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Please enter a valid web address * About * Blog * Projects * Help * Donate * Contact * Jobs * Volunteer * People * Sign up for free * Log in Search metadata Search text contents Search TV news captions Search radio transcripts Search archived web sites Advanced Search * About * Blog * Projects * Help * Donate Donate icon An illustration of a heart shape * Contact * Jobs * Volunteer * People Full text of "Sketch of the Mosquito Shore " See other formats vee pn, St we a 7 4 4 ada . ‘ aed 3 e@ Sa7 284 dan & Palit A 1 8 per aT 4 Ort " ye corny q fe cree REO L Awe ' ‘ mei aey aa , rit bs 4 ao week ry >? io w his mr 4 $6 oe Sena gmrsetony sw wae anne veep ee oues gsvesin a «© Woe We) rn « 7 ae 4s A} . © hte font seg 5 a4 ° combat 4 adutantd i yf *— 4 aned fice ; ‘ ak ak 4 : ; eh — dae - , : ‘ 4 oo 40 “ea. 38 ih Fila’ fie addd « * 141 5 4t- ; . a! ot a@ mie i i on + . 88 4 a a +o on ke a sa a my ‘~ { 4 Pe iene t tf 44 ve (eedw ae + heen tele 4 4 ‘ > ca (hy oat m t4aeag 4 4 s 8 bes bt ‘dean | ~4' e . ei @ere Comer eee =a in e : ae Ge + ui4, 8 1 q i i Xt). aes Shed < ye * # a ® nh ‘, 4 . a roe "See: whew ’ “ ia) » ah J = * « a4 4 J ' Om ti 4 rare ; A ne ois (baka a Fe ed * «ae 4 * . 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I do not pre- tend to decide its true longitude, but am rather in- clined to think the Spanish correct, as the distance. between the two capes is undoubtedly. 20 leagues. The point forming the north side of Truaxillo Bay is low, and ‘a considerable reef of coral rocks, with sand, stretches from it to the westward. The land of the interior, hence to the eastward, appears high and variegated. Cabbage Tree, or Three Leagues Point La- goon, lays about twelve miles to the eastward of Cape Honduras; it is of a small extent, but with a very wide mouth, and has a reef of ‘rocks laying off its westernmost entrance. Salt River Lagoon, lays afew miles inland, a little to the eastward of the former,-and has a small river running out of it, which empties itself into the sea ; ‘here, it is said, large quantities of salt might be made. Great Roman River, called by the ‘Spamiards, El Rio Grande, empties itself into the sea, after a course ef about one Hundred and fifty miles, by two mouths, which are formed by: Spark’s island, Several considerable streams empty themselves in- to it, the chief of which are the Rio Guayape, which rises in the mountains -in the neighbourhood of ‘Olancho el Viejo, where there ‘are mines of silver. The Rio Ye anque, has its head waters in the immediate vicinity of the silver mines, and in 8 its course ‘passes by the Spanish towns of San Gorge de Olancho, and Soneguera, and empties itself into the great Roman river, about thirty miles below the latter town, where the Guayape also forms a junction with it. Lime-house River, is the next on the coast, and has a course of about forty miles; from the sea it is known by a saddle mountain with a sugar loaf hill on one side, and by another sugar loaf on the other side, whose top appears to be broken off. To the eastward of the mouth of the river are the Great Rocks, which shew themsélves like a round bluff; they are close to the sea side, about a mile from theshore. The bluff point of the Great Rocks to the eastward, and old Roman point, make Lzme- house Bight. Further on are the “itile Rocks, and between them and the Great Rocks are the two rivers called Paw River and Piaw Creek. At Piaw River there is anchorage. Zachary Lyon River follows next, and has a course of about 30 miles; it has high land, nght over it, in the’ form of a sugar loaf, not unlike that over Black River, but distinguished by a saddle mountain, alittle to the westward ; between Piaw river and the Zachary-lyon river, there is a small bay, called the Turtle Bight. Itis on the banks of the Zachary Lyon, that the proposed Hebrew co- lony is about to be established. The title-deed 9 to which property, has already been. transmitted to a respectable house.in London. Praunow Creek, is only two miles to the west- ward of Cape Camaron River; the opening is ea- sily seen from the sea, as the eastern side is distin- guished by a high sand hill, and en the western side a spit.stretches out a mile into the sea. This river forms the eastern boundary of the projected Hebrew colony. Cape Camaron, and River, are the next import- ant points on the coast. The Cape, as determined by the Spanish observers, lies in 16e 2’ north and 85° 9’ west. The coast between Cape Honduras and Cape Camaron is irregular ; there are gradual sound- ings in approaching, but there are some patches of rocks along shore. Black River; the entrance of this, which is to the eastward of Cape Camaron, has been determin- ed by the Spanish observers, to be in 15° 58’ North, and 84° 55’ West, or at the distance of about twelve miles from the cape. The Spaniards call it Reo Tinto; it has a course of about one hundred and twenty miles, and several considerable streams empty themselves into it. It is navigable for small-craft till within about twenty miles of its principal source. About for- ty miles from the sea, on its left bank, is situated the town of Poyars, the capital of the territory of thisname. And about fifty miles higher up is the 16 Embarcadero, from whence there is an Indian patli leading to Manto, or Olancho el Viejo, in the neighbourhood of which, as already observed, there are rich silver mines. At the junction of two of its branches, and in latitude 15° 8’ at the base of a ridge of mountains, are two remarkable hot and cold springs, situated close to each other. “ Its entrance ”, the only harbour on all this coast from ** Rattan to Cape Gracias a Dios, was for more than * 60 years the refuge of the Logwood-cutters, when ‘‘ the Spaniards drove them from the forests of East “ Yucatan; they waited there in safety for the ‘moment their enemies should retire. As their “ expulsions were frequent, and always unforeseen, “ the ships which went to load with logwood in the ‘bay of Honduras, chose to touch first at the “ Black River, to get intelligence, and to deter- “mine in consequence the manner of pursuing “ their voyage. Wood-cutters, sailors, deserters, “and adventurers of several kinds, fixed themselves “ insensibly in this place ; they received merchan- “ dise in return for the fruits of their labour, and “ soon established a lucrative trade with the Spa- “ niards in the inland parts. The last treaty of “‘ peace, which secures to the wood-cutters the un- “ interrupted enjoyment of their forests, far from ‘‘ making the Black River deserted, has given more “activity to the settlement. The séa coast is san- “ dy, generally low and swampy, with mangrove 11 “ trees: higher upon the rivers and lagoons, the “ soil more fertile, produces many plantains, co- ‘ coa-trees, maize, yams, potatoes, and several “ other vegetables; the passion of drinking rum “ has made them begin the planting of sugar canes. “ The rivers, as well as the lagoons, are extremely ** well stored with fish, the forests filled with deer, “« pecarys or Mexican swine,andgame. On the shores “ they catch the finest turtle, from March to J une, ‘and from August to the end of September ; be- ‘ sides this fishery, which is very plentiful, the Black “ River settlers cut mahogany and zebra wood, and “ gather a great deal of sarsaparilla. These settlers, “ still fewer in number than those of the Bay of “ Honduras, are like them under the inspection of ‘ the commander of the frigate which cruises on the “ coast: but the colony is so wel] situated, that it ** cannot fail of increasing ; the Government, who ** destroyed their fort at the peace, in vain neglects “it. Itisone of those plants, which placed by “ chancein a happy corner of the garden, flourish, in- “ crease, and bear fruit of themselves, without the ‘* gardener’s giving himself the trouble of watering ‘‘ or taking care of them. But it ismow given up “ to the Spaniards, and the English have entirely “ abandoned these parts.” ** The occupation of this territory by the Spaniards, was however of * Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 11. B T2 _ short duration ; for having quarreled with the Mos- quito people, the fort at Black River was attacked by the Indians, under the command of one of their most distinguished chiefs, General Robinson, and ta- ken by escalade. The Spaniards however effected a retreat, and since that time have never attempted to make any other establishments. Black River Lagoon, is of considerable extent, being calculated at eight miles broad and fourteen if length ; it is beautifully spotted with several smiall islets, on one of which, when in possession* of the British, was occupied for raising stock. Plantain River, is about thirty miles to the east- ward of Black River ; it has a large mouth, with four fathoms water, a short distance from the coast ; its sources are about eighty milesin the interior of the country ; on its left bank, and near the mouth, aré sonie fine savannahs, where the Indian chief, General Robinson, has a large herd of cattle. Brewers Lagoon, is fifteen miles farther on ; it has a wide mouth, with anchorage off the entrance from twelve to eight fathoms water. This Lagoon is about nine miles broad, and runs nearly fifteen into the interior of the country. In the middle of the haven, about a league up, is an island, that appears like two hills, Whereon some English people for- merly resided, and probably had a battery, as there are two old guns laying there to this day. “Puttuch, or Patook River, is of considerable 13 size, and has several smaller rivers that empty them- selves into it, the chief of which is the Rio Barbo: these streams have their sources in the ridgeof moun- tains. which form a barrierto the left bank of the great ° river Yare; the extent of the Patook and its tri- butary streams, is upwards of one hundred miles. It has two-mouths, one of whichempties itself into Bre-. wers lagoon. On the easternmost bank of the Patook ts Patook Point, from whicha sand bank, with a sharp point, extends for a mile and a half into the sea; and which vessels ought to give a good birth to, approach ing no nearer than nine fathoms water. T'wo or three years ago, in the time of the heavy rains and freshes, the waters of the river cleared away the bar, leaving a depth of about three fathoms, which is a proof of the facility, with which the bar rivers on the north coast might be cleared and deepened ; it has been gradually filling up ever since. Little Patook River, is about fifteen miles fur- ther to the east of Great Patook River, and rises about thirty five miles in the interior. There isa kay, or small island, laying between the two rivers, Caractasco Lagoon, called by the Spaniards Balia de Cartago, lies about 17 leagues from Great Patook river. This place is easily known ; for, as the mouth is very wide, the opening may always beseen It is shallow, has a bar, and is only navigable for small vessels, and is considered by the natives a day’s journey in length ; its breadth, which is nearly equal throughout, may be computed at ten miles. 14 Captain Henderson, who visited this lagoon in the mionth of September 1804, says, “ We pas- ‘sed the bar in a short time, and entered the ‘* Lagoon of Caratasco, and had to beat up the re- ** mainder of our voyage, a distance of about two * leagues, in a course directly contrary to the one ‘‘ we had pursued previous to entering it. It was ** almost the same as going back by the same sea, * the space of land dividing the navigation we had * left from that we were in, not being more than “a few hundred yards. We came to ananchor off “ the settlement of Crata at five. The Mosquito «‘ Indians have other settlements on both sides of © “ the sound.......Caratasca Lagoon is considered by the natives a day’s journey in length: its breadth, “which is nearly equal throughout, may be com- * puted at about ten miles; it is shallow, and only navigable for vessels ofsmall burden. On landing, “ T was immediately received by Captain Potts, a “man of some consequence in the settlement or « Crata, with most expressive marks of friendship ¢¢ and regard, and conducted by him to his habi- “tation: ‘The whole of the inhabitants of the ¢* Settlement soon crowded round me, and from alk “IT could discover the same signs of welcome. An “excellent supper of fowls, eggs, plantains, and “the root of the Casava, was expeditiously pre- * pared, and I do not recollect that 1 ever made ¢ a meal with more entire enjoyment. I passed the Lo ‘night with my Indian frends. Captain Potts “appeared about sixty years of age, and a more “ kind, aimable being Imever met. His atten- ‘tions and hospitality were unceasing. He had “three wives; the elder seemed of the same years “ with himself; the youngest certainly not more “ than sixteen; the other might be taken at the “ medium age of both. ‘“« Saturday, 5th.—As soon as I had breakfasted, “ I was informed that a house had been prepared for ‘me to occupy during my stay. Few houses, I be- *« lieve, had ever been raised with more expedition. ‘‘ It was begun and finished in one night; and al- ‘ though aot after any known design of architecture, ‘it was comfortable and commodious, sufficiently ‘ proof against the weather, and affording every “ requisite convenience for myself and servants. Of “ the latter I never stood in less need, for the “unremitted assiduity of the people of the country “to be useful to me, would scarcely allow of their “interference in any thing. In the course of the *‘ day, numbers that I had not seenon my arrival, “ living contiguous to Crata, came and paid their “ respects, bringing presents of hogs, poultry, &c. “&c. Luinvited threeof the principal men to dine “withme. After our meal was concluded, I gave “‘ several toasts expressive of regard for their na- * tion, and for perpetuating a good understanding * between it and my own; all of which they per- 16 * fectly understood, and received with high marks of ‘ approbation. ‘¢ Sunday, 6th.—The principal Mosquito chiefs “ not arriving as I expected, in the forenoon I dis- ‘“* patched other messengers to hasten them. Dur- “ing the remainder of the day, I amused myself “‘ with short rambles round the settlements of Crata, “ and was much delighted with the simple and rural ‘‘ appearance of the Indian dwellings, and the very ‘* pleasing scenery which every where presented ‘* itself. I eagerly wished for the tasteful pencil ‘“‘ of a Gilpin to delineate some of the many agree- “ able subjects before me ; for, without the language “‘ of affectation, most of them were worthy of it. “‘ Wednesday, 9th.— As it might be expected, my “ appointment of yesterday produced an early as- ‘‘semblage of the men of Caratasca Sound this “forenoon. Immediately after their arrival, I con- “ cluded my business with them.... An ox having ‘‘ been slaughtered for the occasion, I had as many ‘as my house could contain to dine with me, and ‘* every thiag passed with entire harmony. I can- “ not omit remarking, that the greater part of my “‘ puests, if not tastefully or fashionably dressed, “ were at least splendidly and variously so. I really ‘believe the entire costume of Europe, civil and ‘‘ military, for the last hundred years, might at one “view have presented itself at my table. And “ whatever was oncethought gay and ornamenta! in 17 * the brilliant and refined circles of London and “ Versailles, might perhaps be now considered equally “ soonthelesspolishedshore of Caratasca. It had often “ been matter of surprise with me, to what earthly “ mart the venders of cast off gaieties in London could “ consign the odd articles frequently decorating their “‘ doors; this astonishment ceased, the moment my ‘‘ company had collected in the Mosquito nation. “* Monday, 14th.—Early this morning General ** Robinson came on board our vessel, and shortly “afterwards I accompanied him onshore. Whilst “ the matters I had to take with me were. collecting, ‘‘T amused myself with a walk of about a mile ‘“ through a spacious savannah, and the scenery on “ thisside the Lagoon certainly greatly surpassed that ‘¢ we had left on the other. ‘Thissavannah for a very “< considerable extent, formed an entire level of con- ‘¢ tinued verdure, and of the finest pasturage; skirted ‘* on one side of the water of the Lagoon, and bounded “on the other by gentle rising hills. ‘he clumps “ of pine and other lofty trees, interspersed at pleas- ‘ing distances over the whole, gave the view all “the appearance of cultivated art, and afforded a ‘¢ most agreeable relief to the eye. At the foot of ** the hills, the wood in places thickening, almost ‘‘ deluded the imagination to conceive, that in the ** bosom of these sequestered groves might be found “ the ornamental dwelling of some tasteful owner. 18 “ But awaking from this, here all was Nature *,.” I must now leave the friendly Indians, and con- tinue the description of the coast, which from Cara- tasca. Lagoon, inclines to the south-east. Croalk or Crotch River, is a small stream, which | empties itself into. a little bay, a short. distance before reaching the False Cape. It has from nine to eleven feet water over its bar. False Cape, is about 14 leagues from the en- trance of Caratasca Lagoon; it has a shoal called Cape Bank laying off it, that lies to the northward. There is tolerable anchorage under the lee. of the cape, after getting round the sand bank. Little Black River, lays about half way between © the False Cape, and Cape Gracias a Dios; its course is about forty mules, and about twelve miles from its mouth, is the settlement of Tobuncana. Cape Gracias a Dios, this celebrated cape lays in about 15° north latitude. The harbour is formed by an arm of the sea, large enough to hold the navy of Great Britain, and open only from E. by S. to S.S.W. from which points the wind seldom blows there +. Captain Wright informs us, that it isa noble extensive harbour, where Commodore Parry anchored in 1782, with his squadron, consisting * An Account of the British Settlement of Honduras, &c. by Captain Henderson, 44th Regiment, 1811, p. 173. + Edward’s Account of the British Settlements on the Mose quito Shore, in Vol. 5, app. p. 209. 19 of a fifty gun: ship; and some heavy frigates ¢ this bay is open to no winds but a south-east ; the Cape Keys, off this place, abound with turtle all the year round *, The depths in the bay are from 6 to 24 fathoms, and this is a safe and convenient place of shelter during the north winds. When off the pitch of the Main Cape, you will see the land tending nearly north and south. ‘The cape ends in a low sandy point, tending to the southward: some old trees are frequently drifting out of the river. The water shoalens a good way off, till yow double the pitch of it, then you may borrow as close as you please, into 2, 3, 4, and 5 fathoms, soft ground. Do not proceed higher up in the bay than in 3 or 4 fathoms ; although it is all clear ground, ‘and’ sheltered from all winds }._ On entering the Bay, a small village presents it- self on the larboard side; here the King of the Mosquito Nation usually resides ; there are also some settlers here, and an American and an Irish Gentleman, have both established astore for the sale of goods, which are chiefly obtained from Jamai- ca. “Itisone of the most healthy and. beautiful “spots in the world : the Europeans do not suffer ‘* by any of those disorders so dangerous in the West * Wright’s Memoir-of the Mosquite Territory, p: 17. _-t Columbian Navigator, art. Mosquitia, p. 32. C } 20 “ Indies, and live here to a very old age. *” Before. the evacuation of it by the British in 1787, there were near thirty English families, with about one hundred negro slaves, who had, begun planta- tions of sugar on the lands given. them} by: the Mosquitos +. The inhabitants live on the edge of avery large savannah, perpetually covered’ with the most fattening pasturage, and wes on. the river Wanks. | Peyrae. Wanks, or Great Cape River, called also Van-. kes, Yure, Yowra, and. Golden -River; from the: grains of that metal, bein g found in its sands): it-arises' very near the South Sea, and aftersuccessively passing the Spaniards, Indians friendly to the Spaniards, Indi-” ans friendly to us, and Mosquito Indians; rolls overa’ shallow bar into the sea at Cape Gracias.a»Dios:f. In the time of the English, they cut'a canal from” the: bay through to the river, from which itis sepa- rated only a few, hundred yards ;’it.is now filling” up, but canoes are still able to pass, and:orders have” lately been given to have it properly. cleared. «:! © _The strength of current, and various -coutse of this river, ‘and many~ other obstructions to mea-" surement of distance, make it very. difficult to as- certain the breadth of the continent ; but mules = 4 * Introduction to Jeffrey’s West India Atlas, p. 11. + Ibid. { Edward’s account of the British .settlements on the Mose quito shore, p. 209. el 21 have been brought down to the Cape, from a place supposed to. be considerably: more than a hundred leagues ‘up the river,’ from whence: ‘it is said to bé only two days ride through the woods to the Spanish city of Leon *,° The whole length of the river may be safely stated at upwards of 300 miles. . In the ‘months of February and March ‘1688, a party of the Buccaniers, whohad been cruizingin the South Sea, passed from the Bay of Amalapa to the town of New. Segovia, and from thence, after tra- versing the. woods fora short : distance, they em- barked: upon the river and arrived at Cape Graci: asa Dios. The town of New Segovia “ liesin a bot- ‘tom, and is so surrounded with mountains, that she “ looksas if she were laid. up.in a prison; the churchés “ heré‘are but:very indifferently built, and the place’ , “of arms is both very considerable’ and’ ‘very fine ; + “itis an.inland place, forty leagues off from ‘the | “ South Sea. The way that leads to it, from the place - “ where.we were, is very difficult, ‘being ‘all moun-° “ tains ofa prodigious. height,’ to the tops whereof ' “we must ‘creep. with great danger’;- and the val- “leys, consequently, are so very narrow here, ‘that’ “ fora league of: even ground you pass over, you” sal “ have six leagues of: mountains-to go. When we “had passed these mountains, we felt a very =" * Edward’s account of the British: Settlements % ‘the Mos, quito shore, p. 209, ) | C 2 “ gold, and were taken with so thick a fog, that even “ when day appeared, we could not know one ano- ‘‘ ther, no otherwise than by our voices ; but that ‘‘ only lasted till ten in the morning, when the “¢ weather cleared wp, and the fog went entirely off ; “and the heat which succeeds the cold, becomes ‘‘ there very great, as well as im the plains, where ‘¢ none-of this cold is felt, till you come to the foot “ of the mountains.—On the 16th, we lay at another “‘ (Hatto *) six leagues farther ; and at last on ‘the “ 17th, which was the sixteenth day since our setting ‘“‘ out, we came to the so much: desired river, and ‘* presently entered into the woods, that grow upon ‘‘the banks thereof, where every one fell to work, “in good earnest, to cut down trees to build pipe- “ ries, wherein we might go down the same +.” Upon their first setting out, they found the river to run fora * long way in a most rapid man- “ner, interrupted by vast numbers of rocks, of a “‘ prodigious bigness. On the 20th of February,” our author says, “ we found the- river larger, and “‘ more spacious than before, and met with no * more falls therein; but the same was so incum- “ bered with trees and bamboos, which the flood “‘ carried thither, that our wretched machines. could “not be kept from overturning ; at last, when we * A Grazing Farm. i Hist. of the Buccaniers of — p: 170, London 1699. 23 “ were got down some leagues farther, we found the “ river very good, the stream very gentle, and no “ jikelihood of our meeting any more rocks nor “ trees, though we had still above sixty leagues to ‘¢ the sea side. ‘Though this river we are now leav- ‘“‘ ing, is by some Spanish maps made to run direct- ‘‘ ly fourscore leagues, and then to fall into the ‘North Sea, yet we have computed the same to ‘run above three hundred, being almost always “ carried to the south-east for to go to the north *.” The Yare, or upper part of the river, as we have seen above, is full of falls, and there is a considera- ble one, and the last, just below the forks, in about latitude 140 20’ N. and about fifty miles above the Indian town, called Secklong, which latter is by the course of the river distant about 150 miles from the mouth of Cape River, thus making the river navi- gable for small craft for about 200 miles; the direct distance from the great falls, by land, to the Upper Embarcadero on the Black River, is about’70 miles, but a branch of the river Yare rises within nine miles of Popyas River, which falls into the Rio Tinto, separated however by a ridge of hills, but of no considerable height. Warner’s Sound, called also Wano Sound, is a short distance to the southward of the Cape, is of small extent, and las a bar at its mouth. meee: * Hist. of the Buccaniers of America, London, 1699. a4 Sintipoco River, is a few miles —— and runs’ out of a small lagoon. 6.0 fi me Sat Sandy Bay, is nearly 10: a from Cape Gracias a Dios.. ‘You. may.come to an,anchor in this bay in as deep or as little water as you choose: In 6 or 7 fathoms there is good muddy ground, and” fit for ships. In from 5 fathoms, or less, is sandy? ground, fit for smaller vessels. ..At the head of «the bay, and about twenty five miles from its entrances. is the chief Indian town, and where. the King fre-» quently resides ; this town 1s situated upon the river. Corce, which runs for about ninety, miles up into,, the country. The English formerly had settlements , between this bay and Ducana lagoon. bs at Governor's Point, forms the,-southern. point of the outlet from Ducana lagoon, and here, commence. the _ territories of the Tact kar ne the Go-,. VERNOR. |. |). ——— Stony Island, lays. eae ani to. the peers a little to the southward, and distant from the main: . land about twelve miles; it is a rock, and appears above water to the height of a ship’s hull, and, quite:’ black. It hes E, S; E. from Sandy. Bay, at, the dis-;;; tance. of about. A or 3 leagues. _-You may approach » to the distance of a mile from Stony Island, ‘and :. have 6 fathoms, bottom of white sand, TD Housetana Creek, is about nine miles ta aa southward of Governor’ $ Point, and about thirteen. . miles further south, is, Housetana River. which: 25 flows out of Para Lagoon. The coast from Go- vernor’s Point to the northern entrance of this ri- ver, is called Playa Blanca. ( Waniessa, called by the English Devils Key, lays at the distance of about three leagues south from Stone Island, and fourteen miles from the main land. It is a small islet covered with trees. Brangman’s Bluff; called by the Spaniards Monte Gordo, is composed of the highest sandy hills on the coast to the southward of Cape Gracias a Dios. It'has three or four whitish hills, which’ are very remarkable, and is also covered with tall” trees. There is anchorage close in shore, under the high land. | » Ville Coose River, rises upwards of one hundred and fifty miles in the interior, and empties itself by two mouths, the noithermost into Para Lagoon, and the southernmost by ier! is called the River’ Vava into Wava Lagoon. ‘The Towkeas Nation live on its head waters, | -Wava Lag oon, lies a little to the southward. of perroarie s Bluff; its mouth is of no great extent, and is situated a few miles inland, communicating with the sea by means of two rivers, one of ye is of the ‘same name.“ * © a J T ongulaw Lag ‘TOON, is about fourteen miles to the southward of Wava River, it is also of small extent, an island lays inside of. it, near its mouth; ~ the Fou’s Reef; lays at the distance of three miles, — 26 and across the whole lengths of its mouth, and be- tween the reef and the southernmost éntrance of the lagoon, there is anchorage in 3 fathoms. Prince Pulko River, is of considerable extent, and empties itself into the sea by four principal mouths, which form several islands; the northern- most is called Walpo Six, and its southernnrost branch is called Great Snook Creek. iil Little Snook Creek,is.a small river, and dividing itself into two empty forms. a. considerable island at its mouth. | Great River, called in some mapsand chatts, Rio Grande, rises about 180 miles in the interior, and in its course several small streams fall into it; this fiver empties itself into the sea, a few miles below. Little Snook ee which with it, forms at’ its mouth, a. considerable island ;. 1t has a considerable depth of water at its mouth, and there are several Indian settlements on its banks. Alligator Creek, is a small army of the sea, and. runs about twelve miles up into the country, ending in a salt pond, or lagoon. From hence to Pearl Key Lagoon, a great number of islets and shoals lay all along the coast, which makes the navigation intricate for a stranger, and a pilot ought to be pro- cured, before attempting it. The principal of these are the Moskito Keys, King’s Keys, Long Reef, Ashin’s Key, Pearl Keys, Water Keys, Hobbies 27 Keys, Frenchman’s, Bill Birds Keys, Parrots Key, Maroond’s Key, &e. Pearl Key Lagoon, the entrance les in about 12° N. and has a bar, with only nine feet water on it. It is distant about fifteen leagues from Cape Gracias a Dios. Captain Wright says, it has some small keys all round and lying off it, which forms good anchorage *. It takes its name on acs count of the pearl oysters which are plenty aboutit+. This lake is of considerable magnitude, being from two to three miles broad at its entrance, about twenty miles in length, and from eight to eleven miles in breadth. It contains five islands, some of them two miles in length. There are four rivers of soine magnitude that empty themselves into it. The entrance, however, has a shallow bar, but there is good. anchorage under tlie lee of the north point in three fathoms water. In the time of the English, there were a great many settlers at this place, attracted by the fertility of the soil; there are still a few here, who cultivate principally cotton and sugar; one of them, a French gentleman, has a considerable sugar plantation, and has lately com- menced the distillation of rum. Bluefield’s Lagoon, is said to be called after a famous Jamaica buccanier of that name, it is some * Wright's Memoir, p. 17. + Introduction to the West India Atlas, p. 1i. ith 28 times also denominated Hone Sound. This La- goon, properly speaking, 1s composed of an Upper and Lower, and is separated in one part from Pearl Key Lagoon by a narrow isthmus of two miles in breadth. An island, called Hone Key, and about eight miles long, divides the mouth into two en- trances ; the southernmost entrance has a bad bar and very shallow, but the northernmost has sixteen feet water over it at high water; when inside, it forms a noble bason, capable of holding a thousand sail of shipping *. The Bluff, an extensive rocky eminence, of very easy defence, has naturally almost every requisite for a town, and presents so bold a bank to the harbour, that vessels of any bur- den may he close to it when they load. This high eminence has a flat at top of about 1500 acres, on which one cannot land but by two places easy to euard ; it is joined to the continent on the north part by alow isthmus, sandy on the sides, and fen- ny, with mangrove trees in the middle. ‘There is the most grand and extensive prospect of the sea and land to the south from the top of this emi- nence{. As Bluegelds Bluff fully commands the entrance of the harbour, a small force stationed there, would keep off, effectually, a great and nu- * Wright’s Memoir, p. 17. | + Edward’s Account of the British Settlements on the Mos- quito Shore. App. vol, 5th, p. 209. { Introd. to Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 11. 29 merous enemy *, It would be easy to fortify this Bluff, for stone is found near it in abundance, and the oyster shells would afford all the lime necessary }. The Lower Lagoon is about 20 miles in length, and from 5 to 6in breadth. The Upper Lagoon is a continuation of the Lower, and runs 2bout N. N. E. at itsentrance ; it is little more than one mile broad, but encreases as you ascend, and in one place is 61 miles broad; its length may be estimated at twenty three miles. “ Several noble rivers, after “ having watered some of the richest land, perhaps, ‘‘ in the world, empty themselves in the vast lazoon “ of which this harbour is part {.” The depth of water in the harbour is from three fathom to three fathoms and a half. The neighbouring land is fertile, and its climate very healthy ;? the banks of its principal river are covered with cedars, large mahogany trees, and plenty of other trees gcod for building either houses or ships §. In the time of the English, they had many settlements about the Lagoon, and carried on an extensive trade with the interior of the country. Bluefields River, called by the Spaniards Rio Escondido, and Riode Neuva Segovia, rises in the * Wright’s Memoir, p. 19. + Introd. to West India Atlas, p. 11. + Edward’s Account of the British Settlements on the Mos« guito Shore. App. vol. 5th, p. 209. § Inirod. to West India Atlas, p. 11. 30 mountains of the Province of Nicaragua, one of its sources being near the town of Corpus Christi, and its other priricipal source rises in the mountaing near the town of Néuva Segovia, by which it passes ; it has'a course of upwards of three hundred miles, and in its passage receives the waters of several tri- butary rivers, emptying itself into Bluefields Upper Lagoon ; it is navigable for vessels of one hundred tons burthen for 60 miles, and canoes and other small craft may ascend it, nearly to its sources. The Cockoracks Indians reside about one hundred and thirty miles from its mouth ; they are denominated wild and tame, in order to distinguish the civilized from the uncivilized * ; a tribe of the latter, toge- ‘taet with the Woolvas, have settlements within 15 ‘miles of its mouth. Monkey Point, lies about ten miles to the south- ward of Bluefields Lagoon. Varin Key River; the principal mouth of this river is about eleven miles south of Monkey Point ; it has another mouth which empties itself into Blue- fields Lagoon. The course of this riveris about for- ty-five miles. Varin K ey, lays a short distance off it; and between Monkey’ Point and its mouth, at.the distance of eight miles from the con- ‘ tinent, is French Key, a small round islet. Rio de Punta Gorda, has a course of about seven- ty miles, and passing between two ridges of moun- * Wright’s Memoir, p. 25. 0 ol tains empties itself into the sea, to the northward of Punta Gorda; it has three islands laying off it, called the Three Brothers: the tribe called the Ramas, have two settlements upon this river, near its mouth, the uppermost of which is called Tigu- zigalpas. Grindstone Bay, lays between Punta Gorda, me Corn River ; there is anchorage for vessels here in from 4 to 10 fathoms water; a short way in the in- terior, the country rises into high and elevated hills. Corn River, has a course of only about forty or fifty miles, its sources are at the foot of the high Jands of the interior, and its mouth, which is wide, is easily distinguished. Indian River, has a course of about fifty miles, and rises in a high ridge of mountains in the interior ; it communicates with the river San Juan by two branches, the one called the river Cambitto, and the other the Rio Bocades ; a few miles further south is the river Z'rigo or Trigu, which also runs out of the great river San Juan’s. The Ramas occupy the country, from Bluefields to San Juan’s, and at va- - Ylous periods of the year, carry on a considerable ' traffic with the Spanzards. Rio de San Juan, is considered by geographers as the southern extremity of the Mosquito Shore ; nevertheless, the king of the Mosquito nation, whose country it originally was, claims all the eastern part of the province of Nicaragua, as far as Ro de Oro, J2 in the province of Veragua. The river issues out of a lake of the same name, and falls by three mouths or channels into the sea or bay of Guatimala. . Its current is so strong, that the flat-bottomed boats and canoes, which navigate it, are about nine days in ascending, and but thirty-six hours in.descend- ing, to and from the lake*. This river is more than thirty-six leagues long. Several rapids ren- der its navigation difficult, and the Indians are the only ones who know how to get over. these obsta- cles}. Bryan Edwards, the elegant historian of the British West Indies, however says, ‘I have been as- “ sured, if am not greatly deceived in my recollec- “* tion, that a vessel of thirty tons has sailed up to the “ entrance of this lake, which very vessel afterwards “made a voyage to Jamaica. {” About the latter end of the dry season, or middle of March, the river is so full of shoals as to render the passage very dif- ficult §; and the entrance into the river from the harbour of St John’s, 1s somewhat obstructed by a bar, on which there are only five feet water. About sixteen years ago, an enterprising Englishman, who casually visited the river, examined the different passages over the bar, and discovered one, which al- * Columbian Navigator, p. 22. t Introduction to Jeffrey’s West India Atlas, p. 11. { Edward’s Account of the British Settlements on the Mos- quito Shore, Vol. 5. p. 213. § Columbian Navigator, p. 22. NCY ae though narrow, would admit a vessel drawing twen- ty-five feet *. The harbour above-mentioned, called St John’s, is very capable of containing from ten to fifteen ships of war, with shallow water births, of about three fathoms ; and there 1s room enough for one hundred sail of transports besides, which will be perfectly secure from the north and south winds, the only dangerous winds on the coast +. The Lake of Nicaragua, from which the river flows, is about 170 British miles in length, and a- bout half that breadth. This grand lake is situated in the province of the same name, and according to Alcedo is navigable for ships of the line. “ In the “hands of an enterprising people, this lake would “ supply the long wished for passage from the At- ‘ Jantic into the Pacific, and in the most direct *‘ course that could be desired. Nature has al- “‘ ready supplied half the means, and it is probable “ that a complete passage might have been opened, *‘ at half the expence wasted in fruitless expeditions “ to discover such a passage by the north-west or the *¢ north-east {.” Atthe western extremity of the great lagoon, is a river which communicates with the * Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution, &«. feael are an- nexed some observations on the practicability of opening a commerce between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, &c. by William Davis Robinson. Vol. 2d, p. 276. + Edward’s Account,c. Vol. 5th, Appendix, p. 213. { Pinkerton’s Geography, 4to. Vol. 2d, p. 357. Lake of Lindiri, or Leon, distant about eight leagues. The distance from the Lake of Leon to the ocean is about thirteen miles; and from Nica- ragua to the Gulf of Papagayo in the Pacific Ocean, is twenty-one miles*. ‘The ground between the “ two lakes and the sea is a dead level +.” Pinkerton says, “ On the other side the space to “be cut, according to the best and most recent “maps, would not exceed ten or twelve English ‘¢ miles, and might cost to open a grand navigation, *“‘ about two hundred thousand pounds sterling f. ” I have been the more particular in mentioning this idea of a canal between the two seas, as the Mosquitos, whose country it originally was, enjoy still all the eastern part ; and the province of Nica- ragua, with the exception of the castle of Neuestra Senora, on the river San Juan, is inhabited by the Spaniards, only towards the South Sea §, and in the immediate vicinity of the great lake. Rio Colorado, rises in the mountains of the in- terior, and in its course to the sea, which is about forty-five miles, several small streams empty them- selves into it. This river, according to the Spaniards, forms the boundary line between the provinces of ® Robinson’s Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution, vol. 2d, — p: 218. % + Ibid. + Pinkerton’s Geography, vol. 2d, p. 358. § Introduction to the West India Atlas, p. 11. 3o Nicaragua and Costa Rica. To the southward of this is an inlet called the Boca de la Tortuga, in- to which a small river of the same name discharges itself. : . Rio de los Anzuelos, and Rio Vasquez, are two small rivers both laying to the southward of Boca de la Tortuga. Port of Cartago, is at the mouth of the Rizo Matina, which the Buccaniers have named Car- penters River ; it is one of the grand rendezvous of the European contiaband traders *. This river has a course of about sixty miles, and about thirty-five miles from its mouth, it is joined by another at a place where the Spaniards havea fort called Castil- lo de Austria ; there is a road from thence for about eight leagues to the Embarcadero, or landing place, which is only seven or eight miles distant from the port. : From Carpenters River to Punta Chica, or pion key Point, the coast is inhabited by the race of Indians called YZalumancas. The following are the capes or headlands, and also the rivers that run through this territory, emptying themselves into the | sea, or Bay of Guatemala, as itis by some geogra- phers designated Rio} de Suerre, the harbour, called el Portete, Rio Salado, port of Cuernavaca, Rio San Antonio, Punta Blanca, Rio de Bananas, Rio de * Intreduction to the West India Atlas, ee 32, + The Spanish name fer River, iD : 36 Dios, Rio de los Doraces, Punta Caneta, Rig Que- mado; and Rio de Culebras ; thislatterisesteemed by the Spaniards the boundary between the provinces of Costa Rica and Veragua. Punta Chica, or Monkey Point, is the first head- land in the province of Veragua, and after aii fol- lows Punta Gorda de Tirbi. Lagoon of Chiriqui, and Bahia del Almirante, isan immense piece of water; it has excellent an- chorage: several islands extend themselves across. its mouth from Punta Gorda de Tirbi, to Punta de Valencia, vulgarly called Valenty Point. The Boca del Toro, is one of the principal entrances to the Lagoon of Chiriqui. Itis 44 leagues from Porto Bello, and leads on the west to the Bahia del Al- mirante, or Port of Boca Toro; and on the east, or rather south, to Chiriqui Lagoon. The mouth to the west is called Boca del Drago, or Dragons mouth. In the harbour there is safe anchorage and good shelter for ships; and under the Itttle islands in the vicinity, smaller vessels may ride securely during violent winds. This place was often resorted to by the Buecaniers, and here they victualled and refit- ted their fleet, consisting of nine vessels, fora South | Sea expedition *. Bryan Edwards says, ‘* but the finest harbour in “‘ all the continent, from Honduras to Porto Bello, * Columbian Navigator, p. 21- 37 ‘“‘ ig undoubtedly the Boca del Toro, a place not “ only capable of containing the whole navy of “ Great Britain, with good anchorage throughout, “ but which has within it many excellent harbours, “« sheltered from the wind at every point of the com- ‘* pass ; 1t commands a tract. of country one hundred “miles in extent, and joins a lagoon, called the “ Chiriqui Lagoon. The ‘rivers that empty them- “* selves into the lagoon areindeed little known toany ‘¢ people, except our Mosquito Indians, who say they ‘ have traced some of them quite back to the Spa- ‘nish settlements. ‘They aver, that there is a la- *‘ goon on the South Sea coast, right opposite to the “ Chiriqui lagoon, and that these Jagoons have a “communication with each other, by means of some “ of the rivers above-mentioned : certain it is, that “ from a hill on the interior banks of .the -Chiriqut ‘ Lagoon, there isa spacious prospect of both seas, ‘ ‘Fhe navigation into the harbour we are now speak- “ yng of, will be attended with no’kind of difficulty “ to ships of the largest. tonnage, the smallest depth ** being five fathoms *”. ‘Mr Jefferys says, * The In- “dians who inhabit the country around these *‘ bays are very fierce; and,.as the Spaniards could ‘“‘ never conquer them, they called them Jndios ‘“* Bravos, or Wild Indians. These people have * Edward’s Account of the British Settlements on the Moss quito Shore. Vol. Sth, p. 215. . 8 Ou) often shewn an inclination to trade with the En- “ lish ; but the Mosquitos, (to the northward,) “ being jealous, it has been thought more prudent ‘to decline it, though a settlement erected here, “ with a fort, might be attended with a very lucra- “ tive trade to the British nation. Near this coast ‘¢ is found asmall shell fish, which affords the true “Tyrian dye. The country is very fruitful, and “ produces great plenty of mango, equal to that of “ the East Indies, with several sorts of spices, includ- ‘ing the wild nutmeg, many of which were “ brought by the French, who once had a design of “settling here *.” There are at present about sixty persons, chiefly English from Jamaica, settled here, and the Indians of the whole of the district of Chiriqui, recognise George Frederic, king of the Mosquito nation, as their sovereign, and pay him an annual tribute. ! ' There is a kay on the north point of the Boca del Toro, with cocoa nut trees on it; which shews itself like a snow under sail. When you get this kay in sight, bearing from S. by E. to §. S.W. you must haul off; for there is very foul ground, which | lays for at least.3 leagues from the kay f. * Jefferys, + The West India Pilot, p. 36. a9 ISLANDS. Ruatan, vulgarly called Rattan, is about thirty miles in length, and varies from five, to seven, and eight miles in breadth; it lies nearly E. and W. and the east end of it bears N.W. by W. distance 14 leagues from Cape Honduras, and IL from Truxillo, and lays 444 miles W.5.W. from Jamaica. It is estimated to contain about 250,000. acres ; the climate is very healthy, the land in the vallies rich and fertile. Here are great quantities of cocoa nuts, wild figs, and excellent grapes *. The forests produce white oaks, and pine trees fit for masts for merchant ships}. It abounds with -deer, wild hogs, Indian rabbits, and birds of many species ; parrots are innumerable, and their inces- sant noise may be heard at a considerable distance ‘from the shore t. Its soil, and the natural advan- tages connected with it, might perhaps in no de- gree be found inferior to many of the West India islands which are cultivated, and it is considerably larger than many of them {. A constant breeze from the E. cools and tempers the air, and it abounds * Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 17. + Maltham’s Naval Gazetteer, Vol. 2d. { Henderson's Honduras, p. 163, $ Ibid. p. 168. : 40 with excellent water #. At its west end are several iine meadows of many hundred acres, where the Jamaica planters formerly used to breed mules. The north coast is defended by a continued reef of rocks, between which are very few passages even for small vessels. The south side of Ruatan has se- veral good harbours: the principal, named by the English New Port Royal, and where they began their settlement, ‘is a very fine harbour, and ca- ‘* pable of being made impregnable ; the sea breeze, “ meeting no obstruction, blows quite through, and “renders the place extremely healthy ; the air is ** cooler, and more temperate than most parts of tbe “ West Indies +.” ‘This harbour is naturally guarded by rocks and shoals, and has an entrance so small as only to ad- mit one ship at a time t. It is formed, on the south, by several islets and shoals, which form two entran- ces. The largest of these is called George's Isle; and the best channel is at the west end of it. At ‘the N.E. end of the harbour there is a small kay, called. Careening Kay, where vessels may be cleaned and repaired, This is the best anchorage for vessels that come in to:stay:for any considerable time-4. Maltham’s Naval Gazettter. Vol. 2d, West India Pilot, 1766. Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 17. Columbian Navigator, p. 38. 4L “In Port Royal Harbour, British ships formerly “‘ obtained wood ; and they procured water from “a nvulet in the N.W. part of the harbour. The “ harbour is capacious enough to contain 20 or 25 sail of the line, Formerly there were two small * batteries here; one on the west end of George’s * Isle, and the other on a high point of land on the ‘* S.W. part of the harbour. The heights of Rua- ** tan command such an extensive prospect, that no. “‘ vessels can pass to the Bay of Honduras without “being seen from them *. ” Within about three leagues of the west end of the island, and just to leeward of the second point on the coast, in running down from Port. Royal, isa harbour called Dzxon’s Cove, very convenient in north winds for ships to shelter in that are bound to the Bay of Honduras. The banks on both sides of the harbour are very steep, 12 to 3 fathoms not half a ship’s length from the deep water to the shoalest. It is best to anchorin the middle of the harbour in about 15 or 16 fathoms, clay ground, and moor with a kedge to the eastward ; you will then be abreast of a creek on the east side of the harbour +. This is a fine outlet, as you may be at sea in 10 minutes; and, in case of accidents, a ves- sel may be saved here without anchors or cables, * Columbian Navigator, p. 38. + Earle’s Sailing Directions, 1799, p. 29. 42 by running up the N.E. part of the harbour, which ig all soft mud *. | The English in 174%, took possession of the is- land of Ruatan, and built a fort in which they puta garrison of 250 men; one Pitts, a logwood cutter, was its first governor, who never had a successor+. “Our ships, bound from Honduras to Jamaica, * touch at Port Royal when they want water or “‘ have sprung a leak ; and those which go from Ja- “‘ maicato Honduras, take pilots there for the Bay {.” This fine island is claimed by H. H. the Cazique of Poyais. ‘ The Spaniards have a kind of military * station or look-out post on this island ; this, how- “ever, may rather be considered as intended to es- “tablish their right to it by occupancy than as a “ means of defence, as the force does not consist of ** more than five or six men {.” The small islands adjoining the east end of Ruatan, named Helena Moraite, and Barbaretia, may be deemed only as detached parts of the former ; they are situated on a flat, extending from Ruatan, and are only separated from each other by a narrow channel of the sea. They are frequented by turtles, and abound in In- dian rabbits, an animal something larger than a * Earle’s Sailing Directions, 1799, p. 29. + Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 17. t Ibid. p. 17. § Henderson’s Honduras, p. 194. 43 hare, the flesh of which is considered very delicate. Captain Henderson, on his return from Mosquitia, was driven by stress of weather to take shelter un-~ der Barbaretta, on the beach of which he construct- eda hut, but could not gain the interior without great difficulty; the surface though +igh, being nearly covered with impenetrable underwood. ‘‘ Af- “ ter a walk of about a mile and a half along the ‘‘ beach, in a contrary course to the one’I had.pursued “‘ the day before, we came to the rocks, and here, al- ‘“‘ though our progress seemed less difficult to the “eye, it scarcely presented fewer obstacles to the “feet. Difficulties, however, sink before determi- *‘ nation. Iwas resolved to mount, ,to it therefore “TI went with hands and knees. After some ‘‘trouble, I.gained a firm station .on a toler- ‘able eminence: and without -resorting to .the “ extravagant and affected language sometimes used ‘‘ on similar occasions, I might truly say, the whole “¢ was.enchantingly beautiful.and picturesque. -The “spot on which I stood.might,be connected.with a ‘© space of somewhat more: than half an acre, entire- “ ly clear of trees, growing with a luxuriant grass. “ Beyond.this the whole became.a thick continued “* grove, «© Where scarce a speck of day, “ Falls on the lengthened gloom.” THOMSON. “ At the bottom of the rock, the sea rolled with FE A * Joud and haughty sway, and the confused mass of “stone which lay scattered about, at once confes- “sed its uncontrollable dominion *.” Guanaja, vulgarly called Bonaca, was discover- ed by Columbus, and is about 60 miles in cireum- ference. It lies about the distance of 40 leagues W.S.W. from the Swan Island, and 20 leagues from Black River. “ The part of the island we “were on was highly romantic and picturesque, “ and like Ruatan, profusely covered with trees. Its ' “natural productions appeared nearly the same. ‘¢ The little bay in which we anchored was of great “ depth, and so transparent that the shell fish and “ coral rocks at the bottom might be clearly discern- “ed+.” This island contains abundance of lime- stone ; and lapis calaminaries, an ore of zinc, has been discovered here. The land is very high, and it can be seen at a great distance off at sea. The harbour on the south side is called Half moon Kay, from a small island of that name and shape, close to its entrance ; it 1s also the largest of several, that lay about the entrance, and has cocoa- nut trees growing onit. There are several other kays inside. To go to the watering place, you must steer west from the Half-moon Kay, for the middle, or 77o- lan’s Kay, and from thence W. by N. for the kay * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 194. + Ibid. p. 176: 40 which is nearest the island, and called Frenchman’s ay. Then run round the north-east side, between it and the island, observing to keep close to the reef, and to fetch as near as you can to the kay, and when it bears East from you, to let go the an- chor. “ There are several patches of rocks lying ‘* to the southward and westward ; but as the water. “‘is-very clear, those dangers may be avoided *.” A Between Halfmoon Kay, and the S.W. Kay, and about mid-channel over to the eastward, lies a very dangerous shoal, where there is hardly, e eight feet water in some places; the bad effects of which were felt by H. B. M. sloop Swift, which struck u pon it in 1764, and was thereby obliged to throw her guns overboard}. ‘‘ Rattan and Bonaca, for “‘ the conveniency of very fine harbours, the good~ “ness of the soil, pureness of the air, the great “‘ quantity of fish and wild hogs, cocoa-nuts, fine- “ness of water and commanding ground; those “islands are proverbially called in that country, “ ¢ the Garden of the West Indies; the Key to “ Spanish America, New Gibraltar, &e.: and they ‘¢ of themselves, from their natural strength, might ‘“‘ be made impregnable, being tenable with a Say ‘¢ small force f. * Columbian Navigator, p. 37. + Directions for Sailing to the Moskito Shore, Rattan, and Bay of Honduras, &c. by Captain Hester, % Wright's Memoir, p. 16. bs re 8) 46 Swan Islands, called by the Spaniards Santa- nillas, aré two islets, situated about 300 miles from the west end of Jamaica, and about 90 miles dis- tant from Black River. They’ aré siirrounded by a reef, excepting on the S.W. side, where there is an- choragé. Considerable quantities of fustic gtow here, and gredt numbers of turtle resort to them, to lay their eggs, Vessels from Jainaica, bourid to the Mosquito Shore and Bay of Honduras, usually endeavout to make these islands, from whericé they - take a fresh departure. It is 1 contemplation to establish a few fishermen’s familiés oni them, for the purpose of being able to supply pilots to vessels, bound to Black River and Balize. : Old Providence, lies in latitude 13°96"Ney it: is only two leagues and a halflong, and one Bi ta: its most northerly point, called Santa Catilina, is separated from it by a narrow channel, on which the Buccaniers had built a bridge *. It is nearly surrounded by a reef, which also incloses the isle of Catalina. A break on the reef, on thé western side, admits vessels to an anchorage, in 4 fathoms fF. This island formerly belonged to the Earls of War- wick, and its possession was secured to England by the 8th article of the American treaty in 1670, but it afterwards reverted to the Spaniards. It has lat- * Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 11, - Columbian Navigator, p. 31. AT terly been in possession of the independent chief, General Aury, who has built a town there, called Isabella. Its present population is between three and four hundred souls, exclusive of the garrison. It has been very much celebrated in the history of the Buccaniers, who fortified it, and made it for . some time their principal retreat. In 1665, Mans- velt, the pirate, sensible of the great convenience of these islands, in his descents on the Spanish Main, took them, and connected them by a bridge, in-_ tending to raise provisions on them for his whole | _ fleet, leaving a garrison and French governor; the latter delivered them soon after to the Spaniards, who fortified them, but they were subsequently taken by the Buccaniers *. Notwithstanding the smallness of this island, it may be considered as ‘one of the best in the West Indies, both on account of its fruitfulness and the salubrity of its air; to which we may add, the facility of fortifying its shores ; it is watered by four streams, two only of which are dry in summer; the woods, composed of cedars, fustic, and other trees for dying, are full of an in- credible number of pigeons; guanas, whose flesh . in taste resembles that of a chicken, are in great abundance ; and there is not a serpent, or any other venomous creature to be found +. | * Columbian Navigator, art. ‘Mosquitia, p. 31. a Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 11. ' 48 . San Andres, sometimes called St Andrews, and St Andreas, lays in latitude 12°. 30’, with the north point of the island N. by E. the middle E. by S. and the south point S. E*. San Andreas is about. 18 leagues from Old Providence. At the S. W. side, you may anchor in very good sandy ground. Abont a mile from shore, you have from 15 fathoms to 6 fathoms. You may come to an anchor in what water you please}. On the west side there is a fine harbour called the Cove, where large vessels may anchor within a cable’s length of the shore ; ‘‘ the water here is so deep that the Mon- ‘‘ arch, a ship of 600 tons, anchored with a cable a- “ stern, within a few yards of the shore f.” On the east side there is good anchorage in Cocoa-Plumb- Tree-Bay ; the entrance is between two small islets ; on the bar there is two and a half fathoms water. This 1s an excellent harbour for vessels not exceed- ing 200 tons: up the harbour towards the north end, there is fine shelter, and plenty of wood and water to be had. Mr Weatherhead, a medical officer attached to the army of General Macgregor in 1819, and who has * Columbian Navigator, p. 31. + Earle’s Sailing Directions, p. 28. { An Account of the late expedition against the Isthmus of Darien, under the command of Sir Gregor M‘Gregor, by W- D. Weatherhcad, Esq. London 182!, p. 15. 49 since published, rather a biassed account of the late expedition against Darien, influenced probably by hisown disappointment, says, “‘ the Island of St An- “ drews is a coral formation, of small size, within a “ few hours sail of the Island of Old Providence and ~“ the Corn Islands, and about forty-eight hours sail “from the main land of South America. It is “beautifully varied by hills and valleys covered “* with woods, sugar and cotton plantations, provision ** grounds, and excellent pasture for oxen; the beef “‘and pork here are very superior, fowls are in a- “ bundance, yams, plantains, and cocoa-nuts, pines, - “ shaddocks, forbidden fruit and tamarinds, onicns, ** shalots, &c. &c. enrich the provision grounds, and *“ prow round the picturesque houses and cottages of the inhabitants *.” In another place he says, “two “ roads lead from the cove the length of both sides “of the island; they are, however, somewhat diffi- “ cult at landing to find out ; indeed, so snugly are “¢ all the houses on the island situated, that only one “‘ of them can be perceived from the sea, it appear- “edtousto be uninhabited. The island is éx- ' “ tremely healthy, rich and beautiful, perpetually “ cooled by delightful sea breezes+ .” | The island of San Andres centains about three hundred white persons and people of colour, and be- * Weatherhead’s account of the expedition against the Isth- mus of Darien, p. 15. vWD 50 tween ten and twelve hundred slaves ; “‘ they carry “on a considerable smuggling trade with the Main, “ ship cotton, &c. for Jamaica, supply Chagres and “‘ Porto Bello with ground provisions, and I believe, “annually dispose of a number of the children of “their slaves at the ports on the South American “coast *.” In the month of December 1815, two Carthagenian privateers landed their crews and cap- tured the island, putting the Spanish governor and soldiers to the sword; they spiked the guns of the batteries, and burnt the government house, and Governor Gonzale’s plantation, at the same time carrying away .many of the slaves. In 1818, Gene- ral Aury sent his sick here from the island of Pro- vidence, and in April 1819, General Macgregor came to an anchor in the Cove with hisfleet ; ‘‘ the island of ‘* St Andreas was taken formal possession of by him- “self and the ex-governor, in the name of the govern- ‘‘ ment of New Grenada, on Sunday the 4th April, “1819. At twelve o’clock the patriot colours of “ Grenada were:hoisted on Leva-hills, near the scite ‘of an intended battery, which was to command “ the cove, and a salute of 21 guns was fired by the ‘¢ Hero upon the occasion +,” immediately after which she was commissioned as a national vessel, and un- _ ™ Weatherhead’s Account of the Expedition against the Isthmus of Darien, p. 15. t Ibid. p. 15, 51 der a second salute of twenty-one guns, hoisted the independent standard of New Grenada, when his Excellency Don Juan Elias Lopez, the governor of Carthagena and Delegate of the General Congress of New Grenada, conferred on her the name of El Macgregor *, in compliment to the commander in chief. “* A dinner was given on shore by the ex-go- «' vernor, at which the principal officers were present, “ andchief inhabitants of the island; an oath of “allegiance to the government of New Gre- “nada was taken, and General Wolf’s song, “ The soldiers business is to die, was sung with *‘ all that enthusiasm which the occasion inspired. ‘‘ It was the intention of Sir Gregor to convert St ‘* Andreas into a depot for the sick, to erect forts, * &c. upon the island, and to leave a part of the “ artillery and stores+.” After the recapture of Porto Bello, General Macgregor returned here, and again took formal possession of the island, appointing Colonel Woodbine, the Adjutant-General of .the army, to be its governor. At the capture of Porto Bello, he particularly distinguished himself; Wea therhead says, ‘‘ Colonel Woodbine now led the “advance, who, from his experience in bush-fight-. “ ing in the late American war, when at the head of, “ the Indians, was well calculated for this descrip- “tion of service {.” This officer, who has been * The Macgregor. . + Crea cehieall’s Account of the cpusinen against the Isthmus of Darien, p. 19 and 20. + Ibid. p. 25. G 52 several years in the Cazique’s service, was promoted in 1819, to the rank of Brigadier-General, and at the same time received the Military order of the Green Cross; end in 1820, in consideration of his long and faithful attachment, was entrusted with the important office of Vice-Cazique of Poyais ; and it is my firm opinion, that no one conld have been found more deserving and worthy of this con- fidence, or more capable of filling the important station with credit to himself, and benefit to the native Indians, as well as the settlers in general. There are some islets or kays in the vicinity of San Andres. At the distance of six leagues to the eastward are the E.S.E. Kays, they are three in number, and have reefs all round them; there is good anchorage for small vessels, but a person ought to be well acquainted. ‘The $.S.W. Hays, called by the Dutch Abu-kerken, and by the Spaniards Albuquerque, axe three islets with good anchoring ground. There is nothing to fear here; the water about therm is deep and clear, and every thing may be seen. ‘There are a few rocks above water, close to the kays, but they will be avoided by keeping the island of San Andres N. by W. until the 9.9.W. kays bear S.W. by S. when you may pro- ceed as convenient*. Both the above kays aré covered with cocoa-nuts; and large quantities of turtle are caught here in the season, many of them * Columbian Navigator, art. Mosquitia, p. 31. 33 of the Hawks-bill species. In a ciear day, both the E.S.E. and S.8.W. kays may be distinctly seen from the heights of San Andres. J Corn Islands, called by the Spaniards Islas de Manglares, lie to the eastward of Pearl Key La- goon; they are of considerable height, the south- western is the largest. From the sinaller island stretches a reef, about two leagues distant on the north-east side of the island. These two islands are reckoned 50 leagues distant from Sandy Bay *. The largest is nearly surrounded by a reef, but there 1s anchorage on the western side, in clear sandy ground, in 4, 5, or 6 fathoms water. Little Corn Island, is full of large cocoa-nut trees, and has fresh water: in the Great Corn Island, plenty of good fresh water may be found, by digging ' small holes in the sand. Several English families reside upon these islands, where they raise cotton and pienty of stock; the population may be esti- mated at one hundred souls. MOUNTAINS. The chief of these to the westward, are called the Poyer Hiils, and by the Spaniards Sierras de la Cruz. This high land terminates with a remark- able sugar loaf hill, supposed to have been a vol- cano, which stands several leagues inland, upon the eastern bank of Black River, and nearly south from | * The West India Pilot, 33. G2 a4 the entrance; further westward,a little distance in the interior, stands the high round hill called the Picacho. A chain of lofty mountains run diagonally from the Bay of Truxillo, nearly south-east, to Saint Juans, which are deemed inaccessible, and serve as a strong barrier between the Spanish and Mosquito terri- tories *, CLIMATE. The climate is mild for those latitudes, and being continental, not nearly so hot as the islands in the same parallel +. The great salubrity of the air { of this delightful and most valuable country §, sup- plies a constant fund of health and activity to the European settler, a blessing which is seldom enjoy- ed in the same degree in any other part of either - North or South America. With the exception of a few months in the year, this country is constantly refreshed by regular sea breezes, accompanied by an average of heat that may be taken at the tempera- ture of 80 degrees ||, The temperature of the air @ Wright’s Memoir, p. 11. t Memoir of the Mosquito Territory, by Captain Wright, R. N. 1808, p. 11. + Ibid, p. 11. § Account of the British Settlements on the Mosquito shore, by Bryan Edwards in 1773, 5th Edit. vol. 5, App. p. 202. || Account of the British Settlement of Honduras, by Captain Henderson, 44th Regiment, 2d Edit. 1811, p. 13. 03 varies indeed considerably according to the eleva- tion of the land, but with this exception, the me- dium degree of heat is much the same throughout the country. Captain Henderson, speaking of the climate of Honduras, very justly observes, “ The “ climate of this part of the American continent is “ greatly superior to that of most other paris of the ‘¢ same vast portion of the globe, either in higher or “ lower degrees of latitude. It is equally superior “to the climate of the West India islands general- “ly; for persons whose health and constitutions ‘‘ have become impaired from the effects of the ‘‘ latter, very frequently acqu:re a sudden restora- *‘ tion of both after an arrival at Honduras *.” This observation holds not only equally good, but even in a superior degree, with respect to the Mosquito shore, and there certainly is not any where to be found in either the Northern or Southern continent of Ame- rica so salubrious and delightful a climate. ene SEASONS. A tropical year seems properly to comprehend but two distinct seasons, the wet and the dry, and these have also their marked difference, though na- ture may not have determined the shades of varia- * Account of the British Settlement of Honduras, by Captain Henderson, 44th Regiment, 2d Edit. 1611, p. 12, 13. 56 tion with the same strong lines which she has affix- ed to most other situations under her dominion ; but as the rains in these climates constitute. two great periods, it may be described like the, Euro- pean year, under four divisions. The Spring or vernal season may be said to com- mence with the months of April and May, when the foliage of the trees evidently become. more vi- vid, and the savannas begin to change their russet hue, even previous to the first periodical rains, which are now daily expected, and compared with the autumnal rains, may be said to be gentle show- ers. After these rains have continued a short time; the weather becomes dry, settled and salutary ; and the tropical Summer or dry season, reigns in full glory. The sun, during this space, is always most — powerful, and its. vivid rays are not mitigated by. the same uniformity of breeze that prevails dur- ing. the other months of the year. Nota cloudis to be perceived ; and the nights at this season are transcendently beautiful. The clearness and bril- liancy of the heavens, the serenity of the air, and the soft tranquillity in which nature.reposes, contri- bute to harmonise the mind, and produce the most calm and delightful sensations. | The moon too, in these climates, displays far great- er radiance than in Europe. The smallest print is le- gible by her light, and in the moon’s absence, her function is not ul supplied by the brightness of the. 57 milky-way, and by that glorious planet Venus, which appears here like a little moon, and glitters with so refulgent a beam as to cast a shade from trees, buildings and other objects, making full a- mends for the short stay and abrupt departure of the crepusculum or twilight *. The state of the weather commonly continues with little variation, from the middle of June until the end of August, when the diurnal breeze begins to intermit, and the sun, during this space, is always more powerful, and instead of a steady and refresh- ing wind from the sea, there are usually faint bree- zes, and calms elternately. These are preludes to the second periodical or autumnal seasons. Large towering clouds, fleecy and of a reddish hue, are now seen in the morning in the quarters of the south and south-east ; the tops of the mountains at the same time appear clear of clouds, and the ob- jects upon them wear a bluish cast, and seem much nearer to the spectator than usual. When these vast accumulations of vapour have risen to a con- siderable height in the atmosphere, they common- ly move horizontally towards the mountains, pro- claiming their progress in deep and rolling thunder, which reverberated from peak to peak, and an- swered by the distant roaring of the sea, heighten the majesty of the scene, and irresistibly lift up the * Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. Ist, p. 9. 58 mind of the spectator to the great Authorof all sub- limity *. The waters, however, with which these congre- gated vapours load the atmosphere, seldom fall with great and general force until the beginning of Octo- ber. But the wet season, as it is emphatically denomi- nated, is not considered here the season of disease. It is fatally otherwise with the whole of the West Indies. At the beginning of November, what are called the norths, north winds, commence, and gene- rally continue, with little variation, til the return of the month of March. Whilst these winds last, the mornings and evenings are cold, frequently un- pleasantly so; and what in this country is under- stood by a wet north, might perhaps furnish no very imperfect idea of a November day in England; a dry north, on the contrary, is healthful, agreeable, and invigorating +. The north wind having ac- quired sufficient force, the atmosphere is cleared ; and now comes on a succession of serene and plea- sant weather, the north-east and northerly winds spreading coolness and delight throughout the whole of the country. If this interval, therefore, from the beginning of December to the end of April, be cal- led winter, it is certainly the finest winter on the * Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. 1st, p. 11. +t Henderson’s Honduras, p. 14. ms 59 globe. . To valetudinarians and persons advanced in life, it is the climate of Paradise *. —— SOTL. [ aoa) The soil is every where fertile in a very uncom: mon degree, and capable of producing in the utmost perfection, whatever is produced between the tro- pics+. Few countries, perhaps, ever possessed higher advantages, in an agricultural point of view, than the greater part of that which is placed con- tiguous to the Bay of Honduras. The extraordinary benefits that might result from the happiest com:- bination of climate and soil, are almost disregarded ; and the cultivation of the earth, which in almost every other spot of the habitable world, claims a first attention, is here held of no consideration at allt. The soil isso rich, that, until three or four seasons of ratoon canes has in some degree impo- verished the land, no sugar can be produced; the first growth rising to the great height of sixteen to eighteen feet, and of several inches diameter ; which naturally impoverishes the saccharine juices. This fact must sufficiently tend to shew the great ferti- * Edward’s History of the West Indies, vol. 1, p. 13. + Ibid. p. 208. + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 37, 88. ; el 60 lity of the soll in producing maize, Indian corn, cotton, coffee, and provisions of all kinds, exceeding by far any thing known in the West India Is- lands *. In the month of September 1806, Captain Hen- derson was sent from Balize to the Mosquito Shore, charged with a vatiety of presents, ordered by go- vernment for the Chiefs of that nation; he says, ‘The soil they inhabit is abundantly fertile, and *t capable of many modes of cultivation. Indian “‘ corn of the finest quality, plantains, cassava-root, “ varieties of the yam and sweet potatoe, are plen- “ tifully raised from it. The sugar-cane, cotton *‘ and tobacco, thrive equally well; and in the _ “ mountainous situations, coffee, no doubt, might ‘*‘ be produced, not inferior to that which is raised “in the West India Islands +.” Had Captain Hen- derson visited Biack River, he would have there seen as fine. coffee as 1s produced in any part of the “world. ' Every variety of animal and vegetable nature, for use or beauty, for food or luxury, has been most liberally bestowed on this country. It is every where. plentifully watered ; and the soil is almost every where fertile in a very uncommon degree, and * Captain Wright’s Memoir, p. 11, 12. + Henderson’s. Sketches of the Mosquite Indians, p. 212, 213, 61 capable of producing, in the utmost perfection, whatever is produced between the tropics. © The cotton bush, the cocoa or chocolate nut, and venel- loes, flourish spontaneously all over the country ; indigo, too*, is a native, and appears to be the same sort with that of the neighbouring province of Guatimala +, which is accounted the best of any. The sugar-canes arrive here to as great perfection as in any of the islands{. The productions common to the West India Islands, with a considerable va- riety of such as are more familiarly known to that part of the continent which is comprehended within the tropics, might unquestionably be cultivated at Honduras, with equal, if not, in many instances, with superior success. The sugar-cane viewed as the most valuable of all, thrives with the richest luxuriance. Coffee, another, and now become one of the most profitable articles of our island culture, grows equally well. Cotton must likewise be in- cluded. Indigo might’also amply reward the labours of the cultivator; an inferior sort is indigenous, In- dian atrow-root is abundantly produced, and prmento has been tried under the most.encouraging appear- ance of profit{. ‘ Previous to the removal of the: “ English settlers from the Mosquito Shore, several * Indigofera Argenta, Linn. + Indigofera Disperma, Linn. { Edward’s West Indies, vol. 5th, App. p. 20». § [Ienderson’s Honduras, p. 39. HS 62 ‘ sugar plantations had been formed on Black River, “ and the sugar and rum which they furnished was “‘ very generally deemed, by competent judges, not ‘inferior to the same articles the prodtce of Ja- “« maica *,” One might cultivate rice, cocoa, indigo, silk grass, tobacco, &c. to advantage in this country ; at pre- sent, we get from it tiger and buck-skins, dying- woods of several kinds, gums and balsams, indigo, cochineal, sarsaparilla, tortoise-shells, zebra-wood, for cabinet-makers, &c. but all these only in small quantities {. From Bluefields to Black River, the country is generally flat for many miles from the sea-coast ; but it rises into hills much sooner to the westward of Black River, and to the southward of Biuefieldsf. The savannas, or plains, afford the richest pastur- age, being capable of any sort of cultivation §: Endless tracts of fine ridges interspersed all over the country, would supply an inexhaustible fund of tar and turpentine ; the trees being so redundant with the liquors, that when put into the deepest rivers they instantly sink ||. * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 39, 40. + Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p, 11. { Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. 5th, app. p. 208. j § Wright’s Memoir, p. 14. | Ibid, p. 12, 63 MINERALS AND MINERAL SPRINGS. Gotp,--thisis the only mineral that has yet been discovered in this country, with the exception of lapis calaminaris, in the Island of Guanaja: many of the rivers, by washing the sands in fine sieves, furnish the native globules of pure gold. Those mines that have been discovered are very rich: “I shall particularly mention one at Albra- “ poyer, which might have turned out to infinite ‘‘ advantage to those concerned, had honesty in the “ conducting of it been as proportionably attended *‘ to as the mine was rich. This mine, with several “ others might, with proper management, be again “ worked to great benefit *.” In the neighbour- ing province of Honduras, there are a great many mines both of silver and gold; it is therefore pro- bable that mines of the former metal will also be dis- covered here, when the country becomes more peo- © pled, for the ridge of mountains that traverse the Mosquito territory, are spurs of the same great chain that separate this country from that of Hon- duras and Nicaragua, and which contain many rich mines of both these metals. The Mexican gold is chiefly alluvial, but partly found in primitive moun- ee * Wright’s Memoir p. 14. 64 tains, and mixed with silver, in the mines of that metal *. Lapis CALAMINARIS,--this mineral is found in the {sland of Guanaja ; it is an ore of zinc, of a spongy substance, and a lax and cavernous texture, yet con- siderably heavy. Zinc, which forms the connect- ing link between the ductile metals, and those which are not so, when found oxidated, 1s then com-. monly called Calamine, or Lapis Calaminaris. Cal- amine, according to Werner, is not found in the primitive rocks. It oftener occurs sulphurated, and then the vulgar name of it 1s Pseudo-gealena, or Blende. It generally accompanies galena, or sul- phuret of lead. It is often mixed with iron, gold, and silver. The latter in particular is frequently found in sulphurated zinc. It combines with al- most all the metals, and some of its alloys are of great importance. Zine combines readily with copper, and forms one of the most useful of all the metallic alloys. When the zinc does not exceed a fourth. part of the copper, the alloy is known by thé hame of brass. When the alloy contains three parts of zinc, and four of copper, it assumes a colour nearly the same with gold; but itis not so maleable as. brass. Itis then called pinch-beck, princes metal, or Prince Rupert’s metal. Tin and zinc may be + Edinburgh Gazetteer, Introduction, p. 77. 65 easily combined by fusion. The alloy is much harder than zinc, and scarcely less ductile. This alloy is often the principal ingredient in the com- pound called pewter. The importation of this ore into the United States of America, is free of duty ; it may perhaps therefore merit the attention of some of the settlers. At the junction of two of the branches of the Black River, or Rio Tinto, and in latitude 15° 8’. are two springs, the one hot, the other cold; they are situated close to each other at the base of a ridge of mountains, which contain, according to re- port, several rich mines of gold, and probably also some of the other mineral ores. TREES, SHRUBS, PLANTS, &c. Manocany *,——This beautiful and valuable tree grows in vast quantities in various parts of this country ; it thrives in most soils, and varies both in grain and texture with each 3 that which grows a- mong the rocks is smaller, but very hard and weigi- ty,ofaclose grain and beautifully shaded; while -the produce of the low and richer lands is observed to be more light and porous, of a paler colour and open grain ; and that of mixed soils to hold a nie- dium between both. The tree grows very tall and * Seretenta Mahagoni, Linn. 66 straight, rising often sixty feet from the spur to the branches, and is usually about four feet in diameter. The leaves are of a beautiful deep green, the flower of a reddish or saffron colour, and the fruit of an oval form, about the size of a turkey’s ege ; while that-which grows in the mountainous districts hard- ly exceeds the size of a nutmeg: the whole appear- ance of this tree, is the most beautiful that can be imagined. It is said, that some have grown to the - enormous height of one hundred feet. The wood is generally hard, takes a fine polish, and is found to answer better than any other sort in all kinds of cabinet ware. It 1s a very strong timber, and answers very wellin beams, joists, plank, board and shingles ; and has been frequently put to those uses in Jamai- ca in former times *. The Spanish men of war ta- ken by the English, at the last memorable siege of Gibraltar, in 1782, were of the finest species of this wood. The mahogany tree is seldom found in clusters, or groups, but single and often much dispersed +; there are two seasons of the year for cutting it ; the first commencing shortly after Christmas, the other about the middle of the year. The tree ig common- ly cut about twelve feet from the ground. The workmen raise a scaffolding four or five feet high * Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p, 159. + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 62, 67 for the axe-man employed in levelling it. The part beneath, extending to the roots, is not only of a lar- ger diameter, but of a closer texture than the other parts, most elegantly diversified with shades or clouds, or dotted like ermine, with black spots, and moreover takes the highest polish, with singular lustre. This part is only to be come at by digging below the spur to the depth of two or three feet, and cutting it through, which is so laborious an o- peration, that few attempt it, unless they are un- commonly curious in the choice of their wood, or to serve a particular order *. The body of the tree, from the dimensions of the wood it furnishes, is deemed the most valuable ; but for purposes of orna- mental kind, the branches or limbs are generally preferred, the grain of these being much closer, and. the veins more rich and variegated. Some of the wood is rough squared upon the spot, but this part of the labour is generally suspended until the logs are rafted to the entrance of the different rivers. *“‘ It has been remarked, by those of most experience _ “in the occupation, that the mahogany which is “ fallen between the months of February and Sep- ** tember is very liable to split; the same observa- * tion extends to that also which grows in rocky or ‘“* mountainous situations. This is the bay-man’s “* greatest evil, for the wood more particularly sub- * Mortimer’s Commercial Dictionary. I 68 ject to this inconvenience is invariably the largest “and of the finest quality. ! There is but one pre- “ caution'‘against this, whenever the tendency to- “‘ wards it is discovered, which is, to keep the tree ‘‘ immersed as closely as possible in deep water until ‘the time for shipping, or otherwise disposing of 1t “arrives *,” The price of mahogany on the Mosquito Shore, is only £12 Jamaicacurrency per thousand feet. At Balize it sells from sixteen to thirty pounds. This difference of price arises from the cheapness of la- bour in the Mosquito territory, and its greater a- bundance. “ To give some idea of the profit, “ though'perhaps the instances of such success are not ‘¢ numerous, which has been known to attend the “ cutting of mahogany : a single tree has been found “to contain 12,000 superficial feet, and this to pro- ‘« duce upwards of one thousand pounds sterling +.” When this country was is possession of the British, the exportation of mahogany in 1769 amounted to 800,000 superficial feet f. Locwoop }.—This tree is small and crooked, with a dark rough bark, the branches armed. with solitary auxiliary prominent thorns: the leaves are wedge-sha- * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 62. + Ibid. “ + Edward’s Account of the British Settlements on the Mos- quito Shore, drawn up for the use of Government in 1775. § Hamatozylum Capechianum, Linn. 69 ped, very smooth and shining; the flowers are nu- merous, and appear either solitary, or in pairs, and are of a reddish yellow colour. In-1715 it was brought to Jamaica, in order to be propagated there for exportation, and it now grows in many parts: of that island. It thrives best in low swampy lands, or shallow waters, where the bottom is rich and moderately firm, and seldom rises above twelve or fourteen feet in height, or exceeds seven inches in diameter ; but the trunk is generally short and un- even*, It may be classed among productions of an. aquatic kind, and can seldom be obtained in any a- bundance but in a low swampy soil or contiguous to fresh water creeks and lakes, on the edges of which the root, the only valuable part of the tree, spreads to a very wide extent+. Iam not aware that this tree is to be found in the Mosquito territory, and if so, in only very small quantities. Captain Hen- derson says, ‘‘1t may likewise be observed, that it “is a production of local growth, and but rarely dis- “ covered in any direction southwardly from the “settlement of Balizet.” As this plant produces a very valuable dye, and has been naturalized in Ja- maica, I think there is little doubt, but what it might thrive on some parts of the eastern coasts of * Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p, 221, + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 70. } Ibid. p. 71. I 2 70 this country, were any of the settlers to be curious enough to make the experiment. ‘This tree it 19. paid attains to maturity in five years. Cepar *, is found in great abundance in this country, and grows to the height of seventy or eighty feet, and is sometimes found from five to six feet in diameter; the trunk is covered with a rough bark, marked with longitudinal fissures ; but when young, the bark is smooth and of an ash-co- lour, growing rough as it advances in age ; when fresh cut, it has an unpleasant smell, resembling that of a- safoetida ; the timber, however, has a pleasant smell when dry, and is soit, light, and of a reddish colour. The leaves are sometimesnear three feet long, and have a smell resembling that of the bark. | The flowers are small and of a whitish flesh-colour. The wood of this tree is much esteemed for wainscoting, and the in- ternal partitions of most sorts of cabinet ware. It makes good planks and shingles for houses, but can- not be made into casks, as all spirituous liquors dissolve a great quantity of its natural resin, and from thence acquire a strong bitter taste +. ie much used for canoes and periaguas, some of which have been hollowed out of its trunk, not less than forty feet long, and six broad : the softness and light- * Cedrela Odorata, Linn. t Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 158. Ww ness of its wood render it peculiarly proper for this purpose ; and it is a valuable material for chests of drawers, and other articles of household furniture, because its odour is offensive to insects. Santa Maria.—This isreckoned pretty good tim- ber-wood ; but it must be kept under cover, for it does not bear the weather well: it is frequently used for staves and headings *, There is another tree of the same name, which I believe is the Z'er- minalia latifolia of botanists, and the Broad-leaf tree of Jamaica. This wood has lately become greatly in repute for ship-building, and its im- portation into Great Britain is encouraged by its being declared, for a limited time, free of duty. SUMWOOD, or SOMEWOOD, is a peculiar non-de- script wood, fit for many purposes of ship-building ; “ the valuable properties of it are, to be impregna- “ ble to the worm, and resist rust; this I had an “ opportunity of ascertaining very fairly, by getting ‘¢ the carpenters of the Swift to build a boat of it for “me, 28 feet length of keel, that 1 used all the ‘‘time I was in that country, and a twelvemonth “‘ after I returned to England, finding it answers all “‘ the good qualities that were given of it +.” * Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 372. + Memoir of the Mosquito Territory, by Captain John Wright, R. N. p. 13. 72 - Ouca,or Basrarp LiGNUMVITAE *.—This tree ri- ses to a very considerable height ; its trunk is often a- bove two feet and a half in diameter, and is covered with a thick scaly bark. The leaves are about three inches long, and two broad, smooth, with a strong mid-rib, and many. interbranching veins; the wood is hard, dark coloured, and close grained. It is esteemed as one of the best timber woods of the country. Fustic +.—This tree is found in many parts of the country, and abounds particularly in the Santanilla, or Swan Islands, It has a large and straight trunk rising to the height of upwards of sixty feet, with long and large roots ; the bark is of a yellow colour. he wood is very fine and solid, and of a fine yel- low; the leaves are alternate, on shortish stalks, rough, dark green, pointed, and larger towards the footstalk ; the fruit is as large as a nutmeg, round, formed like a mulberry, but greenish, both within ~ and without, with brown seeds. ‘This is a fine tim- ber wood ; and a principal ingredient in yellow dies, for which it is chiefly imported into Europe. The berries are sweet and wholesome, but not. much used, except it be by the winged tribe, by whose care it ischiefly planted {. It is principally used in * Rhamnus Sarcomphalus, Linn. + Morus Tinctoria, Linn, .. $ Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 339. 73 general dyeing, and seldom in printing. It goes much further than weld. YELLOW SANDERS*, 1s of a pale yellowish or brownish colour, of close even grain, and with a smell approaching to a mixture of musk and roses, and of a somewhat acid taste, with a slight bitterness ; it is a most beautiful wood, and yields by digestion a rich yellow tincture. On account of its fine frag- rance, it is held in universal estimation. The wood of this tree is said to make good inside timbers. There is a shrubby plant + of this species which is sometimes found in swampy places. Pine {.—This tree rises to the height of fifty or six- ty feet, with upright uneven rugged branches; the leaves have rough, or finely serrated edges, and are crowded about the extremities of the branches. A- bout the different rivers and lagoons, particularly towards the coasts, are found extensive tracts of land abounding with pine trees of various kinds. Captain Henderson, speaking of those found at Balize, says, “‘ The timbers which these furnish, can scarcely ‘* be exceedéd in size, and are generally considered for “ every necessary purpose, greatly superior to what “* can be imported of the same kind from the Unit- * Santalum, Linn. + Pterocarpus Ecastaphyllum, Linn. t Panus Occidentales, Lambert. 74 “ed States. But the cause which has been before “ assioned, the high value of labour in this country, “‘ has occasioned the settlers, in most instances, ra- “ther to prefer purchasing such materials from the «“ Americans, than have recourse to those before “them of domestic growth*.” Several saw mills, some of them to be worked by steam, are about being erected in the territory of Poyais, for the purpose of cutting lumber, both for domestic con- sumption and exportation. Endless tracts of pine ridges interspersed all over the country, would supply an inexhaustible fund of tar and turpentine: the trees being so redundant with the liquors, that, when put into the deepest rl- vers they instantly sink +. While the British were im possession of Black River, several of the settlers engaged in the manufacture of tar, and some of the ovens used by them are still standing. The large quantities of pitch pine t upon the borders of Black River Lagoon, might be turned to valuable account, and become an article of extensive exportation to Europe, and particularly Great Britain; and there are few occupations that would better repay the la- bours of the settler, as may be seen from the follow- ing extracts, copied from Warden’s Account of the * Henderson’s Honduras, p, 109. + Wright’s Memoir, p. 12, £ Pinus Teda, Linn, 79 United States. “ From the pitch pine which. covers “ the high sandy soil of the low country, an immense ‘‘ quantity of turpentine, tar, and pitch, 1s extract- “ed. These commodities formerly enriched many _“ farmers, who gained from the labours of one man “ between £100 and £200 a-year. The turpentine “is obtained by the simple process of making two “ slits in the trunk of the pine, each about a foot in “length, under which vessels are placed to receive “ the resin, or gum, as it flows. For extracting zar, “a circular basin, or floor of potter’s earth, is made, “and so perforated as to allow the escape of the re- *¢ sinous matter, which is received in carts placed “underneath us it runs from the burming pine. “ Pitch is formed by boiling the tar in pots of iron, “ or in vessels formed of potter’s earth *.”” In Nor- way, the inhabitants extract tar from the root of the fir tree f. Mancrove {.—There are three species of this tree, the black, white, and red. This tree is generally found on the borders of the sea, in whose waters alone it seems to thrive; and there, only in such places as have a soft and yielding bottom. The * Warden’s Account of the United States of America; vol. ad, p. 389. + Rordanz’s Europ. Commerce, p. 228. + Rizophora Mangle, Linn. K 76 fruit of this tree germinates within the cup, and grows from the top downwards, until it acquires a due degree of weight and perfection: then it falls off; and asthe root part is always thickest, and hangs lowest, it drops in that direction, and is thus réceived in the natural position in the mud below: the leaves immediately unfold, and in a few minutes you see a perfect plant, sometimes of ten or twelve inches in length, which soon begins to shoot its roots, and push its growth hke the parent stem *. . ‘Fhe trunk of the Mangrove seldom grows to any considerable thickness ; it is said sometimes to gTOW to the height of fifty feet, has a white wood, and rusty coloured bark. The wood is very tough and hard, bears the Water well, and the black species is much tised for knees and ribs in iong-boats, and o- ther small craft ; for which the archings and angles of its limbs most naturally adapt it. Its lower bran- ches become frequently the supporters of the Amert- can oysters, which has given rise to the fabulous ac- count of the growth of this shell-fish +. The red species is greatly preferred for the firmness of its texture and its extraordinary durability : the bark it furnishes has been thought little inferior to that of the oak, when applied to the purpose of tanning leather. This species of the mangrove usually . = * Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 211. + Fbid. 17 6 grows on the borders of the sea, or on the edges of the rivers and creeks contiguous to it *, SEA-SIDE GRAPE, Of MANGROVE GrapE tree}. This is a large tree ; the branches irregularly spreading, not forming a handsome head, but rendered beauti- ful by the leaves and fruit. The leaves are large, often quite round, of a deep green, with small scarlet veins ; the flowers are small and of a whitish colour. It grows on a sandy soil, generally near the sea. The wood, according to Jacquin, is of a deep red co- lour, very hard, heavy, brittle, but almost incorrupt- ible: when used for posts or pallisades, the part un- derground becomes as hard as stone. The fruit is said to be good to eat. This tree is found extreme- ly useful, from the naturally formed knees and Ubi bers it supplies for small vessels. Saropizza t, called by the natives Eban, and in the island of Jamaica the Bully, or Nisberry Bully tree, is found extremely useful for many purposes. It generally grows the tallest of all the trees in the woods ; its fruit is small, and the seeds oblong and narrow. It is esteemed one of the best timber trees in Jamaica {. There is another species of it called * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 108. + Coccoloba Uvifera, Linn. +t Achras, Linn. § Brown's Civil and wana’ History of Jamaica, p. 201. K 2 78 the White Bully tree, or Galimeta wood *. This tree grows to a considerable height, and is generally furnished with many branches towards the top ; but then rise irregularly and at distant stages, as they usually appear in most of the firs of Europe. The berries of this tree are black, smooth, and very small +. All the species of this genus are found growing naturally in the woods, and are much sought after for the sake of their fruit, which is very agreeable and pleasant to the taste. The bark of several of the species is very astringent, and is called Cortex Jamaicenis. 'This was once sup- posed to be the true Jesuits bark, but its effect on the negroes has been found to be pernicious. PatmetTtTo [, Patmerro Royat, or Mountain CazBBAGE, so called, because the upper part of the trunk is sometimes eaten, and supposed to resemble the European cabbage in flavour. This is a most beautiful tree, and Brown says, ‘“‘ may be esteemed “ the queen of the woods ;” it grows to a very con- siderable size ; rises by a tall straight trunk, which bilges moderately at some distance above the root ; ‘and shoots by a straight cylindric tapering body from thence to the. top, where it spreads into a large and : . ¥ Achras Salicifolia, Linn. + Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 201. + Palma Altissima, Linn, 19 beautiful foliage, not unlike that of the cocoa-nut tree*, The sheaths of the leaves are very close, and form the green top of the trunk, a foot and a half in length. The fruits are oblong, obtuse berries of a blue purple colour, and about the size of an olive, containing a stone or nut which is oblong, mem- braneous, smooth, brittle, inclosing a very hard car- tilaginous kernel. “ The upper part of the trunk “from whence the foliage springs, resembles a well ‘“‘ turned finely polished baiuster, of a lively green “ colour, gently swelling from its pedestal, and di- “‘ minishing gradually to the top, where it expands “into branches waving like plumes of ostrich fea- “thers. From the centre of the summit rises the “ spatha or sheath, terminating in an acute point, “The trunk itself is not less graceful, being a “ straight, smooth, slightly annulated column, large “at the base, and tapering from thence to the in- “sertion of the baluster or cabbage+}.” Within the leaves, at the top of the palm, is found a white heart of eight or nine inches in circumference, which is called cabbage, and which is esteemed a great luxury by the inhabitants, who eat it either raw as sallad, or fried with butter, as well as boiled, and compare its taste to that of the archichoke. Some authors say, that it frequently rises to above 200 ¢ * Browns Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 342, t Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. Ist, p. 20. 80 feet in height, with a trunk no bigger than a man’s thigh, and covered with a coat which is impenetra- ble to a musket ball. Ray makes mention of one of these trees that was observed to grow to the height of 270 feet, or thereabouts. Ligon men- tions some, at the first settlement of Barbadoes, about 200 feet in height ; but Mr Hughes observes, that the highest in his time, in that island, was 134 feet. Ldwards says, I am inclined to believe, that I have seen them in Jamaica upwards of 150 feet in height ; but it is impossible to speak with cer- tainty, without an actual measurement. Neither the tall trees of Lebanon, (says Hughes) nor any trees of the forest, are equal to it in height, beauty; or proportion ; so that it claims among vegetables, that superiority, which Virgil gives to Rome among: the cities of Italy : ** Verum hec tantum alias inter caput extulit urbes, * Quantum lenta solent inter viburna cupresst.” o This tree is found very abundant in the different islands and kays, and its wood is found remarkably serviceable in the construction of wharfs, or when put to any use where a continued resistance to water may be needed. PaLMETO-THatTcH *, grows both in the rocky * Palma Brasthenses prunifera, Sloane.. 8] hills, and low moist plains near the sea, but seems to thrive best in the former. It shoots-by a simple stalk, and rises generally from four or five, to ten or fourteen feet in height. It is always furnished with leaves of the form of a fan, sustained by slender compressed foot-stalks, and bears a great abundance of small berries, which seem to feed both the birds and beasts of the wood, when they are in season. The trunk seldom exceeds four or five inches in diames ter; it is called the Thatch-pole, and is much used for piles in wharfs, and other buildings made in the sea; for it has been observed to stand the water very well, and is never corroded or touched by the worms : the foot stalks of the leaves are very tough, and serve (when split and pared) to make baskets, bow-strings, ropes, and a thousand other convenien- ces, where strength and toughness is required. The leaves are called Thatch, and are daily used as such in most new settlements and plantations, especially for all the out-houses, and is found to stand the weather for many years; but such coverings are apt to harbour rats, and other vermin, which pres vents a more general use of them *,. Iron Woop +, the Ysera PuTerana of Mares grave.— This wood is of a reddish cast, and is called * Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 191. t Syderoxylum, Linn, 82 iron wood, on account of its corroding as that metal does, and its being remarkably hard and ponderous, even more so than ebony. It will not float in wa- ter, but sinks like metals. In South America it is used for the shafts of the wheels of water-mills, for the rollers with which the cylinders are jointed for pressing the sugar canes, &c. Iron wood is fre- quently employed in the manufacture of works of taste, and in the formation of such articles as are re- quired. to possess durability. CaLaBaso-TreE *,—-This tree seldom rises above sixteen or twenty feet in height; the trunk is gene- rally irregular, and the branches crooked and spread- ing; the wood is very tough and flexible, which renders it very fit for the coach-makers purposes, where it is observed to answer better than any other sort of timber hitherto known +. The shell of the fruit is so thin and close, that it serves to boil wa- ter, as well asan earthen pot. The thicker parts are frequently used for button moulds, and it also makes a light and convenient drinking cup, for which pur- pose they are much esteemed, and are often found so large, as to be able to contain a gallon of water, or other fluid. ee ee _ * Crescentia, Linn. t+ Brown's Natural History of Jamaica, p. 266, 83 Burton Woop *.—This tree grows very luxuri- antly in low sandy bays and marshes, and seldom rises above fifteen or sixteen feet, although it has sometimes been known to grow as high as thirty feet ; the leaves are smooth and greasy to the touch ; the flowers are small and of a greenish yellow. The Spaniards call it- Mangle Saragoza. It is used for fire-wood, and its bark, it is said, serves to” tan leather very well +. j BuLttet-Tree.—This isa hard wood, and much esteemed. Wittow {.—This tree is very common, and grows on the banks of most of the rivers. - Bamsoo §, the large or Wild Bamboo Cane, is very common in the cooller swampy bottoms a- mong the mountains, and rises frequently to the height of twelve or fourteen feet from the root ; it is jointed like other reeds, is about an inch anda half in diameter near the bottom, and tapers gradu- ally towards the top; the outward coat 1s hard and smooth, and the body firm, and filled with a soft * Conocarpus Evecta, Linn. + Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 159. t Salix Mosquitiana. § Arunds Bambos, Linn, L 84 fibrous substance: the whole stalk is strong and elastic, and is generally used for wattles in those countries where they cover their houses with tyles, or thatch. They are also used for baskets; but to. prepare them for this purpose, they are obliged to split them into tender slips, and to pare off the in- ward more pithy part, leaving none but the out- ward rind dnd lignous fibres for use. ‘The tops of the more tender shoots of this plant are frequently pickled in America, and very much liked; they eat very crisp and tender *. ‘There are several spe- cies of this tree, some of them rising to the height of thirty feet, while others again, rise only a few feet from the ground. Itis common on the banks of most of the rivers. Mouor +.~This tree is frequent by the sea side, and is also found at soine distancé up the several ri- vers, and grows very luxuriantly in many places. It rises commonly to the height of sixteen or eigh- teen feet, and throws out some large flowers, which generally appear of a yellow, or saffron colour. The bark of the tree is very tough, and not much infe- rior to either hemp, or flax, on many occasions; it is naturally white, and of a fine, soft, filamentous tex- * Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 138+ + Althea Rucemgsa, Lim. 85 ture ; which must, undoubtedly, render it extreme- ly fit for the paper-mill *. The bark of it is woven into ropes, which are found to be little inferior to those made from hemp for strength and durability. At Honduras, the body of this tree is usually converted into rafts to float the logwood down to the sea+. All the parts of the tree, especially the flowers, abound with a fine mucilage, and are both emollient and laxative. There are several species of this tree. Caourcuouc f, or Elastic Gum, from which the well known material of Indian rubber is made, is abundantly found in most places, and is a consider- able article of barter between the native Indians who collect it and the traders. The Mexicans call it ollz, and the Spaniards we. Besides its use for removing the marks of black-lead from paper, &c. it is employed in the construction of various surgi- cal instruments; it is also of use to chemists, as a material for flexible tubes to gazometers and other apparatus; a mixture of volatile oil and alcohol will dissolve it, and it thus forms a good varnish. And finally, it enters as an essential ingredient into the composition of the best varnish for balloons, a rc en IS een a pA ech SSAA re I * Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 284. + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 110, + Hevea Caoutchouc.—Jatropha Elastica, Linn. ae, 86 The juice of it may also be used in making cloth of all kinds, boots, shoes, gloves, &c. impenetrable to water; and there can be no doubt, but that it might be applied to a vast variety of important purposes. From the bark of the tree when wound- ed, there flows a milky juice, which by exposure to the air, in a short time turns black, and is convert- ‘ed into caoutchouc. The American caoutchouc, is usually brought to Europe in the form of globular narrow necked bottles, about a fourth of an inch thick, and capable of holding from half a pint to a quart, or more. They are formed upon moulds of unburnt clay, pieces of which are often found ad- hering to the inside. At Cayenne, it is said to be used. for torches, on account of its inflammability. Locust Tree *.—-This is a large spreading tree, with a thick stem, and covered with a_ russet bark. It grows toa very considerable size, and is looked upon as an excellent timber-tree;:but it must be very old before it is cut, otherwise the heart will be but small. The flowers are of a yel- low colour, striped with purple, and hang in loose panicles, at the end of the branches. The pods are fleshy, brown, shaped like the common garden bean, about six inches long, and half as broad, of a pur- plish brown colour, and woody consistence, each con- * Hymenea Courbaril, Linn 87 taining a few seeds separated by transverse parti- tions, and inclosed in a whitish substance, inter- mixed with filaments, as sweet as haney, which is eaten by the Indians with great avidity. Between the principal roots of the tree exudes a fine trans- parent resin, yellowish or red, which is the Gum Anime of the shops. This is the finest varnish known, when dissolved in rectified spirits of wine : it is also used in perfumes, and in medicine, exter- nally. It has been remarked, that the wild-bees are very fond of building their nests in the bran- ches of this tree. Its wood is in great request for wheel-work in the sugar-mills, particularly for cogs to the wheels, being extremely hard and tough, as well as capable of a fine polish. -It is so heavy that a cubic foot of it weighs about a quarter of a hun- dred weight. Potze-Woop.—This tree is found in great a- bundance in the vicinity of Black River, and is said to be excellent for making shafts and wheels for chaises. BraziLtetTro *.—This tree grows in a dry and rocky soil ; it is an excellent timber-wood, but sel- dom exceeds eight or ten inches in diameter in the * Cesalpinia, Linn, 88 most perfect state. The wood is elastic, tough, and durable; and bears a fine polish: it is of a beautiful orange colour, full of resin, and yields a fine full tincture by infusion *, Dracon’s-Bioop-TREE }.—This tree rises to a- bout the height of thirty feet, and is a native of the interior of the country: the flowers are of a -yellow colour; and it yields a red pellucid resin, called Dragon’s Blood t, which had formerly the reputation of stopping hemorrhages, but it is now out of use. This substance is a blood-red resin, and the best sort is the exsudations from the tree, in the shape of ovaldrops. This resin, when finely pulverised, becomes a fine crimson. It is totally -ansoluble in water, insipid and without smell when cold, but if heated, it gives a fragrant odour like benzoin: a solution of it in alcohol serves to stain marble of a beautiful and permanent red co- lour; it is also employed in staining leather and wood ; as also in lacquering and varnishing, and for similar uses ; and is so much valued by artists, that the finest samples bear a pretty high price. * Long’s History of Jamaica, p. 227. + Pterocarpus Draco, Linn, + e ~ e ~ Sanguis Draconis. 89 Cocoa Nut *.—This tzee is planted in most parts of America, both for its beauty and productions > this is the common inhabitant ef almost every situa- tion within the tropics; and in this‘country, both on the continent and different islands, is most abun- dant : it grows generally in the low lands, and 1s from forty to sixty feet high, of a moderate thick- ness in proportion to its height, straight, naked, marked with the scars of fallen leaves. It bears alk its foliage at the top, like the rest of the kind. This consists of many strong ribs, furnished with long narrow leaves folded lengthways, which rise in a continued series on both sides, and spreads very evenly both ways. These ribs shoot gradually from the top; and as the younger ones stretch out suiffi- ciently to raise the sap ; the lower ones decline, wither away gradually, and fall off in time. The flowers are of a yellowish white. The nut or shell is formed of a hard compact substance, and filled with a sweetish water, while young; but as the fruit advances inits growth, this deposites a soft ge- Jatinous crust upon the sides of the shell, which har- dens gradually with age, until at length it acquires a strong concreted texture; and then it is not unlike the substance of an almond, either in taste, or con- sistence. This kernelin some plants is near an inch _ LETT OED * Palma Indica Nucifera. 90 thick, enclosing about a pint of sweet, delicate, wholesome refreshing liquor, which is looked upon as one of the greatest ‘dainties in America. Its trunk is made into boats, rafters, the frames of hou- ses, and gutters to .convey water. The leaves are used for thatching buildings, and are wrought into mats, baskets, and many other things for which osiers are employed in Europe. The fibrous coat or husk. of the shell, after being soaked in water, 1s beaten into oakum, spun into a variety of yarns, woven in- to sail-cloth, and twisted into ropes and. cables even for the largest ships; for these purposes it is prefer- able to hemp on account of its greater durability. The woody shell itself, or nut which encloses the kernel, is polished and formed into goblets, powder boxes, and various kindsof cups. The kernels, pres- sed ina miil, yield an oil, which when fresh, is e- qual in goodness to the oil of sweet almonds ; it is said to become soon rancid, and is then employed by painters. It is also much used in South America for burning in their lamps, and has lately become an article of exportation. If- the body of the tzee be bored, there exudes from the wound a white, sweet liquor, which is collected by the natives in pots; the liquor thus procured is called palm-wine, and is a favourite beverage in the country. It is very sweet when fresh; kept a few hours, it be- comes more poignant and agreeable; but the next day it begins to grow sour, and in the space of 91 twenty-four hours is complete vinegar. The juice thus obtained, upon being mixed and fermented with molasses, affords a very pleasant wholesome spirit, which differs but very little from arrack. The tender leaves, before they fully expand, are sometimes eaten in place of cabbage, and other cu- linary greens; but as this luxury can be obtained only by the destruction of so valuable a tree, it is generally thought too expensive a treat, except in those parts of the country where the plantations are numerous. The kernels of the nuts when broken are much used, and esteemed excellent for fattening hogs. The tree is propagated by planting the nuts. Sik Corron Tree *, or Ceiba, grows generally in the low lands, and rises to the height of eighty, or an hundred feet, and sometimes even more, by a straight and well proportioned stem. When in bloom it is one of the most splendid productions of nature. At such season it is entirely crowned with a profusion of brilliant flowers of rich and variegated hues, of which the colour of the carnation is the most pre- dominant. This bloom is suddenly succeeded by a multitude of small pods which contain the cotton, and that burst when sufficiently ripe. The crop of cotton it affords is said to be triennial. The trunk of this tree is much used in the building of canoes * Bombax Ceiba, Lynn, M —— — i 92 and small vessels *. Some of them simply render- ed concave, have been known to produce a boat capable of containing one hundred persons f. Zsa, or Palmeratta-wood, also abounds in this country ¢. Itismuchesteemed in Europe, for making ornamental furniture. There is likewise found here, two other trees of nearly the same kind, but lam unable to give any description of them ; these are the. Sabah, and Malata-wood. Witp Fic-Tree §..-This monstrous tree is, at first, but a weakly climbing plant that raises itself by the help of some adjoining trunk, rock or tree; and continues to shoot some slender flexile radicles, or appendixes, that embrace the supporter, and grows gradually downwards, as the stem increases : this at length gains the summit, and begins to shoot both branches and radicles or appendixes more lux- uriantly ; these in time reach the ground, throw out many smaller arms, take root, and become so many stems and supporters to the parent plant; which now begins to enlarge, to throw out new branches and appendixes, and to form a trunk from the sum- mit of its supporter; which still continues in the * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 114. : _t Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. Ist, p- 21. { Wright’s Memoir, p. 15. § Ficus Indica, 93 centre of the first radicles, interwoven in their des cent, and at length augmented and connected gta: dually into a common mass or body about the bor- rowed foundation ; which (if a vegetable) soon be- gins to decay, and at length is wholly lost within the luxuriant trunk it supported *. This monarch of the wood, whose empire extends over Asia and Africa, as well as the tropical parts of America, is described by our divine poet with great exactness. “ The fig-tree, not that kind for fruit renown’d, But such as at this day to Indians known In Malabar and Decan, spreads her arms, Branching so broad and long, that in the ground The bearded twigs take root, and daughters grow Above the mother tree, a pillar’d shade, . High over-arched, and echoing walks between |” ) ParapisE Lost, Book i. Rost Woop +.—This tree grows toa considerable size, and is considered as one of the most valuable timber trees, but itisnot common. ‘The wood is white, and of a curled grain when young, but grows of adirty clouded ash-colour with age: it bears an excellent polish, and has a fine smell. The younger trees, in Jamaica, are frequently cut for firewood in themountains ; they are fullofresin, burn very freely, 3 * Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 110. + Amyris Balsimifera, Lymn. M 2 : 94 and with a most agreeable smell. The wood is heavy, and in great vogue among the cabinet-makers. All the parts of this tree are full of warm aromatic par- ticles, and may be used in baths and fomentations ; the berries are oblong, and have the taste of the Bal- sam of Copaiba. An infusion of the leaves has a plea- sant flavour, is highly cephalic, strengthens the nerves, and is particularly restorative to weak eyes. ~ In Jamaica there are several species of Amyris, the leaves and bark of which yield a fine balsamic juice ; and if the body were tapped at the proper season, a thick liquor would transude, resembling that of the Gilead Balsam, to which the taste of the bark and wood of the smaller branches bears a very exact re- lation. Dr Wright apprehends that this wood, by distillation, would yielda perfume equal to the ole- um rhodii. Nicaracua-Woop *, is a kind of dye-wood of a very bright red colour ; it grows in great abundance in the neighbouring province of Nicaragua, from whence it derives its name, and is also said to be abundant, about the banks of the Bluefield River, or Rio de Nueva Segovia. Copa Tree +.—This tree produces the valuable * Cesalpinia Nicaraguensis. + Rhus Copallinum, Linn. 95 gum resin, called Copal, and is a natural exsudation from the tree, which hardens in the air. Itis very com- mon in most parts of the Mosquito Shore, and is collected in large quantities by the natives for the purpose of barter with the foreign traders. | The best copal is a hard brittle resin, in rounded lumps of moderate size, easily reducible to fine pow- der, beautifully transparent, but often, like amber, containing parts of insects and other small extran- eous bodies impacted in its substance. 'The colour of copal is a light lemon yellow, varying to orange ; but when dissolved and thinly spread over any surface, the colour is scarcely perceptible, and it on- ly gives a fine hard, smooth transparent glazing. It is this union of hardness and transparency, with want of colour, that renders copal so valuable as a varnish. CapEvi-TReEE *, is a lofty and elegant tree, with a handsome head; the smaller branches zig-zag, with a nearly smooth, brownish ash-coloured bark. The leaves are about four inches long, and the flow-. ers are white. This tree produces one of the most valuable and active medicines, called the Bulsam of Copaiba: to procure it, several incisions, or some- times auger holes are made near the ground, pene- * Copaifera Officinalis, Linn. 96 trating through the bark into the substance of the wood, when the balsam flows out in such abun- dance, that sometimes in three hours, twelve pounds have been obtained. This balsam is colourless when flowing from the tree; after a while it becomes of an amber yellow, and considerably viscid, but retains its transparen- cy ; itis never known to become perfectly solid. The smell of capivi balsam is flagrant and power- ful, and its medicinal virtues are held in high esti- mation. Puystc-Nur Trex *, or Physic-nut.—This plant is very common, and grows to the height of seven or eight feet, or better; but dies aftera few years f. It is the property of this nut to act upon the human system either in the way of emetic or cathartic ; or if it be required, powerfully as both ; effects, which depend on the mode of its preparation, and which in all ways is intimately understood by the inhabi- tants. It is very generally considered one of the most efficacious antidotes to bile ; and consequently must be deemed singularly valuable in a climate, where the disposition to such habit is so preva- lent f. * Jatropha, Linn. + Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 345. {+ Henderson’s Honduras, p. 115. G7 Lime TREE *.—This is a bushy shrub, and very common in America and the West Indies, where it is often raised for the sake of its fruit, and not unfrequently planted for fences, When it grows luxuriantly, it is seldom under twelve or fourteen feet in height, and spreads greatly about the top ; but it is often stunted, and of a smaller stature. ' The juice of the fruit is used, as a principal ingre- dient in punch: the most appropriated and agreea- ble liquor that can be used in any country, where the juices are overheated and in a ferment. Sweer Lime Tree }.—This tree grows much like the foregoing; but it rises generally more upright, and bears a fruit which in'size, as well as form, seems to hold a mean between the lime and the lemon. The juice is rather insipid, but never- theless, is esteemed much more grateful than that of the lemon. It is from this tree that the perfume called Bergumot is obtained. As this oil exists pure in the peel, being simply deposited in small cells, the extraction is easy, either by expression or distil- lation. The former is the best, as the oil is not liable to be altered by heat ; but more is produced by distillation than by expression; by this mode, * Citrus Acris. + Citrus, 98 two ounces of the oil have been obtained from twe pounds of the peel *. Lemon Tree +The varieties of the lemon tree are numerous. The St Helena Lemon-tree has been introduced into Jamaica, where it is now cultivated by most people; on a¢count of its large fruit ; one of which, frequently yields above half a pint of juicet. Lemon juice is one of the sourest, and most agreeable of all the vegetable acids. It is procured.simply by squeezing the fruit, and strain- ing the juice through linen or any loose filter. This juice forms a considerable article of commerce, and is then called the Citric Acid, or Acid of Lemons. In the Mediterranean, it is obtained by peeling the fruit, slicing it, and putting it in a strong press with a cloth or hair strainer. The juice which comes out very turbid, is then placed for a day in a cool cellar, and then strained into jars with very narrow necks, which are then well cemented up. It may be preserved in these jars for a considerable length of time, by covering it with a thin stratum of oil. These presses are sometimes so large as to squeeze six thousand lemons at once. Scheele has “ Moitimer’s Commercial Dictionary. t+ Crtrus Lemon. ¢ Brown’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 308. 98, discovered a process for obtaining the pure citric acid, in the form of crystals, which is as follows: Saturate boiling lemon juice with chalk in powder, added gradually, till all effervescence ceases. A grey insoluble mass settles to the bottem, composed of the citric acid united with the lime, leaving the mucilage and other ingredients of the lemon juice in the supernatant liquor, which may be thrown away, and the citrat of lime is to be well washed with cold water, till the latter comes away colourless. Then add to the precipitate a quantity of sulphuric acid, equal to the weight of the chalk employed, but previously diluted with about ten parts of water. Boil the whole for a few minutes, and a change of composition takes place, the sulphuric acid engag~ ing the lime, and the citric acid passing into the supernatant liquor. Strain off the latter, and eva- porate it slowly to the consistence of a thick syrup, and by standing for some days, most of the citric acid will separate in large crystals. A small excess of sulphuric acid is requisite to enable the citric acid to crystallize; which otherwise, would oniy concrete into a gelatinous mass. In preparing the citric acid in the great way, M. Dizé gives the following particulars: After the citrat of lime has been decomposed by the sulphuric acid, cold water, assisted by stirring, is sufficient to wash out all the citric acid adhering to the sulphat of lime, which should therefore be employed, and N € 100 these washings added to the filtered liquor. Much sulphat of lime, however, remains in the clear li- quor, which, 1n fact, is a mixture of citric acid, sul- phuric acid, and sulphat of lime, and is of a clear light yellow. It may be evaporated at a boiling heat, and as the bulk of fluid lessens, the sulphat of lime falls down, so that it is of use to suspend the evaporation once or twice for some hours, to give time for the sulphat of lime to separate, which should be removed. Towards the end of the eva- poration the liquor becomes blackish, owing to the sulphuric acid remaining in it, becoming so concen- trated as to act partly on the acid itself, and partly, as this chemist supposes, on a portion of the origi- nal extractive matter which accompanies the citrie acid, in its combination with lime, and separation from it, and which appears to be the cause of the difficulty found in getting the whole of the acid to erystallize. This acid is so very soluble, that the: evaporation must be pushed to a very thick syrupy consistence before it will crystallize. The crystals are at first black and dirty ; by a second solution im cold water, of which a small quantity will suffice, filtration, and evaporation, the crystals are obtained yellow and more regular ; but a third operation of the kind seems necessary to bring them to be per- fectly transparent and colourless. As there is much waste in these operations, all the washings and 101 fouled parts should be reserved for subsequent puri- fication. SEVILLE OrsaNcEe*, or Sour OraNcEe.—This species.grows more bulky and upright, than that of the. lime-tree, and the juice of its fruit is much | milder. The rhind is much esteemed in bitters, and stomachic wines +. Citron-TREE {.—The fruit of this tree is oblong, with a very thick and succulent rhind, and makes a fine sweet meat. It is sometimes steeped in spi- rits; and to them, when distilled, it-gives both an agreeable flavour, and its name.. The bark of the citron is smoother, and the wood less knotty than that of the lemon. In their wild state, some of them are said to attain to the height of sixty feet. Curva Orancz-Tree §, is a middle-sized tree, with a greenish brown bark, with moderately sized leaves; the fruit is sweet, with a smooth thin rhind. The orange-tree in general has an upright smooth trunk, divided upwards into a branchy regular head, and is generally about * Citrus Aurantium, Linn. t+ Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica. p. 308. $ Citrus Luberosa. | § Cutrus Aurantium. N 2 102 twelve or fifteen feet in height. It is said that the finest flavoured fruit is obtained by engraft- iN the China orange on “a Seville orange stock. The flowers of the orange tree have been for a long time in great esteem asa perfume, They are high- ly odoriferous, and of a somewhat warm, and bitter taste. They yield their flavour by infusion to rec- tified spirit, and in distillation both to spirit and water. An oil distilled from the flowers 1s brought from Italy under the name of oleum, or essentica neralt. SHappock Tree *,—It is said to derive its name from a Captain Shaddock, who first brought it from the East to the West Indies: it is a middle-sized tree, and grows to a much greater height than any of the others ; the leaves are egg shaped: the flow- ers white, and very odorous : the fruit is very large, being in general about eight inches in diameter, of a yellowish green colour, even surfaced, twelve cel- led or more, containing some a red, others a white pulp; the juice in some sweet, in others acid. ForBIDDEN Fruit }, or Smaller Shaddock Tree: this species also grows to a more considerable size than any of the others. The fruit of these two last * Citrus Decumana + Citrus 103 species, is agreeable to most palates, and of a plea- sant grateful flavour; but the last excels in sweet- ness, while the other partakes a little of the bitter, which recommends it to most people. Avocato, or Alligator Pear Tree *.—This tree grows commonly to the size of the largest apple trees in Europe, and spreads pretty wide at the top, The branches are very succulent and soft ; the leaves oblong and veiny, and the fruit of the form of a pear ; but the pulp is covered with a tough skinny coat, and contains a large rugged seed, which is wrapped up in one or two thin membranous covers. The fruit of this tree is one of those that is held in the greatest esteem; the pulp is of a pretty firm consistence, and has a delicate rich flavour, some- thing resembling that of the Jerusalem artichoke. Itis generally eaten with pepper and salt ; and is some- times called Vegetable marrow. “The tree re- quires some care, a rich soil, and a warm situation, to raise 1t to perfection. | TAMARIND TREE +.—The trunk of this tree is lofty, and of considerable thickness, crowned with wide extended branches, bearing bright green leaves: the fruit hangs pendulous like large beans. This. * Laurus Persea. + Tamarindus Indica, Linn. 104 tree-1S a sensitive-1n some degree, and closes up its leaves on the.approach. of cold, .or »moist.and heavy air*, It is common in many parts of the country, but it is in the island of San Andres, where it is to be found in the greatest profusion and perfection. It:is the seed pods of this. tree which form and con- stitute the .preserve called. tamarinds, which is sold in_the shops; and is of such.a pulpy acid quality, as to be of.-great use in abating and quenching thirst, and. in cooling-and allaying excessive heat. Tama- rmds-are prepared for exportation at Jamaica, in the following manner-;- the pods are gathered when ful- ly ripe, the fruit is taken out of them, cleared from the shelly. fragments, and placed in layers in a cask 5 boiling syrup, just before it begins to granulate, is then poured in till the cask is filled. Thesyrup per- vades every part down to the bottom, and when cool, the cask isheaded for sale. A better mode of pre- serving this fruit is with sugar, well clarified with eggs, till a transparent.syrup is formed, which produces a pleasant flavour +. Guava TREE {.—This shrub rises generally from eight to twelve feet in height, It bears a round fruit ofa moderate size, which is much esteemed among the natives: this, while immature, is astrin- * Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 125. + Mortimer’s Commercial Dictionary. + Psidium Guajavas. 105 gent, like all the other parts of the tree; but when it ripens, it 1s rather laxative, and is then much u2 sed both ‘in jellies and cream dishes. «The wood: is very tough, and generally used for ' bows 1in* cattle yokes. The fruit mixed with sugar, Peruvian bark, and water; and left to ferment, makes a céol- ing and agreeable drink’; and is much used in this way in-the province of Socorro in New: Grenada, where it'was usually served up daily at the ‘table’ of General-MacGregor, when Commandant-General of this province, in the year 1813, 0 «4+ piel Manceneet Tree *.—This tree is very common in most parts of America; and is generally found in sandy watery places near the ‘coast. This is a tall and spreading tree, of handsome appearance, com- pared by Jacquin to a pear-tree ; it is full- of an ac- rid milky juice, which is: apt to blister and inflame the skin; nay, the. dew or rain drops that fall from the leaves, is said to do the same. ‘The fruit is of the size of a walnut without the coat, of a yellow- ish: green, resembling acrab-apple in size and smell ; the coat is very thin, and nut large. Brown says, “‘1- “‘ have known many people who have ignorantly- * eaten of the fruit of this tree, which they had-ta-- “‘ ken for crab apples: they- generally vomited in a “ short time, and continued to cemplain of a burn- * Eppomane Mancinetla, Linn, 106 * ing heat in the mouth, throat and stomach, for ma- “ny hours after. The juice of the buds of the ‘‘ white cedar is esteemed an antidote to this poison, “and is generally used with some success on these “ occasions ; but oily mixtures, and emulsions, are “ the most effectual assistants, and seldom fail giv- « ing relief soon*.” The wood is of a beautiful grain, being variegated with several dark colours ; it will take a tine polish, and last well: the wood- cutters, to guard against its corrosive juices, are 0- bliged to make a fire round the body of every tree, some time before they can venture to fell them. It is with the juice of this tree that the Indians used to poison their arrows. Pimento TREE +, 1s one of the most elegant pro- ductions in nature; and produces the fruit called Allspice, or Jamaica Pepper; a _ production which rivals the most valuable spices of the East, combining the flavour and properties of many of those spices; and forming (as its popular name denotes) an admirable substitute, and succeda- nium for them all{. The pimento trees grow spontaneously, and in great abundance, in ma- ny parts of Jamaica, but more particularly on hilly situations near the sea, on the northern side of that _* Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p: 351. + Myrtus Pimenta, Linn. + Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p. 369. 107 island. There is a species of pimento growing in Spanish America, whose berry is larger, weaker in its aroma, and consequently inferior in its quality to the West Indian. This tree is so entirely the child of nature, that not one attempt in fifty to. propagate the young plants, or to raise them from the seeds, in parts of the country where it 1s not found growing spontaneously, has succeeded *. As a species of it is a native of Spanish America, and as the planting of it sometimes succeeds in Ja- maica, I think it is deserving of a fair trial in the ter- ritory of Poyais, if only for the domestic use of the planter himself. The usual method of forming a new pimento plantation, (in Jamaica it is called a walk) is nothing more than to appropriate a piece of wood land, in the neighbourhood of a plantation already exist- ing, or in a country where the scattered trees are found in a native state, the woods of which being fallen, the trees are suffered to remain in the ground till they become rotten, and perish. In the course of twelve months after the first season, abundance of young pimento plants will be found growing vigorously in all parts of the land, being without doubt, produced from ripe berries scattered there by the birds, while the fallen trees, &c. afford them both * Edward’s History of the West Indies, vel, 2d, p. 370. O 108 shelter and shade*. At the end of two years it wil be proper to cleanse the land thoroughly, leav- ing such only of the pimento trees as have a good appearance ; these will then soon form goves, which perhaps do not require much attention, after the first four or five years, There is hardly in the vegetable creation, a tree of greater beauty than a young pimento. The trunk, which is of grey colour, smooth and shining, and entirely free from bark, rises to the height of fifteen or twenty feet. It then branches out on all sides, richly clothed with leaves of a deep green, which, in the months of July and August, are beautifully contrasted and relieved by an exuber- ance of white flowers. These leaves are equally frag- rant with the fruit; and in distillation yield an odoriferous oil; which is very commonly used in the medicinal dispensaries of Europe, for oil of cloves +. Soon after the trees are in blossom, the berries be- come fit for gathering, the fruit not being suffered to ripen on the tree, as the pulp in that state, is dif- ficult to cure. It is impossible, however, to prevent some of the ripe berries from mixing with the rest ; but if the proportion of them be great, the price of the commodity is considerably injured. The berries that are fully ripe, lose the aromatic. * Edward’s History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p. 370. + Ibid, p. 371. 109 warmth for which they are so much esteemed, and acquire a taste perfectly resembling that of juniper berries, which renders them an agreeable food for the birds, the most industrious planters of these trees, which devouring them greedily, and muting the seeds, afterwards propagate these trees in the woods. Perhaps these ripe berries might be used with advantage in giving a flavour resembling gene- va, to the spirit which is distilled from Indian corn. It is gathered by the hand; and one labourer on the tree, employed in gathering the small bran- ches, will give employment to three below (who are generally women and children) in picking the berries ; an industrious picker will fill a bag of 70 Ibs. in aday. It is then spread ona terrace, and exposed to the sun for about seven days, in the course of which it loses its green colour, and be- comes of a reddish brown, and when perfectly dry it is fit for market. ; In a fayourable season, a single pimento tree has been known to yield 150 lbs. of the raw fruit, or one cwt. of the dried spice; for there is ‘generally a loss of one-third in curing. A plenteous crop, however, occurs perhaps but once in five years; and the price in the British market fluctuates ac- cordingly. Some planters kiln-dry the pimento berries with great success, and it seems indeed a most. eligible ov 110 method, where from abundance of the crop, dispatch and security against rain are essential. Pimento is us- ually imported in bags and casks. As there is so great an affinity between this spice, and the true clove, it has been proposed as worthy of trial, if the fruit, when first formed, or the flowers picked off the tree _and dried, might not answer the same purpose as the Asiatic clove; the more odoriferous, and smaller the berries are, the better they are reckoned. The ber- ries have a similarity in smell, and taste, to cloves, juniper berries, cinnamon, and pepper, or rather a peculiar mixture of somewhat a-kin to all of them, whence their name of all-spice. The exports from Jamaica are about two millions of pounds annually. Of this quantity, no inconsi- derable part is sold to the Dutch. The South Americans frequently mix pimento with their cho- colate, and denominate it guayavita. If pimento be left, for some time, to soak in good brandy, it will yield, by distillation, an odoriferous spirit, which, by the addition of a proportionate quantity of sugar, may be converted into a most agreeable and highly stomatic cordial. Awnoto *, calledin commerce Annatto, as also Nankeen + ; by the French, Rowcou, and the Spa- % Bizxa Orellana, Linn. + Mortimer’s Commercial Dictionary. 111 niards, Achote. It is procured from the pulp of the seed-capsules of the shrub, which grows seven or eight feet high, and produces oblong hairy pods, some- what resembling those of a chesnut. Within these .are thirty or forty irregular figured seeds, which are enveloped in a pulp of a bright red colour, and un- pleasant sinell, in appearance like the sort of paint called redlead, when mixed up with oil ; and as paint was used by some tribes of the Indians, in the same manner as woad by the ancient Britons*. Thisshrub rises with an upright stem to the height of eight or ten feet, sending out many branches at top, which forma regular head. These are garnished with heart-shaped leaves, ending in a point, which have long foot-stalks, and come out without any order. The flowers are produced in loose panicles at the end of the branches, of a pale peach colour, having large petals. Itisa native of South America and the East and West Indies. The method of preparing the anoto for market is very simple, and is as follows. The seeds, together with the red tough matter that surrounds them, are softened in a wooden trough with water, until, bya kind of fermentation, which spreads a very nauseous smell, and by diligent stirring and pounding, the kernels are separated from the pulp. This mass is then strained through a sieve and boiled; upon * Edward's History of the West Indies, vol. 2d; p. 269. 112 which a thick reddish scum, which is the pigment, separates. When skimmed off, it is carefully in- spisated in another kettle; and after being com- pletely cool, is moulded in roundish lumps, wrapt round with leaves of trees, and packed for sale. This drug is preferred by the dyers to indigo, and sold one-fourth dearer. The double Glouster cheese is coloured with this dye, and some of the Dutch farmers use it to give a rich colour to their butter, and great quantities are said to be applied to the same purpose in the English dairies. The poor people use it instead of saffron; and in South America, it is frequently mixed in all their dishes, as well as in the composition of chocolate, to which it gives (in their opinion) an elegant tincture, and great medi- cinal virtues. The liquid sold in London by the name of ‘* Scott’s nankeen dye,” is said to be an- natto, dissolved in water by means of potash*, La- bat informs us, that the Indians prepare a dye of this sort much superior to that which is brought to Europe ; of a bright shining red colour, almost e- qual to carmine. For this purpose, instead of steep- ing and fermenting the seeds in water, they rub them with their hands, previously dipt in oil, till the pellicles come off and are reduced into a clear paste, which is scraped off from the hands with a knife, and Jaid on a clean leaf in the shade to dry. * Bancroft’s Philosophy of Colours. 113 - Coco Pium-Tree*, is an uregular shrub, grow- ing from seven to ten feet high, with a brown or russet bark, besprinkled with whitish minute spots. The leaves are about two inches long, and one and a half broad: the flowers are small and whitish, a little villous or cottony on the outside, and without smell: the fruit is about the size of a damascene plumb; of these some are black, some white ; but no essential difference appears in the shrubs that bear them. ‘he fruit is insipid, and contains a large nut, marked with five longitu- dinal furrows: it incloses a single kernel of a very pleasant flavour ; which makes up abundantly for the insipidity of the pulp; and for which it pro- bably had been so much esteemed by the native Indians +. When planted in situations not far remote from the sea, it continues in flower almost the whole year, but generally ripens its fruit in June and December. When planted in a dry sunny soil, the fruit remains always a dry drupa ; the nut being covered only by a thin skin or bark. Its root passes for an astringent, and has been em- ployed as such in medicine. This shrub is very common in the island of San Andres, and gives name to a bay on the east side of the island. * Chrysobalanus Icaco, Linn. + Brown’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 250. 114 “PLaNTANE Tree *,.—This plant, of which there are several varieties, as the Banana+, Dominica, &e. is cultivated with great care in all the ‘tro- pical regions, where the fruit supplies the place of bread. It thrives best in a cool, rich, and moist soil; and is commonly planted in regular walks or fields: it is propagated by the shoots, and plant- ed at convenient distances from each other; but as the root throws up a number of young lay- ers every year, the spaces between the first plants are left pretty considerable. The trunk or stem of this tree is made up of a small spungy heart, cover- ed with the thick fibrous vagine formed by the foot-stalks of the leaves, unfolding each other as they recede from the centre. But the heart, at length, shoots above the foliage, and throws outa large flower-spike, adorned with a great number of blossoms, joined in clusters, and inclosed in their several spathce, which are afterwards succeeded by so many distinct oblong berries, resembling a large cucumber, with a smooth skin, of a light green co- lour, and when perfectly ripe, turns to a deep yel- low. When these are ripe and fall, or are taken off, the stem decays gradually, and the root begins to throw up young shoots, by which the kind is again renewed ; but lest the growth of these should = * Musa Paradistaca, Linn. + Musa Sapientun, Linn, 415 be retarded by the exhalaflons of the old stalk, it is usually eut down near the root, when the fruit is taken off, which gives a stronger and quicker growth to the new plants. Their fruiting in the South Sea Islands, is said to be promoted by the use of lime and wood-ashes. The fruit is used, not only when full grown, but before it ripens: it is commonly peeled, and after- wards roasted in its skin; many persons prefer them to any other kind of bread, especially when young and tender. As the fruit ripens, it becomes soft and sweetish, and is then frequently made into tarts, or sliced and fryed with butter, and thus served up in plates, The juice of the tree is a very rough astringent ; but its cooling leaves are generally used to dress blisters in those parts of the world : and when dried, are made into mats of different sorts, or frequently employed to stuff matresses *. Axor Prant +.—The most valuable species of aloes is that of the island of Socotra in the East In- dies; the introduction of which to the West Indies, has hitherto been unaccountably neglected. The species called the hepatic, is the only sort known to the planters there; and the cultivation of which, * Browne’s Civil and Natural History of Jamaica, p. 363. + Aloe. P 116 is principally confined fo the island of Barbadoes. It is propagated by suckers, and will thrive in soils the most dry and barren *, It is procured in Jamaica in the following man- ner:—The labourers go into the fields with tubs and knives, and cut off the largest and most succu- lent leaves close to the stalk: these they put into the tubs in an upright position, that the loose liquor may be drained from the wound. When this is al- most wholly discharged, the leaves are taken out singly, and cleared of any juice that may adhere to them ; and the liquor is put into shallow flat-bot- tomed vessels, and dried gradually in the sun, till it acquires a proper consistence ae Another method is described by Mr Edwards, which is as follows:—The plant is pulled up by the roots, and carefully cleansed from the earth, or other impurities. It is then sliced, and cut in pieces, into small hand-baskets or nets. These nets or baskets are put into large iron boilers or caul- drons, with water, and boiled for ten minutes, when they are taken out, and fresh parcels. supplied, till the liquor is strong and black. At this period,’the liquor is thrown through a strainer into a deep vat, narrow at bottom, where it isleft to cool, and to de- posit its feculent parts. Next day the clear liquor is * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol, 2d, p. 368.. + Dr Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 198..: Li? drawn off by a cock, and again committed to the large iron vessel. At first it is boiled briskly, but towards the end the evaporation is slow, and requires constant stirring to prevent burning. When it be- comes of the consistence of honey, it is poured into gourds, or calabashes, for sale, and hardens by age. A species of this plant, the Agave, is common in all the warm regions of America; Linneus has separated this genus from the aloe. It isa plant highly esteemed by the Indians, who make ropes and various kinds of cloth from the leaves, as also a kind of shoe or sandal, called apargate. The fibres of the leaves, separated by bruising and steep- ing in water, and afterwards beating them, will make a thread for common uses. It also affords an excel- lent soap, fit for all the purposes of the laundress *, Cuaw Strick +.—The bark of this plant is of a pleasant bitter taste, and raises a great fermentation in the saliva ¢t. This is the common dentrifice of the aborigines, from whom the use of it has been learned ; and for preserving the teeth pure and de- licately white, thissimpleapplication perhaps exceeds all others. With the natives any appearance of de- cay in this respect very rarely occurs §. * Introduction to Jeffery’s West India Atlas, p. 19. t+ Rhamnus Gouania. { Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 175. § Hencerson’s Honduras, p. 117. P 2 118 PaLMA CuRIsT1 *,.—-This plant has brown stalks that divide into two or three branches, and rises to the height of six or seven feet: the leaves are of a deep green on both sides, and are unequally serrate ; the'stem is thick jointed, and of a purplish red colour upwards. The seed of this plant, is a whitish ker- nel enclosed in a brown acrid husk. These seeds contain a large quantity of a mild nearly insipid oil, which from a third to a fourth of the weight may be extracted, and is the common Castor Oil + of the shops. The oil is prepared in two different ways, either by simple expression, without previous pre- paration, or by decoction. For the latter method, the nuts are beaten in deep wooden mortars, and thrown into iron boilers filled with water, and slow- ly brought to a boiling heat with constant stirring. The oil rises as a scum to the top, which is simply strained and bottled. According to Dr Wright f, the oil thus prepared is much milder than that ob- tained by pressure, on account of the mucilaginous and acrid part which the compression forces out of the nut and mixes with the oil, Genuine castor oil is very thick and viscid, of a light amber or straw colour, with scarcely any smell or taste. It becomes beautifully transparent by subsidence, and a quan- * Rieinus Communis, Linn, + Oleum Ricini. { Medical Journal, 1787. 119 tity of mucilage falls slowly to the bottom of the vessel *, Arrow Root ;.—It has a stalk and leaf exact- ly like the plant called Indian Shot {; but the flower differs ; that of the latter being a beautiful searlet, and that of the former milk white : the plant grows from a thick fleshy root, and shoots by a sim- ple foliated stalk to the height of two or three feet, and terminates ina loose and somewhat branched flower-spike. It was called Indian Arrow Root, the juice of the root being reputed a remedy for wounds inflicted with poisoned arrows, as well as against the stings of venomous insects. It ismealy, but may be kept perfectly sound for many years, as no insect will meddle with it. The root washed, pounded fine, and bleached, makes a fine powder and starch: It has sometimes been used as food, when other provisions were scarce, and is frequently administered in infusions to the sick. * Ree’s New Cyclopeedia, vol. vi. part 2d. + Maranta Arundinacea, Linn. { This plant commonly rises about four feet from the ground, and is furnished with large oval leaves near the bottom: the top shoots into a simple flower-spike, and is adorned with red blossoms, which are succeeded by pretty large oval and echina- ted capsule containing large round seeds, from the size and form of which it derives its present appellation. Browne. eee 120 Cassava *.—This plant, which formerly supplied the greatest part of the sustenance of the native In- dians, who called it Manzhot, is now raised in most parts of America. The Spaniards call the plant Yucca, and the bread made from its root Casada. It is a very beneficial vegetable, and yields an agree- able wholesome food ; and this, with its easy growth, and hardy nature, recommends it everywhere. It shoots from a tough branched lignous root, whose slender collateral fibres swell into those fleshy conic masses for which the plant is cultivated; and rises by a slender woody knotted stalk, to the height of four, five, or six feet, sometimes more. It thrives best in a free mixt soil, is propagated by the bud or gem, and generally cultivated in the following manner. The ground laid out for the culture of this plant is first cleared, and howed up into shallow holes, of about ten or twelve inches square, and seldom above three or four inches in depth. A sufficient number of full grown stems are then provided, and cut into short pieces, of about six or seven inches in length, as far as they are found to be tough and lignous, and well furnished with prominent, well grown, hardy buds: of these one or two are laid in every hole, and covered over with mould, from the adjoin- * Jatropha Mandihoca. 121 ing bank; but care miust be taken to keep the ground clean until the plants rise to a sufficient height to cover the mould and prevent the. growth of all weaker weeds. The plant grows to perfection in about eight months ; but the roots will remain for aconsiderable time, uninjured in the ground, though the want of plants, or stormy weather, should oblige the cutting of the stalks. The roots are com- monly dug up as occasion requires, and prepared for use in the following manner, viz. Being first well washed and scraped, then rubbed to a pulpy farine on iron-graters, they are put into strong linen, or palmetto bags, and placed in presses, until the juice is entirely expressed. The presses generally used on this occasion, are both cheap and effectual; they , are contrived by placing one or more large flat stones near the root of some convenient tree, in the side of which they cut a hole or notch about the height of the stones; and into this they fix the end of a strong plank, which is stretched over the flat stones on which the Cassava bags are set ; placing asmany weights as the strength of the board will bear, or may be requisite to express the juice, on the other end. The farine being taken out and spread in the sun for some time, is pounded in large wood- en mortars, then run through coarse sieves, and af- terwards baked on convenient irons, similar to those used for toasting oaten cakes in Scotland. These 122 8 are placed upon the fire, and when hot, strewed with the sifted meal to whatever size or thickness people please to have their cakes made; this agglu- tinates as it heats, grows gradually harder, and when thoroughly baked, is a wholesome well-tasted bread. The juice of the root is sweetish, but more or less of a deleterious nature, both fresh and in the putrid state ; though it hardly retains any thing of this quality while it ferments. What is expressed from the furine is frequently preserved by some people, and prepared. for many economic uses: in the boil- ing it throws up a thick viscid scum, which is al- ways thrown away ; and the remaining fluid (being found by long experience to be both wholesome and agreeable) is sometimes diluted and kept for com- mon drink, and it is thought to resemble whey very much in that state. Some use it in sauces for all sorts of fish as well as many other kinds of food ; purposes for which it was known to be employed a- mong the native Indians, long before any Zuropean had landed in those parts of the world *. VANGLO, or Ort Plant +.—It was first introduced into Jamaica by the Hebrews, where it is now culti- vated in most parts of the island: the seeds are * Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 349, a + Sesamum, Linn. 123 ‘ frequently used in broths by Europeans, but the He- brews make them into cakes. The plant is in great esteem among many of the Oriental nations, who look upon the seeds as a hearty wholesome fcod ; and express an oil from them, that is not unlike, or inferior to the oil of almonds. The Sesamum plant is cultivated in Carolina with great success ; and it is computed there, that nine pounds of this seed yields upwards of two pounds of neat oil, which they find to grow more mellow and agreeable with age ; and to continue without any rancid smell, or taste, for many years *. | ERYNGo +, or Firtweep.—This plant rises from a thick proportioned root, and spreads a good many. leaves about the crown, before it throws up a stalk ; but as the season advances, it shoots into a branched stem, which generally rises to the height of one or two feet above the ground, and bears all its flowers in roundish radiated heads t. The seeds of this plant bruised and taken internally, are considered an in- fallible remedy for the bite of the most venomous snake. The root is attenuant and deobstruent, and is therefore esteemed a good hepatic, uterine, and nephritic. Its whole virtue, it is to be observed, consists in the external or cortical part. * Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 270. + Eryngium. + Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 185. Q 124 Tomato *,..-There are several species ; and the berries are often used in soups and sauces, to which they give a very agreeable and grateful flavour: they are sometirnes roasted, and then chiefly used with mutton: they are also fried with eggs, and served up in single plates. In Spanish America, they are much used, particularly in making omelets. This fruit is supposed to possess a stimulating, or aphrodisac property. The Hebrews in the West In- dies, make use of this fruit in almost all their dishes. The flowers in these plants grow chiefly on common footstalks, and are seldom above seven or eight feet together: they are disposed in an alternate and dis- tich order, and grow commonly at some distance from the alze of the leaves +. Gutvéa Pepper t.—All the species.of the Capsi- cum or Indian pepper (as it is called 11 America) have the same general qualities, which are sensible im every part of the plant. The fruit is much used for culinary purposes, arid has long since been intro- duced into Europe as a poignant ingredient in soups and high seasoned dishes, under the name of Cay- enne pepper. This pepper derives its name from the island of Cayenne, in South America, of which it is a native. * Solanum Lycopersicum, Linn. + Browne's History of Jamaica, p. 175. t Capsicwn, 1295 The species from which the Cayenne is made, is called Bird Pepper ; it grows in small tufted bush- es, and seldom rises above three feet trom the ground : but when it meets with a suppott, shoots toa moderate height; and in shady places, is fre- quently observed to rise many feet from the root. The capsule and seeds of these plants are full of a warm acrid oil, and generally prove an agreeable seasoning with these sorts of food that require a gentle stimulus to promote the proper digestion ; and indeed, such a stimulus becomes more generally requisite in those warm countries, where a more free and constant perspiration seldom fails to pro- duce a weakness and langour in the bowels. They are used by most people in these colonies, and al- ways observed to give an appetite, to help digestion, to promote the tonic motion of the viscera; and in more robust habits, is sometimes observed to purge with a heat and tension about the podex. In the West Indies, there is a mixture made, and called. Mandram, in which a great deal of this is employ- ed, and which seldom fails to promote an appetite in the most languid stomachs. The ingredients are- sliced cucumbers, eschalots or onions cut very small, a little lime-juice, and Madezra wine, with a few pods of bird or other pepper well mashed, and mixed with the liquor *. * Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 177. Q 2 126 The fruit of the capsicum bacatum gathered when ripe, dried in the sun, and then pounded and mixed with salt, is kept stopt in bottles, and known in the West Indies by the name of Cayenne butter. Pepper-pot, according to Miller, is made of the same species, or of that variety of it, called minimum. For this purpose the ripe fruit is first dried in the sun, then put into an earthen or stone pot, with a layer of flour between each layer of the fruit, and baked in an oven till it is perfectly dried. Itisthen cleaned from the flour, and beaten or ground to fine powder. To every ounce of this powder, a pound of wheat flour is added, and the mixture made into small cakes with leaven: these are baked, cut into small pieces, and baked again till they are as hard as biscuit, then beaten into powder and sifted. The result is the well known Cayenne pepper, VANILLA *, om plant is a climber, and rises with great ease, to the tops of the tallest trees. The stalk is moderately slender, and throws out a long winding tendril opposite to each of the lower leaves, by which it sticks and holds to the branches, or bark of the tree : but after it gains the top, these become useless, and the place of each is supplied by a fellow leaf. It isa parisitic plant, the leaves of which greatly resemble the vine, and are about * Myrobroma—Epidendrum vanilla, Linn. 127 eighteen inches long, and three inches broad. The flowers are of a white colour, intermixed with stripes of red and yellow. When these fall off they are quickly succeeded by the pods, which grow in pairs, and are generally of the thickness of a child’s fin- ger; they are green at first, grow yellowish after- wards, and turn of a brownish cast as they ripen. The sort which is manufactured, grows not only in the Bay of Campeachy, but also at Carthagena, at the Caracas, Honduras, Darien, and Cayan, at all which places the fruit is gathered and preserved ; but it is rarely found in any of the English settle- ents, if we except Jamaica, though it might easily be propagated in them; for the shoots are so full of juice, that they will continue fresh, out of the ground, for several months. | When these plants are intended for propagation, nothing more is required than to make cuttings of three or four joints in length, which should be plant- ed in low warm lands, along walls, or at the foot of trees, or other props, whereby it may be supported. The method used to preserve the fruit, is when it turns of a yellow colour, and begins to open, to ga- ther it, and lay it in small heaps to ferment two or three days, in the same manner as is practised for the cocoa pods: care should be taken not to allow the pods to remain upon the stalks too long, as they then transude a black fragrant balsam, whichcarries off both the smell and delicacy of the seeds, for 128 which alone the plant is cultivated. They are af- terwards spread in the sun to dry, and when they are about half dried, they flat them with their hands, and afterwards rub them over with the oil of Palma Christi, or of the Cocoa; then they expose them to the sun again to dry, and afterwards they rub them over with oil a second time ; then they put them in small bundles, covering them with the leaves of the Indian reed to preserve them. These plants pro- duce but one crop of fruit in a year, which is com- monly ripe in May, and fit for gathering, for they do not let them remain on the plants to be perfect- ly mature. The Spaniards, French, and Italians, mix them in their chocolate, to which they are thought to give both a delicate smell and an agree- able flavour. They are generally looked upon as a cooling cordial, a stomachic, and a good nervous me- dicine ; and are sometimes used to perfume snufis, and many other substances. Cownace *, is the celebrated Covw-ztch, or Cow- hage, and is much used in this country as a power- ful vermifuge +. It bears long magnificent clusters of violet coloured flowers. The legumes are densely clothed with rigid very pungent barbed bristles, causing intolerable itching in the skin, but swallow- * Dolichos Pruriens, Linn. + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 116. 129 ed with safety, in the form of a bolus, into the stomach, where they act mechanically, so as to des- troy all kinds of worms. This medicine may be given with great safety in all constitutions, as it produces no sensible disturbance ; and as a proof that its action is merely mechanical, it may be add- ed, that neither the tincture nor decoction of this plant has any perceptible effect whatever on the constitution *, Snake Oxro +, or as it is sometimes called Ve- getable Musk, is very plentiful. The seeds of this plant when grown to full maturity, have a strong and perfect smell of musk; a few grains being sufficient to perfume a whole roomf. 'The seeds of this contain an highly aromatic oil, and which when bruised and taken internally, are be- lieved to be an infallible remedy for the bite of the most venomous snake. An application to the wounded part, in the way of poultice, of the same kind, is likewise recommended. § It may also be used with great propriety, instead of musk, in pow- ders, pomatums, &c. * Rees’s Cyclopedia, vol. 12, p. 1. + Hibiscus Abelmoschus, Linn. ~ Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 285. § Henderson’s Honduras, p. 116. 130 Oxro *.—The pods of this shrubby plant are full of nutritive mucilage; and is the principal ingredient in most of the soups and pepper-pots, made in America. They are generally boiled se- parately,and added just before these messes are taken off the fire: but the seeds may be boiled in broth, like barley or any other ingredient ; for they are not somucilaginous. The pods boiled and buttered, make a rich plate; but are seldom used in this way, €X- cept in private families +. | ConTRAYERVA {.—This plant isa climber, and rises frequently to a considerable height among the neighbouring trees and bushes. The root has a strong smell, and is deservedly looked upon as a warm attenuant and an active diaphoretic and stomachic ; it is administered in infusions, and great- ly used among the slaves in Jamaica §. Another species || is found in almost every spot about Balize, in the Bay of Honduras. A preparation from the root of this is known to produce abortion, and is much used for such purposes by negro females@. The * Hibiscus. + Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 285. + Aristolochia Phetruome. § Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 250. || Dorstenta Contrayerva, Linn. § Henderson’s Honduras, p. 117. 131 root is about half an inch thick, full of knots, hard, and of a reddish colour. Long tough slender fibres shoot out from all sides of it; these are sometimes loaded with knotty excrescences: it is of a pale co- lour within, of an astringent taste, bitterish, with a Irght and sweetish kind of acrimony, and has a pe- culiar kind of aromatic smell. It was formerly much used in medicine, but is now almost neglect- ed. FoxcLove*,—This plant is found about the high lands in the bay of Honduras. It derives its bo- tanical name from digitale, the finger of a glove. ‘Considerable attention is required in the selection and preparation of this plant for medical use. ‘The leaves are to be gathered when the flower stems are shot up, but before the time of flowering ; and the largest and deepest coloured leaves are preferable. These are to be carefully dried, and when complete- ly crisp and dry, they are to be reduced to powder, and kept in bottles closely corked, and not exposed to the light. | SARSAPARILLAT.—This plant delights in low moist grounds, and near the banks of rivers. The roots run superficially under the surface of the ground. * Digitalis, Linn. t Smilax Medicinal, Linn. R a 132 The gatherers have only to loosen the soil a Httle, and to draw out the long fibres with a wooden hook. In this manner, they proceed till the whole root is got out. It is then cleared of the mud, dried, and made into bundles. The flower of this plant is yel- low, mixed with red. The fruit is a black berry, containing several brown seeds. Its root, which 1s the part in use, divides itself into a great number of filaments, three or four feet long, of the thickness of a quill; it is brownish outside, and white within, only marked with two red streaks. It is inoderous, and has a mucilaginous very slightly bitter taste. Sarsaparilla, which is demulcent, and said to be diuretic, was first brought into Europe by the Spa- mards, about the year 1530, with the character of a specific for the cure of the lues venerea, which made its appearance a little before that time. The method of preparing 1t by the Spamiards and Indians of South America is as follows: they macerate an ounce of the root in almost four pints of water, for twenty-four hours, and boil it away to one-half. They give of the expressed decoction half a pint twice a-day, four hours before their meals, in bed, covered with clothes, where they sweat two hours, mixing. a suffictent quantity of the fine powder of the root with each dose of the decoction. They purge them every tenth day. The reputation of this medicine declined after its introduction into Europe ; though it appears from experience, that 155 in many cases, strong decoctions of it drank plenti- fully, and duly continued, are of very considerable service for promoting perspiration, and sweetening or purifying the blood and humours. Dr William Hunter and Sir W. Fordyce revived its reputation*, This plant is obtained in the greatest abundance in all parts of the Mosquito Shore; and in 1769, the British settlers exported from hence 200,000 Ibs. of sarsaparilla +. Ipecacuanua {.—There are several sorts of this plant found here. The bark of ipecacuanha is said to be preferable to its root, as an emetic 3 acting equally well, and with equal safety, in a smaller dose, either in powder, or infusion. The zpecacuane radix, is.a little wrinkled root about the thickness of a quill. The celebrated Mutiz recommends the use of this root, as a sovereign cure for the dysen- tery, mixed with cascarilla, and I believe a small por- tion of opzum. There isa species of this plant very common in the West Indies, and the southern parts of America, which bears a red flower, has a thick short stalk of a deep-glossy green colour, full of a milky juice, and said to be used by the natives for creating abortions. * Rees’s Cyclopeedia, vol. xxxi. part 2d. +t Edwards’ Account cf the British Settlements on the Moss quito Shore, p. 211. { Ipecacoanha, R 2 134 Yam * is a large fleshy root, eatable when boiled or roasted, and of which there are several species, all natives of tropical climates: they are highly useful to voyagers, as they will, like potatoes, keep for a con- siderable time without spoiling. It is universally cultivated in both the East and West Indies, the equinoctial parts of Africa, and in the islands of the south Sea; its roots being no less grateful than whole- some, when either boiled or roasted, and used as bread. The root is often three feet long, as thick as a man’s thigh, and sometimes weighs 30 Ibs. Its bark is black, the internal part white and glutinous, becom- ing farinaceous when drest. A favourite dish in Otaheite is composed of this root, with the pulp of the plantain fruit, and the kernel, or internal part of the cocoa-nut grated. It is mealy and easy of digestion, being both dry and palatable; and the rocts are inferior to none now in use, either in de- licacy, flavour, or matter of nourishment +. The plants are propagated by the piece ; but these must be cut so as to have a little of the skin upon them, by which alone they germinate; for the roots have no apparent gems, but cast out their weekly stems from every part of. the surface alike. They are put into holes, two or three in each, which are dug pretty regular, and about a foot and a half “® Duoscorea. . 6 ~ + Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 359. 135 or two feet square: these are afterwards filled with earth, and the whole covered with cane-trash ; which serves to keep the ground cool and fresh, and to prevent the growth of weeds, from which these plants must ‘be carefully preserved, until they grow sufficiently to cover the mould themselves. They are planted commonly in August, and are generally ripe about November or December following. When the roots are dug up, it 1s necessary to be careful not to wound ,them, or but as little as pos- sible; for such as are cut throw out their sprouts very early, and are seldom fit for any thing but planting, if they hold out even till that season comes on. After they are dug up, they are rubbed over with ashes, and piled regularly on hurdles raised above the floor, so that the air may pass freely be- tween them: but when they are heaped in great quantities, care should be taken to strew some ashes between the layers *, Potatog and Potator Siip+.—Both these plants are now cultivated all over America, and supply the poorer sort of people with a great part of their food in many places ; they are hardly distinguished by the tops, but the roots of the latter are constantly of a yellow colour, and those of the former white : the * Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 360. + Solanum. ‘ 136 plant rises equally from the bits and slips; though generally propagated by the latter, and is cultivated by laying a few short juncks of the stem, or larger branches, in shallow interrupted trenches, and cover- ing them with the mould from the banks. The roots grow to full maturity in three or four months, and the propagation is continued by covering the stems, bits and smaller protuberances with mould as they dig up the more perfect bulbs for use. The leaves make a very agreeable fodder for sheep, goats, hogs, rabbits and horses, upon occasion; and the roots boiled, mashed and fermented, make a plea- sant cooling drink *. } Gincer +.—This grateful aromatic root had a very early introduction into Hispaniola, and Acosta relates that it was conveyed from the East Indies to New Spain by a person named Francisco de: Men- doza. Ifsuch was the fact, the Spanish Americans must have entertained very high expectations of profit from its culture, and carried it to a great ex- tent ina very short space of time ; it appearing from the same author, that no less than 22,053 cwt. were exported by them to Old Spain in the year 1547. Ginger is a knotty, flattish root, of a fibrous sub- stance, of a pale or yellowish colour, covered with a * Browne’s History of Jamaica, p: 154, + Amomum Zirgiber, 137 thin, dusky pellicle, which is usually taken off while it is fresh, and before it is brought to Europe. The plant does not appear far above the ground ; it puts forth long green leaves, somewhat similar to those of the leek, and its flowers are red, slightly tinged with green. There are two sorts of ginger, white and black ; of which the former is the most valuable ; but the difference arises wholly from the mode of curing ; the former being preserved by insolation, and the latter by means of boiling water. The Indians are fond of ginger; they eat both the young shoots of the leaves and the roots themselves, cut small in their sallads and broths; and they make a very fine sweetmeat of them, preserving them with sugar; but in this case they must be taken up at the end of three or four months, while its fibres ure tender, and full of sap. In the cultivation of this root, no greater skill or care is required than in the propagation of potatoes in Great Britain, and it is planted much in the same manner, but is fit for digging only once a-year, unless for the purpose of preserving it in syrup. In Jamaica it attains its full height and flowers about August or September, and fades about the close of the year. When the stalks are entirely withered, the roots are in a proper state for digging, which is generally performed in the months of January and February. After being dug, they are picked, clean- 138 sed, and gradually seethed, or scalded in boiling wa- ter: they are then spread out, and exposed every day to the sun, till sufficiently dried; and after being divided into parcels of about 100 lbs. weight each, they are packed in bags for the market: this is called the “ black ginger.” White ginger is the root of the same plant ; but instead of scalding the roots, by which they acquire the dark appear- ance of the former, each root is picked, scraped, se- parately washed, and afterwards dried with great care: by this operation, more than double expence is incurred, and the market price is proportionably greater. Witp Pine *.—This plant fixes itself, and takes root on the body of a tree, commonly in the fork of the greater branches of the wild cotton tree. By the conformation of its leaves, which have a broad hollow base+, it catches and retams water from every shower. Each leaf resembles a spout, and forms at its base a natural bucket or reservoir, which contains about a quart of pure water, where it re- mains perfectly secure, both from the wind and the sun, yielding refreshment to the thirsty traveller in places where water is not otherwise to be pro- cured tf: * Tillandsia Mazina. . t+ Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 194. + Edward’s History of the West Indies, vol. Ist; p. 565. 139 Pine Appts *.—This is a perennial root ; the root-leaves are from two to three feet long, and from two to three inches broad, channelled, often a little glaucous ; the stem is short, cylindric, thick and leafy ; the spike is glomerate, dense, scaly, oval or conic, crowned with a tuft of leaves, similar to the root and stem leaves, but smaller: the flowers are bluish, small and scattered upon the common, thick, fleshy receptacle ; the germ,.is half buried in the substance of the receptacle, which after the flowers fall off, increases in size, and becomes a suc- culent fruit, covered on all sides with small trian- gular scales, and resembling the strobile of the genus Pinus, whence its common English name is derived. This root is a native of the tropical regions of America, and was found by Columbus in all the West India islands. This has always been esteemed the richest and best fruit in America: it is, in general, agreeable to the stomach; but the na- tural mellowness of its juice renders it more agreea- ble to the natives and old standards, than it possi- bly can be to new comers, who generally think it too rich and cloying. The juice fermented, would make a good winé ; it is sometimés mixed with the rum liquor, when it ferments, and is thought to give it a pleasant flavour}. In South America, a * Bromelia Ananas, Linn. + Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 192. S 140 pleasant drink is made of the ‘pine apple, cut in slices, and left to steép for twenty-four “hours ‘in water. | Pincurn Pine Appre*.—The leaves of this plant are five or six feet long, and the edges very prickly, and these generally arched backwards, which makes them extremely hurtful to either man or beast, that may chance to fall among them ; and are, for this reason, generally used in all the fences and inclosures round the country +. The fruits of this plant are separate, and each nearly of the size of a walnut ; the pulp has an agreeable sweetness, joined with such a sharpness, that if you make much use of it, or let it lie for any time in the mouth, it will corrode the palate and gums, so as to make the blood ouze from those tender parts. The leaves of all the different sorts of Bromelia, (but this m particular) being stripped of the pulp, yields a strong thready sub- stance not much inferior to hemp, which is fré- quently made into ropes, whips, &c.; and by the Spaniards into hammocks. Gourp {This plant is cultivated chiefly on * Bromelia Pinguin, Linn. + Browne's Natural History of Jamaica, p. 193. t Ibid. § Cucurbita. 4d account of the lignous shell of its fruit, which grows frequently, large enough to contain between twenty and thirty quarts. Where aloes is manufactured in any quantity, it is commonly preserved in these shells. They are also used to hold water and small grain *. lll eae Scotcu Grass ~.—This plant is cultivated, and thrives very luxuriantly in all the low and marshy lands of Jamaica, where itis now almost universally used as fodder for all their stabled cattle: it is planted near the towns with great care, and found to be one of the most beneficial productions of the island ; it is propagated by the joints or root, and set in small drilled holes placed about two feet and a half asunder; the young shoots begin to appear ina few days, and as they grow, they spread and creep along the ground, casting a few roots, and throwing out fresh shoots from every joint, as they run; they soon supply the land, and fill the field with standing plants, the only that are generally cut. It rises variously according to the moisture and luxuriance of the soil, but its general growth is from two to four feet, and is fit to cut in six months from the first planting, and every month or six weeks after, if the seasons are favourable, and pro- * Browne’s Natural History of Jamaica, p. 354. + Panicum hirtellum, Linn. 92 142. per care taken to keep the ground free from weeds. An acre of good land well stocked with this plant, in the vicinity of Kingston, is computed to bring in above a hundred and twenty pounds a-year ; and 1s not attended with so much expence or so many 1n- conveniences as when cultivated with any of the other productions of the Island; for being once planted, it holds many years; but when the main stalk or root grows hard and lignous, the young shoots do not push so luxuriantly, and they are then obliged to be planted anew; this however is very easy, as itis done gradually, for they generally sup- ply the pieces as they clean them, and throw up every stubbed or failing root they find, planting a few joints in its place*, From a single acre of this ° plant, five horses may be maintained a whole year, allowing fifty-six pounds of grass a-day to each f. Guinea Grass {.—This plant, like the Scotch grass, is also much cultivated in Jamaica. It is planted, like the other, by the joint or gem, and also by the root ; but does not require near so much moisture, and is reckoned a more hearty fodder §. ‘“‘ This plant may be considered as next to the sugar “cane in point of importance; as most of the * Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 133. + Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 1. p. 253. Holcus. Browne’s History of Jamaica, p. 366. OA de 143. * srazing and breeding farms thoughout the island, “ were originally created, and are still supported, ‘“‘ chiefly by means of this invaluable herbage. “‘ Hence the plenty of horned cattle, both for the ‘‘ butcher and planter, is such that few markets in “ Europe, furnish beef at a cheaper rate, or of bet- “ ter quality, than those of Jamaica *,” * Edwards’ History of Jamaica, vol. 1. p. 253. Lit QUADRUPEDS. Horse* .—This noble animal is found in consider- able numbers in this country ; in the interior there are dreves of them, sometimes containing three or four hundred head. Their price is from 12 to 15 dol- lars per head, or from £2 10s. to £23 Sterling. They are generally small, but very sure footed and hardy, which renders them extremely fit for those moun- tainous lands: and their hoofs are so hard that they seldom require shoes; but this is the effect of the heat of the country and dryness of the land in gene- ral. The horses found in this country are without doubt of Spanish origin; but many of them have a mixture of the English breed ; in consequence of some horses of that nation having been imported in- to the country, during the time that the British ‘were in possession of the Mosquito Shore, - Ox and Cow+; these are to be had in great numbers in this country : there are many large herds of them ; and at Plantain River, on the property of General Ro- binson, there is a herd of at least 500 head, as large and fine, as are to be found in any part of the world. | * Equus. t+ Bos. 145 The breed in this country, is undoubtedly of Spa- nish origin, and perhaps mixed with ‘the English; ‘some of which were no doubt imported into ‘the Mosquito territory, when in’ possession of that nation. Many of them are to be found wild in ‘the: interior. The usual price of a tame ox, or even of a cow with its calf, very rarely exceeds from 12 to-15 dol- lars a-head, or about £2 10s. to £3 sterling. ~Cow ‘milk is generally very thin in those : parts’ of :the world, and tastes frequently rancid, especially ‘when they feed in the lower lands, where the aceacia and the Guinea Head weed grow in plenty ; neverthe- less, in the mountainous'situations they yield sweet milk, and good butter is sometimes made from it. Within the Spanish territory in particular, nature “ has supplied a rich and almost boundless pasturage, “and where the numbers of cattle and horses raised “ is prodigious. “Many of the latter, so little ‘are “ they regarded, return to a state of wildness, and “associate in immense droves, from which it fre- “quently becomes a task of much difficulty’ and “* danger to reclaim them *.” ‘The British settlers, while resident at Black River, formerly used to’ob- tain both horses and' cattle from the Spaniards in exchange for merchandise. Considerable quantities of tasajo; the flesh of cat- tle cut up into long shréds, “slightly ‘salted, : and dried in the sun, are imported into the-island of St * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 120, 146 Thomas from the River Plata; and from whence, after a certificate has been obtained of its having been landed, it is again re-exported to the Havana ; where it.sells for 14 dollars, and even sometimes for 18 dollars per cwt. -Tasajo are bundles of flesh, rolled up and tied fast, which is done by slicing off all the flesh from the -bone with a knife, in long thin narrow stripes. It is then salted and hung up on posts, or between two trees to dry, being left exposed to the wind and weather for a whole week ; it is then hung up and | smoaked for another week, and afterwards rolled up in small bundles, which in time becomes almost as hard as stone *, When it is to be used it is washed, beat with a mallet, and either boiled or stewed ; it _is not unpleasant to the taste. Cattle, it is supposed, can be had in considerable numbers from the Spaniards in the back country, at the moderate price of 4 dollars per head. In conse- quence of the scarcity of cattle on the Spanish Main -and inthe West Indies, it is said that Messrs Cay- an and Co. of Barbadoes, the contractors for sup- plying the British Army and Navy with provisions, have been compelled to send to Ireland and the Cape de Verd Islands for cattle: the passage from Poyais'to the Windward Islands, may be estimated at about thirty days at farthest, and this country * A New Survey of the West Indies, &c. by Thomas Gage, London, 1648, p. 143. 147 could supply annually, without detriment, from 1200 to 2000 head of cattle, besides any quantity of green turtle. Burrato *,—TI insert this animal on the authority of Captain Wright+. It is probably the Bison of America. “The bunched ox, or wild bison, “ (according to Buffon), appears to have inhabited “‘ the northern parts of America only, as Virginia, “ Florida, the country of the Illionois, Louisiana, “ &c.; for though Hernandez calls it the Mewican “ Bull, we learn from a passage of Antonio de Solis, “that this animal was a stranger in Mexico,” &c. - The following is a literal translation from de Solis f, of the “passage alluded to by Buffon, who formed his opinion from a French copy of the work. “In ‘“‘ the second court of the same house, were the -wild “beasts, which had been presented te Montezuma, “ or taken by his huntsmen, in strong wooden caz “‘ ges, well arranged, and under cover ; lions, tis ‘* gers, bears, and all kinds of wild beasts, the pro- “‘ duction of New Spain; among which the great- “‘ est novelty was the Mexican Bull, extraordinary “ curious, being composed of various animals, ‘ crooked, with a bunch on his back, and the ‘* shoulder curved like a camel, the flank meagre, * Bos Bubalus, Linn. + Wright’s Memoir, p. 15. t La Historia de la conquista, &c. de la Nueva Espana, por Don Antono de Solis, Madrid 1684, p. 240. T 148 “the tail large, and the ‘neck covered with hair “like the lion; the foot cloven, and the forehead “armed like a bull, whose ferocity it imitates with “ equal activity and execution *.” ‘Mutes }, are sometimes obtained from the Spanish settlers in the back country ; and are more valuable than any other cattle in these hilly countries ; and the most generally used both for carriage and the mill in all mountainous estates. _ Hocs t.—These animals, when tame, differ in no- thing from those of the same sort, commonly seen in Europe, being generally bred and raised in the same manner. The Guinea Hog }, though a-small sort, answers best in America, for it breeds a great- er number of pigs than any other kind, and these very rich and delicate: but the old ones are so fat, that none, except the boars, are ever brought to table ||. Prcarry @, or Meaican Hog. The tusks of * Probably the animal, which Captain Wright calls the Buf- falo, is nothing more than the Wi/d Bull now so numerous on the continent of America, and which are said to have sprung from one bull and seven cows which were carried thither by some of the first conquerors. + Equs Asinus Mulus, Linn. + Sus. : § Sus Porcus. \| Browne’s Natural History of J: amaica, p. 487. q Sus Tajassu, Linn. 149 this species are scarcely conspicuous when the’ mouth is shut; the ears are short, erect, pointed ; the eyes are sunk in the head; the neck is short and thick ; the bristles are nearly as large as those of the hedge-hog, longest on the neck and back ; in colour it is hoary, black, annulate with white ; from the shoulders to the breast is a collar of white. In size and figure, this animal bears an imperfect re- semblance to the hog of China ; it has no tail. On the back of this animal is- placed a glandulous ori- fice, which has furnished a very common belief that in this part of it the navel is situated. From this gland on the back, constantly distils a thin fe- tid liquor, which is the most remarkable peculiarity of this species. If killed in the night, provided the gland on the back be taken off, and the liquor which it secretes, carefully washed away at the instant of death, the flesh of the Mexican hog is considered agreeable food, and is esteemed good either fresh or salted. Though existing ina wild state, they are susceptible of domestication, but nothing can over- come their natural stupidity. They grunt with a stronger and harsher voice than the hogs of Asia and Europe ; their chief food is fruit, seeds, and roots ; but they will devour with great eagerness serpents, toads, and lizards ; and they display great dexterity in tearing off the skins of these reptiles; but they do not wallow, and become fat, like the common hog. ‘They produce a number of young at each lit- T 2 150 ter, aad the mother treats them with the tenderness and solicitous care of a kind parent. Waree *, called by some the hog of the Isth- mus of Darien; and an opinion has been suggested, that it may only be the European hog run wild +; they are very fierce: and if not wounded in any principal part, generally return with great fury upon the assailant, who is obliged to climb into some neighbouring tree to avoid the fury of the beast. The approach of these animals may be heard in the woods at a great distance, by the loud and clamorous noise they usually make. GIBEONITE {.—This is a small animal greatly re- sembling, though somewhat larger than the guinea- pig. It is plentifully found at Honduras, and easily domesticated. The flesh of it is extolled as a pecu- liar delicacy §. This animal is near two feet in length; the form thick and clumsy, and bearing some resemblance to that of a pig, for which reason it has sometimes been called the hog-rabbit. The head is round; the muzzle short and black; the upper jaw longer than the lower ; and the lip divid- ed like that of the hare: the nostrils are large, the * Sus vie ee Stn + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 124. ¢ Cavia Paca—Mus Paca, Linn. $ Hendersen’s Honduras, p. 124, 151 . whiskers long ; the eyes large and prominent, and of a brown colour; the ears short, moderately large, round, and naked ; the neck thick 3 the body very plump, larger behind than before, and covered with coarse, short, thinly scattered hair of a dusky brown colour, deepest on the back: the throat, breast, in- sides of the limbs and belly, dingy white; and on each side of the body are five longitudinal series of roundish, or slightly angular spots, situated contigu- ous to each other. The legsare short, and the feet have five toes, four of which are armed with strong and sharp claws; that on the fifth toe being very small. The tail consists merely of a small conic projection, not more than half an inch in length. The female is said to produce but one young at a birth. Inpian Conzy *.—This animal, which has some- times been confounded with the former, is of the size of therabbit; the body plump, and thicker behind than before ; the head rather small and somewhat com- pressed laterally ; snout longand rathersharp; nose di- vided at the tip; and the upper jaw longer than the lower ; ears short, broad, naked, and rounded ; neck rather long, but thick; legs thin, almost naked and blackish ; the hind legs larger than the anterior ones, and furnished with only three toes; tail extremely * Cavia Aguti—-Mus Aguti, Linn. 132 short, naked, and sometimes scarcely visible ; the whole of the animal covered with hard, strong, and shining hair, in genetal of a rufous brown colour with blackish freckles; rump orange coloured. Authors mention three varieties, viz. The lesser Agouti, or cuvia aguls cunicularis; the larger Agouti, or cavia agoutt leporina; the American Agouti, cavia agouti Americana. Buffon observes, that the agouti has the hair, grunt- ing,and voracious appetite of the hog; and whenfully satiated, hides the remainder of its food like the fox, in different places. It takes delight in gnawing and spoiling whatever it comes near. When irritated, it bites fiercely; its hair stands erect along the back, and it strikes the ground violently with its hind feet. It does not, he remarks, dig holes like the rabbit, but lives in the hollows of trees. _ Roots, potatoes, yams, and fruits, are its principal food. It uses its fore paws, like the squirrel, in carrying food to its mouth; runs swiftly up hill, or on even ground; but its fore paws being shorter than its hinder ones, it is in danger of falling upon a decli- vity. The flesh of the agouti being nearly as good as that of the rabbit, and the skin of such a durable quality, as to form an excellent upper leather for shoes: the hunting of these animals is an object of attention among the Indians. They commonly go in search of them with dogs, or take them in traps ; the natives know also how to allure them by whist- 135 ling or imitating their cries, and kill as many as they please. The young agouti is easily tamed. When in a wild state, they generally dwell in the woods, where the female chooses the most obscure parts, and there prepares a bed of leaves and grass for her young. She usually brings forth two or three at a time, and in a day or two afterwards, she carries them in her mouth like a cat, into a hollow of some tree, where she suckles them for a short space of time, and they are soon in a condition to run about and provide for themselves. They mul- tiply as fast as rabbits, producing three, four, and sometimes five young ones, during every season of the year. When in a domestic state, they never remove to any great distance, and always return to the house; but constantly retain somewhat of their wild disposition. Henderson says, “ this animal, in size, form, and “ habit, is very like the hare. It does not run, but “‘ leaps; and whilst in the act of lstening, it rears ‘* itself on the hind legs, exactly in the same way. “The meat of it is wholesome, but exceedingly aay Ticer}, called also the Jaguar or American Tiger, The colour of this animal is a bright tawny; the upper part of the head striped with black ; the sides * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 123. + Felis Onca. 154 beautifully variegated with irregular oblong ocollar spots; the thighs and legs are variegated with black spots without central spaces; breast and belly, whitish ; tail not so long as the body, above marked ‘with large black spots in an irregular manner, be- neath with smaller spots. It grows to the size of the wolf, and sometimes even larger. The female is supposed to produce only two young at a birth. The Jaguar “ often commits the most open and “‘ daring outrages on the plantations of the settlers. ‘¢ Sheep, goats, and hogs, are the particular objects ‘“‘ of its depredations. Reports are also given, that ‘“‘ it has sometimes attacked man, but it is consider- “ed that such are unfounded ; for it fortunately ‘ happens, that the otherwise established reputation “ for courage in this animal is usually found defi- “ cient in this respect *.” It runs swiftly, and by | means of its talons, ascends the loftiest and smooth- est trees, with a facility that 1s inconceivable, when in pursuit of quadrupeds, that endeavour, by climb- ing up the trees, to effect their escape. Brack Ticer +.—This resembles the former pretty néarly, except in colour, which is dusky, and in ge- neral plain. The throat, belly, and inside of the legs, are pale-ash ; the upper lip white, and furnish- * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 120. + Felis Discolor. : Vi ed with long whiskers, and the eye-brows beset with long hairs; at each corner of the mouth isa black spot; the ears are sharp-pointed, and the paws white. The tail is of the same colour with the rest of the body. “ The Black Tiger, which is “‘ deemed much the fiercest, is but rarely discover- “ed *.” It grows to the size of an heifer of a year old, and is remarkable for its strength ; its form is rather slender. MI. de la Borde relates of the black tigers, that they frequent the sea shore, and eat the eggs deposited there by the turtles. They also de- vour alligators, lizards, and fishes, and sometimes the buds and tender leaves of the Indian fig. Mexican Carf, or Ocelot, is common, and proves destructive to the smaller kinds of stock, such as poultry, &c.f It greatly resembles the common cat, but is three or four times its size, measuring in length about four feet, and its height two feet and a half. In the variety of its markings, as well as colours,.the ocelot is extremely beautiful, the male especially. The general colour is bright tawny above, with the breast, belly, and lower part of the sides, together with the limbs, white. — {{ Ibid. L 1 268 The time that elapses from the planting to the commencement of gathering cotton, does not vary very much from four months, or about one hundred and twenty days... It has been observed by an ex- perienced traveller, that cotton will grow upon every variety of land, upon which any useful vegetable can be cultivated *. . Gathering the cotton is entirely done by the hand; and demands great care in the operation, 2 circumstance which, in the natural history of cot- ton, contributes to render its collection, free of dead leaves, difficult and tedious +. The quantity of cotton that can be made upon, and collected from an acre, differs greatly. Below $30 North Latitude, one thousand weight is consi- dered about amedium. The relative weight of seed and down is about three-fourths of the latter, to one- fourth of the former; therefore, 250 lbs. of clean cotton would be the medium produce of an acre. A labourer will cultivate with ease; more than twice as much cotton as he can collect. There is no manual labour done by man, where the quantum that is performed by different men, of equal strength, differs so greatly as in picking cotton. The ordinary amount allowed for a day’s work, is between fifty * Darby’s Emigrants Guide. New York, 1818, p. 178. + Ibid. 269 and sixty pounds: two hundred has been collected by one person ina day. Darby says he has seen chil- dren collect more cotton into baskets than- they were able to carry to the place of deposit. It may indeed be justly considered as one of the excellen- cies of the culture of cotton, that in its collection no manual labour is lost. Neither age nor child- hood, if in health, is prevented from giving its aid in this innocent and useful pursuit. Children from eight years old can be employed to advantage. The bale varies in weight : 320 lbs. is a medium. That farm produces well, where three and a half bales of this size are made to each hand; four such bales is an excellent crop *. It must be understood, however, that the same labourers raise maize, plantains, cassada, sweet po- tatoes, yams, and other vegetables for nourishment, From the ability of cultivating more cotton than can be collected by the same labourers, leisure is al- so given to cultivate vegetables for food. I shall now bring into one point of view the se- veral particulars attending the first cost and settle- ment of a plantation in this sort of husbandry, and the return which may reasonably be expected from a small capital thus employed. I fix on a small capital ; because I conceive that a cotton planta- I * Darby’s Emigration Guide, p. 178. 1 2 ; 270 tion may be established on a more moderate fund than any other *, It is presumed that land proper for the growth of cotton, situated near the sea, may be purchased, in the territory of Poyais, at the present selling price of one shilling per acre; and as it is prudent in most cases, to change the soil after the third crop, by replanting fresh land, I will allot one hundred and sixty acres (a quarter section) for the first pur- chase, in order that the planter may have room for that purpose. Supposing, therefore, that twenty- five acres only is planted in cotton at the same time, the capital will be invested as follows : Cost of one hundred and sixty acres of land, at one shilling per acre - £8 0 0 Expence of clearing, fencing, and planting 25 acres, at ten shillings per acre - - - - - 1210 0 . £20 10 0 Provisions, implements, and sundry small articles, say sil : 910 @ Total, £30 O O The returns are now to be considered. In Poyais, it is calculated that one acre of cotton will yield from 200 to 350 pounds annually, and 250 Ibs. * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p. 317. 271 may be considered the medium average, and is safely estimated at 8d. sterling per pound. The returns, therefore, according to this data, upon such a plantation as we have described, will be as fol- lows, Viz. 6250 Ibs. of cotton, at 8d. sterling per i - - £208 6 8 Deduct incidental expences, as mate- rials for bagging, &c. £13 6 8 Deduct wages of 8 labour- ers, at £18 each, per an- num - - - 104 0 0 ———— 117 6 § Remains in sterling money, £98 O O To which may be added, the sale of surplus provisions, as yams, plantains, maize, cotton seed-oil, &c. say 2 9 0 O £100 O O Cotton is packed in the West Indies, in bags, from 300 to 520 lbs. weight each, and the tare al- lowed there is 3 per cent *. In the United States, one-fourth of the amount is allowed for the expence of cleaning cotton from the seed, the purchase of duck and cordage, and transpor- * Mortimer’s Commercial Dictionary, 2d edit. 1319, art. Cotton. — _~ 2712 tation to market. “ From individual experience, the ‘* author of this treatise is fully convinced, that this “is an ample allowance if taken generally *.” For the territory of Poyais, the allowance I have made for bagging, &c. will be found amply sufficient. The quantity of oil that cotton-seed will give, has never been determined with sufficient accuracy. The proportion of clean cotton wool to that of the crude mass, including the seed, has been found very nearly to be as one to four. Persons holding cot- ton-gins are obliged to deliver one lb. of clean cot- ton for every four lbs. of the mass in seed, for which the receipts are given. One hundred pounds of seed, is allowed to produce one gallon of oil +. From the data given above, it appears that an active industrious emigrant, arriving in this country with about £150 sterling, would in twelve months create a cotton plantation, that would yield him 100 per annum, with the certain prospect of every year being able to extend it, and so in proportion augment his capital and income. It should also be observed, that there are merchants, who will ad- vance an industrious settler, such goods as he may require, on a twelvemonth’s credit, taking his cot- ton in payment at a fair price; and as the Indians prefer being paid in goods to money, the emigrant who arrives with only L.30 in his pocket, may raise ~ os Darby’s Emigrant Guide, p. 181. + Thid. 273 a similar estate, if he can get credit with the mer- chant to the amount of L.117, 6s. 8d.: but sup- pose he only gets it for half the sum, this will ena- ble him to employ four labourers, and cultivate twelve or thirteen acres in cotton, which will yield, after making a fair allowance of L.10, for the dif- ference between goods bought with ready money, and those obtained on a long credit, an annual in- come of L.40 sterling, on a capital of thirty pounds. In Nile’s Weekly Register, published at Baltt- more, for July 1819, is the following curious calcu- lation: —“‘ Ten slaves, five of them capable of “ working in the fields, the other five, women and “ children, will produce of cotton annually, about | Ibs. 6,500 « At this rate 100,000 would produce 835,000,000 ** Which at 13 cents. pevlb. amount to D.11,050,000” In the same work for July 1820, is the following calculation :—“ We now proceed to state the situa- “tion of an extensive cotton manufactory, in the “ neighbourhood of Boston, which is in actual ope- “ ration. “ItcontainsMen - 14 * Women and Children 286 300 “ And produces, with the power of looms and other “machinery, at the rate per annum of 1,250,000 “ square yards of cloth. 274 Dollars “ Which at 25 cents per yard is - 312,500 “ Deduct 450,000 Ibs. of cotton, at 16 cents '72,000 ‘¢ Annual saving of the nation by the | ‘* Jabour of 14 men and 286 women + d.246,500 “ and children, N.B. In the above statement the expences of the establishment is not given, but we might cal- culate it at 40,500 dollars, which would leave a pro- fit upon the capital (whatever that may be) of 200,000 dollars. Let us now calculate the result of the labour of 100,000 men, women and children, in the same proportions, and at the same kind of employment. As 300: 240,500:: 100,000: 80,166,666 dollars. That is to say, the clear profit of the labour of 100,000 persons, employed in the cotton manufac- tory, would amount to above eighty millions of dollars annually, after paying for the raw material *. Inpico.—The plant which yields the valuable commodity, called Indigo (probably so named from India, where it was first known to be manufactur- ed), grows spontaneously in this country. In the British Sugar Islands, they reckon three distinct species; the Wild +, Gautemala +, and French §. * Nile’s Weekly Register, July, 1820. , + Indigofera Argenta, Linn. + Indigofera Disperma, Linn. § Indigofera Tinctoria, Linn. 275 : The Wild indigo has short crooked pods and black seeds ; the G'watemala is distinguished by the red« ness of the stalk, and the colour of the seeds, which are green: the #rench is a short bushy plant, with roundish leaves, long crooked pods, and its seeds are yellow. ‘The first issaid to be the hardiest, and the dye extracted from it is supposed to be of the best quality, both in colour and closeness of grain, but one of the other two species is commonly prefers red by the planter, as yielding greater return ; andof these, the Frerich surpasses the Guatemala in quan- tity, but yields to it in fineness of grain, and beaus ty of colour *. “ That the richest soil produces the most lux- “ uriant plant, and that good seasons accelerate its “ srowth, cannot I think be doubted ; but, observ- ' “ing its long tap-root, and spontaneous growth, ‘in almost every dry and barren savannah, I am “ convinced it will thrive on soils that are fit for “ nothing else. The longest dry weather will not “ totally kill it, though much water will have that “ effect, if suffered to remain long on the plant +.” The cultivation and manufacture are conducted in the following manner. The land being properly cleared of weeds, &c. is hoed into small trenches of two or three inches in * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p. 325. + Ibid. Mm 276 depth, and twelve or fourteen inches asunder ; in the bottom of which the seeds are strewed by the hand, and covered lightly with the earth taken out : a bushel’of seed is sufficient for four or five acres of land. During the progress of vegetation, the ground must be carefully weeded, in order to pre- vent any mixture of herbs, which would injure the indigo in its manufacture. In moist weather, the plarit comes up in three or four days; and in about two or three months after, it is fit for cutting: if suffered to stand till it runs into flower, the leaves become too dry and hard, and the indigo obtained from them proves less in quantity, and less beauti- ful ; the due point of maturity is known, by the leaves beginning to grow less supple, or more brittle. In rainy seasons; the cutting may be repeated every six weeks: cutting in dry weather kills the plant, which if that is avoided, continues to afford fresh crops for two years. The ratoons or subsequent growths from the plants, ripen in six or eight weeks ; but the produce diminishes fast after the second cut- ting, so that it is absolutely necessary to sow the seeds anew every year. The produce per acre of the first cutting, will be about eighty pounds weight of what the French call pigeon’s neck; or about sixty pounds of a quality equal to the Guatemala. The produce in North America is sometimes nearly as much ; but when Fahrenheit’s therriometer falls to 60°, the re- 217 turns there are very uncertain, both in quality and quantity ; a greater heat being absolutely necessary both for vegetation and maceration, The yielding for the subsequent cuttings somewhat diminishes ; but in Jamaica and St Domingo, if the land is new, about 300 lbs. mer acre of the second quality may be expected annually, from all the cuttings together, and four negroes are sufficient to carry on the cultiva- tion of five acres, besides doing other occasional work, sufficient to re1mburse the expence of their maintenance and clothing *. The process for obtaining the dye is = conducted in twa cisterns, which are placed like two steps, the one ascending to the other. The high- est (which is also the largest) 1s called the steeper; and its dimensions are about sixteen feet square, and two feet anda halfin depth. There is an aper- ture near the bottom, for discharging the fluid into the second, which is called the battery or beater, and is commonly about twelve feet square, and four and a half in depth. Cisterns of these dimensions are proper for about seven acres of the plant; but if stone-work cannot easily be erected for want of materials, vats made of brick, and plastered with a composition of cement in the inside, may be substi- tuted, or if constructed of strong timber, well se- ee anette NL ETE OY Te ‘ { * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p-. 327. Mm 2 ais ' cured from leakage, they will answer as well. There is also required a Jime-vat, six by eight feet square, and four feet deep; and it may be proper to ob- serve, that the tap or plug-hole ought to be placed at least eight inches from the bottom, to leave suf- ficient room for the lime to subside, before the lime-water is drawn off into the battery. The plants are cut with reap-hooks or sickles, a few inches above the root, and leaving a few bran- ches on the stem. This will draw up the sap bet- ter, and produce a more luxuriant ratoon, than where a naked stalk is left. During the first cut- ting, it is usual to leave some of the most flourish- ing stalks for seed, which ought not to be gathered until it is well hardened in the pod. It generally requires ten bushels of the pod to produce a single bushel of clean dry seed, fit for sowing. A large quantity of the plant is placed by strata in the steeper, until it is about three parts full. They are then strongly pressed down with boards, which are wedged or loaded, to prevent the plants from buoying up; and as much water is admitted as the weed will imbibe, until it is covered four or five inches deep, and in this state is left to fer- ' ment, until the pulp is extracted. The matter be- gins to ferment, sooner or later, according to the warmth of the weather, and the maturity of the plant, sometimes in six or eight hours, and some- times not in less than twenty. The liquor grows 279 hot, throws up a plentiful froth, thickens by de- grees, and acquires a blue colour, inclining to violet. In proportion as the caloric increases, azote is dis- engaged, and the herbaceous mucilage separated, the vegetable is decomposed, and the mixture ab- sorbs oxygen. ‘The fermenting fiuid passes from a green to a violet tinge, and this by degrees changes toa blue colour. The great art of the manufacture is to check the fermentation at a proper degree. If the fermentation is too feeble or too brief, the plant remains impregnated with much essential salt, which diminishes the quantity of indigo. If it be too long, the tender extremities of the plant under- go a putrefaction, which destroys the colour. Some | years ago, the following criterion was published at St Domingo, for ascertaining invariably the correct fermentation of the indigo. It is only requisite to write on white paper with the matter ta be examin- ed. If this ink be of very high colour, it is a proof that the fermentation is not yet at its true point. The experiment is repeated every quarter of an hour, till it is perceived that the liquid has lost its colour. This was pronounced an infallible index to shew the true point of fermentation. When these signs are perceived, they indicate the success of the operation. At this-time, without touching the herb, the liquor impregnated with its tincture is let out, by cocks in the bottom, into the other vat, called the battery. 250 In the second vat, the liquor is strongly and in- cessantly beat and agitated, with a kind of buckets fixed to poles, till the colouring matter is united in- to a body ; a more convenient machine has been constructed, in which the levers are worked by a cog wheel, and kept in motion by a horse or mule, A good deal of nicety is requisite in hitting this point ; if the beating is ceased too soon, a part of the tinging matter remains dissolved in the liquor ; if continued a little too long, a part of that which had separated is dissolved afresh. The exact time for discontinuing the process is determined by tak- ing up some of the liquor occasionally in a little cup, and observing whether the blue focwle is dis- posed to separate and subside. The facility with which the grain precipitates to the bottom of the beater, 1s an unequivocal sign that the beating has arrived at the correct point. The liquor being properly and sufficiently work- ed, and the pulp granulated, it is left undisturbed until the flakes or focwle@ settle at the bottom, when the incumbent water is drawn off, and the indigo distributed into small linen bags to drain, after which it is carefully put into little square boxes or moulds, and suffered to dry gradually in the shade, and this finishes the manufacture. However well drained and dried the indigo may be, it always experiences, in the first month of its fabrication, a diminution sufficiently evident to 231 warrant a hastening of the sale. It is customary to pack the indigo into barrels; and thus to circulate it in commerce. Indigo is also packed in sacks of coarse linen, and the sack is then covered with an ox’s hide, having the seams so hermetically sewed and tarred that nothing can penetrate it: These packets are called ceroons, and they are much preferable to barrels, as they are more solid; and more convenient for transportation. Two ceroons make the load of amule. In this way the indigo is packed for mar- ket in the kingdom of Guatemala, and in all parts of Spanish America. Indigo is commonly divided, from the colour which it exhibits upon breaking, into three kinds, copper-coloured, purple, and blue. Good indigo is moderately light, breaks of a shining surface, and burns almost wholly away upon a red hot iron. It is quickly penetrated by water, and reduced into a kind of paste; a considerable part is at the same time diffused through the liquor, and very slowly subsides: é Berthollet speaks of the indigo from Guatemala as the best of any; as it is‘so light as to swim on the surface of the water; instead of sinking to the bot- tom, as all the other kinds do. The different qua- lities of Spanish American indigo are expressed by the three terms, Flora, Sobres, and Cortes, whereof the first is the best, and the last the worst. “* To what has been said above of the nature of 282 “ the plant, suiting itself to every soil, and produc- “ ing four cuttings in the year, if we add the cheap- “ness of the buildings, apparatus, and labour, and “‘ the great value of the commodity, there will seem “‘ but little cause for wonder at the splendid ac- *‘ counts which are transmitted down tous concern- “ing the great opulence of the first indigo planters. ‘¢ Allowing the produce of an acre to be 300 Ibs. “and to produce no more than 4s. sterling per ‘¢ pound, the gross profits of twenty acres will be ** £1200, produced by the labour of only sixteen “ negroes, arid on a capital in land and buildings, ‘* scarce deserving consideration *.” One of the greatest drawbacks formerly in the manufacture of indigo, was the pernicious effects of the vapour arising from the fermented liquor ; which is now entirely removed by an improved method of extracting the indigo by means of a boiling pro- cess; “ By the scalding process (observes Dr Rox- burgh) I have always on a small scale made from “the common indigo plant, better indigo than I ‘‘ could by fermentation, and in one fourth of the “ time ; and what is also of great importance, with- “ out the smallest degree of the pernicious effluvia “ which attend the manufacture of indigo by fer- ‘“‘ mentation, and moreover, the twigs and leaves “‘ themselves of the indigo plant burn fiercely, after * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, Vol. 2d, p. 333. 283 “having been well dried, and will carry on thé ** operation without iia any great addition of * other fuel.” In another place, Dr Roxbury observes, “ that “ the Hindoos throughout the northern provinces or “ circars, make all their indigo by means of hot * water, and precipitate with a cold infusion of the “bark of the jambolong tree; yet notwithstanding “« the inferiority of this bark as an astringent, when ‘its effects are compared with those of lime water, ‘* T have always found their indigo to be cf a very ** excellent quality, and very light ; a cubic mch “weighing only about 110 grains, and being of a ‘blue violet colour. The-superior quality of this *« indigo must alone be imputed to the nature of this ‘ process, by which the colour, or rather base of the “ colour, is extracted from the plant ; for their ap- “ paratus is very inconvenient.” “« Besides the superior quality of the indige obtain- “ ed by the scalding process, the quantity is gene- “‘ rally increased by it, moreover the health of the “ Jabourer in this way is not endangered ; as in the ‘‘ fermenting process, by constarit and copious ex- * halations of putrid miasma: the heat employed “‘ expels most of the fixed air during the scalding, ‘‘ which renders a small degree of agitation, and “very little cf the precipitant necessary. The “ operation can also be performed two or three times “ a-day upena large scale; and Jastly, the indigo Je an 284 “ itself dries quickly without acquiring any bad “smell, or putrid unwholesome tendency *.”— Surely these observations deserve the most serious attention of the planters in the British West In- dies +! I shall conclude my account of this valuable plant, with an estimate of the expence of an Indigo plant- ation, and the probable revenue arising from it, and with observing that it is one of the articles of pro- duce, which is most deserving of the emigrants at- tention, irom tlie small capital required in establish- ing a plantation, the simplicity and cheapness of the manufacture by the scalding process, and the high price, together with the great and constant demand of the article; the quantity of indigo annually im- ported into Great Britain from all parts of the world, being, I believe, one million and a half of pounds, of which five parts in seven are purchased of foreign- ers, ) Estimate of the Expence of an Indigo Plantation. Cost of 160 acres of land (a quarter Section, ) at one shilling per acre, £8 O O Expence of clearing, fencing and planting 20 acres, at ten shillings per acre, - - - - - 10 0 90 ” * Bencroft’s Philosophy of Permanent Colours. + Edwards’ History of the West Indies, Vol. 2d, p. 537. 285 Building a dwelling-house, cisterns, ; tanks, &c. - 2 z 3200 #50 0 Q Produce. 20 acres at 300 lbs each is 6000 lbs. which at 4s sterling per pound, will give, i 2 = - £1200 0 0 Deduct the wages of 16 labourers at | £13 each per annum, : - 208 O O £992 0 O Leaving a clear profit nine hundred and ninety two pounds upon a capital of £258. But it is to be observed, that as the settler, at the end of the first six months, will have sold a portion of his crop, he would only require a capital of about one hund- red and jifty pounds, to realize an income of al- mest one thousand pounds sterling per annum! CoFFEE.—Its true name, according to Bruce, is caffé, from Caffa, the south province of Narea in Africa, where it grows spontaneously in great a- bundance. It is a fruit approaching to an oval or semi-oval form; smaller than a horse- bean, and is of a tough, close, and very hard tex- ture. When deprived of its parchment covering, it is found to be prominent on one side, and flatted on the other, with a large deep furrow ,which runs Nn2 286 along the flattened side. Itis moderately heavy, hardito break before it is roasted, and is of a pale ereyish colour. wil rich deep soil, frequently meliorated by show- ers, will produce a luxuriant tree, and a great crop ; but the beans which are large, and of a dingy green, prove for many years, rank and vapid. It is singular, however, that the North Americans prefer this sort to any other *. . Coffee indeed will thrive in every soil in the West Indies; a cold stiff clay, and a shallow mould on a hot marle, except- ed. In both which the leaves turn yellow, and the trees perish, or produce ‘nothing ; but the best and highest flavoured fruit is unquestionably the growth of either a warm gravelly mould, or sandy loam. Frequent showers of rain, are friendly to its growth, but if water remains long about the roots, the tree will decay and perish. If the land be fresh and naturally good, coffee plants may be set out at all seasons of the year, even in dry weather, and they will thrive in any situation, provided it be screened from the north winds, which often destroy the blossom ; and some- times, in the after part of the year when those winds prevail most, entirely strip the tree of both fruit and leaves, ® Edwards’ History of the West Indics, vol, 2d, p. 339. 287 ‘The usual mode of planting is to sow the seeds, or to set out the young plants, eight feet distant from each other on all sides, which | gives six hun- dred and eighty trees to an acre; and when young plants are easily precured they are preferred to ber- ries. The plants which are intended to be set out are generally selected of about three feet in height. They are cut off about two inches above the surface. of the ground, and care is taken to dig them up with the roots as entire as possible. The holes in which they are set, are made large enough to hold the lower part of the stem and all the roots ; and the upper fibres are buried about two inches un- der the surface. But although eight feet be the usual distance of setting out the plants in all soils, it is frequently found in rich lands, that the trees, as they grow to maturity, become from their luxu- riance, so closely intermingled together, as to im- pede the free passage of the air; in such case it is thought adviseable to cut down every second row within ten or twelve inches of the ground, and by well moulding the stumps, they will furnish a suc- cession of healthy young trees, while the rows which are left will bear much better for the room which is given them. In the cultivation of a young walk, the general and most approved system is to keep the trees per- fectly clear of suckers, and to rear one stem only from each root. If, therefore, a healthy shoot 288 springs up near the ground, all the original plant is cut off close above it, by which means, when the plant is moulded, the root becomes well covered. At the height of five or six feet, which the plants generally attain the third year, the trees are topped. At this height, a single stem gives from thirty to forty-two bearing branches, and the pruning re- quired annually, is to leave nothing but those branches *. From what has been said concerning the effect of a difference of seasons, it must be difficult to fix on the average produce of a coffee plantation by the acre. In rich and spongy soils, a single tree has been known to yield from six to eight pounds of coffee: I mean when pulped and dried. In a dif- ferent situation, a pound and a quarter from each tree, on an average, is great yielding ; but then the coffee is infinitely better in point of flavour. The following is, I believe, on a medium, as accurate a calculation as the subject will admit. Coffee trees raised from old trees, in lands neither very poor or very rich, bear the second year from the new growth 300 pounds weight per acre; 500 pounds the third year; and from 600 to 700 pounds the fourth. If the trees are raised from young plants, no produce is to be expected until the third year from the planting, when they will yield very little; the fourth year about 700 pounds. The average annual * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p. 342. 289 produce per acre; after that period, if the walk is properly attended to, may be reckoned at 730 pounds; and one person is well able to take care of an acre and a half. As soon ds the berries acquire the colour of a black-red on the trees, they are supposed to be suf- ficiently ripe for picking: The labourers employed in this business are provided each with a canvass bag, with a hoop in the mouth to keep it open. It is hung about the neck of the picker, who empties it occasionally into a basket, and if he be indus- trious, he may pick three bushels in the day. But it is desireable he should take time, otherwise a great deal of unripe fruit will, in that case, be mix- ed with the ripe. The usual practice is to pick the trees at three different stages of rypeness. One hun- dred bushels in the pulp, fresh from the tree, will give about one thousand pounds weight of mer- chantable coffee. There are two methods in use of curing or drying the bean: the one is, to spread the fresh coffee in the sun, in layers about five inches deep, on a slop- ing terras, or platform of boards, with the pulp on the ber#y, which in a few days ferments, and dis- charges itself into a strong acidulous moisture, and in this state the coffee is left, until it is perfectly dry, which, if the weather is favourable, it will be in about three weeks. The husks are afterwards separated from the seeds by a grinding- mill, hereaf- 290 ter to be described, or frequently by pounding them with pestles in troughs or large wooden mortars. Coffee thus cured, weighs four per cent. heavier, than if cured with the pulp *. The other method is to remove the pulp imme- diately as it comes from the tree. Thisis done by means of a pulping-mill, consisting of a horizontal fluted roller about eighteen inches long; and eight inches in diameter. This roller isturned by a crank or handle, and acts against a moveable breast-board, which being fitted close to the groves of the roller, prevents the berries from passing whole. The mill is fed by a sloping trough, and the aperture of the trough, from which the berries drop into the mill, is regulated bya vertical sliding board. By this sim- ple machine a man will pulp a bushel in a minute. The pulp and the bean (in its parchment skin) fall promiscuously together. The whole is then washed in wire sieves, to separate the pulp from the seeds, and these are immediately spread open to the sun to dry. There yet remains the operation of grinding off the parchment skin, or membrane which imme- diately envelopes the bean, and is left after the pulp is removed. It is done by a machine which will also separate, at the same time, the dried pulp Gf the former mode of curing has been adopted) much more expeditiously than the pestle and mor- tar. * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol, 2d, p. $45. 291 The grinding mill consists of a perpendicular axis, surrounded at some distance by a circular trough, into which the coffee is thrown, and about a foot a- bove the level of the surface of the trough, there are commonly four horizontal arms or sweeps, tenanted into the axis, and stretching some feet beyond the trough, and on these are four rollers, fitted to run in the trough, on the arms being turned round with the axis, whichis done by mules, or horses yoked to the extremity. The rollers, which are generally of considerable weight, moving round in the trough, bruise the skins of the coffee, so as to render them separable by the fans, though there is always a pro- portionleft untouched. When it appears sufficient- ly bruised, it is taken out of the trough and put to the fan, which cleans the coffee from the chaff, and the seeds remaining unground are separated by sieves, and returned to the mill, which will clear 1,500 pounds of coffee in a day. I shall conclude by offering an estimate of the expences and returns of a coffee plantation. EXPENCES. First cost of 640 acres of land, of which 150 acres is planted in coffee, and the same quantity in provisions, &c. £32 0 0 Clearing, fencing and planting 150 a- cres at 10s. per acre - = «TO OO Carry over £107 O O Oo 292 Brought over £107 0 0 Twenty mules or horses at £3 per head - = = = - - 60 0 0 Buildings and mills, utensils and tools 200 O O Expence of 50 labourers at £13 each, and 50 women and children at £6.10s each for three years - - - 2850 0 0 . £3217 0 0 Returns the fourth year at £4 40 per cwt. of 112 lbs. From 150 acres of young coffee may be expected the fourth year 45,000 lbs. £1687 10 0 Deduct annual charges for the fourth year - £950 0 O Sacks and saddles - 40 0 0 wee JOD 0 0 Clear profit - - £69710 0 Returns the fifth and subsequent YEAS ; VIB. 150 acres, yielding '750 Ibs. per acre, —112,500 Ibs. at £4 4 0 per cwt. 4219 0 O Deduct annual charges as before - = - £950 0 0 - Sacks and saddles - 80 0 0 Repairsofmills,;&c. - 60 0 O- ————— 1099 0 0 Clear profit - - £3129 0 O 293 From which it appears that, by the fifth year, a clear income of £3129 may be expected from a capital of £3217. But as few emigrants can be expected to command, or be able to afford to lay so long out of so considerable a capital, I would recom- mend to such as are desirous of establishing a coffee plantation, to commence by degrees, and with some other article of culture at the same time, as indigo, or cotton, for instance, and employing the profitsarising from the cultivation of one or other of these articles, in the gradual establishment of a coffee walk. Cacao.—-The cacao or chocolate nut is the pro- duction of a tree, common in the West Indies and the tropical regions of the American continent. It is indigenous of this country; where it grows to the height of from fifteen to twenty feet. The choco- late-tree begins almost from the ground to separate itself into four or five stems, according to the vi- gour of the root from whence they all proceed: they are commonly between four and seven inches in diameter ; but they first grow in an oblique di- rection, so that the branches are expanded and se- parated from one another. The iength of the leaf is between four and six inches, and its breadth from three to four: it is very smooth, soft, and terminating in a point, like that of the China-orange-tree, but differing from it in colour; the former being of a dull green, and Oro 2 294 having no gloss, which is observable on the latter ; nor is the tree so full of leaves as that of the orange. “The cacao tree,” says Mr Edwards, “ both in ‘¢ size and shape, somewhat resembles a young black- “heart cherry. The flower is of a saffron colour, “extremely beautiful, and the pods which in a “‘sreen state are much like a cucumber, proceed im- “mediately from all parts of the body and larger ‘branches, As they ripen, they change their co- ‘Jour, and turn to a fine bluish-red, almost purple, “with pink coloured veins. ‘This is the common ‘‘ sort; but there is a larger species, which produ- ’ “ces pods of a delicate yellow or lemon colour. * ” The pods that contain the cacao, grow from the stem, as well as from the branches. The colour of the pod, while growing, is green, like that of the leaf: but when arrived at its full perfection, it gradually changes to a darkish red. When the fruit is arrived at its full growth, and cut in slices, its pulp appears white and juicy, with the seeds, or nuts, regularly arranged, and at that time of little great- er consistence than that of the pulp, but whiter, and enclosed by a very delicate membrane ; these are of an oblong figure, resembling a large olive in size and shape, but rather thinner in proportion to its length, and in some degree approaching to the almond or pistachia-nut : it is larger however than either of * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p. 363. 295 these. Each pod may contain from twenty-five to thirty of these nuts or kernels, which are imme- diately enveloped in a parchment shell. The chocolate-nut, when dried, is found composed of a thin, but hard and woody coat or skin, of a dark blacking colour, and of a kernel within this, filling up its whole cavity, fleshy, dry, firm, and flattish to the touch, of a dusky brown colour, with a mixture approaching to red on the surface, and of a greyish brown within. It is composed of several irregular and unequal parts, which, however, cohere firmly enough together, and it is of a very fragrant and agreeable smell, and of a pleasant and peculiar taste, with something of the acerbinit. The nuts ‘quickly lose their power of vegetation, if taken out of the capsule, but kept in it, they preserve that power for a long time. The tree bears leaves, flowers, and fruit, all the year through; but the usual seasons for gathering the fruit are June and December. This is almost the only tree in nature to which the enlivening beams of the sun are obnoxious. It requires to be sheltered from their ardour; and the mode of combining this protection with the prin- ciples of fertility forms a very essential part of the talents which its cultivationdemands. The cacao- tree is mingled with other trees, which guard it from the rays of the sun, without depriving it of the benefit of their heat. The erythrina or bean- 296 | tree, and the banana, are employed for this purpose. The latter, by the rapidity of its growth, and the magnitude of its leaves, protect it for the first year. The erythrina endures at least as long as the cacao ; it is not every soil, however, that agrees with it. It perishes after a while in sandy and clayey soils, but it flourishes in such as combine those two species *. In Spanish America, where the cacao forms a considerable article of commerce, its cultivation 1s conducted in the following manner. Having chosen a spot of level land (a deepblack mould is preferred) sheltered round with a thick wood, so as to be well screened from the wind, especially the north, and caused it to be cleared from all manner of stumps and weeds, the planter digsa number of holes at eighteen? or twenty feet distance, each hole being about a foot in length and width, and six or eight inches deep. In the mean time, having selected the largest and fairest pods of the cacao when full ripe, he takes out the grains and puts them into a vessel of water. Such of them as swim are rejected ; the others, being washed clean from the pulp and skinned, are suffer- ed to remain in the water till they begin to sprout, at which time they are fit for planting. The plant- er then takes the banana, or some other large leaves, and places one leaf within the circumference of each hole, so as to line it round; leaving however * Depos’ Travels in South America, vol. Ist, p. 393. 297 the sides of the leaf some inches above the ground, after which he rubs in the mould, very lightly, till the hole is filled. He then selects three nuts for each hole, and plants them triangularly, by making a small opening for each with his finger, about two inches deep, into which he puts the nuts, with that end downwards from which the sprout issues ; and having lightly covered them with mould, he folds over theleaf, and placesasmall stone onthe top topre- vent its opening. In this manner he plants his whole walk, or orchard. At the end of eight or ten days, the plants will generally be found to rise above the earth. ‘The leaves are then opened, that their growth may not be impeded ; but, in order to shel- ter them from the sun, other leaves or branches are placed round the hole ; for which purpose those of the palm kind are generally chosen ; and they are changed as often as they decay, for the space of five or six months. If all the three nuts placed in each hole spring up, it is thought necessary, when the plants are about eighteen inches high, to cut at least one of them down. The other two, if they spread different ways, are sometimes suffered to remain; but it seldom happens that all the nuts, or even more than one of them, will take root, which is the reason of plant- ing three ina hole *. * Edwards’ History ef the West Indies, Vol. 2d, p. £61. 298 When the bananas grow old, they should be care- fully felled, lest the cacao-trees should be injured by their accidental fall. They are to be totally re- moved as soon as the erythrinas yield sufficient shade ; this operation gives more air to the trees of the plantation, and encourages their growth *. Until the cacao plant attains four feet in height, it is trimmed to the stem. If it shoots forth seve- ral branches, they are reduced to three at equal distances ; and in proportion as the plant increases, the leaves which appear on the three branches are stripped off. If they bend much, and incline to- wards the earth, they are tied in branches, so that the tree may not remain crooked. The branches which are trimmed are cut at the distance of two fingers from the tree. The suckers which spring from the tree are also removed, as they only live at its expence +. In two years from the seed, the tree is above three feet high, and spreads its branches, not more than five of which are suffered to remain. Before its third year is complete, it shews for fruit. The fifth year the tree begins to bear, and the eighth attains its full perfection : it then produces in ge- neral two crops of fruit in the year, yielding at each, from ten to twenty pounds weight, according * Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. Ist, p. 396: t Ibid. vol. Ist, p. 396, 299 to the soil and seasons ; and it will sometimes con- tinue bearing for twenty years; but the same deli- cacy of stamina which marks its infancy, is visible in all the stages of its growth. It is obnoxious to blights, and shrinks from the first appearance of drought *, It is necessary that a cacao plantation should have always shade and irrigation ; the branches of the plant should be cleared of the scurf that forms on them ; the worms should be destroyed ; no large herbs or shrubs should be permitted to grow ; since the least disadvantage resulting therefrom would be the loss of all the fruit that should fall into these thickets. But it is most essential to deepen the trenches which carry off the water, in proportion as the plant increases in size, and as the roots of course pierce deeper: for if the trenches are left at a depth of three feet, while the roots are six feet in the earth, it follows that the lower part of the cacao plant is in a situation of too great humi- dity, aud rots at the level of the water. This pre- caution contributes not only to make the planta- tion more durable, but also to render the crop more productive. It is necessary also to abstain from cutting any branch from cacao plants already ina state of produce. Such an operation might occa- sion the subsequent crop to be stronger; but the ST A SSS Sesriem? * Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol. 2d, p 861, Pp 300 plants become enervated and often perish, accord- ing to the quality of the earth, and the number of branches cut off *. The cacao gives two principal crops ina year, cne about St John’s day, the other towards the end of December: The cacao also ripens and is gather- ed during the whole year. But in all seasons, the people of Terra Firma make it a point, as far as possible, to collect their crops only at the decline of the moon ; because, say they, experience proves that this precaution renders the cacao more solid, and less liable to spoil +: After gathering the ripe fruit, it is opened, and the kernels struck out with a small piece of wood, which must not be sharp, lest it injure the grain; they are then laid on skins kept for that purpose, and left in the air to dry. The good and bad cacao must not be mingled together. There are four sorts of cacaos in every crop; the ripe and in good condition; the green but sound; the worm-eaten and the rotten; the first quality is the best, the second is not bad; but the two others should be rejected f. Tie cacao must always be exposed to the sun, on the fourth day after it has been gathered, and this exposure should be daily repeated until it’ 1s ge SR * Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. Ist, p. 400. + Ibid. p. 402. ‘ie @ 301 perfectly dry. When this is the case, the grains burst on being squeezed, their shell resounds when struck, and they no longer become heated on being placed in heaps. If the cacao is not sufficiently exposed to the sun it becomes mouldy ; if too much, it withers and easily pulverises; in either case it soon rots *, Depons who paid particular attention tothe mode in which this valuable tree is cultivated in the pro- vince of Caracas, says, “‘ less expence is also required ‘for an establishment of this kind, than for any o- “ther of equal revenue. One slave, as I have al- ‘ready said, is sufficient for the preservation and “harvest of a thousand plants, each of which should ‘“ yield at least one pound of cacao, in ground of ‘moderate quality, and a pound and a half in the ‘best soil. By an averaged calculation, of twenty “ounces to each plant, the thousand plants must ‘‘ produce 12 hundred and fifty pounds, which, at “the customary price of twenty dollars per hundred, “ produces two hundred and fifty dollars per annum ‘for each slave or labourer. ‘The expences of the “ plantation, including those of utensils, machines, “and buildings, are also less considerable for cacao “than for any other produce. The delay of the “ first crop, and the accidents peculiar to cacao, can “alone diminish the number of planters attached to * Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. Ist, p. 403. Ewe 302 ‘its culture, and induce a preference to other com: “‘ modities *,” I shall now proceed to make a calculation of the expence and probable profit of a cacao plantation. First cost of 320 acres (a half sec- tion) at Is per acre, of which 80 acres are planted in cacao—-250 trees on an acre, : 2 - ~ - £16 O 0 Clearing, planting, and fencing 80 acres, at 10s per acre, - - 40 0 O Dwelling-house, drying sheds, &c. 30 0 O Expence of 20 labourers at £13 per annum each, for 4 years, 1040 0 oO Total £1126 0 0 Returns the fifth year. From 80 acres of young cacao trees, may be expected the fifth year 10,000 Ibs. which at £3 10s. per cwt. gives 350 O O Deduct annual charges for the fifth year, : = : - - 260 0 0 Clear profit the fifth year, £90 0 O Returns the sixth and seventh years, viz. 80 acres, yielding 250 lbs. per acre, 20,000 Ibs. aoe - - 700 O O * Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. Ist, p. 405. 303 Deduct annual charges, - 260 O O 2 SS ee Clear profit sixth and seventh years, £440 O O Returns the eighth and subsequent years, viz. 80 acres yielding 3121 lbs. per acre —25,000 Ib. - -— = 875 0 0 Deduct charges same as former years, 260 0 O CS a Clear profit the eighth year, &c. £615 0 O From the above data it appears that a plantation of cacao, the original cost of which would be about £1126, would yield the fifth year from its establish- ment a clear profit of £90; the sixth and seventh year, £440; and the eighth and subsequent years £615. The observations I have made upon the most economical plan of establishing a coffee plan- tation, are equally applicable tocacao. Indian corn might also be planted the first year, in the intervals between the plants. Coffee is frequently, in South America, planted among the trees of a cacao grove. A cacao plantation when once established, is prefer- able to any other, on account of the great returns, and the small annual experce of labourers. Tozpacco,—called in Botany Nicotzana, received its name in honour of John Nicot, of Nismes, Am- - passador from the French court to that of Portugal, who during his residence at Lisbon in 1560, receiy- cO4 ed some of the seed from a Dutchman, who had it from Florida, and part of this he sent to France. There the plant soon became famous, as well as in Europe, by the name of Tabac, or Tobacco, from Tabaco, given it by Hernandez de Toledo, who first sent it to Spain and Portugal. It was not known in Europe til] after the discovery of America by the Spaniards ; and is supposed by some, to have been first imported into Great Britain in the year 1560 by Sir Francis Drake. Tobacco requires a moderately strong, yet rich, compact, and deep soil, and one that is not too much exposed to moisture ; indeed, a fresh, unimpaired spot of land, is best adapted to the culture of a plant, which is greedy of succulence. The tobacco seed is sown in beds; and so soon as the plants appear about two inches above the ground, and put forth at least six leaves, they are gently drawn, during damp weather, and carefully transplanted into a patch of land previously prepared for the purpose, being pla- ced at the distance of three feet asunder. If this operation be carefully performed, the leaves will not undergo any alteration for the worse, but will re- cover their vigour in less than twenty-four hours. It is advisable to cover the plant with a banana leaf, to protect it from the heat of the sun, and the heavy rains. Four days afterwards it should be re- moved, in order to replace such plants as may not have taken root. The best time for planting 1s either the morning or evening. 305 The weeds which spring up around it must be carefully removed as they appear, its tops cut when it has grown to the height of two feet and a half. In order to prevent its attaining too great a height, suckers are to be carefully lopped off, and all the lower leaves, as well as those which appear like- ly to suffer by rottenness, or the attacks of insects, carefully removed, so as to let not more than eight or ten leaves at most remain upon the stem. One industrious labourer is capable of thus cultivating 2500 stalks, which ought to render a thousand pounds weight of tobacco. The plant soon springs up and forms on the summit a bud, towards which the sap would direct itself,if'a remedy was not applied. Themeansemployed with success is to cut off the bud. The plant is then a- bout one foot and a half inheight: This operation is repeated when it has attained three feet. There are some persons who repeat it, even three times. In consequence of these operations, the tobacco be- comes bushy, and acquires by degrees a colour be- tween green and blue, a sign of the approach of its maturity. It is known to be ripe by a small bluish spot which forms itself at the point where the leaf joins to the stem; this commonly takes place in December. * | * Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. Ist, p. 480. 306 The tobacco plant is allowed to remain about four monthsin the ground. “ In proportion as it approach- ‘es to maturity, the bright vivid green of the leaves ‘“‘ assumes a darkish hue, the leaves themselves ap- ‘pear to droop and emit an odour, the strength of “which is daily augmented. When these symp- ‘toms are evident, and particularly when the odour “is perceived at some distance from the plant, the “tobacco is ripe, and may be cut down *.” All the leaves do not ripen at the same time; because the sap is not equally distributed through- out the plant. Those leaves only are gathered of which the colour indicates their maturity. The others have not yet the essential juice, and would only yield tobacco without flavour. The gather- ing is continued and repeated as the leaves ri- pen +. The plants, when cut down, are placed in heaps on the land which produce them, and are left, for one night only, to sweat, or dis- charge their moisture, in the open air. On the following day they are deposited in sheds, so con- structed as to admit the air on every side, and here they remain, hung at a distance from each other, till they become perfectly dry Tf. * Mortimer’s Commercial Dictionary, 2d. Edit. art. Tobacco. + Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. 1st, p. 480. + Mortimer’s Commercial Dictionary, 2d Edit, art. Tobacco. 307 Depons however says, that “it is highly import- * ant to the quality of the tobacco, that it should “ not be gathered except when the sun is in full “‘ force above the horizon; for the dews, or any o- ‘‘ ther humidity, would by fermentation injure its “ constituent principles, and would render ineffec- “ tive the benefits which it had already received “from nature, and those which it might expect * from a methodical preparation *.” The same au- thor further observes, that it is the practice in Terra- Firma, to arrange the plants on mats, as they are collected, covering them at the same time, so as they should be protected from the sun, and in this man-, ner transported to the manufactory. Twenty-four hours after the tobacco has been brought to the drying sheds, it is hung up on bars, in leaves of two and two, if in winter, and four and four if in summer. This is done to make the to- bacco lose, by the action of the air, its tension and green colour, and to acquire instead a yellowness and softness which render it more flexible. If the weather is rainy it will require to be hung up for three days, and sometimes four ; but if the weather is dry, two days are sufficient +. When the tobacco has obtained the colour and softness above-mentioned, it is taken down, without * Depons’ Travels in South aad vol. Ist, p. 480, + Ibid. p. 481. Qq 308: being piled up, lest it should ferment; the stalks are then taken out, from the point, until within four inches of the part where the leaf was united to the stem. This must be done cautiously with the fingers, in order to prevent. the leaf from being da- maged. They are then laid on one side, and the damaged tobacco and stalks on the other; care however must be taken not to place them in heaps, ag there is still danger of their heating or ferment- ing: At the same time, persons are employed to make cords or twists of the leaves, which they divide into balls of seventy five pounds, which after the process of preparation, will be diminished to twen- ty-five pounds. These operations require great ce- lerity, because the leaves may dry, and consequent- ly it would be more difficult to take out the stalk, and to twist them: , The interior of the cord is made, like segars, of broken or damaged leaves, which are covered with a good leaf. As soon as the ball is of the proper size, 1t is made anew, so that the outward end be- comes the centre of the new ball, This is done to prevent it from untwisting. The balls of tobacco are then placed on beds or layers, a foot thick, formed of the branches and stalks, and covered with the damaged tobacco. A covering of tobacco is likewise placed over the balls, and kept down by weights, or skins. All this re- quires to be done in the shade and under sheds ; it being absolutely necessary, to guard both against the sun and rain, The tobacco is suffered to ferment for forty-eight hours, if it was too dry, when the large stalk was taken out, but only twenty hours if it was at its proper point. It is afterwards rolled anew, so that what was the exterior, now becomes the interior ; and at the same time it should be highly moistened to prevent fermentation. The balls are then re- turned to their former place to ferment, and in this state they are left for twenty-four hours, When the balls of tobacco have sufficiently fer- mented, they are exposed to the air, until they be- come cold ; and for three or four days, they should be wound over every morning and evening. By this last process, more or less frequently repeated, the visible defects of the tobacco may be corrected. If its colour is blackish, its juice viscid, and its smell agreeable, it is considered to be entirely free from defect. Lastly, the balls are unrolled, and the tobacco made up in bundles, which are suspended in the shade, that the tobacco may lose its superfluous hu- midity, and acquire that colour which influences its value in commerce. In damp weather a fire may be lighted underneath, or such materials placed, as will yield a thick smoke. The exact period, that the tobacco should remain Qq 2 310 in this state, it 1s not easy to determine, but it may be known, by opening the cord and squeezing it. If the juice run freely, the tobacco is not sufficiently dry. The usual time it takes is from forty to fifty days *, The above 1s the usual process, as practised by the tobacco planters on the Spanish Main, and the fol- lowing is the mode customary in Virginia. The planter begins to clear the ground by gird- ling or cutting the bark of the large trees near the ground, and grubbing up the small ones ; the ground is rendered soft and light by repeated working. The plants having previously been raised in a nur- sery, after the first rains, and when the ground is soft, are drawn, when about the height of four or five inch- es, and carried tothe fields, where they are planted in beds, or little mounds, at the distance of three feet from each other; and, if a plant die, another is put in its place. This operation is performed by mak- ing a hole with the finger, and pressing the earth close round the top root. The plants are drop- ped into each hole by children. The earth is raised round the stalk by the hoe and shovel, three different times, in the shape of little hil- locks ; and the last operation is performed when the leaves are developed, and the plant has acquired a considerable growth. In about a month they are * Depons’ Travels in South America, vol. 1st, p. 483. 311 a foot high, when the top is pinched off, level with the ground or bottom leaves, leaving from eight to twelye. The young sprouts are broken off, lest they should draw the nourishment from the leaves, and the weeds are carefully kept down. The to- bacco or horse worm is picked off and destroyed, otherwise this ravenous insect would devour whole fields in a very few days. The ground worm, which cuts the plant beneath the surface of the earth, must also be looked for and destroyed. The former is the favourite food of the turkies; flocks of which are driven into the grounds, and are more useful than a number of hands. In six weeks more, the plant has attained its full growth, being from five to seven feet high, and the ground is covered with the leaves. The change of colour of the leaves, from green to brown, after a clammy moisture or perspiration, indicates their maturity. As the plants ripen unequally, they are cut as they become ripe, Every plant is hung up sepa- rately. After cutting, it is split three or four inches, and cut off below the undermost leaf. This split is placed across a small stick, an inch in diameter, and four feet and a half long, and so close, that the plants | touch, without pressing each other. The drying is hastened, by making slow fires on the floor below, After this the plants are taken down, and laid in rows or heaps, where:they sweat a week or a fort- night ; and in damp weather, are sorted and packed me a 313 up in hogsheads. For this last operation, more skill and experience are required than for any other. If not performed in moist or wet weather, they crumble to dust. The ground leaves and faulty tobacco are thrown away, as they are pulled from the stock. The Aands or bundles are pressed down in the hogsheads with a large beam, one end of which is inserted with a mortice into a tree, and on the other a great weight is suspended. The finest flavoured tobacco is produced on a new and kindly rich soil, with an undulating surface. The second crop is inferior to the first, as the third is to the second *, * In 1621, every person on board of nine ships, * which then arrived under the protection of Go- “‘ vernor Wyatt, was obliged to raise a thousand * plants of tobacco, the produce of which was near- ‘ly a hundred pounds, andthe price vaned from eighteen-pence to three shillings currency. A ** hogshead of tobacco, weighing 1350 pounds, is ‘t considered a good crop, and sufficient employment ‘‘ for one labourer; or four plants to the pound, * though very rich land will yield double this quan- tity +.” In Louisiana it is calculated that 50 _ workmen ought to raise 60,000 pounds, which. at ten dollars per cwt. would give 5357 dollars, or 107 * Warden’s Account of the United States, vol, 2d, p. 208. + Jbid. 313 to each hand*. tn Maryland 6000 plants are found to produce about 1000 lbs. of tobacco +. _ The following is a calculation of the expence and probable profits of a Tobacco plantation: EXPENCES. First cost of 160 acres of land at 1s. per acre, of which ten acres are planted in tobacco, oe - £8 0 0 House, Sheds, &c.—- - 4 17 0 90 Clearing, planting, and fencing 10 acres, at 10s. per acre, 6 - - 9 0 0 £30 0 6 RETURNS. 10 acres of tobacco, at 1000 lbs: each, is 10,000 Ibs. which at 4d per Ib. will give lee ee 106 13 4 Deduct the expence of 10 labourers, one half women and children, at £1 each per month, for 4 months, . 40 0 O Clear Profit, : £126 13 4 cmencieneesenns, It is calculated that 12 labourers will raise 15,000 lbs. of tobacco, which . at 4d per |b. is 4 . “ £250 0 O Deduct wages of 12 labourers, one + Warden’s Account of the United States, vel. 2d, p. 543. § Ibid. p. 159, 3l4 half women and children, at an average _ , of £leach per month; for 4months, 48 0 06 Clear Profit, = - (£202 0,6 In this country the Indians raise tobacco of a very mild and excellent quality ; and there is no doubt, if attention were paid in selecting the seeds and soil, that a quality equal to the Havanna might be raised: Ricz,—Is a plant very much resembling wheat, both in shape and colour, and in the figure and disposition.of its leaves. The panicle which ter- minates the stem is composed of small flowers, dis- tinct from each other, which have four unequal scales, six stamina, and one pestil, surrounded with two styles; this pestil becomes a white seed, ex- tremely farinacious, covered with two interior scales. It grows to the height of two feet anda half, with a stalk not unlike that of wheat, but fuller of joints, and with leaves resembling that of the leek. It branches out into several stems, at the top of which the grain grows in clusters, and each of them is terminated with an ear or beard, and enclosed in a yellow rough husk. When stripped of this, they appear of an oval shape, of a shining white a1, and almost transparent. 315 Rice is of two kinds, namely, the wet and the dry ; the former is that which is usually grown in low marshy grcunds. It is even customary, in less swampy places, provided a river or stream of water be convenient, to inundate the rice by means of sluices, and completely to soak the herb, so soon as it appears above the surface, as well as in its fur- ther progress towards maturity.. The fibrous root of the rice plant puts forth stems, which generally gTOW to the height cf four or five feet ; these stems are chamfered thicker and firmer than those of wheat, and knotted with joints situated at equal distances: the leaves are long, fleshy, and some- what similar to those of the leek ; the flowers ap- pear ori the tops of the stalks or stems, are of a pur- ple colour, and grow in clusters like the flowers of millet : to these succeed the seeds, which are of an oblong form, white, semi-transparent, and hard, and whereof each is enclosed in a yellowish, rough, chamfered, angulous, shaggy shell or rind, termi- nated by a point or spike, the whole being disposed. alternately along the stems. ‘his is the species of rice that is generally brought from the Levant, The other species, called the dry rice, by reason of its being cultivated without the aid of water, is grown on dry lands, principally on the mountains, and possesses a saccharine flavour not unlike that of the filbert. The mountaineers of Cochin-China sow their rice in dry ground, as we sow our corn, iy 3 316 and always perform the operation at the end of the rainy season. 7 In Mangalore, the seed is generally planted lke pease. If the plantation be situated in low ground, which receives the rain and absorbs the whole of it, the seed must be planted two feet asunder, with a- bout four grains to every hole ; but if the situation be a sloping one, or remarkably dry, the seed need only be eight or ten inches asunder, and planted about the depth of three inches from the surface, tn furrows; the land may be afterwards strewn o- ver with what seed remains. The rice usual- ly appears above ground at the end of five or six days, provided the soil be fresh, but it remains much longer when the situation is dry ; it ripens in about four or five months. One hundred pounds of 11ce in the husk, usually yields from 75 to 80 pounds of white rice. In India they cut it very close to the ground ; and, from the roots, “exceed- ingly delicate blades soon spring up, which are €s- teemed good fodder for the cattle. | ~The method. of cultivating 1 rice in China, 1s thus described by Mr Duhamel. , mo To hasten the sprouting of the 1 Tike, it is put ae baskets, and. soaked for some days i in a stand- ing water. 2. When” their Tice-grounds are SO soaked with water as to be quite ‘like mud, they are ploughed with a buffalo yoked to a plough, very simple in its make, having but one share, one han- 317 die, and no wheels, 3. Aftera gentle rain, they break the clods with a kind of large hurdle, drawn by a large buffalo; the driver sitting upon it to in- crease the weight. 4. The ground is cleared of all stones, and whatever roots are in it are pulled up by 2 strong harrow, with great iron teeth, This instrument is drawn by a buffalo, and a man guides it by the help of two handles, like those of a plough, upon which he leans hard. The earth is like mud, and partly covered with water during all this ope- ration. 5. The earth is afterwards smoothed with a harrow, which has several rows of teeth. A man guides this harrow by its two handles, whilst a buffalo draws it ; and as fast as its teeth form little channels in the ground, the water runs in and fills them up. 6. When the rice that was laid to soak has sprouted, the seed is known to be good ; and it is then sown by hand, very thick, and as equally as possible. Part only of the ground is sown in this manner, to furnish plants for the rest, The day after it has been sown, the points of the plants appear above the surface of the water; for the ground is overflowed all this time with just a suffi- cient quantity of water to cover it. And it is add- ed, that when the plants have acquired a little strength, they ate sprinkled with lime-water, to de- stroy the insects, and some of the weeds that would hurt them. For this purpose, a small basket is fas- tened to ‘the end of a long handle, and di pt in the | Rr2 -318 lime-water, which runs through it, and is conveyed over the plants. And the Chinese have a great ve- neration for the first inventor of this method, which answers to the custom in Great Britain, of steeping wheat in lime-water, or manuring land with quick- lime. ‘7% Towards April, when the plants are grown strong enough to cover the whole field, and look very green and even, the greatest part of them is pull- ed up by handfulls ; all the mud is carefully wash- ed off their roots, and, being held at the same time as even as possible with one another, they are planted in tufts, pretty far asunder, and in a quin- ~ cunx form, in fields prepared on purpose for them. A serene day is chosen for this operation, which “must be performed as quick as possible. This practice of the Chinese is, he thinks, with respect to the common culture of rice, what the new hus- - bandry is with respect to the common culture: of wheat. 8. The rice must be watered, which is always done in China by overflowing it. ‘To this end, the rice-grounds are always near a-rivulet, pond, or great pool of water, from which they are. separated only by a bank or causeway. If the water was higher than the rice-ground, a trench cut through the causeway would overflow it at once ; but as it is generally lower, or on a level with the rice-ground, the necessary quantity 1s con- veyed in pails or buckets, which are worked chiefly by the help of ropes. 9. Though a man cannot Sig step in these rice-grounds without being up to his knees ; the Chinese weed them three times in a sum- mer, and that with such care, that they pull up even the roots of every weed. 10. When the rice is ripe, which is known by its turning yellow, like wheat, it is cut down with a sickle, made into sheaves, and carried into a barn, where it is thrashed with flails, pretty much the same as in Europe; the straw is removed with pitch-forks and shovels, and the outer husk of the grain is taken off by beating it with great wooden pestles, or a kind of mallet, after which it is sifted and winnowed: and, lastly, to get off the under husk, the grain is put between two mill-stones, which are worked by a lever fast- ened to. the upper one. But the two most remark- able circumstances of this culture are, Ist, The care which the Chinese take not to let their plants be too close together, lest they should rob one another of their food ; and, 2dly, Their weeding their rice grounds three times in a summer, which ,answers the end of the hoeings recommended for the alleys between the beds of other grain, cultivated accord- ing to the horse-hoeing husbandry. In South Carolina, on tide lands, the general pro- duce of rice-is from 1200 to 1500 pounds per acre of clean rice; on inland tracts fram 600 to 1500 pounds*. In-Louisiana, in common seasons, the * Warden’s Account of the United States, vol. 2d, p. 445, 320 produce per acre is estimated at fifteen barrels, each weighing 200 Ibs. The nett value arising from 100 acres, cultivated by 50 workmen, 1s estimated at '700 barrels, which at six dollars a barrel, gives 4200 dollars, or 84 for each hand. It is calculated that there are 250,000 acres in Louisiana fit for the culture of this plant, which, yielding seven barrels an acre, at six dollars per barrel, would produce an annual revenue of 10,000,000 dollars *. And I may observe by the way, that there is an equal quantity fit for its cultivation in the territory of Poyais. Rice can be cultivated in places unfit for any other grain, and the crop is more certain. » 4 The following is an estimate of the expence and probable profit of a farm cultivated in rice. — First cost of 160 acres of land at Is. per acre, and of which 50 are planted withtice, = = ye 0 Clearing and preparing the land at 10s ‘ ; per acre, - - - 23. Je House and other buildings, - 27 0 0 Returns, from 50 acres of land plant- ed in rice, at 2000 Ibs. per acre, —100,000 Ibs. which at 15s per cwt. 670, iy 0 ¥ .. Warden s Account of the United States, vol. 2d; p. 588. ; 321 ~ Deduct the wages of 25 workmen, one half women and children, for one yeur, - + = - «+ 240 0 0 Clear profit, £430 O O From the above it appears that with a capital of about £200, employed in a rice plantation, that a clear income of £430 per annum may easily be obtained. — Maize,—Commonly called Indian Corn, is 2 very productive grain; the size of its ears, when it is cultivated on good warm soils, being, on a medium, nearly a span Icng, having commonly eight or more rows of grain, each of which usually contains about thirty seeds of various colours, as red, white, yellow, blue, olive, greenish, blackish, speckled, striped, &c. sometimes in the same field and same ear; but the white and yellow are the most common ; nor does this diversity of colour ever reach beyond the outside of the grain, the flower of which is always white, with a little tinge of yellow. The seeds, which are as big as large peas, are round at the outer surface, very smooth, and set extremely close in straight lines. The ear is clothed and armed with several strong thick husks, which defend it not only from unseasonable rains, and the cold of the night, but also from birds. It has long leaves, almost like the flag, at every joint, and, at the top, a bunch of flowers of various colours. . bia Ad The leaves of this plant when cut green, afford a good cattle-food, and the stalk and envelope of the grain dried in bundles, are equal, for cattle and sheep to the best hay. This grain is superior to all others for fattening cattle, hogs, and poultry. The flour mixed with rye, in the proportion of a third, makes excellent brown bread, and is in com- mon use in America. | In Louisiana, maize was cultivated by the In- dians for their subsistence during great part of the year, and, after the French were established in it, be- came an article of exportation to the sugar islands. The mode of culture was as follows: the canes growing naturally on the soil were cut down, and * the trees stripped of their bark, to the height of two feet from the ground, in the beginning of March, when the sap was in motion: About fif- teen days after, the whole was set on fire and con- sumed, and the maize sown the following day in squares of four feet asunder; the only trouble af- terwards was to destroy the tender and brittle shoots which spring up from the roots of the cane, not destroyed by the fire. In North America, the common method of pre- paring land for Indian corn; is, in the fall, to plough it, or what is termed flushing it: The soil is'rais- 323 ed in a rough manner by ploughing broad furrows ; it being so thin, that it is not turned over, but stands very much on the edge. In the latter end of April, or beginning of May, the plan is, to list it out, that is, crossing the field five or six feet a- sunder, setting two furrows back to back, then the like the other way, which forms a sort of hill where their furrows cross each other. The practice is then to go with a large hoe, such as that its weight will break the clods, and also to make the mould very fine, something similar to the manner that gardeners prepare cucumber beds in field gar- dens. In these hills are put four or five corns, Reckoning four corns to one hill, four thousand only will be required to plant an acre containing a thousand hills, When the corn is come up, the custom is for the labourers to go with their hoes, and draw a little mould to the plants, destroy any. : weeds that may appear, and. plant fresh corn, if any be wanting, which often happens ; that done, to plough from those hills both ways, then to go with the hoes, and work the hills again, and to draw the plants of aninferior kind out, leaving two of the best on each hill, or,if the land be good, three and sometimes four, and to transplant those drawn out where any are wanting. Then to plough all the land towards the plants one way; after this, it is necessary to (what. they term) sucker them, that is, to take off any young sprouts that os 324 have littered, otherwise the corn will not. grow in the ear to its proper length or size, but grow short, what they call cobbings; this done, just before. 1t goes into silk, they plough the land to the corn the contrary way, which makes five times in all. Good Indian-corn will grow from-twelveto fourteen feet high; the white is much higher than the yellow, but the yellow kind is by far the sweetest, although the tops and blades are not so abundant. As soon as it 1s formed, they begin to eat it, in what is termed roasting ears; they boil them, and eat the corn in the same manner as we do green pease, with drawn butter. The blades and tops feed the horses, cattle, and sheep; the corn feeds both man and beast, and 1s very excellent food for fowls, hogs, &c. -The people eat it in hominy, mush and bread, or cakes; the homing y is made in like manner to creed wheat buttered, by knocking the husk off in a wooden mortar : ; the mush is made of the flour as our hasty-pudding, and eaten with milk or treacle. The better sort of people make a very nice cake, with eggs and milk, ‘about the thickness of what are called crumpets in Lon- don; the lower class of people mix the flour with water, make a sort of paste, and lay it before the fire on a board or shingle to bake, and generally eat -ithot, asit is but very indifferent food when cold : it is called Johny cake. ; 325 *. “In Indiana, on the best lands, the average pro- duce is said to be from fifty to sixty bushels: per ‘acre. In South Carolina, on a-good soil, well ma- ‘nured, the greatest produce is one hundred bushels an acre; but in the middle parts, in strong dry lands, the common ‘produce is from ‘thirty to fifty “bushels; and, in the low country, it seldom exceeds thirty. In America it is a common practice to plant pease or pumpkins among the rows of the In- ‘dian'com.° ~ i In the territory of Poyais, there are three crops of Indian corn in the’ year, and the produce will ‘generally exceed one hundred bushels an acre. Listimate of the eapence, and probable returns, ofa farm, cultivated in Indian corn. : First cost of 160 acres at Is. per acre, of which 50 acres are planted in Indian corn, - - - - 8 0 0 f Clearing and fencing 50 acres at 10s. | per Fete bs - - - - 29 0 0 ~ Building a farm-house - ° 12 0 0 Two horses, with harness and plough 12 0 Q ) Cows and hogs, poultry, seed corn, ec. citar y ¥ ee ils 13 0 0 os 2 326 Returns from 50 acres of land, plant- : _ed in Indian-corn, at 100 bushels per acre, and at 4s. per bushel = - 1000 0 0 There will at least be another crop in the year, which ought likewise to — produce . = - - 1000 0 O 2000 0 O Deduct the wages of 12 labourers, one half women and children - Il4 0.0 Se | a Ge Clear profit - - £1886 0 O From the above it appears, that a capital of less than £150 employed in the cultivation of Indian- corn, would produce an income of £1886!! The returns and price are both estimated /ow, and there is no danger of the price being reduced from the largeness of the quantity produced, as a ready mar- ket can at all times be found for it at Jamaica, and the other British West India islands, where im- mense quantities are consumed in feeding the ne- groes ; and the planters upon seeing that they could obtain a regular supply, would soon abandon the raising of provisions, employing their slaves in the cultivation of the more valuable products of sugar and coffee. As the large profits arising from such a farm, and on so small a capital, may startle some of my read- 327 ers, I beg leaye to observe, that one hundred bush- els per acre, is a frequent crop in Louisiana, and sells there for a dollar, or 4s. 8d. per bushel, and allowing for three crops in the year in the territory of Poyais, it would make the returns 300 bushels per acre per annum. The best plan, however, would be to clear and prepare one hundred acres, planting fifty of them zn rotation. Twelve labour- ers would be found to be quite sufficient for the cultivation of such a farm. | ce Leary MANNERS AND D CUSTOMS. NATIVE. INDIANS, | ? ' Tue Natives are composed of two distinct breeds : the one, of the original Indians ; the other, who are called Samboes, a mixture of these with Africans of the Samba country, occasioned, as is ‘supposed, by a Dutch ship full of that people having been cast away, many years ago, to the southward of Nicaragua, from whence ‘the negroes travelled to the Mosquito territory, where, after several rencoun- ters with the natives, they" had “wives pe ground allotted them *, = ‘ feat cats The Mosquito Indians sae formerly, yee power- ful-andnumerous; but they were much reduced, some years ago, by the small-pox. What: their’ present number is, however, tho’ ‘since that visita’ tion, 1t-must have considerably increased, itis not~ possible to ascertain with any degree of accuracy. ; 3 ed as oF ‘ > anak -& es) Bc tal aa qe & : | AFP 4 yer eam Er as ig ge Te / « eit Lose See * Edward's Hist. s ah West ee 7 5th, p. 210, req “ Henderson's ‘Honduras, Pe 178, 4 cpt al a right’s : hig ihe 28. | junta = 2 » Span. nas soot = HE oe Rte RE oh goede + . #y es ee oF Gece on 329 Both tribes are well made, strong, and rather tall: the former have the colour of the thin Dutch cop- per, and. long straight hair ; the Samboes are of all shades between the Indian and the black, and their hair, in proportion as they approach the latter, par- takes of the wool. . The features. of the whole na- tion indeed are rather agreeable : their foreheads are high, their noses inclining to the aquiline, their teeth good, and their eyes and hair black. The | women are frequently handsome.; their children, when young, are particularlyso. Their habits and intercourse with each other denote much affection ; the old and the young being found in continual association *. , The conduct of the people gives a very favour- able idea of Indian nature. _ They are seldom guilty of positive.evil, and often rise to positive good, when this latter quality. does not require much exertion of mind. They possess modesty, docility, good faith, a. disposition . to frendship,, and gratitude. They have good capacities, a great desire for information, are, ingenious in.learning any mechanic art, and set: about what they undertake with a good will t,a cir-- ©. Henderson's Honduras, p. 216. + The following fact is illustrative of this feature of their character. ‘ There was a proposal from a Spanish mer- ‘chant, at that time, to cut a road from Black River. on the «« Mosquito shore into the province of Comayagua, which would “bea ready way to and from the South Sea, and would be « 350 cumstance unknown to any of those Indians who are in an abject state of submission to their fellow- creatures. They are hospitable to each other; are extremely attached to the British, of whose justice and magnanimity they entertain a most exalted o- pinion. A tradition has long prevailed amongst them, that the grey-eyed people, meaning the English, have been particularly appointed to pro- tect them from oppressicn and bondage ; and they may enviably be classed with the very few tribes whose liberties have remained uninterrupted by European aggression on this side of the Atlantic *. The Samboes inhabit the country from Sandy Bay to Potook ; they are tolerably numerous, ra- ther indolent, most of their labour being performed by their wives. There is no mode of ascertaining their number ; but Captain Wright, writing in 1808, says, from many circumstances, it may be inferred, that 500 men might be induced to follow an army, “means of the merchants going and coming with safety ; “thereby preventing the Dutch from carrying on that valu “able trade to Truxillo Bay, which they had so long mono- “polized. The Popyya (or Poyai) Indians, accordingly cut ‘¢ the road, and drew their trade, as was intended, to Black “River ; which hath thereby increased the profits of our come ‘merce to a prodigious degree.” West India Pilot, p. 31. * Edwards’ Hist. of the West Indies, vol, 2d, p. 210. App. Henderson’s Honduras, p. 212. M. S. Memoir. 331 without injury to their own country. They are particularly useful as woodsmen, skilful in hunt- ing, striking fish, managing batteaux, canoes, dorys, and pit-pans, either in rapid rivers, or high surf beaches. ‘They have an idea, that in whatever ser- vices their friends or relations may lose their lives, or die a natural death, that all such must be paid _ for, and it has been regularly demanded, even in battle; when satisfactory answers have not been given, they have been known to retreat in a most dangerous and disorderly manner ; as, on the con- trary, if they had been promised payment, they might have materially assisted in defeating the Spanish dragoons, in the plains of either Matigul- pha, or Watigulpha *. They have no modes of public arenes nor could any particular forms of religious persuasion be found to prevail amongst. them. ‘They are not idolaters, but worship a God, or, as they say, a first and good principle, whom they allow to be the God of their friends the English. Like all other nations, however, in an early stage of civilization, they are subject to the general superstitions as to : the existence of devils, the chief one of whom they - call the Woolsaw, or evil principle, witchcraft, &c. They have a kind of priest called Sookie, a person of * Wright’s Memoir, p. 26. i a 332 high importance, and whose occult skillis ever regard- ed with the deepest and most implicit veneration *. In common with most, if not with all Indian tribes, polygamy prevails, and a plurality of wives is the privilege of every husband in the Mosquito nation; but perhaps it has seldom been. indulged, in equal extent, in any country. Many men here claim from two to six wives ; few can be found satisfied with one: their late King surpassed all his subjects in this respect, he claimed no less than twenty-two! His Mosquito Majesty might very well have exclaimed with honest Launcelot— ‘“* Alas! fifteen wives is nothing.” At the same time, it may be observed, that this circumstance is attended with far less inconvenience than might possibly be found annexed to it in most other situ- ations ; the numerous claimants for the affection or favour of their lord never discovering the least jealousy or hatred towards each other +. The females, as in most Indian nations, are taken for wives at a very tender agé, frequently when they have scarcely attained their tenth year. The contract for their destination in this respect is, not uncommonly, formed, at the hour of their birth, * Henderson’s Account of Honduras, p. 222. The Columbian Navigator, Directions for the Coasts of Ter ra Firma, &c. p. 23. +t Henderson’s Honduras, p. 222. 333 with the husband and the parents of the parties. From what would seem so premature an engage- ment, that which usually discovers itself in this sex, in such circumstances, must be expected tohappen— an early appearance of advanced years, It is like- wise observed, what is a natural consequence of the above, that the comparative difference in the dura- tion of life in the sexes is very. considerable. A singular custom is scrupulously observed by the women of this nation, At the time of partu- rition, a habitation is prepared for them in the deep- est recesses of the woods, to which, with a female assistant, they retire, and where they remain seclud- ed from every eye fora stated period, This past, a public lustration of themselves and their offspring must take place previously to their being again ad- mitted to the society of their relatives and friends +. They have one law against adultery which has something curious init. ‘The fine imposed on the offender is, that he pay the injured husband an ox. This penalty the head-man of the particular tribe to which the adulterer belongs, is strictly bound, by long custom, to see punctually complied with, or one of his own cattle may be taken as a lawful indemnity. Should the latter happen, the chief then exacts, as an equivalent for what he loses by * Henderson’s Hondurag, p. 223, ap iene et 2 334 the offence, a stated period of servitude from the offender *. They have given sufficient proof of bravery by their many expeditions against the Spaniards in the Bay of Honduras, Carpenter’s River, Cocly, across the continent, &c. and in which they have seldom failed of success. About the year 1709, the Spa- niards, for the first and last time, attempted to re- turn their visits, with a tolerable armament ; but an inferior number of those brave unconquered Indians lay in their canoes till they could cut them off from the shore, and then attacked them fairly on the open sea, destroying all of them but one man, whom they allowed to go back with such news as cured the Spaniards of invasions +. Their dwellings are formed ina style of the rudest simplicity, being little more than a number of rough poles placed perpendicularly in the ground, and roofed with the leaves of the palmetto tree. They are usually large, and left entirely open at the sides. The floor is of clay, and in the center of it is the fire-place. Four or five of their houses are gene- rally within call of each other, and such little ham- lets are scattered all over the country. These ha- bitations seldom contain more than one apartment, and this commonly affords accommodation to seve- * Henderson’s Honduras, p. 223. + M.S. Memoir. 335 val families, The bed of each, a mat, is placed on_ what is called a barbecu, a frame made of sticks, and raised a few feet from the ground. This, with a few earthen pots for cookery, are the chief articles of furniture *, Remains of some of the old Mexican customs may be observed among them, and several kinds of stone and earthen vessels, and utensils embossed with figures, are foundin many parts of the country buried in heaps, (probably at first with other things that have since decayed), which seems to indicate their having been, formerly, in a greater state of civilization than at present; but that to the sole resolution of defending their liberty, (which they have truly done) they sacrificed every thing else. The chief arts now among them are, making very durable cotton cloth, and thread or twine of silk grass for nets, and hammocks, lances, harpoons, bows, arrows, and canoes of all sorts and sizes. As in all other countries in a similar stage of civiliza- tion, where the subdivision of labour has not been, at least to any extent, introduced, every man is a tailor, hunter, fisher, and an extremely good swimmer. Yet those white men who have lived some time according to nature, and, by going with- out clothes, have arrived at the same use of their ® “Henderson’s Honduras, p: 218, (Qe aed 336 limbs as 1s possessed by the Indians, are not infe- rior to them in athletic accomplishments *, They wear little clothing ; seldom any thing more, both men and women, than a small kind of wrap- per, which reaches from the lower part of the waist to the middle of the thigh, The women decorate their persons with a profusion of beads, to which species of finery, like most, if not all Indian tribes, they are passionately attached, and very commonly paint their faces and necks with a kind of red ochre, which is found in their country. Their children go entirely naked ; and, when young, are always borne on the back of the mother. All offices of the do- mestic kind are exclusively performed by the fe- male : the male would be degraded by such ser- vices Ff. These Indians may, in one respect, be thought to resemble the zmprovisatori of some other countries ; their metrical effusions being entirely spontaneous, and usually thrown into a kind of measure, which, if it be rude and uncultivated, possesses, neverthe- less, something peculiarly soft and plaintive to re- commend it. ‘The subjects which call forth their poetical effusions are chiefly of the latter descrip- tion f. * M. S. Memoir. + Henderson’s Honduras, p. 217. + Se \ TE 2. 337 They are very fond of European commodities, in the cheice of which they are influenced either by their real utility or gaudiness. Fire arms and edge tools they have now been so long used to that they could not do without them. They take nothing else in payment for what they earn or sell, money not being current among them *. The chief things they traffic with are, tortoise- shell, canoes in the | rough, horses, horned cattle, green turtle, turkies, fowls and parrots; and they hire themselves out to hunt, strike fish, or navigate small craft along the shore, and even the bars of the rivers, which last requires great skill, and in the performance of which they are particularly dexter- ous. But getting tortoise-shell istheir grand employ- ment from the age of fifteen to twenty. Peruaguas (large canoes,) with about twelve men in each, are employed on this from April to August. If they have formed any plan of an expedition, they choose this time to execute it, and therefore set out and keep together till it is over, otherwise they straggle from the first, and spread all the way from Blewfields to Baca del Drago+. The produce of their labour usually amounts to upwards of ten thousand pounds of shell. They all talk a little English ; but their own lan- eae aD e M.S. Memoir. + Ibid. 335 guage is peculiar to themselves, as are some of their customs ; to none of which however are they attach- ed from any feeling of bigotry or superstition. Upon any other account, however, than as they illustrate the manners of the people, they do not seem deserving of attention. But, altogether, they are so superior to the neighbouring Indians, that their denominating these last wild, as the ancient Greeks called all the rest of the world barbarians, is no great comparative impropriety. | 339 COMMERCE. Tye Geographical position of this hitherto ne- glected country, being in the vicinity of some of the richest provinces of Spanish America, at near- ‘ly an equal distance between the southern part of the United States on the one hand, and the new Republic of Columbia on the other, being also within a convenient distance of the West India Is- lands, and close to the British Territory in Yucatan ; together with the immense variety of exceedingly valuable commercial commodities, which are the ® natural productions of the soil, present of themselves, B even independent of the operations of the planter § or cultivator, a rich field for successful commercial B industry. It is well known, that although the Spanish pro- vinces alluded to, are abundantly supplied with the precious metals, and with other commodities almost of equal value, (such as indigo, cochineal, &c.) they are in want of almost every article of NW British manufacture ; and although the recent poli- § tical changes which have taken place in Guatemala Band Mexico, may, if completed, lead to a more li- B beral commercial policy, in so far as relates to the Uu 340 introduction of European goods, it is not probable that the ancient duties, and restrictive regulations, will be so completely withdrawn, as to admit, by the Gulf of Mexico or Spanish ports in the Bay of Honduras, a supply of European goods, nearly sufficient for the demand, in the interior provinces of Mexico, and in the rich kingdom of Guatemala. It therefore is evidently through the Territory of Poyais, possessing a south-western boundary, which reaches to within a short distance of the Pacific ocean, with rivers navigable a considerable way in- to the interior, and also trading paths, leading into the centre of the neighbouring provinces, that not only the latter kingdom, but also the south-eastern provinces of the Mexican empire, must be supplied with the merchandize of Europe ; more particular- ly, whenever the navigation of the Gulf of Mexico shall be interrupted by hostilities between the Un- ited States and Spain, or any other power ; an event which even at present is perhaps not far distant. The advantages of this trade, even in its present state, are well known, and appreciated in the West Indies ; and it has been computed, that even in the uncivilized state of the country, and independent of the native consumption, manufactured goods to the value of upwards of fifty thousand pounds pass annually into the Spanish American provinces, through this territory alone, yielding under every disadvantageous contingency, a very large profit to S41 the adventurers ; and there is no doubt, that this trade, protected by a wise and liberal policy on the part of the Government of Poyais, may be car- ried to an extent, much beyond any calculation which can at present be formed, and that it will amply remunerate those who may become interest- ed. Notwithstanding, however, the great value of this trade, and the great length to which it may ulti- mately be carried, it can only be considered in a secondary point of view, when put in present com- petition with the immense gain which may im- mediately be derived, from the numerous and valu- able commercial commodities which are the natural production of the territory itself, and which, inde- pendent of the labour of the planter or agriculturist, present an inexhaustible source of prosperity, to the intelligent and industrious European, aided as he will readily be, by the labour of a faithful, docile, and peaceable native population. For immediate exportation to Europe and the States, and in return for the capital which may be employed, or for the European goods which may | be imported for the native trade, or the supply of the settlers, the country abounds in mahogany of the finest description, and of every size ; and as the good qualities of this useful, durable and beautiful timber, are every where becoming better known and appreciated, the consumption both in Europe Uu?2 and in the States, is rapidly increasing, not only for the purposes to which it has hitherto usually been applied, but also for ship-building ; and how- ever the heavy duty in Britain may, if not removed or modified, affect the sale of the low qualities, ma- hogany will always form a leading article of export to Great Britain, as well as to the United States and continental Europe.. Dyewoods, such as logwood, fustic, Nicaragua wood, yellow sanders, &c. will likewise form not the least valuable part of a general cargo; there are besides, a great quantity of other exceedingly useful and beautiful woods ; ; such as cedar, Santa Maria, rosewood, zebrawood, lancewood, somewood, and many others ; which, as their inestimable qualities (some of them have already been mentioned), be- come more generally known, will be everywhere eagerly demanded. The medicinal gums and drugs, which are so plentifully dispersed throughout the country, and which can be collected in great quantity at a very small expence, will also form no incon- siderable part of the exports ; amongst these are, the balsam capivi, dragons blood, gum copal, gum ani- me, caoutchouc, or gum elastic, and many others : Sarsaparilla, the consumption of which as a medi- cine, is rapidly increasing over all Europe, may also be procured in great quantity; and even so long ago as the year 1769, above two hundred thousand 343 pounds of this valuable drug, was in that year ex- ported * principally to England, and there is no doubt that double, or perhaps triple that quantity, might now be annually collected. Many medicinal barks and woods may also be found in this coun- try, and would liberally repay the researches of a good medical botanist. Vegetable oils will likewise, in a very short time, become a considerable part of the exports from this territory ; castor oil, palm oil, and many others, could be prepared in great quantity; and the experience derived from the success of former settlers, or adventurers, who made considerable for- tunes by the preparation of thiscommodity, proves that it is one which well deserves attention. Amongst other articles, a quantity of beautiful skins and furs, will be procurable by barter or pur- chase, from the natives and the surrounding tribes, such as leopard, tiger, antelope, and other skins, besides small peltry. Cow, ox and horse hides, will also ultimately be obtained in sufficient quantity to become worth shipping. The great variety of timber with which the fo- rests abound, affords abundant materials for the ma- nufacturer of pot and pearl ashes; and the im- mense ridges of pitch pine, which in endless tracts are interspersed all over the country, supply an in- exhaustible fund of tar, pitch, turpentine rosin, * Dryan Edwards’ History of the West Indies, 5th Edition, ae B44: &c. “ the trees being so redundant with these li- “ quors, that when put into the deepest rivers, ‘“‘ they instantly sink *.” The expence and trouble of preparing these articles, in a country where pro- visions are abundant, and where labour can be had on moderate terms, is well known to be trifling ; besides, the manufacture of these articles will in some measure be connected with the preparation of lumber, for the supply of the British settlements in the West Indies, a most important branch of trade to be hereafter mentioned, and which with the raising of provisions for the same destination, will no doubt meet with the decided support and encou- ragement of His Highness the Cazique of Poyais. ° Tortoise-shell, and turtle, will always form a- nother exceedingly valuable article of export ; and it will no doubt be the policy of the Government of Poyais, to protect and encourage the turtle fishery on its own shores, as much as possible. The hawksbill turtle, from which the shell is procured, xs very abundant on the coast ; and even so far back as the year formerly mentioned, upwards of ten thousand pounds weight of tortoise-shell, was sent to the mother country, by the British settlers, in that year +. - Now, when a method has been disco- vered for preserving the flesh of the turtle for ex- portation to Europe, it has, (even independent of * Wright’s Memoir. _ + Bryan Edwards’ History, 5th Edition. 345 the shell,) become another article to be added to the list of exports, and an additional source of pro- fit to the merchant: Methods will no doubt be discovered, to preserve for exportation in a similar manner, many of the o- ther luxuries with which this territory is so liber- ally supplied ; and as the quantity of fish on the shores, and in the bays, lagoons, and rivers, is most abundant, and salt can be produced in any quan- tity, a very lucrative fishery, with a market ata very short distance, might unquestionably be estab- lished. Oysters of the most delicious quality, | could be exported to any extent required, and o- ther descriptions of provisions will, it is probable, be in course of a little time prepared for foreign mar- kets. : There are undoubtedly many other very valuable articles of merchandize, which, independent of a- griculture, are the natural production of the soil; but to notice each of them at length, would extend the present chapter beyond the limits assigned. It may however be proper to notice, that the terri- tory does not exclusively depend upon foreign or inland trade, for a supply of the precious metals, or for the valuable dyes mentioned at the commence- ment of this article. There being, as has been for- merly stated, not only gold mines in the territory, but gold dust is also found in the rivers. Moreover, indigo is an indigenous plant, of the same kind, as 346 that from which the finest indigo of Guatemala is produced ; and the cochineal insect, both as re- gards food and climate, will doubtless thrive equal- ly well in this country, as in the neighbouring pro- vinces, where it is produced in such abundance: -Annatto or nankeen, and several other dyes, are also the produce of this territory ; and it has been said, that on a part of the coast is found, a small shell-fish, which affords the true Tyrian dye. Pimento, ginger, Guinea pepper, and many o- ther spices, are also natural productions of the coun- try ; and, together with fruits, such as lemons, oranges, limes, cocoa-nuts, tamarinds, and various preserves, will undoubtedly in a short time become very valuable export commodities. The ready supply of the British West India Is- lands with provisions, lumber, &c. isa matter of such immense importance to Great Britain, and is in every pointof view, somuchconduciveto the welfare and prosperity of Poyais, that it will undoubtedly meet the particular attention, support, and encou- ragement of both Governments. To the intelligent and industrious European set- tler, in Poyais, it presents an inexhaustible field for his most active exertions, with the certainty of am- ple and immediate remuneration for the labour and capital which he may be able to bring forward. To give some idea of the immense amount of the supplies required for the British settlements in 347 the West Indies, and the consequent extent of the demand which may be expected for the produce of Poyais, it appears unnecessary to state any thing more than the following list of the quantities of pro- visions, lumber, &c. which were imported into and for the consumption of Jamaica alone for one year, viz. from the 29th day of September 1815, to the 29th day of September 1816, agreeable to a gene- ral return, which has been laid before the Honour- able House of Assembly of that island. These sup- plies consisted of 60,947 barrels of flour; 4,875 barrels, 7,485 bags, and 7,198 kegs of bread ; 2,942 tierces, 1,740 barrels, and 2,849 bags of rice; 52,190 bushels, 1,578 bags, and 16,043 barrels of corn and meal ; 497 barrels and 800 bags of pease ; 1,972 hhds. 7,109 casks, 3,358 boxes and 778 quintals of dried fish ; 534 tierces, 19,170 barrels, and 991 kegs of pickled fish ;, 40,204 barrels of her- rings 3 9,375,943 staves and heading ; 10,071,830 shingles ; 9,192,775 feet of timber ; together with 2,035 horses,.6,211 mules, 501 asses, and 5,675 cattle. This list does not include beef, pork, butter and other articles ; and according toa return made a few years prior to the one above stated, these three necessaries amounted to the great quan- tity of 97,750 barrels of beef and pork, and 64,009 firkins of butter. It must however be observed, that the last mentioned supplies, were not for the use of Jamaica alone, but for the British West In- XX 348 dia Islands, generally, with the exception however of the conquered Islands of St Lucia, Tobago, and Trinidad. The supplies requisite for Jamaica a- lone, being so extensive, it may fairly be calculated, that. for the consumption of the whole British pos- sessions in the West Indies, together with the Bri- tish continental colonies of Berbice, Demerara, Es- siquiba, and Balize in Yucatan, two or perhaps three times the amount of provisions furnished to Jamaica in 1816, are necessary, with at least three or four times the quantity of lumber ; and these im- mense supplies are even independent of what is re- quired for the islands and settlements belonging to other powers, in that quarter of the globe. With- out going farther into this subject, however, it is hoped enough has been said to prove, that a market exists in the immediate neighbourhood of Poyais, capable of consuming the utmost quantity of lum- ber and provisions, which can (at least for several years to come,) be exported from that Territory, and consequently, that instant remuneration is pre- sented for such labour, and capital, as may be en- gaged, either by the merchant in preparing lumber, or by the agriculturist in raising provisions; or, what is likely to be still more profitable to early settlers from Europe, the conjoming together these two.important sources of gain. The country, pos- sessing rivers navigable a considerable way into the interior, and being abundantly supphed with 549 streams of water, every facility is presented for e-. recting at a very moderate expence, saw-muls, in the centre, as it were, of the immense pine forests, so plentifully interspersed all over the country ; while, at the. same time, the rafts of prepar- ed lumber, and such other more valuable timber as might be ready for exportation, could, with the greatest ease imaginable, be floated down to the shipping port, or eventually, put zmmediately on board the small traders, usually employed in na- vigating the Gulf of Mexico, and Carribbean sea. A. very moderate capital, in the hands of an in- telligent and industrious person, is adequate to such an undertaking, which of itself, would be a sufli- cient foundation for more extensive operations, leading in the end to affluence and prosperity ; and if combined, as it might easily be, with the raising of stock, growing of Indian corn, &c. a very rapid fortune might be accumulated. The native In- dians are well known to. be excellent axe-men, and their labour could be obtained for very moderate wages, the greater part of which would be paid in trifling articles of European manufacture or pro- duce, which could be purchased or imported for very little money. In addition to the saw-muills which are now a- bout being erected, and to those above-mentioned, the construction of a few powerful steam saw-mills: in the vicinity of the principal shipping ports, for Ke 350 the purpose of preparing timber of every descrip- tion, not only for foreign markets, but also for sale to the settlers, and for ship-building, would un- doubtedly, under proper management, yield an im- mense return to any commercial company of suffi- cient capital for the undertaking; and as such es- tablishments would contribute to the general pro- sperity of the state, there is no doubt, on these per- sons becoming to a certain extent interested in the soul, the government of Poyais would give them e- very possible facility and encouragement. Although the demand for the markets of Europe, and for the use of the settlers, will undoubtedly be considerable, it is by exporting to the West In- dia Islands, as already stated, that the merchant must in the first instance look for a steady demand and ready market, for every description of lumber and provisions, The soil and climate being so well adapted for the production of Indian corn, (which can be rais- ed at three different periods within the year) it will perhaps be the interest of the early settler to pay immediate attention tothe extensive growth of this article ; and when this valuable commodity, to- gether with rice, pease, and other pulse, is fully cul- tivated; when the immense savannahs or plains are stocked with the numerous herds of cattle which they are capable of rearing, and when pro- per establishments are formed for curing provisions 351 and fish for exportation, it may be hoped that the assertion made some years ago in the British Par- liament, ‘‘ that the produce of the soil of the United States, was necessary to the. existence of the Bri- lish West Indies,” can no longer be repeated with the least appearance of truth,—a circumstance de- voutly to be wished by every person interested in the welfare of Great Britain, Although these matters are unquestionably of vital importance, in the first instance, it is not to them alone that the intelligent settler in Poyais must inthe end look for remuneration, or to increase the value of his property ; neither must the commercial man consider them the only commodities which are of importance to him; on the contrary, the soil and climate being well adapted for the cultivation of all and each of those valuable commercial articles, which have rendered the West Indies so important, there is no doubt that the agriculturist will, while he pursues the objects pointed out for more im- mediate attention, keep steadily in view, and gra- dually adopt, to a certain extent, the culture of the valuable articles alluded to, more especially coftee, cotton, tobacco, cocoa, &c. and although the cultiva- tion of the sugar-cane, and the manufacture of sugar and rum, will perhaps require a larger capital than it may be in the power of the generality of settlers to advance at the commencement, or that it may be prudent in them to divert at first, from the [Sy hee Je 2 more immediate raismg of stock and corn, there is no doubt, asa planter’s means increase, he will find it his interest to introduce gradually and slowly by degrees, the cultivation of those more valuable commercial commodities which constitute the wealth of the West India planter. Some years previous to the removal of the English settlers from Poyais, several sugar plantations had been form- ed at Black River, and the sugar and rum which they produced was very generally deemed equal to the produce of Jamaica *, and Captain Wright, in his Memoir, goes so far: as to say that, from his own personal knowledge, together with what he had learned by reading and reflecting on the sub- ject, corroborated by “many a long and prolix con- “ versation with aged natives,” this country, if pro- perly cultivated, would be able .“ to supply the ‘“‘ whole world with rum, sugar, coffee, -cacoa, and “ molasses }.” fiw Although these commodities, —_ parent for sale, will not at first be considerable in amount, they’ will no doubt gradually be brought forward for ex- portation ; and they will consequently extend the operations of the merchant, affording him addition- al materials for an extensive trade with Continental Europe, and North and South America, and» the * Flenderson’s Honduras, p. 39, 40. t Wright’s Memoir, p. 29. . 1 00 open 335 ready means of paying for the merchandize requi- site, for the valuable trade mentioned at the com- mencement of this chapter. It would, perhaps, be premature to speculate upon the consequences to Poyais, which in a com- mercial point of view, must inevitably follow the opening a communication between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. ‘The practicability of such a measure has never been doubted, and that it will ultimately take place through a part of the Mosqui- to Territory, or in its immediate neighbourhood, un- der its controul, seems to be a prevalent opinion. —Asa commercial depot, and otherwise, Poyais will undoubtedly derive incalculable benefit from the commencement and completion of such a mea- SUIC. The late act of Parliament for the regulation of the trade, between America and the British West Indies, gives every requisite facility and encourage- ment to the commercial operations of Poyais, whe- ther as regards the trade to the British settlements in the West Indies, or elsewhere: and as the esta- blishment of free-ports, in that part of the world, by a neutral government, and under wise regula- tions, is a matter of such immense advantage to all parties, there is no doubt, equal facilities will be allowed by the United States, and the other go- vernments of America and Europe. It will perhaps be the policy of the government, 354 and the interest of the merchants of Poyais, to en- courage as much as possible, the employment in the first instance, of British built vessels, together with such Americans as may be requisite for the trade with the United States, more especially, as the construction of a sufficient number of vessels for the protection of the coast and neighbouring seas, from the depredations of piratical vessels, and for other purposes, together with the building of small trading craft, may perhaps at first be sufficient em- ployment for the dock-yards about to be establish- ed. There is no doubt, however, that as the coun- try affords abundant materials of almost every des- cription, ship-building will ultimately become a very profitable and important branch of trade. To those persons who, from limited means or otherwise, are obliged, in the first instance, to con- fine themselves to a small share of the country trade, the wants of the settlers and natives present a ready market for any quantity of small wares, such as hardware, cloathing, &c. of every description ; in exchange for which, they will receive tortoise-shell, gums, dye-woods, gold dust, &c. and by care and industry, their operations will gradually and quick- ly increase with their means. In short, it is hoped, that considering the exten- sive trade which may ultimately be carried on with the European Colonies in the West Indies, as well as with Great’ Britain—The United States—Mex1- 359 co,—South America and Continental Europe,——the advantages to be derived from the establishment of free ports, (especially whenever the navigation of that part of the globe shall be disturbed by belli- gerents)—the relative position—valuable natural productions—fine climate, and internal capabilities of this neglected country,—enough has been said to prove the great encouragement, and manifold advantages, which must be derived from commer- cial establishments in the Territory of Poyais : and now, that the well known political circumstances are removed, which have hitherto retarded the ad- vancement of this fine country, in civilization and in the scale of independent states, there seems no rea- son whatever to doubt, that, protected by the wise and vigorous administration, sound policy, and comprehensive views of His Highness the Cazique of Poyais, this beautiful country will rapidly ad- vance in prosperity and civilization, and will be- come, in every point of view, and within a very short period, not the least considerable of those ‘‘ radiant realms beyond the Atlantic wave *.” * Edwards. Elo, 14S. BTA GOAT ER GVETETE OOOO HO4008 Leith. Printed hy Win. Reid, y : 4 D SOME ACCOUNT OF THE MOSQUITO TERRITORY; CONTAINED IN A MEMOIR, WRITTEN IN 1757, WHILE THAT COUNTRY WAS IN POSSESSION OF THE BRITISH, AND NOW, WITH PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR’S FAMILY, FIRST PUBLISHED FROM THE ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT OF THE LATE COLONEL ROBERT HODGSON, FORMERLY HIS MAJESTY’S SUPERINTENDANT, AGENT, AND COMMANDER IN CHIEF OF THE MOSQUITO SHORE, BEFORE ITS ANNEXATION TO THE CROWN OF SPAIN, “To YOU, the Genius of these emerald shores, ‘* ‘With liberal hand, extends her ample stores.”’ Lines addressed to Poyais. SECOND EDITION. ~ EDINBURGH : SOLD BY WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, & ALL THE BOOKSELLERS. Wez2. ra = sh (TeMoiis ue a dine PREFACE. In order that the reader of the following Memoir may be convinced of the authenti- city of its statements, respecting the many pre-eminent advantages of the Mosquito shore, it will be necessary to mention a few particulars relating to the Author. His father, Capt. Hodgson, of the 49th rest., was in habits of friendship and confidence with Sir William Trelawney, Governor of Jamaica; by whom, in the year 1740, he was sent to the Mosquito Shore to take posses- sion of that country, in the name of the King of Great Britain; and it was accordingly ceded to his Majesty, represented by Capt. Hodgson, who was appointed Superintendant i v1 of the Mosquito Shore, by the Governor of Jamaica, and resided there for some years. It was at that time considered a dependency of Jamaica. The chief settlement of the British was at the town of Black River, on the north part of the shore, where was also the seat of government. After the death of Capt. Hodgson, his son, Robert Hodgson, Esq. of the 49th regt. obtained from the British Government, the situation of Superintendant, Agent, and Commander-in-Chief on the Mosquito Shore. At the time of his soliciting the appointment, a handsome compliment to the public vir- tue of his father, was paid by Mr. Wood, then Under Secretary of State, in a letter to his widow; in which he observes, that her husband’s exertions had been of great ad- vantage to the public, with very little to himself. Robert Hodgson, Esq. remained Superin- tendant for nine years; during three years of which period he made many voyages along the Mosquito Shore, in order to invéstigate different parts of the coast, and pursued his Vil excursions inland among the Indians, to at- tach them more effectually to the British interest. ud In taking possession of the Mosquito shore in 1740, the British were actuated by a be- hef that it ought to be considered an inde- pendant country, never having been conquer- ed by any nation, but remaining in the pos- session of the Aboriginal Indian tribes: the Spanish crown, however, obtained it at the peace of 1783 ; though it was not finally eva- cuated by the British settlers, till a separate convention in the year 1786 rendered their farther occupation of it impossible. To those who doubt the desirableness of the Mosquito Shore as a residence, let it be observed, that the first superintendant, Capt. Hodgson, spent most of his life there; his son did the same; the chief proprietor resident on the shore at the time of the cession, William Pitt, Esq., of Black River, did the same; his children, and the other settlers, who were compelled by the Spanish Convention to abandon their possessions there, evacuated the shore with great regret. rad Vill To those who are disposed to undervalue the importance of the Mosquito Shore, let it be observed, that it offers a fertile soil, and a genial climate, to such as merely wish to obtain. a refuge from poverty; since the necessaries of life may be obtained there in the greatest abundance, and of the most luxurious kinds. But it farther holds out the prospect of facilitating navigation and commerce in the highest degree, by an easy junction of the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, along the line of the river San Juan, through the lakes of Nicaragua and Leon, whence to the Pacific is a level waggon-road of about twenty miles. It will, I am persuaded, confer an. addi- tional interest in the perusal of this Memoir, if I annex a short Preface by the Author of the Memoir. 1X PREFACE OF THE AUTHOR. Whoever may happen to read the follow- ing sheets with any attention, will of course be desirous of knowing how the person who wrote them became enabled so to do. On this account most of his voyages are sub- joined*, which, though chiefly upon service, were undertaken voluntarily, with a different view to that of private interest. | But as, while flattering himself with the hopes of being sometime or other of use there, he was endeavouring to explore this almost unknown part of the worid, he lost the opportunity of being known himself; of him let it suffice to say, he was a gentleman, and in the army. * The account of Mr. Hodgson’s Voyages has been omitted, not being material to the present purpose. ¥ LT ha) pe Le ’ 7 ~ - Ld . =i 4 , at. & i's’ ie -— é 7 i = ‘se * @ \ ivi % SOME ACCOUNT OF THE MOSQUITO TERRITORY. Tue Mosauito Sore lies between 16° 10’ and 10° 25’ N. latitude, and between 83° 55” and 87° 50’ W. longitude: the sea coast (in a general view) forms. an angle, somewhat obstuse, at Cape Gracias a Dios, in latitude 15° 0’ and longitude 83°55’. From this cape the extent westerly is 85 leagues, and south- erly 95, making in the whole a coast of 180 leagues; the westerly extremity is Cape Honduras, latitude 16°, and the southern boundary is that branch of the lake of Nica- ragua, called Nicaragua River, in longitude 84° 10’. ie The reason for ascertaining these bounds, is, that the Mosquito Indians have, ever ‘since the country was known to Europeans, possessed and used this tract, without any other people whatsoever interfering with their native right of doing so; they having never been conquered by any, nor ever having been friends with any but the British, who have likewise spread almost from one end to the other of it ; under their protection, white families having lived as far westerly as Roman River, (where they still employ many ne- groes;) and their hunters used to go to Cape Honduras. But the most westerly settlement is now at Cape River, and the most southerly at Punta Gorda, the inhabitants of which employ both themselves and their slaves as far as Nicaragua. The chain of little settle ments between these places will be best shown by the table of them; and, though some of them have notoriously been esta- blished above a hundred years, no power has yet attempted to disturb them. It is not easy to determine with certainty the inland boundaries; but the situations '3 of part of the inhabitants will assist us in forming some judgment thereof. Many of the Mosquito Indians live at least a hundred miles aback from the sea, up several of the rivers, and above two hundred miles up the river at Cape Gracias a Dios. The British have lived several miles up Roman river ; above a hundred up Black river; about a hundred up Cape Gracias a Dios river; seventy-five up Blewfield’s river ; and several up Punta Gorda river, and this without the least molestation: for between all these and the Spaniards (who live at more than double the distance) there is much uninhabited land, and several tribes of friendly Indians who are in alliance with the Mosquitoes. But, till the inland country is fully known, no bounds can properly be fixed, but by imagin- ary lines of certain bearings, latitudes and longitudes, though indeed, near Cape Hon- duras, there is a river and a lagoon that go some way up the country, along which might be part of the western limit, and the north side of the lake of Nicaragua might be the southern one; but these two limits should 14 not meet, because they would include some of the Spanish Indian settlements, and go beyond a chain of mountains, which, I be- lieve would be found a natural south-west boundary, as I am informed they divide the continent in that direction; though, as it might be a century or two before the British subjects and the Spaniards met, what each might then possess would perhaps settle the boundaries in an eligible manner. The British settlers are decreasing — for the old standers, loath to leave so fine a country, concerning which they had indulged the most flattering hopes, are at length dying off, while the total neglect of encouragement prevents the arrival of any new comers. The settlers are mostly traders with their dependants and servants, and live scattered, as chance, inclination, or private interest directs. Their number, as called over. and counted, is as follows, (exclusive of the military.) Population of the British Settlements on the Mosquito shore in 1757, exclusive of the Aborigines. MULATOES & SLAVES. WHITES. MESTIZOES. NEGRO. || INDIAN. a PLacEs OF ABODE, aan RAI |e ee 3 re . 2 W ad |ele| Elz] slgislzl2] 5 | 3 = Te | we = |S |e re simile & = Cape Gracias a Dios, eeeeeooeseceegeeoe 2 ee 3 ee ee ee 98 34 eG BEE Ae, RO, Arcee. BLATIO MANS, so..ecesceccessesdesssonssssanee 4: rs) 1 Pearl Key Lagoon,.......sceeseseel 2 poe] ee 3 2 ll GO~Z © S| Male. poet Go Co os w” yd a pant AS) o>) Cae: Utes RE Sie ee eee BC WAECIOS, ...0s'..cde.--onyeshanes estes coals WPtinta, Gloria, .