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Title: A voyage to Guinea, Brasil and the West Indies
Author: J. B. Atkins
Release date: November 12, 2023 [eBook #72102]
Language: English
Original publication: London: printed for Caesar Ward and Richard Chandler, 1735
Credits: Peter Becker, John Campbell and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A VOYAGE TO GUINEA, BRASIL AND THE WEST INDIES ***
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
This book was printed in 1735 and this etext is a careful
reproduction of that original text. No spelling and very few
punctuation corrections have been made in order to preserve the
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When a year is given for a date between January 1st and March 24th it
is shown in this etext as 1720/1 or 1721/2 or 1722/3.
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etext.
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19, 20, 21 etc. No pages are missing, it is a printing error by the
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are noted at the end of the book.
_Lately Publish’d_,
In a neat Pocket Volume, Price 3_s._
THE NAVY SURGEON: Or, _A Practical System of Surgery_. Illustrated
with Observations on such remarkable Cases as have occurred to the
Author’s Practice in the _Royal Navy_. To which is added, A Treatise
on the _Venereal Disease_, the Causes, Symptoms, and Method of Cure
by _Mercury_: An Enquiry into the Origin of that Distemper; in which
the Dispute between Dr. _Dover_, and Dr. _Turner_, concerning _Crude
Mercury_, is fully consider’d; with Useful Remarks thereon. Also an
_Appendix_, containing _Physical Observations_ on the Heat, Moisture,
and Density of the Air on the Coast of _Guinea_, the Colour of the
Natives; the Sicknesses which they and the _Europeans_ trading
thither are subject to; with a Method of Cure. By JOHN ATKINS,
_Surgeon_.
Printed for WARD and CHANDLER, at the _Ship_, between the
_Temple-Gates_ in _Fleet-Street_; and Sold at their Shop in
SCARBOROUGH.
A
VOYAGE
TO
_Guinea_, _Brasil_, and the
_West-Indies_;
In His Majesty’s Ships, the SWALLOW
and WEYMOUTH.
Describing the several Islands and Settlements, _viz_—_Madeira_,
the _Canaries_, _Cape de Verd_, _Sierraleon_, _Sesthos_, _Cape
Apollonia_, _Cabo Corso_, and others on the _Guinea_ Coast;
_Barbadoes_, _Jamaica_, &c. in the _West-Indies_.
The Colour, Diet, Languages, Habits, Manners, Customs, and
Religions of the respective Natives, and Inhabitants.
With Remarks on the GOLD, IVORY, and SLAVE-TRADE; and on the Winds,
Tides and Currents of the several Coasts.
By _JOHN ATKINS_,
Surgeon in the ROYAL NAVY.
_Illi Robur & Æs triplex
Circa Pectus erat, qui fragilem truci
Commisit Pelago Ratem
Primus_——
HORAT.
[Illustration: (ship under sail)]
_LONDON_;
Printed for CÆSAR WARD and RICHARD CHANDLER, at the _Ship_, between
the _Temple-Gates_ in _Fleet-Street_; And Sold at their Shop in
SCARBOROUGH. M.DCC.XXXV.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
PREFACE
The Publishing of this Voyage, is from a Supposition that it contains
something useful to those following in the same Track, and that it
will be no unprofitable Amusement to others who do not. I shall
therefore wave all Apology, and instead, proceed to a Reflection or
two, on the Life and Element we occupy.
And _first_, The Man whose Means of Subsistence irreversibly depends
on the Sea, is unhappy because he forsakes his proper Element,
his Wife, Children, Country, and Friends, all that can be called
pleasant (and of Necessity, not Choice) to tempt unknown Dangers, on
that deceitful, trackless Path; Lee Shores, Tempests, Wants of some
kind or other, bad Winds, or the rougher Passions of our selves, are
continually molesting; and if common Danger under one adopted Parent
(_Neptune_) does not always unite us, yet we are still cooped like
Fowls, to the same Diet and Associates.
“_Till chang’d at length and to the Place conform’d_
_In Temper and in Nature we receive_
_Familiar the fierce Heat._”
Milton. B. II.
Tophet[1] _with Stink of_ Suffolk _Vaporous
Obscures the Glim; that visive and olfactive Nerves
In us feel dreadful Change._
And to compleat our ill Luck, while we are thus contending with
sinister Fate, the Rogues at home perhaps are stealing away the
Hearts of our Mistresses and Wives. Are not these a hapless Race thus
doomed!
A Sea-Life absolutely considered, had so much of Hardship and
Danger, that in King _John_’s Time a national Synod ordained, _no
married Persons should go beyond Sea without publishing their mutual
Consent_; which, I apprehend, proceeded from this Foundation:
_That it should not be in the power of one to thrust himself on
Difficulties and Hazard, that would make the other equally unhappy._
The _Saxons_ before, made a Law, that if a Merchant crossed the
wide Sea three times, he should be honoured with the Title of
_Thane_, (_Rapin_, p. 15.) and the Monarchs of the East shew their
Approbation, by still leaving the rough Dominion of it to Christians.
There are Circumstances notwithstanding, which may abate the
Infelicity, and give real Pleasure: Such chiefly in the Navy, are
a Defence of one’s Country, a Livelihood, being better manned and
provided against Dangers than Trading Ships; Good-natur’d Officers,
a mutual good Treatment, seeing the Wonders of the Deep, and at
last, maimed or decrepid, a Retreat to Superannuation, or that
noble Foundation of _Greenwich_-Hospital; to which of late Years
must be added, the Satisfaction Officers receive from that generous
Contribution for supporting their Widows, and consequently the
Children they may leave behind them.
This charitable Project is governed by the following Articles,
established by His present Majesty.
I.
_That Widows of Commission and Warrant Officers of the Royal Navy,
shall be reputed proper Objects of the Charity, whose Annual
Incomes arising from their Real and Personal Estates, or otherwise,
do not amount to the following Sums_, viz.
_l. s. d._
_The Widow of a Captain_ }
_or Commander_, } 45 0 0
_The Widow of a Lieutenant_ }
_or Master_, } 30 0 0
_The Widow of a Boatswain,_ }
_Gunner, Carpenter,_ }
_Purser, Surgeon,_ }
_Second Master of_ } 20 0 0
_a Yacht, or Master of a_ }
_Naval Vessel warranted_ }
_by the Navy Board,_ }
_And that where any such Widow is possessed of, or interested in
any Sum of Money, the Annual Income and Produce thereof, shall be
computed and deemed, as annually yielding Three Pounds_ per Centum,
_and no more_.
II.
_That to avoid Partiality and Favour in the Distribution of the
Charity, Widows of Officers of the same Rank shall have an equal
Allowance, the Proportion of which shall be fixed Annually by the
Court of Assistants, according to their Discretion; and that in
order thereunto, the said Court may distribute Annually such Part
of the Monies, arising by the said Charity, among the Widows, as
they think proper; and to lay out such other Part thereof in_
South-Sea _Annuities, or other Government Securities, as to them
shall seem meet, for raising a Capital Stock for the general
Benefit of the Charity, where the Application is not particularly
directed by the Donors._
III.
_That in the Distribution of Allowances to poor Widows, the same be
proportionate to one another, with respect to the Sum each is to
receive, according to the following Division_, viz.
_The Widow of a Captain or Commander shall receive a Sum One Third
more than the Widow of a Lieutenant or Master._
_The Widow of a Lieutenant or Master shall receive a Sum One Third
more than the Widow of a Boatswain, Gunner, Carpenter, Purser,
Surgeon, Second Master of a Yacht, or Master of a Naval Vessel
Warranted by the Navy Board._
IV.
_That Widows admitted to an Annual Allowance from the Charity,
shall begin to enjoy it from the First Day of the Month following
the Decease of their Husbands, provided they apply within Twelve
Months for the same; otherwise, from the Time of their Application._
V.
_That if any Widow, admitted to the Charity, marries again, her
Allowance from thenceforth shall cease._
VI.
_That in order to prevent Abuses, no Widow shall be admitted to the
Benefit of the Charity, who has not been married for the Space of
Twelve Months to the Officer by whose Right she claims the same,
unless the said Officer was killed or drowned in the Sea Service.
And if any Officer marries after the Age of Seventy Years, his
Widow shall be deemed unqualified to receive the Charity._
VII.
_That if the Widow of an Officer lives in the Neighbourhood of any
of His Majesty’s Dock-Yards, the Commissioner of the Navy residing
there, and some of the Principal Officers of the Yard, or the
said Officers of the Yard, where there is no Commissioner, shall
inform themselves thoroughly of the Circumstances of the Deceased;
and being satisfied that the Widow comes within the Rules of the
Charity, shall sign and give her the following Certificate gratis_,
viz.
These are to certify the Court of Assistants for managing the
Charity for Relief of Poor Widows of Commission and Warrant
Officers of the Royal Navy, That _A. B._ died on the _________
and has left the Bearer _C. B._ a Widow; and according to the
best Information we can get from others, and do really believe
ourselves, is not possessed of a clear annual Income to the Value
of ___________ and therefore she appears to us to be entituled to
the Benefit of the said Charity under their Direction.
_Besides which, the Widow is to make Affidavit, that her Annual
Income is not better than is expressed in the said Certificate, and
that she was legally married (naming the Time when, and the Place
where) to the Officer, in whose Right she claims the Benefit of the
Charity._
VIII.
_That if the Widow resides in any other Part of his Majesty’s
Dominions, a Certificate of the like Nature is to be signed by
the Minister of the Parish, a Justice of the Peace, and two or
more Officers of the Navy, who are best acquainted with her
Circumstances; and she is to make such Affidavit as is before
mentioned._
IX.
_That all Widows applying for the Benefit of the Charity, are to
make Affidavit, that they are unmarried._
X.
_That Widows admitted to the Charity shall once in every Year,
at the Time that shall be appointed, bring to the Court of
Assistants their Affidavits, containing a particular State of their
Circumstances, and that they continue unmarried._
XI.
_That Widows of Masters and Surgeons are to apply to the Navy
Office, and receive from thence a Certificate of the Quality of
their Husbands in the Navy, which shall be given them_ Gratis,
_before they apply to the Court of Assistants, to be admitted to
the Charity_.
XII.
_That no Officer or Servant employed in the Business or Service of
this Charity, shall receive any Salary, Reward, or other Gratuity,
for his Pains or Service in the Affairs of the said Charity, but
that the whole Business thereof shall be transacted_ Gratis.
_Secondly_, Of the different Seas we traverse.
The _Mediterranean_, from the Climate, Fertility, and Beauty of the
Countries bordering on it, claims the Preference, I think, of all
Seas; and recompenses more largely the Fatigues of a Voyage. What is
peculiar, and makes them more than others pleasant, is, _First_, the
Temperature of their Air, neither too hot nor cold, but a pleasant
Mediocrity, that is, Spring or Summer all the Year. _Secondly_,
Being of a moderate Compass: A Man by a little conversing with Maps,
fixes an Idea of his Distances, his Stages from Place to Place, and
may measure them over in his Head with the same Facility he would
a Journey from _London_ to _York_. _Thirdly_, Thus acquainted with
the daily Progress, our Approaches please in a Proportion to the
Danger and Wants we go from, and the Remedy and Port we go to.
_Leghorn_, _Genoa_, _Naples_, &c. have their different Beauties.
_Fourthly_, The confining Lands on the _European_ and _African_ Side
being mountainous, and the Sea interspersed with Islands, gives
these Priorities to main Oceans, _viz._ that you cannot be long out
of sight of some Land or other, and those flowing with Milk and
Honey, no ordinary Comfort, excepting when they are _Lee_ Shores.
_Secondly_, If the Hills be to Windward, they take off the Force of
strong Winds, and make a smooth Sea. And _thirdly_, The same Hills
to _Leeward_, do by their Height give a Check to Storms; the Air
stagnating by their Interposition, I have observed frequently in
shore, to become a gentle Gale.
_Lastly_, The greatest Pleasure of those Seas, is visiting Towns and
Countrys that have been worthy History; the most famous do somewhere
or other border there, and have given birth to the greatest Men and
greatest Actions. _Greece_, that was the Mother of Arts and Sciences,
the Oracle of the World, that brought forth a _Homer_, _Socrates_,
_Alexander_, &c. and was one of the four great Empires, stands to
those Seas (though changed now to _European Turky_, by a Progress as
wonderful) so does _Italy_, the Seat of the last universal Empire.
That _Rome_, which subjected almost all the Kings and Kingdoms of
the known World, gave _Britain_ Laws, and left every where eternal
Monuments of their Power and Magnificence: Here lived _Virgil_,
_Horace_, _Cæsar_——Hither some say St. _Paul_ made his Voyage,
having coasted along _Crete_, and suffered Shipwreck at _Malta_,
Islands famous here, the one being the Birth-place of _Jupiter_, the
other for a renowned Order of Knights, the professed Defenders of
Christianity against the _Turk_.
Volcanos, Catacombs, Triumphal Arches, and Pillars, Baths, Aqueducts,
and Amphitheatres, are peculiar Curiosities of _Italy_. There is
scarcely a Spot in that delicious Country, but is recorded for some
remarkable Occurrence; is memorable for High-ways, Grottos, Lakes,
Statues, Monuments, some Victory gained, or Battle lost, the Birth
or Death of _Cæsar_ or his Friends. On the _African_ Side, stands or
did stand, _Carthage_, _Troy_, _Tyre_, _Nice_, _Ephesus_, _Antioch_,
_Smyrna_; and on that shore was once Christianity firmly planted (no
less than 300 Bishops being expelled thence;) but alas how all things
change! neither Greatness nor Virtue can exempt from Mortality:
Towns, Countries, and Religions, have their Periods.
_Thebes_, _Nineveh_, &c. are now no more.
_Oppida posse mori,
Si quæras Helicen & Burin, Achaidas Urbes,
Invenies sub Aquis._
They have a determined Time to flourish, decay, and die in. Corn
grows where _Troy_ stood: _Carthage_ is blotted out. _Greece_ and
her Republicks (_Athens_, _Sparta_, _Corinth_,) with other fam’d
_Asian_ and _African_ Cities the _Turkish_ Monarchy has overturned.
Their Magnificence, Wealth, Learning, and Worship, is changed into
Poverty and Ignorance; and _Rome_, the Mother of all, overrun with
Superstition. Who, on the one hand, but feels an inexpressible
Pleasure in treading over that Ground, he supposes such Men
inhabited, whose Learning and Virtues have been the Emulation of
all succeeding Ages? And who again but must mourn such a melancholly
Transposition of the Scene, and spend a few funeral Reflections over
such extraordinary _Exequiæ_: Perhaps the Revolution of as many Ages,
as has sunk their Glory, may raise it again, or carry it to the
_Negroes_ and _Hottentots_, and the present Possessors be debased.
The next pleasant Sailing to the _Mediterranean_, is that part of the
_Atlantick_, Southern, Pacifick, South, or _Indian_ Seas, that are
within the Limits of a _Trade-Wind_; because such Winds are next to
invariable, of such moderate Strength as not to raise heavy Seas, or
strain a Ship; no Storms at Distance from Land; and equal Days and
Nights.
The _Atlantick_, and Southern Ocean, without the Limits of this
_Trade-Wind_, that is, from 30 to 60°° of Latitude, are far the
worst for Navigation; wide, rough, and boisterous Seas, more subject
to Clouds, Storm, and Tempest, variable Weather; long, dark, cold
Nights, and less delightful Countries and Climates out of _Europe_.
_Lastly_, Beyond 60 Degrees of Latitude we have little Commerce,
and the Seas less frequented; the Countries growing more and more
inhospitable, as Latitude and Cold increases towards the Pole;
however, Men who have used _Greenland_, tell me, those inclement
Skies contain no other Vapors, than Mist, Sleet, and Snow; the Sea
less ruffled with Winds, which blow for the most part Northerly,
towards the Sun, _i. e._ towards a more rarified Air, seen in those
Drifts of Ice from thence, that are found far to the Southward, both
on the _European_ and _American_ side. Another Advantage to cheer
the Winter’s Melancholy of Northern Regions, is the Moon’s shining
a Length proportioned to the Absence of the Sun; so that where he is
entirely lost, she[2] never sets, but with reflected and resplendent
Light on Ice and Snow, keeps up their Consolation.
In all Seas are met numerous Incidents and Appearances, worthy our
Reflection. I have therefore gone on to Observations more instructive
and amusing. If the Solutions are not every where Standard, they may
strike out Hints to better Capacities; among those, I can perceive
_two_ more liable to Objection.
_First_, The _Pythagorean_ Soliloquy I set out with (p. 18.) which
may be deemed too foreign for the Subject: To which I answer——A
Voyage to Sea is a Type of that dark and unknown one we are to make
in Death: Wherefore it is not unnatural with a _Departure from the
Land’s End of England, shooting_ into an _Abyss_ of Waters, to
consider a little on that Life, which lost is a _Departure_ from the
_World’s End_, and to launch into a greater _Abyss_, Eternity;—The
Principle, _in what is material of us_, I think, highly consonant to
Reason, and continues still the Doctrine of the Eastern Sages.
_Diversæ autem corpora formæ non sunt nisi diversæ modificationes
ejusdem materiæ_, &c.
(_Keil_ de legibus naturæ.)
_E. G._ Vapors condensed to Rain, we see descend on Earth; and both
enter and pass into the Seeds and Forms of all Plants. From them,
either taken alone, or amassed in animal Food, is what constitutes
and repairs by a daily Eating, our own Bodies; which if there be any
Trust to Sense or Reason, moulds, decays, and turns again to Dust and
Air, in order for Regeneration.
What only can destroy this Philosophy (as I observe at that place)
and maintain a Resurrection of the _same_ Body, is Revelation, and
the Immortality of the Soul; for Sameness, or Identity then, will not
consist in the same individual Particles being united, that makes
our Bodies here, (which we are sure are continually fluctuating,
and changing while we live;) but on that Consciousness which the
immaterial Part will give, though joined to Matter, taken from the
Top of _Olympus_.
_Secondly_, The Denial of _Canibals_ against the Authority of
_grave_ Authors, has proceeded from a Persuasion, that the Charge
carries the highest Reproach on Humanity, and the Creator of it. My
Aim, therefore, was to shew in the best manner I could, that the
Accusation every where has probably proceeded from _Fear_ in some,
to magnify the Miracle of escaping an inhospitable and strange
Country, and from _Design_ in others, to justify Dispossession, and
arm Colonies with Union and Courage against the _supposed Enemies of
Mankind_. Conquest and Cruelty, by that means go on with pleasure
on the People’s side, who are persuaded they are only subduing of
brutish Nature, and exchanging, for their mutual Good, SPIRITUAL for
TEMPORAL INHERITANCES. By particular and private Men, this may have
been fixed on a People, to allay some base or villainous Actions
of their own, that could not any other way be excused, or bear the
Light: And for this, I appeal to the discerning part of our Traders,
acquainted with _Guinea_, whether they do not think the Reports of
Cape _St. Mary_’s Inhabitants, Cape _Mont_, _Montzerado_, _Drewin_,
and _Callabar_, down-right Falsities, and impolitick ones; for the
multiplying of Places, like Plots, in a great measure destroys the
Use of them.
At the _Caribbees_ again, it is full as preposterous; for on small
Islands, had their Women bred like Rabbits, they must have been
desolated Ages before the _Europeans_ Arrival; unless we can suppose
human Flesh was eat only on their Feast-Days; or that they just
commenced Monsters upon our Discovery.——_La Hontan_, or some other
_French_ Translation I have read, talking of _Canibals_ bordering on
_Canada_, flies into a strange _Gallicism_, and makes them commend
the Flesh of a _Frenchman_ (sad Partiality) in Eating, as of finer
Taste than that of an _Englishman_.
These, with _Europeans_ neglecting to charge the _East-Indians_ thus,
who have more Power than simple _Americans_ or _Negroes_ to resent
the Indignity and Reproach, makes me disbelieve the whole of what I
have hitherto heard; and that the true _Anthropophagi_ are only the
diverse Insects infesting us in diverse Countries; the _Pediculose_
Kind do not live in hot Climates; instead thereof, they are assaulted
with a ravenous Fly called _Muskito_; Legions that live wild in the
Woods, and seize with every Opportunity, human Flesh, like Lions.
* * * * *
As there is a strict Regard to Truth observed throughout the whole,
it is apprehended the following Sheets will be not only amusing, but
useful.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
A
VOYAGE
TO
_Guinea_, _Brasil_, and the _West-Indies_;
In His Majesty’s Ships, the _Swallow_,
and _Weymouth_, &c.
We took in eight Months Provisions each, at _Portsmouth_; Stores,
Careening-Geer, and Necessaries requisite to continue us a double
Voyage down the Coast of _Guinea_, for meeting, if possible, with
the Pyrates; who did then very much infest those Parts, and destroy
our Trade and Factories. Accordingly the Company’s Governors for
_Gambia_ and other Places, embark’d under our Convoy, and were to
have what Support we could give them, in restoring the Credit of the
_Royal African Company_; which begun now to take new life under the
Influence of the Duke of _Chandois_.
For this Purpose we set sail from _Spithead_ _February_ 5th, 1720/1.
It is a Pleasure we have beyond the Merchant-Service in sailing,
that we are forbid Commerce. When Men of War have no other Lading
than Provisions and Necessaries, the Duty of Sailors is eased, and
their Conveniencies better; whereas Cargoes, besides dishonouring the
Commission, and unfitting the King’s Ships for Action, stifle and
sicken a Ship’s Company in warm Climates, impose hard Services, and
spoil the Trade of the Merchant they are designed to encourage, and
expect a Gratuity from; because Labour and Freight free, they can
afford to undersel.
In the Evening from six to nine, we saw those Appearances in the Sky
called _Capræ saltantes_, by the Sailors _Morrice-Dancers_; they are
Streams of Light that suddenly shoot into one another, and disappear
for a Minute or two; yet shifting their Stations _within the
Quarter_, in so quick and surprizing a manner as might easily deceive
superstitious Times into a belief of Armies in the Air; _these_, the
_Scintillæ volantes_, and such like nitrous Exhalations, having given
rise, it’s probable, to all those Prodigies the Air has heretofore in
_impious_ Times abounded with.
The _Western_ Extremity of _England_ that we are now passing by, has
been supposed, from the equal Depth of Water found there, from Doors,
Windows, and Roots of Trees, formerly (_it’s said_) hooked up by
Fishermen, to have been in Ages past continuous with the rocky little
Islands of _Scilly_, by a Land called _Lioness_. When I consider
the Changes Earthquakes and Inundations have made, and continue
insensibly to make on all the different Coasts of the Earth, losing
in some places, and gaining in others; and what new Islands have now
and then been thrust up on the surface of the Waters by Streams and
Currents, subterranean Winds and Fires; the thing does not appear to
me altogether conjectural: the Rocks seem now with terrible accent
to lament the reparation. Who knows but we likewise are severing
eternally from our Friends! it is a Voyage we shall at some time or
other make; and those solitary Rocks that bound the last sight to our
Homes and Countries, naturally bring to my mind some Reflections on
the subject.
Whether when we have shut up this Life we shall remain resolved into
our Elements; revive again in some Plant or Animal; or thirdly, be
reinstated Soul and Body into Glory, is an Enquiry worthy our utmost
Concern and Diligence; as it will sweeten the imbittered Potions
of Life, make us patient under Afflictions, and even easy on this
treacherous Element the Sea; whom none ought to trust; but they who
have a Faith in Providence.
Immortality has been the Ambition of the greatest and wisest Men
that have lived, and indeed who would not in the satiety of worldly
Objects seek out and desire such a prerogative to his Soul? The
Philosophers, rather than lose so comfortable a prospect, have
placed it in an Existence that can never concern our Happiness or
Misery as Men: The Princes of them having made it to subsist in the
universal Soul of the World; from whence, say they, are struck out
Scintillations to every thing that has Life; and in Death, what was
Elementary, returned to its proper station, and what was Divine
in us, to what is Divine in the Universe: a _Metempsychosis_ or
Transmigration continuing the World on in the order we see it.
When I ponder on the natural Cause of our Being ... On the Necessity
of that Cause to produce us, and what the material Agent is ... On
our gradual Advances and Decay; both in respect to Body and Soul
... The Soul’s sympathizing with the disorders of the Body ... Our
Sleeps and total Forgetfulness ... Our Susceptibility of Madness
or Idiocy, and _hebridous_ Productions, especially that of Man
with Beast; I am tempted to think this the most plausible of all
Philosophical Opinions, in relation to our future Existence, that we
are not Creatures of that consequence we imagine; our Natures neither
deserving, nor should they expect in reason any other Immortality
than what other Creatures enjoy in their Seed and Transmigration.
This Doctrine is what the _Eastern_ Sages, reverenced for their
Wisdom, do still propagate, and teach the Heterodox a Lesson of
Humility, _That Pride was not made for Man_: but at the same time
it makes me superstitiously fear and abhor a Grave of Waters; which
I fancy will subside us too far from the _Sun_, whose Power is the
chief Principle to revive us again in some Plant or Animal on our
native Element: which will be such perhaps as, in our Life-time,
our Senses were familiar and delighted with; and for which, we had
a sympathetical Affection and Tendency to. But then granting the
Doctrine, I am considering what the Advantage of such a belief can be
to us as Men? Why none. Our personal Identity must be destroyed in
the first Transmigration, much more in an infinite Succession; and we
(_as we_) can never after this Life be affected with either Pleasure
or Pain. I am therefore on the whole fond of _Revelation_, and wish
that to be Truth which ascribes such Power to Faith, _That it can
remove Mountains_: and therefore, with its fruits concurring, may
raise us into immortal Spirits, translate us to Bliss, even without
passing through the horrors of Death.
That an Almighty Power can subsist us to Eternity, we are very sure;
and that he will do it, I say let it be our Happiness, that we have
the Promises of his Gospel; for here only can be a remedy to all
worldly Cares; and wherever Death o’er takes us, whether this _Voyage
or next_, so we be upon our _Watch_, it will _transport_ us to a
_Port_ and Treasure fixed. It will free us from _Rocks, Sands, and
tempestuous Seas, and anchor us in a Haven of Felicity_.
* * * * *
The Gale with which we left _England_, carried us the length of
Cape [3]_Finisterre_ into serener Weather, and Sun-shine; but there
we met with continued Westerly Winds (very unusual to the Coast of
_Portugal_) which prolonged our Passage. A Day or two’s sail from
_Madeira_, we fell in with Commodore _Matthews_, in the _Lion_,
bound with a Squadron of four Sail to the _East-Indies_, on the like
Service with ours to _Africa_, viz. _the Suppression of Pyrates_.
Abundance of Sea-weed floated about us at 40 Leagues distance,
and continued a constant float till we reached the Island; an
Argument that the bottom of the Sea, especially where the Depths are
decreasing towards any Shore, have a Cloathing of Plants, which are
probably the common Nutriment of large Fish. This our _Divers_ in
Pearl, and Coral-fishing, have confirmed to 8 or 10 Fathom water;
and this, I think, the present Observation proves to be in greater
Depths; _1st_, Because the Unwieldiness of some, and the manner
of being provided for Mastication in others, declares Ruminating,
and not Prey, to be the way of Subsistence in many. _2dly_, There
is a greater Resort toward Shores, than in the distant Ocean, and
perhaps, like many little Fish in our own Channels, they may have
their Seasons of Rotation, and their Grazing, the Cause of unrooting
and throwing it up here. _3dly_, _Porpoises_ play about us daily in
Shoals, the most familiar great Fish in the _Atlantick_, and at all
Parts of it: They tumble most upon a rough Surface, and against the
Wind. Sailors observing these _Porpoises_, say, they portend Storms.
The _Latins_ call them _Porci marini_, from some Resemblance to the
Hog, in it’s Entrails and Bigness, (weighing several Hundred.) These
Fish, as they are very numerous, never enticed to the Hook, wasting
many of their hours in play, and gradually lessening from Shore, shew
they know readily where to make their Meals at the bottom of the Sea,
tho’ at other times they certainly prey on smaller and particular
Species of Fish: _These_ their _Feasts_, it’s like, and _That_ their
ordinary Diet.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_MADEIRA._
This Island, at the first Discovery of it by the _Portuguese_, about
the Year 1420, was over-run with _Wood_, whence it’s Name. Divided to
the two Discoverers, they set the Woods on fire, which _Travellers
say_ burnt seven Years; the Ashes giving a vast Fertility to
their Sugar-Canes, at the first Planting; till a Worm getting into
the Cane, spoiled the Increase, _&c._ so that it is now entirely
planted with Vines brought originally from _Candia_, which yield
the strongest Wines: That called _Malmsey_ is a rich Cordial, the
best made at the Jesuit’s Garden in _Fonchial_. Their Vintage is in
_September_ and _October_, and make about 25000 Pipes.
Others say, one _Mecham_ an _Englishman_, in a Voyage to _Spain_
was drove on this Island before the Discovery above: That his Crew
sailed without him and his Mistress; whom he buried here, left an
Inscription on her Tomb, and then in a Canoo of his own building
sailed to _Barbary_; the King presenting him as a Prodigy to the
King of _Castile_: From whole Account, the _Spaniard_ soon after
made conquest of the neighbouring _Canary_ Islands. The Island is
rocky Mountains, with an Intermixture of little fruitful Plains. The
highest Parts, Goat-herds and Woods; the Middle, Kitchen-Gardens; and
the Bottom, Vineyards. The Roads bad, which makes them bring their
Wines to town in Hog-skins upon Asses; a brownish and a red sort, the
latter called _Vino tinto_, being according to common report stained
with _Tint_, tho’ they assure you it is the natural Grape. They are
almost all _limed_, a Preservative against the excessive Heats of
the _West-Indies_, where they are for the most part transported by
us, and where no other Wine keeps well.
Trade is carried on by Bartering, 40 or 50 _per Cent._ being allowed
on an Invoice of Provisions, Cloaths, or Houshold-Goods; of the
former sort, Bread, Beef, Pork, Pilchard, Herring, Cheese, Butter,
Salt, and Oil, are first in demand. The next are dry Goods, Hats,
Wigs, Shirts, Stockings, Kersys, Sagathys, Crapes, Says, Shalloons,
and Broadcloths, particularly Black Suits, the usual wear of the
_Portuguese_. The last and least in Expence are Escrutores, Chairs,
Pewter, Post-Paper, Counting-books, _&c._ For these you have in
Exchange their Wine at 30 _Millrays_ a Pipe; the _Malmsey_, 60. each
_Millray_ in present Pay 6_s._ 8_d._ in Bills 6_s._ What other little
Traffick I had, stands as _per_ Margin.[4]
There is one Caution to be observed; That as there is not much
dishonour in Trade to take advantage of a Chapman’s Weakness, it is
prudent to see the Wines you have tasted shipped forthwith, or it
is odds but the Stranger finds them adulterated: So that altho’
they seem to allow a good Interest on your Goods; yet the Badness of
your Wine, or (if good) broke at their Price, lessens the supposed
Advantage. Some Goods at particular times, bear an extraordinary
Price; not so much by a Call of the Island, as of _Brasil_, whither
they are again exported.
_Fonchial_ is the chief Town of the Island, the Residence of
the Governour and Bishop: Is large and populous, has five or
six Churches; three Nunneries, not so strict as at _Lisbon_, we
conversing and trading for Toys with them every day; and as many
_Convents of Fathers_. That of the Jesuits has at present in it only
seventeen; a neat handsome Building and Chappel: this _Order_ being
in all Catholick Countries the most respected for their Learning
and Riches. Wherever you find a College of them, you may be sure
there is good Living. The other Inhabitants consist of a mixed Race;
_Portuguese_, _Blacks_, and _Molattoes_, who are civil, courteous,
and equally respected in Trade; the _Portuguese_ no where abroad
scrupling an Alliance with darker Colours.
They keep no regular Market, but the Country brings in according as
they think will be the Demand at any time: Kid, Pork, and now and
then a lean Heifer, Cabbages, Lemons, Oranges, Walnuts, Figs, Yams,
Bananoes, _&c._ There is one Curiosity I found in their Gardens
called _the everlasting Flower_, never fading after gathered, or
indiscernibly, in many Years; the Herb is like Sage growing, and the
Flower like Camomil: I laid by several of them, and found at twelve
Months end they were just of the same freshness as when gathered.
_Fonchial_ Road is very open and unsafe against West and S. W. Winds;
deep Water also, that there is no anchoring but at the West End, and
that in 40 Fathom, a Mile or Mile and half off Shore: So that when a
Swell from those Quarters gives notice of a Gale coming, all Ships in
the Road slip their Cables and to Sea, returning at a more favourable
season for their lading: Which likewise, by an extraordinary Surf on
the Beach, becomes troublesome to ship off; commonly done by swimming
the Pipes off to the Lanch, or lade on the Beach, and run her with
many hands into the Sea. The like trouble Boats have in Watering (by
a River at the W. End of the Town) and is most commodiously done
before the Sea-breeze comes in.
The _Loo_ makes a tolerable Harbour for small Vessels against
Westerly Winds, that would be unsafe _without_. They make fast their
Cable to a high Rock called the _Loo_, whereon is a Fort; but when
the Winds veer, opening their Heads to the Sea, all Hands go on
Shore, and leave the Ship and Storm to contest it by themselves.
Their Lodgings on shore are as uneasy to Strangers, as the _Road_ to
Ships; being prodigiously pestered with Bugs and Fleas. Cotts upon
the Floors, is the common way of laying.
Their Strength is in the Militia, computed at 18000 disciplin’d and
loyal Fellows; They, the _Azores_, and _Cape De Verd_ Islands soon
returning to their Allegiance, after that Revolution in _Portugal_,
1640.
Before I leave _Madeira_, I must relate the surprizing Account just
arrived here by several Masters of Vessels, Eye-witnesses of a new
Island which sprung out of the Sea the 20th of _November_ last, 17
Leagues S. E. from _Terceira_, one of the Western Islands.
The Master who took a Survey of it by order from the Governour of
_Terceira_, lays it down, a League long, a Mile broad, a little
above the surface of the Water, and smoking like a _Volcano_. After
the Eruption, the Sea for several Leagues round was covered with
Pumice-stone, and half-broiled Fish. I was curious to know what
Symptoms (if any) had preceded this Prodigy at the other Islands;
and learned that _Pico_, one of them, a noted _Volcano_, had ceased
to burn for some time, and that they had felt a Shock or two of an
Earthquake that had done considerable damage. _Corvo_, an Island in
this Neighbourhood ([5]_Albert de Mandelzo_ tells us) started up
also in such manner, _June_ 16, 1628. And History relates the like in
the _Archipelago_.
That new Islands should be formed in Rivers, as at the Conflux of
the _Save_ with the _Danube_, or Sands shifting in any Channels,
may be from the Swiftness of the Streams, wasting some and raising
others; but that this Effect should happen in deep Water, 50 or 60
Miles from Shore, is truly wonderful: The Phænomenon seems best
resolved here, by subterranean Fires, which from a great Depth and
Extent have their Vents at _Volcanoes_; and as the Consumption of
their Materials is more, the nigher they are such Vents (observable
in _Italy_, _Iceland_, &c.) so their Effects in the neighbourhood of
Waters (when by any Accident the Mouth is stopp’d, and they meet)
must be Concussions of the Earth, blowing the Mountains away in
Cinders; and now and then in Ages, such a Wonder as a new Island, the
same as we see (if we may compare great things with small) in several
Chymical Preparations. _This_ Island has settled, and probably by the
Spunginess of its Materials, may sink in a few Years out of sight
again. The ultimate End, is perhaps to strike Mankind with a Dread of
Providence, and warn a sinful World against the Consequences of angry
Omnipotence: Men generally taking a deeper Impression from something
new and wonderful in Nature, than in the Creation or Conservation of
the World it self.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_CANARIES._
From _Madeira_ we sailed by the _Canary_ Islands, belonging to the
_Spaniards_, and taken by them in 1418.
_Palma_, remarkable for rich Wines, making 12000 Pipes _per Annum_.
_Ferro_, or _Ferrara_, for our Navigators taking their first Meridian
from thence, there being none, or the least Variation; and for a
_Volcano_ that now and then breaks out upon it. One in _November_
1677, seen five Days; and in 1692 broke out again with Earthquakes,
and seen six Weeks together: There is also, our Voyages say, a
wonderful Tree on it, forty Foot high, that condenses the Clouds in
such quantity, as to supply the want of Springs.
_Grand Canary_, the chief Residence for Governours and Consuls; and
_Teneriff_, for its noted _Pike_, thought from the shewing it self
singly, to be the highest Land in the World. It is a Pyramidal Heap
of rough Rocks piled thus (it’s thought by Naturalists) from some
subterraneous Conflagration that burst out heretofore.
The Ancients called them _Insulæ fortunatæ_; it’s likely from the
Interception they may have given to the Destruction of Coasters blown
off, before the use of the Compass: Cape _Non_ on the Continent being
the utmost of their Navigation.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Cape de VERD Islands,_
Denominated from the Cape, always green: They were anciently called
_Hesperides_; the Diminutive of _Spain_, called heretofore _Hesperia,
propterea quod hæc regio, omnium extrema, sit a sit ad Occidentem_;
_Hesperus_, the Evening Star, by a Metaphor signifying the West.
They are inhabited by _Portuguese_, who welcome all sort of Ships (of
good, or ill Design) bound to _Guinea_, _India_, _Brasil_, or the
_West-Indies_; they frequently putting in here to furnish themselves
with fresh Provisions, exchanged for Trifles; chiefly at _St. Iägo_
(_James_) the principal, which has three or four Forts, and where
resides the Governour. In several of these Islands there are natural
Salt Ponds, kerning great quantities without trouble. The most noted
by the _English_ is _Maio_, or the Isle of _May_, where many of
our Ships lade in Summer; and was, with _Tangier_, and _Bombay_ in
_India_, Part of Q. _Catherine_’s Fortune to _England_. Another of
them has a _Volcano_, and called _Del Fuego_.
The Land about the Cape appears the Height of that at _Deal_ in
_Kent_; woody, a white even Sand along Shore, and about 28 Fathom
Water a League off. Just to the Northward are two or three great
Rocks, called by our Sailors _Shitten Islands_, being white all over
with the Dung of Sea-fowls. At the same distance Southward of the
Cape, is an Island called _Goree_, about a League from the Main, has
a _French_ Factory with two Forts, commanding all the Trade about the
River _Senega_, from other Nations.
While our Ships lay too here, we had good Fishing with our Lines;
took _Breams_ (or _Porga’s_) _Skip-jacks_, _Groupes_, _a Rock-fish_
(thick, short, and of a deep yellow on the Belly, Gills, and Mouth)
and the _Jew-Fish_; which has a double Mouth, the uppermost not to
swallow Food, but full of Air-pipes, and finned like a _Cod_, all
well tasted: and having washed them down with a Bowl, our Friends and
we parted, the _Weymouth_ steering in for _Gambia_ River with the
Governour Colonel _Witney_, and the Merchants; We for _Sierraleon_,
anchoring there the Beginning of _April_, 1721.
The Winds from _Madeira_ to _Sierraleon_ at first blew fresh at S.
and S. W. and as we came farther to the Southward, they wheel’d
gradually on the Western Side of the Circle, quite round to the
N. so as in the Latitude of 21 to have it N. E. a true _Trade_,
seven, eight, or nine knots Day and Night; but whether it were the
Badness of our half-minute Glasses, the tendency of the Sea with the
Wind, or any Current, I cannot tell; but we always found our selves
considerably further to the Southward, by Observation every day, than
the Distance by the Log would give.
In this Passage, we took up a few _Turtle_ with our Boat. As they
sleep and bask upon the Surface, we steal upon them without noise,
and throw them in upon their Backs. We saw also abundance of flying
Fish, and their continual Enemies, the _Albicore_ and _Dolphin_; the
latter we strike now and then with a Fizgig, or Harping-iron. It is
a glorious-colour’d, strait Fish, four or five Foot long, forked
Tail, perpendicular to the Horizon: plays familiarly about Ships; is
of dry Taste, but makes good Broth. They are seldom seen out of the
Latitudes of a _Trade_-wind; and the flying Fish never: These are the
bigness of small Herrings; their Wings about two thirds its length;
come narrow from the Body, and end broad; they fly by the help of
them a Furlong at a time when pursued, turning in their Flight,
sometimes dip in the Sea, and so up again, the Wind making them, by
this Expedient, fleeter.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_AFRICA in general._
As there is nothing more surprizing and delightful in Voyages or
Travels, than beholding the different Habits, Customs, Dieting,
and Religion of the different Natives; so there is none I believe,
wherein that Difference can be found, so much as here. A Colour,
Language and Manners, as wide from ours, as we may imagine we should
find in the planetary Subjects above, could we get there.
But before I proceed on any Observations of my own, it may be proper
from others, to convey some Idea of _Guinea_ in general; so much as
carries Probability, either from the Dead or Living.
_Africa_, one of the four Quarters of the World, next in bigness to
_Europe_, by the Ancients had several Names; _Olympia_, _Ammonis
Ortygia_; but the most noted, _Apher_, from a Nephew, it’s said,
of _Abraham_’s. It extends from about 36 N. to as many Degrees of
Southern Latitude; and excepting _Egypt_, _Barbary_, _Morocco_, and
in this last Age the Coast of _Guinea_, is a Country as little known
as any Part of the Globe. _Marmol_ says, the _Arabians_ in the 400 of
the _Hegyra_, passed into _Afric_ and divided it. This is certain,
that it has many fine large Rivers, some of them navigable for
Ships. Along the Banks of these Rivers, the Inhabitants abound with
_Millet_, _Rice_, _Pulse_ or, _Indian-Corn_. The further we depart
from _Morocco_ on this West Side, or _Egypt_ on the East, there is
always found less Industry and more Ignorance: For Governments, tho’
never so tyrannical, are better than none, extending some Improvement
to Humanity.
The _Niger_, which is one of the largest Rivers in _Africa_, is said
to have the same Property of overflowing every Year, like _Nile_,
remunerating to the inland parts a vast Fertility and Increase; and
this very probably, because it has been traced some hundred Leagues,
and by the Course, descends from the _Ethiopian_ Mountains, the
common Fountain of both.
The _Senega_ and _Gambia_, Branches of this great River, disgorge
here at the windward Part of _Guinea_; they are large Rivers, driving
considerable Trade: To the former of these, the King of _Morocco_
extended his Dominions, about 1526, by the Conquest of the Kingdom
of _Tombuto_, which still continues tributary, and whence that King
raises considerable _Negro_ Armies, his chief Strength. A College
of the Sect of _Haly_, is founded in _Melli_, a Kingdom upon this
River. They have many _Crocodiles_ or _Alligators_, _Sea-Horses_, and
_Shirks_ in them. _Senega_ affords great quantity of _Gum_; and at
_Gambia_ begin our Factories for Slaves, Teeth, and Gold, on which
this general Remark, That the Slaves there, faring softer from a
better Soil, are not so hardy as those lower down. The Teeth are as
large, and in as much plenty, as at any one Part of the whole Coast;
those taken out of the _Sea-Horse_ are small, not weighing above 5
or 6 Pounds, but more solid than the _Elephant’s_. And lastly, their
Gold is current in what the Traders call _Bars_, little twisted
Lengths, or in Rings of 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8_s._ Value.
All the great Rivers flow and ebb regularly, being governed by the
Moon, as the Tides on our own Coasts; but the Sandiness of the Soil,
and Nearness of the Sun, makes the Country between, so extreamly dry,
that they have great scarcity of Water for an hundred Miles an end
sometimes; and this Drought is what brings the Beasts of all sorts in
Droves to the Banks, for satisfying Thirst, (_Tygers_, _Panthers_,
_Leopards_, _Antelopes_, _Elephants_, _Apes_; _Ostriches_, &c.) From
which Accident, say they, might probably have happened the many
_Hebridous_ Productions that have made this Country the Proverb of
all Ages; it continually producing something new or monstrous.
Their chief Diet is _Indian_ Corn, Rice, Palm-nuts, Bananas, Yamms,
Pine-apples, and now and then a little Fish, or a Fowl; all which
thro’ Ignorance, and want of Necessaries, are very slovenly cooked by
them.
_Africa_ is almost a Triangle in shape; the Kingdoms on the North are
_Mahometans_; and in the trading Towns of _Barbary_, and _Turky_,
there is a little Mixture of _Jews_. On the Eastern Line next
_Persia_, are said to be some of the Sect of _Gaurs_, followers of
_Zoroastes_, a very learned _Persian_ Philosopher, that appeared,
according to Dr. _Prideaux_, about 2300 Years ago: He instituted
Fire-worship, and established it by a superiour Cunning, through most
parts of _Persia_ and _India_, where there are still some left, poor
and despised, (called _Persees_) since the seventh Century, when the
_Mahometans_ over-run that Country, and almost extinguished them.
In _Æthiopia_, (_Prester John_’s Country) Writers say, are a sort
of _Christians_, still acknowledging the Patriarch of _Alexandria_;
meerly nominal I believe, for the _Greeks_ themselves, much nigher
his Pastorship, have since their Conquest by the _Turks_, in a manner
lost _their_ Christianity; Poverty and Ignorance, the Consequence
of Captivity having obliterated the outward Pomp, which, next to
Power, is the main Pillar in all Religions. _Inland_, and to the
Southern Extremity, they are _Pagans_. And on this Western Line (the
_Negroes_) all trust to the _Gregory_ or _Fetish_; which in the bulk
of it means no more than what we in _Europe_ call _Charms_, which in
many respects carries strong Superstition, that is, a vain Religion
in it; only their consecrated Materials having more Reverence from
their Ignorance and Fear, work more stupendous Effects; or are
imagined to do so, which is the same thing. So much may serve for a
general Idea of _Africa_, since several of the Articles will, in the
progress of the Voyage, be occasionally expatiated on.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_SIERRALEON._
By _Guinea_ here, I mean all _Negro-land_, from about the River
_Senega_ Northward, to within a few Degrees of _Cape Bon Esperance_;
because Ships bound to any part of this Extent, are said to be bound
to _Guinea_; and because the People, without these Lines, alter to a
dark Colour seen in the _Moors_ at this, and the _Hottentots_ at the
other Extremity. The Name (_Gordon_ says) imports _hot and dry_, and
its Gold gives Name to our Coin.
The black Colour, and woolly Tegument of these _Guineans_; is
what first obtrudes it self on our Observation, and distinguishes
them from the rest of Mankind, who no where else, in the warmest
Latitudes, are seen thus totally changed; nor removing, will they
ever alter, without mixing in Generation. I have taken notice in my
_Navy-Surgeon_, how difficultly the Colour is accounted for; and tho’
it be a little Heterodox, I am persuaded the black and white Race
have, _ab origine_, sprung from different-coloured first Parents.
When we parted with the _Weymouth_ off _Cape de Verd_, we steered S.
S. W. to avoid the Shoals of _Grandee_, and in hawling in for the
Land again, waited till we came into the Latitude of _Sierraleon_,
some _others_ laying on the N. Side that River. The Soundings in with
the Cape are gradual, from 60 Fathoms about 12 Leagues off, to 13;
when we get in sight of Cape _Sierraleon_, known by a single Tree
much larger than the rest, and high land on the back of it. We run up
on the Starboard side of the River, anchoring in the third Bay from
the Cape; where is very commodious watering and wooding; and regular
Tides, as in any part of the Channel of _England_.
_Remark 1._ The Trade for our _African_ Company here, is carried on
from _Bense_ or _Brent Island_, about 5 Leagues distance from our
Anchorage, by Factors, of whom Mr. _Plunket_ is chief. The private
Traders are about 30 in number, settled on the Starboard side of
the River: loose privateering Blades, that if they cannot trade
fairly with the Natives, will rob; but then don’t do it so much in
pursuance of that trading Advice, (_Amass Riches, my Son_,) as to put
themselves in a Capacity of living well, and treating their Friends,
being always well pleased if they can keep their Stock _at Par_, and
with their Profits purchase from time to time, Strong-beer, Wine,
Cyder, and such Necessaries, of _Bristol_ Ships, that more frequently
than others put in there; of these, _John Leadstine_, commonly called
_old Cracker_, is reckoned the most thriving.
They all keep _Gromettas_ (_Negro_ Servants) which they hire from
_Sherbro River_, at two _Accys_ or _Bars_ a Month. The Women keep
House, and are obedient to any Prostitutions their Masters command.
The Men-servants work in the Boats and Periagoes, which go a trading
in turns with Coral, Brass, Pewter Pans, Pots, Arms, _English_
Spirits, _&c._ and bring back from the _Rio Nunes_, Slaves, and
Teeth; and from _Sherbro_, Camwood for Dyers; a Sloop or two is the
most that is loaded from the latter Place in a Year, and that with
difficulty; being obliged to go far up the River, narrow and beset
with _Mangroves_, which makes it sickly.
The _Ivory_ here is of the _Elephant_ or _Sea-Horse_, great and
small; the former, sold at about 40 _Accys_ per _Quintal_ in
Exchange; the other at half Price.
The Slaves when brought here, have Chains put on, three or four
linked together, under the Care of their _Gromettas_, till
Opportunity of Sale; and then go at about 15 Pounds a good Slave,
allowing the Buyer 40 or 50 _per Ct._ Advance on his Goods.
As these Slaves are placed under _Lodges_ near the Owner’s House,
for Air, Cleanliness, and Customers better viewing them, I had
every day the Curiosity of observing their Behaviour, which with
most of them was very dejected. Once, on looking over some of old
_Cracker_’s Slaves, I could not help taking notice of one Fellow
among the rest, of a tall, strong Make, and bold, stern aspect. As
he imagined we were viewing them with a design to buy, he seemed to
disdain his Fellow-Slaves for their Readiness to be examined, and as
it were scorned looking at us, refusing to rise or stretch out his
Limbs, as the Master commanded; which got him an unmerciful Whipping
from _Cracker_’s own Hand, with a cutting _Manatea Strap_, and had
certainly killed him but for the loss he himself must sustain by it;
all which the _Negro_ bore with Magnanimity, shrinking very little,
and shedding a Tear or two, which he endeavoured to hide as tho’
ashamed of. All the Company grew curious at his Courage, and wanted
to know of _Cracker_, how he came by him; who told us, that this same
Fellow, called Captain _Tomba_, was a Leader of some Country Villages
that opposed them, and their Trade, at the River _Nunes_; killing our
Friends there, and firing their Cottages. The Sufferers this way, by
the Help of my Men, (says _Cracker_) surprized, and bound him in the
Night, about a Month ago, he having killed two in his Defence, before
they could secure him, and from thence he was brought hither, and
made my Property.
_Remark 2._ _Sierraleon River_ is very broad here, but in ten or
twelve Miles rowing upwards, narrow to half the Breadth of the
_Thames_ at _London_, spread on both sides thick with _Mangroves_;
Trees, or slender woody Shrubs, that spring from the low, watry Banks
of Rivers, in warm Climates. From the Branches, the Sap descends
again and takes a second Root, and so on, a third, fourth, _&c._ that
the Ground is all covered; very difficult, if not impossible for
Men to penetrate: This makes them fit Haunts for the _Manatea_ and
_Crocodile_ (Sea-Cow and Alligator) which, with the _Shirks_, very
much infest the River. A Story or two of these Creatures, may not be
unacceptable.
The _Manatea_ is about eleven or twelve Foot long, and in girt half
as much; Teeth only in the back part of her Mouth, which are like
the Ox’s, as is also her Muzzle and Head; with this difference, that
her Eyes are small in proportion, and Ears you can scarce thrust a
Bodkin in; close to her Ears almost, are two broad Finns, sixteen or
eighteen Inches long, that feel at the Extremities as tho’ jointed;
a broad Tail, Cuticle granulated, and of a colour and touch like
Velvet: the true Skin an Inch thick, used by the _West-Indians_ in
Thongs for punishing their Slaves; weigh to five or fix hundred
Weight; of a firm Flesh, that cuts fat, lean, and white like Veal:
Boiled, stewed, or roasted (for I have eaten it all ways) it has no
fishy Taste, but is as acceptable a Treat as Venison to Cockneighs.
The _Negroes_ way of taking them, is in a _Canoo_, which they paddle
towards the _Manatea_ with as little noise as possible, (she being
extreamly quick of hearing:) when near enough, a Man placed ready in
the Boat’s Head, strikes in his Harpoon with a long Pole into her,
and lets go. She makes towards the _Mangroves_ immediately, and the
Water being shallow, they now and then get sight of the Pole, and so
follow, renewing the Strokes till they kill, or weary her, and then
drag her ashore.
The _Alligator_ answers in all respects, and doubtless is the
_Egyptian Crocodile_; shaped not unlike the _Lizard_, but of
two hundred Weight perhaps, covered with hard Scales that are
impenetrable to Shot, unless very near; long Jaws set with sharp
Teeth, two very large, and two small: Finns like Hands: A Tail thick
and continuous; will live a long time out of the Water, being sold
frequently alive in the _West-Indies_. They are not shy, but rather
bold, and tho’ easily waked, will not make off presently, our Boats
falling down with the Stream within a few yards of them, before they
stir; laying basking to the Sun, in little muddy Nooks they form in
their egress from the _Mangroves_. When they float upon the Water,
they lie very still and like a Log of Timber, till the little Fry
underneath come unwarily sporting about them and tempt their greedy
Stomachs; they diving very quick upon their Prey.
One of these set upon a Man of Captain _Masterton_’s, a Sloop that
put in here from _Sherbro_. The Sailor, to avoid walking round a
Bay, and being mellow with drinking, would needs cut his way short
by wading over a weedy part of it up to his Breast, where the
_Alligator_ seized him; and the Fellow having full Courage, ran his
Arm down his Throat: Notwithstanding which, the _Crocodile_ loosed,
and renewed the Battle two or three times, till a Canoo that saw
the Distress, paddled to his Relief, but he was torn unmercifully
in his Buttocks, Arms, Shoulders, Thighs, and Sides; and had not
the Creature been young, must certainly have been killed. The Man
recovered of his Wounds.
_Shirks_ very much infest the Mouth of this River; the most bold and
ravenous of the watry Tribe: He never forsakes your Hook, till he is
taken, and slights the Proverb,
_Occultum visus decurrere piscis ad hamum._
We have catched three in less than half an hour, each 8 or 10 Foot
long, the Livers of them making above ten Gallons of Oil. They have
four or five Rows of short, sharp Teeth, one within another, and the
Sides of them indented like Saws. Their Swallows 14 and 16 Inches
over. In the Maws, we found Beef Bones, and what other Trash had been
thrown over-board in the Day; for they are like the Parson’s Barn;
they turn on their backs to take in their Prey. Our Seamen dressed
and eat the Flesh, tho’ very strong; the fault of all carnivorous
Animals.
These _Shirks_ have generally two, three, or more pretty-coloured
little Fish, the bigness of Herrings attending them, called _Pilots_:
They go in and out at his Maw, or fasten on his Back, in familiar
manner: They are supposed like the _Jackall_ to the _Lion_, to be
instrumental in procuring him Prey, and warning him of Danger in
Shoals, for which he receives Food, and Protection from the _Shirk_.
I shall give an Instance or two within my own knowledge, to shew the
Boldness and Rapacity of this Fish.
The _Weymouth_’s Barge rowing up _Gambia_ River, a _Shirk_ made to
them, and notwithstanding the noise of so many Oars, seized one of
them in his Mouth, and snapped it in two.
At _Whydah_, a very dangerous Coast to land at, having two Bars
before it, and great Seas; a Canoo was going on shore from a
Merchant-Ship with some Goods, and in attempting to land, overset: A
_Shirk_ nigh hand, seized upon one of the Men in the Water, and by
the Swell of the Sea, they were both cast on shore; notwithstanding
which, the _Shirk_ never quitted his hold, but with the next _Ascend_
of the Sea, carried him clear off.
In short, their Voracity refuses nothing; Canvas, Ropeyarns, Bones,
Blanketing, _&c._ I have seen them frequently seize a Corpse, as soon
as it was committed to the Sea; tearing and devouring that, and the
_Hammock_ that shrouded it, without suffering it once to sink, tho’ a
great Weight of Ballast in it.
There are in the Bays of this River, variety of good Fish,
that supplies the Scarcity of Flesh; Turtle, Mullet, Skate,
[6]Ten-pounders, [7]Old-wives, [8]Cavalloes, [9]Barricudoes,
[10]Sucking-Fish, Oysters, [11]Cat-Fish, Bream, and Numb-Fish; the
most of which we catch’d in great numbers with our Searn; two or
three Hours in a Morning supplying a Belly-full to the whole Ship’s
Company.
The Oysters and Numb-Fish have something peculiar; the former
growing, or rather sticking in great Bunches of twenty or thirty,
upon the Rocks and Mangroves, to which they seemingly grow, very
small and ill-tasted.
The latter, which is the _Torpedo_ of the Ancients, is flat as a
Skate, so very cold as to numb the Hands or Arms of those who touch
him, but goes off again in few Hours; and with a Stick you may toss
him about a Day together without any other Harm than losing your
time.
_Remark 3._ The Country about _Sierraleon_ is so thick spread with
Wood, that you cannot penetrate a Pole’s length from the Water-side,
unless between the Town, and Fountain whence they fetch their Water,
without a great deal of difficulty. They have Paths however through
these Woods, to their [12]Lollas, and [13]Lugars, which tho’ but a
mile or two from the Town, are frequently the Walks of wild Beasts;
their Excrement I have found up and down in walking here, white and
mixed with Ossicles.
The Shores hereabouts, like those of _Sweden_, are rocky, and without
any Cover of Earth almost; yet produce large Trees, the Roots
spreading on the Surface: The chief of these are the Palm, the Coco,
and the Cotton-Tree, described _p._ 198, in the first Volume of the
_History of the Pyrates_.
Other Vegetables for Food are Rice, Yams, [14]Plantanes,
[15]Pine-Apples, [16]Limes, Oranges, [17]Papais, Palm-nuts, wild
Roots, and Berries.
This is their common Sustenance; the Gift of Providence, without
their Care; they might abound, but prefer Ease and Indolence, he
being greatest among them, who can afford to eat [18]Rice all the
Year round. Kid and Fowl, they have a few, and were all the domestick
Animals I saw.
_Remark 4._ On the Negroes here, their Clothing, Customs and Religion.
The _Men_ are well-limbed, clean Fellows; flattish-nosed, and many
with _Exomphalos’s_; the Effect of bad Midwifry, or straining in
their Infancy to walk; for they are never taught, but creep upon a
Matt on all Fours, till they have Strength to erect themselves; and
notwithstanding this, are seldom distorted. These do not circumcise,
but the Slaves brought from the Northward are frequently so; perhaps
from bordering on _Morocco_.
The _Women_ are not nigh so well shaped as the Men: Childing, and
their Breasts always pendulous, stretches them to so unseemly a
Length and Bigness, that some, like the _Ægyptians_, I believe, could
suckle over their Shoulders. Their being imployed in all Labour,
makes them robust; for such as are not _Gromettas_, work hard in
Tillage, make Palm-Oil, or spin Cotton; and when they are free from
such work, the idle Husbands put them upon breading and fetishing out
their Wool, they being prodigious proud and curious in this sort of
Ornament; and keep them every day, for many hours together, at it.
Their _Houses_ are low, little Hutts, not quite so bad as many in
_Yorkshire_, built with wooden Stockades set in the ground, in a
round or square form, thatched with Straw; they are swept clean every
day; and for Furniture, have a Matt or two to lie down upon; two or
three earthen or wooden Dishes, and Stools, with a Spoon, all of
their own making. They are idle, principally from want of Arts and
domestick Employments: for as I observed, they are so cautious of
planting too much, and wasting their Labour, that they are really
improvident; smoaking all day in long Reed-Pipes together; unplagued
with To-morrow, or the Politicks of _Europe_.
Whole Towns shift their Habitations, either when they do not like
their Neighbours, or have more Conveniency somewhere else; soon
clearing Ground enough for what Building and Culture they purpose.
_Seignior Joseph_, a Christian _Negro_ of this Place, has lately
with his People left a clean, well-built Town, and removed further
up the River. Their Huts are mostly orbicular, forming a spacious
square Area in the middle, and _in this_, the doors paved with
Cockle-Shells; two or three Crosses erected, and round about,
Lime-trees, Papais, Plantanes, Pine-apples, and a few Bee-hives; the
latter made out of pieces of old Trees, three foot long, hollowed and
raised on two Poles.
In the middle of the Area was a great Curiosity, a large Tree with
500 _hanging Nests_ at least upon it; this is a small familiar Bird,
that builds thus about their Towns, upon the extreme slenderest
Twigs, hanging like Fruit, and declares the Wisdom of Instinct, since
it’s designed a Security for their Young, against Monkeys, Parrots,
Squirrels, _&c._ Creatures of Prey, whose Weight cannot there be
supported.
_Anointing_ their Body and Limbs with Palm-Oil, is a daily Practice
with both Sexes; some use [19]Civet, but all cast a strong,
disagreeable Smell; this mending it much like as melted Tallow is by
a Perfumer’s Shop.
_Palaavers_ are their Courts of Judicature, where the principal or
elderly Men amongst them meet in a Ring or under a _Lodge_, to settle
the Differences that arise amongst themselves, or with the Factories;
the frequentest are in relation to Trade. Each salutes the other at
meeting, by a _Bend_ of the Elbow, and raising his Hand to his Face.
When they have heard what each Party has to say, they determine by
Vote, who has the Reason of the thing on their side, and so punish,
or acquit. For Fornication, the Party (whether Man or Woman) is sold
for a Slave. If a white Man lies with another’s Slave, he is bound
to redeem her at a current Price. On a Charge of Murder, Adultery,
or _if there can be_ any other more heinous Crime among them, the
suspected Person must drink of a red Water his Judges prepare; which
is called, purging the Criminal: that is, if the suspected be of
ill Life, or had Envy to the deceased, so that the Surmizes against
him are strong, though they want positive Evidence; they will give
him so much of that Liquor as shall kill him; but if inclined to
spare him, they politickly give less, or make it weaker, whereby his
Innocence appears the better to the Friends and Relations of the
deceased.
_Panyarring_, is a Term for Man-stealing along the whole Coast: Here
it’s used also, for stealing any thing else; and by Custom (their
Law) every Man has a right to seize of another at any Conveniency,
so much as he can prove afterwards, at the _Palaaver_-Court, to have
been defrauded of, by any body in the same place he was cheated.
_Dancing_ is the Diversion of their Evenings: Men and Women make
a Ring in an open part of the Town, and one at a time shews his
Skill in antick Motions and Gesticulations, yet with a great deal
of Agility, the Company making the Musick by clapping their hands
together during the time, helped by the louder noise of two or three
Drums made of a hollowed piece of Tree, and covered with Kid-Skin.
Sometimes they are all round in a Circle laughing, and with uncouth
Notes, blame or praise somebody in the Company.
During our stay at this _Port_, we paid a Visit to _Seignior Joseph_,
about nine miles up the River. The Reason of his leaving the other
Town, he told me was, the frequent _Palaavers_ he was engaged in,
on account of Differences between his People and the _Grimattoes_,
and the great Expence he was at, in so near a Neighbourhood with
the _English_. He has been in _England_ and _Portugal_; at the last
place he was baptized, and took in that christian Erudition that
he endeavours to propagate. He has built a little Oratory for his
People’s Devotions; erected a Cross; taught several of his Kindred
Letters, dispersing among them little Romish Prayer-Books, and many
of them are known by Christian Names. Those of the Country not yet
initiated, never have but one. _Mousi_, or _Moses_; _Yarrat_, and
_Cambar_, are very common Names to the Men; _Baulee_, and _Kibullee_,
to the Women. Others take the _Cognomen_ from their Disposition;
Lion, Lamb, Bear, Hog, _&c._ like our _Danish_ Ancestors. _Seignior
Joseph_, who is very communicative, tells me, to the extent of his
knowledge, the People are cleanly, of good Temper, and docible; all
wishing some Missionaries would think their Conversion and Wants
worth regarding: But the Poverty of their Country will probably
keep them a long time from that Benefit. There is no Invitation in
a barren Soil, scarce of Provisions and Necessaries, Danger of wild
Beasts a mile from Home (especially Wolves;) and about their Houses,
Rats, Snakes, Toads, Musquitoes, Centipes, Scorpions, Lizards, and
innumerable Swarms of Ants, a white, black, and red sort, that build
to 8 or 9 Foot high, dig up the Foundation of their Houses in two
or three Years, or turn a Chest of Cloaths to Dust (if not watched)
in as many Weeks. This Christian _Negro_, by the Advantage of Trade,
has in some measure removed the Wants of his own Family (his Towns;)
they are tolerably stocked with _Guinea_ Hens, Fish, and Venison;
while the Country fifty miles off, he says, have little to feed on
but Honey, and Manyoco Root. He received us in a _Europæan_ Dress
(Gown, Slippers, Cap, _&c._) and sent his Canoos out to shew us
the Diversion of chasing the _Manatea_; they brought one ashore in
two hours time, and we had stewed, roast, and boiled, with a clean
Table-cloth, Knives and Forks, and Variety of Wines and strong Beer,
for our Entertainment. The Flesh of this Creature was white, and not
fishy; but very tough, and seasoned high (as are all their Dishes)
with Ochre, Malaguetta, and Bell-pepper.
His Kinswomen came into the Room after we had dined, and to them
other Neighbours, saluting those of their own Colour, one by one, by
making a Bend of their right Elbow, so that the Hand comes nigh the
Mouth; the other to whom she addresses, is in the same Posture, and
mixing their Thumbs and middle Fingers, they snap them gently off,
and retreat with a small Quaker-like Obeysance, decently and without
Hurry or Laugh. They shewed likewise much good-nature towards one
another, in dividing two or three Biskets, and half a Pint of Citron
Water (we brought) into twenty Parts, rather than any one should miss
a Taste. In conclusion, _Seignior Joseph_ saw us to the Boat, and
took leave with the same Complaisance he had treated us.
The _Religion_ here, if it may be called such, is their Veneration
to _Gregries_: Every one keeps in his House, in his Canoo, or
about his Person, something that he highly reverences, and that he
imagines can, and does defend him from Miscarriage, in the nature our
Country-Folks do Charms, but with more Fear: And these things are
very various; either a cleaved piece of Wood, a Bundle of peculiar
little Sticks or Bones, a Monkey’s Skull, or the like. To these,
every Family has now and then a Feast, inviting one another; but of
this more, under the Word _Fetish_.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_The GRAIN and MALAGUETTA Coasts._
We left _Sierraleon_ and were joined by our Consort the _Weymouth_,
_May_ 1, from _Gambia_; we found upon Conference, that both Ships had
like to have ended their Voyage at these first Ports: She had run on
a Sand in that River, wringing three Days and Nights in a Tide’s way,
with great difficulty getting off: We, at _Sierraleon_ letting in
Water to the Ship one Evening, had forgot the Plug, till we had 5 or
6 Foot Water in the Hold.
The Company’s Presents, we understood by them, were received well
there by the King of _Barra_, and he has given the Factors leave to
build a Fortification at _Gilliflee_, a Town commanded by a Woman,
about 15 Miles up the River; made a Duchess by Captain _Passenger_,
from whence the Custom I believe has been taken up, of distinguishing
the most deserving Fellows at trading Towns by the Titles of Knights,
Colonels, and Captains, which they are very proud of. This Duchess
of _Gilliflee_ has become very much the Factory’s Friend there, and
gives all possible Assistance in their Settlement.
Cape _St. Mary’s_, or the Starboard Entrance of that River, they
found no Cannibals, as commonly reported among Sailors; but a
civilized People, with whom they wooded their Ship.
On the 4th we were off Cape _Monte_, and next day _Montzerado_,
both high Lands; the former appearing in a double, the latter with
a single _Hommock_; the Country trenching from them, low and woody;
about 35 Fathom Water 3 Leagues from Shore. From the latter, came
off a Canoo with the _Cabiceer_, Captain _John Hee_, distinguished by
an old Hat, and Sailor’s Jackett with a greater number of thick brass
Rings on his Fingers and Toes, than his Attendants. He seemed shy of
entering the Ship, apprehending a _Panyarring_; his Town’s People
having often suffered by the Treachery of Ships, and they as often
returned it, sometimes with Cruelty, which has given rise to the
Report of their being Savages and Cannibals at several places; very
unlikely any where, because they could not part with their Slaves,
which are but few, if they had this Custom, nor could they have any
Trade or Neighbours: Their Fears would make them shun their Enemies
(the rest of Mankind) and all Correspondence totally cease.
The _Fetish_ they brought off, on this dangerous Voyage, was a Bundle
of small, black Sticks, like a hundred of Sparrowgrass put into a
Bag, knit of Silk-grass, and hanging over one of their Shoulders,
seeming to place a Security and Confidence in it; for I would have
handled and tasted it, but found it put them in a Fright, saying, to
deter me, _You didee, you kicatavoo_, (i. e.) if you eat, you die
presently.
The mutual Distrust between us, made their present Business only
begging old Breeches, Shirts, Rags, Biskett, and whatever else they
saw, parting in some hurry, and calling to one another for that end,
in a Note like what Butchers use in driving Cattle. They have plenty
of Milhio, Rice, Yamms, and Salt hereabouts.
We found in our coasting by _Bashau_, and other trading Towns, the
same Fears subsisting, coming off every day in their Canoos, and then
at a stand whether they should enter: The boldest would sometimes
come on board, bringing Rice, Malaguetta, and Teeth, but staying
under Fear and Suspicion. Here we may take these Observations.
1. _Canoos_ are what are used through the whole Coast for
transporting Men and Goods. Each is made of a single Cotton-tree,
chizelled and hollowed into the shape of a Boat; some of them 8 or 10
Foot broad, carrying twenty Rowers. The Negroes do not row one way
and look another, but all forward, and standing at their Paddles,
they dash together with dexterity, and if they carry a _Cabiceer_,
always sing; a Mark of Respect.
2. _Cabiceers_ are the principal of the trading Men at all Towns;
their Experience, or Courage having given them that Superiority: All
Acts of Government in their several Districts, are by their Votes.
They came off to us with some _English_ Title and Certificate; the
Favour of former Traders to them, for their Honesty and good Service;
and were they done with Caution, might be of use to Ships as they
succeed in the Trade: Whereas now they contain little Truth, being
done out of Humour, and learn them only to beg or steal with more
Impudence.
3. The _Negrish_ Language alters a little in sailing, but as they are
Strangers to Arts, _&c._ restrained to a few Words, expressive of
their Necessities: This I think, because in their Meetings they are
not talkative; In their Trading the same Sound comes up often; and
their Songs, a Repetition of six Words a hundred times.
Some _Negrish_ Words.
_Didee_, Eat.
_Malafia_, }
_Govina_, } Ivory.
_Malembenda_, Rice.
_Cockracoo_, Fowl.
_Praam_, Good.
_Nino_, Sleep.
_Sam sam_, all one.
_Acquidera_, Agreed.
_Oura_, Very well.
_Tomy_, Arse-clout.
_Attee, ho_, How do you?
_Dashee_, a Present.
_Kickatavoo_, Killed, or Dead.
_Tossu_, Be gone.
_Yarra_, Sick.
_Fabra_, Come.
_Brinnee_, White Man.
_Bovinee_, Black Man.
_Soquebah_, Gone, lost.
_Tongo_, Man’s Privities.
_Bombo_, Woman’s.
Lastly, the Dress common to both Sexes every where, is the _Tomy_,
or Arse-clout, and the pleating or breading of their Wooll. The
Arse-clout the Women tie about their Hips, and falls half way down
their Thigh all round; but the Men bring it under their Twist, and
fasten just upon the girdling part behind. Both take great delight in
twisting the Wool of their Heads into Ringlets, with Gold or Stones,
and bestow a great deal of Time and Genius in it.
The Women are fondest of what they call _Fetishing_, setting
themselves out to attract the good Graces of the Men. They carry a
Streak round their Foreheads, of white, red, or yellow Wash, which
being thin, falls in lines before it dries. Others make Circles
with it, round the Arms and Bodies, and in this frightful Figure,
please. The Men, on the other side, have their Ornaments consist in
Bracelets; or Manilla’s, about their Wrists and Ancles, of Brass,
Copper, Pewter, or Ivory; the same again on their Fingers and Toes: a
Necklace of Monkey’s Teeth, Ivory Sticks in their Ears, with a broad
head. Most of them have one, two, or more of these Ornaments, and
have an Emulation in the number and use of them.
When the Nakedness, Poverty and Ignorance of these Species of Men
are considered; it would incline one to think it a bettering their
Condition, to transport them to the worst of Christian Slavery; but
as we find them little mended in those respects at the _West-Indies_,
their Patrons respecting them only as Beasts of Burthen; there
is rather Inhumanity in removing them from their Countries and
Families; here they get Ease with their spare Diet; the Woods,
the Fruits, the Rivers, and Forests, with what they produce, is
equally the property of all. By Transfretation they get the brown
Bread, without the Gospel: together, as Mr. _Baxter_ observed, they
might be good Fare, but hard Work and Stripes without it, must be
allowed an unpleasant Change. They are fed, it’s true, but with
the same Diet and Design we do Horses; and what is an aggravating
Circumstance, they have a Property in nothing, not even in their
Wives and Children. No wonder then, Men under this View, or worse
Apprehensions, should be prompted with Opportunity frequently to
sacrifice the Instruments of it.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_SESTHOS._
We anchored before _Sesthos_, or _Sesthio_, _May_ 10th, a Place
where most of our windward Slave-ships stop to buy Rice, exchanged
at about 2_s._ per Quintal. The River is about half the breadth of
the _Thames_; a narrow Entrance only for Boats on the starboard
Side, between two Rocks, which, on great Swells and Winds, make the
shooting of it dangerous; the rest of the breadth being choaked with
Sands.
The Town is large, and built after a different Model from those we
have left; they run them up (square or round) four Foot from the
Earth; at that height, is the first and chief Room, to sit, talk, or
sleep in, lined with matted Rinds of Trees, supported with Stockades,
and in the middle of it, a Fire-place for Charcoal, that serves a
double Purpose; driving off Insects and Vermine, and drying their
Rice and _Indian_ Corn. Of the upper Loft they make a Store-house,
that runs up pyramidal 30 foot; making the Town at distance, appear
like a number of Spires, each standing singly.
This, and every Town hereabouts, had a _Palaaver-Room_, a publick
Place of meeting for the People to council, and transact the Business
of the Society: They are large, and built something like our _Lodges_
for Carts, open, 4 foot from the Ground; then a Stage to sit, rafted
and well covered against Rain and Sun-shine. Here they meet without
distinction; King and Subject, smoaking from Morning to Night. At
this Place, it is common to bring your Traffick; brass Pans, pewter
Basins, Powder, Shot, old Chests, _&c._ and exchange for Rice, Goats
and Fowls. Two or three Pipes, a Charge of Powder, or such a Trifle,
buys a Fowl. A 2 pound Basin buys a Goat; and I purchased two for
an old Chest, with a Lock to it. Such a piece of Mechanism I found
a Rarity, and brought all the Country down to admire. A Watch still
encreased their Wonder; and making _Paper speak_ (as they call it) is
a Miracle.
They bring their written Certificates hinted above, and when you
tell them the Contents, or they are made Messengers of Notes between
_English_ Ships, they express the utmost Surprize at such sort of
Knowledge and Intercourse; it infinitely exceeds their Understanding,
and impresses a superior and advantageous Idea of the _Europeans_.
The King who commands here has the Name of _Pedro_; he lives about
five Miles up the River, a Sample of Negro Majesty.
As there is a _Dashee_ expected before Ships can wood and water
here; it was thought expedient to send the Royal Perquisite up by
Embassy (a Lieutenant and Purser) who being in all respects equal
to the Trust, were dismissed with proper Instructions, and being
arrived at the King’s Town, they were ushered or thrust in by some
of the Courtiers into the common _Palaaver-Room_ (to wait the King’s
dressing, and coming from his Palace) his publick Audience being ever
in the Presence of the People. After waiting an hour, King _Pedro_
came attended by a hundred _naked Nobles_, all smoaking, and a Horn
blowing before them. The King’s Dress was very antick: He had a
dirty, red Bays Gown on, chequer’d with patch-work of other Colours,
like a _Jack pudding_, and a Fellow to bear the Train, which was a
narrow Slip of _Culgee_ tacked to the bottom of the Gown. He had
an old black full-bottom’d Wig, uncombed; an old Hat not half big
enough, and so set considerably behind the Fore-top, that made his
meagre Face like a Scare-crow; coarse Shoes and Stockings, unbuckled
and unty’d, and a brass Chain of 20_lib._ at least about his Neck.
To this Figure of a Man, our modern Embassadors in their Holiday
Suits, fell on their Knees, and might have continued there till this
time, for what _Pedro_ cared: He was something surprized indeed, but
took it for the Fashion of their Country, and so kept making instant
Motions for the _Dashee_. This brought them from their Knees, as
the proper Attitude for presenting it; consisting in a trading Gun,
two pieces of salt Ship-beef, a Cheese, a Bottle of Brandy, a Dozen
of Pipes, and two Dozen of Congees. But _Pedro_, who understood the
Present better than the Bows, did not seem pleased when he saw it;
not for any defect in the Magnificence, but they were such things
as he had not present Occasion for; asking some of their Clothes
and to take those back again, particularly their Breeches, sullied
a little with kneeling in the Spittle: But on a _Palaaver_ with his
Ministers, the Present was accepted, and the Officers dismissed
back with a Glass of Palm-Wine and _Attee, ho_, (the common way of
Salutation with Thumbs and Fingers mixed, and snapping off.)
To smooth the King into a good Opinion of our Generosity, we made it
up to his Son, _Tom Freeman_; who, to shew his good-nature, came on
board uninvited, bringing his Flagelet, and obliging us with some
wild Notes. Him we dress’d with an edg’d Hat, a Wig, and a Sword, and
gave a Patent upon a large Sheet of Parchment, creating him Duke of
_Sesthos_, affixing all our Hands, and the Impress of a Butter mark
on Putty.
This was taken so kindly by the Father, that he sent us a couple of
Goats in return, and his younger Son _Josee_ for further Marks of
our Favour; whom we dignified also, on a small Consideration, with
the Title of _Prince of Baxos_. Several indeed had been titled, but
none so eminently, as by Patent, before; which procured us the entire
good-will of the King; suffering us at any time to hawl our Searn in
the River, where we catched good store of Mullets, Soles, Bump noses,
and Rock-fish; and to go up to their Villages unmolested.
In one of these Towns, some others of us paid a Visit to his Majesty,
whom we found at a Palace built as humble as a Hog-sty; the entrance
was narrow like a Port-hole, leading into what we may call his
Court-Yard, a slovenly little Spot, and two or three Hutts in it,
which I found to be the Apartment of his Women. From this we popped
through another short Portico, and discovered him on the left hand,
upon a place without his House, raised like a Taylor’s Shop-board,
and smoaking with two or three old Women, (the favourite Diversion of
both Sexes.) His Dress and Figure, with the novelty of ours, created
mutual Smiles which held a few Minutes, and then we took leave with
the _Attee, ho_.
From his Town we went to two others still farther up the River; at
one of them was a bright yellow-colour’d Man, and being curious to
know his Original, were informed (if we interpret their Signs and
Language right) that he came from a good distance in the Country,
where were more. Captain _Bullfinch Lamb_, and others, have since
told me, they had seen several; Mr. _Thompson_, that he saw one
at _Angola_, and another at _Madagascar_; a great Rarity, and as
perplexing to account for, as the black Colour.
_Exomphalos’s_ are very common among the _Negroes_ here. I saw also
one squint-ey’d; another without a Nose; and another with a Hair Lip;
Blemishes rare among them. Circumcision is used pretty much; not as
a religious Symbol, but at the Humour of the Parent, who had found a
Conveniency in it.
The Diet is Rice, Potatoes, Yacoes or _Indian_ Corn, Parsly, and
other Vegetables; the Cultivation of which, and their domestick
Affairs, are all imposed on the Women.
In general may be observed, they are exceeding _cowardly_, like other
Countries undisciplined; a whole Town running away from a Boat with
white Men. _Thievish_ on their own Dunghills; none of them seeming to
have any Notion of it as a Crime, and quarrel only about a Share of
what is stole. So _lazy_, that Scores of them will attend our Searn
for a Bisket, or the Distribution of such small Fish as are thrown
by; for tho’ their Waters afford great Plenty, they want the Means or
Inclination to catch them; chusing rather to loiter and jump about
the Sands, or play at round Holes, than endeavour to get Food for
themselves.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Cape APOLLONIA._
From _Sesthos_, we reached in two or three Days _Cape Palma_; weighed
Anchor from _Jaque a Jaques_, the _28th_; from _Bassau_, the _30th_;
_Assmee_, the _31st_; and anchored here the _6th_ of _June_. In this
part of our Sailing may be observed,
1. That the Land from _Sierraleon_, excepting two or three Capes, and
that about _Drewin_, appears low, and the first Land you see (as the
_Irishman_ says) is Trees; runs very streight without Bays or Inlets,
which makes it difficult to distinguish, and impossible for us to
land safely at; the Surff breaking all along to a great height, by
means of a continued Swell from a vast Southern Ocean; a Sea which
the Natives only understand, and can push their Canoos through. This
seems a natural Prohibition to Strangers, and whence it follows in
respect to Trade, that Ships are obliged to send their Boats with
Goods near Shore, where the Natives meet them, and barter for Slaves,
Gold, and Ivory; for at many places a _Grandee Shippee_ (as they call
it) affrights them, and they will venture then, as I imagine they can
swim.
2. The Ground is very tough, our Consort and we losing three
Anchors in heaving a Purchase; we stopping at Nights for fear of
over-shooting Places of Trade.
3. We find pretty equal Soundings, _about 14 Fathom Water_, _a League
from Shore_, unless at one noted place, a _Lusus Naturæ_, called the
_bottomless Pit_, 7 Leagues below _Jaque a Jaques_, where the Depth
is all at once unfathomable, and about three Miles over.
The great Sir _Is. Newton_, in his calculating the Force of Gravity,
says, Bodies decrease in their Weight, and Force of their Fall, in
the Proportion of the Squares of Distance from the Center; so that a
Tun at the Surface of the Earth would weigh but ¼ of a Tun, removed
one Semi-Diameter of the Earth higher; and at three Semi-Diameters,
but the 1/16 of a Tun. In like manner their Velocities of Descent
decrease: A Body at the Surface which would fall 16 foot in a Second,
at 12000 Miles high, or three Semi-Diameters, would fall only 1/16,
or one Foot in a Second; but at all given Distances, something, _&c._
Now, according to this Rule, heaving a _Lead_ in great depths of
Water, the Velocity should increase with the descent or sinking of
it; since in the Progress of Gravity, the falling Body in every
space of Time receives a new Impulse, and continually acting, the
same Gravity super-adds a new Velocity; so that at the end of two
Seconds, to be double what it was at the end of the first, and so
on, which here the Weight of the super-incumbent Medium should still
more accelerate. Yet a Lead-line is drawn out perceptibly slower at
the second, than the first hundred Fathoms: But perhaps this proceeds
from the increasing quantity of Line to be drawn with it, not so
equally apt to demerge, and a _Nisus_ in all Bodies of Water, from
below upwards, contrary to Gravity.
4. The Winds were more Southerly _than above_, checking the
Land-Breeze, which obtaining brings strong unwholesome Smells from
the _Mangroves_.
5. Their Diet being very slovenly, and much of a piece in this Track,
I shall here entertain you with two or three of their Dishes.
_Slabbersauce_ is made of Rice and Fish, a Fowl, a Kid, or Elephant’s
Flesh, the better for being on the stink. They boil this with a good
quantity of _Ochre_ and _Palm-Oil_, and is accounted a royal Feast.
A Dog is a Rarity with some: Our Master had a little Boy-Slave of
eight years of Age, in exchange for one. At other Places, Monkeys are
a very common Diet.
_Bomini_ is Fish dried in the Sun without Salt; stinking, they put it
in a Frying-pan with _Palm-Oil_, then mixed with boiled Rice, snatch
it up greedily with their Fingers.
_Black Soupee_ is a favourite Dish, as well at our Factories, as
among the _Negroes_; we make it of Flesh or Fowl, stew’d sweet,
with some uncommon tasted Herbs; but the ascendant Taste is Pepper,
_Ochre_, and _Palm-Oil_. At first I thought it disagreeable, but
Custom reconciled it as the best in the Country: Men’s way of Diet
being certainly a principal Reason why in all places some of Land
and Sea-animals are approved or rejected; liked in one Country, and
detested in another.
To return to _Jaque a Jaques_; we met there the _Robert_ of
_Bristol_, Captain _Harding_, who sailed from _Sierraleon_ before
us, having purchased thirty Slaves, whereof Captain _Tomba_ mentioned
there was one; he gave us the following melancholly Story. That
this _Tomba_, about a Week before, had combined with three or four
of the stoutest of his Country-men to kill the Ship’s Company, and
attempt their Escapes, while they had a Shore to fly to, and had
near effected it by means of a Woman-Slave, who being more at large,
was to watch the proper Opportunity. She brought him word one night
that there were no more than five white Men upon the Deck, and they
asleep, bringing him a Hammer at the same time (all the Weapons
that she could find) to execute the Treachery. He encouraged the
Accomplices what he could, with the Prospect of Liberty, but could
now at the Push, engage only one more and the Woman to follow him
upon Deck. He found three Sailors sleeping on the Fore-castle, two of
which he presently dispatched, with single Strokes upon the Temples;
the other rouzing with the Noise, his Companions seized; _Tomba_
coming soon to their Assistance, and murdering him in the same
manner. Going aft to finish the work, they found very luckily for the
rest of the Company, that these other two of the Watch were with the
Confusion already made awake, and upon their Guard, and their Defence
soon awaked the Master underneath them, who running up and finding
his Men contending for their Lives, took a Hand-spike, the first
thing he met with in the Surprize, and redoubling his Strokes home
upon _Tomba_, laid him at length flat upon the Deck, securing them
all in Irons.
The Reader may be curious to know their Punishment: Why, Captain
_Harding_ weighing the Stoutness and Worth of the two Slaves, did,
as in other Countries they do by Rogues of Dignity, whip and scarify
them only; while three others, Abettors, but not Actors, nor of
Strength for it, he sentenced to cruel Deaths; making them first eat
the Heart and Liver of one of them killed. The Woman he hoisted up by
the Thumbs, whipp’d, and slashed her with Knives, before the other
Slaves till she died.
From this Ship we learned also, that the inland Country who had
suffered by the _Panyarrs_ of the _Cobelohou_ and _Drewin_ People,
have lately been down, and destroyed the Towns, and the Trade is now
at a stand; and perhaps the Consciousness of this Guilt increases
their Fears of us. The Ceremony of contracting Friendship and Trade,
is dropping a little salt-water into the Eye, or taking it into their
Mouth, and spurting out again; which must be answer’d, or no Trade
will follow.
At Cape _Apollonia_, the Natives are of a jet black, very lively
and bold, accustomed to Trade, and better fetished than their
Neighbours; have cleaner and larger _Tomys_, wear Amber Beads,
Copper Rings, Cowrys, and their Wooll twisted in numberless little
Rings and Tufts, with bits of Shell, Straw, or Gold twisted in them.
They have all a Dagger † cut in their Cheek, and often in other
Parts of their Body: A Custom preserved among a few, down to the
Gold Coast. The _Romans_ and _Goths_, when possessed of _Barbary_,
exempted the _Christians_ from Tribute; and to know them, engraved
a + upon their Cheeks; but this seems too distant for any Analogy
with theirs. All we learn is, its being a very ancient Custom, and
distinguishes them from the Country, who they _Panyarr_ and sell for
Slaves, naked at 4 _oz._ _per_ Head; allowing 100 _per Cent._ on
Goods, they cost at a medium 8_l._ Sterling. The _Cabiceers_, out
of this, demand a due of 20s. and the _Palaaver-Man_ 10_s._ whence
I conjecture they are more regularly trained to _Panyarring_ or
thieving, than the Towns we have past.
There is a great deal of Ground cleared about this Cape, and sown
with _Indian_ Corn; first brought among the _Negroes_, it’s said, by
the _Portuguese_.
[Illustration: (flower)]
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Cabo TRES PUNTAS._
We stopped a few Hours at _Axim_ in our Passage from _Apollonia_,
and anchored here _June_ 7, most Ships doing it for the Conveniency
of watering, more difficultly supplied at any parts above. It is
called _Three Points_, from that number of Headlands that jutt one
without the other; within the innermost is a commodious Bay, nigh the
watering-place. _John Conny_, who is the principal _Cabiceer_, exacts
a Duty from all Ships, of an Ounce of Gold, for this Privilege; and
sends off a Servant with his Commission, a large Gold-headed Cane,
engraved _John Conny_, to demand it. Our Neglect herein, with some
opprobrious Treatment of the Agent, occasioned _John Conny_ next
day to come down with a _Posse_ and seize our Water casks ashore,
carrying away ten or a dozen of our Men Prisoners to his Town.
The Officer among them endeavouring to distinguish to _John_ the
Difference of a King’s Ship from others, got his Head broke: _John_
(who understood _English_ enough to swear) saying, by G—— me King
here, and will be paid not only for my Water, but the Trouble has
been given me in collecting it. Drink on, says he to the Sailors,
(knocking out the Head of a Half-Anchor of Brandy,) and eat what my
House affords; I know your part is to follow Orders. _John_, after
some trouble in negotiating, accepted in recompence, six Ounces of
Gold, and an Anchor of Brandy.
_His Town_ stands about three Miles Westward of the watering-place;
large, and as neatly raftered and built, as most of our North or West
small Country Villages. Every Man his Coco-trees round the House,
and in the Streets (such as they are) sit People to sell the Nuts,
Limes, Soap, _Indian_ Corn, and what is a great part of their Food,
_Canky_, the Work of the Women. It is made of _Indian_ Corn, after
this manner; they pound it in a Mortar for some time, then malaxing
it with Water and Palm-Wine, they grind it still finer with a Mull
upon a great Stone, which every House almost has at the Door for that
purpose; baked or boiled in Cakes, it makes a hearty and well-tasted
Bread.
The _Danish_ (or, as they say, the _Brandenburghers_) Fort was on
an adjacent Hill, of four or five Bastions, and could mount fifty
Guns. The Garison, when in being, probably taught the Natives the
way of marketing, observed only where the Factories are; but being
some few years since relinquished by them, it’s now in _John Conny_’s
possession, and has raised up some Contests and _Palaavers_ with the
_Dutch_: for they pretending a Title of Purchase, sent a Bomb-Vessel
and two or three Frigates last Year, to demand a Surrendry; but
_John_ being a bold and subtle Fellow, weighing their Strength,
answer’d, that he expected some Instrument should be shewed him to
confirm the _Brandenburghers_ Sale; and even with that (says he) I
can see no Pretence but to the Guns, the Brick, and Stone of the
Building, for the Ground was not theirs to dispose of. They have
paid me Rent for it, (continues he) and since they have thought fit
to remove, I do not design to tenant it out to any other white Men
while I live. This sort of _Palaaver_ nettled the _Dutch_; they threw
in some Bombs and Shot; and heating more with Rage and Brandy, very
rashly landed forty of their Men under the Command of a Lieutenant to
attack the Town: They fired once without any Damage, and then _John_
at the Head of his Men, rushing from under the Cover of the Houses,
outnumbred and cut them in pieces; paving the entrance of his Palace
soon after, with their Skulls.
This Advantage made him very rusty, upon what he called his Dues
from every body, tho’ just in Trade; and when we had returned to a
good Understanding, my self, with some other of our Officers paid
him a Visit: Our landing was dangerous, the Southerly Winds making
so great a Surff, nor could we do it by our own Boats, but Canoos
of his sending, paying an _Accy_ for the Service; they count the
Seas, and know when to paddle safely on or off. _John_ himself
stood on the Shore to receive us, attended with a Guard of twenty
or thirty Men under bright Arms, who conducted us to his House; a
Building pretty large, and raised from the Materials of the Fort.
It ascends with a double Stone Stair-case without, of twelve Steps;
on that Floor are three good Rooms; one his Armory, another his
Chamber, with a standing Bed in it, and the third for Entertainment
of Guests, furnished with Tables, Chairs, &c. We came to it thro’
two Court yards; the outermost has Houses for Officers and Servants
belonging to him, the inner (a spacious Square) has a Guard-Room and
good Armory fronting the Entrance, with Piazzas to accommodate his
Guard, and imitate in some measure the Grandeur he had observed in
the _Prussian_ Governours; _John_ having been some Years a Servant
with them, and thence had taken his Punctilio and Ceremony, and knew
how to put on a significant Countenance. He is a strong-made Man,
about fifty, of a sullen Look, and commands the Respect of being bare
headed, from all the _Negroes_ about him _that are worth Caps_. To us
he shewed very great Civility; we had returned his Salute of six Guns
with [20]an equal Number, and made up the Breach of Watering, on
his own terms; things that pleased him, and he gave us leave to fish
in a River on the back of his Town; but returning with very little
Success, which _John_ could not foresee, we were disappointed of our
Dinner, and had a hard Look into the Bargain, for he told us, this
ill Luck was owing to our neglect of giving the Waters a _Dashee_,
for it was a Grandee-man’s [21]_Fetish_, he said, and deserved more
notice; however we got some _Canky_-Bread, salt Butter, Cheese,
_Palm_-Wine, and Beer, served up with clean Plates, Knives, Napkins,
_&c._ One of his Wives (for he seemed to have many) sat all the time
he entertained us behind his Chair, big with Child, a clean Wrapper
round her, and handsomly fetished; both together, I believe, had in
Gold Chains about their Necks, their Wrists, Ancles and Legs, with
the Drops in their Hair, to 8 or 10_lib._ _Troy_-Weight.
Finding our Landlord cheerful and familiar, I ventured to ask him
what was become of the _Dutchmen’s_ Skulls that lately paved the
entrance of his House. He told me very frankly, that about a Month
before our Ship’s Arrival, he had put them all into a Chest with some
Brandy, Pipes, and Tobacco, and buried them; for, says he, it is time
that all Malice should depart, and the putting up a few Necessaries
with the Corps, such as they loved, is our way of respecting the
deceased. Among themselves, I learned it was customary with the
Rich, to sacrifice a Slave or two also at their Funerals. The under
Jawbones of these _Dutchmen_ he shewed me strung, and hanging on a
Tree in the Court-yard.
From this odd Ceremony in their Funerals, and what is above noted
upon the Word _Fetish_, it looks as though there were some dark
Notions of a future State among them, and an Expectance in it of
Retribution.
It is impossible to expect in such a State of Nature as theirs,
naked of Education and Science, that they should be able to form any
refined Notions of a Deity; which, we experience among our selves,
receives the Improvement with our growing Understanding, purely the
Effect of Art and Study; the Philosopher and Countryman being at
as much distance in their Explanation of divine Points, as it is
possible the Christian Sailor and the _Negro_ can be. Let us imagine
then, apart of our Species started up in the World, without knowing
how or why, (the _Negroes_ Case) and examine strictly in our own
Thoughts, what religious Notions could be framed by them?
To me it appears, that their Appetites and Passions would have the
first Regard; they are gnawing and troublesome, requiring immediate
Care and Redress; and the Intervals from supplying them; it’s very
natural to suppose, would some of them be employed in ruminating
upon their own Beings, in what manner, and to what end they were
placed here; and on all those other Beings that surround them; the
Consequence of which must be, Amazement and Wonder: And as they
experienced Pain and Sickness, some things would terrify, and some
please, according as they were persuaded they promoted or averted
such ill or Good. Now as the Understandings of Men, supposed as
above, would be mean and low, not able to account for these Effects
from their Causes, the natural Power and Tendency in this, to promote
that: I say, not knowing this way of Induction, they will readily
ascribe something _supernatural_ to any Materials used about them;
they may want the Word, but the Meaning would be confirmed in the
use of _Fetish_.
That this is not barely a Supposition, but an experienc’d Truth,
is evident in the Condition, the Actions, and Manner of these
poor People. They are set down as from the Clouds, without Guide,
Letters, or any means of Cultivation to their better Part, but what
immediately strike their Senses from beholding this Universe, and the
Beings contained in it; their Deductions from whence, as to a Deity
devoid of Matter, is next to impossible, therefore we say mean and
pitiful. They can go no further without Learning, than concluding all
things about them good or evil, to have a God or a Devil in it that
immediately either benefits or hurts them; and thence their Worship.
That these People could arrive to better Knowledge by the use of
proper Means and Instruction, there is no manner of doubt. They give
proof enough that their natural Endowments are capable of following
any Pattern; but as it is, their Actions demonstrate that the Soul
wants a proper Nurture as well as the Body, and will hardly, without
a Miracle, increase its Knowledge to any degree above what at present
it appears; but when the Seeds and Principles are laid by letter’d
Nations, it is not then nigh so difficult to improve. _They want
all_, and their Understanding therefore in spiritual Matters is
poor and naked, like their Bodies, which if they cannot provide of
Necessaries with the Materials about them; how insuperable is the
other, where all is out of sight?
To come to the point, the _Negroes_ have chose _Woods_, _Lakes_,
_Hills_, or a part of these, a _bundle of Chips_, _or Roots_, _a
Stone_, _a piece of Metal_, or the like, for their _Fetishes_.
Now what is more likely, or indeed grateful, than assigning a
supernatural Power, and of course reverential Respects, to those very
things they are immediately conversant with, and experience their
Effects? For the Hill, the Wood or the Lake may afford Sustenance
from time to time; perhaps in Extremity, either may have contributed
to their Preservation or Defence from wild Beasts; or _Panyarring_,
a more dreadful Evil. And others of them (for there are a great
Diversity) have as a Charm, cured a Sickness, been propitious in
their Journeys by Land or Water, in their Hunting, Fishing, or
other Exercises; that is, they have been safe, they have observed,
and protected from Danger, Distress, or Hurt, while they bore
such a _Fetish_ about them, or in the House, or Boat, they lodged
or travelled in; which are the Reasons, and all the Reason they
can give for their Choice. And some have descended from Father to
Son with great Reputation, two, three; or more Generations, until
the Proprietor could not observe any of the usual Effects, or was
improsperous; and thus, whether he imputes it to the Age and Decay of
the _Fetish_, I cannot tell; but he rejects it, and from some lucky
Accident to him takes a newer, and consequently a better: Immemorial
Custom giving strength to the Persuasion and the Practice.
Nor does this appear that unaccountable and ridiculous Folly some
would have it. All material Beings are equally incomprehensible as to
their Seed and real Essence; the Existence of a Straw as mysterious
as the Existence of the Sun: _Quodcunque vides_, _Deus est_. No
Man can comprehend how Matter came first into being, nor, which is
nigher him, how the Atoms that compose a Stick, Stone, or Metal, are
supported and hang together in that Bulk; or what diversifies them,
that one should be fusible, another malleable, some both: I say, to
consider these, and some other Attributes of Matter in the Essence,
it will be impossible to explicate, without putting the Deity to it;
and if infant Reason cannot reach above a material God, what I think
would first and most naturally occur, would be the Objects about us,
as they did us good or hurt, the _Fetishes_ of the _Negroes_. The
original Gods, obvious to the first and darker days of Reason, were
in my opinion, _Stocks_ and _Stones_, _Serpents_, _Calves_, _Onions_,
_Garlick_, &c. Not that these things appeared to them in the exalted
Attributes of Spirit, Creator, Omniscience, _&c._ then inconceivable:
No; they only could observe that all the parts of Nature were
mysterious in their Essence and Operations, and therefore attracted
their Esteem and Worship.
That the wiser Idolaters (as called) set up the Sun to worship,
from the prodigious Advantages of Light and Life to the World, I
take to be a Refinement on this ancienter Heathen Mythology; an
improved Understanding that perceived the Heavenly Bodies, the Sun
in particular, to be the Source of all Benefit and Fertility to
the Earth. That this was so, I am more inclined to think, from the
ignorant and contrary Conclusions still made by many People born in
more enlighten’d Countries, concerning the Influence and general
Benignity of them. It is hard to persuade some of such universal
Good, when they are evidently, they think, Sufferers in the failure
of their Crops, Plagues, and Famine. Too much Rain or Sun-shine
must ever have disturb’d some body, and mixed Murmur with Devotion,
removed only, as Knowledge increased:
_The dripping_ Sailors _curse the Rain,
For which poor_ Farmers _pray in vain._
Again, if we can think they have conceived any Notions of a future
State, as is not improbable; have a natural Affection or Respect;
the Custom was on neither account; preposterous of _John Conny_,
to bury Pipes, Tobacco, Brandy, or what else the deceased loved or
wanted. It answers to the Pomp and Decency of our own Funerals, only
more significant.
From the _Negroes_ Religion, may be drawn these Observations.
_First_, The Foundation of all Men’s Religions is taken from this
visible Universe, as ancient as the Creation. The greater Lights that
have from time to time appeared in the World, are only Refinements
and Superstructures upon this Prop; first Milk, and then Meat.
2. The grossest Idolatries are not a proper Subject of Laughter: It
is a case all Mankind seem bewilder’d in, some more grossly than
others indeed, and bespeaks the Pity of greater Light and Knowledge.
3. The _Negroes_ Ignorance of Good and Evil was equal, before their
Acquaintance with us; and as they are acknowledged to advance with
greater pace in the latter, discerned between the trading and the
country People brought down for Slaves; the question might be ask’d,
Whether ours or their own Religion contributes most to it?
4. The essential Point in all, is to mend Men’s Morals, to make them
good and virtuous to their Neighbours, obedient to Superiours, and
where it fails, the true Politician will account it bad by whatever
Name denominated. The Faiths that cannot produce good Works, are
certainly faulty, and may be spiritualiz’d into Vapour and Shadow, as
well as materializ’d into Dross and Chaff.
_Lastly_, The Fear of the _Fetish_ keeps them from injuring one
another a little, that is, one another in the same Combination;
but has little or no Influence in respect to us; whom they rob,
cheat, or murder, as best answers their Conveniencies. They are
like the Articles of Pyrates, which keep up a sort of Honesty among
themselves, tho’ they despoil every body else. _John Conny_ is very
upright and just himself in all Bargains; but then he does not want
what the others are thieving; it is below his Game: rigorous also in
exacting his Dues, or inflicting Punishments. There was a Murderer a
few Weeks since, (we understood) whom _John_ had condemned, altho’
there were some Circumstances of excuse, (a _se defendendo_, which
_John_ did not understand) and made the Criminal’s own Brother, one
of his trustiest Servants to be the Executioner before his Face,
by tying a vast great Stone like a _Mill-Stone about his Neck and
throwing him into the Sea_ from a Canoo.
He has engrossed by his Riches and Power, the Trade of the Place;
and by that means has reduced the Traders Profits to 20 _per Cent._
a Disadvantage they themselves have contributed to in some measure,
by underselling one another. His People allow less, for in the little
Traffick they had with us, they paid all in _Crackra_ Gold, not a
quarter the value it was taken at. They are all marked with a Cross
in their Cheek, unless _John Conny_ himself (who told me it was only
Ornament) and none are circumcised.
The Women _fetish_ with a coarse Paint of Earth on their Faces,
Shoulders and Breasts, each the Colour they like best. In Marriage
the Husbands spend four Ounces of Gold more or less, according to
their Ability, on her Friends and Acquaintance; who by this are
brought together as Witnesses, that he may have redress in case of
Adultery; a Crime for which the Transgressor becomes the injured
Person’s Slave. A Man likewise forfeits his Liberty for thievery
among themselves; and Trade has so infected them with Covetousness
and Fraud, that the Chiefs will put Snares both for the one and the
other, driving at the Profit, and not the Punishment of a Crime.
[Illustration: (flower)]
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Cabo CORSO._
At this Cape _Corso_ on the Gold Coast, is the principal Fort
and Factory of our _English_ Company, to which their Ships
constantly resort, and receive orders either by themselves, or with
Supercargoes, where else to proceed.
The _Company_ about this time of our Voyage had raised by
Subscription 392400_l._ and in _December_ 1722, made a Call of 5 _per
Cent._ allowing the Proprietors, as had been accustomed, a Dividend
of 3 _per Cent._ In _December_ 1723, they exposed to Sale 200000_l._
Stock at 30 _per Cent._ which shewed their Affairs had an ill Aspect,
notwithstanding their late Flourishes; confirmed next Winter, when
they petitioned the Government (I find in a Pamphlet printed a few
Years since) that they were undone, and the _African_ Trade lost,
unless they were impower’d to scheme it over again: The Projectors
for the Company righteously proposed, that if the Legislature would
give a Sanction, they would engage to raise the Stock-jobbing Humour,
and raise a Million, whereof they would be liberal.
The Factory consists of Merchants, Factors, Writers, Miners,
Artificers and Soldiers; and excepting the first Rank, who are the
Council for managing Affairs, are all of them together a Company of
white Negroes, who are entirely resigned to the Governour’s Commands,
according to the strictest Rules of Discipline and Subjection;
are punished (Garison fashion) on several Defaults, with Mulcts,
Confinement, the Dungeon, Drubbing, or the Wooden Horse; and for
enduring this, they have each of them a Salary sufficient to buy
_Canky_, _Palm-Oil_, and a little Fish to keep them from starving:
for tho’ the Salaries found tolerably in _Leadenhall-Street_ (50
to 90_l._ _per Ann._ a Factor; 50 an Artificer) yet in the Country
here, the General (for the Company’s good) pays them in _Crackra_, a
false Money which is only current upon the spot, and disables them
from taking any advantage of buying Necessaries from Ships coasting
down. If the Subjects should have other, it’s against the Interest of
the Company to suffer its being laid out any where from themselves,
because their Stock would by that means lie dead. So that for the
Support of Nature, or perhaps indulging youthful Follies, these thin
Creatures are obliged to take up of the Company, and in effect by it
sign over their Liberty; none being admitted to depart, ’till he has
adjusted all Accounts. When the Man is too sober to run in Debt,
there are Arts of Mismanagement, or loss of Goods under his Care, to
be charged or wanting. Thus they are all liable to be mulcted for
Drunkenness, Swearing, Neglects, and lying out of the Castle, even
for not going to Church, (such is their Piety:) and thus by various
arbitrary Methods, their Service is secured _durante bene placito_.
The same Method he takes with the Town _Negroes_, who, inconsiderate
Wretches, are continually scoring up for Goods or Drams, and thus
become _Pawns_ to the Company, _i. e._ liable to be sold when the
General thinks fit.
The Director-General is Supreme, or first Person in the Factory, at
2000_l._ _per Ann._ Two other Merchants at 300_l._ and a Secretary
at 200_l._ are what compose the Council for the Company’s Affairs;
send Factors to their outer Forts, and Supercargoes on board Vessels
to collect the Trade, who are to transmit and make up their Accounts
here. The General supports a Table for them; a [22]Chaplain and
Surgeon, who have orderly Meals, without any idle Bottles.
Tho’ the General has but one Vote in Business, yet it’s tacitly
consented, from his better Allowance and Power as Governour, that
he shall lead the others, who sign only for their Salaries: He
therefore disposes solely of Preferments to the Factors and Writers,
who, as they please or displease, may be continued at, or removed to
their advantage. For, as on Service from the Fort they are allowed
a Commission in Trade, additional to their Pay; so, in some of the
outer Forts (such as _Accra_, or in a Ship) they make considerable
Increase; while at others again, _Anamaboo_, or _Dixcove_, they
find a great deal of Trouble, wet Lodging, Scarcity of Provision,
and no Profit; and as these last outnumber the good, I observed
most of our Factors to have dwindled much from the genteel Air they
brought; wear no Cane nor Snuff-box, _idle in Men of Business_, have
lank Bodies, a pale Visage, their Pockets sown up, or of no use,
and their Tongues tied. One Cause of their Slenderness indeed, is a
Scarcity of Provision; little besides Plantain, small Fish, _Indian_
Corn, and a great deal of _Canky_, to be bought at Market.[23] Poor
_T——d_ was a Youth well recommended, and lived as long as he could.
I had once some Business in his Office, when a _Negro_ Woman came
bawling about his Ears for a Plantain he had stole from her: He
would feign have concealed the meaning of her Musick, but at length
I understood it was the only Morsel he had eat for three days past;
one night’s Debauch, and several Mulcts having run him out of Pocket.
The next Occasion I had of enquiring after him, I heard, that being
too narrowly watched in this illegal Traffick, he pined with a
Vacuum of the Guts, and died; leaving this Advice to his Countrymen,
rather to run a remote hazard of being hanged at home, than chuse a
Transfretation hither.
Another Instance how well they live, was the Captain of their
Soldiers, in my time stealing away from the Castle in the night,
to make his Escape on board a Brigantine going off the Coast; but,
unlucky Gentleman, was chased and brought back by the _Weymouth_ next
day: The General, by _Canon Law_, fined the Master of the Vessel, 70
Ounces for this Misdemeanor, besides corporal Punishment.
The General does not feel this Want, for altho’ here be a Scarcity of
neat Cattle, Kid, or Fowl, (no body having any besides himself) he
supplies this Want from other Parts, by their own trading Vessels,
and _Dashees_ from Masters of Ships, and neighbouring Nations; and
for Vegetables, he has a large Garden without the Castle, first
planted by Sir _Dalby Thomas_, a former Governour, abounding not
only with their’s, but Fruits of _English_ Growth, _and entirely for
his own use_. Of _Taggys_, a sweet Nut, they make Emulsions, and boil
to a Custard.
_Cromers_ grow in Pods like Peas, but larger, rounder, and full of
little Seed; this, and _Tantarraboys_, a Fruit red and yellow, that
grows wild, they put into their _black Soupee_, made here in the best
and cleanest manner, washing the Palm-nuts with warm water, to bring
away the Strings.
The General has taken a _Consa_, which by the _Negroes_ is understood
a temporary Wife, because she is not obliged to leave the Country,
which is looked on as Slavery: She is a _Mulatto_ Woman, begot by
a _Dutch_ Soldier at _Des Minas_, by whom he has four Children, of
fair, flaxen Hair and Complexion. Her _Negro_ Friends and Relations
add Interest and Power to him, and he again can back their Injustice
in the _Pawns_ irregularly procured to the Garrison. He dotes on
this Woman, whom he persuades now and then to our Chappel-Service,
and she complies without Devotion, being a strict Adherer to the
_Negrish_ Customs. I attended the Illness of one of her Children; and
afterwards on the General himself, who on both Occasions, I found,
was so weak or so wise, as to give the preference of _Fetishing_ to
any Physical Directions of mine, wearing them on his Wrists and
Neck. He was a Gentleman of good Sense, yet could not help yielding
to the silly Customs created by our Fears, and shews the Sway it
bears in the Choice or Alteration of our Religion.
He cannot persuade this Woman to leave the Country, tho’ he has
stole or forced her Consent for all the Children, in regard to their
Education; she still conforming to the Dress of her Country, being
always barefoot and _fetished_ with Chains and Gobbets of Gold, at
her Ancles, her Wrists, and her Hair; to alter which in _England_,
she thinks would sit awkard, and together with her Ignorance how to
comport her self with new and strange Conversation, would in all
likelihood alienate her Husband’s Affections.
The General, besides being a kind Husband and Father, is a good
Servant to the Company; assiduous and diligent, maintaining his
Authority against the _Dutch_ at _Des Minas_: Mr. _Butler_, the
_Dutch_ Director-General there, and he, having frequent Controversies
and Demands upon one another; sometimes on account of pretended
ill-usage to the Relations of his _Consa_, oftner upon Trade. Yet
the Dignity he is to preserve in this petty Sovereignty, and the
accustomed fawning Submission of the _Negroes_ to it, has made his
Carriage haughty towards all under him. He resides for ever within
his Battlements; his Subjects and he resembling the Giant and
enchanted Castle. He is seen no oftner than is necessary; and when he
vouchsafes an Invitation to his Table, you must keep a good Look-out,
or lose your Dinner; he never descending so much from _State_ as to
ask after you, tho’ he knows there is no Victuals any where else. A
Project indeed is lately set on foot, for the _Company’s_ importing
_Irish_ Beef and Pork, to be issued at 19 and 12_lib._ an _Accy_,
wished for by those who love their Meat without Sauce. I was six
Weeks attending the Trials of the Pyrates at this Castle, and treated
very civilly.
The Factory have every now and then a large Demand for Salt, made
and brought hither from _Accra_. The Sale appears like a Fair in
the Castle, and many of those _Negroes_ whose Ivory or Gold would
not purchase half a Bushel, I was told had travelled some hundred
Miles; they chusing to go in Bodies when Seed-time is over, as a
better Protection from wild Beasts, and their wilder Countrymen, who
frequently make Incursions from several parts of the Coast, and sieze
them for Slaves, when few and defenceless.
The Castle is a large Quadrangle, built by the _Portuguese_; for
tho’ the _French_ first discovered this Part, their Civil Wars
hindred Settlements first made by them; who erected Forts, from whom
the _Dutch_ seized their’s, and we from them again. Vice-Admiral
_Holmes_ in 1664, after reducing _New-York_ and _Long Island_
from the _Dutch_, coming here by order of the Duke of _York_, then
Lord-Admiral, and dispossessing them of most Places; it certainly
being as reasonable on our side as it was on their’s; or more,
because they would have excluded all others from the Trade, making
Prize of our Ships, and imprisoning the Men. Admiral _Ruyter_
seized them from us again the next Year, without Declaration of
War, which engaged us to a Reprizal on their _Bourdeaux_ Fleet.
These Transactions, and the pressing Instances of the Parliament,
who voted, the King should be addressed to redress the Wrongs and
Injuries of the _Dutch_ on our Trade in _Africa_ and _India_ to a
vast Value, occasioned a War, which concluded with our Right of
Privilege.
The Height of the Walls is the Strength of this Fort; sufficient
against any _Negro_ Power, as they lately experienced in an Attack
the _Fantins_ made upon the Castle’s Dependants, who found their
Security under the Walls; for here are some potent Neighbours, such
as the Emperor of _Fantin_, the Kings of _Santie_, _Akim_, and
_Aquemboe_, between whom and the Company’s _Negroes_, happen frequent
Occasions of Quarrel, from unwarrantable Practices in Trade. The
common way to evade the Stroke, or push it in the Company’s favour,
is giving a _Dashee_ of 5 or 600_lib._ in Goods to one of them, to
fall on the Adversary; a Trick used alternately by the _Dutch_, and
us also, to counterplot one another’s Interests.
In the Area of this Quadrangle, are large Vaults, with an iron Grate
at the Surface to let in Light and Air on those poor Wretches, the
Slaves, who are chained and confined there till a Demand comes. They
are all marked with a burning Iron upon the right Breast, _D. Y._
Duke of _York_.
_Tanks_ (Reservatories of Water) are in the Castle, vaulted and
terrassed, capable of holding 100 Tuns or more: The Pavement leans
from all parts towards them, to drain off the Rain; Water being
scarce in dry [24]Seasons, and great quantities wanted. There is only
one, nasty, muddy Pond, of ill Taste, in the Neighbourhood, from
whence Ships are supplied, swum off to the Boats with a great deal of
trouble by the _Negroes_.
Within the Castle is a Smith’s Shop, a Cooperage, Store-houses, a
Chappel, and Houses for the Officers and Servants. The General’s
Lodging communicates with the Chappel, a capacious Hall, which serves
to preach and dine in, pray or drink, serve God or debate on Trade;
hence they can over-look what the Company’s Servants are doing, and
how comply with their respective Duties. A Bastion runs out from it
that has a very pleasant Prospect to the Sea, discerning with a Glass
the Ships coming down the Coast, and very distinctly all those in the
Road at _Des Minas_.
Having done with the Factory and Castle at present, I come now to the
Natives, who from a long Acquaintance with _Europeans_, are much the
best _Negroes_ of the whole Continent.
Their Houses are built of Mud, kept clean, many of them with Chairs
or Stools, good Matts to lie down upon, earthen Pots and Pans, and
several Changes of _Tomees_ (Arse-Clouts.) They give Names to their
Children, mostly by the days of the Week born on, _Quashee_, _Yeday_,
_Cuujo_, that is, _Sunday_, _Monday_, _Tuesday_, &c. and at Manhood,
change it to something expressive of their Disposition; _Aquerro
Occu_, _Yocatee_, [25]_Tittwee_, like a _Parrot_, _Lion_, _Wolf_,
&c. The same they do by white Men, imposing a Name of their own
chusing.
Their Town is a little without the Castle-Gate, where the Women
keep a Market with their _Canky_, Papais, Soap and Fish, such as
Cavalloes, Bream, Cat-fish, _&c._ all small, but in tolerable plenty;
there being out in the Road fishing, from 40 and 50, to 100 Canoos,
when fine Weather.
These Market-Women have Scales, and weigh every _Toccu_ of Gold-dust.
A dozen Sticks of Wax, a couple Pounds of Loaf-Sugar, or two or three
pieces of salt Beef, will be worth an _Accy_; our Crown an _Accy_ and
a half.
Such as are imployed with the _Smith_, or the _Cooper_, make
presently good Workmen, and the _Negro_ Goldsmith, with very little
Instruction, has arrived to a good Skill in making Spoons, Buckles,
Buttons, heading Canes, or tipping the Deers Feet.
Captain _Tom_, an honest fellow among them (our Gold-taker) who,
understanding a little _English_ by being imployed in our Service,
was a great Acquaintance of mine, and would, in the best manner he
was able, always satisfy my Curiosity about the _Fetish_: He believes
it able to protect from Dangers, or recover from Sickness; so that,
in Travail, or any Ailment, they never are without the _Fetish_ about
them, whom they constantly _Dashee_ for Health and Safety. _Tom_
wore his about the Leg, and at Sea, as constantly as he had a Dram,
a Glass of Wine, or any Victuals, he dipped his Finger and gave the
_Fetish_ a Taste. It’s the general Belief that it both speaks and
sees; wherefore on any Action that ought not to be done, the _Fetish_
is hid within their _Tomee_, or wrapped in a Rag to prevent Tales.
This Persuasion obtains by the Cunning of the _Fetish_-Man (or
Priest) who is consulted with a Present always (a Bottle of Rum, a
Goat, a Fowl, a Papa, according to the Importance of the Business,
and Ability of the Person) on any Sickness, Business or Undertaking;
and his Answers sway them to the Pursuance or Omission: If he says
the thing shall succeed so and so, it commonly does, their natural
Sagacity measuring out Consequences; and in Medicines or Charms,
Experience pronounces tolerably on the Operation. The last Refuge
of the _Fetish_-Man is, to charge the Person with some Crime that
diverted the good Influence of the _Fetish_; and so fond are they
of these Tutelar Deities, and credulous of the Intercourse between
them and the _Fetish_-Man, that they are glad to accuse one another
of Faults that made them unlucky; and if no Friend was Witness, do
it themselves, to prevent the Displeasure might fall on them by any
Contempt.
Every Man has two, three, or more _Fetishes_ to his fancy; one worn
about him, or in his Canoo; the rest at home, bequeathing them, as
they prove serviceable, from Father to Son. There is also at _Cabo
Corso_, a publick _Fetish_, the Guardian of them all; and that is
the Rock _Tabra_, a bluff peninsular Prominence that juts out from
the Bottom of the Clift the Castle stands on, making a sort of Cover
for Landing, but so unsafe, as frequently to expose the Boats and
People to Danger, the Sea breaking over with great force. This was
most remarkably felt by them about forty or fifty years ago, when all
their Fishing Canoos, from some want of Devoir, were by a Southerly
Wind split against Rock _Tabra_, and the Misfortune happening on a
_Tuesday_, has ever since been set apart for Idleness, Dancing, and
Diversion.
To this Rock, the _Fetish_-Man sacrifices annually a Goat and some
Rum, eating and drinking a little himself, and throwing the rest into
the Sea with odd Gestures and Invocations, he tells the Company,
and they believe that he receives a verbal Answer from _Tabra_,
what Seasons and Times will be propitious; and for this Knowledge
every Fisherman finds it worth his while to _Dashee_ him with some
Acknowledgment.
They not only seem to think there is an Intelligence in those
material Things that are of immediate Good or Hurt to them, but also
the _Fetish_-Men to have Conversation, and by it to be acquainted
with their most private Affairs at any distance, which preserves Awe
and Regard.
_Peter Anchicove_, another Gold-taker of Cape _Corso_, assured me
that being once at _Succonda_, a _Fetish_-Man met him, and demanded
three _Accys_, which was given immediately on threatning: (the Gift
on ordinary Occasions is less; a piece of Perpet, a Cap, a Fowl,
or from a Market-Woman a Loaf of _Canky_.) And then he bid _Peter_
leave the Voyage he was upon, and return home, for his Wife had in
this Absence kept a scandalous Correspondence with several Men.
Accordingly when he came home, he found it as the _Fetish_-Man had
said, and a _Palaaver_ being called, _Peter_ recovered two Ounces
of Gold Damage (the Punishment of Adultery) against one of the
Offenders; an Ounce and a half of it to himself, the other half Ounce
to the Court. The Penalty goes no farther, if the Woman be Daughter
to a Freeman; for if the Cuckold is not contented, the Father takes
her home on the acknowledgment of a Goat, or the like small Present,
because it is his Loss: But if a purchased Slave is false, she is
sold. When Proof is wanting, but the Suspicion strong, he brings an
edible _Fetish_, which if she refuse to eat, she is adjudged guilty,
and the dread of its poisonous Quality, makes them often confess, to
their Accusers Satisfaction; the certain Punishment being preferable
to the doubtful Lethality of the _Fetish_.
The Men likewise, in this or notorious Crimes, go thro’ such a Tryal,
or compound rather by a Mulct, which better answers the Aim, and
shews he is not stubborn and refractory[26].
At _Accra_ they have _Fetish_-Women also, so by Descent, who
pretend Divination, give Answers to all Questions, and, like our
Fortune-tellers, are continually bubbling the weaker.
_Fetishes_ are sold, from an experienced Goodness in them, from two
_Accys_ to two _Bendees_ a-piece, or as they are warranted to protect
from this or that sort of Evil, or better than another can do it.
They use Circumcision, Prayers, and Washings, and seem to have an
obscure Notion of Futurity; for when I used to charge my acquaintance
with any thing of Dishonesty, they would reply, That after Death the
honest goodee Man go to Godee, livee very well, have a goodee Wife,
goodee Victuals, _&c._ but if a _Rogue_ and _Cheatee_, he must be
tossed here and there, never still. To this agrees the vulgar Notion
of some, returning after Death to their own Country.
At a Death, the Relations and Neighbours keep a noise and howling
till the day of Interrment, always at their own Houses, where the
Corpse being put in a Trunk, and carried a small Circuit on Men’s
Heads, the Town’s-Folks attend with wild Noise and firing of Guns,
till finding the Deceased does not wake, they drink and make merry,
and bury with the Corpse a Portion of Liquor, Pipes, _&c._ This done,
a little Victuals is supplied by the Relations every day to the
Grave, for a considerable time.
The superiour Genius of these Gold-Coast _Negroes_, is owing much
to the Settlement of _European_ Factories among them: Their greater
Honesty toward us, first from Forts that awe them; secondly,
from their unwarrantable Practices with their Neighbours, who by
_Panyarrs_ and cheating for our good, are become perpetual Enemies,
and fixed them by Interest and Necessity ours; where the greater part
of them find they can live better by Honesty than by being Thieves,
they are under less Fear, and could not conceal any attempts of Fraud
long. Honesty in all trading places is bottom’d upon this in the
lower, and upon Interest in the higher Ranks of Men; if the former
can provide themselves as well, or better, that is, with quieter
Sleeps and less Anguish by being honest than Robbers; it is egregious
Folly, abating the Crime, to forsake it: and when prosperous Events
give Increase to Riches, it is Interest to allure others, a general
Security lying in it. And they may, by the Influence of Example, and
an open Behaviour, make particular Men so, that were not first in
the Design. Few, I surmise, under the same Circumstances with the
Wretches that at last go to the Gallows, but would have been there
too, if Fortune had reversed their Scituation; those that can rob
under no Necessity, we may be sure would.
Thirdly, altho’ Christianity is not concerned in the Question
with these _Negroes_, I am apt to think, _European_ Conversation
has given them the Intimation of the Word _Godee_, (for so they
express the tremendous Name) and another State, which, if beyond
their Comprehension, and the Instruction hitherto had, may yet have
advantaged the Reverence to _Fetishes_; which, if it answers in the
cultivating Virtue, and mending their Morals, is no silly thing.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_The Coast from Cabo CORSO to WHYDAH._
From _Cabo Corso_ we made short Stops in our Passage, at _Anamaboe_,
_Montford_, _Barku_, _Shallo_, _Accra_, R. _Volta_, _the Papau_
Coast, and arrived at _Whydah_ _July_ 4; where we made a stay of
three Weeks.
At _Anamaboo_ our private Ships finish their Slaving, few or none
being got downward, till you reach _Whydah_.
At _Montford_, _Shallo_, and thereabouts, they make up the Deficiency
of Rice and Corn for the Voyage, the Country appearing fruitful, and
with better Aspect than any of those we have passed to Windward,
intermixed with Hills and Vales; at every League almost, a Town; many
Corn-fields, Salt pans and other Marks of Industry, particularly
about _Accra_, which shews they are extricated out of those
Difficulties with their Neighbours behind them, that the manner of
persuing the Slave-Trade exposes others too.
At _Accra_, we, the _French_, and _Dutch_, have each a Factory and
Fort, and make there great quantities of Salt, supplied to Windward,
and to the inland Provinces, where it is always a precious Commodity.
Before we reach hither, we pass by a considerable high Mount,
which _Anchecove_ says, he has seen smoke like a _Volcano_; from
whence, and being the Haunt of rapacious wild Beasts, they have
borrowed the Name, and call it _Devils Hill_; but the most danger to
Travellers, is from a prodigious number of _Apes_ (some 5 foot long)
and _Monkeys_ that inhabit it, who will attack single Passengers,
and drive them for Refuge into the Water, of which these Creatures
are very fearful. At some Places the _Negroes_ have been suspected
of Bestiality with them, and by the Boldness and Affection they
are known under some Circumstances to express to our Females; the
Ignorance and Stupidity on the other side, to guide or controul Lust;
but more from the near resemblances are sometimes met to the Human
Species, would tempt one to suspect the Fact: Altho’ by the way,
this, like other _Hebridous_ Productions, could never go no farther;
and as such a monstrous Generation would be more casual and subject
to Fatality, the Case must be uncommon and rare. Our Carpenter got
one on board from these parts, as near the likeness of a Child,
without being one, as perhaps was ever seen; a flat and smooth
Visage, little Hair, no Tail, would taste nothing but Milk, or Gruel
sweetned, and that with difficulty; moaning continually in a tone
like an Infant; in short, the Moans and Aspect were so shocking and
melancholly, that after two or three Months keeping, it was stunn’d
and thrown over-board.
The _Ourang Outang_, taken now and then at some parts of _Guinea_,
and at the Island of _Borneo_ in _East India_, has been thought a
human Savage. Captain _Flower_ brought home one from _Angola_, in
1733, disembowelled and preserved in Rum: It lived a few months
with him, had a smooth Visage, little Hair, Genitals like the
Human, with Testicles outside; would frequently walk on it’s hind
Legs voluntarily; would sit down in a Chair to sip or drink, in the
same manner they did; always slept sitting, with his Hands upon his
Shoulders; not mischievous like others, and had his Hands, Feet, and
Nails, more resembling ours.
The _River Volta_ is remarkable for the Rapidity of its Stream,
making a very great Sea upon the Bar, and carrying it self off for
some way unmixed; at two Leagues, it’s only brackish. From hence
begins the _Papau_ Coast, low and woody.
The whole Track from _Sierraleon_, is without Gulphs or Bays, of near
an equal depth of Water at the same distances; little Elevation,
except at great Rivers where the Tides are regular, as with us at
home; seldom without Breezes; when a Storm or Tornado happens, they
are always off Shore. No Dews perceptible on board Ships in the
Nights, tho’ large at Shore, and a constant misty Horizon. Captain
_Dampier_ observes the same near Shores, on the Western side of
_America_: _It is always hazy_, says he, _nigh Land_, to 20 degr. _of
Latitude_.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_WHYDAH._
This Country is governed by an absolute King, who lives in _Negrish_
Majesty at a Town called _Sabbee_, six Miles from the Sea. His Palace
is a dirty, large _Bamboo_ Building, of a Mile or two round, wherein
he keeps near a thousand Women, and divides his time in an indolent
manner, between Eating and Lust; he is fatned to a monstrous Bulk;
never has been out since he became King (nigh twelve years) which
some say, is because a large _Dole_ being due to the People on the
Demise of one, and the Accession and first Appearance of another new
Prince, his Covetousness keeps him within doors: Others, that there
is a Sword wanted (the Emblem of his Power); which should, but is
not yet delivered him, by some grand _Fetish_-Man beyond _Jaqueen_.
If any Subjects want Audience, they ring a Bell to give notice;
and if admitted, must prostrate before him, as likewise to his
grand _Fetish_-Man, or High-Priest, if present. The same Humility
and Subjection is required of Inferiours to rich and powerful Men,
without doors: They prostrate to as many as they meet of these in
the Street, and stir not till a Sign is given to get up; so that the
meanest may sometimes be two or three hours walking the length of the
Town.
White People are seldom or never admitted to Presence, but at the
times they pay their Customs; very considerable from _Europeans_, who
drive here the greatest Slave-Trade of any on the whole Continent:
Besides these Dues, the King augments his Revenue by a Duty on every
thing bought or sold by his People. To his Women, he gives entirely
the Privilege of making and selling a Beer brewed from _Indian_ Corn,
pretty much in use here, called _Putto_.
The King of _Ardra_ is his potent and warlike Neighbour; a populous
Country, full of large _Crooms_ or Towns, and all of them obsequious
Slaves, who dare not sell or buy any thing without Licence, and both
ways he exacts a Custom. It is by means of this Country that so great
a number of Slaves are brought down to _Whydah_ and sold to the
_Europeans_ naked; the Arse-clouts they had, I fancy, having been the
Plunder of the Populace: for altho’ they are kept strictly under, in
respect to the Great-ones among themselves, they have in recompence,
a thievish, unlicensed Behaviour to others.
Both Sexes squat when they make water, and the Women may obtain
a _Palaaver_ and Fine against any Man, who at such time should
indecently discover his Privities.
Travelling is in [27]Hammocks, called here _Serpentines_; they are
with Curtains to draw round, against Heat or Flies, slung cross a
Pole and bore up at each end by a _Negro_, two others attending in
the Journey, to relieve alternately: The Heat makes it dangerous
for _Englishmen_ to travel without them, and they are hired at six
Shillings a day.
Provisions are plentiful above any place on the whole Coast, but
neither very cheap nor large. A Cow of 300_lib._ weight is reckoned
a fine Beast, and will sell for two _grand Quibesses_; a Calf of
80_lib._ weight for one _grand Quibess_; a Sheep of 12_lib._ for
_eight Gallinas_; Fowls, five for a Crown; a Dozen Wild-fowl, or a
Hog, for the same Money: but it’s convenient on this Voyage always
to provide _Cowrys_ or _Booges_ (little _Indian_ Shells, called in
_England_ Blackamoors Teeth, bought at 1_s._ and sold here at 2_s._
6_d._ _per lib._) as the readiest for this sort of Traffick. Coin is
the dearest way of buying, at distance from _Europe_.
_Whydah_ Currency.
40 _Cowrys_ make a _Toccy_.
5 _Toccys_ —— a _Gallina_.
20 _Gallinas_ —— a _Grand Quibess_, which
answers to 25 Shillings.
Horses, are what I never saw any where else on the Continent.
The most curious of their Customs, and peculiar to this Part, is
their _Snake-Worship_, which, according to my Intelligence, is as
follows. This _Snake_, the Object of their Worship, is common in
the Fields, and cherished as a familiar Domestick in their Houses,
called _Deyboys_; they are yellow, and marbled here and there,
have a narrow Swallow, but dilatable (as all of the Serpent Kind
are) to the thickness of your Arm on feeding. It is the principal
Deity or _Fetish_ of the Country, and brought into more Regularity
than others, by the superiour Cunning of their _Fetishers_, who
have one presiding over them, called the grand _Fetisher_, or
High-Priest, who is held in equal Reverence with the King himself;
nay, sometimes more, through gross Superstition and Fear: for they
believe an Intercourse with the Snake, to whom they have dedicated
their Service, capacitates them to stop or promote the Plagues that
infest them. He hath the craft by this means, to humble the King
himself on all occasions for their Service, and to drain both him
and the People, in supplying their Wants. It is Death for a Native
to kill one of these Snakes, and severe Punishments to _Europeans_.
When Rains are wanted at Seed-time, or dry Weather in Harvest, the
People do not stir out after it is night, for fear of the angry
Snake, which, provoked with their Disobedience, they are taught, will
certainly kill them at those times, if abroad, or render them Ideots.
They have _Fetish_-Women, or Priestesses, that live separated with a
number of Virgins under their Care, devoted to the Snake’s Service:
I have heard, the rich _Cabiceers_ do often buy the Consent of these
Women to debauch their Pupils; they pretend to the Girls, they have
had some late Correspondence with the Snake, who intimates the
agreeableness of her favouring such or such a Man’s Addresses; teach
her to act Fits and Distortions at the sight of him, to enhance the
Price, and that for this Compliance, she shall be amply rewarded in
the Snakes Country, far pleasanter than this she breaths in, and he
then more amiable, having here put on his worst Shape, that Obedience
might have the more Merit. A Discovery in the Girl would be certain
Death, and none would believe; or if they did, would dare openly to
assert such Murder against the Assertion of the _Fetish_-Men or Women.
It is probable that King _Solomon_’s Navy of _Tharshish_ (_1 Kings_
Ch. x.) did coast from _Ezion Geber_ (the bottom of the red Sea)
round Cape _Bon Esperance_ [28]_to Sofalu, by some thought Ophir_;
and if so, why not to the Gold-Coast? or that King _Hiram_’s Navy
from _Tyre_, might on the North and Western side together have
encompassed this Continent; tho’ afterwards, on the destruction
of each State, the Navigation might be lost with the Trade. This
is probable, I say, from the length of the Voyage (three years)
no unreasonable time in the infancy of Sailing, Ignorance of the
Compass, and dilatory Methods of Trading in Fleets, and in their
Returns, Gold, Ivory, and Apes. The Peacocks mentioned in this Text,
might possibly be the _Crown-Birds_; beautiful, of the same bigness,
and a greater Rarity. One of them we had from _Gambia_ (a Present to
the Duke of _Chandois_) had a fine Tuft of stiff speckled Feathers on
the Head; the Wings, red, yellow, white and black, with a black Down
on the fore-part of it’s Head.
Granting this, whether or no it’s too foreign to imagine, some
traditional Story might be derived from them concerning the old
Serpent, the Deceiver of Mankind? or that fiery one lifted up by
_Moses_ in the Wilderness? _Gordon_ in his _Geography_, p. 327,
says, the _Mosaical_ Law was once introduced into some parts of
_Negro_-land, strengthned by the Affinity of some Names and Customs
they retain with the _Jews_, particularly Circumcision, practised
at most, if not all parts of the Coast. _Bosman_ on this, says even
Girls have their Clitoris stripp’d. The _Ægyptians_ (on this their
own Continent,) were the first we read of that circumcised, from whom
_Abraham_ borrowed it, and the Patriarchs Posterity might as well
have transmitted the use of it with their Trade, to this opposite
side of _Africa_; the only Objections are, the easier Method of
borrowing it from the _Mallays_, black _Turks_ that inhabit about
the middle of _Africa_, with whom they communicate by Trade; and
because the Practice here, like as with the _Mahometans_, is not
taken up of Precept, but Tradition. Be it how it will, they are found
tenacious of their Customs and Opinions: A Woman, from whose greater
Flexibility and Subjection as a _Consa_ to any _European_, might be
expected a Change, never relinquishing her Country-Gods, tho’ she had
cohabited for years, as has been frequently tried at our Factories.
Others think this Snake-Worship might be taken up as of old the
_Ægyptians_ did their Ox and Cow, their Crocodile and Cat, _&c._
They had some moral Reason, tho’ overwhelmed in Fable and ridiculous
Superstition. The Ox and Cow were Emblems of Tillage, taught to
them by _Osiris_ and _Isis_, whom they feigned changed into those
Creatures, and in that form worshipped them.
The Crocodile and Cat preyed upon those Reptiles that devoured the
Fruits of their Husbandry, like as these very Snakes are said to
kill the black and poisonous sort, and to destroy various Species of
Vermin, injurious to their Fields and Grain.
We bear (far from _Egypt_) a _Reverence_ to many Creatures, Beasts
and Birds; eat some, and cherish others; I believe, often on no
other Foundation than Heathen Fable. The _Fetish_ is this Reverence
improved, and if we laugh at [29]_Sambo_ for inflicting Fine or
Death on whoever hurts or kills the Snake, may not he in his turn,
as justly laugh to hear that in some Countries it is Death to steal
a Sheep, a Horse, _&c._ or Penalties to kill Pidgeons, Wild-fowl,
_&c._ tho’ never so much in want of them: For it is all according to
the Fashion of the Country, and doubtless proceeds from a _profound
Veneration_ to those Creatures.
Many and ridiculous are the Stories formed upon the Foundation of the
Snake, over-acted to the Prejudice of Beliefs, which in unletter’d
Countries should be short, and have the Design and Import of Laws;
such Laws as in their nature are best fitted to awe or persuade Men
into the Practice of what is good: but here they are multiplied with
silly Circumstances, or stretch beyond Memory, and spoil their Use;
for which reason, I am firmly of opinion the Snake-Worship will never
endanger our Factories, or propagate far, it has made such Rogues of
them.
Besides the Snake, they have two other principal Deities, and other
small _Fetishes_. The former are their _Groves, and the high Sea_;
addressing either upon the Peculiarity, I suppose, of their Affairs,
or rather, these Groves are consecrated to the Snake, most of them
having a square Tower built in a retired part of it, to which they
carry _Dashees_, and Presents. There is one in this Neighbourhood
pre-eminent to all in the Country, and to which the Prince and People
annually make rich Offerings.
Their smaller _Fetishes_, like as at other parts, are numberless, and
for smaller Concerns made of Stone, Bone, Wood, or Earth; but herein
they differ from others, that this small Fetish is the first thing
they _see, after they are determined upon some Affair or Business_,
and sometimes determines them to that Affair, whence it is taken up
and invoked: If the Business ends luckily, it is lain by in honour to
the chief Idol, and _dasheed_ now and then; but if not, they throw it
away.
I should have done now with _Whydah_, but the surprizing _Revolution_
brought about here in 1727, by the victorious King of _Dauhomay_,
turning things topsy turvy, and entirely destroying our Slave-Trade,
deserves some Remarks.
This Prince was probably incited to the Conquest from the generous
Motive of redeeming his own, and the neighbouring Country People from
those cruel Wars, and Slavery that was continually imposed on them
by these Snakes and the King of _Ardra_; each helped the other to
propagate the Mischief far and wide, and differ’d between themselves,
only in sharing the Booty. That this spurred on their Catastrophe,
I think, _First_, Because it is agreeable to Capt. _Snelgrave_’s
Character of that King, a Gentleman well acquainted with that part
of _Guinea_, and who has given the latest Account of those People:
He says in that Tract, he made a Journey in company with some of
the _English_ Factory to the Camp of the King of _Dauhomay_ (40 or
50 miles up the Country,) and informs us, “that in the Conversation
and Business he had to transact, he had experienced him just and
generous; in his Manners, nothing barbarous, but contrarily, the most
extraordinary Man of his Colour.” The natural Consequence from such
Qualities in a Prince, being, I think, to extend them towards all
that are oppressed, and against those in particular, his Resentments
were fired: _First_, on account of their publick Robberies, and
Man-stealing, even to his Dominions; and _Secondly_, That Contempt
the King of _Whydah_ had expressed towards him, saying publickly,
“_that if the King of_ Dauhomay _should invade him, he would not
cut off his Head_ (the Custom of Conquerors) _but keep him alive,
to serve in the vilest Offices_:” a Specimen both of his Vanity and
Courage, which he had soon after Occasion to try; and then instead
of the haughty Revenge he purposed, dastardly deserted his Kingdom,
he and the Subjects of _Ardra_ becoming in a few days miserable
Fugitives.
2. The King of _Dauhomay_ at this Interview with Captain _Snelgrave_,
which was after the Conquest of _Ardra_ and _Whydah_, agrees with
him in the Character of these Enemies: “_That they were Villains
to both white and black People, and therefore had been punished by
his hands_;” a Text that ought to have been regarded more heedfully
by the Factory than it was: For what were they Villains more than
others of the Colour, unless for this illegal and unjust Trade? And
if he himself declared his Victories in punishment of their Crimes,
what might not they expect in their turn, who differed only as the
Pawnbroker and the Thief? Mr. _Testesole_, the Company’s Governour,
we find when Opportunity presented, was seized by them, and cruelly
sacrificed: “The Crime alledged being, that he had used the _Dahomes_
on all Occasions in his power, very ill, on account _of the bad Trade
they had occasioned_:” and afterwards they went on, surprized and
plundered all the _European_ Merchants at _Jaqueen_, finishing in
that, the Destruction of the Slave-trade, the little remaining being
now at _Appah_, a place beyond the bounds of his Conquest. Yet in all
this, could we separate our Idea of the Sufferers, and the temporary
Views of Traders; the King’s Actions carry great Reputation, for
by the destruction of this Trade, he relinquished his own private
Interests for the sake of publick Justice and Humanity.
_Lastly_, that this destruction of the Trade was designed in the
King of _Dauhomay_’s Conquest, seems confirmed by Captain _Bulfinch
Lamb_’s Proposal from him to our Court.
This Gentleman, on some Business of the Factory, was at _Ardra_ when
the _Dahomes_ came down upon them, was made a Prisoner, detained near
four years with the Emperor, and came to _England_ at last by his
Permission or rather Direction, having given him 320 Ounces of Gold,
and 80 Slaves to bear his Charges. In his Scheme of Trade, said to
be proposed from that Emperor and laid before our Commissioners of
Trade, some of the Articles run thus;——_That the Natives would sell
themselves to us, on condition of not being carried off._——_That we
might settle Plantations_, &c. a Foundation quite foreign to the
former Slave-trade, and carried no Temptation but the empty one of
Instruction and Conversion, which he himself might have laid down
there, and had given some room to expect, agreeably to the Judgment
he made of the King’s Sentiments, and his own view of getting away;
an additional Honour to the King in this way of thinking indeed;
“but the Inconsistency made it unsuccessful,” and Captain _Lamb_,
tho’ under a solemn Promise to return, never gave any Account of his
Embassy to that Prince.
Captain _Snelgrave_’s Account leads me still a little farther,
on his suggesting these _conquering Dahomes_ to be Men-eaters;
I beg an Animadversion or two on that Head.—Common Report has
settled _Cannibals_ at several parts of _Africa_. _Dapper_ in the
_Geographical Atlas_ says, the _Ausicans_ or _Gales_ in _Æthiopia_,
and _many_ of the Natives of _Quiloa_, _Melinda_, and _Mombaza_,
on the East side of _Africa_ are such, and that human Flesh is
sold in the Shambles. _Gordon_, in his _Geographical Grammar_,
conveys it modestly _as a Report_, that the Kingdom of _Loango_ in
South-_Africa_ has many Cannibals, and that human Flesh in several
places is sold publickly in the Shambles, as we do Beef and Mutton.
That the _Caffres_, (tho’ abounding with Provisions) also are such,
and will eat _even nasty Hottentots their Neighbours_; who tho’
accounted the most brutish People upon the Globe in their Manners and
Feeding, are at the same time excused by all Travellers so inhuman
a Custom. _Bosman_ reports the same of _Drewin_. The Observation I
shall make on these and the like Stories I have heard from other
parts of the World, is their being reported of Countries remote from
our Correspondence, abounding with Provisions, by Persons who never
were in the Places they relate their Wonders; or where they have,
their Testimony is on hear-say, or their Reasons inconclusive, and
against later Experience. I am prejudiced indeed against the Opinion
of Cannibals, and very much doubt whether there be any such Men
on the face of the Earth, unless when provoked by Famine, as has
unfortunately happened in Voyages: Or possibly with Savages, single
Instances may have been, as their way to express an intense Malice
against a particular Enemy, and _in terrorem_; or to cement with a
Bond of Secrecy some very wicked Societies of Men: but that there
should be a common Practice of it, Nations of Men-eaters, to me looks
at present impossible. Captain _Snelgrave_’s being the newest Account
of this Affair, and on his own personal Knowledge, I shall amuse the
Reader with a short Extract from him, and then my Objections.
“This Gentleman, by an Invitation from the King of _Dahome_ or
_Dauhomay_, went in company with some other of the Factory from
_Jaqueen_, to pay him a Visit at his Camp, 40 miles inland; there he
was an Eye-witness of their human Sacrifices, _Captives_ from the
Kingdoms of _Ardra_, _Whydah_, _Tuffoe_, and other Conquests: _the
King chose them out himself_. The first Victim I saw, says he, was a
_well-looking Man_, of 50 or 60, his Hands tied, he stood upright by
a Stage five foot from the Ground. The _Fetisher_ or Priest laying
his Hand on the Head, said some Words of Consecration for about
two Minutes; then giving the Sign, one behind with a broad Sword
hit on the Nape of his Neck, and carried off the Head at one Blow,
the Rabble giving a Shout. _Others of these Captives he made his
Servants, or sold for Slaves._——”
The Story thus far is not over-marvellous; whether the Sacrifices
be considered as a Thanksgiving to their _Fetish_, or God (_as an
Acknowledgment, he was told_) or an Honour to the _Manes_ of his
deceased Heroes, because such Practice is supported both by Scripture
and History. The Captives in War under the _Jewish_ Law, which
fell to the Lord’s Share, were to be slain (_Levit._ xxvii. v. 28,
29.) and the Custom of many _Pagan_ Countries has been, and still
continues in many parts of the World to this day (if we may credit
History or Travellers) to attend the Obsequies of their Princes and
great Men with human Sacrifices, particularly at some other Parts
of _Guinea_. The Emperor of _Feton_’s Funeral (_Miscell. Curiosa_,
Vol. 3. p. 356.) was accompanied with a great number, and remarkably
barbarous. _Montezuma_, (_Antonio Solis_ says,) sacrificed 20000
Enemies a year. The present _Dahomes_ follow it from political
Principles, to awe the Conquered, and secure the Conquest; for _the
captive King was always one_, and next him the Men of Experience
and Influence, such as already had, or were most likely to disturb
his future Peace; answering more justly than that Argument _à
posteriori_, of the Bow-string or Halter, when Men rise for the
Recovery of a lost Country, _&c._
Contending Princes do to this day frequently sacrifice with less
honourable Views, if we may credit Captain _Gulliver_, who says, one
King has lost his Life, another the Crown, only in a Contest about
the primitive way of breaking Eggs.
I say this is not so over-marvellous; but when we come to the
Carcases of these Men, how the _Dahomes_ had made a Festival of their
Flesh in the night, it swells to Incredibility. “Captain _Snelgrave_
was not an Eye-witness of this indeed; he says, the Bodies lay a
little while on the ground to drain the Blood, and then were carried
by Slaves to a place nigh the Camp, and laid in a Heap; he saw two
of these Heaps over night, containing he judged about 400, who had
been chose out by the King that Morning, for Sacrifice. On the next
Morning they were gone, and asking the Linguist what had become of
them, he answered, the _Vulturs_ (ravenous Birds very plentiful
in the Country) had eaten them. Not satisfied with this Answer,
(seeing nothing remain but Blood) we asked for the Bones, and then he
confessed, the Priest had divided the Carcases among the People in
the night, who had boiled and feasted on them, as holy Food; the Head
is for the King, (continues the Linguist) the Blood for the _Fetish_,
and the Body for the common People.”
I make no doubt of the truth of this Relation, and yet think the
Circumstances not conclusive enough, to charge the _Dahomes_ as
_Anthropophagites_.
1. Because the truth depends too much on the Linguist, (_Butteno_,
a _Negro_ of Mr. _Lamb_’s, brought up at the Factory) how well he
knew to render the Language to our Ideas: and to his Veracity and his
Courage. He might think with his Country-men that it was their best
Excuse to the white People, for that cowardly and ignominious Flight
of Thousands from 200 of the _Dahomes_ at _Sabbee_ (the _Whydah_’s
head City) where, instead of eating them, they pretended a Fright
of being eat, and with the King, took precipitately to their heels,
deserting in a shameful manner their Country: and makes something
like the Story of our _Saracens_ Heads of old; when the _English_ had
been threshed heartily for their silly Croisade, they represented
their Adversaries thus large, to insinuate none but Monsters or
Devils could have done it. However the Linguist tells his Masters
first, that the _Vulturs_ had eaten those Bodies, but perceiving them
diffident of this, and prone to another Persuasion (which, by the
way, is some excuse for him) he tells them frankly, _that the People
had eaten them in the night_, &c. The Bones, which were wanting, and
that had drawn this Secret from him, are to me a Confirmation that
they were buried. Otherways, as these Cormorants could not chew or
digest them, they should have been found strewed somewhere, as the
Roads were in his Journey: The Fellow might also in his turn propose
some advantage in this Belief; for Captain _Snelgrave_ tells us, he
met with great Impositions and Cheats at his return to _Jaqueen_,
by the Lord there, and others in Trade, notwithstanding the kind
Reception he had met with at Camp, and that King’s Charge to the
contrary.
2. A _Portuguese_ who resided there, that spoke their Language, and
which is very remarkable, _had married a woolly white Woman born of
black Parents, who had never seen any other Colour: this Gentleman
talked highly of the King’s Policy and Generosity_, that his
Sacrifices were a Proof of it; that he was just, strictly obeyed, and
never eat any human Flesh. If so, according to my way of thinking,
he would hinder so barbarous a Custom in others his Subjects; or it
would be a Contradiction to his Character, a Sufferance being the
same, as doing it himself.
3. If the Sacrifices were designed for eating, one would think they
should have been all young People, not thrown in a Heap, which is
an Objection to their spending well; and now and then I should have
expected they would have been prompted by Novelty to have tasted
a white Man: but it is the King’s Character of being far from
barbarous, and of delicate Wit and Policy: _Lamb_ lived three years
and a half with them, and never was eat.
4. If Men were thus eat, and liked by a _Nation_, there would be less
occasion and Inclination to sell them us for Slaves; they at least
must lose a Breakfast by it now and then; and it would fall heavier
on such Captives they had made their Servants, (for some were made so
at the same time the others were sacrificed) who I am in some doubt
whether they would wait tamely for the turn of having their Throats
cut. This Man-Eating therefore probably might be an Imposition on the
Credulity of the Whites; as the Persuasion amongst some of them is,
that they are bought by us to fat and eat: the Belief in my opinion
is equally grounded. Theirs (if any) is better; for the next Cruelty
to buying human Flesh, one would naturally think, should be to eat
it; especially with Negroes, who cannot conceive how their Labour can
be used, that want so little for their own support.
5. Some Places reported on the Coast to be Men-Eaters are by latest
Accounts much doubted, if not contradicted. At _Loango_ they are
found with better Manners, and mixed with _Portuguese_. At Cape _St.
Mary’s_, the Starboard Entrance of the River _Gambia_, generally said
to be Men-Eaters, were found by our Boat’s Crew as civilized as any
People on the whole Coast, tho’ their Number exposed them an easy
Prey. To this we may add, that all _Negroland_, by the Observations
I could make, are very abstemious of Flesh in comparison of us; they
have very few tame Creatures (Kid, Sheep, Kine, _&c._) among them;
their Country is mostly Woods cleared away a little at their Cooms,
to sow as much _Indian_ Corn and Rice as they imagine will serve
them; which, with Banana’s, Plantanes, Palm-Nuts, Pine-Apples, and
now and then a little stinking Fish, or a Fowl, is the chief of their
Diet.
6. As Slave-Cargoes are a Compound of different Nations, it is more
than probable they are mixed from these Men-eating Countries; and
therefore on their rising and murdering a Ship’s Company, they would
have shewn us e’er now a Precedent, especially those who believed we
were to eat them.
7. Men in this horrid Practice would, with the distinguishing
Characteristick of Reason about them, be more brutish than any part
of the Creation; no Creatures of the greatest Ferocity preying upon
their own Species.
8. If such Custom were taken up to intimidate their Neighbours, and
facilitate Conquests, the Practice should be more publick; not in the
Night, but Day, and openly: Custom in any People familiarizing all
Barbarities, and more so, when an Interest is proposed.
Therfore, lastly, the strongest Proof produced for it is, that one
Mr. _More_ _saw human Flesh sold at_ Dahome’s _Market-place_.
If the Person mentioned does not mean human Flesh alive, and in
way of Trade, yet without a good interior Sight, he might mistake
it for that of Monkeys, there being an awkard Resemblance to _the
Moorish Race_, in the Hands and Phiz; and I have given one Example
purposely, among many (at the beginning of this Chapter) to shew
they are a common Diet at some places; our Sailors frequently eat
them. What inclines me more to this Opinion is, _First_, the Force
of Pre-possession and Fear, which many Readers may experience in
their own Constitution. _Second_, That I never saw a Flesh-Market
of any sort, tho’ I have been on shore at many places on the Coast
of _Guinea_, not even among the _English_, the most carnivorous in
the World; but when they do kill, lend it out. _Thirdly_, What is
my greatest Objection, is, that the Captain should bring another to
assert what he might have done himself, since he was at _Dahome_’s
Camp, (the same place,) and more inquisitive and discerning; unless
this Market was kept one Voyage, and not another.
I have bestowed these Objections, purely in respect to the King of
_Dahomay_, whom, tho’ I never saw, nor expect to be advanced in his
Court, I have a natural Propensity to wish well, _since he has
redeemed his Country-Men from being sold as Slaves_. I would feign,
after such an Action, excuse them from being Men-eaters; a Charge
full as bad for the People, a jumping out of the Frying-pan into the
Fire. Their Guilt herein is less likely, because it happens that this
conquered Country abounds more with Neat Cattle, than all other parts
of the Coast.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Currents on the Coast of GUINEA._
The incomparable Sir _Isaac Newton_ solves all the Phænomena of the
Tides upon the sole Principle of Gravity. The Earth, Sun, Moon,
and all the celestial Bodies, says he, have a Gravitation towards
their Centers, in proportion to the quantitys of Matter in each of
them. Our Earth being within the Activity of the Sun and Moon’s
Attractions; the fluid part of this Globe, the Ocean, feels it, and
necessarily swells: and this, by taking off or abating the force
of Gravity, wherever the Moon is perpendicular in the Ecliptick;
whereby the greater Pressure of Gravity without, carries the Water
thitherward, _&c._ (See the Theory of the Tides, _Philos. Transact._)
Currents seem to be the same thing (at least on this Coast) and on
the same Principle I shall lay down the Facts, and then draw the
Conclusions.
The Rivers of _Gambia_, _Sierraleon_, _Gabon_, the Straits and
Channels of _Benin_, and thro’ the whole Coast, the flowings are
regular on the Shores, with this difference, that in Rivers or
Channels where two Shores contract the Waters into a narrow Compass,
the Tides are strong and high, as well as regular; but on the dead
Coast, slow and low, not to above two or three foot, increasing as
you advance towards the Bay and Channels of _Benin_; and this is
farther evident at Cape _Corso_, _Succonda_, _Commenda_, and other
places: for wherever the Land rounds and cheques, the Flowings
there will be a Foot or two more than on an evener Coast, tho’ next
adjoining.
The Currents here set sometimes two knots an hour along Shore,
sometimes with, sometimes against the Wind; tho’ generally to
Leeward; sometimes off, sometimes on, ripling like a Tide, at other
times a smooth unmoved Surface for days together, and never felt, or
imperceptible at 8 or 10 Leagues Offing.
The Currents set in on both Shores, to the Bay of _Benin_; _from_ the
Southward, about and beyond Cape _Lopez_; and _from_ the Westward
along the _Papau_ Coast, that is, to Leeward; for the Winds are as
commonly deflected along Shore, as the Currents. This all Ships
experience in their Passage to _Angola_, if they hold the Land on
board, or if they endeavour getting Westward on the _Papau_ or Gold
Coast.
The reason of this Diversity, I imagine, proceeds from the Formation
of the Land, together with the Weather, and the Winds.
The Land being on a strait Line, without Gulphs or Bays, unless that
remarkably large one of _Benin_ and _Callabar_, the Flux of the Sea,
when it comes to be bounded by the Shores, have a natural Tendency
there, seen in growing stronger as they advance towards it on both
sides; because such Gulphs, in a Contraction of the Waters, bear some
Resemblance to Channels, which every where in proportion to their
Breadth and Depth, and the Sea they stand open with, have more or
less Current or Tide along their Shores inward; assisted partly by
the Winds, which, as I have observed, are deflected, and tend also
on both sides towards the Bay; and partly, by the Weather; clear and
hot Sunshines drawing more Vapours from the Seas _next Shores_ in
all places, (and especially in Bays with Shoals) to be expended in
Exhalations, Mists, Fogs, and Rains; the Rains again may, by being
incessant for a Month or six Weeks, and in a Rotation upon different
parts of the Coast, contribute to some little diversity of Strength.
Another reason of Currents tending mostly to Leeward here, is the
Flood being propagated from a vast Southern Ocean, takes it’s Course
along Shore; but the Ebbs revert easily and equally from all parts to
the Ocean, and therefore make so little an Alteration of the Stream,
as is seldom and scarcely felt at a very little distance from it.
The most that we found was open with this Bite of _Benin_. We left
_Whydah_ the latter end of _July_, where tho’ the Currents in the
Road were very strong to Leeward, and the Winds altogether S. W. yet
we found we could with ease have weathered any of the Islands; which
would have been impossible, had the same Current in the Road extended
across the whole Bay; nay, our getting so far to the Southward
(_i. e._ Windward) will be very difficult to account for, unless
the Waters received into this Bay by those Currents are allowed to
reverberate in the middle Space, tho’ insensibly, towards the main
Ocean.
From these light Observations, I think it may be concluded, _First_,
that in all Places, Currents and Tides have a very great affinity.
That it is principally the Formation of the Lands drives them into
the one or the other; if contracted between two Shores so as to form
a Channel, the diurnal Elevation of the Ocean, by the Attraction
of the Moon, will make there a Tide, rapid in proportion to it’s
Breadth, Depth, and Sea it is open to: And if an open Coast, as
_Guinea_, those Tides become Currents. This agrees with the Voyages
I have met to those Parts, and particularly the sixth general one set
forth by the _India_ Company of that Channel, made by the Eastern
side of the Continent, and the Island of _Madagascar_; for being too
deep and broad for the Direction of a Tide, _there are Northern and
Southern Currents_, as the elevated Sea rowls round the North or
South end of the Island: and which is still more agreeable, _they
are strongest where the Channel is narrowest, and less, and vary
on different Points of the Compass, as the Sea spreads more in the
Passage cross the Line_.
2. That all Currents and Tides are found only on Shores, and
indiscernible at 10 Leagues distance from a Coast, or the Mouth of
any Channel; are also variable from the same Influence of the Moon,
and Change of Weather.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_RAINS._
There is a Return of Vernal and Autumnal Rains through the whole
Coast. The former, whether on this or the other side the Equator, are
longer and more incessant. They begin on this side at _Sierraleon_,
in _May_; at the Gold Coast and _Whydah_, in _April_, preceded by
S. and S. E. Winds. On the other side the Line again, the Vernal
Rains fall at Cape _Lopez_, in _October_; at _Angola_ in _November_,
&c. And as these Seasons are attended with the Interposition of
Clouds thro’ both, the Air is cooler, and therefore by the stewed
Inhabitants denominated Winter.
What conduces to such annual and regular Returns, is perhaps
inscrutable: It is only a general Observation, that the Sun, on
or nigh the Æquinox, inclines to rain every where. Dr. _Clayton_
says, (_Philos. Trans._) that there are frequent and great Rains at
_Virginia_ in _April_ and _September_, and other Countries observe
the same. The ultimate end is to embrue the Land with Fertility,
where the Inhabitants have Sense and Willingness to co-operate with
Providence.
At Cape _Corso_ this year, they ceased the end of _May_; they
had fell, we understood, for six Weeks before, almost without
intermission, only some hours they were heavier, and chiefly in the
Nights, with continued Thunder, Lightning, and Calms. Whenever they
felt a Breeze, it was Southerly, (directly upon the Land) the Clouds
that contained the Rains succeeding one another from the Ocean, as it
were orderly. If the Horizon brightened as it does by Spirts at these
Seasons, the Sun is felt with redoubled Heat and Fervour.
[30]The Mist and Haziness of the Horizon (always on the Coast) and
those great Dews which out of the rainy Seasons fall every night on
the Shore, and rarely or never two Miles from it where the Ships
anchor, are corroborating Proofs of what is just before hinted under
the Article of Currents, that the Vapours supplying these, or Rains,
are extracted from Coasts and Shallows more abundantly than from the
main Ocean; which would otherways be seen and felt, and in greater
measure at Sea, from so large a Body of Waters surrounding; but is so
far from happening, that _Exhalations of all sorts diminish, as is
the Distance from Land_.
Again, the Winds from Sea, which are the Winds that usher in these
Rains, are known to spring up but a few Leagues from Shore; (the
_Trade_ obtaining in all these Latitudes:) and tho’ I say, any
regular Periods of it under this Vicinity of the Sun all the year
may be inscrutable, yet when they do come, they visibly bring on the
Land-Clouds loaded with aqueous Vapors; a more rarified Air there
naturally attracting them, and helping their fall.
Both Ships came to Isle _Del Principe_ the end of _July_, 1721, where
we felt dreadful Effects from the excessive Heats and Irregularity
of the Seamen, during our _Careening_; for although we arrived
very healthy, the Island furnishing _Palm_-Wines and the means of
debauching at easy Rates, and our Tents giving opportunity; they soon
run into Excess, which brought on an epidemical malignant Fever,
that reduced us in a short Stay of two Months, to some Deliberations
whether we could proceed to Sea safely without a return of Men from
_England_; the _Weymouth_ not being able to purchase her Anchors, and
we in the _Swallow_ with difficulty. My Judgment, as Surgeon, was
by all means to go, tho’ in the most sickly Condition, because thus
removed from the chief Causes of our Misfortune (Calms, excessive
Heats, and a disorderly Living) whoever were visited with the
Distemper, would by that method find a Crisis in Recovery or Death,
and stop the infection: We therefore, with the Assistance of some Men
from a _Dutch East-India_ Ship that happened to put in, got under
Sail and left the Island; the effect I have related elsewhere more
at large, and shall only observe here, that our Fevers for want of
Necessaries turned in many to Fluxes, and pursued us, tho’ with less
Cruelty. The _Weymouth_, who brought out of _England_ a Compliment of
240 Men, having at the end of the Voyage 280 dead upon her Books.
_Princes_ was the Birth-place of _Africanus_ and _Moulee_, of whom
they give this tragical Relation; That she becoming a Favourite of
her Patron, was forced from _Africanus_, and having a Child whose
Complexion betray’d the true Father, _Africanus_ murdered both, and
afterwards himself, to avoid Punishment.
We touched at [31]_St. Thome_, the chief of these _Portuguese_
Islands for fresh Provisions, purchased cheap; the Profit of half a
dozen Hogs fed two or three Months, and sold at the Gold Coast, will
maintain the _best_ Mess in a Ship a whole year.
It was lucky for Mr. _Rowry_, Master of a _Bristol_ Vessel, that the
Man of War came in; his Men had made him Prisoner, and were disposing
of the Slaves at a very easy Rate with the Governor, who rejects no
Schemes of Profit. _Rowry_, who had been discountenanced by him upon
his Men’s Complaints, was now heard indeed; but not knowing _rightly_
the Method of getting Men to bring away his Brigantine in our
Company, he was obliged to take what Price the Governor would set on
her and her Cargo, and took Passage with us for Cape _Corso_; where,
upon Demand, he accompanied his Leave with a handsome Acknowledgment
for his Diet, and went home with the Account.
We regained the Gold Coast in fifteen days from this Island, having
met in the Passage some Sprinklings that we understood had been heavy
showers on Shore.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_WINDS._
The Winds, different from our Quarter of the World, in these Voyages
are either peculiar to warm Latitudes; such are _Trade-Winds_, _Land
and Sea Breezes_; or to the Coast, _Tornadoes_, and _Air-Mattans_.
_Trade-Winds_ are easterly, blow fresh night and day, all the Year,
and every where round the Globe; that Part of it I mean that we
are upon, the Ocean, whether _Atlantick_, _Indian_, or _American_:
for the Soil and Position of Lands, though the same Cause of them
subsists more powerfully, gives uncertain and various Deflections.
They will extend to 30°° of N. Latitude, when the Sun is on this
side the Equator, and as far S. when on the other; deflecting where
he is farthest off (here to the N. E. there to the S. E.) and always
nearest to the E. Point on the Equinoctial, or where he is vertical.
The general Causes assigned by the Ingenious for these Phænomena, and
with the greatest Probability of Truth, are;
_First_, _the daily Rotation of the Earth Eastward upon its Axis_,
whereby the Air or Wind (the enforced Stream of it) by this means
goes Westward in respect of the Superficies; and this is farther
countenanced in that these Winds are found only in the largest
Circles, where the diurnal Motion is swiftest; and _also because they
blow as strong in the Night as Day; home, on the Coast of_ Brasil,
_as near_ Guinea.
The _second_ permanent Cause of this Effect, the ingenious Dr.
_Halley_ ascribes to the Action of the Sun-beams upon the Air and
Water every day, considered together with the Nature of the Soil, and
Situation of the adjoining Continents.
The Sun heats and rarefies the Air exceedingly, in all Latitudes
within the _Zodiack_, (evident from the anhelous Condition it
subjects most Animals to in Calms) and therefore the Air from
Latitudes more _without_ his Influence (as more ponderous) presses
in, to restore the Equilibrium: and to follow the Sun, must come
from the Eastward. The westerly Winds that restore this Balance,
from Latitudes beyond the Tropicks, would, I fancy, be as constant,
and keep a Circulation, were the whole a Globe of Waters: As it is,
they are from 30 to 60°°, abundantly the most predominant, with a
Deviation to N. or S. on various Accidents: blow with more force,
because, among other Reasons, the Equilibrium is restored to a
greater from a lesser Circle; and as it were to confirm this, are
received into the Trade-wind, with a Deflection of N. E. or more
northward at the Point of reception.
On the Coast of _Guinea_, North of the Equinoctial, the true Winds
are westerly, keeping a Track with the Shore, where it trenches
all eastward. From the River _Gabon_ again, under the Line, the
Land stretches to the Southward, and, exactly answerable thereto,
the Winds wheel from S. E. to S. by E. to keep nigh a Parallel
with it; in both, the Shore seems to deflect the true _Trade_, in
the same manner Capes do Tides or Currents, and obliges it, like
them, on that Point where they have the freest Passage. If at any
particular Seasons (as in the Rains is remarked) the Winds become
more southerly, and set full upon the Shore, they are weak; and as
the Sun is at such time on this side the Equinoctial, it is probably
to restore an Equilibrium to that Air at land, more rarefied from a
stronger and more reflected Heat.
I shall give two or three other Remarks on Trade-winds, proper, tho’
made at other Periods of the Voyage.
1. You must be distant from the Influence of Land to Windward, before
the _Trade_ blows true and fresh, (from this Coast we may suppose
twenty or thirty Leagues) and then a Ship bound to _America_ will
make a constant and smooth Run of forty or fifty Leagues every
twenty-four Hours. And as there are no Storms, vast numbers of flying
Fish sporting near the Ship, (_found every where within the Verge
of these Winds, and no where else that ever I saw_,) _Bonetoes_
pursuing them; with Birds of various sorts, _Garnets_, _Boobys_,
_Tropick-Birds_, and _Sheerwaters_, it makes a very delightful
sailing.
2. Although the N. E. and S. E. Trade-Winds on this and that side
the _Line_, do not blow adverse, yet by approaching to it, are in my
Thoughts, the Occasion of becalming the Latitudes between 4 and 12°
N, the Point of Contest; as we found, and will be hereafter remarked
in our Passage from _Brasil_ to the _West-Indies_, in _July_ and
_August_: and this I think, _First_, because the East southerly Trade
is known ordinarily to extend E. S. E. to 4° of Northern Latitude:
and consequently, as the East northerly is bounded a little nearer
or further from the Equinoctial, as is the Station of the Sun;
Calms and small Breezes, the Attendant of them, may vary a little,
yet they will always happen about these Latitudes, and near the
windward Shores be attended with Thunder, Lightning, and perpetual
Rains. _Secondly_, all Ships actually find this in their Passage
from _Guinea_ to the _West-Indies_ in any Month, or from _England_
thither; the true Trade decreasing as they approach those Latitudes,
and up between _Cape Verd_ and the Islands, those Calms by all our
Navigators are said to be as constantly attended with Rains and
Thunder.
_Thirdly_, Because the same thing happens at the Commencement of the
_Trade_, from the variable Winds in 27 or 28°° of Northern Latitude,
sooner or later as I observed is the Station of the Sun: From all
which I would infer, that from _Guinea_ these calm Latitudes are
easier passed, not nigh, but within 100 Leagues of the Continent
of _Africa_, and at _America_ not to get into them till a Ship has
nigh run her Distance; for the Land, I think, either to Windward or
Leeward does give a better Advantage to the Breezes, than nearer or
more remote: Ships from _England_ do not want this Caution so much,
because the N. E. _Trade_ does not fail till a little beyond the
Parallel of _Barbadoes_, the Southermost of our Islands.
_Land and Sea-Breezes_ are Gales of no great Extent, the former much
fainter and inconstant will blow off an Island to a Roadsted, be on
which side of it you will, but whether at the same time or no, or
now here, now there, I am not experienced enough to say, tho’ their
Weakness and Inconstancy makes either way defensible.—They are found
at all shores within or near the Tropicks, the Sea-breeze coming in
about ten in the morning, fresh and sweet, enlivening every thing.
The Land-breeze when it does succeed, is at the same distance from
Sun-set or later, small, sultry, and stinking, especially when from
Rivers whose Banks are pestered with rotten _Mangroves_, stagnating
Waters, _&c._
They seem to arise entirely from the _Heat of the Sun-beams_: That
the Air is more rarified by their Reflections on the solid Body
of the Earth than on a fluid, is certain; therefore till their
rarified Air, made so by three or four hours Sun, is brought to an
Equilibrium, the Breezes must be from the Sea at all parts of the
Coast, because at all parts, the same Cause is operating. And if this
Rarefaction is limited by a determined heighth of the Atmosphere, the
Sea-breezes that are to fill up the Vacuities will last a determined
time only; _two, three, or more hours_: this is fact, but whether
properly solved, must be submitted. Of affinity with this are the
frequent Breezes we find with meridian Suns at shores, even to the
Latitude of _England_, tho’ very still before and after. Again, the
Land-breezes which succeed at night when the Sun has lost it’s Power,
seem by their Weakness to be the return of Air heaped up by the
preceding day’s Heat, like other Fluids when higher or fuller from
any Cause (in one part than another) of course has it’s reflux to
make an even Surface.
_Tornadoes_, by the _Spaniard_ called _Travadoes_, are in no part of
the World so frequent as at _Guinea_. They are fierce and violent
Gusts of Wind that give warning for some hours by a gradual lowering
and blackening of the Sky to Windward whence they come, accompanied
with Darkness, terrible Shocks of Thunder and Lightning, and end in
Rains and Calm. They are always _off shore_, between the N. and N.
E. here, and more Easterly at the _Bites of Benin, Calabar, and Cape
Lopez_; but although they are attended with this favourable Property
of blowing from the shore, and last only three or four hours, yet
Ships immediately at the appearance of them furl all their Sails and
drive before the Wind.
We have sometimes met with these _Tornadoes_ two in a day, often
one; and to shew within what a narrow Compass their effects are,
Ships have felt one, when others at ten Leagues distance have known
nothing: Nay, at _Anamaboo_ (3 or 4 Leagues off) they have had serene
Weather while we have suffered under a _Tornado_ in Cape _Corso_
Road. And _vice versa_. A Proof of what Naturalists conjecture,
that no Thunder is heard above 30 Miles; in these Storms it seems
to be very near, one we felt the Afternoon of taking _Roberts_ the
Pyrate, that seemed like the ratling of 10000 small Arms within
three yards of our Heads; it split our Maintop-Mast, and ended as
usual in excessive Showers, and then calm; the nearness is judged by
the Sound instantly following the Flash. Lightning is common here at
other times, especially with the shutting in of Evening, and flashes
perpendicularly as well as horizontally.
Both arise from a plenty of nitrous and sulphurous Exhalations that
make a Compound like Gun-powder, set on fire in the Air; and if the
Clouds that retain them be compact, and their heterogeneous Contents
strong, various, and unequal, then like a Cannon in proportion to
these, the disjection is with more or less Violence, producing
Thunder, which as with a [32]Shot has frequently split the Masts
of Ships; and strengthens the above Observation of _their being
discharged near hand_; because if at any considerable distance, they
would spread in the Explosion, and lose their Force. It furnishes
also another, _viz._ That neither Thunder nor Lightning can be felt
or heard far from shores; Winds may impel such Exhalations something,
but at a hundred Leagues from any Land the Appearance must be
rare and uncommon, because the matter of their Compound cannot be
collected there.
_Air-mattans_, or _Harmatans_, are impetuous Gales of Wind from
the Eastern Quarter about _Midsummer_ and _Christmas_; they are
attended with Fogs, last three or four hours, (seldom with Thunder
or Lightning, as the _Tornados_) and cease with the Rain; are very
dry, shriveling up Paper, Parchment, or Pannels of Escruitores like a
Fire. They reach sometimes this Gold Coast, but are frequentest and
in a manner peculiar to the Bite of _Benin_, named so some think from
_Aer Montain_, respecting whence they come; or by others _Mattan_,
the _Negrish_ Word for a pair of Bellows, which they having seen,
compare this Wind to.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_The GUINEA Trade._
An extensive Trade, in a moral Sense, is an extensive Evil, obvious
to those who can see how Fraud, Thieving, and Executions have kept
pace with it. The great Excess in Branches feeding Pride and Luxury,
are an Oppression on the Publick; and the Peculiarity of it in this,
and the Settlement of Colonies are Infringements on the Peace and
Happiness of Mankind.
By discoursing on this particular Branch, I do not pretend to a
Sufficiency of giving full Directions; the Natives Alteration and
Diversity of Taste are Obstacles with the most experienced: It’s only
within my Design to give a general Insight to such as are Strangers,
and a Rule to improve upon by such as are not.
We may for this end divide _Guinea_ into a windward Coast, the Gold
Coast, and the Bay, a Tract of 6 or 700 Leagues from the River
_Gambia_, in 13°° N. to _Angola_, about 9 or 10°° S. The _Portuguese_
were the first _Europeans_ that settled and built Forts here, tho’
now the least concerned, paying their Tribute to the _Dutch_ for
Leave: What remains of theirs is to the Southward on the River
_Congo_ at _Loango de St. Paul_, and the Islands, where they keep
Priests to teach their Language to the Natives, and baptize without
making Christians.
1. In the windward Coast, _Gambia_, _Sierraleon_, and _Sherbro_
Rivers may be reckoned chief; the _African_ Company having Factors
and Settlements there. Less noted, but more frequented by private
Ships in this part of _Guinea_, are Cape _Mont_, and _Montzerado_,
_Sesthos_ River, Capes _Palmas_, _Apollonia_, and _Tres Puntas_. A
number of others intervene, of more or less Trade; which it is their
Custom to signify at the sight of any Ship by a Smoke, and is always
looked on as an Invitation to Trade; but as each is alterable among
them from the Chance of War, the Omission shews they decline it, or
are out of Stock.
This Change of Circumstance found on different Voyages, proceeds
from weak and bad Governments among themselves, every Town having
their own _Cabiceers_ or ruling Men, (or it may be three or four in
Confederacy) all so jealous of the others _Panyarring_, that they
never care to walk even a mile or two from home without Fire-Arms;
each knows it is their Villanies and Robberies upon one another
that enables them to carry on a Slave-trade with _Europeans_; and
as Strength fluctuates, it is not unfrequent for him who sells
you Slaves to-day, to be a few days hence sold himself at some
neighbouring Town; this I have known.
The same way of reasoning answers for the _Panyarrs_ and Murders
so frequently between them and us, and never that I heard with the
_French_ or _Portuguese_. For if any of our Ships from _Bristol_
or _Liverpool_ play tricks, and under pretence of Traffick seize
and carry away such of them as come on board, and trust themselves
on that Confidence, the Friends and Relations never fail with the
first Opportunity to revenge it; they never consider the Innocence
of who comes next, but as Relations in Colour, _Panyarr_ the Boat’s
Crews who trust themselves foolishly on shore, and now and then by
dissembling a Friendship, have come on board, surprized and murdered
a whole Ship’s Company. Captain _Piercy_’s Lieutenant was killed
on shore on some such Pretence, or because he had a good Suit of
Cloaths, or both. Captain _Canning_ of the _Dove_ Brigantine 1732,
was cut off by the Natives of _Grand Bassau_ from an Inadvertency;
first, of tempting the _Negroes_ with the sight of a fine Cargo, and
then by trusting the Mate Mr. _Tho. Coote_ on shore; the one prompted
them to rob, and the other was an Hostage for their Security, they
ventured off in their Canoos and murdered all the Company under the
Conduct of a Fellow they called _Thomas Grey_, who run the Vessel in
shore; the Mate remained with them unhurt, about sixteen days, and
was then redeemed by Captain _Wheeler_ for 17 Pounds worth of Goods,
which as an Encouragement to the Service, he was suffered to repay at
_London_. His Food during the stay, was _Indian_ Corn, Rice, Snails
and Monkeys; the last they shoot as often as they want, in the Woods,
and after the Guts are taken out, singe the Hair off, and then boil
it in the Skin. He saw no other Flesh in this part of the Country,
excepting a few Fowls, tho’ he was up it above twelve miles.
2. The Gold Coast is the middle and smallest part of the Division,
stretching from _Axiem_ a _Dutch_ Settlement, to near the River
_Volta_, an extent of 70 or 80 Leagues, but of more consequence than
the others, in respect to our’s and the _Dutch_ Company’s Forts, who
together command the greatest part of it. There is one _Danish_ Fort
at _Accra_ indeed, (the Leewardmost of our Settlements) but in a
decaying State, and will probably (as that of the _Brandenburghers_
at Cape _Tres Puntas_) be relinquished in a little time.
Our Company’s principal Fort is at Cape _Corso_. That of the _Dutch_,
two or three Leagues above, called _Des Minas_ or _St. George de
Elmina_; each has other little ones up and down this Coast, to gather
in the Trade that centers for the respective Companies, at one or
other of the aforesaid larger Forts.
The _African_ Company was erected under the Duke of _York_ in K.
_Charles_ II’s Time, and therefore _Royal_; the Epithet being still
retained, tho’ that Prince’s Superstition, and Thirst after Power,
have long since justly banish’d him the Realm.
In it’s first flourishing Condition, it was allowed by authentick
Accounts to have gained annually to _England_ 900,000_l._ whereof
in Teeth, Camwood, Wax and Gold, was only 100,000_l._ and the rest
in Slaves; which in the Infancy of their Trade were in very great
demand over all the _American_ Plantations to supply their own
wants, and carry on a clandestine Commerce with the _Spanish_
West-_Indies_. On Computation, _Barbadoes_ wanted annually 4000
_Negroes_, _Jamaica_ 10000, Leeward Islands 6000; and because the
Company (’twas complained by such as wished them ill Success) could
not supply this Number, having only imported 46396 Slaves between
the years 1680 and 1688; Interlopers crept in, and contended for a
Share; which the _Company_ represented as contrary to the Privileges
of their Patent, and withal, that the Accusation was groundless and
unjust, because they did supply enough for demand, and maintained
Forts and Garisons at a great Charge, for awing and subjecting the
Natives to trade, and maintaining an Industry equal to the _Dutch_,
without which it was plain to all impartial Considerers, it would be
but very difficultly carried on. However, their Adversaries, after
some years of grumbling, obtained an Act of Parliament 1697, whereby
private Traders for making good this deficiency of Slaves, should
have Liberty of Trade, allowing the Company 10 _per Cent._ towards
defraying their extraordinary Expence.
From this time the _Company_ more visibly decayed, insomuch that in
eight following years they only imported to the West-_Indies_ 17760
Slaves; and the separate Traders in that time 71268.
Their 10 _per Cent._ in the first ten years amounted to 87465_l._ and
therefore finding their Trade under great disadvantages with these
new Inmates, they resolved to make the best shares they could in this
Money, by lessening their Expence about the Forts. They accordingly
withdrew all Supplies from their Garisons, leaving them to subsist by
their own Management or starve. _Gambia_ Fort having only twelve men,
was taken by a Privateer of eight Guns in 1709, _Sierraleon_ thirteen
men, _Sherbro_ four, and these not of any Charge to the Company,
but were possessed by such, who having a long time resided in their
Service, by help of those Fortifications were capable to do something
for themselves, and so the private Traders by degrees got entirely
quit of their Impost; the reason in a manner ceasing, for which it
was at first allowed.
About 1719, their Affairs seemed to revive again, under the Auspices
of the Duke of _Chandois_, who became a very considerable Proprietor
in their Stock, and promised from his Figure and Interest a Renewal
of those Privileges that had depressed them; their Objections
ceasing, (the number demanded being now very short of what it was
formerly.) More Ships were imployed than for many years past, but
whether it were their too large Expence, or Corruption of their
chief Officers, who too often in Companys think they are sent abroad
purely for their own Service, or both; they soon felt that without
a _separate Act_ they were uncapable of contending with private
Traders, and every year more and more explaining their Inability,
they applied to Parliament, and now support their Forts by an annual
Allowance from the Government, of 10000_l._
Those who are the Favourers of Companies suggest, that if the Trade
must be allowed, and the Christian Scheme of enlarging the Flock
cannot well be carried on without it, that then it seems necessary
and better for the Publick that some rich and powerful Set of Men
should have such exclusive Powers to encourage and enable the
subsisting of Forts and Garisons, to awe the Natives and preserve the
Trade from being engrossed by our dangerous Rivals here, the _Dutch_;
which, as we relinquish, falls an acquisition to them, and renders
all precarious; they could also bring (as an exclusive Company)
foreign Markets to their own Price.
The Company’s Trade wanting that Encouragement, every year grows
worse; buying dearer than in times past on the Coast, and selling
cheaper in the _West-Indies_; the reason at _Guinea_, is a greater
Scarcity of Slaves, and an improved Knowledge in the trading
_Negroes_ who dispose of them; and at the _West-Indies_ it is the
Demand failing, more disadvantageously still for them, because
separate Traders are not under the delays they are subject to: They
take the whole Coast in their way, while the other is consigned to
the Governour, and can afford to undersel their Goods (necessary
Requisites for Dispatch and Success) because they stand exempt from
all Coast-Charges. On the other side, our Colonies are now pretty
well glutted with Slaves, and their Call consequently not nigh so
large: 2000 in a year perhaps furnishes all our Plantations, and
tho’ more are imported, it is in order to transport them again to
the _Spanish West-Indies_, where tho’ the _Assiento_ Ships are of
late years only indulged by Treaty, all others being liable to
Confiscation, and the People to Slavery if taken by the _Spanish
Guard le Costa_; yet the Prospect of Gain inciting, they still find
means to continue on, and maintain a forcible Traffick for them,
under the Protection of their Guns. This clandestine Method, by the
way, hurts the _South-Sea_ Company, beating down the Price of their
Slaves, who cannot so well afford it, because bought, and brought
there at a greater Charge.
The third part of our Division is the Bay of _Guinea_, which takes
in _Whydah_, _Benin_, _Callabar_, &c. to _Congo_ and _Angola_ in 8°°
S. In this Extent _Whydah_ is principal, there being more Slaves
exported from that place before the late Conquest of it by the King
of _Dauhomay_, than from all the rest of the Coast together, the
_Europeans_ being said in some years to have carried off 20000; but
more of this by and by. I shall only observe, that as this part
abounds more with Slaves, the other does with Gold, and the windward
Coast with Ivory.
I now proceed to our Method of Trade, and shall sum the Rules of it
up, under the head of Interlopers. Private trading Ships bring two
or three Boats with them upon this Coast for Dispatch, and while the
Mates go away in them with a proper Parcel of Goods, and Instructions
into the Rivers and By-places, the Ship is making good her Trade at
others near hand.
The Success of a Voyage depends _first_, on the well sorting, and
on the well timing of a Cargo. _Secondly_, in a Knowledge of the
places of Trade, what, and how much may be expected every where.
_Thirdly_, in dramming well with _English_ Spirits, and conforming to
the Humours of the _Negroes_. _Fourthly_, in timely furnishing proper
Food for the Slaves. _Fifthly_, in Dispatch; and _Lastly_, the good
Order and Management of Slaves when on board; of each, a Word or two.
_First_, on the _Timing_ of a Cargo: This depends at several places
much on Chance, from the fanciful and various Humours of the
_Negroes_, who make great demands one Voyage for a Commodity, that
perhaps they reject next, and is in part to be remedied either by
making the things they itch after, to pass off those they have not
so much mind to, or by such a continual Traffick and Correspondence
on the Coast, as may furnish the Owner from time to time with quick
Intelligence, to be done only by great Merchants, who can keep
imployed a number of Ships, that like a Thread unites them in a
Knowledge of their Demands, and a readier Supply for them, as well
as dispatch for their Master’s Interest, by putting the Purchases of
two or three Ships into one. The late Mr. _Humphry Morrice_ was the
greatest private Trader this way, and unless Providence had fixed a
Curse upon it, he must have gained exceedingly.
_Secondly_, _Of the Sorting_, this may be observed in general; That
the Windward and Leeward Parts of the Coast are as opposite in their
Demands, as is their distance. Iron Bars, which are not asked for
to Leeward, are a substantial Part of Windward Cargoes. Crystals,
Orangos, Corals, and Brass-mounted Cutlasses are almost peculiar
to the Windward Coast;—as are brass Pans from _Rio Sesthos_ to
_Apollonia_.—Cowreys (or Bouges) at _Whydah_.—Copper and Iron Bars
at _Callabar_;—but Arms, Gun-powder, Tallow, old Sheets, Cottons
of all the various Denominations, and _English_ Spirits are every
where called for. Sealing-wax, and Pipes, are necessary in small
Quantities, they serve for _Dashees_ (Presents) and a ready Purchase
for Fish, a Goat, Kid, or a Fowl.
To be more particular, here follows an Invoyce bought at _London_
about the year 1721.
_A GUINEA Cargo._
_l. s. d._ _l. s. d._
10 Cotton Ramalls at 0 11 0 5 10 0
10 Silk D^o 1 00 0 10 00 0
20 Herba-longees 0 10 0 10 00 0
20 Photees 0 17 6 17 10 0
30 Tapseils 0 12 0 18 00 0
20 Blue swaft Bafts 1 02 0 22 00 0
20 Chintz 0 12 6 12 10 0
50 Nichanees 0 13 0 32 10 0
176 Blue Paper Sletias 0 7 6 66 00 0
650 Crystal Beads }
N^o 221 _per Mill._ } 2 00 0 13 00 0
2500 D^o —— N^o 30 2 12 0 6 10
4500 D^o —— N^o 36 2 18 0 13 01 0
2000 Rangos _per Cwt._ 0 11 0 11 00 0
4 Cases and Chests 1 15 0
Charges and Entry at Custom-house 3 12 6
_Ct. q. l._
20 Brass Kettles _qt._ 2 0 02
28 D^o 2 0 04
25 D^o 2 0 06
251 _Guinea_ Pans 3 0 18
------------
9 1 02
_per Cwt._ 7_l._ 7_s._ 0_d._ 68 02 5
------------
311 00 11
4 Casks 1 03 00
20 Chests of old Sheets }
each _qt._ 65, at } 0 1 10½ 121 17 06
130 2_lb._ _Guinea_ Basins.
73 3 —— D^o
13 4 —— D^o
In all 4_Cwt._ 1_q._ 11_l._ 18 04 09
Box of Scales, Weights and blue Pans. 19 00
Cartage, Portage, Wharfage, _&c._ 4 10 00
84 Quart Tankards at 2_s._ 2_d._ 9 02 00
96 Pint D^o at 1 8 8 00 00
A Cask 14 09
11 Groce of slope-pointed Knives }
at 1_l._ 6_s._ } 14 06 00
200 Blue Ranters at 0 08 00 80 00 00
50 Narrow green D^o 0 08 00 20 00 00
50 Broad blue D^o 0 11 06 28 15 00
25 Says at 1 15 06 44 09 06
8 Cases with Carriage 2 10 06
150 Trading Guns at 0 08 03 61 17 06
50 D^o dock Locks 0 08 06 21 05 00
150 Cags 0 00 07 02 10 06
21 _Cwt._ Tallow 2 01 00 43 01 00
For melting and putting
up _per Cwt._ 00 02 2 03 00
Cartage, and 10 large Cags 00 11 00 16 08
------------
797 06 07
35 Small Cags at 0 00 08 1 03 04
10 Barrels of Powder 3 05 00 32 10 00
Wateridge and shifting the Powder 00 08 06
50 Wickered Bottles 0 03 02 9 03 04
172 Gall. malt Spirits 0 02 00 17 04 00
40 Cases of Spirits 0 07 00 14 00 00
Freight of a Vessel to _Portsmouth_ 5 10 00
Expences and Postage of Letters 0 11 00
Commission at 2½ _per Cent._ 22 03 03
------------
900 00 00
10 _Cwt._ of Cowrys at 5_l._ 50 00 00
------------
Total 950 00 00
I was but a young Trader, and could not find out till I came upon the
Coast, that this Cargo was ill sorted. At the first place we touched
(_Sierraleon_) where commonly may be got twenty or thirty as good
Slaves as any upon the Coast, I found I had neither Cutlasses, iron
Bars, a better sort of Fire-Arms, Malt, and other strong Liquors,
the delight of those Traders. At none of the others, quite down to
the Gold Coast, were many considerable Articles of my Invoyce ever
asked for; so that I was forced to make friends with the Factorys,
and exchange at such a loss, that had it not been for the small Wages
our Ship was at, and some lucky hits, the Owners must have suffered
much; but to give an Insight.
_The Sale of Goods._
At _Sierraleon_.
Gold Bars.
1 Piece of Planes 10
7 77_lb._ Kettles 26
3 Pieces of Chintz 12
1 Piece of Handkerchief Stuff 2
---
The Price of a Woman Slave 50
7 50_lb._ Kettles 20
5 Pieces of Brawls 10
1 Piece of Ramal 4
1 Bar of Iron 1
---
The Price of a Boy Slave 35
At _Apollonia_.
_Accys._
2 Photees 14
2 Cotton Ramals 8
1 Piece Longee 4
2 Sletias 5
7 Sheets 7
32 Brass Pans 32
---
A Man Slave 70
3 Photees 21
41 Sheets 41
2 Longees 8
---
A Man Slave 70
At _Gambia_.
Gold Bars.
9 Gallons of Brandy 9
6 Bars of Iron 6
2 Small Guns 10
1 Cag of Powder 10
2 Strings of Pacato Beads 2
1 Paper Sletia 3
---
A Woman Slave 40
At _Assinee_.
8 Trading Guns 32
1 Wicker Bottle 4
2 Cases of Spirits 6
28 Sheets 28
---
A Man Slave 70
At _Anamaboo_ and Cape _Palmas_.
_Accys._
A Cag of Tallow 2½
A quart Pewter Tankard 1
A Pint D^o ½
4_lb._ Pewter Basin 1
2_lb._ Pewter Basin ½
Sealing-Wax 3
A qr. Barrel of Powder 8
A gallon Cag of Musket-Shot 6
A gallon Cag of small Shot 8
At _Whydah_,
Cowrys sell _per Cwt._ 12_l._ 10_s._ or in
their way of reckoning, 10 _grand Quibesses_.
At _Angola_, the Duties are about 100_l._ Sterl. every Ship; and
Goods sell, _viz._
Pieces.
A Gun 1
A Cag of Powder 1
A deep blue Baft 3
A Culgee 3
A Tapseil 2
A Nicanee 2
A Cutchalee 1½
A red Chintz 1½
A Bundle of Anabasses qt. 10_lb._ 1
10 Brass Pans small and large 1
4 2_lb._ Pewter Basins 1
1½ Case of Spirits 1
A whole Case D^o 1½
4 Cutlasses 1
A _Guinea_ Stuff ½
2 Bunches of Beads 1
4 King’s Cloths 1
4 Looking-Glasses 1
10 Pint Mugs 1
A Brawl ½
9 Foot of black Bays 1
16 Inches of Scarlet Cloth 1
16 D^o of blue Cloth 1
1 Photee 2
1 Pair Cotton Ramal 1½
As I propos’d only a general View of the Trade, I have pointed out
here the best I could, what Goods are asked for, the Price, and
at some places, the Proportion; the Slaves selling at a Medium
of 15_l._ a Man, and 12_l._ a Woman; a Gun and Barrel of Powder
being always parts of the Truck (at _Cabenda_) for a Slave. They
have Canoos there, will carry 200 Men; matted Sails to them, and
Cordage twisted from a wild Vine that grows in plenty about the
Country; with these they pass frequently from _Congo_ to _Loango_. A
Slave-Ship in the former River would intercept much of the Trade to
_Cabenda_ and _Angola_: The Duties are easy with the King of _Soni_,
and the Harmony they live in with a few defenceless _Portuguese_
Missionaries, shews they are a peaceable People.
A _Second_ Requisite for Success in this Trade, is an acquaintance
with the Places, what may be expected at them, either as to the
_Manner_ of Trading, bold or fearful of one another, and the Number
of Slaves they are able to bring.
Where the _Company_’s Factors are settled, as at _Gambia_, and
along the greatest part of the Gold Coast, they influence the Trade
something against private Ships; so also at _Sierraleon_ some
separate Traders live, who voyage it with Boats into the adjacent
Rivers, and most of what a Ship can purchase, is thro’ their hands;
but those from _London_ seldom strike higher upon the Coast than
Cape _Mount_, _Montzerado_, and _Junk_, falling from thence down to
Leeward; many of the places in their Course being rendered dangerous,
from the Tricks and _Panyarrs_ the Traders have first practised upon
the _Negroes_; a mutual Jealousy now keeping each side very watchful
against Violence. We trade on board the Ship, often keeping our
Sailors in close quarters abaft, because few: while the Slaves are
viewing and contracting for at the fore part; at night also keeping a
good Watch, some of these _Negroes_ attempting now and then to steal
with their Canoos athwart your Hawse, and cut the Cable. Captain
_Cummin_ at _Whydah_, they stranded 1734.
They again, are as often diffident of coming nigh us, and will play
for hours together in their Canoos about the Ship, before they dare
venture. In this windward part, I have before observed, they have
a superstitious Custom, of dropping with their Finger a drop of
Sea-Water in their Eye, which they are pleased when answered in,
and passes for an Engagement of Peace and Security; and yet after
all this Ceremony, they will sometimes return to shore: If hardy
enough to come on board, they appear all the time shy and frightned,
and from the least appearance of a _Panyarr_, jump all over board.
Downwards to _Bassam_, _Assinee_, _Jaquelahou_, Cape _le Hou_, _Jaque
a Jaques_, Cape _Apollonia_, and _Three Points_, or where they have
possibly gained a Knowledge of the _English_ Factorys, there is a
better Understanding and Security: These are places that sell off
a number of Slaves, managed however wholly on board the Ships who
anchor before the Town, hoist their Ensign, and fire a Gun: Or when
the Natives seem timorous, do it by their Boats coasting along the
Beach, and pay at some of them a small Duty to the chief _Cabiceers_.
_Thirdly_, To give dispatch, cajole the Traders with _Dashees_ of
Brandy, and tell them, you cannot possibly stay above a day or two,
and that on their account. To a Country-Man, if he joins where there
is prospect of _Goodee_ Trade, you are to form some Story that may
carry him farther to Leeward if possible, (two or three Leagues will
hinder his doing you any Damage for that Voyage.) The Lye did me
most Service, and for which I had the Merchant’s Dispensation, was
informing my good Friend that at _Cobelahou_ they had taken a great
number of Captives, and that Captain —— had got his Freight there in
ten days: this I did with an air of Diffidence, to make the greater
Impression, and at the same time _dashee’d_ his _Negro_ Friends to
go on board and back it. If on better Intelligence such like Story
should not take, and he resolves to stay and share, your Reputation
is secured by the diffidence of your Report, and you must resolve
with him now upon a Price in your Slaves, not to outbid one another;
but at the same time make as strong a Resolution not to observe it.
And here the Master has room to display his talent, the frequency of
the Trick having made all very cautious and diffident.
When a Ship has gathered up all this Trade, she makes up the
deficiency of her Freight at _Anamaboo_, three Leagues below Cape
_Corso_, where they constantly stop, and are sometimes two or three
Months in finishing. It is a place of very considerable Trade in
itself; and besides, the _Company_ have a House and Factor, keeping
always a number of Slaves against those demands of the Interlopers,
who, they are sensible, want dispatch, and therefore make them pay
a higher Price for it than any where on the whole Coast; selling at
six Ounces and a half a Slave (in exchange for Goods) tho’ the poor
Creatures look as meagre and thin as their Writers.
If the _Company_ should want rather to buy than sell, as is sometimes
the case, and fits both; then such a difference is paid by the
_General_, as shall make it worth the Ship’s time to go to Windward
again.
Hence I make this deduction, that if the Adventurers Stock be small,
only sufficient to employ one Vessel, to have her a Sloop; because
less hazard is run in lengthning out time, which subjects to Sickness
and Mortality among the Slaves; saves the aggregate Charge of
supporting them and a Ship’s Company, and likewise such a Vessel will
have less remains of Cargo, after her Slaving is compleated; what is
left, usually going off to the trading _Cabiceers_ and Factories at a
low Price, or what is worse, kept on board and spoiled.
Contrarily, great Traders who can imploy many Ships, obviate in a
great measure such Inconveniencies: They put the Trade of two or
three Ships into one at _Anamaboo_, (the largest and most chargeable)
and with the conjunction of their remains, go to Windward, and begin
anew.
_Fourthly_, giving way to the ridiculous Humours and Gestures of the
trading _Negroes_, is no small artifice for Success. If you look
strange and are niggardly of your Drams, you frighten him; _Sambo_
is gone, he never cares to treat with dry Lips, and as the Expence
is in _English_ Spirits of two Shillings a Gallon, brought partly
for that purpose; the good Humour it brings them into, is found
discounted in the Sale of Goods.
A _fifth_ Article, is the wholesome Victualling, and Management of
Slaves on board.
The common, cheapest, and most commodious Diet, is with Vegetables,
Horse-Beans, Rice, _Indian_ Corn, and Farine, the former, Ships
bring with them out of _England_; Rice, they meet to Windward, about
_Sesthos_; _Indian_ Corn, at _Momford_, _Anamaboo_, &c. and further
Supplies of them, or Farine, at the Islands of _St. Thomas_, and
_Prince’s_; Masters governing themselves in purchasing, according to
the Course they design to steer.
This Food is accounted more salutary to Slaves, and nearer to their
accustomed way of Feeding than salt Flesh. One or other is boiled on
board at constant times, twice a day, into a Dab-a-Dab[33] (sometimes
with Meat in it) and have an Overseer with a Cat-of-nine-tails, to
force it upon those that are sullen and refuse.
The further Management and Caution to be taken with Slaves on board,
till their delivery in the _West-Indies_, I shall intermix with what
I know of the method of Trade at _Whydah_, and _Angola_, because
Cautions where a Cargo is of one Language, is so much the more
requisite.
_Whydah_ is the greatest trading Place on the Coast of _Guinea_,
selling off as many Slaves, I believe, as all the rest together;
40 or 50 Sail (_French_, _English_, _Portuguese_, and _Dutch_)
freighting thence every year. The King is absolute as a Boar; making
sometimes fair Agreements with his Country Neighbours, it being often
the Interest of Traders to be honest (perhaps the only reason that
makes them so) but if he cannot obtain a sufficient number of Slaves
that way, he marches an Army, and depopulates. He, and the King of
_Ardra_ adjoining, commit great Depredations inland.
On the Ships he lays these Impositions, and to prove his Folly, does
it mostly for the benefit of those that rule him; _First_, of having
the Refusal of all Goods; _Secondly_, the Value of twenty Slaves from
every Ship, small or great, as a Duty; and _Thirdly_, forces his own
upon them at an advanced Price.
The _French_, _Dutch_, and _English_, have each a House, or mud Fort,
about three Miles from the Sea, keeping Tents at the Beach for the
convenient receiving and securing their Cargoes as it comes from the
Ship, and transmitting the Returns; which, by a dangerous double Barr
upon the Coast, is rendred impassable sometimes (by the alteration
of the Winds) for a fortnight together; the _Negroes_ only know how
to paddle thro’ it, and when they think it safe, a Signal is made to
the Ships, from those Tents, by hoisting their Flags.
The chief of either Factory that gets first on board any Ship coming
into the Road, has a right to serve her with Boats and Servants, and
has a Due of seven Slaves for it.
The Commanders, with their Surgeons, (as skilled in the Choice of
Slaves) attend the whole time on shore, where they purchase, in what
they call a fair open Market.
The Mates reside on board, receiving from time to time their Master’s
Directions as to the Goods wanted, and to prepare the Ship for the
Reception and Security of the Slaves sent him; where this is a
Rule always observed, _to keep the Males apart from the Women and
Children, to handcuff the former; Bristol Ships triple such as are
sturdy, with Chains round their Necks_; and to keep your own Men
sober, and on a barricado’d Quarter-deck: tho’ the natural Cowardice
of these Creatures, and no other Prospect upon _rising_, but falling
into the hands of the same Rogues that sold them, very much lessens
the Danger: Nevertheless, it is adviseable at all times, to have a
diligent Watch on their Actions, yet (abating their Fetters) to treat
them with all Gentleness and Civility.
At _Angola_, the first Man is the King, the second, _Mabuca_, third,
_Mafucar_, fourth, _Machangee_, fifth, Captain _More_, and the sixth,
Madam _Barsse_; Names expressive of some [34]Virtue; and where they
chuse a white Man’s, (common at many parts of the Coast) it is from
the Qualities they admire in such, and strive to imitate.
Here they force about twenty Servants, which the Ship is obliged to
pay, after the rate of six Fathom of _Guinea_ Cloth _per_ month, and
every _Sunday_ Morning, two Knives to each of them.—Their Business is
to attend every Morning, and carry up your Goods safe to the Factory,
where others take the Charge, and are accountable for all Losses.
The _Bum-boy_ again supervises the Slaves, to do justice between
Buyer and Seller, and by the Custom or Law of the Country, the
Ship is to stand charged with neither them or other Effects, till
delivered into the Boat. However, considering what are their Courts
of Justice, it will behove all Masters to have a diligent Inspection
upon the Slaves themselves, and to keep good Locks and Bolts upon
their Goods: for it is here, as at _Whydah_, the commonest People,
who cannot arrive at, or forbid Trade, are all Thieves and Beggars,
the King and Courtiers chief, but _openly_ more honest, because they
get more by it.
Your Gold-takers are, _Peter Griffin_, (the King’s Brother-in-law)
_Thomas Boon_, and _John Brown_. Sometimes Ships settle an Agency
at _Mumbalar_, or other neighbouring Place, and get considerable
Trade; I have known 70 Slaves purchased there in a Month, with the
additional Duty of six _Pieces_, and giving to the Servants who
fetched up the Goods, each a single Annabass, a bundle of Beads,
three Knives, and a Dram: with all, let your Agreements be as
positive as possible, for they are very difficultly kept to their
Words.
When we are slaved and out at Sea, it is commonly imagined, the
_Negroes_ Ignorance of Navigation, will always be a Safeguard; yet,
as many of them think themselves bought to eat, and more, that
Death will send them into their own Country, there has not been
wanting Examples of rising and killing a Ship’s Company, distant
from Land, tho’ not so often as on the Coast; but once or twice is
enough to shew, a Master’s Care and Diligence should never be over
till the Delivery of them. Some _Negroes_ know well enough, that the
preserving one white Man may answer their Purpose in an Exchange;
however, generally speaking, we allow greater Liberty in our Passage,
as conducive to their Health; we let them go at large on the Ship’s
Deck, from Sun-rise to Sun-set, give such as like it, Pipes and
Tobacco, and clean and air their Dormitories every day.
Having given my Sentiments of the way and method of Trade at
different parts of the _Guinea_ Coast, I have still some remaining
Observations to make under the chief Articles of it, _viz._ _Slaves,
Ivory, and Gold_.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_SLAVES._
Slaves become so (we are told) in this Country, by War, by Mulcts
on some particular Crimes, or Debts which they are unable to
discharge; and they are bought by us (some say) not as Merchants, but
Christians, to preserve them from Sacrifice and Cannibals, to convey
them to a Land flowing with more Milk and Honey, to a better Living,
better Manners, Virtue, and Religion; let us examine each of these
Pretences.
_First_, the _Negroes_. By War for the most part is meant Robbery
of inland, defenceless Creatures, who are hurried down to the Coast
with the greater Cruelty, as it is from a contented, tho’ a very
poor Life. Trade has improved the Robbers, but as all are not alike
expert, or alike Villains, it is alterable, ebbs and flows, and at
some places we have never yet had any.
2. The _Negroes_ become Slaves to one another, by Mulcts imposed
on some sort of Crimes, or Debts contracted beyond their Ability
to discharge. Few come to us this way; for tho’ much Artifice
and Revenge might mix in their _Palaavers_ (Justiciary Courts)
yet their Jurisdiction extends not beyond their own Towns, when
Self-preservation will teach them more regard to Justice for their
own sakes, lest the Relations of those sentenced should revenge
it, and also because the Barbarity would encrease an Enmity to the
Rulers, the Punishment falling on Neighbours of the same Country,
Complexion, Language, and Religion.
We who buy Slaves, say we confer a Good, removing them to a better
state both of Temporals and Spirituals; the latter, few have the
Hypocrisy (among us) to [35]own, and therefore I shall only touch on
the former.
They live indeed, according to our _European_ Phrase, very poor and
mean, destitute almost of the common Necessaries of Life; but never
starve, that is peculiar to trading Republicks; then who is judge of
their Wants, themselves, or we? Or what does Poorness mean? more than
a sound, to signify we have that which another does not want. Do not
many men in politer Nations, renounce the World for Cloisters and
Desarts, and place a greater happiness in preserving their Innocence,
than enjoying even the Necessaries of Life; nay, often ravished with
the neglect of them. Wherever therefore Contentment can dwell, tho’
under the meanest Circumstances, it is a barbarous Corruption to
stile such poor, for they have every thing they desire, or, which is
much the same, are happily ignorant of any thing more desirable.
To remove _Negroes_ then from their Homes and Friends, where they are
at ease, to a strange Country, People, and Language, must be highly
offending against the Laws of natural Justice and Humanity; and
especially when this change is to hard Labour, corporal Punishment,
and for _Masters_ they wish at the D——l.
We are Accessaries by Trade, to all that Cruelty of their Countrymen,
which has subjected them to the Condition of Slaves, little better
in our Plantations, than that of Cattle; the Rigour of their usage
having made some hundreds of them at _Jamaica_ run away into
barren Mountains, where they chuse to trust Providence with their
Subsistance, rather than _their Fellow-Christians_ (_now_) in the
Plantations.
_Slaves_ differ in their Goodness; those from the _Gold Coast_
are accounted best, being cleaned limbed, and more docible by our
Settlements than others; but then they are, for that very reason,
more prompt to Revenge, and murder the Instruments of their Slavery,
and also apter in the means to compass it.
To Windward they approach in Goodness as is the distance from the
Gold Coast; so, as at _Gambia_, or _Sierraleon_, to be much better,
than at any of the interjacent places.
To Leeward from thence, they alter gradually for the worse; an
_Angolan Negro_ is a Proverb for worthlessness; and they mend (if we
may call it so) in that way, till you come to the _Hottentots_, that
is, to the Southermost Extremity of _Africa_.
I have observed how our Trading is managed for Slaves, when obliged
to be carried on aboard the Ship.—Where there are Factories,
(_Gambia_, _Sierraleon_, _the Gold Coast_, _Whydah_, _Calabar_,
_Cabenda_, and _Angola_,) we are more at large; they are sold in open
Market on shore, and examined by us in like manner, as our Brother
Trade do Beasts in _Smithfield_; the Countenance, and Stature, a good
Set of Teeth, Pliancy in their Limbs and Joints, and being free of
Venereal Taint, are the things inspected, and governs our choice in
buying.
The bulk of them are country People, stupid as is their distance
from the Converse of the Coast-_Negroes_, eat all day if Victuals is
before them; or if not, let it alone without Complaint; part without
Tears with their Wives, Children, and Country, and are more affected
with Pain than Death: yet in this indocile State, the Women retain
a Modesty, for tho’ stripped of that poor Clout which covers their
Privities (as I know the _Whydahs_ generally do) they will keep
squatted all day long on board, to hide them.
_Whydah_ Slaves are more subject to Small-Pox, and sore Eyes; other
parts to a sleepy Distemper, and to Windward, _Exomphalos’s_. There
are few Instances of Deformity any where; even their Nobles know
nothing of chronical Distempers, nor their Ladies, of the Vapours.
Their flattish Noses are owing to a continued grubbing in their
Infancy against their Mother’s Backs, being tied within the _Tomee_,
whether upon Travel or Business, for a year or two, the time of their
sucking.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_IVORY._
Ivory is a Commodity sold all the Coast over, but, like the Slaves,
more in some parts than others, and supplied thence to all the
Western World. It is in _Teeth or Screvelios_. The Teeth are the
large, weighing from 30 to an hundred weight, are worth double the
other at home; these selling for ten or twelve pounds, when those do
not for above 5_l._ a hundred.
The _Screvelios_ are small, from fifteen down to four Pounds
weight; among these last are sold us to Windward, the Teeth of the
_Hippopotamus_, or _Sea-Horse_, catched in the Rivers _Nunes_ and
_Gambia_, about 16 Inches long, a white Ivory, but so brittle as not
to be easily worked.
The Rule upon the Coast is, that when four will weigh an hundred
weight, they shall all be accounted Teeth, and paid for as such, tho’
one or two of them be never so small; for the more Teeth encrease
in their weight, the better the Ivory, and makes amends for the
smallness of the other.
At _Gambia_, the points of them are often found broken, from the
Elephant’s grubbing against rocky Ground; at other times, you see
them flawed, or they are light in proportion to their bigness,
Circumstances that abate their value.
I have been often ruminating, how the trading _Negroes_ come by these
Elephants Teeth, and find they exchange our _European_ Commodities
with the inland Natives for them; but whether they again shoot the
Elephants, or find their Teeth in travelling through the Woods and
Desarts, is uncertain. Their Rivers and Canoos indeed, help to extend
their Knowledge a vast way through the Country, and there are some
Accounts that tell us, the _Negroes_ scituated upon these Rivers
(like the _Americans_) make Excursion, or Voyages of a month or two,
from their Habitations.
Mr. _Plunket_ of _Sierraleon_, and others of above twenty years
experience in those parts, have informed me, that Elephants move and
change their Pasture in very large Herds; that they have seen Droves
upon the Banks of the _Gambia_, of a thousand and fifteen hundred
together; that they are bold, have a tough Case, forage less than
Horses, and look out much better: from the Circumstance of number,
and boldness of their March (said to be in a line) they seem secured
from any attacks of the timorous Natives, who must come very near, or
their Skin is impenetrable by Fire-arms. Besides, Ivory was the Trade
of _Guinea_, before the use of them, to which I may add, the weighty
Teeth come to Sale in a less number than the _Screvelios_; altogether
persuading me, they are not shot, but that the larger Size are Teeth
of Elephants who have died naturally, and which being grown to their
utmost Perfection and Solidity, withstand a very considerable Elapse
of time, without decay or mouldering; and that the _Screvelios_ are
probably such as are shed when young, the like as we meet in the
human Species, or as Bucks do their Horns, which the Natives by
practice know where to look for.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_GOLD._
The Gold of _Guinea_ is mostly traded for at the _Gold Coast_ (thence
denominated) and is either _in Fetish, in Lump, or in Dust_.
The _Fetish-Gold_ is that which the _Negroes_ cast into various
Shapes, and wear as Ornaments at their Ears, Arms, and Legs, but
chiefly at their Head, entangled very dextrously in the Wool; it is
so called, from some Superstition (we do not well understand) in
the Form, or in their Application and Use, commonly mixed with some
baser Metal, to be judged of by the Touch-Stone, and skill of the
Buyer you employ.
The _Lump_, or Rock Gold, is in pieces of different weights,
pretended to be brought our of Mines. I saw one of these which Mr.
_Phips_ had at Cape _Corso_, weighing thirty Ounces, they are always
suspected to be artificial, and by the cunning Fellows in Trade, cast
so, to hide some baser mixture of Silver, Copper or Brass: wherefore
it is not safe trusting to the antique, dirty look, but to cut or run
it for satisfaction.
_Dust_ Gold is the common Traffick, the best comes hither from the
neighbouring inland Kingdoms of _Dinkira_, _Akim_, and _Arcana_, and
is got (we are told) out of the River-Sands. _Tagus_ in _Portugal_
was once so famed;
_Omnis arena Tagi, quodque in mare volvitur aurum._
Juvenal. Satir. 3.
The Natives dig Pits nigh the Water-falls of Mountains abounding with
this Metal; the Ponderosity of their Particles sinking them there:
and then with incredible Pains and Industry, they wash the Earth and
Sand in Trays and Vessels till it all swims off, and they espy at
bottom now and then two or three shining Grains of Gold that pays
them (without great Fortune) only as Labourers.
This is the most probable Account, how they come by their Gold on
this Coast: For if it were through Mines, and from Kingdoms so nearly
bordering on our Factories as _Arcana_ (whence the best and purest)
it would long since, I imagine, have tempted us, or the _Dutch_ to
have dispossessed the Natives, and worked them solely to our own use.
Gold Dust is not gathered at _any_ part of the same River, it’s said,
but at convenient Spots nearest the Mountains; because when too
distant from the Floods that wash through Mines, their Weight buries
them too deep, or disperses their Particles too widely, to answer the
Labour of Searching.
Masters of Ships customarily hire a Native, at so much _per_ month,
for this part of the Trade; he has a quicker sight at knowing, and by
Practice, readier at separating the drossy and false Gold, with which
the true has ever some Mixture, to impose on unskilful People. This
impure Stuff is called _Crackra_, a Pin or brass Dust, current upon
the Gold Coast among themselves, but is a gross Cheat in Traffick,
some of it is very bad.
The way to separate, is by copper Blow-pans, shaped like
Fire-Shovels; into this your Gold-taker throws three or four Ounces
at a time, and by gently tossing, and blowing upon it, the lightest
being the false, flies off: the larger Grains he discriminates by his
sight, and separates by his Fingers with a wonderful dexterity.
Their way of counting Gold at the Factories, is by Ounces, Bendees,
and Marks, lesser are Dumbays, and Doccys, or Toccus; 12 of this, or
24 of that, make an _Accy_, (about 5_s._)
All reserve it in Leather Pouches, and at _London_, the Gold-Smith
runs it down in a [36]Crucible at two pence _per_ Ounce; it’s kept
dissolved for the Evaporation of Dross, (perhaps one Ounce in a
hundred) and then cast into a solid Bar; a Chip from it he sends to
the Assay-master in the _Tower_, who by his Office is Judge, and on a
small Fee, signs back a Note of it’s Value, that is, how much above,
or under Sterling; and so amounts to a Shilling or two over or under
4_l._ a _Troy_ Ounce.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Our Return upon the Gold Coast._
At our coming hither in _October_ 1721, we understood every where
that the Pyrates under the Command of _Roberts_, had been plundering
the Ships down the whole Coast, but were then supposed gone off:
the latest Account of any who had suffered, being in _August_ last.
We therefore, under no Apprehension of their Return, divided the
Provisions had been sent hither from _England_ to us, and leaving
the _Weymouth_ (the worst disabled Ship of the two) in Cape _Corso_
Road, stretch’d away to Windward again, the Beginning of _November_,
in order to _mann_, by the Purchase of Slaves, and impressing Sailors
from the Merchant Vessels; the latter we had little Occasion of,
their ill Treatment, and bad Diet (or a Pretence of it) making them
all Volunteers that could be spared.
At _Succonda we heel’d and scrubbed Ship_, a Ledge of Rock shooting
from the western Point nigh a League, making it a smoother Sea than
any of the neighbouring Places; and this little Check given to the
Water, we observed, made the Bay flow a foot or two higher than any
part of the plain Coast.
At _Dixcove_, the Windermost of our Gold-Coast Factories, we heard by
the _Carlton_, that the Soldiers who had come out under our Convoy
for the _African_ Company’s Service at _Gambia_, had unhappily
mutiny’d with Captain _Massey_ one of their Officers; disdaining
the bad usage of the Merchants who had the Command and Victualling
of them, they spiked up the Guns, and retir’d to the Ship which had
brought them over, (the _Bumper_) and there by a joint Consent of
_George Lowther_ the second Mate, and some of the Sailors, proceeded
to Sea; the Effect of which, _see in the History of the Pyrates_.
At _Apollonia_ we found all our old Acquaintance were gone: The Queen
that had two or three Months ago sent off a _Dashee_ of four _Accys_,
was lately, with her People, forced to move to _Assinee_.
There are a numerous People called _Santies_, or _Assanties_,
extending a long way on the back of them, who derive a considerable
Trade to the Coast, particularly at _Anamaboo_. This Nation, provoked
by the frequent Depredations and _Panyarrs_ of the _Apollonians_,
had lately been down and drove them from their Habitations; tho’
themselves, unwilling to own the Roguery, say it has proceeded from
the Instigation of _Jan Conny_ their Neighbour and Competitor. At
_Assinee_ therefore, we found them preparing to revenge this Injury,
buying up all our trading Arms at a good Price, and giving a Fowl
for every Flint we could spare, (there being no such thing in the
Country.) They are as fearless as any of the Colour, both in Trade
and War, and promise themselves an Amendment of their Fortune, which,
by accounts since, I hear they have accomplished against _Conny_.
At Cape _Three Points_ we found our Water-Pond almost dried up,
tho’ the Wind at S. E. had lately brought on two or three heavy
Showers of Rain, and they failing, constant thick Fogs in the day,
and what is very unusual at the distance we anchor, Dews in the
night on board: _The Current to Westward_. In this Bay, two or three
Evenings running, we saw a monstrous Fish heavily moving about the
Ship, divided into eight or ten different Parts, each as large as a
_Thornback_, sinking immediately at the throwing over a Hook; the
Sailors call it a _Devil-Fish_. _Fire-Flies_ also, (common to warm
Latitudes,) flew about in the night; an Insect that makes the like
light in the Air, as _Glow-Worms_ on the Ground.
What I shall farther observe from this Cruise or the Circuit we
have made, I never yet met either of those useful Animals, a Dog
or a Horse, among the Natives; the latter, _Bosman_ (who writes
of _Guinea_) says, are numerous in-land; and of the other, _their
Bark turns to a Howl in three or four Broods, their Ears and
Colour inclining to a Fox_. Those I have seen, and not hitherto
mentioned, are, among _Quadrupeds_, the Cat, Hare, Rat, Lizzard,
Boar, Porcupine, Civet-Cat, Camelion, and Petto or Sluggard, from
the Slowness of his March; he will grow lean in the time he takes to
ascend a Tree, and never comes down till he has devoured all the
Fruit. _Birds_, the Parrot, Paraquet, Pheasant, Partridge, Wild-Duck,
Turtle-Dove, Snipe, Kite, and others. _Fish_, the Jack, Plaise, Sole,
Bream, Thornback, Dab, Lobster, Crab, Shrimp, _&c._ _Reptiles_, the
Toad, Scorpion, Centipes.
[Illustration: (decorative flower)]
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_PYRATES._
As _Roberts_ the Pyrate, by the bold Sweep made in _August_, had
struck a Pannick into the Traders, we were several times in our
late Cruise alarmed with Stories of their being again to Windward;
which kept us _Plying_, till others contradicting such Report,
and considered with the rashness of the Attempt, returned us to
our Rendesvouz in Cape _Corso_ Road, where we had scarce well
arrived, before Mr. _Phips_ received Intelligence by two or three
Canoos dispatched to him, of Vessels chased and taken by them a few
Leagues off, committing great Cruelties. They were well manned, we
understood, having increased their number greatly by this double
Expedition, and the Reputation of their Success; the Seamen every
where entering, notwithstanding our neighbourhood, and where they
refused, by report, ’twas oftner thro’ Fear, than any detestation of
the Practice.
The Conclusion from our Advices, was to follow them to _Whydah_; for
avoiding this Road, (which it might be imagined they would do, in
respect to our being there) the next and chiefest Place for Booty was
there. We missed them however by 24 hours, but following quickly to
Cape _Lopez_, luckily fixed the Limits of their Navigation; their
Drunkenness, Inadvertency, and Disorder, making them fall an easy
Prize to us.
Discipline is certainly an excellent Path to Victory; we see it
through all Nations, who in some ages are warlike, in others
effeminate. Courage, locutory or military, like a Trade, is gained by
an Apprenticeship. The Coward to-day, may seven years hence become
a brave Fellow, and metamorphosed again, perhaps by a bad Wife, or
other adverse Fortune. What makes our Militia laughed at, even by Men
draughted from them? only because they want that constant Discipline,
the red Coat and martial Law, that makes the other terrible: Every
Man in standing Troops, is in a School of Exercise, where, if not
dull, he may acquire the Tread, the Talk, and Courage of a Hero.[37]
Subordination is an Essential to it in this very Discipline; the
Gentleman brought up ever so tamely, finding a Courage with his
Commission, and for the most part, increasing as he becomes a
Captain, a Colonel, or a General. The Pyrates, tho’ singly Fellows of
Courage, yet wanting such a Tye of Order, some Director to unite that
Force, were a contemptible Enemy, neither killed nor wounded us a man
in taking them, and must ever, in the same Circumstances, be the
Fate of such Rabble.
We found in the three Ships about 200 _Englishmen_, 60 or 70 stout
_Negro_ Slaves, great plenty of trading Goods, and, what more
attracted the Eye, a large quantity of Gold Dust, by computation, 8
or 10000_l._ the Searches made, and the Diligence of the Officers
in those Searches, imagining themselves to have some share in the
Heap, makes that Sum very probable; the Pyrates themselves giving out
double: for all which, the Commander at home obtained the Privy-Seal.
The People, their Wives, and Widows, who thought themselves injured
in this Seclusion, petitioned the Lords-Commissioners of the
Admiralty, the Secretaries, and other Officers of State, for a
Recall of this Grant; _sine Auspiciis_. The Officers joined also in
a Petition for the E—— of _B——y_’s Interposition, to obtain for them
the Division of any Sum they might prove, over and above what was
suggested in obtaining the Privy-Seal;—and with the same Success.
To return from this Excursion; the number of our Prisoners gave a
great deal of fatigue and uneasiness, during a six Weeks Passage,
lest the danger of a Halter should prompt them to some desperate
Attempt for their Liberty; but arriving safe at Cape _Corso_ again,
they were there brought to their Tryals, hang’d, or acquitted; the
Court allowing for the Office of Register,
26 Days Attendance, at 30_s._ } _l. s. d._
_per Diem_, for which at } 26 00 0
home ⅓ was deducted }
The Provost, 7_s._ 6_d._ _per Diem_ 9 15 0
The General of the Coast gave the Table, which made the whole Charge
rest upon those two Articles, the cheapest since the Reformation.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_St. George de ELMINA._
During our Stay in the Road, an Officer or two of us took an Interval
to wait on Mr. _Butler_, the Director-General for the _Dutch_ at
_St. George de Elmina_, three Leagues to Windward; he received us so
much the more kindly, that in eighteen years which he had resided
on the Coast, he had seldom been visited by his Countrymen, and of
late, not at all, which he imputed to the Misunderstandings that were
frequently happening between him and his Neighbour, Mr. _Phips_, on
account of Trade; they could not pay him this Compliment without
offending the other. His Table had ten Dishes of Victuals, an
extraordinary Shew in a part of such Scarcity, with variety of Beer
and Wine, and an attendance of six _Negro_ Servants, each a gold
Chain about his Neck, the largeness distinguishing Grandeur, as fine
Cloth or Lace does a Livery.
After Dinner, Mr. _Butler_ gave us four gold Rings a-piece, (the Make
of the Country) a Trifle, he said, to remember him, and then shewed
us their Apartments and Store-houses, large, and well stocked.
The Castle, taken from the _Portuguese_ in 1638, is a Quadrangle,
like that of Cape _Corso_, but has a double Ditch round, cut out of
a Rock, which like Basins hold the Rain-water, and give additional
Strength; a populous _Negro_ Town at the foot of it, under their
Protection.
From hence, we retired for the Afternoon to a Summer-house in his
Garden, and in the Evening his Officers attended us to the Boat,
where we were still followed with Marks of undeserved Respect,
three or four Rooves of _Brasil_ Sugar, (then a Commodity) and at
putting off, a Salute of nine Guns. The worst part of our Fare came
afterwards, when we could not commend this Hospitality and Generosity
of Mr. _Butler_, without indirect Reflections upon our own Castle.
On the 1st of _May_ 1722, we left Cape _Corso_, (for my own part,
I hope till Doom’s-Day) and on the third, came down to _Whydah_.
Here we took a Sailor out of a _Portuguese_ Ship, that had been a
Confederate in seizing Captain _Rowry_’s Vessel, as mentioned before
at _St. Thomas’s_; he, on the Reflection of his Crime, and a Fear of
worse Evil, cut his Throat, and died. About this time I was appointed
_Purser_ to the _Weymouth_, (a _Bursier_, the Officer in Colleges,
that takes care of their Accounts) every body being dead almost, that
could do it: and with Reluctancy in me, because not skill’d in the
_Employ_, and neither Cooper, Steward, or Necessaries on board; but
the Indulgence I expected on these accounts from a worthy Commander,
and some little Advantage in quitting the Surgeon’s Employ, were
Persuasives.
From _Whydah_, both Men-of-War steered away for Cape _Lopez_, to wood
and water, in order for the _West-Indies_.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_Cape LOPEZ._
Cape _Lopez_ makes a safe and pleasant Bay, our anchoring in 20
Fathom Water, the Cape N W B N, the Watering-place S B E, each a mile
and half distance.
Coming in, we bring the Cape S. S. W. to avoid what most Charts lay
down, the Shoal called _Frenchman’s Bank_, about a League and half
N. N. E. from the Cape; and some say there are other Shoals between
that and the _Main_ to the Northward.
The Cape is low and steep, yet looks bluff with Trees, has some
_Savannahs_ behind, the resort of _Buffaloes_; I have seen a dozen
head at a time here, which, when you are minded to hunt or shoot, the
_Negroes_ are ready to assist. The Bay is well stored with Fish, and
the Country affords Plantains, Goats, Fowls, and particularly grey
Parrots, all cheap; but their principal trading Commodities are Wax
in Cakes, and Honey, exchanged with us on easy terms, for Linnen,
Calicos, Stuffs, Pewter Spoons, Knives, _&c._ and it is the Seal of
all Bargains, to take hold of one another’s Hands and say, _Palaaver
suquebah_.
_Pou_, or Wood, is after the rate of a Fathom, for an old _Guinea_
Sheet; their Water free, and easy come at, but is a standing Pool,
and not so well-tasted therefore as Springs.
The Natives are harmless and inoffensive, never sell one another.
But when Ships come in, flock towards the Bay with Wax, Honey, a few
Teeth, and little Gold; which last, I rather believe, is brought
thither, because not one of them seemed to know the Value of it. They
are timorous, and therefore have their Habitations at a distance from
the Sea, few of them venturing on board a Ship; feared, I suppose, by
the Tricks have formerly been put upon them by our Traders: so that
we barter altogether on shore, where they attend for that purpose.
Their familiar Salute at meeting, is by clapping their hands two
or three times, to one another. To a Superior, (the _Cabiceer_,
or the Aged) they bend the Knee, raising first their Hands to the
out-parts of their Shoulders or Arms, then patting the other’s Hands
gently three times, they cry _Chamba_ at each time, and retreat with
three times clapping their own hands:—to profess an extraordinary
Friendship to you, they raise your Hand as high as they can reach.
Many of them have borrowed Names from the _Europeans_ that put
in here, and are pleased when you will adopt them to wear such a
Cognizance of your Remembrance; they do not sollicit this Favour till
after several views, that they see something to be admired, or that
the Person asked, has a fancied Sympathy of Temper, or likeness with
themselves.
As they come down to trade in Tribes, each has a Captain or Leader,
who always craves or claims some _Dashee_, before you strike a
Bargain with any of the other _Negroes_; a Bottle of Brandy, a Sabre,
Knife, or any ordinary Apparel is acceptable; _the Chief_ loves to
distinguish himself by an Imitation of our Dress, and is often so
preposterously set out with Hat, Wig, and Breeches, that he makes a
fifty times more ridiculous, and scaramouch Figure, than any of his
naked Dependants.
_Jacobus_ was one of these; he takes on him the Title of King,
without knowing the meaning, and came on board to visit us in a very
antick Figure; an old Sailor’s Wig turned upside down, half a pair
of Breeches, Jacket, Hat, _&c._ yet this Man seemed to be reverenced
much by the others, and in drinking, two of them always held up a
Cloth before his Face, that he might not be seen; the Custom seems
to have a State in it, and borrowed perhaps from some neighbouring
Monarch: He of _Monomotapa_, it is said, never drinks, but the Court
put up their Prayers with a loud Voice, which being heard by others,
is transmitted over the whole Town.
As _Jacobus_ and his Company grew drunk, (for they swallowed nothing
but Bumpers of Brandy) I observed this Respect was laid aside; and
what was a greater Misfortune, the Prince and his Retinue beheld with
winking Eyes, all their Hovels on fire ashore: The Occasion this; we
happening to have all our Colours flying, and some Guns let off in
honour of the 28th of _May_, another Leader on shore misinterpreting
it as a particular Respect to _Jacobus_, grew jealous, seized his
House during the Revel, his Wives, and his _Dashees_, drank up all
his Brandy, eat all his Victuals, cudgelled his People, and set both
his Houses on fire.
Next Morning, on unravelling the Mystery, the Surprize was over, and
all became good Friends again. They have very little Knowledge or Use
of Fire-Arms, because no Trade scarce; their Weapons being Spears,
Arrows, and Clubs, and it is a bloody Battle among them, when half a
dozen of a side are knocked down.
[Illustration: (decorative flower)]
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
A VOYAGE TO _Brasil_, and the _West-Indies._
From Cape _Lopez_ (parting with the Coast) we came in sight of
the Island _Annabona_, the Breezes small at South, and Calms
alternatively; hereabout we cruised three or four days, for our
Consort the _Swallow_, that some how or other was separated; and
missing her, bore away for _Brasil_.
In the Passage it may be first observed, that when we had sailed
ninety Leagues to the Westward, and got into 3°° S. the Winds that
were at South veered, so as to become a true S E. _Trade_, that
carried us four or five _Knots_.——And still as we advanced farther
Westward, it blew fresher at E S E. 7, 8, and 9 _Knots_ constantly,
with neither Thunder nor Lightning. _Quære_, whether this distance
is not a proper Medium to allow for the Attraction of all Exhalations
by the Land; at least that they considerably abate after that length
from all Shores, allowing for Latitude, and as they are Montainous or
Plain. We see within this Dimension, (plainly) that it takes off the
Influence of the Sun, and varys the _Trade_ Wind towards itself: Nor
is it so astonishing, since Animals themselves obey; several sorts of
Fish and Fowl have a periodical return to such and such places, and
not so of those inhabiting the more stable Element of Land: Wherefore
it is highly rational to think, that as the fluid Elements they live
in yield _to the attractive Power of the Earth and Planets_, so also
their Inhabitants have their Instinct more sensibly fated by them.
_Secondly_, in this _Trade_-Wind sailing, we are every day diverted
with flying Fish, Bonetos, and Sea-Fowl; the Sails require little
labour in _trimming_, the Ship goes steady, and the Bowl unslung; so
that at leaving such a Country we might cheerfully sing,
_How happy were we, when the Wind blew abaft!_
One of these cheerful Evenings, eleven at night, the full Moon became
totally eclipsed, a Darkness surprizing, as it was unexpected; when
she had recovered her Light, we repeated our Sacrifice in Bowls, and
fell into Reflections and Admiration of that Power which supports the
Regularity of the planetary Motions, and the Sublimity of that Art
which can so exactly calculate them: They demonstrate the Sphericity
of the Earth, because Countries, as they are farther East or West,
observe them hours sooner or later, according to their Longitude,
which could not be on a Plain, but visible to all at once.
This Longitude therefore in a general View, is the same thing as
Time, the difference of it being the distance East and West of any
two places, allowing 15 Degrees, or 300 Leagues to an Hour; the whole
24 being lost or gained in a Circum-navigation of the Globe, West or
Eastward.
A natural, tho’ hitherto incorrect way of estimating the Parts of
Longitude _in those Runs_, till Instruments and Rules are discovered,
is, I think, _First_, to make exact Tables of the Sun’s Risings and
Settings, at Places commonly departed from, and those we go to for
every day in the year: and then, _Secondly_, to carry two proved
Watches of equal Goodness, kept in equal Warmth, and freest from
Motion and Weather, to measure the difference of time where you are,
by the same edge of the Sun the Tables were made from; the Minutes
sooner or later, according as you go East or West, is so many
Leagues of Longitude for that day. I would insinuate by this only my
Opinion, that those literal _Improvers_ of Time, the Watch Makers,
bid as fair for the Discovery of Longitude as the Astronomer; for if
Watches can be made not to err above two or three Minutes in the time
a Ship is running 1000 Leagues, or if they do err more, a Rule could
be found how much, (like as an Azimuth corrects the common Compass;)
or if any _Movement_ could be depended on only from Observation to
Observation, then the Error would be no greater than what is met
in different Quadrants, observing Latitude. As it is, it seems a
proper Method to correct or assist the present Rules of calculating
meridional Distance.
We made this Passage of 8 or 900 Leagues to _Brasil_ in three Weeks;
but having elsewhere given my Observations on the Country, I shall
only take notice that the _Trade_ blowing very fresh, and bringing in
a great Swell, we hastened from the Coast to our intended Ports in
the _West-Indies_.
In our Progress thither, a Remark or two: _First_, that in the
Navigation from _Brasil_, we crossed the Æquinoctial, two or three
Degrees W. of Cape _Roque_, keeping on with a pleasant S E. _Trade_
that gradually lessened, and in 4°° North Latitude, left us in Calms,
Rains, and uncertain Squalls, (varying round the Compass;) That this
continued for several days, till we drew in or near the Parallel
of _Barbados_, and then we as gradually had obtained the _Trade_
to Northward of the East, running 150 Leagues with it, that is, to
_Barbados_.
_Secondly_, The reason of Calms, and Rains met in Latitudes between
4°° and 11°° N. (with a little Variation, as the Sun is of this or
that side the Equinoctial) is probably from a Contest between the N
E. and S E. _Trade_; but whether the passing them be more favourable
far to the Eastward or Westward, I am uncertain.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_BARBADOS._
_Barbados_ was discovered by Sir _William Carter_, in King _James_
I’s time, planted to little purpose until 1627; since which, the
Crops have been so advantageous, as to have raised the Price of
Ground thirty fold.
We anchored here in _Carlisle-Bay_ the beginning of _August_, the
resort of most Shipping who load at this Island. The Bay is made
by _Needham and Pelican Points_; the Anchorage 20 Fathom, so clear
Water that you may see to the bottom; but so foul and rocky, that
the Cables are always buoy’d up with Cask. In the bottom of the
Bay stands _Bridgetown_, the principal of the Island, and is the
Residence of the Governor, Factors, and Merchants, who transact their
Business here and at their Plantations alternately. There is only one
large Church, with an Organ, and about twenty Chappels at different
parts of the Island, all Episcopal, there having been no _Dissenters_
these many years. The People are for the most part polite and
well-bred, promoting Trade by a magnificent way of living; the chief
of them are Colonels, or Captains of Militia, and in the Assembly are
divided into a Party-Interest, on the civil Affairs of the Island,
their chief Distinction; murmuring, or elate, just as they are in or
out of the Governor’s Favour, who can abate in the Customs, or imploy
in the Application: (tho’ by the way the fewer Officers, and those
Menials, the better advantage to him.)
The whole is a _sweet_ Spot of Earth, not a Span hardly uncultivated
with Sugar-Canes; all sides bend with an easy Declivity to the
Sea, and is ever green: This delight to the Planter has its
Inconveniencies, that there is no Recreation out of Business, but in
Drinking or Gaming.
The Propriety was given by King _James_ I. to the Earl of _Carlisle_;
and _Anno_ 1661, King _Charles_ II. purchased it back of Lord
_Kinoul_, that Earl’s Heir, allowing him 1000_l._ _per Ann._
Acknowledgment.
_Anno_ 1663, an Act passed by the President (who acts as Governor
in their absence) the Council and Assembly, for 4½ in Specie Duty
of all Commodities, the Produce of the Island, which it’s computed
will amount to 10000_l._ _per Annum._—_Madeira_ Wines imported, at
4_l._ 10_s._ _per_ Pipe, raises 7000_l._ and this, with one Pound of
Gunpowder _per_ Tun on each Ship, is appropriated for Stores, and
Repairs to Forts.
The Governor is appointed by the King, his Salary formerly used
to arise at an uncertain Sum of 4 or 5000_l._ _per Ann._ from
Presents and Perquisites, since fixed at 1200_l._, 2000_l._ and now
is 6000_l._ And as the Council, _a part of their Constitution_,
is in a manner of his own Nomination, being appointed by Letters
of _Mandamus_, as they have Power to make Demands on ancient
Perquisites, and sway in the Application of the publick Money; there
are various ways of obliging, and his Party will always be uppermost
in the _Legislature_, which consists of him, the Council of twelve,
and an Assembly of twenty two, chose at the several Parishes by a
Majority of Votes.
One Law is, _That no Inhabitant shall be carried off the Island
without Leave; whoever engages in the Project, is liable to the
Debts_; so that when a Family sees Ruin approaching, (a frequent
Case of late years) their Remedy is stealing away in Boats to some
other Place of Subsistence; and if they cannot this way escape a hard
_Creditor_, they comfort themselves in dying, that it may be their
Lot next. Those who depart fairly, are obliged to give publick notice
at the Secretary’s Office; and no body objecting in twenty one days,
are at liberty.
Another Act in 1676, passed against the Industry of the Quakers,
whose Conversion of the Negroes, it was pretended, hazarded the
Safety of the Island. They are computed at 80 or 90000, and are
countenanced in Polygamy; yet not dangerous, because no Mountains to
fly to, Detections and Executions would soon follow their Rebellions.
The _English_ are reckoned 20000, the Women among them most _Scotch_
and _Irish_, very homely, and great Swearers. The Men, contrarily,
are very gay, clean, and handsome, from mean Originals, often
succeeding with rich Widows; it being but Justice to link a fat
Plantation to the truely nauseous Draught of Matrimony.
The way of feeding such a Multitude, and providing Necessaries in
an Island yielding little besides Sugar, is principally by their
Fisheries and Importations.
The Sea gives them great plenty of flying Fish, Dolphins, Barricuda
and King Fish, particularly the first; they bait with their own
Specie, which thrown about, the Fish fly in such numbers to the
Boats, that they take them up with Dip-nets, and sometimes the
Dolphins with them; the Season goes off at the Autumnal Equinox.
Their Importations by Ships from _England_, _Ireland_, _New-England_,
_Pensylvania_, _Carolina_, or _New-York_, constantly supplying any
Defect of Food or Necessaries, every Vessel bringing them something
or other of this kind, which the Merchants keep in store and sell the
Planters occasionally, who give their Sugars, Rum, and Molosses in
return. The Price in what I was acquainted is, _viz._
Bought,
Rum at 1_s._ 2_d._ per Gallon.
Citron Water 40 0
Pickled Pepper 10 0
Preserved Ginger 5 0 _per lb._
Sugar, twenty Shillings a hundred; and before
our Improvements (says _Gee_) the _Portuguese_
sold for 7 and 8_l._ a hundred.
Cocoa, 3 or 4_l._
Aloes 4_d._ _per lb._
Sold,
Salt Beef and Pork, 40 Shillings for a Cask of 2 _Cwt._
Bisket, 17_s._ _per_ hundred
Candles, 6½ _per lb._ &c.
Exchange 30 _per Cent._ or more.
I have heard that the Custom-house Books had one year 35000
Hogsheads of Sugar entred, which at 10_l._ _per_ Hogshead, amounts
to 350000_l._ Every Acre was supposed 10_s._ a year Profit to the
national Stock of _England_, besides what the Planter got, and
Mouths fed by it; but I must observe, the Crops of late years have
very much failed, and put many of them under great Necessities. The
Soil fertile in the Age past, seems now growing old, and past its
teeming-time; they endeavour to mend this by a few Cattle kept for
the sake of Manure; _few_, I say, because Land imploy’d this way,
gives not 1/10 its Value. Wherefore when a thoughtless Man has joined
to unlucky Events and Seasons an inadvertent way of living, he falls
a Prey to the more astronomical Heads of Factors, who supply him
with Food and Necessaries. The Hardships of many Planters at this
time, through such Inclemencies, cannot be better laid open to the
Reader, than in transcribing part of a Sermon, that I am informed was
preached by Command of his Excellency the Governor, _May_ 1734.
A Charity SERMON at _Bridgetown_, for the two Parishes, _St.
Philip_, and _Christ-Church_.
“Here I should have left off, but I am _commanded_ by his Excellency
the Governor, to exhort you to that Charity, the Necessity of which
has been laid before ye.
“Remember therefore, that one of the ways observed of seeking God is,
by obeying the Dictates of his Holy Spirit, that Humanity and Charity
undepraved Nature feels towards all that are poor and distressed.
“What an excellent Grace of Christianity this is, _St. Paul_ from
the Spirit of God teacheth, (1 _Cor._ xiii.) saying, that when the
Gift of Tongues, of Prophecies, of Miracles shall cease, _a greater_,
even that of Charity, shall never cease in the Church militant, never
in the Church triumphant; nor can there be any greater Inducements
to provoke us to Charity, than _first_, it covers a Multitude of
Sins, and _next_, bringeth God himself (as he is pleased to esteem
it) in debt to us; _for he who giveth to the Poor lendeth to the
Lord, and look, what he layeth out shall be paid him again_; paid in
Blessings here, and hereafter eternal Life, if no mortal Sin continue
in the Giver, to hinder these blessed Effects.—I need say no more
to ye who read the Bible, how dear to God those Christians are, who
according to their Ability are liberal to poor Persons and Families;
so that what remains for me to say, is to expatiate a little upon
the miserable State of the Poor of these two Parishes, and leave the
whole to your pious Consideration.
“In one of these, _St. Philip_’s, mine Eyes beheld all the Signs of
an approaching Famine; the Face of the Earth appeared as it were
a dry Crust, burnt up and gaping for its watry Nutriment; hardly
any thing green appeared, and I am told, the Face of the Country is
much the same in _Christ-Church_ Parish. Now how miserable must it
be with the single Poor, and with Families! I assure you, several
are come into ours, and others are gone farther Leeward to seek for
Work and Food. You who are tender Parents, consider how terrible it
must be for Families with nothing in their House, nothing growing on
their Land, not a grain of any thing to support themselves and dear
helpless Children: No Money, and no Credit, no Relief from without,
and no Bread, nor Water either, hardly within or without. I have
heard of poor Men going about for Work, to sustain their own Bodies,
forced to leave Wife and Children at home to starve; sure your Hearts
must relent, and every one of you give according as you are able,
with a free Mind, and willing Heart. But here some may object, Why
should I give to those two Parishes, when our own Poor may be in as
great Want? I answer, some may be so; but the Calamity (blessed be
God) is not so general here; it is not so bad with us in that one
necessary Article of Water. Thirst is terrible, let us then pity our
poor Brethren, their Wives and Children, who go so far for Water
that they have not due time to get their Bread, were there Work for
them to earn it by.
“I believe, you know we have here poor Families in great want, and I
could wish our Vestry would meet, particularly to consider it; but
in the mean time, let us not forget the poorer People of these two
Parishes, as now perishing for want of Food; yea, his L——p and the
Council’s Belief is, (you hear) that some have already died for want
of Bread.
“What Christian Man or Woman then in Affluence and Plenty, can have
an Heart so hard as not to bestow liberally on so great, so sad, so
calamitous a Necessity and Misery? and what poorer Christian, who has
somewhat, tho’ little above his daily Wants, but will fling his Mite
to stop so dread an Evil?
“What Christian Woman, who has young and helpless Children of her
own, and Bread to give them, but whose Bowels must yearn and Heart
ake to hear, that in these two Parishes are many Infants crying at
the empty Breasts of their Mothers, and their Mothers weeping and
languishing at the same time for Bread to sustain themselves.
“What compassionate Fathers or Brothers but must grieve to
understand, that grown Children too young to work, are now starving
in these Parishes, and their Parents and Brothers nothing to relieve
them.
“What good Children but must bleed at heart to see their Parents
starving? yet such is the Fate of some in these Parishes.
“Christians consider, that one way of keeping Famine from us of this
Parish, is to bestow our Charity in a Proportion to their Wants, and
our Ability: That is the likeliest Method to move God to give us
fruitful Seasons, to renew our Springs, and bring a cheerful Green
over the Face of our Plants and Seeds.
“_May the blessed Spirit_, &c.”
* * * * *
The Consequence of this Distress now among the _Barbadians_, is
shifting their old Habitations; several impelled by Necessity, and
Wants, (stronger Motives than Religion;) are stealing away to mend it
where they can.
The Sufferings of these Islanders, I think, will carry some
Similitude to larger Countries; where the remarkable Decay, or
Loss of one single Branch of Trade, it’s observed, will sensibly
affect Multitudes, not only those immediately concerned in the
retailing, who must change Trades, infringing on others, or seek
other Countries, but also those not concerned; because as an
extraordinary Trade stamps an extraordinary Value on Land, and that
on Provisions, when the one fails, or changes hands, as it has and
will do, (_Venice_, the _Hans Towns_, _Antwerp_, _Holland_, and
which by the way, shews all Countries bordering on the Sea, within
50°° of Latitude, equally advantageous for Trade) the other ought to
give way for the lowering of Provisions, and Charge of Subsistence
to the Poor, (some ways of it being supposed now to be cut off or
curtailed:) and if Landlords do it slowly, the Law should oblige;
because, as publick Virtue is no private Man’s Profession, he will
take his Lands into his own hands, tho’ with Loss, rather than submit
to the Reduction of his Rents; and because he can afford it, will
hoard, and suffer Grain to decay and spoil, before he will fall the
Price.
In our Plantations, the inferior sort of Merchants are not unlike
Sharpers in Gaming; they by a better Skill, know how to prey on the
Wants, the Weakness, and Passions of their Customers (the Planters
and Artificers) chaining them down by degrees to their Service; many
of the Inconsiderate being ruined without knowing it, till the very
Day they want Victuals.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_SUGAR-CANES._
In the Wars between _Holland_ and _Portugal_ in _Brasil_, a
_Dutch-Man_ arrived here from thence, who taught them the way of
Planting and making Sugars. They are set out between _August_ and
_December_, six Inches deep, and do not come to Maturity until one
year and a quarter: when ripe, which is known by their Colour, they
cut them up with a Bill, and send them to the Wind-mills, which
presses out the Juice so clean, the Canes by being an hour or two in
the Sun, become fit for Fuel.
The Liquor must not remain in the Cistern above a day, for fear
of souring; it is therefore by a Gutter conveyed to the Copper or
Boyler, and in the boiling, the Filth scummed off; thence it’s
conveyed into the second and third, and in the last, called the
_Tack_, is boiled to a Consistency, and turned into a Grain by
throwing in of _Temper_, which is only the Infusion of Lime and Water
made strong according to the Goodness of the Cane. Nine Pounds of
Juice makes one of Muscovado, and one of Molossus.
From hence it is carried to the cooling Cistern, till fit to put in
Pots, which have Holes at Bottom to drain off the Molossus.
Of these Molossus again, they sometimes make another worse Sugar,
called _Paneels_. Of the Scum, coarse Molossus, Washings of the
Boilers and Pots, fermented together, is made _Rum_.
To refine Sugar, is to boil it over again, and clarify with the
same Lime-Water and Eggs, reckoned better than the clayed Sugars
of this Region, made by putting a clayey Earth mixed with Water
to the thickness of a Batter upon them, and repeated three or four
times according to the degree of Whiteness design’d; both ways carry
the Treacle and Molossus downwards, but the former most esteemed,
as mixing less, and purging to better purpose. Lime refines from
Impurities, and imparts a softer Taste, experienced in throwing it
into Wells of hard Water; the best refin’d in Loaves comes back to
the Sugar-Colonies from _England_, sell at 50 or 100 _per Cent._
Advance, and are of common Use; they must be kept dry, a hot and
moist Air dissolving them.
From Molossus, Distillers make a clean Brandy, and it gives a pretty
tasted Spirit to Malt Liquors, boiled and worked in the Tun.
Besides Rum and Sugars, they have Quantities of Ginger, Aloes,
Tamarinds, Citron, Cassia, Coloquintida, Cassava, Limes, Oranges,
Guavas, Pine-Apples, Mastick, Cedar, Cotton and Palmeto Trees,
prickled Pear; but our Apples and Pears, nor any of our Shrub-Fruits,
Goose-berry or Currant, will thrive. Of the Potato they make a brisk
Small-beer, called _Mobby_.
About two or three years ago, the low Price of Sugars, that had
reduced and beggar’d the Planters, brought on a Complaint, and
Bill in Parliament in their favour. They urged, according to the
best of my Remembrance, that the northern Colonies, especially
_New-England_, being suffered to trade with the _French_ Islands, was
in a great part the Occasion of this, and a Loss to the Nation; for
they took off all the _French_ Molossus, which before they had no use
for, but sold it our Islands at very low Prices.
The _French_ therefore were helped by this Sale, to afford their
Sugars cheaper, and still more enabled by _a nearer Way of Living;
by the Customs being taken off, allowing them to go thence to any
Market, and other Encouragements_ to undersell, and take the foreign
Markets from _us_, who were clogged with all those Inconveniencies.
The _New-England_ People alledged, their Trade seemed the least
essential Article in the Injury complained of; for unless our Islands
found means to take off the other Impediments, and bring their Sugars
to as cheap, or cheaper Price than the _French_ and _Dutch_, they
would be the same in respect to foreign Markets; and if new Grounds
are better, or more wanted in Plantations, there are enough at
_Jamaica_, _St. Christopher’s_, &c. to redress the Evil. But this is
not in their View, say they; the more Lands are employed, the less
will be the Value of the present Estates, an impolitick Reduction
of all prodigal Expences; for every Island singly, reckon their
Happiness in part, not from the flourishing Condition of another, but
from Casualties, and bad Seasons; _the less quantity there is to
answer the Demand, the higher the Price_.
_Barbados_ formerly used to buy the _French_ and _Dutch_ Sugars,
making all that Trade go through their own hands, till in 1715,
laying a Duty turned the Channel, and they would now make up that
oversight by imposing their own Price on us.
The Northern Colonies deserve Favour, they think, as vastly superior
in Number and Trade, take off more of the Manufactures of _England_
for themselves, and their Trade with the _Indians_, who exchange
Furrs and Pelfry to make Hats; for the same Reason, they want more
Molossus to manufacture among themselves, than our Islands can sell,
or if they could, cannot take off one quarter of the Lumber, Horses,
and refuse Fish, with which we trade with the _French_, not only for
Rum and Molossus (which may as well come to us this way, as through
their hands) but sometimes also Money; and without which we have no
means of purchasing, nor could get rid of our Produce and Industry,
which is very unreasonable.
To lay a Tax of six-pence a Gallon on _French_ Molossus, is the same
as a Prohibition, which their Country cannot so easily bear. They
take 20000 Hogsheads a year (each 100 Gallons) from the _Dutch_ and
_French_, which is 50000_l._ whereas they have no Specie to pay it,
their Currency being all Paper, and that but 30000_l_. Besides, it
would be the first Tax on a charter’d Colony from _England_, where
they have no Representatives.
_Lastly_, it was said, the _French_ buy their Negroes, and
Sugar-Materials (Mills, Coppers, &c.) 40 _per Cent._ dearer than us;
therefore for our Islands to say they cannot afford as cheap, is
to say, they will not abate of their Pride and Luxury, but help to
maintain it by a Tax on our more humble Industry.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_The WEST-INDIES._
For a general Idea of the _West-Indies_, we may understand by that
Term, all the Continent, Sea, and Islands, from _Terra Firma_ to
_Florida_, or from near the Equinoctial to 28°° of N. Latitude; and
if you include _Bermudas_, to 32°°. The main Land in this Circuit
divided into _Spanish_ Provinces, is more peculiarly called the
_Spanish West-Indies_, they possessing all, unless to the Southward
in _Guiana_ and _Paria_, where there are a few _English_, _Dutch_,
and _French_, interspersed on the Rivers and Coast of _Oronoko_,
_Surinam_, and _Amazons_.
They import hence to _Europe_, besides Rum and Sugars, great
quantities of Cocoa, Indigo, Cotton, Logwood, Ginger, Lignum-vitæ,
Cochineel, Snuff, Cassia, Aloes, Pimento, Tortoise-shell, Dyers, and
other Wood, a Variety of Drugs, and above all, prodigious Quantities
of Plate, and some Gold.
The Islands in this Sea are the _Charibbees_, _Sotovento_,
_Antilles_, and _Bahama_.
_Charibbees_ were the lesser _Antilles_, about 30 in number, whereof
the _French_ have _Martinico_, _St. Lucia_, _Bartholomew_, _Deseada_,
_Granada_, _Marigalant_, _Guadalupe_, and _Santa Cruz_. To the
_Dutch_ belong in whole or part, _Saba_, _Eustatia_, _St. Vincent_,
and _Tobago_, or _Tobacco Island_; so called, from the Plenty of
that Weed there, or the Weed so called, as first transplanted
thence. The rest are _English_, and of them _Barbados_ is chief.
Others next of Note are _Antegoa_, _Nevis_, _St. Christopher’s_,
and _Montserrat_; which have a separate Governor, stiled General
of the Leeward Islands, their principal Produce with us, is Rum
and Sugars; but the _French_, besides these, cultivate Cocoa, and
Indigo: and as the managing of more Lands naturally gives Plenty, and
makes room for an Increase of People, the _French_ Policy of late
years has considerably increased their Colonies at _Martinico_ and
_Hispaniola_; some say 40000 settled there at the _French_ King’s
Expence, with the Addition of a year’s Maintenance, to countenance
their _Mississipi_ Settlements, and these further Views of drawing
over Men’s Affections, by affording _Europeans_ the _West-India_
Commodities, at the cheapest rate, and strengthning themselves
against the Resentment of any who dislike it.
In some are found large Caves that run half a Mile under ground,
supposed the Dwelling-places of the old Natives, who quickly forsook
them to the new Inmates; tho’ _Dampier_ says, he met some of these
_Charibbees_ at _St. Lucia_, and _St. Vincent_, and others say the
like of _Curasao_: The Name imports _Cannibals_, an Inhumanity
charged on them at the Discovery, as a proper Accusation for
Dispossessors.
_Sotovento Isles_ lie E S E. and W N W. along the _Terra Firma_,
called so because the _Spaniards_ in their Voyages to _Mexico_,
make them one after another _sub vento_ (to Leeward.) Of these, the
_Dutch_ have _Curasao_, _Oruba_, and _Berraire_. The _Spaniard_ the
others, (_La Trinidad_, and _Margarita_, chief;) from whence, and
the _Antilles_, they have of late years very much infested this
Navigation, with their _Guard le Costas_, confiscating the _English_
Effects in Reprisal, it is supposed, for the Loss of their Fleet near
_Messina_, 1718.
_The greater Antilles_ are, _Cuba_, _Hispaniola_, _Portorico_, and
_Jamaica_; the three former, _Spanish_.
_Cuba_ is principal; a very pleasant and flourishing Island, the
_Spaniard_ building and improving for Posterity, without dreaming,
as the _English_ Planters do, of any other Home. They make the best
Sugars in the _West-Indies_. It was from this Island, (_Velasquez_
Governor,) that _Cortez_ in 1518, made his Expedition and Conquest of
_Mexico_.
The _Havana_, its chief Port and Town, is esteemed the richest in
_America_; for besides its own valuable Produce, the _Spanish_
Fleets from all parts on the _Main_, make up here in their return to
_Europe_.
The Islands on the South Side of it, and the _Camaines_, are resorted
to for the largest and best _Turtle_.
_Porto-Rico_, and _Hispaniola_ (the diminutive of _Hispania_) are
Islands we make, in our Passage to _Jamaica_, famous of late for
their _Guard le Costas_. These Privateering Fellows, when they are
not acting by lawful Commission, they know the Governor’s Mind,
and bring in Ships on a pretence they are trading with the King of
_Spain_’s Subjects in a clandestine and prohibited manner; if they
find any Pieces of Eight, it is a Condemnation; an Encouragement in
searching a Ship, to deposite some there themselves: Or if this Trick
fails, they are yet detained, and on various Pretences lengthned
out with Law-suits, till ruined. We called, after weighing from
_Barbados_, at _Sancto Domingo_, the chief Town of _Hispaniola_,
where we found three _English_ Masters of Ships under these
Hardships. They had got the better in Law, but with such Charge and
Delay, that it had spoiled their Ships and Voyages; and lest that
should not do it effectually, their Damages are against the Captains
of the Privateers, who are perhaps the Governor’s servile Dependants,
and not worth a Groat.
_Sancto Domingo_ Harbour has 15 Fathom Water at the Bar, and the
Entrance defended by several Batteries. The Town is the Residence
of an Arch-Bishop, and a President from _Spain_, who lives in a
House that is said to have been built and occupied by _Christopher
Columbus_ himself. To this Officer (on account of its prior
Settlement) Appeals come from all the _Spanish West-India_ Islands,
whose Sentence is definitive, unless called by a particular
Commission to _Old Spain_. They buy their Places, it seems, and
consequently execute them oppressively.
The Island is diminished of its Inhabitants, for this, or a securer
and better Settlement on the Continent; so that the _French_ now,
about _Petit Guavas_, equal, if not outnumber them, tho’ both
together are vastly short of what its Extent and Fertility deserves.
A Soil that produces any thing; their Sea and Rivers full of Fish,
and the Country spread with Forests of Cabbage and Palm-Trees,
in which are prodigious Numbers of wild Hog and Beef, which the
_Hunters_ of different Nations at certain Seasons shoot, the latter
for their Hides; and the Pork, they _jerk_ (as they call it) that is,
strip it from the Bones, and then salting the Flesh a little, dry it
in the Sun.
_Bahamas_, so called from the Principal, or _Lucayes_ from _Lucayone_
(new _Providence_, the largest of them) where the _English_ have a
Governor: They are noted for a dangerous and rapid Chanel, commonly
called the Gulph of _Florida_, through which the _Spanish_ Fleets
always take their Passage to _Europe_, and are frequently shipwrecked.
The Pyrates often take their rise here, or if not, seldom fail in the
Course of their Adventures to visit these Seas. There are Multitudes
of little Islands and Kays, besides this Division above, that afford
Refreshments of wild Hog, Cow, Goat, Sheep, Parrots, Guanas, Turtle,
and Fish; many of them uninhabited, and seldom visited but on that
account, whereby they are a natural and good Security. The Sailor,
when he would express the Intricacy of any Path-way, stiling it the
_Caribbees_.
They commonly make their Beginning here after this manner; when any
_Spanish_ Ship is wrecked in _Florida_, the _Jamaicans_ fit out
Vessels to fish upon her, (the best I believe, being always pleas’d
with going shares in such Voyages, which may be judged of by their
Treatment of the Galleon cast away on _Jamaica_, a very few Years
ago) and dispute a Right of Plunder with the _Spaniard_ himself,
who is also fitted from the _Havana_ on these Accidents, to recover
what they can; the Contest therefore is with various Fortune, and
sometimes turns to a bad account.
Our Logwood-Cutters from _Campechy_ and _Honduras_, who have been
unfortunate by the frequent Visits of the _Spaniards_ to destroy that
Trade, remove hither, or those to them, to consult of Reparations
to their broken Fortunes. Saunterers also, who are turtling from
different Parts, do all together make a considerable Resort
sometimes, and being prompted to Revenge for the Injuries sustained,
they combine and furnish out a little Sloop perhaps _against them at
first_, who finding little come by confining their _Ways and Means_
to the _Spaniards_ only, who sail in Fleets, they fall at last on any
Nation; the Transition being easy from a Buccanier to a Pyrate; from
plundering for others, to do it for themselves.
These Logwood-Cutters, (since mentioned) I must observe, were
originally settled at the Bay of _Campechy_, but with a contested
Right that made it hazardous, the _Spaniard_ opposing the Legality,
and when uppermost, treating them as Pyrates, which our People have
frequently returned again with Interest. It was taken 1659, by Sir
_Christopher Mins_. In 1678 again, by the _English_ and _French_
Privateers; and what Licence the Peace of _Utrecht_ gave, I am
uncertain, but they are since drove out, and now support themselves
with their Arms at the Bay of _Honduras_.
They are about 500 (Merchants and Slaves,) and have taken up their
Residence at a Place called _Barcaderas_, about 40 Miles up a narrow
River full of Alligators; and what is a greater Inconvenience
against transporting their Effects, is a strong Current in it from
the Freshes up Land, and the Banks being covered with Shrubs, that
makes it difficult to walk and tow the Boats; covered also with
infinite Numbers of Sand-Flies, and Muskitos. They live in Pavilions;
a Servant at their time of lying down to rest, shaking them till
cleared of these Vermin, that are an unsufferable Plague and
Impediment to Sleep.
At the Season (once a year) they move their Pavilions from the
pleasurable Spots, the better to attend the Logwood cutting, which
carries them sometimes many Miles from this principal Residence, to
follow the Wood, which runs in a Line or Vein (like Minerals in the
Earth) of some Miles perhaps, and then as many, without a Stick of
it. They cut it into large Pieces, and leave it on the Ground till
the Land-Flood favours their bringing it into the River, and then
Canoos are laden away with it, to lay in store at _Barcaderas_, where
the Chief are still left residing.
They have all good Arms, and knowing the _Spanish_ Clemency, defend
themselves desperately, if attacked; which has happened seldomer than
at _Campechy_, and always by Sea.
A Servant, which is the first Step with Seamen into the Trade, is
hired at a Tun of Logwood _per_ Month, and has one Day in seven for
himself, making together about 10_l._ a Month to him; hence, if
thoughtful and sober, they in time become Masters, join Stock, and
trade independently. They have a King, chose from among their Body,
and his Consort is stiled Queen, agreeing to some Laws by common
Consent, as a Guide to them.
The Ships that come into the Bay, are on their Guard also, fetch it
down in flat-bottomed Boats, each Crew being allowed on the Voyage,
a Bottle of Rum and some Sugar, and row generally in the Night, as
freest from those stinging Flies, and rest in the Day.
The Exchange with Ships is for Money, Beer, Flower, or any sort of
Provisions and Necessaries; these, the cunningest reserve in Store
against the Wants and Demands of the Inconsiderate, and so make
extraordinary Returns.
It may not be improper to conclude this Head with an Observation or
two on the Channel and Current of _Florida_, which I submit to the
more Skilful.
This Gulph is as dangerous a Navigation as any known; the _Spaniards_
often experience it, because it’s an Addition to the Danger, that
they have unwieldy Ships, and lubberly Seamen. We commit Errors, I
imagine, by our common Charts, which lay down the Channel double the
Breadth it is; the most intelligent in the Passage having assured me,
it is not above 16 or 18 Leagues over; and therefore when a Storm
happens, build on a false Supposition.
The _Spaniard_ is likewise over-careful to be safe; the nicer
Observations made on Shoals, Currents, or Winds, either here or in
the Bay, when and how to make them advantageous, are from an imagined
Security against any maritime Power, committed only to their Admiral
(according to common Report) whose Light the Fleet are to follow;
and for their better Recovery of any shipwrecked Cargo in the Gulph,
(frequent in losing the Admiral,) they have a Garrison at _St.
Augustine_, on the _Florida_ Shore, a barren Spot where they are
almost starved, and which would not be worth keeping but for this.
Ships and Vessels may, and often have sailed through this Channel
from the N End to _Cuba_, or the Bay of _Mexico_, notwithstanding the
common Opinion, on account of the Current, that is against it. They
keep the _Bahama_ shore aboard, Shoals of a great Extent, sprinkled
with rocky Islands so low, there is very little Safety to those
unhappy Men who are cast away upon them; yet at several, there are
anchoring Places, and fresh Water found.
They meet the Wind in Summer, for the greatest part of the Channel,
Easterly; which with a counter Current in shore, pushes them through
easily; much the better way for any sudden Attack upon the _Havana_
(a glorious Attempt in time of War) because they cannot discover you,
like as in the other Path from _Jamaica_, where by Beacons, they can
gain an Intelligence of 150 Leagues in a very short Space of time,
and so be the better prepared.
In order to the laying down my Sentiment on the _Florida_ Current, I
shall premise the Facts and Observations of our Pilots in relation to
this Gulph, and that of _Mexico_, which have a Dependency as to the
Cause of it, with each other.
1. This Stream goes constantly out to the Northward in mid Channel,
its Force having some respect (like Tides in other Channels) to
the Moon and to the Winds; with a counter Current, or at least a
Stillness of the Water in shore, that will enable a Ship to turn
through, be the middle Stream never so strong; the same as in the
Strait of _Gibraltar_, where tho’ the Current is continually into
the _Mediterranean_, Ships may work through, keeping the Shore aboard.
2. The Current which goes out here, sets for the most part into
the Gulph of _Mexico_, between the two Capes of _Corientes_ and
_Catoche_, with counter Currents in shore; tho’ not always so, the
Pilots having observed them strong to the East, new, and full Moons.
3. As to the Bay of _Mexico_ it self, there are every where Currents
round it various and uncertain, as to the Point they run on, or time
of Continuance, especially on the _Apalachian_ Side where it is
safest stopping in the Night, and up Anchor only, in the Day. That
these Currents are less discernible the farther from shore, and for
the most part, bend to the Trend of the Lands; that is, when you have
rounded Cape _Catoche_, it sets Westward, open with _Campechy_ Bay to
the Southward: From _Vera Cruz_ in 19°° to the Latitude of 28°° it
runs to the Northward, and thence round the Bay to the Eastward; more
perceptible, I say, the nearer shore, because bounded, and makes the
Tides in the Rivers.
4. The Rivers of _Georgia_, and _Carolina_ (next Coast to _Florida_
Northward) have as regular Tides as the _Thames_. So again, in the
Bay of _Honduras_ Southward, whose Reflux, it must be taken notice,
makes a Northern Current.
Now to sum up all, in order to account for the Current of _Florida_,
which seems to me only this, that more of the Flood is propagated
into the Bay of _Mexico_, by that Passage made from the West End of
_Cuba_, and Shore of _Yucatan_; and more of the Ebb by the Chanel of
_Florida_, and for these Reasons.
The Gulph of _Mexico_ receives many and large Rivers, whose Mouths
together carry some proportion with the Chanel of _Florida_; and
consider’d as a little _Mediterranean_ Sea, the Flood in it must
have a more remarkable and strong Ebb: which shews it self rather
here, _first_, because the Make of the Lands gives a freer Opening
and Tendency of the Waters that way. _Second_, The Length and
Contraction of the Channel, makes it more visible and constant, and
is the Continuance of those River-Streams (that disembogue in the
Bay) even till it meets with the Tide to the Northward, which checks,
like as at them, and produces a counter Current along shore: for
we may observe, that altho’ the Current goes constantly out in the
Channel, yet at the Isle of _Providence_ contiguous to it almost, the
Tides are alternate and regular. _Third_, The Winds at East are more
favourable to the Exit than the _Trade_, which sets in directly at
the other Passage, and while it helps the Flood there, is at the same
time an Obstacle to its Return; to which assists also that Northern
Current from the Bay of _Honduras_; nor will it be so perceptible
there, because what Reflux is, opens to a wider Sea immediately, and
probably had been the same at _Florida_, if the Gulph of _Mexico_ had
open’d without such Restraint to the main Ocean directly.
On this Supposition, the Variety and Uncertainty of Currents in the
Bay, and the greater or less Rapidity in the Chanel, will depend much
on the Winds without; and as they are dry or wet Seasons at Land, new
and full Moons should influence the Strength of the Stream; and hard
Gales concurring at N. or N E. among the _Bahamas_, should slacken it
there, and promote an Eastern Current at the other Passage.
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_JAMAICA._
_Jamaica_, called _St. Jago_ by _Columbus_, and was altered by King
_James_ II. it being a Compound of his Name, and _Ca_ an Island.
The chief Town is called _St. Jago de la Vega_ (by the _English_,
_Spanish-Town_.) Here the Governor resides; Courts are held, and the
Assembly (chose as at _Barbados_) meet to enact Laws for the civil
Government of the Island; which consequently draws the greatest
Resort of People, on account either of Business or Pleasure.
It was built about 1590, plunder’d by some _English_ Privateers under
one _Jackson_, in 1638, and in 1657 the whole Island was reduced
by _Pen_ and _Venables_: The favourite Families of those Days,
(_Bradshaws_, _Iretons_, _Axtells_,) I believe, sharing the Estates;
so warm a Climate with Hurricanes, Earthquakes, and dry Belly-achs,
was a due Preparation. This Town of _St. Jago_ is irregular, and low
built, to secure it against Storms; even the Governor’s, or what they
call the King’s House, is but a Ground Floor, and makes one side of a
Quadrangle, with a Parade, where all Gentlemen meet to transact their
Business; the Merchants and Factors for distant Planters, and the
Officers civil and military, do together make a considerable Number,
dividing in the Evenings to Parties of Dancing, Gaming, or Drinking,
and generally to a publick House, to avoid the Obligation of Returns
and Treats, very costly in this Country.
_Kingston_, at the upper End of _Port-Royal_ Harbour, the Place of
lading and unlading almost all Ships to and from the Island; is in
my eye, preferable to the former. The Streets are wide, and more
regular, to face the Sea-Breezes, and the cross Streets at right
Angles, that the Air may have as little Interruption as possible; a
Convenience that cannot be too much meditated in so hot a Climate:
for the Land-Breezes failing betimes in the Morning, you have it
excessively hot; all Creatures languish and faint till the Sea one
succeeds, which will not be till ten a clock, sometimes eleven, or
later, and may be esteemed the Life of the Island, dispelling those
impure Vapors, continually exhaled from the Mountains, and refreshing
and rowsing the animal Nature, from Backgammon or Loitering, to
Business.
The Harbour is spacious here, and the Ships lie _Land-locked_; but
the Peninsula that covers them from the Sea being low and narrow,
they are not so safe against Storms as one would imagine.
From hence to _Spanish-Town_, when called on any Law-suit or
Business, they take Boat to _Passage-Fort_ on the other side, a small
River at the Bottom of the Harbour, where are three or four Houses
that furnish Passengers for the Journey (6 Miles) at 20_s._ a Coach,
or 5_s._ a Horse, and are rarely without Customers; the Calls in
Traffick are so frequent.
_Port-Royal_, which makes up with the former two, all the Towns
of Note on the whole Island, is on the Starboard Entrance of the
Harbour. The Road before it is reckoned good holding Ground, and
fenced from Southerly Winds, by sandy Kays without. The Town it self
stands on such a sandy Kay, not much above the Surface of the Water,
and contains no more Ground than holds the Buildings, and the Fort
contiguous with it on the outer Point; which, with a Line, or Rampart
of Guns to the Sea, (together about 100) is their chief Defence.
Under the Fort is a little Nook, or Bay, called _Chocolato Hole_,
where we have a Hulk lies for cleaning Ships.
_Port-Royal_ has suffered remarkably every ten years, for thirty
past. In 1692, an Earthquake sunk above half the Town; the Rubbish of
those Buildings being still seen under Water, in the shallow Channel
that now continues to divide it from the Main. In 1702, it was burnt
down. In 1712, _August_ 28th, happened a dreadful Hurricane. And now,
_August_ 28th, 1722, a more dreadful one, that besides the Damage
it spread over most parts of the Island, did here in particular
split the Castle, lay the Church and two thirds of the Town flat,
burying three or four hundred People in the Ruins; but the Terror and
Desolation may deserve a more particular Description.
_Forsan hæc olim meminisse juvabit._
[Illustration: (decorative flower)]
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_HURRICANES:_
The _West-Indians_ agree, that _August_ and _September_ is the Season
to expect them. They are incredible Tempests of Wind, whose Fury,
neither Ships, Masts, Trees, or Buildings can resist. They come a Day
or two before the full or new Moon next the Autumnal Equinox, and
give Warning by a preceding unusual Swell of Water. They are of no
great Extent, but blow within a Chanel as it were, one Island feeling
it, when the next (within 20 Leagues perhaps) has no Share; and are,
if not peculiar, rarely met with out of the _West-Indies_.
The Cause, as guessed at, is Plenty of elastic Vapors on the _Terra
Firma_ (whence they all blow) with which conspire at this time of
year, the united Force of the Sun and Moon, to give their Explosion a
greater Force; to this also may contribute, subterraneous Heats and
Mountains: and if such different Effluvias as constitute the Matter
of a Hurricane, can be supplied to the Chanel it blows in, _crescit
eundo_.
This Opinion seems confirmed, _first_, from the Points of the Compass
they blow on (S E. and S S E.) and never without side the Continent
at Cape _Roque_; for that Length the uninterrupted _Trade-Wind_ is
a Barrier, and from which these Storms, by the Position of Lands
and Mountains, are necessarily a Deflection. _Second_, Æquinoctial
Gales, we know, are every where observed to happen, and ascribed
to the greater Agitation of Air, by Heat in a greater Orb; when
therefore the Northern Suns have so long together been attracting,
and at the same time chopping, and opening the Earth for a freer
Emission of nitrous, sulphurous, and elastic Particles, no wonder the
conjoined Forces of the Planets there, should now and then put them
in execution.
The present Hurricane was a Week after our Arrival; began at eight in
the Morning, two Days before the Change of the Moon, gave at least 48
Hours notice, by a noisy breaking of the Waves upon the Kays, very
disproportioned to the Breeze, a continued Swell, without Reflux
of the Water; and the two Nights preceding, prodigious Lightnings
and Thunder; which all the old experienced Men foretold would be a
Hurricane; or that one already had happened at no great distance.
I was ashore at _Port-Royal_, and found all the Pilots returned from
the Windward part of the Island, (where they customarily attend the
coming down of Ships,) and observing upon the unusual Intumescence
of the Water, so great the Day before, and beat so high, that our
Boats could not possibly put on shore at _Gun Kay_ to take the Men
off that were set there, to the Number of twenty, for trimming up
our Cask; themselves making Signals not to attempt it. Betimes next
Morning, the Wind began in Flurrys at N E. and flew quickly round to
S E. and S S E. where it continued the Stress of the Storm, bringing
such Quantities of Water, that our little Island was overflowed 4
foot at least; so that what with the fierce driving of Shingles
(wooden Staves used instead of Tiling upon their Houses) about our
Ears, and the Water floating their Boats, empty Hogsheads, and Lumber
about the Streets, those without doors were every Moment in danger of
being knocked on the Head, or carried away by the Stream. Within it
was worse, for the Waters sapping the Foundations, gave continual and
just Apprehensions of the Houses falling, as in effect half of them
did, and buried their Inhabitants: Nor indeed after the Storm had
began, was it safe to open a Door, especially such as faced the Wind,
lest it should carry the Roofs off; and escaping thence, there was no
place of Retreat, we remaining in a very melancholly Scituation both
from Wind and Water. _The Perils of false Brethren was nothing to it._
It may be worth notice, what became of the Purser in this common
Danger; I was regardless at first, as suspecting more of Timidity in
the People, till finding my self left alone Proprietor of a shaking
old House, the Streets full of Water and Drift, with Shingles flying
about like Arrows; I began to meditate a little more seriously
upon my Safety, and would have compounded all my _Credit_ in the
Victualling, my Hoops, and Bags, for one Acre (as _Gonzalo_ says in
the _Tempest_) _of barren Ground, long Heath, or brown Furze_, to
have trod dry upon.
Our Neighbours had retreated towards the Church, as the strongest
Building, and highest Ground, which I was luckily too late to
recover; but endeavouring to stem upwards for a safer Station, was
taken into a House in the lower Street, with an old Woman wading in
the same manner from her ruined Habitation.
We were no sooner in, but new Fears of this also falling, thrust us
into the Yard (the Water then at eleven a clock, breast high) where
we helped one another upon a low Brick-built Out-house, that being
more out of the Wind, and surrounded with others, kept the Waters
still. The unhappiness of those who suffered in stronger, was their
facing the Wind, which brought the Sea upon them with violence. A
Platform of one and twenty Guns and Mortars were drove some of them
to the Market-place; the two Lines of Houses next the Sea, with
the Church, were undermined and levelled with the Torrent, and in
their ruin was our Safety; for altho’ we had a greater Depth, they
were by such a Bank made motionless. The whole Rise of the Water was
computed at 16 or 18 foot, very admirable at a Place where it is not
ordinarily observed to flow above one or two.
At 5 in the Evening the Waters abated, and with so quick a Retreat as
to leave the Streets dry before 6; when every one was congratulating
his own Safety in Condolancies upon the Loss of their Friends. Of 50
Sail in this Harbour, only 4 Men-of-War and 2 Merchant-Ships rid it
out, but with all their Masts and Booms blown away. All the Men we
left at _Gun Kay_ were washed off and perished, except one _Indian_
that drove into Harbour upon a broken Gallows that had been there
erected. Wrecks, and drowned Men were every where seen along shore;
general Complaints of Loss at Land (least at _St. Jago_) which made
it a melancholy Scene, and to finish the Misfortune, the Slackness of
the Sea-Breezes, Calms, and Lightning, stagnating Waters, Broods of
Insects thence, and a Shock or two of Earthquake that succeeded to
the Hurricane, combined to spread a baneful Influence, and brought
on a contagious Distemper, fatal for some Months through the Island.
There being no Volcanos, the Earthquakes felt here are always after
great Rains, on a parched Earth that admits their Penetration; and
possibly nigher the Coast, as at _Port-Royal_, may be from the Sea
in a long Process of time undermining in some manner a loose Earth,
or finding in its deep Recesses new Caverns; or subterranean Heats
working towards them, the dreadful Contest shocks.
In _December_ following, for we were detained some Months in the
Repair of Damages received, another or two Shocks were felt; and
at the End of the Month, as their proper Season, came on what they
call _fiery Breezes_, strong Gales from Sea, that hold out often
against the _Land-Breezes_, six or seven Days together; they are
pre-signified by a hazy Horizon, and portentous of a wholesome Season.
_Norths_, are counter to these; they blow at uncertain Periods,
strong and cool from the Mountains; the People shut their Doors,
and button up close against it, and the Impurities the Air has been
experienced to be loaded with from that Quarter. We had one of these
Gales the latter End of _September_, and two Days after, quick
Shocks of Thunder and Lightning, which split a Sloop’s Mast, and the
_Flag-Staff_ at the Castle in pieces.
On _Christmas-Day_ we had a Meteor in this Horizon, that appeared to
be a Ball of Fire, trailed along to a quarter of the Compass, from N
N E. dropping Balls in the Track, that were suddenly extinguished.
The same I believe we call Falling-Stars, unless larger, and a more
transverse Descent. Astronomers suppose them sulphurous Bodies, set
on fire by the Sun, tho’ eclipsed till he is set.
To Return to the Island: The _English_ Gentlemen are preferable to
the Women; for the most part, of a genteel Education, and emulous in
a Magnificence of Living, but true Republicans in the Disposition; a
Stranger unconcerned in Business, very difficultly tasting any other
Hospitality than his Landlady’s.
_Bitts_ of 7½_d_
Dinner 5
A Bottle of Small-Beer 1
A Bottle of Ale 4
Coffee _per_ Dish 1
A Quart of Rum Punch 4
Lodging _per_ Night 8
Ordinaries are filled with a Mixture of Land and Seafaring People,
who have three or four sorts of Cookery at Dinner, and each a
Pint of _Madeira_, with a Desart of Guavas, and other insipid or
ill-tasted Fruit. One of our Dishes is frequently _Turtle_, much
esteemed in this part of the World, and are supplied to the Market
here by Sloops, and sold at a _Bitt_ a Pound, like other Flesh; now
also increased to a tolerable Plenty, by the Planters having set
apart Servants, Pens, and Pasture-Grounds, for rearing up all kinds
of Domestick Animals, in which of late Years they have found their
account; our Ships Companies being victualled here twice a Week with
fresh Beef, during a stay of 6 Months; and an Hospital on shore
provided with lighter Food.
_Bartering_ is the easiest way of Living on shore; or rather, no Man
can live long without it: _Madeira_ Wines, refined Sugars, Linnens,
and Necessaries of almost all kinds, selling from 100_l._ to 150
_per Cent._ Advance. Their Rum to you, 3 _Bitts_ _per_ Gallon;
Sugars, from 4 to 7 _Dollars_ a hundred, both superior to _Barbados_.
Other Commodities are Ginger, Piemento, Cocoa, Indigo, Cotton,
Tortoise-shell, Dyers Wood, Cedar, Mohogany, and Manchineel-woods,
and allow 35 _per Cent._ Advance on Money.
The _Cræoles_ (those born here) which are properly the Natives of the
Island, the ancient ones being all extirpated, or fled the Cruelty
of the _Spaniard_, before our Possession, are a spurious Race; the
first Change by a Black and White, they call _Mulatto_; the second a
_Mustee_, and the third a _Castee_; the Faces, like a Coat of Arms,
discovering their Distinction. They are half _Negrish_ in their
Manners, proceeding from the promiscuous and confined Conversation
with their Relations, the Servants at the Plantations, and have a
Language equally pleasant, a kind of Gypsy Gibberish, that runs
smoothest in Swearing.
The _English_ Subjects are computed at 7 or 8000, the _Negroes_ at
80000; a Disproportion, that together with the Severity of their
Patrons, renders the whole Colony unsafe; many hundreds of them have
at different times run to the Mountains, where they associate and
commit little Robberies upon the defenceless and nearest Plantations;
and which I imagine they would not have done, but for the Cruelty
of their Usage, because they subsist very hard and with Danger, by
reason of Parties continually sending out by the Government against
them, who have 5_l._ a Head for every one killed, and their Ears are
a sufficient Warrant, for the next Justice to pay it; if the _Negro_
be brought in a Prisoner, he is tormented and burnt alive. Our latest
Advices from _Jamaica_ concerning them is, that they have chose a
King, daily increase, have some inaccessible Places of Retreat, and
are suspected of being encouraged and supplied with Powder and Arms
from _Cuba_.
The natural Remedy against this Evil, is an Increase of Hands. They
have large Savannahs both on the North and South Sides, supposed
formerly to have been Fields of _Indian_ Wheat, that afford good
Pasturage, and breed up a great number of Cattle with a great
Waste of Land, still left capable of large Improvements into
Sugar Plantations or Tillage; but here lies the Objection to any
further Encouragement. If the present Proprietors can export 11000
Hogsheads of Sugar annually, and the Price with that number is kept
low at Market, whoever contributes towards making 11000 more, is
depreciating his own Estate, lending a Hand to ruin himself. Tillage
and Grazing, tho’ not employing the Land to 1/10 Part its Value in
such Colonies, would yet interfere with the present Interest also,
by lowering the Price of Provisions; wherefore the Security from
such Augmentation of People (the Merchants being Judges) give place
to Profit, a Neglect that must be reaped in the End, by Undertakers
of more generous Sentiments. This convinces me, that altho’ Trade
be Wealth and Power to a Nation, yet if it cannot be put under
Restrictions, controlled by a superior and disinterested Power,
that Excess and Irregularity will be an Oppression to many, and
counter-balance the publick Advantages by increasing the Difficulties
of Subsistence, and with it, Men’s Dissaffection.
Here is a distant Evil; the Cure of which lies in an Expence that no
body likes; nor for such Dislike will ever blame himself in time of
Danger. The Merchant and Planter think, if less Sugars were made,
it would be better, provided (every one means) the bad Crop do not
happen upon their own Plantations, and this for the same Reason, the
_Dutch_ and other Companies burn their Spice, _India_ Goods, Tobacco,
_&c._ _viz._ _to keep up a Price_; for rendering things common or
cheap, or assisting towards the same Liberty, would border too much
on the christian Precepts.
The Sloop-Trade hence to the _Spanish West-Indies_, under the
Protection of our Men-of-War, has been reckoned at 200000_l._ _per
Ann._ In 1702, Orders came to the Governor to hinder it, on account
of a Treaty between us and the _Dutch_ for that purpose, who have
since gone into it themselves from _Curisao_; and in 1716, a yet
greater Obstruction was put, by the peculiar Privileges of the
_Assiento_ Factors; however, they continue on, and complain of no
other Illegalities, than the _Spanish_ Seizures, of late years very
frequent, and together with the Decay of this Branch of Trade, their
Want of _Spanish_ Wrecks, Privateering, and Fall of Sugars, makes the
Island not so flourishing as in times past.
Sir _Nicholas Laws_ a _Cræole_, gives way as Governor, to the Duke
of _Portland_, who arrived in that Quality (with his Dutchess and
Family) about the middle of _January_ this Year. He had put in to
_Barbadoes_ in the Passage, and met a generous Reception.
Here they have doubled the Salary, a Compliment to his Nobility, and
that too little, it’s said, for his splendid and magnificent way of
Living. His Table singly, has already rise the Price of Fowls, from 4
to 6 _Bitts_.
The _Jamaica_ Chronology.
_A. D._
_Columbus_ discovered the Island _May_ 3d. 1494
Sir _Anth. Shirley_ routed the Spaniard 1596
_Pen_ and _Venables_ did the same 1655
Geo. _Fortescue Sedwick Doyley_ 1660
Ld. _Windsor_, Governor 1662
Sir _Charles Littleton_ 1663
Sir _Thomas Muddiford_ 1664
Col. _Thomas Linch_, President 1671
Lord _Vaughan_, Governor 1675
E. of _Carlisle_ 1679
Sir _Henry Morgan_ 1680
Sir _Thomas Linch_ 1682
_Hender Molesworth_ 1684
D. of _Albemarle_ 1687
Sir _Francis Watson_, President 1688
E. of _Inchiquin_, Governor 1690
Earthquake _June_ 7th 1692
_John White_, President 1692
Col. _John Bowden_ 1692
Sir _William Beeston_, Governor 1693
_French_ landed at _Withy-Wood_ 1694
_William Selwin_, Governor 1702
Col. _Peter Beckford_, President 1703
Col. _Tho. Handaside_, Governor 1704
Ld. _Archibald Hamilton_ 1711
A Hurricane, _August_ 28th 1712
_Peter Haywood_, Governor 1716
Sir _Nicholas Laws_ 1718
A Hurricane _August_ 28th 1722
D. of _Portland_, Governor 1722
The _Pelican_ is a great Curiosity among their Birds, as the
_Alligator_ in their watry Tribe; it is a common Water-Fowl, that is
all day picking up his Living at Sea, and roosts at Night on high
Rocks and Clifts, sitting with his Head to the Wind; his Body when
skinned, is as large as an ordinary Goose, the Wings will extend to
7 or 8 feet, a short Tail, the Bill 14 Inches long, very hard, and
increasing broader towards the End, where it crooks like a Parrot’s;
their Necks are a foot and half, with a bay-colour’d Hair instead of
Feathers on the back side of them, and from about half way there are
membranous Bags or Pouches, which stretch thence to the Extremities
of their under Bills, capable, when separated, of holding a couple of
Pounds of Tobacco: in these they reserve their Prey when gorged with
eating, and in these they are said to transport their young ones,
when Danger or Instinct prompts them to change Places. They appear
slow and heavy Birds flying, but have a piercing Sight to discern
their Prey (the little fishy Fry below) from a considerable Height in
Air, whence they fall like a Stone, and catch, or dive after them.
We killed three or four, and in opening their Bodies, met the same
Observations, _viz._
1. They had double Ventricles, that together reached the length of
their Bodies; to the Bottom of which, were connected the Small-Guts,
about twice as thick as a Goose-quill.
2. In the first Ventricle or Craw, the Fish they had swallowed (70,
80, or 100) the Bigness of smaller Sprats, lay whole and unaltered.
3. In the lower Ventricle, those little Fish changing to a paler
Colour, were nigh the _Fund_ of it mashed and macerated, and (what
was principally meant by reciting any Observations) here also
the Mass or Pulp _had an intimate Mixture of numbers of slender,
lively Worms in it_; which to me, was a Matter of Speculation, for
finding no such Insects in the small Fish above, which I suspected
at first might have been their Prey, I concluded it here to be the
common Accident of Concoction, a certain Consequence of Heat and
Putrefaction, which are conquered by farther Digestion, and pass into
insensibility again; for the Small-guts, after a little Distance from
the Stomach, had none, or rather made part of a yellow, chylous
Substance.
_Quære?_ whether other, or all Creatures have not such a Principle
of Concoction, more or less discernible in some, than others, there;
tho’ imperceptible, and differently shaped and coloured, as is the
Nature of the Food swallowed, and the Strength and Heat of the
Animal swallowing. _Vercellonius_ supposes the _Thyroide Gland_ in
Man, to be a little _Nidus_ of verminous Eggs, generated there, and
transmitted through subtle Ducts to the _Oesophagus_ and Stomach, to
impart a vital Character to the Chyle.
I should have proceeded here to some other natural Curiosities, but
omit it, as being already more accurately done by Sir _Hans_ _Sloan_,
in 2 Vol. _4to_.
The _Weymouth_ and _Swallow_ having now fixed their Jury-masts, and
finished their Repairs, weighed from _Port-Royal_ on _New-year’s
Day_, anchoring out at the _Kays_, where we stayed till the 7th of
_February_, and then left the Island.
There are two Passages used for returning hence to _Europe_; heavy
Sailers, and Fleets, use the Gulph of _Florida_, because assisted by
a constant Current to the Northward, (already spoke to;) lighter, and
well-manned Ships, that called the _Windward Passage_; _First_, as
the safest and shortest Navigation, all the Difficulty being, plying
to the East End of _Jamaica_; for which, _Secondly_, there succeeds
generally a Windward Current, on new or full Moons; or a Course of
fiery Breezes, bringing in a fuller Sea, and therefore the Reflux
more perceptible. _Thirdly_, keeping nigh shore, the Land-breezes
sometimes favour the Design.
We chose this way in our Return home, and with half Masts worked to
Windward of _Port Morant_, in six or seven Days, a Distance of 12
Leagues, where the Passage is in a manner gained, because the _Lee_
of _Hispaniola_ makes a smooth Water, and deflects the _Trade-Wind_
often, in Flaws to advantage. We indeed met Calms for three or four
Days, but on the 17th, got sight of the little Island _Navasia_,
which the _Jamaicans_ use in Boats, to kill _Guanas_, an amphibious
Creature that breed in abundance at the Roots of old Trees, some of
them 3 foot long, a _Lizard_ Shape, with sharp, black, and green
Scales; the Flesh firm, white, and as Sailors say, makes good Broth.
The same Evening we anchored in _Donna Maria_ Bay, at the West End of
_Hispaniola_, the usual Stop, especially of the King’s Ships in those
Parts, for Wood and Water: We filled our Cask at a Valley, a Mile
Southward of the two _brown Clifts_, very good Water, but on some
Winds the Sea gets over the Bar. There are two other Places used,
nigher those _Clifts_, and not so easily overflown. Here we bought
some jerked Hog’s Flesh from two or three _French_ Hunters, belonging
to _Petit Guavas_.
At leaving the Bay, a strong S W. Wind soon set us between the Capes
_St. Nicholas_ and _Maize_; when we came into small Winds, and a
Current in our favour, the old _Bahama Strait_, and Islands dispers’d
here, showing _this_ wherever they contract the Waters, and lessens
again, as we open to a larger Sea.
The 26th, nigh the Island of _Heneago_, recovered the true
_Trade-Wind_, E. half N. The 28th, saw the Rocks called _Hogstys_
by our Observations in 21°° 38 something farther to the Northward
than they are set down in the Charts. At Noon, came round _Aclin’s
Kays_ (pretty high out of the Water) and before Night, made _Crooked_
or _Well-Island_. The last, and from which we took our Departure,
was _Watlin’s Kay_, 24°° N. where we may farther remark, that the
_Trade-Wind_ continued with us to the Latitude of 32°° but faint
and weak, from 27°°; caused, I presume, from the Contest between
the Variable and that, as I have already guessed the N E. and S E.
_Trade_ does in other Places.
From 26 to 37°° Degrees of Latitude, (as far N. as _Virginia_) we
found every Day large Quantities of what they call _Gulph-weed_,
floating about the Ship, and lessening in proportion to the Distance;
it is so called, from a Conviction of its being thrown from the
Shoals of _Florida_; and by being found three or four hundred Leagues
N E. a-trend with the Continent, argues I think, a Continuance (tho’
insensible) of some Current, or that it is longer, or more to the
Northward than Southward in those Latitudes; and contrarily, in
higher North Latitudes the Seas nigh the Continent have a Tendency
Southward, demonstrated in those Islands of Ice, that drive all
Summer from the North West, along the Coast of _Newfoundland_, even
as far as _New-England_.
To the Northward of _Bermudas_, the Winds grew variable, and as we
advanced, stronger; A never-failing Gale (N W. to S W.) blowing from
the _American_ Coast at this Length and onward, to 60°° of Latitude,
and tho’ not invariable like the _Trade_, yet a Constancy of ¾ or
4/5 of the year, shews it on the same Principle with them; Ours was
a very hard Gale at N W. which put us to a reefed Fore-sail for a
Fortnight, so great a Sea following, that we could not help dipping
it up by Tuns sometimes at our Stern. We arrived in _England_,
_April_, 1723.
_FINIS._
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
AN ABSTRACT Of the foregoing VOYAGE.
_A. Anchored, or arrived at._
_W. Weighed, or went from._
[Sidenote: 1720/1]
[Sidenote: _Feb. 5th_.]
_W._ From _Spithead_, about the same time with Commadore
_Matthews_, who commanded a Squadron of 4 Sail to _India_, on the
like Service; _the Suppression of Pyrates_.
[Sidenote: _Mar. 10._]
_A._ At _Madeira_. In our Approach to the Island (for 30 or 40
Leagues) met abundance of Sea-weed floating; here also we overtook
Commadore _Matthews_; two of his Squadron by hard Gales of Wind,
had damaged their Masts, and left him at Sea.
[Sidenote: _Mar. 18._]
_W._ _Thence_; and presently at Sea, found the _Trade-Wind fresh_.
[Sidenote: _27._]
We made the Cape _De Verd_ Islands, and on the 30th, parted with
the _Weymouth_, bound in with the Governor and Factors for _Gambia_
River. Meeting after this, Calms, or small Breezes, (common near
this Land) we took up several _Turtle_, who love sleeping on a
smooth Surface.
[Sidenote: 1721.]
[Sidenote: _April 7._]
_A._ At _Sierraleon_, the next noted River and Factory from
_Gambia_; and on the 18th, visited _Seignior Joseph_, a generous
and good-natur’d christian _Negro_, who had lately removed his
People some Miles up the River. With his old Buildings wooded our
Ship.
[Sidenote: _28._]
_W._ _Sierraleon_. The Winds 2 or 3 Points within the Land, always
favourable for sailing to the Westward, which is therefore called
_down the Coast_.
[Sidenote: _May 10._]
_A._ Off the Mouth of _Sesthos_ River; a Bar before it, but
commodious enough for watering. Here may be purchased considerable
Quantities of Rice; the River abounds with Fish; and you are
tolerably supplied with Goats and Fowls, or you imagine so from the
great Scarcity that appears at most other Places, from _Sierraleon_
to _Whydah_.
[Sidenote: _May 18._]
_W._ _Thence_, and sailed several Days along the Coast, low like
_Holland_, anchoring now and then. The 30th, came before _Bassam_
or _Bassau_. The 31st, before Assinee, passing by that unfathomable
Place called the _Bottomless Pit_[38]; the Natives every where
appearing shy of Correspondence, until we came upon the Gold Coast.
[Sidenote: _June 2._]
_A._ _Cape Appollonia_, the Land grows higher here, and the Natives
more alert and prompt at Trade.
[Sidenote: _6._]
_A._ _Axim_, the first _European_ Factory, belonging to the _Dutch_.
[Sidenote: _7._]
_A._ Cape _Tres Puntas_; the Fort formerly was the
_Brandenburghers_, who deserting it, it’s now in the possession
of a _Negro_, called _John Conny_. Ships constantly stop here
to water, as the most convenient Place for taking in any large
Quantity, and pay, each Ship, an Ounce of Gold for the Privilege.
[Sidenote: _14._]
_W._ _Thence_, and anchored the 15th at _Dixcove_, an _English_
Factory. This, _Succonda_, _Anamaboo_, and others, tho’ called
Factories, are the Residence only of two or three People from the
principal one at Cape _Corso_, who have Commission over and above
their Salary, for what Trade they transact.
[Sidenote: _16._]
_W._ _Dixcove_, and anchored next Day before _Cape Corso Castle_,
our _African_ Company’s chief Fort; the Residence of their
Governor, stiled _Director General_; two Merchants, a Secretary,
Chaplain, Surgeon, Factors, Writers, Artificers, and a Company of
Soldiers; with Buildings and Conveniencies inside, for themselves
or Slaves.
[Sidenote: _June 26._]
_A._ _Anamaboo_ (just below it) a noted Place of stopping, for all
our Windward trading Ships, to compleat their Slave Cargoes.
[Sidenote: _28._]
_A._ and _W._ _Montford_; the 30th, _Barkee_, and then _Shallo_.
Through the whole from _Sierraleon_, it may be observed, that
Wood, Candles, or any other Ships Necessaries are hard to get; the
former, not from a Want in the Country (it being over-run) but
an impassable Beach, where there is no navigable River, and the
Diffidence of the _Negroes_, where it might be best supplied; and
the other, because Merchant-Ships do not expect a Trade of that
sort, and therefore unprovided.
[Sidenote: _July 4._]
_A._ _Whydah._ The whole Coast runs in a strait Line (without
Gulphs or Bays) is thick set with Trees, a Tendency of the Sea with
the Wind, and every where a very rough and turbulent Beach.
[Sidenote: _20._]
_W._ _Whydah_, and arrived the 28th at the Island of _Princes_,
belonging to the _Portuguese_. In our Approach, saw every Day
abundance of Whale, Thresher, and Petrel.——Cleaned our Ships,
heaving down by one another, but became exceeding sickly by the
Fatigue, each burying three and four Men a Day, for six Weeks
together.
[Sidenote: _Sep. 20._]
_W_ _Princes_, both having purchased their Anchors with difficulty.
[Sidenote: _28._]
_A_ _St. Thomas’s_, another _Portuguese_ Island (the principal of
three) on this Coast, abounding with fresh Provisions, especially
Hogs and Fowls, exchanged like other Places of Poverty, at very
easy Rates.
[Sidenote: _Oct. 5._]
_W_ _Hence_, and stretched with our Starboard Tacks to the
Westward, designing to reach as far to Windward as possible, that
if any Pyrates should be on the Coast, we might have them under our
Lee. The 20th we fell in with _Cape Apollonia_, went from thence
the 23d, and anchored at _Axim_.
[Sidenote: _24._]
_W_ _Axim_, and came to Cape _3 Points_, where neglecting to pay
_John Conny_ his Duties for Water, he _panyarr’d_ some of our Men,
till satisfied.
[Sidenote: _30._]
Left Cape _3 Points_, and arrived next Day in Cape _Corso_ Road
again; it being every where confirmed to us in this Return down, that
the Pyrates in _August_ last (the time we were at _Princes_) had
committed great Ravages upon the Merchant Ships.
[Sidenote: _Nov. 10._]
_W._ Cape _Corso_ Road, leaving the _Weymouth_, (now too disabled
to weigh her Anchor,) and plying to Windward, fell in with
_Succonda_ the 15th, repeating our Visits in a Month’s Cruise, to
_Dixcove, cquedah_, Cape _3 Points_, _Axim_, Cape _Apollonia_,
_Assinee_, _Bassam_, _Jaque a Jaques_, &c. our Purpose in it being
to secure Trade, air a sickly Ship, be in the way of Intelligence,
and impress Men from the Merchant-Ships. Many prevented this
indeed, by escaping to us themselves from ill Treatment (they said)
bad or short Diet; but then, as more again on the same Pretence
took on with the Pyrates, it shews Caprice and Humour to be the
principal Point that determines Seamen to this or that Service.
[Sidenote: 1721/2]
[Sidenote: _Jan. 6._]
_A_ _De Elmina_, the _Dutch African_ Company’s principal Fort, of
great Trade, there being seldom less than 5 or 6 Sail of _Dutch_
Ships in the Road, often more.
[Sidenote: _7._]
_A._ Cape _Corso_ Road, and left it the 10th in pursuit of the
Pyrates; the Governor here, having received two or three Expresses,
that they had chased and taken a Ship nigh _Axim_, a Place we had
just come from.
[Sidenote: _11._]
_A_ _Apong_ to Leeward, not following too fast lest we over-shot
them, but after certain Intelligence that the Rogues had passed
this Road (off at Sea) we followed.
[Sidenote: _12._]
_A_ _Accra_, a considerable trading Place, (for Salt particularly)
and where the _Dane_, the _Dutch_, and _English_, have a Castle.
[Sidenote: _Jan 15._]
_A_ _Whydah_, and learned that the Pyrates had plundered and
ransomed 11 Sail of Ships, and left the Place two Days before, on
the Report of our following them.
[Sidenote: _19._]
_W._ Thence, and followed the Pursuit, coming before the Isle of
_Princes_ the 29th, and found the _Portuguese_ Strangers to the
News.
[Sidenote: _Feb. 1._]
_A._ The Mouth of the River _Gabone_, a snug Harbor we thought, for
their Reception, the Navigation being difficult; but finding by our
Boats we had missed them, left it the 3d, and continued our Search
to Cape _Lopez_.
Made the Cape, and soon after discovered the three Pyrate Ships at
Anchor in that Bay. One of them upon the _Heel_, righted at sight
of us, slipped her Cable and chased, bending some of her Sails as
she came out, by which we judged the Rashness of our Enemy, who
fell a Prize to us before Night.
[Sidenote: _10._]
Recovered the Cape again, and found the Prize’s Consorts (according
to expectation) very easy in the Bay, and stayed so long that we
doubted whether they would stir for us; but at length, as their
Eyes cleared in our nearer Advance, all mad and frightned, they cut
their Cable, set their Sails, up went the black Flag, and down
their Courage; they continued a running Fight, while only our chace
Guns could play upon them, and struck presently when our Broadside
reached, without the least Damage done to us.
[Sidenote: _Feb. 12._]
_A._ Cape _Lopez Bay_, seizing there the third Pyrate Ship, that
had been deserted for a better Escape or Defence in the other.
[Sidenote: _18._]
_W._ Thence, having wooded and watered, bound with our Prizes and
Prisoners to Cape _Corso_; the General, and chief Merchants there,
being in the Commission, (brought out of _England_ with us) for the
Tryal of them. Stopped at _Princes_, from the 21st to the 24th.
[Sidenote: _Mar. 15._]
_A._ Cape _Corso_ Road; the Pyrates in this Passage were very
troublesome to us, from a Project or two they had formed for their
Deliverance, and hoped by the Weakness of our Ship’s Company, would
have succeeded.
[Sidenote: 1722]
[Sidenote: _May 1._]
_W._ Cape _Corso_, the General’s Daughter of the Coast taking a
Passage with us to _England_, a fair, flaxen-hair’d, young Lady,
tho’ born of a _Mulatto_.
I shall here observe at leaving the _Center_, that in respect to
Trade, _Guinea_ needs only this threefold Division, _viz._ the
_Gold_, the _Ivory_, and the _Slave-Coast_; all to Windward of
this, might be called the one, and all to Leeward the other; not
because either of these Parts of Trade would be entirely wanted
in such respective Division, but each abounds more under that
Denomination.
[Sidenote: _May 3._]
_A_ _Whydah_, and left it the 5th, arriving at Cape _Lopez_ the
26th, where both Ships wooded, watered, and purchased Wax for
making Candles, now exceeding scarce; and is the most convenient
Place for Ships of War, at leaving the Country.
[Sidenote: _June 5._]
_W._ Cape _Lopez_, and after a few Days at Sea, by foggy Weather
lost Company with our Consort the _Swallow_.
[Sidenote: _July 1._]
Made Cape _Augustine_ in _Brasil_, a _Portuguese_ Colony, and
anchored the 4th in _Pernambuca_ Road, the next great Port of Trade
in this Province, to _Bahia_.
[Sidenote: _12._]
_W_ _Brasil_, having found the _Trade-Winds_ blow home, and
increased in their Strength to this Continent, bringing a dangerous
Swell into the Road.
[Sidenote: _August 3._]
_A_ _Barbados_, took in a Supply of Rum and Provisions, and left it
the 9th.
[Sidenote: _23._]
_A_ _Port-Royal_ in _Jamaica_, where we found the _Swallow_ had
arrived, a Week before.
[Sidenote: _Aug. 28._]
A _Hurricane_[39] that drove the _Prize_ ashore, blew away all our
Masts, with other Damages that detained us here 6 Months to repair.
[Sidenote: 1722/3]
[Sidenote: _Jan. 1._]
_W_ _Port-Royal_, and anchored at the _Kays_.
[Sidenote: _Feb. 7._]
_W._ The _Kays_, bound for _England_.
[Sidenote: _19._]
_A_ _Donna Maria Bay_ in _Hispaniola_ (the Windward Passage) to
water, _&c._
[Sidenote: _22._]
_W._ Thence, and arrived at _Spithead, April 8th_, whence we were
ordered to _Woolwich_, and paid off _May_ 11th, 1723.
_FINIS._
[Illustration: (decorative banner)]
_ERRATA._
P. line
32 19 for to r. too.
67 22 for he r. they.
72 27 After r. Aft.
75 24 and will be paid not only _&c._
115 4 Ch. x.
115 5 Ezion
125 16 r. some other Parts.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Put metaphorically for a Ship’s Cockpit; and answers to the dark
Cellaring of a House.
[2] At the Changes of the Moon appears a Pillar of Fire in the
North, which darting its Rays every way, moves from Place to Place,
enlightning not only _Greenland_, but _Iceland_ and _Norway_; and
sometimes further, till the returning Sun obscures it. (_Harris_, p.
635. Vol. II.)
[3] _Finis Terræ_, the Westermost Extremity of _Europe_, and formerly
thought a _Ne plus ultra_.
[4]
Sold 2 half-worn Suits for a Pipe of Wine.
3 Second-hand Wigs —— —— Ditto.
Loaf-Sugar sells 20_d._ _per_ lib.
Cheshire-Cheese, 8.
Bisket, 2.
Beef _per_ piece 10.
Bought Citron at 15_d._
Lemons _per C._ 20.
[5] Vide _Harris_’s Voyages.
[6] Ten-pounders are like Mullets, but full of small Bones, like
Herring-bones.
[7] Old-wives; a scaly, flat Fish, half as thick as long, called so
from some Resemblance the Face is fancied to have, with that of a
Nun’s.
[8] Cavalloes; a bright, silver-colour’d Fish, with a prickly Ridge
on each side, half its length.
[9] Barricudoes; a well-tasted Fish, one Foot and an half long, not
wholesome if the Roof of the Mouth be black.
[10] Sucking-Fish; something like the Dog-Fish; underneath he has
an oval Flat, of three Inches and an half over, granulated like a
Nutmeg-grater; with this he sticks so fast, as difficultly to be torn
from the Deck. He often infests the Shirk, sticks fast, and sucks his
Nourishment from him.
[11] Cat-Fish, so called from four slender Fibres like Whiskers,
sprouting from the under part of his Mouth.
[12] Lollas, are Places cleared of Wood, but barren; the Habitations
only of Bug a bugs, the Species of an Ant; build not above a Foot
and half high; are whitish, smaller than the common sort, sting, and
devour Cloaths.
[13] Lugars; open, clear Places, sowed with Rice, _&c._
[14] _Plantanes_ and _Bananoes_ are a very common Fruit, shaped like
Cucumbers, but slender and longer; peeled of their Coat, they are
roasted and eat as Bread, fried, or eaten raw. The latter is the
juicier, and of a preferable Taste. The Plant bearing them grows as
high as a Cherry-tree, with a Leaf three Yards long, and one over; an
admirable Detergent in foul, sanious Ulcers, stripped of the inner
Skin, and applied as you do Housleek in Corns.
[15] The Pine-Apple is their Prince of Fruits; does not grow so high,
but about the Bigness of a Pæony; a beautiful green and yellow; firm
and juicy as a Melon; eaten with Wine and Sugar. Some of strong
Fancy, imagine all sorts of Fruit to be tasted in it; to me, it
always left a stinging abstergent Flavour.
[16] Lime-trees, about as big as our _Apple_, arise by several Roots,
and have an oval Leaf; the Fruit smaller, but of sharper Scent and
Flavour than Lemons. In the Woods also are many _Sevil_-Orange Trees,
the Fruit largest and best tasted of any I ever met.
[17] Papais, the Size of a moderate _Melon_, green as that, and full
of Seeds, which thrown out, and the outside pared, is used with Meat,
buttered and salted. They grow 20 or 30 Foot high. _Bosman_ says,
Male and Female (the _Alcoran_, that all Fruits grow so, p. 213.) the
Male blossoming, but bearing no Fruit.
[18] Rice is sown in swampy Grounds; grows the height of our Wheat,
and from the top of the Stems shoot very slender Stalks, bearing the
Rice grained one above another to a vast Increase; a Peck yielding
above 40 Bushels: Yet such is their Idleness, there is often a
Deficiency supplied from _Sherbro_, &c.
[19] The _Civet_ is about as large as a Ram Cat, comes from about
_Sherbro_; it’s Head like a Foxes. The Male only affords this, at the
rate of 3 or 4 Grains a day, gathered with a Quill out of a little
Cod or Hole, near the Intestin. rectum.
[20] General _Phips_ at Cape _Corso_, was so nettled at this (he
receiving but 19 for 21) that it took his Stomach off Victuals two or
three Days.
For as in Fight the Gun or Drum
Will make the Warriour’s Stomach come;
So eke in Play; if two miss Fire,
The Stomach palls with wax’ning Ire.
[21] The Word _Fetish_ is used in a double Signification among the
_Negroes_: It is applied to Dress and Ornament, and to something
reverenced as a Deity (a Lake, a Stone, a Tree, _&c._) both so far
agree, as to be regarded as a Charm. That by a Peculiarity, and this
by some inherent Essence, can _attract Good, or divert Evil_. Here
they sometimes hide the _Fetish_ in secret parts of the Woods; on
urgent Occasions make a sort of Appeal to them, separating some the
_Friday_, some the _Saturday_, and keep within doors the whole day,
in a Moaning, or what you may call a Devotion to it.
[22] Salaries 80_l._ _per Ann._
[23] Boiled by the Negroes to the bigness of half-penny Rolls, and an
Accy purchases nine a day of them for a Month. The _English_ bake it.
A lean Goat you may get by chance for five Accys; a _Muscovy_ Duck, a
Parrot, or couple of Chickens, for one.
[24] _Miscell. Curiosa._ Vol. iii. has a Journal of the Weather at
Cape _Corso_ for 12 Months, from Mr. _Hillier_, who says, that was a
Year of the most Rain that could be remembred.
[25] _Tittwees_, like a large Wolf or Mastive, very fierce, and rob
their Towns in the Night, of what Kid or Poultry they find.
_Tigers_, not so adventurous, but are seen by them sometimes: There
are two now in the Castle.
_Serpents._ I have heard the Gentlemen of the Factory say, they have
been seen here 30 foot long, able to swallow a Child whole; (_Bosman_
says, a Man, or a full-grown Deer.)
_Deer._ Those whose Feet are tipped, and used as Tobacco-Stoppers,
are the bigness of a large Cat. The General had one in his Kitchen,
the Feet as thick as the middle Finger; whence I judge, those very
slender ones we see, are the Abortives of this Animal.
[26] These sort of Tryals have much the same View with the _Water of
Jealousy_ among the _Jews_, or _Ordeal_ with our _Saxon_ Ancestors,
that is, a Tryal by Fire or Water: The former was proving their
Innocency by walking on hot Plough-Shears un-hurt: The latter was
used hot or cold. They run their Arm into it scalding hot; or the
Priest gave an Imprecation to a Draught of Holy-Water. The Person
swore to his Innocence, and being tied Hands and Feet, was thrown
into a River or Pond; if he sunk, he was adjudged innocent, if he
floated, guilty: And these ways continued till K. _Hen._ III.
Another way with the _Saxons_, was single Combat; if a Woman, she
appointed her Champion.
Another, since we are upon Tryal, was by two Ounces of Bread and
Cheese taken after the Communion, the Priest thus imprecating; May
it stick in your Throat, turn pale, your Limbs convulsed, _&c._ if
guilty; but if innocent, may you swallow it easily, _&c._
_Rapin._
[27] _Hæmac_ is a _Brasil_ word, and signifies a Net slung to rest
in; made there from the Rind of a Tree.
[28] _Milton._ B. 10, & 11.
[29] A _Negrish_ Name.
[30] See the Appendix to the _Navy-Surgeon_, in which are Physical
Observations on the Moisture and Density of the Air.
[31] There is a square Fort on the Larboard Point of the Bay, and
Anchorings about a League from it.
[32] Some pretend to have found what they call a material
Thunder-bolt; such a one is said to have fell on the _Turkish Mosque_
at _Adrianople_ _A. D._ 1693; and such are shewn in the _Museums_
of Princes. At _Copenhagen_ they have a large piece of metallick
Substance, said to be Thunder-bolt.
[33] A Word used by our Sailors, for the _Grout_ is made of it.
[34] _Moquissin_ is a name given to any thing they think has an
incomprehensible Virtue. _V. Geographic. Atlas._
[35] The _Portuguese_, who trade hither from _Erasil_, chuse their
Cargoes all Boys and Girls, if they can, as more ductile for
Conversion; there being Fathers appointed to instruct them in their
Creed, and to baptize them, on their arrival; _but then they are
Papists_.
[36] Made of a peculiar Earth from _Germany_, and bear (those that
are good) the most intense heat.
[37]
There’s but the twinkling of a Star,
Between a Man of Peace and War.
_Hud._
[38] At this Place I would observe, in relation to heaving the Lead,
that there is a _Nisus_ in Bodies of Water from below upwards, which
makes ’em to sink neither so fast, nor so direct, at any considerable
Depth, as near the Surface; all at 200 Fathom or less, being
bottomless; _i. e._ unfathomable.
This _Nisus_, or resisting Motion to the Descent of Bodies, is not
only perceptible in the Lead, but more sensibly declares itself,
_first_, in that black or green Skim, seen sometimes on the Surface
(even smelling) after long Calms, the Product of some intestine
Motion.
2. That _Divers_, or any floating Bodies, emerge with greater Force
than they sunk.
3. Mr. _Boyle_’s 20th Experiment observes, that a glass Bubble let
open into the Receiver, on the Exsuction of the Air, _the Water in
it manifestly rises a greater Height_; consequently the Expansion
and Rarefaction of the Air by the Heat of the Sun, makes room for
this _Spring_ in the Water, to exert itself; and therefore the Tides
themselves would more difficultly yield to the distant Attractions of
the Sun and Moon (I should think) without adding to that Theory this
conjoined Force, or natural Propensity of the Sea, to swell before.
In respect to sinking the Lead, also may be added, a greater
Coldness, and a greater Saltness of the Sea, in proportion to the
Depths; (both which are very probable,) and will create a greater
Buoyancy, or Resistance to sinking, as will likewise the drawing out
a greater Quantity of Line, (less apt to demerge.) So that although
falling Bodies in Air, have their Velocities encreased, the nearer
they approach the Earth, yet contrarily in Water, it diminishes with
the Descent.
[39] Depend much on the preceding Season, (hot and dry Weather) apt
to raise greater Plenty of elastick Vapours on the _Terra firma_,
and will explode themselves now here, now there, as the greater
Rarefaction of Air (more towards one Island than another) may invite.
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TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE
The numerical dates in the Sidenotes (on pages 255 to 265) have all
been italicized for consistency eg _Mar. 10._.
Except for those changes noted below, all misspellings in the text,
and inconsistent or archaic usage, have been retained.
Pg 35: ‘some hunred Leagues’ replaced by ‘some hundred Leagues’.
Pg 48: the footnote anchor [16] was missing, and has been added to
‘[16]Limes, Oranges’.
Pg 68: ‘weighed Auchor’ replaced by ‘weighed Anchor’.
Pg 97: ‘our Rigth of’ replaced by ‘our Right of’.
Pg 97: ‘The Heigth of’ replaced by ‘The Height of’.
Pg 104: ‘ars sold’ replaced by ‘are sold’.
Pg 132: ‘a Change full as bad’ replaced by ‘a Charge full as bad’.
Pg 193: ‘joined also in in a’ replaced by ‘joined also in a’.
Pg 199: ‘ridiculous, scaramouch’ replaced by ‘ridiculous, and
scaramouch’ (catchword ‘and’ was missing).
Pg 202: ‘we re- our’ replaced by ‘we repeated our’.
Pg 207: ‘off the 1sland’ replaced by ‘off the Island’.
Pg 209: ‘Food or Necessarieis’ replaced by ‘Food or Necessaries’.
Pg 243: ‘Bitts of 7d½’ replaced by ‘Bitts of 7½d’.
Pg 261: ‘1721/2’ inserted before ‘Jan 6.’ as a new Sidenote.
Pg 263: ‘1722’ inserted before ‘May 1.’ as a new Sidenote.
Pg 265: ‘1722/3’ inserted before ‘Jan 1.’ as a new Sidenote.
Catalog: ‘by furnish- them’ replaced by ‘by furnishing them’.
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