Journal of a Residence among the Negroes in the West Indies

by Matthew Gregory Lewis

  MARCH 15.

  On opening the Assize-court for the county of Cornwall on March 4, Mr. Stewart, the Custos of Trelawny, and Presiding Judge, said, in his charge to the jury, he wished to direct their attention in a peculiar manner to the infringement of slave-laws in the island, in consequence of charges having been brought forward in England of slave-laws not being enforced in this country, and of their being in fact perfect dead letters. The charge was unfounded; but it became proper, in consequence, for the bench call in a strong manner on the grand jury to be particularly vigilant and attentive to the discharge of this part of their duty. The bench at the same time adverted to another subject connected with the above. Many out of the country, and some in it , had thought proper to interfere with our system, and by their insidious practices and dangerous doctrines to call the peace of the island into question, and to promote disorder and confusion. The jury were therefore enjoined, in every such case, to investigate it thoroughly, and to bring the parties concerned before the country, and not to suffer the systems of the island, as established by the laws of the land, to be overset or endangered. It was their bounden duty to watch over aud support the established laws, and to act against those who dared to infringe them ; and that, otherwise, it was imperiously called for on the principle of self-preservation. Every country had its peculiar laws, on the due maintenance of which depended the public safety and welfare. I read all this with the most perfect unconsciousness: when, lo and behold! I have been assured, from a variety of quarters, that all this was levelled at myself! It is I (it seems) who am " calling the peace of the island in question who am " promoting disorder and confusion;" and who am infringing the established laws! " I should never have guessed it! By " insidious practices" is meant (as I am told) my over-indulgence to my negroes ; and my endeavouring to obtain either redress or pardon for those belonging to other estates, who occasionally appeal to me for protection : while " dangerous doctrines " alludes to the opinions I have expressed, that the evidence of negroes ought at least to be heard against white persons.

  My opinion is most decided that they ought to be heard ; the jury, of course, always making proportionable abatements of belief, from, bearing in mind the bad habits of most negroes, their general want of probity and good faith in every respect, and their total ignorance of the nature of religious obligations At the same time, these defects may be counterbalanced by the respectable character of the particular negro ; by the strength of corroborating circumstances; and, finally, by the irresistible conviction which his evidence may leave upon the minds of the jury. They are not obliged to believe a negro witness, but I maintain that he ought to be heard, and then let the jury give their verdict according to their conscience. But this, in the opinion of the bench at Montego Bay, it seems, is " dangen doctrine ! " At least, the venom of my doctrines is circumscribed within very narrow limits; for, as I have made a point of never stirring off my own estate, nobody could possibly be corrupted by them except those who were at the trouble of walking into my house for the express purpose of being corrupted.

  At all events, if I really am the person whom Mr. Stewart alluded, I must consider his speech as the most flattering compliment I ever received. if my presence in the island had made the bench of a whole country think it necessary to exact from the jury a more severe vigilance than usual in all causes relating to the protection of negroes, I cannot but own myself most richly rewarded for all my pains and expense in coming hither, for every risk of the voyage, and for every possible sacrifice of my pleasures. There is nothing earthly that is too much to give for the power of producing an effect so beneficial; and I would set off for Constantinople to-morrow, could I only be convinced that my arrival would make the Mufti redress the complaints of the lower orders of Turks with more scrupulous justice, and the Bashaws relax the fetters of their slaves as much as their safety would permit. But I cannot flatter myself with having done either the one or the other in Jamaica; and if Mr. Stewart really alluded to me in his charge, I am certainly greatly obliged to him; but he has paid me much too high a compliment ;-God grant that I may live to deserve it!

  MARCH 16.

  It is to be wished, that the negroes would content themselves with their occasional amusements of poisoning, stabbing, thieving, &c., on a small scale ; but a plan has just been discovered in the adjoining parish of St. Elizabeth's, for giving, themselves a grand fete by murdering all the whites in the island. The focus of this meditated insurrection was on Martin's Penn, the property of Lord Balcarras, where the overseer is an old man of the mildest character, and the negroes had always been treated with peculiar indulgence. Above a thousand persons were engaged in the plot, three hundred of whom had been regularly sworn to assist in it with all the usual accompanying ceremonies of drinking human blood, eating earth from graves, &c. Luckily, the plot was discovered time enough to prevent any mischief; and yesterday the ringleaders were to be tried at Black River.

  MARCH 17. (Sunday.)

  The 'Cornwall Chronicle' informs us, that, at the Montego Bay assizes, a man was tried on the Monday, for assaulting, while drunk, an officer who bad served with great distinction, and calling him a coward ; for which offence he was sentenced to a month's imprisonment and a fine of 100 1 . ; and on the Tuesday the same man brought an action against a third person for calling him a " drunken liar," for which he was awarded 1000 l . who had two Captains under him; and their intention for damages ! A plain man would have supposed two such verdicts to be rather inconsistent ; but one lives to learn. This man was a clergyman; and his cause of quarrel against the officer was the latter's refusal to give him a puncheon of rum to christen all his negroes in a lump.

  MARCH 22.

  Mr. Plummer came over from St. James's to-day, and told. me that the " insidious practices and dangerous doctrines " in Mr. Stewart's speech were intended for the Methodists, and that only the charge to the grand jury respecting " additional vigilance " was in allusion to myself ; but he added that it was the report at Montego Bay, that, in consequence of my over-indulgence to my negroes, a song had been made at Cornwall, declaring that I was come over to set them all free, and that this was now circulating through the neighbouring parishes. If there be any such song (which I do not believe), I certainly never heard it. However, my agent here says, that he has reason to believe that my negroes really hav~ spread the report that I intend to set them free in a few years ; and that they have done this merely out of vanity, in order to give themselves and their master the greater credit upon other estates. As to the truth of an assertion, that is a point which never enters into negro consideration.

  The two ringleaders of the. proposed rebellion at St. Elizabeth's have been condemned, the one to be hanged, the other to be transported. the plot was discovered by the overseer of Lndhurst Penn ( a Frenchman from St. Domingo) observing an uncommon concourse of stranger negroes at a child's funeral, on which occasion a hog was roasted by the father. he stole softly down to the feasting-hut, and listened behind the hedge to the conversation of the supposed mourners ; when he heard the whole conspiracy detailed. it appears that above two-hunddren and fifty had been sworn in regularly, all of them Africans ; not a Creole was among them. But there was a black ascertained to have stolen over into the island from St. Domingo, and a brown Anabaptist missionary, both of whom had been very active in promoting the plot. hey had elected a King of the Eboes, who had two captains under him ; and their intention was to effect a complete massacre of all whites on the island ; for which laudable design His Majesty thought Christmas was the very fittest season in the year, but his Captains were more impatient, and were for the striking the blow immediately. The next morning information was given against them : one of the Captains escaped to the woods ; but the other, and the King of the Eboes, were seized and brought to justice. On theor trial they were perfectly cool and unconcerned, and did not even profess to deny the facts with which they were charged. Indeed, proofs were too strong to admit of denial ; among others, a copy o
f the following song was found upon the King, which the overseer had heard him sing at the funeral feast, while the other negroes joined in the chorus :-

  SONG OF THE KING OF THE EBOES.

  Oh me good friend, Mr. Wilberforce, make we free!

  God Almighty thank ye! God Almighty thank ye!

  God Almighty, make we free!

  Buckra in this country no make we free:

  What Negro for to do? What Negro for to do?

  Take force by force! Take force by force!

  CHORUS.

  To be sure! to be sure! to be sure!

  The Eboe King said, that he certainly had made use of this song, and what harm was there in his doing so ? He had sung no songs but such as his brown priest had assured him were approved of by john the Baptist. " And who, then, was John the Baptist?" He did not very well know ; only he had been told by his brown priest, that John the Baptist was a friend to the negroes, and had got his head in a pan!

  As to the Captain, he only said in his defence, that if the court would forgive him this once, he would not do so again, "as he found the whites did not like their plans;" which, it seems, till that moment the conspirators had never suspected! They had all along imagined, no doubt, that the whites would find as much amusement in having their throats cut, as the blacks would find in cutting them. I remember hearing a sportsman, who was defending the humanity of hunting, maintain, that it being as much the nature of a hare to run away as of a dog to run after her, consequently the hare must receive as much pleasure from being coursed, as the dog from coursing.

  MARCH 23.

  Two negroes upon Amity estate quarrelled the other day about some trifle, when the one bit the other's nose off completely. Soon after his accident, the overseer meeting the sufferer---" Why, Sambo," he exclaimed, "where's your nose?" " I can't tell, massa," answered Sambo; " I looked everywhere about, but I could not find it."

  MARCH 24. (Sunday.)

  Every Sunday since my return from Kingston I have read prayers to such of the negroes as chose to attend, preparatory to the intended visitations of the minister, Dr. Pope. About twenty or thirty of the most respectable among them generally attended and behaved with great attention and propriety. I read the Litany, and made them repeat the responses. I explained the Commandments and the Lord's Prayer to them teaching them to say each sentence of the latter after me, as I read it slowly, in hopes of impressing it upon their memory. Then came " the good Samaritan," or some such apologue; and, lastly, I related to them a portion of the life of Christ, and explained to them the object of his death and sufferings. The latter part of my service always seemed to interest them greatly ; but, indeed, they behaved throughout with much attention. Unluckily, the head driver, who was one of the most zealous of, my disciples, never could repeat the responses of the Litany without an appeal to myself, and always made a point of saying --" Good Lord, deliver us; yes, sir! " and made me a low bow. Like my friend the Moravian, at Mesopotamia, I cannot boast of any increased audience; and if the negroes will not come to hear massa, I have little hope of their giving up their time to hear Dr. Pope, who inspires them with no; interest, and can exert no authority. Indeed, I am afraid that I am indebted for the chief part of my present auditory to my quality of massa rather than that of priest; and when I ask any of them why they did not come to prayers on the preceding Sunday, their excuse is always coupled with an assurance that they wished very much to come, " because they wish to do anything to oblige massa."

  MARCH 25.

  The negroes certainly are perverse beings. They had been praying for a sight of their master year after year; they were in raptures at my arrival ; I have suffered no one to be punished, and shown them every possible indulgence during my residence amongst them; and one and all they declare themselves perfectly happy and well treated. Yet, previous to my arrival, they made thirty-three hogsheads a-week; in a fortnight after my landing, their product dwindled to twenty-three; during this last week they have managed to make but thirteen. Still they are not ungrateful; they are only selfish: they love me very well, but they love themselves a great deal better; and, to do them justice, I verily believe that every negro on the estate is ex- tremely anxious that all should do their full duty, except himself. My censure, although accompanied with the certainty of their not being punished, is by no means a matter of indifference. If I express myself to be displeased, the whole property is in an uproar; everybody is finding fault with everybody; there is nobody that does not represent the shame of neglecting my work, and the ingratitude of vexing me by their ill-conduct ; and then each individual-having said so much and said it so strongly, that he is convinced of its having its full effect in making the others do their duty-thinks himself quite safe and snug in skulking away from his own.

  MARCH 26.

  Young Hill was told at the Bay this morning, that I make a part of the,Eboe King's song ! According to this report, " good King George and good Mr. Wilberforce " are stated to have "given me a paper " ( i. e. an order ) to set the negroes free, but that the white people of Jamaica will not suffer me to show the paper, and that I am now going home to say so, and " to resume my place, which I have left during my absence to be filled by the Regent.

  Since I heard the report of a rebellious song issuing from Cornwall, I have listened more attentively to the negro chants; but they seem, as far as I can make out, to relate entirely to their own private situation, and to have nothing to do with the negro state in general. Their favourite, " We varry well off," is still screamed about the estate by the children; but among the grown-up people its nose has been put out of joint by the following stanzas, which were explained to me this morning. For several days past they had been dinned into my ears so incessantly, that at length I became quite curious to know their import, which I learned from Phillis, who is the family-minstrel. It will be evident from this specimen, that the Cornwall, bards are greatly inferior to those of Black River, who have actually advanced so far as to make an attempt at rhyme and metre.

  NEGRO SONG AT CORNWALL.

  Hey-ho-day! me no care a dammee!

  Me acquire a house, (i. e. I have a solid foundation to build on,)

  Since massa come see we-oh!

  Hey-ho-day ! neger now quite eerie, (i.e. hearty,)

  For once me see massa-hey-ho-day

  When massa go, me no care a dammee,

  For how them usy we-hey-ho-day!

  An alligator, crossing the morass at Bellisle, an estate but a few miles distant from Cornwall, fell into a water-trench, from which he struggled in vain to extricate himself, and was taken alive. Fontenelli says, that when Copernicus published his system, he foresaw the contradictions which he should have to undergo-" et il se tira d'affaire tres-habilement. Le jour qu'on lui presentoit le premier exemplaire, scavez-vous ce qu'il fit? Il mourut;" which was precisely the resource resorted to by the alligator. He died on the second morning of his captivity, and his proprietor, Mr. Storer, was obliging enough to order the skin to be stuffed, and to make me a present of him. Neptune was despatched to bring him (or rather her, for nineteen eggs wer found within her) over to Cornwall ; and at dinner to-day we were alarmed with a general hubbub. It proved to be the occasion by the arrival of Neptune with the alligator on his head. In a few minutes everything on the estate that was alive, without feathers, and with only two legs, flocked into the room, and requested to alloowed to take a bird's-eye view of the monster ; for as to coming near her, that they were much too cowardly to venture. It was in vain that I represented to them, that being dead it was utterly impossible that the animal could hurt them : they allowed the impossibility, but still kept at a respectful distance ; and when at length I succeeded in persuading them to approach it, upon some one accidentally moving the alligator's tail, they all, with one accord, set up a loud scream, and men, women, and children tumbled out of the room over one another, to the irreparable ruin of some of my glasses and decanters, and the extreme trepidation of the whole sideboard.

 
The negro-husband, who stabbed his rival in a fit of jealousy, has been tried at Montego Bay, and acquitted. On the other hand, the King of the Eboes has been hung at Black River, and died, declaring that he left enough of his countrymen to prosecute the design in hand, and revenge his death upon the whites. Such threats of a rescue were held out, that it was judged advisable to put the militia under arms, till the execution should have taken place; and also to remove the King's Captain to the jail at Savannah-la-Mar, till means can be found for transporting him from the island.

  MARCH 27.

  The Eboe captain has effected his escape by burning down the prison door. It is supposed that he has fled. towards the fastnesses in the interior of the mountains, where I am assured that many settlements of runaway slaves have been formed, and with which the inhabited part of the island has no communication. However, the chief of the Accompong Maroons, Captain Roe, is gone in pursuit of him, and has promised to bring him in, alive or dead. The latter is the only reasonable expectation, as the fugitive is represented as a complete desperado.

  The negroes have at least given me one proof of their not being entirely selfish. When they beard that the boat was come to convey my baggage to the ship at Black river, they collected all their poultry and brought it to my agent, desiring him to add it to my sea-stores. Of course I refused to let it be received, and they were evidently much disappointed till I consented to accept the fowls and ducks, and then gave them back to them again, telling them to consider them as a present from my own hen-house, and to distinguish them by the name of 11 massa's poultry."