Part 7

This was the sum of the news that greeted our arrival at Barbadoes. But gloomy as it was, the distressful feelings it produced were, in some degree, alleviated by our learning, soon afterwards, that the Brunswick, which had been ordered to proceed with troops to the relief of St. Vincent, had arrived most opportunely to save the island; and that the Stanley, which had sailed with the first fleet in November, and was supposed to have been lost, during the disastrous storm which arose in the channel, had arrived safely in Carlisle Bay, on Christmas day, being the only ship of the _November_ convoy that made good her passage; and, further, that nine or ten of the vessels of the _December_ convoy had reached Barbadoes in safety, with upwards of two thousand troops on board.

The delight we felt on the glad occasion of setting our feet, again, upon terra firma was more exquisite than I can describe; and it was highly augmented by the novelty that surrounded us. The houses, the streets, the people, the fruit, fish, and vegetables, the trees, the fields, every thing before us, was new. The very means of labour and amusement were novel, and all combined to indicate the change we had made—all bespake our removal to a tropical latitude. We gazed on all we met, and all we passed. Objects which, at other moments, would have been trifling and unimportant, now called forth our attention. Chaos seemed to be renewed; and, without being able to discriminate, we contemplated, in anxious curiosity, this seeming change of worlds.

We took our umbrellas in our hands, by way of parasols, but found less occasion for them than we had been taught to expect; for notwithstanding that the heat was greater, by several degrees, in Bridge-town, than in the harbour, we did not feel any degree of languor or oppression. A pleasant breeze counteracted the ardent rays of the sun: and, at our first visit, we rambled about, for two hours, with far less inconvenience from heat, than I have often experienced in the close and sultry days of England.

It will be quite within your recollection how long, and how much I have wished to visit the ships trading to Africa, and to witness personally, the manner of treating those poor beings, who are torn from their native home, by the iron hand of commerce, to be transported to a land of slavery. In this wish, I have had an early opportunity of being gratified. A slave-ship, belonging to North America, and bound to Savanna in Georgia, had arrived from the coast of Guinea just before we came into harbour, and was lying very near to us, with a cargo of negroes on board. Fearing she might sail for America, and being unwilling to lose the first occasion that offered, of indulging our curiosity, Drs. Master, Cleghorn, and myself took off a boat, the morning after we came to anchor, and went to visit the Guinea-man. We found both the master and mate of the ship disposed to show us every civility, and to oblige us by freely replying to our questions.

A little before they made Carlisle Bay, the captain and his mate had been taken out of their ship, and detained a whole night, on board an English frigate, while their papers were examined, under the suspicion that the vessel and cargo were Dutch property: but the property being proved to be American, they were released, and the ship is now taking in water, preparatory to pursuing her voyage to the state of Georgia.

The cargo consisted of a hundred and thirty slaves, of whom two-thirds were males, and one third females. The two sexes were kept separate by a partition, or bulk-head, built from side to side, across the ship; allotting the _waist_ to the men, and to the women, the _quarter-deck_. A great majority of them were very young, being from ten to eighteen years of age. We were pleased to observe that an air of cheerfulness and contentment prevailed among them. In a few only we remarked despondency, and dejection of countenance. Both sexes were without apparel, having only a narrow band of blue cloth put round the waist, and brought from the back to fasten before. Many of them had marks upon the skin which appeared to have been made with a cutting instrument. These, we learned, were distinctive of the nation to which they had belonged. Some had their teeth cut, or filed to sharp points, giving them a very hideous, and canine appearance. They looked well fed and healthy, although some of them had an eruption, called the cra-cra, upon the skin.

Their sleeping berths were the naked boards. Divided into two crowded parties, they reposed, during the night, upon the bare planks below—the males on the _main-deck_—the females upon the deck of the _aft cabin_. In the daytime they were not allowed to remain in the place where they had slept, but were kept mostly upon the open deck, where they were made to exercise, and encouraged, by the music of their loved banjar, to dancing and cheerfulness.

We saw them dance, and heard them sing. In dancing they scarcely moved their feet, but threw about their arms, and twisted and writhed their bodies into a multitude of disgusting and indecent attitudes. Their song was a wild yell, devoid of all softness and harmony, and loudly chanted in harsh monotony.

Their food is chiefly rice, which they prepare by plain boiling. At the time of messing they squat round the bowl in large bodies, upon their heels and haunches, like monkies, each putting his paws into the platter to claw out the rice with his fingers. We saw several of them employed in beating the red husks off the rice, which was done by pounding the grain in wooden mortars, with wooden pestles, sufficiently long to allow them to stand upright while beating in mortars placed at their feet. This appeared to be a labour of cheerfulness. They beat the pestle in tune to the song, and seemed happy; yet nothing of industry marked their toil, for the pounding was performed by, indolently, raising the pestle, and then leaving it to fall by its own weight.

I am most happy to conclude my report of this visit by informing you that we discovered no marks of those horrors and cruelties, said to be practised on board the ships occupied in this sad traffic of human flesh; and which are represented as so frightfully augmenting the manifold ills of slavery. Chains, stripes, and severities did not seem to have been in the catalogue of means employed on conveying these poor Africans to their American masters. Our minds, necessarily, suffered in contemplating the degrading practices of civilized beings towards the less cultivated brethren of their species: but the eye was not shocked by the abuses of tyranny and inhumanity. The comfort and health of the slaves were promoted with every care. Being fond of washing in cold water, they were encouraged to the free use of it; and their persons, as well as the ship, were kept remarkably clean. They were plentifully fed; and, in the daytime, were dispersed about the vessel, so as to be prevented, as much as possible, from assembling together, in close unwholesome crowds. Mirth and gaiety were promoted among them: they were roused to bodily exercise, and care was used to divert their minds from dwelling upon their change of state, and loss of home: and I may truly say, that a more general air of contentment reigned among them than could have been expected. While many were dancing and singing, and playing together, others were giving their assistance in working the ship; and we learned that several of them had made themselves highly useful on the passage, and were already becoming expert sailors.

They all seemed to regard the master of the vessel more in affection than fear; and, although strictly obedient, they did not appear to be at all under the influence of terror. Crowded they, necessarily, must be, particularly in the place where they slept; but every attention was paid to prevent the injury which might derive from it; and to keep them in health.

We went down below to see their place of repose, where the hard planks formed one common bed, each individual employing his arm as his pillow. The men could not stand between decks, without stooping; and when they lay down, the boards were so closely covered, that that it was scarcely possible to set a foot between their naked bodies. They were always taken upon deck early in the morning, and the sleeping birth was thoroughly cleaned and washed: still it was highly offensive to European olfactories; and plainly indicated, that if it were not for the great attention paid to cleanliness and ventilation, disease must inevitably be generated. Their nakedness is, perhaps, their best security; for although they had neither bedclothes, nor personal covering, nor any kind of baggage, or furniture in the place, we perceived that all the cleaning and airing which were employed could not subdue the stench caused by their sleeping together in such crowded heaps.

Although they are fond of washing, and seem to have a sense of personal cleanliness, they have none of cleanliness of place, nor of common decency: for, notwithstanding the strictest prohibition against it, they cannot always be prevented from the filthy habit of depositing their natural excretions upon the spot where they sleep.

The wool of their heads forms a thick cover for vermin, of which they have, commonly, a swarming abundance; therefore to prevent this, and to further the rules of cleanliness, all their heads had been shaved: but this, we were told, had deprived them of a great source of occupation and amusement; it being a singular pleasure to them to sit down in pairs, for hours together, to enjoy the social feast of picking each other’s heads, and afterwards twisting and plaiting the wool into a variety of forms.

The pleasure we had experienced from finding these poor blacks in a state of apparent contentment, and, with respect to the reported cruelty, enjoying a degree of comparative comfort, was succeeded by feelings of horror, on hearing the relation of an insurrection which had taken place, on board the ship, previous to their sailing from the coast of Africa. Many of the negroes being detained on board for a considerable time while the cargo was completing, and lying, during this period, within sight of their native shore, from which, and, perhaps, from their wives and families, they were about to be torn for ever, had grown indignant even to desperation, and rising upon the ship’s company, murdered the master and mate, who then belonged to the vessel, and wounded several of the men: nor was it until after a very severe and bloody contest that they were overcome; when the ringleaders were put to death, as an example to deter others from revolting. One of the sailors showed us three desperate wounds which he had received on the face, the breast, and the arm, from the stroke of an axe, with which one of the blacks had, just before, struck off the captain’s head.

The next day, after our visit to the American slave-ship, an opportunity offered of seeing one of our own nation—a Liverpool Guinea-man; a ship of much greater burden, fitted out expressly for the trade, with a sufficient number of hands and of guns on board to protect her against the enemy’s privateers; and calculated for a cargo of five hundred slaves.

We were taught to believe that we should find the negroes much better accommodated in this, than in the American ship; but we could not observe any great superiority. Although the vessel was larger, the number of slaves was more than proportionally greater. In other respects the accommodations were nearly equal. The Liverpool ship was kept remarkably clean; but the other was not less so; and, between the decks, the American vessel was the most commodious, being higher, and having more room in proportion to the cargo, from which the slaves had the advantage of being less close and confined during the night.

In the sleeping-place of the English vessel we could not stand up without stooping almost double: in each, the men and women were kept separate; in both, their food was rice; and in both they slept naked upon the bare planks, crowded together like sheep in a fold.

The most striking difference that occurred to our observation was, that the slaves of the Liverpool ship were of blacker and smoother skin than the others, and all of them free from that dirty eruption, the cra-cra; but upon our noticing this better appearance of one cargo than the other, the apparent superiority was instantly explained to us, by the remark that the Liverpool vessel had reached her destined port, and that her cargo had been made up for market, by having their skins dressed over three or four times with a compound of gunpowder, lime-juice, and oil—a preparation which not only destroys the cra-cra, and gives the skin a smooth, black, and polished appearance, but likewise renders it sleek and fine: and it was further observed, that the American cargo would be made to look as well, before they reached the port where they were to be exposed for sale.

LETTER XVII.

Carlisle Bay, Feb.

From the details I gave you of our tedious voyage, you will learn, with surprise, that we still continue to live on board ship. But to this we have many inducements. It is much cooler in the harbour, than it is in Bridge-town; we are far less annoyed with musquitoes; and, from our belonging to the St. Domingo staff, and being in daily expectation of receiving orders to proceed to that island, we are, at all moments, ready to move, without the risk of leaving our baggage behind; moreover, by living on board, whilst we are detained to windward, our sea-habits are continued, and perhaps we may thereby avoid the tormenting sickness of a second voyage.

We have a regular mess established. Every morning we go or send to market for provisions; and our domestic arrangements are better regulated, and in more of comfort than if we were on shore. Occasionally we dine, and spend the whole, or part of a day at Bridge-town, but we never fail to return on board to sleep.

We find that the accommodations of a West India tavern, are by no means despicable: and you know that I am enough a traveller, rather to court the varieties we meet, than to regard them as hardships, because they are not, in every particular, the same as we are accustomed to in England.

But you have desired to be told of these varieties as they occur, and I have an early opportunity of trying your patience. Our first dinner on shore was at a tavern in Bridge-town, kept by a mulatto woman, Mary Bella Green. Plenty prevailed. The crowded table smoked with fish, a piece of boiled beef, a pepper-pot, a turkey, some roasted veal, and a quarter of mutton, with several different kinds of puddings, and quite an assortment of vegetables, of eight or nine different species—European and tropical. Our liquors were most excellent bottled porter, good Madeira, tolerable claret, and very fine Noyeau. In the dessert we were sadly disappointed, for, instead of the fine tropical fruits which we had expected, three or four of the very common and inferior species were set before us, unripe, and bad in quality: viz. goavas, bananas, and sour-sops, with some tough, and bitter shaddocks; to all of which, the commonest apples, or gooseberries of Europe would have been preferable. But Barbadoes is not an island abounding in the finer fruits of the climate, hence we do not judge of the delicious productions of the West Indies by this ill-chosen sample.

Our party, for whom we had ordered dinner, consisted of nine persons, but upon coming to table, we found covers for fifteen, and learned that, instead of giving us a private dinner, as we had directed, they had put us into a large public room, and served a kind of _table d’hote_. Not being prepared for this arrangement, we remonstrated against it, and, with some difficulty, prevailed in having the extra-covers removed; but we soon perceived that we had gained little by thus interrupting the customs of the house: for they, directly, spread another table in the same room, and, setting down the six strangers close by us, divided the dinner, between the two parties.

In making out their bill for payment, they do not detail the separate articles of the dinner, the number of bottles of wine, the different plates of fruit, &c. as in England, but put down the whole sum, under the three general items of _dinner_, _wine_, and _fruit_; and, at any house you are accustomed to use, if you call, occasionally, in a morning to rest, or to take shelter from the sun, or rain, they give you a glass of lemonade, or of coco-nut water, with a “_very welcome_,” and consider themselves rewarded, by the payment you make when you take dinner at the house. Nor is the demand for this at all extravagant, except, in so far as regards the bad fruit. We paid a dollar each for dinner; the same for the wine; and half a dollar for the dessert.

They make the wine and porter pleasantly cool, by putting the bottles in wet cloth bags, and placing them in the open windows, for some time before dinner; taking care to sprinkle them, occasionally, with water, as they stand exposed to the breeze. A rapid evaporation is thus produced, and, consequently, far more heat carried off, than by merely setting the bottles in cold water. The porter is so highly improved by the climate, and rendered so grateful, by this method of cooling, as to be superior to any that is drank in England.

The attendants of the table are very numerous, black and yellow, male and female; perhaps too numerous to serve you well; for they are badly regulated, and the duty of one being that of all, it is not regarded as the particular duty of either, and, consequently, is apt to be left unheeded. Each, being idle and inactive, waits for another to step before him, when any thing is called for; and, although you have a crowd of servants present, it is difficult to obtain what you want.

The females are, mostly, of erect figure, and stately carriage, but they move in all the languor of the climate. They appear without shoes and stockings, in a short white jacket, and a thin short petticoat. They wear a white turban on the head; but the neck and shoulders are left bare. Silence is not esteemed a necessary qualification among them, for they often join with great freedom, and a sad drawling accent, in the conversation of the table. This will appear to you but little consistent with the reserve and abject forbearance of slavery; but it is the consequence of the public situation in which these women are placed, and the familiarity that is commonly used towards them by strangers; to any, or all of whom they are the very obliging, and _most obedient_ humble servants.

On first making inquiry, respecting the accommodations of the house, we were surprised to learn their extent, and the facility with which they are attainable. A bed may be had for half a dollar per night, or three dollars per week; and, for an additional sum well understood, the choice of an attendant to draw the curtains.

The hostess of the tavern is, usually, a black, or mulatto woman who has been the favored enamorata of some _backra_[2] man; from whom she has obtained her freedom, and perhaps two or three slaves to assist her in carrying on the business of the house; where she now indulges in the good things of life, grows fat, and feels herself of importance in society. To those who, in compliance with the Highgate privilege, seek her services in preference to those of the persons employed by her, she is supposed not to be impolite.

It is to her advantage that the female assistants in her family should be as handsome as she can procure them. Being slaves, the only recompense of their services, is the food they eat, the hard bed they sleep on, and the few loose clothes which are hung upon them. One privilege, indeed, is allowed them, which, you will be shocked to know, is that of tenderly disposing of their persons. This offers the only hope they have of procuring a sum of money, wherewith to purchase their freedom: it is so common a resource among them, that neither shame nor disgrace attaches to it; but, on the contrary, she who is most sought, becomes an object of envy, and is proud of the distinction shown her.

One of our attendants at table, appeared, both from her conversation and behaviour, to be very superior to her degraded station. She had nothing of beauty, nor even prettiness of face, but she was of good figure, and of respectable and interesting demeanor, and, in point of intellect, far above her colleagues. Together with gentleness of manner, and an easy, pleasant address, she possesses a degree of understanding and ability which claims respect. In principle, and in sentiment, she appeared virtuous; and, from the frankness of her replies, it was evident that she knew no sense of wrong in her conduct. We could not but lament that the imperious habits of the country did not allow of her being a more respectable member of society.

This woman is the great support of the house—the bar-maid, and leading manager of the family. Her mistress had refused to take a hundred guineas for her; which, she assured us, had been offered by a gentleman who would have purchased her. She has a very lively interesting little daughter, a Mestee about four years old. Of this child she spake with great tenderness, and seemed to bear it all the fond attachment of an affectionate parent. Yet, as the infant was born in slavery, should the mother, by any means, obtain her own freedom, she cannot claim her child; but must leave it, still the disposable property of her mistress, equally liable to be sold as any other piece of furniture in the house: for, in Barbadoes, the offspring of a woman in slavery becomes the absolute property of the owner to whom the mother belongs, whether it be black, yellow, or white; as the law knows no period when the child of a slave shall be born free, however removed from the African: nor can the mother, under any circumstances of subsequent liberation, claim her infant from its owner, even though it should be of fairer skin than the fairest European. Thus are the natural ties of our species torn asunder; and the dearest attachments, and purest affections of the heart cruelly broken down! Babes are separated from their parents, and mothers robbed of their children, by this unnatural appropriation of human substance!