordered them to touch the 
 coffin in succession; the two men who had gone aloft were the 
 last to do so, but when they approached the bier, blood flowed 
 from it, they confessed a murder, the coffin disappeared in a flash 
 of fire, and the criminals were placed in irons, landed, and in due 
 course hanged. 
 
 Poets sigh for "a lodge in some vast wilderness," and truly they 
 might have found it in our quiet ship, as she pursued her lonely 
 way over the Atlantic. Of an evening, after sitting for hours 
 holding sweet converse with a favourite author under the cabin 
 lamp swinging overhead, and every sound hushed in the vessel, 
 except the monotonous creaking of the timbers joining in chorus 
 with the rush of the billows as we bounded over the deep, I would 
 change the scene and stroll on deck: solitude was also there ; the 
 watch (by permission) was asleep under the booms, the helmsman 
 plied his silent task, the clouds rolling on the easy gale across the 
 face of the "gentle moon," occasionally obscured her disk, and 
 then permitted her to send a broad beam of light over the ocean, 
 and to illuminate our canvass, and cause us to move " in glory and 
 in joy" over the dark waters. 
 
 Theeasterly wind bore us within the influence of the gulf stream, 
 where branches of sea weed continually floated past us, some fresh 
 and green, others yellow and withered, as if they had long been 
 torn from their bed, about the situation of which the scientific are 
 so divided in opinion ; but as these " Sketches" are intended for 
 the general reader, we will not here pause to speculate on "the 
 fields of the ocean" from whence these beautiful marine plants 
 are derived, and only recall to mind their efiect on the crew of 
 the prince of navigators, the immortal Christopher Colon. Dis- 
 heartened with the length of their voyage, the trade winds blow- 
 
14 COLUMBUS — COAST OP GUIANA — THE ESSEQUIBO RIVER. 
 
 ing continuall}' from a quarter which seemed to debar the hope of 
 their return, the ravenous shark rising <'like a sceptre'' from the 
 depths of the Atlantic, and flying fish seen for the first time, be- 
 sides other causes of alarm, induced them to demand from their 
 intrejjid commander an abandonment of his unrivalled enterprise ; 
 but his gallant spirit bore him through his desperate trials, and 
 pointing to the sea weed, he revived the drooping spirits of his 
 crew by the prospect of a speedy sight of the land of promise. 
 
 After some heavy squalls of wind, accompanied with a deluge 
 of rain, we found ourselves transferred from a blue and transpar- 
 ent sea, into water of a turbid brown colour; and though we did 
 not see land, yet we sounded and found bottom with only three 
 fathoms of line : we then knew that we were close to the South 
 American coast, and to the mouth of one of the mighty streams of 
 the New World. A small schooner appeared steering across our 
 bows, at the distance of two or three miles; a boat with six stout 
 hands was sent to inquire our exact position, and we anchored to 
 await the return of the mission. The horizon in the mean time 
 clearing, we perceived the tops of trees resting, as it were, on the 
 surface of the water to leeward : the anchor was then got up, and 
 we stood along shore, the current setting strong to the north-east ; 
 we thought to make the Demerara River, but we passed it, and 
 got by mistake into the Great Essequibo (there twenty-five miles 
 in breadth with numerous islands), and before our boat rejoined 
 us, we tacked in a quarter less three fathoms on the hard and dan- 
 gerous sand of Quakeraba, where, if we had struck, we must have 
 gone to pieces : fortunately we deepened our water, and again 
 anchored. 
 
 The Essequibo communicates with the Great Amazons and 
 Oronooco rivers by means of the Rio Negro; and it was interesting 
 to reflect that the grey water on which we floated was perhaps 
 tinged with the debris of the Andes, which, having been trans- 
 ported from the interior for two or three thousand miles, was now 
 mingling with the briny flood. 
 
 After dusk a black pilot, with a bunch of plantains in his hand, 
 boarded us from a small cutter; he requested a glass of porter, 
 asked me if <' Massa got any old trowsers ?" and then took charge 
 of the vessel. 
 
 The current was still setting strong from the mouth of the Great 
 Amazons towards the Oronooco ; heavy clouds charged with rain 
 hung over the land, and we were drenched with tropical showers, 
 which fell not in drops, but as if a sluice or the windows of hea- 
 ven had been suddenly opened. We stood towards the mouth of 
 the Demerara, which appeared, as opening among the trees, of two 
 miles in breadth : the sable Palinurus carried us over the bar (with 
 
APPEARANCE OF STABROEK — REFLECTIONS. 15 
 
 only nine feet of water on it at ebb-tide), and we found ourselves 
 in a broad river. 
 
 On both banks the coridore and mangrove trees grew thick ; 
 here and there amongst them the pahns waved their fringe-like 
 leaves, their tall stems appearing like living columns over the low- 
 er vegetation. No hill or rising ground was visible in any direc- 
 tion, for this part of South America is a dead flat, consisting of a 
 rich alluvial soil, carried down from the branches of the giant 
 Andes. Stabroek, or George Town, was situated on the left, but 
 few of the houses could be seen, the foliage being so dense ; a 
 lighthouse (of which there are far too few in our western posses- 
 sions) became the most conspicuous object in the picture. About 
 sixty vessels lay opposite the town, all under the British flag ; 
 schooners conveying the produce from the different estates along 
 the coast, were leaving and entering the noble stream ; the negro 
 crews of these droghers shouted, laughed, and asked us the news 
 as they passed under our stern ; occasionally they sung in wild 
 chorus, or like Tritons blew a long blast from a large conch shell. 
 
 Whilst inhaling the fresh and fragrant odour of the land breeze, 
 on viewing the serenity of the sky, the gorgeous foliage shading 
 comfortable white houses of two stories, surrounded with veran- 
 dahs, the river bearing on its bosom a fleet of merchantmen, the 
 windmills and tall chimneys of numerous steam-engines on the 
 bank opposite to Stabroek, and all betokening the wealth and im- 
 portance of British Guiana, or the united colonies of Demerara, 
 Essequibo, and Berbice, I was led to exclaim, " Are these the 
 splendid possessions which some in England are willing to sacri- 
 fice to an unjust and ignorant clamour, whereby the thousands de- 
 pending on them for subsistence would be plunged into ruin ? and 
 above all, when the superabundant population at home, renders it 
 so difficult to provide employment for the rising generation ?" 
 But a truce to this subject ; my reader must be rather sea-sick, 
 and so, if he pleases, we will land, and commence another chap- 
 ter. 
 
16 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Land at Stabroek. — The streets. — The white inhabitants. — The coloured. — The ne- 
 groes. — The coloured and black freemen. — The Indians or Bucks. — The military. 
 — The barracks. — Medical men. — Causes of mortality among the troops. — Injudi- 
 cious manner in which the English and Dutch live in Stabroek. — Animal food con- 
 demned. — The public buildings and private residences. — Stabroek a city of refuge. 
 — Anecdote. — Form of Government. — Civil and criminal courts. — Grants of land. 
 — Anti-Malthusian doctrine. — Salubrity of the climate. — A castle of indolence. — 
 Tricks played with electric eels. — Tlie last census. — Slave population on the in- 
 crease. — Returns of produce. — Imports. — Price of labour and provisions. — Ex- 
 amination of soil. — Defence of British Guiana from foreign invasion. 
 
 The stelling, or wooden landing-place, was occupied by a few 
 negresses sitting beside trays of fruit and vegetables ; from thence 
 a road, flanked by canals, led to the streets, which were unpaved, 
 but in excellent order. Except close to the river, the houses of 
 the inhabitants were widely scattered, each being surrounded by 
 a garden and lofty trees. Last year it was found impossible to 
 keep the gardens free from weeds, owing to the amazing quan- 
 tity of rain that had fallen, which was reckoned by feet, and not 
 by inches in the usual way : thus in five months six feet eight in- 
 ches of rain fell at Stabroek ! 
 
 The European inhabitants were riding or walking about in 
 white Panama hats, and clothes suited to a tropical climate : though 
 nearly under the line, the men had a tolerably healthy look, be- 
 cause they moved about in the open air ; but the white ladies were 
 exceedingly pale and sickly in their appearance : a few were 
 observed riding in gigs, for they never condescend to walk 
 abroad, the consequence of which is that they are generally very 
 languid and debilitated. The mulatto men, in straw hats and 
 round jackets, were tall and robust, and the brown ladies also 
 well grown and in excellent case ; they wore handkerchiefs tied 
 round the head, after the fashion o( the French femmes cle cham- 
 bre ; but above all the negroes attracted attention. 
 
 One would have imagined, from the incessant outcry in Eng- 
 land about ameliorating the condition of the black population in 
 the colonies, that the negroes are in a very deplorable condition — 
 emaciated, borne down with hard labour, wearing a look of hope- 
 less despondency, badly fed, badly clothed, and sounds of suffering 
 and of the whip of the driver everywhere heard : no such thing. 
 The men were well clothed and well fed ; hats or striped caps they 
 wore on their heads ; and though they prefer carrying their 
 jacket under their arm to wearing it on their shoulders, and strip 
 to their work to the trowsers, yet they all seemed to be abun- 
 
INHABITANTS OP STABROEK. 17 
 
 dantly supplied with clothes. The negresses were decently clad 
 in printed gowns, and were commonly seen walking about huck- 
 stering vegetables, carried in a wooden tray on their heads. 
 There were no sounds but those of merriment ; the song and 
 chorus of a group of young negresses, the salutations and jokes of 
 friends meeting, and the incessant gabbling of the old women, 
 who, when they can get no one to converse with, carry on a con- 
 versation (aloud) with their own sweet selves, like negroes at 
 their balls, sometimes dancing to their own shadow on the wall 
 for want of a partner. 
 
 Contrasted with the sleek appearance of the slaves, there were 
 certain ragged and miserable looking beings sitting at the corners 
 of the streets, or sleeping off their drunkenness in the shade. 
 These were free negroes, and disreputable people of colour ; those 
 who were awake, were gambling and quarrelling ; blasphemy 
 and horrid oaths were on their lips, and their presence was offen- 
 sive. As a proof of the incorrigible laziness and worthlessness 
 of these "low caste" freemen of Stabroek, they cannot be indu- 
 ced to push a canoe into the river and fish. The market is badly 
 supplied with fish, which are scarce and dear in town, though 
 they abound in the stream. 
 
 Last of all, the Indians, or Bucks, from the interior are to be 
 noticed, and it is with great interest that a stranger contemplates 
 these children of nature moving among civilized life. Of short 
 stature, but well proportioned, they walk about in a state of nu- 
 dity, with the exception of a narrow lap or strip of blue Salam- 
 pore about their loins, their head protected from the sun and 
 shower by their straight and glossy black hair alone, their skins 
 beautifully clean, and of a light mahogany colour ; their features 
 were those of handsome Tartars, oval, the nose long but not promi- 
 nent, the eyes wide apart and narrow ; their expression was 
 pathetic, but good-natured and amiable. Their wives followed 
 them in blue petticoats, and with the breasts exposed, rows of 
 party-coloured glass beads about their necks, their raven tresses 
 neatly braided, and fastened with a silver skewer on the crown of 
 the head. Men and women carried either a child across the hip, 
 or bows and arrows, pegals or baskets, parrots, or skins of birds 
 to barter for powder, shot, and cloth. 
 
 I have thus given a sketch of the people I met in walking 
 through Stabroek to a lodging-house, and before I repose in the 
 New World I shall say a word on the military. An old acquain- 
 tance, Lieutenant-Colonel Chalmersof the 25th, on my arrival invi- 
 ted me to join the mess of his regiment. I availed myself of the 
 hospitable invitation, but was sorry to remark that several of the 
 officers and many of the men of the regiment were suffering from 
 C 
 
18 MEDICAL MEN MORTALITY. 
 
 fever and ague ; one hundred were sick out of three hundred. 
 The barracks were in a low, swampy, and badly-drained situation; 
 in fact, there was a puddle of water covered with weeds in the 
 middle of the barrack square. The burial ground was immedi- 
 ately opposite : altogether the site of tlie barracks is very bad, 
 but it could be improved without removing them. 
 
 The soil and climate of Guiana are totally different from the 
 West India islands, though people at home are so ignorant of this, 
 that the colony of Demerara is commonly considered to be an isl- 
 and, Essequibo to be in Mexico, and in the Edinburgh Almanac 
 for 1831, Berbicc is placed among the Bahama islands! No won- 
 der, then, that the surgeons w-ho accompany regiments from Eng- 
 land are unacquainted with the diseases and their mode of treat- 
 ment in Guiana; but when they arrive, they undoubtedly should 
 condescend to be instructed by the old and experienced surgeons 
 of the colony. 
 
 During the war a frightful source of disease among the military 
 was the crowded state of the barracks ; though building materials 
 are cheap and most abundant (wood I mean,) and though a water 
 and sun proof shed, with a dry floor, is all that is required for sol- 
 diers in the West, yet they were crowded into small rooms, their 
 hammocks were touching one another, and six men used to occupy 
 the same space that three now do in those admirable contrivances 
 the iron bedsteads. 
 
 Formerly when a regiment of seven hundred strong arrived in 
 the country, they were all cramped up together, and made to 
 occupy as little space as possible. Three hundred would quickly 
 die off with impure air and new rum; the four hundred who 
 would survive would be healthy, because, they had got inured to 
 the climate, but in reality because they had got room to breathe ; 
 and the troops in the islands are now comparatively healthy for the 
 same reason. Yet there are many points which still require alter- 
 ation and amendment, and if medical men would only make 
 representations in the proper quarter, doubtless abuses would be 
 immediately inquired into and removed ; but, alas ! what is 
 " every body's business is nobody's, " 
 
 I shall notnow trespass further on the patience of the general rea- 
 der with observations on the treatment of soldiers in the western 
 colonies, but reserve for another place some more observations 
 on this important point. Health is a subject in which we are all 
 interested, and he must be unfeeling indeed, who does not 
 sympathise with brave men suffering under an injudicious system, 
 which cannot be known at head-quarters unless subordinate 
 officers will most respectfully submit proposed improvements to 
 the higher authorities. 
 
MANNER OF LIVING — ANIMAL FOOD CONDEMNED. 19 
 
 Whilst on the subject of health I may remark, that during the 
 few days I remained at Stabroek I was particularly struck with 
 the manner in which the English and Dutch families live ; it 
 seemed to me to be highly injudicious even in a cold climate. 
 Before breakfast a Dutchman has his pipe and several drams of 
 schidam, and some of the old English residents adopt the same 
 system ; at breakfast is the favourite pepper-pot, or meat stewed 
 with cassireep, (the juice of the bitter cassava or manioc), and 
 made pungent with red and green pepper ; there is also salt fish 
 from the United States or Newfoundland, beef-steaks and unripe 
 plantains roasted : abundance of butter and grease of every kind 
 is employed in the cuisine, and green tea is in high favour. 
 After this substantial meal, between ten and twelve o'clock there 
 is a little sauntering exercise, according to the calls of business ; in 
 the middle of the day there is a meat lunch, after which the 
 siesta in the grass hammock. At dinner there are again loads of 
 meat, and a mixture of porter, spirits, wine, &c. and supper at 
 ten o'clock: all this would produce inflammatory diseases in any 
 climate, and particularly within 6° of the line. I need hardly say, 
 that if a person wishes to enjoy good health, he must place a re- 
 straint upon his appetite in all situations, and live by rule ; and I 
 may state, after an experience of all climates, that two small 
 slices of meat per day are quite sufficient to support nature, with 
 milk, bread, and vegetables as may be requisite, and even whilst 
 taking very violent exercise ; thus two hundred miles have been 
 ridden in one day, and fifty walked in another, without any 
 animal food for some time previous. When young men visit the 
 tropics, their friends say, "Don't drink," (every one knows 
 that strong drink is injurious,) but they are seldom warned 
 against strong meat ; it is that which is so pernicious ; but consume 
 it in moderation, 
 
 " Then good digestion waits on appetite, 
 And liealtli on both." 
 
 The public buildings in Stabroek are the residence of the 
 Governor, Sir Benjamin d'Urban, G. C. B. called the Camp, 
 which is commodious, rendered cool by broad galleries round it, 
 and shaded with many noble trees. There are also several 
 excellent churches ; an extensive range of public offices of brick, 
 now just finished; a jail, with that useful appendage a treadmill; 
 hospitals, &c. ; and there is a steam-boat for the ferry across the 
 river, which vessel is also employed to convey purchasers to 
 estates that may be exposed to sale. 
 
 1 was much pleased with the neat manner in which the private 
 houses of respectability were fitted up ; the broad piazzas 
 
20 PUBLIC AND miVATE RESIDENCES. 
 
 rendered them extremely cool, and the open windows and doors 
 gave free passage to the fragrant breeze ; goglets of porous 
 earthenware in the varandah, cooled the rain water collected in 
 tanks and cisterns from the roof; convolvuli twined round the 
 pillars and trellis-work of the gallery, and rich odour of the 
 mignonette was diffused through the rooms. The broad-leaved 
 plantriin and papaw, the acacia with golden flowers, the fig tree 
 and myrtle, grew beside the majestic palmetto royal in the garden ; 
 couches, tables and chairs, were of the beautiful colonial woods; 
 the walls of the rooms were handsomely papered, and on them 
 were wall-shades in silver sockets, to screen the light from the 
 wind and winged insects; and the floors were covered with oil- 
 cloths. The East Indian punkah was wanting, but the sea- 
 breeze from the north-east during the day, and the land breeze 
 from the south-east during the night, obviated the necessity for the 
 « punkah's cooling breath ;" and it has been truly said of the good 
 people of Stabroek, whose hospitality is gratefully remembered 
 by one who ardently desires their prosperity, " that their doors 
 are ever open to the stranger, and their purses never shut to the 
 needy." 
 
 Stabroek is a city of refuge for the bad characters from the 
 West India islands — they abound here, and it seems diflicult to 
 prevent their ingress. The manner in which they live is this : — 
 every estate has a schooner, manned by a black captain and six 
 negroes; in these vessels, as I said before, the produce (rum and 
 sugar) is conveyed to Georgetown for shipment to England. 
 The estates are principally on the coast, and not up the rivers, 
 since the conquest of British Guiana from the Dutch in 179G. In 
 every schooner there is an experienced cooper, who dexterously 
 opens the casks, takes out a part of their contents, and, like a 
 cunning workman, makes all smooth again. At night the black 
 captain sends a canoe under the wooden wharfs with the plunder; 
 a trap-door communicates with the obscure dwellings of the white 
 vagabonds before- mentioned ; they purchase from the negro 
 captain at a cheap rate, and again sell their commodities to 
 hucksters and grog-shops in town. In 1S23 five hundred whites 
 were ferreted out to serve in the militia against the negroes in a state 
 of insurrection ; of these Europeans the police had previously no 
 knowledge, for they slept all day and drank and gambled all 
 night ; they shunned the light " because their deeds were evil." 
 
 The Dutch form of Government is still preserved in British 
 Guiana, and the laws arc administered by a governor and 
 council. The members of council are elected by the kcizers, or 
 representatives of the people, and each burgher possessing 
 
FORM OP GOVERNMENT. 21 
 
 twenty-five slaves, or six hundred guilders per annum, is entitled 
 to a vote. 
 
 The council framing laws is termed the court of policy, and the 
 court of justice was composed, when I was in Stabroek, of the 
 governor and certain councillors. Great civil and criminal 
 causes came under the cognizance of this court, while petty offen- 
 ces were referred to the commissary court. The fiscal, or public 
 prosecutor or attorney-general, was the principal officer of this 
 court ; his duty was also to inspect the roads of the colony, 
 accompanied by the burgher captains of the districts. Lately the 
 courts of civil and criminal justice have been annihilated, and 
 others created in their place ; peripatetic judges holding sessions 
 in British Guiana, Trinidad, and St. Lucie twice a j^ear ; also 
 petty courts are to be established. The crown colonists complain 
 of this new arrangement, because it will produce great delay, 
 debtors will be favoured, property in the market will deteriorate in 
 value, and so on. 
 
 Grants of land are obtained by application to the governor and 
 council ; the usual size of an estate is a quarter of a mile of front, 
 and a mile and a half in depth ; if not cleared in part within a 
 certain time the grant is annulled. Strange to say, it was English- 
 men who first showed the Dutch the superiority of the land of 
 the coast to that on the banks of the rivers. From the Pome- 
 roon river to the Berbice, there is a stripe of cultivation with the 
 richest soil in the world, and bounded by a forest which extends 
 across the continent, passes the Andes, and ends only with the 
 Pacific. 
 
 I did not visit Berbice, which was first settled, but the appear- 
 ance of the country there, and the manner of cultivating sugar 
 and coflee, are similar to Demeraraand Essequibo. Many cotton 
 estates have been abandoned in Berbice, such a mania prevails for 
 sugar making, though it is well known that the colonies produce 
 far more than there is a demand for in England. A sugar estate 
 requires a negro per acre ; a cofiee estate two for three acres; and 
 a cotton estate one for two acres ; it will thus be seen the great 
 expense that attends a sugar estate. 
 
 I often wished that some of those who think that ere long the 
 world will be overpeopled, and that we shall shoulder one another 
 oflfit, or into the sea, could view the vast solitudes of Guiana, and 
 reflect that nearly the whole of the interior of the South Ameri- 
 can continent, though capable of supporting billions of inhabi- 
 tants, is as yet almost entirely in the keeping of nature. The 
 cultivation in British Guiana is now confined to two hundred 
 miles of the coast, and the same may be said of South America 
 generally. 
 
22 SALUBRITY OF THE CLIMATE — ELECTRIC EELS. 
 
 Ill the West the general impression is, that the climate of 
 Guiana is unhealth}'-, but it is really less so than that of the neigh- 
 bouring islands. Wlien the forest was first cleared on the coast, 
 and the decayed trees and leaves exposed to the influence of the 
 sun, when the sea unconfined by dikes was allowed to form salt 
 marshes, then yellow fever prevailed, but for several years this 
 fatal malady has been altogether unknown here. 
 
 The " Dandy," or stiflcning fever, three years ago paid a flying 
 visit to the islands and the main ; it seems to have been a sort of 
 rheumatic attack, the joints became suddenly stiff", and the patient 
 was assisted to his hammock, where for two or three days he 
 remained in a helpless state, and in considerable pain, but gradu- 
 ally recovering, no bad effects resulted. 
 
 I walked about Stabroek, and visited the friends to whom I 
 had introductions, the public buildings, and that castle of indo- 
 lence, the Logic, or shed on the banks of the rivei', for the accom- 
 modation of the Bucks, or Indians, who visit the town. There 
 the men and children lay in their hammocks, suited in size for 
 an adult or for a child a day old ; the buckeens, or women, were 
 commonly baking the flour of Cassava on an iron plate, and they 
 cat as they felt inclined, for the Indians have no fixed hours for 
 meals, and of course have not the slightest idea of the value of 
 time. 
 
 In Stabroek, it is usual for the old residents to amuse them- 
 selves at the expense of strangers ; wonderful stories are told of 
 snakes, as large as trees, of alligators cooling themselves on the 
 streets of an evening, and occasionally looking in at a bed-room 
 window, of vampires attacking the throat, and of land crabs, so 
 large that two or three of them will drag a man into their holes if 
 he happens to sleep near tliem. I heard many strange tales which 
 I need not repeat, but will mention a trick which was played me, 
 and with which new comers arc often served. 
 
 I was standing in the gallery of a house belonging to a half-pay 
 officer (now a planter,) when I observed a large jar in the garden; 
 I inquired what it contained, and was told, an electric eel, '<but,*' 
 said my friend, "I have had it a long time, it is sickly, and has 
 entirely lost its electrifying powers." I went to examine it, and 
 saw a brown flat-headed broad-tailed eel, four or five feet long, 
 with a look of ^^noli me tangere,''^ moving slowly round the 
 inside of the jar. The planter then taking up a piece of old iron 
 hoop, said in an ofT-handcd manner, '<Ifyou touch him with this, 
 you will perceive he has lost all his power." 1 did so, and was 
 nearly knocked flat on my back : the shock was most severe, 
 though the eel did not appear to be in the least agitated ; of course 
 my friend was highly delighted. 
 
THE LAST CENSUS — SLAVE POPULATION. 23 
 
 Scenes of great diversion are occasioned among the English 
 sailors who come to Stabroek by electric eels; they are told to 
 bring them to be cooked. Jack bares his arm and plunges his 
 hand into the jar, and in a moment receives a shock which be- 
 numbs him ; he looks round in wild amazement, and then at the 
 eel, all the while rubbing his elbow, "Try again, Jack, for a 
 bottle of rum ;" he does so, grasps the eel firmly, grins and 
 swears at "the beggar," receives shock after shock, drops the eel 
 in despair, and runs oif as if the devil had struck him. A little 
 dog was thrown into ajar one day in which there was an electric 
 eel, and was so paralyzed that it sunk helpless to the bottom, and 
 was got out alive with some difficulty ; and a horse that attempted to 
 drink out of the jar was immediately thrown back on its haunches, 
 and galloped off with mane and tail on end snorting with terror. 
 
 The last census of Demerara and Essequibo I have seen is of 
 1829, there were then, 
 
 White males, . . . 2,100 
 
 Ditto females, . . . 906 — 3006 
 
 Coloured and black freemen, . 2,530 
 
 Ditto ditto females, . 3,830— 6,360 
 
 Slaves, males, . . . 37,092 
 
 Ditto females, . . . 32,276—69,368 
 
 Total, — 78,734 
 
 At present more than seven-twentieths of the slave population 
 are under twenty years of age, and a large proportion of the 
 females are already arrived at the age of bearing children ; the 
 average age of all the slaves is about thirty-two years and a half, 
 and I now select at random a few plantations as exhibiting an in- 
 crease during the last three years, fully equal to the periodical 
 increase of the population of Great Britain, which has been esti- 
 mated at one and a half per cent per annum. 
 
 Increase. Average 
 
 Negroes. 
 
 Births. 
 
 Deaths. 
 
 per ct. age. 
 
 Enmore, . . 301 
 
 34 
 
 9 
 
 9 nearly 28^ 
 
 Hamburg, . . 260 
 
 19 
 
 7 
 
 5 42 
 
 Batchelor's adventure, 690 
 
 62 
 
 36 
 
 4 31 
 
 Chateau Margeau, . 241 
 
 23 
 
 9 
 
 6 30 
 
 Foulis, . . 156 
 
 20 
 
 7 
 
 9 27 
 
 Jalousie, . . 309 
 
 25 
 
 10 
 
 5,\, 35 
 
 The different parishes differ in salubrity, and the greater mor- 
 tality in some is to be imputed to their situation on the banks of 
 rivers and creeks, which have always been considered unhealthy. 
 
24 PRODUCE — IMPORTS — PRICE OF LABOUR. 
 
 This conclusion is ])ornc out by the smaller degree of mortality 
 in the parislics on the sea coast, where the air is very salubrious. 
 The mortality of the colony on the average for the last three 
 years is one in twelve. Further, with regard to the slave popu- 
 lation, a check has been given to the natural but serious loss 
 hitherto suffered by the dropping off of the old Africans, and the 
 approaching equalization of the sexes ; and it must be highly gra- 
 tifying to the humane to know that the colony has reached the 
 termination of a period of decrease, and will now doubtless exhi- 
 bit an increasing population. 
 
 The amount of the produce of Demerara and Essequibo in 1829 
 was — 
 
 Sugar, .... 91,652,331 lbs. 
 Coffee, .... 4,555,789 " 
 
 Rum, .... 3,389,739 gallons. 
 
 Molasses, . . . 2,288,737 '' 
 
 Cotton, .... 1,217,269 lbs. 
 
 Plantains, . . . 526,424 guilders. 
 
 Cattle, , . , , 64,844 " 
 
 4s. 6d. sterling is equal to 1 Spanish dollar,=3 guilders,=60 
 stivers. The measures are English, from a gill to a gallon, and 
 110 lbs. English are equal to 100 lbs. Dutch. The expenditure 
 of 1S30 was guilders 985,899, The average value of the imports 
 for the last three years — 
 
 From Great Britain, value of imports . £554,869 
 Ships , , , 177 
 
 Tonnage . , , 51,704 
 From British North American Colonies , £139,180 
 Ships , , . 302 
 Tonnage . . , 29,645 
 The price of labour is very high in Stabroek ; a dollar a day is 
 usually given to a common artizan, but certain Europeans pur- 
 chase negroes and let them out as task-gangs, and realize a hand- 
 some profit in this way. I saw many of these task-gangs building 
 houses, digging trenches, making dikes, &c. 
 
 Medical men usually receive as follows, eleven guilders for a 
 visit during the day, and twenty-two during the night ; and law- 
 yers also twenty-two for an hour's consultation. 
 
 All proprietors of slaves pay six guilders of a capitation tax per 
 annum. 
 
 The price of provisions varies much ; for instance, American 
 flour, which usually sella for eight dollars a barrel, rose to four- 
 and-twenty when I was in Stabroek, The trade with the United 
 States had just been thrown open, but the Americans imagined 
 that they could not compete with the Canadians, and they again 
 
SOIL OP STABROEK — DEFENCE OP BRITISH GUIANA. 25 
 
 thought that the market would be overstocked by the Americans; 
 the consequence was, that neither Americans nor Canadians sent 
 any flour, and the price rose to a ruinous amount, but this was 
 temporary. Butcher's meat usually sells for ten stivers the 
 pound, and a large querriman fish from six to nine guilders. 
 
 Though the soil of Stabroek is argillaceous, yet no one makes 
 bricks for the foundations of the wooden houses, or tiles instead 
 of the Wallaba shingles for the roofs ; the bricks are sent from 
 England at an enormous expense. Some brick sugar-works near 
 town have cost £20,000. I examined the only shaft that ever 
 was sunk in Stabroek for water, the strata were as follows — 
 To the depth of 44 feet — blue clay. 
 
 10 do. — fragments of wood partly decayed. 
 19 do. — compact whitish grey clay. 
 31 do. — yellow sand mixed with clay. 
 6 do. — violet coloured clay when first brought 
 to the surf 
 light grey. 
 10 do. — white sand and clay mixed. 
 2 do. — quartorze sand and clay mixed ; water. 
 
 112 
 
 The principal defence of Guiana from a foreign foe consists in 
 the shallowness of the sea on the coast ; large men of war are un- 
 able to approach it, and the rivers are guarded by dangerous bars. 
 Signals can be made from the Berbice river to the Pomeroon with 
 great rapidity, and wha-t with regular troops, the colonial militia, 
 sailors from the ships, and the Indians, a formidable force might 
 be speedily assembled to repel invasion. Still, however, the fort 
 at Stabroek is too small to make a good defence. The works on 
 Fort Island, on the Essequibo, formerly mounted forty pieces of 
 cannon, but Kykoveral, at the junction of the three rivers, Esse- 
 quibo, Coioony, and Mazarooni, is the natural citadel of the 
 colony. 
 
26 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Desire to visit the interior. — Eldorado. — Sail to the Essequibo. — Carelessness of nc- 
 gro crews. — Anecdote. — Islands of tlie Essequibo. — Mazarooni and Coioony 
 Rivers. — Few traces of early Settlers. — The miirhty Forests. — The Mora, Cotton, 
 Palmetto, and Mangrove trees. — ThcCampancro. — The Tapir. — Manati. — Ame- 
 rican Leopard. — The Cayman. — Monkeys. — Deer. — Pcccari Hogs, and oilier 
 quadrupeds of Guiana. — Parrots, Macaws, Vampires, Owls, and Goat-suckers. — 
 Aquatic birds. — Humming-birds. — The Cock of the Rock. — Aboma Snake. — The 
 Conacoushi, Labarri, and Rattlesnakes. — Anecdote. — The Cobra of India. — The 
 Pipa Frog. — Visit a Dutch Entomologist. — Remarkable fishes. — Pacoo, Pcrai, 
 Silurus, Assa, electric Eel, Wurwurecma. — The Frog-fish. — Guiana a rich field 
 for the Naturalist. — Awful solitude. — Approach of a Storm. — Geology of the Es- 
 sequibo. — Woodcutters. — A forest residence. — Wood-nymphs. — Kykoveral. — 
 The post. — Visit an Indian settlement. 
 
 I REMAINED butashort time in Stabroek, for I was impatient to 
 plunge into the primeval forests of the interior — to navigate the 
 mighty rivers fertilizing regions unexplored by European travel- 
 lers — to visit the nameless creeks overshadowed by the gloomy, 
 though rich and luxuriant vegetation — to tread the soil of that 
 country, ever famous since the days of Sir Walter Raleigh, as 
 containing the magnificent city of Eldorado, which ''for great- 
 ness, riches, and the excellent scat, far exceeded any city in the 
 world, and founded on an inland sea two hundred leagues long, 
 like unto the Mare Caspium." 
 
 No Eldorado has ever yet been discovered, though a shallow 
 lake called Parima exists between the Amazons and Oronooco; 
 and the gallant courtier is right when he says, "he never saw a 
 more beautiful country (than that to the south of the Oronooco), 
 nor more lively prospects ; hills so raised here and there over the 
 valleys, the rivers winding into divers branches, the plains ad- 
 joining without bush or stubble, all fair green grass (in many 
 parts), with ground of hard sand, easy to march on either for 
 horse or foot ; the deer crossing in every path ; the birds toward 
 the evening singing on every tree with a thousand several tunes ; 
 cranes and herons of white, crimson, and carnation, perching on 
 the river's side; the air fresh, with a gentle easterly wind, and 
 every stone that we stooped to pick up promised either gold or 
 silver by its complexion." 
 
 Elated with pleasing anticipations, I embarked in a small schoo- 
 ner to sail up the great Essequibo river, in company with a Dutch 
 
CARELESSNESS OP NEGRO CREWS. 27 
 
 physician, full of life and good humour, Dr. Speringshoek, and 
 Mr. Hilhouse, a surveyor in British Guiana, and late of the staff 
 corps, a gentleman who has seen more of the interior of Guiana, 
 and is better acquainted with its natural productions and the habits 
 of the wanden'ng tribes of Indians, than any other person I know. 
 I was extremely fortunate in my companions, and most thankful 
 to these gentlemen for volunteering to accompany me. 
 
 The navigation at the entrance of the Essequibo is very dan- 
 gerous from the shifting banks of sand : the coasting schooners 
 constantly get aground there, and are sometimes totally wrecked; 
 but this is oftener owing to the carelessness of the crews than any 
 other reason. It is difficult to keep even the steersman awake; 
 and I have seen him nodding over the tiller, and the vessel con- 
 stantly taken aback, the captain during this time quietly asleep in 
 the fore part of the schooner. The drogher belonging to the es- 
 tate called Maria's pleasure, was totally lost a short time before I 
 arrived at Stabroek ; and as an instance of the folly and careless^ 
 ness of negro crews, 1 shall give a short anecdote. 
 
 Some time ago a schooner got aground between the Demerara 
 and Essequibo rivers ; she lay in the mud for several tides, and 
 at last was noticed by a pilot cutter, the master of which boarded 
 the schooner, and found half the crew asleep ; the other were 
 coolly roasting plantains. "Why don't you lay out a warp, and 
 try to get your vessel off? if it comes on to blow, you will all be 
 lost," said the pilot. " Me no care, suppose lost," replied Quaco; 
 <'Massa schooner, massa nigger — all massa's loss." 
 
 At the mouth of the Essequibo, the three islands of Leguan, 
 Waakenaam, and Tiger, are cultivated like gardens, and produce 
 most luxuriant crops of coffee and sugar. 
 
 We sailed up the Essequibo for eighty miles, and occasionally 
 took to canoes, or coorials, to visit the creeks. We then went 
 up a part of the Mazaroonl, and saw also the unexplored Coioony. 
 These three rivers join their waters about one hundred miles 
 from the Atlantic. 
 
 In sailing or paddling up the stream, the breadth is so great, 
 and the wooded islands so numerous, that it appears as if we na- 
 vigated a large lake. The Dutch, in former times, had cotton, 
 indigo, and cocoa estates up the Essequibo, and even beyond their 
 old capital Kykoveral, at the forks or junction of the three rivers; 
 at present, however, beyond the islands at the mouth of the Es- 
 sequibo, there are no estates, and the mighty forest has obliterated 
 all traces of former cultivation. There is solitude and silence on 
 either hand ; and not a vestige of the dwellings of the Hollanders 
 is to be seen; but occasionally in struggling through the entangled 
 brushwood, one stumbles over a marble tomb stone, brought from 
 
28 TRACES OF EARLY SETTLERS. — MORA AND COTTON TREES. 
 
 the shores of the Zuyder Zee, covering the remains of a Hol- 
 lander. 
 
 " An hundred summer suns Iiad showered 
 Their fostering warmth and radiance bright, 
 Since first this remnant of liis race 
 Did tenant his lone dwcUing-place." 
 
 And truly one is tempted to exclaim, that such a mercenary, cold- 
 hearted, and cruel people to their slaves as the early Dutch settlers 
 generally appear to have been, from the painfully interesting 
 narrative of Stcdman, deserve as richly to lose their valuable pos- 
 sessions, as the Spaniards did for their barbarities to the unoffend- 
 ing Indians: at the same time it must not be forgotten that, fifty 
 years ago, our own planters, with their negro task-masters, too 
 often grievously oppressed and abused their sable bondsmen ; but 
 to the honour of the nation, a mighty change for the belter has 
 taken place. 
 
 At every turn of the river we descried objects of great interest; 
 the dense and nearly impenetrable forest itself occupied our chief 
 attention. Magnificent trees, altogether new to me, were an- 
 chored to the ground by the bush rope. Convolvuli, and the 
 flowers of parasitical plants of every variety, caused the woods to 
 appear as if hung with garlands. Pre-eminent above the other 
 sons of the forest, was the "towering and majestic mora," its 
 -trunk spread out into buttresses ; and on its top would be seen the 
 king of the vultures, spreading out its immense wings to dry after 
 the dews of night. 
 
 Rivalling the mora in height, and surpassing it in beauty, was 
 the silk cotton tree. A naturalist might study for days one of 
 these grand objects, produced by exuberant nature from the rich- 
 est mould, with the combined advantages of a tropical sun and a 
 moist atmosphere, and still he would find something new and 
 much to wonder at. Yet the timber is not valuable, and the cot- 
 ton is only used for pillows. Let us pause awhile, and admire 
 the noble shaft, eighty feet in height, without knot or branch, and 
 its grey surface smooth and shining as if polished by the hand of 
 man : high overhead it stretches out its great limbs, partly hidden 
 by the bright green leaves, forming a mighty pillared shade, fit 
 to grace the foreground of a Salvator Rosa. 
 
 Supporting many other plants, and a numerous colony of ani- 
 mated nature, on the topmost branches of the tree are seen the wild 
 pine ; while the vines descending like shrouds to the earth, aflbrd 
 to the traveller a pleasant beverage, for, if skilfully cut with the 
 knife, the water gushes out, as from the rock in the wilderness at 
 the touch of the rod of Moses. The opossums and other small 
 quadrupeds, ascending by the vines, drink from the deep cup of 
 
WILD PINE, VINE, PALMETTO — AMERICAN LEOPARD. 29 
 
 the pines, which contains nearly a quart of water, collected from 
 the dews and rain. In the forks of the branches are seen the black 
 clay nests of the wood ant, with double galleries down the stem, 
 by which the tiny colonists ascend and descend without interrupt- 
 ing each other. Sometimes the marabuntahs, or wild bees, oc- 
 cupy the place of the ants, and are surrounded by the hanging 
 nests of the black and yellow mocking birds ; they live sociably 
 together, and it is said that the bees attack the foes of the orioles, 
 but these last ungratefully forgetting their obligations to their neigh- 
 bours, attempt to kidnap them when their young cry for food. 
 
 Here and there, singly or in groups, the palmetto royal reared 
 its head, one hundred feet in height, and the stem seven or eight in 
 thickness ; the straight grey pillar terminated in a green and edible 
 shaft, affording the mountain cabbage ; then the branches, fifteen 
 feet in length, spread out horizontally, from which depended the 
 close-set, pinnated, and pointed leaves, agitated by the slightest 
 breath of air. From the midst of the leafy diadem a green spike 
 appeared, said to be a lightning conductor. On the soft bank of 
 the streams the red mangrove from trunk and branches sent down 
 its ligneous shoots, to anchor it to the shifting soil ; whilst the 
 white mangrove on harder ground dispensed with supports. 
 
 Whilst we lay in the noon-day heat, shadowed under the thick 
 wood, the very peculiar and romantic cry of the campanero, or 
 bell-bird, would be heard at intervals ; it is white, about the size 
 of a pigeon, with a leathery excrescence on its forehead, and the 
 sound which it produces in the lone woods is like that of a con- 
 vent bell tolling at a distance. 
 
 A crash of reeds and brushwood on the river's bank would be 
 followed by a tapir, the western elephant, coming down to drink 
 and roll his dark hide in the mud. In bulk he is about the size 
 of an ox, with thick legs and a short prehensile proboscis. The 
 maipoori, raanati, or river cow, would lift its black head and 
 small piercing eye above water, to graze on the leaves of the cori- 
 dore tree. These harmless animals are shot from a stage fixed in 
 the water with branches of Iheir favourite food hanging from it ; in 
 form they resemble the common seal, and one of twenty-two hun- 
 dred weight was killed not long ago. 
 
 A shout from the negro boatmen eagerly gazing at the middle 
 of the river, would point out the head of the spotted jaguar, or 
 American leopard. Swimming strongly across, and fearless of 
 the aquatic monsters doubtless following in his wake, he dashes 
 the water aside with his muscular paws ; a long ripple goes from 
 either flank ; he approaches the bank, and, impatient to land, 
 springs vigorously from the stream, and with a growl of defiance 
 disappears among the canes and moco mocos. 
 
 I 
 
30 ALLIGATOR. MONKEYS — PEER PICCAREE HOGS. 
 
 A long-drawn and heavy sigh would direct attention to appa- 
 rently n gnarled and hlack log of wood under the river's bank ; it 
 would then begin slowly to move towards the river, and a green 
 and malignant eye would be turned to the spectator ; horrid claws 
 would be observed sinking into the slime over which was dragged 
 a bloated and scaly body, ending in a pointed tail, with strength 
 in it to break the leg of a horse. The long jaws would open and 
 shut with a snapping noise, displaying the rows of sharp white 
 teeth ; headlong it would plunge into the river, and re-appear far 
 up the stream. This is the cayman, or alligator, which is found 
 in all the tropical rivers of America : one I saw in the Essequibo 
 was of the great length of twenty-two feet : of such a monster it 
 might be said, <<He esteemed iron as straw, and brass as rotten 
 wood ; the arrow could not make him flee, darts were counted as 
 stubble, and he laughed at the shaking of the spear." 
 
 The trees of the forests, matted together by the bush rope, here 
 running up tiieir stem, and there joining branch to branch, were 
 at times alive on each side of the river with the restless saccawin- 
 kee, or small red monkey with a white face. They travel from 
 tree to tree with facility by means of the wild vines ; and numer- 
 ous families of these active little creatures, with their offspring on 
 their backs, may be seen disporting themselves among the leaves 
 and feeding on the nuts, far removed above their enemies, the 
 snakes, below. 
 
 Advancing up a creek, the wanderer may come to a lonely spot, 
 rocks and trees casting broad shadows into the pools, and he will 
 there see the spotted wirrebocerra, or red bajccr deer, reposing at 
 noon, or rushing with panting sides to the water. The flesh of 
 both these deer is delicious eating, particularly that of the wirre- 
 bocerra. 
 
 Rushing through entangled brushwood will be heard a score or 
 two of piccaree hogs, remarkable for the gland on the back, emit- 
 ting a fetid odour, which some improperly suppose to be the navel. 
 The ant bear, tree porcupine, the scaly armadillo, and the languid 
 sloth are not unfrequently met with in traversing these luxuriant 
 and unbroken forests ; but above all the red men desire to meet 
 with the amphibious laaba, about the size of a pig a year old, with 
 short neck and legs, and the body brown with white spots, afford- 
 ing flesh, rich and delicate. It is a saying in Guiana, <'that he 
 who eats lauba and drinks creek water will be sure to return to 
 the country." I did both, and the grateful flavour of the former 
 is still present in my recollection. 
 
 When the sun sinks rapidly in the west, and disappears behind 
 the trees like a fiery target, gorgeous macaws and screaming 
 parrots fly in pairs over head returning from their feeding- 
 
MACAWS, VAMriRES, AQUATIC BIRDS DIRDS OF GUIANA. 3 1 
 
 grounds to their favourite roosts ; the dreaded vampire then 
 leaves the shady nook or hollow tree where he had dozed during 
 the day, and flits on ebon and leathery wing along the river's 
 bank. Not unfrequently he attacks the naked foot of the sleeper 
 in his hammock under the trees, applies the cylindrical tongue, 
 and whilst dexterously cupping, gently fans the foot with his 
 wings in an ecstasy of delight — the sleeper awakes faint and 
 exhausted, and sees below him a pool of liis own gore. These 
 foul bats are sometimes three feet from wing to wing. 
 
 During the night the owls and goat-suckers lament with 
 ominous cry, and at early dawn the black hannaqua loudly re- 
 peats its own name ; the woodpeckers commence their hammering 
 on the decayed trunks, and the mighty-billed toucans yelp from 
 the loftiest trees. 
 
 Near the mouths of the rivers the curry-curry, or scarlet curlew, 
 stalks conspicuously among other aquatic birds ; and the pelican 
 and spoonbill are seen with flocks of ducks and teal. Water 
 fowl, in particular, are so numerous on the coasts of Guiana at 
 particular seasons of the year, that huntsmen say, you may brhig 
 down an acre of them in a day! or like the renowned 
 Munchausen, spit half a dozen ducks on the ramrod at one shot. 
 
 With active through invisible wing, the minute humming birds 
 are often observed, the metallic lustre of their plumage glistening 
 in the sunbeam : 
 
 " The winglet of the fairy humming-bird. 
 Like atoms of the rainbow fluttering round." 
 
 Darting from flower to flower of the shrubs planted near the 
 habitations of the settlers, they extract a honeyed repast of sweets 
 and insects with the slender filaments of their tongues, and too 
 often are they shot by the idler sitting listlessly in his shady 
 piazza, not for the purpose of preserving the delicate skins, but 
 out of sheer wantonness. 
 
 Far removed from the haunts of men, sits the cock of the rock, 
 in orange plumage, so brilliant that some will say it is impossible 
 to look stedfastly on it. It is a crested bird, about the size of a 
 pigeon, and of an elegant form ; but I must not stop to describe 
 at greater length the great variety of the feathered tribe that are 
 met with in these wilds, but merely mention the names of the 
 scarlet and blue aras, the great trumpeter and powese, or peacock 
 pheasant, the brown marrodee, the spotted tiger bird, the blue 
 bird, and the rice bird, the green sparrow, and, above all, the 
 kishee kishee, the size of a lark, but decorated with splendid 
 plumage, the various colours of which are beauifully arranged so 
 as to enchant the eye of every beholder. 
 
32 SNAKES OF GTJIANA — HATTLESNAKES — AN ANECDOTE. 
 
 Nourished in hot swamps is the mighty camoodi, aboma or 
 boa : he drags his great bulk to the edge of his favourite marsh, 
 and lies in wait for the passing deer, or even tiie wandering Indian ; 
 suddenly he twines round his victim, breaks the yielding bones 
 of his prey, (writhing in helpless agony,) covers it with saliva, and 
 slowly gorges the prepared morsel. But far more dreaded by the 
 red man, is the conacoushi. Waterloo, the prince and paragon 
 of wanderers in desert places, enthusiastic as a naturalist, and 
 peerless as a preserver of birds, oftliis formidable snake beauti- 
 fully says, <' Unrivalled in his display of every lovely colour of 
 the rainbow, and unmatched in theeffects of his deadly poison, the 
 conacoushi glides undaunted on ; sole monarch of these forests, 
 both man and beast fly before him, and allow him to pursue an 
 undisputed path." The conacoushi is better known by the name 
 of bush-master; I saw one twelve feet long, and his general ap- 
 pearance was that of the head of the ugliest toad on the foul body 
 of a serpent. The Indians avoid this monster by means of their 
 dogs, sent in advance to warn their masters of the bush-masters 
 occupying the path ; but I have also been made aware of the 
 vicinity of a poisonous snake by the strong musky odour left by 
 it in its progress through the herbage. 
 
 The labarri is nearly as poisonous as the conacoushi, and is 
 sometimes killed in Stabroek. No object can be conceived more 
 horrid than this reptile ; when irritated, every scale rises from its 
 body like the feathers of a cock, the eye sparkles with malignant 
 ire, and the open jaws show the long fangs ready to dart the 
 venom into the shrinking limb. 
 
 But let the sceptic who says in his proud heart "there is no 
 God," be covered with confusion, when he is told that a merciful 
 Creator has provided certain remarkable plants which grow near 
 the haunts of these deadly snakes, and are effectual remedies 
 against their bites ; and He has clearly pointed out to the naked 
 and ignorant Indian, by the spotted stems of these plants, re- 
 sembling the colour of the poisonous reptiles, by their coiled 
 roots and flowers like the open mouthed serpent, that there is yet 
 a balm in Gilead. 
 
 Rattlesnakes are common in almost all parts of America, and 
 in Guiana they are not wanting ; there are also tree and water 
 snakes of several varieties, of the rattlesnake I may here give an 
 original anecdote. 
 
 A stout negro belonging to a friend near Stabroek, brought in 
 from the bush two rattlesnakes in a box; he seemed to have com- 
 pletely subdued them by intimidation, and after a time he would 
 let them out in the verandah, and they would return to him at 
 his call. One day they were missing, and the negro's master 
 
THE COBRA or INDIA GUIANA FROG. 33 
 
 going to an out-house saw them coiled up under the step of the 
 door, he was a long time imprisoned, but at last plucked up 
 courage and sprang into the open air over them. The negro 
 went out with his box to catch them, "Ah! you damn rascal, 
 you go way ! Get in house this minute," said Quaco, and the rep- 
 tiles obeyed him ! Sometimes he would irritate his pets, and 
 they would bite him in the hand, then he would run out to the 
 high grass near the house, and rub the wound with a plant, the 
 name of which he would not reveal, for his fellow slaves looked 
 on him with great respect from his being a snake-charmer. At 
 last, on one occasion, he got drunk, began handling the snakes, 
 they bit him, he neglected to'apply his antidote, went to the field 
 to work, and in a short time was a bloated corpse. 
 
 I have seen the cobra de capello, or hooded snake of India, 
 caught in my garden, have watched the snake-charmer with 
 feathered turban sitting beside a hole under the hedge of prickly 
 pear, and piping on a rude musical instrument made from a gourd 
 and a bit of looking-glass in front of it; unlike "the deaf adder," 
 the head of the cobra would soon appear above ground as if listen- 
 ing to the wild strains, and his eye attracted by the dazzling glass. 
 An assistant would be ready to catch him behind the neck, would 
 draw forth his yellow and writhing length, and without extract- 
 ing the poisonous fangs, would slip him into a covered basket, 
 muttering the usual curse of "HutTere." Next day the char- 
 mer would return, place his basket on the ground, sit on his 
 haunches before it and pipe, the lid would rise, and the subdued 
 snake come forth, partly coil himself up, and move his head to 
 the music, and ever and anon display his spectacled hood, or hiss 
 when the charmer approached his hand ; the assistant would go 
 behind and hold up the reptile by the tail, then he could not do 
 injury, but if a fowl were to be thrown at him, it would be dead 
 in a few minutes. What I have said of tame rattlesnakes is less 
 surprising than the feats of oriental snake charmers with the 
 cobra. 
 
 The pipa or Guiana frog, hideous as a toad, and of the size of 
 a duck, abounds in all the pools : the combined croak of a number 
 of these reptiles amounts almost to a roar in loudness : the tad- 
 poles come to maturity by attaching themselves to granules on the 
 back of the mother. Though harmless, the pipa is a most dis- 
 gusting animal. 
 
 Whilst on the Essequibo I heard of a recluse who collected in- 
 sects, and I went in a canoe to visit him. I landed in a cane 
 brake, up to the knees in mud, and scrambled for half a mile 
 through an entangled and swampy path to his retreat. A small 
 open space in the forest was cultivated as a cassava-field, and in 
 E 
 
34 AN ENTOMOLOGIST REMARKABLE FISHES. 
 
 the midst of it stood a close and an open shed for the cold rains 
 and the dry weather. Mynheer Faber, a thin, grey-headed man, 
 displayed before me a rich and valuable entomological collection, 
 consisting of the most beautiful varieties of butterflies and moths, 
 of beetles in coats of shining armour, lantern and fire-flies of dif- 
 ferent species, the remarkable walking leaves, gigantic bush- 
 spiders, the red-footed tarantula, centipedes a foot long, and 
 scorpions whose bite occasions fevers and death in a few hours. 
 I was strongly tempted to purchase, but when I came to inquire 
 the prices that Mynheer affixed to a double tray of selections from 
 the Guiana insects, I refrained from indulging myself, M. Faber 
 asked 10 joes, or 15/. for what he collected about his own door, 
 so I made my salam and returned from whence I came. 
 
 I saw many remarkable fishes of species unknown in Europe, 
 for the river ichthyology of Guiana requires yet to be described. 
 Mr. Hilhouse has applied himself to this branch of zoological in- 
 quiry, and is making a large collection of valuable drawings of 
 the finny tribes of Guiana; and it is to be hoped that he will one 
 day make them public, with descriptive letter-press. 
 
 Many of the Guiana river-fish are of the most delicious flavour, 
 and afford excellent sport to the angler. Among others, the pacoo, 
 which is found near the rapids of the Essequibo, is flat, twenty 
 inches in length, and weighs four pounds. It feeds on the seeds 
 of the arum arborescens, in devouring which the Indians shoot it 
 with their arrows. Of similar genus are the cartaback, waboory, 
 and omah. 
 
 The perai or omah, is deservedly dreaded by the swimmer ia 
 the Guiana waters. It is two feet long, and its teeth and jaws 
 are so strong that it cracks the shells of most nuts to feed on their 
 kernels, and is most voracious, for the Indians say that it will 
 snap off the breast of a woman or one of the extremities with the 
 greatest ease. The genus silurus is very remarkable, for the 
 young swim in shoals of one hundred and fifty over the head of 
 the mother, who at the approach of danger opens her mouth — 
 they rush in, and she swims off with her progeny to a place of 
 safety. 
 
 The loricaria calicthys, or assa, constructs a nest on the surface 
 of the pools from the floating blades of grass; in this it deposits 
 its spawn, which are hatched by the sun. In the dry season this 
 singular fish, however incredible it may appear, has been dugout 
 of the ground in the broad savannahs, for it burrows in the rains, 
 owing to the strength and power of the spine and gill-fin, anU the 
 body being covered with strong plates. Far below the surface it 
 finds moisture to keep it alive till the rain again converts the 
 plains into shallow lakes. 
 
ELECTRIC EEL — WURWUREEMA — FROG FISH. 35 
 
 The electric eel, a well-known inliabitant of these waters, has 
 sometimes nearly proved fatal to the strong swimmer, for if it 
 paralyzes him with its touch, lie sinks at once to the bottom. I 
 have seen electric eels eiglit feet long; their head is broad, and 
 below they are keel-shaped. If this fish is sent to England in 
 tubs, the wood and iron act as conductors, and keep the fish in a 
 continued state of exhaustion, causing eventually death. An 
 earthenware jar is the vessel in which to keep it in health. 
 
 The fish called wurwureema (a tetrodon), though only three 
 inches in length, resembles the bushmaster of the woods, for it 
 not only disdains to retreat before man, but inflicts a bite of the 
 most deadly poison. When first taken out of the water it blows 
 itself out like a ball. 
 
 Lastly, I shall notice the rana paradoxa, or frog-fish, perhaps 
 the most singular production of Guiana ; first a fish of five inches 
 long, then gradually assuming legs, and losing its tail, it becomes 
 a frog of a pea-green colour, leaves the water, and emits a melan- 
 choly note before rain. 
 
 I have thus given a sketch of the treasures that are to be met 
 with on the surface of British Guiana. As a pupil of one of the 
 most distinguished naturalists of the age, Professor Jameson, I 
 might have been expected to enter more fully into the natural his- 
 tory of the colony, but I am fearful of fatiguing many of those 
 who honour these pages with perusal ; I therefore briefly state, 
 that I know of no finer field in the universe for a naturalist to dis- 
 tinguish himself in than that of Guiana. There are vast mineral 
 treasures yet to be discovered in the mountain ranges ; the most 
 valuable gums, spices, and medicinal plants abound in these ro- 
 mantic woods, scented by the sweet hyawa ; and in a morning's 
 walk, under the matted trees, or by the side of the lonely creek, 
 new species of insects, inhabiting the land or water, are continual- 
 ly to be met with. Let this rich harvest then be reaped by some 
 able hand, and let "the natural history of British Guiana" teach 
 the public to appreciate the noble possessions of England in South 
 America. 
 
 But let not the wanderer imagine that whilst voyaging by land 
 or water in Guiana, he will meet with animated nature at every 
 step ; no — the forests may be trodden for hours, and not a sound 
 be heard, or a quadruped or bird seen. Creeks silent as the grave 
 may be navigated for miles, and at last an approaching shower 
 will alone relieve the awful solitude. First the heavy drops are 
 heard at a little distance, singly among the leaves, then they fall 
 around, and lastly, the rushing blast sweeps through the foliage, 
 forked lightning displays the forms of the trunks and branches, 
 
36 STORM — GEOLOGY. 
 
 and the thunder-cloud in dark majesty moves across the welkin — 
 
 " And then the mighty organ of the wind 
 Raised up that tuneful anthem which has rung 
 Since the creation day I" 
 
 The fertile soil near the mouih of the Essequibo was still seen 
 higher up the river, and the deca3'ed trees and leaves afforded a 
 rich mould over the clayey bottoin. Still higher up, the alluvium 
 of the estuary was changed for white sandstone on the immediate 
 river's hank, and I saw occasionally black oxide of manganese. 
 The rocks at the forks were of a granitic nature. Inland were 
 seen wooded hills of small elevation, which no one has perhaps 
 ever visited : the Indians think they are inhabited by demons; 
 and their distance from the river prevented the early settlers oc- 
 cupying them. 
 
 Scattered along the banks of the Essequibo, at wide intervals, 
 are the lonely residences of a few woodcutters, of Dutch descent. 
 They send down to Stabroek logs of the ducollubola, rivalling ma- 
 hogany, the bouracourra or letter-wood, the durable green-heart, 
 the tough hackea, ebony, and iron-wood, and receive in return 
 cloth, powder, shot, &c. Their wants are few, for they live like 
 the Indians, on cassava bread, and pepperpot, and drink creek 
 water, with a modicum of rum when they can procure it. 
 
 I visited several of the houses of these Backwoodsmen ; some 
 consisted of only two rooms, others had more pretension ; Myn- 
 heer Hoenkirk's was two-storied, with gable ends to the fj'ont, a 
 stoop or gallery to the upper story, where a Hollander could en- 
 joy a quiet pipe, and a most noble view of the broad river, stud- 
 ded with its wooded islands. The house was shaded with palms, 
 and under a spreading pomerose tree was the tomb of a brother, 
 surrounded with rails. It was an affecting sight, and I often re- 
 marked in Guiana that the mouldering remains of a near relative 
 repose in the corner of the garden of those who loved him when 
 living, and who constantly desire to cherish his memory when 
 dead. 
 
 " What doth it matter tlien, if thus, 
 
 Without a stone, without a name, 
 To impotently herald us. 
 
 We float not on the breath of fame, 
 But like the dew-drop from the flower 
 Pass, after glittering an hour?" 
 
 There was plain furniture in the rooms, which were clean and 
 neatly boarded; and we were served with pepperpot of guana, (a 
 large lizard, delicate to eat, but not particularly agreeable to view,) 
 also the fish called querriman ; we dipped the roasted plantains in- 
 to the rich sauce, and washed down the pungent food with weak 
 spirits and water. 
 
A FOREST RESIDENCE. 37 
 
 There were no beds in the house, but net hammocks were slung 
 across the principal rooms by ropes of the silk grass plant ; and 
 we slept in these till morning, and enjoyed a cool and delicious 
 repose, undisturbed by the stings of tlie musquitoes of the coast. 
 Behind JVIynheer Hoenkirk's peaceful retreat was the endless and 
 entangled forest, and through it there were a few paths, one of ex- 
 ceeding beauty, for it followed the course of a clear rivulet, and 
 opened out into little glades, in which stood gro-ups of moras, and 
 across which the light-footed wirrebocarra deer would skip, or a 
 herd of the peccaree hog rush pursued by the spotted jaguar. 
 
 The females one meets with in these wood-cutters' houses are 
 one or two Dutch girls, some fair as the flowers of their own 
 savannahs, a few mulattas and negresses. The brown men are ex- 
 cessively indolent, and it is no unusual thing to see one of these 
 stout fellows fast asleep in the bottom of a canoe with a bottle of 
 rum in close embrace, and allowing himself to glide down with 
 the stream, with fishing-lines fastened to his toes. 
 
 The fort of Kykoveral is an interesting remnant of the old mas- 
 ters of the Essequibo, the Dutch. A coat-of-arms is yet to be 
 traced over the gateway, and the high walls which enclosed the 
 island to the water's edge are still in tolerable preservation. The 
 site of Kykoveral is most picturesque, for it is at the forks of the 
 three rivers, but it has long been deserted, and the ancient capital 
 of Essequibo, like the estates on the banks of the river, has been 
 buried under rank vegetation. There is the house of a Post- 
 holder near Kykoveral ; his duty is to report to the Protector of 
 Indians at Stabroek the proceedings of the red men, and to pre- 
 vent, if possible, suspicious characters proceeding into the inte- 
 rior. The triennial presents are distributed to the Indians here, 
 when hundreds assemble from their different settlements in the 
 wilderness, and bring their wives and children in their large 
 coorials or canoes, and live for some days at the post in open logics 
 or sheds prepared for their reception. The post is on a high 
 rocky bank, and below it the clear stream runs swift and deep; 
 here, two years ago, a son of Sir Benjamin D'Urban leaped from 
 a rock to bathe, in the middle of the day, and was never again 
 seen in life. 
 
 We were in theMazarooni river, and observed a family of In- 
 dians crossing the stream in their log canoe and disappearing under 
 the bush on the opposite side. Mr. Hilhouse and myself pad- 
 dled after them in a small coorial, and landed under some locust 
 trees, and found an Indian settlement. The logics were open all 
 round, and thatched with the leaves of the trooly palm, some of 
 them twenty -four feet long. Suspended from the bamboo timbers 
 of the roof were grass hammocks: in these the men were lazily 
 
38 VISIT TO AN INDIAN SETTLEMENT. 
 
 swinging; one or two of those who were awake were fashioning 
 arrow iicads out of the cockarito palm. The men and children 
 were entirely naked, with the exception of the hlue lap or cloth 
 for the loins, the lap of the former ending in a fringed tail, and 
 bands of beads were round the wrists and ankles of the latter. 
 The young women in their blue petticoats, braided hair, hands 
 stained with the seed of the arnotto, like the rosy-fingered and 
 gazel-eyed beauties of Persia, were scraping the roots of the bit- 
 ter or poisonous cassava tree into a trough of bark; it was thea 
 put into a long press of matting, which expressed the poisonous 
 juice; the dry farina was afterwards baked on an iron plate, and 
 the juice converted by boiling into cassereep for the savoury pep- 
 perpot. 
 
 The old women were weaving the square coeoo, or lap of beads, 
 which they wear sometimes without a petticoat, also armlets and 
 ankle ornaments of beads, the wampum of the North American 
 Indians. Some were fabricating clay pots, and all the females 
 seemed actively employed. Parrots and saccawinkee monkeys 
 were on the rafters, and little sharpnosed dogs and spotted fly- 
 catchers were below. I was attracted by the arms scattered about 
 the logics — the short and heavy war-clubs, a rifle or two, bows 
 and arrows, with many barbs for shooting fish, and with blunted 
 heads for stunning birds, and above all the blow-pipe made of a 
 straight reed sixteen feet long, by means of which the miniature 
 arrows dipped in Wourali poison and ending in cotton balls, are 
 projected with deadly aim to the distance of three hundred feet. 
 
 The Indians stared at us without speaking, and we sat down in 
 empty hammocks and commenced swinging like the rest. I 
 caught up a red boy, a chubby-faced firm little rogue of a year 
 and a half old, and tickled him till he screamed with laughing; 
 his mother, who was pounding maize in a wooden mortar, ceased 
 from her labour, and courteously otlered us casseree in a gourd — 
 a crimson liquor made from the sweet potatoe; of this I partook, 
 and found it to taste like cider: however, I politely declined the 
 pywarree. This intoxicating beverage is like thick rice-water, 
 and is prepared by the sweet mouths of the Indian fair, old and 
 young: they ciiew the cassava flower, spit it into a wooden 
 trou"^h, or sometimes a small canoe, add water, the liquor fer- 
 ments, and at the pywarree feasts the men sit round the vessel, 
 and the entertainers and their guests roll in the sand, drunk for two 
 or three (lavs together: their tender helpmates look after them, and 
 keep them'from being suffocated with the sand getting into their 
 mouths. But pywarree is a harmless liquor, that is to say, it does 
 not produce the disease and baneful effects of spirits; for after a 
 
INDIAN PURSUITS — INDIAN PISHING. 39 
 
 sleep the Indians rise fresh and well, and only occasionally indulge 
 in a debauch of this kind. 
 
 We saw the fish and birds which the men had just shot with 
 their arrows, brought out of their canoe and harhacoted or smoke- 
 dried on a grating of bamboo over the fire; and we then followed 
 an aged Indian with a cutlass to the small fields of cassava cleared 
 by girdling and burning part of the forest behind the logics. 
 The cassava plant is four feet in height, has a knotted ash-coloured 
 stem, with slender branches at the top, from whence proceed the 
 red footstalks of the broad digitated leaves; the white root is 
 cylindrical and a foot long. In the bitter^ or poisonous cassava, 
 is a fibre, which the sweet wants. 
 
 The Indians, above described, were Arrawaks, and we after- 
 wards saw Accaways, Caribs, &c. and I have seldom experienced 
 greater pleasure than in visiting the settlements of these children 
 of nature, passing their days under the majestic trees b}'' the side 
 of the oozy creek, or clear and rapid stream, sometimes listlessly 
 reclining in their hammocks, then, instigated by the calls of hun- 
 ger, proceeding warily and stealthily through the bush in quest of 
 game; at one time paddling their canoe up the river, dragging it 
 up the rapids, and nimbly springing from rock to rock with a 
 stout towing-rope of nibbee, or vine in their hand, and animating 
 each other to exertion by short and impatient shouts. A small 
 cataract is to be passed, the canoe is unloaded and transported on 
 the shoulders to the still water above, and the voyage is resumed. 
 The creek teeming with the finny tribes is visited below the foam 
 of a cascade, and dammed up; the roots of the Hyareetree poison 
 the water, and in a short time the fish rise to the surface, agitated, 
 and for a time drunk with the tainted element. The Indians are 
 then all life and agility, dart from their longbows their barbed 
 arrows, and their women plunge into the pool and bear the rich 
 prize to the bank. Again they descend the river to their logics 
 and shoot the rapids, the steersmen sit in silence and watchfulness 
 with balanced paddle at the head and stern of the canoe, glancing 
 on either side their practised eye; the water boiling and roaring 
 among the rocks sends them breathless into the midst of the bi-eak- 
 ers, crested with foam; the spray dashes into the frail bark, but 
 the danger is past, and with a wild chorus they regain their lowly 
 sheds. 
 
 \ 
 
40 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 On the Indians of British Guiana. — Population. — The names of the Tribes. — The 
 Arrawiiiis. — Best known to the Settlers. — Practise polygamy. — Inconveniences of 
 this system. — How to win a Bride. — Shameful conduct of some Europeans. — 
 Dreadful etfccts of seduction. — The Indian not unwilling to be related to the white 
 man. — The birth of a child. — Named by the Peiman. — How the Indians spend 
 their time. — Rum ought to be prohibited. — Hospitality of the Indians. — The be- 
 haviour of the Indians in the house of an European. — Indian deportment. — 
 Highly useful as Bush-rangers. — Diseases. — The Village of the Dead. — Funeral 
 Ceremonies. — Indian Theology. — Tradition of the Creation. — Of the Deluge. — 
 Never address the Diety. — The Accaways. — Wourali poison. — The Caribisce. — 
 The VVurrows. — The Macoushis. — Indian language. — Indians ought to be re- 
 claimed. — The Protectors and Postholders. — Their duties. — Their Character. — 
 Roguery of a Postholder. — The Soil and Climate of the Indian country. — Adapted 
 for Colonization. — A settlement recommended. — Moral and religious Instruction. 
 — Indian labourers. — Labour of sexes equal. — Mismanagementof Indian affairs. 
 — A remedy proposed. — Colonial policy. 
 
 The Indian population which inhabits British Guiana is esti- 
 mated at twenty thousand souls, but only about five thousand of 
 these receive presents from the Colonial Government, the rest are 
 wanderers, extending their migrations from the Amazons to the 
 Oronooco. The principal tribes are the Arrawaks, Accaways, 
 Caribisce, Wurrows, and Macoushis. 
 
 The Arrawaks are best known to the European settlers on the 
 coast, as they continually visit the towns and plantations, and 
 many of them live on the creeks near the sea ; they are invaluable 
 as bush-rangers, and for tracking run-away slaves; and rendered 
 great assistance to the colony in the insurrection of 1823, when 
 the Missionary Smith was supposed to have instigated the negroes 
 to insubordination. 
 
 The Arrawaks practise polygamy, and I have seen one man 
 with two sisters as his wives, and another with two middle-aged 
 women, and a young girl who was to succeed them, all living 
 apparently in great harmony ; but I have been assured by those 
 well acquaintetl with Indians, that in the forests of the West, as 
 much inconvenience is experienced as in the harems of the East, 
 by the lord of a plurality of wives. In the latter he retreats for 
 a time "to smoke the pipe of patience," till the domestic broils 
 have ceased ; whereas in the former he hesitates not to use a stout 
 bush rope to restore order. Indian wives are won by presents 
 to the parents ; or when the lady herself is wooed, the Shakspear- 
 ian maxim is followed : 
 
 " Win her with gifts, if she respects not words ; 
 Dumb jewels often in their silent kind, 
 More than quick words, do move a woman's mind." 
 
DREADFUL EFFECTS OF SEDTTCTION — BIRTH OF A CHILD. 41 
 
 The descent is traced from the family of the mother. Though 
 in public a native sense of propriety prevents the men caressing 
 the women, yet they are extremely attached both to them and to 
 their offspring, and the children never receive personal correc- 
 tion. It was with feelings of unmingled disgust that I remarked 
 some Europeans uncovering the bosoms of the Arrawak women 
 in presence of their husbands, and otherwise behaving rudely to 
 these inoffensive people. Coarse must that mind be, and desti- 
 tute of all sense of propriety, which induces an individual to out- 
 rage so'grossly another's feelings. 
 
 A short time before I arrived in the colony, a brown man had 
 induced the young wife of an Arrawak to visit him. The hus- 
 band saw his wife leave the house of the seducer, and led her to 
 his logic: there he taxed her with her infidelity; she confessed 
 she was deserving of death, and the husband acknowledging his 
 fondness for her, avowed that he was unable to wipe off the stain 
 his honour had sustained if she looked at him ; on which she de- 
 liberately turned her back, and he struck her to the ground with 
 his heavy war club, and then stabbed her. The Arrawak's friends 
 gave him up to the Fiscal, to prevent a "bellum internecivum," 
 or war of mutual extermination. He was tried and found guilty 
 of murder, and the sentence remitted for approval to England. 
 The brother of the woman declared in court, that if the husband 
 v^as not hanged, he would have his life, though it cost him his 
 own. After this, what more need be said to show the fatal con- 
 sequences of a libertine interfering with the domestic concerns of 
 the Arrawaks ? 
 
 But the Indian is not unwilling to give one of his nation to be 
 an helpmate to the white man, and is even proud of the connex- 
 ion. The Dutch possessed great influence over the tribes, by 
 selecting their mistresses from among them, while the English, 
 by some extraordinary perversity of taste, prefer the daughters 
 of Africa. 
 
 I was anxious to ascertain whether an extraordinary custom 
 prevailed among the Arrawaks of which I had read, viz. that on 
 the birth of a child the lazy father lies in his hammock, acts the 
 part of a woman indisposed, and is nursed for some weeks by his 
 family. I was assured that this was not the case; that the father 
 merely receives in his hammock the congratulations of his friends, 
 and does not act so ridiculous a part as has been formerly de- 
 scribed. 
 
 The child is named by the peiman, or magician, and doctor of 
 the tribe, who is distinguished by possessing a calabash contain- 
 ing certain seeds and shining pebbles, and ornamented with par- 
 F 
 
42 HOSPITALITY OF THE INDIANS. 
 
 rots' feathers ; with this he performs his incantations, and is besides 
 possessed of a knowledge of medicinal herbs. 
 
 The Indian leads a life of the most luxurious ease. A bounti- 
 ful nature supplies all his wants, and the climate obviates the ne- 
 cessity for cloliies. For two months in the year he cultivates 
 his cassava, and raises a supply of farinaceous food, which, with 
 game and fish, is sufficient for the remainder of ihe year. Then, 
 like the French Canadians, he visits his friends, and sings, dances, 
 and drinks pywarree, 
 
 I was pained to see the Europeans pay the Indians for any little 
 articles they purchased from them, as a parrot, pegals or baskets, 
 models of buck houses, or bows and arrows, with the health- 
 destroying rum. Indians are 710/ naturally fond of spirits; and 
 young men to whom it is offered for the first time, constantly 
 refuse it, but by persuasion they are at last induced to taste " the 
 poisoned chalice," and the usual consequences follow : — Disease, 
 death, and the extinction of families. Oh! cursed destroyer of 
 happiness, soon may there be an end of thy pernicious influence! 
 
 The Indians are extremely hospitable, and I was delighted to see 
 the readiness with which food and drink was offered to the stran- 
 ger. An Indian visitor, naked and armed for the chase, on com- 
 ing into a hut, says to the man dozing in his hammock, and who 
 may never have seen him before, "Prooha meroo," (I am come,) 
 to which the other replies deliberately, " Cherre," (sit down,) 
 and no other introduction is required, but food and lodging im- 
 mediately tendered. 
 
 When the Indians untie their hammocks and visit the whites, 
 the women and children are commonly left with the coorials in 
 the neighbouring creek, and the men walk quietly through the 
 house or sit on tlieir hams in the verandah, smoking tobacco rolled 
 up in a leaf; they will not pilfer if confidence is placed in them, 
 and are ready to barter their handy work for cloth or cutlery. In 
 the lonely " bush," or in a crowded assembly, they are grave 
 and sedate in their demeanour, graceful in their action, upright 
 in their carriage, and rarely express astonishment at novel sights; 
 this may be natural to them, but my old friends the Persian Kiz- 
 zilbash are taught to suppress their wonder, and to contemplate 
 strange sights with sang-froid, as if they had been long accus- 
 tomed to them. 
 
 Light of foot and unencumbered with dress or heavy knapsack, 
 the Indian will march three times the distance that an European 
 soldier would in a day, and their sagacity in tracing those of 
 whom they may be in pursuit is quite astonishing. Their 
 senses of hearing and seeing are most acute ; sounds unheeded by 
 the dull ear of the whites immediately convey intelligence to the 
 
DISEASES — VILLAGE OP THE DEAD. 43 
 
 red man, and the pressed leaf in the path, or the broken twig, 
 not only inform him that he of whom he is in pursuit has gone 
 before, but the very time he has passed that way. 
 
 The Indians of Guiana are subject to few diseases, though 
 small-pox contracted on the coast sometimes cuts off whole 
 tribes. Thus, I was told by a friend that once, on an expedition 
 to some of the streams that fall into the Oronooco from the south, 
 he landed with his Arrawak followers to pass the night at an 
 Indian seltlement of at least a hundred logics ; in the sheds, the 
 hammocks, cooking pots, and arms, were all in the usual order, 
 but there were no other signs of the inhabitants. Thinking they 
 were gone on an expedition into the bush, the travellers took 
 possession of one of the logics, eat and slept in it. In the 
 morning, a wood-skin, or the bark of a purple heart-tree, sus- 
 pended from the rafters, was seen to contain a corpse, and on 
 examining the other logics, they were each found to contain two 
 or three dead bodies. The Arrawaks were alarmed, and preci- 
 pitately fled from this village of the dead ; and it was afterwards 
 ascertained that the small-pox having appeared among this 
 (extinct) tribe of Indians, the Spaniards had isolated them, and 
 they had been cut off nearly to a man. The Indians when 
 attacked by this frightful disease, cannot be made to believe that 
 the cold-bath is very dangerous ; they plunge into the stream 
 when the burning fever is on them, and the virus which would 
 otherwise expend itself on the surface, is driven inwardly with 
 fatal effect — thepeiman all the while rattling his calabash, blow- 
 ing the fumes of tobacco over the patient, and screaming horribly. 
 
 The Indians of Guiana frequently bury their dead under the 
 floors of their logics, and burn a fire over the grave for some time 
 afterwards. Sometimes they desert th.e spot where their friends 
 have died, and seek a new settlement. The annual feast of the 
 dead is said to prevail among some of the tribesfar in the interior: 
 all who have died since the former feast, are disinterred and 
 brought from considerable distances to be interred in one spot. It 
 must be an awfully impressive ceremony. The recent corpse 
 loathsome with corruption ; in others the flesh wasted away, and 
 the skin alone covering the bones like parchment ; and then of 
 some, the skeleton alone remaining! See these poor people 
 piously collecting the loved remains of their departed friends, re- 
 newing their lamentations and tlieir grief, and with rude pomp 
 and ceremony again committing them in honour to their native 
 earth. Though the feelings of the inhabitants of the Old World 
 may be shocked at this savage solemnity in the New, let them not 
 deny that the Indians of America are capable of affection towards 
 
44 THE CREATION DELUGE — NEGLECT OF PRArER. 
 
 one another, and continue their regard for their relatives even 
 beyond the grave. 
 
 " How sorrowful their hearts ! when to their dead 
 The last sad melancholy rite was paid, 
 They buried their old men and tiie young boy, 
 And tlic athletic hunter, in their last 
 And narrow home, and mournfully departed." 
 
 The Arrawaks say that they believe in a supreme Creator of all 
 things, who has a brollier, the Governor of the Universe ; there 
 is also an Evil Spirit, (Yabahoo,) whom they endeavour to con- 
 ciliate by means of their peinicn, who attempt to cast out the Evil 
 Spirit with their calabash. 
 
 Their tradition of the creation is, that the Great Spirit set on a 
 silk cotton-tree, and cut off pieces of bark, which he threw into 
 the stream below him, and they became animated, and assumed 
 the forms of all animals. TJiat man at last was created, that a 
 deep sleep fell upon him, that he was touched by the Deity, and 
 when he awoke he found a wife by his side. The world becom- 
 ing desperately wicked was drowned by a flood, only one man 
 was saved in a canoe, from this he sent out a rat, to discover if 
 the waters had subsided, and it returned with a head of Indian 
 corn. 
 
 The Indians believe in *'free will," and have neither priest- 
 hood nor form of worship ; they say that it is unnecessary to 
 address the Creator in prayer, for that as he is supremely just, he 
 will not give any one undue precedence on supplication, neither 
 will he willingly afflict his creatures. By incantations they at- 
 tempt to propitiate the Evil Spirit. 
 
 Further removed from the coast than the Arrawaks are the 
 Accaways; in stature they difler not from the former, but are 
 more energetic, quarrelsome, and insubordinate to their chiefs. 
 Under proper leaders they are capable of the most desperate 
 enterprises, and are universally dreaded by the other wandering 
 tribes. 
 
 It is the Accaways who principally prepare the wourali poison 
 from the wourali vine, certain bulbous roots known only to them- 
 selves, with the addition of the muneery, or large black ant, and 
 the fangs of the conacoushi, labarri, and rattlesnakes. 
 
 The Caribisce inliabit the upper country, between the 
 Essequibo and Coioony, and are a manly and intrepid race. 
 Those that I saw were fairer than the Arrawaks, and I was 
 particularly struck with the noble bearing of a young chief on a 
 visit to an Arrawak family, from the members of which he was 
 distinguished by a dash of red arnotto under the eyes, and a chintz 
 scarf gracefully crossed over his broad chest. 
 
SKETCH OF THE DIFFERENT TRIBES. 45 
 
 The houses of the Caribisce are all roof, and not open at the 
 sides, like the logics of the Arrawaks; and they have a tradition 
 that they once inhabited the West India islands. 
 
 The Wurrows occupy the coast between the Pomeroon and 
 Oronooco: though a black and wretched- looking race, they are 
 very skilful boat-builders, and construct the Spanish launches, so 
 famed for elegance and speed. The food of the Wurrows is prin- 
 cipally fish, and the edible part of the eta, or mauritia, from which 
 invaluable tree they also manufacture their hammocks and bas- 
 kets, and with the leaves thatch their sheds. Occasionally the 
 Wurrows visit Stabroek, to barter smoked and salted querriman 
 (mugil) for cloth and cutlery. 
 
 Far in the deep recesses of the forests of the interior, dwell, in 
 constant dread, the persecuted Macoushis; they surround their 
 dwellings with poisoned stakes, carry continually about them, in 
 the tooth of the cayman or alligator, deadly poison, and when 
 they suspect a guest of treachery, they take a little of this under 
 the nail and mix it with the bread, and thus relieve themselves of 
 their fears. The other tribes plunder them of their property and 
 kidnap them without mercy, but not always with impunity, for 
 the cunning of the Macoushis is very great, and they are implaca- 
 ble in their revenge. 
 
 The language of the South American Indians is necessarily 
 very copious, from the immense number of objects of natural his- 
 tory with which they are surrounded, for all of which they have 
 appropriate names. 
 
 The origin of nations is to be learned from an analogy of fea- 
 tures and language, and few have yet made a study of the differ- 
 ent dialects of South America. The researches of my friend Mr. 
 Ranking, as to the origin of the American Indians, are extremely 
 interesting and well worthy of attention; and it appears to me, 
 from the similarity of colour and feature between the inhabitants 
 of Eastern Asia and the Guiana Indians, that that learned anti- 
 quary is borne out in his assumption that the American continent 
 was partly peopled by Tartars. 
 
 On rocks high up the Essequibo, there are certain rude figures 
 or hieroglyphics, which ought to be accurately copied for the pur- 
 pose of comparison with those so rife in Mexico. The Carib 
 language is considered the first great language on the east of the 
 Andes, then the Arrawak and Wurrow. The Accaway is merely 
 a dialect of the Caribisce, whilst the Arrawak and Wurrow are 
 totally different. 
 
 As a specimen: — Fire, in Arrawak, is ikehkee; in Wurrow, 
 ikoonoohj and in Caribisce and Accaway, waatuh. Water, in 
 Arrawak, is ivunney-yaboo; in Wurrow, ho; and in Caribisce 
 
46 INDIANS OUGHT TO BE RECLAIMED. 
 
 and AccawFLj, toojiiah and toonah. Earth, in Arrawak, is oro- 
 roo; in Wurrow, /lo/a/i; and in Caribisce and Accaway, eetoh. 
 
 This, then, is a sketch of the different tribes who inhabit Bri- 
 tish Guiana. At present they are of little or no value to the 
 colony, except, like the Maroons of Jamaica, being a check upon 
 the negroes; but with care they might be of great benefit to the 
 province. No time ought to be lost in endeavouring to reclaim 
 them, and to teach them settled and industrious habits, or they 
 will quickly disappear from the face of the earth by European 
 diseases, for which they have no cure, and the vicious habit they 
 acquire of drinking spirits. 
 
 The great Chateaubriand lays down most judicious directions 
 for the management of Indians; and from a little work entitled 
 " Indian Notices," by Mr. Hilhouse, j)ublished in Stabroek seven 
 years ago, valuable instruction may be derived by those who have 
 the interest of these neglected wanderers at heart. 
 
 What have been the consequences to the Hollanders of neglect- 
 ing their Indians in Surinam? Dangerous settlements of bush 
 negroes, amounting now to seventy thousand souls, who continu- 
 ally plunder the plantations, and may one day drive the Dutch 
 into the sea. 
 
 In British Guiana there are six Protectors of Indians, but in 
 reality mere honorary appointments, and under these there are 
 six Postholders and assistants on the different rivers. The Post- 
 holders receive £158 of salary {)er annum and a house, and their 
 assistant £72. The duties of the Protectors are, to see that the 
 Postholders do their duty and fill their offices agreeably to in- 
 structions; to endeavour to make peace between contending 
 parties of Indians; to transmit quarterly returns to the Lieutenant- 
 Governor. The duties of Postholders are, to keep the posts in 
 good order; to attach the Indians to their posts; to endeavour, on 
 all occasions, to prevent misunderstanding and quarrelling be- 
 tween individuals or tribes; to preserve peace among them; to 
 deter all persons, whether whites or free coloured, from passing 
 the posts without permission of the Lieutenant-Governor or Pro- 
 tector of Indians; and to give in, through their respective Pro- 
 tectors, to the Lieutenant-Governor, a quarterly return of all 
 occurrences at their post. 
 
 The Protectors have no salary, and are merchants and planters 
 who live on the coast; the Indians are therefore left to the tender 
 mercies of the Postholders, who, removed from observation in 
 the interior, report <' what seemeth good to them" to the Pro- 
 tectors, who again only triennially visit the posts. 
 
 I took pains to get introduced to one of the Protectors, expect- 
 ing to get from him a good deal of information regarding the 
 
ROGUERY or A POSTHOLDEH. 47 
 
 Indian population, their condition, manners and customs, &c. ; 
 but what was my surprise to find that he knew nothing whatever 
 about them, and seemed to care as little! 
 
 Some of the Postholders are men of mongrel breed between the 
 English and Dutch, are altogether unprincipled and worthless, 
 shamefully neglecting or abusing the charge committed to them. 
 Their sole aim seemed to be to enrich themselves, or to find the 
 means of living a debauched life by inducing the Indians to cut 
 wood for them by presents of rum, thereby demoralizing the peo- 
 ple they were intended to protect, " Ex uno disce 07nnes,^' — 
 one instance of their roguery will suffice: 
 
 After the declaration of independence by Colombia, three hund- 
 red Indians from the Spanish missions, refusing to place them- 
 selves under the republican government, came to the banks of the 
 Pomeroon river and settled on the British territory. They were 
 in a very civilized state, were well clothed and well acquainted 
 with agriculture, and many mechanical arts, to the honour of the 
 Jesuit padres who had instructed them. Altogether they were a 
 valuable acquisition to the colony. A drunken and unprincipled 
 Postholder on the Pomeroon, concealing from his Excellency the 
 Lieutenant-Governor the arrival of these people, immediately 
 employed them in cutting troolees for his own benefit; and Mr. 
 Hyne a most respectable Roman Catholic clergyman told me that 
 he was the first to discover them to the Lieutenant-Governor, for 
 a deputation from these Spanish Indians came to him in Stabroek, 
 requesting that he would visit their settlement, which he did, 
 married many of their young people, and baptized about seventy 
 children. From this excellent man I got many interesting par- 
 ticulars of the state in which he found these Indians. 
 
 Mr. Hilhouse's report on the soil and climate of the interior 
 of Guiana, or the region inhabited only by the Indians, is very 
 favourable. " For," says he, " it is far more salubrious than that 
 of the coast ;" though nearer the line, its superior elevation lowers 
 the temperature, and the thick shade of the forest keeps the sur- 
 face of the earth cool. 
 
 I said that the number of deaths on the estates on the rivers 
 and creeks was greater than those on the coast, but this meant 
 only the flat banks of the rivers near the sea; for higher up, and 
 beyond the influence of the tide, the rivers' banks are extremely 
 healthy. There the drainage is perfect ; no stagnant waters exist, 
 nor is miasma generated by decayed vegetables exposed to the 
 influence of the sun. 
 
 As forest tracts are always moist, so in the interior great quan- 
 tities of rain fall ; the forests attract the clouds required for their 
 own support, and between the tropics abundant nourishment is 
 
48 SOIL AND CLIMATE OF GUIANA — COLONIZATION. 
 
 required for vegetation ; therefore it is recommended, in clearing 
 a country for cultivstion, that groups of trees be left to increase 
 the fertility of the soil. 
 
 My informant stated, that it was his opinion, if the hand of 
 cultivation reached the hills of the interior, and a few artificial 
 improvements were added to the advantages of local situation, the 
 climate of Guiana would be the most healthy and agreeable of any 
 within the tropics, with fish, flesh, fowl, and vegetables in abun- 
 dance, pure water, no fevers, and no musquitoes. 
 
 One therefore naturally supj)oses that this region would be a 
 favourable one for the occupation of British emigrants, and it 
 really would be so, if the emigrants were properly directed. But 
 first it would be necessary to act justly with regard to the Indians: 
 to colonize them, to assemble them in communities, teach them 
 industrious habits, and elevate their minds hy moral and religious 
 instruction. 
 
 Mr. Hilhouse recommends Bartika, at the confluence of the 
 three rivers, as an eligible situation for a colony, and thinks 
 it will succeed best if it is half European and half Indian. Thus 
 the former would learn the appropriate habits of the climate, the 
 moral character of the Indian would be improved, (supposing that 
 the Europeans conducted themselves with propriety), and no 
 hostilities or opposition would then be experienced on the part of 
 the Indians. 
 
 The head of this colony should be well acquainted with the 
 character of the Indians, be of sound principles and unspotted 
 reputation ; he should reside constantly at the colony, and report 
 to the Lieutenant-Governor alone. No worthless characters should 
 be allowed to approach the red man, no spirit drinking allowed, 
 no debauching of their women, and no interference with their 
 prejudices. 
 
 Of course the white colonists ought to have the immediate 
 benefit of instruction with religion for its basis, without which 
 it is highly pernicious. But with regard to the Indians, their 
 morals ought first to be improved before they can be duly sus- 
 ceptible of religious impressions ; industry and sobriety ought first 
 to be inculcated, and then let religion shed its benign influence 
 over them — 
 
 " Then let the desert sing : 
 Where sprang- tlie tliorn,tliet\viningf vine shall spring, 
 And where unsightly and rank thistles grew, 
 Shall grow the myrtle and luxuriant yew." 
 
 A military force, partly white and partly Indian, may be or- 
 ganized from the colonists, which as bush rangers, and preventing 
 
INDIAN LABOURERS LABOUR OV SEXES EQUAL. 49 
 
 slave insurrection, and detecting runaway negroes, would be in- 
 valuable. 
 
 It is a singular fact, that the colonies of Guiana owed their 
 origin to Indians. The Dutch came amongst them, induced some 
 to labour and others to procure for them Indian slaves. The free 
 Indians received a few European articles, which they prized, as 
 cloth and ammunition. The Dutch gradually becoming richer 
 by the export of their produce, purchased negro slaves, and dis- 
 pensed with the services of the Indians. The coffee, indigo, 
 cocoa and arnotto (dye), which were cultivated high up the 
 river, are now succeeded by cotton and sugar on the sea coast. 
 
 At present, the agricultural labours of the Indians onl}'^ occupy 
 them two months in the year, but, with proper management, they 
 might be induced to raise sufficient maize, cassava, and plantains 
 to support them, without roving about for fish and game, as they 
 do at present ; and though the savannahs of Colombia and of 
 Brazil are occupied with immense herds of cattle, the savannahs 
 of British Guiana are grazed only by the deer. 
 
 Those who are superficially acquainted with the Indians, com- 
 plain of the drudgery that the women are subjected to : thus 
 they see them en route, first the husband, with upright carriage, 
 bearing only his light arms ; behind him, in single file, walk the 
 women carrying the heavy burdens : — then again the women are 
 seen weeding in the fields, drawing water, collecting fire-wood, 
 and preparing the food; whilst all this time the man may be lazily 
 hanging his legs and arms out of his hammock ; — but then it must 
 be considered that on a journey his hands ought to be free to 
 guard against surprise ; that he clears the fields, builds the coorial 
 and the logic, hunts and fishes — so that the division of labour is 
 not unequal. 
 
 It is a very painful reflection, that although the colony 
 annually pays the Protectors, for presents, provisions, Postholders' 
 salaries, &c. about £3000, in order to induce the Indians to re- 
 main in British Guiana, yet the office of Postholder has been so 
 shamefully abused, that the Indians are yearly and rapidly de- 
 creasing in numbers. 
 
 In the Coromantyne negro rebellion of 1793 and 1794, eight 
 hundred Carib warriors took the field to suppress it. Scarcely 
 fifty can now be found in Demerara ; nine-tenths of the Arrawaks 
 which then existed, exist no more ; half the Accaways and half of 
 the Wurrows have now disappeared. The Indians have rendered 
 signal services to the colony, but neither have pains been taken to 
 preserve them, nor has their welfare been at all promoted. No 
 charge of corrupt dealing can be brought against the Protectors, 
 who are generally highly respectable gentlemen ; but their in- 
 G 
 
50 COLONIAL POLICY. 
 
 difference to the interests of the red men cannot be excused; and 
 really the system which has existed in British Guiana for forty 
 years, compared with that in Colombia, with respect to the 
 Indians, makes one blush for one's country. 
 
 The reasons why the administration of Indian affairs ought 
 immediately to be changed, are these important ones: — First, on 
 the score of humanity ; at present the Indians near the coast 
 imitate the vices of the Europeans, and contract their diseases, 
 and no arm is stretched forth to save them from the utter destruc- 
 tion, bodily and mental, which is about to overwhelm them, — 
 Secondly, on the score of interest; if the colony is again attacked 
 by a foreign foe, the negroes would probably rise in rebellion if 
 there are no Indians to keep them in check ; the regular militia 
 will be obliged to succumb to the invader ; the honour of the 
 British arms will be tarnished, and the rich South American 
 colonies lost. The change recommended to be made is simply 
 this. One active, zealous, and responsible Superintendent of 
 Indians, with an adequate salary, instead of six unpaid Protectors. 
 Steady half-pay officers as Postholders ; annual Indian fairs, and 
 the formation of Indian communities. 
 
 To conclude, <'our policy is simple, and the danger to be 
 avoided is great." 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Settlers on the coast. — Unacquainted with the interior of Guiana. — Pleasures of a 
 Bush expedition. — Advice to Wanderers. — Expedition of Mr. Hilhousc and Mr. 
 Tichmaker. — Sail up the Mazarooni. — Magnificent mountain ranges. — Raleigh's 
 Peak. — Arrawak fathers. — The great falls of Cumarrow. — A glorious scene. — 
 How to spend the night in the bush. — A talc of the living and the dead. — Interest- 
 ing collections. — The melancholy fate of the travellers Smith and Gullifer. — Left 
 valuable papers. — Cannibalism on the Essequibo. — The enchanted pool — The Rev. 
 Mr. Hync's visit to the Spanish Indians of Morocco. — Their civilized state. — 
 Conduct of certain parties of pleasure condemned. — A warning. 
 
 Is it not strange and surprising, that although most of the 
 rivers and creeks of the interior of British Guiana are un- 
 known, hardly one has attempted to explore them ? The 
 merchants and planters on the coast ridicule the idea of expedi- 
 tions into the interior, attended as they are with risk, discomfort, 
 and no profit. Yet, if one is willing to leave for a while the 
 pursuits of wealth or idle pleasures, let him penetrate the wilds of 
 Guiana, and he will be amply repaid for his trouble ; he will there 
 view the grandest productions of the torrid zone — the broad rivers 
 
PLEASURES OP A BUSH EXPEDITION. 51 
 
 abounding with undescribed fish ; the vast forests tenanted with 
 wild beasts, shunning the approach of man ; and with the most 
 beautiful of the feathered tribes, appearing like blossoms among 
 leaves; the swamps nourishing in their gloomy recesses serpents 
 of the largest size ; and the rich green plain of the broad 
 savannahs, perhaps diversified only here and there with a solitary 
 tree. High excitement will attend the pilgrim, and no great 
 danger, either from Indians or wild animals, — respect the pre- 
 judices of the former, and cautiously tread near the haunts of the 
 latter: — Prudens et audax, Prudence with daring, is an excellent 
 motto and maxim for a traveller. 
 
 If the dry season in October and November is selected, com- 
 parative comfort will attend the wanderer; he will then enjoy a 
 clear sky, the rapids will be more easily passed, and the rivers 
 flowing with gentler current than during the freshes in the rains; he 
 will have a long morning twilight, and in the evening the moon- 
 light and the refreshing breeze will delight him as he prepares for 
 his repose under the serene canopy of heaven, listens to the hum 
 and noise of the myriads of insects around his hammock, or 
 watches the sparkling showers of the fire-flies among the foliage. 
 
 " And nought of gloom he feels, or inward dread, 
 But joy-inspiring shades he sees before him spread !" 
 
 I was unable to asend the rivers as far as I wished to do, from 
 the great freshes in them. The season of the year was most un- 
 favourable, and I was daily drenched with rain; yet I penetrated in 
 every direction as far as I could, and by practising a Spartan 
 abstinence, shielding my head from the sun's influence, and taking 
 care always to sleep dry, I suffered no injury on the score of health. 
 I recommend a broad-brimmed leather hat, covered with white 
 linen, a light waterman's jacket; short water-proof cloak, and 
 leather leggings, for bush expedition between the tropics. The 
 arms, — a rifle, sword, dagger, and double-barrelled pistol. 
 
 Mr. Hilhouse, and a young and intelligent planter of the name 
 of Tichmaker, availed themselves of the dry season of 1830, and 
 had, to the distance of two hundred and fifty miles, a most inte- 
 resting expedition up the Mazarooni river, by them explored for 
 the first time. I now subjoin a short sketch of their proceedings. 
 
 At Stabroek the travellers hired a number of Arrawak Indians, 
 and a large canoe, in which they placed tin boxes containing their 
 clothes; presents of cloth, cutlery, and beads for the red men, 
 and fowling-pieces to kill their food. From the Essequibo river 
 they passed into the Mazarooni, which makes a considerable 
 sweep to the north-east, and then returns, so as to form a large 
 peninsula enclosing lofty mountains and considerable creeks. 
 
52 SAIL UP THE MAZAROONI. 
 
 The isthmus of the peninsula is so narrow, that three days will 
 suffice to cross it, so that thus the sweep may he avoided. The 
 travellers, however, pursued the course of the river, passed the 
 mouths of several creeks, and saw on the left, mountain ranges 
 seemingly of white quartz, and several thousand feet in height. 
 Towering above the rest, was a noble peak on which rested a 
 diadem of clouds: this they named Raleigh's Peak, for they were 
 in Eldorado, the shining particles of mica in the quartz having 
 been mistaken for precious ore — hence a region of gold. Afar 
 off was also seen a magnificent waterfall, which, like a thread of 
 silver fell over a face of rock apparently eleven hundred feet 
 high! 
 
 It was remarked of the Arrawak men, women, and children, 
 who accompanied the travellers, that the fathers evinced great 
 fondness for their children, carefully wrapped them up in coarse 
 blankets, at night, sheltered them from the rain, and tended them 
 as carefully as the mothers did. We read of the indifference of 
 the American Indians to tiieir offspring — that like the stony- 
 hearted ostrich, they leave them to nature; but it is not so true. 
 They allow them to eat whatever they can pick up; thus they 
 may be seen with a large piece of indigestible cocoa-nut in their 
 hand, or munching green fruit; but the parents know not how 
 pernicious this food may be; — and it often surprised me to see 
 so many children survive such a system. But let us follow the 
 expedition. 
 
 White sand-stone rocks on the rivers' banks, were succeeded 
 by felspar, then granite and quartz seemed to form the highest 
 ridges. On coming to the Cumarrow creek, the travellers were told 
 by their Indians, that up it there were very fine falls; accordingly, 
 they left the Mazarooni and turned up the creek. No white man 
 had ever been seen there before, except three Spanish padres, who 
 twenty years bclbrc had lived at the mouth of the creek, and per- 
 suaded many Indians to accompany them to the missions on the 
 Oronooco. 
 
 Tiie banks of the Cumarrow were, as usual, shaded with mag- 
 nificent trees, and there were scattered settlements of Indians, in 
 all, about one hundred and fifty people. The water shoaled as 
 they proceeded; in some places it was only one foot, and then 
 three; on these occasions the Indians jumped out of the coorial, 
 and drdgged it into deep water. The colour of the water was 
 often very peculiar, being a deep chocolate, from the decomposed 
 vegetable matter held in solution in it. At last they came to 
 where the surface of the water was white, with streaks of foam, 
 and rapids ran between high rocks. 
 
 They now left the coorial, and proceeded towards the rush- 
 
FALLS OP THE CUMARROVV. 53 
 
 ing of mighty waters; they climbed up the steep face of a 
 hill, holding on by the bushes, and found themselves suddenly 
 near the top of a magnificent cascade. They crawled on their 
 hands and knees to tlie edge of a cliff of perpendicular descent, 
 and saw the fall, glorious with rainbows amongst the foam of its 
 waters, plunging into an awful abyss, and surrounded by sublime 
 scenery. Mountain ranges, four thousand feet in altitude, were 
 before the enraptured spectators, and untrodden forests encom- 
 passed them. The thermometer at the top and bottom of the fall, 
 indicated in boiling water 206° and 208°; the height of the cata- 
 ract was estimated at five hundred feet, the breadth at the top one 
 hundred. 
 
 After remaining some time at the grand falls of Cumarrow, the 
 rains set in before the travellers could penetrate any further, and 
 dysentery attacked Mr. Hilhouse. Accordingly they retraced 
 their steps, and every night they landed and slept in their ham- 
 mocks between trees. i3ut they had omitted to take any cover- 
 ing for their hammocks; a painted sheet to form an awning 
 would have effectually protected them; and when they neglected 
 to make the Indians cut a few leaves and make a shed to shelter 
 them, they were forced to sit on their tin boxes under an um- 
 brella, back to back, and this for three nights. 
 
 One evening they heard a man howling in the woods; they 
 landed, and found an Arrawak Indian swinging in a hammock 
 between two dead bodies on each side of him, also in hammocks; 
 he swung his hammock from side to side, and thus caused the 
 dead also to swing, and all the while he uttered the most distress- 
 ing cries. On inquiring what was the matter, he said that the 
 corpses were those of his two brothers, who had just died from 
 injuries they had received from an unfriendly tribe which had 
 passed up the creek in the night; but no wounds were apparent 
 on the bodies, and they were taken down and laid on the ground. 
 
 The surviving brother then cut thorny twigs, and beat the 
 bodies all over, uttering at the same time, " Heia, heia," as if he 
 felt the pain of the flaggellation; he then took tlie grease of a hog 
 just killed, and anointed the mouths and faces of the dead, grunt- 
 ing all the while, when, seeing that it was impossible to reanimate 
 the lifeless clay, he opened the eyes and beat the thorns into the 
 eye-balls, and all over the face. It was a dreadful sight, but it 
 evinced how deeply the poor Indian felt the loss of his brothers, 
 and the rude means he took to restore animation. At last he 
 was persuaded to bury them:' a mat was thrown over them, the 
 grave filled up, and strewed with leaves. 
 
 After a day of fish-shooting at a poisoned creek, the travellers 
 returned to Stabroek with a carefully executed chart by Mr. Hil- 
 
54 CANNIBALISM ON THE ESSEQUIBO. 
 
 house, of the Mazarooni river, and many of the creeks that flow 
 into it; also many specimens of minerals, birds, insects, &c. from 
 the interesting district they had just explored. 
 
 Two years ago a JVIr. Smith, a mercantile man from the Carac- 
 cas, was joined at Stabrock by a Lieutenant Gullifer, R. N. ; they 
 proceeded down the Pomeroon river, then up the VVyeena Creek, 
 travelled across to the Coioony, sailed down it, and then went up 
 the Essequibo to the Rio Negro, connecting the Amazons with the 
 Oronooco. At Para, on the Rio Negro, Mr. Smith, from sitting 
 so long cramped up in a coorial, got dropsy, and allowing himself 
 to be tapped by an ignorant quack, he died after a fortnight's ill- 
 ness. Lieutenant Gullifer sailed down the Rio Negro to the 
 Amazons, and remained at Para for some months, till he heard 
 from England. From domestic details which he received at Para, 
 he fell into low spirits and proceeded to Trinidad, where one 
 morning he was found suspended to a beam under the steeple of 
 the Protestant church. His papers, and Mr. Smith's, consisting 
 of journals of their travels, were sent to a brother of Lieutenant 
 Gullifer on the Morocco coast of Essequibo. I went there and 
 saw the papers, and was anxious to edit them, or to obtain them 
 for the Royal Geographical Society, but Mr. Gullifer said he must 
 first consult with the relatives in England. 
 
 Among the other interesting details I found in their notes, I 
 may mention the following : High up the Essequibo they fell in 
 vv^ith a nntion of Anthropophagi, of the Carib tribe. The chief 
 received the travellers courteously, and placed before them fish 
 with savoury sauce ; on this being removed, two human hands 
 were brought in, and a steak of human fiesh. The travellers 
 thought this might be a part of a baboon of a new species ; how- 
 ever, they declined the invitation to partake, saying, that in tra- 
 velling they were not allowed to eat animal food. The chief 
 picked the bones of the hands with excellent appetite, and asked 
 them how they had relislied the fish and the sauce ; they replied 
 that the fish was good, and the sauce still better. On which he 
 answered, " Human flesh makes the best sauce for any food ; these 
 hands and the fish were dressed together. You see these Macou- 
 shi men, our slaves, we lately captured these people in war, and 
 their wives we eat from time to time." The travellers were hor- 
 rified, but concealed the state of their feelings as well as they 
 could ; and before they retired for the night, they observed 
 that the Macoushi females were confined in a large logic, sur- 
 rounded with a stockade of bamboo ; so that daily, the fathers, 
 husbands, and brothers of these unfortunate women saw them 
 brought out and knocked on the head, and devoured by these in- 
 human cannibals. Lieutenant Gullifer, who was then " in bad con- 
 
THE ENCHANTED POOL THE MOROCCO INDIANS. 55 
 
 dition," got into his hammock and slept soundly ; but Mr. Smith 
 being "in good case," walked about all night, fearing that their 
 landlord might take a fancy to a steak of white meat. 
 
 " For lie could drink hot blood, 
 And do such business as the bitter day- 
 Would quake to look on." 
 
 They afterwards visited a cave in which there was an enchant- 
 ed pool of water; the Indians requested them not to bathe in this 
 pool, for if they did, they would die before the 5'ear was out. 
 They laughed at their brown monitors, bathed, and sure enough 
 were both clods of the valley before the twelve months had expired. 
 
 A very intelligent and most worthy Catholic clergyman, the 
 Rev. Mr. Hyne (before mentioned), paid a visit a short time ago 
 to the Indians who had come from the Spanish Missions of Co- 
 lombia, and settled in the British territory on the banks of the 
 Pomeroon. I had the pleasure of making Mr. Hyne's acquain- 
 tance, and got his report of the state in which he found these in- 
 teresting people. 
 
 In 1S30 there were from one hundred and fifty to two hundred 
 families of these Indians scattered on the Pomeroon, and on the 
 creeks which fall into it, and into the sea on the Morocco coast of 
 Essequibo ; and though their existence there had been carefully 
 concealed from the British governor by a Dutch postholder re- 
 ceiving British pay, yet it appears that they had emigrated from 
 the Oronooco several years back, under very peculiar circumstan- 
 ces. Being essentially royalists, they took an early and decided 
 part in the revolutionary war which distracted their country. 
 Every inducement which the love of liberty, licentiousness, or 
 money, could suggest or inspire, was held out by the patriots as 
 the price of their apostacy ; but true to the interests of their 
 sovereign, they struggled (till the last strong hold was abandoned 
 by the European Royalists) to uphold the declining fortunes of 
 their master. 
 
 This devoted ness brought down upon them a dreadful retalia- 
 tion ; their priests were massacred, their villages plundered and 
 razed to the ground, and these forlorn beings, whose greatest crime 
 was an attachment to the institutions which rescued them from 
 barbarism, were driven from their comfortable homes, and the 
 land they fertilized with the sweat of their brows, to seek a shel- 
 ter amongst the forests of Guiana. One wide desolation has since 
 overspread these Missions, and the Indians, assembled together 
 with so much trouble, are again wandering in the woods. 
 
 It was but natural to suppose, that, freed from every restraint, 
 civil and ecclesiastical, they were much deteriorated in their moral 
 
56 MR. hyne's visit 
 
 and intellectual condition since their departure from the Oronooco. 
 The temj)tations to idleness and profligacy which such a state of 
 life hohls out, and the corrupting influence of the erratic tribes 
 with whom they were compelled to assort, are not easily with- 
 stood. They yielded to them in a certain degree, hut though 
 degenerated, it was e.isy to discover a degree of intelligence, and 
 a refinement of feeling, which marked at once the early impress 
 of civilization and religion. Happy at being tolerated within the 
 pale of a more enlightened and settled Government, they were 
 eager to evince their gratitude for the protection it afforded them; 
 they were likewise most anxious, but unable of themselves, to 
 transmit to their children those blessings which elevated them in 
 the scale of beings under the excellent and liberal administration 
 of Sir Benjamin D'Urban. These advantages, it is to be hoped, 
 will be secured to them, and the colon}^ will be amply repaid for 
 the patronage extended to them, in the attachment and fidelity of 
 a grateful people. 
 
 Mr. Hyne's visit to the Morocco Indians was at their own ur- 
 gent request. In the beginning of 1830, they commissioned a 
 white man to call on him, and inform him of their destitute con- 
 dition, deprived of the comforts of religion, and the advantages 
 of civilized life. This person gave so much curious information 
 concerning them, their manners and habits, that Mr. H3Mie ex- 
 pressed a wish to see and confer wMth some of their head men; 
 and accordingly, within a few weeks after this interview, Mr, 
 Hyne had the pleasure of conversing with their chief. Captain 
 Guan Aguilar, and a few others, and was struck with the good 
 senseand intelligence which characterized their discourse. 
 
 The captain read well in his own language, wrote, and was not 
 deficient in what might be called general information. His know- 
 ledge of the system of Christianity and of morals, was as extensive 
 and correct as is generally found among the generality of those 
 who comj)ose the lower orders of peasantry in civilized Europe. 
 As a proof of his general knowledge, INIr. Hyne instanced what 
 occurred on the occasion of his first visit to his house. The eye 
 of the Indian happened to be arrested by some scriptural and 
 historical pictures which were suspended in one of the apart- 
 ments, and after adjusting his spectacles (which, as an inhabitant 
 of the forest is described, it may not be uninteresting to mention 
 were of gold,) and surveying them, he instantly gave the history 
 of what they represented. 
 
 This good old man then informed Mr. Hyne that all his com- 
 patriots were most desirous to see the padre, and entreated him 
 to name a day that he would visit their settlement, to give them 
 an opportunity once more of assisting at the rites of their religion. 
 
TO THE MOROCCO INDIANS. 57 
 
 They had likewise many children to be baptized; and there were 
 some young couples who were desirous to be joined in wedlock. 
 With the consent of the Governor, St. John's day was named as 
 the one on which Mr. Hyne would visit the Indians, which was 
 a day of great festivity among them. 
 
 On the eve of the feast of St. John he reached their settlement 
 among the dark woods of Pomeroon, and was received by 
 Ihem with many demonstrations of joy and affection. Muskets 
 were fired as he approached; and on his landing, men, women, 
 and children flocked to kiss his hand in token of respect. It being 
 night, the forest was illuminated with wax lights of their own 
 manufacture. Considerable numbers had arrived from all quar- 
 ters for the celebration of the festival, and they danced and enjoyed 
 themselves with much sobriety and decorum till a late hour, and 
 without indulging in any of that uproarious mirth so characteristic 
 of the savage. 
 
 On the morning of the festival great preparations were made 
 for the celebration of the divine mysteries; a large logic was 
 cleared out for the purpose, and tastefully decorated with flowers 
 and green boughs, and in this rustic temple the service was per- 
 formed to a most orderly and devout congregation. Seventy-five 
 children were then baptized, all under the age of ten years. The 
 appearance of these little innocents was quite attractive; they 
 approached the font attired in the prettiest manner, attended by 
 their godfathers and godmothers; the girls robed in white, with 
 necklaces of coral and silver, and their hair nicely arranged with 
 combs tipped with gold. These children were catechised, and 
 they were all well instructed in their prayers. Some couples 
 were then joined in wedlock; and their appearance and demeanour 
 also gave great satisfaction to the worthy padre. 
 
 During the three days that Mr. Hyne stayed at Morocco, a 
 single case of inebriety did not fall under his observation, so that 
 in the work of reforming these people there was a vice less to 
 combat among them. They were generally decent in their man- 
 ners, and their appearance was very prepossessing. The men 
 were all well clad, in Spanish straw hats, trowsers, and a loose upper 
 robe; and the females were also gracefully attired in flowing dra- 
 pery, and their hair carefully arranged. In all the scattered settle- 
 ments Mr. Hyne remarked a degree of comfort and cleanliness 
 that it would be in vain to look for among other Indians; their 
 houses were all neat and commodious, and their grounds tolerably 
 well cultivated — sufficiently so perhaps for their wants. Coffee, 
 sugar-cane, plantains, yams, cassava, maize, and a variety of 
 vegetables were observed growing. They also raised great quan- 
 tities of feathered stock. They expressed the juice from the 
 
58 A WAUNING. 
 
 cane by a simple machine, and from it made a liquor like spruce 
 beer ; if this were to be introduced among other Indians, they 
 might be weaned of their liking for rum. They also caught and 
 cured fish, particularly the querriman, so much sought after in the 
 colony. 
 
 At present these Spanish Indians arc out of the sphere of use- 
 fulness to the colony, and if left to themselves must relapse into 
 a state of barbarism. The colony would materially benefit if they 
 were settled up the Demerara river ; for instance, formed into 
 one community, and drilled to act against negroes in case of re- 
 volt ; their bravery is undoubted, and they were originally all 
 trained in the Missions, Their highmindedness and conscious 
 feeling of superiority, never suffer them to ally themselves with 
 the negroes. A few thousand dollars might be advanced to en- 
 able them to build and fit up a church, school, and family houses; 
 and their settlement should be so situated that other Indians 
 should see them and profit by their example; but no European of 
 bad caste should be allowed to approach them, and drunken Post- 
 holders should not be tolerated. 
 
 It is with pain I mention it, but a sense of duty compels me to 
 state, that some parties who at various times have gone a short way 
 up some of the rivers of Guiana " for pleasure," have behaved most 
 imprudently, as far as their own safety was concerned, and in a 
 manner which seriously wounded the feelings of the kind-hearted 
 woodcutters and the inoffensive Indians. I have no doubt that 
 several of those who conducted themselves in the way to which 
 I allude, were led to believe, from the reports of libertines, that 
 the females up the rivers, belonging either to Creole woodcutters 
 or red hunters, might be tampered with ; but they ought to have 
 reflected that men have hearts and affections, whether they live 
 in the sunshine of civilized society or in the shade of a forest, and 
 it cannot be endured that those who dwell in the wilds, and are 
 comparatively unprotected, should be liable to be abused by who- 
 ever choose to make free with what does not belong to them. I 
 heard of certain individuals who gave so much offence at the 
 Wyeena creek to a party of Indians, by endeavouring to seduce 
 their women, of whom they are very jealous, that the hired fol- 
 lowers of the whites were obliged to conceal their masters for 
 three days in the bush from the vengeance of the justly-olfended 
 Accaways. 
 
 Surely if a person "takes the road" it is then (above all other 
 seasons) his bounden duty to leave his sinful propensities behind 
 him ; if he does not, he not only endangers his own safety, and 
 commits a great moral offence, but also causes serious inconve- 
 nience to those who follow him. He who walks forth with Dure 
 
MEERZORG PLANTATION. 59 
 
 intent, may spread his carpet in the chamber and dip his hand in 
 the dish of the jealous Mussuhnan ; but he who allows his eyes 
 to wander towards what is forbidden, may well dread the knife 
 of the avenger and the beak of the vulture. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Descend the Esseqiiibo. — Dang-erous rocks. — Arrive at Plantation Meerzorg. — The 
 House, Garden and Works described. — A negro lioliday. — Musicians and Dan- 
 cers. — Piccaninnies. — Ladies of Quality. — Creole Dance. — The poor oppressed 
 Slaves. — Insect serenade. — Ride round the estate. — A plantain thief. — Walks. — 
 Canals. — Punts. — Cattle. — A Field-gang. — Book-keeper and Driver. — Studies for a 
 Statuary. — Breakfast. — A Jaguar at the Hog-pen. — Dutch CofHns and Land-crabs. 
 — The manufacture of Sugar. — Grinding. — Boiling. — Curing. — Animating Scene. 
 — The Calabash Estate. — A sucking Thief. — Military Smugglers. — A Dinner 
 party. — Fishing for Guanas. — A Buck party. — Sunday in Wakenaam. — Negro 
 Congregation. — Critique on a Sermon. — Misstatements of the Abolitionists. — 
 — The Church establishment of the Colony. — Moravians tlie best Missionaries. — 
 A candid Statement. 
 
 Let us now descend to the coast, and visit the coffee and sugar 
 plantations, and see the actual condition of the negroes on the 
 estates ; but as we drop down with the current, let us not forget 
 our obeisance to the Old Man's Rock in the Essequibo, which a 
 murdered Buckeen continually haunts, and at which it is dan- 
 gerous to point the finger; and let us avoid the water boiling 
 near the dangerous Sisters, and particularly the current sweeping 
 past the sharp edge of the Sail Rock. 
 
 Heavy squalls of wind and rain assailed us before we reached 
 Wakenaam Island, and we got aground off Fort Island ; but at 
 last I found myself, after a most interesting excursion, under the 
 care of Mr. Pearson, the hospitable manager of the Meerzorg 
 plantation. 
 
 The house, commanding a view of the broad river and of the 
 Atlantic, was two-storied ; built on brick pillars ; had a broad 
 gallery round the first floor ; and the cool breeze from Quaker- 
 aba played through the airy apartments. The garden which sur- 
 rounded it was in excellent order, which is not always the case 
 in Guiana, for vegetation is so rapid, and there is such a demand 
 for the field labourers, that seldom can hands be spared from the 
 raising of sugar or coffee, to cultivate fruits and flowers. Here, 
 however, I saw neat walks, shaded by the broad-leaved vine, 
 ornamental trees, and shrubs in great variety, as the bread fruit 
 tree, the tall cocoa nut, the majestic palmetto royal, the grena- 
 
60 A NEGRO HOLIDAY — CREOLE DANCE. 
 
 dillo, water lemon, the star-apple, fig, mango, and above all the 
 broad leaves shading the golden bunches of the banana, waved 
 gracefully round the pleasant dwelling. 
 
 " The sight was pleased, 
 The scent regaled, each odoriferous leaf, 
 Each op'ning blossom, freely breathed abroad 
 Its gratitude, and charmed us with its sweets." 
 
 The " works" were visited, where I saw the steam-engine for 
 crushing the canes ; the five cauldrons for boiling the juice ; the 
 coolers in which it congeals and becomes sugar ; the curing-house, 
 where hogsheads on end allowed the molasses to drain from them; 
 the still-house, where from the skimming of the cauldrons the 
 rum is prepared ; the trash-house, wdiere under cover is kept the 
 dry and pressed canes to be used as fuel ; the hospital, where every 
 care and attention was paid to the sick negroes ; and ihe negro- 
 houses in two rows, with gardens round them, in which were 
 pigs, poultry and culinary vegetables. 
 
 It was a holiday, and Quashce and Quaslieba were lounging 
 about in their gala dresses, and waiting impatiently for evening, 
 to commence their festivities in the "Great House." The men 
 were dressed in white vests and trowsers, and cloth jackets; and 
 the women in printed gowns, with straw hats or handkerchiefs on 
 their heads. Every where as we passed through the different 
 groups in the garden, the white teeth were displayed in a smile, 
 and " How de massa? ready for dance massa !" was heard. The 
 piccaninnies, black and mischievous as monkeys, were "scurry- 
 ing" about, running between their parents' legs, laughing loud, 
 and tumbling one another head over heels on the grass. 
 
 At last a drum is heard in the gallery, and the negroes take pos- 
 session of the house ; t'vo or three musicians then seat themselves 
 in chairs, and with fiddle, tambourine, and drinn, strike up some 
 lively jigs, at the same time thumping the floor vigorously with 
 their heels. Every one is alive ; short cries of mirth are uttered 
 by the men as they hand out their sable partners ; and they lead 
 one another up and down the lane of the country dance, with as 
 much enjoyment as I have ever witnessed at a Highland wedding. 
 
 The little black urchins, boys and girls, are not idle round the 
 room, whilst their parents are "■tripping it" in the centre, but 
 copying their elders, they "cut and shulUe" at a great rate ; the 
 mothers, with children at their breasts, alone quietly enjoy the 
 scene. A worthless fellow who rushed in his chemise into the 
 room, and attempted to join the well-dressed figurantes, was in- 
 stantly expelled. Santa (sweet punch) and cakes, were handed 
 round from time to time. Mulatta ladies looked in at the win- 
 
INSECT SERENADE PLANTAIN THIEF. bl 
 
 dows at the mirthful scene, but declined to join the negroes ; and 
 a few overseers and book-keepers " whispered soft nonsense" in 
 their ears. 
 
 Outside the house, in the moonlight, a musician seated himself 
 with his drum on the grass, and commenced singing an Africian 
 air, when a circle of men and women, linked hand in hand, danc- 
 ed round him with rattling seeds on their legs, and joined in the 
 chorus. 
 
 Oh ! how I wished that some of the kind ladies of Peckham 
 could have contemplated for five minutes this scene of mirth ! 
 could have beheld what they are pleased to call <' the naked, starv- 
 ed, and oppressed negroes," well clothed, plump, and full of glee : 
 instead of shrieks of misery, could have heard sliouts of laughter : 
 and instead of the clang of the whip, could have heard the lively 
 music of the fiddles, and the gladsome songs of the creole dan- 
 cers. Surely, then, their feeling hearts would prompt them to 
 look for more distressed objects nearer home on which to exercise 
 their benevolence, would induce them to leave emancipation to be 
 Avrought out by slow and rational means, and not cruelly insist, 
 that since the planters have had for so long time the use of their 
 slaves, they should now give them liberty, — forgetting that to the 
 suddenly emancipated slave this boon immediately opens the door 
 to licentiousness and misery. "Vide ut supra," see the preced- 
 ing statement, and be convinced of your error. 
 
 But at the midnight hour let us dismiss the dancers to their neat 
 cottages, to sleep off their fatigue, and to be ready to take the 
 field on the morrow, though at a later hour than usual. We throw 
 ourselves on our couch, and draw round us the mosquito gauze, 
 and hear the tiny tormentors ply their busy wings round us, heed- 
 less of their vain efibrts to feast on our blood. The hum of other 
 insects, the harsh notes of the razor grinder, the shrill chirping of 
 crickets, and the croaking of the bull frogs outside the house, af- 
 ter a time, lull us to rest ; dreamless we pass the night. At early 
 dawn Quambo appears in the room, and skilfully introducing un- 
 der the gauze a cup of exhilarating coffee, at Shell Blow we spring 
 vigorous and refreshed from our lair. 
 
 Mounting a horse, and receiving from a black groom a palm 
 leaf to keep off" the flies, I proceeded to ride round the estate with 
 the manager. We had gone but a little way when the negro 
 watchman over the plantain walks, with a cutlass in his hand, ad- 
 vanced to us, dragging along with him a roguish-looking and mea- 
 gre varlet, who he said had been detected stealing bunches of the 
 favourite food ; the culprit made a great outcry, loudly protesting 
 his innocence, — " I neber do that : him tell damn lie." But as 
 he had been caught in the fact, and not only that but a quantity of 
 
62 WALKS — NEGRO BREAKFAST. 
 
 stolen plantains found in his house, he was forthwith condemned 
 to the stocks, amidst the laughter of the women who flocked 
 around us. 
 
 We rode down the centre walk of the estate, a broad road bor- 
 dered by canals, from which others proceeded at right angles 
 through fields waving with the beautiful cane plant, under the in- 
 fluence of the cool morning breeze. I observed in the canals the 
 flat-bottomed punts, in which the canes were conveyed to the 
 mill ; and the cattle grazing on the rich grass of the banks, under 
 the care of a young negro. Palm trees bordered the road for some 
 distance, and then we came to a gang of athletic negroes at work 
 with the hoc, under the eye of a white book-keeper, in straw hat 
 and cotton dress ; he held in his hand a board containing a regis- 
 ter of names, and certain little pegs to mark off the tasks perform- 
 ed, which were frequently completed at three in the afternoon. 
 A black driver stood beside the line of negroes, bearing in his 
 hand a small cane, the badge of office. The whole gang worked 
 vigorously, and were employed clearing a cane plot, that is, hoe- 
 ing up the weeds ; all seemed in high spirits, and occasionally 
 they burst into a wild chorus, 
 
 A few women now joined the gang, advancing along the walk 
 with calabashes of plantain and salt fish on their heads, which 
 having deposited by the side of the fields, they also commenced 
 their labour with the hoe. Their petticoats were tucked up to 
 their knees, by a handkerchief tied round the loins ; they thus 
 made a kind of kilt of it, by which they were not impeded in 
 their work. The men had generally stripped off" their shirtS; and 
 worked in their trowsers, and some of the busts of these labourers 
 would have furnished models for the statuary ; the deep chest, 
 the broad slioulders, and muscles of the arm fully developed, 
 formed a perfect picture of manly beauty and strength. 
 
 At a signal from the book-keeper the negroes left off work and 
 went to eat their breakfast ; some partook of pepper-pot, and 
 others contented themselves with plantains and salt fish. The 
 book-keeper, joined by two others, returned to the house, where 
 they sat down to fish, meat, and coffee, and though there was 
 bread on the table, yet the nutritive plantain was preferred. 
 
 We continued our ride, thermometer in the shade at 80°, at 
 nine A. jr. and passed the hog-pen in an uncleared part of the 
 estate. The negro keeper, an old African, dried and withered, 
 and unlike the superior race of Creole negroes, or those born in 
 the colony, reported that a jaguar, or leopard, had swum over 
 from the main to Wakenaam ; had visited the pen the night be- 
 fore, and carried off a hog. The robber must have been of 
 formidable size, for the print of his foot was as large as a plate. 
 
DUTCH COFFINS LAND-CRABS. 63 
 
 The manager warned the man to keep a better look out in future, 
 and mind his watch-fire. 
 
 Further on, after crossing some wooden bridges, we turned 
 into another " walk," and found, on either side, the forest re- 
 cently cleared or the trees cut down, the stumps remaining, and 
 plantains as a first crop to prepare the rich soil for canes. We 
 returned home under the shade of fruit trees, and examined the 
 front dike which prevented the encroachments of the sea ; buta re- 
 cent flood in the Essequibo had swept over it and exposed a row 
 of coffins of the old Dutch residents, made without a bend, like 
 sea chests, in which were seen the bones of the dead clean picked 
 by the voracious land-crabs, which ran out and in of their holes, 
 and abounded in the moist soil. They were not unlike the com- 
 mon sea crab, moved sideways, and were of all sizes, from a 
 man's hand to a nutshell. 
 
 I eat a light breakfast, and then went to a neighbouring estate, 
 to see the operation of grinding the canes and boiling the juice ; 
 the piccaninny, or children's gang, under the charge of a matron, 
 carried on their heads the canes to the upright cylinders revolving 
 by steam, and an old negro placed the canes in order. The 
 juice was quickly expressed by the revolving cylinders, and con- 
 veyed into a cistern; from thence it was emptied into the first 
 large copper, or clarifier, in the boiling-house; there the juice 
 was skimmed and tempered with lime, to give it substance, and 
 afterwards ladled into four other boilers, from whence it was trans- 
 ferred to the square and shallow coolers, and finally into hogs- 
 heads in the curing-house. 
 
 I was amused with the shouts of the boiler-men to the firemen 
 outside, as they handled their large ladles to skim the bubbling 
 juice, diffusing through the building a grateful steam. "Mo 
 fyer" (more fire) was continually demanded in stentorian voice, 
 accompanied by a joke and hearty laugh. All seemed on the 
 qui vive, and the noise of the engines was mingled with the ani- 
 mating cries of the people, who were all following their vocations 
 in excellent humour. 
 
 Negroes, if not strictly looked after, are very prone to steal 
 sugar and rum, which they carry away from the works in 
 calabashes. Hence the saying of ''the calabash estate" being 
 always the most productive in the colonies, as it is conducted at 
 no expense. The sugar is commonly stolen by the negroes em- 
 ployed in emptying the coolers, or abstracted from the hogsheads 
 on board the schooners ; and the rum is obtained before being 
 shipped in the following singular manner: — An overseer told me 
 that he had frequently missed rum from a cask which stood near 
 a window in a room which was locked up; he could not account 
 
64 A SUCKING THIEF — MILITARY SMUGGLING. 
 
 for the manner in which the liquor disappeared; he deter- 
 mined to keep watch all night, and from time to time walked 
 round the house ; at last, on suddenly turning the corner of the 
 building, he saw a negro with a long pipe in his mouth, made 
 from the hollow foot stalks of the papavvtree, introduced between 
 the blinds of the window, through which he sucked the rum, 
 and spat it out into a calabash on the ground beside him. This 
 he intended to dispose of at the grog-shops in the town, which 
 are principally supplied from stolen produce. 
 
 Soldiers in the colonies, when prevented from introducing 
 spirits into their barracks, have sometimes eluded detection by dip- 
 ping their flannel vests into rum, passing the sentry, and wringing 
 them out at their leisure. The negro mode of stealing rum was 
 equally refined with the soldiers' mode of smuggling it. 
 
 In the afternoon I sat down to an excellent dinner with a party 
 of hospitable managers from the neighbouring estates, who 
 generally took a glass of wine and bitters, and some of them 
 spirits, in the Russian way, to sharpen the appetite before the 
 meal. We had excellent crab-soup, fish, turtle, tortoise, lamb, 
 turkey, and ham; patisserie followed, and then a dessert of pines, 
 shaddocks, melons, water lemons, and Agovado pears, or the 
 vegetable marrow. The fluids were seltzer water, malt liquor, 
 and excellent hock and madeira. After two hours occupied in 
 eating and drinking, the party adjourned to the gallery, to smoke 
 segars and enjoy the cool sea breeze, or doctor, 
 
 " It was the hour to musing sweet, 
 When sun and sea in glory meet." 
 
 Whilst we sat thus in luxurious enjoyment, half a dozen ne- 
 groes, who had been allowed a holiday, returned from the forest 
 with a number of guanas, or lizards, from two to three feet in 
 length, with a serrated ridge on the back. These poor animals 
 had their forelegs tied over their backs, reminding one of Water- 
 ton and the Cayman. They make excellent pepper-pot, and their 
 eggs are delicious. The negroes had caught them on the trees 
 with a long stick and hair noose at the end of it. They whistle, 
 fix their eye upon them, and approach them cautiously; the guana 
 is fascinated, allows itself to be tickled with the end of the stick, 
 the noose is slipped over the neck, and it is thus dexterously 
 fished from the trees. An Arrawak and his two wives then pad- 
 dled their canoe up a creek to the front of the house, and com- 
 menced bartering their bows and arrows and letter wood; they 
 said that, since leaving their logic, they had slept on a few leaves 
 at the bottom of the canoe. 
 
SUNDAY — NEGRO CONGREGATION. 65 
 
 Next day was Sunday, and I rode seven miles to hear a Pres- 
 byterian clergyman, whom the planters of Wakenaam had par- 
 .ticularly requested to be sent to them from Scotland for their own 
 benefit and that of their negroes; but he had grievously disap- 
 pointed them: and though I heard many complaints of him, yet 
 I was determined to judge for myself. On arriving at the house 
 of prayer, I found it to be a large open shed, with a small pulpit 
 and desk in the centre, and rows of forms for the congregation, 
 as usual, principally composed of women, who were remarkably 
 neat and clean in their persons and dress. I felt deeply the peculiar- 
 ity of my situation, sitting in the midst of these sable worshippers 
 of a Deity in whose eyes the adoration of a pure heart, whether it 
 beats beneath an alabaster or ebon skin, is equally acceptable. 
 
 The discourse was delivered in an impressive manner, and the 
 minister took pains to explain to the negroes, as clearly as he 
 could, though not in the language to which they are most accus- 
 tomed, the Creole Dutch, the doctrines he was desirous of incul- 
 cating; but he seemed to neglect the precepts of the apostle James, 
 and insisted on faith alone; forgetting that "as the body without 
 the spirit is dead, so faith without (good) works is dead also." 
 Religion and morality ought to be inseparable. 
 
 I particularly remarked that this clergyman took no pains 
 whatever to teach subordination to superiors — to show the duties 
 of servants to masters, or that their interests were the same; and 
 he was very reprehensible in altogether omitting to pray either 
 for the King, the Governor of the Colony, or any in authority. 
 He appeared to be a sincere Christian, but undoubtedly lacked 
 judgment. He had quarrelled with all the planters who enter- 
 tained mistresses; and had also given great offence to the negroes for 
 refusing to baptize any of their children born out of wedlock. 
 How can he or any other preacher of the gospel, expect to do 
 good among negroes, unless with unprejudiced mind he makes 
 some allowance for colonial habits, and endeavours to conciliate 
 the proprietors of slaves ? 
 
 It was gravely stated a short time ago by one of the most vio- 
 lent of the abolitionists of slavery, that if he had seen any dispo- 
 sition on the part of the colonists to prepare the slaves by religious 
 instruction for emancipation, it would have given him great joy; 
 but that the policy of the whole of the Colonial Assemblies was to 
 reject religious instruction. " Let the Commons recall one name 
 to their recollection," said he. " Let them remember Mr. Smith 
 of Demerara. When the colonial authorities had persecuted that 
 martyr to death, what did they do ? They banished the mission- 
 aries from that colony, and passed a law to prevent their admis- 
 sion in future; and they have constantly endeavoured to put down 
 
66 MIS-STATEMENTS OF THE ABOLITIONISTS. 
 
 schools, to shut up meeting-houses, and to abolish instruction alto- 
 gether." 
 
 Now what are the facts. — Mr. Smith was tried before a court 
 martial of thirteen military officers, altogether unconnected with 
 the colony; they found him guilty of exciting the slaves to insur- 
 rection, and their sentence was confirmed by the King. Mr. 
 Smith died before the sentence was published. Never has a mis- 
 sionary been banished from Demerara, nor has any law been pro- 
 posed or passed to prevent the admission of missionaries into the 
 colony; on the contrary, they have always been permitted to ex- 
 ercise their sacred functions uninterruptedly, and there are at 
 present at least ten resident in the colony; in which, besides the 
 missionaries at their schools, there are eight clergymen of the 
 established church, five Scotch ministers, two Roman Catholic 
 priests, and twelve catechists, all paid by a colony with a popula- 
 tion of three thousand whites. 
 
 A new chapel has just been erected in Stabroek; the stipends 
 of the clergy and catechists amount to 100,000 florins annually, 
 and 30,000/. have lately been expended in building and repair- 
 ing churches and parsonages; besides, many planters have private 
 schools on their own estates. In answer, then, to the above 
 assertion, that "attempts are made to put down schools and abo- 
 lish instruction," as we say in the East — What can I say more ? 
 
 I have the highest respect for Moravians. Their system of in- 
 struction is most judicious; they teach mechanical arts, and at the 
 same time enlighten the understanding; thus gradually preparing 
 the negro by slow but sure means to take care of himself, when 
 eventually emancipated. Cowper beautifully says of the Mora- 
 vians, 
 
 " Fir'd with a zeal peculiar, they defy 
 The rage and rigour of a polar sky; 
 And plant successfully sweet Sliaron's rose, 
 On burning plains, and in eternal snows." 
 
 I cannot trust myself to speak of certain other sects, but merely 
 say that their system is quite the reverse of the Moravians, who 
 ought everywhere to be encouraged; whereas the others, with 
 their "lip service," will find plenty of employment among the 
 fanatics and ultra religionists at home, without visiting the colo- 
 nies. 
 
 I am aware that this is a very delicate subject to meddle with, 
 and I lay myself open to censure for noticing it at all ; however, 
 I cannot help stating my sentiments, and to prevent mistakes, 
 conclude this chapter in the words of a popular writer. 
 
 " I hate all humbug, and would eschew that cant and fanaticism 
 which are at present tainting extensive portions of society, as 
 
POLONIES OUGHT NOT TO BE SACHIPICED. 67 
 
 sincerely as I venerate and wish to cultivate a spirit of sober, 
 manly, and rational piety." 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 The important question of Abolition of Slavery. — Impartial Witnesses ought to be 
 heard. — Colonics ought not to be sacrificed. — Slavery in the abstract cannot 
 be defended. — Ruinous Consequences of sudden Emancipation. — St. Domingo. — 
 Character of a Functionary there. — Humane enactments of the British Govern- 
 ment. — Protectors of Slaves and their Assistants. — Their Duties. — Sunday Mar- 
 kets prohibited. — Also servile labour on tliat day. — Men, Women, and Children, 
 how punished. — Religious Instruction and Medical Attendance. — Marriages of 
 Slaves. — May acquire property. — Relatives not to be separated. — Manumission. — 
 Slaves may purchase their Freedom. — Evidence of Slaves to be taken. — The food 
 and maintenance of the Slaves. — Supported by an allowance of provisions or an 
 allotment of land. — Hours of Labour. — Slaves' clothing. — How lodged. — Planters 
 plead their inability to comply with all the Legislative enactments. — Slavery in 
 the East. — A cruel Punishment. — Treatment of Slaves in Surinam. — Incredible. 
 — Fresh Importations of Slaves. — Community of Lepers. — Comparative Slavery. — 
 Brazilian Slaves. — A Slave Ship. — A Slave Market. — Some Slaves more degraded 
 than beasts of burden. — French Slaves. — British Planters cannot compete with 
 Foreigners if the present great Trade in Slaves is not suppressed. 
 
 The more I think on the important question of the abolition 
 of slavery, the more I am convinced that certain theorists in Eng- 
 land take a wrong view of the case. Impartial witnesses are not 
 listened to ; and no credit is given to the British West India 
 proprietors for all they have done, and are willing to do, to ame- 
 liorate the condition of the negroes. Besides, no lover of his 
 country would wish to see a portion, and a most important por- 
 tion, of her possessions sacrificed to an idle clamour ; and if he is 
 actuated by a true spirit of patriotism, he will run the risk of ob- 
 loquy and reproach, and stand forth fearlessly, and state what he 
 knows, from personal observation, and <* information collected 
 on the spot," to be facts, and for the truth of which he pledges 
 his honour. 
 
 No one with the slightest spark of fellow-feeling for his species, 
 can be an advocate for slavery in the abstract ; *'it is always a 
 bitter draught, disguise it as we will," and God grant that the 
 day may not be far distant, when it will be altogether abolished 
 and unknown in European settlements, or in those of their des- 
 cendants. Still, since the evil exists, and was formerly encour- 
 aged by every Government, and since immediate emancipation 
 of negroes, altogether unprepared for the blessings of freedom, 
 would ruin their proprietors, (for without slaves their lands would 
 
6S CONSEQUENCES OP SUDDEN EMANCirATION. 
 
 be valueless, plough husbandry not yet having been extensively 
 introduced,) and since it must be evident to every one who knows 
 what negroes are, that to please the Anti-slavery Society, and 
 grant immediate emancipation, ivould not contribute to the hap- 
 piness of the 7iegro ; for idleness, crime, and punishment would 
 rapidly succeed each other; it becomes the humane anil philan- 
 thropic to inquire how can eventual emancipation be brought 
 about without disaster and ruin to those who are at present in- 
 terested in West India property, and with advantage to the slave ? 
 
 Let this be written on the palms of the hands of the abolition- 
 ists. "The slave question must be approached with a vast fund 
 of information, and must be discussed with consummate pru- 
 dence." 
 
 What was the consequence of the sudden emancipation of the 
 slaves in the valuable Island of St. Domingo during the French 
 revolution ? The massacre of hundreds of the whites ; the expul- 
 sion of the remainder ; the loss of the colony, and ruin to the 
 Bourdeaux merchants. What is the state of society in the free 
 republic of Hayti at this moment ? I answer by a short anecdote. 
 A British man of war anchored offPortau Prince, and was shortly 
 afterwards boarded by the black captain of the Port, in cocked 
 hat, gold epaulettes, and side arms. He was taken down to the 
 cabin, and shown every attention ; and in return he asked the 
 English captain to accompany him on shore ; the invitation was 
 declined, as it was intended to get under weigh early next morn- 
 ing. The captain of the Port then returned on shore. After 
 night-fall it came on to blow, and the sea " got up ;" the ship was 
 hailed from a canoe alongside, half full of water ; in it there was 
 the (speculating) captain of the Port, naked to his drawers, and 
 two female companions. " What can I say more ?" 
 
 I greatly admire the enactments of the British Government for 
 improving the condition of the slaves in the crown colonies, 
 British Guiana, Trinidad, St. Lucie, the Cape, and the Mauritius. 
 I shall now give a short analysis of them. 
 
 A protector of slaves is appointed for each of the crown colo- 
 nies with an adequate salary ; he is obliged to have an office, and 
 to attend regularly at that office. If the protector becomes an 
 owner or a manager of slaves, he immediately forfeits his appoint- 
 ment ; though, if unable to obtain free servants, he may hire 
 slaves for domestic purposes. Protectors may enter on the es- 
 tates, and into negroes' houses, to communicate with the slaves, 
 and a penalty is imposed on those who oppose the protector in 
 the discharge of his duties (this last ought perhaps to be amended.) 
 
 Assistant protectors are appointed by the Governors for differ- 
 ent districts. If a slave is brought to trial for a capital or trans- 
 
NEGRO PUNISHMENTS. 69 
 
 portable offence, the protector or an assistant is to attend in court 
 on behalf of the slave. Again, on receiving notice of an injury 
 done to a slave, the protector or assistant is immediately to inquire 
 into the case, and if necessary, to sue or prosecute the wrong doer. 
 
 Sunday markets are entirely prohibited, and the public sale of 
 goods on Sunday, except medicines and some perishable articles, 
 after the hours of Divine service. The Governors appoint a mar- 
 ket day in each week. 
 
 All servile labour is prohibited on Sunday, and those working 
 their slaves on that day are subject to a fine of from one to three 
 pounds for each slave so employed : this of course does not apply 
 to domestic servants. 
 
 The whip is not to be carried in the field as a stimulus to labour, 
 nor as an emblem of authority, nor used, except for the punish- 
 ment of a fault previously committed ; six hours must elapse be- 
 tween an offence and the punishment. Females are not to be 
 punished by whipping; and male slaves are not to receive more 
 than fifteen lashes for one ofience (thirty-nine and then twenty-five 
 used to be the number), nor any whipping so long as scars remain 
 on the body, nor unless one free witness, or six slaves be present. 
 Judicial punishments form an exception to this rule. 
 
 Female children may be lightly punished by whipping; and 
 female adults by confinement in the stocks, the tread-mill, or im- 
 prisonment. 
 
 Managers of estates are to keep a record of all punishments in- 
 flicted on plantation slaves, and submit it half-yearly to the pro- 
 tector for inspection ; and on omitting to make the proper 
 entries, heavy penalties are to be inflicted. Slaves are authorized 
 to attend divine worship, and licensed ministers only are to offi- 
 ciate. A medical attendant, as heretofore, is to be supplied for 
 the slaves, who is to keep a journal. 
 
 Slaves are declared competent to marry, and receive a license 
 from the protector on producing the owner's consent; or if the 
 owner dissents, the protector is to inquire into the case, and see 
 justice done the parties. Registers are to be kept of the marriages 
 of the slaves. 
 
 Slaves may acquire property to any amount, and bring and de- 
 fend actions for it ; they are however not to be proprietors of 
 boats, or to possess arms and ammunition, nor to be proprietors of 
 slaves. Slaves are not to be taken in execution in satisfaction of 
 debts contracted by themselves. 
 
 Husbands and wives, parents and children, are not to be sepa- 
 rated under legal process, and separation of families is not to take 
 place on the death of their owners intestate ; neither can they be 
 separated by conveyance, contract, or will. Slave children above 
 
70 REGULATIONS REGARDINO SLAVES — SLAVE EVIDENCE. 
 
 the age of sixteen may be separated from their parents, and 
 if families signify to the protector their willingness to be sepa- 
 . rated. 
 
 All fees of office and duties on manumission are abolished ; all 
 persons may manumit slaves belonging to them with the concur- 
 rence of all the joint owners. If a slave is manumitted gratuit- 
 ously, bond must be given for his maintenance if he be less than 
 six or more than fifty years old, or in a state of disease, or else 
 the estate of a testator becomes liable. 
 
 With the concurrence of the protector, slaves may contract 
 with their owners for the purchase of their freedom, and if the 
 owner be unwilling, slaves may effect the purchase by cumpul- 
 sory process. Appraisers or umpires are to make the valuation. 
 However, the judge may stay proceeding if it is found that the 
 money to be paid has been raised by donation inter vivos, and if 
 the slave has committed any robbery within five years. 
 
 By the produce of their gardens, and by the sale of their pigs 
 and poultry, many slaves have accumulated in a few years a sum 
 for the purchase of their freedom ; but after self-emancipation 
 they never have been known to remain on estates as free la- 
 bourer; 
 shops. 
 
 The evidence of slaves is to be admitted ; and slaves are for- 
 feited on conviction of the owners for cruelty, but are punished 
 when making calumnious accusations. 
 
 The rules to be followed with regard to the food and mainten- 
 ance of the slaves are these : — every owner or manager of slaves 
 is to intimate to the protector, or to an assistant, in the first week 
 of January, whether he intends to maintain his slaves by the cul- 
 tivation of ground to be to them appropriated for that purpose, 
 or by an allowance of provisions ; which intimation is however 
 revocable. 
 
 The quantity of provisions to be supplied is as follows : — 
 every slave above the age of ten years shall receive in each week 
 not less than twenty-one pints of wheat-flour, or India or Guinea 
 corn-fiour, of good average merchantable quality, or fifty-six full 
 grown plantains, or fifty-six pounds of cocoas or yams ; and also 
 seven herrings or shads, or other salt provisions equal thereto. 
 Children under ten years of age receive half of this allowance 
 (which by the way is much more than a slave can consume). 
 
 Those who propose to maintain their slaves by an appropriation 
 of land, are to allot to those above fifteen years of age half an acre 
 of good land within two miles of the residence of the slaves; a 
 quarter of an acre is alloted for children under fifteen, to be cul- 
 tivated by the parents or friends. Seeds and implements of hus- 
 
HOURS OP LABOUR CLOTHING SLAVERY IN THE EAST. 71 
 
 bandry are to be supplied to the slaves ; and forty days of twen- 
 ty-four hours each are to be allowed for cultivating the lots. 
 
 The labour of slaves is limited from six in the morning to six 
 in the evening, deducting three hours for their meals ; but the 
 young, the aged, and pregnant women, only to labour six hours 
 in the twenty-four, and no slaves whatever are to labour more than 
 nine hours in the twenty-four, whether employed in sugar boiling 
 or otherwise. 
 
 The clothing required for slaves is to be as follows : — once a 
 year there is to be delivered to every male slave above fifteen 
 years of age, one hat of chip, straw, or felt, one cloth jacket, two 
 cotton check-shirts, one pair of Osnaburgh trowsers, one blanket, 
 two pairs of shoes, one knife and one razor ; (the shoes and razor 
 might be dispensed with — negroes dislike shoes and have no 
 beards.) To every female slave of the age of thirteen and up- 
 wards, one chip or straw-hat, two gowns or wrappers, two cotton 
 check-shifts, two Osnaburgh petticoats, two pairs of shoes, one 
 blanket and one pair of scissors. Half of the above to children : 
 and to each family, one saucepan, one kettle, pot, or cauldron, 
 for the cooking of provisions. Every slave is to be provided with a 
 wooden or iron bedstead, so as to be elevated when asleep at least 
 a foot above the ground ; and their houses are to be comfortable, 
 and a separate one for each family. 
 
 Such is the substance of the late orders in council, addressed in 
 a spirit of benevolence to the crown colonies, and whicli are also 
 recommended to the colonies with legislative assemblies, as Ja- 
 maica, Barbadoes, &c. ; and the only plea the planters can urge for 
 non-compliance with them is poverty — inability, from their re- 
 duced means, to furnish the requisite food and clothing ; and they 
 earnestly pray for a reduction of the four and a half per cent. 
 duty on their produce. 
 
 if the abolitionists of negro slavery really wish to improve the 
 condition of the negroes, let them endeavour to improve the con- 
 dition of their proprietors; and let us hear no more of that mon- 
 strous doctrine, " If the planters are depressed, the better will be 
 the situation of the slaves." 
 
 Let us now take a glance at slavery in other countries, and first 
 let us make an expose of an Oriental punishment which I have 
 often been obliged most reluctantly to superintend. In the East 
 Indies, if a person is unable to pay his debts to another, the deb- 
 tor becomes the slave of the creditor until the amount is paid off. 
 Now, in the regiments of cavalry, there is a grass-cutter to collect 
 forage for each horse ; these are under a head man, called on the 
 Madras establishment a choudry ; the grass-cutters are of both 
 sexes, but principally women, and are often slaves of the choudry. 
 When the bundles of grass are paraded in the troop-lines of 
 
72 A CRUEL PUNISHMENT. 
 
 an evening, the choudry measures them with a stick, to see that 
 they are of the regulated height, length, and thickness ; if any 
 are deficient, the grass-cutters who brought them, whether male 
 or female, old or young, are ordered to the front, and the choudry 
 taking a Russian knout from his shoulders, or a short stick with 
 a very long and heavy lash, inflicts with it such a flagellation, 
 under the superintendence of an oflicer, that, compared with it, 
 the fifteen lashes that negroes receive with a cat or cow skin are 
 nothing. Talk of the severity of West Indian punishments af- 
 ter this ! 
 
 Whoever has perused Stedman's Narrative, descriptive of Dutch 
 Guiana fifty years ago, has had his indignation excited and his 
 feelings agonized at the recital of the abominable cruelties practis- 
 ed by the Hollanders of those days on the bodies of their helpless 
 flaves ; and it will hardly be believed that many of the same 
 atrocities are practised at this moment in Surinam. I derive my 
 information from a most respectable gentleman of undoubted vera- 
 city who recently visited that colony ; and he stated to me as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 During the summer of 1830 the Governor of Surinam issued a 
 proclamation, similar to those that have been promulgated from 
 time to time, enjoining that no negro should smoke, or sing, or 
 whistle in the streets of Paramaribo ; that on approaching a white 
 man within five yards the negro must uncover his head ; that no 
 negress is permitted to wear clothes above the waist, the breasts 
 are to be exposed, and a petticoat from the waist to the knee is 
 the only covering allowed. There are a few of our country- 
 men settled in Surinam, and even at their tables my informant 
 said he was shocked to see the negresses in attendance with what 
 ought to be sacred and concealed, exposed — their bosoms. This 
 is most disgraceful. 
 
 "Oh most dcnfradingof all ills that wait 
 On many a mourner in his best estate I 
 All other sorrows Virtue may endure 
 But Slavery. Virtue dreads it as her prave ; 
 Patience itself is meanness in a slave." 
 
 The manner in which men and women are punished with the 
 cart-whip is stated to be thus : — Both sexes are stripped entirely 
 naked, the wrists and ankles are firmly tied together with cords; 
 the victims, thus "huddled up," are laid on the ground on their 
 right sides; a stake passing between their legs and arms, and 
 driven into the ground, effectually pins them to the earth. They 
 are flogged on one buttock till it is quite raw, and then they are 
 turned over and unmercifully chastised on the other, by black driv- 
 ers, under the eye of a Dutch Overseer quietly smoking his pipe ! 
 
FRESH IMPORTATIONS OF SLAVES. 73 
 
 After one hundred and fifty or two hundred lashes are inflicted, 
 the sufierers are lifted up, as they are unable to rise or stand alone, 
 and it is frequently a month before they are sufficiently well to 
 resume their work. Any one sending a negro to the jail may 
 have one hundred and fifty lashes inflicted by the executioner for 
 one dollar, and so on, paying in proportion to the number of lashes 
 required. 
 
 In Dutch Guiana it is well known that slaves are continually 
 imported from the coast of Africa, and therefore the price of an 
 able-bodied field slave is only 40/. ; whereas in British Guiana, 
 into which every one conversant with the slave question knows 
 that none have been introduced since 1807, when the negroes on 
 an estate are sold, a field negro brings 250/. at least. 
 
 At Surinam, his Britannic Majesty's commissioners for the ad- 
 judication of captured slaves, not having the faculty of ubiquity, 
 cannot efiectually prevent the importation of slaves, and particu- 
 larly if the Dutch authorities lend an inattentive ear to their re- 
 monstrances. But slavers may land their living cargoes on any 
 part of the coast of Surinam, without even the authorities know- 
 ing it. 
 
 There is only one doctor with a regular diploma in the whole of 
 the extensive colony of Surinam ; ignorant negro doctors are all 
 the poor slaves have. The mortality is dreadful, but the supply 
 abundant. The camps of runaway negroes, high up the Surinam 
 river, which the Dutch made several ineffectual efforts last cen- 
 tury to surprise and disperse, now consist of sixty or seventy 
 thousand souls, who have entered into a sort of treaty with their 
 late masters, receive presents from them, but they still occasion- 
 ally plunder the plantations. Last of all, there is a community 
 of seven thousand lepers, far in the woods of Surinam — men, 
 women and children, cast off from all attendance, all comforts; a 
 Catholic priest alone volunteered to administer spiritual consola- 
 tion to them and live near them. 
 
 Such, I learned, is the treatment of slaves among the Dutch; 
 and though I was requested by some to omit these details, yet I 
 have ventured to give them publicity, in the hope that by showing 
 the condition of negroes under English and other masters in the 
 New World, I may, by means of "comparative slavery," prove 
 that the greatest injustice has been done our colonists. The Bri- 
 tish slave laws are most humane, and the colonists endeavour to 
 obey them ; whereas cruelty and injustice prevail under other 
 masters, since other governments, except the American, still con- 
 nive at the importation of slaves. At the same time let it be borne 
 in mind, that, so far from all Dutch masters using their slaves 
 cruelly, I knew of several in Guiana who were most indulgent to 
 K 
 
74 BRAZILIAN SLAVES — SLAVE MARKET. 
 
 their negroes, fed and clothed them properly, and tenderly watched 
 them in sickness, living amongst them like parents among their 
 children, and entering into all their feelings and sympathising in 
 their joys and in their griefs, I have no cause to dislike Dutch- 
 men; on the contrary, I have several personal friends of that na- 
 tion whom I highly esteem, and it is really with great reluctance 
 that I give the above details; but since I have professed an ear- 
 nest desire to serve the British colonists, a sketch of "compara- 
 tive slavery" is one of the means I have adopted to do so. 
 
 Since we have noticed Dutch slaves, let us also observe for a 
 few moments the condition of Portuguese slaves in Brazil. In 
 1830 the slave trade was carried on with such activity between 
 the coasts of Africa and Brazil, that vessels were fitted out at Rio 
 Janeiro to carry one thousand slaves ; one of these was captured 
 by a British cruiser. 
 
 The slave merchants of Rio Janeiro import their negroes from 
 Cabinda and Benguela ; they negotiate with the chiefs of these 
 countries, who seize their own people and barter them for Euro- 
 pean goods. The negroes are then branded on the back or on 
 the forehead, and often, without a rag to cover them, are packed 
 closely in slave ships, occupying a confined space over the hold ; 
 they have only sitting room, and spreading their legs they sit in 
 rows one behind the other, between each other's legs. Two large 
 hatches give air to the slaves' room. They are brought on deck 
 in gangs to walk about, — "and," said the mate of a slaver to me, 
 "we occasionally compel them to dance to keep them in health. 
 A strong bulkhead separates them from the poop, on which are a 
 brace of guns loaded with grape, and pointing forwards ; double 
 sentries with lighted matches are stationed beside these guns, and 
 every evening the shot is drawn and the guns fired off, to show 
 the negroes that we are prepared for them if they attempt to 
 mutiny." 
 
 " What wish can prosper, or what prayer 
 For merchants rich in cargoes of despair, 
 Who drive a loathsome traffic, guage, and span, 
 And buy the muscles and the bones of man ?" 
 
 Arrived at Rio, they are quartered in large sheds near the sea, 
 and are fed on maize flour eaten out of gourds. Those desirous 
 of purchasing slaves repair to the market called Vallongo, where 
 the negroes arc drawn up, quite naked for inspection. They are 
 then compelled to show their teeth, to walk, run, and strike out 
 their legs and arms, to ascertain if they have any bodily defect ; if a 
 purchase is concluded, the sellers commonly warrant for a fortnight. 
 
 What did Dr. Walsh see when he landed at Rio Janeiro in 
 1828 ? The whole labour of bearing and moving burdens per- 
 
DEGRADED NEGROES. 75 
 
 formed by slaves in a state revolting to humanity. They were 
 entirely naked, with the exception of a covering of dirty rags tied 
 about their waist. Their skins, from constant exposure to the 
 weather, had become hard, crusty, and seamed, resembling the 
 coarse black covering of some beast, or like that of an elephant, a 
 wrinkled hide, scattered with scanty hairs. In contemplating 
 their persons, you saw them with a physical organization resem- 
 bling beings of a grade below the rank of man, long projecting 
 heels, the gastronomic muscle wanting, and no calves to their 
 legs; their mouths and chin protruded, their noses flat, their fore- 
 heads retiring, having exactly the head and legs of the baboon 
 tribe. 
 
 Some of these beings were yoked to drays, on which they 
 dragged heavy burdens ; some were chained by the neck and legs, 
 and moved with loads thus encumbered ; some followed each other 
 in ranks, with heavy weights on their heads, chattering the most 
 inarticulate and dismal cadence as they moved along ; some were 
 munching young sugar-canes, like beasts of burden eating green 
 provender; and some were seen near the water, lying on the bare 
 ground among filth and offal, " curled up like dogs, and seeming 
 to expect or require no more comfort or accommodation, exhibit- 
 ing a state and confirmation so inhuman, that they not only seem- 
 ed but actually were, far below the inferior animals around them. 
 
 Horses and mules were not employed in the way the slaves 
 were ; they were used for pleasure, and not for labour. They 
 were seen in the same street pampered, spirited and richly 
 caparisoned, enjoying a state far superior to the negroes, and ap- 
 pearing to look down on the fettered and burdened wretches 
 they were passing, as beings of an inferior rank in the creation to 
 themselves. Some of the negroes actually seemed to envy the 
 caparison of their fellow brutes and eyed with jealousy their 
 glittering harness. Did I see any human beings degraded to the 
 lot of " the beasts which perish," on landing at Stabroek ? Not 
 one; only a few melefactors working in chains, on the roads ; but 
 this sight I have often witnessed in the East: besides, white con- 
 victs work in chains in our dock-yards, and white convicts work 
 in chains in the streets of New Orleans. 
 
 Injustice, however, to the Brazilians, we must add, that from 
 all I have read and heard of the treatment of their slaves on estates, 
 they are for more humane than the Dutch, and their slaves soon 
 become habituated to a country of which the climate so much re- 
 sembles their own. 
 
 While in South America I had not the good fortune to fall in 
 with any one who had visited the beautiful French colony of 
 Cayenne, rich in cloves, cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, and other 
 
76 FRENCH SLAVES — OLD PREJUDICES. 
 
 choice spices, and consequently could not inquire how negroes 
 were treated there. The French are an amiable and kind-heart- 
 ed people, and in Europe invariably treat their domestics well. 
 I understand that in the French islands the house negroes are in- 
 dulged, but the out-door negroes are often over-worked though 
 cerfain holidays are allowed them, and on Sundays they are very 
 gaily dressed. When I landed from an Indiaman on the African 
 Isle of liourbon, some ten years ago, I was hauled on shore 
 through the heavy surf by a gang of naked negroes, chained to- 
 gether, and I afterwards saw others cruelly flogged by French 
 overseers. There is a flourishing slave-trade carried on at Mar- 
 tinique, Guadaloupe, and other French West India islands, and, 
 as far as I could learn, more slaves were imported from Africa 
 in 1830 into settlements not British, than ever there were he- 
 fore. How then can the British planter compete with foreigners? 
 and how can he afford to sell his produce at so cheap a rate as 
 they can ? 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Visit the Morocco coast of Essequibo.— Attention of the Planters.— -Their prospects. 
 — Not allowed a hearing. — Old prejudices. — Additional labourers much wanted. 
 — East India competition. — Mistake of a distinguished Writer. — Plough husband- 
 ry ought to be introduced. — Rice. — Negroes at times very provoking. — Anecdotes. 
 Contrivance to attract the Birds of the Forest — Plantation Lima. — Again enter 
 " the Bush." — A Boat Song. — The Tapacooma Lake. — A Woodman's retreat. — 
 Forest amusements. — The Water Mamma. — A deserted Settlement. — Effects of 
 Indian superstition. — Adventures. — Combat between a Jaguar and Cayman. — A 
 Bush expedition. — Fascination of the Forest. — Effects of instruction in Gymnas- 
 tics. — A pleasant predicament. — Sail for Stabroek. — Pleasant companions in the 
 hold of a Schooner. — Land in safety. 
 
 From Wakenaam island I proceeded to the Morocco coast, and 
 visited many estates between the Essequibo and Pomeroon. 
 There is a broad road which leads along the coast to connect the 
 different plantations, though the planters commonly go between 
 Stabroek and their estates by sea. With the usual kindness of 
 the planters, I was transferred, without trouble or expense, from 
 the one house to the other, either on horseback or in a light 
 chaise, and every attention was paid to my comfort and con- 
 venience. One jolly-looking old planter I met with, in talking 
 of his prospects said, " By Jove! Sir, I know very well that in 
 a year or two we'll all be ruined by the influence of the saints at 
 home; they are so bitter against us that they won't believe a 
 
EAST INDIA COMPETITION. 77 
 
 word we say in our defence; and worse than that, though we are 
 Englishmen and entitled to a hearing, we are condemned without 
 being heard. Every now and then a planter at home writes and 
 publishes a pamphlet, showing the true state of our case, but no 
 one reads it, and even when an impartial witness who visits the 
 West (like the clever author of " Six months in the West Indies") 
 pronounces a favourablejudgment on us, our enemies immediately 
 cry out, < Oh! this man lived on sugarplums, and was treated with 
 sparkling champaigne; no wonder then he speaks well of the 
 planters.' But I am tired of death of the senseless outcry 
 against us, and since it seems we are to be sacrificed, d — n it, I 
 had rather it would happen at once, and have it over." 
 
 Every sugar-estate had its steam-engine, and some had two; 
 and the old Dutch windmills were in ruins. However, some of 
 the gray-headed planters, like the prejudiced in general, are 
 adverse to all improvements and innovations in sugar-making. 
 In talking to one of these about a new mode of boiling cane juice 
 171 vacuo, and potting the sugar with syrup, so as to increase 
 the size of the grain, he said, " I dont't care a fig about improve- 
 ments in sugar-making, only give me a good crop of canes; the 
 old plans are the best, they are easiest learned, and are less ex- 
 pensive; but we went hands. Sir: here we are with an immense 
 country, almost too rich for canes, plenty of provisions for 
 negroes, and hundreds of miles uncleared; in many of the islands 
 the negroes are starving, their masters have more hands than they 
 can feed, yet they cannot benefit themselves and their people by 
 bringing them here. I answered, " On the first view of the case, 
 that seems very strange, but you remember that negroes were not 
 allowed to be transferred from one colony to another, as it might 
 open the door to smuggling in fresh slaves from Africa." 
 '< Very true, but I don't helieve that a single fresh slave would 
 be introduced, for since the abolition of the trade in 1807, no slaver 
 has ever been detected within sight of a British colony. If we had 
 more hands, we would supply the world with sugar, and as it is, 
 we produce more than all the British West India islands put to- 
 gether, Jamaica excepted. But we are afraid of being undersold 
 by the East India sugar. Is not labour there very cheap ?" 
 "You may make yourself perfectly easy about the East India 
 sugars," I replied, " they will never do you any harm ; the 
 wages of labour to be sure, are low in the East, but the quantity 
 of work done is next to nothing; it takes ten men to do the work 
 of one here. If you have two men to work for you there, you 
 require to have a third to look after them. You see then, that in 
 reality, labour is very dear in the East; besides, the freight is 
 heavy, and the distance between the East Indies and England is 
 
78 PLOUGH HTTSBANDRT RECOMMENDED — RICE. 
 
 three times greater than that between England and the West 
 Indies." 
 
 This gentleman was one of the few exceptions to what I so 
 generally remarked in British Guiana, that the planters to the 
 utmost of their ability tried to improve the manufacture of sugar. 
 A deservedly popular writer, Mr. Gait, committed a great mis- 
 take some time ago, in a paper on the sugar colonics; he said, 
 " The planters are very careless in the manufacture of sugar, they 
 will not adopt the most approved modes for producing a superior 
 article, they will not refine their sugars ; the days of molasses 
 and dirt ought to be now gone by," or words to that effect. 
 Now, refined sugars are not allowed to be iii^)orted into Eng- 
 land, only clayed ; and really in the manufacture of sugar, the 
 planters spare no expense, but immediately adopt (if they can) 
 whatever is considered an improvement. Sometimes men of first- 
 rate intelligence trip ; "Aliquando bonus dormitat Homerus" — 
 is due to Mr. Gait on this occasion. 
 
 The cultivation of the cane is ceriainly defective in Guiana. 
 Plough husbandry ought really to be extensively tried there. 
 The Americans succeed very well with the plough in the sugar- 
 states of Louisiana and Mississippi. Guiana is flat like them, and 
 has abundant food for cattle ; unlike Barbadoes and other islands, 
 where they complain of wanting fodder. Guiana has also a great 
 advantage over the islands in her canals, which intersect the es- 
 tates in every direction, whereby the produce is conveyed to the 
 mill with light labour, and at trifling expense. Why not then 
 gradually diminish the number of <' hoeing" slaves by subtituting 
 the plough, and use the limbs of brutes instead of men ? If the 
 soil is too soft for the hoofs of cattle, let broad boots be used, as 
 in the morass between Manchester and Liverpool. 
 
 I saw a little rice on one estate, and I asked the manager why 
 it was not more generally cultivated ? He replied, "Rice suc- 
 ceeds admirably on this flat coast where it is easily irrigated, but 
 if one man only plants rice, the birds all flock to his fields and 
 eat up the grain; whereas, if all the planters would plant simul- 
 taneously, the loss among many fields would be trifling. We 
 don't think either, that it is so nutritive for our people as plan- 
 tains." 
 
 At the house of an assistant protector of slaves I heard a negro 
 make some frivolous complaints against his master ; but when 
 the protector proceeded to take down his deposition, the negro 
 retracted a great part of what he first stated ; and it is a singular 
 fact, that negro witnesses, when they see that their statements 
 are recorded, generally give true evidence, and vice versa. 
 
 There is nothing so common as for negroes to take a lazy fit. 
 

 CONDUCT OF NEGROES. 79 
 
 and sham sick. One day I saw a negrcss come to a manager, 
 and with a rueful face say, '<No can work, massa." " What's 
 the matter?" " Very seek, massa." The pulse was immediately 
 felt and the tongue examined — all right ; "Head turn round, 
 massa." On another occasion, a negro had absented himself 
 without leave, and I saw him approach the house limping and 
 supporting himself as if in great pain, "What now, Cupid?" 
 "Snake bite um foot, massa — no can walk, massa." I watched 
 him after he had turned the corner, when he shouldered his stick 
 and stepped out as nimbly as needs be. Negroes are really at 
 times excessively provoking. 
 
 In my progress along the coast, I was most hospitably and 
 kindly treated by Colonel Dougan, the Honourable Mr. Bean, 
 Mr. Mackie, and the Honourable Mr. Rose ; their civiHties to 
 me I duly acknowledge and always gratefully remember. At 
 Mr. Bean's I remarked an ingenious contrivance to attract the 
 birds of the forest to the veranda : a yellow and ripe banana was 
 placed in an open basket, and fearlessly the feathered tribe in 
 their gorgeous plumage picked the sweet fruit. I was strongly 
 tempted to ensnare some of these visitors, for the sake of their 
 
 andsome coals, but I placed a restraint on my evil propensities. 
 Mr. Rose, at Lima, (an estate in a high state of cultivation 
 with. five hundred negroes upon it,) was so kind as to man a canoe 
 with some of his people, and I again proceeded into the bush, to 
 visit an Indian seUl^ment and the Tapacooma lake, eight miles 
 in length, formed by a dam between two sand hills, and intended 
 to irrigate the Morocco estate in the event of a scarcity of rain. 
 The negroes merrily plied the paddles, and we brushed past the 
 overhanging trees .to their favourite song of •' Velly well, yankee, 
 velly well oh! 
 
 De bottley oh ! de bottley oh ! 
 Dc ncger like the bottley oh ! 
 Right early in the raarning, dc neger like the bottley oh ! 
 A bottle o'runi, loaf a bread, 
 
 *^&^l^ 
 
 Make de ncger dandy oh ! • '■' -<» ^. . ^jf,. 
 
 Right early in de marning, de neger like de bottley oh I ' '^~'*' ■'*^^| ■ 
 
 { 
 We passed through the Tapacooma lake, and saw those trees 
 leafless and rapidly decaying whose roots were unaccustomed to 
 be continually submerged. Spurwings and spoonbills were fish- 
 ing in the newly-formed lake, and the black clay nests of the 
 Marabuntahs, or wasps, were surrounded by the pendant habi- 
 tation of the orioles swinging from slender branches. 
 
 I hung my hammock in the forest retreat of Mr. James Frazer, 
 an eccentric countryman, to whom I became much attached. In- 
 
80 TAPACOOMA LAKE — FOREST AMUSEMENTS. 
 
 different to luxuries, either in dress or lodging, he ranged the 
 forest in quest of game in check shirt and trowsers. His cottage 
 was simple and unadorned, thatched with palm leaves, and the 
 sides enclosed with split manicolc, hut the jaguars, snakes, and 
 vampires had free admission if they chose, and I was lulled to 
 sleep hy the melancholy note of the houtou, and the distant cry 
 of the howling baboon. Thermometer during the night 70°. 
 
 With Frazer I visited the logic of Wallabanari, an Arrawak 
 chief; traversed the gloomy forest, or paddled our canoe in the 
 dark creeks. Sometimes we made the woods resound with the 
 martial music of the pipes, or on the beams of a logie competed 
 with the Indians in gymnastic exercises ; then induced them to 
 j)lay their rude flute of bamboo, or simple viol with three strings, 
 and enjoyed their dance, performed by three or four men clasp- 
 ing one another with their arms, advancing, retreating, pirouetting 
 and stamping the ground with their heels, to the song of ''Na, 
 na, na !" 
 
 We were paddling our canoe among the water-lilies of the 
 Tapacooma lake, when Frazer related a singular instance of su- 
 perstition in the Indians. He was engaged to superintend soiue^ 
 Arravvaks who had agreed to work at the dam which formed the 
 lake, but they declared that they would not commence their la- 
 bours until the Water-Mamma was appeased : — this is a sort of 
 mermaid, believed by the Indians to inhabit the fresh waters of 
 Guiana, and to be possessed of malign influence. " I told the 
 Arrawaks," said Frazer, "that instead of appeasing the Water- 
 Mamma of the Tapacooma creek, I knew how to catch it; so I 
 set to work and stuflcd a bear-skin jacket with straw, and put it 
 into an old puncheon full of water in a dark corner. Three of 
 the Arrawaks were persuaded to come and see it, which they did 
 in fear and trembling, and no sooner had they looked into the 
 puncheon than they fled, fell sick and actually died, though we 
 took the greatest pains to explain to them the trick that had been 
 played them. 
 
 One afternoon we paddled down a dark creek, and landed 
 where an overgrown path led into the bush. We proceeded cau- 
 tiously along it, to allow the snakes to get out of our way; though 
 neither they nor other wild animals will attack unless suddenly 
 disturbed, always excepting the horrid bush-master : fortunately 
 these are seldom seen, and the Indians are warned of their pre- 
 sence by their dogs, and making a wide circuit round them, they 
 transflx them with their arrows at a safe distance. 
 
 Leaping over the fillen trees, and bruishing aside the branches 
 of the underwood with our paddles, we came to an elevated and 
 cleared spot, on which were three deserted logics: here a tragedy 
 
EFFECTS OF INDIAN SUPERSTITION — ADVENTURES. 81 
 
 had been enacted, which caused the Indians to desert a place of 
 evil omen. At a Pigwarry feast an Arrawak had been killed in a 
 moment of irritation, and the murderer, a Peiman (or sorcerer), 
 was sentenced by the tribe to be shot by the nearest relative of 
 the murdered man after digging his own grave. With this latter 
 part of the sentence he complied, and was led out to execution ; 
 when left alone, he suddenly sprang into the forest ; one man fir- 
 ed at him and missed him, and dreading his spells he sickened 
 and died. Under the floor of one of the logies were the graves 
 of the murdered Arrawak and the bad marksman. 
 
 As we were proceeding leisurely with the stream on another 
 occasion, I said to Frazer, "You must have met with a number 
 of strange adventures, and seen many strange sights in your wan- 
 derings ?" — "Yes," said he, "particularly when I used to visit 
 the Oronooco, to procure the laurel oil, so famous for the cure of 
 chronic rheumatism. I went principally by water from Stabroek 
 to Angostura, not by way of the coast, but by the numerous ri- 
 vers that intersect all parts of Colombia south of the Oronooco. 
 We made short portages from one river to the other, the Indians 
 carrying the canoe and the baggage on their heads. 
 
 " I was twice bit by labarri snakes. I cut round the wounds, 
 and one of them still gives me pain. One of my dogs was bit by 
 a labarri in the head ; the labarri-plant was at hand — ^^I rubbed the 
 root of it into the wound, and there is the dog alive and well. 
 You see Antonio, there, a Spanish Indian, in the bow of the 
 canoe ; well, he and myself, and a few others, once went up the 
 Apoori, a branch of the Oronooco, to look for turtle's eggs, and 
 on that expedition we saw a very strange sight, which might not 
 be believed at home — and I don't like to tell it to every one." — 
 "Don't hesitate to tell it me, Frazer. I have seen sights myself 
 that I don't like telling, as I would rather have a character for 
 veracity than be considered one who has seen wonders, and is 
 fond of doing them full justice in the narration; but communi- 
 cate freely, and I'll reciprocate." — "Well, then; we went up the 
 Apoori and came to the sandbarJc where the nests were, and when- 
 ever there was a smooth part of the sand we dug down eight or 
 nine inches, and commonly found five-and-twenty eggs, with a 
 soft shell like parchment. After procuring as many as we want- 
 ed, we dropped down the Apoori and got into the Oronooe, broad 
 and deep, and bordered by heavy forests. We were passing a spit 
 of sand on a clear afternoon, when we saw a large cayman, ten 
 feet long, asleep on the sand, at the distance of a few feet from 
 the water's edge. We approached in the coorial, to shoot the mon- 
 ster in the eye, but, as we neared him, a spotted jaguar was seen 
 to issue from the edge of the forest, and stole towards the alligator, 
 
82 COMBAT OF A JAGUAR AND CAYMAN — EXPEDITION. 
 
 creeping with his belly on the ground like a cat preparing to sur- 
 prise a bird. We drew off, to see what would happen. The 
 leopard made a sudden spring on the cayman, and they both dis- 
 appeared in the river, in a cloud of spray and foam. The cay- 
 man did not reappear, but the nimble jaguar soon rose to the sur- 
 face, blowing with his exertion ; sitting on his haunches, like a 
 dog, on the sand, licked himself for a few moments, and recover- 
 ing his breath, he again plunged into the river like a Newfound- 
 land dog. Up he came again ; still no cayman was seen, though 
 the water was much agitated, and air-bells rose to the surface. At 
 last, after a third dive, he dragged the alligator on the sand in a 
 dying state. We wanted to secure them both, and fired away all 
 our powder and ball at the jaguar, but he just sat looking at us, 
 grinning and growling as we fired, and we were obliged to move 
 off; but next day we got the dead cayman, but don't know what 
 became of his conqueror. No part of the cayman had been eaten ; 
 perhaps a ball may have spoilt the jaguar's appetite." "Yes, or 
 perhaps he had attacked the cayman merely through natural ani- 
 mosity, like the ichneumon the snake." 
 
 About this time there was a bush expedition, to recover some 
 runaway negroes. The manager of an estate had been changed : 
 then the negroes usually try what he is made of; some are inso- 
 lent, others refuse to work, and when threatened with punish- 
 ment, run away and secrete themselves in the forests. Part of 
 the militia on the Morocco coast was called out, principally con- 
 sisting of the book-keepers; but their inefficiency was soon prov- 
 ed. On the second morning, one man complained of illness for 
 want of his coffee ; another said he was unable to proceed, having 
 lost a shoe in the mud ; and a third said he must look after his 
 helpmate, who was in the family-way. Frazer and a few Arra- 
 waks soon tracked the runaways, and they were lightly punished 
 under the eye of a protector. 
 
 I had now been some weeks in British Guiana, and I thought 
 it high time to proceed to the islands. I therefore quitted the 
 woods with extreme reluctance, and returned to Plantation Lima. 
 
 To certain temperaments, removing for a time from all con- 
 nexion with mankind to "the silent shade of some sequestered 
 spot," is very congenial, and even beneficial ; it estranges the 
 mind from the pursuit of sensual enjoyment, enables us to see the 
 folly and vanity of the votaries of pleasure, and induces one to 
 exclaim, 
 
 " Give me, indulgent gods ! with mind serene, 
 And guiltless heart, to range the sylvan scene ; 
 There pleasing objects useful thoughts suggest : 
 The sense is ravished, and the soul is blest." 
 
 •1^' 
 
SAIL FOR STABROKK. 83 
 
 But it is sinful and presumptuous in one who has been placed 
 in a certain station in society, altogether to seclude himself. He 
 has duties to perform, which in retirement he must neglect, and 
 therefore, though, in common with many others, I was fascinated 
 " with the boundless contiguity of shade," where one is indepen- 
 dent of Fashion's edicts, I determined to break the spell and 
 return to Stabroek. 
 
 On a dark and stormy night I bade adieu to Mr, Rose and his 
 excellent lady, and walked down to the Lima stclling, or pier. 
 A small schooner rode at anchor at some distance from it ; and on 
 hailing her, a boat was sent to bring me off. A heavy sea was 
 running, and it was dangerous for the skiff to come alongside the 
 pier. Accordingly, the negro steersman allowed the waves to 
 wash it under the piles, and I suspended myself by the hands, 
 with a depth of some three or four fathoms water below me, in 
 order to drop into the boat. It was an interesting predicament, 
 no doubt, though rather a ridiculous one. The sea rolled the 
 boat in and out, the negro was unskilful, and there I remained 
 swinging in mid-air, like the epicurean in the trials of initiation, 
 and calling lustily to direct the steersman. The spray washed 
 my feet, and the wind confounded me; at last I dropped into the 
 boat, and nearly stove it, but reached the schooner in safety. 
 
 The negro captain then directed the anchor to be weighed, and 
 to stand out to sea ; but, with the usual carelessness of a black 
 crew, after sail was made the schooner was allowed to run aground; 
 she struck heavily on the hard sand : however, by great exertion 
 we got her head round, and bore away under a reefed mainsail. 
 
 Black clouds obscured the heavens, and torrents of rain ac- 
 companied the heavy squalls of wind ; the influence of sleep began 
 to steal over me, and as there was no cabin, I descended to the 
 dark hold to woo the <' sweet restorer." I felt for a pillow on 
 which to repose, and found a bunch of plantains; and wrapping 
 myself up in my cloak, I lay down, but a more comfortless night 
 I have seldom experienced. The schooner rolled and pitched 
 heavily, agitated the bilge water, which saluted the olfactories with 
 aught but " the perfumes of Arabia," and the rain poured in upon 
 me through the seams of the deck, I was not the only occupant 
 of the hold; squadrons of cockroaches flew against me, musqui- 
 toes stung me, rats nibbled at the plantains, and ran over me, as 
 also did long files of ants; then an unwieldly hog, that usually 
 occupied the fore part of the hold, paid me a visit, and commen- 
 ced grunting at my ear, I struck out in desperation, and drove 
 him off for a time. I got no rest from my numerous tormentors till 
 morning dawned, when I discovered three negresses sleeping beside 
 me, on their way to the tread-mill, and over-head hung a basket 
 
84 CROWDED CAUINS. 
 
 containing two Camoodi snakes; but after a voyage of twenty 
 hours, I arrived, unscathed, at Stabroek, and then, as on many 
 other occasions, was compelled to laugh at the annoyances to 
 which I voluntarily exposed myself. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Embark in ascliooner bound to Barbadoes. — Crowded cabins. — Bid adicii to South 
 America. — Passengers' anecdotes. — Yankee Skippers. — Change of colour in the 
 Sea. — A Barbadian dame. — Barbadoes descried. — View of the Island from the 
 Sea. — Carlisle Bay. — His Majesty's ship Shannon. — Bridgetown. — Enmore. — 
 Population and produce of Barbadoes. — Agriculture. — Public Buildings. — The 
 Governor. — The Bishop. — Schools. — The country. — Worthing, the Barbadian 
 Brighton. — The shooting season. — Upton. — Codrington College. — The Principal. 
 — Course of Instruction. — The black Pojjulation rapidly increasing. — A partought 
 to be removed. — Distressed state of many Proprietors. — Peculiar habits of Negroes. 
 — The Barracks of St. Anne. — Healthy situation for Troops. — Forts, Magazines, 
 and Hospitals. — The Court-house and Gaol. — Government of the Island. 
 
 I NOW engaged a berth in the Paget schooner, Captain Gilbert, 
 proceeding to Barbadoes, and at three o'clock one morning took 
 leave of my old schoolfellow, Mr. James Glen, of the wealthy 
 house of Glen and Co., and rowed down the Demerara river to 
 join the vessel, which, though a *' clipper," was little larger than 
 a ship's launch ; the negro boatmen nearly upset us among the 
 hungry sharks by running foul of a hawser, but after some trou- 
 ble we got safe on board. 
 
 I found all hands asleep, and beheld three ladies, consisting of 
 two actresses and a young creole, who occupied berths in the 
 small cabin, where was also my resting-place. The ladies said 
 they preferred the gentlemen's cabin to their own, as it was cooler; 
 and the captain said that the other cabin was full of mulatto wo- 
 men. Here was another trial of initiation, so we lay down in 
 our clothes in our berth, with the consent of the fair. 
 
 At daybreak the tide and wind favoured, and lightly bounding 
 over the billows, we bade adieu to the shores of South America, 
 and saw the long line of mangroves gradually disappear in the 
 horizon. We had sixteen passengers on board ; the men all sea- 
 sick, lay about the deck in their cloaks, and the ladies lay in their 
 berths, as it rained heavily during the day. We were extremely 
 crowded, the sea was very rough, and our little bark seemed every 
 moment about to be immersed beneath "the briny flood;" the 
 
passengers' anecdotes. 85 
 
 white-crested waves curled high over her stern, but she heeded 
 them not, but gallantly scudded before the blast — 
 
 'flj 6' oti tii (Ji'aT'oj irtrtoi axogfrjeai ijii ^atvri. 
 
 " The wanton courser thus with rein unbound, 
 
 Breaks from his stall and beats the trembling ground, 
 Pampered and proud he seeks the wonted tides, 
 And laves in height of blood his shining sides." 
 
 After our evening meal on deck, the passengers began to recover 
 a little, and sat round the main-mast telling stories. The subject 
 of these was principally instances of the devotion to the main 
 chance, and the cunning tricks of the Yankee skippers who visit 
 the British posts in the West. I beg to give three of these anec- 
 dotes. 
 
 A Yankee captain was lying in the Demerara river when hia 
 brother arrived from the States; the skipper said, "Well, what 
 news from Charleston ?" " Not much news, I guess, only father 
 dead;" on which the other coolly responded, "Oh! H 1." 
 
 A Yankee sold an English captain a watch, warranting it to go, 
 
 but next day it was brought back with this address; " I) n it, 
 
 you humbugged me about this here watch, it won't go at all." — 
 " A bargain's a bargain," said Jonathan; "to be sure it won't 
 go, unless you carry it, I reckon." 
 
 Some time ago a Demerara merchant purchased a barrel of 
 beef from a Yankee captain, who shortly afterwards sailed. On 
 coming to the bottom of the barrel a horse's head was found in it: 
 the merchant said nothing, but when the skipper returned to 
 Demerara, he sold him a hogshead of sugar, which, when exam- 
 ined at the custom-house at Boston, was found to have a head of 
 the heavy green heartwood, six inches thick, which was forthwith 
 hung up as a proof of British honesty ; but no mention was made 
 of the choice morsel which had been found in the beef-barrel. 
 
 We pitched and rolled over the troubled deep; the graceful 
 tropic bird soared high above us, appearing with its long tail and 
 wings like a white cross, beautifully relieved against the dark rain 
 clouds; but we shortly left these and the turbid water of Guiana 
 behind us, and a clear sky and clear seas succeeded. 
 
 I was much amused with an elderly Barbadian dame on board; 
 she delighted in " porter cup," made of Barclay and Perkins' 
 entire, with the addition of water, sugar, and nutmeg. Occasion- 
 ally she would call out to young Mungo, her servant, in a drawl- 
 ing voice, " Bae, go to drip, and bring me a little waeler, please;'* 
 then in a lower key, " when pass buffet, put a little rum in it, 
 please." "Yees, Missa ; want nutmeg, Missa." " Go lang. 
 
86 VIEW OF BARBADOES FROM THE SEA. 
 
 you black niggar you. What! you link I drink punch, eh. ^" <<No, 
 Missa, beg pardon Missa." 
 
 On the second night we backed our topsail, lay to occasionally, 
 and were struck heavily by the sea; the ladies ever and anon 
 called out, thinking we were on a rock. When the third morn- 
 ing dawned, we perceived from "the high and giddy mast" the 
 dim outline of Barbadocs. 
 
 All sail was cracked on the schooner, innumerable shoals of 
 flying fish rose round us, and we stood towards the land. Hills 
 of some elevation were observed, but we steered towards where a 
 long point stretched to the south-east: gradually the beauties of 
 the island were revealed, the grouped foliage, the white houses 
 scattered amongst it, the windmills, and the cane-fields of bright 
 green, all gladdened the eye, and presented the appearance of a 
 well-cultivated garden. 
 
 It was Sunday, in the month of June, and no living thing was 
 seen moving on shore, only the leaves of the palms skirting the 
 beach coquetted with the breeze; not a sail was observed until we 
 weathered a point and some dangerous reefs — then Carlisle Bay 
 opened before us, a noble panorama. 
 
 Round the bay were umbrageous trees, and the neat houses of 
 Bridge Town; at one extremity of the bay was a formidable bat- 
 tery ,°and behind it the handsome barracks of St. Anne. "The 
 meteor flag of England" floated proudly from its staff, and 
 <<long," I exclaimed, "may it continue to float over these glo- 
 rious isles of the West!" The corresponding point of the bay 
 was covered with a lovely grove of cocoa, the royal palm, the sea- 
 side grape, and the beautiful though noxious machineal. 
 
 In the centre of the picture the land rose above the town, and 
 sloped far into the distance to the hills of the Barbadian Scotland, 
 clothed in a rich and varied garment, studded with pleasant villas 
 and enlivened with a bright sun. Ships of war, merchantmen, 
 and coasting schooners, rode at anchor, with pendants and ensigns 
 displayed, for it was Sunday; and I was quite fascinated with the 
 enchanting prospect. 
 
 Ilis Majesty's frigate the Shannon, of high reputation, layout- 
 side the other vessels; a long seine, or fishing-net, hung between 
 her fore and main rigging, and her boats were seen to dash out 
 from her sides under broad lug sails, competing with one another 
 in a race to sea. A shot or two was fired over us to bring us to; 
 we were boarded by an officer, and in the evening landed on a 
 stone pier. 
 
 There was a remarkable contrast hero to the wooden houses, 
 moist soil, and canals of Guiana. The streets of Bridgetown 
 were narrow, clean, and perfectly dry; the brick houses were 
 
PRODUCE AND POPULATION. 87 
 
 shaded with piazzas, and the free coloured inhabitants and ne- 
 groes, neatly dressed, lounged about on the day of rest. I found 
 a comfortable chamber at Enmore, the delightful residence of 
 Mr. Cavan; but alas! that house, so cool and agreeable, with its 
 shady trees and marble verandah, is now a heap of ruins, the 
 dreadful hurricane of August having prostrated it in the dust. 
 
 For the fortnight I remained in this most ancient, most loyal, 
 and most windward colony, and spent my time very pleasantly 
 and profitably, geneially studying until three o'clock, and then 
 sallying out with a white cover over my cap, and taking exercise 
 on foot or on horseback for three hours. 
 
 Courteous reader, I am not going to trouble you with a history 
 or "present state" of Barbadoes, but a mere outline of this re- 
 markable island, in size nearly equal to the Isle of Wight, pro- 
 ducing, with what the abolitionists call ''a worn-out soil," four 
 hundred thousand hundredweight of sugar annually, besides ex- 
 porting poultry and plantains to the Leeward Islands, and support- 
 ing a population of one hundred and twenty thousand souls, 
 eighty-three thousand of whom are slaves, and rapidly increas- 
 ing! 
 
 The scanty soil, on a coral substratum, is carefully manured, 
 and the sloping fields are divided into terraces, to prevent the 
 rain washing away the precious mould. The highest land in 
 the north-eastern quarter is one thousand feet above the level of 
 the sea; and there, in deep valleys, are the remains of the ancient 
 forest which covered the whole island in the days of the good 
 Queen Bess. In other parts of the island, hill and dale are 
 equally cultivated with the light hoe. Fire-wood is scarce, and 
 great quantities are brought from Demerara. There are no 
 steam-engines here, but at least three hundred windmills for 
 grinding the canes, besides others for drawing water from the 
 deep wells. 
 
 Bridgetown, extending for two miles round Carlisle Bay, 
 contains twenty thousand inhabitants, a square with a statue of 
 the immortal Nelson; and some churches without steeples, but 
 the cathedral, a massive pile, had a square tower. The respect- 
 able inhabitants, though greatly reduced in means, tried to be 
 contented with their lot, and lived in comparative comfort till 
 the late awful visitation unroofed their dwellings and overthrew 
 their walls; but they have a noble spirit within them, and I doubt 
 not but that Bridgetown will shortly again rise from its ruins, 
 and that yet prosperity may dawn upon the people. 
 
 Spikes Town, on the west coast, is a considerable place; but 
 Hole and Austin Town are mere hamlets. The remains of old 
 
88 THE GOVERNOR — SCHOOLS. 
 
 forts and honeycombed guns are thickly scattered all over the 
 island, which has never surrendered to a foreign foe. 
 
 Let me gratefully recall to mind the hospitality of the governor, 
 much beloved by the Barbadians, Sir James Lyon, — hisabundant 
 table, his choice wines. West Indians are urbane and hospitable 
 themselves, and they delight in a ruler who partakes of their 
 own character. King's-house and Pilgrim or Government-house, 
 were both of them residences worthy of the chief of the Wind- 
 ward Islands. 
 
 The Bishop of Barbadoes (Dr. Coleridge) had been most in- 
 defatigable; a church and chapel were in each of the eleven 
 parishes of the island; and besides the central school for one 
 hundred and sixty white boys, founded by Lord Combermere, 
 there were many others of recent establishment, for both sexes 
 and for all colours. 
 
 In riding into the country, though some of the white roads 
 were lined with trees, yet the generality of them were painfully 
 glaring to the eyes. On each side it was interesting to remark 
 the peculiarity of the cultivation; four distinct crops, of cane, 
 maize, tobacco, and sweet potatoes, would be seen in the same 
 field, and in alternate drills. 
 
 Worthing, a small sea-bathing place, was a most delightful 
 spot; lofty palms shaded the wood, which was washed by the 
 lively ripple of the crystal sea, and comfortable houses accom- 
 modated the invalids. Near Worthing is a swamp, which is 
 celebrated as the shooting-ground in the month of August. 
 Then innumerable flocks of wild fowl resort there, sheds are 
 erected which let for a high price, and under these the sportsmen 
 sit in chairs, with a table and refreshments before them, and a 
 black boy looking out; on -seeing the birds approach he whistles, 
 when the active venator rouses himself and fires; but two or three 
 others may fire at the same flock at the same time, and they all 
 rush out after the volley and often dispute for the prize. 
 
 I spent some pleasant hours at Upton, the beautiful residence 
 of Mr. Barrow; seated on an eminence surrounded with trees 
 collected from ''furthest Ind and Afric's burning plains," and a 
 garden where 
 
 " Blossoms and fruits at once of golden hue 
 Appeared, witli gay enamelled colours mixed." 
 
 While at Upton, I visited Codrington College in a light 
 caleche; on our way we halted at Mr. Barrow's upper estate, and 
 in passing the fields where his people were at work, they 
 cordially saluted him with "Good marning massa, good mam- 
 
COURSE or INSTRUCTION. 89 
 
 ing; how de massa?" Truly it was a pleasant sight to see the 
 affection of these poor people. 
 
 After a drive of several miles and a steep ascent, we found 
 ourselves on a level plateau romantically enclosed with high 
 cliffs; at the bottom of an avenue of living columns, was the long 
 range of the college, and the residence of the principal, hoth 
 constructed of solid masonry which had withstood many hurri- 
 canes. 
 
 The situation of the college is one of the most delightful that 
 can possibly be conceived; shut out from the world by hills 
 possessing the superior advantages of the sea breeze, and an un- 
 bounded view of the Atlantic, and refreshed by a clear stream of 
 water collected in front into a small lake. Gracefully the long 
 leaves of the palms waved over our heads as we rode down the 
 avenue, and I was quite enamoured of a spot so suited for study 
 and reflection. 
 
 We were received by the Rev. Mr. Finder, the principal, in 
 his usual kind and obliging manner, and by him conducted over 
 the establishment. There were twenty-three students receiving 
 instruction, and it was a singular sight to observe these young 
 men walking about the grounds in their academicals, the cap and 
 gown of our universities, between the Tropics. 
 
 The students belonged to different islands, and their board and 
 education only cost 35/. a-year, exclusive of clothes ; they are 
 examined and ordained by the bishop, if intended for the church; 
 and it is really a pity that so noble an institution as this college 
 should not be more patronized by the West Indians than it is. 
 The fault partly lies with the trustees of the late General Cod- 
 rington, who for years were studious only to educate and render 
 comfortable the negroes on the estates left for the support of the 
 college, and until lately neglected the great object of the charity — 
 the education of the whites ; forgetting that no slaves can be so 
 well treated as under masters who have themselves benefitted by 
 moral and religious instruction. 
 
 We returned in the afternoon to Upton, and spent a pleasant 
 evening with a few friends. 
 
 The black population of Barbadoes is now so numerous and 
 disproportionate to the size and resources of the island, that the 
 restrictions laid by Government upon the transmission of slaves 
 from one island to another is here, especially, severely felt by the 
 planters, who, in the neighbouring islands of Trinidad or Jamaica, 
 or in Guiana, might find a ready mart for their superabundant 
 population, and at the same time benefit these noble colonies. 
 *' Slavery," says the philanthropist, " would thus be perpetuated." 
 I answer, that planters and negroes are at present in danger of 
 M 
 
90 BLACK POPULATION — BARRACKS OF ST. ANNE. 
 
 Starving in the old islands ; that slaves could be more effectually 
 prepared for emancipation in the midst of abundance, than while 
 wanting daily bread ; and that I see no danger whatever of slave- 
 smuggling taking place, since registers are now so strictly kept, 
 since there is such an establishment of protectors and assistant 
 protectors, and since there are so many agents of the abolitionists 
 in the colonies, who would be anxious and ready to report any 
 introduction of Africans, if such an improbable occurrence took 
 place. 
 
 Why do the negroes increase in Barbadoes and decrease in Ja- 
 maica ? Simply because the climate of the former is so much bet- 
 ter than that of the latter. 
 
 It is with pain I record the fact, that in the island of Barbadoes, 
 which was considered one of the most productive of our western 
 colonies, the greater number of the estates are mortgaged con- 
 siderably above their value; indeed, the nominal proprietors can 
 only be considered as the agents of their creditors, who receive all 
 their produce, and allow them a fixed income; and it grieves me 
 to reflect how many unfeelingly contemplate further inroads on 
 the property of the already impoverished planter. 
 
 Among the negroes of Barbadoes, the custom prevails of hav- 
 ing two or three mistresses, but either free or on different estates: 
 one of these is always an old woman who feeds and supports her 
 young friend. It is very difficult to persuade negroes to marry, 
 here or elsewhere — they prefer concubinage; and on this account 
 their masters sustain heavy loss. If a free negress has a child by 
 a slave, the mother and child are supported clandestinely from 
 the estate to which the father belongs, and the child does not be- 
 come the property of the negro's master: but if a female slave 
 has a child by a free man, then the child and its mother remain 
 in bondage. 
 
 I was much delighted in viewing the esplanade at St. Anne's, 
 and the handsome barracks, where the troops (as they ought al- 
 ways to be between the tropics) were coolly and comfortably 
 lodged. Lofty well-ventilated rooms, shaded by broad veran- 
 dahs, were occupied by rows of iron bedsteads, with the Welling- 
 ton arm rack at the head of each. The beds were of hackled 
 corn husk ; and though the men got five days in the week salt 
 provisions, yet they looked healthy. The penny a day compen- 
 sation in lieu of an allowance of liquor had worked wonders among 
 the recruits, though it is difficult to keep an old soldier out of a 
 canteen. 
 
 Three years ago the parade-ground at Barbadoes was a swamp; 
 in crossing it to a dry spot for drill, the men carried their shoes 
 in tlieir hands, perhaps were half drunk from the effects of the 
 
HEALTHY SITUATION FOR TROOPS. 91 
 
 debauch of the night before, and had most of them swallowed a 
 " slug," or <' chuck," to keep the fog out, as they called it. Drill 
 over, they returned to their barracks wet, went to sleep wet, 
 and often got up in a burning fever. Now, the parade is per- 
 fectly dry, and there is much less drinking; so that there were 
 fewer in the sick list in Barbadoes in June last, than there were 
 amongst a like force in England. 
 
 The greater number of the soldiers of the 35th and 36th regi- 
 ments had brown wives ; many of these ladies were very well edu- 
 cated, but owing to their depressed circumstances, and the numbers 
 there are of them in Barbadoes, they are glad to place themselves 
 under the protection of private sentinels. 
 
 Captain Byrne of the Royals, and Fort Adjutant, was kind 
 enough to accompany me round the barracks, forts, and magazines. 
 St. Anne's fort, though small, would yet make a good defence, 
 and in it there are excellent magazines stored with the munitions 
 of war, and an armoury with many thousand stand of arms in the 
 highest order. In the hospitals there were a few fever cases, 
 principally drunkards; and in the asylum some negro soldiers in 
 chains, dangerous lunatics. 
 
 In visiting the court-house, I was surprised to find that the 
 goal was a part of the same building ; debtors and rogues were 
 confined in the ground-floor. The tread-mill, '< that sovereign 
 rectifier," was in the yard, and the imprisoned were allowed to 
 lounge in and about the court-house whilst the judges were on the 
 bench. Classification is much required here, else mutual corrup- 
 tion must extend among the incarcerated. 
 
 Besides the Governor, his twelve Councillors, and the twenty- 
 two Members of the House of Assembly, the laws are ad- 
 ministered by twenty-seven Judges (planters and merchants); 
 but as few or none of these have been educated for the bar, His 
 Majesty's Attorney General assists them in their deliberations and 
 decisions. There are many evils attending this system, which 
 I need not enlarge upon. Electors are those who possess really 
 or nominally ten acres of land. 
 
99 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Leave Enmore to make the tour of the Island. — Splendid view from Hackleston's 
 Cliff. — Precipitous descent. — The white Creoles. — Plantations.— Turner's Hall 
 Wood. — The boiling Spring. — Harrison's Cave and tlie animal flower cave — 
 How to trtivel between the Tropics. — Creole hostess of the Bridgetown Clarendon. 
 — A Joan.Johnny dance. — Unpleasant finale. — A quality Ball. — An exclusive 
 Party. — Barbadian drinks. — Fair Barbadians. — Character of the white Inhabi- 
 tants. — A cock-fight. — The mysterious Vault. — The charming residence of Vau- 
 cluse. — Strange infatuation of a Negro. — The first hurricane of the season. — Pre- 
 parations for departure. 
 
 One morning I set out on horseback at six o'clock, with Mr. 
 Best, late of the 8th hussars, to make a tour on the windward 
 side of the island. We rode gaily out to Blackinan's estate, and 
 there breakfasted, and it was delightful to remark the air of com- 
 fort and excellent state of cultivation which the country presen- 
 ted. The house at Blackman's was a Montpellier for salubrity; 
 on a lofty site, and surrounded with a garden crowded with rare 
 exotics. After our meal of fruit, bread, and coffee, I put on an 
 oriental turban, and we continued our excursion. After a smart 
 canter, we suddenly found ourselves on the verge of a very pre- 
 cipitous descent, Hackleston's Cliff by name; and here from one 
 of the highest points in the island, one thousand feet above the 
 level of the sea, a most beautiful and extensive prospect burst 
 upon us. On the slope below were plantations with groves of 
 trees around them, fields of bright green, streams glittering 
 in the sunbeam, and beyond, the ocean reposed in silent splen- 
 dour — 
 
 " It plays with the clouds, it mocks the skies, 
 Or like a cradled creature lies." 
 
 We then commenced the descent of a path so rugged and pre- 
 cipitous that, viewing it, and my own extraordinary figure in 
 eastern guise, I was transported in imagination to the awful 
 mountain passes of Persia, the Koutuls, where loaded mules are 
 continually precipitated among the rocks far below, strewed with 
 white merchandize and white bones. 
 
 We gave our horses the rein, and slid and stumbled down to 
 the bottom; here we fell in with a Barbadian, trudging along to 
 his small farm in Scotland; he talked learnedly on cock-fighting, 
 and belonged to a class of white men who are noted for indolence, 
 
THE BOILING SPRING — CREOLE HOSTESS. 93 
 
 vicious propensities, and ridiculous pretensions. We looked in 
 at several houses, and were served with cooling liquors, but de- 
 clined punch and man-dram; and then made for Turner's Hall 
 Wood, a part of the aboriginal forest. The soil had now chan- 
 ged froii the black mould near Bridgetown to red argillaceous 
 earth, and in some parts of Scotland (which we were now in) we 
 observed as it were chalky cliffs, though calcareous only in ap- 
 pearance. 
 
 The scenery was varied and extremely picturesque ; there were 
 hill and dale, the rich tints of tropical vegetation, and glimpses 
 of the Atlantic at the bottom of the long vistas of the valleys be- 
 tween the ridges. We rode past some small pools, where tar 
 issued out of the earth, and then screened ourselves from the 
 scorching rays of the sun under the shelter of the ancient forest. 
 Tying our horses to a tree, we scrambled down to the boiling 
 spring, and on approaching the dark gulley where it is situated, we 
 became sensible of an unpleasant gaseous odour; and discovered a 
 hole in the ground, from which there were " mutterings of unutter- 
 able things" proceeding. We threw water into the hole, and a vio- 
 lent bubbling immediately ensued; and if we had applied a light, 
 the inflammable gas would have burst into a flame. Harmless 
 snakes, monkeys, and birds of varied plumage, inhabit Turner's 
 Hill Wood, which by the ancients would have been considered a 
 delicious retreat for fauns and dryads. 
 
 I shall not now stop minutely to describe the other natural 
 curiosities of this part of Barbadoes. Harrison's Cave, incrusted 
 with beautiful petrifactions, and through which, like Styx, a 
 stream flows, but clear and limpid; and again the animal flower 
 cave, where in a natural basin into which the tide flows, there is 
 a rock with beautiful varieties attached to it, of that remarkable 
 zoophyte — the hydra; they appear like petals of the marigold, of 
 purple, yellow, and green colours, to attract the insect prey, but 
 when touched they contract and become invisible. This remark- 
 able production forms the connecting link between the animal and 
 vegetable kingdoms of that extraordinary gradation, or chain of 
 beings, proceeding from the rudest unorgaaised matter up to 
 man. 
 
 We rode home in the evening, and after a bath felt no bad 
 effects from the long excursion. Protect the head from the sun, 
 be temperate, and exercise may be taken between the tropics with 
 impunity whilst the thermometer stands in the shade at 110°. 
 
 To get an insight into Creole character, I sometimes strolled 
 down to town, and sat for an hour with the well known Betsy 
 Austin, the hostess of the Bridgetown Clarendon. At the door, 
 lolling in her easy chair, would be seen the jolly dame, decked in 
 
94 A JOAN-JOHNNY DANCE- 
 
 gaudy finery and superintending the light labours of some female 
 slaves, whom she occasionally rated in no measured terms. She 
 kept a very clean liouse of entertainment, and was always remark- 
 ably civil. <'Ah! you stranger gentleman, 1 know very well 
 why you come down and see me. You go away and laugh. 
 The devil take you, Sally, be quick and bring the captain a chair; 
 will you take cocoa-nut water or lemonade, sir?" " Tlie cocoa- 
 nut, if you please," — "You have heard some people abuse me, I 
 suppose, sir, but I don't care, I tell you; — damn you, Pompey, 
 why don't you sweep up the floor, you black neggar you." 
 
 One evening whilst sitting in the marble verandah at Enmore, 
 and listening to the ceaseless hum of the insects and the gentle 
 rustling of tiie trees, and thinking of again venturing on the 
 treacherous deep, I heard the lively sound of a drum at some dis- 
 tance, and immediately repaired to where the negroes were amu- 
 sing themselves under the mild rays of the Cynthian queen. On 
 a level spot, surrounded by small houses of coloured and black 
 people, was a bench, on which were seated two negro fiddlers 
 and a thin fellow beating a drum; behind stood a man shaking 
 violently a calabash filled with small stones and reeds, and sing- 
 ing with contortions an African air. The crowd formed a ring, 
 and those who wished to dance the Joan-Johnny stepped forward, 
 presented the leader of the band with a bit, and he 
 
 " Bid tlie fiddle to the banjar speak, 
 Tlie banjar to the calabash without," 
 
 and a couple w^ould twist their bodies, thump the ground with 
 their heels, and circle round one another to the inspiring strains. 
 The little black urchins, as usual, were setting to one another on 
 the outskirts of the admiring crowd, or kneeling down behind 
 their elders, who would be pushed over amidst shouts of laugh- 
 ter, or mimicking the actions of the white lookers on. I was much 
 amused with the scene, but a violent end was put to the entertain- 
 ment, for a huge stone was hurled at the musicians by some un- 
 known hand, which wounded the leader's bow-arm. Immediately 
 there was a great uproar, and a second stone nearly demolishing 
 an instrument, the party broke up, venting curses on the unseen 
 spoiler of the sport — probably some choleric freeman, who did not 
 like sounds of obstreperous mirth near his dwelling. 
 
 The '' quality balls" of the coloured people are well worth visit- 
 ing. The brown beaux and belles are gaily dressed — kid gloves, 
 silk stockings, "tiglit continuations," and quizzing-glasses, are 
 seen on the gentlemen ; whilst the ladies sport feathers, silks, 
 book-muslin, tinsel turbans, bustles, and satin slippers. 
 
A QUALITY BALL. 95 
 
 I was fortunate enough to be present at two balls of the '< Pre- 
 miere Qualite." They were conducted in a similar manner to 
 what we are accustomed to at home. At these parties I saw many- 
 fair forms, who left a lasting impression ; and an additional inter- 
 est has been excited — for these pale and dark-eyed maids have 
 since had to hurry from their couches at the dead of night, the 
 roofs blown from their dwellings, and the walls crumbling in ruins 
 behind them. 
 
 Whilst the dance proceeded, the thirsty souls among the gentle- 
 men would adjourn to pledge one another in tea-anne and coffee- 
 anne, (preparations of congo ormocha, with spirits,) or each would 
 take up a huge glass vase of sangoree, with a "spry" of lemon- 
 peel floating on it, and quaif deep draughts of the tempting be- 
 verage, half wine, half water, with sugar and nutmeg. It was 
 really verj"- enticing, but we must resist seductions of all kinds 
 whilst wayfaring. 
 
 Many of the fair Creoles whom I had seen in the morning lan- 
 guidly reclining on a couch, and apparently incapable of the 
 slightest exertion, were now as it were inspired ; their eyes spark- 
 led with animation, the colour played in their cheeks, like ''a rose 
 crushed on marble," and with delicate shapes they moved in the 
 dance gracefully and untiringly. 
 
 "What do you think of the Bims or Barbadians?" said an 
 English resident, accosting me at one of these balls. "Why, I 
 have been so short a time on the island," I replied, " that I ought 
 not to give an opinion at all. The impressions I have formed of 
 them are these : — open-hearted and good-tempered, with no small 
 opinion of themselves or of their island ; which lam not surpris- 
 ed at, as it seems a right pleasant island, and its turtle and punch, 
 lam sure, find favour in your eyes. " — "Yes," answered he; "but 
 many of the Barbadians are very ignorant. Would you believe 
 it. Sir, only the other day a Bim asked me how long the people 
 were locked up in England ? ' Locked up !' I answered ; ' what I 
 do you think the cold confines us to the house ?' — 'Yes.' — 'Not 
 in England, my good friend. True, it does so in Siberia ; you 
 must be thinking of that part of the world, where if you yawn, 
 such an icicle forms in your mouth that it requires a hatchet to 
 cut it !' Now, the Bim believed this nonsense, and repeated it 
 to his friends." — •'! can assure you," I retorted, "that the ignor- 
 ance of the Barbadians regarding England is more excusable than 
 the absurdities we hear regarding the West Indies at home ; a cer- 
 tain party make people believe that in the Antilles there is nothing 
 but weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, chains and whips, 
 yaws and yellow fever." 
 
 I said that cockfighting was one of the principal amusements of 
 the lower class of white Barbadians, but the middle class also is 
 
96 COCK-FIGHTING — THE MYSTERIOUS VAULT. 
 
 parlial to this cruel and disgusting sport. At a main, fought by 
 the birds of two well known sporting-gentlemen, the pit was 
 quite full, and great amusement was derived from watching 
 some of the betters and lookers on. They seemed to feel such 
 intense anxiety in the fate of their favourite birds, that every 
 stroke had an electric effect upon them. A hideous, sunburnt, 
 buccaneering-looking fellow appeared to suffer as much as the cock 
 upon which he had staked his money ; suddenly he would writhe 
 as if in acute pain, his hands clenched, breath drawn in, and his 
 body bent forwards, watching with convulsive eagerness the pend- 
 ing battle. At last, his bird received the coup de grace, when 
 with a wo-begone face, and mouth screwed up, he uttered aloud, 
 "Whew ! he ben't a cock ; he's a 'orse ; see how he jumps on 
 the flats o' his foots !" 
 
 It is not generally known, that in Harbadoes there isa mysteri- 
 ous vault, in which no one now dares to deposit the dead. It is in 
 a churchyard near the se.i-side. In 1S07 the first coffin that was 
 deposited in it was that of a Mrs. Goddard ; in 1S08 a Miss A. 
 M. Chase was placed in it ; and in 1812 Miss D. Chase. In the 
 end of 1812 the vault was opened for the body of the Honourable 
 T. Chase ; but the three first coffins were found in a confused state, 
 having been apparently tossed from their places. Again was the 
 vault opened to receive the body of an infant, and the four coffins, 
 all of lead, and very heavy, were much disturbed. In 1816 a 
 Mr. Brewster's body was placed in the vault, and again great dis- 
 order was apparent in the coffins. In 1819 a Mr. Clarke was 
 placed in the vault, and, as before, the coffins were in confusion. 
 
 Each time that the vault was opened the coffins were replaced 
 in their proper situations, that is, three on the ground, side by 
 side, and the others laid on them. The vault was then regularly 
 closed ; the door (and a massive stone which required six or se- 
 ven men to move) was cemented by masons ; and though the floor 
 was of sand, there were no marks of footsteps or water. 
 
 The last time the vault was opened was in 1819; Lord Com- 
 bermere was then present, and the coffins were (bund thrown con- 
 fusedly about the vault; some with the heads down, and others 
 up. What could have occasioned this phenomenon ? In no other 
 vault in the island has this ever occurred. Was it an earthquake 
 which occasioned it, or the effects of an inundation in the vault ? 
 
 In England there was a parallel occurrence to this some years 
 ago at Staunton, in Suffolk. It is stated, that on opening a vault 
 there, several leaden coffins, with wooden cases, which had been 
 fixed on biers; were displaced, to the great consternation of the 
 villagers. The coffins were again placed as before, and the vault 
 properly closed, when again another of the family dying, they 
 
HURRICANE — DEPARTURE. 97 
 
 were a second time found displaced ; and two years after that, they 
 were not only found all off their biers, but one coffin (so heavy as 
 to require eight men to raise it) was found on the fourth step 
 which led down to the vaults, and it seemed perfectly certain that 
 no human hand had done this. As yet no one has satisfactorily 
 accounted for the Barbadian or the Staunton wonder. 
 
 I spent one day at a most charming residence, Vaucluse, on a 
 high spot, delightfully cool, commanding extensive views. The 
 proprietor said that some Moravian brethren had established 
 themselves in his neighbourhood, and that those of his negroes 
 who attended the instructions of that excellent fraternity, were 
 extremely sober and industrious. His butler had lately died, 
 and he gave him a handsome funeral, for he had served him faith- 
 fully for many years, and the master was anxious to testify his 
 respect for his servant. Shortly after this, a healthy negro re- 
 fused all food, lay with his eyes open, and gasping as it were for 
 breath; the doctor could discover no ailment, and it was con- 
 jectured that the butler's funeral had so excited his envy, that he 
 determined to have a similar one, and to starve himself. The 
 master came in, and said aloud, "If this negro dies, I mean to 
 throw him into a hole, and bury him with his face down." It 
 is almost unnecessary to add, that, shortly after this speech, the 
 sick took up his bed and walked forth healed. 
 
 One night whilst I was ruminating on my intended route in 
 bed, the wind, which had shifted suddenly from one point of the 
 compass to another, at last set in to blow with fearful violence from 
 the south-east; it roared among the trees, bent them, and tore off 
 branches, injured the roof and seemed to sweep with resistless 
 violence across the island, which it drenched with heavy rain. 
 This was the first hurricane of the season. Next morning I 
 walked down to Carlisle Bay, to see how it had fared with Uie 
 shipping: the men of war and merchantmen were pitching 
 violently at their anchors; immense waves, in long ridges of 
 green water, broke over the pier-head and shook the stones. 
 Someof the smaller craft had drifted on shore, and when the wind 
 moderated a little, the launches were sent from the frigates to 
 collect all the " Libertymen" on shore, and prepare to go to sea. 
 I also prepared to go to sea, for I calculated that immediately 
 after a storm there is likely to be moderate weather. "The 
 vehicle to mount is that which has been upset the day before." 
 
 N 
 
98 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 The great hurricane of 1831. — The English suffer from their prejudices. — Will not 
 change their habits in any climate. — The hurricane of 1780. — Injudicious style 
 of building. — Flat roofs recommended. — The writer apologises for his remarks. 
 — Barbadoes before the hurricane of 18.31. — 7'he last great hurricane more des- 
 tructive than the former one. — Destruction in Bridgetown. — The effects of 
 hurricanes illustrated. — Atmospherical phenomena on tlic 10th of August. — Com- 
 mencement of the gale. — Awful and sudden gusts from different points of the com- 
 pass. — Destructive effects. — The air filled with fragments ot wood and stone. — 
 An earthquake and shower of hail. — The salt spray. — Examples of the violence of 
 the wind. — Fire-balls. — E.^jposed situation of delicate females. — Appearance of 
 Barbadoes after the hurrcane. — The dead and dying — Destruction of St. Anne's 
 barracks and the public buildings. — Great loss of shipping. — The wounded, how 
 disposed of. — Generosity of the Governor. — Liberality of the merchants. — Resigna- 
 tion and enterprise of the people. 
 
 In the splendid possession.s of Great Britain situated between 
 the tropics, I have often remarked to what a prejudiced nation I 
 belong. In the East, or in the West, our countrymen are con- 
 tinually at war with the climate — attempt to build their houses as 
 they are wont to do at home, dress as if they intended to walk 
 the streets of London, and eat and drink as if the thermometer 
 never exceeded 65°. One would imagine, that having spread 
 themselves over the four quarters of the globe, Britons would now 
 have voluntarily become endowed with the properties of Proteus 
 — that they would be able to change their habits according to 
 change of scene; but as yet this is far from being the case. Our 
 African travellers were spit upon and reviled because they dressed 
 as Britons and as Christians; and Englishmen abroad suffer con- 
 tinual inconvenience, great loss of property, and life itself 
 prematurely, because they will not study and accommodate to the 
 pecularities of foreign climes — 
 
 " Ccelum non animum mutant qui trans mare currunt." 
 
 Many of the West India islands are subject to dreadful hurri- 
 canes in the months of August and September. Barbadoes, in 
 particular, has suffered most severely. In 17S0 it was laid waste, 
 and four thousand five hundred of its inhabitants were buried 
 under the ruins of the houses; yet I remarked that the style of 
 building througliout the island was, as usual, very badly adapted to 
 the climate. The houses were generally on a small scale, the 
 rooms were not sufficiently lofty, and the roofs, covered with tin 
 or shingles, retained the heat, as the iron roofs of Moscow, dur- 
 ing a great part of the night. 
 
THK HURRICANE OF 1780. 99 
 
 Then again, instead of excluding the sun by light mats, as in 
 the East Indies, every window was left open, and thus what little 
 comfort was gained by the circulation of air was counterbalanced 
 by the reflected heat from the white roads. But the great in- 
 consistency in the mode of building at Barbadoes was this: instead 
 of flat roofs, the houses were covered in with a lofty and clumsy 
 structure, quite disproportionate to the rest of the building, and 
 offering a resistance to the wind which too often has occasioned 
 their destruction. To this it may be replied, that the houses 
 thus constructed are much cooler than others; but this is disprov- 
 ed, for in Eastern countries, where the heat far exceeds that of 
 the Antilles, and where inland there are no refreshing sea-breezes, 
 the houses are flat roofed, yet cool. With flat roofs, single stories, 
 and substantial piazzas, hurricanes are not to be dreaded. The 
 barracks of Antigua, occupying the highest ground on the island, 
 resist all tempests, and are built on the above excellent principle. 
 
 But why should I indulge in this train of observations after 
 the direful calamity of the 10th of August 1831? why should I 
 irritate and vex those who have suffered so grievously, by insinu- 
 ating that they were partly to blame for what has befallen them ? 
 "Shame be my portion, and let my head besprinkled with 
 ashes," if I were to be so unfeeling as to upbraid the luckless 
 inhabitants of Barbadoes for their heavy misfortune! I merely 
 give my own impressions, and those of others who have visited 
 the East, on the manner in which their houses were built, in the 
 hope that in future the Oriental plan may have at least a trial in 
 the Antilles. 
 
 But let us now proceed to describe, as concisely and distinctly 
 as possible, from various nuthentic documents, the dreadful visi- 
 tation of the autumn of 1831. On the morning after the hurri- 
 cane it was truly said that Barbadoes, the gay, the prosperous, and 
 the happy — one of the finest of the colonial isles — the Brighton 
 of the West Indies — the mart of commerce — the home of hospi- 
 tality — Barbadoes in its pride, was no more. Bridgetown, the 
 capital, was a heap of ruins; and country, villa, and hamlet, were 
 alike level with tiie earth. 
 
 On Wednesday, the 10th of August, it pleased the Almighty 
 Disposer of joy and sorrow to visit this island with one of the most 
 destructive hurricanes ever known in the western hemisphere; 
 and misery, irretrievable misery to thousands, has been the dread- 
 ful consequence. The islands of St. Vincent, St. Lucia, St. Do- 
 mingo, and Cuba, with the city of New Orleans, also came within 
 the track of the destroying tornado, and suffered most mate- 
 rially. 
 
 Those who recollect the great hurricane of 1780, all agree that 
 
100 COMPARATIVE EFFECTS. 
 
 the wind on the late tremendous gale was far more violent than 
 the former, and the truth of this may be proved by mathematical 
 demonstration. If the force of the wind in 1831 in five hours 
 did twice as much damage as was done in 1780 in eleven hours, it 
 follows that the last hurricane raged with far greater fury than the 
 first; and that more than twice as much mischief was actually done 
 by the last storm, a view of the face of the island, even after 
 several weeks had elapsed, sufficiently testified. 
 
 After the gale of 1780, about one-fourth of the houses with 
 which the island was thickly dotted remained standing; whereas 
 on the 1 1th of last August no more than two in every twenty re- 
 mained. In the first storm Spikestown suffered very little injury; 
 it is now little better than a heap of ruins. With regard to 
 Bridgetown, it is certain that it suffered far greater injury in 17S0, 
 but that circumstance is to be attributed as much to the duration 
 as the violence of the storm. On these dreadful occasions one 
 street protects another, and the protecting streets must be blown 
 down before the others can be violently assailed. Had the last 
 gale lasted in its utmost severity only two hours longer, every 
 house in the town, every building, both of stone and wood, 
 throughout the whole island, would have been completely levelled 
 with the earth, and would have met with the fate of Jerusalem, 
 without one stone or timber being left upon another. 
 
 An intelligent Barbadian gave me a very clear account of the 
 nature of a West India hurricane. The wind does not on such 
 an occasion, as is commonly imagined, act with a broad sweep, 
 bearing down with equal force every thing before it; it comes in 
 squalls or whirlwinds, and very frequently a tornado does not 
 extend in width beyond two or three miles. The next squall 
 may exert its force on another part of the sea or land, not far dis- 
 tant from the first. 
 
 To make this more intelligible, suppose there are two vessels 
 at sea, about two miles from each other, east and west; let us ima- 
 gine the squall to come from the north or south, it may strike one 
 of the vessels and miss the other; one may be dismasted, while 
 the other has only a moderate breeze. The next squall may take 
 the other vessel, and leave untouched the dismasted one. Were 
 the vessels, instead of being east and west of each other, to be 
 north and south, exactly in the tack of the wind, the case would 
 be altered, the same squall would equally affect both. One unfortu- 
 nate planter in Barbadoes had his house blown down as early as half 
 pasttwoA.M. by a dreadful gust from the north-north-west. At that 
 moment a gentleman who lived not more than a mile and a half 
 to the east of the other, said he was <'snug in bed listening to the 
 wind, which did not seem to him at that time to be alarmingly 
 
COMMENCEMENT OP THE GALE. 101 
 
 high." It is evident, then, that the blast which struck the first 
 missed the second; but he also suffered, for the south-west wind 
 at six in the morning unroofed him, and this same gust levelled 
 with the earth most of the buildings in the southern and eastern 
 parts of the island. On the western coast the cocoa-nut and other 
 trees lay in general from the north-north-west to south-south-east; 
 in the interior of the island they lay from south to north. 
 
 On the evening of Wednesday, the 10th of August, certain ap- 
 pearances in the sky indicated unsettled weather, and many per- 
 sons in Bridgetown prognosticated that there would be a gale 
 before the morning, but few anticipated so dreadful a visitation as 
 that which took place. The wind was at times rather high, and 
 about ten o'clock there was a shower of rain, which was succeeded. 
 by a calm; after this a dense mass of clouds gathered over the 
 horizon, and remained for some time suspended in a gloomy 
 canopy over the devoted island, as if the spirit of the storm was 
 looking down from his dark throne, and contemplating the feeble 
 works of man which he was about to overthrow. 
 
 At midnight the clouds burst in a severe squall, which was fol- 
 lowed by a torrent of rain. Then a smart breeze set in from the 
 north-east, and the atmosphere was clear and bright, and smiled 
 as it were malignantly for a while: — the wind increased; in two 
 hours it blew a tremendous gale, and tbe atmosphere, porten- 
 tously dark, was lighted up at short intervals with vivid flashes 
 of the electric fluid. At half past two the gale lulled; but at three 
 came the force of the hurricane, when heavy, sudden, and awful 
 gusts seemed to shake the foundation of the island itself. 
 
 " And all around, the clouds, the air, the sea, 
 Rose from unnatural, dead tranquillity. 
 And came to battle with their legions." 
 
 Then the work of destruction commenced; every succeeding 
 five minutes there was heard in the town the dreadful crash of 
 falling trees, chimneys, roofs, and houses themselves, above the 
 roaring of the gale. Those who had cellars to their houses took 
 shelter in them, overpowered with feelings of intense agony ; 
 they were helpless, and could only commit themselves to the care 
 of a merciful Providence. Huge pieces of timber, tiles, and bricks 
 would continually strike the frail tenements, and the inhabitants 
 whose houses had been overwhelmed, would be heard wandering 
 about the streets crying for shelter. 
 
 The greater number of the houses were levelled with the earth 
 or unroofed ; the largest trees were torn up by the roots, or their 
 branches were twisted off them, and whirled like the autumnal 
 leaves before the blast ; the air was filled with shattered fragments, 
 
103 DESTRUCTIVE EFFECTS. 
 
 threatening wiih instant death those exposed without shelter to 
 the pelting storm. The majestic palms would he tossed to and 
 fro as a withe, then snapped off with an appalling crash, or up- 
 lifted from the earth with terrific force, and dashed against the 
 buildings they were wont to shade; and tombstones prostrated, 
 exposed the coffins of the dead. 
 
 Some imagined there was an earthquake during the storm. 
 There was a rapid shower of hail while the wind was between 
 north and west; then it shifted and blew fiercely from the east, 
 veered to the south-east, and about six o'clock burst from the 
 south-west with renewed violence, accompanied with a deluge of 
 rain. The sea all this time rolled in mountain waves towards the 
 shore, and was lashed into one immense sheet of white foam. As 
 the quick rising billows uplifted their heads, the wind carried 
 the salt spray into the troubled air, and swiftly bore it on its pin- 
 ions over the ill-fated island. 
 
 During the tremendous squall from the north-west, which 
 swept the western part of the island, the power of the wind was 
 such, that a heavy cart was blown into a pond a considerable dis- 
 tance from it, and taken out afterwards piecemeal, A large leaden 
 cistern (attached to a sugar mill), which received the cane juice, 
 was battered or crumpled by the wind like paper squeezed in the 
 hands; and those who were driven into the fields, so far from 
 being able to stand on their legs, could not even sit up, the wind 
 was so violent as to throw them on their faces. 
 
 The lightning flashed tremendously in their eyes, and appeared 
 to strike the ground only a few yards from them ; but such was 
 the roar of the wind, that the thunder could not be heard. In- 
 numerable fire-balls were seen to fall from the clouds. Those 
 who saved themselves in their cellars or hurricane chambers, al- 
 though doubtless they had dangers and terrors enough of their 
 own (the dread of the walls falling in upon them, keeping them 
 in a state of horrible agony and suspense), yet could form no 
 adequate idea of what was seen, heard, and felt by those who lay 
 in the open fields. 
 
 The gentleman beforementioned said, that whilst he lay with 
 his family around him in a pool of water, the blue lightning ap- 
 peared just to miss his wretched group, and the phosphoric light, 
 which seemed to be falling in great balls from the clouds, in one 
 instance was brushed from the head of a child, who providen- 
 tially remained unhurt. The dreadful howling of the wind, 
 which resembled the not far distant roar of heavy artillery ; the 
 pelting of the rain drops, which seemed to fall like small shot on 
 the eyes, and reddened and bruised the tender necks of the deli- 
 cate females; the pieces of timber falling within a few feet of the 
 
APPEARANCE AFTER THE HURRICANE. 103 
 
 trembling group ; tlie impenetrable, the Cimmerian darkness 
 which shrouded the sky in a black pall in those intervals when 
 the lightning glared not, were horrors which were not witnessed 
 by those under cover — they have yet to learn what the fearful 
 accompaniments of a hurricane are. 
 
 Conceive the situation of those who, reared in the lap of luxury, 
 never before had been exposed to the rude warfare of the ele- 
 ments; who, accustomed to every comfort, and even superfluily 
 which money could procure, were driven forth fi-om their dwel- 
 lings at the midnight hour, their roof pursuing them and flying 
 in thousands of fragments over their heads; then lying down on 
 the damp ground, cramped and chilled by the cold, paralyzed 
 and stupihed with terror, and continuing in this state for several 
 hours! The bodily and mental torture of those who were in 
 health must have been excruciating, but what must the state have 
 been of delicate females who had been lingering on a bedof sick- 
 ness ? and many of these there were, some in the open fields, 
 separated from their relatives and friends, and almost in a state of 
 nudity; helpless infants too were in like manner torn from the 
 arms of their distracted parents. 
 
 From six to eight the wind and rain continued, but there was 
 little standing to encounter the fury of the hurricane; then the 
 tempest subsided, and winged its flight to the north west. The 
 noise of the winds and the crashing of the falling ruins having 
 ceased, the shrieks of the affrighted, and the groans of the wound- 
 ed and dying, broke in mournful sounds and pitiable accents on 
 the ears of the less unfortunate survivors; all was desolation and 
 ruin — not one house in Bridgetown had escaped, and thousands 
 of the population of the island were buried, or fallen among the 
 ruins of their own habitations, or severely injured. "' The groans 
 of the people spread over the hills; it was like the thunder of 
 night, when the cloud bursts on Cona, and a thousand ghosts shriek 
 at once on the hollow wind." 
 
 Every street was impassable, every roof was gone, every 
 lane closed up, shingles and immense pieces of wood, stone, and 
 bricks were knee deep in the streets. In one place the heads of 
 the numberless dead were seen; in another their arms and legs, in 
 many instances severed from their bodies. Those whose strength 
 remained, commenced a sorrowful search for the respective mem- 
 bers of their families, some of whose lifeless bodies were disinter- 
 red from the ruins to be transferred on boards to another grave, 
 whilst mangled forms of others were dragged forth frightful from 
 their bruises, and making the hearts of their sympathising rela- 
 tives bleed with anguish. Wives would be seen crying bitterly 
 for the loss of their husbands, mothers weeping for their children, 
 
104 DESTRUCTION OF PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 
 
 sons and daughters lamenting the loss of all that was dear to them 
 in life. Then again, those who unexpectedly met after a signal 
 deliverance, would rush into each other's arms and cry aloud for 
 
 On the garrison of St. Anne, the storm spent a portion of its 
 severity; fifty men were killed under the ruins, and upwards of 
 two hundred officers and men were seriously injured. The wind 
 rushed under the broad verandahs, tore off the roofs, demolished 
 the walls, and the pillars were levelled in rows. 
 
 The country villas were now no more, and the once beautiful 
 and smiling scenery was now also gone. No vestiges remained of 
 the woods and the groves of palms, and even the soil which pro- 
 duced them was washed away; almost all the public buildings 
 were razed to the grouiid. Besides the magnificent barracks, and 
 the military store houses, Government-house and King's-house, 
 Codrington's-college, the custom-house, theatre, and national 
 school, were heaps of ruins. 
 
 The shipping which rode so proudly and apparently so safely 
 in the noble bay had disappeared, but the beach told the fate of 
 many ships, brigs, schooners, and cutters; some of them were 
 stranded, others foundered at their moorings, and a few were 
 driven to sea; twelve at least were seen high and dry, total 
 wrecks. Twenty years will not repair the damage done in 
 Bridgetown alone, and a century, it is said, will not place the 
 planters or estates on the same good footing as they were on the 
 10th of August, the fields, which on that day presented so luxuri- 
 ant an appearance, were completely changed into a desert ; neither 
 canes, corn, nor provisions, with a few inconsiderable exceptions, 
 were left in the ground, and the sugar mills were all overthrown. 
 
 The cathedral, although it received considerable injury in the 
 roof, was yet made available as an hospital, and presented a dis- 
 mal spectacle. There the dead and the dying were borne from 
 different places, and the bruised taken for surgical assistance. 
 The pews were filled with white, free-coloured, and slaves, no 
 respect of persons was shown — all, by a very judicious and be- 
 nevolent arrangement, were provided with every comfort, with 
 food and medicine,and were most diligently and regularly attended 
 by the physicians and surgeons of the town, assisted by medical 
 gentlemen of the army; the clergy and the staff took their watch 
 day and night, and ministered to the comforts of the afflicted 
 patients. 
 
 His Excellency Sir James Lyon, himself a considerable suf- 
 ferer in worldly estate, and having been driven to the cellar of 
 Government-house, was most prompt in calling the legislature 
 together, and did all, which in his situation he could do, for re- 
 
RESIGNATION OP THE PEOPLE. 105 
 
 moving or lessening the public distress. Besides, that excellent 
 and distinguished officer who happily for the colony then admin- 
 istered the government, most generously announced his determi- 
 nation not to receive his colonial salary during the severe exi- 
 gency of the island. 
 
 The active exertions of the ecclesiastical chief, Lord BishopCole- 
 ridge, and of the venerable the Archdeacon, can never be remem- 
 bered but with gratitude: the spiritual and temporal wants of the 
 distressed were most promptly attended to by these distinguished 
 persons; and crowded congregations offered up to that God who 
 had humbled and afflicted, but not destroyed them, their sacrifice 
 of thanksgiving, humiliation, and prayer. It was indeed truly 
 gratifying to see the pious feelings of the people generally, rich 
 and poor, bond and free, under this afflicting dispensation. A 
 subdued spirit, a patience, a tranquillity of feeling, a cheerful and 
 truly Christian resignation, pervaded all ranks. Many who had 
 always occupied spacious apartments, furnished with every con- 
 venience and every elegant article of domestic use, were now, 
 with their families and dependants, and in many instances with 
 their neighbours, who had been deprived of a// shelter, huddled 
 together, ten, fifteen, twenty, or thirty persons, in a negro-house 
 or a cellar, a kitchen, a stable, or a coach-house. 
 
 It is said that "the wind is tempered to the shorn lamb;" and 
 this was verified in the present instance: a pestilence was dreaded 
 from the putrid dead and unburied bodies of men and animals, a 
 famine was to be feared, and a negro insurrection; but providen- 
 tially none of these calamities took place, for the cup of suffering 
 of the Barbadians was already full. Some of the slaves showed 
 insolence and insubordination, but the majority of them behaved 
 in the most exemplary manner; and though at first paralyzed and 
 stupified, they at last made every exertion to preserve their own 
 and their master's property. Would this have been the case if 
 their proprietors had previously ill-treated them ? 
 
 The noise of the carpenter's hammer was heard in very direc- 
 tion, and all exerted themselves to restore shelter. Food was 
 abundant, and we record the fact with feelings of unmingled plea- 
 sure, that the merchants of the town disdained to take any advan- 
 tage of the distress of the moment to raise the price of any articles 
 of necessaries. They not only disposed of them at the usual 
 prices, but also effectually prevented any base attempt to mono- 
 polize articles of food by retailing them, thus accommodating 
 families with small quantities at a time. This noble and disinter- 
 ested conduct must ever be remembered with respect and grati- 
 tude. 
 
106 PUBLIC GRANT TO THE SUFFERERS. 
 
 The conduct of the neighbouring colonists cannot, either, be 
 too highly extolled ; sums of money were voted from the public 
 chests, subscriptions were opened, and vessels freighted with tim- 
 ber and provisions for the sufferers, not only at Barbadoes, but al- 
 so at St. Vincent s and St. Lucia ; and though themselves suffer- 
 ing from the general depression in the West Indies, one and all 
 most humanely and promptly stepped forth in aid of the kind, 
 brave, and hospitable people, who on every occasion of co- 
 lonial distress have evinced themselves so ready to help others. 
 The government also most liberally granted £100,000 to Barba- 
 does, St. Vincent, St. Lucia, &c. to assist in repairing the damage 
 they had sustained ; £50,000 of which sum was appropriated to 
 the use of Barbadoes. 
 
 The amount of property destroyed in Barbadoes was estimated 
 at two millions and a half; and five thousand human beings mi- 
 serably perished, and were severely wounded in the ever memora- 
 ble hurricane of the 11th of August 1831. So great a destruc- 
 tion of property, and so melancholy a loss of life, is believed to 
 be without a parallel in history, except where whole cities with 
 their inhabitants have been swallowed up by earthquakes, orover- 
 vsrhelmed with volcanic eruptions. 
 
 CHAPTER XIL 
 
 Sail from Barbadoes. — A party in the cabin. — Anecdotes of Clapperton the traveller 
 — Appearance of Tobago. — The drowning mariner. — View of Scarborough.— Rob. 
 inson Crusoe. — Land. — Delightful prospect from Mr. Noding's residence. — Effects 
 of Defoe's celebrated narrative. — The citadel. — The country. — Visit to the Gover- 
 nor. — See Trindad from a hill. — Attractions of the fair Creoles. — Dangerous to 
 travellers. — An excellent character. — Ridiculous fears of a Tobago proprietor. — 
 Ride across the Island. — Effects of a Imrricanc. — Courland Bay. — Outline of the 
 history of the Tobago. — The negroes. — Natural productions of Tobago. — The cur- 
 rents and Crusoe's Cave. — Indians from the main. 
 
 I TOOK a passage for Tobago in the mail schooner Jean, the 
 fastest in commission in the Antilles, lately the yacht of Sir W. 
 W. Wynne; and one stormy-looking evening, with black clouds 
 hanging over Carlisle Bay, we stood away from " Little England." 
 
 It blew fresh and rained during the night, but we had a very 
 comfortable party in the cabin, where the tale went round as usu- 
 al. Our captain had been a shipmate of that daring traveller Clap- 
 perton, and told many characteristic anecdotes of him. "He was 
 a d — d smart fellow, sir ; drew well, but was not particularly 
 
ANECDOTES OP CLAPPERTON. 107 
 
 clever with the pen ; he was first of all in the merchant service, 
 and then in a man of war, and it was not long before he got on 
 the quarter-deck, but he ran away when a midshipman, and some 
 time afterwards was pressed from a merchantman, and was placed 
 in the same ship he had been in before, where a second time he 
 was made an officer, for he was a tliorough seaman every inch of 
 him. He was tall, and strong as a young elephant. — Lord ! I 
 remember him springing across the forehatch, and taking our two 
 biggest hands in the ship and rapping their heads together for 
 quarrelling ; he could floor an ox, sir, — such a fore arm ! He was 
 headstrong, but of a fine, generous and brave spirit, and proud as 
 Lucifer of the navy. Once we were lying oflf Macao, in China, 
 the captain was on shore, when a typhoon came on ; it blew as if 
 St. Antonio had burst his bags, and we all thought the frigate 
 would go down at her anchors. I was in bed, under the effects of 
 mercury to cure a stiff attack of fever, when Clapperton jumps 
 down into my berth with only a pair of nankeen trowsers on, 
 rolled up to his knees — 'Well, old fellow, get up,' says he, 'I'm 
 come for you, there's no time to be lost, we must make a swim 
 of it ; we're old cronies you know, and I would rather save you 
 than any man aboard.' 'It's of no use,' said I, 'water will kill 
 me, I may as well lie here, but take the captain's commission, his 
 decoration, and his mother's picture, and save them ;" so he tied 
 them in a handkerchief round his neck, and was actually forcing 
 me out of my cot when the gale began to lull. D — n it, Clapper- 
 ton was made of the right stuff, depend upon it; and his death is 
 a great loss to the service." 
 
 We were not long in sighting Tobago ; it seemed when seen 
 from the north to be a mass of high mountains, had a very gloo- 
 my appearance, for black precipices descended abruptly into the 
 sea, and rain clouds rested on the heavy forests. 
 
 " The land appeared a high and rocky coast, 
 And higher grew the mountains as we drew, 
 Set by a current, towards it." 
 
 We ran along shore, the colour of the sea being livid like mol- 
 ten lead, with very strong currents. We had a view of the me- 
 lancholy island in its whole extent, the high central ridge of basalt, 
 with separate hills rising from it, and below it, and forming deep 
 and narrow ravines, through which streams were seen to pour. 
 The north side terminated in abrupt precipices, with the dark 
 islands of little Tobago and the dangerous rocks called St. Giles's, 
 skirted with white breakers, dashing high upon them with sullen 
 roar: the south side terminated in plains and lowlands. Truly it 
 was a sight of gloom, very different from smiling Barbadoes. 
 
lOS VIEW OP SCARBOROUGH. 
 
 A few plantations were observed on the sides of the mountains, 
 and we saw in a bay a five-hiindrcd-ton ship stranded in the late 
 hurricane. It was evening, and though unable to run in with the 
 land; yet we could not lie too, or the current would soon have 
 swept us out of sight of the island; so we stood away, avoiding 
 the dangerous rock called the Minister. We were straining our 
 eyes to catch the lights of the houses in Scarborough, (for here, 
 as in the otlier West India Isles, there is a deplorable want of 
 light houses,) and were at the same time all anxiety to clear the 
 sunken Minister, when a voice of distress hailed us from the sea; 
 we answered the shout, but got no reply, and it was so dark that 
 we could not perceive the wretched being from whom the voice 
 proceeded; we shorteued sail, but it was useless — the wind whist- 
 led through our cordage and the sails flapped heavily, but the sea 
 and sharks had done their work. 
 
 We saw a twinkling light afar off and stood in again, and got 
 under the rocks of Scarborough and into a fine bay. From the 
 heights above us numerous lights flashed out, and at eight o'clock 
 the bugles from the citadel sent forth their warning sounds. 
 We anchored, and at early dawn a strange sight presented itself: 
 on our right, nearly five hundred feet above us, was Fort George, 
 on a conical hill below it was the town — houses and trees inter- 
 mixed — before us; the head of the bay was covered with wrecks, 
 as if the island had lately been visited by an invader. Cocoa- 
 nut trees fringed the water, and the land sloped away to the main 
 ridge, green and verdant, and on the left the land stretched out 
 long and low to where it ended in Sandy Point. Flocks of peli- 
 cans flew round us, dived, brought up fish, and goodnaturedly 
 allowed the parasite gull to lighten their heads and partake with 
 them. Reader, it was here that Defoe laid the scene of the ship- 
 wreck and hermitage of the celebrated Robinson Crusoe. 
 
 I landed, and walked up the steep streets of Scarborough, ad- 
 miring the handsome forms of the Creoles of French extraction, 
 sitting at the doors of the houses. I passed a large town-house 
 and a methodist meeting-house, conspicuously situated, and de- 
 livered my letters to Mr. Noding, one of the most respectable 
 merchants on the island, with whom I took up my residence. 
 What a delightful view of Rocky Bay, famous for turtle, and of 
 the garden of the island, where the rich black mould is highly 
 cultivated, did Mr. JS'oding's house command! and above all of 
 the strand where "the hermit is said to have walked about, lift- 
 ing up his hands, and his whole soul being wra[)pcd up in the con- 
 templation of his deliverance from the raging ocean, then cast 
 his eyes on the stranded vessel, which the breach and froth of 
 the sea nearly covered, and reflected on all his companions who 
 
THE CITADEL. 10 9 
 
 were drowned, and looked to Heaven and thanked God in the 
 ecstacy and transport of his soul that his life was spared." Yet 
 thus he often thought, " though monarch of all he surveyed," 
 
 " Society, friendship, and love, 
 Divinely bestowed upon man, 
 Oh ! iiad I the wings of a dove. 
 
 How soon would I taste you again !" 
 
 What a tide of recollections of our boyish days did not this 
 sceae occasion, and of the extraordinary effects of Defoe's great 
 work; of how many it had unsettled, of how many it had sent 
 roaming, and imbued with a spirit of adventure. Good Master 
 Daniel! though your fiction (if fiction it be, which I really much 
 doubt,) suggests very useful instruction " by showing how the 
 native powers of man ma}'^ be exerted for surmounting the diffi- 
 culties of any external situation;" yet the wonders of the life of 
 your hero are so exciting, and of such variety, that you have 
 occasioned thousands of youths of lively imagination and ardent 
 temperaments to court danger and difficulty, and have moistened 
 many a fond mother's and sister's cheek with salt tears, for those 
 destined never again to be a light to their eyes. 
 
 I visited the citadel with poor Knocker of the Royal Engineers, 
 now no more, and was sorry to see that the quarters of the troops 
 (a wing of the Royals) were not very agreeable, and that there 
 was a deadly morass under the hill of Scarborough. This morass 
 had been partly drained and cultivated, still there is much to be 
 done; and it would cost but little to prevent the overflowing of 
 the low land by the tide, which here rises four feet. It would 
 also be worth while to employ the military, morning and evening, 
 in throwing up earthen ramparts with turf revetements, where 
 the stone ramparts are open and unfinished. Some officers try 
 how they can save their men between the tropics from all fatigue; 
 that is not the secret of health, but moderate exercise and labour, 
 with temperance. 
 
 I mounted a horse to visit the Governor, General Blackwell, 
 who resided in a hired residence some four miles in the country, 
 till the new Government house (on an elevated site, with the 
 town and Rockley Bay below it,) should be completed. In tra- 
 versing the country I was struck with its beauty, and forgot my 
 first impressions of the island from the sea; many of the hills, 
 though steep, were so regular, that they were cultivated to near 
 Iheir summits, that is, those in the direction of Courland Bay, on 
 the west side of the island; while to the north it was one wild 
 and romantic scene of mountain and wood, with numerous cas- 
 
110 
 
 ATTRACTION OP THE FAIR CREOLES. 
 
 cades in dark glens, where wild hogs and birds, resembling the 
 beautiful varieties met with in the Spanish main, are found. 
 
 General Blackwell, who had served unremittingly from the 
 taking of Seringapatam to the end of the last great Continental 
 war, received me with great urbanity and kindness. I left his 
 Excellency, and proceeded to one of the highest points in the 
 centre of the island, and had a noble view across it from 
 Rockley to Courland Bay. To the South was seen the Island of 
 Trinidad. What says Crusoe? "It being a very clear day, I 
 fairly descried land, whether an island or a continent I could not 
 tell, but it lay very high, extending from the west to the west 
 south-west, at a very great distance; by my guess it could not be 
 less than fifteen or twenty leagues off' — probably the savage coast 
 between the Spanish country and Brazil, whose inhabitants are 
 indeed the worst of savages, for they are cannibals or man-eaters, 
 and fail not to murder and devour all the human bodies that fall 
 into their hands." 
 
 I returned to Mr. Noding's, and spent the evening with some 
 of his friends, acquiring information regarding the island, with 
 the pleasant interlude of music. 
 
 I may say with truth, that if the wanderer does not keep watch 
 on his heart while vo3'aging among the Antilles, he will find them 
 to be isles of Calypso, and there forget Ithaca. Fair daughters of 
 the West, '<your languid beauty captivates in the morning, and 
 the lively gaiety of your heart delights at eventide." True, you 
 are not very industrious, but that is the fault of your early educa- 
 tion among indolent Africans, and also arises from the enervating 
 effects of the climate; but after a visit to the old country, you re- 
 turn graceful and accomplished, with mild and gentle manners, 
 and pure hearts. I saw a Penelope in Tobago, whom I fain 
 would have wooed, but the Fates forbade it; with hair black and 
 glossy as the raven's wing — with eyes like those of doves '< by 
 the rivers of waters washed with milk, and fitly set — and with a 
 countenance like Lebanon, excellent as the cedar;" her form like 
 the beautiful cypress in a garden of Iran amidst beds of spices and 
 pleasant flowers — her voice like that of the boolbool telling his 
 loves to his favourite rose. 
 
 Though at the risk of offending a friend, I cannot omit giving 
 a sketch of the career of a gentleman of Tobago, so highly to his 
 praise; presenting at the same time a picture creditable to human- 
 ity, and one which ought to attach us more and more to our spe- 
 cies. Of a respectable Dutch family, he was shipwrecked when 
 a mere infant, on the island of Barbadoes, and lost all his relatives; 
 he alone was saved, and was left a naked and helpless child. A 
 kind-hearted planter adopted him, tenderly reared him, educated 
 
AN EXCELLENT CHARACTER. Ill 
 
 him, and established him as a merchant. He was intelligent and 
 industrious, and fortune was propitious. He settled in Tobago, 
 and was living in comfort and independence, with a charming 
 wife and family, when fortune frowned on his benefactor in the 
 evening of his days. He then eagerly solicited him to share his 
 dwelling with him, and there I saw him. 
 
 A young man who had been left considerable estates in Tobago, 
 went there lately from Liverpool to see his property, but the 
 demon of yellow-fever seemed to haunt him whilst he remained 
 on the island. He was in constant dread and alarm; brought 
 with him a large supply of chlorate of lime; carried some con- 
 tinually about his person; white-washed his room with it, and 
 sprinkled it on the floor. It was quite laughable to see his ap- 
 prehension; he thought, he talked, he dreamt of nothing but 
 " the black vomit;" and one evening whilst at dinner, on some 
 one by way of joke telling him that "a case" had just occured in 
 town, though in reality Tobago has been remarkably free from 
 yellow-fever of late years, he got up from table, hurried down 
 to the beach, embarked in a vessel that was to sail for England 
 next day, and wasofF without previously arranging his affairs; he 
 being of opinion that — 
 
 " The weariest and most loatlied worldly life, 
 That age, ache, penury and imprisonment 
 Can lay on nature, is a paradise 
 To what he feared of death." 
 
 I started one morning at an early hour to breakfast with the 
 Governor, and visit some of the plantations and the west side of the 
 island; Knocker, as before, accompanied me; an excellent young 
 man he was, quiet and gentlemanly in his deportment, and I be- 
 lieve fully prepared for the dread visit of the remorseless blighter 
 of youthful hopes and anticipations. 
 
 We everywhere saw the effects of the late hurricane: trees lay 
 across the road which had been cut up by the heavy rain; the 
 rivers at the bottom of the steep hills had risen ten feet at once, 
 and swept off'houses, mills, and cattle, the plantains and yams of 
 the negro grounds. The canes too had slipped down in many 
 places, and it was calculated that £15,000 of damage had been 
 sustained on the estates, and £6000 by the shipping. 
 
 With my oriental head-dress, I rode all day in the flaming sun' 
 with impunity, but was drenched by some heavy tropical showers. 
 In descending to Courland Bay, a beautiful sea view opened upon 
 us; palm trees waved on the iron bound shore, on which the 
 breakers played and coquetted with the black rocks; a single 
 droguing (coasting) sloop lay at anchor in the smooth water before 
 
112 COURLAND BAY — HISTORY OP TOBAGO. 
 
 a battery of cannon placed at the point which commands the en- 
 trance of the harbour; and the scattered houses of the small town 
 of Plymouth, half hidden in foliage, were immediately below us. 
 
 It is not known by whom Tobago was discovered, but its 
 abundant prochiction of useful woods, fertile soil, and numerous 
 streams, attracted a small colony from Barbadoes in 1625, which 
 shortly afterwards abandoned the island, and left perhaps the 
 goats and cats of which Crusoe makes mention. The Dutch and 
 Courlanders alternately possessed the island, and from the latter 
 Courland Bay is named; but after Tobago fell in 1677 to the 
 French, it lay desert and neglected until 1757, when a French 
 hermit was discovered by the Stirling castle, who had been living 
 alone for twenty-one years. Since 1803, it has been in the un- 
 disputed possession of the English. 
 
 I observed and heard that the negroes in Tobago were well 
 treated and contented, and seems to be on excellent terms with 
 their masters; their houses were built of boards, or wattled, and 
 consisted of two apartments, with a portico in front of many of 
 them; and here, after the day's work was over, might be seen 
 the families enjoying themselves in thoughtless levity, or else 
 basket-making, and preparing their trays of market goods. On 
 Saturday night a negro wench balancing an empty bottle on her 
 head, and rattling a calabash filled with small pebbles, advances 
 with a dancing step to the manager, and sings, 
 
 " Ax de bottle what he da want, 
 Massa full him, massa full him ;" 
 
 whilst Tim makes a triangle out of a stirrup and a rusty key, 
 and Jack vigorously thumps a skin stretched across a barrel, 
 throws back his woolly head, and shouts with delight at his own 
 rude music. 
 
 Though the country of Tobago is for the most part improvable, 
 there is but little'of it in cultivation; still it is valuable for supply- 
 ing timber for ship-building, and victualling for fleets. Mer- 
 chants and planters may here make fortunes if the fanatics would 
 only leave them alone. If the naturalist visits the island, he will 
 find it abound in fruits and flowers, and in birds of the most 
 splendid plumage, in great numbers and of infinite variety. I 
 saw several beautiful collections, consisting principally of 
 mannikens, parroquets, and humming birds. Basalt, sienite, and 
 trap, from the highest ridges, and I picked up some madrepores 
 on the hills, and enriched my sketch-book with many interesting 
 views. 
 
 It will be in the recollection of my readers, that when Robinson 
 
INDIANS FROM THE MAIN. 113 
 
 Crusoe put to sea in his canoe, he describes minutely the currents 
 which set round his desolate island, and how they seemed to be 
 affected by the stream of a great river on the main, doubtless the 
 great Oronocco. So correct is the description of the set of these 
 currents, that they could only have been seen to be so particularly 
 noticed. "Surely," I exclaimed, *' Defoe's work has a true 
 narrative for its basis;" and will it be believed that near Sandy- 
 point there is a cave, answering the description of the one in 
 which the hermit saw the frightful monster, the old he-goat, 
 glaring upon him ? The entrance of this cave is hidden by brush- 
 wood, which requires to be cut away before th8 mouth of it is 
 reached. The cave is level and dry, and divided into two apart- 
 ments, and the floor is covered with the skeletons of goats; near 
 it is the sandy beach where the print of the man's foot paralyzed 
 Crusoe. 
 
 I was cogitating on all the similarities I had observed between 
 Tobago and the island of Crusoe, when on walking to the beach 
 I discovered two canoes of Carib Indians which had just arrived, 
 assisted by the currents from Trinidad or the main; not, as in 
 days of yore, to partake of a bloody feast, but to barter fish, 
 basket-work, and variegated wood for cutlery and beads. 
 These people were nearly naked, of a dark olive colour, their 
 faces round and plump, eyes sparkling, nose small and straight, 
 a good mouth set with ivory teeth, and withal comely, handsome 
 people, perfectly well made, and with strong limbs; then I 
 thought of the Man Friday, and was perfectly convinced that I 
 trod the soil hallowed in the recollection of the English youth, 
 as the scene of the hermitage of their esteemed favourite Robinson 
 Crusoe, 
 
114 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Sail from Tobago. — Adventure of a French Doctor. — A narrow escape. — Sight of 
 the lofty shores of Trinidad. — The King-fish. — Pass'the Boccas. — Bay|of Chagara- 
 nius. — Combat between a Whale and Thrasher. — Tlie Port of Spain. — The An- 
 tilles well adapted for Panoramas. — The first Alcalde. — Drive through the Capital 
 of Trinidad.— The Cathedral.— Beauty of the Creole Women.— The Catholic 
 Church. — Visit the Markets. — Feathered Scavengers. — The late Captain T. 
 Abercrombie Trant. — Environs of Port of Spain. — The Government House at St. 
 Anne's. — The Barracksof St. James. — The Church Service ought to be curtailed 
 for Soldiers. — Trinidad Races. — The Coloured Spectators. — Sacrifice to Bacchus. 
 — Sable Divinities. — The Spanish Ladies. — The Carnival. — The ride to St. 
 Joseph's. — Swamps. — Injudicious clearing of Timber. — Great fertility of the 
 Soil. — Sugar Estates. — Manner of Purchasing Estates. — The Cocoa Planters 
 ruined. — Climate of St. Joseph's good. — Mortality in the West Indies less than 
 that in the East. — The Lepers. 
 
 Once more upon the waters, the anchor weighed, jib, fore, 
 and mainsail set, pennant and ensign displayed, and the long 
 black hull with its narrow red streaks buries its bows in the 
 rolling sea. We steered cautiously out of Rocky Bay, passed the 
 dangerous reefs, and two conspicuous red rocks with shrubby tops, 
 white with sea-fowl, and saw a large turtle entangled in the seine 
 set by the mulatto fishermen. We soon left behind us the 
 pleasant houses at Scarborough, which ere long dimly blended with 
 the verdure of Tobago; and gladly careered over the waves. In 
 any other craft we should have been washed fore and aft, but the 
 rake of our masts was such, that we were lifted clear over the 
 sparkling crests, and left a bright snowy track in our wake. 
 
 One of our passengers was a French doctor, who said he was a 
 botanist, making a tour among the Antilles; when he afterwards 
 left us, he omitted to pay his passage money, thinking, perhaps, 
 that men of science ought to be franked everywhere. 1 got into 
 conversation with him, and he said, that a short time before he 
 had sailed from Surinam, in a schooner of fifteen tons, bound for 
 Martinique; so small was she that the water was <' flush" with 
 the gunwale ; there were only the Dutch captain and two hands 
 on board, and one of the last was laid up with ophthalmia. The 
 captain took no observation — said his quadrant was out of order ; 
 but the fact was, he himself was constantly drunk. A few rotten 
 plantains were the only eatables on board, and after sixteen days 
 out, all reckoning lost, and the water gone, an American fortu- 
 nately hove in sight, and took them into Antigua, or else they must 
 have all perished. 
 
 It is strange to see the small schooners and cutters which navi- 
 
ROMANTIC SHORES OF TRINIDAD. 115 
 
 gate between the Antilles; many disappear every year, either 
 foundering in squalls, or captured by pirates and slavers. Thus a 
 gentleman told me, that he landed from a schooner, with his ser- 
 vant, at St. Vincent's, leaving all his baggage on board, and a rich 
 collection of objects of natural history, for he intended merely 
 to speak to a friend and return in an hour or two to the schooner, 
 which lay off and on waiting for him ; a squall came on, the 
 schooner stood out to sea, and has never been heard of to this day 
 — there was a narrow escape ! 
 
 Fresh blew the breeze as we sighted the lofty and romantic 
 shores of Trinidad ; the captain kept near the land, and from the 
 deck of our little bark we enjoyed a glorious prospect. The 
 mountainous coast was covered with gigantic forest trees, the tro- 
 pical woods of noble growth descending to meet the waves, where 
 precipices did not fall abruptly into the deep water ; on the right 
 were the blue ridges of Cumana, in South America, and before us 
 were the wooded islands between the mouths of the Dragon, or 
 Boccas, seeing all which, in Oriental phrase, " caused the goblet 
 of the heart to overflow with the wine of ecstasy." 
 
 We stood out for the Bocca Grande, and caught a king-fish 
 (not unlike a salmon) of twelve pounds weight, with a line over 
 the stern ; it was immediately cut up and cooked, and a more de- 
 licious morsel I have seldom tasted. Our eyes and mouths feasted 
 with beautiful scenery and savoury morsels ; we rolled under a 
 wall of rocks on the right, and found a strong ripple and power- 
 ful current setting against us; we were between a Scylla and 
 Charybdis, and the danger is imminent if in these dreaded pas- 
 sages the breeze fails. We saw the rock on which a large ship 
 had lately been broken up, but to us tEoIus was favourable — 
 
 " Implevit velis ventisque secundis," 
 
 and we dashed into the clear waters of the gulf of Paria. 
 
 In the bay of Chagaramus is a whaling establishment, and here 
 it is usual to see the monsters of the deep majestically ploughing 
 the waves, turning up their black sides to the sun, and spouting 
 water to a great height in tiie air ; here also are frequently wit- 
 nessed desperate combats between the whale and the thrasher ; 
 the latter springing into the air falls with violence on its enormous 
 foe, and belabours it with its tail. The noise of the combatants, 
 and agitation in the sea are very great ; the whale dives perpen- 
 dicularly, and is then said to be attacked by the sword-fish, and 
 again reappearing, the thrasher assails it, till worn out and ex- 
 hausted in the encounter, it falls a prey to its enemies, and its 
 flesh is devoured. 
 
116 PORT OF SPAIN. 
 
 Low lying and surrounded with an amphitheatre of hills, was 
 Port of Spain, the most imposing and the handsomest city in the 
 West Indies, with tower and spire, and massive stone buildings. 
 Before it lay the shipping and canoes, with white sails, darting 
 amongst the larger vessels. Stretching to the south of the city 
 was the Savannah Grande, of fertility equalled only by that of the 
 plains of Guiana ; and as we cast our eyes back to the Boccas, we 
 saw the coast studded with rocky islets. 
 
 I sketched the enchanting panorama as we were becalmed for 
 a short time, before we slowly approached the anchorage grounds; 
 and in the hands of a Claude, the scene might be worked up into 
 a picture of surpassing loveliness. Panoramic views of the An- 
 tilles would make the fortune of any painter, and give the Eng- 
 lish public some idea of the beauty and value of their Occidental 
 possessions, alas ! how decried. 
 
 The harbour-master carried me on shore in his boat, and I land- 
 ed on an excellent pier, beside a battery of cannon, and took up 
 my residence in the suburban villa of the first Alcalde, M. Shine. 
 Port of Spain is extremely well built, and I was delighted 
 with the regularity of the streets, the public walks shaded with 
 trees, and the neat trottoirs for foot passengers ; but at this time, 
 the month of July, the thermometer was at 90° in the shade, and 
 the refreshing sea breeze was shut out by the picturesque hills to 
 windward. 
 
 I drove through the streets with my kind entertainer, and re- 
 marked the substantial air of the Spanish houses, so different from 
 the wooden buildings usual in British colonies. Our countrymen 
 visit tropical countries only to accumulate wealth, and return to 
 enjoy it in Old England ; whereas foreigners expatriate themselves 
 entirely, and build for their descendants. The general air of 
 cleanliness about the city said much in favour of its municipal 
 police ; and those public buildings which had been constructed un- 
 der the eye of a late Governor, Sir Ralph Woodford, were evi- 
 dences of his good taste. 
 
 We first visited the Protestant church, or cathedral, occupying 
 one side of a square, and built in the gothic style with a lofty 
 square tower. The body of the cathedral is extremely elegant, 
 the great expanse of the roof, unbroken by ailes, is beautifully 
 groined, and the wainscoting, altar, doors and pews were com- 
 posed of the rich woods of the island, carved in excellent taste. 
 The draperies were purple, and there were no invidious distinc- 
 tions between the accommodation for the whites and the coloured 
 people. 
 
BEAUTY OF THE CREOLE WOMEN MARKETS. 117 
 
 "Fleecy locks and dark complexion 
 Cannot forfeit Nature's claim ; 
 Skins may differ, but devotion 
 Dwells in wliite and black the same." 
 
 Truly, the coloured women here are uncommonly handsome; 
 Spanish blood they say amalgamates better than British with 
 African, and really I saw some faces and figures that reminded 
 me of the healthy olive cheeks and cypress waists of the East. 
 Now the brown Creoles of the old English islands have not such 
 characteristics, neither do they dress so well; and I was particular 
 in learning from the fair daughter of the alcalde the fashionable 
 mode of adjusting the saffron and crimson handkerchief, which so 
 well becomes the head of the Trinidad mulattas. 
 
 The Catholic church, also of gothic architecture, is a more pro- 
 minent and beautiful object than the Protestant, and is very con- 
 spicuous from the harbour, with its tower, lofty roof, and pointed 
 windows. Here, under the chancel, are entombed the remains 
 of a bishop who died a short time ago, leaving behind him an un- 
 blemished character, and bearing with him to the grave the regrets 
 of all the inhabitants of Port of Spain, whether Roman Catholic 
 or Protestant. Indeed the kindly feeling and absence of all 
 religious animosity which exists among the inhabitants of this 
 island, are highly deserving of praise. Though there was a su- 
 perb avenue of trees leading up to the entrance of the church, 
 forming a most delightful promenade, it seemed to be at all times 
 deserted, the ladies preferring the roads near the town, and even 
 the hot streets. 
 
 I visited the markets, and saw the treasures, in the shape of 
 vegetables and fruits, which are here bestowed in luxurious abun- 
 dance by a bountiful nature. Plantains and sweet potatoes, okras, 
 yams and teniers were exposed in baskets before brown or black 
 hucksters, sitting under the shade of umbrellas, whilst the eye 
 delighted to wander over the heaps of pomegranates, guavas, 
 shaddocks, oranges, limes, custard-apples, mangoes, pines, and 
 grenadilloes, which could be purchased for very trifling sums. 
 
 The butchers had a cool hall immediately opposite the vegeta- 
 ble and fruit market, and it would have pleased those who " han- 
 ker after the flesh pots of Egypt," to have witnessed the clean- 
 liness of the stalls, and the excellent appearance of the beef and 
 mutton, of which eight pence per pound was, I believe, the price. 
 Outside and unmolested, were at least one hundred black vultures, 
 waiting patiently in rows to perform the office of scavengers; like 
 the adjutant of India, their voracity is quite surprising, and they 
 make '<no bones" of whatever is thrown them. 
 
 When I went out in the morning I had remarked an Indian 
 
118 CAPT. T. ABERCROMBIE TRANT. 
 
 from the interior sitting on a log and looking towards the sea; in 
 the afternoon I looked again to the log, and lo! there was the 
 self-same day-dreamer sitting in the same spot, and in the same 
 attitude, but his face now turned inland. 
 
 Before we take a glance of the environs of Port of Spain let 
 us state to the reader, that from a highly-valued friend, now no 
 more, we derived much information regarding Trinidad; that 
 friend, whose loss we never cease to deplore, was Captain T. 
 Abercrombic Trant of the twenty-eighth regiment, who resided 
 a year on this island. A concise account of the extraordinary 
 career of this young officer, who was cut off at the early age of 
 twenty-seven, will be found in the attractive pages of the United 
 Service Journal for April 1832; and here let it suffice to state, 
 that he had served his king and country with honour and repu- 
 tation in the four quarters of the globe, was favourably known to 
 the public as the author of "Two Years in Ava," and the "Narra- 
 tive of a Journey in Greece," and was cut off after protracted 
 sufferings, occasioned by the various trying changes of climate 
 he had undergone at a time when the star of his fortune was ap- 
 parently in the ascendant. But, alas! for youthful anticipations 
 and fond hopes of future success, 
 
 " 'Tis ever thus, 'tis ever thus, that when the poor heart clings, 
 With all its finest tendrils, with all its flexile rings, 
 That goodly thing it cleaveth to, so fondly and so fast, 
 Is struck to earth by lightning, or shattered by the blast." 
 
 Of the colony of Trinidad, abounding as it does in natural cu- 
 riosities, with a rich and productive soil, with valleys bounded 
 by the most picturesque and beautiful hills, and those few parts of 
 the island under cultivation indicating its vast capabilities, and 
 how important it may yet become, I could see little in the course 
 of a few days; but my friend supplied my deficiencies; and to ' 
 him then let the reader ascribe much of the information which is 
 found in the following pages. 
 
 Much as the Port of Spain is to be admired, still more does 
 the country around it attract attention; the mountains form a 
 wide semicircle in the back ground, and between them and the 
 town the intervening level plain is cultivated; the sides of the 
 circular road, for four miles out of town, are diversified with cot- 
 tage residences and plantations, and in addition to the eternal 
 verdure of the trees, the waving fields of sugar-cane present a 
 bright sheet of green, "whilst the red blossoms of the hois im- 
 mortal shine like clusters of rubies in a setting of emeralds, and 
 the yellow flowers of the tulip-trees form a dazzling relief to the 
 dark-coloured leaves." 
 
PtTBLIC BUILDINGS. 119 
 
 I drove out to St, Anne's, the country residence of the interim- 
 Governor, Sir Charles Smith, R. E. The house is cool and com- 
 modious, stands on an elevated plateau commanding a delightful 
 view of the town and gulf of Paria, and is backed by the forest- 
 covered mountains, and surrounded by a botanical garden, in 
 which are rare and valuable plants from distant climes. The nut- 
 meg, cinnamon, and clove there flourish, the banyan and teak, 
 the bread fruit, cocoa, and vanilla, grow on a soil carpeted with 
 delicious lemon grass. 
 
 Next I visited the barracks of St. James, two miles from town, 
 in a most beautiful situation, but badly chosen in point of salubri- 
 ty. The buildings were extremely handsome and substantial, sur- 
 rounded with iron railings, and behind them was a park over 
 which waved the feathery leaves of palms : above were wooded 
 hills, and in front was the sea ; but near them was a badly-drain- 
 ed swamp, and the cold currents of air from the lovely valley of 
 Maraval, caused great mortality in a wing of the Royal re- 
 giment. Though there was a prodigal disbursement of money in 
 the construction of St. James's barracks, )'et there is not accom- 
 modation for a regiment in them. 
 
 I attended divine service with the officers and men of the Ro- 
 yals (among the former I discovered some fellow-students at the 
 Royal Military College), and though I remarked that attention was 
 given to the sermon, I am of opinion that between the tropics, the 
 service of the Church of England would not be the worse for be- 
 ing shortened, for many a slumbering soldier behind me gave nasal 
 tokens of inattention ; and I have always remarked the same to 
 prevail among negroes. During the prayers they doze, rouse 
 themselves to listen to the sermon, and are always wide awake to 
 accompany the organ with their excellent voices. 
 
 Sometimes, but rarely, there are races in front of St. Anne's ; 
 the novelty consequently attracts a great many spectators, and the 
 scene becomes very animated. A stand is erected for the accom- 
 modation of the fair sex, and a profusion of bonnets and ribbons, 
 many pretty faces, and neatly turned ankles, may be seen crowd- 
 ed within its limits. 
 
 At four in the afternoon scarcely a soul remains in town, except 
 the old and the bed-ridden. The merchants shut up their stores 
 (for though here, as in other western Isles, there are veritables 
 boutiques, yet the word shop is unknown), and if single, mount 
 their horses, or if they have a better half step into a light one- 
 horse chaise, and whirl along the firmly macadamized road to the 
 place of rendezvous. Then the more aristocratic part of the so- 
 ciety follow, amidst a crowd of merry, grinning blacks and good- 
 looking coloured girls, with bright flaming fichus tied a la Fran- 
 
120 SABLE DIVINITIES — SPANISH LADIES. 
 
 paise, and feeling as proud and consequential as the first lady in 
 the land. Even " Beau Nash" closes his retail store, and Reine 
 Maude leaves her throne, whence she is wont to dole out "Epi- 
 ceries en detail," and proceed to join the spectators. 
 
 There being none of the Greek a\vtat., or officers to preserve 
 order and regularity, at the St. Anne's races, when the horses 
 start with black jockeys in their silken jackets and top boots, 
 what a shout arises from the motley crowd — such an uproar, such 
 anxiety, such betting ! men who, one might suppose, possessed 
 nothing but the clothes on them, stake their dollars, joes and 
 doubloons, and then the eagerness with which the " legs" (to call 
 them black would be invidious), make their bets, and strive to 
 take each other in, is not the least amusing part of the scene. Then 
 in the interval between the heats, some tents where refreshments 
 are sold become the caaba, or point of attraction ; and when the 
 rum begins to take effect, and blackey's wit to be excited, many 
 are the jokes, and loud the roars of laughter, one might hear there. 
 
 " Du sublime au ridicule il n'y a qu'un pas," 
 
 said a great man, now no more. The justness of the observation 
 must have been acknowledged, when Wellington and Napoleon 
 were seen rolling along in drunken fellowship, whilst Pompey 
 and Caesar forgot their rivalship, and merrily enjoyed a glass of 
 grog. Nelson, who carried too much sail aloft, fell on his beam 
 ends ; and Blucher staggering past, jeeringly pointed at him, and 
 exclaimed, <<Hi, Massa ! me tink him dam drunk ; him black nig- 
 ger." There also the forgotten favourite of a queen, Bergami, 
 might be seen, — of course a precious young scamp: innumerable 
 goddesses forsook Olympus, and in the semblance of ebony-co- 
 loured damsels joined in the happy group; Juno, Minerva, and 
 Venus, Diana, Aurora, and Hebe, without any apples of dis- 
 cord, severally honoured the assemblage with their presence; and 
 many English names, which might remind one of 
 
 " Cheeks vying with the blooming rose, 
 And lips like brightest coral," 
 
 were responded to by ladies having visages as black as coal, noses 
 like saucepans, and mouth from ear to ear. Certainly it is rather 
 annoying to hear names which have been ennobled by the glorious 
 deeds of those who bore them, or which may be endeared to us by 
 recollections of love and affection, thus degraded. There is a full 
 house of peers to be found in any of the Western Isles ; and 
 either of the West India regiments contain as many general 
 officers as there are names in the army list ; so that those who 
 
RIDE TO ST. Joseph's 121 
 
 have earls and viscounts to converse with daily, ought not to com- 
 plain of their society. 
 
 Except on Sundays, and ^'owr* de fetes, the Spanish Creole wo- 
 men are seldom seen. I was fortunate enough to see a consider- 
 able number in white and black niantillas (veils) ; their appear- 
 ance was very Castilian, tbough mofe languishing, and eyes swim- 
 ming in love ; or, "like hawks, these black-eyed damsels play- 
 fully glancing, seized with the talons of their eyelashes, the hearts 
 of helpless lovers in their grasp." They say, however, that there 
 is less dancing and gaiety now among the Spanish residents than 
 formerly ; that the light guitar is seldom heard accompanying the 
 voice of a lover when serenading his mistress in her bower, or 
 the castanets keeping time to the steps of a bolero or fandango ; 
 yet at the period when the people give a loose to their gaiety, at 
 the Carnival, every house in Port of Spain is thrown open, and 
 the authority of Momus universally acknowledged. Groups of 
 masks perambulate the streets at all hours, and as much life and 
 spirit are then shown as there is listlessness during the previous 
 period of the year. 
 
 The races always close with a ball (but race-balls are nowhere 
 select;) and those who may have been selling gloves or millinery 
 in the morning, may be seen figuring in the dance in the evening — 
 mere trifles to philosophical travellers. 
 
 In riding into the interior of the island, the usual road to take 
 is that leading to the town of St. Joseph, due east of the capital ; 
 on the left is a range of hills, and on the right, connected with 
 the Savannah Grande, is an extensive swamp covered with man- 
 grove shrubs, and from whence such a noxious vapour exhales 
 that many of the houses built in its vicinity have been deserted. 
 Very little attention has been paid to the draining of swamps in 
 the West; we hear constantly "the bad climate" talked of, but it 
 is like a man's feeble constitution being blamed. The fault rests 
 with ourselves only: if no pains are taken to drain salt marshes, 
 we must expect yellow fever; if no pains are taken to live judi- 
 ciously, we cannot expect a green old age. 
 
 After the swamp is passed, the country is highly cultivated; the 
 pretty village of St. Juan is passed, a fine stream of water crossed, 
 and then the spire of St. Joseph is seen above the cocoa planta- 
 tions at the entrance of the valley of Maraccas. Gorgeous wild 
 flowers are on the sides of the road, and birds of the richest plu- 
 mage disport on either hand. The country on the road from St. 
 Joseph's is every where cleared, and being well watered by 
 numerous mountain streams, offers great facilities for cultivation; 
 the clearing of the ground from wood has however been performed 
 with little discrimination, as, not contented with the removal of 
 Q 
 
122 TOWN OF ST. Joseph's — fertility of the soil. 
 
 the brushwood and shrubs which might interfere with agriculture, 
 the planters have also felled those majestic trees, which if left in 
 clumps or groups of four or five, would not only have given the 
 estates the semblance of parks, and not have impeded the pro- 
 gress of cultivation, but would also attract rain, so indispensable 
 for canes. 
 
 But everywhere in the New World I made the same remark; 
 little or no taste is displayed by the clearers of land, every thing 
 is swept off, ''root and branch," with remorseless hands; so that, 
 as in Trinidad, one sees the houses placed in the middle of an un- 
 interesting open space of ground, rendered still more insipid by 
 its contrast with the richness of the wooded mountains which 
 overhang it. 
 
 The returns of the soil at Trinidad are so great, that it would 
 seem an easy matter to acquire a large fortune; but although a 
 planter's outset does not seem to be an arduous undertaking, yet 
 when his situation is minutely inquired into, it will appear to be 
 one of much exertion, and requires a great share of perseverance. 
 Land is here so abundant that the price of an estate is not calcula- 
 ted from the number of acres that it comprises, but from the num- 
 ber of slaves belonging to it, each slave being considered adequate 
 to cultivate and manufacture three, or three and a half hogsheads 
 of sugar. 
 
 Thus the primary object is to secure a well-manned estate, 
 since owing to the laws prohibiting the removal of slaves from 
 one island to another, those in Trinidad are too few in number to 
 do justice to the prolific soil, and other natural advantages, which 
 give this island a superiority over our other western colonies. 
 
 It is also of great importance to fix upon a part of the island 
 whence the sugar may be transported with ease to the coast; but 
 these points being settled, that which one might suppose the most 
 difficult to arrange, namely, the payment, is a matter of no im- 
 portance, as the purchaser, until by his own industry he has clear- 
 ed off his mortgages, is merely the agent of the former pro- 
 prietor. 
 
 For instance, if an estate is for sale for £20,000, and a person 
 chooses to become the purchaser, it is merely necessary for him 
 to pay as a first instalment £3000 or £4000, which could be bor- 
 rowed on the security of the estate; the remainder of the purchase 
 money would only be required in instalments, at considerable in- 
 tervals; and as an estate of this value would produce £2000 a year, 
 it may be easily understood, that by constant industry and econo- 
 my a man may, in the course of time, clear off his incumbrances 
 and become independent. There are instances of people having 
 purchased estates without possessing any capital with which to 
 
COCOA PLANTERS — CLIMATE — MORTALITY. 123 
 
 commence, and by judicious management and fortunate seasons 
 have secured an unincumbered property in seven years; but these 
 examples are not of frequent occurrence, and for one estate that 
 is out of debt there are a dozen that are mortgaged. 
 
 These remarks are solely applicable to the sugar estates, the 
 cocoa plantations being now of no value; hence the depressed 
 state of the poor Spaniards, who principally cultivated this pleasant 
 fruit. Cocoa, many years since, was the staple commodity of 
 the island, but a short-sighted policy induced the planters to in- 
 troduce an inferior description of that plant, because more pro- 
 ductive; and the South American estates having been laid waste 
 by the contending parties during the revolutionary war, they 
 found no difficulty in disposing of it. 
 
 But when the peace enabled the Colombians to attend to the 
 cultivation of their estates, the superiority of their cocoa was uni- 
 versally acknowledged, and the result was that the Trinidad plan- 
 ters, who had been in the habit of selling their cocoa at thirty 
 dollars the hundred weight, could no longer find a mart for their 
 produce, and now would be glad to obtain for the best cocoa four 
 dollars a fanega, or one hundred and ten pounds; they are there- 
 fore, poor people, mostly ruined. Some are cutting down their 
 beautiful cocoa plantations, "those aromatic shades," in order to 
 plant canes; while others allow the cocoa groves to run wild, and 
 employ their slaves on other estates in cultivating sugar. 
 
 Captain Trant, who lived several months at St. Joseph's (seven 
 miles from Port of Spain, now containing about a hundred houses, 
 though formerly the capital, and plundered by Sir Walter Ra- 
 leigh,) gave a very favourable account of the climate, the thermo- 
 meter being four or five degrees below that at the modern capital ; 
 during the day a refreshing breeze prevailed, which reduced the 
 heat to the temperature of a summer's day in England. Certainly 
 one was not prepared to meet with so fine a climate in the West 
 Indies. 
 
 We hear so much of the mortality which is supposed to take 
 place in the West Indies, that they are viewed in the worst possi- 
 ble light, and many suppose when their relatives and friends em- 
 bark for these islands, that they are preparing to encounter cer- 
 tain death; they are pitied for their impending fate, and praised 
 for the fortitude they evince in not shrinking from the trial; and 
 perhaps these very people may live much longer and enjoy bet- 
 ter health than those they are leaving. 
 
 The fact is, that at least two thirds of the deaths are brought on 
 by imprudence ; and if one lives in a quiet moderate way, with- 
 out absolutely avoiding or seeking exposure to the sun, there is 
 little doubt but that a man may live in the West Indies for many 
 
124 LEPROSY AT TRINIDAD. 
 
 years (at a distance from swamps,) without their proving the 
 Golgotha they are said to be. 
 
 The cHmate there is decidedly superior to that of Bengal; in 
 the latter, if a person were to take exercise at noon in the sun, 
 without a thick turban on, or (what I particularly dislike) an um- 
 brella over his head, a fever would be the inevitable consequence; 
 whereas in the West the sun is comparatively harmless. Ob- 
 serve also the personal appearance of those who have resided for 
 many )'ears in the two climates; the East Indians arc (many of 
 them) sallow, withered, and emaciated, while the West Indians, 
 on the contrary, still appear to retain the vigour of their Euro- 
 pean constitutions (though of course not altogether unimpaired,) 
 and seem much fresher and healthier than their eastern brethren. 
 
 In fatal diseases the two countries are much on a par; the East 
 is scourged with the cholera, while in the West the yellow fever 
 leaves few who can boast of having recovered when once attack- 
 ed. I saw several cases of that terrible disease, the leprosy, at 
 Trinidad; English, French, and Spaniards, had it in their families 
 introduced by black women ; parents had been careless as to 
 whom they selected as nurses, and the consequences were very 
 painful to witness. 
 
 " ' Room for the leper,' and aside they stood, 
 Matron and child, and pitiless manhood — all 
 Who met him on his way, and let him pass, 
 And he went forth alone; not one of all 
 The many whom he loved, nor she whose name 
 Was woven in the fibres of the heart, 
 Breaking within him now, to come and speak 
 Comfort unto him. Yea, he went his way, 
 Sick and broken-hearted, and alone to die, 
 For God hath cursed the leper." 
 
 
125 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 The British Government judiciously preserves the Laws of conquered Colonies. — 
 The Government of Trinidad. — Tlie Cabildo. — Inhabitants wish a Representative 
 Government. — The commandants of Districts. — Popuhition of the Island. — Go- 
 vernors of Colonies might take an example from Sir Ralph Woodford. — The Val- 
 ley of Maraccas. — The River St. Joseph. — A Tropical scene. — Free Blacks. — 
 The Falls of Maraccas. — The Village of Arima. — An Indian Settlement. — Indian 
 Cottages. — The Red Men. — Their appearance. — Character and habits. — Schools. 
 Trinidad Indians have no traditions. — Here as elsewhere their numbers are di- 
 minishing. — Change of system again recommended. — The Pitcli Lake. — Its Isl- 
 ands. — Singular effect of standing on the pitch. — Experiments. — Mud Volcanoes. 
 — Similarities between Crim Tartary and Trinidad. — The Bois immortal. — A 
 Spicy Grove and Tropical Residence. — Strange instance of delicacy in a Creole. 
 The Trinidad Militia. — Fort St. George. — Defence of the Island criticized. — 
 Trinidad too valuable to be sacrificed. 
 
 The British government, with great judgment, has preserved 
 the laws, as they respect private property, in the colonies con- 
 quered in the West. The Spanish laws of Trinidad still remain 
 with some modification, and by them almost despotic power is 
 vested in the Governor, who is aided by a council of his own 
 nomination. In addition to the council, a corporate body of con- 
 siderable influence, called the cabildo, exists in Port of Spain ; it 
 is selected from among the most respectable inhabitants of the Isl- 
 and, who, when they retire at the end of the year, nominate their 
 own successors. 
 
 The cabildo has an income of £12,000 per annum, which is 
 dedicated to the erection of public works, and to pay the salaries 
 of the executive officers. ' Though not possessed of the same 
 power as the representative assemblies of other islands, the cabildo 
 can, notwithstanding, act with great independence; but the power 
 of taxing ad libitum, rests with the Governor. Arbitrary power 
 is, in fact, essentially necessary in an infant colony, composed as 
 it is of people of various nations, and comprising many desperate 
 adventurers and outlaws. 
 
 It is true that the educated and enlightened part of the commu- 
 nity are extremely desirous of a representative government; but 
 although it might prove personally beneficial to them, as throwing 
 the power of taxation into their hands, yet at present it would but 
 embarrass and tie up the power of the Governor, and prevent his 
 enforcing acts which, by consolidating the executive power, tend 
 to prevent the jarring of various interests, and by embracing only 
 the ultimate benefit of the island, would enable it in a few years 
 to emerge from its present depressed state, and assume the im- 
 
126 POPULATION — GOVERNORS. 
 
 portant station in the West, that its geographical situation, prolific 
 soil, and favourable climate, entitle it to hold. 
 
 Trinidad, next to Jamaica, will be the most valuable island 
 appanage of the British crown; but to aid its rise, the person at 
 the head of the government should be of a firm and decided cha- 
 racter, one who will not allow himself to be biassed by the mur- 
 murs of the discontented, or influenced by the interested advice 
 of favourites. 
 
 Another powerful reason against the establishment of a popular 
 assembly is, that from the circumstance of there being at present 
 but few resident gentry in the island (the object of all those who 
 now reside on their estates being to return to England when their 
 exertions are repaid by a sufficient income), it is natural to sup- 
 pose that those measures from which only a distant benefit would 
 be derived, would meet with the disapprobation of legislators, 
 whereas those calculated to afford immediate relief, though at the 
 expense of a great loss hereafter, would be joyfully acceded to, 
 as the 07111S would fall on their successors. 
 
 In conformity with the Spanish form of government at Trini- 
 dad, the terms Alcalde, Algacil, &c. are always used instead of 
 their corresponding names in English. The inland division of 
 the island is also regulated according to the old system, and is 
 portioned into districts under the superintendence of comman- 
 dants, whose office is to keep the peace, punish refractory slaves, 
 secure marauders, and so on — but their power is very limited. 
 
 The population of Trinidad is yearly increasing, and is now 
 estimated at five thousand whites, sixteen thousand people of co- 
 lour, and only twenty-two thousand slaves, which form an average 
 of nine souls to a square mile, the island being seventy miles 
 long and as many broad. The proportion of white males to 
 females, is as two to one; but the females of the negro race ex- 
 ceed the males by one hundred. Field labourers are so scarce 
 in Trinidad, that I was told of hundreds of hogsheads of sugar 
 absolutely rotting on the ground for want of hands to cut the 
 canes. 
 
 Governors of colonies, besides superintending and administer- 
 ing the government entrusted to their charge, may render great 
 benefit by ameliorating the state of society, and setting an exam- 
 ple of liberality without extravagance; and by urbanity and polish 
 of manner, may throw a brilliancy over the circle in which they 
 preside, and above all, place the members of it on good terms 
 with each other. 
 
 In the days of Sir R. Woodford there were none of our western 
 colonies which could boast of a gayer or more agreeable society 
 than Trinidad; he had raised a social structure with great judg- 
 
 J 
 
VALLEY OP MARACCAS. 127 
 
 ment and foresight. The fair deh'ghted in St. Anne's, as the 
 place where happy moments might be passed with gay Lotharios 
 in the mazy dance; the young men, in conversing with Sir Ralph, 
 derived both amusement and instruction from his remarks; whilst 
 the elder rejoiced in the choice wines and excellent dinners which 
 graced the Governor's hospitable board. He enco'uraged theatri- 
 cal amusements, and mirth and festivity prevaded his halls. 
 
 Let us now make another excursion into the interior. In the 
 recesses of the Valley of Maraccas there is a most magnificent 
 waterfall; and in riding up the valley, it is impossible for the 
 wanderer to suppress his exclamations of delight. Beautiful 
 shrubs in full blossom hang over the sparkling stream of the St. 
 Joseph, and blending their perfumes with that of the acacia, re- 
 fresh the sense, "like a garden of perfect beauty and fragrance, 
 in which the cypress and cedar grow side by side, and the lily 
 and the rose, like a bride and bridegroom, recline on each other's 
 bosom." Then the larger trees, bending low their boughs over 
 the river, for awhile conceal it from the sight (though it can still 
 be heard rushing over its rocky bed), or form here and there a 
 rustic bower, inviting to repose in its cool shade; above on either 
 side is a lofty mountain, which hemming the river in, causes it 
 to meander and wind like the coil of a serpent; eight times it is 
 forded in less than four miles. 
 
 Animated nature likewise adds to the interest of the scene. 
 Numberless humming-birds flit from bough to bough; at one mo- 
 ment darting across the path, and the next balancing themselves 
 in the air close to a flower from whence they seek to extract the 
 insects or the sweets, and agitating their wings with such rapidity 
 as to render them invisible. 
 
 " While richest roses though in crimson drest, 
 Shrink from the splendour of their gorgeous breast." 
 
 Afar in the forest is heard the barking of the large beaked tou- 
 cans, the scream of the paraquet, and the wailings of the goat- 
 sucker; butterflies of all sizes, and of all colours of the rainbow, 
 skim around; lizards of an emerald green rtm across the road, or 
 lie basking in the sun; and snakes, startled at the approach of 
 human feet, retreat with rustling noise into the grass on the way 
 side. 
 
 At the eighth ford of the river there is a clump of the most 
 beautiful bamboos, and so regularly have they by chance sprung 
 up, that the stems seem to form the clustered columns, and the 
 weeping branches and leaves the arches, of a graceful gothic edi- 
 fice. Here, after the exercise of walking and shooting among the 
 
128 FALLS OF MAUACCAS. 
 
 hills, the luxury of a bath may be enjoyed, and after it a rural 
 repast. 
 
 Beyond this the valley becomes wider, and forms a basin, shut 
 round by the mountains; and here, in different directions, are ob- 
 served some small houses and plantations, delightfully situated on 
 the slope of the hills. The high road is now left, and a moun- 
 tain path is ascended for a couple of miles, having on one side a 
 steep declivity, and on the other a lofty mountain; here the 
 ground has been partially cleared by some free black settlers. 
 On looking to the steep in front, the cascade will now be seen, 
 falling in a perpendicular line from the mountain into the valley. 
 The trees again shut it from the view; but from the first glimpse 
 the lover of nature will feel assured that he will be amply recom- 
 pensed in the end. It is now necessary to proceed onwards on 
 foot, along a narrow path, with a precipice below, and amongst 
 wild scenery; at last, on emerging from a thick wood, the tra- 
 veller finds himself at the bottom of the fall. 
 
 The precipice over which it rolls is two hundred and eighty 
 feet high, and the trees which grow on the summit of this, have 
 the semblance from below of mere shrubs, and from the crevices 
 of the rock which forms the cliff, various shrubs and flowers pro- 
 ject, and afford a support to the festoons of parasitical plants which 
 fall from above them. At the very highest part of the cliff the 
 water rushes from under the trees, over a ledge of rock, and falls 
 in an unbroken stream about two-thirds of the way, where it 
 breaks into spray, and forms rainbows in the sunbeams. 
 
 So perpendicular is the precipice, that one may walk up to its 
 base, and then on gazing upwards, the overhanging rocks seem 
 threatening to escape from his beds, and in falling down, to crush 
 one to atoms. Earthquakes (here of no uncommon occurrence, 
 though Trinidad is free from hurricanes,) have detached large 
 masses of the precipice, which lie scattered in the bed of the 
 torrent, where also may be seen the mangled remains of water- 
 fowl and snakes. Near the cascade stands a tree which has been 
 used as an album by former visitors to the fall, and on its venerable 
 trunk are inscribed names and dates as far back as 1S02. Pine- 
 apples and other fruits may be here enjoyed, as the mulattoes in 
 the neighbourhood pay attention to gardening. 
 
 Few of the residents in the island have seen the waterfall of 
 Maraccas. Sir R. Woodford first caused the path to be cut 
 which leads to it; and before his time it was comparatively little 
 known. In a country which contains such magnificent scenery 
 as Trinidad, it is not unlikely but that there may be other scenes 
 similar in their general character, but there can be none equal in 
 grandeur to the vale of Maraccas. 
 
VILLAGE OP ARIMA — INDIAN SETTLEMENTS. 129 
 
 "It seems the seat of pure delight, 
 A paradise or faery land." 
 
 In the village of Arima, in the interior, a settlement of 
 aboriginal Indians has been formed under the auspices of the 
 British Government. There, are assembled a remnant of that 
 unfortunate race, who only three centuries since were the quiet 
 and undisputed possessors of this portion of the Western hemis- 
 phere, but whose history since that period has been one uninter- 
 rupted tale of oppression, misery and despair, and who now are 
 so rapidly decreasing in numbers, that ere another century 
 elapses, they will in all probability be entirely swept from the 
 face of the earth. 
 
 Arima is ten miles inland from St. Joseph's, and the road to it 
 is agreeably diversified with plantations, comfortable houses, 
 savannahs, and forest scenery. Several fine mountain streams 
 rush across it, and on viewing the great capabilities of the soil, 
 and the abundance of water, one cannot but regret that the dearth 
 of inhabitants should condemn the greatest part of this island to 
 remain in its original state of wnldness. 
 
 In the centre of Arima is a square, on one side of which is a 
 church, which much resembles a barn; beside this is the house 
 of the curate, and opposite is a thatched house, called the Casa 
 Real, for the accommodation of the Governor, when his Excel- 
 lency visits the settlement: a few Indian cottages form the other 
 two sides of the square. The other huts of the inhabitants are on 
 two sides of a broad street, on which the grass grows luxuriantly, 
 trodden down in one narrow path only. 
 
 The interior of the Indian habitations is neat and comfortable. 
 The inmates are of low stature; and although the women are very 
 delicately formed, the men are stout and robust. They have the 
 usual long and black silky hair, and their features, which strongly 
 resemble those of the Malays or Tartars, are dull and apathetic. 
 When not at work in their small fields, or in the forest, they 
 always appear, like Turks at the doors of their coffee-shops, to be 
 engaged in deep thought, although, in fact, their mind is quite 
 unoccupied; and in a torpid state would they pass their lives, un- 
 less excited by hunger or some other cause. Nature has endowed 
 them with an inertness of disposition, which at first seems quite 
 incompatible with a savage state, but which is removed, when 
 they are partly civilized, like those at Arima; there they can be 
 made to exert themselves; there they are well dressed, and in 
 some of their houses there is furniture of a superior description; 
 indeed, one man, of the name of Bravo, built himself a very com- 
 fortable residence, and by his assiduous attention to the cultiva- 
 R 
 
1 30 INDIAN HABITS — INDIANS HAVE NO TRADITIONS. 
 
 tion of cocoa at a time when it was in great demand, he derived 
 from it an annual income of £350. 
 
 Unfortunately the Indians of Arima have acquired such habits 
 of drunkenness that it is impossible to persuade them to refrain 
 from the use of ardent spirits; and the pernicious extent to which 
 they carry this vice is of course considered one of the reasons 
 why they rapidly diminish in number. The descendants of the 
 whites who taught them this fatal propensity, should labour 
 hard to teach them temperance. These Indians also neglect their 
 children until they attain the age often or twelve years, and then 
 they only take care of them in order that they may be assisted in 
 their labours. But although the parents pay but little attention to 
 the welfare of their offspring, the government of the island 
 watches over them with a careful eye; and the state of the schools 
 does the worthy Padre infinite credit. Botli boys and girls are 
 instructed in reading and writing Spanish, and in the principles 
 of the Catholic religion. Ths boys' schoolroom is whimsically 
 enough divided into Roma and Cathago, and beneath these 
 names, which are painted on the opposite walls over each class, 
 is the figure of a jackass, which when the one class excels the 
 other in its conduct is turned to the wall, whilst the stupid set 
 have their emblem fully displayed. The Padre is a great favourite 
 with his young charge, and also with their parents, and was one 
 of those who fled from Old Spain to England, to avoid the perse- 
 cutions of the petticoat embroiderer, Ferdinand. 
 
 There are about two hundred Indians at Arima, and nearly four 
 hundred more in the other settlements; but of these the males 
 form the largest proportion, and, strange to say, those of Arima 
 have lost all traces of their own language and only speak 
 Spanish. They likewise retain none of the traditions of their 
 forefathers, and have no idea when the Europeans arrived in the 
 New World, still less are they aware that the whole island was 
 formerly theirs; their little world is now limited to Arima, where 
 a considerable tract of land has been secured to them in perpetuity. 
 The present station which these poor people hold in the civilized 
 world is owing to the judicious liberality of the British Govern- 
 ment, and more especially to the interest which the late Sir Ralph 
 Woodford took in ameliorating their condition. Truly this ex- 
 cellent Governor is most deserving of a statue, if ever a public 
 benefactor deserved one. 
 
 The Indians of the other three missions are not at present so 
 well cared for as those of Arima, and are more frequently seen 
 with the fig-leaf than in decent attire. During the Spanish mis- 
 rule, the Indians were viewed in the light of beings devoted to 
 the service of the whites; no pains were taken to rescue them 
 
CHANGE OP SYSTEM KECOMMENDED. 131 
 
 from their barbarism; they were over-worked, ill-treated, and the 
 slaves of their oppressors, so that death to an unfortunate Indian 
 was a welcome release from misery. 
 
 Now that they are independent, enjoying all the comforts of 
 life, and possessing every facility for acquiring a limited educa- 
 tion, the Indians, it might be expected, would shake ofl those in- 
 dolent and depressed habits, which, though natural to them, may 
 have been increased by their state of debasement during the last 
 three centuries. But such is not the opinion of those who ought 
 to be well acquainted with them ; their speedy extinction is fore- 
 told by all, and it would almost seem, say they, as if the Almighty 
 had ordained that a race of beings, possessing so few of the ener- 
 gies of man, should gradually recede before the colonists of the 
 old world, until at last none are left, and the continent of America 
 become peopled with men calculated to avail themselves of its 
 vast resources. 
 
 I say now, as I said formerly, that a proper plan has not been 
 pursued with these unfortunate red men. What miracles have 
 not temperance societies accomplished in our own country, and 
 in the United States! and why not hold out to the aboriginal 
 American the inducement of an office of trust, if he conducts him- 
 self properly and fits himself for it ? Cold-blooded and avaricious 
 men may say that the Indians are incapable of improvement; 
 what were the Peruvians, the children of the sun, before they 
 fell before their remorseless invaders ? What were the Mexi- 
 cans, with their magnificent temples and palaces, before they 
 were, like stricken deer, scattered to the four winds ? What 
 says the Indian lament? 
 
 "I will weep for a season, on bitterness fed, 
 For my kindred are gone to the hills of the dead, 
 But they died not of hunger, or lingering decay. 
 The steel of the white man hath swept them away." 
 
 One of the greatest natural curiosities in the world is a lake of 
 asphaltum, or pitch, in Trinidad, situated about thirty-six miles 
 to the southward of Port of Spain. The western shore of the isl- 
 and, for about twenty miles, is quite flat, and richly wooded; and 
 though only one- or two houses are perceptible from the sea, the 
 interior is well cultivated, and several small rivers, which empty 
 themselves into the gulf of Paria, afibrd great facilities for the 
 transport of sugar to the ships which anchor off their embou- 
 chures. As Naparima is approached, and the singular mountain 
 (at the foot of which San Fernandez is situated) is plainly distin- 
 guished, the shore assumes a more smiling aspect; here one sees 
 a noble forest, there a sheet of bright green points out a cane- 
 
132 THE PITCH LAKE — ITS ISLANDS. 
 
 field. Cocoa-nut and palm trees are sprinkled over the landscape, 
 and gently wave their feathered foliage; now and then a well- 
 built house appears close to the water's edge, with a verdant l.iwn 
 extending from it to the sea, and the ground sometimes broken 
 into sinuosities, and then slightly undulating. The beauty of 
 this part of Trinidad is very great, though from some undrained 
 swamps poisonous malaria exhales. 
 
 At Point La Braye are seen masses of pitch, which look like 
 black rocks among the foliage. At the small hamlet of La Braye 
 a considerable extent of coast is covered with pitch, which runs a 
 long way out to sea, and forms a bank under water. The pitch 
 lake is situated on the side of a hill, eighty feet above the level 
 of the sea, from which it is distant three quarters of a mile; a 
 gradual ascent leads to it, which is covered with pitch in a har- 
 dened state, and trees and vegetation flourish upon it. 
 
 The road leading to the lake runs through a wood, and on 
 emerging from it the spectator stands on the borders of what at a 
 first glance appears to be a lake, containing many wooded islets, 
 but which on a second examination proves to be a sheet of asphal- 
 tum, intersected throughout by crevices three or four feet deep 
 and full of water. The pitch at the sides of the lake is perfectly 
 hard and cold, but as one walks towards the middle, with the 
 shoes off in order to wade through the water, the heat gradually 
 increases, the pitch becomes softer and softer, until at last it is 
 seen boiling up in a liquid state, and the soles of the feet become 
 so heated that it is necessary to dance up and down in a ridicu- 
 lous manner. The air is then strongly impregnated with bitumen 
 and sulphur, and as one moves along the impression of the feet 
 remain in the surfiice of the pitch. 
 
 During the rainy season, it is possible to walk over the whole 
 lake nearly, but in the hot season a great part is not to be ap- 
 proached. Although several attempts have been made to ascer- 
 tain the depth of the pitch, no bottom has ever been found. The 
 lake is about a mile and a half in circumference; and not the least 
 extraordinary circumstance is, that it should contain eight or ten 
 small islands, on which trees are growing close to the boiling 
 pitch. 
 
 In standing still on the lake near the centre for some time, the 
 surface gradually sinks, till it forms a great bowl as it were, and 
 when the shoulders are level with the general surface of the lake, 
 it is high time to get out. Some time ago, a ship of war landed 
 casks to fill with the pitch, for the purpose of transporting it to 
 England; the casks were rolled on the lake, and the hands com- 
 menced filling, but a piratical-looking craft appearing in the 
 
EXPERIMENTS — MUD VOLCANOES. 133 
 
 offing, the frigate and all hands went in chase — on returning to 
 the lake, all the casks had sunk and disappeared. 
 
 The first alcalde presented me with a metallic substance, thrown 
 up by the pitch fountains, which I have submitted for analysis; 
 it much resembles copper ore. Science is at a loss how to 
 account for such an extraordinary phenomenon as this pitch lake, 
 for it does not seem to occupy the mouth of an exhausted crater, 
 neither is the hill on which it is situated of volcanic origin, for 
 its basis is clay. 
 
 The flow of pitch from the lake has been immense, the whole 
 country around, except near the Bay of Grapo which is protected 
 by a hill, being covered with it, and it seems singular that no 
 eruption has taken place within the memory of man, although 
 the principle of motion still exists in the centre of the lake. The 
 appearance of the pitch which had hardened, is as if the whole 
 surface had boiled up into large bubbles, and then suddenly cool- 
 ed; but where the asphaltum is still liquid, the surface is perfectly 
 smooth. 
 
 Many experiments have been made for the purpose of ascer- 
 taining whether the pitch could be applied to any useful purpose. 
 Admiral Cochrane, who was possessed of the enterprising and 
 speculative genius of his family, sent two ship-loads of it to Eng- 
 land, but after a variety of experiments, it was ascertained, that 
 in order to render the asphaltum fit for use, it was necessary to 
 mix such a quantity of oil with it, that the expense of the oil 
 alone would more than exceed the price of pitch in England. A 
 second attempt was made by a company styled the Pitch Compa- 
 ny, who sent out an agent from England, but finding that Admi- 
 ral Cochrane had failed, and being convinced that any further 
 attempt would be useless,, he let the matter drop. 
 
 Forty miles to the southward of the Pitch Lake is Point du 
 Cac, which forms the south-west extremity of the island, and one 
 side of the Boca del Sierpe; on this cape is another natural curi- 
 osity, which is well worth seeing, although the distance from 
 Port of Spain renders it rather a difficult operation to proceed 
 thither. What renders this point so interesting to the stranger, is 
 an assemblage of mud volcanoes, of which the largest may be 
 about one hundred and fifty feet in diameter. They are situated 
 in a plain, and are not more than four feet elevated above the sur- 
 face of the ground, but within the mouth of the crater, boiling 
 mud is constantly bubbling up; at times, the old craters cease to 
 act, but when that is the case, new ones invariably appear in the 
 vicinity; the mud is fathomless, yet does not overflow, but re- 
 mains within the circumference of the crater. From what I 
 recollect of the Crimea, I should say that there are remarkable 
 
134 DELIGHTFUL TROPICAL RESIDENCE. 
 
 similarities between it and Trinidad, geologically speaking: in 
 both there are mud volcanoes: in both there are bituminous lakes; 
 and both have been frequently visited with earthquakes. 
 
 One of the most beautiful of the trees in Trinidad, is the Bois 
 immortel, which at ceitain seasons of the year is covered with 
 clusters of scarlet blossoms of exceeding brightness, and which 
 when shining in the sunbeams, look like a mantle of brilliant vel- 
 vet. The tree is very lofty and umbrageous, and serves as a 
 screen to the cocoa plant, which being of too delicate a nature to 
 bear exposure to the sun, is always planted under the shelter of the 
 Bois immortel. This double wood has a very pleasing effect, 
 especially when the cocoa is bearing fruit, when its various col- 
 ours are beautiful. The hedges of the cocoa plantations are usually 
 formed of the coffee bush, intermingled with the lime and bitter 
 orange trees, which when in blossom, breathe perfumes as if — 
 
 " Where some rich caravan not long before 
 Had passed, with cassia fraught and balmy store;" 
 
 whilst amidst the herbage beneath, one sees bursting forth some 
 of the rarest and most valuable bulbs and shrubs, which in Eng- 
 land would be tended with the greatest care in the forced atmos- 
 phere of a hot-house. Place beside this delicious grove the long, 
 cool, but lonely residence of the proprietor, perhaps a veteran of 
 Austerlitz, or a noble Castilian, and let it be shaded by mango 
 and silk cotton trees, with graceful palms, and the bamboo, which 
 though in size far less than those with which the Burmans used 
 to construct their formidable stockades in the forests of Pegu, yet 
 still is incomparably beautiful, waving gently its weeping branches 
 with the slightest breath of air ; and there will be found a retreat, 
 perhaps called "Mon repos," or "Mon desir," and as sweet as 
 that of Paul and Virginia, in view of the mountain of the Three 
 Peaks. 
 
 Pause for once instant in the garden, and gaze with wonder on 
 the butterfly plant ; nothing can more resemble that lovely insect 
 than the blossom which bears its name; attached by a slender 
 and almost invisible stalk, it has the appearance of fluttering in 
 the air; you fancy you can distinguish the double wings, and the 
 long stamina are the antennae of a brilliant butterfly. 
 
 Some fastidious people think that the Spanish and French girls 
 of the second class in Trinidad arc not particularly attractive ; 
 they are certainly darker than our people, but for my part, from 
 having been accustomed to it early in life, I prefer a healthy olive 
 countenance to one " sicklied over with a pale cast," from unwont- 
 ed exposure to tropical heats. The damsels before mentioned are 
 
DELICACY IN A CREOLE — TRINIDAD MILITIA. 135 
 
 said to have a listless and insipid manner, with no great delicacy, 
 and a gentleman recounts this singular circumstance in proof of it. 
 He was riding through the town of St, Joseph's, when, on pass- 
 ing a house at the door of which a French Creole was standing, he 
 observed that she was suckling some extraordinary sort of being, 
 so unlike a child, that he rode up to her in order to ascertain what 
 it might be, and great was his astonishment, when on approaching 
 nearer, he ascertained that the supposed child was an ugly little 
 pup. " Le pauvre petit," said she, " sa maman vient de mourir, 
 et je I'allaite." He then naturally inquired whether she had lost 
 her own baby, and she replied — " Oh ! que non. Monsieur, I'en- 
 fant est la bas." This was certainly throwing away the milk of 
 human kindness with a vengeance. 
 
 I attended a review of the Trinidad militia, and really their 
 appearance on the great plain before St. Anne's was very respect- 
 able ; every freeman on the island is enrolled in the militia, which 
 is composed of cavalry, infantry, and artiller}'^, with a very nu- 
 merous staff. I was certainly rather astonished at the great dis- 
 play of lace embroidery and Saxon plumes, and I thought a plain 
 bush-ranger's frock would have been much more appropriate ; 
 still, plumes, epaulettes, and scarlet please the ladies, and that is a 
 great point gained. 
 
 I saw adjutants-general and quarter-masters-general, aides-de- 
 camp, paymasters, doctors, and commissioners without number ; 
 each regiment of infantry had its peculiar uniform, but above all 
 the St. Anne's hussars shone conspicuous. The King's must have 
 borrowed their new uniform from the St. Anne's, for they wore 
 light bluejackets and trowsers richly braided, with scarlet pelisses. 
 
 The Trinidad militia is about four thousand five hundred strong, 
 and is in a more effective state than that of the other islands ; but 
 the period of assembling for exercise (which formerly took place 
 once a month) having been made quarterly, it is supposed that its 
 discipline may become more lax. The titles of the island military 
 are not quite so grand here as at Barbadoes, where there are lieu- 
 tenant and major-generals, royal horse and foot guards. Colonel 
 is the most exalted rank in Trinidad, and there is no household 
 brigade. 
 
 One forenoon I started with Captain M'Nicol, of the Royals 
 (who for twenty years had enjoyed uninterrupted good health in 
 the West Indies,) to visit Fort George, commanding one of the 
 most beautiful views in the island ; it is three miles from the 
 Port of Spain. We passed Cocoreet, where the ordnance 
 stores are kept, a swampy unhealthy spot; and then ascended a 
 hill on horseback, but were soon obliged to dismount, for trees 
 
136 FORT ST. GEORGE. 
 
 had fallen across the road from a late gale, and we scrambled up on 
 foot. We called at the huts of several negro pensioners of the 
 West India regiments; they seemed to be quite happy with their 
 *' frows," patch of cassava ground, and plantains. I remarked 
 beautiful fern trees on the way up, and the rare " petrea volubilis," 
 with its blue garlands, amongst which the whiskered humming 
 bird flitted ; at last, after a long and steep climb, the blockhouse of 
 Fort George was reached, in which was a signal-master and a few 
 black soldiers. 
 
 In looking out from the blockhouse, I certainly have seldom 
 seen such a glorious prospect; on the left was the capital of Trini- 
 dad, and the ultramarine waters of the Gulf of Paria, with a few 
 white sails in the distance. The mountains of Cumana, South 
 America, were in front, and then sweeping the eye along the 
 horizon to the right, the Boccas, with cape, headland and islands 
 innumerable; immediately below was the valley of Diego Martin, 
 extending across the island to the Atlantic, with overhanging 
 woods and cultivated fields. 
 
 " While on his noontide couch in heavy sleep, 
 Outstretched the interminable ocean lay, 
 Waveless and windless." 
 
 Fort George is an example of the manner in which great sums 
 of money are sometimes lavished on useless fortifications ; here 
 battery on battery rise in succession from the shores of the gulf 
 to the barracks, twelve hundred feet above the level of the sea ; 
 and although it would be a difficult matter to storm the hill, yet 
 what the use would be of stationing a body of men there, leaving 
 the capital, three miles off, and the whole country open, is incom- 
 prehensible to every one, except perhaps to the officer who pro- 
 jected the works. 
 
 Fort George commands but one pass where the road leads to 
 the valley of Diego Martin ; all the other entrances to the interi- 
 or of the country are undefended, and Port of Spain is quite 
 open. An enemy, therefore, by leaving a corps of observation 
 near Fort George, might tranquilly take possession of the island, 
 and soon starve out the besieged troops. On the south side of the 
 capital Sir Thomas Picton erected a blockhouse, which command- 
 ed the town, and might have been serviceable in case of an insur- 
 rection ; but now it has fallen into decay, and goes by the name 
 of Picton's Folly, In the event ot an attack, if the town is not 
 better defended than it is at present, it ought to be abandoned, 
 and the defence limited to the defiles and passes leading in-land ; 
 a few temporary entrenchments thrown across there, the woods 
 well lined with marksmen, and a disposable body of men to de- 
 
mackworth's island. 137 
 
 fend any point threatened, would render the conquest of this in- 
 valuable island no easy task. For the greater efficiency of Co- 
 lonial troops, I wish they could be persuaded to lay aside their 
 hussar jackets and scarlet swallow-tailed coats, and substitute a sad- 
 coloured rifle-dress, with snake and water-proof leather leggings, 
 and amuse themselves with ball practice more than they do. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 Sail from Trinidad. — Mackworth's Island. — The Bay of Chagaramus. — A Flower 
 in the Wilderness. — The Diablotin. — The Umbrella passage. — An accident. — 
 Grenada. — Sunrise between the tropics. — St. George Town and Forts. — Negro 
 Fishermen. — Forbearance of Grenada Sharks. — The Grand Etang. — The expedi- 
 tion of the Count D'Estaing. — Negro Washerwomen. — A mountain ride. — The 
 scenery at the Grand Etang. — Rlassacre of the Caribs. — A French Planter. — 
 Fruits. — English Colonists compared with those of other nations. — A change in 
 West Indian society. — Sangaree. — Eflects of intemperance. — West Indians ob- 
 liged to live on their estates. — Refinements. — A ride through St. George Town. — 
 Richmond Heights. — The Military — Impressions of service in the West. — Offi- 
 cers ought to make the most of every quarter. — Some officers become Creolized. — 
 Service in the East and West compared. — A rhapsody. 
 
 Again embarked in a schooner, I bade adieu to the lofty moun- 
 tains and smiling plains, romantic valleys, and magnificent forests 
 of Trinidad, and to Port of Spain, with its pleasant residences, 
 and beautiful women therein reclining, and stood away towards 
 the Boccas. As I stood on the deck and gazed on the glorious 
 scene, I felt grateful that I had been permitted to see this favour- 
 ed land; and as the breeze impelled us from the shore, and the 
 outlines of the mountains became fainter, I might have said in the 
 words of the song, 
 
 " Absence will but make thee dearer, 
 Isle of Beauty, fare thee well!" 
 
 We passed by an island retreat belonging to Lieutenant Mack- 
 worth of the navy, a neat casa shaded with trees, and where (as 
 before all the sea-side residences of naval officers) there was a 
 flag staff and some small pieces of artillery. 
 
 We then sailed through the noble bay of Chagaramus, under 
 whose wave lie the remains of the Spanish fleet burnt by Admiral 
 Apodac^to prevent its falling into the hands of the captors of the 
 island, cinder the great Sir Ralph Abercromby. On shore we 
 saw a solitary house in a green vale, and the captain (Creitchlow) 
 S 
 
138 
 
 THE UMBRELLA PASSAGE. 
 
 pointing to it said, <«The handsomest woman I ever saw in my 
 life lives there, Signorita Matheson ; her father a Scotchman, her 
 mother a Spaniard; and there she must live and bloom unseen, 
 
 ' And waste her sweetness on the desert air ;' 
 
 unless some one, like the eagle of Sinbad, adventures to bring her 
 to light as a gem hidden in the deep recesses of a Golconda. 
 
 The gulf of Paria, near the Boccas is full of small rocky islets, 
 and some of these contain extraordinary caves of great size, in 
 which are to be found a curious bird called the diablotin, which, 
 if eaten when taken from the nest, is pronounced by epicures to 
 be unrivalled, and by good Catholics to be fit food for fasting-days, 
 inasmuch as feeding upon fish it is made of fish, and being fish is 
 no longer fowl ! 
 
 We saw on the right the old pirate haunts, the deep and con- 
 cealed bays, and reached the Umbrella Bocca with a lively breeze. 
 High and frowning precipices were on either hand, the singular 
 rock was before us from whence the jiassage derives its name, and 
 we went staggering on whilst the sea rushed and roared through 
 the strait, and dashed high upon the cliffs, threatening instant 
 destruction to the frail bark if the wind should fail us. 
 
 A sudden squall with dashing rain came on whilst we were in 
 the midst of the wildly agitated water, and as we had only a crew 
 of two or three men on board, I slipped on as usual my pea-jacket 
 and nor' wester hat, to lend a hand in working out of our danger- 
 ous situation. But I found the saying confirmed, that none pass 
 the Boccas witliout having cause to remember them, for in mak- 
 ing a short tack the main boom got adrift and struck me down on 
 deck and nearly overboard, into a sea rushing like a mill-race 
 between black rocks, and abounding in sharks and baracoutas. 
 My left leg, which I thouglit at first was broken, was seriously 
 bruised and swelled, and I was lame for some time after, but 
 shampooing set all to rights again. "Many a narrow escape 
 we've had from old Chelsea and a timber toe." 
 
 We steered for Grenada, that gem of the ocean, with its azure 
 sky, cloud capped mountains, and verdant slopes, and were not long 
 before we dropped anchor at St. George Town on a still evening 
 in July. Some talk with rapture of a sunset in these latitudes, 
 and certainly the great luminary descends to his cool bed most 
 majestically. His rising too in certain situations is sublime: thus 
 at Grenada, on coming on deck before it was light, the island ap- 
 peared like a mighty wall against the grey horizon, and the*Jouds 
 which floated round the highest ridges were as black a^^jr smoke 
 
GRENADA AT SUNRISE — NEGRO FISHERMEN. 139 
 
 from some dreadful conflagration, reminding one of the mountain 
 of adamant of the Arabian Nights, towards which luckless vessels 
 were irrisistibly impelled. Gradually a light rosy tint overspread 
 the horizon, and threw the outlines of the island still more into 
 relief; this was succeeded by a yellowish tinge, then purple, and 
 now the light shone upon the edges of the clouds, and a flash of 
 fire from a height, followed by the report of a gun, warned us 
 that daylight was only first perceptible on shore, although we had 
 seen it for some time. By degrees the scene lighted up, and 
 through a break in the mountain a blood-red ray darted from the 
 as yet invisible sun; soon however we were prepared for his ap- 
 pearance by the bright light which rose behind the dark sum- 
 mits, and then he burst forth in the full glories of his splendour, 
 revealing a scene of purely Italian character. 
 
 A town of white and gay-looking houses occupied a rocky 
 peninsula, which projected into a clear bay; the spire of a church 
 rose on the isthmus, and Fort George and Hospital Fort, with 
 flag-staffs, in which were displayed waving signals, looked down 
 on the harbour from their commanding heights: behind a point 
 the carenage was occupied by merchantmen, sheltered from every 
 wind, though hurricanes in Grenada are unknown. The fortifi- 
 cations of Richmond Heights, far above and beyond the town, 
 occupied the upper ground in the picture. In the country, on the 
 slopes of the hills, were orange groves and palm trees, plantations 
 and cultivated fields, mound and dale, through which streams 
 rushed to the sea. 
 
 I landed on a pebbly strand; and took up my residence with 
 the Honourable Mr. Hoyes, close to the beach. There the negro 
 fishermen were drawing a long fishing-net lazily and listlessly; 
 two canoes were beyond the centre of the semicircle which it 
 made in the sea, and accompanied it to the shore, whilst black 
 boys swam round it, lifted it as it was occasionally impeded by 
 the stones at the bottom, and splashed the water and shouted, 
 with the idea of frightening the fish and preventing them making 
 their escape. Here, as elsewhere in the Antilles, 
 
 " Each creek and bay 
 With fry innumerable swarm and shoals 
 Offish glide under the green wave, 
 'Mongfst coral stray, or sporting with quick glance, 
 Show to the sun their wav'd coats dropt with gold." 
 
 "No fear of sharks here?" I asked. <'No, massa, shark neber 
 eat him negger here." — " I should not like to trust them." — 
 *'No, massa, neber touch negro Grenada; two tree day gone, 
 two negger capsize in canoe with plenty fish; two shark come 
 
140 THE GRAND ETANG. 
 
 eat up all de fish, negger quite safe." Very curious, if true, as 
 they say in the States. 
 
 The great attraction in Grenada is the Grand Etang, or lake, 
 on the summit of a mountain, apparently an extinct volcano. A 
 pleasant-tempered and handsome young Irishman, Captain Otvvay, 
 of the Island Rangers, agreed to accompany me to visit this 
 *'Lion;" so we mounted at six in the morning, and rode out of 
 town. We passed under the hospital hill, where the British 
 under Lord Macartne}'^ made such a noble defence against the 
 expedition of the Count D'Estaing, in 1779 — five hundred of the 
 former for some time resisting the efforts of five thousand of the 
 latter, with twenty-five ships of the line, and ten frigates; — but 
 at last, after considerable loss on the part of the enemy, the island 
 was surrendered to tlie French. 
 
 We rode through the well-supplied fish market, and then up 
 the Vale of Tempe, with its picturesque cotton-tree and brawling 
 stream. The scene was very lively, for dozens of negro washer- 
 women were up to their knees in the water, and beating the 
 clothes against the rocks on the bank, to the no small injury of 
 the raiment, though thereby their handiwork is beautifully white, 
 and is afterwards skilfully ironed. In a similar manner do the 
 Oriental dhobees belabour the stones with apparel, giving vent at 
 the same time to a heavy sigh like a paviour at each stroke of his 
 rammer. 
 
 As we rode past the sable hlanchisseuses, they laughed and 
 joked with us. "What for massa leave missus so early in the 
 marning ?" Alas! I had no wife to leave; for well has the Per- 
 sian poet said — 
 
 " Is all thy day uneasy, be not afflicted 
 Should thou at night have a sympathiser in tliy bosom." 
 
 We passed over wild paths, and then wound round a steep hill 
 with a precipice of two hundred feet on the left, at the bottom of 
 which was a river concealed by heavy foliage, and every moment 
 we were called on to admire the rich parasitical plants, and ferns, 
 and plantains growing wild. We watered our horses at a beauti- 
 ful secluded nook, through which a clear and cold stream ran, 
 overhung with noble trees; and after a long ascent found our- 
 selves on Table Land, passing between two rows of huts, tenanted 
 by the negro Rangers, and breakfasted in the airy dwelling of 
 their Commandant. 
 
 We then wandered to the deep and still lake, filling the crater 
 of an extinct volcano, and surrounded with forests; on it there 
 was a small canoe, and we admired the adjacent scenery, with its 
 
MASSACRE OF THE CARIBS — FRUITS. 141 
 
 romantic peaks towering above us. The borders of the Grand 
 Etang form a most interesting region, and above all fitted for a 
 recluse. Here, in a delightful climate, he is lifted far above the 
 cares and vanities of the world below — here the senses are con- 
 tinually regaled with beautiful flowers, delicious fruits, and 
 noble views across the island, both to east and west; and here 
 the elevation of the spectator is so great, that the distant sea 
 seems to mount high into the heavens, and contend with them 
 for supremacy. 
 
 When surveying the deep valleys below where we stood, I 
 could not help being overcome with painful feelings, for in these 
 the peaceful Caribs of this lovely isle were cruelly pursued and 
 massacred by the French, in 1650. There formerly stood their 
 huts, which were burned to the ground, and their provisions 
 rooted up by the merciless invaders of their territory; and on the 
 sea-shore might be seen a precipice to which forty of the unof- 
 fending Indians ran to escape the sword, and " casting them- 
 selves headlong into the sea, they miserably perished." 
 
 We left the Grand Etang reposing in its silent beauty, and rode 
 down the mountain towards George Town — on the right were 
 some mineral springs. We halted for a while at a coffee planta- 
 tion, on a commanding site, belonging to an old French resident; 
 and from the kindness and amiability of the proprietor, I soon 
 forgot my recent reflections on the barbarity of his ancestors. 
 
 From the parterre before this charming dwelling, a beautiful 
 map was spread out before us. A succession of hill and dale de- 
 scended to the sea-shore; there were cultivated fields bright with 
 the sugar cane; verdant slopes studded with orange trees, with 
 fruit yellow and golden, like that of the Hesperides, whilst ban- 
 anas, shaddocks, guava, and mangoe trees were equally abundant. 
 White houses were to be seen here and there among the wood- 
 land scenery, and in the far distance were the sails of the coasting 
 vessels. 
 
 Grapes and fruits of every kind are more abundant in this isl- 
 and than in any other of the Caribees; indeed, it is a general re- 
 mark, that in all the French, Spanish, and Dutch islands, fruits, 
 vegetables, and other luxuries are more easily procurable than in 
 those colonized by the English, the first step taken by foreign 
 colonists being to make themselves as comfortable as circumstan- 
 ces may admit, thereby showing their good sense; while on the 
 other hand, I have always been provoked when remarking that 
 the English colonist, forgetting his old predilection for comfort at 
 home, thinks only of returning with wealth to his native land. 
 Surely there is some defect in the education of our countrymen, 
 that so few learn to become citizens of the world, and so few seem 
 
142 COLONISTS — CHANGE IN SOCIETY. 
 
 pleased whilst sojourning abroad. Habitual cheerfulness is a duty 
 we owe to our Maker, to our neighbour, and to ourselves; in 
 almost all situations we liave a cause for thankfulness, on all oc- 
 casions we ought to study to render those around us happy. 
 
 In the word home are the wishes of English colonists centered; 
 towards home all their labours tend, and in eager anticipation of 
 the period when they are to return there, they forget that years 
 of discomfort must elapse ere they can realize their wishes. There 
 are still a few French people at Grenada, but the mass of the 
 population is English, although it was only in 1 798 that Sir Ralph 
 Abercromby conquered the island from the French. 
 
 A considerable change has taken place of late years in the style 
 of West Indian society; it is now more civilized, and approxi- 
 mates nearer to the manners of the European world, than it did in 
 days of yore. Formerly, we learn (from the accounts of those 
 who resided on these islands) that dissipation and intemperance 
 prevailed to an excessive degree, morals were at a low ebb, polite 
 conversation was comparatively unknown, indolence marked the 
 manners of the women, sensuality and debauchery those of the 
 men. The large glass, capable of containing four or five bottles 
 of liquid, and filled with the beverage 'yclept sangaree, being a 
 compound of Madeira, sugar, water, and spices, was invariably 
 placed upon the table the first thing in the morning, and left du- 
 ring the day, so that a casual visiter might be able to partake of 
 it. 
 
 In some houses, a similar bowl of punch would be seen, and 
 many of the West Indians, considering sangaree not sufficiently 
 strong, preferred strong potations, and drank sangarorum, which 
 is wine in its pure state, but highly spiced. After repeated 
 draughts during the day of these insiduous beverages, which would 
 undoubtedly make a man rather non compos, the West Indian 
 would sit down to an early dinner, during which, he perhaps 
 might discuss two orthree bottles of Madeira — then finish the even- 
 ing with brandy and water and cigars. Day after day the same sys- 
 tem would be followed, until at last the health became affected. The 
 constitution, debilitated by repeated indulgences, would be ill- 
 calculated to resist the attacks of a tropical fever — the bacchanalian 
 orgies of the debauchee would then terminate in the grave, and his 
 name would be added to the list of the supposed victims of baneful 
 climate. 
 
 During the war, the flower of West Indian proprietors was to 
 be found in England; the planters were all absentees from their 
 estates, and were living in Europe up to the amount of their in- 
 come. Their t^ons and daughters, educated according to the best 
 principles, were equal in manners and acquirements to the first 
 
REFINEMENTS RIBE THROUGH GEORGE TOWN. 143- 
 
 society, and instead of becoming brutal, overbearing, and ignorant, 
 by a constant residence amongst their inferiors, they assumed the 
 refined tone of high life, and only viewed their estates as the 
 means of enabling them to live in England, without ever con- 
 templating the probability of their beingobliged to reside on them. 
 When, however, their (too often) inconsiderate expenditure had 
 drained their property to the utmost, and the value of West 
 Indian produce became much diminished; when ashamed of re- 
 trenching their establishments in time, they heaped mortgage 
 after mortgage upon tlie estates, in hopes of postponing the evil 
 day, and at last, deprived of all other resources, were glad to 
 return to the West Indies, and perhaps act as agents for their 
 creditors on estates only nominally tlieirown, — the better classes 
 in these islands, of course, benefited by the influx of men of polite 
 and liberal education; and many of the old West Indian habits 
 gave place to English manners and customs. 
 
 The sangaree, though not quite disregarded, is at least no 
 longer the ornament of the sitting room, which formerly, when 
 adorned with half emptied glasses and bottles, and savouring of 
 tobacco and spirits, must have been more like a pot-house than 
 "the bower of a faire ladye." Female society (without which 
 the world is a blank) again came into repute; conversation, in- 
 stead of being confined to the merits of an estate, or whether 
 sugars were up or down, was extended to literature and the fine 
 arts; and a person who had learnt to dance, had now some chance 
 of practising that accomplishment with some as pretty lady-like 
 girls as he could expect to see at home. 
 
 I next rode through the town, up and down steep streets, and 
 past stores replenished with showy wares; everything, they say, 
 is beautiful at Grenada, animate and inanimate objects, and I cer- 
 tainly remarked some most attractive Creole women; and both the 
 white men and coloured females had an air of life and spright- 
 liness about them here, which was quite delightful as contrasted 
 with the listlessness and apathy of other inter-tropical places. 
 But I exclaimed with Coleridge, "Grenadians, where are your 
 wives ?" for nowhere could I see a white female face. 
 
 I wended my way past Government-house, usually occupied 
 by Sir James Campbell, then on a tour of inspection through the 
 islands, and up the winding ascent to Richmond heights, to pay 
 my respects to Major Raper, commanding awing of the 19th 
 regiment; and with this very superior and intelligent officer, I 
 walked about the extensive works, and enjoyed the prospect of 
 the interior of the island, the bays and the town below. I re- 
 marked that the accommodations for the troops, though in an 
 airy situation, were very confined; breathing-room and shelter 
 
144 RICHMOND HEIGHTS. 
 
 from the rain are indispensable for the comfort of troops in 
 garrison, and here they had neither. Their barrack-rooms were 
 small, and the roofs in a bad state. I then set down and convers- 
 ed with the Major on military matters. 
 
 Courteous reader, if you are a civilian, be pleased to pass on to 
 the chapter after the next, as I mean to indulge my military- 
 mania by discoursing about the state of our troops between the 
 tropics; details such as follow may be tedious to you, therefore 
 enter not the barrack room unless you feel interested in those 
 whose only home it is. 
 
 As I viewed the West Indies as a traveller, and not as one who 
 was obliged to " set up 4iis staff" there, whether the climate 
 agreed with him or not, my impressions were rather more 
 favourable of that part of the world, than they perhaps would 
 have been, if I had been stationed there for any length of time. 
 The novelty of the scenes I witnessed, the beauty of the country, 
 the hospitable manner in which I was entertained, and my re- 
 maining but a short time at one spot, made me overlook many of 
 the drawbacks attendant on a residence in the West Indies, 
 <' where I had no continued city." 
 
 As a military station, the West Indies for a lengthened 
 period is the worst that a young officer can possibly resort to; he 
 has little to gain there in a professional point of view, and the 
 chances are twenty to one that, secluded as he will most likely be 
 from much general society, his habits may become dissipated and 
 unprofitable to himself; but for the short period of service usually- 
 allotted to regiments in the West Indies, I see little cause of com- 
 plaint. If officers would only try to make the most of their 
 situation, they have abundant leisure for intellectual pursuits — 
 excellent opportunities to perfect themselves in drawing or music, 
 if they have a taste for these twin accomplishments; and now, by 
 the institution of the United Service Museum, an occupation is 
 furnished them on foreign stations, viz. an inducement to collect 
 and preserve objects of natural history. Besides, in gardening, 
 there will always be found much to please and interest the 
 temporary exile from his father-land. 
 
 I have met with many military men who have passed the 
 greater part of their lives in the West Indies, and are now so 
 completely creolized, that I doubt much if they would wish to 
 return home. Whereas the young men are of course all anxious 
 to escape from their island prisons, as they term them, lest indo- 
 lence and apathy should cast a spell over them. In point of sa- 
 lubrity, as I said before, I do not think that the West Indies are 
 by any means so bad as the East; for sometimes in the West a 
 year elapses and not a single officer dies; whereas in the East, 
 
OFFICERS BECOME CREOLIZED. 145 
 
 amongst an equal nunnber of regiments, several in the same space 
 of time would have fallen victims to the diseases of the climate. 
 Be it remembered too, that the East India Company will not agree 
 to relieve King's regiments until after the lengthened period of 
 two-and-twenty years, whereas regiments in the West are re- 
 lieved every five years. 
 
 But withal the East is a glorious land to serve in, a land of ro- 
 mance and adventure: ''as children we delight in it as the scene 
 of the Thousand and one Nights; ladies love it, as from it are 
 derived gems and silks and Cashmere shawls; and soldiers, be- 
 cause there high reputations have been earned and may still be 
 won." Well pleased am I that it fell to my lot to serve some 
 years in Eastern climes; and many tales of war and pilgrimage 
 has a sojourner there for any time to relate. The East is full of 
 interest and excitement, wherever you move. What could be 
 more delightful than this ? — donning that noble head-dress, a 
 Moslem turban, white robe, shawl, girdle, and loose trowsers; 
 armed with sword and pistol, and with two trusty domestics, 
 going forth as bent upon adventure as ever knight errant that set 
 Jance in rest; visiting caverned temples, and the splendid remains 
 of by-gone ages; hunting deer with the cheeta, or leopard, or ly- 
 ing in wait for the brindled tiger; living entirely with the natives, 
 conforming to their customs, studying their language, and gain- 
 ing an insight into their remarkable characters and peculiarities. 
 But I must not allow my pen to run wild in describing life in the 
 East; at present I have to speak of occidential climes — of a West 
 Indian life. The most humerous illustration was given by a 
 portly major, with whom the heat did not at all agree: during 
 the day he would sit in a tub of cold water, and every now and 
 then ejaculate, "Damn Columbus — curse the fellow, why did he 
 discover these rascally islands!" 
 
146 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Discourse on Military Matters continued. — Advantages of Regimental Schools. — 
 Libraries and Theatres. — Encouragement ought to be given to Games. — Soldiers 
 ought to be fitted for Settlers. — Bathing indispensable between the Tropics. — 
 Spare Tanks ought to be converted into Baths. — Unfortunate situation for soldiers' 
 wives. — Repairs of barracks ought not to be delayed. — Improvements in barracks 
 proposed — Verandahs, shutters, and open blinds. — Danger of exposure to night 
 air. — A light ought to burn in each barraek-room. — Campaigning in the East. — 
 The Canteen. — Alterations proposed. — Military drunkenness might be got rid of. 
 — Pernicious effects of New Rum. — New Rum increased the Pension List. — Malt 
 liquor recommended. — Canteen Keepers. — Change of diet recommended. — Inva- 
 lids sent home from Antilles only once a year. — Ridiculous clamour of pseudo-po- 
 litical economists. — Military Costume. — The Forage and Dress Caps. — Under 
 Vests. — Officers and men ought to be thoroughly drilled with the Reserve. — Uni- 
 form in the Colonies ought to be generally worn. — Strength of the French in the 
 
 . Antilles. — Conclusion. 
 
 In those regiments where particular attention is paid to estab- 
 lish schools, and to provide books and periodical publications for 
 the men, the greatest benefits have arisen; with a further view 
 of occupying the minds of the soldiers, and contributing to their 
 amusement, regimental theatres should be encouraged. Major 
 Raper '' got up" a theatre both at Grenada and St. Vincent's, in 
 which a party of the men performed twice a month, to the no 
 small entertainment of their comrades. It may probably excite 
 a smile, and appear ridiculous for soldiers to assume the buskin ; 
 but among the various characters of a barrack-room a greater por- 
 tion of natural talent is generally to be found than the public seem 
 disposed to allow, and in many regiments there will be found a 
 dozen performers, who would do credit to any country theatre 
 at home. 
 
 To vary the amusements, and if possible to dissipate the gloom 
 of a foreign station, which at best is only a temporary exile, every 
 encouragement ought to be given during leisure hours to bowls, 
 quoits, and other games requiring moderate exertion. In the 
 East Indies we used to have a fives-court, but some commanding 
 officers object to this, and both fives and rackets are considered 
 too violent for the West Indies: they are so in the middle of the 
 day, but not in the morning and evening. Cricket would be less 
 violent, but there is seldom suitable ground within a reasonable 
 distance. The sudden stoppage of perspiration is the principal 
 thing to be guarded against, and officers know how difficult a thing 
 it is to get a British soldier to change his apparel when heated; 
 it therefore ought to be borne in mind, that all games requiring 
 
BATHING INDISPENSABLE. 147 
 
 severe bodily exertion, between the tropics become objectionable; 
 but let the men be continually exercised, let them be taught me- 
 chanical arts, to fit them for settling either in Canada or Australia 
 when discharged, and above all, let us spurn the idea that British 
 soldiers ought to be mere machines. 
 
 What is much wanted in the smaller West India Islands, and 
 which if acceded to would tend to promote both health and clean- 
 liness, is a greater facility for the men to wash their persona. 
 The distance of the hill forts from the sea, with the uncertainty 
 of the weather and general bad state of the roads, seldom admit 
 of bathing, and the daily allowance of fresh water being limited 
 to two gallons each for all purposes, viz. cooking, drinking, wash- 
 ing of clothes and themselves, one can readily fancy how diffi- 
 cult it is for the poor fellows to preserve even the semblance of 
 cleanliness. I may here remark, that to economise water when 
 scarce, and at the same time to cleanse the skin most effectually, 
 a small bag of coarse cloth to fit the hand may be used. A hair 
 or cloth bag drawn on the hand like a glove, and dipped in water, 
 is much superior to the sponge. 
 
 When we consider the heat of the barrack-room, and the many 
 duties to which soldiers are subject, such as fatigue parties, exer- 
 cise at drill, marching to and from the distant guards, &c. com- 
 bined with their exposure to every change of weather, it is 
 scarcely possible to entertain the notion that they are altogether 
 cleanly; on the contrary, they must at all times be otherwise — 
 a circumstance which cannot fail in some degree to affect their 
 health. That however might easily be prevented, and at a very 
 slight expense, for even in garrisons, where scarcity of water may 
 exist, the construction of a moderate-sized tank, or the "fixing 
 up" of the spare metal ones novv kept in store, would under a 
 proper arrangement suffice. It would at the same time be re- 
 quisite to have, contiguous to it, a small room capable of accom- 
 modating six or eight men, and provided with as many small tubs 
 to enable them to wash their bodies. 
 
 By a suitable regulation in the hours of attendance, the same 
 room would serve for the women and their children. At present 
 these unfortunate creatures, when in barracks, labour under 
 greater disadvantages than the men; the latter can adopt what is 
 termed dry rubbing as an aid in cleaning their bodies, whereas 
 the poor women cannot even do that if they have a regard to de- 
 cency. The health of the women and children is an object of 
 great importance, for whatever maladies arise among them gener- 
 ally spread through a corps. 
 
 Great delays frequently take place in the repairs of barrack- 
 rooms in foreign stations; I am not at liberty to enter into the 
 
14S IMPROVEMENTS IN BARRACKS. 
 
 cause of this, but merely allude to it, and hope that ere long some 
 new regulation may be issued on this important point. Men ought 
 not to be exposed to sun or damp in their quarters, and where the 
 materials are abundant, the re.medy is easy, and ought to be spee- 
 dily applied. 
 
 The construction of the barrack buildings varies in different 
 stations. It may therefore be remarked generally in what ap- 
 pears would prove beneficial to the troops. Whenever a barrack 
 is without a verandah, especially on the windward aspect, it should 
 have both jalousies (open blinds) and window shutters; the for- 
 mer alone being insufficient in stormy weather to prevent the 
 rain from beating in and wetting the men's beds; while on the 
 contrary, when the latter are used singly, although a protection 
 from rain, they are in every slight shower obliged to be closed, 
 when they exclude the air altogether. In blowing weather, when 
 open, they also admit so strong a current of air, that the men are 
 liable to catch cold, which is the primary cause of most of the 
 maladies in the West Indies. By having both jalousies and shut- 
 ters (even if not provided with a verandah), a barrack may be 
 preserved dry under the heaviest rains; while in moderate wea- 
 ther the men can exclude the wet, and at the same time admit 
 sufficient air for their general comfort. However, when the po- 
 sition of a barrack will allow of it, verandahs are doubtless the 
 most desirable, as they exclude the overpowering heat of a tropi- 
 cal sun, and serve as places for the men to clean their appoint- 
 ments and take their meals in ; they also prevent the accumulation 
 of dust and dirt, which would otherwise unavoidably ensue, for 
 when fifty or sixty men are obliged to clean their pouches and 
 shoes, and to pipe-clay their belts, in the same room in which 
 they constantly eat and sleep, cleanliness is scarcely to be expec- 
 ted. In such a case, instead of breathing a pure and wholesome 
 atmosphere, the men are inhaling dust and pipe-clay. 
 
 Many complaints originate in a sudden exposure of the men 
 from a warm bed and an overheated barrack to the chillness of the 
 night, when they move out on certain occasions, often without 
 taking the trouble to put on their clothes. The ill effects which 
 may thus arise might be prevented, by merely having a small and 
 well ventilated room attached to each barrack. 
 
 It would be very desirable to have one lamp in each barrack 
 throughout the night. By proper management, a very trivial ex- 
 tra quantity of oil would suffice, which with the cost of the lamp 
 would be the only expense attending it ; at present, when the men 
 move out in the dark, they are apt to come in contact with the 
 iron bedstead, and are sometimes so much injured, as to be oblig- 
 ed to go into hospital, which by the aid of a light might be avoid- 
 
THE CANTEENS. 149 
 
 ed ; they could also, in case of an alarm, dress and turn out in 
 half the time they could do in the dark. It would, moreover, 
 prevent the occurrence or even the suspicion of disorderly con- 
 duct of any kind ; and all danger from fire would be guarded 
 against having the lamps under lock and key. 
 
 In marching or campaigning in the East, each man was order- 
 ed to have a carpet to sleep on, and a quilt ; and each tent was pro- 
 vided with a tarpauline to spread on the ground, and thus keep 
 the men from the damp. Troops in garrison require no tarpau- 
 line, but nothing could be better adapted for the field. 
 
 Some objections may be stated to the present canteen system. 
 As long as it is the only object and interest of a canteen contract- 
 or to encourage drinking, and increase the sale of his rum, so long 
 will the daily temptation be held out to the soldier to get drunk. 
 Non-commissioned officers may be stationed in the canteen to pre- 
 vent inebriety, but the contractor and the soldier can easily evade 
 their scrutiny. 
 
 If all the general canteens were to be abolished, and each regi- 
 ment had its own canteen under proper control, and the non-com- 
 missioned officers who superintended the issue of liquor were to 
 receive no profit on the quantity sold, bat merely be exempt from 
 certain duties, drunkenness would disappear, aided by that excel- 
 lent regulation of last year, that a penny a day be given in lieu of 
 an allowance of liquor as formerly. 
 
 Rum of the best quality might be procured by the Commissa- 
 riat, and kept two or three years in store prior to its issue ; this 
 wrould ensure a wholesome spirit, and obviate the pernicious ef- 
 fects of new or adulterated rum. Few in this country know that 
 new rum is a powerful nocturnal diuretic. 
 
 A man in the West Indies getting drunk with new rum, or 
 <' kill devil," is sure to experience a singular effect from it ; where- 
 as, getting intoxicated with any other spirit, is not attended with 
 the disreputable consequence here allude to. 
 
 No loss could fall on Government by the plan proposed. A 
 price might be put upon the rum equal to the present receipts 
 from the canteen contractor, together with a trifling sum to re- 
 compense the sergeant and corporal, and still the soldiers would 
 gain the difference between those united sums and the profit now 
 made by the contractor ; or, if thought proper, the present can- 
 teen price might be continued, which would not only serve to 
 pay the non-commissioned officers, but cover all loss by wastage in 
 store, and leave a considerable profit to Government beside. 
 
 The injurious effect of new rum on all constitutions has been 
 too often verified to admit of a doubt ; and there is as little doubt, 
 that there are at this moment many individuals, who, by a too 
 
150 MILITARY DRUNKENNESS. 
 
 free indulgence in its use, have become a burthen to the nation in 
 the capacity of pensioners : men who would have been useful and 
 efficient soldiers if perhaps a difi'erent canteen system had been in 
 force. 
 
 Cheap as malt liquor is in England, it might be worth the atten- 
 tion of Government to provide a regular supply for the use of the 
 troops; such men as wished it might then be allowed a reasonable 
 portion at their meals — a measure which would reduce the con- 
 sumption of ardent spirits, be more conducive to health, and ulti- 
 mately benefit the public. A profit might be put upon the ale or 
 beer, which (from the greater quantity likely to be consumed) 
 would equal the present gain on rum. The Board of Ordnance 
 might object to this arrangement, as the canteen profits would then 
 be transferred from that department to the Commissariat, but as 
 John Bull pays for all, one cannot see why the public money may 
 not as well pass through one branch of the service as another, 
 when an evident advantage would accrue. 
 
 From regiments the canteen returns might be paid weekly ; the 
 expense of advertisements, risk of loss by the failure of canteen 
 contractors and their securities, and the correspondence which at 
 times arises on the misconduct of canteen keepers, would all be 
 avoided. The canteen keepers in some of the West Indian islands 
 do not provide the troops with any description of provisions, and 
 are not, in consequence, required to reside in garrison. The pro- 
 fits on the trifling consumption of bread, tea, &c. by a wing of a 
 regiment, would probably not repay them for loss of time, so 
 they merely attend the canteen when open for the sale of rum ; 
 but it is supposed to be a mutual advantage, for the soldiers are 
 regularly supplied, and on as reasonable terms, by market people 
 who attend at the barrack gates. Whenever a canteen keeper un- 
 dertakes the provisions, and for that purpose resides with his 
 family in garrison, it invariably leads to drunkenness ; for under 
 the pretence of purchasing tobacco or other trivial articles, the 
 men can at any hour procure rum witliout being detected. 
 
 With regard to the men's diet, it seems more a subject of con- 
 sideration for medical than military men. 1 am however of opin- 
 ion, that the soldiers would benefit by an increased allowance of 
 fresh meat, in lieu of so much salt provisions, which corrupt their 
 blood, and increase their thirst; at present they have the latter 
 five days a week, and the ration is ill-proportioned ; that of salt 
 pork, for instance, not being enough, while the allowance of rice 
 and peas is rather more than sufficient. The pork ration weighs 
 only nine ounces and one-seventh, and when boiled scarcely ex- 
 ceeds four ounces and a half, which is rather a limited portion for 
 
MILITARY COSTUME. 151 
 
 a grenadier of six feet; still I am no advocate for strong animal 
 food in any climate, much less in a hot one. 
 
 The troops in the West Indies labour under a serious inconveni- 
 ence by invalids being sent home only 07ice a year ; many soldiers 
 inconsequence fall victims to the climate, whose lives might have 
 been saved by a timely removal, and the trifling additional ex- 
 pense would be an infinitely less public loss than is at present in- 
 curred by the sacrifice of so many valuable lives. It would like- 
 wise greatly diminish the list of pensioners, as many men who 
 are invalided at Chatham as unfit for further service, would, if 
 sent home at an early stage of their complaints, recover at their 
 respective depots, and again become effective soldiers. Our ser- 
 vice labours under great inconvenience at present, from the out- 
 cry there is for retrenchment on the part of civilians, and mista- 
 ken economists ; they display great ignorance of military mat- 
 ters, as is natural to be supposed, call aloud for a reduction of the 
 army, and to substitute a militia for the regulars. How can re- 
 liefs be eflfected among so many colonies, unless with a considerable 
 standing force? and what English militia would serve under the 
 burning sun of Jamaica, or would relish looking over a rampart 
 for ten years at Gibraltar ? 
 
 The war department is most solicitous to promote the comfort 
 and efficiency of the troops, but it is hampered by the pseudo po- 
 litical economists. Considerable attention ought always to be 
 paid to military dress; though some old officers are indifferent to 
 it, yet, really, the efficiency of a soldier depends much on his cos- 
 tume. I am the better enabled to suggest certain points to be 
 attended to in military appointment, from having had the good 
 fortune to have seen most standing armies. 
 
 I have always remarked that the forage-cap is ill-adapted for 
 the tropics; it neither protects the eyes nor head from the effects 
 of a scorching sun, and there can be little doubt that it tends to 
 augment the number of opthalmia cases, headaches, fever, &c. 
 The crown between the tropics ought to have cotton two inches in 
 thickness in it — a peakinvariably; and twowhite duck covers ought 
 to be furnished to each man. The officers' dress caps are equally 
 objectionable, from their extreme weight, and their exposing the 
 back of the head. Some officers cannot wear them an hour with- 
 out suffering for the remainder of the day. The only people who 
 can benefit by them, are those who derive an exorbitant profit on 
 their sale. One thing is evident, that the same dress will not an- 
 swer for all climates, either for the military or civilians. 
 
 The use of elastic cotton, or flannel under-waistcoats, is a point 
 which claims the serious attention of the medical officers. It 
 would probably be better if the men wore none, than only to have 
 
152 UNDER VESTS — DRILLING RECOMMENDED. 
 
 two under-vests as at present — for if they get wet while one is 
 *' at wash," they have then no means of change, and become more 
 liable to take cold than those who never use them. They should 
 either have three each, or none; and it is of course questionable, 
 whether a soldier whose constitution obliges him to wear flannel 
 can he considered efficient in the field, where it would be imprac- 
 ticable for him to convey the number requisite to insure a change. 
 
 There is another point which it may be, perhaps, as well to 
 mention, and which would contribute greatly to the comfort, and 
 in some instances to the health of the troops. I allude to the ex- 
 pediency of having both officers and men thoroughly drilled at 
 home, instead of allowing either the one or the other to join the 
 service companies before they have acquired a competent know- 
 ledge of their duty. This particularly applies to field officers and 
 captains, on whom the command of a regiment, wing, or other por- 
 tion, is likely to devolve. Whenever a commanding officer is him- 
 self ignorant of the minute of drill, those under him are sure to be 
 unnecessarily harassed for his instruction ; and it is well known 
 from experience, that when any extraordinary degree of drilling 
 is in progress between the tropics, the hospitals fill in proportion. 
 Such a circumstance, whenever it occurs, also leads to a relaxation 
 rather than an improvement in the discipline of the corps, for the 
 men being aware that the instructor is unable to discover their 
 errors, soon acquire loose and slovenly habits under arms, and 
 lose all confidence in him. In fact, long and useless parades, and 
 unnecessary exposure of the men, either to sun or rain, or to drill- 
 ing on wet grass, ought to be prevented. 
 
 If a corps be in a good state of discipline when it embarks for 
 foreign service, and every individual who may subsequently 
 have to join it be first made thoroughly acquainted with his duty, 
 very little drilling would be required to maintain it in the high- 
 est order. 
 
 It is with reluctance I mention it, but a sense of duty compels 
 me to observe, that in one or two of the West India islands, the 
 officers were allowed to appear on all occasions, and in all situa- 
 tions off duty, in sailors jackets, round hats, &c.; and this at a 
 time when a slave insurrection was dreaded, and the commandant 
 habitually sat in his room with a brace of pistols on the table. 
 
 The military force in the French islands of Martinique and 
 Guadaloupe amounts to seven thousand men. In all the British 
 West India islands, in British Guiana, and Honduras, there are 
 only eight thousand five hundred. Now, the French force is so 
 disproportionate to ours, that, in the event of a sudden war, un- 
 less our fortresses were in good state for defence, our small garri- 
 sons would be overpowered in succession, if the French were to 
 
FRENCH FORCE CONCLUSION. 153 
 
 act en masse against them; let us not then hear any more non- 
 sense talked about our large and useless force in the West. We 
 have laboured to show that these colonies are very valuable, they 
 therefore ought to be defended against foreign foes and negro in- 
 surrection; every military man knows and feels to his cost, that 
 for such a mighty colonial empire as that of Great Britain, our 
 army is much too small, and having our country's glory and 
 honour at heart, we only trust and pray that it may not be further 
 reduced. 
 
 To civilians unacquainted with colonial service, and the many 
 local inconveniences under which the troops labour, the foregoing 
 remarks may appear trivial and undeserving of notice; but mili- 
 tary men who have had an opportunity of personally observing 
 the life of a soldier between the tropics, will perhaps be impres- 
 sed with very different feelings. I confess I have written very 
 unreservedly, and perhaps injudiciously, considering my rank 
 and standing in the service to which I have devoted myself; and 
 perhaps I may be accused of vanity or presumption. I do not 
 intend either, and shall only add, that if from any of the observa- 
 tions which I have just made on military matters the comfort of 
 the British soldier be increased, it will afford me much and lasting 
 gratification. 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Leave Grenada. — Sail past the Grenadines. — Evening at Sea. — St.Vincient's. — Fort 
 Charlotte. — Kingstown. — Visit theCitadel.— The Governor. — Botanical Garden. — 
 Marooning parties. — Dangers attending them. — The Souftriere Mountain. — The 
 eruption of 1812. — Earthquakes and showers of ashes. — Bursting of the lava. — 
 Manner of visiting the Souffriere. — Canoes. — A Tarpeian Rock. — The charming 
 Valley of Buccament. — The Wallibon River. — The road up the mountain — Scene 
 of desolation. — The great Crater. — The Lake. — Thermonietrical Observations. — 
 Distant view of the Charib country. — The Charib war. — King Daniel. — The New 
 Crater. — The perilous descent to the Lake. — Sensations in the water. — Ascent. — 
 Gusts of Wind. — Meteorology. 
 
 On a squally night I embarked in a mail schooner, commanded 
 by Captain Moffat, R. N., and after tripping our anchor, and 
 sheeting home our top-sails, we stood away to the north-west; all 
 next day we had baffling winds, but had an opportunity of seeing 
 the Grenadines extending between Grenada and St. Vincent's. 
 The small islands produce sugar and cotton ; and the slaves rapidly 
 increase upon them, for, as they consist commonly of only one 
 U 
 
154 EVENING AT SEA — KINGSTOWN. 
 
 estate each, the negroes have not a plurality of wives, as on other 
 islands where concubinage is so prevalent. 
 
 We saw St. Vincent's towering in the distance as the sun set in 
 majesty, and then the stars came out clear and sparkling in the 
 azure sky. Few quiet pleasures can be compared to that of re- 
 clining on the deck of a vessel, and contemplating the glorious 
 constellations flashing in glory in the heavens, and the gently 
 heaving sea under the influence of a balmy breeze, between the 
 tropics; one is soothed and refreshed by the scene and the tempe- 
 rature, and it is impossible to go below and repose in the dark 
 cabin. If the dews are not heavy, and the vessel is at some dis- 
 tance from shore, one may sleep on deck with perfect impunity; 
 many hundred delicious dreams I have had on a hen-coop, dis- 
 turbed only occasionally by a few rain drops on the face, and the 
 rushing of many feet to take in sail, preparatory to the coming 
 squall. 
 
 " She bends before its force, 
 And dips her lee-side low beneath the waves ; 
 Straight o'er the sea she flies, as when a hawk 
 Darts on a dove, and with a motionless wing 
 Cuts the light yielding air," 
 
 Next day we stood towards St, Vincent's, and saw the great 
 Soufi'riere, or volcano, casting its shadow over the waves on the 
 north-west of the island; we tacked to and from the shore, and 
 had splendid views of the island scenery. If Grenada is lovely, 
 St. Vincent's is sublime in its character; the hills of the former 
 are rounded in their outline, while those of the latter are sharp 
 and abrupt, and deep valleys are bounded by steep precipices. 
 
 We passed under the guns of Fort Charlotte, on a lofty hill, 
 with a conspicuous drawbridge across a ravine; here a major had 
 lately been shot by one of his men as he was returning from a 
 party. Then opened the town of Kingstown, built round a wide 
 bay, with country-houses rising behind the streets, among which 
 was the house of the Governor, in a garden; but the most con- 
 spicuous object was a church, with a taper spire; in the back 
 ground was a chain of lofty mountains. 
 
 We came to an anchor, and ran our boat on shore on a pier-less 
 and wharf-less beach, and were obliged to watch the receding 
 waves to land dry. I took up my residence with Mr. Le Gall, 
 in a cool and pleasant house, washed by the Atlantic. 
 
 Mounting a horse, I rode through the town, and passed a mar- 
 ket filled with negroes in holiday clothes, trafficking and chatter- 
 ing at a great rate, and then passed up a very steep road to Fort 
 Charlotte; here was stationed a wing of the 19th, under Colonel 
 Hardy. So precipitous is the hill on which this handsome fort 
 
BOTANICAL GARDEN. 155 
 
 is built, that in looking from the mess-room windows, the sea is 
 seen perpendicularly below, with the island of Becquia and the 
 Grenadines in the distance, and Old Woman's Point forming the 
 opposite horn of the Bay of Kingstown. 
 
 I inspected a valuable collection of island shells and a handsome 
 library, the property of Major Dickson, of the Royal Engineers, 
 and then descended the hill, and rode up a valley towards the 
 Governor's residence; on the left, in a confined situation, where 
 no fresh breeze could blow, were the remains of the old French 
 stone barracks, where many victims had succumbed to the cli- 
 mate. 
 
 We found ourselves in the botanic garden, a most interesting 
 spot, but sadly neglected since the death of Mr. Anderson, who 
 formed it; still, though choked with rank weeds, I remarked- 
 many rare plants, and fruits, and flowers, in wild luxuriance. 
 We dismounted at a long single-storied cottage, and paid our de- 
 voirs to Sir George Hill. Though an elderly gentleman, he has had 
 no cause to complain of the climate of St. Vincent's; yet his Ex- 
 cellency seemed puzzled to account for my visiting the Antilles 
 voluntarily, and risking my health. I explained that since I lived 
 strictly by rule, I considered myself free to roam wheresoever I 
 listed. After receiving an invitation to spend a day with Sir 
 George, I took leave. My stay in St. Vincent's was short, which 
 I much regret, for I consider it the most interesting island I have 
 ever seen; in point of scenery, its character is awfully sublime, 
 and well calculated to withdraw the mind from trifling sublunary 
 pursuits to the contemplation of the founder of the everlasting 
 hills. 
 
 No island affords such excellent opportunities for marooning 
 parties, or pleasure excursions, as St. Vincent's. The officers 
 stationed here, if they please, may be engaged in one of these 
 every week during the favourable season, for the planters and 
 merchants delight in pic-nics, and they have always been patro- 
 nized both by Governors Hill and Brisbane. True, they are 
 rather dangerous for those who have left a dulcinea in England, 
 or wish to preserve a whole heart; for enjoying a pleasant repast 
 in a tent pitched in a rural spot beneath lofty trees, lively con- 
 versation without formality, sparkling wine and sparkling eyes^ 
 an evening's ramble by the flowery bank of a clear and murmur- 
 ing stream, with a fair and light-hearted Creole under one's arm; 
 now admiring the distant mountains, or the wide expanse of the 
 Atlantic, and then reciprocating glances of satisfaction at the scene, 
 and pleased with one another; he must be cold indeed, or ex- 
 tremely philosophical, who can long resist such seductions. As 
 Enat Oolla has it, << the heart becomes entangled in the snare of 
 
156 THE SOUFFRIERE MOUNTAIN. 
 
 her dark tresses, and the bird of the soul becomes a captive in the 
 net of her glossy ring*lets." 
 
 Conspicuous among the majestic mountains of St. Vincent's, 
 is the Souffriere, occupying the north-west point of the island. 
 This celebrated volcano is the grandest scene in the West Indies. 
 The lofty summit is only to be seen at intervals between the 
 rolling clouds, and the sides are furrowed with streams of lava. 
 
 Before the last eruption in 1812, the great crater, five hundred 
 feet in depth, and three miles in circumference, contained within 
 it a conical hill, streaked beautifully with sulphur, like a tulip, 
 and covered with shrubs and flowers, amongst which rare birds 
 *' warbled their wood-notes vvild.'^ 
 
 On the 27lh of April 1812, after many violent convulsive throes, 
 columns of smoke ascended from the mountain; these were followed 
 by showers of light pebbles and dust, which covered the vegeta- 
 tion on the hills and valleys around. On the 30th, earthquakes 
 shook the solid earth; smoke and showers of ashes were thrown 
 up rapidly and portentously from the mountain, indicating some 
 direful event; and all the whites, Charibs, and negroes fled from 
 the vicinity of the mountain. 
 
 After a great roaring and agitation in the Souffriere, the hot lava 
 boiled up to the mouth of the crater, overflowed, and ran down 
 the sides of the mountain, destroyed the vegetation, and covered 
 the surrounding country with streams of melted rocks: all this 
 while the earth heaved in agony, the thunder pealed about the 
 dread summit of the Souffriere, and forked lightning flashed round 
 its burning sides. It was a dreadful night ! 
 
 The shower of stones, sand, and ashes, fell over the whole is- 
 land, and were even carried to the neighbouring colonies. After 
 a week's agitation the mountain became still; then nought was 
 heard " but the murmur of the torrent from afar ; the roaring 
 waves which climbed the distant rocks; the flies of evening on 
 their feeble wings, and the hum of their course on the field." 
 
 In order to visit the Souffriere, let the traveller embark at 
 Kingstown in a canoe, manned by half a dozen stout negroes. The 
 island canoes are hollowed out of cedar trees, raised on the sides 
 with planking, and may be pulled at the rate of seven or eight 
 miles an hour. The proprietors on the coast allow their negroes 
 to go to market in these canoes, and they sometimes come a dis- 
 tance of thirty miles. 
 
 In pulling round to the north-west, a high perpendicular rock, 
 washed by the sea, is pointed out, from whence the Charibs are 
 said to have hurled their criminals, as the Romans did theirs from 
 the Tarpeian. Whilst passing close under this precipitous clifl", 
 it is difficult to repress a shudder, on imagining to oneself the 
 
VALLEY OF BUCCAMENT. 157 
 
 number of victims whose frantic shrieks have rent the air when 
 dashed from the dizzy height into the gulf below. During the 
 war, cannon were hauled up at this place from vessels which could 
 come alongside ; and a fort is seen on another commanding emi- 
 nence. 
 
 Though the coast is very bold, yet on every practicable spot 
 are seen plantations of canes, and one or two villages ; but of all 
 the valleys I ever saw, I think that of Buccament bears away the 
 palm, and might dispute it with the happy and secluded vale of 
 Rasselas. In one respect, it is far superior to the retreat of the 
 Prince of Abyssinia ; it is open to the sea, overhanging moun- 
 tains formed the sides, from which rivulets descended, watering 
 the vegetation. " The banks of the brooks were diversified with 
 flowers; every plant shook spices from the rocks, and every 
 month dropped fruits upon the ground." Precipices of bare rock 
 alternated with the verdure, and down the vale ran a clear and ra- 
 pid river, abounding in mullet. The valley is five miles long, 
 shut in with a mountain at the upper end ; and is a mile in width, 
 where the river pours into the Atlantic. Altogether, "it forms a 
 most luxuriant picture of cultivation, contrasted with romantic 
 views, and is wholly secluded from the world." On viewing 
 this enchanting scene from the sea, these lines were recalled to 
 memory, and I participated in the feeling which suggested them; 
 
 " Let me, where yon tall cliffs are rudely piled, 
 
 Where towers the palm amidst the mountain trees, 
 Where pendent from the steep, with graces wild, 
 
 The blue liania floats upon the breeze. 
 Still haunt those bold recesses. Nature's child. 
 Where thy majestic charms my spirit seize." 
 
 Cumberland Bay is next passed, wooded to the water's edge, and 
 here, landing at Richmond estate, on the Wallibon river, the 
 manager's house is reached, looking down from an eminence on 
 another charming valley. 
 
 At the mouth of the Wallibon river, from whence the sketch 
 of the Souffriere, six miles distant, was made by my friend Mr. 
 George Parker, there is a broad expanse covered with black and 
 ashes. The river was larger before the eruption, but now varies 
 in size according to the heaviness of the rains. This desolate 
 waste was once a green sward, with the proprietor's house in the 
 centre of it, immediately behind which were the buildings ; of 
 these there remains only the side of the boiling house. The de- 
 solation was caused some time after the eruption, by thje bursting 
 of the river, carrying along with it immense quantities of sand 
 and ashes with which it was dammed up. On the left of the pic- 
 ture is a bay, and the perpendicular cliffs are composed apparent- 
 
158 SCENE OF DESOLATION. 
 
 ly of black ashes, which are washed away when the sea is raised 
 by storms. 
 
 Leaving the manager's house, the road to the Souffriere passes 
 through cane fields, and a thicket of long grass and ferns which 
 reach over a horse's back ; the path then can hardly be seen, and 
 seems to be on a narrow ridge, on each side of which is a preci- 
 pice, that to the west being the most terrific. The danger here 
 is considerable from the difficulty of keeping the path ; the shrubs 
 are so thick, the ferns so tough, that they can hardly be broken 
 through, and the grass is sharp and cutting ; the ascent is gradual. 
 Six large trees, half way to the volcano, atlbrd a shade under which 
 to refresh, and to admire the graceful forms of the tree ferns scat- 
 tered here and there. 
 
 For some distance beyond the resting-place the path continues 
 intricate as before, and then the crater ridge is reached. This is 
 more thinly sprinkled with trees ; till, towards the summit, it is 
 quite bare, and furrowed with the traces of the mountain torrents 
 and of lava, whilst sand and ashes are under foot. To the south 
 is a mountain, which seems to overhang the traveller ; it is richly 
 covered to the top with tufted foliage, which forms a contrast to 
 the scene on the north ; there desolation seems to have marked it 
 as its own ; the destructive agency of fire has annihilated the ve- 
 getation and left nothing but a bare, barren, and blackened mass 
 of rocks. Here might the naturalist pitch his tent and watch the 
 vegetation improving as we descend the mountain, lichens, mos- 
 ses, grasses, shrubs, and trees. 
 
 There is a convenient nook for leaving the horses, and then, 
 on walking forwards twenty yards probably, a mighty cloud of 
 vapour will be seen; it fills the crater to the brim, gradually 
 clears off, and the whole majesty of the scene is unfolded. In- 
 stinctively the gazer recoils from the abyss beneath his feet, and 
 his senses are wrapt in amazement, for he sees before him one of 
 the most awful scenes in nature; the sides of the mighty goblet 
 with a lake at the bottom, are themselves mountains — here des- 
 cending in a perpendicular wall to the water, and there inclining 
 at an angle of 45°: distinctly marked on the sides of the cauldron 
 is the height of the water of the lake at different times, the 
 variation of which takes place doubtless from rain and evapora- 
 tion. 
 
 According to my very intelligent informant, Mr. John Tinney, 
 of Liverpool, the eastern lip of the crater is three thousand five 
 hundred feet above the level of the sea, and there also the depth 
 from the lip to the surface of the lake in the crater is five hundred 
 feet, the circumference of the cauldron at the top is about three 
 
VIEW OP THE CHARIB COUNTRY — KING DANIEL. 159 
 
 miles: a cold mist commonly rests on the surface of the green, 
 slimy, and unfathomable water at the bottom; and so horrible is 
 the scene, that one almost expects to see the fiend rise *'on ebon 
 wing" from the surface of the dreary lake. 
 
 In a country where the mean fall of rain exceeds one hundred 
 inches, a funnel one mile in diameter must collect a great 
 quantity of water; and, owing to the dense fogs and the lower 
 temperature at the summit of tlie Souffriere, the evaporation 
 is much less than in the plain, while the fall of rain is greater. 
 
 The three peaks to the north of the crater are all of the same 
 height nearly, that is, four thousand feet above the sea. On one 
 of these Mr. Charles Parker, of Liverpool, a gentleman of con- 
 siderable scientific acquirements, observed the thermometer at 
 forty-five minutes past two p. m. on the 31st of July 1S24, when 
 clear, to stand at 69°; and when hazy at 70°; whilst about noon, 
 in the plain, it indicated 82° of heat. 
 
 From the Souffriere, when the day is clear, an extensive view 
 may be had of that wild region, the Charib country, now oc- 
 cupied by a mere handful of red Indians; formerly, there were 
 black as well as red Charibs in St. Vincent's, the former supposed 
 to be sprung from the survivors of a wrecked slave-ship. In 
 1791 the black Charibs revolted against the authority of the 
 English, and with the assistance of the French, maintained for 
 two years a desperate struggle with our troops, (among other 
 regiments engaged, was the 42d) till that doughty knight, Sir 
 Ralph Abercromby, finally subdued them — they were then re- 
 moved to Rattan Island. A sketch of the war is to be met with 
 in the pleasant work of Mr. F. W. N. Bailey, entitled "Four 
 Years in the West Indies." 
 
 The red Charibs who now remain in St. Vincent's, are in 
 number one thousand, including both sexes; they are an idle and 
 luxurious race, live in comfortable huts, cultivate their provision- 
 grounds, and barter fish and curious baskets for rum. Some time 
 ago they had a king, or chief called Daniel, a venerable patriarch, 
 who h!td a harem of five wives; he was short and thin, with an 
 olive complexion, prominent nose, straight hair, and wild fiery- 
 eyes — perhaps his majesty is still alive. 
 
 In walking along the brink of the crater it is necessary to 
 clamber over ridges covered with slippery moss, on a loose soil, 
 without a shrub to hold by, and a false step will send the adven- 
 turer rolling down into the Souffriere. After a mile and a half 
 (or half way round) is accomplished, the new crater is seen; it 
 lies to the southeast of the other, and if the mist is thick and a 
 breeze blowing, as is often the case, it is necessary to crawl 
 
160 PERILOUS DESCENT TO THE LAKE. 
 
 forwards on hands and knees, otherwise it is impossible to avoid a 
 fatal accident whilst looking into the lesser crater. 
 
 The two craters are separated only by a narrow ridge, or 
 saddle, which, though apparently impassable, a sailor once suc- 
 ceeded in crossing. The new crater is more of an abyss than its 
 neighbour, its sides are more rugged and frightful, but it is much 
 smaller at bottom, where is a mass of black ashes and sand, and 
 a little water of a red clayey hue; sometimes it is quite dry. 
 When the force of the last eruption was beginning to subside, 
 these ashes must have fallen back into the crater again. It was 
 not known till some time after tbat a new crater had been formed. 
 The earthquakes are supposed to have ceased on its formation, 
 by the free vent which was then given to the fused matter in the 
 bowels of the earth. 
 
 It is possible, but it is a perilous enterprise, to descend to the 
 surface of the lake in the great crater. It is necessary to slip 
 down rocks and gulleys, having only small projecting stones, 
 roots of grass and shrubs to hold by and to stand upon. A few 
 small plants are beginning to make their appearance, but what are 
 they to the rich scene which was presented in the time of the 
 historian of the West Indies, Edwards, when also the sweet notes 
 of a bird were heard, now no longer known ? 
 
 The rapid descent occupies about twenty minutes, and then 
 there is a small promontory which juts out a few yards into 
 the water. Here two friends stripped, and determined to bathe 
 in the appalling lake, with its slimy water of unfathomable 
 depth, they plunged into the abyss, but nothing could equal the 
 sensations which overwhelmed them on finding themselves in the 
 water, and on looking up and around them; the green and 
 brackish water chilled their bones, and a feeling of horror came 
 over them, when they considered they were in a vast and deep 
 cauldron enclosed with black and steep rocks, and over head the 
 sky. It seemed as if they were about to be swallowed up, and 
 they were not long in regaining the land; their ascent was difficult 
 and slow, and often they thought of giving up the attempt 
 through fatigue. Diverging from the proper path, which in- 
 creased the danger, and turning to the right, they were stopped 
 by a gulley; then to the left they clambered over ridges of sand, 
 and along shelving rocks; but at last reached the top in safety, 
 having performed a feat which none ever before attempted. 
 
 It is curious to observe a gust of wind whirling down into the 
 crater; it is observed by the mist descending upon the water, 
 which is twisted and tossed up into the air to some height. 
 
 At Langley Park, eight hundred and fifty feet above the level 
 
CONCLUSION. 161 
 
 of the sea, and below the Souffriere there fell, in 1822, 120.14 
 inches of rain. 
 
 There were dry days - - - 104 
 Wet do. - - - 261 
 
 365 
 
 Floods 40 
 
 Thunder showers .... 60 
 
 100 
 
 This, then, is a sketch of one of the most interesting mountains 
 in the world; at present it shows no symptoms of again vomiting 
 forth its destructive lava, but the day may not be far distant when 
 it will again send out its waving and admonitory pyramids of 
 smoke, and be shaken with earthquakes. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 Sail in His Majesty's brig Reindeer for Jamaica. — Our Passengers. — High Digni. 
 taries lightly spoken of. — Resuscitation of a Flying-fish. — A gallant Breeze. — St. 
 Domingo. — The Blue Mountains of Jamaica. — Anchor ofFPort Royal. — The great 
 Earthquake. — A Musquito Fleet. — Pleasure of Canoe-sailing. — The streets of 
 Kingston. — The Commander of the Forces. — Jeremiads. — An Anti-slavery News- 
 paper.. — Incendiaries. — Small-pox. — British and American Merchantmen com- 
 pared. — Bribery of Custom-house Officers. — British men-of-war in the Antilles. — 
 An accommodating Storekeeper. — The Barracks at Up Park Camp. — A Mill- 
 tary Funeral. — Effects on the Living. — The seasoning Fever. — The Yellow Fe- 
 ver not a contagious Disease. — Dr. Pinckard. — The Yaws and Cra-cra. — Draining 
 of Swamps neglected. — Treatment of Yellow Fever. — Public Buildings in Kings- 
 ton. — Markets and Hospitals. — The Native School. — Thoughts on Education. — 
 Excursion to the Mountains. — The great Lagoon. — A Coffee Estate. — The Battle 
 of the Bats. — View from the Mountains of Liguanea. — Spanish Town. — Lord 
 Belmore. — An Antiquary put to flight. — The order of Travellers. 
 
 One afternoon, when I was hesitating whether to go or stay 
 some days longer in St. Vincent's, with which I was quite fasci- 
 nated, His Majesty's packet brig Reindeer appeared round Old 
 Woman's Point, stood across the bay, backed her fore-top sail, 
 and sent a boat on shore with the mails. She was proceeding 
 direct to Jamaica; such an opportunity was not to be lost, so I 
 
 A. 
 
162 PASSENGERS IN THE REINDEER. 
 
 took a passage in her, shipped myself and baggage at half an hour's 
 notice, and we stood away into the Caribbean Sea. 
 
 Lieutenant Dickens, R.N. our commander, was a smart officer 
 and a perfect gentleman, so we had a pleasant time of it. Other 
 passengers we had — two ladies and two gentlemen; one of these 
 last was a youngster who had just been " cut adrift from his 
 mother's apron-string." Many were the tricks played upon him. 
 In crossing the Tropic the sailors proceeded to duck the green- 
 horns; our youth barricadoed himself in his cabin, and swore he 
 would complain to the Admiralty if they attempted to ill-use him. 
 " Complain to the Admiralty!" said a great hairy fellow of a 
 boatswain's mate; " by George! we would souse the Lords o' the 
 Admiralty themselves, if they were here, in a couple of shakes — 
 I'm d — d if we wouldn't." A flying-fish came in at a port one 
 morning, and young master greedily caught up the curiosity and 
 put it in his basin, thinkingto bring it alive again; a mischievous 
 dog watched when he went on deck, and laid it on his bed: he 
 turned in to take his afternoon's siesta, and on getting up he 
 made a great outcry on finding the fish smashed under him; but 
 he was pacified and consoled when told that his experiment had 
 succeeded, tlie fish had come to life and had flown out of the basin 
 into his bed! 
 
 Our packet had the usual defects of the old ten-gun brigs; very 
 crank, no breadth of beam, low between decks, and small hot 
 berths; but as we had eight and nine-knot breezes, clear skies, 
 and a lively sea sparkling in the sun or moon beams, we bowled 
 along gaily, with light hearts and elastic spirits. The usual tem- 
 perature of the air was eighty-three, and that of the sea eighty- 
 two in the month of July. 
 
 After a week's run we sighted afar ofi" the dim outline of part 
 of St. Domingo, and then the lofty mountains near Point Morant, 
 the eastern cape of Jamaica. It was a magnificent scene, this part 
 of the island; the Blue Mountains, eight thousand feet high, 
 towered above a stratum of clouds, and the rugged hills below them 
 were furrowed by ravines; we could see no level land, but the 
 steep clifis descended abruptly into the sea, on which were one 
 or two small coasting vessels. As we approached nearer, we ob- 
 served that the hills were not altogether barren, black forests 
 were upon their sides, and patches of bright emerald green, and 
 white houses, were seen as we ran along the south coast towards 
 Port Royal. 
 
 From Fort Nugent, conspicuous under a steep hill, to Port 
 Royal, there is a narrow spit of land, called the Palisades, com- 
 posed of sand overgrown with mangroves, studded with grave- 
 stones, and having a conspicuous pirate's gallows upon it. Behind 
 
PORT ROYAL. >«!: 163 
 
 this is the harbour of the capital; and Kingston itself was seen on 
 an extended plain, and somewhat after the manner of Port of 
 Spain, was encircled with mountains. We stood close in shore, 
 and saw coral banks quite close to us, over which an angry cur- 
 rent swept; we rounded to under the guns at Fort Point, almost 
 touching them with our lower studding-sail boom; our canvass 
 was quickly taken in, and we dropped anchor among a squadron 
 of men-of-war. Among other vessels was the Champion, eigh- 
 teen, in which I had returned from Burma five years before. 
 
 The present town of Port Royal, opposite to which we lay, is 
 now reduced to three or four streets and a few lanes ; at times 
 there is considerable bustle here, for it contains the navy-yard for 
 heaving down and refitting men-of-war, also barracks and an hos- 
 pital. Old Port Royal, which rose by piracy and the slave-trade 
 to be one of the wealthiest cities in the New World, was built on 
 a sandy stratum which rested on a rock; a dreadful earthquake 
 shook it with its inhabitants into the sea, and our anchor lay 
 among the ruins, which may be seen under the wave in a clear 
 day. 
 
 " The earth below 
 Gushed out in fire, and from the blazen sky, 
 And from tlie boiling seas such wrath did flow, 
 And saw not Shinar's plain or Babel's overthrow." 
 
 We had hardly come to an anchor when we saw a musquito fleet 
 of wherries and schooner-rigged canoes bearing down upon us 
 from Kingston, distant seven miles; the negro crews boarded us, 
 and then came the "tug of war" as to who should have the hon- 
 our and profit of conveying us to the capital. I placed my bag- 
 gage in a canoe, and stood away up the harbour; but I believe 
 there was more danger in this short run than on several voyages 
 across the Atlantic. The canoe carried a heavy press of sail, the 
 sea washed into us — the sea-breeze was very strong — the crew 
 belayed tlie sheet, negro fashion, and the gaf top-sail fins of blue 
 sharks might be seen cutting the wave near us; the hands sat on 
 the weather gunwale, and after several heavy lurches we " brought 
 up" at a wooden wharf in Kingston. 
 
 In walking through the long, straight, dusty, and hot streets of 
 Lower Kingston, I remarked that the houses were two-storied, 
 with verandahs "aloft and alow," and numerous stores, on the 
 doors of which was written in chalk, " Oats on sale, herrings, &c." 
 to show that fresh supplies had just arrived. A crowd of negro 
 boys ran past, dragging along by a string, with great shouting 
 and cruelty, an unfortunate guana; it turned and gaped at them 
 
164 TOWN OP KINGSTON ANTI-SI-AVERY NEWSPAPER. 
 
 like a young crocodile, when the cowards took to their heels. I 
 took shelter from the heat (90°) and stifling dust in the comforta- 
 ble lodgings of Madam Sabut, who had two buxom and lively 
 daughters. 
 
 I donned my uniform, and waited on Sir Willoughby Cotton, 
 the Commander of the Forces. The General's house (as well as 
 many others in the upper part of the city) was spacious and well 
 aired, the rooms were large and lofty, in the Madras style, and 
 there were pleasant gardens outside. An old friend. Captain Fin- 
 nucane, Assistant-Military-Secretary, started back when he saw 
 me, as if I had been an apparition; and I need n^ot say that I was 
 most hospitably entertained by the General, who for years had 
 moved in the gay circle at Carlton Palace. 
 
 In wandering among the West Indian islands last summer, it 
 was truly painful and distressing to hear the desponding tones of 
 the planters and merchants. I deeply sympathised with them, 
 for they did not complain without very good reason; still I felt 
 my own spirits sink with being continually in the house of lamen- 
 tation, and hearing constantly jeremiads. Thus I went into a 
 store in Kingston, belonging to one of the most respectable mer- 
 chants of the place; he said, " We were lately in a thriving way, 
 but the crisis which we long dreaded is now come. I would 
 willingly stay here, but incendiaries set the town on fire every 
 week — they can't be detected; and then again the saints at home 
 have established the Watchman Anti-Slavery newspaper; it has 
 not fifty subscribers in the colony, and to conduct and publish 
 such a paper requires £2000 per annum, so that it must be sup- 
 ported by our kind friends at home who seek our ruin: now if 
 we merchants, who mainly support the planters, leave the colony 
 for the United States, the planters' state will be bad indeed." 
 
 I afterwards saw the Mayor, and he said he had just offered 
 £1000 currency and freedom to any slave who would inform 
 against the incendiaries, who daily became more daring. Small 
 pox, too, afflicted this unfortunate city and its suburbs; one thou- 
 sand had perished in the last six weeks: I saw many funerals. 
 
 I strolled down to Kingston harbour, and was pleased to see 
 the crowd of shipping, that, notwithstanding the bad times, still 
 lay off' the town. Since the opening of the trade between the 
 British West India Islands and the United States, this year (1S31,) 
 I confess that I have experienced a painful sense of humiliation 
 in the West India ports the inferiority of the British merchant- 
 vessels to those of the United States: the former, from a certain 
 regulation of the custom-house, have no breadth of beam, their 
 masts or yards are neither taunt nor square, they are abominably 
 fvall-sided, consequently are very crank, and unable to carry a 
 
BRITISH AND AMERICAN MERCHANTMEN. 165 
 
 press of sail, except in the most moderate weather. The Ameri- 
 can merchantmen, on the other hand, have all the qualities of a 
 smart vessel, which the British want: true they may not stow so 
 much cargo in their holds, but they do not find it necessary to do 
 so. Would it cause a great loss of revenue to alter the above 
 regulation for admeasurement of British vessels? If our present 
 system is persevered in, the Americans, by quick runs between 
 port and port, will assuredly forestall us, and will contiually go 
 on injuring our trade, introducing their own manufactures, and 
 underselling us everywhere. 
 
 Another point connected with the Customs may be here noticed. 
 It is impossible to bribe American custom-house officers, because 
 they receive three dollars a day, whether employed or not on 
 board a vessel; at our ports, the custom-house officers receive 
 only 2*. Qd. when on board a vessel. In the West Indies they 
 are also very inadequately paid, and when they make a seizure 
 are not remunerated as they ought to be, and are often put to law 
 expenses for their trouble. I need not state the consequences of 
 all this. I was witness to an extensive smuggling transaction in 
 the West Indies (not in Jamaica,) where in open day a large 
 quantity of French wines and liquors was landed at no great dis- 
 tance from the custom-house wharf with perfect impunity. 
 
 I never contemplate a British man-of-war without "feeling an 
 increased warmth circulating through my veins — the conscious 
 pride of a Briton that, of all seamen in the world, those of Old 
 England are pre-eminent;" and yet, though I remarked on board 
 our men-of-war in the West, that the men were very effi- 
 cient, smart in their dress, and in a high state of discipline, and 
 also that the condition of the rigging and decks was very credita- 
 ble to all hands, I was mortified when I noticed the manner in 
 which the midshipmen were allowed to land with the "liberty 
 men." What must people have thought when they saw officers 
 of ships-of-war out at elbows, in green coats, and hats with part 
 of a brim? There is much need of reform here. 
 
 At Port Royal there was no society for the naval officers; l^e* 
 store and billiard-table of a Frenchman, Johnny Feron by name, 
 was the chief rendezvous. In the climate of the West Indies, 
 some cannot get through the day without sipping a little brandy 
 and water; so, after Johnny's visiters had been served, he would 
 call out to his negro boy, " Who call for grog, Tam ?" "Don't 
 know name, massa, little tall gentleman, tink." — "Well, put it 
 down to all to prevent mistakes." Johnny was indifferent about 
 marrying his three daughters to any decent man, but had no ob- 
 jection to dispose of them for a lieutenant's quarterly bill, or £27; 
 
166 MILITARY FUNERAL. 
 
 he was a wonderfully accommodating character, and made *<no 
 mistakes." 
 
 I visited, with Colonel Macleod, Assistant-Adjutant-General, 
 Fort Nugent and Rock Fort, defending the pass to the east of the 
 capital ; and tlien drove to the handsome and commodious bar- 
 racks at Up Park Camp. They are seated on a sloping plain at 
 some distance from town, and present a fine range of buildings 
 for the men, with comfortable quarters for the officers in front ; 
 behind them, at some distance, are the noble mountain ranges, 
 ridge above ridge, rising into the clouds ; on the grassy plain there 
 was scattered wood, and in the centre in front of the barracks 
 there was a solitary silk- cotton-tree, of venerable age, and paved 
 round, on which the band play in the evening in fine weather. 
 The Colonel pointed out a clear stream which ran past the bar- 
 racks, and which filled one of the largest and best swimming- 
 baths I ever saw, judiciously planned and perfected by Sir John 
 Keane ; seeing all this, and the open airy situation of the barracks, 
 I said, '< Surely there can be no disease here ?" when the wailing 
 notes of the Dead March in Saul, and the heavy tread of soldiers 
 with muskets reversed, accompanying an Assistant Surgeon of 
 the 33d regiment to the tomb; after a fatal attack of yellow fever, 
 soon convinced me of the contrary. At the foot of the mountains 
 in rear of the barracks, there are some pestilential swamps, which 
 ought to be surveyed, and drained without delay. 
 
 A militar}' fimeral at all times, with *' its slow music and so- 
 lemn parade" is an awfully impressive stene : — in this instance 
 it was doubly so, for the victim of the relentless destroyer had 
 braved, for several years, the climate of Sierra Leone and Cape 
 Coast, and, thinking himself perfectly safe in Jamaica, had im- 
 prudently exposed himself in the discharge of his duties, and died 
 after a residence of only six weeks in the colony. 
 
 In hot climates, where the body is more predisposed to disease 
 ^han in temperate climes, on witnessing the warlike honours paid 
 jto a deceased comrade, and hearing the "' thrice-volleyed farewell," 
 g%omy apprehensions, often attended with fatal consequences, 
 arc apt to occupy the minds of the beholder. As the poor doc- 
 tor's mortal remains were carried past the guard, I observed the 
 men turn out, and gaze on the heart-moving procession with looks 
 of despondency : — "And what," thought I, ''must be the feel- 
 ings oi the sick in hospital, on hearing the muffled drums and the 
 muskets at the grave, when those in health are so afiected by the 
 ceremonial ?" Soldiers ought not to be deprived of the usual 
 honorable obsequies of their calling ; but between the Tropics let 
 the procession be conducted in a different manner, and move by 
 aTctired road to the final resting-place. 
 
SEASONING FEVER. 167 
 
 Most Europeans who visit the West Indies have an attack of 
 seasoning fever, and it depends on their constitution and previous 
 habits whether the attack is a severe one or not. This fever is 
 the usual bilious one of Tropical climates, and is either intermit- 
 tent, remittent, or continued — the latter is the true yellow fever. 
 It may be taken as a general rule, that since nature has fitted man 
 for living in all climates, it depends generally on a person's own 
 precautions whether he escapes disease or not. In some situations, 
 all precautions are unavailing — with our greatest care we are at- 
 tacked by severe malady ; but in general, the source of our health 
 and happiness is at our own command. 
 
 Creoles and negroes are subject to intermittent fever ; Euro- 
 peans, who have resided some time in the West Indies, are com- 
 monly attacked with fever in the remittent form ; whilst the 
 healthiest and the strongest of the new comers are subject to the 
 continued or yellow fever. Of late years, however, yellow fever 
 in its most malignant form has not been prevalent in the British 
 West India Islands. 
 
 To prove that the yellow fever is not a contagious disease, creo- 
 lised or acclimated inhabitants of the Antilles are very seldom at- 
 tacked by it. Though strangers are liable to be seized by the en- 
 demic, yet, whether the yellow fever he contagious or not, it is 
 decidedly imprudent to approach a patient too nearly, whilst la- 
 bouring under it ; and from some experience of the cholera in 
 India, and the plague in Turkey, I may say the same of these in- 
 satiate devourers. 
 
 Dr. Pinckard, in his excellent notes on the West Indies, re- 
 marks, that it is not a law of contagion to make its attack upon 
 the most robust and vigorous people ; more commonly it assails 
 those of tender fibre, as, — for example, were any given number 
 of strong, healthy men, and the same number of children, to be 
 exposed at the same time to the influence of the contagion of small 
 pox, measles, or scarlatina, common observation inlbrms us that 
 the children would be found to be most susceptible of the impres- 
 sion, and attacked in the greatest number. But the very reverse 
 of this would be the case, were they to be exposed in a similar 
 manner to the cause producing the yellow fever — the men would 
 be found to be the most susceptible, and a greater proportion of 
 them would fall victims to the disease. 
 
 There is no doubt of the yaws and cra-cra (glandular and cu- 
 taneous diseases) being contagious disorders ; but these are princi- 
 pally confined to the negroes, and arise from impure living. 
 
 The season in which yellow fever is most prevalent is at the de- 
 cline of the wet season of the year. Whilst there is constant rain, 
 or constant sunshine, there is little of this disease. Newly-clear- 
 ed land, damp situations, and particularly salt marshes, or the 
 
168 DRAINING NEGLECTED — PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 
 
 mouths of rivers, generate yellow fever, — miasma, or an unwhole- 
 some exhalation from decayed vegetable substances, causing it to 
 attack individuals whose fibres are not sufficiently relaxed for a hot 
 climate. 
 
 I had occasion to remark before, that it is lamentable to see 
 how careless Europeans are in the West Indies of the soil near 
 their towns. For the convenience of commerce, a town will be 
 built near a deadly swamp; and if any one thinks it worth while 
 to drain the marsh, and convert it into sugar fields, the town will 
 be healthy ; if not fevers are continually prevalent. The mad 
 pursuit of wealth renders health quite a secondary consideration 
 among nations calling themselves civilized. 
 
 The yellow fever is always attended with a derangement of the 
 biliary system, and, consequently, the liver is affected. Bilious 
 vomiting is a usual symptom, (hence the Spanish name of the dis- 
 ease "el vomito negro,") then yellowness of the skin and eyes 
 in the last stage. 
 
 Formerly the yellow fever was treated in the same way as the 
 remittent, by the copious use of bark; but this has been found to 
 be quite fallacious. Mercury, blood-letting, and the bath, are 
 very efficacious in the early stages; and I heard of a Spanish doc- 
 tor who was very successful in his treatment of the disease by ad- 
 ministering a preparation from the juice of pine-apples. 
 
 Many of the fevers of the Antilles have a peculiar tendency to 
 afiect the brain, and the patients, though otherwise quite sensible 
 meditate self-destruction. Several instances have thus occurred 
 in which they succeeded in their fatal purpose. 
 
 " No holy man, with pious care, 
 O'er their poor relics breathed a prayer ; 
 No mourner graced them with a tear, 
 No funeral bell toll'd solemnly." 
 
 I visited the English and Scotch churches in Kingston: from 
 the steeple of the former, I had a most delightful and extensive 
 prospect of the city, the amphitheatre of mountains, and the mag- 
 nificent harbour. It is a useful memorandum for travellers, on 
 first arriving in a town, always to mount to the highest point in 
 it, so as to have a general idea of the topography; and afterwards 
 to visit the theatre, if there is one, to have a general idea of the 
 inhabitants. The English church in Kingston is handsomely fit- 
 ted up — gilding and scarlet in profusion, with marble monuments. 
 The Scotch is a neat circular building, but was what they call ''a 
 whistling kirk," that is, had the advantage of an organ. Some 
 of my puritanical countrymen think this a scandalous innovation, 
 and that musical instruments of any kind are an abomination in 
 
N \TIONAL SCHOOL THOUGHTS ON EDUCATION. 169 
 
 the church service, forgetting at the same time that << it is a good 
 thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto his 
 name upon an instrument of ten strings, upon the psaltery, and 
 upon the harp with a solemn sound." 
 
 I visited the markets, where there was the usual display of fish, 
 flesh, and fowl, fruits and vegetables. I then visited the hospital 
 for whites, and remarked that the patients were extremely crowd- 
 ed, and very little attention was paid to cleanliness. I saw a 
 young lady labouring under confluent small-pox, miserably ac- 
 commodated. I then visited the gaol ; in the outer court were 
 the debtors, in the second the felons, and in the third were the con- 
 demned cells; but though there were eiglity incarcerated alto- 
 gether, yet there had been no execution in Kingston for seven 
 years — which speaks volumes in favour of the population. 
 
 I next stayed two hours in the native school, and had a long 
 conversation with Mr. Reid, an enthusiastic teacher and intelli- 
 gent man, on the diflerent systems for developing the faculties of 
 youth; the system of Witherspoon, for infants, I saw tried here 
 with success, and that of Wood, or the interrogatory system. In 
 the boasted parish-schools in Scotland, I have often remarked, 
 that if the children read a chapter in the Bible with tolerable flu- 
 ency, they were considered perfect scholars. Wood's admirable 
 system is to make them not only read fluently, but also perfectly 
 to understand, by cross questioning and oral instruction, every 
 syllable they read. When children are taught foreign languages, 
 which ought never to be attempted till they thoroughly under- 
 stand their own, and can compose in it with facility, the Hamilto- 
 nian system, with interlinear translations, (whatever opposition it 
 ma)^ receive from teachers interested in retarding the progress of 
 youth,) I know from experience to be a royal short and easy 
 road to tlie acquisition of any tongue. Give a youth a taste 
 for learning by a rapid acquirement, in the first instance, of a 
 vocabulary (as it were) of words on the Hamiltonian plan, and 
 then teach the grammar. It is the same thing in music or draw- 
 ing: if a child is kept at the gamut for weeks, it gets a distaste for 
 music; but teach it to play or sing a simple air by any mechanical 
 means; and what was before disagreeable, becomes a delight: 
 again, if a child is kept sketching eyes, and mouths, and fingers, 
 for a long lime, it will naturally detest drawing; but teach it to 
 draw a little figure, and it will return eventually to the detail or 
 grammar with satisfaction. 
 
 I was anxious to visit Spanish Town, or St. lago de la Vega, the 
 ancient capital in the interior, also to see some of the estates, and 
 to ascend some of the mountain ranges; so one morning I mount- 
 ed in company with a Mr. Freckleton, and rode out of Kingston 
 Y 
 
170 THE GREAT LAGOON. 
 
 in the direction of Spanish Town, to the westward. On either side 
 of the road, hedged with logwood, were pleasant houses, at inter- 
 vals, with trees and gardens about them ; and a few planters from 
 the country passed us, behind whom were riding servants with 
 leather portmanteaus strapped on their saddles. There were some 
 old silk-cotton trees by the road side, under which negroes coming 
 into town were reposing in groups; and then we came to a great 
 lagoon, or salt marsh, at which there was an inn called the Ferry- 
 house. 
 
 The smell arising from the lagoon was heavy and sepulchral; 
 the breeze which swept over it seemed loaded with deadly fever, 
 and there were a few miserable-looking negroes fishing in places 
 clear of weeds. In passing through it on a raised road, and 
 sensible of the murky pestilential atmosphere I breathed, I was 
 reminded of those jungles in some parts of India, in travelling 
 through which for some days, or even hours, one may contract a 
 fever which it will be impossible ever to shake off; and again, I 
 thought this dreadful lagoon, within seven miles of Kingston, 
 was like some parts of Guinea, where the country is altogether 
 uncultivated, overflowed with water, "surrounded with thick 
 impenetrable woods, and overrun with slime ; where the air is so 
 vitiated, noisome and thick, that torches and candles burn dim, 
 and seem ready to be extinguished, and even the human voice 
 loses its natural tone." 
 
 After a short stop at the Ferry-house, we turned off to the right, 
 and rode up a valley with high rocks on either side, and ancient 
 fig-trees with bush-rope hanging from their branches, and aloes 
 and torch-thistles beneath them. We ascended for some hours 
 winding round the face of hills, and after a scrambling, and in 
 some places dangerous ride, we arrived at what is called a coffee 
 mountain. The beautiful coffee and pimento plants were set round 
 the summit, and on a level plateau was the manager's house, with 
 barbacues or terraces for drying the pods, and the pulper-mill in 
 which the berries are detached. A little below this were the 
 negro huts, with gardens about them, and palms overhanging 
 them; it was a perfect picture of a mountain plantation, and I en- 
 joyed it the more as the heat, which in Kingston was 90°, was 
 now at six in the evening at 70°. 
 
 I partook of mountain fare with the manager, coffee and plan- 
 tains, and attempted to read before going to bed, but a squadron of 
 bats flew into my room, dashed against my face, extinguished and 
 upset my light; and though I attempted to make play with a 
 short stick, and not a few drank the sherbet of death, yet at last 
 I was fairly driven under the quilt. A bat is a most unpleasant 
 visiter at all times, and especially in a sleeping room between the 
 
MOUNTAINS OF LIGUANEA. 171 
 
 tropics, where they are so large, have such sharp teeth, and really 
 delight in human blood. 
 
 I rose at five in the morning to enjoy a most glorious prospect 
 from an elevated peak of the mountain, where it is possible to see 
 nearly across the island, forty miles in breadth. A vast chain of 
 mountains run east and west throughout the length of Jamaica; 
 the country on the north side of the island (one hundred and fifty 
 miles long) rises at some distance from the sea into gentle hills, 
 with broad valleys between them ; the face of nature being clad 
 in a bright vesture of green, with scattered groves, and abundant- 
 ly watered with silver streams. Nearer the centre of (he island 
 are vast forests, dark and dense, and rising up the side of the 
 mountains, which lose themselves in the clouds at the height 
 of eight thousand feet above the level of the sea. Looking to- 
 wards the south, I saw the great plain of Liguanea and Kingston 
 near the sea, and saw how inaccessible the capital is to foreign 
 foes. The range of mountains on which I stood, formed a semi- 
 circle behind Kingston, and fell suddenly into the sea on its left, 
 where Rock Fort guarded the narrow pass; then on the right was 
 the great lagoon, far more impenetrable than the marshes of New- 
 Orleans, and running up from the sea to the base of the moun- 
 tains, so that no enemy could approach by land, except after 
 overcoming countless natural obstacles, neither could he approach 
 by sea, for the guns of Port Royal would sink any fleet that at- 
 tempted to pass into the harbour formed by the long spit of the 
 palisades. 
 
 After enjoying myself for some time on the higlilands of Li- 
 guanea, breathing a pure air, and feeling enlivened and spiritual- 
 ized as it were, as all do when raised above the gross vapours of 
 the plains and the still grosser and insatiable pursuits of lucre, I 
 descended and rode towards Spanish Town. After passing some 
 sugar estates and cattle-pens, and crossing an iron bridge over the 
 Cobre river, I rode through many dull streets, in which there 
 were few moving objects, and then came suddenly on a handsome 
 square, in which were the palace of the Governor, the courts and 
 public offices, and in an open temple a statue of Lord Howe. 
 Afer a survey of the town and public buildings, which I need 
 not stop to describe, I returned to Kingston. 
 
 Lord Belmore, the Captain-General, did not reside in his palace 
 at Spanish Town, but at a country-house some distance off, in one 
 of those healthy situations so abundant in this rich and favoured 
 isle; where, if the heat of the plains debilitates the frame, the 
 mountain is at hand where the fruits of Europe flourish, and where 
 a blanket may be used throughout the year. ''May the graves 
 
172 AN ANTIQUARY PUT TO FLIGHT. 
 
 of those be defiled, and their fathers burnt," who wish to cut ofif 
 this island from the possessions of our noble country! 
 
 Whoever has heard of M. le Comte Forbin, Directeur-General 
 des Musecs en France, must remember the dreadful blow which 
 Lord and Lady Belmore, when travelling in Egypt, unwittingly 
 inflicted on the sensitive feelings of M. le Comte. According to 
 his own story, Forbin (making mountains of mole-hills and oceans 
 of rivulets) had succeeded with great difficulty in reaching The- 
 bes, and was revelling, like Marius at Carthage, in all the luxury 
 of meditation on the revolutions of the past, as exemplified by the 
 stupendous ruins which were piled around him; when " figurez 
 son-etonnement," on seeing tripping along the banks of the Nile, 
 unconsciousness of the classic soil on which she trod being con- 
 taminated by her presence, " une femme de chambre Anglaise, 
 portante un parasol vert et habillee en spencer colour de rose!" 
 This dreadful apparition, it appeared, was an attendant upon Lady 
 Belmore, who was returning from Nubia. In a moment it dis- 
 pelled all the Count's glorious visions of the past, and despairing 
 of being able to gain any scientific knowledge where there were 
 English femmes-de-chamhre^ he returned from whence he came, 
 to Cairo. Now, that is the Count's version of this affair; hear 
 another, and judge which is the true one, discriminating reader. 
 Lord Belmore certainly met M. Forbin at Thebes, but her Lady- 
 ship and all the females of her party had laid aside European dres- 
 ses and adopted the Turkish, as better suited to the climate, and 
 rendering the wearers less objects of remark than if they were at- 
 tired in their usual manner; consequently the " spencer coleurde 
 rose" was an invention of Forbin's flowery pen. However, For- 
 bin considering, as men usually do who, after passing their me- 
 ridian, for the first time " take the road," that he had performed 
 miracles in travelling as far as Thebes, on finding that ladies had 
 penetrated into Nubia, and thought his journey but a very trivial 
 one, felt unwilling to encounter the fatigues of a longer tour when 
 he could not boast of being the first explorer of those regions, 
 and so preferred returning to La Belle France, and talking of 
 what he did and what he did not see. 
 
 But in Egypt there is really much to disgust a romantic 
 traveller. Conceive his indignation on reading, in large letters, 
 the name of a celebrated London quack in the catacombs; or 
 "Warren's Blacking, 30, Strand;" on the pyramid of Cheops. 
 The hand that produced this miserable wit was probably directed 
 by a mind belonging to that class who disgrace the order of 
 travellers. I remember one of these who hadjbeen << a young man 
 about town," and who had travelled in Georgia and Persia; he 
 was met in South Russia dressed in a swallow-tailed coat and 
 
SOIL OF THE WEST INDIA ISLANDS. 173 
 
 lightish continuations, and was asked what he had seen, "Oh! 
 d — d barren countries; I went to the Caspian, and saw the fires 
 at Bakoo; (where were the altars of the Guebres, or fire-worship- 
 pers,) but you may see as good any day when they hght the gas 
 in Piccadilly." Now M. le Comte Forbin, I am sure, would 
 willingly have assisted in ducking this character, for presuming 
 to visit scenes hallowed by historical recollections of surpassing 
 interest, and after all affecting to treat them lightly. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 Summary account of the treatment of Slaves under British Masters. — A proud re- 
 flection. — West Indians harshly judged. — The soil of the British West India 
 Islands is not utterly exhausted. — The Writer expresses his regret. — Real state of 
 Negroes has been often described. — Comforts, labour, and jjunishnieiits, of the 
 Slaves. — How the friends of Negroes ought to act. — Unsuccessful Experiments. 
 — Superior class of Managers and Overseers. — Negroes sometimes refuse free- 
 dom. — The members of Anti-slavery Societies. — Are Negroes to be exempt from 
 labour ? — Effects of violent Emancipation in St. Dimingo. — Violent language 
 used by a Clergyman. — Formerly Slaves were much attached to their Masters. 
 — Negro Preachers. — Last year was a fatal one for West India Proprietors. — A 
 common-sense View of Slavery ought to be taken. — Advice to the Colonists. 
 
 It is a proud reflection for a Briton, that England was the last 
 to engage in the slave-trade, and the first to abandon it; and that, 
 to induce other nations also to abandon it, and to suppress, by 
 every means in her power, the unhallowed traffic, she has ex- 
 pended men and treasure to a great amount. The feelings of the 
 nation being decidedly adverse to slavery, it is impossible to 
 believe that many of her sons, though holding slaves, will 
 wantonly ill use them, or consider it justifiable to hold them in 
 hopeless bondage from father to son. They do not — but, of late 
 years, the West India proprietors have been constantly held up 
 to scorn and reproach, and it has been gravely stated by the 
 leaders of the faction with which they have to contend, that since 
 they have possessed slaves for many years, and enjoyed the 
 fruits of their labours, they should now emancipate them without 
 compensation, in other words, reduce themselves to the state of 
 paupers. Already the increasing agitation of the slave question 
 has caused the loss of confidence with the merchant, (who sup- 
 plies stores for estates and receives the produce,) and the great 
 depreciation of property. 
 
 The soil of the British West India Islands is not utterly 
 
174 ^ COMPORTS OP SLAVES. 
 
 exhausted, as some people wish to make it appear to be. True, 
 Barbadoes and some of the longest settled islands do not raise the 
 heavy crops of cane they used lo do; still with the assistance of 
 manure they produce good crops, and if more attention were paid 
 to draining swamps, these verdant and picturesque islands might 
 be rendered perfectly healthy, and Elysian retreats for those who 
 have been harshly used by fortune in the mother country. They 
 will always produce abundantly the necessaries of life; and as to 
 the islands of Trinidad and British Guiana, they are yet but very 
 partially cultivated, and surpass in fertility any part of the 
 British possessions, not excepting the fruitful valley of the 
 Ganges. 
 
 But it is now to be stated how negroes are treated by British 
 planters, since we have endeavoured to show how hard their 
 fate is when subjected to other masters; however, before I sum- 
 marily describe the present condition of British slaves, I must 
 express my unfeigned regret of having been obliged to expose the 
 conduct of Christian people in treating of slaves under Dutch, 
 Portuguese, and French masters; I shall afterwards have occasion 
 to describe the condition of Spanish and American slaves. It is 
 considered a proof of an uncharitable disposition to take pleasure 
 in lowering the character of our neighbours, and I have submitted 
 the statements in Chapter V. to the public with the greatest re- 
 lutance, a sense of duty alone compelling me to do it, for I do not 
 see how I can better serve my country and the British colonists 
 in the west, than by giving a comparative state of Transatlantic 
 slavery; and I will not shrink from the task which I have 
 voluntarily undertaken, whatever construction may be put on my 
 motives. 
 
 Many books, and pamphlets without number, have been writ- 
 ten, to show that the negroes in the British West India Islands, 
 as far as creature-comforts (to use a homely phrase) are concerned, 
 are infinitely better offthan the bulk of the labourers and mechan- 
 ics in Great Britain and Ireland. Churches and schools are now 
 everywhere throughout the West Indies, and I have heard plan- 
 ters say, that they imagine the only check on the slaves rising 
 and massacreing the whites is, "that they are prevented by reli- 
 gion being so extensively diffused among them." It is the inte- 
 rest of the planter to use his servants well, and public opinion, if 
 he is not actuated by conscientious motives, prevents his opposing 
 the mental instruction of his negroes; so that, in general, British 
 slaves are comfortably clothed, well-fed, well lodged, not over- 
 worked, lightly punished, (now commonly with the tread-mill,) 
 have the best medical advice, often the half of Saturday, and al- 
 ways the whole of Sunday, and many schools are preparing the 
 
UNSUCCESSFUL EXPERIMENTS. 175 
 
 rising generation for gradual and eventual emancipation — What 
 more is required ? 
 
 Those who wish well to the slaves might employ their money 
 to great advantage, by subscribing to establish more schools than 
 there are at present for young negroes, where they could also 
 be taught trades; and if they would assist the planters (who have 
 been impoverished by the outcry that has been raised against them) 
 to build churches and support their clergymen, they would effec- 
 tually promote the cause of philanthropy and religion. 
 
 I will now give a proof of the difficulty of regeneratinsi; adult 
 negroes, who have been for some time slaves. Miss Frances 
 Wright, a lady of Scotch parentage, but now an American citi- 
 zen, and lately a peripatetic lecturer on popular education, &c. 
 sometime ago gave much attention to the subject of American 
 negro slavery, and attempted experiments inbehalf of her colour- 
 ed brethren. She saw that negro slavery was the great stain on 
 the national honour of the States, and for four years, in the most 
 disinterested manner, devoted her time and fortune to a race who 
 seemed to be "outcast from hope;" she purchased a tract of land 
 near Meniphis, on the Mississippi, and several coloured families, 
 and hoped by means of her people, " to evince the practicability 
 of making their labour work out the price of their emancipation:" 
 but she was miserably deceived. Her negroes were very com- 
 fortably fed, clothed, and lodged, were fat and sleek, but like the 
 free negroes of Antigua, as described by Coleridge, intolerably 
 idle and dissipated, so that at last, in IS. '9, their benevolent mis- 
 tress, harassed into illness by over-exertion, repeated ^disappoint- 
 ments, and great loss of property, removed them to Hayti, and 
 there gave them their freedom, fearing that, if manumitted in the 
 States, they might be kidnapped, and return to their original 
 bondage. Seveial New Orleans planters complained to me, that 
 it was a great pity to see such able-bodied people leave the coun- 
 try when there was so great a demand for slave labour; of course 
 I heartily condoled with them! 
 
 The difficulty of finding employment for young men of re- 
 spectability at home, causes many of a superior class to visit the 
 West Indies, to obtain the situation of manager, or overseer, on 
 estates. Formerly Europeans, of low caste, were emploj'ed on 
 estates, from whose ignorance and unfeeling disposition not much 
 lenity might be expected towards the slaves; but the case is now 
 altered. 
 
 I have seen slavery in the East Indies and in Russia, besides 
 having just viewed it in various parts of the West, and was sum- 
 moned to give evidence on the Slave question before a Committee 
 of the House of Lords, therefore I ought to know something about 
 
176 EFFECTS OF VIOLENT EMANCIPATION. 
 
 it, — and really I cannot conceive a situation more comfortable for 
 a human being who has never tasted freedom, and whose mind is 
 uncultivated, than that of negroes under British masters in the 
 West Indies: every thing is found them, and "they have no care 
 for the morrow." Negroes, above forty years of age, constantly 
 refuse freedom when it is offered them, " because," they say, 
 *' we are unable to take care of ourselves." Little, therefore, 
 can be done for the present race of adult negroes; their progeny 
 only ought to be prepared for manumission. 
 
 No one has a higher esteem than the writer, for the great mass 
 of those who join anti-slavery societies: their motives are excel- 
 lent, but they are led to give their sanction to unwise and even 
 cruel measures, by fanatics, individuals interested in a different 
 market from that of the West Indies, or by the ambitious, who 
 merely use the slave question as a handle to popularity. To ask 
 the proprietors of negroes to emancipate their slaves without com- 
 pensation, is as reasonable a request as to solicit the fundholders 
 to give up their capital for the payment of the national debt. 
 Let the abolitionists place themselves in the situation of the plan- 
 ters, and then ask themselves how they would act. 
 
 Are negroes to be exempted from the common lot of humanity — 
 labour? " No," reply the abolitionists, <'but they ought to labour 
 for their own support, not to enrich their master." Very true; 
 but first give them the inclination and means to support them- 
 selves by instruction, mental and manual, and then emancipate 
 them. What have been the effects of violent emancipation in St. 
 Domingo ? — agriculture and commerce nearly at an end; murder 
 and debauchery stalking hand in hand through that fertile island; 
 and at this moment the heads of departments are not negroes, but 
 men of colour. 
 
 No feasible or well-digested plan has yet been proposed for 
 emancipating negro slaves. The present enlightened Government, 
 which is strongly inclined to act with a liberal policy to all, is con- 
 fused with the wild clamour for immediate manumission of slave- 
 ry ; and so unfeeling and senseless are the most violent of the 
 abolitionists, that a minister of the Gospel declared publicly at 
 an anti-slavery meeting a short time ago : — ''In order that the 
 negroes may be instantly freed, I care not if the blood of the 
 whites flow in streams, and England lose all the colonies where 
 human beings are held in bondage." Such was the language of a 
 preacher of peace ! 
 
 Still, I confess that on one or two occasions I was also provok- 
 ed by exhibitions of great perversion of feeling on the part of 
 slave-owners; men who inveighed against all protection of slaves 
 by Government ; who said that fourteen or fifteen hours of daily 
 
SLAVES ATTACHED TO THEIR MASTERS. 177 
 
 labour were nothing to slaves ; that the planters were the best 
 judges of the number of holidays to give their people ; that bon- 
 dage in the West Indies, under an European master, was a great 
 advance towards civilization ; that the slaves, by being placed un- 
 der Europeans, had an example set them to imitate, and that, 
 without any other trouble being taken with them, they would gra- 
 dually but surely be prepared for emancipation, or at least their 
 children would. No doubt, those who talked in this way were 
 provoked by the nonsense spoken by their opponents, and there 
 is some apology for them ; but there were few who expressed 
 themselves as above, or who used insulting language towards 
 Great Britain. 
 
 Formerly it was gratifying to see the interest which the sable 
 retainers in a family took in the affairs of their master and mis- 
 tress. The mansion, and every thing appertaining to it was en- 
 trusted to their care, and they were faithful to their charge ; since, 
 however, certain ''busy bodies, meddling with the concerns of 
 others to do good," have commenced their operations, the former 
 race of domestics has been converted into one, the individuals of 
 which think it their duty to cheat, rob, and even murder their 
 proprietors. It was only in September last that fifty white wo- 
 men and children in Virginia were massacred in cold blood by ne- 
 groes. 
 
 The writer is not one of those who maintain that negroes are 
 naturally inferior beings, and ought to be treated as such. He 
 has listened with wonder and delight to negro preachers, and seen 
 negroes labouring hard, under every disadvantage, to learn to 
 read ; whoever, therefore, advocates perpetual slavery for his 
 African brethren, from father to son, is a monster inhuman shape. 
 
 This year has been particularly fatal to the West Indies ; dread- 
 ful hurricanes have passed over them, with destruction on their 
 wings, and ruined thousands. In June we saw Barbadoes smil- 
 ing with pleasant residences, shadowed by the richest tropical 
 foliage, and the whole island cultivated like a beautiful garden : in 
 August it was lying waste and desolate. A fearful hurricane, ex- 
 ceeding in violence the great storm of 1780, had swept across it, 
 like the breadth of the destroying angel ; the sound of lamenta- 
 tion was heard on every side, and the air was loaded with corrup- 
 tion from thousands of men and beasts violently deprived of life 
 under the ruins of their habitations. Then came the revolt and 
 burnings in Jamaica. 
 
 But I must draw towards a conclusion. Since we have endea- 
 voured to show that foreigners have done little or nothing to ame- 
 liorate the condition of their slaves, while British proprietors have 
 done, and are doing, all in their power to render their situation 
 Z 
 
178 ADVICE TO COLONISTS. 
 
 comfortable ; it might be suggested to those who are continually 
 looking abroad with ''telescopic eye," to take down the glass for 
 a time, and contemplate with their "natural optics" the state of 
 our suffering population in the " old country ;" or if they will 
 meddle with West India affairs, let them take a common-sense 
 view of the question of slavery, and discuss it with feelings of 
 charity and Christian benevolence towards their countrymen, who 
 depend for subsistence on the beautiful isles of the Antilles. 
 
 One word to the colonists. In submitting a plain statement of 
 your case to the government, the use of intemperate language 
 will not be advisable, and to threaten separation from the mother 
 country is madness, which would eventually, if effected, be bit- 
 terly repented of; for as long as Britain maintains her naval su- 
 periority, it would be vain for islands to attempt to detach them- 
 selves from her. Stand by your native land, then, at all risks, 
 and bear up patiently a little longer against the tide which strives 
 to overwhelm you. Your grievances will doubtless be listened 
 to by the paternal government of a Monarch who is in truth the 
 father of his people, and eventually ample justice will be render- 
 ed you. In the mean time, do not give way to despondency, but 
 buoy yourselves up with the sjjes melioris sevi — the hope of bet- 
 ter times. 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 Sail in His Majestj^'s frigate Blanche for Cuba. — Jamaica by moonlight. — The Pedro 
 Plains. — Trial of skill between the Blanche and Shannon. — The great Cayman. — 
 Cape St. Antonio. — Heavy Gales. — The iron-bound coast of Cuba. — A fragrant 
 Breeze. — Exciting anticipations. — The Moro Castle. — The Punta. — The Harbour 
 and city of Havannah. — The Salute. — Land. — Characters on the Quay. — The 
 Plaza de Armas. — Wait on the Captain General. — Leave Havannah. — Slave 
 Ships. — Drive to Guanabacoa.— A Volante. — Cuba Roads. — The Country. — His 
 Britanic Majesty's Commissioner. — Panoramic View. — Murders in Ferry-boats. 
 — Police of Havannah. — Moorish Scene. — Pleasant situation for English Ladies. 
 —The Cathedral.— The Tomb of Columbus.— Reflections.— A Relic. 
 
 His Majesty's frigate Blanche, 44 guns, commanded by Com- 
 modore Farquhar, K.C.B., an officer highly distinguished in his 
 country's service, was proceeding to the Havannah, and I was 
 kindly offered a passage in her; accordingly, on a calm night in 
 the end of July, I placed my baggage in a canoe, and was paddled 
 down the harbour of Kingston to Port Royal. 
 
PEDRO PLAINS — CAPE ST. ANTONIO. 179 
 
 The sea reposed in beauty in the moonlight, but a dark canopy 
 of clouds hung over the mountains of Jamaica; the sky wore a 
 portentous aspect, for it was the hurricane season ; men-of-war 
 and merchantmen were flying for safety to more secure ports 
 than those exposed to the influence of these awful tempests. Af- 
 ter an hour's voyage I came alongside the noble frigate; I trod 
 her silent decks, and then turned into a cot in an airy berth, con- 
 gratulating myself on m}'- good fortune. 
 
 We weighed anchor at four in the morning, with the Shannon 
 in company; stood to the westward, and passed before long the 
 singular rocks called the White Horses, the Pedro Shoals, and 
 Pedro Bh]fl'. Bcliind this last are beautiful undulating plains of 
 dark red soil, covered luxuriantly with herbage, with clumps of 
 trees dispersed over them; here thousands of cattle and horses 
 graze. It is said, that for beauty of prospect, for purity and 
 dryness of air, and a climate exempt from either extremes of heat 
 and cold, the Pedro Plains of Jamaica may vie with any spot on 
 the habitable globe. 
 
 The two frigates held on their way leisurely, with a five-knot 
 breeze, and a trial of skill took place between the respective 
 crews in the evening; all hands were piped to reef topsails, in a 
 moment the shrouds were covered with active and eager young 
 fellows, waiting for the command ''away aloft;" when given, 
 they sprang on the yards, drew up with vigorous arm the heavy 
 canvass, reefed it, and then slid down on deck, quick as light- 
 ning: we beat the Shannon. 
 
 Next day we saw the Great Cayman Island, long and low, 
 thirty miles by six, covered with wood, dotted with houses, and 
 containing three thousand inhabitants. We stood towards it for 
 turtle, and saw the wreck of a brig on shore; then half a dozen 
 canoes came off, with mulatto and negro crews, bringing with 
 them turtle of all sizes at seven pence the pound, pigs, fowls, and 
 variegated shell. After making what purchases we wanted, we 
 steered a north north-west course, and the Shannon left us for 
 Honduras. 
 
 We had pleasant breezes till we reached Cape St. Antonio, in 
 Cuba, and then we had some heavy gales, when we turned our 
 head to the eastward : the topsails were closely reefed, the gallant 
 ship pitched heavily in the troubled sea, and the green waves 
 came rolling in over her bows. It looked as if there was to be a 
 repetition of the peril in which the Blanche had been placed last 
 year nearly in the same place — the dreadful entrance of the Gulf 
 of Floridas. Then she lost all her masts by the board, some 
 hands were washed out of her, and the crew were proceeding to 
 throw the guns overboard, when the gale moderated. 
 
ISO EXCITING ANTICIPATIONS. 
 
 With considerable difficulty we approached the north coast of 
 Cuba, after a week's sail from Jamaica, and saw it stretching out 
 low and flat, with palm trees waving in the sea-breeze and some 
 hills of no great elevation in the interior. We neared the rocky- 
 shore, and observed the solitary huts of the free coloured people 
 scattered about in the country, near patches of maize and groups 
 of palm, tamarind, and orange trees; and on the right of the pic- 
 ture was the light-house tower of the Moro Castle, at the entrance 
 of the harbour of the Havannah. 
 
 We lay off and on from the dawn till the sea-breeze set in; the 
 gentle gale which was wafted towards us over the land was loaded 
 with a spicy and exotic fragrance, recalling to mind the air scen- 
 ted with the sweet odours of Araby the blest. 
 
 " See yon fair groves that over Yemen rise, 
 And with their spicy breath embalm the skies, 
 Wiiere every breeze sheds incense o'er the vales, 
 And every shrub the scent of musk exhales." 
 
 Several other vessels lay near us, like the expectants at the 
 pool of Bethesda, at last the fresh and steady breeze, driving be- 
 fore it fleecy clouds, wooed our sails, and we steered for the cele- 
 brated Moro. 
 
 I could not help feeling much pleasing excitement at the pro- 
 spect before me; I was about to see the most important and in- 
 teresting city in the West Indies, the key of the glorious island 
 of Cuba, which is within an eighth as large as England: I was 
 about to view a city which, on account of its noble harbour and 
 favourable site for commerce, has accumulated great wealth, and 
 is peopled by a strange mixture of inhabitants: I was about to wit- 
 ness the head-quarters and grand rendezvous of pirates and slavery : 
 1 was about to visit the scene of the triumph of the arms of Eng- 
 land, when the island fell before the prowess of our troops in 
 1762; and above all, I was about to stand beside the bones of the 
 great Columbus. 
 
 We reached the long and narrow entrance of the harbour, 
 widening out into a basin capable of containing a thousand men 
 of war, and passed close under the guns and rock of the Moro. 
 High over the massive walls and battlements waved the golden 
 and red standard of Spain, and many gay pennants fluttered from 
 no fewer than four signal staffs, bespeaking the great number of 
 vessels that were crowding to the rich western mart. 
 
 On the opposite side of the entrance of the harbour was the 
 castle of the Punta, a regular work of four bastions, also mount- 
 ing heavy guns; and on looking up we saw, on each side of the 
 long entrance to the harbour, battery behind battery, and then 
 the walls of the city itself. The shipping was thus completely 
 
HARBOUR OF HAVANNAfl. 181 
 
 Secure against a hostile fleet, for only one vessel can enter at a 
 time, and a fleet attempting to pass would be sunk in detail. 
 
 Over the walls were seen the gay and crowded buildings of the 
 city, white houses and deep red roofs, pillar and pinnacle, terrace 
 and balcony, towers and domes, intermixed with trees which rose 
 in picturesque confusion; on every church a flag was displayed, 
 and the bells sent forth their peals, for it was a saint's day. Im- 
 mediately in front, were seen the masts of two hundred mer- 
 chantmen, lying with their bows to the wharfs, for there was not 
 room for them otherwise; and tent boats with painted canvass 
 awnings, and others loaded to the gunwale with the most deli- 
 cious fruit of every variety, approached us as we dropped our 
 anchor under the Moro. 
 
 A voice from the watch-tower above then hailed us, and de- 
 manded our nation, and from whence we came; and then the 
 Spanish soldiers, with their dark complexions and high caps, 
 crowded on the parapets to gaze at the English man-of-war, 
 which fired a salute of fifteen guns in compliment to the Spanish 
 Admiral (Saborde). The custom house cutter, and then the health- 
 boat, came alongside with negro crews, and the national flag at 
 the stern; and though we had come from Jamaica, in which the 
 small-pox was raging, we were not prevented from landing. 
 
 I put on my uniform, and accompanied one of the Lieutenants 
 on shore, to wait on the Captain General (Vives), and announce 
 the arrival of the frigate. We pulled up to the custom-house 
 quay, and the moment we stepped on shore, we found ourselves 
 in the midst of a bustling scene. The wharfs were crowded with 
 piles of merchandize and barrels of provisions; crowds of half 
 naked blacks, shouting and singing, were loading and unloading 
 the vessels; shipowners and shipmasters were standing in groups, 
 with broad-brimmed Panama hats, and striped linen coats, talk- 
 ing of sugar, coffee, and flour; the fumes of cigars rose on every 
 side, particularly from the seamen out of employ, and I thought I 
 could detect a pirate or two, or the captain of a slaver walking 
 about, regarding with piercing eye the men who might be fit in- 
 struments for their unholy purpose. 
 
 A portly personage addressed us in broken English, and asked 
 if we wished to wait on Governor Vives; we replied in the affir- 
 mative, and he oflered to conduct us to his palace. We followed 
 him through a narrow street, where our olfactories were saluted 
 with the odour of jerked or dried beef, and fish imported for the 
 sustenance of the blacks, and then found ourselves in a handsome 
 square, called the Plaza de Armas. The buildings which sur- 
 rounded it were lofty and substantial; verandahs ran along their 
 front, and the roofs were concealed by parapets, on which were 
 
1S2 CITY OP HAVANNAH. 
 
 rows of urns. The centre of the square was laid out in walks 
 between flowering shrubs, and the whole air of the place inspired 
 the idea of wealth and luxury. 
 
 The Governor's palace occupied one side of the square, and 
 we passed through its lower piazza, occu])ied as an exchange by 
 the merchants; whence, receiving from the guards in blue and 
 silver uniform a salute, we ascended a broad marble staircase, and 
 entered a suite of apartments, the walls of which were painted in 
 the Moorish style, with wreaths of flowers, recalling to mind the 
 glorious Alhambra. In an inner chamber, on the walls of which 
 hung portraits of the different governors of the Havannah, and 
 two large historical paintings, one representing Columbus' first 
 landing in Cuba to plant the cross and perform mass, the other 
 Cortes burning his ships, to show his followers that there was no 
 retreat for them from Mexico, we found General Vives. He was 
 seated on a gilded sofa, and rose to receive us; he was a short, stout 
 man, with grey hair and dark complexion, and wore a commoa 
 shupa, or coat, of blue and white striped gingham, white waistcoat 
 and trowsers. Beside him were his two daughters, charming 
 little Seiioritas, in yellow gowns, and high tortoise-shell combs. 
 
 The General was very polite, said he should be happy to receive 
 Commodore Furquhar, and, after a good deal of discussion about 
 a complimentary salute, we took leave. I had an introduction to 
 Mr. Macleay, his Britannic Majesty's Commissioner in Cuba for 
 the adjudication of slaves; he lived in the country, some distance 
 from Havannah, and his secretary and assistant, Mr. Jackson, a 
 young man of excellent ability and most gentlemanly manners, 
 kindly offered to take me witli him; we accordingly stepped into 
 a boat and rowed across the broad harbour. We passed three 
 Spanish men-of-war, apparently in good order, for Admiral Sa- 
 borde has a high character, both as a man and as a naval officer, and 
 saw under the walls of Cassa Blanca (white castle) the long and 
 rakish-looking black hulls of numerous slavers. It is here they 
 fit out with perfect impunity, and vvitii the knowledge of the au- 
 thorities; and I could not help reflecting what a mockery it 
 was in the Spaniards agreeing to abolish the slave-trade, when 
 here I saw it openly permitted. T\vent)'-four pounder car- 
 ronades peeped from the ports of the slavers, and long eighteen 
 pounders, or swivels, were amidships. They were schooner- 
 rigged, and were mostly built after the model of the Baltimore 
 clippers, the fastest vessels in the world, with masts like the 
 ears of a vicious horse thrown back on its neck. 
 
 We landed at Regla, on the opposite side of the harbour to the 
 capital, and a mile and a half from it. Regla is the Blackwall of Ha- 
 vannah, situated on a low and swampy shore, and inhabited by pi- 
 
DRIVE TO GUANABACOA— ^PANORAMIC VIKW. 183 
 
 rates, slavers, and vagabonds of all kind. We then took our seat 
 in a volante, to drive to Guanabacoa, the summer resort of the 
 aristocracy of Havannah. A volante is one of the most singular 
 vehicles I ever saw; the body of it is like that of a large cabriolet 
 slung on leathers; enormous wheels, as high as the hood of the 
 machine, are at one end of the shaft, and the horse is yoked to 
 the other end, some distance from the body, which swings be- 
 tween them. In the city volante, the negro postilion sits on the 
 horse between the shafts; but in the one we mounted, he rode on 
 an additional horse attached to an out-rigger on the near side. 
 Our Calasero was a most singular figure; on his head he wore a 
 straw hat a yard high; a blue hussar jacket with gold lace covered 
 his upper man, and his legs were cased in jack-boots, with a pair 
 of massive silver spurs. Seated on the volante, we were screen- 
 ed from the glare by a blue curtain in front. We drove through 
 Regla at a rapid rate, and soon ascertained the meaning of the 
 high wheels of the conveyance. 
 
 The roads or tracks in Cuba are quite in a natural state, tliat is, 
 they are not made or repaired: the only regulation regarding 
 them is, that they shall be sixteen yards wide. Here, they were 
 furrowed in gullies by the rains; and there, huge rocks lay upon 
 them. We descended and ascended these impediments in safety, 
 owing to our peculiar wheels; and even in the streets of Regla, 
 where an English carriage could not have advanced ten yards 
 without upsetting, we dashed over the ruts, and sunk into the 
 mud to the axle with perfect impunity. 
 
 The country round the Havannah was once covered with in- 
 genios, or plantations; but the old soil being exhausted, the fresh 
 soil of the interior is now sought, on which to raise sugar and 
 coffee. The landscape on each side of the road was therefore 
 bare, and was covered with scanty vegetation, with occasional 
 patches of maize and palm trees, in groups. Our road was gently 
 ascending till we reached the rocky sitd of Guanabacoa. The 
 houses on each side of the street (which was altogether unpaved, 
 were whitewashed — two-storied buildings, without much preten- 
 sions to architectural beauty. On the outskirts of the town we 
 reached the delightful casa occupied by Mr. Macleay. We en- 
 tered a court in which was a small and beautiful flower-garden, 
 then ascended a marble staircase to a broad verandah, and in a 
 cool apartment surrounded with books and newspapers, sat his 
 Britannic Majesty's commissioner. 
 
 I dined with Mr. Macleay, partaking of Spanish olios, fricas- 
 sees and fricandeaux, washed down with French claret, and then 
 admired the noble panoramic vievv from the top of his house. On 
 the right of the picture, at the distance of two miles, was Fort 
 
184 MURDERS IN FERRY-BOATS — MOORISH SCENE. 
 
 Coxemar, where Admiral Sir George Pocock landed the English 
 army in 1762. The ridge on which we stood was then occupied 
 by the Spaniards drawn up in battle array. Lord Albemarle ad- 
 vanced towards them, defeated them, made Guanabacoa his head 
 quarters, and then broke ground before the Moro, which, with 
 the harbour, city, and a deadly mangrove swamp, were in the 
 centre of the picture. Beyond the Havannah was the strong 
 fort called El Principe, on an eminence; and on a hill on the ex- 
 treme left, was a most interesting relic, a cross, said to have been 
 erected by Columbus. 
 
 I received an invitation from Mr. Maclaey to re-visit him after 
 I had seen 'Mes curiosities de la ville," and we returned in the 
 evening to Regla. Here we got into a heavy-sailing passage-boat 
 to cross over to the city, and paid a media, or three-pence, for 
 our passage. We had Spaniards, male and female, on board ; 
 mulattoes, and negroes; and I was told that it is no uncommon 
 thing for the crews of these boats to murder and rob their passen- 
 gers in the evening. 
 
 We reached the wharf in safety, and Mr. Jackson most kindly 
 offering me a room in his house, I accepted his preferred civility, 
 and we walked toward his casa, through the narrow streets, which in 
 Havannah, after dusk, is really a perillous undertaking. We 
 passed some slaves bearing lanterns according to regulation, and a 
 few dons, each of whom was armed with sword and dagger. 
 They kept the middle of the way, and curled round us when we 
 neared them; truly an agreeable state of society where one walks 
 in momentary dread of assassinations. We saw neither police 
 nor watchmen. 
 
 The Arabian Nights were forcibly re-called to mind, when I 
 viewed the houses of the wealthy. They were two-storied, and 
 built on the plan of a hollow qaudrangle, with a patio or court 
 yard, and galleries, round the interior; the front was plain stone, 
 painted white, blue, or yellow. In the arched door-way was the 
 volante, and a few black domestics sat under the lamps smoking, 
 singing, or talking. Shrubs were dimly seen in the garden be- 
 yond, or a marble fountain, near which 
 
 " A mantling vine 
 His curling tendrils wove with amorous twine; 
 From the green stalks the glowing clusters hung, 
 Like rubies on a thread of emeralds strung." 
 
 Here one could " scatter roses of delight, and quaff wine of plea- 
 sure from goblets of bliss," 
 
 The other houses we passed were of one story, with immense 
 iron-barred windows, enabling us to see the whole apartment 
 
THE CATHEDRAL — TOMB OF COLUMBUS. 185 
 
 within. As the vesper-bell tolled, the women, dressed in white, 
 rose from their rocking chairs at the window, and repeated their 
 prayers before a picture of the Virgin, then drew the curtains of 
 their windows, and retired to rest on their folding canvass cots. 
 
 We walked through many streets without interruption, and 
 found Mrs. Jackson sitting in an anxious state for the return of 
 her husband. She as well as the only other English lady in Ha- 
 vannah, (Mrs. Norman,) told me that, whenever their husbands 
 are out of an evening, they sit in fear and trembling, dreading to 
 see a corpse brought home to them, murder is so frequent in this 
 city. After a light repast, I retired to my room, but excited on 
 finding myself a sojourner in such a remarkable place as Havannah, 
 it was some time before I could compose myself to sleep ; like 
 one moon-struck, I gazed on the churches and houses, clearl}^ re- 
 vealed by the rays of the Cynthian queen, and then turned to the 
 harbour, on the water of which her beams were playing. I heard 
 no sounds of serenading, but only two negroes below my window 
 talking in an under-tone, perhaps, I thought, watching to assassi- 
 nate some unfortunate individual. 
 
 1 rose at an early hour, and hastened to the tomb of Columbus. 
 The cathedral in which his precious remains are deposited occu- 
 pies one side of a small square. The exterior of the building is 
 of massive stone, of no particular order of architecture ; its gable 
 rises in a pyramidal shape ; on the apex is a cross, and on either 
 side are towers ; pillars adorn the building, and behind these hired 
 assassins frequently lurk. I passed into the body of the church, 
 and was struck with its grandeur and simplicity. The roof was 
 arched and very lofty, and Saxon arches enclosed the aisles. 
 The whole was tastefully painted in imitation of grey marble, and 
 there were none of the gaudy colours and tinsel decorations which 
 are too often met with in Catholic churches. 
 
 Exquisite paintings were disposed here and there round the 
 walls ; one was the announcement to Sarah, by the angel, of her 
 miraculous conception; another, our Saviour conversing with the 
 woman of Samaria at the well ; whilst in the same were repre- 
 sentations of Moses, the Prophets, and the Evangelists. The prin- 
 cipal altar, at the upper end, was chastely and richly ornamented. 
 Within the railing was a mosaic floor of marble, and the seats of 
 the dignitaries were highly carved. Looking to the left, I saw a 
 slab of white marble let into the wall ; this was the monument of 
 Columbus, and as there was only a single priest in the cathedral, 
 we obtained his permission to approach the tomb. 
 
 I was under the influence of no ordinary sensation, on finding 
 myself in so interesting a situation. 1 stood beside the mouldering 
 bones of the most intrepid mariner who ever lived, one who "first 
 Aa 
 
1S6 REFLECTIONS — A RELIC. 
 
 had the judgment to divine, and tlie intrepidity to brave the mys- 
 teries of the perilous deep which divides the Old World from the 
 New, and who, by his hardy genius, his inflexible constancy, and 
 his heroic courage, brought the ends of the earth into communica- 
 tion with each other." He must be dull and insensible, indeed, 
 who could contemplate the final resting-place of the great Colon, 
 without being powerfully afiected, and without sympathising deep- 
 ly in the sorrows and sufferings of his latter days. 
 
 It was strange to reflect on the wanderings of Columbus, not 
 only while alive, but even after death. First his body was de- 
 posited in Ihe church of Santa Maria de la Antigua in Valladolid, 
 in 1506; then removed to the Monastery of Las Cueras, in 
 Seville, in 1513; again it was taken up, and, with the remains of 
 his son Diego, was transported to Hispanolia, and deposited in 
 the cathedral of the city of St. Domingo in 1536. When the 
 Spanish possessions in JIayti were ceded to the French in 1795, 
 his remains, "consisting of a number of bones and a quantity of 
 mould, evidently the remains of a human body," were exhumed, 
 and conveyed in a gilded leaden case with great pomp and cere- 
 mony, on board ship on the 15th of January, 1796. The ship 
 Lorenzo arrived at the Havannh, and the remains were conveyed 
 on shore with great reverence, in the presence of the chief 
 authorities, and deposited in the wall on the right of the grand 
 altar; and lately the marble monument had been placed in front 
 of the leaden case. 
 
 The effigy of Columbus is in mezzo relievo, and represents 
 him with a long visage, prominent straight nose, curled hair, full 
 eyebrows and moustaches; round his neck is a double ruff", and his 
 wrist is similarly ornamented. His body is cased in armour to 
 the waist; a scarf is thrown across the breast, and the fore-finger 
 of the right hand points to America on a globe. Naval emblems 
 are below the half-length of " the worthy and adventurous 
 General of the Seas," consisting of a cannon, rudder, anchor, oar, 
 quadrant, compass, sand-glass, &c. and in the midst of these the 
 following inscription: 
 
 " Restos c Imager del Grande Colon, 
 Mil siglos durad guardados in la urna 
 Y in rcmembranza de nuestra nacion!" 
 
 Remains and image of the Great Columbus, 
 A thousand ages continue preserved in the urn. 
 And in the remembrance of our nation ! 
 
 The enthusiastic biographer of Columbus, Washington Irving, 
 had been most kind to me in giving me many introductions to his 
 
POPULATION OF HAVANNAH. 187 
 
 friends in America, and I was anxious to obtain some relic from 
 the tomb to present to liim. ' But "Let the hand of the man who 
 ever attempts to mutilate or efface it be withered." I would 
 not have done it for the wealth of Potosi, but I was fortunate 
 enough to observe a small fragment of wood which lay under the 
 slab, but in no way connected with it, and seizing it with the 
 avidity of an antiquary, I bore it off in triumph. 
 
 CHAPTER XXL 
 
 Population of Havannah. — The People in the Streets. — The IMarkets. — The Pasao* 
 — Fair Donnas. — Botanical Garden. — Cigar making. — A Havannah Tavern. — 
 Spanish Cookery. — Battle at a Boarding-house. — Nic, the Tavern-keeper and 
 Undertaker. — A Death-bed Scene. — The Blanche saii^^Visit the Churches. — 
 High Mass.— -Lively Music. — The Priests. — The Bishop of Havannaii. — Clerical 
 
 Gambling and Immorality. — Decay of Religion. The University of St. Jerome. 
 
 — The Casa de Beneficencia. — The Institution of St. Lazarus. — Tlie Casa de 
 Locos. — The Campo Santo. — A crowded Cemetery. — Tlie Bishop lauded. — 
 Funeral Rites. — Barbarous Customs. — The Havannah, a hot-bed of Disease. — A 
 Deadly Swamp. — Mortality in a British Frigate. — Manner in which the Havan- 
 neros spend their time. — The Ball-room — The Carcal, or Prison. — Cut-throat 
 Characters. — Shocking Depravity. — Havannah and Hydrabad compared. — Day 
 Robberies. — The man with the Iron Cane. — The murdered GaUician. — An e.xe- 
 cution. 
 
 Havannah and its suburbs are said now to contain nearly two 
 hundred and fifty thousand inhabitants, and, as in all fortified 
 cities, this great population occupies little room within the walls, 
 but a great many new houses are in progress without. I walked 
 to one of the plazas, or squares, wliere the markets are held, to 
 observe how the inhabitants were fed. Numerous volantes drove 
 me to the wall with the cry of the postilion, " Cuidao cavalleros!" 
 ("Take care, gentlemen!") addressed either to the whites or 
 blacks; or large carts, called carets, drawn by bullocks, yoked by 
 the horns which blocked up the way. Groups of slaves wander- 
 ed about, the men in broad-brimmed straw or leaf hats, the women 
 carrying fruit and vegetables on their heads, and both sexes 
 smoking with great zest. The dons, in their striped chupas and 
 gold-headed canes, walked consequentially along; and the ladies 
 in their black mantillas, walked or rode to their devotions, pre- 
 ceded by a female slave, carrying a cushion, or mat, and prayer- 
 book. A stout, well-fed priest, would brush past in his large 
 black hat and ample canonicals. The soldiers marched to relieve 
 
ISS THE PASAO — FAIR DONNAS. 
 
 guard in a slovenly manner, accompanied by officers, whose 
 epaulettes rested on their breast. 
 
 I found in the great market-square a considerable number of 
 monteros, or country people, white, brown, and black. They 
 were mostly sitting on galloways, whose tails were tied in a club; 
 and wore straw-hats, a shirt and trowsers, with a long machette, 
 or sword, in their girdle. The poor horses bore, besides their 
 riders, bundles of molaxca, or the stalks of green maize, used as 
 fodder; and poultr}'^, fruit, and vegetables, also hung round the 
 unfortunate beasts. The provision-stalls were well supplied with 
 meat and fish; the former about a shilling the pound, and great 
 quantities are consumed in the Havannah; those who can afford it, 
 eat it three times a day. Then I walked past stalls, on which 
 handsome cutlery and jewellery were displayed; conspicuous 
 among which, in coarse leather sheaths, were English black- 
 handled carving knives, the black and edge broughtto a point. No 
 explanation was required as to the use of this weapon. 
 
 In the evening ^valked to the Pasao or Hyde Park of Havan- 
 nah, with Captain Burnett, of the Blanche, and Mr. Jackson. At 
 the distance of half a mile from the walls of the city we found a 
 broad road with side- walks and rows of trees. Marble fountains 
 diffused a pleasing coolness, and seats at intervals were occupied 
 by well-dressetl men. The ladies were seated in their volantes, 
 which were highly ornamented with silver, and the calasero, or 
 postilion, in a richly laced hussar jacket. The volantes followed 
 one another at a slow pace ; the envious capacite, or blue cloth, 
 was removed from the front of the volante, and the fair Cuban- 
 nas sat revealed in all their charms to the admiring gaze of the 
 loungers. 
 
 The donnas were all clothed in virgin white, wore no head- 
 dress, except beautifully carved and very large tortoise-shell 
 combs, the fashion of which alters every month, entailing a heavy 
 expense on husbands and fathers. Their hair was " dark as the 
 curtain of night overshadowing the burning heart of a lover," 
 and the cool breeze of evening wantoned with their tresses ; their 
 complexions were like Parian marble, and as they passed an ac- 
 quaintance, their fine eyes beamed forth pleasure, with a lively 
 shake of the fan they lisped, a dios ! a dios ! 
 
 It was a lively and a most interesting exhibition; a band of 
 music breathed dulcet sounds, the air was perfumed with aroma- 
 tic gales, and the eye gladdened with the sight of the beautiful 
 and elegantly attired daughters of Cuba enjoying the balmy influ- 
 ence of a tropical sunset — 
 
 "While deeper blushes tinged the glowing sky, 
 And evening raised her silver lamp on high." 
 
BOTANIC GARDEN BATTLE AT A BOARDING-HOUSE. 189 
 
 Adjoining the Pasao was the botanical garden, which was kept in 
 the highest order, and boasted many rare plants. After walking 
 round it we returned to the city, with the greater number of the 
 officers of the Blanche, who were very anxious to la}' in a supply 
 of real Havannahs. In the cigar-shops we saw the negroes cutting 
 and rolling up the fragrant leaves, and neatly twisting the ends 
 with the assistance of a little water. 
 
 The king's cigars sell for twenty dollars a thousand ; but these, 
 like real Tokay, are very difficult to be procured. Excellent ci- 
 gars may be purchased for twelve dollars ; and the Havannahs 
 whicli are sold in England for ten pounds, are to be purchased 
 here for ten dollars a thousand. 
 
 I was anxious to see the manner of living at the Havannah 
 taverns, or boarding-houses, and accordingly dined at one. The 
 charge for dinner was one dollar, for which abundant fare was pro- 
 vided, inclusive of French claret. Soup, solids, and dessert, were 
 placed on the table at once ; the dishes were crowded on one an- 
 other, and on the ringing of the bell the company hastily took 
 their seats, and made a vigorous onslaught ; every one plunged his 
 fork into the dish he liked best, and there was such a scramble, 
 such a clatter of knives and plates, that it reminded me of Dugald 
 Dalgetty laying in his prevent for three days. 
 
 Such a quantity of oil and grease, to say nothing of garlic, is 
 used in Spanish cookery, that I really could not "play the knife 
 and fork" that my appetite prompted me to do, but contrived to 
 allay the cravings of hunger with coffee and bread at the end of 
 the feast. 
 
 The company consisted of Spaniards, Germans, Frenchmen, 
 Russians, and English, captains of ships ; it was a strange medley 
 both as to language and manners. Most of the guests had the air 
 of desperadoes and adventurers, and they seemed very indifferent 
 to common courtesy in their behaviour to each other ; thus at 
 these houses it is no uncommon thing to see joints of meat and 
 glasses flying across the table, and violent quarrels ending in blows. 
 Sometimes they commence in this way ; a skipper asks for an 
 omelet opposite to him ; a negro runs round to fetch it ; in con- 
 veying it to the sailor he is stopped half way by another gentle- 
 man, who coolly seizes the dish, cuts the omelet in two, takes half 
 himself, and gives the other half to a friend next him ; the disap- 
 pointed skipper vents his rage by uttering a hearty curse, and 
 sends his glass at the head of the gentleman who had taken ''the 
 bread out of his mouth." 
 
 One of the most remarkable characters in Havannah, was Nic, 
 the keeper of a boarding-house frequented principally by English 
 and American captains and supercargoes. He was a Yorkshire- 
 
190 NIC, THE TAVERN-KEEPER. 
 
 man of low extraction, vulgar in his appearance and language, 
 shrewd and mercenary in liis cliaracter ; in height he was ahout 
 five feet six, with long yellow hair and freckled face, and had a 
 short arm, which rather assisted him than otherwise in carving. 
 He took the lead in the conversation at table, tlatly contradicting 
 those who differed in opinion with him, and above all, was fond 
 of joking about yellow fever, the head-quarters of which, in the 
 West Indies, may be said to be Havannah. Nic was an underta- 
 ker as well as a tavern-keeper, and had a loft, or larder, as .he call- 
 ed it, of ready-made coffins of all sizes, with which he could ac- 
 commodate his guests at the shortest notice, and he had also a 
 private burial ground. <'Take care of Nic's stick," became a 
 current saying in Havannah, for when a stranger arrived Nic 
 would talk to him, and all the while be measuring him with a 
 short stick, in case a coffin was required. 
 
 An acquaintance told me that he lived for some time at Nic's 
 house, and there got acquainted with a very pleasant young man, 
 an English supercargo, who was full of health and spirits, and 
 fondly anticipated the successful result of a mercantile specula- 
 tion. One day my acquaintance missed him, and he asked Nic 
 what had become of him. ''He is in the next room," said Nic 
 coolly ; " we'll go in and see him after dinner." When the cof- 
 fee had been discussed and the cigars lighted, Nic asked the com- 
 pany to follow him ; they did so, and found the supercargo a yel- 
 low corpse in his bed-room, and laid out for interment; he had 
 just succumbed to the demon of the West. My acqaintance was 
 shocked beyond measure at such a sudden and awful event, for 
 he really had a regard for the young man. Nic made a joke of 
 the matter, and rubbing his hands, jeeringly said, " Well, who's 
 for a rubber at whist ?" 
 
 The Blanche sailed for Quebec, Admiral Saborde in the kind- 
 est manner sending his boats to tow her out of the harbour. I 
 was so much interested where I was, tliat I determined to spend 
 two or three weeks in Cuba. I took great delight in visiting the 
 churches, which are open during the day; and though high mass 
 is commonly performed in the morning only, yet at all hours a 
 few worshippers might be seen kneeling on the cold pavement 
 before a favourite saint, crossing themselves, muttering their 
 prayers, beating their breasts, and prostrating themselves in the 
 dust. 
 
 " True piety is cheerful as the day ; 
 Will weep, indeed, and lieave a pitying groan 
 For others' woes, but smiles upon her own." 
 
 The altars glittered with gold and silver, and the images of the 
 
VISIT THE CHURCHES — PRIESTS. 191 
 
 MaJonna in particular (some of which were jet black) blazed in 
 silks and jewels, whilst the effigy of " the Man of Son-ows" 
 seemed to be neglected. The church of St. Domingo is a noble 
 pile, and is filled with rich presents; the sacred vessels of a mas- 
 sive size, and the paintings in costly frames and cases: <'ajub 
 jae burae chuppao," — a glorious place for a foray! as a Khorasa- 
 nee would say nf he saw it. Yet St. Francisco is more imposing, 
 from its gothic architecture and great dimensions ; through its 
 long-drawn aisles the organ peals most sublimely, and for a while 
 entrances the soul. 
 
 Some think that the masses in the Havannah were excellently 
 performed, but I cannot say I am of that opinion; for instance, in 
 repairing to a church in the morning, the senoras, in their black 
 dresses and mantillas, would come in and seat themselves on the 
 floor on a mat, whilst their black slaves would kneel behind them, 
 and a few men, either old Spaniards or brown monteros, would 
 stand beside the pillars. A priest in flowing robes, and prece- 
 ded by two attendants bearing candles, would then advance to 
 the altar, burn incense, and commence a chant, which was an- 
 swered from the gallery in such a lively strain that one was more 
 reminded of a concert-room than of the house of prayer. He 
 would then hurry through the service in Latin, but so fast and so 
 indistinctly that it was a perfect mockery, even if his auditors 
 had understood the language, which they did not, though I be- 
 lieve some of the most devout of the female worshippers had a 
 translation to assist them. During the pauses in the service Ire- 
 marked smiles and conversation behind the fans, and I invariably 
 retired from the scene, sincerely pitying those who, content with 
 the mere ceremonials of religion, are not aware that these are al- 
 together insignificant compared with its precepts. 
 
 The priests in the Havannah exceed four hundred in number, 
 and appear to enjoy the good things of this life as well as their 
 brethren elsewhere, for they generally look sleek and fat. Some 
 of the elders, I remarked, were dignified in their appearance, but 
 the greater number had a very sensual and unintellectual air about 
 them. The Bishop of Havannah is a very superior personage, 
 and expends his income of one hundred and ten thousand dollars 
 in acts of charity, in beautifying the city, and repairing churches; 
 his good deeds will embalm his memory, and, like the rose, he 
 will leave a sweet savour even after his demise. But it would be 
 well for the island, of which he is the brightest ornament, if, as 
 the Spaniards sa}'', he " would live a thousand years." 
 
 Some of the country priests employ their time honourably in 
 instructing the youth of their parishes, and as the excellent Ame- 
 rican (Dr. Abbot) said, if the priests of each parish would do the 
 
192 CLERICAL IMMOnALITIES. 
 
 same, whnt reproachful examples of idleness, gambling, andeock- 
 fighting would at once disappear, and the moral desert blossom 
 luxuriantly; then an enlightened population would inhabit the 
 rich valleys of Cuba, peace and prosperity would attend them, 
 the lawless bands of ruffians who occupy the Sierras would be 
 suppressed, and then there might be some hopes of free labour 
 superseding that of slavery. 
 
 Many of the country padres are excessively idle and openly 
 vicious, and a perfect disgrace to the church. I heard a liberal 
 ecclesiastic lament over the sins of his brethren, and regret that 
 marriage was not permitted in the church. Many of the padres 
 have a handsome niece to keep their house in order, but it is bet- 
 ter this than exciting the jealousy of husbands. One of these gal- 
 lant priests, some time ago, had justly excited the indignation of 
 a Spaniard by attentions in a quarter where he had no business; 
 and as the priest alighted from his volante at a ball-room, he re- 
 ceived a foot of steel between his ribs, and perished on the spot. 
 
 Though the moral character of the bulk of the people is not 
 high, yet they are fully aware what the clerical office ought to be, 
 and that the hands of those who elevate the host and impart the 
 sacred wafer should be unspotted and pure as ermine. What re- 
 spect can a clergy be held in when they are too often bold and 
 eager gamblers? From mass they go to the cock-pit, and from 
 the cock-pit to mass, and sometimes delay the mass to see the end 
 of a fight. They might be seen at Guanabacoa, in full canonicals, 
 watching with intense interest a combat between a favourite cock 
 and that of a negro slave, who had staked his money against that 
 of the unworthy priest. 
 
 Of late years there has been a great decay of religion in Cuba. 
 The writings of Voltaire and Rousseau have corrupted the people, 
 made them indiflerent to the Catholic religion, and given them 
 no substitute. After the negro insurrection in St. Domingo, and 
 the expulsion of the French from the island, they flocked to Cuba, 
 sneered at the mental slavery of the Spaniards, as they termed it, 
 and scoffed at religion in every shape. The young Dons became 
 infected with the free-thinking of their visitors, and affected to 
 despise the religion of their fathers. 
 
 A convent of preaching friars established the University of St. 
 Jerome, the principal of which, Don Hugo Valles, is a most in- 
 telligent and upright ecclesiastic, but with all his influence he can- 
 not persuade any of the youths who attended the university to 
 remain after the age of sixteen; they are quite content after they 
 can read and write Spanish, and then put on the togani vh^ilem, 
 sport a gold-headed cane, and give themselves up to pleasure. 
 
 One evening 1 walked out with JNIr. Jackson to visit some 
 
THE CASA DE BENEFICENCIA. 193 
 
 ©f the public institutions which have lately sprung up, much to 
 the credit of the Havaneros. The first we reached, outside the 
 walls, and near the sea, was the Casa de Beneficencia, or House 
 of Mercy, for the education of orphans and friendless children of 
 both sexes. The buildings are very extensive, and enclosed a 
 court through which a stream of pure water runs. The apart- 
 ments are large, and well aired; and it was extremely interesting 
 to see the girls, in particular, sitting at the grated windows read- 
 ing or engaged with their needlework. The boys are taught after 
 the Laneasterian plan. Every attention is paid to health and 
 cleanliness in this noble institution, which rears three hundred of 
 both sexes, and afterwards establishes them in the world. If the 
 females are married from the Casa de Beneficencia, they receive 
 a dower of five hundred dollars; and the boys have a sum advan- 
 ced to them with which to begin business. 
 
 We next turned to the institution of St. Lazarus, or the laza- 
 retto for lepers. The gate was open, and instead of the infected 
 being shut up, I saw several of them sitting by the road side 
 wearing an air of hopeless dejection. They were principally 
 negroes whom I saw, many of them frightfully disfigured, and 
 beginning to lose their lips; others were affected in their extre- 
 mities. 
 
 " The blood beat not, as wont, within their veins; 
 Dimness crept o'er their eyes ; a drowsy sloth 
 Fetter'd their limbs, like palsy." 
 
 Round the court were apartments occupied by white lepers, 
 men and women: they looked extremely dejected, for their dis- 
 ease is incurable; though some live forty years before they finally 
 sink into the grave, a mass of corruption too horrible to describe. 
 It was with painful interest that the sounds of the guitar, accom- 
 panied with a feeble voice, were heard from the cell of one of the 
 inmates, who tried to beguile his sorrows with the soothing notes 
 of melancholy music. 
 
 The next public building we came to was the Insane Hospital 
 (Casa de Locos) inclosed with a lofty wall, and with a handsome 
 entrance, over which was painted a fool's cap and bells. We 
 passed into a spacious court, and saw some noble figures of men, 
 with the wandering eye of lunacy, lounging about. We then 
 passed an inner gate, and found ourselves in a beautiful garden 
 full of shrubs and flowering plants: here and there were secluded 
 walks and arbours for the inoffensive insane. On passing a cell 
 with a grated opening in the door, a voice from within beseech- 
 ingly implored for a cigar. A strange figure, wearing a high cap 
 Bb 
 
194 CAMPO SANTO — A CROWDED CEMETRY. 
 
 decorated with blue and red flags, then crossed our path; and a 
 fine-looking fellow came up to me eagerly, and asked me if I was 
 a naval officer, and talked of ships and of the sea, on which he 
 had once been a rover. The Campo Santo was our next halting- 
 place. This is the only burial-place for Catholics in Havannah, 
 and is a square enclosure of two or three acres, surrounded with 
 a wall painted in pannels, and at the corners are pyramidal shafts 
 twelve or fifteen feet high. The entrance is very appropriate to 
 this field of the dead: on it are painted emblems of death, female 
 figures with reversed torches in their hands, and bearing also the 
 Cross and Bible. We entered the burial-ground, and walked up 
 the central path on a pavement of flags, and saw on either hand 
 the rank grass reaching higher than the walls, and the earth heav- 
 ing up over the crowded dead. At the further end of the path 
 was a beautiful chapel, in which, besides the funeral rites per- 
 formed at the entrance, others are performed for those who can 
 afibrd to pay for them, and then they are buried near it. On the 
 stones we read the names of the most distinguished in the island 
 — governor, nobles, and the wealthy; whilst the poorer classes 
 are laid in trenches near the entrance to the Campo Santo, and 
 have quick lime thrown over them. 
 
 On the front of the chapel was this inscription: — 
 
 " Ecce nunc in pulvere dormiam, 
 Et ego resuscitabo eum in novissimo die." 
 
 And on the interior wall was a well-executed painting. A pat- 
 riarch, surrounded by his weeping family, seems to be resigning 
 himself to death; and above him is an angel sounding the last 
 trumpet, and a holy family mounting with joy and gladness to 
 the regions of bliss. 
 
 Though the Campo Santo is much too small for such a popula- 
 tion as the Havannah, yet it is a great improvement on the old 
 system of burying the dead in the churches, and pounding them un- 
 der the floor with a heavy stone pestle, so as to make them occupy 
 as little room as possible. What can be conceived more barbar- 
 ous than this! — yet it is still practised on the South American con- 
 tinent. It is to the enlightened bishop that this great public im- 
 provement is owing; and though he had strong prejudices on the 
 part of the Havanneros to overcome, yet he refused to grant Chris- 
 tian burial to any one in the church after the Campo Santo was 
 prepared, and has tlius materially improved the health of the city 
 by the beneficent change he has so judiciously and so resolutely 
 introduced. 
 
 When a respectable person dies in the Havannah, a lofty stage 
 
FUNERAL RITES — A HOT BED OP DISEASE. 195 
 
 is erected in the principal apartment, covered with black drapery 
 and tinsel ornaments, and on the top of it the open coffin is placed 
 at an angle so as to expose the dead body, dressed in holiday 
 clothes, to the spectators below. There is also a great display of 
 wax lights in the room. The volantes of the friends of the de- 
 ceased being assembled, the bier is placed across the leading one, 
 which, with the calassero and horse, is covered with black cloth, 
 and attended by slaves in long red coats, gold-laced cocked hats, 
 and canes in their hands. The procession moves to the Campo 
 Santo. Arrived there, the coffin is taken from the volante, the 
 head of the corpse being uncovered, and kept in constant motion 
 by the hasty step of the bearers. It is a ghastly sight. After the 
 service is performed, the body is commonly tumbled uncere- 
 moniously into a shallow grave, lime and earth thrown over it, 
 whilst the coffin is retained for the next who requires it. When 
 children are buried, the attendants sing and play lively airs before 
 them, as Heaven is doubtless their portion. Truly, a funeral at 
 the Havannah is conducted in a manner that the most uncivilized 
 nation might be ashamed of: but such has been the custom from 
 time immemorial, and it seems we must always bow to the wisdom 
 of our ancestors. 
 
 The Havannah is the hot-bed of disease, and one cannot long 
 be an inhabitant of it without having the fatal effiscts of the 
 yellow-fever continually brought before his eyes. In the room 
 under mine, an unfortunate Spaniard sickened and died of this 
 deadly pest, on which I took a dose of quinine, the only medicine 
 I carried with me. It is very easy to see the cause of yellow-fever 
 at the Havannah, and one is struck with wonder at the apathy 
 and indifference of the authorities, who might so easily, at little 
 expense render the city really as healthy as any between the 
 tropics. Opposite the town, extending from the side of the 
 harbour into the country to the east, is a long marsh of mangroves. 
 Now, by a simple dam thrown across this, the salt-water of the bay 
 might be easily excluded, the marsh would dry up, and its deadly 
 miasma would disappear. The streets are narrow and abominably 
 dirty; under one of them only is a common sewer, and the rain 
 washes away the mud and filth of the others as it best can. Often 
 whole ships' crews die in a few days, an on average twenty-five 
 Catholics are buried in the Campo Santo daily, whilst the 
 heretics are conveyed to a burial-ground of their own. Though 
 the wealthy, in the lofty and airy apartments in their upper stories, 
 are more exempt than those who dwell in the lowly sheds, from 
 yellow-fever, yet they should give a thought to their poorer 
 countrymen, and try to remove the disease from their dwellings, 
 and from the unfortunate seamen in the bay. 
 
196 MOKTALITY IN A BRITISH FRIGATE. 
 
 His Britannic Majesty's frigate Aurora arrived sometime ago 
 at Havannah, after having been three years in the West Indies; 
 she dropped her anchor at a spot where the 'breeze blowing over 
 the mangrove swamp could reach her. The Pylades, a fresh 
 arrival from England, also anchored for one night in the harbour, 
 but at the distance of a few hundred yards from the Aurora; 
 next morning the two vessels sailed, the Aurora lost eighty men 
 and officers in a few weeks from yellow-fever; and the Pylades, 
 though unaccustomed to the climate^ did not lose one hand. 
 
 The manner in which the rich Havanncros spend their time is 
 shortly this: — Thc)^ rise early, take a cup of chocolate, the men 
 light their cigars and stroll about the balconies till ten o'clock, 
 the ladies generally attend mass; then a breakfast of meat and 
 fish, eggs and ham, wine and coffee is brought in; after these 
 are discussed, the cigars are again lighted at a little pan of char- 
 coal placed on the middle of the table, the elderly ladies using 
 the cigaritto, or little cigar wrapped in paper. The men then 
 order the volante, or walk out, and the women either pay a visit 
 of ceremony, or sit at home to receive one in their rocking-chairs. 
 At three o'clock dinner is brought in, and the meal of rich made- 
 dishes lasts an hour, the charcoal pan ag'iin appears, coffee is 
 handed round, and all retire to take their siesta. In an hour the 
 Pasao is visited, where is also the amphitheatre for the coridas de 
 toros (bullfights), and when these take place, the attraction is so 
 great, that it is extremely difficult to procure admission. From 
 the Pasao the theatre may be visited, a large heavy pile with a 
 bomb-proof roof. The performances here are respectable, and 
 the dialogues in the Spanish plays spirited. Yet the boards here 
 are disgraced, as in London, with pantomimic representations, 
 and puppets like those which Don Quixote played such havock 
 with. 
 
 I attended several public balls given by gamblers in Havannah; 
 the company, consisting of Sefioras in white robes, and Dons in 
 striped gingham coats, arrived in their volantes with flambeaux 
 carried before them. In an outer saloon were card-tables at 
 which the Monte players were seated, with piles of gold ounces, 
 and silver dollars before them. Ladies and gentlemen stood 
 round the players, and anxiously watched the turning up of the 
 cards, and many staked heavy sums. I observed some of those 
 characters that are everywhere to be met with in Havannah, also 
 deeply interested in the result of the game, athletic sun-burnt and 
 black-whiskered men, with the determined eye of the sea rover, 
 and ever and anon glancing round the group with a fiendish ex- 
 pression if they lost. 
 
 The ball-room was always brilliantly lighted up, the ladies 
 
THE BALL-ROOM — A COUNTRY BALL. 197 
 
 sluing in rows round it as usual, and the men in groups, or 
 lounging about in the galleries smoking; when the dancing com- 
 menced, the band, consisting of nine performers, three violins, 
 two violincellos, hautboys, and French horns, would play in a 
 most animating and excellent style, a waltz, fandango, or con- 
 tredanza, the latter a combination of the waltz and quadrille; 
 and certainly, for grace and elegance in the dance, the Havan- 
 neros are unrivalled. I was at first diffident in joining such 
 excellent votaries of Terpsichore, but found that unless I did so, the 
 fair Cubannas would think me stiff and precise, for in their inter- 
 course with one another they are devoid of the absurd formality 
 of the old school-breeding; so I plucked up courage and led out a 
 Senoritta with black hair and sparkling eyes, but without gloves, 
 which are not worn in Cuba by ladies or gentlemen. At supper, 
 as a mark of attention to the stranger, she, with some of her 
 companions, came with a plate of dolces, or sweetmeats, some of 
 which she presented to me with her fair hand, reminding me of 
 the Persian custom of stuffing the mouths of poets with sugar- 
 candy. 
 
 At a country ball, where all the company were on terms of in- 
 timacy, I was much amused with the game of blind-man's-buff in- 
 troduced as a dance. Ladies and gentlemen circled in a ring 
 round the blind-folded Don in the centre, who had a cane in his 
 hand, with which he pointed at any of the company ; the music 
 would then stop, and the person indicated would take the end of 
 the slick, and in a disguised and squeaking tone repeat some trifl- 
 ing sentence ; if the blind-folded guessed the name of the speak- 
 er, he was allowed to take off the handkerchief, if not, the music 
 and dancing recommenced. Sometimes, all the dancers would slip 
 off to their seats, and leave the blind-folded in a ridiculous situa- 
 tion in the middle of the room, trying to feel with his cane the 
 company who had retired, and who were convulsed with suppres- 
 ed laughter. 
 
 " Ah ! crop the flowers of pleasure when they blow, 
 Ere winter hides them in a vale of snow." 
 
 Turn we now from the ball-room to another scene, and venture 
 to penetrate and explore the gloomy saloons of the most horrid 
 receptacle of crime in the civilized world, the Carcal, or prison of 
 *Mhe cultivated city of Havannah," as the Spaniards delight to 
 call it. I visited this dreadful place, and though it is almost im- 
 possible to obtain circumstantial details regarding it, owing to the 
 extreme jealousy of the Spaniards, and their unwillingness to ex- 
 pose the great want of order, and entire absence of decency which 
 prevail within its detested walls, yet I am enabled from personal 
 
198 DAY ROBBERIES — CUT-THROAT CHARACTERS. 
 
 observation and hearsay to lay before my readers a sketch of the 
 Carcal as it now exists. 
 
 The entrance to it is on the southern side of the governor's 
 house, and the gratings of the back cells open into the very patio, 
 or court-yard of the palace. The gaol itself contains a long pav- 
 ed court, in looking into which through a grated door, where was 
 a strong guard of soldiers, I saw some of the most cut-throat look- 
 ing characters I ever beheld. They were of all classes and colours, 
 black, yellow, and white, and many had gambled away all their 
 clothes, save a thin pair of drawers. From the murderer to the 
 petty thief, all were allowed to mingle indiscriminately. Not the 
 least classification was attempted. At night the prisoners are dis- 
 posed of under the piazzas which surround the court, and sleep 
 on plank couches, retiring to rest at nine o'clock. Up stairs is a 
 large sala, or strong room, (having no connexion with the yard,) 
 also for male prisoners of all kinds. On the left-hand side of the 
 entrance on the first floor, I observed a separate apartment for 
 women, and opposite to it is the "Sala de distincion," or state- 
 room for chance customers, such as drunkards, and other disor- 
 derly persons, arrested after improper hours in the streets, and 
 who can afford to pay for superior accommodation. Mutinous 
 sailors, runaway negroes, and others, whose offences are light as 
 well as their pockets, are thrust into the court-yard with the 
 canaille, and have to fight out accommodation for themselves. 
 I was told by some American sailors, who had been incarcerated 
 by their captain for asking higher wages, that they witnessed such 
 scenes of vice and depravity every night, that they were obliged 
 to keep regular watch on one another. 
 
 All the prisoners are allowed to exercise, within the prison, any 
 trade or handicraft they may have followed, barring that one 
 which procured them a lodging in the Government-house, al- 
 though they sometimes find opportunity to practise even that -also. 
 The produce of their honest industry, such as plaiting straw- 
 hats, huckstering fruit, &c. is applied partly to defray the expen- 
 ses of the prison establishment ; and the residue is given up to 
 their entire disposal. Even the assassins enjoy this privilege un- 
 til sentence of death is pronounced upon them, when they are re- 
 moved to separate cells up stairs. 
 
 Murders are often committed in the Carcal in the following 
 manner : Three men gamble in the daytime, and one of them 
 wins the money of the other two. The losers then conspire to- 
 gether to murder and rob the winner ; ai night they watch where 
 he lies down to sleep in one of the saloons, and each goes to the 
 lamps at the ends of the sala ; they extinguish them simultaneous- 
 ly, draw their knives, and make a rush at the place where their 
 
HAVANNAH AND HYDRABAD. 199 
 
 victim lies ; they stab him in the dark, and sometimes one or two 
 others on each side of him to make sure of him ; then strip the 
 body or bodies of their money, and thrust them down the sink. 
 
 The prison is a rich Golconda for the Havannah lawyers. Per- 
 sons accused on the slightest grounds of any offence or crime are 
 incarcerated without examination, being afterwards permitted to 
 exonerate themselves through the agency of these pests of the is- 
 land society, who never fail to extort the utmost fee from their 
 unfortunate clients. Persons of the better classes and state pri- 
 soners are generally confined in one or other of the forts, and 
 some of them are allowed the liberty of their limits. When the 
 common gaol is overstocked, as often happens, the surplus is trans- 
 ferred to the cells of Fort Cabanas. 
 
 In a city, the population of which is so mixed, the habits of the 
 lower classes so demoralised, among whom gambling and its con- 
 comitant, drunkenness, is so prevalent, — in a city where there is 
 no police, and where, by paying the priests handsomely, abso- 
 lution may be obtained for the most atrocious crimes, no wonder 
 that robberies and assassinations are of almost daily occurrence,^ 
 Sometime ago no fewer than seven white people were murdered 
 in different parts of the city in one day. I remember when on 
 one occasion I visited Hydrabad, a den of miscreants in the East 
 Indies, in the guise of a Mussulman, (for none in European cos- 
 tume could enter its walls with safety,) three were murdered 
 there that day in the streets; but that was nothing to Havannah. 
 
 In this latter city people are robbed in open day in the follow- 
 ing manner: Two villains come on each side of a pedestrian, dis- 
 playing long knives under their arms; while a third deliberately 
 takes out his watch, purse, gold shirt buttons, &c. and whispers 
 that if the least noise is made, the knife will do its office ; and 
 though the plundered individual may afterwards recognise the 
 robbers, he is afraid to give evidence against them, and must just 
 put up with his loss. 
 
 Rather a laughable robbery took place about the time when I 
 was in Havannah. One evening a lover was doing the agreeable 
 to his mistress through a grated window on a level with the street; 
 three men passing observed that he was gaily dressed, in order to 
 appear to advantage in the eyes of the fair; one tapped him on the 
 shoulder, and said, "You are wanted." He stepped aside. The 
 other two showed him their knives. He was stripped of his finery 
 on the spot, and then sneaked back to the window for condo- 
 lence. 
 
 When the least scuffle takes place in the streets, all the doors 
 and windows are hastily closed in the neighbourhood; the in- 
 mates of the house are so much afraid of being called upon to give 
 
200 DAT ROBBERIES — THE MURDERED GALLICIAN. \ 
 
 evidence in case of a murder. I walked about at all hours, and 
 fortunately escaped molestation; but I was fully prepared for a 
 skirmish,' with an iron-cane, a very handy weapon, something 
 between a poker and a crowbar. On looking at it, no one could 
 suspect its weight until they felt it. I recommend this to tra- 
 vellers instead of the piked sticks of Dr. Kitchener, for it strength- 
 ens the chest and arms, and disables an antagonist without killing 
 him. 
 
 The bodies of the murdered are exposed for a day in the street, 
 behind the gaol, in order that their relatives may claim them. 
 One forenoon, I happened to be passing the government-house 
 with my friend Mr. Jackson, and observed a small crowd col- 
 lected; we looked over the shoulders of the people, and saw a 
 ghastly sight. In an open bier, with legs and handles to it, lay 
 the corpse of a white man, about forty years of age, rather good- 
 looking, and wearing a grim smile on his countenance. A dread- 
 ful gash was in his throat, his hands were also cut in the death- 
 struggle, and his trowsers and shirt were torn, and literally steeped 
 in gore. This was a Gallician shopkeeper, who had been mur- 
 dered in his own store, two or three hours before. He was a 
 sober and industrious man, had arrived in Havannah a few years 
 before, and had become possessed of twenty houses, and eighty 
 thousand dollars in cash. His negro wench informed two of her 
 black paramours where the money was kept. The miscreants 
 went in the morning, on pretence of purchasing rope; the Gal- 
 lician stepped to a corner of the store to supply them; they sprang 
 upon him like wolves, held his mouth, threw him down, cut his 
 throat, and carried off two coflee-bags of gold. All this took place 
 within a few yards of the custom-house guard, with perfect im- 
 punity to the murderers. 
 
 One day I was returning from the country in a volante, with a 
 gentleman, (who had resided some years in Havannah, and was 
 one of the few English merchants of respectability there,) when 
 he told me the following story: " This hollow way which we are 
 now passing," said he, " leading down to the shallow stream at 
 the bottom, has been the scene of more deeds of violence than 
 perhaps any other in the island of Cuba. One evening I was 
 riding a spirited horse, and on coming to this spot, a man dashed 
 at me from the side of the road, and attempted to seize my bridle. 
 I galloped over him, and he called out, and another grasped my 
 thigh and nearly pulled me off; I struck him on the face, freed 
 myself, and put spurs to my charger; ablunderbus was fired after 
 me, 1 escaped; my horse was wounded in the neck, but carried 
 me into town. On another occasion I saw three men on the road 
 before me; it was open day; they were a white man and two 
 
GANGS OF ASSASSINS AN EXECUTION. 201 
 
 mulattoes; they walked with their hands in their breasts. I sus- 
 pected that they grasped their weapons; accordingly, I attempted 
 to make a wide circuit round them, but got involved in a morass; 
 seeing that I must pass them, I primed my pistols, took one in 
 each hand, and with my reins in my mouth, passed the fellows, 
 and muttered "Adios,'^ their answer was, " Carajo, Inglese." 
 Some of these villains laid a plot to seize my favourite horse, for 
 whilst on it I set them all at defiance. I found out by accident 
 their contrivance. A negro stopped me one day on the Pasao, 
 and said, <Signor, you were kind to me when I was sick, and I'll 
 now tell you a secret. I overheard some monteroes talking about 
 seizing your horse; be on your guard.' I gave him a dollar, and 
 promised him more if he spoke the truth. Shortly after I saw 
 five countrymen waiting for me on the road, 'Hist! hist!' said 
 they, in the usual Spanish way, ' we have something to say to 
 you.' — 'To my horse, I suppose,' answered I, and galloped on. 
 Not long ago, I got a clerk' from Yorkshire; he was a raw coun- 
 try lad, and went out to take a walk, the evening of the day after 
 his arrival. Whilst gaping and staring about the streets, he was 
 followed by a robber, who got him in a corner, and struggled 
 with him to get his watch. The robber succeeded and ran off. 
 My clerk came home much agitated and went to bed; on going 
 in to see him in the morning, I found the bed-clothes bloody; I 
 awoke the sleeper, to ask him what was the matter, and to his 
 horror and alarm he discovered that he had been stabbed within 
 a quarter of an inch of his heart. He recovered in three or four 
 days, but has never ventured since to take constitutional exercise 
 of an evening." 
 
 I have described some deeds of violence, but I have not yet 
 brought any culprit to condign punishment. I am tired of hor- 
 rors, and am afraid my readers are so likewise; but I think it 
 will be satisfactory to describe an execution, which does not happen 
 quite so often as it ought to do at Havannah. If a criminal has 
 money, he may put off capital punishment for years, even after 
 sentence is passed upon him; but he who is friendless and penny- 
 less, mounts the scaffold immediately after he has been found 
 guilty of a capital oflence. The Spaniards have a great objection 
 to see a white person executed at Havannah, because it degrades 
 their order in the eyes of the coloured inhabitants. They bribe 
 the civil authorities and priests to procure respites, and even if 
 the culprit is not entitled to the least mercy, they will go to the go- 
 vernor and solicit a pardon by the impegnio, or private petition, 
 which it is not generally the custom to refuse. A white woman 
 had made mince-meat of her husband, and had put the mangled 
 body into a beef-barrel; she was found guilty, but by means of 
 Co 
 
202 AN EXECUTION. 
 
 bribery and the impegnio, the punishment was delayed for two 
 years; at last, to the great annoyance of the fair Havanneras, she 
 was placed on the fatal garote, and her hands and feet tied to the 
 chair, a collar of iron received her neck, to which a screw and 
 winch were attached. A priest prayed with the condemned, and 
 on a signal the executioner stepped behind the culprit, turned the 
 winch, the neck was dislocated in a moment, and " the bitter 
 sherbet of death tasted." 
 
 On passing the Carcal one afternoon, I saw a cross and lanterns 
 displayed before a black cloth opposite the door of the prison 
 chapel; this was the signal for the execution of a criminal on the 
 morrow. In the chapel was a tall negro, pinioned and guarded, 
 with a priest sitting beside him ; I asked what tlie crime was for 
 wliich he was about to suffer, and was told that he had been at- 
 tached to a negress, but discovering that she favoured a mulatto, 
 he waylaid them whilst they were proceeding on horseback into 
 the country, and murdered man, woman, and horse, in a solitary 
 place. 
 
 I rose at five o'clock next morning to witness a Spanish execu- 
 tion. The condemned, dressed in a white frock, was taken from 
 the chapel, and drawn in a hurdle for some distance, and then com- 
 pelled to walk for a mile and a half to the plain without the 
 city, which is washed on two sides by the sea; here was the 
 gallows. The cross and lanterns preceded the coffin. He was 
 attended by the Brothers of Charity in black robes and white 
 capes, one of them bearing a bottle of brandy and a glass; the 
 "Companies Urbanos," or city guard, in leather caps, green 
 jackets, carbines, and swords, were on each side. Arrived at 
 the fatal tree, where a multitude waited in anxious expectation 
 of the sight, the culprit got a large dose from the bottle, and 
 then, with a ferocious-looking negro (the executioner,) mount- 
 ed the double ladder, and the rope was adjusted ; the execu- 
 tioner then whispered something in the ear of the culprit, pro- 
 bably to throw him.self off, but he did not do so, when the 
 executioner gave him a hitch with his elbow, and away he swung; 
 the executioner than sprang into the air with the agility of a Clias, 
 seized the rope, and alighted on the shoulders of the murderer, and 
 there sat kicking his breast with his heels. When the executioner 
 had satisfied himself, by stooping down and looking in the face of 
 the culprit, that it was all over with hiiri*' he slid down by the legs 
 and mingled with the crowd. Then a priest mounted the ladder, 
 and pointing to the dead, delivered a short and impressive homily. 
 The body was left on the gallows till mid-day, and then taken 
 down for the purpose of being decapitated, and the head to be 
 placed on a pole at the spot where the foul deed had been done. 
 
203 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 Statistical account of Cuba. — Census of Cuba. — Difficulty of ascertaining the amount 
 of Negro population. — Sugar and Coffee estates. — Cuba, how divided. — Effects of 
 circular surveying. — List of vessels at Havannah. — Commerce. — The Revenue of 
 Cuba. — The Tonnage. — Foreign Merchants in Havannah. — The Natural History 
 of Cuba. — Piratical haunts. — Pleasures of the Asatea. — Cubanos mind their own 
 affairs. — Jealousy of the Spanish Military. — View the defences of Moro and Caba- 
 nas. — Silver Walls. — Offer of protection to tlie Cubanos. — Heavy duty on flour. — 
 Strange conduct of Spanish officers. — Spanish Troops. — A sugar Colonel. — Excur- 
 sion into the interior. — The Monteros. — Caravans. — The Great Red Plain. — 
 Treatment of the Aborigines by their Conquerors. — Treatment of Negro Slaves. — 
 The Slave Trade. — Canarymen. — A Cuban Overseer. — Slave Labour. — Food of 
 Slaves. — Dress. — Punishments. — Capture of Slaves. — Plans for suppressing the 
 Slave Trade. — Negro Music. — Characters of different Classes in Cuba. — The 
 Count Fernandino. — An Entertainment. — Daquilla. — A Chase. — Yellow Fever. — 
 A Hurricane. — Sail from Havannah. 
 
 Until lately it has been the policy of Spain to conceal, with a 
 veil of impenetrable mystery, the internal condition and resour- 
 ces of her colonies; but as regards Cuba, this veil has been unex- 
 pectedly withdrawn, under the direction of the captain-general. 
 A statistical account of "the ever faithful island of Cuba," was 
 prepared by a committee of military and civil officers, and published 
 at the Havannah in 1829. This is to be followed by another simi- 
 lar publication next year, from which very ample information is 
 expected on this noble colony. 
 
 The last census of the population in 1829, gives a return of 
 704,867 inhabitants, over a most fertile surface as large as Por- 
 tugal, and equal to all the Antilles put together. At this moment 
 the population is roughly estimated at 1,020,000; but taking it a 
 million, 500,000 of these are free, and 500,000 are slaves; of the 
 free 300,000 are white, 125,470 are mulattoes, and 74,530 are 
 negroes; of the slave population about 50,000 are mulattoes. Ac- 
 cording to the tables of Dr. Abbott, with regard to the slave po- 
 pulation, it is nearly impossible to get at any thing like the truth. 
 Fresh importations are constantly arriving from Africa, some es- 
 timate them at 10 or l'',000 last year; 2000 fresh landed from 
 Africa, passed under my window one morning from the country; 
 and the mortality of these unfortunate beings is dreadful, from 10 
 to 15 percent. It is the interest of the planters to conceal the 
 number of their slaves, to save the capitation tax; and it is the 
 policy of the government to conceal from the negroes their own 
 
204 NEGRO POPULATION. 
 
 strength, and also that of the military on the island, which may 
 be reckoned at 20,000 men. 
 
 The number of slaves introduced into the island has always 
 been very great, thus — 
 
 From 1521 to 1763 - - 60,000 
 
 1764 to 1790 . . 39,490 
 
 In Havannah alone — 
 
 From 1791 to 1805 - - 91,211 
 
 1806 to 1820 . - 131,892 
 
 There were, besides these, fifty-six thousand introduced into 
 the eastern parts of the island clandestinely, from 1791 to 1820. 
 Most of the coloured population are born out of marriage; in 1828 
 one marriage only took place out of one hundred and ninety-four 
 individuals of the entire population. 
 
 The monteros, or lower class of whites, cultivate small farms 
 all over the country, principally by means of a rude plough with 
 one shaft, to which horses or bullocks are attached. Besides 
 these farms, of which no return of the number could be procured, 
 there are now about one thousand two hundred sugar plantations, 
 and two thousand two hundred coffee estates. 
 
 The island is divided into three provinces — Havannah, Cuba, 
 and Puerto Principe, over each of which is a governor, though 
 the Captain-General and Governor of Havannah is superior to the 
 other two. Each province is divided into partidos, or portions, 
 each about one and a half or two leagues square; these are alto- 
 gether one hundred and twenty in number, but the uninhabited 
 parts of the island have not yet been portioned off. The parro- 
 guias, or parishes, are subdivisions of the partidos. Towns of 
 one thousand inhabitants have corporations, but they are subject 
 to the Captain de Partido, who again reports to the Governor of 
 his province. 
 
 The inhabited parts of the island were surveyed in circles 
 touching each other, consequently between these there were por- 
 tions unappropriated. The Louisiana and Florida Americans, 
 with their long noses, quickly smelt out these " locations," and 
 came over to the ever-faithful island and " squatted" upon them, 
 without leave asked or obtained. I heard many complaints of 
 these intruders, and the Spanish proprietors threatened that if 
 they did not leave the country, or purchase property in the usual 
 way, club law would be put in force. 
 
TRADE AND COMMERCE REVENUE OF CUBA. 205 
 
 Octob 
 
 sr, 1831:- 
 
 — 
 
 
 
 
 Vessels of war. Merchantmen 
 
 Spanish vessels 
 
 , 
 
 3 
 
 42 
 
 Americaa 
 
 , 
 
 1 
 
 27 
 
 English 
 
 . 
 
 5 
 
 3 
 
 Hamburgher . 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 Prussian 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 Sardinian 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 
 Total 
 
 departures, 84. 
 
 
 arrivals were 75. 
 
 
 
 
 Average importa 
 
 tion of Cuba, 1831:— 
 
 
 Spanish Trade 
 
 . 
 
 3,924,847 Dollars. 
 
 Foreign Trade 
 
 . 
 
 11,487,842 
 
 
 In-bound 
 
 Total, 
 ortation. 
 
 1,923,501 
 
 
 
 17,336,190 
 
 
 Average exp 
 
 1831:— 
 
 
 Spanish Trade 
 
 
 2,373,298 Dollars. 
 
 Foreign Trade 
 
 
 10,344,631 
 
 
 In-bound 
 
 
 1,488,823 
 
 
 Total, 14,208,752 
 
 The revenue of Cuba amounted, in 1831, to nine millions of 
 dollars; and the tonnage to the grand total of two hundred and 
 forty-seven thousand fifty-seven tons and a half this year, and 
 last year to two hundred and forty-nine thousand two hundred 
 and fifty-three tons, for Java coffee and Brazilian sugar have in- 
 terfered with Cuba produce so as to reduce the demand for it in 
 foreign markets. The amount of specie which left Havannah for 
 foreign countries, in 1831, amounted to nine hundred and 
 eighteen thousand nine hundred and eighty-nine dollars and three 
 quarters; which summary, I think, will convey some idea of the 
 great prosperity of this bright jewel in the Spanish diadem. 
 
 There are only three English merchants of respectability in 
 Havannah, but the Americans are in considerable numbers there. 
 I am sorry to say, however, that many of them are very unprin- 
 cipled. New Orleans is first resorted to by the worthless, and 
 as a last resource they come to the Havannah. The Spanish 
 merchants stand in great fear of the superior address (to use a mild 
 term) of the Americans; they tell long stories of damaged flour, 
 stones in provision casks, &.c. ; and from the Americans being 
 
206 NATURAL HISTORY. 
 
 seen constantly calculating, the story is current that they are born 
 with a pencil behind their ears. I became acquainted with one 
 or two American merchants of great respectability at Havannah, 
 but in general the traders there consist of a melange of rogues 
 and vagabonds from all parts of the world, and not a few of them 
 from our own country. 
 
 As regards natural history, the island of Cuba is as yet nearly 
 an untrodden field. It is impossible to go far into the interior, 
 except in large parties, and fully armed. Brigands abound in 
 the sierras and in the lonely valleys; and as offenders are seldom 
 brought to punishment, the lawless commit their depredations 
 with impunity, so that few have ventured to pursue scientific re- 
 searches under such circumstances. Much information may be 
 expected on the entomology of the island from the British Com- 
 missary Judge, Mr. Macleay, who has made large and valuable 
 collections of the insects. There is little remarkable in the mam- 
 malia, or serpents. The botany would be a research of great in- 
 terest; and as to the geology, it may be shortly stated that a main 
 ridge of hills run from east to west, principally composed of lime- 
 stone, in many places very cavernous, and the natural grottoes 
 filled with stalactites of great beauty. The highest peak in the 
 island is that of Tarquino, seven thousand seven hundred feet 
 above the level of the sea; and the most picturesque portion of 
 the island is in the vicinity of St. lago, on the east coast, where 
 primitive rocks, deeply indented with bays, (the haunts of pi- 
 rates,) are arranged in the most remarkable and striking forms. 
 
 " It is a wild and breakcr-beatcn coast, 
 
 With cliffs above and a broad sandy shore, 
 Guarded by shoals and rocks as by an host, 
 And rarely cease the haughty billows' roar." 
 
 Whilst I sojourned in Cuba, one of the pleasantest walks I had 
 was on the asatea, or terrace roof of my friend's house. The 
 city, glittering with white walls, towers, and pinnacles, was be- 
 hind me, and before were the fortifications guarding the entrance 
 to the harbour. Taking a to-and-fro-walk on that elevated spot, 
 I enjoyed the sea-breeze, and could observe the ladies in the 
 neighbouring houses, sometimes chasing one another or their fe- 
 male slaves through the apartments, or silting at embroidery, or 
 with a guitar on their knees; or I could watch the various ships 
 which passed in and out under the heavy guns of the Moro. 
 Sometimes a long black slaver, with taunt and raking masts, 
 would steal out; then a fine merchantman, displaying the star- 
 spangled banner; or a broad-bowed Dutchman would roll out to 
 sea. The Cubanos have a fortunate habit of minding their own 
 
JEALOUSY OF THE MILITARY. 207 
 
 business, and every one follows his lawful trade without let or 
 hindrance, so ships of all nations and for all purposes go and 
 come; and if a little "manure," as the Persians call a bribe, is 
 placed in the hands of the custom-house officers, no questions are 
 asked. 
 
 Seeing the fortifications so often at a distance, inspired me with 
 a longing desire to inspect their interior. 1 applied for permis- 
 sion to do so, but was refused, and a Spanish officer plainly told 
 me, "The English have twice paid us unfriendly visits here, (in 
 1669, under Buccaneer Sir Henry Morgan, and again in 1762, 
 under Lord Albemarle,) and really we are suspicious of you. 
 Some of these days your people may pay us a third visit; so we 
 don't allow any strangers, except niauvaiscs svjels, to see the 
 inside of our works." But I was resolved to examine the ditches 
 and outworks; so I got up early one morning, took a boat, cross- 
 ed over to the other side, walked between the Moro and Caba- 
 nas away into the country, looking neither to the right nor left, 
 wheeled round and returned, and walking round the covert way, 
 saw all that I wanted without being challenged. 
 
 The Moro at the extreme point of the ridge opposite to Havan- 
 nah, is washed on two sides by the sea, and on the third is a ditch 
 apparently one hundred feet deep and eighty brdsd, cut in the 
 solid rock. The only ditch I ever saw equalling it was that of 
 Dowlutabad, in India. It certainly is as impassable as the Stygian 
 flood to the unburied dead. When the English took the Moro, 
 after a month's siege, some of the batteries were placed on the 
 hill now occupied by the immense forts of the Cabanas, bristling 
 with cannon, and capable of containing thirty thousand men. 
 The Moro and Cabanas, one-eighth of a mile apart, are connect- 
 ed by a covert way, and some say also by a passage underground. 
 When the English most injudiciously abandoned their splendid 
 conquest in 1764, the Cabanas was commenced, and Mexico prin- 
 cipally paid for its construction. It is supposed that it cost fifty 
 millions of dollars, though some maintain that the works wei'e not 
 completed under one hundred millions. The King of Spain, on 
 seeing the accounts, naturally inquired if the Cabanas were made 
 of silver. 
 
 Nothing could rouse the United Slates to arms sooner than Eng- 
 land or France getting possession of Cuba. The valley of the 
 Mississippi would then be commanded, and the commerce of the 
 great emporium. New Orleans, completely under the control of 
 either of these two great nations, which the cabinet of Washing- 
 ton could not brook. The Mexicans, after separation from Old 
 Spain, offered the Cubanos military protection if they would also 
 throw off the yoke of the mother country. This was ridiculous 
 
208 SPANISH TROOPS. 
 
 enough, for now-a-days the Mexicans are hardly able to protect 
 themselves ; but one great objection to a coalition between Mexico 
 and Cuba is this, — in the former slavery is abolished, certainly 
 prematurely, as far as the tranquillity of the republic is concerned 
 and the happiness of the negroes. Cuba could not consent to this 
 measure. Certainly the Cubanos enjoy many advantages, and do 
 not seem inclined to revolt from Spain at present. They have no 
 direct taxes, except onvolantes; their indirect ones are on pro- 
 duce and goods sold in the island, which pay a duty of four and a 
 half per cent. I was surprised at the enormous duty on American 
 flour. A barrel of it is purchased at New Orleans for five dollars ; 
 if shipped in a Spanish bottom, it pays seven dollars of duty ; if 
 in a foreign vessel, ten ; it afterwards sells for fifteen or sixteen ; 
 so that the price obtained for this necessary article covers the duty 
 and freight, and remunerates the importer, though it will be evi- 
 dent from this, that living is not cheap in Plavannah. 
 
 The Spanish officers evinced great reluctance in allowing me to 
 inspect their barracks, and to see the state of their men. If troops 
 are in an efficient state, their officers ought to be proud to show 
 them to a foreign militaire, and vice versa. I attended their 
 evening parades, and certainly should not have had great hesita- 
 tion in standing before a company of their infantry when firing. 
 Once I saw fifty men attempt a volley, and three muskets went off. 
 But we must not despise the Cubanos, for all that. If they 
 thought there was a prospect of a war, they would get new mus- 
 kets, I have no doubt. The officers were smart in their dress, 
 wore pointed foils at ordinary parades instead of swords, and the 
 ranks were distinguished as follows: — colonels, lieutenant-co- 
 lonels, and majors, wore three, two, and one guerdon round the 
 arm ; the captains and subalterns wore epaulettes. On one occa- 
 sion I saw a regiment of recruits pass under the standard, kiss it, 
 and swear to defend it. 
 
 I had the honour of making the acquaintance of what is called 
 a Sugar Colonel, that is, the proprietor of a plantation, who has 
 purchased his rank and risen rapidly without having seen any ser- 
 vice, and has little inclination to smell powder. The gentleman 
 of whom I now make honourable mention, belonged to one of 
 the battalions which were ordered on the abortive Mexican expe- 
 dition some two or three years ago, when Old Spain attempted, 
 with a few hundred men from Cuba, to reconquer New Spain. 
 Our worthy immediately fell sick, was recommended to try the 
 hot baths at Guanabacoa, came out with his head all plastered 
 over with mud ; he had slipped his foot and fallen on the floor of 
 the bath-room : of course the expedition failed from his unavoid- 
 able absence — 
 
THE MONTEROS— THE GREAT RED PLAIN. 209 
 
 " Thou wear a lion's liide ! doff it, for shame, 
 And liang a calfs skin on those recreant limbs." 
 
 In leaving Havannah to go into the country, it is curious to ob- 
 serve the Spanish taste for ornamental painting ; the shops had 
 birds and beasts depicted on their walls, mounted cabaleros arm- 
 ed with sword and pistol, and donzellas flourishing their fans. At 
 the posados, or inns b}'^ the way-side, a group of monteros would 
 be seen on their long-tailed horses, stout swarthy fellows in straw 
 hats, striped shirts and trowsers, and each with a machette, or long 
 sword, thrust through the handkerchief which girt his loins; 
 others would meet us with fowls hanging from their saddles by 
 the legs, and call with a singing voice, and the last syllable but 
 one a note or two higher than the rest — 
 
 " Vainos a ver esto polio, 
 esta gallina caserita, 
 esto pavo, esto guanago, 
 Esto gano." 
 
 "Come let us see this chicken, this domestic fowl, this turkey, this guinea-bird, 
 this goose." 
 
 — whilst hundreds of little horses, laden with cofFee-bags, or boxes 
 of sugar, followed one another in log rows; on the last a bell and 
 on the leaider the driver sat, cigar in mouth, with sword and dag- 
 ger by his side. In the day-time, in town, people do carry arms 
 openly, but in the country, day and night, the monteros at his 
 plough, and the solitary shepherd in the broad savannah, all go 
 armed ; such is the lawless state of society in Cuba avjourdhui. 
 
 For some distance from the city to the westward are extensive 
 vegetable gardens, but no appearance of plantations or of country 
 seats; the former are further in the interior, and though the coun- 
 try, being undulating, and well wooded and watered, is admirably 
 adapted for the latter, yet it would be unsafe for a respectable 
 person to live near Havannah in a lonely place, unless it was 
 furnished with a moat and drawbridge. At the distance of four 
 leagues from Havannah the great Red Plain commences, extend- 
 ing to the south and to the west; on it are seen numerous coffee 
 plantations, tastefully laid out in shady walks, with lime hedges, 
 fruit trees and avenues of palm, and producing heavy crops of 
 that aromatic berry, grateful to the palate of prince and peasant, 
 from the Tuilerics to Tehran. 
 
 The cruelties practised on the unfortunate aborigines of the 
 
 New World by the Spaniards, are recorded in every history of 
 
 America. It would appear that they shot them down and hunted 
 
 them with blood-hounds, as if they had been monsters, whereas 
 
 Dd 
 
210 TRATMENT OP THE ABORIGINES. 
 
 generally speaking, they were mild and inoffensive. Some they 
 enslaved and compelled to wash the sand of rivers for gold dust, 
 to work in the mine, and to till the ground; all this ended in the 
 total annihilation of the Indians in the Spanish islands, and great 
 mortality among them on the main. Among other appalling facts, 
 the fertile island of Cuba, which once supported an Indian popu- 
 lation of four millions, has not a single red hunter in her majestic 
 forests or noble prairies. All are swept away by the ruthless in- 
 vaders. Now, when I was told that the Spaniards were kind and 
 indulgent to their negroes, I doubted the fact, and after minute 
 inquiries into the real state of the case in Cuba, I maintain that, 
 notwithstanding the boasted lenity of the Spaniards to their slaves, 
 in general the slaves on estates are treated with great cruelty. 
 
 It is true that in Havannah, where wealthy families have large 
 and useless eatablishments of slaves, they are mildly used; but 
 thei« having nothing to do, and their masters being idle, they are 
 ten times more so — drink, gamble, and are the assassins of the 
 city. By robbing and murdering the whites they retaliate on 
 them for being enslaved, and find the means of pursuing their own 
 vicious courses, and giving full scope to their lawless and depraved 
 appetites. 
 
 In Cuba the slave-trade flourishes more than ever, and thousands 
 were landed during the time I was on the island, which was only 
 a few weeks. In 1817 the Spanish Government was induced by 
 British gold, to the amount of £400,000, to prohibit the African 
 slave-trade. This large sum, which was so liberally given them, 
 was intended to compensate those engaged in the lawful trade 
 for the losses they would sustain on being obliged to look for 
 other freight; but the money was actually transferred to Russia 
 for certain ships of war, and the unfortunate slave-dealers got 
 nothing. Of course they thought their case a very hard one, and 
 it appears that their government are of the same opinion, since 
 they now offer no impediment to them in their African traffic. 
 
 Slavers still commonly lose one half of their living cargo on the 
 passage from Africa, the poor creatures are so cooped up in the small 
 fast-sailing vessels. When landed, they are marched across the 
 country to the estates for which they are bespoke; their heads 
 are then shaved, and they are shut up in a kind of stable. The 
 proprietors of estates, if they happen to be Spaniards, live during 
 the greater part of the year in Havannah, spending only one or 
 two months in the country. Their overseers are unprincipled 
 Canary-men, who turn out constantly armed with a long sword, 
 or machette, and dagger, and attended by a couple of blood-hounds, 
 their aides-du-camp and protectors. The Canarians say, " We 
 don't carry fire-arms, for they sometimes miss fire, but the stroke 
 
SLAVE LABOUR AND FOOD. 211 
 
 of the long machette is certain; however, the negroes are more 
 afraid of our blood-hounds than all our arms put together, for 
 they will immediately tear to pieces those who offer to touch 
 us-'' 
 
 Two hours before sunrise the negroes are summoned to their 
 toil, and while the dew still lies heavy on the ground, or the 
 rainy season may have rendered the ground a morass, they cut 
 grass for the horses and cattle, and feed the stock under negro 
 drivers for gangs of twenty-five. After this, they proceed to the 
 sugar or coffee plots; there they labour with the hoe till break- 
 fast time, for which they are allowed half an hour; again at work 
 till dinner, for which an hour is allowed, if it be not crop time, 
 when a quarter of an hour is all they have to devour their meals 
 in. Sun-down does not terminate their labours, for on moon- 
 light nights they carry wood or stones, building materials, 
 or are otherwise employed till nine at night, when a bell rings 
 them to their stable. I do not say that the Cuba plantation slaves 
 are all treated as above described ; but a great many are so abused, 
 and this I had from the mouths of Spanish planters. 
 
 The Spanish and French planters of Cuba give their negroes 
 rice, maize, and four ounces of jerked (dried) beef at each meal, 
 but barely enough to support nature. The Americans in Cuba 
 give salt fish instead of beef, because it is cheaper; but their ne- 
 groes are not so strong as those fed upon beef. The field negroes 
 go nearly naked. The negresses commonly get a coffee-bag to 
 cover themselves: they cut a hole in the bottom of it for their 
 head, and two holes at the corners of the arms. Sunday brings 
 no holiday to these unfortunates, for till ten in the forenoon, and 
 from four till dusk, they labour as usual in the field: between ten 
 and four they are humanely permitted to cultivate their own 
 vegetable grounds. Individuals of both sexes are cruelly flogged 
 with a cow-skin of plaited strips of leather; and to sum up, the 
 negroes on the estates in Cuba too often are badly clothed, badly 
 fed, badly lodged, severely punished, over-worked, and die at 
 the rate often percent, per annum — notwithstanding the humane 
 and excellent fiscal regulations for negroes promulgated by the 
 Spanish government: but we all know, that it is one thing to make 
 laws, and another to administer and enforce them. 
 
 No doubt, many individuals may be found in Cuba who treat 
 their slaves well; and I again repeat, that what I have said above 
 relates only to the treatment of slaves on a great many estates, not 
 on all. Some slaves get so much the upperhand of their masters 
 and mistresses in the Havannah, that though they are clothed, fed, 
 and lodged by them, they sometimes will not sweep the rooms, 
 or bring up the dinner, unless they get paid for it; and there is a 
 
212 SUPPRESSION OP SLAVE TRADE. 
 
 foolish old Spaniard in the country who won't allow any women 
 on his estate, as he says it would give rise to immoral behaviour 
 on the part of his negroes. I need not particularise the conse- 
 quence, but merely state, that his slaves run all over the country. 
 
 Now and then British schooners capture slavers, and in very 
 gallant style, but as perhaps a dozen planters and merchants are 
 concerned in one vessel, the loss does not afi'ect them much. 
 New lands are continually brought into cultivation, and though 
 there is a great demand for negroes, yet the supply is ample and 
 the price moderate. Before the trade was (nominally) prohibited, 
 the price of a field-negro was five hundred dollars; now, though 
 it is said to be unlawful to traffic in slaves, the price is two hundred 
 or two hundred and fifty dollars — this speaks volumes. 
 
 As far as I could learn, there are more slaves imported from 
 Africa at this moment into settlements not British, than ever there 
 were before. That valuable public servant and most intelligent 
 gentleman, his Britannic Majesty's Commissary Judge at the 
 Havannah, suggests that the only effectual way to put a stop to 
 slave-dealing is, "to search and condemn vessels that are fitting 
 out for slave cargoes, and not to wait until they have actually got 
 slaves on board before they can be captured." As I said before, 
 I saw several slavers sail out of the harbour of the Havannah 
 with perfect impunity, freighted with British manufactures to 
 barter for slaves on the coast of Africa. British and American 
 runaway sailors are tempted with fifty dollars a month to serve in 
 slavers; they stand to their guns, whilst Spaniards and others run 
 up the rigging when they are attacked. 
 
 Of an evening I have often stopped to listen to the simple 
 music of the Ethiopians, sitting at the arched gateway of the 
 Casas of the Hidalgos, with the moon revealing the gardens in the 
 court behind them, breathing of perfumes and displaying the 
 Moorish style of architecture to great advantage under its mild 
 rays. The instrument in which these sable children of Africa 
 most delighted is called the bamba; it is a bent bow, about the 
 thickness of a finger, with, a strand or split cane extended across 
 it; one end of the string is applied to the teeth, where also it is 
 beaten with a slender stick. The other end of the bow is held in 
 the left hand, which also presses against the string a clasp-knife, 
 and occasionally withdraws it. The tones produced b)'^ this en- 
 larged variety of Jew's-harp are few, but inexpressibly sweet and 
 wild. To the bamba the negroes dance, with the accompaniment 
 of the drum, and sing while playing on the dulcimer, or shallow 
 box with unequal reeds fixed across the lid of it by cords elevated 
 on bridges, 
 
NEGRO MUSIC. 213 
 
 •' Deem our nation brutes no longer, 
 
 Till some reason ye shall find 
 Worthier of regard and stronger 
 
 Than the colour of our kind. 
 Slaves of gold, whose sordid dealings 
 
 Tarnish all your boasted powers, 
 Prove that ye have human feelings 
 
 Ere you proudly question ours." 
 
 The lower class of whites, or monteros, who inhabit the 
 country, are hospitable and obliging, though not very strict in 
 morals; for in some remote parts the abominable crime of incest 
 prevails. This evil may proceed from the detestable influence 
 of slavery; and from the country being so thinly peopled that re- 
 ligious instruction is difficult to be procured, — and still more, it 
 is to be feared, from the influx of foreigners (as I said before) 
 having tended to make them despise the little religion they 
 possess. The higher ranks are disposed to be very friendly to 
 strangers, and many of them, particularly such as do not gamble, 
 are as well informed people as any in an equivalent circle in 
 Europe. In the domestic virtues they are infinitely better than 
 they have been described to be, and certainly far superior to their 
 neighbours of New Orleans. It is the opinion of an old and very 
 intelligent foreign resident in Cuba, that, making allowance for 
 the difference of manners, the wives and daughters are as correct 
 there as in any equal population in Europe, although, certainly, 
 some glaring instances to the contrary may be produced; and 
 unfortunately female society is not accustomed there to erect 
 itself into a tribunal to decide on the characters of its members. 
 The principal vices of the whole of the inhabitants, both high and 
 low, I repeat it, are gambling, and its accom"panying idleness 
 and extravagance. The Captain-general, Vives, sets a strange 
 example to those under him. He gained a name on the Peninsula, 
 but now spends most of his time in his private cock-pit; and 
 though his allowances are very handsome, he is so penurious, 
 that he gives no entertainments whatever; and when he wants to 
 take a drive, he borrows a volante from a friend, for he is not 
 possessed of a single horse or vehicle. 
 
 Through the kind attention of Mr. Macleay, I had an op- 
 portunity of seeing the best society of the island. He not only 
 gave a ball at his own casa, where I saw the fashionables of 
 Guanabacoa, but also took me to the houses of the Spanish 
 nobility in the town and country. I dined one day with the 
 Count Fernandino (the Duke of Devonshire of Havannah). His 
 palace is a most magnficent one; lofty apartments, most tastefully 
 furnished — black and gold were the predominant colours; in them 
 
214 COUNT FERNANDINO — AN ENTERTAINMENT. 
 
 were immense mirrors and superb chandeliers; the floors were in 
 alternate tablets of black and white marble, and there was the 
 aureum lacunar (the gilded ceiling) in every hall. No carpets 
 were used, but on this account, and the darkened windows, the 
 rooms were delightfully cool, though it was the hottest season of 
 the year. 
 
 It is the etiquette in Havannah to arrive at the house of enter- 
 tainment an hour or two before dinner, to show that the coversa- 
 tion of the company is preferred to the mere viands; accordingly, 
 we were welcomed by the Conde and Condesa two hours before 
 the meal was announced, and received the Spanish compliment 
 of — " La casa es a la disposicion de usted," — the house is entirely 
 at your disposal. 
 
 The Count spends a great deal of his time in his extensive 
 library, and is a most intelligent and excellent nobleman, possess- 
 ed of more influence in Cuba than any other individual. He is a 
 spare-made, middle-aged man, with dark hair and aqueline nose. 
 The Countess is very handsome, amiable, and accomplished. 
 
 The entertainment at which I had the honour of being present 
 in the palace of this noble pair, was served in a saloon open at 
 one side; and looking from it into the court below, the horses and 
 carriages were seen. I remarked game chickens running about 
 under the table, and many old and favourite negresses gazed at us 
 from side rooms„ The viands were, bread soup, larded mutton, 
 partridges, fish, with abundance of oil and haricot beans; olios, 
 honey and cheese, and dolces, or preserves, so sweet that the fla- 
 vour of the fruit was not perceived; but between the tropics it is 
 difficult to preserve fruit, unless a superabundance of sugar is em- 
 ployed. After many courses of savoury food, but far too rich 
 for my taste, though corrected with bumpers of excellent French 
 claret, the company adjourned to a music-room, where one of the 
 senoritas sang and played on the guitar and organ. Portfolios of 
 engravings were examined; and finally the eyelids betokened 
 that it was time to retire for the siesta, previous to the drive on 
 the Pasao, or to the walk on the Alemada, or public promenade, 
 on the wall overlooking the man-of-war harbour. 
 
 A song of the Havannah begins thus; — 
 
 «' Muchacha, se te casar es, 
 Casa te con un Catalon, 
 Que, si no tiene dinero, 
 Se meterd a Mussulman." 
 
 Girl ! if you marry, 
 
 Marry a Catalonian, 
 Who, if he has no money. 
 
 Will become a pirate (to procure it for you.) 
 
THE DAQUILLA — A HURRICANE, 215 
 
 It was really difficult to get away from the Havannah, for if 
 one is well introduced, there are so many attractive donnas trying 
 to persuade one to linger, that it is no easy matter to summon up 
 resolution to take out the passport. The ladies of the family of 
 the Marquis de Ramos were kind enough to present me with a 
 specimen of the greatest curiosity of the island — the daquilla, or 
 lace-tree. If the outer bark of a branch of this remarkable plant 
 is bruised with a mallet, and a knife run down it, the laminae of 
 vegetable lace are disclosed, which, when carefully opened out, 
 afford lace nearly as fine and strong as Brussels, and from six to 
 twelve inches in width. 
 
 I took a passage in a small Spanish schooner to proceed to 
 New Orleans, but she sailed before her time, and although I fol- 
 lowed her in a boat out to sea, yet she would not lie-to to pick 
 me up. But what was an inconvenience at the time, turned out 
 eventually a merciful intervention of Providence in my behalf; 
 the schooner was wrecked off the Louisiana coast. I returned 
 from the fruitless chase, and spent the evening with a countryman, 
 Mr. John Norman, to whom I am under many obligations for 
 supplying me with statistical and commercial information. 
 
 It was high time for me to leave Havannah, for I saw the 
 priests going about in their volantes to administer extreme unc- 
 tion to yellow-fever patients, with a little boy ringing a bell be- 
 fore them, and another bearing a lantern. Yet since 1 had made 
 up my mind to risk New Orleans at the most unhealthy season, I 
 had no very pleasant prospect before me. Still I did not give 
 way to alarm, having fortunately some sources from whence to 
 derive comfort and confidence. I next took a passage in the 
 Aurora Spanish brigantine, placed my baggage on board, and was 
 to sail on the following morning. I supped for the last time with 
 Mr. Jackson and his excellent lady; and regretting extremely 
 the necessity I was under to part, perhaps forever, with such 
 valued friends, from whom, if I had been a brother, I could not 
 have received kinder treatment, I retired with a sorrowful heart 
 to my chamber. In turning out, after the manner of an ancient 
 mariner, to see how the sky looked, there was a certain wildness 
 in the heavens which was not particularly agreeable to behold — 
 the clouds collected in masses, then suddenly dispersed, and the 
 moon had a greenish aspect. I lay down: presently the wind 
 began to whistle through the shutters; then it came in gusts; 
 then it howled round the dwelling, as if evil spirits were in the 
 blast. It increased in force till it became a perfect roar; doors 
 and shutters were blown in, and tiles fell from the roofs; the rain 
 lashed the trembling walls in ceaseless torrents. Cries of distress 
 were heard in the streets; then the firing of guns from the mouth 
 
216 A HURRICANE. 
 
 of the harbour, A large American brig was on shore on the 
 rocks of the Punta; some of her hands were washed into the sea, 
 which swept over her decks, and even over the ramparts of the 
 Punta: the foremast went by the board, but fortunately fell to- 
 wards the shore, and on it the survivors escaped. It blew a regu- 
 lar hurricane, and two schooners sunk at their anchors immedi- 
 ately before the house. The night was, at times, pilchy dark, 
 and then again the lightning gleamed fearfully across the heavens 
 in one broad sheet, revealing the building, and the shipping in 
 the outer and exposed harbour fearfully tossed about by the angry 
 billows. 
 
 The vessel in which I had embarked my baggage was to sail at 
 six, and at five the wind had somewhat abated ; accordingly I slip- 
 ped on my sea-going jacket and trowsers, and set off at a run towards 
 the quay, and dashed on as fast as I could; but the streets were 
 knee deep in running water, the rain poured on my devoted head 
 in torrents, tiles fell from the houses round me, and in turning a 
 corner, a water-spout from a broad roof nearly knocked me off 
 my legs, and drenched me from head to foot. I reached the 
 quay, and took refuge in the cabin of the Aurora, pretty much in 
 the same state as Brunei junior, when he escaped from the Thames 
 Tunnel. I asked the Captain if he would sail that day: " Demo- 
 nioV said he, "no, no, Senor. With this viento fresco (gale of 
 wind) we must wait till to-morrow; in the mean time I'll go 
 ashore, and spend the day with a corazon chico (little heart) of 
 my acquaintance, and I recommend your doing the same." 
 ^^ Hoinbrel (man alive!) why not sail to-day? If it become 
 huen tiempo, and the wind lulls, your cargo of fruit will spoil if 
 you stay here. " — "No importa,^' said he, " I don't care. Jidios, 
 Signor, servidor de listed,^' and jumped on the quay. 
 
 The above hurricane was the same which desolated Bar- 
 badoes and swept from south-east to north-west across Cuba, 
 and reached New Orleans. In Cuba, it caused considerable 
 destruction to life and property. During the day it blew a 
 fresh breeze, and I went down to the Punta to examine the 
 wreck of the American, and. view the mighty billows rolling to- 
 wards the opposite Moro, and dashing up their white foam to the 
 lighthouse tower. A group of negroes stood beside me, when 
 suddenly they raised a shout of joy; another schooner broke from 
 her moorings by the force of the wind, and drifted down among 
 the shipping: the crew slipped overboard, and saving themselves 
 in their boats, the schooner was left to her fate. She was fast 
 leaving the harbour, and the negroes shouted with delight, — for 
 in them the organ of destructiveness is very large. One, who 
 spoke English, cried — " She go for bring coal," meaning a negro 
 
SAIL FROM HAVANNAH — SAVOURY FOOD. 217 
 
 cargo, when she struck the rocks under the Apostles' Battery, 
 and was quickly broken up, to the great amusement of the black 
 group. 
 
 We did not cast off from the quay till late on the following day, 
 for the Spaniards had no idea of venturing to sea till they ascer- 
 tained, by the appearance of the weather and the prognostications 
 of their almanac, that the gale was entirely over. 
 
 We spread our canvass, and with a southerly breeze rolled out 
 into the open and still-troubled sea, and at sun-down the Moro, 
 was a speck in the horizon. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 Passengers in the Aurora, bound to New Orleans. — Etiquette. — Savoury food. — The 
 Guitar. — Sunsets. — First view of North America. — A pilot. — Mouth of the great 
 Mississippi. — Dangers of the Bar. — An Alligator. — The Balize pilot-station. — 
 Prospect of a sickly season. — Stem the current. — The last settler. — A Night- 
 watch. — Course of the Father of Waters. — The Porpoise-tug. — Plantations. — New 
 Orleans. — Melancholy Streets. — Hotel. — The first night on shore. — New Orleans 
 Tonsor.— The Markets.— The Cathedral.— A Duel.— The Levee.— Yellow-fever 
 Captains. — The battle of the Blacks. — Evening resort. — The Gaol. — Morality and 
 Religion — American Preacher. — Philosophical Lady. — Slave insurrection. — Re- 
 gular Infantry. — The Barracks. — Visit the battle ground. — Graves of the slain. — 
 Retrospection. — A song. — Visit a plantation. — A murderer. — Negroes. — Their 
 treatment. — Internal Slave-trade. — Ividnappers. — A disclosure. — England and 
 America ought to cherish liberal and friendly feelings towards each other. 
 
 In the Aurora there were two passengers besides myself, a 
 Spanish merchant and a French baker, the latter proceeding to 
 New Orleans to give instruction in the true mode of making petits 
 pates; these, with the captain and his mate, made up our party 
 in the cabin. 
 
 There was very little ceremony used at our table; the company 
 sat down to their meals in check shirts, tucked to their elbow, 
 and (« la mode Orientale,) plunged their fingers into the dishes. 
 Macaroni, or bread soup, a fowl grilled and swimming in lard, 
 garlic, oily plantains, sliced cucumbers, potatoes, and omelette, 
 constituted our common fare, washed down with vino tinto; the 
 chocolate that was served to me, by particular desire, was ac- 
 companied with a soup spoon, for it was of the consistence of 
 hasty-pudding; and when the dinner was placed on the table, 
 there was always a call for the oil flagon, the same serving for 
 light by night and food by day. 
 Ee 
 
218 SAVOURY FOOD — THE GUITAR. 
 
 For some time after leaving Cuba, we might have sung with 
 Barry Cornwall, 
 
 How gallantly, how merrily, 
 
 We ride along- the sea ; 
 The morning is all sunshine, 
 
 The wind is blowing free; 
 The billows are all sparkling, 
 
 And bounding in the liglit. 
 Like creatures in whose sunny veins 
 
 The blood is running bright ; 
 
 though we soon had light winds, but withall pleasant sailing for 
 ten days. After the usual routine of reading, writing, and walk- 
 ing the deck, I delighted much in sitting in the evening on a 
 hen coop on deck, listening to the Spanish airs of the mate, a 
 rakish-looking fellow, with a handsome pair of whiskers, who ac- 
 companied with the guitar an excellent voice. The crew would 
 sit in groups on the deck swallowing their garlic and oil, and 
 pouring a rill of water into their greasy mouths, from the spout 
 of the porron, a large earthenware vessel held at arm's length. 
 Looking from the vessel, there was nought but sea and sky, but 
 then what glorious sunsets, and how different every evening! 
 What studies for a painter a series of these; and how strange 
 would the forms of the clouds appear to an eye accustomed only to 
 the sky in temperate climes! Between the Tropics the evening 
 sky frequently puts on an awful and potentous aspect, apparently 
 the forerunner of some nightly war of the elements. 
 
 As we approached the low shore of Louisiana, we had light 
 baffling breezes, and the thermometer rose to 86°; we anxiously 
 looked out for land, when one evening at sunset, under two 
 mighty and dark pillars of clouds, which rose from the horizon to 
 the zenith, connected like the bastions of a fortress with a fiery 
 curtain, we descried the twinkling star of the lighthouse at one 
 of the mouths of the great Mississippi, and a rapid and muddy cur- 
 rent set against us occasionally, bearing along with it a huge log. 
 The moon, ''round as the shield of my fathers," shone brightly 
 opposite to the pillars of clouds, and revealed the white sails of 
 two vessels in the distance before us. 
 
 A pilot schooner approached, and from her a lanky and light- 
 haired New-Englander jumped on board of us, who immediately 
 called for gin; he then told us of many wrecks in the late hurri- 
 canes, not a few of which we found out afterwards, to be in- 
 ventions of his own. He next commenced guessing and asking 
 questions in the usual way. " What news can you tell us, 
 stranger?" said he to me. "News! why they talk of a general 
 
AMERICAN PILOT — MOUTH OP THE MISSISSIPPI. 219 
 
 war in Europe!" — <<War in Europe!" cried he with an oath, 
 <' what do we care for a war in Europe in our fine, free flourish- 
 ing country? but I calculate, we'll soon have a war with the 
 Mexicans." — "They won't be able to face you," I said " with- 
 out a fleet." '<0h! tarnation, no," answered he, '< nothing under 
 high heaven; we will knock h — 11 out of them." He then called 
 for more gin, and, thrusting his hand into his breeches, pocket, 
 took out a paper, and holding it out to me, said, <'Read that, I 
 don't care a curse for anybody." It was a certificate from 
 Antonio Be Silva, a master pilot at the Balize, setting forth that 
 " William Stevens was competent to take vessels over the Bar;" 
 60, in order to enable this worthy to prove his competency, I 
 told the captain to stop his grog, but he had finished a bottle be- 
 fore we came to an anchor outside the Bar. 
 
 In the morning, we observed the black and low lying shore 
 stretching from north-east to south-west before us, and the turbid 
 waters of the mighty river pouring into the sea between islands 
 formed by layers of logs, covered and imbedded in mud, and 
 appearing like bones of the mammoth. We weighed anchor, and 
 made for an opening where the water was only one foot deeper 
 than what we drew, and the wind only sufficient to enable us with 
 difficulty to stem the tide. It was a trying situation; the pilot 
 stood at the bows to indicate how the helmsman ought to steer, 
 and I stood a-midships to interpret the conning. The river 
 water rushed and roared past us; black aquatic birds flew round 
 us; and porpoises preceded us, tumblingoverandshaking their tails, 
 as if in derision. Several s?iags, or large logs, firmly fixed in the 
 mud, and pointing down the stream, were passed very close; and 
 sawyers rose and fell above the surface, as they were acted on 
 by the current. At last we got into smoother water, in a branch 
 of the Mississippi and anchored off" the light-house, a tall white 
 pillar, with a house beside it surrounded with peach trees. The 
 wind blew down the river, and I proposed to the captain to take 
 the boat, and row up to the pilot-station, the Balize. 
 
 As we were leaving the vessel, a large alligator was seen des- 
 cending the stream ; as he approached us he sunk his body, and 
 nothing appeared but his malignant eyes, gleaming from under the 
 pent-house and wart-like eyebrows seated on the top of his head. 
 When he had fairly passed the vessel, the long tail slowly moved 
 again on the surface like the appendage of Milton's Sin, which 
 formidable shape — 
 
 " Ended foul in many a scaly fold, 
 ' Voluminous and vast." 
 
 We rowed up to the station, avoiding the thread of the current ; 
 
220 THE BALI/E PILOT STATION. 
 
 and found the Balize a collection of some twenty-five wooden 
 houses, inhabited by about fifty pilots, of all countries. Log 
 causeways communicated between the houses, which were literal- 
 ly built on soft mud, and faced a bayou, or small creek, commu- 
 nicating with the Great River. Our friend Stevens came up to 
 us as we stepped on a sinking log, and holding out his hand to me 
 said, <' Halloo, man! are you here? Which are you for, cock- 
 tail or gin-sling? Here is the Bar, you must liquorise." I beg- 
 ged to be excused, as I seldom drank spirits, but asked him to al- 
 low me to ascend the wooden look-out house, in the centre of the 
 wretched village. We mounted to the top of it, and one of the 
 most desolate and dreary prospects appeared that I ever beheld. 
 On the east and west there was a boundless swamp, covered with 
 reeds; a few sluggish creeks appeared to the south, where also was 
 seen a strip of the sea ; to the north, the land rose a little, and 
 seemed in the far distance to be covered with wood. Thus we 
 saw the Great River depositing its slime, and logs of trees forming 
 what are termed rafts, among which reeds spring up and connect 
 the mass; the reed decaying forms a soil, on which grow shrubs, 
 eventually succeeded by trees, which are cleared by the sugar- 
 planters, and the soil yields abundantly like that of Guiana. Thus 
 the Mississippi is fast advancing the promontory of new land at 
 its mouth into the Gulf of Mexico, and increasing the length of 
 its course, which is computed at three thousand miles from near 
 Lake Superior to the dreary Balize. 
 
 <'We were all flooded here the other day," said the pilot: 
 " our billiard-table was carried away, and some of our houses, but 
 the Bar escaped. We're afraid of a very sickly season, for the 
 water has been above the reeds; but you Spaniards from the 
 Vanah are accustomed to the yellows, — acclimated, eh? We 
 buried a poor fellow here last week." — "What was his com- 
 plaint ?" — "Why, he used to sling considerable heavy." 
 
 We dropped down in the evening to the Aurora, and though 
 the breeze blew fair in the night; the captain and crew smoked 
 and slept very comfortably, like the Dutch captains descending 
 the Hudson, who, when they got on a sand bank, puffed away 
 quietly till the tide took them off. On the following afternoon 
 the anchor was leisurely weighed, and we slowly stemmed the 
 current. 
 
 As a contrast to the indifference of our Spanish captain to our 
 progress, the anxiety of some English skippers to make quick 
 voyages was recalled to mind, I made a month's voyage with 
 one who was hardly ever off the deck, but taking a short to-and- 
 fro walk beside the steersman, he would continually call out, 
 "Now mind your helm, boy. Keep a lively helm. Don't let 
 
THE LAST SETTLER A NIGHTWATCH. 221 
 
 her go to sleep in your hands — look at the head of the ship. 
 Now you're not steering your course — ease her, man, ease her — 
 don't let her fly off — you're yawing about the ship dreadfully. 
 Now, small helm, boy — look at the compass; don't you see you 
 are two points from her course ? Meet her, now — starboard a 
 little;" and so on. 
 
 Our distance from New Orleans was upwards of one hundred 
 miles, about the same distance that Calcutta is from the Sandheads; 
 and vessels are sometimes weeks in reaching the emporium of the 
 valley of the Mississippi. On each side the banks were lined 
 with logs; on which, under overshadowing reeds or shrubs, stood, 
 singly or in pairs, white aquatic birds: and frequently alligators 
 would be observed extended upon the timbers fast asleep. A 
 ball glanced harmlessly off their hide, rough with tubercles, but it 
 annoyed and awoke them, and snapping their jaws, they would 
 plunge into the river. 
 
 We passed the log-hut of the last settler. He was seated at his 
 door, and wore a broad-brimmed straw hat, red shirt, and canvass 
 trowsers; his wife stood beside him, with a white-haired child in 
 her arms. It was an interesting group, but the expression of 
 their countenances was that of deep melancholy, for they were in 
 the midst of dismal swamps; before them a canoe for fishing was 
 moored to a stake, and a few stalks of maize showed how they 
 subsisted. 
 
 1 was much provoked at the laziness of my Spanish messmates: 
 as I commonly do, when on board small craft, I assisted in work- 
 ing the vessel ; so the Dons took advantage of the trouble I was at, 
 and in the evening I found myself in sole charge of the tiller and 
 deck; all hands had gone below to sleep ! Though, of course, 
 quite ignorant of the river, yet I had read that it flowed in one 
 deep channel, with few mudbanks, so I had nothing to do in 
 steering but to avoid the wavy line of the current, and keep the 
 vessel in the still water. The night was enlivened with a bright 
 moon, which revealed the dark and wooded banks of the broad 
 stream ; sounds there were none on the river, but the hoarse 
 croakings of the bull-frogs and the noise of the insects from the 
 pestilential swamps on its margin. The hour and the scene were 
 calculated to cause Fancy to take flight and think of the course of 
 the mighty Mississippi; the "endless river," which I was now 
 navigating, and of the tribes of red men who had been driven 
 across it, and were disappearing in the far west. 
 
 I ascended in imagination to the small lakes, about the forty- 
 eighth parallel from which the river first issues, where also the 
 streams that descend into Hudson's Bay, and those which meet 
 the Atlantic through the Gulf of St. Lawrence, rise. I descended 
 
222 COURSE OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 
 
 the Mississippi for two hundred and thirty miles, through a prai- 
 rie, with rushes and wild rice fringing the margin to the Falls of 
 Peckagama, where it rushes over a rocky bed and descends 
 twenty feet. Its waters are now for six hundred and eighty-five 
 miles shaded with forests of oak, elm, maple, and other stately 
 trees; it reaches the Falls of St. Anthony, and again descends a 
 steep of forty feet, and sweeps past varied and picturesque bluffs 
 of limestone, with forests intermixed, for a distance of eight hun- 
 dred and forty-three miles, when it joins the Missouri, and im- 
 mediately changes its hitherto clear and pellucid stream to the 
 turbid colour of the latter river. "The Father of Waters" then 
 rolls in ona vast volume for twelve hundred and twenty miles 
 past immense forests, broad prairies, rich bottoms, and pestilen- 
 tial swamps, till it joins the Gulf of Mexico. 
 
 I was indulging in my reverie, and the white sails were begin- 
 ning to flap occasionally against the mast, indicating that the breeze 
 was about to die away, when I heard far down the river a sound 
 like the snoring of a giant; it increased in loudness, and I saw 
 lights and some dark bodies advancing towards me up the river: 
 this was the high-pressure steam-tug, Porpoise, with two vessels 
 in tow. Our slumbering captain and crew were immediately 
 aroused; the Aurora was also made fast to the steamer, and for 
 the remainder of the night we breasted the tide in gallant style! 
 
 Oh, wonder-working steam ! what thou may'st do ? 
 
 Where's the prophetic spirit to declare? 
 By thee we make broad cloth, hatch chickens too ; 
 
 We roam the seas — we yet may traverse air ! 
 
 When morning dawned we were passing Fort St. Philip and 
 Fort Jackson, built at a sudden turn of the river, which is raked 
 by the guns little elevated above the water. Waving fields of 
 sugar-cane, backed by dense forests, began to appear about forty- 
 five miles below the city of our destination, the houses became 
 more numerous, plantation succeeded plantation, a road behind 
 the levee (or embankment to confine the river, and prevent its 
 overflowing the cultivated ground) was occupied by bullock- 
 waggons conveying produce ; negroes were employed in the 
 fields, or cutting up drift logs into fire-wood — "hewers of wood 
 and drawers of water." The aged trees which had been spared 
 on the river's banks, were loaded with long bunches of moss, as 
 if the sea had passed over them, and had left them covered with 
 weeds. A turn brought us in sight of New Orleans, extending 
 in a curve along the north bank of the river, and we " cast off" 
 among the shipping, "brought up" at a wooden wharf, and found 
 
MELANCHOLY STREETS. 223 
 
 thirty vessels on shore from the effects of a late hurricane, and 
 round several of them a crowd of negroes, under the direction of 
 white overseers, attempting;, by means of canals, levers, and 
 screws, to force them again into the river. 
 
 A very civil custom-house officer came on board, who seemed 
 also quite sujDerior to a bribe; and after arranging how my light 
 baggage was to be disposed of, I landed, to deHver my letters of 
 introduction, and inquire where I ought to reside. 
 
 In walking through the streets, many of which were well paved 
 with stones brought from a great distance by sea, I observed that a 
 great number of the lofty brickhouses, with stores on the ground- 
 floor, were shut up, and that in some streets I was the only moving 
 object. I needed no inquiry to know the cause of this desolation; 
 long before I arrived, almost all the inhabitants of respectability 
 (who had a regard for their health), had fled from this city of dis- 
 ease, and intended remaining away till about the 1st of Novem- 
 ber; and a small hearse, with a single horse in it passing me, told 
 that the fell tyrant was already making havoc among those who 
 were unable to flee from before his poisonous breath. 
 
 Some of those to whom I had letters, had left weeks before; 
 but I was fortunate enough to find the British Consul at his plea- 
 sant country-house, and a countryman, Mr. M'Millan; to both 
 of which gentlemen I am much indebted for attentions. I took 
 up my residence in the merchant's and planters' hotel (until an 
 opportunity for proceeding offered), with a most intelligent and 
 active landlady, Madame Herries. 
 
 But truly my situation was far from being an agreeable one, 
 though I could not complain, for I had wilfully braved the climate 
 of the "Wet Grave," New Orleans, "where the hopes of thou- 
 sands are buried." The hotel was a handsome and spacious brick 
 building, in Canal Street, near the river, with a double row of 
 young lime trees in the street before it. It was built in the Spanish 
 style, namely, that of a hollow quadrangle, with galleries round 
 the interior paved court. I was almost the only inmate in the 
 house for a fortnight, though it contained one hundred and twenty 
 apartments, single-bedded and double; and the dining-room ac- 
 commodated in the bustling months of November, December, and 
 January, two hundred and fifty guests. Being free to range over 
 such a large house, I chose first one apartment and then another. 
 I cannot pass over the comforts of the first I selected. 
 
 The heat when I retired to rest was upwards of 80° in the end 
 of August; and forced to keep the door and window open for air, 
 though a breath sufficient to agitate the gossamer did not stir, 
 mammoth musquitoes (according to the American phraseology,) 
 rushed into the dreary apartment, and made such a buzzing about 
 
224 NEW ORLEANS TONSOR — A DUEL. 
 
 my ears that it resembled the noise of the wind among the cord- 
 age of a vessel. I took refuge under the sheet, when two or 
 three dozen of rats, pursued hy dogs, "scurried" round and 
 round the room, and attempted to invade my bed, and this recre- 
 ation continued at intervals during the night, accompanied with 
 squeaking, barking, and worrying. As if that were not enough 
 to prevent sleep, a party of noisy roulette players, occupying a 
 room of an adjoining empty house, loudly betted and disputed in 
 French for the better part of the night; then dogs howled porten- 
 tously, first afar off, then their ill-omened cry was repeated by 
 their brethren nearer; and finally, when sinking to sleep at early 
 dawn, a wild turkey in the yard commenced such a tormenting 
 and complaining noise, that sleep was entirely banished from my 
 eyelids, and I got up and refreshed myself by performing my 
 ablutions. 
 
 I went out before breakfast to find a barber, and certainly had 
 my hair dressed in better style than I ever had before by a mu- 
 latto. He seated me in a high chair, with a foot stool, and an 
 upright fixed in the back, with a cross piece of wood on which 
 the head rested, so that the operator had the cranium completely 
 under command to work his will upon it, without being obliged 
 to stoop awkwardly to his work. He cut and trimmed most mi- 
 nutely, used large hard brushes and soft small brushes, curled and 
 oiled after the most approved manner, and all for the reasonable 
 charge of two bits, or fourteen pence. 
 
 I then visited the markets, but, of course, at this season there 
 was a poor display of meat, vegetables, and fruit; mulattoes, free 
 blacks, and slaves, kept the stalls, and French was generally spo- 
 ken. I next visited the Catholic cathedral, built in the style of 
 that at Havannah, with a heavy gable front, a tower, a clock in 
 centre, and turrets on each side; the interior was white- washed, 
 and a few stiff paintings of Saints were near the altar. Here, on 
 the Sth of January, Te Deum is annually sung, in commemora- 
 tion of the unsuccessful attack of the British, in 1815. The 
 cathedral stands in a pleasant square; the Piazza de Armas, hav- 
 ing the city-hall and presbytery on each side of it, with handsome 
 facades. 
 
 Whilst I was walking home, I heard of a duel that had just 
 taken place, after the most approved Backwoods fashion, with 
 rifles and buckshot; but Frenchmen were combatants, and a mar- 
 ried lady the cause of the quarrel. Both had boasted of her 
 favours, and the stronger of the two had severely beaten the 
 other in a corridore for his presumption, but the aggrieved party 
 swore that he would not be satisfied without battle a la mort. 
 Pistols and swords were both proposed and rejected, and rifles 
 
THE LEVEE — EVENING RESORT. 225 
 
 were at last fixed upon; the duellists stood at the distance of 
 thirty paces, back to back, the loaded weapons in their hands; 
 the word was given, "Ready, fire," they turned, aimed, and 
 fired simultaneously. A shot from the lesser hero grazed the 
 stomach of the other, but merely drew blood, and the rifles were 
 again loaded. At the second fire the back bone of the bully was 
 touched — he fell and became very sick; the lesser then exacted a 
 promise from him, that he would not in future render his carry- 
 ing arms to defend himself at all times necessary; and thus the 
 aflair terminated, but the lady preferred the wounded lover. 
 
 I wandered down to breathe a little air (I cannot call it fresh,) 
 on the Levee, and saw specimens of the different vessels which 
 navigate the great river; the square flat-bottomed boats, loaded 
 with fruit and Indian corn; the long Kentucky keel boats, with 
 whisky and flour barrels; and lastly, the handsome steam-vessels, 
 moving hotels of two-stories, with elegant saloons, carpeted floors, 
 mirrored and gilt walls, and comfortable sleeping-berths, oppo- 
 site to each of which was a small window. But, alas! none of 
 these vessels were to proceed up the river for several weeks, 
 they were all laid up in ordinary, and the only chance I had was 
 a yellow-fever captain, that is, an enterprising fellow, who ven- 
 tures down the river from Cincinnati, or St. Louis, in the fall, to 
 see if he can pick up a few stray passengers or freight at a time 
 when others are afraid to venture. 
 
 I saw on the Levee a battle between a mulatto and a negro; the 
 mulatto threatened to jump down the other's throat, on which 
 the negro, as if to anticipate the threat, brought his head to bear 
 on his antagonist like that of a ram, and making a rush at him, 
 threw him violently on his back with a punch on the stomach; 
 but, the mulatto catching the ears of the negro with both hands, 
 bit and gnawed away at his head, when a strapping fellow, aKen- 
 tuckian, ran at them, and flogged them unmercifully with a heavy 
 cartwhip till they separated. 
 
 The place of meeting in the evening, in New Orleans, is not 
 a reading-room, but a coffee-house, with a sanded floor, and some, 
 indelicate pictures on the walls. Here, after sun down, the mer- 
 chants who lingered about this silent city, congregated to talk of 
 cotton and sugar, new banks, speculations in canals and rail-roads, 
 and, above all, of elections. Most of them wore striped jackets, 
 cocked their hats on one side with an air of defiance, and swung a 
 sword-stick between their extended legs. Up-stairs there were 
 billiard and roulette tables with closed doors; the players scowled 
 at me as I entered. Hard by there was the cockpit; neither the 
 American nor French theatre was open, though they are all well 
 F f 
 
226 THE GAOL — AMERICAN PREACHER. 
 
 attended in the healthy months; and masked balls are then given, 
 which in all other cities of the Union are unknown. 
 
 I visited the gaol, which is small, and though crowded with 
 prisoners of all colour, yet it is never known to have yellow fever 
 within its walls; there was no classification of prisoners, who are 
 turned out daily in gangs to work on the streets; they passed my 
 window every day, marching two and two, with hoes, spades, 
 and pickaxes on their shoulders, and chained loosely together; 
 the whites led, then the mulattoes, and then the negroes. Among 
 the former, a white man was pointed out who was condemned to 
 twenty year's imprisonment and hard labour for murdering his 
 mother. 
 
 Though, in point of religion and morals, the generality of the 
 inhabitants of this singular city cannot be praised — (as proof of 
 their indifierence to religion, there are only four churches among 
 fifty thousand inhabitants); yet there are many respectable mer- 
 chants, lawyers, and physicians among them, attracted to a place 
 where it only takes five years to realize an independence, though 
 at the imminent risk of losing one's life by the fatal disease. Ho- 
 race inquires — 
 
 "Quid brevi fortes jaculanmr asvo 
 Multa? quid terras alio calentes 
 Sole matamur ?" 
 
 *' Why do we, whose vigour is so transitory, aim at too much.^ 
 Why do we change our own for climates heated by another 
 sun?'* 
 
 The police regulations are excellent in New Orleans. Some 
 time ago it was a lurking-place for desperate assassins, and though 
 there were two murders committed during my sojourn, yet, in 
 general, one may walk the streets in safety at all hours. 
 
 On Sunday I attended church, and heard a Presbyterian cler- 
 gyman deliver an excellent sermon on charity or benevolence, 
 the want of which in the States, he said, causes such backbiting 
 and libelling. He complained of the desperate hurrying after 
 wealth, which characterised the white population, when half of 
 the institutions of the country languished for want of funds; and 
 though he said he could not trust himself with politics, yet he 
 gave his sentiments plainly enough on a recent occurrence at 
 Washington, where the President disagreed with the Foreign 
 Ministers whose wives very properly refused to associate with 
 the lady of an Arnerican functionary of questionable character. 
 The discourse was extempore, and I was surprised at the undaun- 
 ted manner in which the preacher (whose bread depended on the 
 caprice of his congregation) lashed the vices of his hearers. 
 
SLAVE INSURRECTION. 227 
 
 I was fortunate enough to make the acquaintance of a philoso- 
 phical lady, Miss Carroll, in whose book-store I passed many 
 an hour pleasantly and profitably. A native of Ireland, and most 
 respectably connected, she was early imbued with a desire to 
 visit the Utopia of the West, the United States, a land, according 
 to her youthlul fancy, beyond compare for civil, political, and 
 religious liberty. Declining assistance from her friends, she had 
 supported herself in various cities of the Union by millinery; 
 and now she tries books, not so much with a view of realizing an 
 independence, as by means of them introducing her to acquain- 
 tances, whose god is not Mammon. 
 
 About this time, the beginning of September, there was an 
 alarm of a slave insurrection at New Orleans; liand-bills of an in- 
 flammatory nature were found, telling the slaves to rise and mas- 
 sacre the whites: that Hannibal was a negro, and why should 
 not they also get great leaders among their number to lead them 
 onto revenge? that in the eye of God all men were equal; that 
 they ought instantly to rouse themselves, break their chains, and 
 not leave one white slave proprietor alive; and, in short, that they 
 ought to retaliate by murder for the bondage in which they were 
 held. Several stand of arms, some said three hundred, were also 
 found in a coloured man's house; and the affair looked so serious, 
 that five hundred of the citizens were under arms every night, 
 and the mayor solicited a detachment of four companies of regu- 
 lars from the nearest garrison. I was introduced to the officer 
 who commanded them, and went to the barracks to see how they 
 carried on their ''Peace campaigns." 
 
 The officers were very sensible and gentlemanly, but their man- 
 ner was more reserved than is usual among our people; and though 
 we were near a scene of (to theai) great exultation, the defeat of 
 some thousands of our Peninsular heroes by entrenched American 
 riflemen, 5^et they made not the slightest allusion to it; and there 
 was no vain boasting on their part, but a delicate reserve, when 
 1 introduced the subject, and expressed a wish to visit the unfor- 
 tunate field. 
 
 The uniform of the officers and men was a blue coatee with 
 white buttons, lace on the cufFand collar, and wings on the shoul- 
 ders; the men on duty were not particularly well set up, but the 
 Americans in general have a lounging air about them. The bar- 
 rack-rooms were clean, and the kits neatly arranged; but I was 
 surprised to see that, in the hot climate of Louisiana, the Ameri- 
 can soldiers slept two in a bed. Their bed-stands were wooden 
 frames, which could easily be taken to pieces, and had upper and 
 lower berths. There are no iron bedsteads yet in the States, and 
 consequently their men are far from being so comfortable as ours 
 
228 VISIT TO THE BATTLE-GROUND. 
 
 in this respect. In the barrack-square I observed the punishment 
 of hard labour with a clog and chain attached to the foot of tbe 
 culprit; and I understood that flogging and solitary confinement 
 was often resorted to, though free and independent American 
 soldiers being flogged seemed rather strange, but there are few 
 genuine Americans in the army. 
 
 Next morning a quiet and intelligent young man, Lieutenant 
 Page, United States arni)^, called on me in a very gay carriage, 
 and we drove to the Battle Ground. Three miles below New 
 Orleans we came to an open plain, on which sugar-cane had just 
 been cut, and with a few trees scattered over it. This extended 
 in length to the south as far as the eye could reach, and in breadth 
 about a mile between the deep river and an impenetrable swamp 
 filled with cypress trees; beyond which again, but hidden from 
 view, were lakes Borgne and Pont Chartrain, communicating 
 with the sea and with one another, and affording a back approach 
 to the wealthy city, independent of the river. We alighted at 
 some houses surrounded with trees and gardens, near the river; 
 and my companion said, " Here commenced the American breast- 
 work, extending across the plain between the river and the 
 swamp, and this house was the head-quarters of General Jack- 
 son." 
 
 The line of defence was seen quite distinct, though part of the 
 embankment had been levelled, and in it were found a great num- 
 ber of shot-shell and bullets. I got some relics from a negro-boy. 
 There were also the remains of the American bastions, and the 
 weedy ditch. In the centre of the field were the large holes into 
 which the dead were thrown promiscuously; and I need hardly 
 say, that over this spot the maize waved luxuriantly. 
 
 The scene was one of silence and repose, and nought was heard 
 but the rippling of the eddies of the river as it swept past the 
 Levee at the rate of four miles an hour. How different was all 
 this sixteen years before! Bearing in recollection the spirited ac- 
 count of the short campaign before New Orleans, by that master 
 of description the author of "The Subaltern," there was no diffi- 
 culty in tracing the operations of our troops in December 1814 and 
 January 1S15. The British having defeated the American gun- 
 boats on Lake Borgne, advanced through the cypress swamp; they 
 encamped previous to advancing to assail the city, when the Ame- 
 ricans made a desperate but unsuccessful night attack; and then 
 followed the series of affairs until the 8th of January, when the 
 gallant Packenham led on his seven thousand brave spirits to the 
 lines, and made abortive but reiterated attempts to storm them 
 without ladders, he to whom they were entrusted having neglect- 
 ed to bring them up; while twenty-five thousand Americans crowd- 
 
RETROSPECTION VISIT A PLANTATION. 229 
 
 ed behind their defences, and the artillery and Kentucky rifles 
 with fatal aim brought down our troops, exposed in an open plain. 
 Packenham being at length killed, and Generals Gibbs and Keane 
 desperately wounded, the troops were withdrawn by General 
 Lambert, and in retreating presented such a front that the enemy 
 did not venture to leave their lines to pursuit. General Thornton, 
 having landed on the other side of the river with his band of one 
 thousand, had driven the Americans, with great loss, from their 
 batteries, and pursued them till he came almost opposite the city, 
 where he fired some buildings. He was also wounded, and re- 
 luctantly withdrew on the signal to do so from the main body. 
 Then followed the ten days' preparation for re-embarking the 
 troops, exposed to an inclement season to drenching rains and 
 nightly frosts, and linallv, the departure of the ill-fated expedition 
 toHavannah; but the affair was forgotten and absorbed in a few 
 months by the glories of Waterloo. 
 The Kentucky hunter sings — 
 
 " Jackson led to the cypress swamp : 
 The ground was low and mucky ; 
 There stood John Bull in martial pomp. 
 
 And here stood old Kentucky. 
 And when so near we saw thein wink. 
 We thought it time to stop 'em ; 
 ■ Lord ! it would have done your heart good, 
 
 To see Kentuckians pop 'em." 
 
 From the battle plain we continued our drive to visit some su- 
 gar-estates farther down the river. At one of these, the proprie- 
 tor of a comfortable single-storied house came out to receive us, 
 without either neckcloth or stockings on, and his trowsers cover- 
 ed with blood. He had just been inflicting a severe punishment 
 on a poor negro, who was shoved out of sight on our approach. 
 This man was not an American, but of foreign extraction; and a 
 story was told of him, that whilst Louisiana was under Spanish 
 rule, he wished to marry a neighbouring planter's daughter, but, 
 his savage disposition being well knovvn, the parents refused to 
 give their consent. One day a message came for the old father to 
 visit a friend at some distance, and in passing through a wood he 
 was inhumanly murdered. Forty lawyers and their understrap- 
 pers then sat down in the house of the afflicted widow, on pre- 
 tence of investigating whether or not she had any hand in the 
 crime; and after they had preyed upon her for six months they 
 left her entirely ruined and heart-broken; the real murderer went 
 unpunished, having amply revenged himself for his rejected ad- 
 dresses. 
 
 I remarked, that the negroes on the plantations of the Missis- 
 
230 NEGROES — THEIR TREATMENT. 
 
 sippi looked extremely inelancholy and downcast. In the even- 
 ing I heard neither the song nor the careless laugh and joke, 
 which so frequently pleased me in the British slave colonies; 
 neither did the Louisiana slaves look so plump or healthy as ours; 
 the climate may have been the cause of this. The cattle seemed 
 in excellent condition, for forage is of course most abundant and 
 rich. 
 
 In other parts of the country the negroes are said to be well fed 
 and clothed, but in most of the Southern States it is penal to in- 
 struct a slave, or the child of a slave, in reading or writing, and 
 in fact the American planters in general decline instructing their 
 slaves in moral or religious duties at all, and of course at present 
 do not contemplate eventual emancipation; but from the exer- 
 tions of the Bosterians, and other abolitionists of slavery, they 
 may gradually imbibe other and better views. 
 
 On the exhausted plantations in Virginia, Maryland, and the 
 Carolinas, slaves are bred for the southern market, and though on 
 the shores of the Gulf of Mexico the mortality among the negroes 
 is great, on the aggregate slaves increase rapidly in the United 
 States: and why ? Because their climate is better than that of the 
 West Indies, though their treatment in the former is much worse 
 than in the latter. 
 
 By means of the internal slave-trade, between four and five 
 thousand slaves arrive in the Southern States annually. Kidnap- 
 pers of negroes still travel about the country, and not unfrequent- 
 ly secure the manumitted negroes in the Northern States, and 
 convey them for sale to the south. They likewise visit planta- 
 tions, and purchase incorrigible slaves for two hundred dollars, 
 which at the slave depots at New Orleans are put up to sale with 
 forged characters for live or six hundred. But the most remark- 
 able circumstance connected with slavery in America is the fol- 
 lowing. A planter in Louisiana, of forty 5'ears' standing, assured 
 me that there are a set of miscreants in the city of New Orleans, 
 who are connected with slave-traders of Cuba, and who at cer- 
 tain periods proceed up the Mississippi as far as the Fourche 
 mouth, which they descend in large row-boats and meet off the 
 coast slave-ships; these they relieve of their cargoes, and return- 
 ing to the main stream of the Mississippi, they drop down it in 
 covered flat-bottomed boats, or arks, and dispose of the negroes 
 to those who want them. I believe that no Americans import 
 negroes into the States, for the penalty is death, and, to their 
 honour be it said, the Northern States are as inimical to slavery 
 as the most humane in England. 
 
 Enough has already been written on American slavery to save 
 a cursory observer, like myself, the trouble of enlarging on the 
 
ENGLAND Wm AMERICA. 231 
 
 question. I have little to say in praise of the American treat- 
 ment of slaves; I will therefore draw a veil over what else I have 
 heard to the dispraise of the slave proprietors. To conclude, I 
 have a great contempt for those, whether in England or America, 
 who wish to sow dissention between two countries which stand 
 in so interesting a relation to each other, either by means of the 
 slave question or any other. I sincerely trust that we may see 
 friendly and liberal feelings mutually cherished, and therefore on 
 entering on United States ground, I have no wish to throw down 
 a gauntlet, but hold out the right hand of fellowship to Ameri- 
 cans of all sections of the Union, and trust that I shall never con- 
 found patriotism with national antipathy, or endeavour to exalt 
 my own country by malicious efforts to depreciate others. 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 Detention in New Orleans. — Insalubrity of the Climate. — Great Mortality among Irish 
 Labourers. — Precautions ag-ainst Yellow Fever. — Why New Orleans is called the 
 Wet Grave. — Sepulchres. — Gambling-. — Population. — Commerce. — Waggon road 
 from the Atlantic to the Pacific. — Duelling in the Western States. — A Monster 
 at large. — Contrast between the Eastern and Western States. — Rival Undertakers. 
 — A Hearse recommended. — Stores of ready-made Coffins. — Reasonable charges.. 
 — Bals de Bouquet. — Another Hurricane. — The Texas Territory. — Nature of In- 
 quiries regarding it. — The Boundaries and Area. — Americans desirous of possess- 
 ing it. — Americans and Mexicans not on good terms. — Emigration. — Colonel 
 Austin's and De Witt's Settlements. — Improper persons introduced into Texas. 
 — Slaves. — Anticipated Conquest. — The Face of the Country. — Mountain Ranges. 
 — Prairies. — Rivers. — The climate. — Timber. — Mines. — Productions. — Govern- 
 ment. — Towns. — Concluding remarks on Texas. 
 
 I HAD been in close contact with yellow fever at Jamaica and at 
 Havannah, and now I was in the midst of it at New Orleans. I 
 began to be ashamed of myself for "tempting Providence" so 
 long. We are but frail creatures the strongest of us, easily over- 
 set with all our precautions, and "the pitcher that goes often to 
 the well is at last broken." Therefore, though I acknowledged 
 with lively gratitude my preservation through countless dangers 
 and difficulties, yet I was well aware that it was fool-hardy to put 
 myself in the way of such a formidable enemy as the yellow fever 
 longer than I could help, and therefore was anxious to leave the 
 city; but I could not get a steam-vessel to convey me up the 
 river, so I was obliged to submit to my destiny, and, as we say 
 
232 INSALUBRITY OF THE CLIMATE. 
 
 in the East, '' to smoke the pipe of patience on the carpet of re- 
 signation." 
 
 Though New Orleans is rapidly increasing in size and commer- 
 cial importance, as the emporium of the rich valley of the Mis- 
 sissippi must necessarily continue to do, yet no' improvement has 
 taken place in the climate and in the salubrity of the atmosphere, 
 and even acclimated whites are afraid to remain when a greenish 
 scum of vegetable matter begins to appear on the shallow pools 
 in August. It is distressing to record the fact, that on an average, 
 six hundred Irish perish yearly in and about New Orleans, who 
 come in search of employment and high wages (a dollar a day), 
 from New York and Charleston, to the ungenial clime of Loui- 
 siana. They are commonly employed trenching in the country, 
 and digging the foundation of houses in towns, inhale deadly va- 
 pours, and more deadly rum, have none to advise or guide them, 
 and perish miserably. 
 
 It may not be intrusive to state in this place, the precautions I 
 took to guard against the formidable malady. I slept in an upper 
 story, performed my ablutions as regularly as a Hindoo, eat ani- 
 mal food only once a day, and in small quantities, (farinaceous 
 substances form the natural food of man,) drank no spirits, but 
 two or three glasses of wine per day, took three or four hours* 
 active exercise, kept the mind employed, took once or twice a 
 little precautionary quinine, and avoided the night-air, which 
 crept insidiously through the dull streets loaded with pestilential 
 effluvia from the slimy banks of the river, and from the creeks 
 and cypress swamps, the haunts of loathsome alligators and 
 snakes. 
 
 On the 1st of September, the thermometer at eight p.m. was 
 about S4°, without a breath of air, but myriads of mammoth mus- 
 quitoes. 
 
 New Orleans is called the <' Wet Grave," because, in digging 
 '' the narrow house," water rises within eighteen inches of the 
 surface. Coffins are therefore sunk three or four feet, by having 
 holes bored in them, and two black men stand on them till they 
 fill with water, and reach the bottom of the moist tomb. Some 
 people are particular, and dislike this immersion after death; and, 
 therefore, those who can afford it have a sort of brick oven built 
 on the surface of the ground, at one end of which, the coffin is 
 introduced, and the door hermetically closed, but the heat of the 
 southern sun on this <' whited sepulchre," must bake the body 
 inside, so that there is but a choice of disagreeables after all. The 
 plan on which penitentiaries are built, has suggested to the Loui- 
 sianians a new plan for interment: a broad brick wall is built with 
 
SEPULCHRES ^BUMBLING. 233 
 
 rows of cells on each side, and in these the dead are laid to wait 
 for the awful blast of the angel Gabriel, when the dead shall burst 
 the cerements of the tomb, and come forth to judgment. 
 
 " Wliat is death? 'tis to be free ! 
 No more to live, or hope, or fear — 
 To join the great cqualiiy. 
 All, all alike are humbled there. 
 Back from the tomb 
 No step has come; 
 There fix'd till the last thunder's sound 
 Shall bid the pris'ners be unbound." 
 
 Though it was the season of disease and death, yet the gamblers 
 still continued to reap their harvest in the city. Night after night 
 I was kept awake by the roulette table in the neighbouring house; 
 and it is said that a revenue of thirty-five thousand dollars a year 
 is derived b)'' the city from licensed gambling-houses, which sum 
 supports an hospital. Cock-fighting is a favourite amusement 
 with both whites and coloured, and vice in ever}'- shape seems to 
 hold high carnival in this city of the great valley. However, let 
 no one judge of. America from New Orleans, for it is altogether 
 sui geiieris; and above all let no future traveller visit it in autumn, 
 unless he wishes "to shake off this mortal coil," and save the 
 coroner some trouble. 
 
 The population of New Orleans was — 
 
 In 1802 .... 10,000 
 1810 . . . 17,242 
 
 1S30. . . . 27,176 
 
 1831 . . . 50,000 
 
 This increase is quite astonishing, especially when we consider 
 that the population of the whole state of Louisiana under the 
 French in 1763 was only eleven thousand. The whites are said 
 to be at present two hundred and twenty thousand, and the 
 slaves about one hundred and nineteen thousand in the State. 
 
 In 1S22 there were exported from the port of New Orleans 
 167,742 bales of cotton; and in this year 417,413. In 1822, 
 26,233 hogsheads of tobacco; and in this year 31,933. Sugar 
 and molasses, in 1829, 56,566 hogsheads and 2,511 barrels of 
 the former, and 20,940 hogsheads and 8,245 barrels of the latter. 
 This season, 52,142 hogsheads and 2,650 barrels of sugar; and 
 22,S72 hogsheads and 14,794 barrels of molasses. Commerce 
 will be facilitated by another canal from the city to Lake Pont- 
 chartrain, to be commenced next year; and I travelled from the 
 city to the lake four miles on a rail-road, on which there are now 
 locomotive engines. The citizens seem determined to avoid the 
 one hundred and ten miles of river navigation. 
 
234 DUELLING IN THE WESTERN STATES. 
 
 I may here notice the new and seemingly very feasible scheme 
 for passing the isthmus of Darien with merchandize. Last year 
 goods were sent from New Orleans to Chagres (Darien,) and 
 transported on mules to the shores of the Pacific, and then ship- 
 ped to Manilla. This year a company has been formed at Pana- 
 ma, and proposals have been made in England to form a waggon- 
 road, thirty-six miles in length only, from the head of the naviga- 
 tion of the Chagres River to Panama. Four hundred thousand 
 dollars is the estimated expense, and the shares two hundred dol- 
 lars each. The last scheme for passing the Isthmus with merchan- 
 dize before this one, was through Lake Nicaragua. 
 
 "Are duels still common in the Western country ?" I inquired 
 of a respectable gentleman I met one day at dinner. " Yes, they 
 are," answered he: "and originate most frequently in election- 
 eering squabbles, and people libelling one another in the papers, 
 which are sometimes filled with little else than personal abuse and 
 advertisements. Though now rencontres in which a number are 
 engaged at once, are less frequent, yet one took place not long 
 ago, after a hotly contested election in a Western State. There 
 were six combatants on each side, and they attacked one another 
 with swords, pistols, and daggers with the most savage fury; 
 three were left dead on the field, and almost all the rest were 
 wounded: the weaker party fled. Duels or rencontres are bad 
 enough; but what is worse, downright assassination not unfre- 
 quenlly takes place to the West of the Mississippi, and goes un- 
 punished. Our country is still in a lawless state in that quarter; 
 thus there is now living a man, Mr. J., in easy circumstances, 
 with whom I was at school in Georgia, who is well known to 
 have killed (not in fair fight) at least ten men. We were all 
 afraid of him it school, he had so infernal a temper and so diabo- 
 lical a disposition. As he was leaving school, being strong and 
 grown up, he whipped (thrashed) the poor master, and threaten- 
 ed to kill him, and one day he was playing with a negro boy, at 
 a ball game, the boy was winning the game, and J. split his skull 
 with a paddle. He is now sixty years of age, and walks about 
 continually with a rifle on his shoulder, and a belt stuck full of 
 pistols, and a dagger round his waist. These he carries for fear of 
 the relatives of the people he has murdered; and if any one were 
 to dispute with him, he would not hesitate to 'shoot him down' 
 on the spot." 
 
 " Why is such a monster as this allowed to go at large?" I ask- 
 ed. " What are the magistrates about, that they do not convict 
 him ?" — " Why, sir, he fees lawyers handsomely, and manages 
 to keep himself clear from trial; besides, even if he were confined 
 his relatives are powerful and as ferocious as himself, and they 
 
EASTERN AND #ESTERN STATES. 235 
 
 would fire the prison and raise the country if he were to be incar- 
 cerated. I remember that one young man, a good shot, boasted 
 that he was not afraid of this hoary villain. J. heard of this, and 
 one day followed him into his room ; the door was shut, and a 
 shot was heard, and the murderer walked coolly out of the house, 
 with his arms about him, after having basely shot the boaster. 
 J. opposed Jackson in politics; and once when the General was 
 proceeding to Congress, J., with some other desperadoes, lay in 
 wait to murder him, but Jackson's friends surrounded him, and 
 the miscreants could not efiect their purpose. But the crimes of 
 J. must make earth a hell to him; for he sleeps every night with 
 half a dozen first-rate pistols by his bed-side, the locks oiled, and 
 primed with the finest powder. He who has assassinated so 
 many, is in constant dread of a violent end himself" 
 
 As to duels and deeds of violence, the Eastern States present a 
 remarkable contrast to the above. The New-Englanders have too 
 much shrewd sense, and are too sober and industrious to lead 
 them to quarrel. Idleness, gambling, and drinking, are fruitful 
 sources of crime, and these still prevail in the Western territory 
 to a great extent; whereas temperance societies in the East have 
 worked miracles, the health of the citizens improves, their morals 
 are bettered, and misdemeanors are of rare occurence from these 
 admirable checks on evil propensities. Where the societies err 
 is in insisting on immediate and total abstinence from spirituous 
 liquors; temperance is limitation to a small quantity. Tliousands 
 would join the societies, who now keep aloof from them, if they 
 were allowed a moderate share of "John Barleycorn," and by 
 degrees they might entirely wean themselves. 
 
 Day after day passed in the same manner at New Orleans. 
 Melancholy reigned over the city and its deserted streets, and I 
 was continually reminded of "the pestilence which walketh in 
 darkness, and the destruction which wasteth at noon day," if I 
 looked from my window into the street, where hearses were seen 
 moving towards the grave-yard at all hours. 
 
 I was amused with the advertisements of rival undertakers in 
 the papers; this was their season of harvest. I insert a part of 
 two notices. The first under the heading of a withered tree, a 
 grave-stone, a skull, and the sun setting over a distant hill, thus 
 announces himself: — 
 
 "The undersigned, at No. 61, Camp Street, respectfully 
 announces to the public and his friends generally, that he has just 
 completed a new hearse, which ybr taste and beauty is surpassed 
 by none in this city. Coffins, mahogany, ebony, poplar, stained 
 or covered to order, are constantly kept on hand. He will also 
 undertake to furnish tombs, carriages, scarfs, gloves, &c. All 
 
236 STORES OP READY MADE COFFINS. 
 
 orders will be thankfully received and attended to with despatch 
 at any hour, day or night, and reasonable charges made. Next 
 door to the Jlmericnn Theatre. Thomas P. Willard. 
 
 ** To Cabinet Makers. — Two good workmen will receive 
 regular employment; ^oof/jod^, and cash payments. Apply as 
 above. 1st. Septr." 
 
 The next claimant to public patronage states as follows: 
 
 "Juan Fernandez has the honour of informing the public, 
 that he continues to keep his establishment at No. 84 St. Anne, 
 between Royal (!) and Bourbon Streets, for his sole account, and 
 without partnership with any one. There will be constantly 
 found at his store, coffins of all qualities and proportions, as well 
 as all sorts of funeral decorations; and from this day forward his 
 prices will be reduced as follows: — First, for a simple coffin, lined 
 with black cotton, with ribbands, and the small two-wheeled hearse, 
 No. I, ten dollars. Second, for a coffin, lined with velvet, with 
 two-wheeled hearse, No. 2, decently ornamented with plumes, 
 fourteen dollars. Third, for mahogany coffin, lined with white 
 satin, with the four-wheeled hearse, and necessary plumes, thirty 
 dollars. Other charges in proportion. 
 
 " Mr. Fernandez will also undertake the furnishing of coaches, 
 and the erection of tombs and monuments of all descriptions. He 
 will have tombs opened and closed again when applied to. He 
 will furnish all sorts of funeral marbles and tombstones, engraved, 
 carved, and gilt; and finally will undertake the composition of 
 inscriptions, and epitaphs, which will be made by an able person. 
 Persons who will apply to him /or every thing they may luant, 
 will obtain tapers at the rate of ten bits to a dollar; and if they 
 are desired to be lined with paper, no more will be charged than 
 for those without lining. He will also furnish stuff for mourning 
 dresses, and those who may not be able to pay in cash, will be 
 allowed a reasonable credit, and they will obtain gratis the use of 
 the necessary chandeliers and plate. 
 
 "All persons in needy circumstances, who may wish to have 
 their friends decently buried, will be charged only with the 
 actual cost, without any charge for work and labour. The poor 
 will be served without any remuneration! As to the mode of 
 payment, Mr. Fernandez will not do as is done in certain 
 j)laces, where money is required forthwith, nay sometimes in 
 advance; but he will make arrangements according to the fortune 
 and situation of his employers. He will distress no one; and 
 will send his bills to be collected only when the means of his 
 customers will allow them to pay them." — What a proper man! 
 Every paper I took up contained these advertisements, these 
 
BALS DE BOUQUET — HURRICANE. 237 
 
 meynentos mori ; turn we then from these grave subjects, to 
 another of a different stamp. 
 
 At New Orleans, in the gay season, they have very pleasant, 
 though expensive amusements, called " Bals de Bouquet," given 
 by the bachelors, but at the house of a lady. The garcon who 
 gives the dance, is distinguished by the title of king; and his first 
 care, when invested with the sovereignty, at the beginning of the 
 season, is to select among the ladies of his acquaintance a queen 
 to share his power, which he delegates by crowning his fair 
 partner with a wreath of flowers. At her housC; and in her name, 
 is the ball then given. After two or three quadrilles, the first 
 queen rises from her chair of state, and is conducted into the 
 middle of the room by the king, when gracefully raising a wreath 
 of flowers, which she bears in her hand, she places it on the brow 
 of a future king (another bachelor of the party); and he, after a 
 low obeisance, having fixed upon his mate in like manner, adorns 
 her with the regalia of the bal de bouquet. The new queen then 
 accepts the proffered arm of the king, the band plays a march, 
 and followed by the rest of the company, they polonoise round 
 and round the room. Dancing in its various branches succeeds; 
 quadrilles, Anglaises et Espagnoles, are resumed with the greatest 
 spirit, and continued until day breaks, when the first king and 
 queen cease to reign. Misihi, the Turkish poet, says: — 
 
 " The dew-drops sprinkled by the musky gale 
 Are changed to essence ere they reach the vale ; 
 The charms of youth at once are seen and past, 
 And Nature says, ' they are too sweet to last' 
 Though wise men envy, and though fools upbraid, 
 Be gay, too soon the flowers of spring will fade." 
 
 After an unusually hot and sultry day, the sun assuming at the 
 same time a greenish hue, and the streets in the evening as I walk- 
 ed home to my empty hotel sending forth a most disgusting efflu- 
 vium, in the middle of the night I was awoke by the noise of the 
 doors and windows violently agitated by the wind ; it increased 
 to the hurricane roar, lulled, and rose again, and blew with ap- 
 palling force from the opposite point of the compass, rain at the 
 same time deluging the city. Thus it continued all next day : the 
 sea rushed into Lake Pontchartrain ; behind the town, it burst its 
 banks, and the city was under water, the Levee only being dry. 
 There was no moving out of the house for many hours, and this 
 led me to believe that one day this city, rapidly increasing as it is 
 in wealth and consequence, will be swept into the Gulf of Mexico, 
 if the Mississippi happen to rise unusually high at the annual in- 
 undation, and at the same time the south-east wind raise the sea at 
 
23S THE TEXAS TERRITORY. 
 
 its mouth and in the lakes. More vessels were driven on shore 
 in this hurricane; the nnburied dead were laid in their coffins in 
 the grave-yard, and floated about till the waters subsided to allow 
 of their being buried— the stench was horrible. Many houses 
 were unroofed, and almost all damaged in some way or other. 
 Many lives were lost ; some boats and canoes upset in crossing the 
 river ; and, as usual (whether it proceed from the alligators or un- 
 der current), none who fall into the Mississippi at New Orleans, 
 are ever seen again ; and, lastly the huts of several fishermen 
 were swept off to sea, and the poor people miserably perished. - 
 
 Whilst at New Orleans, I thought it worth my wliile to malce 
 some minute inquiries regarding the American encroachments on 
 the Mexican territory of Texas. The political importance of 
 them is undervalued in England at present ; yet the facts should 
 be known, for in the controversy few of our countrymen arc ac- 
 quainted with even the localities. I was fortunate enough to pro- 
 cure a good map of Texas, really a terrestrial paradise ; and now 
 proceed to give a few rough notes of the province, which is con- 
 sidered the garden of the New World. 
 
 I directed my inquiries to the following heads principally: — 
 To ascertain how far the American squatters had entered Texas ; 
 whether a good sea-port had been discovered along its shore, and 
 and for what class of vessels ; if the sea or land gained on the 
 coast ; how far East the Mexicans were settled ; how the two na- 
 tions were occupied ; which of the native resources they seemed 
 most inclined to dcvclope ; in what way the country seemed most 
 improvable ; whether the bad road which Humboldt mentioned 
 as traversing Texas, between Louisiana and Mexico Proper was 
 improved, or yet habitually travelled ; whether any of the Indian 
 tribes lingered on the sea-shore, and what was their condition. 
 
 The boundaries of Texas are the Red River on the north, se- 
 parating it from Arkansas; the Sabine river on the cast, separating 
 it from Louisiana; south are the Gulf of Mexico and State of 
 Tamanlipa ; and on the west are Chihuanha, Coahuila ; and Santa 
 Fe. The area of Texas is one hundred and seventy-nine thou- 
 sand two hundred square miles, equal to that of the United States 
 of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and South Carolina ; and it 
 now divides attention in the States with the Michigan territory. 
 
 In the last expedition of the Spaniards from the Ilavannah to 
 reconquer Mexico with a few hundred men, it is said that the 
 Americans so far aided the invaders, as to send three armed ships 
 with warlike stores to Vera Cruz : these were seized by the 
 Mexicans and confiscated, and it is supposed by the Mexicans that 
 the Americans had stipulated with the Spaniards to be rewarded 
 with Texas, if the expedition had succeeded. Before seizure of 
 
BOUNDARIES OF THE TEXAS. 239 
 
 these vessels, the Americans were always regarded by the Mexi- 
 cans as brothers ; now, however, they are cordially disliked, and 
 viewed with extreme suspicion, so much so, that the ministers in 
 Mexico, in 1S31, prohibited further emigration from the United 
 States into their territory. 
 
 Four years ago, I understood that the Americans offered twelve 
 millions of dollars for Texas, but an English merchant stepped 
 forward and offered to raise the sum, if the Mexicans gave him 
 the tobacco monopoly for a certain time, which was agreed to. 
 
 Though the Mexicans may prevent the Americans reaching the 
 Texas by sea from New Orleans, which of late has been the fa- 
 vourite route to the country, yet they cannot hinder them from 
 entering Texas by the Arkansas territory ; but on the land route 
 there are many dangers to be encountered. The Indians are ex- 
 tremely hostile to white strangers ; continually attack the traders 
 who visit New Spain from the States, and settlers of course are 
 their aversion. Twelve years ago, a Mr. Austin obtained a grant 
 of Land in Texas, which, with subsequent additions to his son, 
 embraces the large area of nineteen thousand square miles. De 
 Witt's colony adjoins that of Colonel Austin, and comprises an 
 area of three thousand five hundred square miles. Including the 
 Indians, the entire population of Texas is said not to exceed fif- 
 teen or sixteen thousand souls, and these principally in the set- 
 tlement of Colonel Austin, who tempted emigrants with one 
 square league of land each. 
 
 The Mexicans complain, with justice, that instead of industri- 
 ous and respectable settlers being introduced into Texas, in gene- 
 ral the most worthless outcasts from society enter the territory. 
 I heard of people there quarrelling and shooting one another with 
 pistols, in the open day, with perfect impunity; of a dialogue be- 
 tween two old friends who unexpectedly met there, — one asked 
 what brought his neighbour there ? " The murder of a brother- 
 in-law;" the other "had fled after being detected kidnapping free 
 negroes." Again the Mexicans complain that they arc insulted 
 by the Americans, who, contrary to express stipulation, introduce 
 slaves into the colon)', under pretence of their being indented ser- 
 vants; and, indeed it seems quite evident that the Americans are 
 endeavouring to obtain possession of the country (a very tempting 
 prize) in the same way as they did Florida, by encouraging squat- 
 ters to enter it, who, when they are sufficiently numerous, will 
 rise under pretence of being oppressed, and an American force 
 will be marched in to succour them, which retaining possession 
 of the couiitry, a compulsory sale will ensue. Some will say 
 that the Northern States would not tolerate the addition of Texas 
 to the Southern, because their influence in Congress would then 
 
240 FACE OF THE COUNTRY. 
 
 be still more preponderating than it is at present; but I am very- 
 certain that the American Government fully appreciates the great 
 value of Texas, and will not lose sight of such a noble prize, and 
 such a splendid addition to the territory of the United States. 
 
 On the Sabine river the Americans have a garrison of three 
 companies of one hundred and fifty men, and the Mexicans have 
 a superior force on Galveston Bay. 
 
 It now rem-ains shortly to describe the face of the country. 
 The mountain ranges of Texas are not of very great altitude; 
 those along the Saba river are said to be the highest, and the 
 south-western quarter is broken and rises into considerable ridges; 
 this quarter is also barren and unj)roductive. The north-eastern 
 and eastern parts of the province arc spread out into immense prai- 
 ries waving with luxuriant herbage, and watered by abundant 
 streams. On these otherwise wild and solitary steeps, great 
 droves of wild horses and herds of buffaloes are found; and in the 
 northern frontier, and scattered throughout the province, are 
 forests of stately trees. 
 
 The rivers are numerous, and several of considerable size. 
 The Brazos river is at present of chief importance, as along its 
 banks are principally settled the white population. Its length is 
 seven hundred miles, and keel boats may navigate it to a distance 
 of two hundred and sixty miles from its mouth, which generally 
 carries only six feet water; but this might easily be avoided by a 
 short canal of three miles from Galveston Bay to the Brazos. 
 The entrance to the bay is twelve feet deep, and it affords an ex- 
 cellent and safe harbour inside. To the westward, the land 
 seems to be gaining on the Gulf of Mexico, which again is en- 
 croaching on the Florida shore. With the exception of Galves- 
 ton Bay, there is no other along the two hundred and sixty miles 
 of coast which affords sufficient water to constitute a good harbour, 
 and the mouths of the rivers are all interrupted by bars; but 
 what will not science effect, and what obstacles will it not re- 
 move ? 
 
 The Red River, a noble stream (flowing into the Mississippi, 
 and affording an outlet to the fertile tract along its southern bank 
 in Texas) is interrupted by a dangerous raft of timber, noweighty 
 miles long by thirty broad; this is constantly ascending the river, 
 increasing in size by the addition of countless logs after the floods, 
 inundating the country, and distressing the settlers in Arkansas. 
 Plans have been submitted to Congress, to get rid (in part) of 
 this great impediment to the prosperity of Arkansas. As yet 
 there are no settlers on the Texas side of the Red River. A 
 steam-boat from the Mississippi passed the raft last year. 
 
 The Sabine river, though three hundred and fifty miles long, 
 
CLIMATK — NATURAL PRODUCTIONS. 241 
 
 affords no facility for navigation, and expands into a lake of only- 
 five or six feet in depth. No lakes of any great size have as yet 
 been discovered in Texas; the most remarkable that bave been 
 described are the salt lakes of Tamanlipas, near the Bravo river. 
 Large supplies of salt are furnished by these lakes, which is sent 
 into Mexico Proper. 
 
 Except near the swamps, or some parts of the sea-sbore, the 
 climate of Texas is highly salubrious; and winter does not inter- 
 rupt the labours of the husbandman. Instead of spreading out 
 into marshes on the banks of the rivers, as in Louisiana, the land 
 in Texas rises from the streams, and then extends into fertile prai- 
 ries, capable of raising any crops. The river banks are fringed 
 with walnut, elm, oak, cedar, &c.; and in many sections of the 
 country extensive cane brakes are met with, which might be 
 converted into sugar or cotton plantations. A company has been 
 formed this year in New York to work the valuable silver mines 
 in West Texas. 
 
 The colonists have turned their attention to agriculture and graz- 
 ing principally. Fifteen hundred bales of cotton, two hundred 
 thousand bushels of corn, and about two hundred hogsheads of 
 sugar, exported last year to New Orleans, show, that though as 
 yet the settlers are but few in number, they are rapidly develop- 
 ing the resources of the country. 
 
 The local government consists of Alcaldes, Regidores, and 
 Syndics, as in Mexico Proper, elected by the settlers. Brazaria, 
 the principal town, is twenty-four miles from the mouth of the 
 Brazos. Nacogdoches, in a direct line from Natchitoches, was 
 burnt down by the Indians in 1821, but is now rising from its 
 ashes. Bexar is about four hundred miles to the south-west of 
 Nacogdoches, and is still of inconsiderable size, as are Victoria 
 and Goliad. 
 
 To conclude this sketch of Texas, it appears to be a province 
 with a delightful climate, fertile soil, watered by numerous 
 streams, and in the words of an American writer of a pamphlet 
 urging the propriety and necessity of attaching it to the United 
 States, "We may anticipate to a moral certainty, that in progress 
 of time, the fairest cotton, the richest canes, and every species of 
 grapes, will garnish its annual supplies ;" and, 1 may add, that 
 the Mexicans are anxious to have British settlers, to counteract 
 the American influence ; and since Mexico owes seventy millions 
 of dollars to British subjects, it may not be difficult to attach to 
 England such a desirable location for emigrants, and one of such 
 easy access, though, of course the Americans would not relish this 
 arrangement. 
 
 Hh 
 
242 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 Leave New Orleans. — An Escape. — Passengers in the Union. — Our Fare. — The Bar. 
 — A Steamer. — Wooding Places on the Mississippi. — The Forest. — A Sugar Es- 
 tate described. — DiiFerence of Canes. — Annual Expenditure on a Sugar Estate. — 
 Plough Husbandry. — American Entcrprize. — "Nuts" for the Abolitionists. — The 
 last Parroquet. — The Deck Passengers fond of "Corn." — The Encroachments of 
 the Sea. — The old Month of the Great River. — Yankee cunning. — The Clock Ped- 
 lar. — The Mississippi and Irrawaddy compared. — The SquJitters ; their Better- 
 ments. — The Alligators. — River Robbers. — Natchez. — The Upper and Lower 
 Towns. — Passengers plundered. — The Voyage continued. — Navigation of the Ri- 
 ver. — The Wooden Fork. — Dislikes of Backwoodsmen. — The Author gets a les- 
 son. — River Corpses. — Vixburgh. — Distress of a Hotel Keeper. — Three Snapping 
 Turtles. — A Skirmish. — The Prize-ring defended. — Broad Horns. — The Cut-off at 
 Red River. — The Inundation. — The Union is snagged and sinks. — Accidents on 
 the Mississippi. 
 
 After a tedious delay of a fortnight in the Wet Grave, an op- 
 portunity presented itself for leaving, the Union, steamer, pro- 
 ceeding up the river ; I accordingly secured a berth in her, and 
 conveyed my baggage on board. The bell was ringing, announ- 
 cing the departure of the vessel, and I was jumping on the plank 
 with a light heart at leaving the city of death, and again finding 
 the telaria on my feet, when a rough fellow addressed me : — 
 <' Halloo ! Mister ; you've not got the yellow fever yet, I see." 
 — <'No, nor likely either to get it, thank God. Did you expect 
 I should get it?" — "To be sure I did ; why, I saw you land here, 
 and I says to a partner o' mine, There's one will never go alive 
 out of this place." — "I'm not so easily killed, my friend; we're 
 off, so good b'ye !" 
 
 I was in high spirits at being again on the move, and with the 
 prospect of seeing the interior of such an interesting country ; 
 and, though we had the risk of bursting boilers, snags, sawyers, 
 and other evils before us, yet I felt grateful at the escapes I had 
 already made, and looked forward with confidence to be yet pre- 
 served a little longer in this fair world, which affords well-springs 
 of happiness in almost every situation, if we would only look 
 about for them. 
 
 " Where'er we turn, enjoyment and delight, 
 Or present or in prospect, meet the sight; 
 Hourly allurements on our passions press, 
 Safe in themselves, but dangerous in th' excess." 
 
 We had only two ladies on board, some half dozen gentlemen 
 in the cabin, and a dozen and a half of deck passengers. There 
 
THE BAR — A STEAMER. 243 
 
 was abundance of substantial food three times a-day ; plates of 
 steaks, chops, grilled fowls, sausages, maize-bread and wheaten- 
 bread, &c. &c. were placed on the table. First the cabin-passen- 
 gers cleared oflf part of the viands ; then the engineers and pilots 
 succeeded us, in their shirt-sleeves; and lastly, the servants 
 (helps), all calling one another gentlemen, sirring one another, 
 chewing tobacco and spitting — "mere trifles when one's accus- 
 tomed to them." All day long the bar at one end of the saloon 
 was occupied by thirsty souls. Mint julep and apple toddy were 
 the favourite liquors of the refined ; cocktail and gin-sling were 
 relished by the Dii minorum gentium. 
 
 The Union was, as usual, a high-pressure vessel, and burnt 
 nothing but wood, which was piled up round the furnaces in the 
 fore part of the vessel, where were the two chimne)'^s, the awn- 
 ing and wheel; where also stood the pilot, and behind him the 
 short tube for the escape-steam, which, like a small white cloud, 
 puffed violently out every instant, and mingled with the atmos- 
 phere, for we drew no long train of smoke behind us like our 
 vessels in the old country. 
 
 We stopped two or three times a day at the wooding-places on 
 the banks of the river, and saw there the piles neatly arranged, 
 with a squatter sitting beside them to dispose of his cuttings. 
 Wood in America is so-ld by the cord, or one hundred and twenty- 
 eight cubic feet, which makes a pile eight feet in length, four 
 high, and four thick. At first the Captain paid four dollars a cord, 
 and as we got higher up, two, and I think we consumed about 
 half a cord an hour. We were occupied from half an hour to an 
 hour at each of the wooding places, for there were few deck pas- 
 sengers to assist. I had thus an excellent opportunity for visit- 
 ing the plantations and settlements on the banks; but after we 
 had accomplished one hundred and sixty miles above New Or- 
 leans, the sugar estates ceased, and the animated appearance of 
 the river banks given by the white houses, sugar-mills, negro 
 villages, and cultivation, was changed for the gloom of the forest 
 descending to the water's edge, and here and there the hut of a 
 solitary squatter. 
 
 From an intelligent planter, who had been forty years in Loui- 
 siana, I got a good deal of information regarding the value of 
 estates on the Mississippi. " We are now," said he, " about one 
 hundred and fifty miles above New Orleans, and here is an estate 
 of forty acres front, and eighty in depth, backed by the forest; 
 it has one hundred negroes and stock upon it, and has just been 
 sold for fifty thousand dollars cash; if credit had been given, per- 
 haps seventy thousand would have been the price. Near New 
 Orleans it would have fetched double the money, for there the 
 
244 ANNUAL EXPENDITURE. 
 
 canes don't suffer from frost as they do here sometimes, though 
 we stack them, and do what we can to preserve them. 
 
 ''In the district of Opoulousas, to the left of us, estates are much 
 cheaper. The canes are on the ground only from March to Oc- 
 tober, when they are cut. The West Indian canes remain a year 
 in the ground, consequently are much larger than ours. These 
 Mississippi canes are not so good as the Florida, for they are 
 moist, whereas the latter are dry; but it is a profitable business, 
 sugar-planting. At present there are not too many engaged in 
 it, and our Government gives every encouragement to us in the 
 shape of protecting duties. I may say, that on an average 
 the seven hundred and forty sugar-estates in Louisiana yield a 
 profit of from six to ten per cent, on the investment." 
 
 "But are not these estates cultivated at considerable expense?" 
 I inquired. 
 
 *< Yes, and here is a memorandum for you, which will show 
 you the usual cost annually. Each slave, including wages for 
 Sunday's work, physicians' bills, keep of horses and mules, 105 
 dollars. The items are, on an estate of eighty negroes, salt meat 
 and spirits, 830 dollars; clothing, 1200; medical attendance and 
 medicines, 400; Indian corn, 1000; overseer's and sugar-maker's 
 salary, 1000; taxes, 300; annual loss on a capital of 50,000 in 
 negroes, at two and a half per cent. 1250; horses and oxen 1500; 
 repairs of boilers, 550; ditto of ploughs, carts, &c. 300; total, 
 8330." 
 
 "You talk of ploughs — are they extensively used in the State?'* 
 
 "Beginning to be so; and we find great advantage from them, 
 for they turn up old lands much deeper than the miserable hoe. 
 We use one-horse ploughs for ground that has been already bro- 
 ken, and a two-horse plough for new land. We take two crops 
 of canes off the land; it then lies fallow for two years, or corn is 
 raised on it, for we are careful not to exhaust our soil, rich though 
 it be.^' 
 
 *< Fewer hands are of course required where the plough is 
 used !" 
 
 "Undoubtedly; and though some of the old planters are pre- 
 judiced, particularly the French and Spaniards, and will not adopt 
 anything new, either in their agriculture or manufacture of sugar, 
 yet we Yankees try experiments, and adopt new systems, if we 
 find them profitable. The plough and steam-engine are far bet- 
 ter than the hoes and cattle-mill, and in the course of a few years 
 we might do without slaves at all." 
 
 " I sincerely hope so." 
 
 I may here mention a discovery in Africa, which will doubtless 
 be very gratifying to the Anti-Slavery Society, as another mode 
 
THE LAST PARROQUET. 245 
 
 may now be adopted to supersede the necessity for negro labour 
 altogether. An American sea-captain, in a letter to the Editor of 
 the ''African Repository," stated, that whilst he was at Liberia, 
 (the American philanthropic settlement near Cape Coast,) he was 
 informed by the Kroomen, that the ourang outang had been re- 
 peatedly seen on the banks of the Junk river, crah/nnff with a 
 crab slick and rude basket of his own construction. " If this be 
 a fact," sagely adds the captain, "1 think the Colonists might 
 profit by it, by employing these animals in their corn and rice 
 field; for I see no reason why they should not be made to work 
 as well as a horse or an ox." This savours a little of the sea 
 serpent, but is most important, if true. 
 
 Three of our passengers were Guatimalians, two white and one 
 brown young man; they were proceeding up the Mississippi and 
 Ohio, and then across the Alleghanies to Philadelphia, from thence 
 to embark for Europe. They had brought with them a zoologi- 
 cal garden of birds and beasts, splendid blue and scarlet macaws, 
 green and yellow parrots, tiny parroquets, and a monkey or two. 
 One of the female passengers was a strapping dark-haired French 
 Creole, whom we christened the Grenadier; she rocked in her 
 arm-chair, and played with the parrots the livelong day. " Mon 
 cher, do give me this," said she to one of the central Americans, 
 holding up a curious little old-fashioned parroquet, that nibbled 
 her finger with its crooked bill; " I want it so much for my pe- 
 tite." "Ave Maria purissima!" answered the Guatimalian, "I 
 would give it to you, Senora, most willingly, but it is the only 
 one of the kind I have left." However, the parroquet was 
 destined to change owners; the handsome brunette regularly laid 
 siege to the youth, won his heart, and moulded him to her will, 
 and when we stopped opposite to her plantation, I observed that 
 she went ashore with the parroquet on her thumb. Oh! crafty 
 woman, what slaves do you not make of us! verily, we are as 
 Persian Teduko, or led horses before you, and you turn us round yv/' 
 and round your little fingers. KL^ 
 
 Our deck-passengers were principally back-woodsmen, who 
 had dropped down the river in summer in their square and flat- 
 bottomed arks, laden with various commodities; and having dis- 
 posed of their cargo, and their uncouth vessels being broken up 
 for fire-wood, they were returning to their homes. They were 
 a wild and fierce-looking set; their hair was long and uncombed, 
 and a coarse striped shirt and trowsers composed their attire. 1 
 used to go forward among them to hear their conversation, and 
 remark how they spent their time; but they spoke little to one 
 another, and when they did, it was in a mumbling under-tone; 
 and the most of them were continually drinking whisky, playing 
 
246 ENCROA-CHMENTS OF THE SEA. 
 
 at cards on the head of a flour-barrel, or sleeping on the shady- 
 side of the deck. Several had been desperately wounded with 
 knives, and one had his arm tied up, held it out to me and said, 
 " Come, mister, you can doctor this, I reckon." It was an ugly- 
 looking sore, from a stab with a rusty knife, perhaps. As an 
 hospitaller, I ought to have some little knowledge of medicine, so 
 I directed him, in the first instance, to leave off whisky. ''Oh! 
 h — 11," said he, " if my arm should drop off, I must have my corn, 
 I tell ye." 
 
 " They say 'tis pleasant on the lip, 
 And merry on the brain ; 
 They say it stirs the sluggish blood, 
 
 And dulls the tooth of pain. 
 Ay — but within its glowing deeps, 
 A stinging serpent unseen sleeps." , 
 
 In all parts of the world, it is interesting to note the encroach- 
 ments of the sea on the coasts, or to mark its recessions. In 
 Number 25 of the " Journal of the Royal Institution," old series, 
 page 230, it is stated that an old house in Cape May, at the en- 
 trance of the Delaware, marks a loss of one hundred and fifty- 
 four feet from 1804 to 1S20. This is prodigious, and the intelli- 
 gent Secretary to the Royal Geographical Society requested me 
 to inquire if this was progressive; I did so, but could obtain no 
 very satisfactory answer. However, it appears that the coast of 
 Jersey, about Cape May, is shifting sand, and is influenced by 
 storms, which at one time heap up mounds of sand, and at an- 
 other, sweep them away. 
 
 The changes on the coast of Jersey have very little to do with 
 the Mississippi, on which we are now navigating; yet the above 
 is a curious subject of inquiry, but much more so is the following. 
 In an old Spanish account of an expedition which proceeded from 
 the Havannah in the sixteenth century, to search for the waters 
 of youth, (for these were the days of the Eldorado, the Philoso- 
 pher's Stone, the Panacea or Elixir Vita?,) it appears to have 
 landed in Florida, travelled to tlie north-west, and sailed down 
 the Mississippi, the mouth of which the narrator describes to be 
 forty-five miles in breadth, and terminated by two blufl's, the wa- 
 ter between them very shallow. Now Baton Rouge and Opou- 
 lousas correspond with these bluffs, but it seems impossible that 
 the country to the south of these could have risen from the sea in 
 so short a "time. Perhaps the expedition arrived at Baton Rouge 
 during the annual inundation. 
 
 The people of the Southern States stand in as much fear of the 
 superior intelligence or cunning (if you will) of the genuine Yan- 
 kees of New-England, as the yokels of the south and west of 
 
YANKEE CTTNNINa — MISSISSIPPI AND lURAWADDT. 247 
 
 England do of Yorkshiremen. I continually heard complaints of 
 "these damned Yankees taking inourpoor wives and daughters." 
 The planters would never allow that they themselves had been 
 bitten, but complained of the bargains which had been sold their 
 unsuspecting females. I often heard the old stories of wooden 
 nutmegs; common sheep with a merino fleece sewed upon them; 
 and watches sold at auction without works. 
 
 I shall' now only give one anecdote of a trick that was played 
 by a Yankee pedlar with an investment of clocks. He travelled 
 through the State of Georgia, with a light Jersey wagon, or dear- 
 born, freighted with eight-day time-pieces; he sold them all (bar- 
 gains,) save one, at the different "stands." The purchasers soon 
 found that their clocks would not go. The pedlar had occasion 
 to return by the same road, and stopping at a house where he had 
 disposed of a clock, he was immediately taxed with imposition. 
 "I beg pardon," said the sleek Jonathan, <'I made a little mis- 
 take. I left a wrong clock with you, take this one instead." 
 And so on he went changing the clocks, and got clear ofi'with 
 the proceeds of his '< spec." I have lain awake at night and been 
 much amused with Yankees recounting the tricks they had play- 
 ed in the south, selling barrels of rotten apples with a few sound 
 ones at the top, and barrels of damaged flour in a similar man- 
 ner. 
 
 In most parts of its course, the Mississippi is a lonely river to 
 navigate, and we sometimes for a distance of thirty miles saw 
 neither habitations, clearings, nor a single moving object. Yet 
 the woods were magnificent, the ancient trees were of enormous 
 size, and festooned with parasitical plants, like those on the rivers 
 of South America, and at its bends often recalling to mind the 
 great river Irrawaddy in Burma. But the Mississippi wanted 
 the gilded temples, shooting upwards from a bell-shaped base, 
 their taper spires into the clear sky, which are continually obser- 
 ved among the noble forests of Ava; and it wanted the grotesque 
 poongee, or priest-houses, with curved roofs, and griffins guard- 
 ing the entrance, seen in ascending the chief river of his golden- 
 footed majesty: in lieu of these, there was nought but the log-hut 
 of the solitary squatter, with a rude brick chimney at one end; 
 the garden, with a snake fence; and a boat moored in front of the 
 door in case of a flood, so that the whole family, with the sheep 
 and goats, could take refuge in it. 
 
 Whenever we stopped at a squatter's, I went into his house to 
 see how he lived, and I was sometimes asked to purchase their 
 ''betterments." One man's house, with a few cleared acres cut 
 out of the forest round it, I found comfortably boarded, three 
 beds in the sleeping-room, with white curtains and counterpanes, 
 
2,48 BETTERMENTS OT THE SQUATTERS. 
 
 and the tin'and pewter plates, and copper vessels in the kitchen, 
 bright and shining. I stepped into a shady gallery behind, and 
 found the mistress of the family and her daughter, stout and 
 hearty, remarkably neat and clean in their persons, and engaged 
 in knitting stockings; the master in a blue jacket and trovvsers, 
 balanced himself in a chair against the wall, and asked two thou- 
 sand dollars for his betterments, including a stock of sheep and 
 oxen. His negro boy brought me a delicious water mdon, and 
 cutting it in two, I plunged my hand into it and eat it, whilst the 
 sweet juice oozed from the pleasant fruit; but a bull interrupted 
 the treat, and I was obliged to jump down under a bank to avoid 
 the bellowing monster. 
 
 Most of the squatters, however, looked very sickly and ema- 
 ciated, and were living beside swamps, in which alligators "wal- 
 lowed; and they said they were obliged to look sharp after their 
 children, lest they should be snapped up by these devourers. At 
 particular seasons of the year the alligators cry and lament at 
 night like human teings in the greatest distress, and the little 
 ones whine like children. What a situation for a man to be pla- 
 ced in! A dark and swampy forest around him, a deep and tur- 
 bid river in front, and alligators crying all night long about the 
 wretched dwelling! 
 
 Some of the squatters complained bitterly of being plundered 
 by the Kentucky boatmen; their fowls were taken, their corn 
 plucked, and their orchards robbed by these wild rovers. Again, 
 I was told that many of the squatters are great rogues them- 
 selves; they keep grog-shops, the boatmen intoxicate themselves 
 at the bar, are " Burked," or otherwise made away with, and 
 the desperadoes in league with the squatter seize the ark, and 
 take it down to New Orleans, where they sell it and the cargoes, 
 and who return to commit fresh atrocities. I remarked that dur- 
 ing the eight days in which I saw squatters, not one either smil- 
 ed or laughed ; and the men, as well as the women and children, 
 were all dull and melancholy. 
 
 On arriving at Natchez, now containing about three thousand 
 inhabitants, we remained for two or three hours. Natchez is di- 
 vided into an upper and lower town; the upper is pleasantly situ- 
 ated on a high ridge, overlooking the forests on the western bank 
 of the father of waters; the streets are lined with comfortable 
 houses, shaded with trees in front, and between them are racks 
 on which to hang the horses' bridles when the cotton planters 
 come in from the country to pay visits. The lower town of 
 Natchez has got a worse character than any place on the river; 
 every house seemed to be a grog-shop, and I saw ill-favoured 
 men and women looking from the windows. Here the most des- 
 
PASSENGERS PLUNDERED. 249 
 
 perate characters congregate, particularly in the spring of the year, 
 when the up-country boatmen are returning home with their dol- 
 lar-bags from the New Orleans market. They are plied with 
 rum, and induced to gamble all their money away. 
 
 Dreadful riots occur then, — *'fist and scull fighting," where 
 eyes are gouged out, noses and ears bitten and torn otf ; at that 
 season too the passengers of the steam-boats are plundered in the 
 following manner: — In the evening a steamer stops at Natchez to 
 land or take in goods, the passengers observe several houses light- 
 ed up, and hear the sounds of fiddles and merriment, and they 
 run up to see what is going on; they find men and women danc- 
 ing, gambling, and drinking, the bell of the steam-boat rings to 
 announce that she is about to continue her voyage, the lights in 
 the houses of entertainment are immediately extinguished, and 
 the passengers rush out, afraid of being too late for the boat, and 
 run down towards the landing; ropes are drawn across the road, 
 the passengers fall heels over head, a number of stout ruffians 
 throw themselves upon them, and strip them of their money and 
 watches, and they get on board in doleful plight, and of course 
 never see or hear more of their plunderers. 
 
 After leaving Natchez, where in the neighbourhood there are 
 now only thirty Indians left in one small village of the great tribe 
 which was feared and respected over the whole North American 
 continent, we pursued our course, first on one side of the river, 
 where the current was slack, and then across to the other, accord- 
 ing as the banks influenced the stream. Our general rate of going 
 was about seven miles an hour, but where the stream was rapid, 
 as at the chutes formed by islands, two or three miles an hour 
 were only accomplished. Thick fogs often lay on the river and 
 it was impossible to proceed; and, sometimes, notwithstanding 
 all the precautions used we run aground, and were boomed off 
 by a large spar over the bows, to which a purchase was applied 
 by means of the capstan. 
 
 The wheel for steering is placed in American steam-boats in- 
 variably near the bovvs, by which means the pilot sees clearly 
 where he is going, and has a better chance of avoiding the ripples, 
 indicating a snag or planters pointed down the stream, and ready 
 to stave in the bows. At the end of the short bowsprit there is a 
 long white staff, and at the top of this there is a small canvass 
 bag, painted black; at night the pilot keeps this between his eye 
 and the horizon, and thus sees how the river runs. 
 
 The people of the West are very plain in their manners, and 
 dislike all pretensions to singularity, or to superior refinement. 
 Thus a General from the Eastward, in passing up the Missis- 
 sippi, made use of a silver fork to eat his meals with — ("hay- 
 I i 
 
250 DISLIKES OP BACKWOODSMEN. 
 
 makers," or two-pronged forks, are as yet only used there, and 
 both these and the knives are set in carved buckhorn handles;) 
 and a backwoods passenger, incensed at the refinement of the Gen- 
 eral, one day made himself a large wooden fork, and when the 
 General called lor his silver one at dinner, Kentuck produced his 
 wooden one, and eat with it, in derision, immediately opposite 
 the man of war. 
 
 The Mississippi people have a great aversion to brass buttons; 
 and if a luckless wight happen to have these on his coat, a keelman 
 will come up and touching them contemptuously with his finger, 
 say, '' I guess you think them are gold buttons, mister. I'll whip 
 any man that wears gold buttons, by G — !" 
 
 1 had a lesson read to myself, to show how necessary it is at 
 all times to avoid whatever may give offence, or occasion suspi- 
 cion, in a strange country. Having been accustomed to wear 
 moustaches for some years (being a regulation in my late regiment 
 the 16th lancers,) and as the}"^ were not considered outj^e in the 
 former part of the expedition, I did not see the necessity of cut- 
 ting off what one, ridiculously enough, gets attached to, like a 
 veteran of the last century to W\s queue; hut one day I overheard 
 a conversation between two squatters, which occasioned my im- 
 mediately applying the scissors. One said to the other, <'Who 
 can he be, I wonder ?" — " I don't know, I'm sure; but he corned 
 up to me just now, and asked me some questions, but I did not 
 like to give him an answer; why, I reckon, he's a pirate, come 
 up here to look for plunder." — " He's here for no good you may 
 swear." 
 
 In leaving New Orleans at the season of the year, when we 
 did, steam-vessels frequently carry the seeds of the yellow fever 
 with them. The captain said that one had passed up some time 
 before, and lost a great many of the passengers, who were sown 
 up in blankets and thrown over-board; and in passing up the river, 
 he noticed here and there the bodies stuck on the snags, or mov- 
 ing up and down with the sawyers. In the rivers in the East 
 one is constantly shocked with the sight of a floating corpse, with 
 a vulture perched upon it, and expanding its wings to cause it to 
 land, that it may devour its meal at leisure. 
 
 We arrived at Vixburgh, which, like Natchez, has an upper 
 and lower town, but has a much better character than the latter. 
 Thus one of our passengers was a hotel-keeper in New Orleans, 
 proceeding to make a purchase of land in the up-country; he went 
 ashore at Vixburgh, and came back swearing that he could not 
 get a drop of drink in the place. <' I went into the best hotel," 
 said he, "and saw rum, gin, and brandy, painted on casks in the 
 bar as usual. I asked the bar-keeper to mix me a mint-julep, 
 
THREE SNAPPING TURTLES. 251 
 
 and what do you think he had the impudence to answer 1 that 
 they sold no spirits there; that it was not the fashion to -wet up' 
 in Vixburgh now-a-days; that they had got temperance societies 
 there, and could not think of transgressing the rules. The devil 
 take your temperance societies! I said, tliey will be the ruin of 
 my trade; as if it were a sin or crime for a fellow to take a drop 
 of good liquor when he's inclined, without a parcel of old women 
 meddling with him — damned cant and hypocrisy!" I laughed 
 heartily at the distress of this thirsty soul, who went to the bar 
 of the boat, and took a double dose to the confusion of all tem- 
 perance humbugs. 
 
 Here three whacking fellows came on board, to be conveyed 
 a few miles up the river. They were regular-built Kentuckians, 
 snapping turtles, " could leap the Ohio," wade the Mississippi, 
 or whip their weight in wild cats. One of them had a skiff vvith 
 a sack of corn in it, and without leave asked or obtained from the 
 captain, he made it fast to the stern. The word was given to "go 
 a-head;" and away we paddled; but the skiff soon filled with 
 water, and was a dead weight on our speed. "Give her more 
 steam!" cried the captain. Still she did not " progress" as she 
 ought. He walked aft, and saw the drag on her. " That boat 
 must be cut adrift," says he. — "Cut adrift!" cries " the half 
 horse, half alligator," with a back which reminded me of the 
 song— 
 
 " His brawny shoulders four feet square ;" 
 
 u By G — , the first man that tries to cut adrift my boat I'll cut 
 his throat!" Whereupon he stuffed his fist into his right breeches 
 pocket, and drew forth a large knife with a French spring to pre- 
 vent its shutting, and brandishing it, he roared out tigerishly, 
 "My name's Tom Merriman; I'll make mince-meat of ye." His 
 two companions also drew blade; on which being alone with the 
 captain in the midst of these Philistines, I also turned up my 
 sleeves, and felt if my hunting-knife was ready for action, — 
 
 " A useful dudgeon 
 Either for fighting or for drudging ;" 
 
 and expected a regular "scrimmage." I am wicked enough to 
 confess, that I don't dislike, occasionally, to witness a fight, pro- 
 vided it is a fair, "stand-up," and manly encounter. Of course 
 I detest the stiletto; it is a cowardly weapon; and I am sorry to 
 say, that knives are oftener drawn in anger on the Mississippi 
 than they are in Italy or Spain. I will frankly own, that I had 
 
252 THE CUT-OFF. 
 
 an inclination to see how they settled their quarrels in the back 
 woods, and here I thought was what I sought. But the skipper, 
 a prudent Scotchman, and an old man-of-war's man, was not to 
 be daunted by swaggering, but stepping to his cabin, he put a 
 pair of pistols in his pocket, and coming aft, saiil to the bullies^ 
 "Cut away, if you like, my lads! Damn your knives; I've seen 
 more of them than ever you did! Ashore you must go! Pilot, 
 steer for tt^e landing!" The boat approached the bank. "Cast 
 off the skiff, and put the men ashore," was the next order. Ken- 
 tuck immediately came down with the humble — "My name's 
 Tom Merriman," said he: " I wanted to get along a bit. You 
 wanted to cut adrift my skiff; I didn't say I would cut ynur 
 throat: let's have a horn, captain, and shake hands.'^ The skip- 
 per growled a little, but relented, and they all went to the bar, 
 slinged, were friends, and we "went a-head." 
 
 " These are rough characters we have on board, captain: have 
 you often men of that stamp with you?" I asked. " Yes, pretty 
 often; but I know how to manage them now. Some time ago, 
 however, three of the same sort came a-board at Natchez, and 
 wanted to leave without paying their passage. I saw they had 
 money, and, collaring one of them, swore that he should make 
 his deposit before he left the craft; on which he dashed his fist in 
 my face, shoved his middle finger into my ear, and gave my left 
 eye a start with his thumb; but before he could completely gouge 
 me I capsized him on the deck, and fell upon him, and grasping 
 his throat, shook him till he was black in the face. One of his 
 companions whipped out a knife, and ran it through my arm, — 
 there's the mark of the cut still, — the third ruffian got one of my 
 fingers in his mouth, and gnawed it to the bone! It was all the 
 work of a moment, and I should have been blinded or murdered 
 by them, had not my mate knocked the two others down, and 
 we bundled the whole on shore.'' 
 
 Old ladies at home may exclaim against the prize-ring if they 
 please, but until our people's nature becomes more angelic than it 
 is, I do not see how it can well be dispensed with; and whilst 
 on the Mississippi I often wished that some of our pugilistic he- 
 roes would make a tour in the back woods, and give the pioneers 
 a notion of the noble art of self-defence, and thus abolish the 
 cowardly knife, gouging, and biting. 
 
 " Contention, like a horse 
 Full of high feeding, when madly it breaks loose, 
 Will bear down all before it !" 
 
 From the annual inundations extending a considerable distance 
 into the flat country, on both banks of the Mississippi, I noticed 
 
INUNDATIONS — THE UNION SNAGGED. 253 
 
 very few settlers above Baton Rouge; and though at first it was 
 interesting to gaze on the boundless forests en either hand, with 
 the broad stream rolling between ihem, and occasional wooded 
 blufTs, of two or three hundred feet elevati)n, " spurs" from the 
 Alieghanies, yet, after a time, the monotony of the landscape be- 
 came very tiresome. A square flat-bottomed boat, or " broad- 
 horn," would occasionally pass us, or a canoe with a single Indian 
 would be paddled across our bows. Wild fowl, at long intervals, 
 would fly overhead; yet melancholy reigned over the scene, and 
 I was not surprised to see the squatters dull and without anima- 
 tion. 
 
 Before the inundation of last year a small trench was cut across 
 the isthmus at the Red River, where the Mississippi takes a 
 sweep of eighteen miles. When the river rose, a small rill first 
 passed through the cut; gradually the water increased; it became 
 a torrent; and finally the mighty river itself rolled through the 
 trees, tore up a new channel for itself, and now fills the few hun- 
 dred yards of isthmus with its turbid waters, leaving the eighteen 
 miles nearly dry. Besides the alteration in the course of the 
 Mississippi at this interesting spot, no material change has taken 
 place for some time. 
 
 It is a well-ascertained fact, that near the Mississippi the ele- 
 vated ground is more unhealthy than the river's bank itself. The 
 miasma seems to collect about elevated spots, and they are there- 
 fore avoided by old residents. Another peculiarity of the river 
 is, that the banks are generally higher than the country for some 
 distance behind them, so that at the commencement of the annual 
 inundation the river flows in three channels. After a time it 
 rolls in one undivided and vast torrent, sweeping through the 
 trees, and carrying many with it, with masses of the bank. 
 
 After leaving Memphis, the steam-vessel was progressing 
 against the stream at the rate of seven knots an hour. She was 
 in the middle of the river, there about sixty feet deep, and as 
 smooth and unruffled as a polished mirror, when at four in the 
 afternoon she struck heavily against a concealed snag or log, 
 firmly imbedded in the mud, and pointing down the stream. The 
 vessel quivered from stem to stern, the water gushed in at the 
 bows like a mill-race, slie hung on the snag for some time, and 
 great confusion prevailed on board, for there was the prospect of 
 sinking in the middle of the river; but at last she dropped off* the 
 snag, and was piloted towards the shore, where she sank. The crew, 
 passengers, and their baggage, were saved, but the cargo of 
 coffee, sugar, and dry goods was entirely lost. The thirsty hotel- 
 keeper before mentioned, had a narrow escape. He was enjoy- 
 ing his afternoon's nap in a chair in the cabin, after sundry juleps, 
 
254 ACCIDENTS ON THE MISSISSIPPI. 
 
 slings, and cocktails; he continued fast asleep after the accident, 
 but was fortunafel}' observed by the steward, sitting with the 
 water up to his knees, and was with difficulty dragged out and 
 saved. Last voyage three people were hlown out of the Union 
 by the collapsing of the boiler, and I thought that surely after 
 that no accident would happen the next voyage, I therefore had 
 embarked in her in perfect confidence; but she was unprovided 
 with a water-tight snag-chamber at the bows, was very slightly 
 built, and so shattered by the concussion that no hopes were en- 
 tertained of being able to raise her. I left before the final catas- 
 trophe, and landed at Memphis. 
 
 A New-Englander has got a contract to clear the Mississippi, 
 which he does not fulfil as he ought to do. Thus he has a 
 steamer of a peculiar construction, which he runs over a snag, 
 makes fast a hawser to it, and if he can, drags it up by setting on 
 steam; if he cannot move it, he saws it off at low water, and it was 
 on one of these that our unfortunate Union struck. Fourteen 
 steam-vessels were lost in 1831, in the Mississippi and Ohio; 
 there are altogether one hundred and ninety-eight running. 
 Engineers and pilots are entertained without examination; and 
 as whisky is cheap in the West, accidents are not to be wondered 
 at. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 Memphis, in Tennessee. — The Hotel. — Discovery of an Emissary. — A Negro 
 Preacher. — A Sleeping Apartment. — The Indians. — Compulsory Emigration. — 
 Destruction to the Red Hunters. — Chateaubriand. — A group of Chickasaws. — 
 Their encampment. — Indian Manners. — Seemingly, but not really inditferent to 
 their Wives. — Tlie worshippers of the Sun. — The Coronach, or lament for their 
 Dead. — Intercourse between the Pioneers and Indians. — Anecdote. — Leave 
 Memphis for the interior. — The Wagon. — The Forest. — A Stand or Stage. — 
 Corn Bread. — Black Jacks. — Excitement. — The Music of the Woods. — A cure 
 for affectation and self-conceit. — The story of the Boot-jack. — Inquisitive Pioneer. 
 — Strange ideas. — Snakes. — The Prairies. — Indian Mounds. — Barrows. — The 
 unknown Dead. — The Grave of a Scottish-chief. — The Mammoth Cave. — Real 
 Aborigines of America long ago exterminated. — Paintings on Rocks. — Salt Licks. 
 — The Big H;ilchet River. — A Lawyer. — A Duel. — Hunting Parties. — Rifle 
 Practice. — Barrens. — A Hurricane. — An Adulterer detected. — A Backwoods 
 Sheriff. — Paddling a Negro. — Migratory. — Farmers. — Arrive at Nashville. 
 
 I WAS much pleased with the site and appearance of Memphis, 
 in Tennessee; it is pleasantly situated on a high bluff, on the east 
 
AN EMISSARY NEGRO PREACHER. 255 
 
 bank of the Mississippi, and commands an extensive view up and 
 down the river, and across the Arkansas territory, an unbroken 
 forest to the base of the rocky mountains. 
 
 The town now contains a thousand inhabitants. The frame- 
 houses had a clean look about them ; and the hotel where I put 
 up was a respectable establishment, kept by a colonel of militia, 
 with the effigy of the great Washington swinging before the door. 
 The charges were extremely reasonable; one dollar for a most 
 abundant supper, at seven o'clock, bed, and breakfast, and no 
 waiters, chambermaids, or boots to pay. For my passage in the 
 steam-vessel, for eight days, I had paid twenty-five dollars, which 
 included every thing; those who chose to patronize the bar, of 
 course paid for what they drank..- 
 
 At the public table I overheard a conversation which afforded 
 me some amusement. A lank New-Englander said to a burly- 
 looking Kentuckian, "I gues|^ they have not such good food in 
 England as we have." — "No, damn them, they've no corn," 
 (maize.) "Did you hear of the Britainer that abused us pretty 
 considerable the other.day in a book?" — "No," says Kentuck; 
 '< what did he say ?" — " Why I forget what he said exactly, but 
 I he thought himself a very smart man, I reckon. At New 
 • jj^rltaiis t!ic p,eoplethei'e soon found him out; why he was a spy of 
 ^/^lis Government, and came over here to try and persuade the 
 Hr .S,outhern Stntes to Separate from the Northern, but it was of no 
 use, oh, no!" 
 
 Did the gallant Captain (Basil Hall) ever suspect that he was 
 
 looked on as an emissary? Something must have happened to 
 
 Ik displease him at New Orleans, for he^ says very little about that 
 
 |r „ , singular city in his travels. He has had his revenge, for the in- 
 
 ^'^ habitants are annoyed at being passed over with such slight notice 
 
 as he condescends to take of them. 
 
 I strolled out in the evening to enjoy the cool breeze and moon- 
 light on the verge of the forest. In a lone house, in a lane, I 
 heard the sound of psalm-singing, about eleven o'clock at night, 
 and stopped to listen to a 'tune which the Covenanters in the days 
 of their adversity had often uplifted on the hill side, when prepar- 
 ed to contend for their religion to the death. The psalm ceased, 
 and a negro slave delivered a long extempore prayer like those of 
 the Presbyterians, and using excellent language. The prayer was 
 followed by a sermon, in which the fall of our first parents was 
 described, and its consequences to the human race ; "born in sin, 
 and conceived in iniquity," but regenerate through the instrumen- 
 tality of a Redeemer. The audience consisted of a few negro men 
 and women, sitting on forms in a loft, lighted by a solitary candle. 
 The preacher could neither read nor write ; yet he expressed him- 
 
256 A SLEEPING APARTMENT. 
 
 self clearly, eloquently, and energetically. I went away pleased 
 and astonished at what I had seen and heard ; and thought that 
 though it is a penal offence to instruct slaves in these Southern 
 States, yet with all their enactments, the spread of the Gospel 
 could not he controlled, and that the negro still found means to 
 gain access to the fountain of living waters. 
 
 " Though our masters bouglit and sold us, 
 Paid our price in paltry gold ; 
 Yet though slaves they have enrolled us, 
 Minds are never to be sold." 
 
 I returned to the inn, and asked where I was to sleep, and was 
 shown into a room like the ward of an hospital with a dozen beds 
 in it, all doubly occupied save one, from which a voice asked me 
 "to bundle." I declined the invitation, and lay down in my 
 clothes. I remarked that the be^s were composed of feathers, 
 and had blankets and sheets as usual; but in the backwoods I un- 
 derstood that the sheets are not often changed, and as all classes 
 occupied the beds, from the wealthy inercha'nf and planter to the 
 boatmen and shoe-blacks, I slept in my diothes invariably, some- 
 times on a bed, and sometimes on the floor, and sawllfrom wj|at 
 others suffered, that I escaped certain cutaneous " ■ -^ - -- — 
 turnal interrupters of repose. <' A plaid and bag^ 
 to suffice for the rough living Gael." 
 
 I now heard a great deal of the Indians migrating from the eas- 
 tern to the western bank of the Mississippi ; they were melan- 
 choly enough, poor people, at being obliged to leave their familiar 
 hunting-grounds, and the j^'aves of their fathers, with the pros- 
 pect, too, of having to fight their way among hostile tribes. 
 Many Americans regret to see the course pursued by their Go- 
 vernment towards the red men, driving them toward the west, 
 with the excuse, that since they will not become agriculturists, 
 and require such a large space for hunting and fishing, they must 
 be got rid of, '■^ couta quHl coiite.'^ But let us inquire, has the 
 American Government taken pains or trouble to instruct this un- 
 fortunate race in the arts of civilized life? It has not. And 
 though it is a harsh judgment to pronounce, yet improvement has 
 hitherto meant, among other things, exterminating the Indians, 
 or driving them with the red deer and buffalo to the recesses of 
 the rocky mountains ; and evetitually the waves of the Pacific 
 will wash the bones of the last of the red hunters. 
 
 Neither are the English to be praised for their conduct on all 
 occasions towards their copper-coloured brethren. We have par- 
 celled out territory which did not belong to us, and have too of- 
 ten shown an indifference to the fate of those who court the shade, 
 
A GROUP OF CHICKASAWS. 257 
 
 and shun the trammels of civilization. Some will say, that it is 
 impossible to reclaim the Indians from their savage state ; to this 
 I answer, look at the labours of the Jesuits in South America, 
 view the condition of the Indians of the Spanish missions, quiet, 
 industrious, temperate, cultivating the soil, skilled in several me- 
 chanical arts, with religion shedding its benign influence over 
 their lives. In what manner this happy state of things was 
 brought about, is detailed in the writings of the Count de Chateau- 
 briand. 
 
 At Memphis I saw a group of Chickasaw Indians, consisting 
 of a chief, about sixty years of a^e, a warrior, of about thirty, 
 and his wife and child. The chief had a fine Roman nose, and 
 really somewhat resembled his Grace the Duke of Wellington ; 
 he was of as dark a mahogany colour as the Indians of Guiana, 
 and wore on his head a piece of chintz, folded like an Oriental 
 turban, round the lower part of which was a bandeau of silver; 
 a chintz tunic reached to the middle of the thigh, and his legs and 
 feet were cased in leather, with fringes of the same material down 
 the outer seam ; he had broad armlets of silver, and round his 
 waist he wore a girdle of wampum beads, in which was stuck a 
 broad scalping-knife. The young warrior, a strapping fellow of 
 six feet high, was similarly attired, with the exception of the sil- 
 ver ornaments, and whether he stood still or walked, every atti- 
 tude was full of grace. The black and silken hair of the female 
 was parted on the forehead, and clubbed on the back of the head, 
 and she was modestly clothed in along gown. The child had strings 
 of wampum about its ankles and wrists. These people had long- 
 tailed horses with them, laden with dressed deer-skins, which they 
 were anxious to dispose of, for they, too, were preparing to cross 
 the river. Having come from a distance, they "camped out" 
 near the town ; a few earthen pots prepared their evening meal, 
 and they lay down under buffalo robes under the lee of some 
 blankets propped up on sticks, and with their feet to the fire, re- 
 minding me of the Cossack bivouacs during the Turkish war. 
 
 Among the various tribes of North America, there is said to be 
 a remarkable resemblance in feature and habits, betraying a com- 
 mon stock, and there is also a striking similarity in their differ- 
 ent dialects; besides, when the different tribes cannot communicate 
 verbally, they understand each other perfectly by means of signs. 
 They all seem to be gloomy and abstracted when not aroused by 
 particular excitement, to have no curiosity, and they all seem to 
 be indifferent to their wives; but from what I have heard from 
 those who are more intimately acquainted with them than the 
 passing observer, I believe that, like the Orientals, the Indian 
 youth are taught by their parents never to express their surprise 
 Kk 
 
258 INDIAN MANNERS. 
 
 at any object or occurrence, however unusual, as to do so would 
 be a sign of weakness, and never to ask questions, which would be 
 a sign of ignorance, but always to observe diligently. 
 
 Doubtless the dark and shady wilderness in which they dwell, 
 the many dangers to which they are exposed, and the uncertain 
 and wandering lite they lead in desert places, stamp an air of 
 gloom upon them; but at their festivals they give vent to the 
 wildest mirth, and in their games, and in pursuit of their prey, 
 they show an energy, activity, and vivacity, which could not be 
 believed by those who had only seen them with their chins on 
 their knees at the door of their skin or rush wigwams. 
 
 What shall we say of their apparent indifference to their wo- 
 men, but to repeat what we stated regarding the wandering tribes 
 of South America ? — that their character in this respect has been 
 quite misunderstood. During the day, the Indian hardly deigns 
 to look at his squaw, and never caresses her before strangers; 
 but in the evening, the piping of reeds may be heard in the 
 forest near the encampment, or village, proceeding from the 
 young men inviting their favourite damsels to stray with them 
 through the sylvan scene; and at night, when all the fires are 
 extinguished, the lovers visit their mistresses with lighted calu- 
 mets or pipes in their hands. If the lady in her bower is pleased 
 with her swain, she extinguishes the pipe; if not, she takes no 
 notice, and he retires disappointed. 
 
 I have heard that there are still some tribes to the west of the 
 Mississippi who worship the sun. Four times a year they are 
 said to assemble at a particular spot, to pay their adorations to 
 the giver of light and fertility. The multitude arrange them- 
 selves in four quadrants, and all turn their faces to the east at 
 early dawn. When the great luminary rises over the prairie, 
 they hail his appearance with shouts of gladness. The warriors 
 hold out their arms to him, the youths fruit and corn, and the 
 mothers lift up their tender offspring to salute the God of Day. 
 The same ceremony is repeated at mid-day; and when the sun 
 sinks behind the rocky mountains, the night is closed with hymns, 
 feasting, and dancing. It is difficult to conceive any species of 
 worship more impressive than the above, or a ceremony better 
 calculated to inspire a stranger with respect and regard for these 
 lions of the forest, first silent till the object of their adoration ap- 
 pears, then bursting out in accents of rejoicing, and offering for 
 his acceptance their choicest gifts. 
 
 The author of "The Valley of the Mississippi," whose ac- 
 quaintance I had great satisfaction in making, relates a singular 
 ceremony, to which he was witness. In Louisiana, a family 
 mourning for a deceased relative, the women stood in a group, or 
 
PIONEERS AND INDIANS. 259 
 
 walked about, but four men sat on the ground, with their heads 
 nearly touching, and a blanket thrown over them. They uttered 
 at intervals a most doleful howl, like the coronach of the Celts, 
 interrupted by sobs, whilst tears streamed down their cheeks. 
 This was continued for half an hour, when they rose and went 
 about their usual occupations. 
 
 In the back woods I heard many appalling tales of Indian 
 ferocity, and of their implacable hatred to the encroaching pion- 
 eers. From all I could collect, there is a wonderful difference 
 between the French and the American frontier people in their in- 
 tercourse with the Indians. The former insinuate themselves 
 into the good graces of the red men, humour their prejudices, 
 and inter-marry with them; whereas the latter, like the descen- 
 dants of sturdy Britons, will not take the trouble to conciliate 
 the people whose territory they covet; and between the two 
 races there seems to be a rooted and fixed antipathy. As a proof 
 of the feeling that exists among the pioneers towards the Indians — 
 a backwoodsman came into Nashville to purchase powder and 
 shot, with his trusty rifle on his arm. While standing at the 
 door of a store, a poor Indian happened to pass on the opposite 
 side of the street; instinctively, and in a moment, the rifle was 
 levelled at the red man; but the houses recalled the marksman to 
 a true sense of his situation, and with a bitter smile he lowered 
 his piece, and the unconscious Indian passed on unharmed. 
 
 A long wagon, drawn by four horses, starting on the road to 
 Nashville, the capital of the State of Tennessee, I put my bag- 
 gage into it and drove off with a countryman, Mr. Arrott, after 
 breakfasting in company with the driver. 
 
 We crossed a pretty stream, and then plunged into a forest of 
 white oak and cedar. Immediately after leaving the town, on 
 each side of the road, were the purple flowers of the iron-weed 
 and the red shumack, under which the deer love to repose, for it 
 conceals them from their enemies, as the variegated heath did the 
 tartan-clad Highlanders. Thedriver showed greatdexterityin turn- 
 ing his horses round the stumps and black-jacks, or burnt trunks, 
 but we were awfully shaken, for he went over fallen trees without 
 the least compunction or mercy shown to his wagon or the bones 
 of his passengers. These abominable roads are easily accounted 
 for, the population being as yet so widely scattered. When the 
 roads are mended, it is often done by ploughing and harrowing 
 them in the "f;ill" of the year. Sometimes the jolting was so 
 continued and so dreadful, that it seemed as if the tilt would fly 
 off the wagon every moment, and our heads after it. Corduroy 
 causeways, broken bridges, and stumps, all impeded our progress. 
 
260 
 
 A STAND — CORN BREAD — BLACK JACKS. 
 
 I got out and walked whenever I could do so without sinking in 
 the mud to the ankles. 
 
 The first " stand" we came to was a log-house, of two rooms, 
 and between them an open space, nicely boarded. Here the pro- 
 prietor, a major, was balancing himself on the hind legs of his 
 chair in the usual way, and reading an old newspaper. He 
 gave us a nod on entering, and his wife, a clean, bustling woman, 
 silently, but in good earnest, set about preparing dinner. A 
 snow-white cloth was spread, on which were placed bacon, or 
 *' Old Ned," as it is called in Tennessee, greens, boiled beef, 
 roasted fowls, peas, corn bread, and milk. " Do you like the 
 corn bread, stranger ?" said the landlady to me. "*< Yes, very- 
 much, though the flour does not seem to have been ground?" — 
 No; we've no mills in these woods," said the major; "we grate 
 the corn-cob on a piece of tin, with holes knocked in it with a 
 nail." — <«It is very sweet and good for all that," I answered; 
 and so it was. 
 
 We continued our drive through the forest all day, and here 
 and there passed a few fields, cut out of it with snake, or zig-zag 
 rail fences, and blackjacks standing up among the corn. Truly, 
 these burnt trees are melancholy objects to contemplate at first 
 sight; but when we reflect that they are the first and sure indi- 
 cations of a virgin soil being about to support a hardy and ener- 
 getic population, and that they are indications of the unproductive 
 wilderness being about to be converted from solitude and gloom 
 to smiling fields and rich pastures, the pleasures of hope and of 
 anticipation immediately occupy the mind, and we cease to regret 
 the destruction of trees which shut out the kindly influence of the 
 sun from the rich bottoms. 
 
 The wagon jolted on through swamps and mud-holes, and up 
 rugged acclivities, and did not "progress" at a greater rate than 
 four miles an hour, so that I was able to walk on in advance; and 
 sometimes I trotted out, like an Indian, and was full of glee at 
 feeling myself so independent in these solitudes. I could not 
 resist ever and anon singing at the top of my voice snatches of 
 songs, and unseen, played all sorts of ridiculous antics in the exu- 
 berance of my mirth. As the Persians would express themselves, 
 *' freeing the foot of the heart from the skirt of care, 1 tossed into 
 the air the cap of independence." 
 
 Sometimes I sat down on a fallen tree, and listened to the wind 
 playing among the upper branches of the cedars, and recalled to 
 mind this beautiful passage: <' Sounds have awakened sounds; 
 the forest is all harmony ! Are they the full tones of the organ 
 that I hear, while lighter sounds wander through vaults of ver- 
 
MUSIC OP THE WOODS — INQUISITIVE PIONEER. 261 
 
 dure? A short silence succeeds. The aerial music begins again! 
 Everywhere soft complaints, murmurs, — which comprise within 
 themselves other murmurs; each leaf speaks a different language! 
 each blade of grass lias its particular note!" 
 
 Let the youth who is full of himself, who is conceited with the 
 flattery of female friends, uplifted in his own estimation, make a 
 tour in the backwoods of America, it will soon cure him of his 
 empty pretensions. Aflfectation is unknown there, and he will 
 soon acquire a natural manner of acting and thinking. 
 
 I confess that the temper is sometimes rather severely tested 
 in these wilds, and there are many opportunities offered for pick- 
 ing quarrels if one is a fire-eater: thus an acquaintance of mine 
 had arrived at a small inn rather fatigued v^'ith the jolting, and 
 was standing beside the fire, resting his head on his hand in a 
 meditative attitude — " like patience on a monument," when a 
 brawny Kentuckian, in a rough white great coat and whip under 
 his arm, came behind him, and clapping one foot encased in a 
 thick hob-nailed boot between his legs, administered a hearty 
 whack on the shoulder, crying, " Hollo, JNIister, stand steady a 
 minute, I want to make a boot-jack of you." What would "a 
 young man about town" have said to this ? 
 
 An hour before we came to the last stand, where we were to 
 sleep, the driver brightened up, and called to me to sit in the 
 wagon, for he was "going ahead." He dipped a long horn 
 into a pool of water, blew a loud blast, and whipped his horses; 
 we went on at a " rough and tumble" rate as he called it, and ar- 
 rived with aching bones at the house of a lonely settler. Here 
 we got a comfortable supper from an old man and his wife, who 
 had been on the move from one part of the country to the other 
 for the last thirty years. This aged pair were very inquisitive, 
 but civil withal, and proceeded cautiously in their interrogatories. 
 After I had finished eating, and was balancing myself on my chair, 
 Yankee fashion, the pioneer said, " I reckon, sir, you don't be- 
 long to our section of country." — " No, I'm not a citizen of the 
 Union." — •' Where may you be located when you are at home?" 
 continued he. "Where should you guess?" said I. Why, a 
 Spaniard from New Orleans may be." (I was dressed in blue 
 jacket and trowsers, with a good deal of hair about my face.) 
 "No, old gentleman, I'm a Scotchman." — "Scotch, eh! why 
 that's far over seas. Are you all quiet there now?" — "Yes, 
 very quiet. Did you ever hear of disturbances there?" — " Yes, 
 I've heard of a good deal of fighting and plundering there. Have 
 you got rid of your Indians yet !" — "Indians!" said I, "we've 
 no red skins in our country. " — "No ! why that's curious enough," 
 
262 THE PRAIRIES. 
 
 said the settler: but it's time for you to go to sleep, and I'll take 
 your money now, as I don't want to be up so early as you do in 
 the mornino;; I'm an old woodsman now and want rest! That 
 gentleman," pointing to the driver, an unwashed fellow of five 
 and twenty, on the monthly wages of fifteen dollars, " will waken 
 you; he sleeps in tlie room with you. Take your cloak in your 
 hand, and I'll bring in the balance of your baggage." 
 
 The driver awoke in the middle of the night, as he dreamt 
 that his horses had run away: and when once up, he thought it 
 as well to "get along;" so the horses were "tackled up," and 
 we proceeded through the forest in a cold and damp morning. 
 We did not see any snakes, but heard a great many stories of 
 them. The rattlesnakes and copper-heads were said to be the 
 worst, though they have a singular way of preventing fatal effects 
 from the bites. A man and his wife were passing through the 
 forest; the woman in stepping over a log was bit in the foot by 
 a rattlesnake — they were miles from any assistance — but the hus- 
 band killed the snake, cut it open, tied its entrails round his 
 wife's foot, and she walked home, and suffered little from the 
 wound. 
 
 On those seas of verdure, the prairies of the Western World, 
 on the richest soil, and near clear streams, are seen the records of 
 former ages, in the shape of mounds and barrows; the former, 
 often in the centre of a fortified polygon, have been found thirty 
 feet in height, and apparently many centuries old. Sometimes 
 on the top is the body of a chief, below a few feet of earth, and 
 and with a sort of tessellated pavement of parti-coloured stones 
 over the warrior. These mounds may have been temples of the 
 Sun. The barrows are oblong, and have probably been the bu- 
 rial-places of the multitude for several generations, as when opened 
 there are found layers of bones, and those which are lowest are 
 evidently much older than the upper tiers. With the bones are 
 often found fragments of pottery, stone-arrowheads, beads, and 
 mantles ornamented with the feathers of the wild turkey. 
 
 Though to the north of Mexico there are no ruins of stone, 
 " no ivied monasteries or crumbling baronial walls," to attest the 
 former power of churchmen, and the consequence of feudal chiefs, 
 yet in these Indian mounds, on the vast prairies, there is much 
 to excite the imagination, and awaken an interest for the unknown 
 dead. We see evident traces of a numerous population, whose 
 name and lineage have perished, and who have left behind them 
 only their dry bones; near those gigantic quadrupeds, perhaps 
 contemporaneous with them, whose remains show that they also 
 once peopled those charming solitudes. 
 
MAMMOTH CAVE — REAL ABORIGINES. 263 
 
 " Ye mould'ring relics of departed years, 
 
 Your names have perish'd, not a trace remains, 
 Save where the grass-grown mound its summit rears 
 From the green bosom of your native plains." 
 
 The simple tumulus, the most ancient sepulchral monument, 
 seems to have been raised by all nations in honour of the dead. 
 Trojans, Greeks, and Romans heaped mounds of earth over the 
 illustrious deceased, buried with their arms. 1 have seen them 
 on the steeps of Russia, on the salt plains of Crim Tartary, in the 
 healthy isles of the Hebrides, and on the prairies of America. 
 Yet in Scotland, in later times, " grey stones" appear to have 
 succeeded the tumulus, or were set on the top of it. "Narrow 
 is th)' dwelling now, dark the place of thine abode! with three 
 steps I compass thy grave, thou who wast so great before! four 
 stones with their heads of moss are the only memorials of thee, 
 a tree with scarce a leaf." 
 
 In the State of Tennessee, there are objects of the greatest in- 
 terest to the antiquary and naturalist to be found besides the 
 mounds I have just noticed. Near the Mississippi are mammoth 
 caves, the end of which have not yet been seen by mortal eye, 
 they penetrate so far into the bowels of the earth. During the 
 last war, one of these afforded an inexhaustible supply of saltpetre 
 for the manufacture of gunpowder. The roof of one of the 
 mighty halls is said to cover seven acres, and on the floor are 
 heaps of gigantic bones. In other caves in the State, the bodies 
 of Indians have been found in a dried state, with the chin resting 
 on the knees, and the remains of feather cloaks about them. 
 Their countenances differ from those of the present race, and 
 their hair is auburn; this remarkable fact, coupled with the ex- 
 tensive remains of Indian communities on uninhabited prairies, 
 seems to indicate that the Indian race which is now found in the 
 continent of North America had exterminated the real aborigines 
 of the country, as the present race of Hindoos are supposed to 
 have annihilated the woolly-headed Jains. 
 
 On rocks in Tennessee, on the banks of rivers, are painted the 
 sun and moon, evidently for the purpose of being worshipped: 
 thus, on one bluff sixty feet from the bottom of a precipice, and 
 twenty feet from the summit, in a situation altogether inaccessible, 
 except by ropes, the great luminaries are painted of a red colour, 
 and six feet in circumference. 
 
 In Tennessee, there are several "licks" which are well worthy 
 of a visit. These saline springs have been frequented by 
 buffaloes and other wild anifials, whose blood becoming corrupt 
 from the hot swamps beside which were their pasture grounds, 
 paid an annual visit to the licks to purify themselves. The tracks 
 
264 SALT LICKS — BIG HATCHET A LAWYER. 
 
 of these animals yet exist, (though to the east of the Mississippi 
 the stately bison is no more found,) and are sometimes drawn in 
 a straight line of one hundred and fifty or two hundred miles, as 
 if they had been regularly surveyed. Arrived at the springs, the 
 herds drank the water, bathed in it, licked the stones and earth 
 impregnated with saline particles, reposed in the shade for some 
 days, and after rolling themselves in the mud, returned from 
 whence they came. The western hunters, however in the course 
 of time, assembled at the licks, and dealt such destruction among 
 these poor animals, that the survivors took flight, and perhaps 
 crossed '' the great river." I saw bufildoe robes in all parts of the 
 States, for which half a dollar was only given in the first instance, 
 and one old rifleman declared that he had slauglitered two 
 thousand buffaloes with his own hand. In Tennessee, the 
 hunters still watch the deer stealing towards the licks. The soil 
 round them is unproductive, for it is a cold blue clay; it seems 
 that the number of animals which frequented them was so great, 
 that they trampled down the good soil, and the clay appeared. 
 Great quantities of bones are found near the licks, and the big 
 bone lick has the remains of the mammoth in its vicinity. 
 
 We crossed the Big Hatchet river, and took up at Jackson (a 
 thriving town) a Kentucky lawyer. After answering his in- 
 terrogatories, and enjoying his surprise that any one should travel 
 as I did without the prospect of ultimately realizing a handsome 
 sum by the speculation, (as yet I had met with no one since I 
 left England who \vase)irou/e for pleasure or information only,) 
 I cross-questioned him in my turn about the state of the country. 
 He said, " In these Western States of Kentucky and Tennessee, 
 we are improving in the main, particularly in Old Kentuck; 
 though where we now are, the Tennesseans are opposed to in- 
 ternal improvements, and actually wish their roads to remain 
 nearly impassable, as we see them and feel them to be." 
 
 " What can be the reason of that ?" I demanded. " We read, 
 in Cooper's novel of the Prairie, of the Trappers retiring before 
 the face of civilization, and hating towns and their bustling com- 
 mercial inhabitants; is it owing to similar feelings that some of 
 the Tennesseans wish to shut themselves up?" 
 
 " Exactly so — they think, that with bad roads, new people will 
 not settle among them." 
 
 " According to the Oriental phrase, 'they wish their heads to 
 grow grey in quiet.' In your part of Kentucky, are there any 
 duels now?" 
 
 ''Yes, we've sometimes a little rifle and buck-shot practice, 
 but not so often as I remember in my j'ounger days. In our 
 town, a duel took place a short time ago, which gave us a good 
 
A DUEL — HUNTING PARTIES. 265 
 
 deal of amusement. The parties were a doctor and a lawyer, who 
 had quarrelled at a horse race; they agreed to fight next morning 
 with rifles, in a copse of thirty acres of trees and brushwood, and 
 take every advantage, like the Indians. Accordingly the lawyer, 
 to make sure of his man, went out of the town at night and lay in a 
 copse till morning, with the rifle pointed over a log towards the 
 road, by which he expected his antagonist to come. The 
 day dawned, and the sun rose, still no doctor appeared; the 
 lawyer was beginning to think that his enemy had taken fright 
 and declined the combat, and he was getting up to return to town 
 to proclaim the poltroon, when he heard a stick break behind him, 
 and looking up, he saw the doctor's rifle presented within ten 
 feet of his head. The lawyer forthwith called a parley, and was 
 allowed to go off" into the wood to try again; away he went, and 
 looking about he found a hollow tree, in it heensconsed himself, 
 and remained quiet for some time, when, hearing no noise, he 
 ■ventured to look out with one eye, when ' crack' went a rifle from 
 some bushes in front of him, and the bark of the tree was knock- 
 ed off by a ball, within an inch or two of his head. He saw 
 smoke, but no doctor, and therefore could not return the fire, he 
 accordingly called another parley. The doctor, who had been 
 often out with Indians, now showed himself, and agreed to make 
 up the quarrel. They returned to town and had a horn together, 
 and we had a good laugh at the lawyer. 
 
 About Reynoldsburgb, on the Tennessee River, the appear- 
 ance of the forests changed from a gloomy shade to woods open 
 and clear of underwood. We could sec far into them, and could 
 admire the polished stems and the carpeting of wild flowers. In 
 these woods the young men go on " Still Hunting-parties," not, 
 as in Ireland, to ferret out jjotheen, but with a dog at their heels 
 and a rifle on their arm. They move noiselessly through the 
 forest, and try to steal upon and surprise the deer. An Indian 
 sometimes crosses their path, treading stealthily, like a cat, orna- 
 mented with feathers in his hair, and his skin surcoat edged with 
 painted hair. He makes the sign of peace, holds up the open 
 palm to the white man, and they continue the pursuit of their 
 game. 
 
 We passed some hunters practising at a mark; one was an 
 aged and weather-beaten man, whose hand shook so violently 
 that he could not take up a cup of water without spilling it, but 
 the moment he handled his rifle he was as steady as a rock, and 
 no doubt could have brought down a grey squirrel from the top 
 of a sycamore, by hitting the bark immediately below it, and 
 stunning it, without drawing blood or injuring its skin. 
 
 We next passed some miles of what are called in the West *' bar- 
 L 1 
 
266 A HURRICANE — ADULTERER DETECTED. 
 
 rens." These are prairies, or plains, on which is a scanty, or 
 stunted vegetation. I saw one or two white-headed eagles, the 
 national emblem of America, soaring over these lonely and de- 
 sert scenes, and the beautiful red bird sang in the bushes by the 
 side of the road. Some maintain that these barrens are owing to 
 the poverty of the soil; others say, that they were occasioned by 
 the Indian practice of burning the forest in a circle, thus to enclose 
 the game, or to cause fresh grass to grow for their cattle, or to 
 entice deer to particular tracts. 
 
 Then we came to a part of the forest through which a hurri- 
 cane had swept, ploughing it up, as it were, and prostrating the 
 trees in a lane of a hundred yards in breadth. Those in the cen- 
 tre of the resistless blast were levelled with the earth, and their 
 roots stood up in a circle of earth and fibres. The trees at the 
 edge of the current of air had had their branches twisted off and 
 carried away like straws, and it was evident that the luckless pas- 
 senger, coming within the influence of such blasts in these woods, 
 must inevitably perish. Sometimes we heard the hammering of 
 woodpeckers, or screams of paroquets, and fancied we saw hum- 
 ming-birds flitting from flower to flower, though there were but 
 few of them at this season of the year. The geranium, holly- 
 hock, althea, and passion-flower, grew wild in the woods. 
 
 " The groves were God's first temples ; in the darkling woods, 
 Amidst the cool and silence, man knelt down, 
 And offered to the Mightiest solemn thanks 
 And supplication, ere he framed 
 The lofty vault, to gather and roll back 
 The sound of anthems I" 
 
 We halted to eat our mid-day repast at a house, the mistress of 
 which had a very sinister expression, and I was told the following 
 story regarding her: Her husband, a small farmer in the woods, 
 had lived happily with his wife until a young fellow came to 
 board in the house, who was on the look-out for a '< location," or 
 intended to <'take up land" in the neighbourhood. The wife 
 and the boarder soon understood each other; and the husband 
 suspecting something wrong, pretended (as has been done a thou- 
 sand times befure on similar occasions) to go on a journey. He 
 returned at niglit with his rifle, and a couple of dogs, and found 
 that his place was supplied. He accordingly put the clothes of 
 the paramour on the fire, whilst their owner escaped in his shirt 
 by the window. A bullet was sent after him without efiect, but 
 the dogs pursued him down the river side. Some more settlers 
 rose and joined in the hue-and-cry, and the luckless wight was 
 forced to take to the water in a cold night, and saved himself by 
 
A BACKWOODS SHERirF. 267 
 
 swimming to a house, where he was taken in and concealed till he 
 was able to flee the country. But he escaped much better than 
 some other poachers whom I heard of here. 
 
 I had a lusty good-natured fellow, who was a sheriff, as my 
 *^ compagnon du voyage^' for a day, and he afforded much 
 amusement by recounting various anecdotes illustrative of life 
 and manners in the back woods. He described, among other 
 merry-makings, a quilting, or a party of women assembled to sew 
 patches into a quilt. At the end of the day's work the bed-cover 
 is suspended from the ceiling; the young men of the neighbour- 
 hood join the party; a fiddler seats himself on a flour-barrel, and 
 they dance and drink whisky till a late hour. 
 
 Then the worthy sheriff went on to state how he was obliged to 
 be his own thief-taker and executioner; the pursuits he had had 
 after horse-stealers; their desperate resistance with their knives 
 before they would allow themselves to be taken; the satisfaction 
 he had in flogging with a cow-skin a fellow who weighed two hun- 
 dred, who had long eluded him, and had often <' broken away 
 from him like a quarter-horse;" how he administered the thirty- 
 nine scientifically, sinking the instrument into the skin and jerk- 
 ing it towards him till the culprit roared like a buffalo, with pain; 
 how he paddled negroes, strapped them over a log, and punished 
 them with a board full of gimlet-holes, so that every stroke raised 
 blisters which took a month to heal. All this, and more, he re- 
 counted as we walked along before the baggage-wagon, for the 
 roads were still so rocky and uneven that, when I ventured to 
 ride, the jolting reminded me of Gulliver's journey to Brobdignag, 
 when he was so terribly shaken and discomposed in his box, on a 
 horse that went forty feet at every step. These Tennessee roads 
 were far worse than the tracks over the Russian <* steppes," or 
 rugged passes of the Carpathian Mountains, where one had the 
 consolation ofrattlingoverstones at therateoftwelveorfifteen miles 
 an hour. In Tennessee four was our utmost speed. Of a verity, 
 these roads muchrequire an American Macadam, or Western Wade. 
 
 Two or three parties of migratory farmers from the eastward 
 passed us. Their wives and worldly goods were placed in long 
 wagons, with a tilt, which rose at the ends like a Burman canoe; 
 and the pioneers themselves, in their shirt-sleeves, either bestrode 
 their rear wheelers, armed with a long whip, or trudged on man- 
 fully by the side of their moving residence, with broad axes on 
 their shoulder. I stopped for some time to admire a pictur- 
 esque group of adventurers; a single family, seated under a syca- 
 more near a clear stream — a comely wife and smiling infant, with 
 a fine specimen of manhood in the husband; his younger brother 
 unyoking the horses, ornamented with fringes of thongs descend- 
 
268 MIGRATORY FAKMKRS. 
 
 ing from the harness, to keep off the flies. Now these people 
 had left a comfortable home for no better reason than that they 
 wanted a wider range, or "all for the mere love of moving." 
 
 We emerged from the forest, and found ourselves in a little 
 terrestrial Paradise, so great was the contrast between the smiling, 
 the varied, the cultivated, and picturesque environs of Nashville, 
 the capital of Tennessee; the clean and comfortable appearance of 
 the town itself, and the scenes we had passed through between it 
 and the Mississippi. Doubtless '' there is a pleasure in the pathless 
 woods!" doubtless there is a great charm in solitude, for a time; 
 but still a healthy mind will hail with satisfaction and delight a 
 prospect which shows that some of the great family of mankind are 
 fulfilling the design for which our first parents were placed in 
 Eden — are cultivating the earth, and "keeping and dressing" the 
 great garden of a fruitful valley. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 Nashville Hotel. — A pleasant Change. — A Job. — A Tennessee Supper. — Reflections. 
 — Panorama. — Indian Skirmishes. — A sulphur Spring. — The Bridge. — The Leg- 
 islature in Session. — The Members. — Mr. Yeatman. — The Penitentiary. — Prison 
 Discipline. — Vauxhall Gardens. — EtTcct of a visit to Canada. — Emigrants ought 
 to settle among their own people. — Leave Nashville. — A facetious Driver. — The 
 Americans not musical. — Old Kentuck. — Delightful Climate. — Negroes en route. 
 — Rival Claims of Clay and Jackson — An opinion. — Religion in Kentucky. — A 
 Camp Meeting. — The Sink Hole. — A violent Quarrel. — A regular Snorter. — Fe- 
 male Foresters. — Pity the Rover's Bride. — A Jeremiad. — American Gold Mines. 
 Gold in Dust and Gold in Mass. — Smelting. — Aborigines worked the Mines. — Re- 
 turn of Gold for several years. — The Nullifiers. — Cut off the Tail. — Arrive at Louis- 
 ville, Falls of Oliio. — The Canal. — Freedom of Election in the Back Settlements. 
 — A Temptation to enter into Holy Wedlock. — The Banks of Ohio. 
 
 For the honour of the thing, we drove up in the weary wa- 
 gon to the door of the principal inn of Nashville, in the principal 
 square, in the centre of which stood the Court-house; and alighted 
 amidst a crowd of members of the State Legislature, which was 
 now in session. Several members arrived about the same time 
 that we did, but on horseback, with their legs cased in green baize 
 leggins, tied round the ankles and knees with tape. 
 
 It was a great luxury to get into a comfortable and a carpeted 
 room after the severe trial of strength and the violent exercise I 
 had had, and to be enabled to perform my ablutions, and repose 
 for a short season in quiet. But the violent ringing of a bell soon 
 roused me, and a negro boy put his head into the room, and said 
 
A TENNESSEE SUPPEK. 269 
 
 that supper would soon be ready. I determined to appear in a 
 town-like costume before these provincial legislators, and I gave 
 Mungo a surtout to have it ironed by any tailor in the neighbour- 
 hood. Pie returned with it, and said that the knight of the needle 
 demanded one dollar for the job. "That seems a heavy charge 
 for the backwoods?" I said. — " IfMassatink so, Massa can settle 
 with him tailor himself; he will take supper wid Massa !" — 
 " Vivent la libertie et egalite!^^ I exclaimed. The tailor after 
 supper compounded for three quarters of a dollar ! 
 
 I descended to the passage, and found a crowd of expectants 
 before a closed door. Another bell rang out loudly and rapidly 
 from a beUry on the roof of the hotel. The door was unlocked, 
 and we all rushed into a long hall, like a squadron of Hulans 
 charging the enemy, and found tables covered with meat, vegeta- 
 bles, preserved fruit, tea, coffee, and bread, both of maize and 
 wheat, and soft hoe and waffel cakes. Down the company sat in 
 a hurry — noses were blown to one side — cotton handkerchiefs 
 were spread on the knees — cuffs were turned back, and then com- 
 menced " the crash of the crockery and the clash of the steel !" 
 No ceremony was used ; each man helped himself with his own 
 knife and fork, and reached across his neighbour to secure a fan- 
 cied morceau. Bones were picked with both hands; knives 
 were drawn through the teeth with the edge to the lips; the 
 scalding mocha and souchong were poured into saucers to expe- 
 dite the cooling, and the cup deposited in a saucerette on the right. 
 Beefsteaks, apple tart and fish, were seen on the same plate the 
 one moment, and had disappeared the next ! The black domestics 
 bustled about in breathless haste. Mr. Edmonstone, the respect- 
 able landlord, stood at the end of one of the tables, serving out 
 meat and seeing that his guests wanted nothing. 
 
 I was rather bewildered, and could not eat for some minutes, 
 when I saw first one man get up, and then another, and walk out 
 of the room wiping their mouths with the heel of their hand. 
 "I hope the gentlemen are not displeased at anything ?" I said 
 to a neighbour jocularly. "Oh no ! they are quite content and 
 have finished their supper!" The rest continued to eat as if it 
 was their last meal, or as if they intended to choke themselves, 
 and disappeared so suddenly that it seemed as if they had finished 
 by eating one another; but on going into the bar I fotmd them all 
 alive and well, lounging about with their hands in their pockets, 
 balancing themselves on the chairs, taking a quid from their 
 "bacco-box," or receiving a stiff glass of sling from the bar- 
 keepen 
 
 Now what could be the meaning of all the haste and hurry at 
 the supper-table, I thought, and now why so listless ? What would 
 
270 PANORAMA INDIAN SKIRMISHES. 
 
 Orientals, full of etiquette and ceremony, have said to see men, 
 calling themselves civilized, seizing their food like wild beasts, 
 and bolting it without mastication i* But I am in a new country 
 and among a new people — among men descended from Britons, 
 who speak my own language, and for whom I feel a great inter- 
 est, for I see their rapid strides to greatness as a nation, their 
 country rapidly changing from an unproductive desert to a cul- 
 tivated garden under their hands; and why should I sneer and 
 cavil because they eat after a strange fashion ? I am in company 
 with men of all professions, from the great landed proprietor and 
 wealthy merchant, to the store boy and tailor. Suppose I had 
 supped with the latter class in England, might not their manner 
 of eating have been as rude as what I have just witnessed ? As- 
 suredly it might, and assuredly there is great advantage in seeing 
 life in all its phases. 
 
 Next morning I wandered about the town, and ascending an 
 eminence, on which stood the house of Judge Campbell, I was 
 enabled to see the surrounding country undulating and beautiful. 
 At a short distance was the unbroken forest; but along the banks 
 of the Cumberland river, which runs a course of three hundred 
 miles from Nashville to the Ohio, there were numerous cotton 
 plantations. Gardens and fields were round the town, new hou- 
 ses were springing up on all sides, and this delightful capital of a 
 back-woods State, now containing six thousand inhabitants, pro- 
 mised speedily to double its population. 
 
 It is but a few years since the Indians made incessant and des- 
 perate efibrts in the neighbourhood of Nashville to drive back the 
 whites. The older inhabitants told stories without end of bloody 
 skirmishes on the banks of the Cumberland; of the pioneers' hou- 
 ses attacked by the savages in the absence of the men, and women 
 and children massacred; of the deadly flight of the tomahawk, 
 the thrust of the scalping-knife, and the firebrand concealing the 
 traces of gore in smouldering ashes. 
 
 "All died — the wailing babe — the shrieking maid, 
 And in the floods of fire which scathed the glade, 
 The roofs went down ; but deep the silence grew 
 When on the dewy woods the day-beam play'd ; 
 No more the cabin smoke rose wreathed and blue, 
 And ever by their lake lay moored the light canoe." 
 
 From their encounters with Indians, the whites when they 
 quarrelled among themselves, acquired a savage manner of set- 
 tling their disputes. A few years ago, General Jackson, whose 
 country-house is within a few miles of Nashville, was engaged in 
 an affray at the principal hotel, when pistols, sword-canes, and 
 
A SULPHUR SPRING — THE FENITENTIARY. 271 
 
 knives, were all at work — as usual, it was some electioneering 
 quarrel. 
 
 I visited in the neighbourhood of the town a sulphur-spring in 
 great repute, then walked round to the bridge, which is of wood, 
 roofed over and supported on piers at least one hundred feet above 
 the bed of the river; then I attended tiie debates of the legisla- 
 ture, and found the members in handsome rooms, the chairman 
 elevated above the rest in a curtained rostrum, whilst the mem- 
 bers themselves sat on chairs at separate tables, and every man of 
 them, except the orator for the time being, was balancing him- 
 self on the hind legs of his chair, with his dusty boots on the 
 table among the writing materials, and the soles of the feet pre- 
 sented at the chairman. " What would they have said to this in 
 Persia?" I thought; "where on all occasions when seated, the 
 feet are to be hidden by the skirt of the robe, and where also to 
 present the sole of the shoe even at a beggar, is a deadly insult." 
 As little attention seemed to be shown to the different orators as 
 we see on many occasions in St. Stephen's. The members spoke 
 to each other, coughed, chewed tobacco, and spat on the floor; 
 some walked about with their hats on, or opened a window and 
 leaned over it with their backs to the company. The subject of 
 debate was, whether or not new slaves should be allowed to be 
 introduced into the State, for the Virginian massacre of seventy 
 whites, which had just taken place, had alarmed the cotton-plan- 
 ters here, who were fearful that slave-traders would purchase 
 Virginian negroes, (now sold cheap, for no confidence could be 
 placed in them,) and introduce them into Tennessee, and thus 
 corrupt the whole servile body. y 
 
 I afterwards dined at one o'clock with a wealthy and most in- 
 telligent gentleman, Mr. Yeatman, from whom and his friends I 
 received every attention, and was particularly pleased with the 
 conversation of the principal of the college, Mr. Lindsay; and I 
 beg to state, for the information of the silver-fork school, that in 
 the houses of the ^^ gens comme ilfaiit'" at Nashville, there was 
 handsome furniture, a handsome table-service, and, above all, 
 handsome ladies to preside. What more need I say ? 
 
 In the afternoon I visited a new stone penitentiary a short dis- 
 tance from town. This fine building is three stories high, three 
 hundred and ten feet in length, and fifty in width, contains cells 
 for two hundred convicts, though I saw only about twenty in it, 
 and cost about fifty thousand dollars. The plan on which it is 
 built is this: a large roofed building has a broad central wall run- 
 ning its whole interior length; in this wall, on both sides, are the 
 three tiers of cells, to which access is afforded by ladders and 
 galleries. The cells are very narrow, contain a bedstead with 
 
272 VAUXHALL GARDENS — VISIT TO CANADA. 
 
 bed clothes, and a Bible; the door, as strong as wood and iron 
 can make it, has a grating for the admission of air, and is inge- 
 niously and most securely fastened on the outside. 
 
 No visitor is allowed to converse with the prisoners, nor are 
 they permitted to hold communication with each other. Some 
 worked as tailors and shoemakers inside the penitentiary, in the 
 open space between the central and the side wall; while the rest 
 in their dark grey dresses, were employed in an outer court forg- 
 ing the bolts and bars for the completion of the building, and to 
 prevent their own escape. The good effects of this new house 
 of correction are already apparent, for three ge?2ileme7i were con- 
 fined in it, one for gouging out his neighbour's eye, the second 
 for stabbing, and the third lor biting his neighbour's nose off; and 
 since summary punishment now attends these abominable modes 
 of fighting, it is said that within these few months an alteration 
 has taken place for the better among the lawless pioneers of 
 Tennessee. 
 
 I next walked to a garden dignified with the name of Vaux- 
 hall. In the midst was a long room for balls, at the upper end of 
 which were full-length portraits of President Jackson and General 
 Lafayette. Under a shed, some people played at nine-pins, who 
 addressed one another as colonel, major, and squire; whilst a few 
 young men passed round a circular rail-road, on self-moving car- 
 riages of a novel build. 
 
 I spent the evening with some of my countrymen, one of whom 
 had lately visited the Canadas, and he was quite delighted with 
 the country and people. "I have been fifteen years in the Uni- 
 ted States," said he, and though I have succeeded tolerably well, 
 yet I never can feel myself at home here. I don't disagree with 
 the citizens, and have many friends among them, still their 
 manners are so different from those of our own people, that 
 they are not at all to my taste, and I am resolved to move into 
 the Canadas next year, and end my days in the midst of my 
 countrymen, and of men whose habits and feelings are congenial 
 with my own." 
 
 I mean no disparagement to the citizens of the flourishing Re- 
 public by recording the sentiments of an old resident among them. 
 Americans who-set up their staff in the Canadas feel as uncom- 
 fortable as he did in the States. My only object in stating the 
 above is to show that emigrants from Britain to America will best 
 consult their comfort and happiness by settling among their own 
 people, remaining subjects of our gracious Monarch, and eschew- 
 ing a republican form of government, to which they are happily 
 unaccustomed. 
 
 After a sojourn of three days at Nashville, I started for Louis- 
 
A FACETIOUS DRIVER. 273 
 
 ville, Falls of Ohio, Kentucky, and was driven by the first man 
 I had heard sing since I had entered the States. But a jolly dog 
 was this charioteer, and of some humour. "You were capsized 
 the other da}^, Mr. Driver ?" said one of our passengers. << Yes, 
 I reckon I was, but nobody was hurt. The tongue of the pole 
 broke in going down a hill, and I was afraid of running down to 
 the bottom of it; so I told the passengers to sit still, for I was 
 only going to upset them! They sat quiet, and I turned them 
 over on a bank and stopped the horses, I'm d — d if I didn't!" 
 The Americans in general have little music in their souls, and 
 as yet it is as uncommon for an American gentleman to sing as it 
 is for a Turkish effendi; thefirst considers it an accomplishment by 
 which nothing is to be got, and the last thinks it disreputable 
 either to sing or dance, and is content to pay for hired per- 
 formers. 
 
 We journeyed on, well shaken as before, but got out and walk- 
 ed every now and then, some miles. "Wait, Mister, till you get 
 out of this d — d State (Tennessee), and into old Kentuck ; you'll 
 then see a pretty country, I reckon," said a fellow passenger. At 
 last we got into Kentucky, where 1 expected to see a proud, fierce, 
 and overbearing set of people, that would be ready to pick a quar- 
 rel with a stranger on no provocation ; but I found them, during the 
 few days I was in the State, blunt in their manners to be sure, but 
 withal civil and hospitable ; and I may remark generally, that 
 though I met with some very rough characters in the back woods, 
 and saw knives drawn on several occasions, I suffered no personal 
 insult, though the rude familiarity of the West often tries the 
 temper. 
 
 The country, too, through which we passed, though but thinly 
 peopled, was more open and cheerful than Tennessee. The 
 climate was delightful, for the soil rests on a bed of porous lime- 
 stone, which absorbs the moisture and renders the atmosphere dry 
 and elastic, the temperature being about 65° in the end of Septem- 
 ber. Kentucky now contains about 700,000 inhabitants. On the 
 road side grew wild vines abundantly, and the fruit, though small, 
 was very palatable ; there was also the persimmon, a snecies of 
 plum. In walking up a hill, a straggling party of fifty V^groes, 
 preceded by the white owner, passed us. They were proceeding 
 into Tennessee. This was an evidence of the internal slave-trade 
 in the United States, which the Government is afraid to prevent.i/ 
 
 I was quite tired of the endless discussions and arguments about 
 the respective claims of Jackson and Clay to the Presidential 
 chair. Though the first was not to vacate his office for eighteen 
 months to come, yet the subject of his re-election was as warmly 
 discussed as if it were to take place in a day or two. Morning, 
 M m 
 
274 RELIGION IN KENTUCKY A CAMP MEETING. 
 
 noon, and night, in coaches and wagons, riding or on foot, be- 
 fore and after meals (for of course there is not a word spoken dur- 
 ing meals), and at night, in the many-hedded sleeping apartments, 
 nothing was heard but Clay and Jackson, Jackson and Clay ! Be- 
 fore \vc came to a "stand" the passengers would lay bets about 
 the politics of the next driver we were to get. He would mount 
 his box, and turn round and join us in conversation with the pas- 
 sengers inside, and give his opinion as to which of the rival can- 
 didates was "the best man." When we stopped to change horses 
 in a village, strapping fellows in leathers, and with their hair tied 
 up in eel-skins, would put their foot on (he wheel and their head 
 into the conveyance, and say to me, " Well, stranger, which are 
 you for, Clay or Jackson?" — "Why," I answered, adopting 
 their own phraseology, " I think Mr. Clay is a very smart man, 
 but perhaps not so spry as the old general." — "No, I guess not; 
 if we had had another like him, the Britainers would not ha' ta- 
 ken Washington city." 
 
 The Kentuckians have been accused of a total disregard of re- 
 ligious principles, and railing at every form of worship." We 
 stopped to dine at a small village, in which was a good church, 
 and before meat the landlord pronounced as long a grace as I ever 
 heard in Scotland ; and where we slept at night, at Bowling Green, 
 there were many religious books in the landlord's book-case, and 
 a camp-meeting in the immediate vicinity of the town. 
 
 A stage was erected in an open spot in the forest for the preachers, 
 who relieved each other, and round it were huts, hastily put up, 
 to accommodate the religious enthusiasis during the several days 
 they remained in the field. There was psalm-singing, energetic 
 prayer, and wild declamatory discourses, to which the people res- 
 ponded by howling and crying. At night the idle and licentious 
 of both sexes flocked to the meeting ; flambeaux and fires, blaz- 
 ed in the centre ; but the skirts of the congregation were dark, and 
 there were constant scenes of drinking and debauchery. Thus 
 we see that on all occasions ultra-christianity and religious fana- 
 ticism are attended with the worst effects. 
 
 Next day we passed through a beautiful country, undulating and 
 abounding in scattered oak woods. The houses we passed were 
 plain, but comfortable, and the food of the people was abundant. 
 We got venison, chickens, bacon, eggs, &c. and saw tobacco and 
 maize fields everywhere. The more I saw of the people of Ken- 
 tucky, the more I liked them. I saw some fine specimens of the 
 manly character among them, and I respect them for the pride 
 they take in their fine country and in all pertaining to it. 
 
 I stopped for some time to examine a natural curiosity by the 
 side of the road. It was what was called a sink-hole. A stream 
 disappeared in a large cave ; and where it rushed down into the 
 
A VIOLENT QUARREL FEMALE FORESTERS. 275 
 
 bowels of the earth advantage was taken of the fall of the water 
 to erect a mill in the mouth of the cavern. 
 
 It came on to rain heavily, and to add to our discomfiture, a vio- 
 lent quarrel took place between two of the passengers ; one a foul- 
 mouthed little rascal, boasted of his love intrigues, of his money 
 and ability as a trader, and affected to despise every one who had 
 not been across the Alleghanies, and had not seen Philadelphy, 
 as he called it. This arrogance and desire to astonish provoked a 
 Kentuckian, who swore he was nothing but a dirty bob-tailed 
 store-keeper, and wished to impose on us, who he thought were 
 hoebocks (country fellows). "But I'll fight you rough and tum- 
 ble, or fair fight, for fifty dollars," said Kentuck, pulling out his 
 pocket-book. The merchant looked small, but also produced his 
 notes, he could not, however, find one among them for a less sum 
 than one hundred, so we had no fight, but a surfeit of swearing 
 and blackguardism. " It makes me mad," said Kentuck to me, 
 *'to hear a gingerbread fellow, like that, brag; but I knew he was 
 a bankrupt, and would blow up, and come out at the small end of 
 the horn." 
 
 A friend was one day standing at the door of a tavern in Ken- 
 tucky, and whistling an air to himself. A fellow with his hair 
 in an eel skin coming past, cried " I say, mister, you whistle 
 very well, I reckon, do it again." My friend good-natur- 
 edly complied. *'Come," said he of the pigtail insolently, "try 
 it again-" — "I'll try and slap your chops." — "Slap chops!" 
 cried Kentuck, and sprang into the middle of the road. " H — 11 ! 
 I 'm your man for a fair fight, or rough and tumble;" and clap- 
 ping his sides with his elbows, and crowing defiance like a cock, 
 he swore he was a regular snorter, half horse, half alligator, and a 
 bit of the snapping turtle, and cared for no man. Some of the by- 
 standers interfered, and prevented a combat. 
 
 I was rather vexed, I must confess, with the strange manners 
 of the women in these woods. I tried to put them in a good hu- 
 mour by praising their children and their houses, but I seldom or 
 never could elicit a smile; they were always dull, cold, and melan- 
 choly. I should conceive it to be rather difficult to make love to 
 one of these foresters. One afternoon I went up to a young 
 mother with her first child at her knee, and said, "What a nice 
 garden you 've got." After a stare and a long pause, she inqui- 
 ed, " What say ye ?" I repeated my remark, to which she merely 
 replied, " tolerable." Yet with all this silence and reserve, they 
 were always attentive to our comfort, set before us the best their 
 house afforded, were far from being greedy of money, but rather 
 extremely moderate in their demands for the food they supplied. 
 Poor people! I often pitied them when I thought they were mar- 
 
276 PITY THE rover's BRIDE. 
 
 ried to incorrigible rovers, to men who, after they have "fixed" 
 themselves in a fertile spot, cleared some acres and inclosed them 
 with rail-fences, raised log-houses, and out-houses, and even plant- 
 ed an orchard, hear from some passers by of fertile tracts in the 
 far-off wilderness in Arkansas or Missouri, and, like the Tartars 
 in search of fresh pastures, move off and are no more seen. Has 
 not this continued desire for change of place and scene something 
 to do with the non-existence of the law of primogeniture? Why 
 are there so few durable houses in the States, so few libraries 
 formed, or a taste for the fine arts shown? <'The country is a 
 new one," answers the American. I think that primogeniture 
 being of no avail, and the want of local attachments, cause this 
 restlessness. 
 
 I saw females who had been reared in comfort in New-Eng- 
 land, but whose husbands, having suffered from the mad spirit of 
 speculation which is abroad in the States, had retired into the 
 wilderness to avoid their creditors, and to endeavour to retrieve 
 fortunes. The men looked sedate and thoughtful, and the wo- 
 men, though generally silent, yet occasionally gave vent to com- 
 plaints of want of society; said they felt deeply the melancholy 
 occasioned by the dark woods around them, and sincerely regret- 
 ted their separation from friends and home. 
 
 " Thus memory from her treasured urn 
 
 Shakes o'er tlie mind her spring-like rain ; 
 Thus scenes appear and palely burn, 
 
 Like night-lights in the ocean's train. 
 And still the soul shall these command, 
 
 While sorrow writes upon the face; 
 Their thoughts are on their native land. 
 
 Their heart is in their native place." 
 
 A traveller joined us who had just come from the Gold Mines 
 of North Carolina. He gave me a ver)' interesting account of 
 them, and as I know that few in England are aware of the exist- 
 ence of gold in any quantity to the north of Mexico, I beg to sub- 
 join a short statement regarding these mines. 
 
 The gold region as at present known, extends in ridges two hun- 
 dred miles long, and forty broad, through North Carolina, touch- 
 ing also Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, and Ten- 
 nessee. The gold has hitherto been found principally by wash- 
 ing the sand of water-courses. The country people brought the 
 gold dust into the town of Charlotte, which is in the centre of the 
 mines, in quills, and sold it to dealers, who afterwards sent it to 
 the Mint to have it melted into bars, and stamped. But tricks 
 were not unfrequently played, and copper was mixed with the 
 gold dust. ^ 
 
AMERICAN GOLD MINES. 277 
 
 Gold is also found in North Carolina in ore, and I was told of 
 one mass of twenty pounds weight, nearly the whole of which 
 was gold. The gold veins generally have an inclination of 45°, 
 and are of various widths. They occur in the valleys as well as 
 on the sides of the ridges. The deepest shafts that have yet heen 
 sunk, are not much above one hundred feet in depth, but galleries 
 have been carried from these to considerable distances under 
 ground, though attention has been directed to the mines only 
 within these five years. 
 
 The mass containing the precious ore is first stamped, or pound- 
 ed, then ground with quicksilver, and finally subjected to the 
 action of fire, to separate the gold from the quicksilver. In 1S31 
 a body of miners arrived from Mexico, and speculators are flock- 
 ing to Charlotte from all quarters, so that the town, which was 
 lately an insignificant village, is growing very rapidly, and is 
 now a bustling place. The Messrs. Blissels are very extensively 
 engaged at the mines; they employ no fewer than six hundred 
 hands, and in all, there are engaged in mining and in washing 
 twenty thousand individuals. Some estimate the-value of the 
 ore found last year, to be three millions of dollars, and others said 
 it could not be less than five. The greater portion of the gold is 
 said to be shipped to Paris. 
 
 Another tourist in North Carolina stated a fact of considerable 
 interest connected with the gold region, that there is undoubted 
 evidence of the mines having been worked by the Aborigines, or 
 by foreigners, at an unknown date. Pieces of rude machinery 
 have been found, and crucibles, far superior to the best now made, 
 and which are eagerly sought after by the present miners. The 
 same individual stated the belief to be, that the gold region of the 
 United States is likely to turn out more productive in gold than 
 any other part of the globe; and Professor Olmsted, in the 
 "American Journal of Science" in 1S25, estimated the United 
 States gold country to be one thousand square miles in extent. 
 Whether this will prove a blessing or a curse to the Utiion, it is 
 impossible to say; at present, the morals of the miners are repre- 
 sented to be in the worst possible state. The government does 
 not interfere with the mines, in which foreigners have principally 
 invested capital. 
 
 The amount received at the Mint from the United States gold 
 region, was 
 
 In 1825 . . . Dollars 17,000 
 
 1826 ..." 20,000 
 
 1827 . . . . " 21,000 
 
 1828 . . . " 46,000 
 
 1829 . . . . " 128,000 
 
 1830 . . . " 466,000 
 
278 FALLS OF OHIO. 
 
 It appears, therefore, that shortly the United States will not re- 
 quire gold from Africa, South America, Mexico, and the West 
 Indies, as heretofore; and if they secure the Texas, they will also 
 have silver within themselves. 
 
 The conduct of the South Carolinians was constantly discussed 
 by the people I fell in with on the road, for among them are 
 found the most determined of the nullifiers, that is, they claimed 
 aright to nullify or set aside any Act of Congress which at all in- 
 terfered with their interests. Thus they said "That in order to 
 protect the manufacturers of New England, Congress makes us 
 pay heavily for our goods, whereas we could import them much 
 cheaper and better from Europe." Some of the Carolinians, by 
 way of experiment as to the course their Government would pur- 
 sue, had just imported woollens from Liverpool, on which they re- 
 fused to pay duty at the Charleston custom-house, and were sen- 
 tenced to be fined; but the matter was referred to the highest au- 
 thorities, and the final settlement of the question will occupy 
 some time. In the mean time, the nullifiers threaten to demolish 
 their own custom-house, and separate themselves from the rest of 
 the Union. "They must be blockaded, I swear," said a New 
 Yorker to me. " These Carolina planters are as proud aristocrats 
 as any in the world, and think nothing of a man unless he can ride 
 in his coach. They abuse the tariff which protects our manufac- 
 tures, and say it prevents the cotton growing ! Some years ago 
 they got twenty-five cents for their cotton per pound, and this 
 year only eight — all the blame is laid on the tarifi'. They may 
 separate from us if they like, and perhaps we might be better off 
 if we wanted the tail." 
 
 We passed through Elizabeth Town, and after a beautiful ride 
 came to the Salt River, which we crossed, on a large raft, near 
 where it debouches into the Ohio, its clear stream gliding majes- 
 tically between wooded hills to join the turbid waters of the Mis- 
 sissippi. We then struggled on through a muddy road, and arrived 
 at Louisville, Falls of Ohio, an hour before sundown. The town, 
 as we passed through the streets, had a very thriving aspect, and 
 many of the houses had a substantial air about them, for they 
 were of brick, and rough cast. We were set down at a large ho- 
 tel, among a crowd of citizens waiting for their supper. Their 
 hair was generally long, hat turned up behind, and every man of 
 them had his hands in his pockets. In passing the bar I heard 
 the usual interrogatory at the bar-keeper — *' Have you got any 
 good gin, sir ?" — " Yes, sir, Hollands." — " Well, mix me a cock- 
 tail — I want to wet up." 
 
 I had an introduction from Mr. Audabon the naturalist, to his re- 
 lations here, with whom I supped, and next day was occupied in 
 
FREEDOM OP ELECTION. 279 
 
 walking along the river viewing the canal, which goes past the ra- 
 pids or falls, and in seeing some of the public places in the town. 
 
 The canal seems a very complete work, and overcomes a height 
 of twenty-four feet of limestone rock. The cross section is two 
 hundred feet in width from bank to bank at top, fifty at bottom, 
 and forty-two feet high. There are one guard and three lift-locks 
 combined, each about one hundred and ninety feet in the clear. 
 The canal is intended to accommodate steam-vessels of the largest 
 class. 
 
 Louisville contains ten thousand inhabitants, and will increase 
 rapidly in population, from its excellent site and freedom from 
 the scourge of yellow fever, with which it was afflicted before cer- 
 tain swamps were drained near the town. The environs are very 
 picturesque, especially the river view, with its woods, villas, and 
 cultivated fields on the banks of the broad Ohio. 
 
 A laughable proof of the freedom of election in America hap- 
 pened to an acquaintance here, which I may as well repeat.' He 
 saw a crowd assembled at the door of a tavern, and on inquiring 
 what was the occasion of it, he was told, that a lieutenant of mi- 
 litia was desirous of being made a general, and was then treating 
 his friends with sling previous to the election. The privates elect 
 their own officers by ballot in the States. A drunken fellow then 
 staggered up to the stranger, and holding a bottle of rum by the 
 neck, demanded, in a threatening voice, " Who are you for, 
 Mister? D — n you, won't you vote for General Twig ?" — " Ex- 
 cuse me," said my friend smiling, *'I won't vote for either General 
 Twig or General Wig!" — "You won't vote for General Twig, 
 eh ?" (shaking the bottle at him;) "what for?" — "Because," 
 quietly answered the stranger, " I have no right to vote at all; 
 I'm not a citizen of the Union!" — "Oh! that's it! Why the devil 
 did you not say so before? Come, take an anti-fogmatic, then!" 
 and they amicably pledged each other in a horn of old Jamaica. 
 "Vote for my man or else get your head broke," is often the 
 maxim in the back settlements. 
 
 I was tempted to stay in Louisville by an offer of an introduc- 
 tion to certain young ladies with blocks of houses, (a block is 
 half a dozen or a dozen contiguous dwellings built on the same 
 plan,) but as 1 had no inclination to locate myself on the banks of 
 the Ohio, pleasant though they be, and handsome the fair that are 
 found beside them, I embarked in a steamer, the Lady Byron, 
 and paddled away up the river, bidding an eternal adieu to the 
 attractions of Kentucky. 
 
 " Away ! away ! o'er earth and sea, 
 This land is not a home for thee. 
 Arise ! and with a roving wing, 
 To seek elsewhere the smiles of spring I" 
 
280 BANKS OP OHIO — CINCINNATI. 
 
 In the morning the mist lay on the valley of the river until 
 touched by the magic beam of the sun, when they l)egan to move, 
 gradually separated, and rolled away in clouds of white vapour 
 among the hills, just lingering for a moment on their tops, and, 
 disappearing, left the glorious carpet of variegfited foilage, which 
 is said to be more beautiful in the fall, or autumn, in America 
 than in any other part of the world. Here, on the hills of pic- 
 turesque outline the yellow leaf of the poplar was contrasted with 
 the red foliage of the maple, and masses of evergreen pines gave 
 relief to the gorgeous sylvan mantle of scarlet and gold. But 
 this theme has been exhausted before; the beauties of the banks 
 of Ohio, and of the glorious Hudson in the fall, have been painted 
 by other and abler limners; and, like the accomplished author of 
 ** The Dutchman's Fireside," nothing is left for us but to repress 
 the feelings of our swelling hearts by silent musings. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVHI. 
 
 Cincinnati in Ohio. — Its rapid growth, compared with Columbus. — The Author of 
 "The Mississippi Valley." — Mrs. Trollopc. — Falling- Trees. — Marietta. — Land 
 at Wheeling in Virginia. — Its Coal. — Its Fabriques. — Lament for Autliors. — The 
 big Grave. — An American Beggar. — Tale of a Chair. — A Horse Ferry. — Virgi- 
 nian Landlord. — Fanatics. — The golden Bible. — Rapp's Settlement on the Ohio. — 
 Mr. Birkbeck in Indiana. — Wellsville. — A Scotch Colony. — Why was it located 
 in the States? — Sergeant More M'Alpin. — The State of Ohio — A Stage. — A 
 Blacksmitli's notions of England. — Good fcclingon the partof Fellow Travellers. — 
 Peach Plunderers. — Hungry Wayfarers. — Lake Erie. — A Walk. — Land Specu- 
 lators. — Town of Erie. — Belgian Emigrants. — Fredonia. — Natural Gas. — A Ser- 
 mon. — Dunkirk. — Sail to Butfaloe. — The great Erie Canal. — Rail Roads. — The 
 Niagara River. — The great Cataract. 
 
 We sailed by the shores of Indiana on the left, and soon ar- 
 rived at Cincinnati in Ohio. Its site is extremely pleasant, with 
 a south exposure. It rises on a slope from the clear river. Its 
 streets, notwithstanding what Mrs. Trollope said of them, seem- 
 ed to me to be clean, were bustling with active industry, and are 
 at right angles to each other. The tall chimneys of factories 
 were seen here and there among the neat houses, and a crowd of 
 steam-vessels lay below the town, in which there are now an 
 hundred English families of respectability. 
 
 In 1800 Cincinnati had only a population of seven hundred; 
 in 1810 two thousand five hundred and fortyj in 1820 nine thou- 
 
TOWN OP CINCINNATI. 281 
 
 sand six hundred and forty-two; and at present it contains up- 
 wards of twenty-eight thousand inhabitants. The rapid growth 
 of this town is most astonishing, and the Miami Canal to Lake 
 Erie will, it is expected, add to its size and consequence in an in- 
 creased ratio. Tiie location of Columbus, the capital of Ohio, 
 not being so favourableas that of Cincinnati, it has not "improved" 
 as the phrase is, as was to be expected, and though it is seated 
 in the Scioto Valley, famous for its herds of cattle, and has other 
 advantages, its population is only two thousand four hundred and 
 thirty seven. 
 
 At Cincinnati, among others to whom I had introductions, was 
 the Reverend T. Flint, the author of a valuable and interesting 
 work, " Ten Years' Residence in the Valley of the Mississippi," 
 Mr. Flint is stricken in years, and is a tall and spare-made man, 
 full of intelligence and information regarding the vast and fertile 
 tracts near which he dwells. He gave the preference to Indiana. 
 
 When I was leaving Cincinnati I remarked an odd-looking 
 tower near the steam-boat landing, on which was inscribed in 
 large letters, ''Welcome Lafayette!" This I understood was 
 erected by Mrs. Trollope after the celebrated General's last visit 
 to the States in 1826. I wonder if the tower is still in exis- 
 tence! 
 
 As we proceeded up the river, it was interesting to notice 
 the parts of the bank which had fallen in. The roots of the trees 
 were exposed at the edge of the precipice, and the foliage be- 
 ginning to decay; other trees had fallen back into the arms of 
 those behind them, and some lay with their heads in the water 
 ready to be carried away by the next " fresh" to form snags, 
 sawyers, and other impediments to the navigation. 
 
 We passed Marietta in Ohio, a thriving place, with interesting 
 remains of Indian works near it; and after running aground once 
 or twice, for the river was very low, we arrived at Wheeling in 
 Virginia. From the coal-field in the immediate neighbourhood 
 of this town, there are a great number of fabriques of different 
 kinds, in which steam is the primum mobile. There were saw- 
 mills, paper-mills, woollen manufactories, &c. These I examined. 
 After returning from my walk, I was sitting at the door of the 
 hotel, when a little man with a bag in his hand came up to me, 
 and asked me to purchase a volume of poems. I asked, " Who 
 is the author?" — "I'm the man," said he; — "sometimes you 
 see genius in a coarse coat." This was a romantic tailor, who 
 warbled about the banks of Ohio, and occasionally quitted his 
 shop-board to vend his own works. In the States there is such 
 an inundation of reprints from English works, that native authors 
 have little chance of encouragement from American publishers. 
 N n 
 
282 THE BIG GKAVE AN AMERICAN BEGGAR. 
 
 Therefore was the poetical Schneider obliged to be his own book- 
 seller to clear the expense of publication, I condoled with Tho- 
 mas J. Lees, and purchased his <' Musings of Carol.'' 
 
 Near Wheeling is a most remarkable and interesting memorial 
 of the former possessors of Virginia; it is called the Big Grave: 
 a mound three hundred yards in circumference, ninety in alti- 
 tude, and forty-five in breadth at top (where it lias sunk in, and 
 forms a sort of crater); it contains thousands of human bones; the 
 skeletons of men of all ages are there found, with their heads 
 directed to the common centre: and the lowest tiers are evidently 
 many ages older than those near the top of this venerable monu- 
 ment of the unknown dead. 
 
 " Like the shadows on the stream ; 
 Like the evanescent gleam 
 Of the twihght's faihng blaze ; 
 Like the fleeting years and days ; 
 Like all things that soon decay, 
 Pass the Lidian tribes away !" 
 
 I here saw the first beggar and the last that I met in the States. 
 Need 1 say more to attest the abundance of food and employment 
 there is in this prosperous country ? The beggar I speak of was 
 a stout and well-dressed woman. She walked boldly into the 
 room, and held out a hand which had been maimed in a cotton- 
 mill. "You see that!" said she bluntly. — "I do." — <' You'll give 
 me something for it, I guess ?" — " I reckon I will, if you don't 
 make a demand." — <'Umph!" she replied, without thanking me 
 for my mite, and without moving. " Well, what are you wait- 
 ing for? have you not got enough?" — <<No; have you got no- 
 thing in your pocket for me?" addressing another person in the 
 room. I was so provoked by her rudeness and unusual way of 
 asking charity, tiiat I took her gently by the shoulder and showed 
 her the outside of the door. People are not yet accustomed 
 to the trade of begging in the States. 
 
 I may here give another instance of Virginian bluntness and 
 independence. An Englishman was travelling with his wife 
 through the country in a gig. One day, after having journeyed 
 as far as they intended, they stopped opposite to a house before 
 which a bear swung on the sign. The gig had lost a step, and 
 the husband jumping out, called to a young woman lounging at 
 the door of the tavern, "Bring a chair here!" The damsel 
 addressed did not move. "Bring a chair here, I say!" Still 
 no indication of assistance. "D — n it, are you deaf ? don't you 
 hear me ? I say, I want a chair to let my wife down, eh ?" On 
 this the landlord presents himself at the door. — "Halloo, 
 
A HORSE-PERRY RAFT THE GOLDEN BIBLE. 283 
 
 stranger what's all this about? We allow no swearing here; go 
 along, Sir! we take nobody in who swears or makes a noise here," 
 — and our distressed countryman was obliged to convey his spouse 
 some ten or twelve miles farther on to another house of enter- 
 tainment. 
 
 I crossed to an island opposite to Wheeling, by a horse-ferry 
 raft. The poor blinded animals walked on a horizontal tread- 
 mill, which communicated with paddles. The steersman and 
 driver were two of the most eye-gouging, whisky-drinking, nose- 
 biting looking villians I ever beheld. After taking a survey of 
 some farms, I embarked in a small steamer, the Swan, to go a 
 few miles up the river to Wellsville: the banks became more 
 picturesque as we advanced, and every thing combined to add a 
 charm to the scene. It was the Indian summer, and the tempera- 
 ture was bland and the sky bright, except an occasional redness 
 and haziness in the horizon. The noble sycamores and beeches 
 threw their shadows into la belle riviere, and their polished 
 stems were often entwined with the bright red leaves of a wild 
 vine. 
 
 I was surprised to see that still so little wood had been cleared. 
 For miles we sailed by varied hills and rich bottoms, without 
 seeing a house. A few solitary taverns were pointed out which 
 had been the scenes of deeds of violence and rapine. The keel- 
 men, in descending the river, were enticed to land at these, a 
 quarrel was got up, which ended in a fight. The boatmen were 
 often stabbed and put out of the way, and their keel seized and 
 carried down to New Orleans by the tavern gang, as I before 
 mentioned as occurring on the Mississippi. It was a saying, that 
 a Virginian inn was not safe if the landlord had lost his ears in a 
 fight, and it was therefore necessary always to examine mine 
 host previous to taking up one's quarters with him. 
 
 On the banks of Ohio are found fanatics possessed with the 
 wildest possible conceits; their leaders are as often rogues as fools, 
 and impose on the weak and ignorant, in order to turn the delusions, 
 which they originate, to their own pecuniary advantage. The 
 Mormonists gave rise to a good deal of conversation in the West 
 last year. The origin and progress of this new sect, were shortly 
 this; some idle people had been mis-spending their time in digging 
 up money, but in their researches, they, as usual, stumbled on 
 nothing more valuable than stones and earth. To them by invi- 
 tation, Ringdon, a preacher of Ohio, joined himself, who 
 pretended to dream of hidden treasures, and the party set to 
 work with renewed hopes. To one of them it was revealed in a 
 vision, that in a certain hill there was deposited an iron chest, 
 containing golden leaves of a new Bible, called the Book of 
 
284 RAPP'S SETTLEMENTS. 
 
 Mormon; and alter a time, the rest gave out that they had dis- 
 covered what was pointed out "in virion of the night." A 
 translation was forthwith made of the mysterious work, a 
 rhapsody in scriptural language, and a multitude joined the 
 Mormonists. Husbands forsook their wives, and parents their 
 children, to become disciples. Farms were sold, and stores shut 
 up to obtain the means of accompanying the elect into the 
 wilderness. An island of the Mississippi received a number of 
 these deluded people, where, in waiting to be fed like Elijah, 
 with ravens, or with manna from heaven, they died of disease 
 and hunger. 
 
 The settlements of Mr. Rapp (a German) on the Ohio, are well 
 worthy of being visited. He is at present residing at Beaver. 
 This gentleman understands colonization so thoroughly, that he 
 will go with his countrymen into a howling wilderness, and in 
 five years the desert, under his directions, will be flourishing <' like 
 a green bay tree." Handsome houses will be found, elegant 
 churches, stores filled with goods, hotels, museums, and, above 
 all, fields in a high state of cultivation. How is this miracle 
 brought about? simbly by combination. Mr. Rapp's followers 
 bind themselves to labour for a common interest, and on a 
 particular plan, and after a certain time divide a common purse, 
 they are then independent. As a contrast to this, the English 
 settlement of Mr. Birkbeck, in Indiana, may be cited. He him- 
 self, poor man, is now dead, having been upset in a canoe, and 
 drowned in a creek, and those who followed him to the New 
 World, (many of them with considerable sums of money,) are 
 now almost all ruined and scattered. The cause of all this was, 
 that there was no combination among our countrymen, and, 
 following the same system of agriculture, as is usual in England, 
 each trying to act independently, they realized the fable of the 
 bundle of sticks, and were broken separately. 
 
 I had a chronometer in Soutli America, but I did not think it 
 necessary to take it to the United States, to verify the positions 
 of the junctions of streams, &c. ; besides, from the way in 
 which I travelled, alone, without a servant, and deprived 
 of conveniences, it would have been impossible to carry with 
 me a chronometer, or delicate instrument for taking observa- 
 tions. Tenant's maps seem to give the most correct positions 
 of the junctions of streams and tlie situations of the towns and 
 villages. 
 
 If the traveller turns off at Wheeling or Pittsburgh, and pro- 
 ceeds to the eastward, there is little except the passes of the Al- 
 leghany mountains that can be particularly recommended to his no- 
 tice — their height, direction, scenery, and flora, are all interesting. 
 
WELLSVILLE — A SCOTCH COLONY. 285 
 
 But it is better worth the traveller's while to push for Upper 
 Canada in the first place, and take the Eastern States on his re- 
 turn. If he be on the Ohio in the fall, this plan will extend his 
 limits considerably, render him independent of the winter, and 
 lead him along a less beaten tract. 
 
 At Steubenville there was a fleet of "broad horns," floating 
 shops, containing fruit and flour, and keel boats loaded with pro- 
 duce. On one of the latter there was a specimen of a boatman 
 who aflbrded a good deal of amusement; in his hands were two 
 tin drinking cups, and ever and anon he went to a barrel of whis- 
 key in the stern-sheets of his craft, and took a dose with one tin, 
 and dipped the other into the river, making what is called mid- 
 shipman's grog in his stomach. He looked at us, and said, with 
 a swaggering (drunken air, '' I suppose you think I'm a hoebuck 
 (clown) because I'm on a keel, and have not got a good coat on ; 
 I'm a real tar, and by G — d I'll whip (thrash) any body with a 
 good coat on ;" and then he took another horn. The Americans 
 are not so particular about the make of the coat as the fineness of the 
 cloth, and I remarked that they thought very little of those who 
 did not "turn out" in superfine. 
 
 The captain of the Swan wanted to leave us at Steubenville, 
 and there was a little fight in consequence ; but we carried our 
 point, and went on to Wellsville, and scrambled through the mud 
 to the inn. Every bed was doubly full, and I slept on the floor 
 at the door of a closet, out of which two young women came, 
 and stepped over me in the morning. 
 
 In the neighbourhood of Wellsville, (as yet but a straggling vil- 
 lage,) there is a numerous Scotch colony. I saw several of my 
 countrymen, and was delighted to hear my native tongue in this 
 far-off land, to answer eager inquiries regarding the happy state 
 of old Caledonia, and to talk of scenes for ever dearly cherished, 
 and held in fond remembrance by the self-exiled. It was impos- 
 sible to listen without strong emotion to the plaintive airs of our 
 country, sung by these simple people with such deep feeling ; the 
 eyes of the hearers were involuntarily filled with moisture, and a 
 chord of the heart beat responsive to the music. 
 
 " Farewell to Lochaber, and farewell my Jean, 
 Where heartsome with tlicc I hae mony days been ; 
 For Lochaber no more, Lochaber no more, 
 We'll maybe return to Lochaber no more." 
 
 " Why did you not settle in the Canadas ?" I inquired of se- 
 veral. " Some of our friends cam here before us, sir, and we 
 didna ken the difference between the twa Governments ; at the 
 time we cam ower here, it was aa ae America to us, and since 
 
286 SERGEANT MORE m'ALPIN. 
 
 we're here we maun jist bide. The Americans have been very 
 leeberal in the way o' land, and are decent folk on the whole, 
 though there's a great difference between oor menners and theirs ; 
 every man o' them, man and boy, father and sin, hae separate in- 
 terests, we aa draw thegither, and try to keep up a kindly com- 
 munion atween oorsels. There's nae folk like oor nain folk, sir, 
 after aa. " 
 
 I inquired the history of one man, and he said, his father was 
 a small farmer in the highlands of Perthshire, and that his '' fore- 
 bears" had held the same land for two or three hundred years. A 
 young laird succeeded to the estate who had been in England and 
 abroad, and had acquired extravagant habits and notions. He 
 wished to raise his rents. The farmer offered a higher rent, as 
 much as he could afford to give, sooner than quit his beloved 
 country and kindred, and "the graves of his people." The ste- 
 ward demanded more than he could give, and sorrowfull)'^ he emi- 
 grated to America "to choose his place of rest, with Providence 
 his guide." 
 
 The case of this man was similar to that of thousands of others 
 of our warm-hearted peasantry ; and I could not help cursing the 
 cold-hearted cupidity of some landlords, (alas ! how degenerated 
 from their noble ancestors,) and recalling to mind the beautifully 
 pathetic introduction to the '' Legend of Montrose," by the im- 
 mortal Scott. 
 
 "Sergeant More M'Alpin returned after forty years hard ser- 
 vice to the wild highland glen, in which he was born and reared 
 to manhood ; to his recollection this retired spot was unparalleled 
 in beauty by the richest scenes he had visited in his wanderings. 
 Even the happy valley of Rasselas would have sunk into nothing 
 upon the comparison. He came — he revisited the loved scene — 
 it was but a sterile glen surrounded with wild crags and traversed 
 by a northern current. This was not the worst. The fires had 
 been quenched upon thirty hearths. Of the cottage of his father's 
 he could but distinguish a few rude stones — the language was al- 
 most extinguished — the ancient race, from which he boasted his 
 descent, had found a refuge beyond the Atlantic. One South- 
 land farmer, three gre)'-plaided shepherds, and six dogs, now 
 tenanted the whole glen, which in his youth had maintained in 
 content, if net in competence, upwards of two hundred inhabi- 
 tants. The veteran determined to follow his kindred to their 
 American retreat, for with heavy hearts they had bid adieu to 
 their native glen, to the strain of Ha til mi tulidh, we return no 
 more." 
 
 Of the State of Ohio it is said, that from La Belle Riviere on 
 the south to the Canadian Lakes on the north, it affords the great- 
 
A blacksmith's notions op ENGLAND. 287 
 
 est body of good land in America; at present, the greater part of 
 it is covered with heavy timber. There are some morasses and 
 some barren tracts; but as a convincing proof of the superior 
 quality of the soil in general, the New Englanders have made it 
 their own. It is a Yankee State; and of this I was sufficiently 
 aware when I saw the compact farms, the neat white-painted 
 frame houses, the orchards, and the general air of comfort and 
 frugality in the people, and in all that pertained to them in the 
 State of Ohio. 
 
 Our stage was drawn by four horses; had no outside passen- 
 gers except " Mr. Driver," but nine inside, on three seats. 
 The sides of the vehicle were of leather, and there was one door 
 of entrance. The springs consisted of very thick and strong 
 leather straps, which went " fore and aft" under the oval body, and 
 were suspended to short iron uprights "front and rear." The 
 wheels were of corresponding strength, and as the roads were 
 very deep and heavy, all the solidity of construction of our stage 
 could hardly save us from breaking down under the " rude as- 
 saults" we experienced. 
 
 A drunken fellow of a blacksmith commenced a series of abuse 
 of Old England, <'a land of slaves, with a despotic government!" 
 I let him run on without interruption, for I wished to hear the 
 notions of the lower classes of Americans regarding our noble 
 country; but when an eastern passenger, in the usual course of 
 guessing and asking questions, learned to what country I belonged, 
 he, as well as the other passengers, insisted on Vulcan's making 
 an apology, which he did, whilst the others hoped that I would 
 not take offence at what had happened, or conceive a bad impres- 
 sion of their country from the ignorance and bad manners of one 
 man. I was highly gratified with all this, and I assured them 
 that I had a great esteem for them and for Americans in general; 
 that I hoped that petty jealousies would cease between two na- 
 tions derived from the same stock, as soon as the ignorance of 
 each other's character was removed, and that, so far from feeling 
 any ill will myself to the Americans, I felt proud that such a peo- 
 ple should have proceeded from a country to whose service I was 
 attached. I heartily wished them success as a nation, provided 
 there was no attempt at interference with the British American 
 possessions, and thus we journeyed on pleasantly together. 
 
 We passed a number of peach orchards, and I remarked the 
 pigs feeding on the fallen fruit. We sallied out of the stage two 
 or three times, and filled our hats with peaches, but they were 
 flavourless and insipid. One passenger eat a bushel. I don't 
 know how he passed the night after it, but it was lucky that the 
 
288 TOWN OF FREDONIA. 
 
 cholera was not in the country at the time, or he would certainly 
 • have fallen a victim to it. 
 
 I remarked that at the tavern vvliere we stopped, there was 
 much more economy in the domestic arrangements than I had 
 seen before in the States. The mistress of the family handed us 
 the tea or coffee, with very scanty supplies of milk and sugar, and 
 the eatables were also portioned out in a way that was rather tan- 
 talizing to hungry travellers. Everything was remarkably clean 
 in and about the houses, but I observed the same thing in Holland, 
 where the fare was equally scanty. 
 
 At last I was refreshed with the sight of that great inland sea, 
 Lake Erie, and passing Ashtabula, I sat down on its shore in the 
 clean house of a fine specimen of a New-England farmer. 
 
 A gale was agitating the waters of Erie; and as I strolled along 
 the sandy beach, with water worn stones and decayed timber 
 thickly strewed upon it, it seemed as if I trod the margin of the 
 ocean's tide. I only met with two persons in a long walk, one a 
 hunter in search of wild turkeys and squirrels, and the other a 
 woodsman, splitting drift logs by means of an iron wedge and a 
 club like tliat of Hercules. 
 
 I wished to embark on the lake, and sail down to Buffaloe, 
 but I could get no vessel, the small schooners opposite my door 
 being afraid to venture; I accordingly got into one of three 
 coaches at Ashtabula, laden with land speculators, who had return- 
 ed from the north-west territory and Michigan. Most of them 
 seemed to be disappointed, and said that generally the shores of 
 Lake Michigan were low and feverish. I passed rather an un- 
 pleasant night on the road. Tliere was a great deal of '' wetting 
 up," and swearing, and the roads were none of the best. 
 
 We arrived at the town of Erie, and found in the principal 
 hotel (the Mansion House) a party of thirty-five Belgians, men, 
 women, and children, at the head of whom was a Count Leo. 
 They intended to purchase a tract on the Ohio. These foreigners 
 excited a good deal of interest among my companions, whocrowd- 
 ed in to see them eat, as if they had been /era? natiirx. 
 
 The next stage was Fredonia, where I halted. The others 
 went on. Fredonia is lighted with natural gas; a river runs by 
 it; and if a light is passed over the surface of the water in particu- 
 lar spots, flames rise like those from the waves of the Infernal 
 Phlegethon. In a small house on the banks of the stream is the 
 gasometer; a square reservoir for water has been dug under cover 
 of a roof; in this floats a large wooden box without a bottom; the 
 gas rises in this, and the weight of the box forces the gas into tubes, 
 which distribute it over the village. 
 
 Two neat churches stood side by side in Fredonia, a Presby- 
 
A SERMON — SAIL TO BUPFALOE. 289 
 
 terian and a Baptist. I attended the former, and heard a tall 
 young preacher deliver an excellent discourse. He censured 
 those hearers who are more ready to criticise the orator than at- 
 tend to the truths which he delivers: — "'He is not a smart man,' 
 say some of a particular preacher, and neglect altogether the doc- 
 trines he endeavours to inculcate. How ahsurd is it," said the 
 Minister, "for those who are starving to refuse food because it 
 is offered to them in vessels whose form they do not like; equally 
 foolish is it in those who reject the world altogether because the 
 minister may not be personally approved of." 
 
 From Fredonia I went in a wagon to Dunkirk, on the shores 
 of Erie, and found a house full of Irish emigrants, waiting an op- 
 portunity to proceed up the lake to Amherstburgh. I was de- 
 layed here nearly two days, and wandered about in the woods 
 and along the beach, visited an American light-house, and spent 
 a few pleasant hours with some lively and intelligent ladies I ac- 
 cidently met, and shall never see again "on this side of time." 
 
 " The star which shines so fair at e'en, 
 Lives but the hours of night ; 
 It glows on many a fairy scene, 
 But fades at morning light. 
 
 'Tis Hke the joys which mortal taste, 
 
 They're but in slumber given ; 
 And when we wake, in life's dull waste. 
 
 The golden spell is riven." 
 
 At last I got an opportunity to sail down the lake to Buffaloe, 
 and on the voyage thither, observed the rocky south shore of 
 Erie, fringed with dark pines and a few scattered log-houses among 
 them. Erie is two hundred and seventy miles long, twenty-five 
 broad, and two hundred feet deep: it sometimes freezes in win- 
 ter. 
 
 Arrived at Buffaloe, I found myself in a comfortable hotel, the 
 Buffaloe House. I walked about the town, and saw that, phoenix- 
 like, it had risen from its ashes, and exhibited no traces of the 
 fire which had consumed it in the last American war. The com- 
 mencement of the great Erie canal, connecting the Hudson with 
 the Canadian lakes, is at Buffaloe. I saw a part of it, and heard 
 that last year it took forty per cent, of the profits to cover the 
 expense of repairs. This canal used to be the boast of the Ame- 
 ricans, but it was hastily finished, and with inadequate funds. 
 The state of New York suffers, and not private individuals. The 
 papers are filled with proposals for a rail-road to supersede the 
 canal. 
 
 The Liverpool and Manchester rail-road has quite turned the 
 o 
 
290 THE NIAGARA RIVER. 
 
 heads of the citizens of the States. Rail-roads were the universal 
 topic of conversation in all parts of the country, dividing atten- 
 tion with the rival claims of Clay and Jackson for the presiden- 
 tial chair. If the Thames Tunnel had succeeded, (which it is 
 earnestly hoped it will eventually do, and then we may also see 
 the banks of the Thames enclosed with quays, with handsome 
 houses on them, instead of the present miserable huts, sheds, and 
 wood-yards,) I am convinced that tunnels would have been tried 
 in all parts of the civilized world; and from what I have heard 
 in Russia, one under the Neva would undoubtedly have been 
 commenced. 
 
 When embarking at Buffaloe to sail down the Niagara river to 
 Chippaway, I saw several families of Swiss peasants who had just 
 arrived from New York. The men wore blue smocks and forage 
 caps with large peaks, and the women had the usual full petticoats, 
 in shortness rivalling the kilts of our red-shanks. The weather 
 was very cold, yet these mountaineers looked cheerful and happy. 
 In sailing out of the harbour, we passed a handsome pier, formed 
 by filling coffers of wood with stone, and then building on them. 
 
 The banks of the Niagara river are flat and covered with wood. 
 Silence reigned among those scenes where, fifteen years before, 
 the warning notes of the bugle and the sharp crack of the rifle 
 were hourly heard. We circled round Great Island, on which 
 there was an abortive city called Ararat, from which a religious 
 sect was to have proceeded that was to extend over the whole 
 earth. The river widened out before us, and I remarked that 
 we were swept rapidly onwards by an increasing current, show- 
 ing ripples and eddies at the surface. In the distance, a white 
 cloud rose high in heaven, and slowly and continually changed 
 its form — its colour resembled the smoke of burning lime; atone 
 moment it was a dense mass, then portions detached themselves 
 from it and disappeared in the atmosphere, and lastly, it seemed 
 a great tree with a straight stem, on which rested a spreading 
 top. A dull murmur came occasionally on the breeze, like the 
 far-ofi"" voice of a great multitude, as the voice of many waters, 
 or as the voice of mighty thunderings." It was the sound of the 
 Falls of Niagara. 
 
 I landed at Chippaway, and in crossing the bridge, the scene of 
 some desperate encounters, I was aware that I stood on British 
 ground, by seeing before me two soldiers of that particularly 
 smart regiment the 79lh Highlanders, and every thing combined 
 to occasion a state of most pleasing excitement. I was at home 
 among friends and countrymen, and about to feast on one of the 
 grandest scenes in the universe. 
 
 I continued my course along the Niagara river, and passed a 
 
THE GREAT CATARACT. 291 
 
 little grey church embowered in oak wood, in which Sir Pere- 
 grine Maitland, the late Lieutenant of Upper Canada, used to 
 attend divine service. The afternoon was calm and serene, and 
 there were no moving objects on the level road, which winded 
 between fields, rail-fences, and dark trees. This repose was fit- 
 ted to prepare the mind for the mighty cataract, whose hollow 
 voice came upon the wind with varying loudness; at one moment, 
 loudly heard as if close at hand, and the next, dying away like 
 the magic strains of an ^olian harp. 
 
 I reached a part of the road from which the shelving banks of 
 the river, covered "by the pines with many scathed tops among 
 them, descended abruptly. And here a scene burst upon me 
 more like what one may venture to conceive of what shall after- 
 wards be revealed to the blessed in Paradise, than any other the 
 most imposing of Nature's works, which I had delighted in 
 visiting. 
 
 A mile of the broad river was broken into angry and foaming 
 rapids, whose waves increased in size, crested with foam as they 
 approached Goat Island, covered with wood, and dividing the 
 channel of the united overflowings of Lake Superior, Huron, 
 Michigan, and Erie. Between the high bank where I stood and 
 the island, was the sweep of the horse-shoe fall, over which, from 
 their great depth, the waters seemed to roll with majestic slow- 
 ness into a cauldron below, from which rose the ever-varying 
 column of steam beautifully tinted with rainbows. Dimly seen 
 through the vapour, was the straight fall on the American side. 
 Its broad white sheet contrasted with the dark precipices of Goat 
 Island, preventing the union of the tvvo cataracts. The bend of 
 the British fall did not permit me to see its entire breadth, and 
 as the vapour cloud obscured the bottom of the American fall, 
 and increased its apparent size, much was left to the imagination, 
 and consequently a higher conception was formed of the grandeur 
 of the falls from this point of view, than from any other. 
 
 But why need I stop to describe a scene which has already so 
 often occupied the pen and the pencil of authors and artists ? I 
 pass on in thankfulness that it has been my good fortune to have 
 feasted my eyes upon its glories. 
 
 Inviting me to enter, on opposite sides of the road were two 
 hotels with pillars, large windows, and white paint, like staring 
 racing stands. Nothing could be so ill-suited to the scene as these 
 abominations; but if the traveller turns his back upon them, and 
 looks towards the falls and up the river, the scene is still so wild, 
 that it seems as if it were yet only tenanted with the Indians and 
 red deer. I took a room at Lundy's Lane, below the falls, in a 
 quiet country-inn, on the field where a desperate night-battle 
 
292 THE GREAT CATARACT. 
 
 was fought last war, the roar of the artillery mingling with the 
 thunders of Niagara. 
 
 In the evening I crossed the fields, leaping fences and scramb- 
 ing through marshes and underwoods, to see the falls from below. 
 I saw the snow-white water issuing from the cloud of vapour, 
 which for ever hides the hottom of the sheet of this cataract. I 
 stood on the tahle-rock overhanging a part of the horsehoe, and 
 descending to the lower ledge, placed myself beside the water 
 plunging into the great cauldron, and in going under the fall was 
 drenched with the condensed vapour, and assailed with violent 
 gusts of wind, whilst slimy %vater-snakes and eels wound them- 
 selves round the slippery rocks, dimly seen by the green light 
 shining through the thick and resistless sheet of thundering 
 water. 
 
 That night, before 1 lay down I listened long to the voice of 
 the cataract, and could see in the clear moonlight its cloud as- 
 cending slowly and gracefully over the trees. Next morning I 
 rose early, and again hurried to the river, and crossing the ferry 
 in a small boat,, wildly tossed about in the troubled waters, I 
 ascended on the American side, a wooden stair, and saw the 
 ladder from which a strange character, called Jack Patch, used 
 to leap into the river, there two hundred feet deep. I crossed 
 the rapids above the American Falls, to Iris, or Goat Island, by 
 a wooden bridge a triumph of art over natute. It was thrown 
 across the angry torrent in the following manner: — A beam of 
 wood was fixed horizontally in the bank at one end; from the 
 extremity of the other a strong cradle of wood, filled with stones, 
 was let down into the rocky bed of the rapids, to act as a pier; 
 into this, the first pier, another log was fixed; then a second pier 
 was added, and a third, till the bridge was laid. I wandered 
 among the shades of Goat Island, read in an album containing 
 thousands of names of visiters, that of one who stated his residence 
 to be the world, and his destination the grave; walked to the 
 extremity of the bridge, lay on the Terapin rocks, and looked over 
 
 " To where Niagara, in deafening sweep, 
 Girled with rainbows, thunders down the steep !" 
 
 and at a late hour returned to take my ease at my inn. And here, 
 by way of episode, I may give a narrative of the last days of a 
 strange being, whose fate has given an additional interest to the 
 falls this year. My tale was in part derived from a respectable 
 resident at Niagara, and was confirmed by the testimony of the 
 ferryman, who was witness to many of the melancholy details 
 which follow. 
 
293 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 The last days of Francis Abbott. — His arrival at Niagara. — Enraptured with the 
 Falls. — Resides in Goat Island. — Builds a cottage. — His eccentric Habits. — 
 Suspends himselfover the Cataract. — His Firmness. — His principles. — He com- 
 mits suicide. — His Life and Travels. — Examination of his Cottage. — Reflections. 
 — Progressive Changes in tlxe Rock of the Falls. — Water Rockets. — An interest- 
 ing Walk. — Sporting. — Canadian Rifleman. — Queenstown Heights. — Extensive 
 
 View. — General Brocke Mr. W. H. Merritt. — The Welland Canal.— Embark on 
 
 Lake Ontario. — Arrive at York the Capital of Upper Canada. — Its Rise. — The 
 Lieutenant Governor. — The University. — Colonel Givings. — Ride to the Credit 
 Creek. — Clearing Land. — Emigrants. — American Innkeepers. — An Indian Vil- 
 lage. — Change of Habits in Indians. — Their Appearance. — Distribution of 
 Presents. — Birds of Prey. — Consequence of allowing Methodist Preachers among 
 the Indians. — Chief Yellow Head. — Ride up Young Street. — German Settlers. — 
 An old Highland Woman. — Sail to Kingston. — Its Appearance. — Attend a 
 Ploughing-mateh and Show of Cattle. — Ride to Kingston Mills. — The Rideau 
 Canal. — A Funeral. — The lake of the Thousand Isles. — Farm House. — The St. 
 Lawrence. — Brockville. — Prescott. — The Cascades. — Sail up the Ottawa. — 
 Philemon Wright of Hull. — Story of a Beaver. — Arrive at Bytown. 
 
 On the ISth June 1829, the anniversary of the ever-memorable 
 battle of Waterloo, a tall and handsome young man, habited in a 
 long sad-coloured cloak or gown, passed through the village at 
 Niagara. Under his left arm he bore a roll of blankets, as if for 
 bivouacking, a portfolio, a flute, and a large book; in his right 
 hand was a cane. In passing the Eagle Hotel he attracted the 
 gaze of the visiters by his eccentric appearance; but regardless of 
 the idle and gay crowd, he passed on, and sought out the unpre- 
 tending inn of Mr. O'Kelley. There he immediately entered into 
 stipulations with the host for the entire use of a room where he 
 could eat and sleep alone, and that certain parts of his cooking 
 should be done by Mr. O'Kelley. He then made the usual in- 
 quiries as to the localities about the Falls, and wished to know if 
 there was a library or reading-room in the village. On being in- 
 formed that there was, he repaired to it, deposited three dollars, 
 took out a book, purchased a violin and some music-books, and 
 informed the librarian that his name was Francis Abbott, and that 
 he should remain a few days at the Falls. He then conversed 
 on various subjects, and showed by his language that he was a 
 man of cultivated mind. 
 
 Next day he returned to the library, and expatiated enthusiasti- 
 cally upon the beautiful scenery round the Falls, and upon 
 that most sublime and magnificent spectacle the great cataract it- 
 self. " In all my wanderings," he said, " I have never met with 
 
294 HIS ARRIVAL AT THE PALLS. 
 
 anything in nature that equals it in sublimity, except perhaps 
 Mount Etna during an eruption. I shall remain here at least 
 a week, for as well might a traveller in two days expect to 
 examine in detail all the museums and sights of Paris, as to be- 
 come acquainted with Niagara, and duly to appreciate it in the 
 same space of time. You tell me that many visiters remain 
 here only one day, and I am quite astonished that any one, who 
 has a few days to spare, could think of only devoting one to this, 
 perhaps the grandest of Nature's works." 
 
 In a few days he called again, and again spoke in raptures of 
 the glorious scene. He said he had now determined on remain- 
 ing a month, or perhaps six months, and wished to fix his abode 
 on Goat or Iris Island, and was desirous of erecting a rustic hut, 
 where he might abstract himself from all society, and lead a her- 
 mit's life of seclusion. But the proprietors of the island refused 
 him the permission he sought, so he occupied a small room in the 
 only house on the island — a log-hut of one story, and in front a 
 vegetable garden, washed by the rapid above the American falls. 
 The family with whom he lived furnished him occasionally with 
 bread and milk; but he often dispensed with these, providing 
 himself with other articles from a store, and performed his own 
 cooking. He thus lived for twenty months, until the family re- 
 moved; and then, to those few persons with whom beheld commu- 
 nication, he expressed his great satisfaction at having it now in 
 his power to live entirely alone. But after a time another family 
 occupied the hut, whose manners he did not like; so he set about 
 building for himself, and erected on the opposite bank a dwelling 
 of plain exterior, which yet stands, about thirty roods from the 
 American fall, and embowered in trees; here he lived for two 
 months. 
 
 Many spots on Iris Island are consecrated to the memory of 
 f rancis Abbott. At the upper end of the island he had establish- 
 ed his promenade; and in one place it was hard trodden, like the 
 short walk of a sentry at his post. Between Iris and Moss Island 
 there is, in shade and seclusion, a small but interesting cascade; this 
 was his favourite retreat for bathing. Here he resorted at all sea- 
 sons of the year. In the coldest weather, even when there was 
 snow on the ground and ice on the river, he continued to bathe in 
 the Niagara, 
 
 At the lower extremity of the island is the bridge leading to the 
 Terapin rocks, between which the troubled water roars and rush- 
 es immediately before it is precipitated over the ledge. At first 
 when I went on this bridge, though I am not accustomed to be- 
 come giddy, yet, for a time, I could not divest myself of the idea 
 
HIS ECCENTRIC HABITS. 295 
 
 that the bridge was giving way under me, and was hurrying over 
 the awful steep — 
 
 " Towards the verge 
 Sweeps the wide torrent; waves innumerable 
 Meet here and madden ; waves innumerable 
 Urge on and overtake the waves before, 
 And disappear in thunder and in foam." 
 
 From the end of the bridge there extended a single piece of tim- 
 ber, some twelve or fifteen feet over the cataract. On the bridge 
 it was the daily practice of the hermit to walk, either when alone 
 or when there were visiters there, whom he often alarmed by his 
 strange appearance in his dark gown, hair streaming in the wind, 
 and bare feet. With a quick step he would pass along the bridge, 
 advance on the timber to the extreme point, turn quickly but 
 steadily on his heel, and walk back, and continue thus to walk to 
 and fro for hours together. Sometimes he would stand on one 
 leg, and pirouette with the other round the end of the log; then 
 he would go down on his knees, and gaze in seeming ecstacy on 
 the bright green and snow-white water of the cataract. " But the 
 worst of all, Sir," said the ferryman to me, " was when he would 
 let himself down by the hands, and hang over the Fall. Lord ! 
 Sir, my flesh used to creep, and my hair stand on end, when I 
 saw him do that." Truly, he must have had nerves of iron, thus 
 to suspend himself over such a fearful abyss, the vapour rising in 
 clouds round him, the appalling roar of the mighty waters stun- 
 ning him, as the heavy sound rose from the bottom of the mighty 
 cauldron, perhaps five hundred feet deep. 
 
 To the inquiry, why he would thus expose himself.'' he would 
 reply, that in crossing the ocean he had frequently seen the sea- 
 boy " on the high and giddy mast" perform far more perilous 
 acts; and as he should probably again soon pass the sea himself, 
 he wished to inure himself to such danger: if the nerves of others 
 were disturbed, his were not. The ferryman said he suspected 
 he wished to slip from the bridge some day by accident. At 
 the midnight hour he was often found walking, alone and un- 
 fearing, in the most dangerous places near the Falls, and at such 
 times he would shun approach, as if he had a dread of man. 
 
 An agent at Boston remitted him a stipend of about five dol- 
 lars a-week, and he always attended to the state of his accounts 
 very carefully, was economical in the expenditure of his money 
 for his own immediate use, and was generous in paying for all fa- 
 vours and services, never receiving any thing without making im- 
 mediate payment. He had a deep and abiding sense of his moral 
 
296 COMMITS SUICIDE. 
 
 duties, was mild in his behaviour, and inoffensive in his conduct. 
 Religion was a subject he well understood and highly appreciated: 
 "The charity he asked from others, he extended to all mankind." 
 The ferryman informed me that some weeks before I arrived at 
 Niagara he observed Francis Abbott bathe twice in one day below 
 the boat landing; a third time he came down, and the ferryman 
 remarked him holding his head under water for a considerable 
 time, and thought to himself that he should not like to be so situ- 
 ated. He turned his boat to convey a passenger across, and on 
 looking again to the spot where he had last observed the hermit, 
 he was no more to be seen — his clothes only lay on a rock. Search 
 was immediately made for the body, but it was not discovered 
 till ten days afterwards, many miles below the Falls, at Fort Ni- 
 agara. When picked up, it was slightly bruised, doubtless in 
 passing through the Devil's Hole, a terrific whirlpool with drift 
 timber in it, three miles below the great Falls. The corpse was 
 removed to the burial-ground at Niagara, and decently interred. 
 Thus terminated the career of the unfortunate Francis Abbott, 
 so little known to those among whom he spent his last two years, 
 that only a few gleanings of his life can be given. He was an 
 English officer, on half pay, and of a respectable family ; his man- 
 ners were excellent, and his mind highly cultivated. His educa- 
 tion had been a finished one, for he was not only master of seve- 
 ral languages, but well versed in the arts and sciences, and also 
 possessed all the minor accomplishments of a gentleman ; with 
 colloquial powers in an eminent degree, and music and drawing 
 in great perfection. Several years of his life had been spent in 
 travelling ; he had visited Egypt and Palestine, had journeyed 
 through Italy, Turkey, and Greece, Spain, Portugal, and France, 
 and had resided for a considerable period at Rome, Naples, and 
 Paris. 
 
 While at the Falls, if business brought him in contact with any of 
 the inhabitants, with a few of them he would sometimes be soci- 
 able, to all others distant and reserved. When he chose to con- 
 verse, his subjects were always interesting, and his descriptions 
 of people and countries were glowing and animated ; but at most 
 times he would hold no conversation with any one, communicat- 
 ing his wishes on a slate, and requesting that nothing might be 
 said to him. Sometimes, for three or lour months together, he 
 would go unshavcd, often with no covering on his head, his body 
 cnvelo])ed in a blanket, shunning all, and seeking the deepest so- 
 litudes of Iris Island. He composed much, and generally in La- 
 tin, but destroyed his writings as fast almost as he produced them. 
 When his cottage was examined hopes were entertained that some 
 manuscript or memorial might be found of his composition ; but 
 
WATER ROCKETS. 297 
 
 he had left nothing of the kind. His faithful dog guarded the 
 door, and was with difficulty persuaded aside while it was open- 
 ed. A simple cot stood in one corner, and his guitar, violin, 
 flute, and music books, were scattered about confusedly ; a port- 
 folio lay on a rude table, and many leaves of a large book; but 
 not a word, not even his name, was written on any of them. 
 
 " What, it will be asked," said an intelligent American, " could 
 have broken up and destroyed such a mind as seemed to have 
 been that of Francis Abbott ? What could have driven him from 
 the society he was so well qualified to adorn, and what transform 
 him, noble in person and intellect, into an isolated anchorite, 
 avoiding the society of his fellows? The history of his misfor- 
 tunes is unknown, and the cause of his unhappiness and seclusion 
 is still a mystery." 
 
 At Niagara I remained part of three days, and could with dif- 
 ficulty tear myself from the glorious scene. I found that no ma- 
 terial change had taken place in the Horse-shoe Fall since Cap- 
 tain Hall visited it ; the American Fall seems to be fast assuming 
 the horse-shoe form. In standing under the Falls, one ever and 
 anon hears the sound of falling rocks amidst the awful roar of the 
 cataract ; but many of these may have been rolled down the ra- 
 pids from a distance, and may not be portions of the rock of the 
 cascade itself which are falling. I looked attentively for the wa- 
 ter rockets which Captain Hall (in general a close and accurate ob- 
 server) states to be projected upwards from the bottom of the 
 Fail, and to burst in mid air ; but I think, with all due deference, 
 that he must have been under some delusion when he thought he 
 saw this. I could observe nothing of the kind either here or at 
 any other cataract, and no one about Niagara, or acquainted with 
 it, knew anything of such phenomena. 
 
 I know of few walks more interesting than to trace the short 
 course of the Niagara river, thirty-six miles, between lakes Erie 
 and Ontario; the woods are extremely beautiful; in them were 
 fought many skirmishes and actions in the last unnatural war be- 
 tween Britain and sturdy descendants. Comfortable farm-houses, 
 with Iheir poach and apple orchards, and fertile fields, are found 
 scattered amongst the groves. If one has time to tarry a few 
 days in the month of October, he may accompany the young far- 
 mers deer-shooting, or signalize himself against innumerable flocks 
 of wild ducks. Of a morning, hundreds of these poor birds are 
 sometimes found dead in the pools below the Falls, perhaps car- 
 ried down the rapids when asleep, and when they awoke fear may 
 have paralyzed them, and prevented their saving themselves be- 
 fore they took the fatal plunge. 
 
 I fell in with a young rifleman on my way to Lake Ontario, and 
 Pp 
 
298 CANADIAN RIFLEMEN — MR. W. H. MERRITT. 
 
 we had a long discussion about deer-shooting and rifles ; he said 
 he had been in some of the actions during last war, and that the 
 Americans cared little for a volley from our regulars, but dreaded 
 the Glengary Fencibles, who from youth were trained marksmen 
 in the Canadian Forests. 
 
 We reached Queenstown heights, seven miles below the Falls, 
 and here enjoyed the first extensive prospect since I had entered 
 the States ; all had hitherto been streams and dark woods. — 
 
 "From Mississippi's proudly fertile flood. 
 And Orleans, seated on her banks of mud !" 
 
 Now, however, from a commanding eminence, the eye wandered 
 with delight over the country in the State of New York; fields 
 and foliage, plains and distant hills, with the town of Lewistown, 
 were on the right, while in front, the Niagara river swept majes- 
 tically between its rocky banks into Lake Ontario, which lay in 
 the bright sun calm and unruffled, the white sails of a schooner 
 giving relief to its azure waters. On the left were the shores of 
 Upper Canada, and on the eminence above us was the pillar, erect- 
 ed in memory of the gallant Brock, beside some crumbling bat- 
 teries, from which he received his death-wound on the memorable 
 13th of October 1812, when an American force of sixteen hun- 
 dred men under Gen. Wadsworth, crossed over from Lewistown to 
 invade Canada, but few of them returned. After their signal de- 
 feat upwards of a hundred were bayonetted over the rocks on the 
 right, three hundred feet above the Niagara. The General, and 
 one thousand officers and men surrendered to the British. 
 
 I was fortunate enough to fall in with Mr. William Hamilton 
 Merritt, to whom Canada is mainly indebted for the Welland 
 Canal. With him I passed through a cut of the canal; and for 
 those of my readers who wish an outline of this important under- 
 taking, I subjoin the following sketch: — 
 
 In 1825 a company was incorporated by an act of the Provin- 
 cial Parliament of Upper Canada, for the purpose of connecting 
 the Lakes Erie and Ontario, by means of a canal, so as to pass 
 round the Falls of Niagara and admit vessels of a hundred and 
 twenty-five tons burthen. The length of the canal is forty miles. 
 Nineteen of this required excavation, and rivers form the remain- 
 der. The summit level is three hundred and thirty feet above 
 Lake Ontario, and this has been surmounted by thirty locks of 
 wood; and last autumn several vessels passed through the canal. 
 
 The original capital was 180,000/. sterling, divided into six- 
 teen thousand shares of 11/. 5*. each; but the original capital not 
 covering the expenses incurred in the construction of the canal, 
 several loans have been obtained to complete it. 
 
CAPITAL OF UPPER CANADA. 299 
 
 The locks are one hundred and twenty-five feet by thirty-two 
 in some places, in others one hundred feet by twenty; but why 
 there should be two sizes for the locks does not appear. But this 
 is only a part of the many mistakes that have been committed in 
 the Welland Canal; the principal of which are — 1st. An impro- 
 per route, through a horrible marsh, the Wainfleet, the seat of 
 agues and actual yellow fever, and abounding in rattlesnakes and 
 musquitoes; and 2dly, Making the locj^-s of wood instead of 
 stone: <' Many of these," said Engineer M'Taggart, " have been 
 carried away by the floods, and sailed down to Ontario, like im- 
 mense cages; and they constantly require repairs." 
 
 Yet, in the end, the canal must succeed, for the trade of all the 
 upper lakes will pass through it, and their shores are settling so 
 rapidly that a dense population will eventually cause the Welland 
 Canal to be a prosperous speculation, provided always, that a rail- 
 road between Queenstown and Chippavva, on the Niagara river, 
 does not interfere with it. 
 
 I embarked on Lake Ontario, and sailed to York, the capital of 
 Upper Canada, seated on a flat shore behind a long spit of sand, 
 which encloses the harbour, like that of Kingston, Jamaica. York 
 presents no very imposing appearance, yet it is rapidly rising in 
 importance; and though the land around it is sterile, and fine 
 forests are close to the town, yet, under the fostering care of the 
 present Lieutenant-Governor of the province, it will become a 
 flourishing city. I found the streets laid out in straight lines, the 
 wooden tenements all giving place to brick buildings, and a con- 
 venient footway on each side for pedestrians. The public offices 
 were of handsome exterior, and the New University, founded 
 by Sir John Colborne, leaves nothing to be desired by the colo- 
 nist with the cares of a family on his hands. 
 
 I delivered an introduction to the Lieutenant-Governor (the 
 right hand of the gallant Moore,) and was most kindly received 
 by an officer, to whwn his juniors would do well to look up as a 
 pattern, both as a man and a soldier; courteous in the hall, un- 
 daunted in the field, and zealous in promoting the comfort and 
 happiness of those committed to his charge. 
 
 I visited the college, and found one hundred and ten students 
 receiving an excellent education from professors belonging to the 
 English Universities. The emulation among the young men was 
 quite surprising, and all seemed nearly perfect in their classical 
 and mathematical exercises. They were, besides, clean, well 
 dressed, and healthy. Those who board at the college are fed 
 and taught for the very moderate sum of 25/. a year. 
 
 Colonel Givings, the superintendent of Indians, being about to 
 proceed to the Credit Creek to distribute the annual presents to 
 
800 RIDE TO CREDIT CREEK. 
 
 the Masaicugua tribe, Sir John Colborne lent me an active horse, and 
 with his two eldest sons, and some officers of the 79th, 1 rode to 
 see the interesting ceremony. 
 
 We trotted merrily throjgh the pine woods, growing in deep 
 sand, and occasionally came to patches of better soil, where was 
 seen the process of clearing land, A rude log-hut stood on the 
 edge of tlie forest, and round it were the stumps of trees recently 
 cut down; a settler with a yoke of oxen, dragged the logs over 
 the unseen surface, and laid them in cradles, or heaps, to which 
 he applied fire; and thus was timber of some value consumed 
 without mercy, to make way for that noble plant the maize. 
 
 Farther on we passed one or two light wagons, drawn by a 
 span, or pair, of horses, and laden with chests, on the top of which 
 were seated my countrywomen, distinguished by the clean 
 white mutch, or cap, and red cloak; beside them walked, thought- 
 fully but not downcast, their husbands, brothers and sons, in blue 
 coats, and tartan or corduroy trowsers; under their bonnets were 
 the long and sagacious features peculiar to the Caledonians. 
 
 The way-side inns were principally kept by Americans, many 
 of whom locate themselves in Canada; and on a fertile and pro- 
 ductive soil, with a salubrious climate, they enjoy as much civil, 
 religious, and political liberty, as they did in the States, and are 
 much more lightly taxed than in the Union. 
 
 We crossed several streams, and turning to the left, after se- 
 veral hours' ride we exchanged the pines for beech and oak, from 
 which the leaves fell in rustling showers around us, and the squir- 
 rels bounded across the path, and blithely chirping, nimbly moun- 
 ted the grey stems — 
 
 " The squirrel flippant, pert, and full of play, 
 He sees us, and at once, svvitl; as a bird, 
 Ascends the neigiib'riiig beech, there wliiskshis brush, 
 And perks his ears, and stamps, and cries aloud 
 With all the prettiness of unfeigned alarm. 
 And anger insignificantly fierce." 
 
 A wild whoop in the woods, and the report of a musket, told 
 us that we were near the Credit Creek, and shortly we found 
 ourselves on an elevated plateau, cleared of wood, and with three 
 rows of detached cottages, among fields surrounded with rail fen- 
 ces; below, a clear stream, abounding in fish, rushed over its 
 rocky bed to join the waters of Lake Ontario. We rode into the 
 open space in the centre of the village, and found the Indians as- 
 sembled round a pole, on which fluttered the Union Jack: on the 
 top was a small house for the martens to build in, whose presence 
 is considered fortunate in Canada. 
 
DISTRIBUTION OF PRESENTS. 301 
 
 Formerly, when presents were sent to these Indians, they re- 
 ceived them drawn up in military array, fired off their rifles, and 
 performed the war-dance; but on this occasion we were vexed to 
 find that the influence of the Methodist preachers from the Slates 
 had checked their mirth, and they all wore a downcast and mo- 
 rose look. The swarthy chief, six feet in height, was distin- 
 guished by a black hat, broad ribbon, and blue coat; the others 
 wore blankets, or grey surcoats descending to the knee, and con- 
 fined by a girdle round the waist; with red caps, under which 
 their straight black hair hung down to their shoulders. Leather 
 or cloth leggins cased their lower limbs, and on the feet were the 
 light mocassins of dear skin ornamented with porcupine quills. 
 The women sat on the grass in groups, with the hood of their 
 blankets, or dark mantle, drawn over their heads; their leggins 
 were scarlet. The children were miniatures of their parents in 
 dress; and the infants were fixed in long baskets, with a handle, 
 by which the mother rocked them in an upright position, and 
 occasionally held them, basket and all, to the breast, as if they 
 had been playing on a fiddle. 
 
 The Indians, two hundred and twenty-two in number, were 
 all made to sit in a large circle, into which two artillerymen drove 
 a wagon laden with the presents, which were piled in a heap; 
 they consisted of red and grey cloth, chintz, blankets, shoes, 
 rifles, five hundred pounds of gunpowder, lead, &c. — no spirits 
 were given. The chiefs distributed the presents, which were 
 handed round to the people, who received them with a grunt. 
 
 I remarked a number of Yankee squirrel-shooters with their 
 rifles and shot-pouches, lounging about: — "Where the slaughter 
 is, there will the eagles be gathered together." I asked them to 
 show how they could use their pieces, and accordingly they lay 
 down on their bellies and fired, with a rest, at a bottle; and when 
 they could get a tree, they put a gimblet into it, and rested their 
 rifle on that. 
 
 I went into the school-room, where I saw American school- 
 books in which Great Britain was not spoken of in the most re- 
 spectful terms. I also saw American maps, in which we were 
 altogether excluded from the shores of the Pacific, the American 
 and Russian territory joining in the north-west; also the boun- 
 dary on the north-east brought up to the Saint Lawrence. Now 
 all this is unbearable among Indians under the protection of the 
 Canadian government, and who would, I fear, be of little use to 
 us in the event of another war. The cause of it was shortly this: 
 a former Lieutenant-governor, with the best intentions, would 
 allow none but Church-of-England clergymen to go among the 
 Indians; now, whether the zeal of the members of the Estab- 
 
302 CHIEF YELLOW-HEAD. 
 
 lished Church was not so great as that of the sectarians, or that 
 they could not be spared from other duties, I know not, but so it 
 was, that they left the field vacant, which Presbyterians or Mo- 
 ravians would gladly have filled if they had been allowed. In 
 came the American Methodists from the States, and what have 
 been the consequences? Disaffection to England. But, fortu- 
 nately for the country. Sir John Colborne has been exerting him- 
 self to change the old system, and allow none but those attached 
 to the British Government to interfere with the Indians in any 
 way; and no man is so anxious to promote their moral and reli- 
 gious instruction as his Excellency. 
 
 Last year the Lieutenant-governor sent a present of carts, oxen, 
 and agricultural implements, to a tribe of Indians living on the 
 shores of Lake Simcoc, where I am fortunate enough to possess a 
 tract of land. A Methodist, disliking their improvement, said 
 to the Indians — " The British want to enslave you by giving you 
 these things. What use have you for them? — throw them all 
 into the lake at once." — -'No," answered Chief Yellow-Head, 
 " we will keep them. Yesterday you pray, good, show way to 
 Heaven: to-day your heart black, dirty; yesterday quite clean. 
 Governor for good, wish all get christened, and for good give 
 present. Not your business to meddle with our oxen and carts." 
 Some of these Methodists have the assurance to ask Sir John to 
 give them the deeds of the Indian lands, and to pay into tlieir 
 hands the amount of the annual presents in money, for that they 
 best knew how to apply it for the benefit of the Indians. Pro- 
 testant Jesuits! seeking to obtain an undue influence over the 
 ignorant, and nefariously to aggrandize themselves under the 
 sacred cloak of religion. When shall we be delivered from the 
 cant and cunning of these wolves in sheep's clothing ? 
 
 I rode back to York, and spent some pleasant days in the fa- 
 mily of Sir John Colborne; one day I rode up Young street with 
 his Excellency: this road, upwards of thirty miles in length 
 leads to Lake Simcoe, and I was much pleased to see the comfort 
 of the German settlers, in particular, their neat log or frame 
 houses, and well dressed fields. I saw many Highlanders going 
 to settle in the townships of Innisfail and Oro, on Lake Simcoe, 
 among their own ])eople; and one old woman, who could not 
 speak a word of English, put a paper into my hand, stating that 
 she was eighty-three years of age, — and was proceeding to join 
 her kith and kindred who had gone before, from the braes of Bal- 
 whidder. Her appearance reminded me of an oriental description 
 of an aged person; '<■ she advanced, with the aid of a staff, her back 
 was bent with debility like the arched eyebrows of the moonlike 
 damsels; the thread of the pearls of her teeth was unstrung, and 
 
TOWN OF KINGSTON. 303 
 
 upon the surface of the forehead time, like the breeze upon the 
 water, had waved countless wrinkles." 
 
 I again embarked on the lake, and sailed to Kingston, well 
 known last war as the naval depot for the Canadian Lakes. The 
 banks of Ontario were higher than those of Erie, and more beau- 
 tiful; the bay of Qiienti, whicli we passed, is celebrated for its 
 picturesque headlands, and varied scenery; into it flows the Trent, 
 on which is the best land in the province. 
 
 Some poor Irish having located themselves in Peterborough, at 
 a distance from other settlers, were supported for a time by go- 
 vernment, in the expectation that they would bestir themselves, 
 and clear, sow, and reap, but, when the allowance was continued, 
 they still continued idle, and when it ceased they starved. The 
 Lieutenant-Governor hearing that fifteen had died in one week 
 of want, immediately despatched, out of his own funds, supplies 
 for the survivors, which accompanied us in the vessel. 
 
 I liked the appearance of Kingston, silent though its streets 
 now be, like those of Portsmouth since the war, where in the 
 high street a person may feed a horse. There is a great pre- 
 ponderance of stone houses in Kingston, and what with batteries 
 on the heights, commanding the deep and excellent harbour, 
 some immense vessels of war on the stocks, naval stores, a long 
 wooden bridge, &c. and the substantial air of the buildings in 
 general, Kingston presented a much more respectable aspect than 
 other towns which I had lately visited. 
 
 I found some old friends ol the G6th regiment here, quartered 
 in Wellmgton barracks, the first I had seen in which there are 
 loop-holes between every window, and the wall which surrounds 
 them is also loop-holed, so that the barracks are thus at no ex- 
 pense converted into posts of some strength. I stayed several 
 days in Kingston: one afternoon I rode out with Colonel 
 Wright, R. E., to see a plonghing-match, and show of cattle, at 
 the village of Waterloo, some miles off; and I could have fancied 
 myself at a similar exhibition at home. The faces round me were 
 almost all Scotch, as was the conversation, but the manner of 
 ploughing was different. A pair of oxen was attached to each 
 plough, without a driver, and without reins to guide them; they 
 did their work obeying the voice of the man who held the stilts. 
 Premiums for home manufactures (as coarse cloth prepared by 
 the women) were given, and from these meetings of the farmers 
 the best results follow; people become acquainted, prizes render 
 them emulous of excelling, and they observe and imitate what is 
 superior in their neighbours. 
 
 Another afternoon I rodei.with Colonel Wright and Major 
 Baird to Kingston Mills, seven miles off, at the Entrance Valley 
 
304 KINGSTON MILLS — THE RIDEAU CANAL. 
 
 of the 2;rent Rideau Canal, of which important work I may here 
 say a few words. 
 
 Durinor the last American was great loss was occasioned by the 
 enemy, whilst tlie British were dragging their munitions of war 
 up the rapids of the St. Lawrence to supply the forces on the 
 lakes. It was therefore proposed, on the return of peace, to have 
 a water communication from Montreal to Kingston, avoiding 
 the rapids of St. Lawrence and the American frontier altogether; 
 and by connecting a chain of small lakes and rivers between the 
 Ottawa River and Lake Ontario, not only to form a navigable 
 canal for the transport of stores, but also to open up a new tract 
 for settlers. 
 
 Accordingly, the Rideau Canal was commenced in 1826, and 
 it is confidently expected that by this time a steam 'vessel has 
 passed from Bytown, on the Ottawa, to Kingston, distance about 
 one hundred and seventy miles. The number of locks is fifty, 
 and their dimensions one hundred and forty-two feet by thirty- 
 three. Some of the dams, of arched key-stone, are two hundred 
 feet in length, and fifty feet high, and where formerly there were 
 impassable rapids, now still water, five feet and upwards in depth, 
 is made by a single dam for eighteen or twenty miles. One or 
 more locks are at each dam, to enable vessels to pass them. 
 The different parts of the work having been contracted for, 
 were commenced simultaneously, and the outlay has been 
 ^700,000, including twenty-two block-houses to defend the 
 canal, roads from quarries, purchase of land, compensation to old 
 settlers for damages, &c. 
 
 The Rideau Canal difiers from all others in being formed by 
 locks and dams, and not look and cut, or excavation. Ten feet 
 is the lift of the locks; thus, if forty feet are to be surmounted 
 four locks aie required. The rise from the Ottawa to the grand 
 summit level is two hundred and eighty-three feet, and the 
 descent from thence to the Ontario Lake is one hundred and 
 fifty-four. The different parts of this great work are constructed 
 in the most perfect and substantial manner, and reflect the 
 highest credit on Lieutenant-Colonel By, R. E, the superin- 
 tendent, and on his assistants. 
 
 Whilst viewing the extensive works at the entrance valley, 
 enclosed with lofty granite cliffs, covered with birch and pine, a 
 funeral passed us, consisting of several light two-wheeled 
 wagons, each drawn by a span of horses. Women and men sat 
 in three rows in these primitive conveyances, and the coflin, 
 covered with a white sheet, lay among the straw of the leading 
 one. I saw only one funeral in. .Canada! Alas! how many 
 
LAKE OP THE THOUSAND ISLES. 305 
 
 hundreds of our countrymen have since been swept off there by 
 the cholera's fearful scourge. 
 
 I returned to Kingston, and again embarked to sail down a 
 part of the St. Lawrence. We passed through that fairy scene 
 the Lake of the Thousand Isles, among which one might re- 
 create for months and daily discover new beauties in the wooded 
 rocks, of every size and form; the dark coloured, but transparent 
 waters swept us silently past them, and great, though too fleeting, 
 was the pleasure to watch the ever-changing scene, to see the re- 
 flections of the cedars and pines in the water, where it was not 
 broken into silver-crested and sparkling waves. 
 
 One or two farms in full view of the romantic lake, afforded 
 good specimens of recent settlements. The residence was long, 
 single-storied, and with a door and two or three windows in front. 
 A zig-zag fence enclosed a field or two, in which the stumps were 
 still left. Sheep grazed before the door, and hogs with a trian- 
 gular piece of wood round their necks to prevent them trespass- 
 ing in the fields; and behind the house, and three times the size 
 of it, was a high-frame barn, with a few stacks round it. The 
 barn is the first care of the settler, and he lives for years in an 
 indifferent house, till he has means to build a better; he then con- 
 verts the original one into a stable. 
 
 We remained an hour or two at Brockville, the village of pa- 
 laces; and few villages have I seen more attractive than this one. 
 It is situated on a shelving bank, with a southern aspect, and 
 groves of trees round it. The houses and churches are built of 
 grey stones, and being covered with tin, have alight and pleasant 
 appearance. 
 
 I landed at Prescott, at the head of the rapids of St. Lawrence, 
 here, eighteen hundred yards wide. On the opposite side, was 
 the American town of Ogdensbdrgh, which, like others I had seen 
 on the frontier, excels in size the Canadian towns. I inquired 
 the reason of this, and was answered by a farmer as follows: — 
 <' The American towns or villages are often larger than the Cana- 
 dian ones opposite to them, because New York speculators ad- 
 vance money to those who wish to build houses, and endeavour to 
 turn them to account, by afterwards selling them; but most of 
 those houses you see over the water are unfurnished, and have re- 
 verted to the speculators who advanced the sum to build them, the 
 architects having been ruined." According to my informant's 
 account, they were much in the same state as many houses in Mos- 
 cow after it was ordered by his late Imperial Majesty to be rebuilt. 
 Walls, roofs, doors, and windows, were all in order towards the 
 street, but the inside was void. « 
 
 I strolled along the banks of the Great River, and enjoyed the 
 Qq 
 
306 MR. m'kenzie. 
 
 delicious temperature of an October evening. I examined a lofty 
 square redoubt (near the water) without flanking defences, Fort 
 Wellington, in which was a blockhouse, to contain two hundred 
 and fifty men. The Americans often threatened, but never ven- 
 tured, to assault this work, which cost 100,000/. Labour was so 
 dear then that a cart and horse were not hired under four dollars 
 a-day. On the 22d of February, 181.3, Major Macdonnell, 
 with a force of five hundred men (half of which were Highland 
 Militia, commanded by Captain Jenkins,) and three field-pieces, 
 marched across the ice from Fort Wellington, attacked an Ame- 
 rican force of equal strength posted in Ogdensburgh, drove them 
 out with great loss, and captured eleven pieces of ordnance. 
 This was considered one of tlie most dashing exploits during the 
 war. 
 
 I now got into a coach and journeyed down the river. 1 had 
 several fellow-passengers, one of whom vvas Mr. M'Kenzie, an 
 opposition member of the Provincial Parliament, who was pro- 
 ceeding to attend a meeting which he had called, of the farmers 
 about Maria Town, to petition the King to remove certain griev- 
 ances which, he said, existed in the province. 
 
 When I entered the coach I did not know that I had the honour 
 to sit by such a notorious character as he rendered himself last 
 year, and in talking over political matters Mr. M'Kenzie was 
 roughly handled. When we had proceeded some distance, he 
 called to the driver to stop, and left the coach for five minutes, 
 with a portfolio of inflammatory pamphlets in his hand, some of 
 which he left at a settler's. I thought at first of making him an 
 apology for what I had said of him, but seeing the disgraceful 
 way in which he was employed, sowing discontent among indus- 
 trious farmers, who without taxes enjoyed every liberty they de- 
 sired, and who were perfectly satisfied with their Government, I 
 did not feel myself called upon to take any notice of my having 
 inadvertently abused him to his face. He has since been expelled 
 from the Parliament of Upper Canada. 
 
 I next joined company with some officers, and we sailed through 
 Lake St. Francis, and journeyed together past the Rapids of the 
 St. Lawrence, (among which the Long Sault (Soo) is distinguish- 
 ed,) to where the Ottawa adds its tribute to the mighty flood, and 
 passed the field of the victory of Chrystler's Farm. 
 
 The scene is full of excitement when the timber rafts and the 
 long Durham boats, laden with flour-barrels, descend the Rapids, 
 foaming and rushing headlong over the rocky channel, like a 
 squadron of white-maned Arabs charging an enemy of the sons of 
 Ishmael. 
 
 Then we saw the Canadian voyageurs in their grey capotes and 
 
MR. PHILEMON WRIGHT. 307 
 
 peaked hoods, painfully poling their boats against the stream, fol- 
 lowing one another in a line along the gunnel, or else drawing the 
 boat round a point by along tow-rope ; but when they stopped to 
 boil their kettle, suspended, gipsy fashion, between three sticks, 
 and took their "goutte" of brandy, they seemed quite happy and 
 contented with their lot, and would occasionally strike up in cho- 
 rus one of those wild and plaintive boat-songs in which there is 
 such a charm, transporting the listener at once to the torrents of 
 the dark woods and silent lakes of the wilderness. 
 
 I slept a night at the inn at the Cascades. It was cold and wet 
 outside, the house smoky and noisy inside; a party of voyageurs 
 drank and talked incessantly, while the children of emigrants 
 (who lay thick on the floor) complained in their usual manner (so 
 soothing to bachelor's ears) of their rest being disturbed. 
 
 Next day I voyaged up the grand Ottawa river towards Bytown. 
 A well-known character in Canada was on board, Philemon 
 Wright, of Hull. Dressed in black, with a broad brimmed hat, 
 his make was spare; he had been tall, but now stoops considera- 
 bly under the weight of seventy-three years; his nose was long, 
 and his eyes deep-set and sharp. '« Thirty years ago," said he, 
 " before a bush was cut on any of these rivers, we had a weary 
 time of it, poling and dragging our boats where now steam-ves- 
 sels navigate. When I first came from Boston to look out for a 
 location in the Canadas, I voyaged up this river without a settler 
 on its banks, I may say, nobody but a i'ew Indians and bears; I got 
 as far as the Falls of the Chaudi^re, one hundred miles from any 
 white man, and set myself down with thirty axemen, and began 
 to clear." 
 
 In a few years in the wilderness of Hull, were to be seen one 
 thousand arable acres, churches, schools, mills, farm-houses, stores, 
 heavy crops of grain, and large herds of cattle, — all from the en- 
 terprise of this single individual, with whom also originated the 
 idea of the Rideau canal. Taking out some maps, I went over 
 with him his various schemes for extending and improving the 
 internal communications of the British possessions, for explor- 
 ing the rivers that descend from the north-east into the Ot- 
 tawa, and for establishing rail-roads where canals might not 
 answer. 
 
 The river opened out into the lake of the two mountains, and 
 we passed close to an Indian village of remarkably neat houses, a 
 grey church with its tin-covered spire, rows of trees, and a school- 
 house beside it, all giving the lie to those who maintain that In- 
 dians are irreclaimable. Here French clergymen, distinguished 
 by a life of purity, ingratiated themselves with the red men, gave 
 them settled habits, and saved a remnant, who might otherwise 
 
308 STORY OF A BEAVER. 
 
 have been ovcrvvhelmed by the tide of (misnamed) civiliza- 
 tion. 
 
 " They, the rightful lords of yore, 
 Are the rightful lords no more; 
 Like the silver mist they fail, 
 Like the red leaves in tlie gale; 
 Fail like shadows when the dawning 
 Waves the bright flag of the morning." 
 
 About the time that Mr. Wright first climbed a tree at the head 
 of the navigation of the Ottawa, <'and looking round, saw a num- 
 ber of rivers as it were pouring into one, and that the country, 
 by the appearance of the timber, seemed fit for agriculture," there 
 dwelt but two white men on "the Ottawa's tide," between the 
 falls of St. Anne and the Chaudiere; the one was a pensioner, and 
 the other a French Canadian; they lived some distance apart, and 
 when one visited the other, the guest would shut up his own house 
 and remain perhaps a week with his entertainer. Beavers 
 abounded in those days on the Ottawa, which are now driven far- 
 ther into the wilds by the rapacity of the fur-traders. The pen- 
 sioner had a young one as a pet. Christmas came round, and the 
 old soldier, who had fought by the side of Wolfe, putting his wife 
 into a sleigh, drove off to his friend, leaving in the house his bea- 
 ver, with a supply of water and branches of trees for its subsis- 
 tence. After a week's social communing he returned to his lonely 
 dwelling, but to his surprise the door resisted all his efforts to 
 open it; he entered by a window, and found that his pet had not 
 been idle during his absence, but that its faculty of constructive- 
 ness had (irresistibly) developed itself. There were no iron 
 stoves then; no "Nott's patent;" the pensioner's was a tall 
 Dutch one, built of brick and tempered clay. On this the beaver 
 had operated, had softened the clay in his tub of water, had 
 gnawed off the legs of the tables and chairs, and mixing all up 
 with bricks, old mocassins, and other odds and ends, had effectu- 
 ally barred the door against all intruders. 
 
 We continued our voyage to the rapids at Grenville, where a 
 canal has been carried round them. After sleeping at a French 
 Canadian inn on bear-skins, we drove for twelve miles over one 
 of the roughest roads in the universe, (by the side of the canal 
 not yet completed, and into which vehicles have sometimes slip- 
 ped,) and again embarking on the Ottawa, we sailed between dark 
 woods on low lying and fertile banks, and arrived at Bytown. 
 
309 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 Colonel By, R. E. — His Cottag-c Ornee. — The delightful prospect from it. — The 
 Union Bridge. — Fall of the Chaudieere, and Rideau. — Bytown, and its Environs. 
 — The Rideau Canal. — Voyagcurs. — The bursting of the Hog's-back Dam. — The 
 Wilderness of Rideau. — Indian Wigwam.— Halloween. — Rapids. — Merrick's 
 Mills. — Service on the Rideau. — A warm Friend.— Jones's Falls.— The Cranberry 
 Marsh. — Fevers. — Brewer's Mills. — Settlers on the Rideau. — Wild Irishmen. — 
 Benefits of the Canal to Emigrants. — Threats.— Forest Wanderings.— Sail down 
 the Ottawa. — The Rapids of St. Anne. — Story of a Cable. — Lachine. — Island of 
 Montreal. — Habitans. — The City of Montreal — The Streets. — Canadian Hotel. 
 — The Public Buildings. — Isle of St. Helen's. — Ride into the Country, and Even- 
 ing Party. — Loss of Captain Ross, R. N. — The question of Boundaries. — The 
 Northwestern Frontier. — A settlement on the Columbia. — Turning the Tables. 
 — Communicative Fur-traders. — An expedition proposed. — Embark again. — How 
 to get a Berth. — The banks of St. Lawrence. — Seigniories. — Arrive at Quebec. — 
 Cape Diamond. — Magnificent View. — Mountains of Labrador. — The Citadel. — 
 The Obelisk.— Lord Aylmer.— The Place d'Armes.— Wolfe's Statue.— The Gol- 
 den Dog. — Public Buildings. — Lauzon. — Falls of Montmorenci. — Indian Lo- 
 rette. — Charleburgh. — The Plains of Abraham. — Opening of the Parliament of 
 Lower Canada. — The Governor-in-chief 's Speech. 
 
 Colonel John Br, Royal Engineers, commanding at the 
 Rideau Canalj gave me a most hospitable reception at his hand- 
 some cottage ornee, near the town named after him. Colonel 
 By's residence (tastefully ornamented with rustic verandahs and 
 trellis-work) is seated on a high bank of the Ottawa, at the en- 
 trance valley of the Rideau Canal, where eight locks of the most 
 perfect masonry commence the great national work entrusted to 
 an officer of singular activity of mind and body, and who for 
 years has sacrificed his comfort and risked his health in the ser- 
 vice of his country. 
 
 Looking across the entrance valley, a lofty promontory is seen, 
 on which are quarters for the officers of Royal Engineers, and 
 barracks for the sappers and miners employed at the Rideau. A 
 fort will naturally be constructed on this height, which, with the 
 twenty-two block-houses at intervals along the course of the canal 
 to Kingston, will serve to protect it from foreign foes. 
 
 Looking up the Ottawa, was seen the Fall of Chaudiere, thun- 
 dering over a limestone steep, one hundred feet high, and send- 
 ing up a cloud of spray from the boiling cauldrons below. Rocky 
 islets then divide the channel of the river, between which a series 
 of arches have been thrown of stone and wood-work, connecting 
 Upper and Lower Canada. The principal arch is a truss of two 
 hundred and twelve feet span, designed and executed under the 
 direction of Colonel By. This beautiful piece of workmanship 
 
310 BYTOWN AND ENVIRONS. 
 
 rests on two natural piers of limestone, high above the Big Kettle, 
 the bottom of which has not been found with a three hundred feet 
 line. Below some of the other piers there are snies, or channels, 
 into which the water furiously rushes, carrying with it entire 
 trees, which again appear far below, mutilated and stripped of 
 their branches. 
 
 The Union Bridge leads to Mr. Wright's Township of Hull, 
 where, amidst other buildings and New England poplars, a taper 
 spire points to heaven. Below Colonel By's, the Rideau River 
 pours into the Ottawa in two wliite sheets, which of late have 
 been in part diverted to drive saw and grist mills. 
 
 Bytown is laid out in straight lines, and already contain, sever- 
 al hundred inhabitants, schools, taverns, and stores. The coun- 
 try round Bytown is undulating, but until it is more extensively 
 cleared than it is at present, it will present a uniform mass of 
 heavy forest, through which many fertilizing streams flow, aboun- 
 ding in fish, particularly the bass, which piles up cairns of stone 
 in which to deposit its spawn. Wild fowl are seen along the 
 banks, and steal through the brakes < at eve to drink their fill.' 
 
 The Colonel was kind enough to take me with him, on an ex- 
 cursion up the line of the canal. His excellent lady and his two 
 daughters accompanied us and some of tl>e officers. We left in 
 bark canoes early one morning, and were paddled up to Dow's 
 great swamp by Canadian voyageurs, hardy fellows who can ac- 
 complish one hundred miles a day, on pea-soup and pork, and 
 keep up their Herculean exertions for weeks together, lightening 
 their labours with their simple boat songs. 
 
 At the Hog's-back dam, one hundred and eighty feet in length, 
 by forty-five in height, we found a steam-vessel waiting to receive 
 us, and before we embark in her, let me detain the reader one 
 instant, to recount the bursting of the dam some time after it was 
 first completed. For three weeks the water had been leaking 
 through the heavy stones at its foundation, and Colonel By watch- 
 ed it night and day, and superintended the workmen, endeavour- 
 ing to stop it, by throwing in clay and other materials; at last, 
 the leak seemed effectually stopped, and the water began to flow 
 over the top of the dam, where stood the Colonel, rejoicing in 
 the successful issue of the undertaking. 
 
 '•You see, boys, what our perseverance has accomplished," he 
 said to the workmen; but no sooner were the words out of his 
 mouth, than a roar like thunder was heard below him. "Throw 
 down your tools and run for your lives," he cried; they did so, 
 and escaped. He himself dashed along the top of the dam, to- 
 wards the bank, whilst the stones fell under his feet, and he saw 
 the great body of masonry bulging out below, and an irresistible 
 
WILDERNESS OF RIDEAU. 311 
 
 rush of waters tossing up rocks of a ton weight, as if they had 
 been corks, and opening a wide breach, through which poured 
 the collected water of many miles. The Colonel, nothing daun- 
 ted, recommenced the dam, and drove in piles of wood, with 
 notched timbers and heavy stones between them: thus was the 
 dam again raised, and a base was given to it equal to its height, 
 by cart loads of stones and mud on the side next the body of 
 water which it retains, the surplus escaping by a waste weir, 
 round a rocky and pine-covered islet. 
 
 We steered through a silent wilderness of wood, which in a 
 few years will doubtless be changed to smiling fields and orchards 
 and saw the conical bark-covered wigwams of Indians on the 
 banks of the Rideau River. Before them the women were 
 smoke-drying venison. Large canoes, up-turned, lay on the 
 bank, whilst Indian boys would be seen in others of a smaller 
 size, watching under the foliage the deer taking the water, 
 when driven from the forest by the sagacious dogs sent round in 
 pursuit. A stroke of a paddle on the head would secure the 
 prize. 
 
 We spent the evening of Halloween among drowned woods 
 and swamps, and a deluge of rain, whilst we recounted the legends 
 and ghost-stories, with which the Scottish crones are wont to af- 
 fright their juvenile audience on that dreaded night, and then had 
 a round of music. 
 
 "The night drave on wi' sangs and clatter, 
 And aye the ale was growin better ! 
 The storm without might rair and rustle ; 
 We didna mind the storm a whistle I" 
 
 We passed the Black Rapids by another dam, two hundred and 
 twenty feet long and twelve high, and a lock capable of admitting 
 large steam-vessels; and after surmounting Long Island Rapids, 
 Burrett's and Nicholson's, in a similar manner, we reached the 
 works at Merrick's Mills. 
 
 Few are aware of the severe nature of the service during the 
 progress of the Rideau Canal. First, there were the exploring 
 parties through the dark, swampy and entangled forest, over- 
 grown with underwood, through which it was necessary at one 
 moment to cut away, and the next to wade in deep water, the 
 only direction being a compass; then, in the winter, surveying on 
 the ice the lakes and streams through which the canal was to pass, 
 hardly able to move the screws of the instruments for cold, im- 
 peded with the snow and heavy clothing; at night the bivouac in 
 the shanty, or shed, covered with boughs of trees — the bed, the 
 tops of the hemlock pine — before a cedar fire; then, in spring, 
 
312 Jones's palls. 
 
 the passing of rapids in canoes, and sometimes upset in them; 
 carrying them round others which it was impossible "to shoot;" 
 scorched with the sun, bitten with insects, drinking poisonous 
 creek-water, agues wasting the frame — but, worse than all, the 
 officers on the line of the canal lived at intervals of ten miles, so 
 that they had no companion but their stove-pipe; and this from 
 1826 to 1832. Think of that my friends, who complain of all 
 dull stations — think of the wilderness of Rideau ! 
 
 After passing the Rideau, Clear and Mud Lakes, and sundry 
 rapids, a most romantic spot, called Jones's Falls, is reached, 
 where the Rideau River rushes through a crooked and narrow 
 ravine, with impending cliffs ninety feet high, the length a mile, 
 and the fall sixty feet, which had to be overcome by a dam of su- 
 perior height. Then comes the dreadful swamp called the Cran- 
 berry Marsh eighteen miles long and two broad, where some thou- 
 sand stout labourers have met their death from regular yellow fever. 
 Cranberry bushes covered it, with lines of clear water here and 
 there for canoe navigation. A blue mist hung over it, during 
 the hot season, in the morning and evening; and at all times the 
 most pestilential odour exhaled from it. Colonel By was on one 
 occasion passing through it when it was being partially drained to 
 form a track for the canal; his canoe grounded, and the voya- 
 geurs jumped out to float it! In a moment they were up to the 
 middle in blue slime, from which the most cadaverous smell pro- 
 ceeded. They all died shortly after, except two, and the Colo- 
 nel himself after dinner one day suddenly felt feverish, and so 
 feeble that he was obliged to be carried to bed, and thought that 
 he too was "going home!" He remained dreadfully ill for ma- 
 ny days, with total loss of appetite, yellow-jaundice, severe pains, 
 trembling, and general debility. At last he slowly began to re- 
 cover, and in six weeks was actively employed again. 
 
 After the Cranberry Marsh, on the line of the canal, are, the 
 Roundtail, a break in a ledge of rock; then a most gloomy spot 
 conducing to suicide, called Brewer's Mills; then Billydore's 
 and Jones's Rifts, or Ripples; and lastly Kingston Mills, of which 
 we spoke in the last chapter. 
 
 I visited the houses of several settlers on the banks of the Ri- 
 deau. They were generally of logs, piled on one another to 
 form a single-storied house, with a "but and a ben," or an outer 
 and inner room. In the outer was the kitchen, ])arIour, and bed 
 room; in the inner was a loom, or the tools and bench of a car- 
 penter, with pork, flour, and salt-barrels. The women were com- 
 fortably dressed in coarse blue drugget, and seemed very content- 
 ed with their situation. 
 
 I saw many of the Irish emigrants that Mr. Peter Robinson 
 
BENEFITS OP RIDEAU CANAL. 313 
 
 brought out to Canada. Two ship-loads came to settle near the 
 Rideau; they drove away a small Scotch settlement with their 
 outrageous behaviour, and then, having no foreign foe, the pas- 
 sSngersof one ship drew up, with sprigs of shillelah, and fought 
 the passengers of the other. Blood was shed, and the militia 
 called out. But now they are more tame, and expend their 
 strength on the sons of the forest, the oak, beech, elm, pine, and 
 maple, instead of on one another's heads. 
 
 The Rideau Canal has annually employed two thousand labour- 
 ers since 1826, and has been of incalculable benefit to the pauper 
 emigrants, for they seldom remained at the works above a year; 
 but in that time they gained a knowledge of the country, and the 
 kind of work they would have to pertorm in clearing land for 
 their own farms. Some of the Irish labourers were very trouble- 
 some characters ; they even threatened on several occasions to 
 shoot the officers superintending and directing the works. " I'll 
 fix my flint for you in the fall! I'll knock the navigation out of 
 ye!" were expressions sometimes employed when they were 
 threatened with punishment or dismissal. 
 
 After an interesting excursion, we returned toBytown. Near 
 this rising and important settlement I paddled about in canoes, and 
 wandered alone in the woods, and again felt all the charms of a 
 forest life — a life of freedom and independence. It was even a 
 pleasure to lose oneself for a while — to follow down a deer-path — 
 to touch a prostrate stem, which was entire to the sight, but into 
 which the foot would sink to the ankle in crumbling timber — to 
 note the varieties of green moss on the trees — and to see the wild 
 flowers, lifting their pale heads in the shade. A stream is reach- 
 ed, murmuring over the stones in its bed; — divers watch beside 
 it for their finny prey. Again the path leads into the gloom: 
 heavy strokes are heard, and the frequent flash of a woodman's 
 axe is seen through the trees; he welcomes you to his forest 
 dwelling, and directs you how to find your way. 
 
 " Forth goes the woodman, leaving unconcern'd 
 The cheerful haunts of man — to wield the axe 
 And drive the wedge, in yonder forest drear — 
 From morn to eve his solitary task !" 
 
 I bade adieu to my kind entertainer, and again embarked on 
 the Ottawa, sailed down to Grenville; was again dreadfully sha- 
 ken on that most abhorred of roads; slept in a small way-side 
 inn, under a table, from which I was roused to prescribe for a 
 sick woman; passed through the Lake of the Two Mountains; 
 saw the remains of old French works, to defend the early set- 
 Rr 
 
i' 
 
 314 STORY OF A CABLE. 
 
 tiers from the Indians; shot the Rapids of St. Anne, celebrated 
 by Moore in his boat-song of <<Rovv, brothers, row;" and saw 
 the small church, its modest spire, where the voyageurs present 
 their offerings to the Virgin to grant them a safe return to their 
 homes. 
 
 During the late war the transport of stores from Quebec to the 
 Lakes was attended with very heavy expense and trouble, particu- 
 larly from the mouth of the Ottawa to the Upper St. Lawrence, im- 
 peded as it is by many dangerous rapids. On one occasion it was 
 required to send an English cabie for a hundred- gun ship on 
 Lake Ontario; but how to get this carried past the rapids by land 
 puzzled the collective wisdom of the staff at Quebec and Mon- 
 treal, An engineer proposed tiiat it should be carried by a regi- 
 ment of soldiers in India, or single file; but this was rejected; for 
 it was supposed, that if one man fell under the cable, all might 
 come down like a pack of cards. It became a complete nonplus, 
 when at last some one suggested that an advertisement, with the 
 offer of a reward of 500/. currency, might produce a plan for car- 
 rying the weighty article to its destination. 
 
 No sooner did the advertisement appear, than a Yankee came 
 forward, and " guessed" that for the reward he could take the 
 cable to Kingston, if his expenses were also paid. A contract 
 was accordingly signed as he wished. With 150/. he immediately 
 went into the woods, set axemen to work; felled trees; made a 
 number of sleighs. The snow came to his aid, ye yoked his 
 horses; coiled a little of the cable into one sleigh, a little into 
 another, and so on till the whole was disposed of! The drivers 
 cracked their whips; away went the cavalcade in a long line; 
 the cable reached Lake Ontario, and Jonathan netted his 500/. ! 
 
 After reaching the St. Lawrence, I landed at Lachine, in the 
 island of Montreal, and drove along a good road on a table-land, 
 overlooking a broad meadow of fertile fields, the great river be- 
 yond, and in the distance the green hills of Vermont. What a 
 a change was now visible on cither side of the road, on thus 
 entering Lower Canada! We appeared to pass through one long 
 village of the whitewashed cottages of the habitans or French 
 Canadians, with their accompanying gardens, orchards and fields; 
 and then Jean Baptiste himself, with his sharp though amiable 
 French features, his bonnet rouge, his grey capote and parti- 
 coloured girdle, his leather leggins, and a short pipe in his 
 mouth, driving a span of punchy horses, was quite a different 
 being from the sallow calculating American, or sunburnt 
 Scottish settler. I participate in all the feelings of a little Ca- 
 nadian woman who sat beside me, neatly and cleanly dressed in a 
 black bonnet, chintz short gown, and scarlet petticoat, as, glancing 
 
ISLAND OF MONTREAL CITY OP MONTREAL, 315 
 
 her eye with great satisfaction over the landscape, she exclaimed, 
 after we had been talking of the uncleared banks of the Ottawa 
 "Ah, Monsieur, men pays estici!" 
 
 Before us rose the mountain from which Montreal takes its 
 name — a great swelling ridge covered with forest, sheltering the 
 city from the piercing winds blowing over the ice-bound shores 
 of Hudson's Bay. Between the mountain and the city were 
 seen the villas of wealthy seigneurs, and among others, an edifice 
 of heavy masonry, partly fortified, once the castle of the 
 Jesuits. Montreal had a most inviting appearance as we ap- 
 proached — the high and varied roofs, covered with shining tin, 
 rivaling in brightness the broad and sparkling mirror of the St. 
 Lawrence, on which wooded islands reposed. Spires rose here 
 and there, to break the outline of the houses, and conspicuous 
 among other sacred edifices rose the double towers and massive 
 pile of the cathedral. 
 
 We passed through several streets, narrow and winding, the 
 houses, built of grey limestone, setoff with green Venetian blinds 
 in some, and iron fire-proof shutters in others: the sober colour of 
 the walls, contrasted with the silver roof, had a very peculiar, 
 and, to me, a pleasing effect. Besides shopkeepers dressed in the 
 European style, and Canadians, as already described, I observed 
 a few priests in the streets in black gowns, with black skull- 
 caps under a round hat, and a few Indians in blanket coats, and 
 adorned with a broad silver disk hanging at the breast. 
 
 I lived at Roscoe's hotel; and though there was a table-d'hote 
 three times a day, as in the States, and the charges were about 
 the same, there was no scrambling for food, and heaping fish, 
 flesh, fowl, and pastry, on the same plate at once. In consequence 
 of my introductions, I was most hospitably entertained during 
 the few days 1 remained at Montreal. Captain Lewis, R. E. 
 showed me '' les curiosites de la ville;" and Mr. Forsyth, one 
 of the chief merchants in Canada, was kind enough to enable me 
 to see the environs of this interesting city — interesting because it 
 has an air of stability and antiquity about it, and does not savour 
 of the '< shavings and paint" of the new cities in the States, 
 which, however, "indicate the juvenile spirit of life and in- 
 crease that so eminently distinguish the Ameriran population." 
 
 I attended service in the Episcopal church, with a handsome 
 interior of Roman architecture, and then visited the cathedral, a 
 most magnificent Gothic pile of recent erection; but its tawdry 
 internal decorations, its blue compartments and spotted pillars, 
 caused the death of the unt'ortunate architect, who died of a 
 broken heart, disgusted at the bad taste which had spoiled his 
 
316 PUBLIC BUILDINGS ISLE OF ST. HELENAS. 
 
 handiwork. The cathedral contains so many thousand people, 
 that I am afraid to mention the exact numher. 
 
 Besides the above I saw a Presbyterian church, a Burgher, and 
 a Methodist meeting-house, two Roman Catholic academical in- 
 stitutions, the Seminary, and the new College, two nunneries, 
 and a Hotel Dieu for the reception of the sick poor; promenaded 
 in the Camp de Mars, and along the new stone wharfs executed 
 under the superintendence of Captain Fyfe, R. E.; and admired 
 a statue of Lord Nelson, placed opposite the gaol for want of a 
 better site. 
 
 What a lovely isle is that of St. Helen's, opposite the city, 
 with its batteries, its shady walks, and its murmuring rapids! 
 Five hundred miles is it from the sea, but merchantmen of seven 
 hundred tons pass it; and then how pleasant the ride into the 
 country, though the woods were fast parting with their foliage! 
 How interesting to see the neat farm-houses, with their steep roofs 
 for the snow, their Teutonic well with a post and lever; and the 
 wooden crosses surmounted by the Gallic cock, and a crown of 
 thorns, pincers, nails and hammers, displayed upon it! 
 
 I was delighted with Montreal, and saw a little of the best 
 French society in the house of M. Lacroix. The ball-room was 
 resplendent with ladies' sparkling eyes and many wax-lights; the 
 music was lively, and well selected; grace was in the steps of 
 the dancers, and the supper was unexceptionable: but, as a pil- 
 grim, I never could leave a party like this without a feeling of 
 desolation and a sinking of the heart, for in all human probability 
 I could not expect ever again to see one of the faces which had 
 beamed in gladness during the evening. 
 
 During my short stay at Montreal, the last canoes of the fur- 
 traders from the north-west brought the distressing intelligence 
 of the destruction of the expedition under our intrepid country- 
 man, Captain Ross. It was but an Indian report, however, and 
 may be unfounded. His steam-vessel was said to have been 
 crushed in the ice near the inhospitable coast of the Esquimaux. 
 
 Both in Canada and in the States, I heard the question of the 
 disputed frontiers often discussed, but I was happy to find that 
 the angry feelings of the people of Maine towards British Ame- 
 rica were not shared by the rest of the Union, and the north- 
 eastern frontier gives the citizens in general no concern. Yet an 
 early settlement of this is much to be desired; and it is supposed 
 that the line will ultimately run by the St. John's River, and 
 thence along the St. Francis, westward. The chief mistakes com- 
 mitted on this subject were, appointing as British commissionera 
 Bostonian, (who, by the way, also sacrificed Drummond's Island 
 on Lake Huron,) and in not indicating the map that was to be 
 
BOUNDARIES — N. W. FRONTIERS — SETTLEMENT. 317 
 
 referred to for the north-eastern frontier. The truth is, that the 
 British naturally desire to have easy access to Nova-Scotia and 
 New Brunswick from the St. Lawrence, and the Americans wish 
 to isolate these provinces. 
 
 Whilst on the subject of boundaries, I earnestly solicit atten- 
 tion to an important point, the north-western frontier. Seeing 
 the teeming liive of Britain throwing off her swarms of emigrants 
 in annually increasing numbers; seeing that we are at peace with 
 the world, now is the time to fix, definitively, frontiers, and dis- 
 cover fertile tracts for our adventurers in the West. The last 
 American maps published in Philadelphia bring down the Rus- 
 sian frontier to meet the American, in the parallel of 54°: now 
 this cannot be tolerated; by the right of the discoveries of Van- 
 couver, Cook, &c. the British have a claim to hundreds of miles 
 of the coast of the Pacific. 
 
 Two thousand settlers were to proceed this year from St. Louis 
 on the Mississippi to the south bank of the Columbia River, 
 where melons ripen in the open air; and a Russian officer who 
 visited Philadelphia sometime ago, said, that at his post on one of 
 the streams [south of the Columbia, be it remarked,) his men 
 were able to cultivate their gardens all the year round. Few are 
 aware of the fact, that as to climate, 44° (the mouth cf the Colum- 
 bia) corresponds to 34° on the east coast. The boundary be- 
 tween the British and Americans was to proceed westward from 
 the Lake of the Woods along the parallel of 49°, and from where 
 that strikes the Columbia, proceed down it to its mouth: now the 
 Columbia has many branches, and we must take care that names 
 are not altered by cunning map-makers. 
 
 Hitherto our own fur-traders have kept us in ignorance of the 
 north-west territory; fear of losing their monopoly has been the 
 cause of their silence. But I trust, that ere long, attention will 
 be directed to these favoured regions, for it appears strange, that 
 Captain Beechey, in the Blossom, was not ordered to enter the 
 Columbia, and that as yet we know little of the country from 
 California to Behring's Straits. 
 
 Some time ago an American Commodore (Biddle) was sent 
 with a small squadron to take possession of certain British ports, be- 
 longing to the Hudson's Bay Company, on the north bank of the 
 Columbia, and near its mouth. The British, on seeing the Ameri- 
 can squadron, quietly evacuated their forts. The commodore landed 
 with his men, hoisted the American flag, dismounted the cannon, 
 and posted placards on the trees, stating that this was American ter- 
 ritory. He re-embarked in his boats, and had hardly reached his 
 ships, when the British traders returned, re-mounted the guns, tore 
 down the placards, and remain in possession of the forts to this day. 
 
318 FUR-TRADERS. 
 
 I was much surprised at the conduct of certain fur-traders with 
 whom I took pains to get acquainted, in order to get infor- 
 mation regarding the course of streams in the north-west, the 
 habits of Indians, &c. These gentlemen would communicate 
 nothing. — '< What!" said they, '< do you ihink we will give the 
 result of five and twenty years' experience without a recompense? 
 If you pay us well for our information, we may disclose something." 
 "You mistake me," I replied, "I have no intention of learning 
 the mysteries of your trade, topographical information is all I 
 want; surely you don't wish to be paid for telling how a stream 
 runs ?" — " Yes, Sir, we are not in the habit of supplying a com- 
 modity for nothing." — "I understand you, honjour inessietirsP 
 In Coxe's " Columbia River," there is much curious information; 
 still it would be worth while, and I should like exceedingly, to 
 accompany an expedition to the north-west, to acquire accurate 
 information on that interesting region, by the following route: 
 
 Leave Montreal and proceed up to the Ottawa to 46^°, then 
 cross to Lake Huron, taking a cursory survey of the I^lipissing 
 Lake, which as yet is only known to the Indians. Proceed 
 along the north shores of Huron and Lake Superior to the lake of 
 the Woods — ascertain which is the north-westernmost point of it, 
 (the point of departure for the boundary,) travel along the forty- 
 ninth parallel, cross the Rocky Mountains, and descend that 
 branch of the Columbia which is cut by the forty-ninth parallel to 
 the sea. Then proceed to Behring's Straits by sea, and complete 
 the survey of the two hundred and seventy miles between Point 
 Beechy and Icy Cape. 
 
 Governor Simpson of the Hudson's Bay Company, proceeds 
 annually in six weeks from Montreal to the North-west Posts, so 
 that we might undertake to complete the above (if we escaped the 
 rifles and tomahawks of the flat-heads and black-feet Indians) in 
 twelve or eighteen months, and accomplish three great ends, — dis- 
 cover new locations for emigrants, settle the north-west boundary 
 question, and complete what Captain Franklin so nobly began on 
 the shores of the Frozen Ocean. 
 
 I confess that the above proposal for an expedition bears a Quix- 
 otic aspect, but so much the more pleasing excitement would at- 
 tend it. As I said before, voyageurs can accomplish in canoes 
 one hundred miles a day for months together. I used to think it 
 something to ride in the East as much a day for a continuance, 
 but that is nothing to the labour undergone by the voyageurs in 
 paddling so great a distance. 
 
 I again embarked on the St. Lawrence to sail down to Quebec. 
 As all the berths were full, I stretched myself under a table, (a fa- 
 vourite position,) but was half inclined to put in practice the ruse 
 
BANKS OP ST. LAWRENCE — QUEBEC. 319 
 
 of a facetious fellow, Jocky Wells by name, who, in a similar pre- 
 dicament, raised a cry of fire, and slipped into a berth when the 
 passengers jumped up to make their escape. On another occasion 
 he cried "A man overboard," threw a billet of wood into the 
 water, and again secured a warm berth in the confusion which 
 ensued. We passed William Henry in the night, sailed through 
 Lake St. Peter in ihe morning, and then stopped for some time 
 at the pleasant town of Trois Rivieres. The houses were princi- 
 pally of wood, and they, as well as the inhabitants, had an air of 
 repose about them, which evinced that speculation and change 
 were strangers here. 
 
 It was pleasing to see how thickly the banks of the St. Law- 
 rence seemed to be settled from Montreal to Quebec; on both 
 sides it looked like one long village of scattered houses, and occa- 
 sionally collected in groups, where a glittering spire reared its 
 head. Li the times of the French rule, the land here was divid- 
 ed into seigniories or lordships, and these again into farms of two 
 hundred acres each, conceded to respectable settlers, who were 
 bound to live on their farms, to clear and to cultivate. When 
 the banks of streams were settled, other farms were conceded be- 
 hind the first, with acres of fire-wood intervening, so that the 
 country fortunately preserved its wooded aspect. 
 
 In the evening we approached a range of cliffs about three hun- 
 dred feet above us on the left, which cast a broad shadow into the 
 deep river, and many boats with white square sails passed us 
 steering up the river. We distinguished fortifications and artil- 
 lery on the summit of the cliffs, a town below, and many ships. 
 I landed at the quay, and with Chief Justice Reid ascended some 
 steep streets, and found comfortable quarters in the Albion Hotel, 
 Quebec. 
 
 I rose early next morning and hurried to the citadel, where 
 from the commanding site. Cape Diamond, I enjoyed a most 
 splendid panoramic view of the ancient city, and the surrounding 
 country. I looked up and down the broad St. Lawrence below 
 me, and saw the shipping arriving from Europe, and leaving the 
 port for the last time in the season. The white cottages of the 
 Canadian peasantry extended along the banks on fertile plains, 
 bounded to the north-east by the mountains of Labrador, distant 
 ten leagues, across which the white man has not yet penetrated. 
 We are as little acquainted with regions beyond as with central 
 Africa. The Indian hunters alone have traversed them. Then 
 the river St. Charles was seen winding through houses and gar- 
 dens to join the St. Lawrence at Beauport, which with Charle- 
 bourg and Lorettes form three marked objects on the map, diver- 
 sified as it is with wood, water, and eminences of various heights; 
 
320 THE OBELISK. 
 
 then the plains of Abraham extending to the right of the citadel, 
 with Martello towers to sweep them with their artillery, and the 
 vapour clouds of the Falls of Montmorenci, appearing where dark 
 cliffs impend over the liver some distance below Quebec. Lastly, 
 the spire and group of buildings at Point Levi, and the productive 
 island ofOrleans, arrested attention. 
 
 The citadel, occupying the highest point of Cape Diamond, is 
 as impregnable as a commanding site, massive ramparts, and guns 
 of the largest calibre can make it, and is the strongest fortress in 
 the western world; with barracks and casements, there is accom- 
 modation for many thousand men, and the magazines are large 
 and fully supplied with the munitions of war. Below the highest 
 part of the rock, is the spot where the American General Mont- 
 gomery was shot in an unsuccessful attempt to surprise the town. 
 Outside the citadel is a tall obelisk, from a chaste design by Cap- 
 tain Young, 79th Highlanders, erected by subscription, in the 
 time of Lord Dalhousie, to the memory of Wolfe and JMontcalm. 
 <' They fell like the oak of the desert, when it lies across a stream 
 and withers in the wind of the mountains; they fell in the noise of 
 battle, terrible as the roar of a thousand storms, but fresh and green 
 are the leaves of their fame." 
 
 I waited on his Excellency, Lord Aylmer, in the Castle of St. 
 Louis, to deliver an introduction, and was received with that 
 frankness and urbanity which have rendered the Governor- 
 General so popular with all parties under his jurisdiction. In 
 looking from the windows of the chateau, tastefully furnished 
 under the directions of Lady Aylmer, I saw that it was on the 
 verge of the precipice overhanging the St. Lawrence, and com- 
 manded nearly as extensive a view as the citadel above it. 
 
 In front of the'castle was the sloping green of the Place d'Arnies, 
 where the tandem sleighs in winter drive round, the court-house 
 and Episcopal church being on two sides of the square. The 
 Catholic church I greatly admired, for its interior decorations; the 
 walls, of great solidity, were of virgin whiteness, and the pulpit, 
 altar, chandeliers, &c. were masses of rich gilding. 
 
 With my old friend, Captain Sewell, Usher of the Black Rod, 
 and Captain Tovey, of the 24th, I promenaded about the city, 
 and had pointed out to me the various objects of interest, parti- 
 cularly the small statue of Wolfe, in red coat, cocked hat, and 
 knee-breeches, set up in the corner of a street to mark the spot 
 to which the conqueror of Quebec penetrated as a spy previous 
 to his victory; also the (dormant) golden dog, rudely sculptured 
 over the door of a bookstore, which, in the time of the French, 
 was placed there by M. Philippert, a merchant, to testify his 
 sense of the injustice of the intendant, M. Bigot. Philippert was 
 
PUBLIC BUILDINGS. 321 
 
 assassinated in consequence of it; and the intendant fell at Pon- 
 dicherry, in the East Indies, by the hand of a brother of the 
 merchant. 
 
 I visited the parliament-house, an ancient and inconvenient 
 building over the Prescott gate, which will soon be replaced by 
 a more suitable edifice for the Members of Assembly. The se- 
 minary or college, a fine old building with steep roofs, the Ur.su- 
 line Convent, a public institution to promote lemale education, 
 the Hotel Dieu Nunnery, for the reception and cure of the sick, 
 and the gaol, are well worthy of the stranger's notice. 
 
 I made several interesting excursions during the fortnight, I 
 remained at Quebec. The first was with the Honourable Sir 
 John Caldwell, one of the Legislative Council, and Captain Has- 
 tings Doyle, 24th, to visit the handsome seat and extensive saw- 
 mills of the hospitable baronet, on the opposite bank of the river. 
 We passed the timber coves where the great staple of Canada is 
 received from the interior, and saw the quiet retreat of Sillery, 
 where the scene of the charming tale of Emily Montagu is laid; 
 then the <' single-arch bridge" of wood, thrown across a ravine; 
 and from the house of our kind entertainer enjoyed an excellent 
 view of the city, and the shipping, picturesquely seen at the bot- 
 tom of its bold rock, 
 
 Another excursion was to the Falls of Montmorenci with Mr. 
 George Ryland. We dashed through the streets of the lower 
 town and over the Beauport Bridge, in a tandem, the same which 
 had been driven round the decks of the great Columbus timber- 
 ship, and drove blithely along the banks of the river and into 
 the countr}'', with its pleasant houses of the peasantry and the 
 crosses by the way-side. The emigrants are in the habit of 
 laughing at the French Canadians crossing themselves when they 
 approach these emblems of their religion; so that now, when 
 these simple-minded people pass the cross, they take no notice of 
 it till they have got an hundred yards or more from it, and when 
 they think they are not observed, they then turn round, doff 
 their hat, and devoutly cross themselves. 
 
 We reached a wooden aqueduct below the Falls, conveying a 
 part of the water to saw-mills on the St. Lawrence. Jn looking 
 down on these extensive works, we observed that they were a 
 blackened mass of burnt wood, the whole having recently been 
 consumed with fire. In walking over the aqueduct, I fell through 
 the planking, rotten with the vapour-cloud of Montmorenci, but 
 escaped without much injury, and from a dangerous point of view 
 saw the cascade dashing over its cliff two hundred and fifty feet 
 high, and the white spray, in which the sun occasionally pencilled 
 rainbows, flying off from the descending masses of foam. 
 S s 
 
322 FALLS OF MONTMORENCI. 
 
 More interesting than the Falls themselves are the natural steps 
 some distance up the Montmorenci, where the river rushes 
 throijoh a rocky ravine, the sides of which are cut in ledges pa- 
 rallel with the stream as if by the chisel: the roar of the water 
 and overhanging trees render this a spot of rare attraction. In 
 winter, the fur-clad inhabitants of Quebec glide over the frozen 
 St. Lawrence in their light carioles, and visit Montmorenci to 
 ascend the cone, sometimes one hundred feet high, formed at the 
 Fall by the congealed spray covered with snow, and then slide 
 down it, after the manner of the Montagnes Russes. 
 
 A third excursion was with Mr. Ryland to Indian Lorette. 
 The road to this village (three leagues from Quebec) was several 
 inches deep in mud, a usual circumstance throughout Canada im- 
 mediately before the frost sets in. We struggled through the 
 sloughs on horseback; and arrived on an elevated plateau crowned 
 with a chapel and the scattered houses of Indians. We saw, from 
 the village, the distant city to great advantage, and an open and 
 cultivated country on every side, where, in the days of Charle- 
 voix, this mission " was surrounded with the vastest w^oods in 
 the world, to all appearance as ancient as the world itself, and 
 never planted by the hand of man." 
 
 The river St. Charles, issuing from a beautiful and secluded 
 lake of the same name, foams over ledges of rock in a deep dell 
 immediately below Lorette; the wooded cliffs conceal the torrent, 
 till it again glides into the sun-light, and pursues its winding 
 course to the St. Lawrence. We put up our horses at a remark- 
 ably clean house of a French Canadian, in which the square iron 
 stove heated two rooms at once; and on visiting some of the re- 
 mains of the once powerful Ilurons, we found them living in 
 comfort and peace, and similarly dressed to the Indians of the 
 Credit, with the addition of a circular metal plate on the breast 
 of the women. I purchased some handsome mocassins, and then 
 attended the chapel, built after the model of the Santa Casa, in 
 Italy. The men, with their long black hair and Tartar features, 
 sat or knelt on the ground on one side, and the women on the 
 other; they sang hymns with great sweetness, and joined with 
 meekness in the religious exercises: 
 
 " They were a tribe 
 Once mighty in the land, but fell at length, 
 And to the stranger left their ancient realm." 
 
 In riding home, we saw the village of Charleburgh, one of the 
 oldest settlements in Canada. The church here was the point 
 from which all the farms radiated, to adeptli of thirty acres, with 
 
PARLIAMENT OF LOWER CANADA. 323 
 
 only three acres' front. A neighbourhood was thus formed, the 
 road was easily kept up, and mutual protection afforded aj2;ainst the 
 Indians; for, when the alarm was sounded from the church, all 
 flocked to it as the rallying point from whence to defend their 
 possessions. 
 
 Twice I visited the plains of Abraham, where ,the immortal 
 Wolfe fell in the arms of victory. From March mont, the beau- 
 tiful villa of Mr, Ferrier, was seen the steep ascent up which the 
 British, led by Highlanders and light infantry, mounted from the 
 St. Lawrence; round the house was the grassy plain where they 
 formed, and on which I picked up several fragments of shells. 
 Proceeding along the plain in the direction of the city, the Mar- 
 tello towers appeared, about half a mile in advance of the exterior 
 defences of the citadel. In front of the towers, fences inclosed a 
 few fields under cultivation; in one of these was the redoubt, yet 
 perfectly defined and fortunately untouched by the plough from 
 which the general received his death-wound when heading his 
 men, and the well near it from whence he drank whilst reclining 
 against a rock, surrounded by his staff" mournfully contemplating 
 the tide of life fast ebbing from his wounds. 
 
 The Parliament of Lower Canada was opened when I was in 
 Quebec. Lord Aylmer, in a rich Windsor uniform, delivered a 
 speech from a gilded throne, under a crimson canopy. Seven 
 councillors sat within a bar, to which the members of the Lower 
 House advanced, headed by M. Papineau, a large Cromwell-like 
 man, with energy and decision on his brow. His Excellency's ad- 
 dress alluded to the liberal appropriations of the legislature during 
 last session for internal communications, praised the judgment and 
 economy with which they had been expended by the Commis- 
 sioners, and directed attention to others to be carried into effect 
 this year, by which the produce of the townships at a distance 
 from Quebec and Montreal will find a ready market, whilst the 
 Colonists will have the means of personal intercourse with one 
 another, and thus the British empire in the West will be consoli- 
 dated. 
 
 The necessity for farther improving the harbour of Montreal 
 was noticed ; also the erection of court-houses and gaols in the se- 
 veral counties of the province, and the precautions taken to pre- 
 vent the inroad of the cholera. After congratulating the Legis- 
 lative Council and House of Assembly on the flourishing state of 
 the province, his Excellency concluded in these words : 
 
 "When I addressed you at the ojjening of last session, being 
 then a stranger to you all, I was actuated, as I ever have been and 
 ever shall continue to be, by a sense of duty and devotion to my 
 Royal Master, which is of itself sufficient to command the exer- 
 
324 INQUIRIES REGARDING EMIGRATION. 
 
 tion of every power of my mind in his service. Since that time, 
 a new and powerful stimulus to exertion has found a place in my 
 breast, I mean the attachment, the daily increasing attachment, 
 I feel to the people of this happy land. This sentiment is pre- 
 sent with me wherever I go, it sweetens every official occupation, 
 and as I set ahout my daily task of duty, it teaches me to ask my- 
 self this question, <What can I do this day to promote the hap- 
 piness and prosperity of Canada .-" " 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 Inquiries regarding Emigration. — Population of Canada. — Distress anticipated. — 
 Condition of Old Scttler.s. — The lioads. — Liberal Policy. — The French Canadians. 
 — The Irish sit on their skirts. — Englisli and Irisli Landlords. — Pensioners. — 
 Employment of pauper Emigrants. — Wages.— The Canada Company.— Emigrants 
 settled on Seigniories. — Infamous conduct of Captains of Timber-ships. — A re- 
 medy. — American Speculators. — Mr. Andrew Stewart's judicious Plans for dispos- 
 ing of Emigrants. — An American Settler locating himself. — Emigration ought al- 
 ways to be directed to Canada. — Disadvantages of the States. — Mr. George's Plan 
 for Internal Improvements. — The Bersiamils River explored. — Discovery in Mag- 
 netism. — Leave Quebec. — The road to St. John's. — Isle au.Y Noi.x. — Lieut. Ingal. 
 — Lake Champlain. — Crown Point. — Ticonderoga. — The Royal Highlanders. — A 
 Canal-boat. — Troy. — Albany. — Breaking up of the ice on the Hudson. — Economy 
 of Time. — The Ex-King of Spain. — The Highlands. — Arrived at New York. 
 
 It is a subject of extreme interest for the British Traveller in 
 Canada at present, and also at future periods, to obtain exact in 
 formation regarding our colonists there. Their number and con- 
 dition, their progressive denseness relatively to the extent of coun- 
 try occupied by them, their contentment, &c, all form heads of 
 inquiry of great interest. And there is now one point worthy, 
 perhaps, of peculiar investigation — whether a considerable popu- 
 lation could be turned into Canada without grants of land al- 
 together, and be left to depend merely on their labour — wliether 
 they could find engagements as yearly servants, for example, for, 
 unless engaged by the year, they would starve in winter ; but if 
 they could be thus engaged, improvements would go on faster in 
 the districts already occupied, the population would be kept dense, 
 civilization would be kept up, the previous habits of pauper 
 emigrants would not be violently changed, and the expense to 
 parishes at home of sending them abroad, would be greatly reduced. 
 
 1 felt myself bound to pay particular attention to the important 
 
POPULATION CONDITION OF OLD SETTLERS. 325 
 
 subject of emigration, and to the disposal of our self-exiled coun- 
 trymen in the Canadas. The information collected was rather 
 voluminous, but I shall spare my readers a heavy infliction, and 
 now merely give an abstract from my notes. 
 
 The population in the valuable British possessions in North 
 America now amounts to upwards of a million and a quarter, 
 about nine hundred thousand inhabitants, occupying the two 
 Canadas, and last )^ear, the great addition of fifty-five thousand 
 souls arrived at Quebec. A great number of these emigrants pro- 
 ceeded to Upper Canada, many lingered about the towns of Que- 
 bec, Montreal, Trois Rivieres, Kingston, &c. ; a few proceeded 
 to the Western States, and not a few returned ; after a short trial 
 of the New World, to the land of their birth. In one ship I re- 
 marked that sixty re-embarked. 
 
 In the beginning of winter I saw or heard of little distress 
 among the emigrants ; those who had brought money with them 
 were already settled on land, the paupers had found work, and 
 they passed last severe winter better than it was anticipated they 
 would have done, as the spring reports showed. Though it is 
 wrong to atiticipate evil, yet many who know the Canadas well, 
 foretold great misery and want among such an unusual number of 
 settlers, many of them of dissolute habits, and unable to take care 
 of themselves in the old country, and munh less to provide food 
 and warm covering in a new and severe climate. 
 
 I found the old settlers comfortable and happy, receiving good 
 prices lor their produce, and in the enjoyment of civil, religious, 
 and political liberty. The governors of the two provinces are 
 labouring to provide for the rising generation the means of in- 
 struction, and the Jesuit's college in Quebec is to be reconverted 
 into a seminary, from a barrack. I before noticed the Upper 
 Canada College at York, instituted by Sir John Colborne, as an 
 admirable institution ; and there are, besides, many excellent pre- 
 paratory schools. 
 
 The prosperity of the colonists has hitherto been retarded by 
 the want of good roads in the provinces. In the spring and fall 
 of the year they are knee-deep in mud, and in summer the heat 
 and dust render travelling extremely disagreeable. The sleighs 
 in winter afford almost the only means of communicating with 
 distant parts of the country, and of transporting produce to mar- 
 ket, when the settlers are removed from the great highways, the 
 St. Lawrence, and the lakes. 
 
 From the liberal policy of the Government, more particularly 
 evinced in a despatch from the Colonial Office, in September 1831, 
 to the Governor-in-chief, it is confidently anticipated that a new 
 and a bright era will dawn on the Canadas; that all grievances 
 will be looked into, and redressed, and every possible attention 
 
32G ENGLISH AND IRISH LANDLORDS. 
 
 paid to internal improvements. Hitherto violent party-spirit has 
 convulsed Lower Canada, and a discontented few in the upper 
 Province have paralyzed the efforts of the local Government to 
 insure prosperity to the colonists. Now, however, all parties 
 seem to be pleased, and the prospects of the Canadian settlers are 
 most cheering. 
 
 I was much gratified in witnessing the comfort of the French 
 habitans of Lower Canada ; their neat houses, clean persons — 
 their abundant fare, and contented faces ! True, their agriculture 
 is not on the most approved principles ; their breed of cattle, 
 sheep, and hogs, is not the best ; yet withal, they are happy, at- 
 tend to their fields in summer, and visit each other, and enjoy 
 themselves in social communing in winter ; they really seem to 
 taste far greater happiness, and to know how to extract from their 
 lot a far greater share of felicity, than those who at all times and 
 seasons wildly strive to accumulate riches, without knowing or 
 thinking how to spend them rationally. 
 
 But Irish emigrants ought to be kept at a distance from the 
 French Canadians. The Scotch and English commonly proceed 
 at once to Upper Canada, or to the eastern townships, but the 
 Irish sit on the skirts of the habitans. Thus, in riding out in the 
 country 1 frequently witnessed a Canadian peasant returning from 
 market, with the poultry, cheese, or vegetables he had taken into 
 town to dispose of, and with a scowl on his countenance retracing 
 his steps homewards. The cause of his discontent was simply 
 this : — The Irish now crowd the markets in Lower Canada : at 
 first they ask the same prices as the habitans, but being, as usual, 
 " from hand to mouth," they speedily reduce their price, and take 
 whatever they can get for their pork, butter, eggs, &.c. ; and they 
 can afford to take a low price for llieir commodities, for in Canada, 
 as in Ireland, they huddle together filthily in single rooms, each 
 corner being occupied by a family ; they therefore save fuel and 
 house-rent, whilst the habitans live at much more expense, but 
 respectably. 
 
 It is with relutance that I notice the conduct of certain Irish 
 landlords last year. They induced their poor tenants to emigrate 
 without making any provision for them after arriving in Canada. 
 English landlords, on the other hand, who spend their incomes on 
 their estates, and who pay five millions of poor-rates (which is so 
 much deducted from rent), in sending out their poor tenants to 
 the Canadas, have written to an agent in Quebec to sujiply them 
 with small sums to set them going. Irish emigrants are therefore 
 continually seen hanging about the wharfs, quite lost for some 
 time, till an old acquaintance perhaps accommodates them with 
 a corner of his room ; whilst the English, on the other hand, are 
 
EMPLOYMENT OP PAUPER EMIGRANTS. 327 
 
 enabled by their old landlords to proceed at once up the country. 
 It is with pleasure I notice the Marquis of Bute, pre-eminent 
 among English landlords for his liberality to his emigrant tenan- 
 try. If the Government, or Emigration Committee, undertake 
 to send emigrants to Canada, they ought (as I said before) to be 
 disposed of at a distance from the French Canadians. These poor 
 people ought not " to be devoured," as they term it, by hungry 
 paupers. Very serious consequences will undoubtedly ensue if 
 the system is continued of allowing pauper emigrants to locate 
 themselves wherever they choose, or to linger about the towns. 
 
 I cannot help noticing the unfortunate experiment of inducing 
 old soldiers to exchange their pensions for land. It was truly 
 painful to witness the condition of these men ; many sold their 
 land immediately for a dollar an acre, thus their one hundred aci'es 
 would yield ^620, Young women would attach themselves for a 
 time to these veterans, keep them continually drunk, and go 
 oflf with the plunder and a paramour. The pensioners died by 
 dozens in Quebec and in attempting to proceed up the country, 
 and I am confident that when the result of the above experiment 
 is represented in the proper quarter, it will not be repeated. 
 
 A considerable pauper population could be turned into Upper 
 Canada, provided they could be employed for one year on public 
 works. I said that the Rideau Canal, since 1S26, has annually 
 employed two thousand labourers, and has been of incalculable 
 benefit to the pauper emigrant. If taken care of for one year, 
 the emigrant gains a knowledge of the country, learns how to 
 handle the axe, and is then able to occupy land. Road-making 
 is the natural way of employing the emigrants, though many of 
 them arrive with such extravagant notions of their own conse- 
 quence, that though in absolute want, they will not condescend to 
 be thus employed. 
 
 Last year there was a considerable demand for labourers in the 
 Eastern Townships, at the rate of Is. 6cl. a day; many, however, 
 refused to labour under 2s. 6d. When six or eight thousand 
 arrived yearly, they could get that sum, but not now. Ship 
 carpenters, joiners, &c. received in 1831, from 5s. to 7*. 6d. a 
 day without food. House servants (men) 30^. a month, with 
 food; and females, 155. or 20^. Many farmers support poor 
 Irish familes during the winter merely giving them food and 
 lodging; for this, they chop wood and are otherwise employed. 
 Since lunYber-men get thirty dollars a month for hewing wood, 
 and conducting it on rafts to Quebec, the farmer has hitherto been 
 obliged to pay the high rate of nine or ten dollars a month for a 
 summer labourer, and find him besides in food. 
 
 The thriving Canada Land Comiiany, whose slock is daily 
 
328 ROGUERY OP CAPTAINS OP SHIPS. 
 
 rising, on the 1st of November, 1831, had received at their 
 office, in York, Upper Canada, seventeen thousand sovereigns for 
 the sale of land during the year. This shows that a considerable 
 number of the emigrants who arrived lately, were not in dis- 
 tressed circumstances. In Lower Canada, the emigrants who 
 are now the most comfortably situated, are those with whom the 
 following plan has been pursued: Three or four merchants of 
 Quebec or Montreal, purchase a seignoiory of land; dispose of a 
 great part of it in lots, to respectable settlers; give them three 
 years to pay for their farms, of one hundred and fifty or two 
 hundred acres, (without interest; after three years, interest is 
 charged). The settlers are supplied with all necessaries at nearly 
 prime cost, are advised and directed by the company, who retain 
 a portion of their own land, which continually increases in value, 
 and all parties are benefited. 
 
 Poor emigrants have hitherto been exposed to serious incon- 
 venience and risk from the roguery of captains of ships, princi- 
 pally those from ports in Ireland; they advertised their vessels to 
 sail on a certain day, and stated that they were of considerable 
 size, but they did not sail for weeks after the day fixed; in the 
 mean time, the emigrants consumed their sea stock of potatoes 
 and meal on shore, and when at last they got on board, they 
 found themselves so crowded, that it was impossible for all to be 
 accommodated between decks. No inspection of the emigrants 
 took place previous to embarkation, to ascertain that they were 
 free from infectious disorders; the small-pox was frequently in- 
 troduced on board, and man}^ children and adults have thus been 
 consigned to the bosom of the Atlantic. Water and provisions 
 would fail the emigrants when some time at sea, and the necessaries 
 of life would then be disposed of at a high price, by the mercenary 
 and unfeeling commanders. If the captain was a drunkard, there 
 was great chance of being kept out eight or ten weeks at sea, or 
 perhaps wrecked in the gulf of St. Lawrence. Arrived at 
 Quebec, the emigrants would be hurried on shore, even at night, 
 in small boats, in a strange land, and not knowing where to find 
 shelter. Mr. Walter Ferrier, his Majesty's collector of customs, 
 Quebec, exerted himself strenuously to amend the Passenger 
 Regulation Act, by which emigrant ships are in future to be 
 strictly inspected previous to sailing from Britain, and immediately 
 also on their arrival at their destination; so that now it will be 
 difficult for a captain to ill-use those who confide themselves and 
 their families to his care without subjecting himself to an exem- 
 plary exposure and punishment. 
 
 As a link in the chain of oppression, of inconvenience, and of 
 heavy losses, to which emigrants were sometimes subjected, I 
 
AMERICAN SPECULATORS — MR. ANDREW STEWART. 329 
 
 may mention the following anecdote, which was told me by a 
 gentleman in Upper Canada. Certain American speculators were 
 in the habit of travelling on the roads and in steam-boats along 
 with emigrants newly arrived, and would insinuate themselves 
 into their confidence, tender advice, induce them to purchase 
 land in the States, and implements of husbandry at a high rate, 
 and, in short take every advantage of their ignorance, plunder 
 them, and too often reduce them to beggary. My informant 
 said, that on one occasion, when he was coming up the Hudson, 
 he observed in the steam-vessel a burly, ruddy-faced English 
 farmer, to whom a sleek-looking Yankee was paying particular 
 attention. My friend saw the game that was being played, and, 
 taking the farmer aside, he advised him to beware of his new 
 friend. ''But how are we to knovv these swindlers?" said 
 Hodge; ''perhaps you are one yourself." "Me? no, no," said 
 the gentleman; "why, 1 don't want to sell anything to you. I'm 
 your countryman: I only offer you advice, for I wish to save you 
 (here the American approached to listen to what was going 
 forward); but, whenever you see a d d sneaking fellow shov- 
 ing himself forward where he has no business, and listening to 
 conversation which does not concern him, that is a Yankee 
 speculator — of him beware!" The American was unable to notice 
 this severe rub, and edged off to mark down another quarry. 
 
 Mr. Andrew Stewart, a Member of the Provincial Parliament, 
 and one of the best informed men in Canada, particularly on to- 
 pics connected with emigration, the disposal of settlers, the dis- 
 covery of new and fertile tracts, and the difficult question of 
 boundaries (which last ought immediately to be definitely de- 
 termined, in order that the frontiers may be located), proposes 
 as the best way to elicit judicious plans for the disposal of 
 emigrants, that a series of interrogatories be put to intelligent 
 settlers who have been in the country one year, such as, VVhy 
 they left England ? How much money they brought with them? 
 What difficulties they had to contend with, and what they would 
 do if they had to begin afresh ? Another of Mr. Stewart'-s plans 
 is to clear and prepare land for emigrants with the military thus: 
 — each private with two oxen to clear ten acres; one-third of the 
 regiment to be discharged, if they wish it, and settled on the 
 cleared land; the rest to be given over to pauper-settlers. The 
 favourite region of Mr. Stewart is the borders of the lake 
 St. John and the banks of the Saqueny river, flowing into the St. 
 Lawrence from the north. He says that the last citadel of the 
 Canadas should be on the lake, and that its shores should there- 
 fore be settled with Highlanders, to repel invasion, [quod Di 
 avertant I) and there make a final stand for our Western Empire. 
 Tt 
 
330 AN AMERICAN SETTLER LOCATING. 
 
 I derived much pleasure and profit from various communings 
 with Mr. Stewart. 
 
 When an American conies over to Canada to take out a loca- 
 tion-ticket, he immediately sets to work, in the fall of the year, 
 and slashes (fells) and burns the wood on perhaps eio;ht acres of 
 land; then, walking through his new field among the stumps, 
 with a bag of Indian corn seed about his neck, and his axe in his 
 hand, he makes a hole in the ground with it, and, dropping two 
 or three seeds into it, he closes the hole with his foot, and he 
 thus disposes of his whole seed. He then, perhaps, returns to 
 the Stales, or hires himself out to work till the time of harvest 
 comes round, when he returns to his field and reaps it. He now 
 may think of building a log house: he prepares the timber, the 
 neighbours collect in "a bee," and assist him to erect his dwell- 
 ing; he roofs and floors it with bark, the doors and windows are 
 cut out, the hinges are of wood, as are sometimes the locks, the 
 light is admitted through oiled paper, the table is a rough board, 
 and the stools cuts of round logs. He brings his wife and a bar- 
 rel or two of pork; more land is cleared; pigs, poultry, and cattle 
 are seen to increase; the log-hut is converted into a stable, and a 
 frame-house is substituted. This is supplanted in time by -an 
 elegant two-storied mansion of brick, with tin-roof, green Vene- 
 tians, and carpeted rooms; and I have sketched with great inter- 
 est, the successive dwellings of a thriving settler, who requires 
 but an axe and a saw, sobriety and industry, to lay the foundation 
 of a competence in ''that happy land." 
 
 " Look now abroad : — another race has fill'd 
 These populous borders. Wide the wood recedes, 
 And towns shoot up, and fertile realms are till'd ; 
 The land is full of harvests and green meads. 
 Streams numberless, that many a fountain feeds, 
 Shine disembower'd, and give to sun and breeze 
 Their virgin waters. The full region leads 
 New colonies forth, that toward the western seas 
 Spread like a rapid flame among the autumnal trees I" 
 
 For some years, the stream of emigration flowed chiefly into 
 the United States, and not to Canada, because the greater number 
 were deceived; they knew nothing of the British possessions in 
 North America. Many still imagine that the climate and fnce 
 of the country of Upper Canada are similar to Siberia; but who 
 that is a lover of his country and people would unhesitatingly live 
 under another government, and forswear his allegiance to his 
 sovereign ? Democrats and levellers may go to the States; but 
 the friends of the British constitution, the friends of British hab- 
 
EMIGRATION TO CANADA RECOMMENDED. 331 
 
 its and feelings, will only find a situation congenial to them in the 
 British possessions. 
 
 At present land is so dear to the east of the Allegliany moun- 
 tains, in the States, that the generality of emigrants who arrive in 
 New York are utterly unable to purchase even a few acres. To 
 proceed to the back-settlements of Illinois, Missouri, &c. a jour- 
 ney by land and water of upwards of fifteen hundred miles is 
 necessary, and very heavy expense and serious inconvenience 
 incurred thereby. In landing at Quebec, a short journey will 
 carry the emigrant south to the eastern townships, where there is 
 abundance of excellent land at a moderate rate, which roads will 
 soon open up to the St. Lawrence; or else steam-vessels will con- 
 vey him, by Montreal, Kingston, and York, to Amherstburgh, on 
 Lake St. Clair, if he chooses. The market is excellent for his 
 produce in the British possessions; clothing, and other necessiries, 
 can be purchased at a moderate cost; the climate is generally 
 very healthy; he has all the privileges of a British subject, may 
 be said to be burtiiened with neither taxes, tithes, nor poor-rates, 
 and, above all, has abundant opportunities of receiving religious 
 instruction, of educating his children, and leaving them indepen- 
 dent of the world. To recapitulate: land in the States is much 
 dearer than in Canada, the distance to be travelled is very great 
 before a location can be got, and the soil and climate of the Wes- 
 tern States are decidedly inferior; — who^then, will hesitate which 
 to choose ? 
 
 But however much I may have said in praise of Canada, as a 
 place of refuge for those who cannot maintain themselves to their 
 wishes in their own country, let no one in a spirit of restlessness 
 and discontent leave home on slight grounds, or without well 
 weighing the consequences of the eventful step he may be about 
 to take, voluntarily exiling himself from all he may hold dear. 
 The pang of parting with old and familiar faces is very severe, 
 and nearly as painful is leaving for ever the home of our youth, 
 even without its loved tenants, the peaceful cottage with its gar- 
 den and aged trees, the warm bower-like village with its grey 
 church, round which our forefathers may be mouldering in the 
 hallowed dust, the pleasant banks of the clear and glancing stream, 
 the smiling fields, the wild moor or heath-clad hills, — which, 
 with all their attractions and endearing associations will be con- 
 tinually thought of with fond regret when left. 
 
 If by honest industry and sobriety the labourer or mechanic 
 can maintain himself and bring up his family in his own country, 
 let him never think of emigrating, particularly if he is not con- 
 scious of strength of body and mind to carry him through the 
 new and trying scenes he will meet with in the wilderness of the 
 
332 INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 
 
 West. Conceive the feelings of the settler on finding himself 
 placed for the first time with axe in hand, in a dark forest, with 
 nought but the countless stems of tjrees around him, and knowing 
 that these must first disappear by painful labour before he can 
 turn the soil to any account. How many have S'Unk under the 
 depressing prospect before them, and bitterly repented their own 
 recklessness in venturing across the Atlantic ! 
 
 I conclude this subject with a circumstance of recent occur- 
 rence. A settler who had been for some time in Canada, re- 
 turned to a village in the south of Scotland to arrange some family 
 matters, and in conversing with an old acquaintance on the coun- 
 try of his adoption, his friends asked him, '■'■ Did you see any 
 thing like Tweed-side in America?" — "No," was the answer: 
 *' Nothing to be compared to it; one man lived near me from 
 this quarter, and we used continually to talk about Tweed-side, 
 till we both cried." — "Well," said the other, fortunately igno- 
 rant of the luxury of grief, " I'll stay where I am, enjoy Tweed- 
 side, and not go to America to cry about it." 
 
 To employ emigrants without means, for some time after 
 their arrival in the Canadas, it may be suggested that instead 
 of any more canals on the grand scale, wooden rail-roads should 
 be formed throughout the country, and above all, perpendicular to 
 the frontiers; from the very abundant supply of materials for their 
 construction, they can be laid at a trifling cost. It is a painful 
 thing to witness in the Canadian forests, the noble trees consumed 
 by fire in cradles or heaps, to clear the land, and the roads at the 
 same time in many places nearly impassable. What more easy 
 than to lay the trees on the road on notched cross sleepers, and 
 elevating the small end of the tree, lay a bar of iron on its length. 
 Mr. George, of Quebec, has paid much attention to this subject, 
 and his plans for internal improvements in general, are well de- 
 serving attention. 
 
 Mr. George established aland office in Quebec in 1821, to en- 
 courage and promote emigration, and where emigrants could be 
 informed of the most eligible means and most advantageous mode 
 of proceeding to commence a settlement in any part of Lower Can- 
 ada. By this means, the supply of flour, formerly furnished by 
 the United States to his Majesty's forces in the West Indies, Nova 
 Scotia, New Brunswick, and elsewhere, is now supplied by Cana- 
 da, greatly to the advantage of the province. 
 
 Mr. George next exerted himself to bring about a direct tea- 
 trade from China to Canada, which gave to the province ^635, 000 
 revenue in the two first years, and prevented the illicit trade along 
 the Canada frontiers. Then he developed the possibility of ren- 
 dering the St. Lawrence Rapids navigable by steam tow-boats, 
 
DISCOVERY IN MAGNETISM. 333 
 
 with chains and inclined planes, which would greatly tend to the 
 prosperity and defence of Canada. 
 
 He proposed the substitution of inclined planes instead of locks 
 in canals in many instances, to convert the trees of the forest into 
 wooden rail-ways, and to encourage the growth of hemp. Lastly, 
 he proposed the erection of a pier from Quebec to Beauport, in 
 order to extend the harbour of Quebec, and render it equal, if not 
 superior, to any on the continent of America. 
 
 An interesting discovery was made last year by the naval sur- 
 veyors on the St. Lawrence, which may be of service to emi- 
 grants. The fur traders had hitherto represented the Bersiamils 
 river in the meridian of 69° as altogether unnaviga-ble, and en- 
 deavoured to persuade the surveyors not to examine it. How- 
 ever, they were determined to do so, and the following was the 
 result: A noble stream carrying for thirty-five miles eighteen and 
 twenty feet of water, when a magnificent cataract interrupted the 
 navigation. The banks were steep, of clay and sand below, and 
 deep vegetable mould above, supporting poplar, pine and gigantic 
 birch trees. This year it is to be hoped that the river has been 
 examined above the Falls. 
 
 It may not be out of our place here to mention a discovery in 
 magnetism, which was communicated to me by a French gentle- 
 man (A. Girod) at Quebec. Whilst in Mexico, he was engaged 
 in a series of magnetical experiments, and discovered a method 
 by which polarity could be restored to compass needles deranged 
 by the firing of cannon, by lightning, or the vicinity of iron. M. 
 Girod says, that if a compass needle be struck on both sides of 
 the point of suspension longitudinally with a .«mall bar of copper, 
 proportioning the strength of the blow to that of the steel, the 
 needle loses its polarjty, which seems to be driven out latterally. 
 Again, to restore the polarity, let the needle be struck horizon- 
 tally, and across on both sides of the point of suspension. Now 
 this is a very simple experiment; and a most important discovery 
 for navigation.* 
 
 After partaking of the hospitality of government-house, and re- 
 ceiving a series of attentions from many friends at Quebec, I left 
 this interesting city (and one which will ever be held by me in 
 
 * Several years ago the Rev. W. Scoresby discovered a mode of magnetising- soft 
 steel bars by percussion, or of destroying the magnetism by tiie same process at 
 pleasure, whicli he accomplished to the utmost certainty. For example, a small bar 
 of steel hammered vertically, and held at the same time vertically upon ihe top of a 
 poker or other rod of iron, will, by a few blows, become so highly magnetic, as to take 
 up considerable weights of iron, or traverse as a compass, if properly suspended. To 
 destroy this magnetism, a blow or two is sufficient when the steel is held horizontally, 
 and in an east and west direction. — Philosophical Transactions, Royal Society^ 
 1823—4. 
 
334 ROAD TO ST. John's — lake champlain. 
 
 pleasing remembrance) on a clear frosty night in November. The 
 streets were clean and silent, and the moonlight played on 
 the tin roofs and on the glancing waters of the St. Lawrence, as I 
 walked through the Prescott-gate, and down Mountain-street to the 
 quay. I intended at one time to have availed myself of an invi- 
 tation to visit the Governor of New Brunswick, but I found it 
 impossible to reach P'redericktown at that season of the year, sol 
 sailed up the St. J^awrence, part of the voyage in a snow storm, 
 and having missed the passage-boat to La Prairie, passed over in 
 a canoe to journey by land and water to New York. 
 
 The road from La Prairie to St. John's was full of dangerous 
 ruts and deep in mud; besides, it passed through a dead flat, and 
 was one of the most disagreeable highways I ever travelled. The 
 wagon, with its four horses, lumbered along heavily for some 
 time, and at last turned completely over, and we were thrown 
 into a pei'fect 'slough of despond,' and begrimed with mud from 
 'head to foot. We were scraped and reseated, and embarked 
 wilh whole bones, at the head of Lake Champlain. 
 
 Every window was closed at night in the stoved cabin of the 
 steamer; and in the morning, I was so overcome with the heat 
 and bad air, that it was sometime before I could rise and stagger 
 to the door. We passed Isle aux Noix, a small British frontier 
 fort, where among other officers, I saw Lieutenant Ingal, of the 
 15th, who has particularly distinguished himself by his zeal, ac- 
 tivity, and ability, as a traveller and discoverer, in the wilds of 
 Canada. 
 
 The shores of Lake Champlain were low and flat at first, and 
 the mountains on either side were at a distance from the water. 
 There was a wild smuggling, and uncultivated look about the 
 country near the frontier, but it improved as we advanced to the 
 centre of the lake, where the scenery became very magnificent. 
 Bays, headlands, mountains, and woods, were presented under 
 every imposing aspect. The greatest breadth of the inland sea is 
 eighteen miles. 
 
 Passing Plattsburgh, a flourishing little town, the scene'of our 
 defeat last war,l we reached Crown Point, and then the lake con- 
 tracted from four or five miles in breadth to a river channel. 
 The point was green and elevated, and on it were the ruins of mi- 
 litary works, principally erected by the Canadian French, when 
 they meditated and attempted the utter expulsion of the English 
 colonists from the shores of the Atlantic. Stories are told of 
 vaults and dungeons at Crown Point, where plots vvAere hatched 
 in conjunction with the Indians, for burning the dwellings and 
 massacreing the families of the settlers; and here were displayed 
 " long rows of scalps, white in one place with the venerable locks 
 
LAKE GEORGE TICONDEROGA. 335 
 
 of age, and glistening in another with the ringlets of childhood 
 and of youth." 
 
 Next, at the entrance to Lake George, with its clear waters, its 
 picturesque islets, and steep shores, were the remains of the cele- 
 brated Fort Ticonderoga, situated on a point of land surrounded 
 on three sides with water, and on the fourth, deep trenches cut 
 into the morass, with high breast-works. It presented one of 
 the most likely posts to make a gallant defence, that could well 
 be conceived. The ruin of a barrack, like a "donjon keep," 
 was the most conpicuous olvject on the point. 
 
 It is impossible, as an officer of the black watch, to think of 
 Ticonderoga without strong emotion, for here, in 1758, the 42d, 
 after cutting their way with their claymores through a broad 
 abattis of prostrate trees, under a heavy fire from the Frer.ch gar- 
 rison, made desperate efforts for four hours to scale a- high work 
 without scaling-ladders, by mounting on one another's shoulders 
 and by making holes in it with their bayonets. They were so 
 exasperated at being so unexpectedly checked, and by the heavy 
 loss which they had sustained, that they refused to withdraw till 
 ordered a third time to do so by their general; their loss on this 
 occasion was more than half the men, and two-thirds of the officers 
 killed or severely wounded; that is, twenty-five officers, nine- 
 teen sergeants, and six hundred and three privates. About this 
 time the regiment received the honorary distinction of Royal. 
 
 We sailed through the contracted and shallow waters of the 
 lake for some distance, while rushes lined the rocky banks on 
 either hand, and landed at Whitehall, on the borders of Vermont. 
 We then embarked in a canal track-boat; to voyage by Saratoga, 
 unfortunately memorable for Burgoyne's surrender, to Tro}', on 
 the Hudson; but there was so much tobacco-chewing, smoking, 
 and heat in the cabin, during the cold night that I bivouacked on 
 deck beside the steersman, and ran the risk of a rheumatic attack 
 in consequence. 
 
 I was surprised and pleased to see how well they always live 
 in the Stales; here, in a long, narrow, and crowded boat, and 
 from a cook-shop, only five or six feet square, breakfast, dinner, 
 and supper were provided for thirty or foity people, which 
 would have done credit to any respectable hotel; stews and stgaks 
 vegetables and preserves, tea and coffee, all were in abundance, 
 and well "got up." 
 
 We passed through a rich, well-cultivated country, and saw oc- 
 casionally the heavy Dutch houses of the farmers, with gable ends 
 in front; the weathercock on one end of them, and the stoop, or 
 porch, before the door. Then passing the junction of the great 
 Erie and Champlain Canals, we had from beneath a handsome 
 
336 ALBANY THE HUDSON RIVER. 
 
 wooden bridge, with a roof and opened latticed sides, a view of 
 the Falls of the Cahoes, on the Mohawk river, thundering over a 
 precipice seventy feet high, to reach which the river passed 
 through a rugged and wooded solitude above, which, with the 
 cataract, inspired the muse of Moore thirty years ago. 
 
 Troy, with Mount Ida behind it, was composed ol whitewashed 
 brick and wooden houses, with large windows and signs thickly 
 set; it had an air of bustle about it, but I should be sorry to set up 
 my staff here, and would rather seek a quieter Ilium. We entered 
 the steam vessel John Jay, which advertised to take passengers 
 to New York for fifty cents (half a dollar,) distance one hundred 
 and fifty miles, and we paddled towards Albany. We had not 
 long started before the passengers were penned up in a corner, 
 and relieved of a much larger sum than what was specified in the 
 advertisement, on the plea that the hand-bill which we had seen 
 was circulated unknown to the proprietors of the John Jay, and 
 that their fare was a quarter of a dollar to Albany, six miles, two 
 dollars to New York, •' and no mistake about that." 
 
 We changed our vessel at Albany for one of the largest which 
 navigate the Hudson, and tarried but a brief space at the seat of 
 the State Legislature of New York, but a sufficient time to re- 
 mark, that almost all the primitive little Dutch houses of red and 
 yellow bricks had disappeared, and that the streets were generally 
 straight, at right angles to one another, and composed of three- 
 storied modern edifices, with about a dozen handsome churches. 
 
 One of the most interesting events which annually occurs at 
 Albany is, the breaking up in the spring of the ice in the Hudson, 
 over which sleighs and wagons may have driven for some weeks 
 previous. The river is then swelled underneath by the melted 
 snow from the tributary streams, and suddenly a roar like that 
 from a park of artillery is followed by a longitudinal crack, ex- 
 tending for several miles, and displaying a body of ice six or 
 seven feet thick; the stream then breaks this into masses of va- 
 rious size, and the whole float past, angrily crashing and grating 
 against each other, and heaped up into ever-changing and glitter- 
 ing figures. 
 
 About this time passengers were landed at different places, in 
 a way attended with great danger, for the competition was so 
 great on the Hudson, that to save time, they did not stop the 
 engine at all, but rang a bell to warn the passengers about to leave 
 as they approached their destination; they then placed them with 
 their baggage, in a boat hanging from the quarter davits; it was 
 lowered stern foremost into the water; a steersman stood at the 
 rudder; a tow-line was attached at the bow rollock, if the steamer 
 happened to be going with the stream, at the rate of fifteen miles 
 
ECONOMY OP TIME — THE EX-KING OP SPAIN. 337 
 
 an hour (which is not uncommon, as they are built for river na- 
 vigation, like a spoon); away spun the boat to the bank, at the 
 rate of twenty miles an hour; the passengers jumped on shore, 
 and the engine, by an ingenious and simple addition to the ma- 
 chinery, vvound up the tow-line, and the boat returned to the 
 steamer without any pause or diminution in its speed. Now, how- 
 ever, (after some fatal accidents,) they stop the engine for a few 
 minutes, and take more time to land their passengers. 
 
 In the summer and autumn the steamers on the North river 
 have been known to have seven or eight hundred passengers on 
 board at a time; people from New York, or the unhealthy south- 
 ern States, proceeding to the springs at Saratoga, or about to travel 
 west by the Great Erie Canal. On these occasions it is impossi- 
 ble to walk about on deck; the dense multitude stand or sit com- 
 posedly, and get their meals in succession, without noise or in- 
 convenience, by each getting a ticket, and having his place fixed 
 at table. 
 
 Some time ago an Englishman, unaccustomed to such crowds, 
 was proceeding up the Hudson, and after spending a night of dis- 
 comfort on board, in the morning was desirous of refreshing him- 
 self by performing his ablutions. He inquired where he could 
 wash, and was directed to a recess, where he saw basins in use, 
 and rapidly passing from hand to hand. He saw also a looking- 
 glass, on one side of which hung a brush by a string, and on the 
 other a comb, which were applied indiscriminately to the " haffet 
 locks" of the citizens. He was rather disgusted with this strange 
 scene, and despaired of being able to secure a basin before the 
 breakfast-bell rang, when at last a passenger, who had just washed, 
 turning round, saw the distress of the John Bull, and immediately 
 emptied his basin, poured a little pure water into it from the cock, 
 and laying it down on the slab, pointed to it and made a low bow 
 to the Englishman, who thanked the stranger for his civility, 
 and gladly availed himself of it. 
 
 At breakfast-time the Englishman related to a compagnon dii 
 voyage what had happened previously, and added — "I see op- 
 posite to us the gentleman who behaved so civilly to me, and so 
 unlike the others; 1 wonder who he can be!" — " Why," answered 
 his friend, <' I have just learned that that is the ex-King of Spain, 
 Joseph Buonaparte!" 
 
 The Hudson unfolded to us its beauties in succession as we 
 voyaged down its noble stream. Tlie Katskill Mountains on 
 the right presented their majestic sides, along which clouds were 
 rolling; the opposite bank of the river was smiling with fields, 
 woods, and occasional villas, and where rocks and cliffs appeared 
 U u 
 
338 
 
 THE HIGHLANDS. 
 
 it recalled recollections of the far-famed Rhine, but without its 
 castles. On the deep tide were frequently seen the white sails of 
 sloops, conveying flour and deals to New York. The town of 
 Hudson was passed on the left, pleasantly looking down from its 
 hill, but altogether modernized and changed since its great founder, 
 Henrick, "shook from his skirt the dust of mortality." The 
 river next expanded into a succession of lakes, and did not con- 
 tract its channel till we approached those scenes of many a wild 
 tale and martial achievement, the Highlands. We passed 
 through the cleft of the mountains at Windgate, and found our- 
 selves navigating between most romantic precipices, amongst 
 which Dunderberg and Anthony's Nose were looked on with 
 peculiar interest. 
 
 We emerged from the deep shadows of the impending masses 
 of rock, and saw the Military Academy at West Point, on its 
 elevated plateau, and surrounded with the traces of military works 
 constructed during the great struggle for American independence: 
 then Fort Putnam, on its natural platform on the right, recalled 
 the memory of the chivalrous but unfortunate Andre. On look- 
 ing back at the southern entrance to the bold scenery of the High- 
 lands, it seemed like a Scottish loch; the trees descended from 
 high ridges to the water's edge, and here and there a bare peak of 
 granite towered above the foliage. Then Verplank's Point ap- 
 peared, with its family mansion, commanding beautiful views 
 of the river; after which we were in the Tappaan Sea, a lake of 
 the Hudson, with tiie primeval forest alternating with clearings 
 and snug farm-houses. On the eastern shore was the Sleepy 
 Hollow of Rip Van Winkle, and the Palisades. A wall of gra- 
 nite, extending on our right for several miles, marked the shore 
 of New Jersey. 
 
 Night had now closed in upon us, and the termination of our 
 swift course was indicated by a long line of glimmering lights on 
 the left, proceeding from the fair city of New York. 
 
339 
 
 CHy^PTER XXXII. 
 
 Leave New York to see Congress opened — General Wool — Sail to Brunswick, in New 
 Jersey. — Trenton. — Memorabilia connected with it. — The Delaware. — Joseph 
 Buonaparte. — Biistol and Burling-toii. — Philadelphia. — The William Penn Steam 
 Vessel. — Newcastl ■. — The Chesa peake and Delaware Canal. — Sail up the Patapsco 
 to Baltimnre. — Uninviting appearance of Maryland. — Slavery and its Effects too 
 apparent. — The great Chesapeake and Oliio Rail-road. — Bladcnshurgh. — Pass over 
 the Battle-field. — Silent approach to Wasliington. — Resembles a Russian city. — 
 The Streets. — Houses indifferently heated. — Audience of President Jackson. — A 
 Sketch of his Career. — The Pennsylvania Avenue. — The Capitol, Sculptures, and 
 Paintings. — The Rotunda, National Library. — Halls of the Senate and of Re- 
 presentatives. — The President's Message. — A gratifying Account of the Pros- 
 sperity and Prospects of the United States. — Visit Mr. Clay. — Inpect the Arsenal. 
 — Visit the Theatre and attend Church. — Mr. Bankhead. — The Nunnery. — A 
 Party at the President's. 
 
 A FAVOURABLE Opportunity presenting itself for journeying; by 
 way of Philadelphia and Baltimore to Washington, to see Con- 
 gress opened, being invited to join the party of General Wool, 
 consisting of himself, his excellent lady, and the two accomplish- 
 ed daughters of the Secretary at War, Governor Cass, I did not 
 tarry long in New York, but intended making a longer stay on 
 my return. 
 
 General Wool served with distinction in the last war, 
 particularly on the attack of Queenstown Heights. For his 
 gallantry and good conduct in the battle of Plattsburgh he received 
 the brevet of Lieutenant-Colonel, and afterwards on the peace 
 establishment was appointed Inspector-General, with the rank of 
 Colonel; since which he has received the rank of Brigadier-Ge- 
 neral by brevet. He is an officer of the strictest honour, very 
 intelligent, and with the manners of a perfect gentleman. 
 
 The snow lying thick on the ground, we walked to the steam- 
 vessel, which carried us through the Narrows of Long Island, 
 and round the Coast to New Brunswick in New Jersey: from 
 thence vve travelled in a coach across the fertile State to Trenton, 
 its capital, on the Delaware, now containing upwards of four 
 thousand inhabitants, with a beautiful covered bridge, a quarter 
 of a mile long, near "The Falls." 
 
 Trenton is associated with some of the most important events 
 of the revolutionary war. Whilst the English held it, there was 
 deadly strife about it. The capture of an English and Dutch 
 detachment at Trenton in 1776 was the first victory gained by 
 the Americans, and which served at once to raise their drooping 
 spirits, while the masterly retreat of Washington from Trenton, 
 
340 BANKS OF THE DELAWARE — SLAVERY APPARENT. 
 
 under every disadvantage, is considered as one of his most brilliant 
 achievements. 
 
 We sailed down the Delaware, and passed Bordentown, 
 where is the residence of Joseph Buonaparte, the ex-King of 
 Spain, distinguished by his courteous manners and his taste for 
 the fine arts — the last shown in the elegance of his villa and the 
 grounds which surround it. 
 
 We next passed Bristol and Burlington on opposite sides of 
 the Delaware, the former in Pennsylvania, and adorned with 
 handsome country houses and flower-gardens; and at night 
 reached Philadelphia. We left early on the following morning, 
 by a magnificent steam-vessel, the William Penn, with great 
 length of keel and breadth of beam, lofty cabins, machinery in 
 the most perfect order, and the greatest regularity observed on 
 board, with attention to the comfort of passengers and the safety 
 of their baggage. 
 
 We passed Gloucester and Fort MifHln, on an island in the 
 Delaware, then Lazaretto and Chester, and arrived at Newcastle, 
 where we took the passage-boat on the Chesapeake and Delaware 
 Canal. We had great difficulty in forcing our way through the 
 ice with six horses. A false cut-water of rough planks was 
 rigged, and, by inducing a schooner to precede us, we accomplish- 
 ed the fourteen miles, after considerable delay, passing the <'Deep 
 Cut," where, in some places, the banks are seventy feet high; 
 then under the Summit Bridge, two hundred and eighty feet 
 long and eighty feet above us, and through marshes which for 
 some time swallowed up the embankments as soon as formed. 
 
 At the village of Chesapeake we entered the celebrated bay of 
 the same name, and, embarking in another steam-vessel, passed 
 the strong Fort M'llenry and a very flat country on either hand, 
 and passing up the Patapsco a short distance, we arrived at Balti- 
 more, where we only stayed one night, for here and at Philadel- 
 phia I intended to sojourn a few days on .my way back to New 
 York. 
 
 On leaving Baltimore, the appearance of Maryland was far from 
 inviting. We immediately saw that we were in a slave-stale : in- 
 stead of the well-dressed countrymen, the fertile fields, the neat 
 fences, and comfortable houses of the State of New York, wesavv 
 k only a few starved and ragged ^pegroes driving bullock-wagons 
 laden with firewood, and exhausted tobacco-fields on each side; 
 and there was an air of gloom and desolation over the landscape, 
 increased by the houses being far apart on the road. 
 
 We passed through some oak-woods and over roofed wooden 
 bridges, and saw the great Chesapeake and Ohio rail-road, of bars 
 of iron laid on wooden sleepers, and intended to extend for three 
 
BLA.DENSBURGH — CITY OF WASHINGTON. 341 
 
 hundred miles ; sixty had then been completed on the distance 
 from Baltimore to Fredericktown. 
 
 We next passed through the village of Bladensburgh, consist- 
 ing of two rows of indifibrent wooden houses ; crossed the small 
 stream by the bridge, where considerable loss was sustained by 
 our troops from the American artillery ; ascended the hill on 
 which the enemy's lines were drawn up, which fired with little 
 effect by platoons on our light infantry in extended ordej- ; saw 
 where our lads rushed to the charge, and the scattered cypress- 
 trees, beautifully dispersed over the gently ascending eminence, 
 where the slain lell, and beside which they lie buried; snow- 
 wreaths here and there lay in the hollows, and the scene was one 
 of quiet beauty. 
 
 The road continued through some dark woods and an uncul- 
 tivated country ; and, after passing a single bullock-cart, on lift- 
 ing up my eyes, I saw before me, on a bare plain, the great dome 
 and the massive pile of the capitol at Washington, with a few in- 
 ferior houses round it, and hardly a living object moving on the 
 silent scene — a strange approach to the metropolis of "a fine, 
 free, and flourishing country." 
 
 I found the principal hotel (Gadsby's) full of Members of Con- 
 gress, who were well lodged and entertained in this very superior 
 establishment, built as a hollow square of four stories, with 
 covered galleries round the interior, and a fountain in the centre 
 of the court. 
 
 In walking through Washington, it reminded me much of a Rus- 
 sian city ; the streets of great length and breadth, the houses in- 
 conveniently scattered over an open and treeless plain, and no bus- 
 tle of commerce. There were many good stores, and numerous 
 lottery-offices ; but in one material point the Americans were great- 
 ly inferior to my old friends the Muscovites — in the heating of 
 their houses. The snow lay on the ground some inches in thick- 
 ness — 
 
 " The wind whistled cold, 
 And tlie stars glimmer'd red ;" 
 
 yet, in some of the best mansions, it was impossible to sit still, 
 so great was the cold within doors from the houses being badly 
 finished, and the grates with the anthracite coals being quite in- 
 adequate to the purpose for which they were intended. 
 
 The Inspector General was so kind as to accompany me to the 
 President's house, a handsome building of the Ionic order, of two 
 stories and a basement, overlooking the Potomac and an extensive 
 landscape from its elevated site. We entered an iron gate before 
 the edifice, drove round a grass-plat enclosed with posts and chains, 
 
342 PRESIDENT JACKSON. 
 
 and alighted at a lofty portico of four columns. On knocking at 
 the entrance-door, at which there were neither guards nor liveried 
 retainers, after a considerable delay, one of the leaves was opened 
 by a little man in a fur cap and grey short coat, who said he would 
 ask if General Jackson could be seen ; he then left us in an emp- 
 ty hall. It was bitterly cold, and General Wool piloted me up- 
 stairs to an anti-room, in which there was a fire, sundry chairs 
 without backs, book shelves without books, and, in plain frames, 
 four coloured scriptural prints indiflerently executed. 
 
 The President's ne|)hew and ado[)ted son, Mr, Jackson, a tall 
 young man, recently married (as almost all American young gen- 
 tlemen ybr/^^n«/e/y are), came and conversed with us for some 
 time, and then conducted us into a handsome drawing-room 
 with yellow furniture, where we found the ladies of the family 
 dressed a la Parisienne, and all of them extremely affable and 
 agreeable ; they consisted of young Mrs. Jackson, Mrs. Donald- 
 son, Miss Eason and Miss Farquhar. 
 
 After sitting some time with the ladies, we conducted them to 
 their carriage, and then were shown into a room where the Pre- 
 sident was seated at a table covered with newspapers, and before 
 a huge fire. He rose at our entrance, and, shaking hands, inquir- 
 ed after our health with the formal politeness of the old school. 
 The General is about six feet high, of a spare make and upright 
 carriage, dressed in black, with a black stock, wears his white 
 hair combed back from his face, which is long, and his nose of 
 corresponding dimensions. In face and figure he reminded me 
 of the late Lieutenant-Governor of the Royal Military College, 
 General Butler. 
 
 Behind the President there was a full-length portrait of Bolivar, 
 similar to one I saw in the possession of Sir Robert Wilson; and 
 round the room were models of agricultural implements. 
 
 The party in opposition to the re-election of General Jackson 
 to the presidential chair had spread a report that he was seriously 
 ill, and could not live; and it was with a peculiar expression that 
 he replied to General Wool's interrogatory regarding his health, 
 that he had not been so well for ten years. A tooth had annoyed 
 him, and an unskilful dentist, in removing it, had also drawn 
 with it a part of the jaw; the accident had confined him to the 
 house for some days, but now he had got over the annoyance. 
 
 We remained with the President a quarter of an hour, during 
 which time he made inquiries regarding my progress through the 
 States, asked my opinion of what I had seen, and then spoke at 
 some length on the engrossing question of reform, trusted that 
 there would be no revolution in England, and that the constitu- 
 tion would still be preserved in its purity. 
 
PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE. 343 
 
 It would be very improper for me to repeat the General's 
 words during this very interesting; interview, as it would be a 
 betrayal of confidence, of which former travellers in the States 
 have sometimes been accused; let it suffice to say, that I retired 
 much pleased with my reception by the chief magistrate of the 
 United States, who politely invited me to take a family-dinner 
 with him in a few days. 
 
 General Jackson commenced life without the advantages of a 
 liberal education — his energy of character alone brought him for- 
 ward; first on service in the revolutionary contest, then distin- 
 guished in Indian warfare on the western frontier, he was the ter- 
 ror of the red men from the Mississippi to the Rocky Moun- 
 tains; he likewise engaged in political life, and acted in a judicial 
 capacity. As a General of the Militia of Tennessee, he was se- 
 lected to repel the British inva'^ion of New Orleans in 1S14: his 
 success on that occasion was of incalculable benefit to the States, 
 and occasioned his promotion to the high office which he has fill- 
 ed with excellent judgment for three years, and has given gene- 
 ral satisfaction both to the citizens and to foreigners. 
 
 We next inspected the four public offices, two on each side of 
 the President's house, appropriated to the treasury, state, navy, 
 and war departments; in the latter, I had the honour of making 
 the acquaintance of Governor Cass, secretary-at-war, and of Gen- 
 eral Macomb, commander of the army. 
 
 We proceeded along the Pennsylvania avenue, a mile long, 
 (the upper end ornam.ented with double rows of poplars,) and 
 ascended the eminence on which the great pile of the capitol is 
 built, by broad stairs. In the middle of the ascent was a marble 
 monument, consisting of an eagle-surmounted column on a square 
 base, on which were also allegorical figures representing History, 
 Fame, Commerce, and America, This monument, erected in 
 memory of the naval officers who fell in the Tripolitan war, for- 
 merly stood in the navy yard, but lately was removed to a bet- 
 ter site. 
 
 We entered the circular Rotunda in the centre of the capitol, 
 excellently paved, and v,?ith the great and echoing circumference 
 of the dome overhead. In four niches round the walls were 
 sculptured representations of the fight between Boon (one of the 
 first pioneers of the West) and an Indian chief — the landing at 
 Plymouth of the Pilgrim Fathers fleeing from England for con- 
 science sake — the treaty between Penn and two Indian chiefs on 
 the Delaware — and the last, the escape of Captain John Smith in 
 1606, from the uplifted war club of King Powhatan, on the in- 
 tercession of his daughter Pocahontas. Four large oil paintings, 
 by Col. Trumbull, represented the Declaration of Independence, 
 
344 NATIONAL LIBRARY — HALLS OP CONGRESS. 
 
 General Washington resigning his commission, and the surren- 
 der of Cornwallis and Burgoyne at Yorktown and Saratoga. 
 Connected with these two last, I beg to subjoin an anecdote highly 
 creditable to the American character, and also to show that a re- 
 gard for the feelings of others is confined to no particular coun- 
 
 A British officer on a visit to Washington made the acquain- 
 tance, at a hotel, of two officers of the United States artillery; 
 they showed him whatever was worthy of notice in or about the 
 city, but they dissuaded him from entering the capitol, as they 
 said it was in an unfinished state, and contained nothing that 
 could interest him. However, one day he went alone to the 
 capitol, and found that the cause of the dissuasions of his friends 
 was the pictures above mentioned. They thought it would vex 
 him to see these memorials of British defeat. 
 
 In the National Library, also in the capitol, I found a large 
 collection of choice works, and the librarian kindl)?^ afforded me 
 every facility in consulting them on several occasions. The hall 
 of the senate was a neat semicircular chamber, but the hall of 
 representatives is the great attraction in the capitol. I was intro- 
 duced to it by General Aaron Ward, on the day that the Presi- 
 dent's message was read. The Speaker's chair, or rather cur- 
 tained throne, was placed in front of a row of lofty windows, 
 with crimson drapery; the seats and desks of the members of 
 Congress were placed in semicircular and ascending rows. Co- 
 rinthian pillars of great size, with polished shafts of variegated 
 pudding stone, in which blue predominated, and crowned with 
 marble capitals, were disposed round the walls, and opposite to 
 the Speaker was a capacious gallery. The members wore their 
 hats, as in St. Stephen's, and one or two I remarked in fur caps 
 and white great coats, probably from the far west. Well may 
 the Americans vaunt of their country, when representatives 
 salute each other- in Congress after journeys over two thousand 
 miles of United States territory. 
 
 There is silence in the great hall; a door opens and a voice an- 
 nounces, "The Message of the President." Instead of a ])ro- 
 cession, a single individual in a cloak, enters with a bundle of 
 papers in his hand, tied with red tape, and advancing up the 
 centre passage, presents it to the Speaker; he unties it, and reads 
 aloud the important document. 
 
 The Message. — The President congratulated his fellow citi- 
 zens of the Senate and House of Representatives on the continued 
 and increasing prosperity of their beloved country, and gave a 
 satisfactory view of the agriculture, manufactures, and internal 
 improvements in the United States. He then alluded to the state 
 
THE president's MESSAGE. 345 
 
 of the navigation and trade, and had much satisfaction in noticing 
 the late arrangements with Great Britain relating to Colonial trade, 
 productive of mutual good feeling and amicable relations between 
 the two countries, which he hoped would not be interrupted. 
 He next mentions his desire that an early settlement of the boun- 
 daries should take place between Canada, New Brunswick, and 
 the States. Then spake of the claims (for indemnity) on France, 
 Spain, and Denmark, the two Sicilies, Portugal, &c. for irregu- 
 larities committed on American vessels, and for the redress of 
 injuries. Commercial treaties with Russia and Austria, Prussia 
 and the Porte, it was anticipated, would open a vast field for the 
 enterprize of American merchants. Increased facilities attended 
 the commerce to China and the East Indies, and satisfaction was 
 to be required by an armed force, for piratical outrages commit- 
 ted in Sumatra on American merchantmen. 
 
 The nature of the connection with the independent States of 
 South and Central America, was next in order, and it was hoped 
 that trade would increase with them on the subsiding of civil 
 commotions. A revisal of the Consular laws was recommended. 
 The removal of the Indian tribes to the west bank of the Missis- 
 sippi was noticed, and the President trusted that the States would 
 not be long embarrassed with an Indian population, though 
 experiments might be made to reclaim the red-men from barbar- 
 ism, and to teach them the habits and enjoyments of civilized 
 life. 
 
 The state of public finance, as shown by the Secretary of the 
 Treasury, was very gratifying; the revenue of 1831 amounted to 
 twenty-seven millions seven hundred thousand dollars, and the 
 expenditure for all objects (other than the public debt) did not 
 exceed fourteen millions seven hundred thousand. The payment 
 on account of the principal and interest of the debt during the 
 year was sixteen millions and a half of dollars, and it was antici- 
 pated that within four years of the President's administration, the 
 whole of the public debt would be extinguished — a remarkable 
 case in the history of nations. 
 
 A modification of the taritf which shall produce a reduction of 
 revenue to the wants of the Government, and an adjustment of 
 the duties on imports, with a view to equal justice in relation 
 to all national interests, and to the counteraction of foreign po- 
 licy, so far as it may not be injurious to these interests, was 
 deemed one of the principal objects which demanded the consi- 
 deration of Congress, and arrangements should also be made to 
 relieve the people' from unnecessary taxation after the extinction 
 of the national debt. 
 
 The insolvent debtors (to the United States) should be relieved; 
 X X 
 
346 MR. CLAY. 
 
 the complicated system of public accounts should be improved; 
 the laws of the Dkstrict of Columbia (round Washington) should 
 be revised: and tlie extension of the judiciary system in the 
 States of Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Alabama, Mississippi, and 
 Louisiana, which have not the benefits of a circuit, but only of a 
 district court. 
 
 Leaving to the investigation of an enlightened people and their 
 representatives the present organization of the bank of the Uni- 
 ted States, with a view to its improvement, the President's mes- 
 sage concluded in these words: " Permit me to invoke that Power 
 which superintends all governments, to infuse into your deliber- 
 ations at this important crisis of our history a spirit of mutual 
 forbearance and conciliation; in that spirit was our Union formed, 
 and in that spirit must it be preserved." 
 
 Among other distinguished persons to whom I had letters from 
 Mr. Washington Irving, was General Jackson's political oppo- 
 nent, Henry Clay, Esq. a Senator of the United Slates. I waited 
 on him at his hotel, and found him to be a tall and spare-made man, 
 about fifty-five years of age, in black, with a high forehead, thin 
 brown hair, fresh complexion, straight nose, and front teeth rather 
 prominent. His demeanour was quiet, though he is a Kentuck- 
 ian; he wore a smile on his countenance in speaking, and was 
 slow and distinct in his articulation; yet his appearance and man- 
 ner evidently implied that 
 
 " He plunores into the sea who seeks for pearls, 
 And he who seeks greatness has watchful nights." 
 
 With him sat a nephew of the great Washington, a tall and robust 
 man, with a florid complexion, and the sedate manner of his cele- 
 brated relative. 
 
 I inspected the arsenal, across the Tiber and at some distance 
 from the city, by invitation from Lieutenant Lymington, and 
 found it, though small, in the most perfect order. I visited the 
 (indifferent) Washington Theatre, and had my money returned; 
 for the gas would not burn, and there was no performance. I' 
 attended a Presbyterian church on Sunday, where I heard an ad- 
 mirable discourse from a Mr. Post on the "signs of the times," 
 on which we should not shut our eyes and ears, but be up and 
 doing. Education was the distinctive mark of the present age, 
 in which peace prevailed, and in which the comforts of the poor 
 were attenried to, and the security of the rich. 
 
 At the table of our excellent Charge d'Affaires, Mr. Bankhead, 
 I met the Members of the Corps Diplomatique, two English tra- 
 vellers of fortune, Messrs. Davidson and Gibb, and a daughter of 
 
PARTY AT THE PRESIDENT'S. 347 
 
 the Emperor Iturbide, a charming young lady, rather petite, with 
 black sparklina; eyes and raven tresses. She hnd been educated 
 at the convent near Washington, a very interesting establishment 
 of sixty nuns, descendants from rich Catholic families; they in- 
 struct one hundred boarders, and their day charity-school consists 
 of two hundred pupils, for vvhich they deserve great praise. 
 
 The day before I left Washington, I dined e?i farnille with 
 the President, and considered my being asked in this kind and 
 friendly manner as a compliment to the service to which I be- 
 longed. The General had not begun to give dinners that season, 
 and my stay being short; owing to my anxiety to return to Eng- 
 land, from the stirring times that were anticipated, if I had not 
 been invited to a family-dinner, I could not have partaken of the 
 hospitality of the chief magistrate at all. 
 
 To a small and comfortable drawing-room, with mirrors and a 
 chandelier, and in which there was a full-length portrait of 
 Washington, I was introduced by Mr. Baird (the butler) to Gen- 
 eral Jackson, who was seated in a high-backed arm chair, round 
 which were the members of the family, the ladies composing one 
 quarter of the semicircle, and the gentlemen the other. My ex- 
 cellent friend General Wool, and his lady, were the only stran- 
 gers besides myself. 
 
 After another discourse on English Reform, we handed the 
 ladies into the blue dining-room, where a well-cooked dinner and 
 choice wines refreshed the senses. The services of plate and crys- 
 tal were in excellent taste. Two brown domestics assisted Mr. 
 Baird, who gave his opinion on the dishes and liquors as he 
 helped them, and seemed to be the factotum of the establishment. 
 After some lively conversation regarding ages of wine and ages 
 of individuals, remarks on the changes in the face of the country, 
 the increase of fields and the decrease of the forest, the Gen- 
 eral drank "Our absent Friends," and we all rose, and handed 
 the ladies back to the drawing-room, where they were arranged 
 as before, till coffee was served, when two of the young demoi- 
 selles went to the piano, sang and played Scotch airs; the General 
 regaled himself with a long pipe in his easy chair, a la Parr, and 
 retired to bed at nine. Thus ended the party at the President's. 
 
348 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 Leave Washington. — My Fellow Travellers. — The Author of "Pelham." — Slang.— ^ 
 Enter Baltimore by a Railway. — Spirit of the Inhabitants. — View from an Obser- 
 vatory. — The Battle Monument. — The Cathedral. — The Washington Pillar. — 
 Charles Carroll ofCarrolton. — Journey to the Susquehannah. — An English Radi- 
 cal. — Philadelphia. — The State-house. — The Banks and Churches. — Pealc's Mu- 
 seum. — The leO-gun Ship Pennsylvania. — The Theatre. — The Fair Mount Wa- 
 terworks. — Aneedote. — Mechanical Genius of the New Englanders. — The Peni- 
 tentiary. — Its Arrangement. — Sketch o( the Life of a Convict. — How to prevent 
 Prison-breaking. — Facetious Thieves. — Robbery of a Mail Coach. — A Robber's 
 Advice to Travellers. — The Philadelphia Prison. — Why liberated Prisoners do not 
 reform. — Dr. Rush. — Luxury of the Philadelphians. — A grumbling Traveller. — A 
 Wistar Party. — A grievous Disappointment. — Return to New York. 
 
 Next morning I was on my way to Baltimore in company with 
 Mr. Burrows well known in New York, and Major Wingfield. 
 In the coacli (a sort of windmill, freely admitting the cold air 
 through the leathern sides) there were, besides the above, six edi- 
 tors and reporters of newspapers. These gentlemen were very 
 conversable and facetious, mixing up in their discourse expressions 
 peculiar to the Americans, some of which would have puzzled 
 even the author of <' Pelham," who, by the way, is an especial 
 favourite in the States, the ladies considering him a nonpareil, 
 and certain speculators (forgers and swindlers) having been detec- 
 ted last year with "■ Paul Clifford" in their portmanteaus. 
 
 The gentlemen of the Press talked of going the whole hog for 
 one another; of being up to the hub (nave) for General Jackson, 
 who was all brimestone but the head, and that was aquafortis; and 
 swore, if any one abused him, he ought to be set straddle on an 
 iceberg and shot throujih with a streak of lightning. 
 
 As we approached Baltimore we diverged from the usual road 
 to drive on the great railway, from the Atlantic to the Ohio. Lo- 
 comotives had not been then introduced, and our conveyance for 
 seven miles was a heavy double carriage, drawn by one horse. 
 
 The very enterprising inhabitants of Baltimore seem determin- 
 ed, by extending internal communications, to make up for the 
 disadvantage they labour under, of having their harbour closed 
 with ice for some weeks in winter; and though the foreign trade 
 had ceased for a time, when I visited this, the third city of the 
 Union, and the great flour and tobacco mart, yet the streets were 
 far from being dull, but men and things wore a bustling, commer- 
 cial air. 
 
 From the top of the City Hotel, containing a hundred and 
 
CHARLES CARROLL. 349 
 
 seventy-two apartments, I enjoyed the panorama of the city on 
 its three hills, with their intervening valleys, the houses of brick 
 with numerous spires, towers and domes, risinj; above them. 
 The harbour and shipping, defended by Fort M'Henry, directed 
 the eye to the Bay of Chesapeake beyond; and the outlines of the 
 environs of the city, varied with hill and dale, grove and country 
 villa, claimed unqualified admiration. 
 
 In front of the hotel was the "Battle Monument," erected to 
 the memory of those who fell in defence of the city last war. A 
 reeded column, like a bundle of fasces, of white marble, stands on 
 a square base. On the fillets which cross the shaft are inscribed 
 the names of the honoured slain. 
 
 " Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori!" 
 
 I visited the massive square pile of the cathedral, surmounted 
 by a dome, and situated on the highest ground in the city. In it 
 there was a fine large organ, and pictures, presented by Kings of 
 France. Near the cathedral is the rival place of worship of the 
 Socinians, a handsopie edifice, also with a dome. 
 
 Beyond these 1 saw the Washington monument, about a hun- 
 dred and seventy feet high, bearing a colossal statue of the first 
 President, on a column of white marble with a double base. 
 
 I then had great satisfaction in visiting a living monument of 
 the Revolution, and the last survivor of those who signed the 
 Declaration of Independence, Charles Carroll of Carrolton, in his 
 ninety-fourth year. I found the venerable patriarch quite alone, 
 and seemingly musing. The apartment was lofty, with furni- 
 ture of an antique fashion, and family pictures on the walls. It 
 was night; wax lights were on the table, and a clear fire blazed 
 on the hearth. The old gentleman, dressed in a dark purple 
 gown, and seated in a high-backed chair, was rather of short 
 stature, and stooped under the burden of years; his nose was 
 aquiline, and his expression was particularly mild and engaging. 
 
 I took tea with his family (two of his daughters are the Mar- 
 chionesses of Wellesley and Carmarthen,) and spent a very agree- 
 able evening. The speech, sight, and hearing of the veteran had 
 not much failed him, but his memory had. He made frequent 
 inquiries about a contemporary of his, Sir Robert Listen, the first 
 British ambassador to the Independent Stales, and the subject of 
 cholera seemed to possess his mind for a considerable time. 
 When Mr. Carroll was a youth, Baltimore contained seven houses; 
 its population is now seventy-five thousand. 
 
 I left Baltimore with regret, as the little I saw of the people 
 gave me a very favourable impression of their intelligence, liber- 
 
350 CITY OP PHILADELPHIA. 
 
 ality, and attention to strangers from the ''old country," and I 
 heartily wished them pros[)erity. 
 
 The water-communication being stopped, I continued my jour- 
 ney by coach; passed the scene of the victory of North Point, 
 and in a wood saw the grave of a mail-driver, who had been shot 
 by robbers. This ralher alarmed some of the passengers, who 
 immediately concealed their valuables about their persons, and 
 began frightening one another with tales of terror. 
 
 During this journey I much admired the forbearance of the 
 Americans, and their general good temper. An English Radical 
 travelled in the conch, who had left his own country in disgust, 
 but finding himself a very insignificant personage in America, he 
 did nothing but abuse the institutions of the States and the peo- 
 ple to their face, in the most intolerable manner. I quarrelled 
 with him, which was more than the Americans did, who bore 
 with him very patiently, much to their credit, and to his dis- 
 grace. 
 
 When we got to the Susquehannah, famous for its canvass-back 
 ducks, the snow and ice greatly impeded our progress. The 
 landlord of the inn on the banks of the river demanded a small 
 sum for putting us across in a boat, shoved through a channel in 
 the ice by four black men, with boathooks. The passengers re- 
 monstrated:— '< What is the meaning of the toll?"— '''Tft^^^rrielfh- 
 ing of it," says mine host coolly, " is, that if you don't pay it 
 you stay here, I guess!" It was paid with some grumbling, and 
 we "progressed quick as a chain of lightning," by Wilmington, 
 in Delaware, to Philadelphia, and crossing the Schuylkill, we 
 entered the capital of Pennsylvania. 
 
 The first appearance of Philadelphia was highly respectable. 
 The strait and clean streets — the houses of goodly exterior, many 
 of them with marble steps, and rails with plated knobs — the ex- 
 cellent taste in which the ladies were dressed, without the varied 
 colours of the New York fair — and the quiet and orderly de- 
 meanour of the lower orders — gave me a very favourable impres- 
 sion of the city and people. 
 
 In walking through Philadelphia, I was attracted to Chestnut 
 Street, to visit the venerable State House, (with its long fagade 
 surmounted by a cupola,) for in it is the apartment in which the 
 Declaration of Independence was signed; then the Bank of the 
 United States, built after the model of the Pantheon, with white 
 marble portico and tympanum. The bank of Pennsylvania, after 
 the plan of the Ilyssian Temple of the Muses, and M. Girard's 
 bank, with its Corinthian portico, particularly arrested attention. 
 The eighty-eight churches were of indescribable varieties of style, 
 and but few of them dignified with tower or spire. 
 
FAIR MOUNT WATER WORKS. 351 
 
 In Peale's Museum I saw the skeleton of the great Mammoth, 
 a large collection of birds, well preserved, and a gallery of por- 
 traits of distinguished individuals. With Captain Reid, of the 
 United States' navy, I visited the Mammoth man-of-war, the 
 Pennsylvania, of one hundred and sixty guns, and at one of the 
 handsome theatres I saw Mrs. Austin as Cinderella. 
 
 The boast of Philadelphia are the Fair Mount Wafer Works, 
 on the Schuylkill, for supplying the city. Mr. Kane, a gentle- 
 man of the legal profession, was kind enough to drive me out to 
 visit them, and I found them on the most simple plan, but so eff> c- 
 tive, that the whole city was abundantly supplied with excellent 
 water at an expense of five dollars per day. A dam directs the 
 water of the river to a long building, in which there are four large 
 water-wheels; these, in revolving, pump up the water to reser- 
 voirs on an eminence above them, from which pipes dispense 
 the pure element. 
 
 The pistons and cylinders of the forcing-pumps were laid near- 
 ly in a horizontal position, though at first they were upright, but 
 then the superintendents could not make them work to any effect. 
 One day, a plain-looking Yankee, from the eastward, with his 
 hands in his pocket, was seen to look at these vertical cylinders 
 for some time, when the engineers were calculating how they 
 could alter and improve them. At last, Jonathan guessed that he 
 knew how to improve them, and make them throw up an abun- 
 dant supply of water; but the men of science only laughed at him 
 save one, who took him aside, and asked him what was his no- 
 tion for bettering the cylinders and their mo.de of working. 
 <'0h! but I'm not going to tell you though," said the Yankee. — 
 "Perhaps you'll tell us," answered the engineer, "if we promise 
 you ten thousand dollars, should your plan succeed?" — "Why, 
 in that case I might tell you how to do the trick, — -just write me 
 out a contract, will ye ?" — It was written out, — " Lay the upright 
 cylinders on their sides." It was done, and the effect was mi- 
 raculous^ affording at the same time another proof of the great 
 mechanical genius of the New Englanders. 
 
 From the water works we went to the New Penitentiary, an 
 area often acres enclosed by a thirty-five feet granite wall, (with 
 battlemented towers at the entrance,) containing the prison, on 
 the most perfect plan, for carrying solitary confinement, with 
 labour, completely into effect. 
 
 A centre room, called the observatory, (in which sat the 
 keeper, a Quaker,) has seven passages diverging from it; on each 
 side are cells for two hundred and fifty prisoners, all on the 
 ground floor; these cells, twelve feet by eight, and lighted from 
 the top, have a square opening to the passages closed with an 
 
352 A CONVICT. 
 
 iron shutter, in which there is a small eye-hole to permit the 
 turnkeys to see the interior of the cells whenever they choose, 
 without the prisoners bein^ aware that they are observed; a small 
 court is attached to each cell, for the purpose of exercise; through 
 this is the entrance to the cell. So complete is the seclusion in 
 these cells, that prisoners may live for twenty years in one, and 
 never know who their neighbours are on either side. 
 
 It may be interesting to notice one inmate of the Penitentiary. 
 George Taylor, born a robber, and suckled with the milk of 
 thieves, was incarcerated for the period of twenty years, for rob- 
 bing mails, and shooting at the keeper of a gaol. He was a light- 
 built, black-haired man, dressed in dark clothes, and a linen cap 
 on his head; he rose hastily from a loom as we entered, and shook 
 hands with Mr. Kane, who had been his counsel. "Well, 
 George, how do you feel now?" kindly inquired my friend. 
 "Thank you. Sir, I feel much easier in my mind since your were 
 so kind as to send me this," showing a small religious book, and 
 pointing to a particular hymn in it; "but a chill comes over me 
 every now and then; I'm breaking up. Sir, fast, and won't remain 
 long here." His words recalled these lines, 
 
 "Like the lamp's expiring- ray, 
 Here my strength must pine away, 
 And when some few months are o'er, 
 Here I shall be seen no more. 
 Wretched live and wretched die. 
 Far from blessed liberty." 
 
 Taylor then showed the coarse cloth he was weaving, by 
 means of which, and other articles manufactured by the prisoners, 
 they are maintained without expense to the State, and even pro- 
 duce a surplus; he next showed the iron bedstead fastened up to 
 the wall during the day, and let down at night. 
 
 This daring robber had broken many gaols in his time, and 
 Mr. Kane asked him if he thought he could escape from the 
 Penitentiary. " Yes, Sir, I think I might, if it were not for that 
 confounded hole," pointing to the small orifice in the iron shutter. 
 <' At night. Sir, sometimes if I cough, or make the smallest 
 noise, I hear a voice in the passage say to me, ' What's the 
 matter, George? art ill, lad?' Now that's the rub. Sir; I could 
 manage my escape, but for that little hole; I can do nothing, for an 
 eye may always be looking at me, and an ear listening." 
 
 Taylor said, that it required courage and daring to commit the 
 sort of robberies and thefts in which he had been engaged — and 
 that there was high and pleasing excitement in the planning of 
 a robbery with one or two tried companions. He laughed when 
 
ROBBERY OF A MAIL COACH. 353 
 
 he told how, on one occasion, he and two others got access to a 
 house in which there was an evening party; the ladies and gen- 
 tlemen were assembled in the drawing-room, a grand supper was 
 laid out in the dining-room, and the servants were in the kitchen. 
 The thieves quietly locked the drawing-room and kitchen doors, 
 went to the dining-room, regaled themselves with wine and cake, 
 and swept oflfthe whole of the plate from the table and sideboard; 
 as they left the house by a window, they enjoyed the ringing of 
 the bell from the drawing-room, and the abortive attempts of the 
 servants to answer it from the kitchen. 
 
 He next described the robbery of a mail. It was three o'clock 
 on a fine summer's morning; the twelve passengers were nodding 
 at each other, and the driver also was half asleep under the balmy 
 influence of the air, and the stillness of the country. As the 
 coach passed through a populous neighbourhood, three unmasked 
 robbers suddenly sprang from the side of the road; one stopped 
 the horses, another stood beside the driver, and the third, (George 
 Taylor,) went to the door of the coach, (American coaches have 
 only one door,) and opening it, he said quietly, <' Gentlemen, are 
 there any ladies inside ?" — the answer was, " not any." ''Then, 
 gentlemen, you will tell me if any of you have arms; if you have, 
 you must give them up." There were none; and the next pro- 
 ceeding was for the passengers to come out one by one, to be tied 
 with their own handkerchiefs and to draw up in a line opposite a 
 a fence, when the robbers for the first time showed their arms. 
 The mail bags were cut by one of the men, and their contents ex- 
 amined. Taylor relieved the passengers of their pocket books, 
 purses, and watches, and the third robber stood sentry. 
 
 On a vvatcli being taken from one of the party, he said to 
 George, "There are marks on that watch which may occasion 
 your detection; besides, it is an old-fashioned silver one, and of 
 no great value to any one but myself, for it is a family one — will 
 you let me keep it.'"' Taylor restored it. Another man gave 
 up ten dollars very reluctantly, saying, " You see, my man, all 
 1 have got to get me a dinner; I am a long way from home." 
 Taylor generously gave back a dollar; but he was outwitted here, 
 for he afterwards learned that the New Englander had notes to 
 the amount of three thousand dollars in his boot, which he saved. 
 The horses were then tied up to the fence; two of the robbers 
 leaped over it, and decamped with their booty. Taylor watched 
 the passengers for half an hour, and prevented their raising an 
 alarm; then, telhng them they might make the best of their way, 
 he followed his companions. Why he asked if there were any 
 ladies in the coach was, that he might use means to prevent their 
 Yy 
 
354 A robber's advice. 
 
 raising an alarm; for females commonly make a great noise when 
 their fears are excited — men are more silent. 
 
 In the last gaol from which Taylor had escaped, the keeper 
 had flogged him and a companion very severely. They vowed 
 vengeance, and on hrcaking out, they watched the keeper as he 
 walked up the streets. Taylor's companion went hehind him 
 and snapped a pistol at his back: Taylor cried out, " That's ow- 
 ing to your d — d cowardly way of going to work," and fired 
 from the opposite side of the street, but missed: he was pursued, 
 taken, and placed where we found him. He gave this piece of ad- 
 vice to travellers: << On the road either go well armed and fire at 
 once when you are stopped, or else give your pistols up. Never 
 parley with a robber whom you mean to resist: if you do, and 
 fail in your resistance, your life is gone, I myself would have 
 been off at once, if, in attempting to rob a mail, a passenger had 
 fired at me without hesitation; but if a passenger had attempted 
 to throw me off my guard and afterwards resist, I would certainly 
 have shot him." 
 
 I next saw the Philadelphia prison, once so celebrated, but 
 which has been proved not to answer, so far as the reformation 
 of the prisoners is concerned. At night they are locked up sepa- 
 rately, but during the day labour in silence together; thus they 
 know one another by sight, so that when they are liberated they 
 think it useless to become honest men, for so many know that 
 they once were rogues. I only heard of two instances of reform 
 in those who had been inmates of the Philadelphia prison. One 
 went to St. Domingo, and is now in independent circumstances 
 by his own industry; the other went to the back woods of Ten- 
 nessee, and commenced clearing and farming. He had a wife 
 and young family, and continued industrious for some years, till 
 unfortunately he was discovered by some of his former compan- 
 ions in durance; they threatened, if he did not pay them hand- 
 somely, they would inform his neighbours what his former char- 
 acter had been. The poor man satisfied them; but, on their 
 returning again and again to him, and plundering him, he lost 
 heart, and returned to his old vicious courses. Whether the Pe- 
 nitentiary system will succeed in producing reformation by entire 
 seclusion, with labour, and religious instruction by an unseen 
 clergyman, discoursing in the passage to the prisoners seated in 
 their cells, remains yet to be proved. 
 
 At Philadelphia, through the instrumentality of a lady held in 
 deserved estimation in America, Mrs. Grant of Laggan, I had 
 great satisfaction in making the acquaintance of Dr. Rush, the 
 worthy son of a sire who was chiefly instrumental in establishing 
 the American Medical School. 
 
A GRUMBLING TRAVELLER. 355 
 
 I confess I was surprised to see the luxurious living and the 
 expensive furniture of the best classes in Philadelphia. I thonwht 
 that a Quaker-simplicity would have prevailed; but in their lofty- 
 rooms tiie eye was feasted with silken curlainsand velvet-covered 
 chairs, gilded walls and ceilings, mirrors and pictiu'es in costly 
 frames, and, at supper in particular, the viands were delicious 
 and the wines unexceptionable: I make honourable mention of a 
 honed turkey covered with jelly as an excellent standing dish 
 last year. 
 
 A lady who had displayed great taste in the furnishing of her 
 house, threw open her rooms to an Englishman of mature age^ 
 who for the first time had left his own country, and was grumb- 
 ling his way through America, and measuring every thing by 
 the standard of England. "Pray, what do you think. Sir, of 
 these apartments ?" asked the lady. — " Why, they are very well 
 in their way; but you must get ottomans, madam — you must get 
 ottomans." 
 
 At a Wistar party (a literary association founded by the late 
 Dr. Wistar) I was introduced to Major Long, of Rocky Moun- 
 tain celebrity, who was very communicative regarding the North- 
 West. I also conversed with a Count Valverde,* who had spent 
 years in foreign travel; and it is a pleasure to record the name of 
 so respectable an old gentleman as Mr. Vaughan, and one who is 
 always so friendly to our countrymen who visit Philadelphia. 
 
 In this changeful scene we are doomed to constant disappoint- 
 ments. I experienced a great one at Philadelphia. The only 
 relative I had in America was Colonel Burn, (son of a consider- 
 able proprietor in Virginia, and distinguished in the last war as 
 an officer of American cavalry,) who lived in the neighbourhood of 
 the city at the pleasant country village of Frankford. I anticipated 
 for months before great pleasure in meeting this gentleman, who 
 bore a high character among his acquaintances for a noble bear- 
 ing and unbounded liberality. But when I was driven out to 
 Frankford by a kind-hearted countryman, Mr. Arrott, it was 
 only to find my relative's " place empty;" to see his old charger, 
 Silver, grazing in the meadow before the once cheerful residence, 
 and to brush the snow from a marble slab to read the colonel's 
 epitaph. After this, I returned to New York. 
 
 " Yet why repine ? does not the Lord of Heaven 
 
 Decree to all their portion here below? 
 
 For not by chance, but by His hand is given 
 
 Our various fortune, whether weal or wo. 
 
 Oft does His gracious providence bestow 
 
 A thousand tender mercies on mankind; 
 
 From Him alone our joys and comforts flow ! 
 Then man should still be humble and rcsign'd, 
 And let Religion's balm for ever soothe his mind." 
 
356 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV. 
 
 Leave New York to visit West Point. — The frozen Hudson. — The Military Aca- 
 demy. — The course of Study. — The Classes. — Artillery Cadets. — Subsistence of 
 Cadets. — Confinement to the Halls of Study. — Excesses. — Effects of the Ordeal 
 at West Point. — The Army of the United States. — Artillery and Infantry. — The 
 Ordnance. — Major-General Macomb. — Military Chiefs. — The Staff of the army. — 
 Desertions and Enlistments. — The Privates. — Moral Culture neglected. — The 
 Non-commissioned Officers. — Intemperance. — Uniform of the American Army. — 
 Temptations to belong to it. — Military experience of a young Artillerist. — Posts. 
 — Bush Expeditions. — British and American Soldiers compared. — Arsenals. — 
 Rifles. — Topographical Inquiries highly commended. — The States not fortifying 
 the Maine Frontier. — Field Works. — The American Hatchet. — The Militia. — In- 
 
 i"udicious System. — A muster in Vermont. — Evacuation Day at New York. — The 
 nvincibles. — Prospects of War. — Britons ought to be superior to petty jealousy. 
 
 It was a bitterly cold clay in December, the ice was closing up 
 the sides of the Hudson, and masses of it were floating down in 
 the open centre channel, which daily became more and more con- 
 tracted, when I stepped into a steam-vessel, and essayed to visit 
 the Military Academy at West Point. The hills, prairies, and 
 fields, were in their bleak winter mantle, and the white frame 
 houses in the midst of the snow, suggested any other idea than 
 that of warmth and comfort. 
 
 We ploughed and crushed through the ice, and after several 
 severe struggles with thickening floes, landed at the Military Aca- 
 demy, got a most comfortable apartment next the officers' mess- 
 room, and were received with great kindness by Cslonel Thayer 
 and the other gentlemen of the institution. 
 
 The situation of the academy is beautiful and romantic. High 
 above the Hudson, on a level plateau, and surrounded with moun- 
 tains of a thousand feet elevation, stand the plain buildings of 
 West Point. Three barrack-like edifices contain the halls of study 
 and sleeping apartments of the two hundred and fifty cadets, and 
 a row of detached houses, with poplars before them, are occupied 
 by the superintendent and the professors. On the heights around 
 and everywhere commanding the river, are traces of the re- 
 doubts and batteries of the revolution. A cenotaph in memory 
 of Kosciusko, the Polish patriot, overlooks the river ; and not far 
 from it is the garden retreat, among rocks and trees, where he 
 used to meditate on his fallen fortunes. On the left of the ground 
 is the cadets' grave-yard, where is a handsome marble tomb, with 
 military emblems on it. 
 
COURSE 01" STUDY — ARTILLERY CADETS. 357 
 
 Cadets remain at the Military Academy four years; when ad- 
 mitted, at fourteen years of age, they are examined in English, 
 reading, writing, and arithmetic only ; but after six months, there 
 is a severe mathematical examination, which many are unable to 
 pass. As at our Royal Military College, there are half-yearly ex- 
 aminations at West Point ; but these are so strict, and the course 
 is in general so severe, that half of those who enter the college, 
 are obliged to leave after the first examination. There is a re- 
 markable difference between the cadets of the Northern and 
 Southern States ; the former are generally studious and industri- 
 ous, the latter, brought up among slaves, are idle and inattentive, 
 so that they are almost all dismissed ; consequently the academy 
 is not " in good odour" with the planters, for they imagine that 
 favouritism prevails, and that the dismissals are not impartial. 
 
 The cadets are divided into four classes for the four years' 
 course. The junior class study French grammatically, (but pay 
 no attention to speaking the language,) mathematics, including 
 geometry, trigonometry, Algebra, mensuration, and surveying ; 
 they are also drilled. The second year the mathematical course 
 includes descriptive and analytical geometry, conic sections, and 
 fluxions ; French is continued, and drawing the human figure is 
 taught. The third year natural philosophy is given, with chemis- 
 try, and drawing, or rather copying landscapes, and topography. 
 And the fourth or last year, the studies are engineering, including 
 the science of artillery, field, and permanent fortification, tactics, 
 military and civil architecture, besides chemistry and mineralogy, 
 laws and ethics. 
 
 The cadets intended for the artillery, after leaving West Point, 
 attend the school of practice at Fort Monroe, in Virginia, where 
 they see, for the first time, the construction of field works. The 
 West Point cadets are encamped two months in autumn, but then 
 only for the purpose of drills. At that time about one-fourth of 
 the cadets are allowed to visit their friends, for there is no regular 
 vacation. The uniform of the cadets is a grey coattee with three 
 rows of brass buttons and black braid, white trowsers in summer 
 and grey in winter. Their pay is twenty-eight dollars a month, 
 out of which ten are deducted for messing, and the rest furnishes 
 clothes and other necessaries. 
 
 The cadets are confined to their halls of study for about ten 
 hours per day ; they seemed to be very well prepared with their 
 exercises, but their proficiency is attained with the loss of health, 
 for they all looked pale and sickly, stooped, and some wore spec- 
 tacles. From October to March they hardly ever move out of 
 doors or take active exercise, and it was really painful to see young 
 men under such a rigorous system. After what 1 saw, I need 
 
358 ORDEAL AT WEST POINT. 
 
 hardly have inquired after the health of the cadets, but I did so, 
 and found that from January to March dyspepsia was very com- 
 mon among them ; and though few die at the establishment, yet I 
 am convinced the seeds of disease are sown tliere, and that many 
 return to their friends with broken constitutions. As no watch is 
 kept over the cadets at night, I was told by one of the young gen- 
 tlemen, that some leave their rooms, and repair to haunts of dis- 
 sipation among the hills known only to themselves, where they 
 meet women of ioose character, eat pork and molasses, drink gin- 
 sling, and chew tobacco, which last [horresco referev.s) is too of- 
 ten an accomplishment of the American youth of ail classes. 
 
 I naturally inquired what figure the cadets who pass the ordeal 
 of West Point make in after life — are they distinguished in the 
 walks of science? — do they contribute to the literature of their 
 country? The answer I received was, that they are never heard 
 of after they leave the Military Academy. A short time ago, 
 certain young officers were sent from the academy to assist Ge- 
 neral Bernard to draw up reports for Congress on the national 
 defensive works, and he complained that, so far from these offi- 
 cers being of any assistance to him, he was compelled to translate 
 his own French into imperfect English, No attention being paid 
 to English composition at the academy, the young men could not 
 express themselves intelligibly in their own language; and I ima- 
 gine, from getting a surfeit of mathematics at West Point, they 
 throw aside Legendre and Lacroix the moment they quit the 
 academic groves. 
 
 In a word, though the Military Academy has produced some 
 names distinguished in the history of tbeir country, yet it appears 
 to me that the present system is not judicious; the health of the 
 young men is needlessly sacrificed, and they acquire a distaste 
 for abstruse studies of every kind. 
 
 I may as well now say a few words on the army of the United 
 States in general, in case any military reader should desire to be 
 better acquainted wiih the composition of the republican army. 
 
 The peace establishment of the United States is composed of 
 four regiments of artillery and seven regiments of infantry, and, 
 with staff officers, amounts to about six thousand men. Each 
 regiment of artillery consists of nine companies, one of which is 
 equipped as light artillery. A company is officered by a captain, 
 four subalterns, and eight non-commissioned officers, with three 
 artificers, two musicians, and forty-two privates. A company of 
 infantry consists of a captain and two subalterns, seven non-com- 
 missioned officers, two musicians, and forty-two privates; and to 
 each regiment of artillery and infantry there are one colonel, one 
 
MAJOR-GENERAL MACOMB. 
 
 359 
 
 lieutenant-colonel, one major, an adjutant, sergeant-major, and 
 quarter-master-sergeant. 
 
 The corps ot^ military and topographical engineers are not at- 
 tached to the ordnance department, which is merged in the artil- 
 lery. The ordnance service in the States consists merely of thirty 
 oificers of artillery, selected to command the different depots of 
 arms and arsenals of the Union, with ten superintendents ot ar- 
 mouries and storekeepers. 
 
 Major-General Alexander Macomb, who commands the army 
 at present, is a stout, good-looking man, about fifty-nine years of 
 age, and has served thirty-two years; he was a member of the 
 Military Academy, and distinguished by his services in the last 
 war, as the commandant of a regiment and brigade, and particu- 
 larly at the battle of Plattsburgh, where he commanded in chief, 
 and for which latter service he received the thanks of Congress, 
 and a gold medal, a brevet of major-general, the freedom of the 
 city of New York, and a sword of honour voted by the legisla- 
 ture, the special thanks of Vermont, and the general thanks of 
 several other States." I had the honour of making the acquain- 
 tance of General Macomb, and found him a very frank and intel- 
 ligent man, with more of the engaging off-handed manners of an 
 Irishman than the usual reserve of Americans. 
 
 The major-general commanding is allowed two aides-de-camp;, 
 besides him, there are two brigadiers-general, each with one aide- 
 de-camp, and these aides (taken from the subalterns of the line,) 
 besides their other duties, perform those of assistant adjutants- 
 general. Two inspectors-general travel annually thousands of 
 miles to visit the widely-scattered posts of the army; their duty 
 is very severe, when we consider the great extent of territory 
 they have to traverse. There are also an adjutant and a quarter- 
 master general, two quarter-masters, and ten assistant quarter- 
 masters. 
 
 The subsistence department consists of one commissary-general" 
 and fifty assistant-commissaries, taken (as in the East India Com- 
 pany's service) from the subalterns of the line, with extra pay. 
 There are also one paymaster-general, and fourteen paymasters; 
 one surgeon-general, eight surgeons, and forty-five assistant-sur- 
 geons. 
 
 It is an extraordinary fact, but not the less true, that nearly one 
 half of the non-commissioned officers and privates of the Ameri- 
 can army desert every year. All free white males, between the 
 ages of eighteen and thirty-five, may be enlisted; the standard 
 height is five feet six inches, and the bounty-money is twelve 
 dollars. According to the spirit of the institutions of the country, 
 all enlistments shall be " voluntary," that is to say, twenty-four 
 
360 DESERTIONS AND ENLISTMENTS. 
 
 hours must elapse between the recruit's expressing his wish to 
 enlist and his subscribing the oath and receiving the bounty, and 
 though the period of service is only five years, yet few remain 
 to complete it. 
 
 The great extent of territory in the States, with the scanty po- 
 pulation, causes wages to be high, while provisions are also cheap; 
 generally speaking, therefore, the most worthless characters en- 
 ter the army, which consists of a melange of English deserters, 
 Dutch, French, Americans, &c. Five dollars are the monthly 
 pay of a private, and many labourers in the States earn a dollar 
 per day, so that it is obvious there is no great inducement to be- 
 long to an army which is held in no great estimation by the 
 citizens generally, and has no pension list, or asylum for disabled 
 soldiers. Officers and soldiers who have lost ej^es or limbs last 
 war in the service of the States, are to be met with in different 
 parts of the Union, without any compensation for their losses. 
 Who would not serve a Republic ? 
 
 General Macomb justly regretted that the moral culture of the 
 American soldier was wholly neglected, and in the States atten- 
 tion to this important point is, perhaps, more necessary than in 
 any country. Detached as the troops are in small posts to over- 
 awe the Indians of the north-west and western territories, they 
 immediately become demoralized from contact with the wild be- 
 ings and vagabond hunters in the midst of vi^hom they live. If 
 the sons of respectable parents could be induced to enter the army 
 at an early age, and be retained at a depot of instruction for some 
 time, with attention paid to their habits, and to their moral and 
 religious improvement, then, as they would be made better men, 
 they would become better soldiers, imbibing at the same time 
 patriotic feelings; while with the prospect of considerable ulti- 
 mate reward when discharged, (which the States can well afford 
 in tlie shape of land,) the men would become attached to their 
 service, desertions would be unfrequent, and the army would be 
 placed on a respectable footing. 
 
 It is well known that the efficiency of an army is mainly de- 
 pendent on the character of the non-commissioned officers; and 
 if they are inadequately paid, competent men will not desire to 
 be promoted, ^s'ow, the sergeants and corporals of the- American 
 army receive only a trifle more than the privates; consequently 
 taken into consideration their responsibility and trouble, their 
 office is not in great request. 
 
 Habits of intemperance are very common in the American 
 army; and, as is to be supposed, almost all crimes committed 
 by the soldiers, are to be traced to these fruitful sources of 
 evil. 
 
INTEMPERANCE — UNIFORM OP AMERICAN ARMY. 361 
 
 " Then dash the brimming cup aside, 
 
 And spill its purple wine ; 
 Take not its madness to thy lip, 
 
 Let not its curse be thine: 
 'Tis red and rich, but grief and wo, 
 Are hid those rosy depths below." 
 
 The intelligent head of the army has, however, this year adop- 
 ted that admirable regulation of the British service, " giving a 
 compensation in lieu of liquor. " Under the new regulation old 
 soldiers only give way to their propensity for liquor, and the young 
 will not acquire a taste for it; so that I am convinced that in 
 the course of a few years the health and habits of the troops, both 
 British and American, will be most materially improved by this 
 very judicious regulation. 
 
 The uniform of the American army is a single-breasted blue 
 coatee, with bars of lace on the collar and cuffs, in the artillery 
 gold, and the infantry silver. The trowsers are grey, the cap 
 bell-shaped; the feather white and red for artillery, white and 
 blue for infantry, with eagle plates and scale?. General and field 
 officers wear epaulettes, all others wings. Captains are distin- 
 guished by a chevron on the upper part of the arm; subalternsby 
 one near the cuflf. As may be supposed, no great attention is 
 paid to uniformity of dress in the American army, officers wear- 
 ing forage caps according to their own taste, frock coats variously 
 trimmed, and fancy swords; the favourite one hns a hilt like what 
 is commonly seen on the stage on the person of a beplumed and 
 bespangled gallant. 
 
 General Macomb approves highly of the new regulation double- 
 breasted coatee of the British service, with epaulettes for all ranks, 
 and means to adopt it this year, though the citizens tliink that it 
 is too gaudy for republicans; however, as it is, they are obliged 
 to tempt their officers with high pay to remain in the service, 
 their captains receiving £310 per annum, the British £lSO; so 
 that a handsome uniform will be an additional inducement to re- 
 main in the service. Of the officers of the American army I will 
 only add, that they are well known to be possessed of a high 
 sense of honour, and those whose acquaintance I had the pleasure 
 of making were invariably most obliging and communicative. 
 
 I said that officers are tempted by high pay to remain in the 
 American service, and truly they require it; stationed for years 
 in the back woods without society, and with little other renown 
 than sports of the field, books being difficult to be obtained, their 
 duties are far from agreeable, and their situation often most un- 
 pleasant. I beg to subjoin a short anecdote, illustrative of the 
 nature of the service in America. 
 Zz 
 
362 A YOUNG ARTILLERIST. 
 
 A young officer of Artillery, having just left the Military 
 Academy after the peace in 1815, was sent with two other offi- 
 cers, his seniors, and a hundred and fift}^ men, to garrison Fort 
 St. Philip, on the Mississippi below New Orleans, and seated in 
 the niiist of interminable forests, dismal swamps, and sluggish 
 creeks, teeming with alligators and wild fowl. After a short 
 time the second in command died, and fifty men! The senior 
 officer one morning drew up on parade those who remained, in- 
 spected them, and then, in a fit of despair, threw himself in full 
 uniform from the parapet into the ditch of the fort and was drown- 
 ed! Shortly after this General Jackson visited the fort. The sur- 
 vivor received him on landing from the river, proceeded to the 
 ramparts, and fired the salute, and then appeared in the hospital 
 as the surgeon. After nine months he was ordered to proceed 
 to New Orleans with ten men. They all died of yellow fever, 
 except himself and servant! He also caught the disease, and was 
 given up; but, overhearing the doctors say that he could not live, 
 he roused himself and gave their prediction the lie. The officer 
 ordered to relieve him at Fort St. Philip, instead of going there, 
 inclosed the General his commission! So much for the military 
 experience of a young American artillerist. 
 
 There are about fifty military posts in the States — forts, bar- 
 racks, and arsenals. The two former overawe the Indian and 
 negro population: the latter contain the arms for the regulars and 
 militia. The officers seem to dislike Indian warfare very much; 
 complain of the hardships attending " bush expeditions," the 
 treachery of the enemy, tlieir ambuscades, surprises, and cruelty 
 to the prisoners. There are yearly skirmishes with Indians, 
 which, by the way, are never made public. 
 
 At New Orleans I described how the privates slept two in a 
 bed, and the punishment of the log and hard labour. There is 
 nothing worthy of remark in the system of drill in the American 
 army. They borrow from the English and French. The offi- 
 cers say that English deserters who enter the service are very 
 au fait at drill, and keep themselves and arms very clean, but 
 that they cannot march with the American soldiers. Now this 
 must be a mistake, for it is a notorious fact, that no American 
 will ever walk when he can sit in a wagon behind a span of hor- 
 ses. All the citizens are disinclined to active sports or pedestrian 
 exercises of any kind, and even the children are seldom seen to 
 run or engage in " out-of-door-games," like English boys; so 
 (with all due deference) I think it is impossible that American 
 soldiers can march with British, particularly with the "lads wi' 
 the kilt." The extremes of heat and cold are so great in the 
 States, that the people do not sufficiently exercise their limbs. 
 
ARSENALS RIFLES. 363 
 
 The American arsenals are very neatly kept, with very small 
 means; and the superintendents deserve great credit for the order 
 in which they keep their arms, with few assistants allowed them 
 by Government. Tlieir cannon are all copied from the British. 
 An American musket is well fabricated, and costs twelve dollars. 
 A new rifle was introduced last year, called "Hall's Patent." 
 It loads at the breech, which is elevated for this purpose, by 
 touching a spring like an extra trigger, when a flask, with a double 
 head for powder and ball, loads it expeditiously. It might be 
 worth while to experiment with this rifle, as it saves the often te- 
 dious operation of loading a rifle with a ramrod ; and with a per- 
 cusion lock and light rest, in lieu of a ramrod, it might be an im- 
 proved weapon for the British rifle corps. 
 
 There is a branch of the service of the United States which 
 ought not to be passed by without notice — the topographical. 
 This corps is separated from the engineers, and now constitutes a 
 d'lsUnct bureau, and its importance is very great, considering the 
 great extent of territory in the States, and the necessity there 
 is to possess a correct geographical outline of it, A knowledge 
 of the features of a country collected by surveys, paves the way 
 for internal improvements^ and facilitates military operation in the 
 event of a war. 
 
 Topographical engineers are at present much wanted in the 
 British service, (though the enemies of the standing army oppose 
 all improvements and additions, though greater efficiency may 
 thereby be given,) among other duties, to survey and determine 
 our frontiers in North America and in Guiana (South America); 
 to complete maps of some of our West Indian islands, wdiichhave 
 not been accurately surveyed ; and for the various duties which 
 the staflf corps used (so well) to perform. Officers from the Royal 
 Military College might be selected as topographical engineers. 
 Possessing valuable colonies in all parts of the world, on the re- 
 tention of which the prosperity of Britain, and her high station 
 among nations, mainly depend, perhaps no country in the world 
 more requires topographical engineers than our own. 
 
 The States are not constructing any forts on the Maine frontier. 
 The only thing of the kind they have is a poor specimen of a 
 stockade at Holton Town, erected three years ago, and garrison- 
 ed by four companies of infantry; and even as a field work it is 
 quite contemptible. Perhaps too little attention has been paid ia 
 the British service, in the construction of field works and tem- 
 porary defences, to the hatchet. An American officer of rank 
 told me that he often laughed whilst watching our troops through 
 his glass, in the late war, cutting branches with their bill-hooks, 
 and wasting time in making fascines according to rule, whilst the 
 
364 MILITIA THE INVINCIBLES. 
 
 Americans liad trees down is a short time, abattis laid, and stout 
 breastworks of logs. There is some truth in this, ^'^ Fas est ab 
 hoste docerij^' — one axe in a wooded country is worth twenty 
 bill-hooks. 
 
 " The catalogue and character 
 Of th' enemies' best men of war" 
 
 having been given (I fear to the no small annoyance of civilians, 
 who may take little interest in military matters), I shall only de- 
 tain them for an instant longer, to say a word on the militia of the 
 United States. The system and administration of this branch of 
 the national defence are radically bad, and imperiously call for al- 
 teration ; in fact, the mere mention of American militia excites 
 ridicule in the citizens themselves. 
 
 Ever}'^ citizen between the ages of eighteen and forty-five, with 
 the exception of surgeons, clergymen, &c. is enrolled in the militia, 
 and nominally drilled twelve days every year ; but though they 
 are expected to arm and clothe themselves, it is but few who do 
 either, at least uniformly; and as to the drill, it is a perfect farce. 
 A "muster," in the State of Vermont last summer may serve as 
 a specimen of the whole. The privates turned out in their usual 
 vvorking-dreis, belts and pouches over surtouts, long coats and 
 shooting-jackets ; feathers, red, green, and blue, of ail sorts and 
 sizes, were stuck in round hats, on the front of some of which 
 was tied, with a string, the eagle plate. A fortunate few had 
 duck guns and rifles ; the rest had broomsticks for muskets, or 
 muskets without locks. The band sent forth martial music from 
 seven bass drums, a fife, and a fiddle ; and the colonel (as usual a 
 tavern-keeper) with a huge broadsword by his side, could not at- 
 tend to duties for mixing " 
 to insi)ire his gallant troops. 
 
 On the ISth November last the militia of New York were in- 
 vited to parade in honour of ''Evacuation Day," elegantly so 
 named as the anniversary of the British evacuating the city in the 
 revolutionary war. 
 
 The milita men, disgusted with the present injudicious system, 
 were determined to try what eflect public ridicule would have in 
 causing the legislature to give attention to fitting the people 
 morally and physically for the defence of the country by an 
 alteration in the militia-laws. Accordingly, three or four 
 hundred mock soldiers paraded in one of the principal streets of 
 the city, and "the invincibles," as they called themselves, were 
 reviewed by a Icoder dressed like Napoleon, with the addition of 
 small statues of the Emperor on his shoulders, green spectacles 
 
MILITARY STSTEiAI — PROSPECTS OF WAR. 365 
 
 on his nose, and a sword four feet long and a foot broad "in his 
 red right hand." 
 
 The warlike body then marched through the streets to the 
 sound of insjjiring airs; but to describe adequately the dress and 
 appearance of the men would be difficult. Caps were of all shapes 
 and colours; one wore a pumpkin with the long leaves of a carrot 
 for a plume; another was distinguished by a chapeau five feet in 
 length, and a cod-fish for a sword! Wigs, beards, and false 
 noses were common; and the coats were of bright scarlet, brown 
 woolen, green baize, deer skin, and split cane. Here was a 
 Highlander in top-boots, and there, his Satanic Majesty, with 
 pitchfork and tail! One carried four muskets, and was attired in 
 shaggy goats'-skins, like Robinson Crusoe; another was half 
 horse and half alligator, or a Kentucky snorter! Never before 
 was such an array witnessed! And though this review was 
 entirely burlesque, it may have the effect producing a thorough 
 reformation in the militia-laws, which at present make fops rather 
 than soldiers of the young, dissipate the time of the seniors, lead 
 to scenes of debauchery in all, and make a mockery of drills and 
 reviews. 
 
 To conclude, in reviewing the military system of the States, 
 we find that, owing to the nature of the institutions and habits of 
 the people, it is very defective. The citizens dislike the re- 
 straint of discipline, and though the navy is held in estimation 
 by them from its unexpected successes last war, the army is not 
 viewed with an eye of favour. 
 
 The secretary-at-war and all attached to the military depart- 
 ment, have much trouble to obtain from Congress the necessary 
 supplies, and as it is, the scanty armaments in tlie forts are old 
 and nearly useless, and many of the works themselves in a very 
 dilapidated state. But with all this; having had an opportunity 
 of seeing (cursorily) many of the States, and knowing what a 
 shrewd and intelligent people the Americans are, (and indi- 
 vidually as brave as Britons, being of the same stock,) I am con- 
 vinced that, if they s 'W a pressing necessity for an immediate 
 alteration in the military sj^stem, they would set about it. 
 Since however, there is not at present the slighest prospect of war, 
 and all are striving to partake of the general prosperity around 
 them, the Americans are indifferent to forming an efficient army. 
 
 Ere long, there may be a dispute with Mexico for'the valuable 
 territory of Texas, rapidly settling with American squatters. 
 The encroachments of Russia in the north-west may cause 
 American troops to march to the Pacific; and in course of time, 
 American manufactures competing with British in foreign markets, 
 may bring about a maritime war with England. However, 
 
366 ENGLAND OUGHT NOT TO BE JEALOUS. 
 
 these two last events are remote, and may not take place in our 
 day; but at all events, we ought to strive to avert the last,' or be 
 prepared for it, and not trust to a dissolution of the Union, for 
 the Americans will not readily commit a political suicide, and 
 thus become incapable of coping with us in war with any chance 
 of success. 
 
 If we glance our eye over the map of the world, and view the 
 great, tlie varied, and the rich possessions of our glorious empire, 
 we shall not envy the Americans their territory, even though it 
 may extend beyond the Rocky Mountains, We have enough, 
 and more than enough, considering the small though efficient 
 army that is left to defend our possessions; and instead of feeling 
 petty jealousy at the growing prosperity of America, we ought 
 on all occasions to extend the right hand of friendship to her, 
 cultivate her acquaintance, and feel proud of so creditable a scion 
 from the stock of Old England. 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 
 Leave the Military Academy. — The Valley of Canterbury. — Murderer's Creek. — 
 Newburgh. — Fire. — Journey to New York. — The City Hotel. — A Concert. — An 
 Evening Party. — The Penalty of Indulgence. — Useful Receipts for Topers. — Gen- 
 eral Santander.— Lawrie Todd. — Dine with the St. Andrew's Society. — A Patriotic 
 Speech in honour of Scotland. — Visit Long Island. — The Navy-yard. — " Ready, 
 aye Ready." — Leave New York. 
 
 From the military academy I went in a sleigh through a pass 
 in the mountains, and descended into a romantic valley of Can- 
 terbury, in the bottom of which runs Murderer's Creek, so named 
 from the murder of a white family of the name of Stacey, by the 
 Indians, a century ago. One old red-skin, who attempted to save 
 the Staceys b}^ giving information of the designs of his tribe, was 
 also inhumanly tomahawked. 
 
 I remained a night at the pleasant town of Newburgh, and was 
 exposed to some inconvenience from the importunities of rival 
 innkeepers for the honour of my company. At last, when I was 
 comfortably seated alone in a carpeted parlour of the mansion- 
 house, it suddenly struck me that there was a haze between me 
 and the candles, then there was the rushing of many feet in the 
 passage. I opened the door, and followed the noise to a sunken 
 floor; flames and smoke now announced that the house was on fire; 
 we seized buckets and succeeded in extinguishing the burning 
 
CITY OP NEW YORK. 367 
 
 fire-wood. Next day, by a beautiful road with wooded hills on 
 the left, we reached Jersey city, by way of Hackinsack, and 
 crossed over to New York. 
 
 I now established myself for some days in the city hotel, one 
 of the largest in America, and found the house crowded with peo- 
 ple of all nations. I was highly pleased with New York, the first 
 in population, the first in wealth, and the first in commercial en- 
 terprise in the Union. I walked over every part of it, and was 
 careful to promenade in Broadway, between the hours of one and 
 three, to admire the fair dames even in winter tripping along 
 with mincing steps in gauze ribbons, silk pelisses, and satin shoes. 
 I also admired the bay inclosed by Long Island, round which, 
 like reeds in a pool, the masts of the shipping were thickly set. 
 
 I visited the battery, from which the town extends like a trian- 
 gle, the city hall and the exchange with their marble fronts, 
 churches, theatres, and institutions of all kinds; and was very hos- 
 pitably entertained by those to whom I brought introductions. 
 
 I was very fortunate in making the acquaintance of Nathaniel 
 Prime, Esq. one of the chief merchants of the city, whose ele- 
 gant and accomplished daughters accompanied me to some gay 
 circles; and by Dr. Hossack I was shown the literary part of the 
 community, and among other distinguished Americans whom I 
 met with at his house, I saw an author, who for wit, humour, and 
 lively description, has few rivals, I mean Mr. Paulding. He is 
 a spare-made man, with a brilliant eye, and reminded me of Fran- 
 cis Jeffi'ey in ajipearance and manner. Through the kindness of 
 Professors M'Vicar and Renwick, I twice spent evenings with 
 the Literary Association, on a similar plan to the Royal Society, 
 and heard subjects of great interest discussed in that quiet Indian- 
 like manner, which is certainly to be preferred to the continual 
 interruptions of a speaker, which I am sorry to say is still preva- 
 lent in England. 
 
 At one of the concerts, to which three hundred exclusives sub- 
 scribed, the music was entirely French and Italian. The hall 
 was well lighted up, and the audience sitting facing one another 
 in little groups, seemed attentive to the foreign strains, though I 
 am sure that a few English songs or ballads would not have 
 pleased them less because better understood; but, ainsi va le 
 monde, such is the despotism of fashion, foreign airs and fashions 
 are on all occasions to be slavishly admired and followed. 
 
 The evening parties resembled those in England; there were 
 the same crowds of fashionablj'-dressed people in well-lighted 
 rooms with "folding doors and marble mantlepieces. " The 
 sexes mingled together as in Europe, and did not keep aloof from 
 each other, as is the custom in the Western States, and was in our 
 
368 CONCERTS AND EVENING PARTIES, 
 
 own country a hundred years ago. Music alternated with dancing; 
 during the former, the young ladies who wished to be particular- 
 ly interesting sat on low stools in the middle of the room, to the 
 discomfort of the beaux, who were compelled to stoop and whis- 
 per soft nothings in their willing ears. Quadrilles, here called 
 cotillions, and waltzes were kept up with spirit, notwithstanding 
 the strong prejudice against the latter "indelicate importation" 
 by the elders: then little tables were wheeled into the rooms by 
 servants not in livery; the eyes of the ladies sparkled brighter than 
 ever, whilst the obsequious swains in starched neck-cloths and kid 
 gloves dispensed canvas-back ducks, blue-pointer oysters, lobster- 
 salad, fish, soup, jellies, blanc-mange, cream, kisses, champagne, 
 and bottied-portcr. « Of a truth," I exclaimed, with the author 
 of the ^New Mirror of Travellers,' " since it is maintained by the 
 best practical piiilosophers that the business of man's life is eating, 
 there is no place in the universe where he can live to such ex- 
 quisite purpose as tlie renowned City of New York, and no where 
 can there be found sucli glorious content of the palate asat this happy 
 emporium of all good things!" But what is the penalty paid for 
 indulgence? We hear the fashionable American disease, dyspep- 
 sia, the nervous disorders and debility of numbers of the wealthy 
 inhabitants, attributed to the moisture of the climate, the great 
 heat in summer and excessive cold in winter; but it is to hot and 
 heavy suppers, and the great consumption of strong animal food 
 with little exercise, that we must chiefly attribute the loss of com- 
 plexion, of teeth, of health, and the death of one-third of the 
 population of the celebrated Island of Manhattan in the prime of 
 life. 
 
 For the receipt-book let the following be copied: — First, Cock- 
 tail is composed of water, with the addition of rum, gin, or 
 brandy, as one chooses — a third of the spirit to two-thirds of the 
 water; add bitters, and eyirich with sugar and nutmeg: in sling, 
 the bitters are omitted. — Second, Mint Julep. Put four or five 
 stalks of unbruised mint into a tumbler, on them place a lump of 
 ice; add brandy, water, and sugnr. — Third, Applc-toddy, says 
 M^. VVillard, the bar-keeper of the City Hotel, who never for- 
 gets the face of a customer, is thus made: Have the fairest apples 
 rolled in brown paper, which wet with water, and then bury 
 them in live embers till they are thoroughly roasted and quite 
 soft; then a fourth part of apples, a fourth part of brandy, a fourth 
 part of water, a lump of ice, and the whole to be rich with a 
 fourth part of sugar, makes the agreeable compound. N. B. If 
 there is no nutmeg convenient, a scrape or two of the mudler 
 (wooden sugar-breaker) will answer the purpose. 
 
LAWRIE TODD. 369 
 
 I met the Colombian General Santander, at several parties; his 
 moustache, aquiline nose, manly face and form, and general good 
 humour, created a very favourable impression of this leader. He 
 was the most distinguished foreigner at New York during my 
 sojourn. 
 
 I often visited another character of a different stamp, the origi- 
 nal of Gait's Lawrie Todd. I found him in his handsome seed- 
 store, an old Quaker meeting-house, with a great display of green 
 varnished flower-pots, containing exotics; pictures of flowers 
 hanging on the walls, drawers and barrels full of seeds, roots of 
 all kinds, gardening implements, a great many canaries and other 
 singing-birds in cages at the upper windows of the gallery, a 
 greenhouse in front, and Mr. Thorburn, himself the greatest 
 curiosity of the whole. He was, as described in the book, a very 
 little man, with a goodly nose and a most sagacious expression of 
 countenance; his small body was cased in a long frock of grey, 
 and he wore a coarse aporn and "shop-sleeves" whilst he tied up 
 parcels. 
 
 After some conversation with him about his singular career in 
 the States since he left " bonny Dalkeith," he took me behind 
 the door and said, " Do you see that auld nailer's hammer, sir ? 
 Well, I landed at New York with that and three ha'pence in my 
 pocket: I would not sell that hammer now for one hundred dol- 
 lars, for it was the beginning of my fortune. I have no occasion 
 to work now; I do it just for pastime, for I canna be idle. You 
 have seen the book, sir, nae doubt; it's very interesting, though 
 Mr. Gait left out a great deal of what I gave him; but he's an 
 extraordinar' clever man for aa that." 
 
 Our countrymen settled in New York are deserving of great 
 praise, for establishing societies for the relief of their distressed 
 compatriots, whose wants are supplied with a noble liberality. 
 I had the honour of dining with the St. Andrew's Society, in the 
 assembly-room. City Hotel, .with a great number of Scotchmen, 
 and I have seldom spent a more delightful evening. Mr. Sinclair, 
 the celebrated vocalist, gave us some of his best songs; and a 
 piper in the garb of old Gaul strutted proudly round the tables, 
 and occasionally electrified the company with his instrument; — 
 
 " The pibroch has, to Highland ears, 
 A sweeter and more pleasant note 
 Than polish'd strains which smoothly float 
 On soft Italian measures." 
 
 Among other excellent speeches, one by Mr. Hugh Maxwell, 
 as a preface to his toast of " Schools and Schoolmasters, the 
 3 A 
 
370 A PATRIOTIC SPEECH 
 
 cheapest defence, the best treasures, and tl)e highest glory of na- 
 tions," deserves particular notice, from being characterized with 
 so much eloquence and patriotism, reflecting great lionour on 
 Scotland and on the speaker, and warming the hearts of his whole 
 audience. 
 
 Brought together, said he, to enjoy the social festivities of an 
 annual meeting, we might well recall early recollections, and cul- 
 tivate an honourable regard for the land of our birth or that of 
 our fathers. It would add to the pleasure of the meeting to re- 
 flect, that during the past year the society had not been inatten- 
 tive to the duty of relieving the distressed, but it was not for 
 them, nor was this the time, to speak of deeds of beneficence. 
 Let others, whose hearts have been gladdened, whose wants have 
 been relieved, testify to the liberal dispensation of the bounty of 
 the society. But he thought that this was the occasion, and this 
 the very hour, when they might speak proudly of Scotland, when 
 they might give vent to their feelings of affection and regard for 
 their native land; and when could that be enjoyed so well as on 
 the day of St. Andrew, ever dear to Scotchmen and their child- 
 ren ? This, he said, they might do without disloyalty to their 
 adopted country, the prosperous land where their household- 
 altars had been established; where their graves were to be made 
 — where their bones were to be buried. 
 
 Well might we exult, he said, in the character of Scotland — 
 exult that she possesses qualities that constitute the highest 
 honour and confer the truest dignity. It was not that Scotland 
 could boast of natural advantages as to soil or climate; in these 
 respects, like the northern nations of Europe, she was inferior to 
 other countries. She had not the gorgeousness of an Italian sky; 
 she had not a soil that yielded spontaneously to the call of the 
 husbandman, she boasts not the 
 
 • Slave's spicy forests or gold bubbling- fountains ;' 
 
 she had not extended commerce or hoarded millions, or political 
 domination, or pomp or power. To these advantages, ii 
 advantages they may be called, Scotland acknowledges no obli- 
 gation. Before the union with England, and indeed after the 
 union, a lawless nobility, national feuds, and a distracted people, 
 ever kept Scotland the victim of the jealousy of England, or of 
 the overbearing arrogance of France, or what was "worse than 
 either, made her a prey of her own intestine faction and disquiet. 
 Notwithstanding this unhappy state, there were eras, however, 
 in the early history of Scotland, exhibiting the indomitable cour- 
 age of a people worthy of freedom. There were names, there 
 
IN HONOUR OF SCOTLAND. 371 
 
 were triumphs, at which the blood warms, the heart beats high. 
 Our own glorious Wallace, "who noble dared to stem tyrannic 
 pride, or nobly die," lives immortal with the Washingtons, the 
 Tells, and Kosciuskos of mankind. The triumphs of Bruce, the 
 battle of Bannockburn will live while history shall record the free- 
 dom of nations. But, however illustrious these names and 
 triumphs might be, yet in reality they did not constitute the 
 highest glory of the Scottish people. There were other triumphs, 
 bloodless triumphs, that conferred a higher dignity, a truer 
 glory — he meant the triumphs of the Parochial Schools of 
 Scotland. 
 
 Contemplate the religious, moral and intellectual condition, that, 
 descending upon Scotland like an angel of mercy and light, with 
 healing on her wings, had shed down upon the whole land a 
 blessed influence is one unbroken stream of effulgent brightness; 
 and by means of a conqueror, in the humble character of a school- 
 master, Scotland has accomplished a victory greater than she ever 
 had achieved before — a victory over herself. 
 
 The orator then went on to point out the results of this victory 
 in the social and civil relations, in the principles of national in- 
 dependence, forming so many men with clear heads, improved 
 understandings, and willing minds, to assert the freedom of 
 conscience and the rights of man; in occasioning a sincere and un- 
 affected reverence for the rites of a pure and holy faith, and a 
 sincere regard for all the charities of life in all its relations of 
 father, son, and brother. 
 
 The divines, the lawyers, and the literary men, were then 
 enumerated, who had done honour to Scotland; emanations, bright 
 emanations indeed from the diffused intelligence of their more 
 humble countrymen, an intelligence to be found in the " cottage far 
 apart," as well as amid the "towers and palaces of Edina;" an in- 
 telligence godlike and gracious, that even now glows and 
 brightens and beams forth from the deepest glens and the re- 
 motest valleys of Scotland, until it reaches and illuminates with 
 a glorious radiance the lofty crags of Ben Nevis, the queen of her 
 mountains. 
 
 These are the bloodless triumphs of Caledonia, these are her 
 riches and her jewels, of which she might boast as the Roman 
 matron boasted of her children, and what Scotchman is there who 
 does not feel emotions of just pride when he reflected on them; 
 and where is there a Scotchman who does not on this day give a 
 sweeter and stronger impulse to the best affections of his nature 
 when he thinks of his native land; who does not, whether he be 
 toiling in the remotest India, or freezing under the rigours of a 
 northern winter, or panting under a tropical sun — whether he be 
 
372 VISIT TO LONG ISLAND. 
 
 on the land or on the sea — look more earnestly, on this day of 
 St. Andrew, to the bleak hills of his country and the scenes of 
 his childhood; who does not join in the prayer of his immortal 
 countryman Burns, 
 
 "Oh! never, never Scotia's realm desert, 
 But still the patriot and the patriot bard, 
 In bright succession raise, her ornament and guard !" 
 
 I crossed to Long Island, and took some interest in visiting it, 
 with the numerous villages along its shores ; for once it had be- 
 longed to an ancestor, before the primeval forests were cut upon 
 it. Passing through the lively town of Brooklyn, I went to the 
 navy yard, where I saw the remains of the celebrated steam frigate, 
 the Fulton, three sixty-gun frigates, (two of them under the 
 building-sheds,) and two schooners. I remarked the manner of 
 salting the timber of a vessel after it is built, to preserve it from 
 the rot, and the quantity of materials collected at the yard, to enable 
 this active and enterprising people on a very short notice, to equip 
 a fleet for sea. 
 
 Though the American naval force in commission consists now of 
 only five frigates, eleven corvettes and seven schooners, let us not 
 imagine that it would be difficult to increase this force, particular- 
 ly by the important addition of steam batteries, an appropriation 
 for two of twelve heavy guns each, having just been recommend- 
 ed by the secretary of the navy. Some in England, in talking of 
 the increasing consequence of the United States, or the over- 
 grown empire of Russia, lull themselves into fancied security by 
 saying, " We have nothing to fear, the union cannot last, and Rus- 
 sia will shortly be dismembered.'* There are no signs of either 
 of these events at present; let us then, according to the motto of 
 a noble ftmiily, be *' Ready, aye ready." 
 
373 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 
 Connecticut. — The buildings of New England. — Anecdotes of New-Englanders, — 
 The Automaton Chess-player. — fantoccini and Fire King. — New England in win- 
 ter. — American Helps. — Distress of a British General. — Hartford. — Boston. — 
 View from the Dome of the State House. — The Streets. — Houses and People. — 
 Hint to marrying Bachelors. — The Athenasum. — Bunker's Hill.— The Monument. 
 — Leave Boston. — A Somerset. — Again enter New York. — Festivities of the New 
 Year. — Reflections on leaving America. — Sail for England. — The Sherbet of 
 Death. — Land at Liverpool. 
 
 One morning I mounted the mail sleigh, and set off at a rapid 
 rate to visit the most ancient city in the Union, the cradle of re- 
 publicanism, the city of Pilgrims, Boston, distant two hundred 
 and fourteen miles. We glided over the frozen surface of Con- 
 necticut, along the shores of the Sound, and when we halted to 
 bait, found the clean inns decked with boughs, and musical instru- 
 ments prepared for the celebration of merry Christmas. 
 
 The churches and houses of New England are generally of 
 wood, painted white, with green Venetians, and the favourite 
 poplars behind a rail in front. New England houses we saw to 
 perfection at New Haven, one of the handsomest towns in the 
 Union, in which the principal attraction is its square, of several 
 acres, ornamented with trees, churches, and the brick buildings 
 of Yale College. 
 
 We broke down once, and had a walk of several miles over 
 the snow, to the no small discomfort of my travelling companions, 
 principally seafaring men — men who had shown the enterprise of 
 New England by visiting every port in the world for traffic, and 
 <'who had vexed every sea by their fisheries ;" in Hudson's Bay 
 and Davis's Straits, along the burning coasts of Brazil and West 
 Africa to Falkland Island, and the icebergs of the antarctic circle, 
 had they thrown the harpoon. They told many stories of Yankee 
 sagacity. It seems that when the automaton chess-player visited 
 New England, he had not long exhibited his performances (so 
 unaccountable to our countrymen), when a Yankee set to work, 
 made and exhibited an opposition automaton, and completely 
 "took the wind out of the sails" of the proprietors of the origi- 
 nal automaton, who was forced to leave the country. The same 
 thing happened after the exhibition of the fantoccini ; and lastly, 
 when I was in the States, M. Chaubert, the fire-king, had only 
 performed a few days, when a Connecticut doctor requested per- 
 mission to join him in washing his hands in the boiling oil, in 
 
374 NEW ENGLAND IN WINTER HARTFORD. 
 
 swallowing the molten lead, and in superintending the cooking of 
 the beef-steak in the oven : all which the fire-king reluctantly 
 consented to, and which caused him to quit the States, seeing that 
 his secrets had been discovered 
 The appearance of the country, even in winter, was very cheering; 
 the hills were crested with wood, the undulating valleys, though 
 wrapped in a snowy mantle, were evidently highly cultivated, 
 and the people were well-dressed, sober, intelligent, and oblig- 
 ing. 
 
 The women were less cold and reserved than in the Western 
 States, for they occasionally condescended to laugh and talk with 
 strangers; and the young women of the respectable families on the 
 road were all actively employed in domestic occupations, for the 
 want of good servants (helps) in America imposes increased house- 
 hold-duties on the mistresses of families and their daughters of all 
 classes. 
 
 A British general officer, now in Canada, said that, he brought 
 over with him men and women-servants to attend him and his 
 family during an experiment he made of living in the States. 
 The Americans sneered at his servants for remaining with him 
 when they might set up for themselves; but the servants were for 
 some time faithful, because, they said, their master used them 
 kindly. However, on the Americans calling them ''white ne- 
 groes," they gave their master warning, and said they could not 
 remain with him any longer, for they had been called names they 
 could not endure. Thus was the General left with his children, 
 horses, and cows, for a fortnight, without assistance; at last, a 
 New England help, for "a consideration," agreed to come early 
 in the morning to assist, in order that the neighbours might not 
 know that he, a citizen of a fine, free, and flourishing republic, 
 had demeaned himself by serving another. 
 
 Passing through Hartford, on the Connecticut River, exhibit- 
 ing every appearance of increase and prosperity, we sleighed 
 through the thriving State of Massachusetts, and in due time 
 were comfortably seated in the Tremont House, at Boston, with 
 its granite front, Doric portico, marble bar, and dining-saloon, 
 ornamented with Corinthian pillars. 
 
 I was not long in ascending with Mr. Osborne, of Demarara, to 
 the most commanding point in the city, the lantern on the dome 
 of the State House, whence we saw the bay, the city, and the 
 beautiful environs thereof. Looking out to sea, were seen the 
 headlands, indentations, numerous islands and fortifications of 
 Boston Bay; round the shores was a rich country, diversified 
 with hill and dale, forest and field, and numerous villages, each 
 with its church-spire. The city on its peninsula connected with 
 
CITV OF BOSTON ATHENiEUM BUNKEr's HILL. 375 
 
 the main by a narrow isthmus and six long bridges (one of seven 
 thousand eight hundred and ten feet,) was on the right and left; 
 and behind me, on the wharfs, were immense warehouses, be- 
 side which lay the crowded shipping. Immediately in front, and 
 between the State House and the bay, was the common or park, 
 of seventy-five acres, with its mall or walk shaded by spreading 
 elms. It was a delightful prospect, and, from all I had read and 
 heard of Boston, and from the very respectable and even antique 
 appearance which it presented, 1 felt more interest in it than in 
 any city I had seen in North America — always excepting 
 Quebec. 
 
 In walking through the streets, crooked and narrow though 
 many of them be, I was pleased with the old-fashioned stone and 
 brick houses of all styles of architecture, and many of them with 
 gables to the street and bay-windows: rows of houses altogether 
 regular, like a stone wall with doors and windows cutout of it, 
 fatigue the eye. The people, both men and women, were ac- 
 tively walking about, and the children were "hurling" down the 
 declivities on little hand-sleighs. The health and appearance of 
 the inhabitants of Boston seemed much better than in other cities 
 of the Union; and, for the information of any Coelebs in search of 
 an American wife, I may add, that the ladies of Boston are con- 
 sidered the best educated and the most intelligent in the States — 
 not to mention the blocks of houses or plump dollar-bags of many 
 of them as trifling additions to their other excellences. 
 
 A respectable merchant (Mr. Motley) was so kind as to show 
 me over the city, and to introduce me to the Athenaeum, the best 
 in the States, consisting of many rooms filled with books, a large 
 collection of coins, a museum, and a reading-room, in which I 
 saw almost all the English periodicals. With Colonel Theodore 
 Lyman I visited the navy-yard, and sawaround-sterned corvette, 
 the Columbia, and a stone dock, the new wonder of the city, 
 completed in the most superior manner, at an expense of five 
 hundred thousand dollars. We then walked to Breed and Bun- 
 ker's Hill, passed through the streets of Charlestown, and ascend- 
 ed the rounded ridge, ever-memorable as the spot where the first 
 battle of the revolution was fought. On its summit was an incom- 
 plete pillar of blocks of granite; its purpose being to show to the 
 world "the deep sense the Americans entertained of the value 
 and importance of the achievement of their ancestors, and by 
 presenting this work of gratitude to the eye, to keep alive similar 
 sentiments, and to foster a constant regard to the principles of the 
 revolution." 
 
 Near the base of the monument fell the American General 
 Warren. Beside it were still seen the traces of the earthen re- 
 
376 FESTIVITIES OF THE NEW YEAR. 
 
 doubt, hastily thrown up by the intrepid defenders of the hill. 
 Lower down was where the frail defence of rails, filled in with 
 mown grass, was placed from whence the advancing lines of 
 British sustained such deadly volleys after landing from their 
 boats below, at the hands of those who, in the words of an Ame- 
 rican poet, 
 
 " Left their ploughshare in the mould, 
 Their flocks and lierds without a fold ; 
 The sickle in the unshorn grain, 
 The corn half garnered on the plain, 
 And mustered in their simple dress, 
 For wrongs to seek a stern redress I 
 To right those wrongs, come weal, come wo, 
 To perish or o'ercome the foe !" 
 
 <'The enlightener of the world was lifting his head from the 
 collar of the east, and was expanding the mantle of brilliancy over 
 the earth," as I left Boston; the glittering snow lay so thick on 
 the ground that it was impossible to distinguish the road, and in 
 a short time the close sleigh turned bottom upwards, and we lay 
 doubled up in the top for some time, unable to move, till, by vio- 
 lent struggling, we got out of a windovv, and in due course, for 
 the fourth time, entered New York. 
 
 I found the inhabitants driving about in sleighs at a great rate, 
 seated on red-edged " Buffaloe robes," which hung out flauntingly 
 over the back of the light vehicles; and drove into the country 
 with my friend Macleod. It was New Year's Day, and the gen- 
 tlemen were busy gliding from house to house to pay the com- 
 pliments of the season to the ladies, gaily dressed and seated at 
 home beside tables, with wine and cake. All enmities were now 
 forgotten, mirth and good humour prevailed, and the evening 
 closed with the dainty fare and inimitable liquor for which the 
 island of Manhattan is so justly celebrated. 
 
 My respectable agents, Messrs. Tucker and Lauries, having 
 provided a passage for me in the packet ship New York (though 
 they recommended a newer vessel), I left the thousand and one 
 attractions of the commercial capital of the United States, and 
 stepped on board, to return to the old country, fully impressed 
 with the idea, that though republican institutions may be suited 
 to a new country, where there is an extensive range for enterpris- 
 ing pioneers of their own fortune, none but a monarchy, and a 
 constitution such as Britain is blessed with, (and may it long be 
 preserved!) can succeed in our beloved islands, with their dense 
 population. Both the Canadas and the States (and may they ever 
 be disunited!) seemed advancing in prosperity and wealth with 
 
SAIL FOR ENGLAND. 377 
 
 rapid strides; and for our Western Islands, I earnestly hope, in 
 Oriental phraseolo^j^, that speedily the gloom of their condition 
 may be brightened with the lamp of prosperity, and that their 
 night of suspense may be succeeded by the morning of gladness. 
 Of the descendants of Britons in North America in general, as a 
 people, though under difierent governmentSj it may be said, that 
 they are 
 
 ' Strong as an eagle at the dawn of day, 
 Who shakes the slumbers from his eyes away, 
 Plumes his long wings and meditates his flight 
 Beyond the clouds which curtain down the light I" 
 
 We struggled through the ice of the Bay of New York, and at 
 last, on reaching Sandy Hook, got sea-room, and stood away 
 towards the banks of Newfoundland, with a westerly gale in our 
 bellying canvass. There were only three passengers on board 
 besides myself, one of whom was a lady. 
 
 We had been a few days out when, one squally evening, the 
 captain was suddenly called up from the cabin. He stayed on 
 deck but a short time, then came down to us, with a look of very 
 bad omen. " I think it right," says he, '' to mention, that, since 
 we sailed, the ship has made a great deal of water, but until to- 
 night we have been able to keep the leak under! We are in an 
 old vessel, and this was intended to be her last voyage, but it may 
 be the last voyage to us all, for we have got seven hundred casks 
 of tar on board; some of these have got adrift, and the pumps are 
 getting choked with tar! I say it with great reluctance, but I fear 
 we cannot keep the ship afloat much longer — we'll never be able 
 to get across the Atlantic; our only chance of safet}' is to put 
 back to New York, though the wind is dead against us! I think 
 it right to prepare you for the worst!" 
 
 Here, then, was the prospect of an immediate termination to 
 our existence, the prospect of slowly sinking into a sea vexed with 
 the storms of winter, through which no frail boat could live. In- 
 deed the bitterness of death seemed now to be come! 
 
 The lady immediately fell into hysterics, and was carried to her 
 cabin — the two gentlemen called for the brandy bottle— I put 
 my papers into a bag, and slipping on my pea-jacket, went on 
 deck, determined to struggle to the last for "dear life!" A pic- 
 turesque group of seamen was assembled round the main-mast, 
 their weather-beaten countenances lighted up with a lantern! The 
 captain stood a little apart; the men pumped with heavy and 
 difficult strokes; the box was drawn forth, dripping with tar! 
 The men shook their heads in silence; the carpenter sounded the 
 well, and announced an increasing depth of water in the hold! 
 3B 
 
378 
 
 LAND AT LIVERPOOL. 
 
 A new and clean box was fitted; I lent a hand; the ship was put 
 about, and the weary pump went all night. Morning seemed 
 never again inclined to appear! At last it broke through clouds, 
 over the melancholy main rising in dark waves! We saw it was 
 in vain to expect to reach New York. We resigned ourselves 
 into the hands of Providence, and were mercifully preserved; 
 again stood towards England, and, after a voyage of only sixteen 
 days, during which we pumped incessantly, we landed in safety 
 and thankfulness at Liverpool, having thus been permitted to lay 
 before our readers a sheaf gleaned from the varied harvest of 
 America. 
 
 THE END. 
 
NEW AND POPULAR WORKS 
 
 PUBLISHED BY 
 
 KEY AND BIDDLE, 
 
 33 MINOR STREET. 
 
 AN ADDRESS TO THE YOUNG, ON THE IMPORTANCE 
 OF RELIGION. By John Foster, author of Essays on De- 
 cision of Character, &c. 
 
 This is a good publication, well conceived and admirably executed, full of important 
 truths and beautifully enforced. 
 
 Our readers know, or ought to know John Foster, the Author of "Essays on De- 
 cision of Character," one of the best writers that England has produced, suited to 
 be compared in many things with Robert Hall, he needs no higher praise. — U, S. 
 Gazette. 
 
 This work comprises a series of eloquent and affectionate exhortations, which, if 
 carefully attended to, will make wise and good men of all who lay them to heart, 
 and endeavour to accord with them in life and conversation. The author has acquir- 
 ed great celebrity by his former writings. — Saturday Courier. 
 
 We are not going to hold a rush-light up to a book of John Foster's, but only 
 mean to tell what is its intent. It is an awakening appeal to youth of the refined and 
 educated sort, upon the subject of their personal religion. There can be no doubt 
 as to its currency. — The Preshyterian. 
 
 John Foster is all owed by men of all parties, political and religious, to be oiie 
 of the most original and vigorous thinkers of the age. His well tried talents, his 
 known freedom from cant and fanaticism, and the importance of the subject dis- 
 cussed, strongly commend this Book to the attention of that interesting class to 
 whom it is addressed. All his writings are worthy of careful and repeated perusal; 
 but his essay on " Decision of Character," and this " Address to the Young," should 
 be the companions of all young persons who are desirous of intellectual and moral 
 improvement. 
 
 Foster's Address to the Youxg. — Perhaps no religious book has issued from the 
 American press which commanded more general and abundant patronage than one ' 
 from tlie pen of the Rev. Jared Waterbury, called " Advice to a young Christian." 
 Aside from its intrinsic excellence, it was rendered valuable by the fact that it was 
 exactly adapted to a particular class of Society ; and all who wish to make an im- 
 pression upon that class, was apprised by its very title that it was designed to be sub- 
 servient to such a purpose. A work of precisely such a character from the pen of 
 the celebrated Foster, and designed to operate upon a different class of persons, will 
 be found in the one of which the caption of this article is the title page. The name 
 of the author will supersede the necessity for all eulogium to those who have not 
 read it, and to tliose who have, the book will abundantly commend to itself. Permit 
 me to direct to it the attention of such of your readers as may have careless young 
 friends, into whose hands they would desire to place a solemn, affectionate and fervent 
 appeal on the indispensable necessity of religion. It is just published by Key and 
 Biddle, of this city, and can, I presume, be procured at any of the bookstores. May 
 the great Head of the Church make it instrumental in the conversion of many souls, 
 — Episcopal Recorder. 
 
NEW AND POPULAR WORKS. 
 
 A MOTHER'S FIRST THOUGHTS. By the author of 
 
 '< Faith's Telescope." 
 
 This is a brief miniature, from an Edinbnrg-h edition. Its aim is to furnish reli- 
 gious Meditations, Prayers, and Devotional Foetry for pious mothers. It is most 
 hijrhly commended in the Edinburgh Presbyterian Review, and in the Christian 
 Advocate. Tlie author, who is a Lady of Scotland, unites a deep knowledge of 
 sound theology, with no ordinary talent for sacred poetry. — Tlie Presbyterian. 
 
 " A Mother's First Thoug-hts," is a little work, of great merit. It breathes a spirit 
 of pure and fervent piety, and abounds in sound and salutary instruction. It con- 
 tains also some excellent poetry. — Saturday Courier. 
 
 PHILOSOPHY OF A FUTURE STATE. 
 PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION. 
 CHRISTIAN PHILOSOPHER. 
 
 By Thomas Dick. 
 
 Phifadelphia, Key and Biddle. 
 
 In the first of the works wliose titles head this article, Mr. Dick has endeavoured 
 to prove, that man is an immortal being. His arguments are drawn from various 
 sources, and he has judiciously availed himself of the recent discoveries in science, 
 in illustrating the connexion of intellectual improvement, with the state of future ex- 
 istence. 
 
 Mr. Dick has displayed in this work considerable extent of knowledge, and the 
 industry manifested in collecting and arranging his numerous and diversified ma- 
 terials, will meet with the decided approbation of every intelligent Christian. 
 
 The Philosophy of Religion is a production of no less value than the preceding ; it 
 is an attempt by the pious and indefatigable author, to illustrate the moral being of 
 the universe, and to delineate the obligations of man to God — to show how reasonable 
 and excellent the precepts of revealed religion arc, and how well they are adapted to 
 the condition of man, how certainly their practical adoption is productive of peace 
 and joy, and how bright under all circumstances are the hopes, and soothing the con- 
 solations of the Christian. It is an excellent book, and may be read with advantage 
 by all sects of Christians. 
 
 The Christian Philosopher, which next claims our attention, is to the philosophic 
 Inquirer more interesting than either of the preceding two. It is a scientific inves- 
 tigation into the existence and attributes of a great first cause, and the author has 
 evidently come to his subject well prepared, securely assured, and ready to give a 
 reasonable answer to the sceptical questioner for the hope that is within him. The 
 author has successfully combated the ridiculous ideas of those zealous but ignorant 
 christians who reject all human knowledge as vain and useless. He has shown that 
 the study and contemplation of the laws of the natural world, elevate the mind in its 
 conceptions of the power, wisdom and goodness of God, and that every advance in 
 knowledge, every discovery in science, tends to confirm our faith, exalt our views 
 and refine our dispositions, and thus improve us in moral and religious feelings and 
 principles. 
 
 Mr. Dick veryjustly observes that " the man who would discard the efforts of the 
 humuM intellect, and the science of Nature from Keligion, forgets — that He who is 
 the author of human redemi)tion is also the creator and governor of the whole system 
 of the material universe — that it is one end of that moral renovation which the Gos- 
 pel effects, to qualify us for contemplating arigiit the displays of Divine Perfection 
 which the works of creation exhibit, that the visible works of God are the principal 
 medium by which lie displays the attributes of this nature to intelligent beings — that 
 the study and contemplation of these works employ the faculties of intelligences of a 
 superior order — that man, had he remained in primeval innocence, would have been 
 chiefly employed in such contemplations — that it is one main design of divine revela- 
 tion to illustrate the operations of Providence, and the agency of God in the forma- 
 tion and preservation of all things — and that the scriptures are full of sublime des- 
 
NEW AND POPULAR WORKS. 
 
 criptions of the visible creation, and of interesting references to the various obejcts 
 which adorn the scenery of nature. In these opinions we entirely concur, and we 
 are certain that every believer in the Gospel of Christ, will have his soul expanded, 
 his energies awakened, and all his faculties and powers enlarged by investigating 
 the laws of the Universe. God is every where ; we perceive his wisdom in the 
 organization of a man, and a tree ; every animal on earth, all objects in nature, 
 organized or unorganized, exhibit the power, the skill, and the benevolence of the 
 Creator. 
 
 Mr. Dick's book contains many important facts in relation to the laws of matter 
 and motion, illustrated by familiar expositions, and well adapted to the comprehen- 
 sion of the general reader. We have rarely perused a work with more pleasure 
 and profit, and we are confident that it will prove a valuable and useful addition to 
 every family library. To the young divine just commencing his ministerial labours, 
 it will be of much benefit, it will supply hitn with topics for exemplification, upon 
 which he can expatiate with the fervour and eloquence of genius, and all the 
 enthusiasm of a finer, but rational and ardent Christian. 
 
 In dismissing these productions of Mr. Dick, wc cordially commend them to the 
 attention of our readers. 
 
 EXAMPLE; OR FAMILY SCENES. 
 
 This is one of those useful and truly moral publications which can not fail to 
 be read with delight by the youth of both sexes, who, as their hearts expand, and 
 they advance in years, have need of some instructer to point out the path they 
 should follow for their future happiness. The author has been triumphantly suc- 
 cessful in attaining these laudable objects in this interesting publication." WeeMy 
 Times. 
 
 HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES, in 1 vol. 12mo. 
 Br Thomas Hughs. Embellished with a great number of 
 beautiful wood cuts. 
 
 The publishers announce this work with the highest feelings of satisfaction. 
 The three objections they have had in view are cheapness, beauty of embellishment, 
 and novelty of matter, combined with accuracy of research. The name of the 
 author, (who is already favourably known by several previous works for schools) is a 
 sufficient guarantee of the manner in which this book will be executed. It will not 
 be uninteresting to state that the sources from which some of the materials of this 
 school book are derived, are inaccessible to any except the present writer; whose 
 business it has also been to attempt the attainment of that which has hitherto been 
 overlooked, as of no importance, viz: elegance of style, which may interest at the 
 same time that it will aid in forming the taste of the youtliful reader. 
 
 A HARMONY OF THE FOUR GOSPELS. Founded on 
 the Arrangement of tlie Harmonia Evangelica, by the Rev. 
 Edward Greswell. With the Practical Reflections of Dr. 
 Doddridge. Designed/or the use of Families and Schools, 
 and /or Private Edification. By the Rev. E. Bickersteth. 
 Rector of Wolton, Herts." 
 
 A beautiful duodecimo of about four hundred pages; and one of the best books 
 which has appeared for many years, with respect to personal and domestic edifica- 
 tion. It is next to impossible to read the ordinary Harmonies. The current of 
 the narrative is broken by constant interruptions. In this, we have in con- 
 venient sections, the four Gospel histories, made up into one, in proper order, in the 
 words of the common English translation. The devotional notes of Doddridge are 
 better than any wc have seen for reading in the closet or at family worship. The 
 name of Bickersteth, prefixed to a book, is enough to show that it is written simply 
 to serve the cause of Christ.— TAe Presbyterian. 
 
NEW AND POPULAR WORKS. 
 
 THE HUMOURIST'S OWN BOOK. A cabinet of original 
 and selected anecdotes, bon mots, sports of fancy, and traits 
 of character; intended to furnish occasion for reflection as well 
 as mirth. By the author of the Young Man's Own Book, &c. 
 
 It is grood to be pleased; and tlie book which can cliase a care, or enliven a brow, 
 provided it be pure, is worthy of honest recommendation. Such is the character of 
 the volume entitled The Humourist's Own Book, recently published by Messrs. Key 
 and Biddle. The work is made of good things, carefully culled; and the man who 
 can run over them all, without a laugh or smile, is fit for treason. — Phila. Gazette. 
 
 THE HAPPINESS OF THE BLESSED, considered as to 
 the particulars of their state; their recognition of each other 
 in that state: and its difference of degrees. To which are 
 added, Musings on the Church and her services. By Richard 
 Mant, D. D. M. R. I. A. Lord Bishop of Down and Connor. 
 
 JOURNAL OF A NOBLEMAN. Being a narrative of his 
 residence at Vienna, during Congress. 
 
 LIFE OF A SAILOR. By a Captain in the Navy. Two 
 very interesting volumes. — U. S. Gaz. 
 
 LEGENDS OF THE WEST. By James Hall. Second edi- 
 tion. 
 
 MEMOIRS OF HORTENSE BEAUHARNAIS, DUCHESS 
 OF ST. LEU AND EX-QUEEN OF HOLLAND. 
 
 IRISH ELOQUENCE.— The Speeches of the celebrated Irish 
 Orators, Phillips, Curran, and Grattan; to which is added, 
 the Powerful Appeal of Robert Emmett, at the close pf his 
 trial for higli treason. In 1 vol. Svo, 
 
 The above work forms a complete and unique school of Irish oratory. To every 
 member of the bar, lo every clergyman, to every aspirant to political influence and 
 admission into the legislative halls of his country, this practical text book of elo- 
 quence will be an honoured manual; and scarcely less does it recommend itself to 
 every lover of literature, and each promoter of his country's good, who will both be 
 rewarded for the purchase, the one by its high literary merits, and tlic other in the 
 glowing pictures it presents to him of personal sacrifice on the altar of public weal. — 
 United States Gazette. 
 
 THE SOLDIER'S BRIDE, AND OTHER TALES. By 
 James Hall, Esq. author of "Legends of the West," &c. 
 
 Contents. — 1. The Soldier's Bride. 2 Cousin Lucy and the Village Teacher. 
 3. Empty Pockets. 4. The Captain's Lady. 5. The Pliiladclphia Dun. 6. The 
 Bearer of Despatches. 7. The Village Musician. 8. Fashionable Watering Pla- 
 ces. 9. The Useful Man. 10. The Dentist. IL The Bachelor's Elysium. 12. 
 Pete Featherton. 13. The Billiard Table. 
 
 We have just risen from the perusal of the Soldier's Bride. The impression it 
 leaves upon the mind is like that which we receive from the sight of a landscape of 
 rural beauty and rejiose — or from the sound of ricii and sweet melody. Every part 
 of this delightful tale js redolent of moral and natural loveliness. The writer belongs 
 to the same class with Irving and Paulding; and as in his descriptions, characters 
 and incidents, he never loses sight of the true and legitimate purpose of fiction, the 
 
NEW AND POPULAR WORKS. 
 
 elevation of the taste and moral character of his readers, he will contribute his full 
 share to the creation of sound and healthful literature. — United States Gazette. 
 
 THE TESTIMONY OF NATURE AND REVELATION 
 TO THE BEING, PERFECTIONS, AND GOVERN- 
 MENT OF GOD. By the Rev. Henry Fergus, Dunferm- 
 line, Author of the History of the United States of America, 
 till the termination of the War of Independence, in Lardners' 
 Cyclopedia. 
 
 The Rev. Mr. Fergus's Testimony of Nature and Revelation to the Beinor, Per- 
 feetion and Government of God, is an attempt to do in one volume what the Bridg- 
 water Treatises are to do in eight. We wisli one-eighth of the reward only may 
 make its way to Dunfermline. Mr. Fergus's Treatise goes over the whole ground 
 with fervour and ability ; it is an excellent volume, and may be had for somewhere 
 about half the price of one of the Bridgwater octavo. — London Spectator. 
 
 TALES OF ROMANCE, FIRST SERIES. This is not only 
 an uncommonly neat edition, buta very entertaining book; how 
 could it be otherwise when such an array of authors as the fol- 
 lowing is presented. 
 
 The work contains All's Bride, a tale from the Persian, by Thomas Moore, inter- 
 spersed with poetry. The Last of the Line, by Mrs. S. C. Hall, an author who sus- 
 tains a reputation which every succeeding production greatly enhances. The Wire 
 Merchant's Story, by the author of the King's Own. The Procrastinator, by T. 
 Croftcn Crokcr. The Spanish Beadsman. The Legend of Rose Rocke, by the 
 
 author of Stories of Waterloo. Barbara S , by Charles Lamb. A Story of the 
 
 Heart. The Vacant Chair, by J. M. Wilson ; and the Queen of the Meadows, by 
 Miss Mitford. 
 
 This volume has no pretensions to the inculcation of mawkish sensibility. We 
 have read every word of it, and can confidently recommend it to our friends. — Jour- 
 nal of Belles Letters. 
 
 YOUNG MAN'S OWN BOOK.— A Manual of Politeness, In- 
 tellectual Improvement, and Moral Deportment, calculated to 
 form the character on a solid basis, and to insure respectability 
 and success in life. 
 
 Its contents are made up of brief and well written essays upon subjects very ju- 
 diciously selected, and will prove a useful and valuable work to those who give it a 
 
 careful reading, and make proper use of those hints which the author throws out. 
 
 Boston Traveller. 
 
 YOUNG LADY'S OWN BOOK, a Manual of Intellectual Im- 
 provement and Moral Deportment. By the author of the 
 Young Man's Own Book. 
 
 Messrs. Key &. Biddle,of this city, have published a very neat little volume, enti- 
 tled, The Young Lady's Own Book. Its contents are well adapted to its useful 
 purpose. — National Gazette, 
 
 WACOUSTA, OR THE PROPHECY; A Tale or the Cana- 
 
 DAS. 2 vols. 
 
 ZOE, OR THE SICILIAN SAYDA. 
 
NEW WORKS 
 
 IN PRESS BY 
 
 KEY AND BIDDLE. 
 
 THE HOME BOOK OB^ HEALTH AND MEDICINE, 
 being a popular treatise on the means of Avoiding and Curing Dis- 
 eases, and of Preserving the Health and Vigour of the Body to 
 the latest period: including a full account of the Diseases of Wo- 
 men and Children. 
 
 THE YOUNG MAN'S SUNDAY BOOK.— In continua- 
 tion of the Series commenced by the Young Man's Own Book. 
 
 THE WORLD AS IT IS, AND OTHER TALES. 
 
 THE YOUNG CHRISTIAN'S BOOK. By G. T. Bedell, 
 D. D. 
 
 THE JOURNAL OF A LUNATIC. 
 
 PROGRESSIVE EXPERIENCE OF THE HEART. By 
 Mrs. Stevens. 
 
 YOUNG LADY'S SUNDAY BOOK. By the Author of 
 the Young Lady's Own Book. 
 
 THE FAMILY BOOK; a series of Discourses, with Prayers 
 for each Sunday evening in the year; with an Introductory Es- 
 say. By the Rev. John Breckinridge. 
 
 HARPE'S HEAD. A Legend of Kentucky. By the Au- 
 thor of Legends of the West. 
 
 LETTERS FROM THE NORTH OF EUROPE. By 
 Charles Boileau Elliott, Esq. 
 
 Tliis is one of tliosc remarkably pleasant tours whicli an intelligent gentleman, 
 wlio has seen much of the world, is alone calculated to write — one of those produc- 
 tions which engage the attention and do not fatigue it, and which we read Irom first 
 to last with the agreeable sensation, that we are gathering the information of very 
 extensive travel easily, by our own fireside. — London Literary Gazette. 
 
 MEMOIRS OF DR. BURNEY, arranged from his own 
 Manuscript, from family papers, and from personal recollections, 
 by his daughter, Madame D'Arblay. 
 
 The Monthly Review, in noticing the Memoirs of Dr. Burney, expresses the opin- 
 ion " that a more amusing and projitable production has not appeared for many 
 years." 
 
 Several literary gentlemen on this side of the Atlantic who have examined the 
 work, declare that next to Boswell's Life of Johnson, it is the most attracting and 
 interesting memoir ever published. 
 
 THE ARISTOCRAT, by the Author of Zoe, &c. 
 
 LRBAp'28