CHAP.XXI.

[Contents]CHAP.XXI.Spirited Conduct of the Rangers and Rebels—A Skirmish—Scene of Brotherly Affection—The Troops return to Barbacoeba—Plan of the Field of Action—A Slave killed by the Oroocookoo Snake.Colonel Fourgeoud, on finding himself thus foiled by a naked negro, was unable any longer to restrain his resentment, and swore aloud he would pursue Bonny to the world’s end. His ammunition and provisions were however expended, and if they had not, it would have been in vain now to think of overtaking the enemy.—To the surprize of most persons, our hero however persevered in this impracticable project, and dispatched CaptainBolts, with one hundred men and thirty rangers, besides a number of slaves, to transport a quantity of shot, and a week’s provisions from Barbacoeba, and at the same time issued orders for the troops to subsist upon half allowance, desiring the men to supply the deficiency by picking rice, peas, and cassava, and prepare them in the best way they could for their subsistence, and this was also my lot, as well as most of the officers; while it was no bad scene to see ten or twenty of us with heavy wooden pestles, like so many apothecaries, beating the rice in a species of mortars, cut all along in the hard trunk of a levelled[119]purper-heart-treeby the rebel negroes (being the only contrivance used by them to separate the rice from the husk) this was however for us a most laborious business, the sweat running down our bodies as if we had been bathing, while water was at this time the only beverage in the camp.Among other vegetables we had the good fortune to find here great quantities ofwild purslane, which only differs from the common, by growing nearer the ground, the leaves being less, and more of a blackish green; this vegetable grows wild in the woods of Guiana, and may be either eaten as a sallad, or stewed, without reserve, being not only a cooling and agreeable food, but reckoned an excellent antidote against the scurvy.Here were also great quantities ofgourdorcalebassetrees, which are very useful to the natives of the country. This tree grows to the height of a common apple-tree, with large thick pointed leaves: the gourds it produces are of different forms and dimensions, some being oval, some conical, and some round, growing often to the size of ten or twelve inches in diameter; the shell is hard and very smooth, covered over with a shining skin or epidermis, which becomes brown when the gourd is dry and fit for use: the heart or pulp is a pithy substance, which is easily extricated by the help of a crooked knife. The uses are various to which these gourds are applied, they furnish bottles, powder-flasks, cups, basons, and dishes: I seldom travelled without one, which served me[120]as a bason, plate, &c. in the forest. The negroes generally adorn them by carving on the outer skin many fantastical figures, and filling up the vacancies with chalk-dust, which sometimes has a very pretty effect.The rangers having been out to reconnoitre, returned on the afternoon of the 23d, and reported that they had discovered and destroyed another field of rice to the N. E. This pleased Colonel Fourgeoud very well; but when in the dusk of the evening I observed to him, that I saw several armed negroes advancing at a distance, he turned pale, exclaiming, “Nous sommes perdus!” and ordered the whole camp immediately under arms. In a few seconds these negroes were near enough to be discerned, and we now saw that several of them were carried upon poles, in hammocks. Fourgeoud then said, “We still are ruined, though not the enemy: ’tis Captain Bolts, beaten back, with all his party;” and this proved literally to be the fact, when that unfortunate officer (having delivered the wounded to the surgeons) made his report, that having entered the fatal swamp where Captain Meyland had been defeated, he was attacked by the enemy from the opposite shore, who, without hurting a single European, had made a dreadful havock amongst hisrangers; that CaptainValentine, a brave young fellow, belonging to that corps, whilst sounding his horn to animate his countrymen, had it shot away, with his pouch also, and was himself most desperately wounded infivedifferent parts of the body. In this situation he was met[121]by his brother, namedCaptain Avantage, who, upon seeing his mortal condition, a scene of such real fraternal affection ensued as is seldom to be observed in a civilized country:—kneeling at his side, and bending over the mangled Valentine, he sucked the blood and gore from his shattered breast and sides; then cherished him with the manly promise to revenge his death upon his foes, and the hopes that when he himself was killed he should meet him again ina better place.Colonel Fourgeoud now found that the rebels had kept their promise of massacring the rangers; while Captain Bolts reported that some had fired upon his party from the tops of the palm-trees, and then sliding down with surprising agility, disappeared, whilst the rangers were foaming for revenge on their active adversaries, and could hardly be restrained from an immediate pursuit through the verdure.Our mighty leader now found his absurd scheme of pursuing the enemy compleatly frustrated, and himself in danger of total destruction; being cut off from every supply, and having neither ammunition nor provisions left in his camp, with very few men, except the sick and wounded, to defend it. Thus he at last began most seriously to consider how to secure a safe retreat; to which he was urged likewise by the general and incessant murmurings of the troops, who were not only almost[122]starved, but indeed dreadfully harassed by daily fatigues and nightly watchings:“They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way, they found no city to dwell in.“Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.”On the 24th, a detachment of one hundred and forty men, commanded by two field officers, were still ordered to destroy the fields, and the old settlement calledCofaay; of this party I had the honour again to be one. We soon performed the service we were sent upon, and also picked up, out of the marsh, several utensils, such as tea-kettles, iron pots and pans, &c. that the rebels had formerly pillaged from the estates, and had thrown into the water to conceal them from us, with an intention, no doubt, of returning to fish them up, as soon as we were gone from Gado-Saby.Upon the return of the detachment in the afternoon, we immediately decamped, and began to retreat for Barbacoeba. Here I must remark in Colonel Fourgeoud an instance ofbad policy, at least, though many have not hesitated to bestow upon it a harsher epithet. This evening, upon our return, when we entered the ominous swamp, he suddenly caught up one of the empty bread-boxes, and having stuffed a hammock into it, he carried it before him as a shield, crying aloud to his men, “Sauve qui peut!” At this moment a Walloon namedMattowstepped up to him, and said, “Mon Colonel, but[123]few can, and I hope fewer still will, follow your example. Drop your shield, and do not intimidate your soldiers: one brave man creates others, then follow thy Mattow, and fear for nothing.” Upon which he instantly threw open his bosom, and charging his bayonet was the first that mounted the opposite beach: this intrepidity inspired the rest, and they passed the marshy swamp without opposition; for which act of heroism this private marine was since made a serjeant. I should think myself deficient if I did not observe, that the Walloons in general behaved with great spirit, and were in every respect excellent soldiers. This evening we encamped upon the same ground where we had passed the night before the engagement, with excessive bad weather and very heavy rain.Early on the morning of the 25th, we again marched, and proceeded on our return, having now a beaten path before us. It will suffice to say, that we reached our place of general rendezvous, Barbacoeba, on the afternoon of the following day, but in a most shocking condition; the whole of the detachment being mostly spent and wore out with fatigue, some nearly starved, others mortally wounded; whilst all the slaves were employed in carrying the sick and lame in their hammocks, on long poles, though these poor wretches were scarcely able to support themselves.—Such was the concluding scene of the taking of Gado-Saby. However, if during this expedition we neither captured any of the rebels,[124]nor gained booty, we nevertheless rendered the colony a very essential service, by rooting out this concealed nest of enemies, who being thus discovered and driven away from their capital settlements, never think (as I have already observed) of returning to live near the same spot. I might, indeed, pronounce our victoryalmostdecisive; I say almost, for if we except the demolishing a few plantations for immediate subsistence, and from a spirit of revenge, the rebels were, by being driven from this settlement, so disconcerted and panic-struck, that from the present period their depredations were certainly less, as they soon afterwards retired to an inaccessible depth in the forest, where they neither could do any material injury, nor be joined by negro deserters.To shew the masterly manœuvres of our sable foes to more advantage, I here present the reader with a plan of this extraordinary settlement, together with our different stages, after leaving our encampment on the borders of the Cottica River,viz.Nos1, 2, and 3, are supposed to be the general rendezvous at Barbacoeba, and the two succeeding nights encampment.No4. The spot where we heard the firing and shouting of the rebels, on the night of the 17th.No5. The latitude where the troops were joined by the black corps or rangers.No6. The night’s encampment previous to the engagement.[125]No7. The beach on the opposite side of the marsh, where Captain Meyland with his troops had been defeated.No8. The advanced post of the rebels, whence the first shot was fired at the troops.No9. The field with rice and Indian corn, entered without opposition.No10. The pass or defile in which the firing commenced.No11. The beautiful rice-field in which the action continued above forty minutes.No12. The town ofGado-Sabyin flames at a distance.No13. The spot whence the rebels fired on the camp, and held the conversation, on the night of the 20th.No14. The ground of the old settlement Cofaay, with the floating bridge that covered the retreat of the rebels.No15. The fields with cassava, yams, and plantains, that were at different times destroyed.No16. The field of rice discovered and demolished by Captain Stedman on the 21st.No17. A field demolished by the rangers on the 23d.No18. The swamp or marsh which surrounded the settlement.No19. The quag-mire, or biree-biree, adjoining it.No20. The forest.Having formerly described the manner in which we erected our huts, I shall here also add a small plan of[126]the mode of arranging them during our encampment in the woods of Guiana, which camps were generally of a triangular form, as being most secure in case of a surprize, and the easiest to defend our provisions and ammunition; but the situation of the ground would not always permit this, and then we encamped in any form, square, oblong, or circular, &c.—In the annexed plan,No1. Is the hut or shed of Colonel Fourgeoud, or the commanding officer, in the centre, with a sentinel.No2. The huts of all the other officers, in a small triangle, surrounding that of the commander in chief.No3. The angles of the outer triangle formed by the huts of the privates in three divisions,viz.the main body, the van, and the rear guards, with sentinels at proper distances, to cover the front of each.No4. Powder-chests, provisions, and medicines, with a sentinel.No5. The fires in the rear of each division to dress the victuals, and round which the negro slaves are lodged upon the ground.No6. A coppice of manicole-trees to erect the huts or sheds.No7. A rivulet or creek to provide the troops with fresh water. And,No8. The surrounding forest.I must now return once more to my narrative, and observe, that Barbacoeba, instead of being in a state of sending provisions to Gado-Saby, as our chief had expected,[127]it could scarcely afford daily subsistence to his emaciated troops on their arrival; who having for many days lived on rice, yams, peas, and Indian corn, were now most violently attacked by the flux; for although that kind of nourishment will keep the Indians and negroes strong as horses, the Europeans cannot long subsist without animal food; which was at this time so very scarce, that even the Jew soldiers of the Society troops devoured salt pork as fast as they could catch it.Plan of the Principal Field of Action between the Rivers Cottica and Marawina; with a Sketch of the manner of Encamping in the Woods of Surinam.T. Conder Sculpt.Plan of thePrincipalFieldofActionbetween the RiversCotticaandMarawina; with a Sketch of the manner ofEncampingin theWoodsofSurinam.London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.I nevertheless continued among the few that still were healthy; which was almost a miracle, as I had fared very hard indeed for want of my private stores, and whichI had left at the neighbouring estateMocha: however, expecting leave now to bring them in person from that plantation, I was in good spirits also. But here I was disappointed, by Colonel Fourgeoud’s declaring he could not spare me one moment, while I was able to stand upon my feet. I therefore waited patiently for an opportunity of sending for them; in the mean time sharing with my black boy the scanty allowance of a private soldier, with the casual addition of some mountain-cabbage, or palm-tree worms, and perhaps a few warrappa fish.As for the miserable slaves, they were so starved, that having killed aCoatamonkey, they broiled it, with skin, hair, intestines and all, then tore it to pieces with their teeth, and devoured it like so many cannibals, before it was even half dressed. Of this animal they offered me[128]a limb; but, hungry as I was, my stomach could not relish this kind of venison.A good constitution, sterling health and spirits, now supported me, or I must have sunk under the load of misery and hardships, which were at this time become so intolerable, that the rangers again forsook the camp; and Mr. Vinsack, their conductor, as brave and active a man as ever entered the wood, threw up his commission, as Mr. Mongol had done before, during Colonel Fourgeoud’s first campaign at the Wana.In the beginning of September, the bloody flux raged in the camp to such a degree, that the colonel saw himself obliged to send off all the sick officers and privates, without exception, not to Paramaribo for recovery in the grand hospital that is there, but to linger and die on the banks of the rivers, where they relieved others to be encamped, and undergo a similar wretchedness; the sick of his own regiment being dispatched to Magdenburg in the Tempatee Creek, and those of the Society troops to Vreedenberg in Cottica.Colonel Fourgeoud’s inhumanity to the officers was now actually become such, that he would not even permit those who were past recovery a marine to attend them, whatever price they offered; some of whom I have seen expanded between two trees, while the very filth, for want of assistance, was dropping through their hammocks. Of this number was EnsignStrows, who, in this dreadful situation, was ordered to be transported in an open boat[129]to Devil’s Harwar, where he died. At length Colonel Fourgeoud himself was seized with this dreadful malady, and his belovedptisanproved to be of no more avail; yet he soon recovered, by the plentiful use of claret and spices, whichheseldom wanted, and which his colleague Seyburg also employed as a preservative of his health, though by swallowing too copious doses he frequently lost the use of his reason. In such a situation, and in such a despicable encampment, our commander in chief had the vanity to expect a deputation from the court at Paramaribo, with congratulations on his victory: in consequence of which he had built an elegant shed, and sent for sheep and hogs to entertain them—but the expected deputies never yet arrived.On the 5th, therefore, the hogs and sheep were slaughtered, and, for thefirst timein his life, he ordered one poundperman, bones and all, to be distributed among the poor emaciated soldiers: indeed the number able to partake of this bounty was at present very small.On the following day a reinforcement of one hundred men arrived from Magdenburg, in Comewina; and from the Society post Vreedenburg, in Cottica, nearly as many. These confirmed the death of Ensign Strows, besides of a great number of privates, who had assisted at the taking ofGado-Saby, and who had expired in the boats during their removal from Barbacoeba.Intelligence arrived at the same time that the defeated rebels had actually crossed the river Cottica below Pattamaca,[130]intent on immediate mischief, and that they were marching to the westward. In consequence of this information, a captain and fifty men were immediately detached, by water, to reconnoitre the banks near the Pinenburg Creek. This party returned upon the 8th, and confirmed the intelligence. Our indefatigable chief now again determined to pursue them; but the slaves who were to carry the ammunition and provisions had been sent home to their masters, nothing but skin and bones, to be exchanged for others, not yet arrived, and to be starved in their turn. I shall therefore relate what happened the two following days, until the arrival of these unfortunatebeastsof burden; for so they might with propriety be called.On the 9th were sold upon credit, and to the highest bidder, the effects of the deceased Ensign Strows, when the poor soldiers, regardless of price, and only wishing to obtain some cloaths and refreshments to keep (in the vulgar phrase) soul and body together, actually paid at the rate of 700 per cent. and this infamous debt was accordingly stated in their accounts. I have seen, for instance, a private marine pay five shillings for a pound of mouldered tobacco, that might be worth six-pence, and double the prime value for a pair of old stockings or shoes. A sick man paid one guinea for a couple of meagre chickens; and for a broken bottle-case to hold his lumber, another paid a similar sum. Thus were these poor dying half-starved wretches deprived of the little property they[131]had earned at the expence of their blood and sweat, while this miserable necessity might have been easily prevented by only supplying them with what was their due. A private marine, of the name ofSem, at this time, swore, in the heat of his resentment, that he would certainly shoot Fourgeoud, whenever he had an opportunity; which being overheard, upon condition of repentance, I bribed the evidence not to inform against him, and so literally saved this poor rash fellow from dying on the gallows.Fortunately, all the world did not possess this chieftain’s insensibility, for this day the good Mrs. Godefroy once more sent up a flat-bottomed barge, with a fat ox, oranges, and plantains for the private soldiers, which was accordingly distributed amongst them. The same evening a small supply of provisions also arrived for me, from Joanna, with a few bottles of port wine; and though part was stolen, and part was damaged by the way, it made me very happy, and I gavenothingto Fourgeoud.When we speak of provisions in the woods, we only mean sugar, tea, coffee, Boston biscuit, cheese, rum, ham, or a keg of sausages, since little else can be carried through the forest by a single slave, and we werenowallowed no more. Shirts, shoes, and stockings were also usually accounted among the necessaries, but the last two articles I did not use, being accustomed to walk barefooted, which I had now practised for more than two years, and with great advantage to my limbs, when I[132]compared them with the diseased and ulcerated shanks of my ghastly-looking companions.On the 12th, the fresh supply of slaves being arrived, the necessary preparations were made to pursue the rebels the next day, directing our first course towards the spot formerly called Jerusalem, mentioned in 1773, when I commanded the fatal expedition in Upper Cottica; and on the 13th, the baggage and provisions being sent before us by water to Jerusalem, escorted by the sick officers and privates, we at last decamped to follow them, and bidding a final farewell to Barbacoeba, re-entered the woods, marching S. and S. E. the whole day, then passed the night on the opposite bank of the Cassiporee Creek, where we encamped.Nothing could be more diabolically cruel, than the persecution of the new slaves during this march; not only overloaded and starved, but beat like mules or asses by every ill-tempered individual—for instance, I saw Fourgeoud’s black favourite, Gousary, knock down a poor negro slave fornottaking up his load—and the chief himself knock him down for taking it uptoo soon; when the wretch, not knowing what to do, exclaimed, in hopes of pity, “O massera Jesus Christus!” and was actually knocked down a third time by an enthusiast, for daring to utter a name with which he was so little acquainted.During the last day’s march, a large drove ofWarrehogs or wild boars broke through our line; several of them were cut down by our sabres, and stabbed with[133]the bayonets, the men having orders from the commander in chief not to fire at any game whatever. The animals that were killed were cut in pieces, and distributed among the troops, which proved, though small, a very seasonable dainty. It is certainly very remarkable, that if the first wild boar or leader passes through any danger, all the others stupidly follow, in hopes of a similar escape, which on the contrary, as I have said, frequently proves the cause of their destruction.On the 14th we marched S. W. till about noon, and arrived at Jerusalem, which the van had reached about an hour before us, all thoroughly soaked with mud and heavy rains, and several men unhappily with ruptures in the groin, by falling over the roots of trees, large stones, &c. Here just arrived, we found again, to my astonishment, the identical Mr.Vinsack, with one hundred fresh rangers: he had heard, it seems, of the rebels passing Upper Cottica, and had been prevailed upon to resume his command by the governor; thus he now once more offered his service to Colonel Fourgeoud, who was very happy indeed to accept it.Here, our camp being mostly overgrown with long coarse grass, one of the slaves was unfortunately bitten in the foot by a small serpent, called in Surinam the1Oroocookoo snake, from its colour, which resembles an owl.[134]In less than a minute the man’s leg began to swell, when he was seized with excruciating pains, and soon fell into convulsions. One of his companions, having killed the snake, made the patient drink its gall, mixed with half a glass of spirits, which I gave him. He seemed now (perhaps from imagination) to bear his misfortune better; but the fits soon returned with increasing violence, and he was instantly sent to his master’s plantation, where he expired. That the gall of adders,externallyapplied, is efficacious, I have often heard. In the Grand Magazine for April 1758, may be seen a letter, signed J. H. and dated 24th March, which treats systematically of the application of gall. But these investigations I must leave to the learned of the medical profession; and only observe, in general, that the smaller the snake, at least in Guiana, the more fatal the poison; as is justly and beautifully observed by Thomson:“——But still more direful heThe small, close-lurking minister of fate,Whose high concocted venom through the veinsA rapid lightning darts, arresting swiftThe vital current.”——In this grassy wilderness one of the rangers also killed a snake, called the whip-snake, from its resemblance to that instrument; it was about five feet long, and not very much thicker than a swan’s quill; the belly white, and the back a lead colour: concerning its bite, I can say[135]nothing. I was informed by the negroes, but I cannot speak from my own observation, that it has the power of giving a very severe stroke with its tail, like the lash of a whip, which it so much resembles.I must also notice an amphibious animal which some of the negroes killed this evening, called by them theCabiai; it is a species of water hog, and about the ordinary size of the land animal which goes under that name; it is covered with grey bristles, and armed with a number of very strong teeth; it has no tail; on each foot it has three toes, webbed like those of a duck. This animal, it is said, goes ashore only during the night, where it feeds on young grass, and other vegetables. I have been told it is good food, but never tasted it myself.On the 16th, having rested one day at this place, Colonel Fourgeoud detached two strong parties to reconnoitre,viz.Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes, with 100 men, was sent to the Wana Creek in Upper Cormoetibo; and Colonel Seyburg, with an equal number, was ordered to the Creek Pinenburg, in Upper Cottica. The latter returned about midnight with two canoes, which he had found hauled ashore, on the opposite side of the river, a little below the mouth of the Claas Creek. This convinced us that the rebels were gone westward to plunder, and had brought their empty canoes down the Claas Creek, from the rice country, in order to send them back loaded with booty from the estates they intended to[136]pillage. In consequence, therefore, of this information, the proper preparations were immediately made to pursue them with alacrity. Never did the old warrior display more vigour than on this occasion, swearing aloud that he now would be revenged of them all,coute qui coute.“Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.”But how far his generalship on this occasion proved to be a match for that ofBonny, I must beg leave to reserve for the succeeding chapter.[137]1This, I apprehend, is the snake which Dr. Bancroft calls the small Labora, and which he mentions as having killed a negro in less than five minutes when he was at Demerara.↑

CHAP.XXI.Spirited Conduct of the Rangers and Rebels—A Skirmish—Scene of Brotherly Affection—The Troops return to Barbacoeba—Plan of the Field of Action—A Slave killed by the Oroocookoo Snake.

Spirited Conduct of the Rangers and Rebels—A Skirmish—Scene of Brotherly Affection—The Troops return to Barbacoeba—Plan of the Field of Action—A Slave killed by the Oroocookoo Snake.

Colonel Fourgeoud, on finding himself thus foiled by a naked negro, was unable any longer to restrain his resentment, and swore aloud he would pursue Bonny to the world’s end. His ammunition and provisions were however expended, and if they had not, it would have been in vain now to think of overtaking the enemy.—To the surprize of most persons, our hero however persevered in this impracticable project, and dispatched CaptainBolts, with one hundred men and thirty rangers, besides a number of slaves, to transport a quantity of shot, and a week’s provisions from Barbacoeba, and at the same time issued orders for the troops to subsist upon half allowance, desiring the men to supply the deficiency by picking rice, peas, and cassava, and prepare them in the best way they could for their subsistence, and this was also my lot, as well as most of the officers; while it was no bad scene to see ten or twenty of us with heavy wooden pestles, like so many apothecaries, beating the rice in a species of mortars, cut all along in the hard trunk of a levelled[119]purper-heart-treeby the rebel negroes (being the only contrivance used by them to separate the rice from the husk) this was however for us a most laborious business, the sweat running down our bodies as if we had been bathing, while water was at this time the only beverage in the camp.Among other vegetables we had the good fortune to find here great quantities ofwild purslane, which only differs from the common, by growing nearer the ground, the leaves being less, and more of a blackish green; this vegetable grows wild in the woods of Guiana, and may be either eaten as a sallad, or stewed, without reserve, being not only a cooling and agreeable food, but reckoned an excellent antidote against the scurvy.Here were also great quantities ofgourdorcalebassetrees, which are very useful to the natives of the country. This tree grows to the height of a common apple-tree, with large thick pointed leaves: the gourds it produces are of different forms and dimensions, some being oval, some conical, and some round, growing often to the size of ten or twelve inches in diameter; the shell is hard and very smooth, covered over with a shining skin or epidermis, which becomes brown when the gourd is dry and fit for use: the heart or pulp is a pithy substance, which is easily extricated by the help of a crooked knife. The uses are various to which these gourds are applied, they furnish bottles, powder-flasks, cups, basons, and dishes: I seldom travelled without one, which served me[120]as a bason, plate, &c. in the forest. The negroes generally adorn them by carving on the outer skin many fantastical figures, and filling up the vacancies with chalk-dust, which sometimes has a very pretty effect.The rangers having been out to reconnoitre, returned on the afternoon of the 23d, and reported that they had discovered and destroyed another field of rice to the N. E. This pleased Colonel Fourgeoud very well; but when in the dusk of the evening I observed to him, that I saw several armed negroes advancing at a distance, he turned pale, exclaiming, “Nous sommes perdus!” and ordered the whole camp immediately under arms. In a few seconds these negroes were near enough to be discerned, and we now saw that several of them were carried upon poles, in hammocks. Fourgeoud then said, “We still are ruined, though not the enemy: ’tis Captain Bolts, beaten back, with all his party;” and this proved literally to be the fact, when that unfortunate officer (having delivered the wounded to the surgeons) made his report, that having entered the fatal swamp where Captain Meyland had been defeated, he was attacked by the enemy from the opposite shore, who, without hurting a single European, had made a dreadful havock amongst hisrangers; that CaptainValentine, a brave young fellow, belonging to that corps, whilst sounding his horn to animate his countrymen, had it shot away, with his pouch also, and was himself most desperately wounded infivedifferent parts of the body. In this situation he was met[121]by his brother, namedCaptain Avantage, who, upon seeing his mortal condition, a scene of such real fraternal affection ensued as is seldom to be observed in a civilized country:—kneeling at his side, and bending over the mangled Valentine, he sucked the blood and gore from his shattered breast and sides; then cherished him with the manly promise to revenge his death upon his foes, and the hopes that when he himself was killed he should meet him again ina better place.Colonel Fourgeoud now found that the rebels had kept their promise of massacring the rangers; while Captain Bolts reported that some had fired upon his party from the tops of the palm-trees, and then sliding down with surprising agility, disappeared, whilst the rangers were foaming for revenge on their active adversaries, and could hardly be restrained from an immediate pursuit through the verdure.Our mighty leader now found his absurd scheme of pursuing the enemy compleatly frustrated, and himself in danger of total destruction; being cut off from every supply, and having neither ammunition nor provisions left in his camp, with very few men, except the sick and wounded, to defend it. Thus he at last began most seriously to consider how to secure a safe retreat; to which he was urged likewise by the general and incessant murmurings of the troops, who were not only almost[122]starved, but indeed dreadfully harassed by daily fatigues and nightly watchings:“They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way, they found no city to dwell in.“Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.”On the 24th, a detachment of one hundred and forty men, commanded by two field officers, were still ordered to destroy the fields, and the old settlement calledCofaay; of this party I had the honour again to be one. We soon performed the service we were sent upon, and also picked up, out of the marsh, several utensils, such as tea-kettles, iron pots and pans, &c. that the rebels had formerly pillaged from the estates, and had thrown into the water to conceal them from us, with an intention, no doubt, of returning to fish them up, as soon as we were gone from Gado-Saby.Upon the return of the detachment in the afternoon, we immediately decamped, and began to retreat for Barbacoeba. Here I must remark in Colonel Fourgeoud an instance ofbad policy, at least, though many have not hesitated to bestow upon it a harsher epithet. This evening, upon our return, when we entered the ominous swamp, he suddenly caught up one of the empty bread-boxes, and having stuffed a hammock into it, he carried it before him as a shield, crying aloud to his men, “Sauve qui peut!” At this moment a Walloon namedMattowstepped up to him, and said, “Mon Colonel, but[123]few can, and I hope fewer still will, follow your example. Drop your shield, and do not intimidate your soldiers: one brave man creates others, then follow thy Mattow, and fear for nothing.” Upon which he instantly threw open his bosom, and charging his bayonet was the first that mounted the opposite beach: this intrepidity inspired the rest, and they passed the marshy swamp without opposition; for which act of heroism this private marine was since made a serjeant. I should think myself deficient if I did not observe, that the Walloons in general behaved with great spirit, and were in every respect excellent soldiers. This evening we encamped upon the same ground where we had passed the night before the engagement, with excessive bad weather and very heavy rain.Early on the morning of the 25th, we again marched, and proceeded on our return, having now a beaten path before us. It will suffice to say, that we reached our place of general rendezvous, Barbacoeba, on the afternoon of the following day, but in a most shocking condition; the whole of the detachment being mostly spent and wore out with fatigue, some nearly starved, others mortally wounded; whilst all the slaves were employed in carrying the sick and lame in their hammocks, on long poles, though these poor wretches were scarcely able to support themselves.—Such was the concluding scene of the taking of Gado-Saby. However, if during this expedition we neither captured any of the rebels,[124]nor gained booty, we nevertheless rendered the colony a very essential service, by rooting out this concealed nest of enemies, who being thus discovered and driven away from their capital settlements, never think (as I have already observed) of returning to live near the same spot. I might, indeed, pronounce our victoryalmostdecisive; I say almost, for if we except the demolishing a few plantations for immediate subsistence, and from a spirit of revenge, the rebels were, by being driven from this settlement, so disconcerted and panic-struck, that from the present period their depredations were certainly less, as they soon afterwards retired to an inaccessible depth in the forest, where they neither could do any material injury, nor be joined by negro deserters.To shew the masterly manœuvres of our sable foes to more advantage, I here present the reader with a plan of this extraordinary settlement, together with our different stages, after leaving our encampment on the borders of the Cottica River,viz.Nos1, 2, and 3, are supposed to be the general rendezvous at Barbacoeba, and the two succeeding nights encampment.No4. The spot where we heard the firing and shouting of the rebels, on the night of the 17th.No5. The latitude where the troops were joined by the black corps or rangers.No6. The night’s encampment previous to the engagement.[125]No7. The beach on the opposite side of the marsh, where Captain Meyland with his troops had been defeated.No8. The advanced post of the rebels, whence the first shot was fired at the troops.No9. The field with rice and Indian corn, entered without opposition.No10. The pass or defile in which the firing commenced.No11. The beautiful rice-field in which the action continued above forty minutes.No12. The town ofGado-Sabyin flames at a distance.No13. The spot whence the rebels fired on the camp, and held the conversation, on the night of the 20th.No14. The ground of the old settlement Cofaay, with the floating bridge that covered the retreat of the rebels.No15. The fields with cassava, yams, and plantains, that were at different times destroyed.No16. The field of rice discovered and demolished by Captain Stedman on the 21st.No17. A field demolished by the rangers on the 23d.No18. The swamp or marsh which surrounded the settlement.No19. The quag-mire, or biree-biree, adjoining it.No20. The forest.Having formerly described the manner in which we erected our huts, I shall here also add a small plan of[126]the mode of arranging them during our encampment in the woods of Guiana, which camps were generally of a triangular form, as being most secure in case of a surprize, and the easiest to defend our provisions and ammunition; but the situation of the ground would not always permit this, and then we encamped in any form, square, oblong, or circular, &c.—In the annexed plan,No1. Is the hut or shed of Colonel Fourgeoud, or the commanding officer, in the centre, with a sentinel.No2. The huts of all the other officers, in a small triangle, surrounding that of the commander in chief.No3. The angles of the outer triangle formed by the huts of the privates in three divisions,viz.the main body, the van, and the rear guards, with sentinels at proper distances, to cover the front of each.No4. Powder-chests, provisions, and medicines, with a sentinel.No5. The fires in the rear of each division to dress the victuals, and round which the negro slaves are lodged upon the ground.No6. A coppice of manicole-trees to erect the huts or sheds.No7. A rivulet or creek to provide the troops with fresh water. And,No8. The surrounding forest.I must now return once more to my narrative, and observe, that Barbacoeba, instead of being in a state of sending provisions to Gado-Saby, as our chief had expected,[127]it could scarcely afford daily subsistence to his emaciated troops on their arrival; who having for many days lived on rice, yams, peas, and Indian corn, were now most violently attacked by the flux; for although that kind of nourishment will keep the Indians and negroes strong as horses, the Europeans cannot long subsist without animal food; which was at this time so very scarce, that even the Jew soldiers of the Society troops devoured salt pork as fast as they could catch it.Plan of the Principal Field of Action between the Rivers Cottica and Marawina; with a Sketch of the manner of Encamping in the Woods of Surinam.T. Conder Sculpt.Plan of thePrincipalFieldofActionbetween the RiversCotticaandMarawina; with a Sketch of the manner ofEncampingin theWoodsofSurinam.London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.I nevertheless continued among the few that still were healthy; which was almost a miracle, as I had fared very hard indeed for want of my private stores, and whichI had left at the neighbouring estateMocha: however, expecting leave now to bring them in person from that plantation, I was in good spirits also. But here I was disappointed, by Colonel Fourgeoud’s declaring he could not spare me one moment, while I was able to stand upon my feet. I therefore waited patiently for an opportunity of sending for them; in the mean time sharing with my black boy the scanty allowance of a private soldier, with the casual addition of some mountain-cabbage, or palm-tree worms, and perhaps a few warrappa fish.As for the miserable slaves, they were so starved, that having killed aCoatamonkey, they broiled it, with skin, hair, intestines and all, then tore it to pieces with their teeth, and devoured it like so many cannibals, before it was even half dressed. Of this animal they offered me[128]a limb; but, hungry as I was, my stomach could not relish this kind of venison.A good constitution, sterling health and spirits, now supported me, or I must have sunk under the load of misery and hardships, which were at this time become so intolerable, that the rangers again forsook the camp; and Mr. Vinsack, their conductor, as brave and active a man as ever entered the wood, threw up his commission, as Mr. Mongol had done before, during Colonel Fourgeoud’s first campaign at the Wana.In the beginning of September, the bloody flux raged in the camp to such a degree, that the colonel saw himself obliged to send off all the sick officers and privates, without exception, not to Paramaribo for recovery in the grand hospital that is there, but to linger and die on the banks of the rivers, where they relieved others to be encamped, and undergo a similar wretchedness; the sick of his own regiment being dispatched to Magdenburg in the Tempatee Creek, and those of the Society troops to Vreedenberg in Cottica.Colonel Fourgeoud’s inhumanity to the officers was now actually become such, that he would not even permit those who were past recovery a marine to attend them, whatever price they offered; some of whom I have seen expanded between two trees, while the very filth, for want of assistance, was dropping through their hammocks. Of this number was EnsignStrows, who, in this dreadful situation, was ordered to be transported in an open boat[129]to Devil’s Harwar, where he died. At length Colonel Fourgeoud himself was seized with this dreadful malady, and his belovedptisanproved to be of no more avail; yet he soon recovered, by the plentiful use of claret and spices, whichheseldom wanted, and which his colleague Seyburg also employed as a preservative of his health, though by swallowing too copious doses he frequently lost the use of his reason. In such a situation, and in such a despicable encampment, our commander in chief had the vanity to expect a deputation from the court at Paramaribo, with congratulations on his victory: in consequence of which he had built an elegant shed, and sent for sheep and hogs to entertain them—but the expected deputies never yet arrived.On the 5th, therefore, the hogs and sheep were slaughtered, and, for thefirst timein his life, he ordered one poundperman, bones and all, to be distributed among the poor emaciated soldiers: indeed the number able to partake of this bounty was at present very small.On the following day a reinforcement of one hundred men arrived from Magdenburg, in Comewina; and from the Society post Vreedenburg, in Cottica, nearly as many. These confirmed the death of Ensign Strows, besides of a great number of privates, who had assisted at the taking ofGado-Saby, and who had expired in the boats during their removal from Barbacoeba.Intelligence arrived at the same time that the defeated rebels had actually crossed the river Cottica below Pattamaca,[130]intent on immediate mischief, and that they were marching to the westward. In consequence of this information, a captain and fifty men were immediately detached, by water, to reconnoitre the banks near the Pinenburg Creek. This party returned upon the 8th, and confirmed the intelligence. Our indefatigable chief now again determined to pursue them; but the slaves who were to carry the ammunition and provisions had been sent home to their masters, nothing but skin and bones, to be exchanged for others, not yet arrived, and to be starved in their turn. I shall therefore relate what happened the two following days, until the arrival of these unfortunatebeastsof burden; for so they might with propriety be called.On the 9th were sold upon credit, and to the highest bidder, the effects of the deceased Ensign Strows, when the poor soldiers, regardless of price, and only wishing to obtain some cloaths and refreshments to keep (in the vulgar phrase) soul and body together, actually paid at the rate of 700 per cent. and this infamous debt was accordingly stated in their accounts. I have seen, for instance, a private marine pay five shillings for a pound of mouldered tobacco, that might be worth six-pence, and double the prime value for a pair of old stockings or shoes. A sick man paid one guinea for a couple of meagre chickens; and for a broken bottle-case to hold his lumber, another paid a similar sum. Thus were these poor dying half-starved wretches deprived of the little property they[131]had earned at the expence of their blood and sweat, while this miserable necessity might have been easily prevented by only supplying them with what was their due. A private marine, of the name ofSem, at this time, swore, in the heat of his resentment, that he would certainly shoot Fourgeoud, whenever he had an opportunity; which being overheard, upon condition of repentance, I bribed the evidence not to inform against him, and so literally saved this poor rash fellow from dying on the gallows.Fortunately, all the world did not possess this chieftain’s insensibility, for this day the good Mrs. Godefroy once more sent up a flat-bottomed barge, with a fat ox, oranges, and plantains for the private soldiers, which was accordingly distributed amongst them. The same evening a small supply of provisions also arrived for me, from Joanna, with a few bottles of port wine; and though part was stolen, and part was damaged by the way, it made me very happy, and I gavenothingto Fourgeoud.When we speak of provisions in the woods, we only mean sugar, tea, coffee, Boston biscuit, cheese, rum, ham, or a keg of sausages, since little else can be carried through the forest by a single slave, and we werenowallowed no more. Shirts, shoes, and stockings were also usually accounted among the necessaries, but the last two articles I did not use, being accustomed to walk barefooted, which I had now practised for more than two years, and with great advantage to my limbs, when I[132]compared them with the diseased and ulcerated shanks of my ghastly-looking companions.On the 12th, the fresh supply of slaves being arrived, the necessary preparations were made to pursue the rebels the next day, directing our first course towards the spot formerly called Jerusalem, mentioned in 1773, when I commanded the fatal expedition in Upper Cottica; and on the 13th, the baggage and provisions being sent before us by water to Jerusalem, escorted by the sick officers and privates, we at last decamped to follow them, and bidding a final farewell to Barbacoeba, re-entered the woods, marching S. and S. E. the whole day, then passed the night on the opposite bank of the Cassiporee Creek, where we encamped.Nothing could be more diabolically cruel, than the persecution of the new slaves during this march; not only overloaded and starved, but beat like mules or asses by every ill-tempered individual—for instance, I saw Fourgeoud’s black favourite, Gousary, knock down a poor negro slave fornottaking up his load—and the chief himself knock him down for taking it uptoo soon; when the wretch, not knowing what to do, exclaimed, in hopes of pity, “O massera Jesus Christus!” and was actually knocked down a third time by an enthusiast, for daring to utter a name with which he was so little acquainted.During the last day’s march, a large drove ofWarrehogs or wild boars broke through our line; several of them were cut down by our sabres, and stabbed with[133]the bayonets, the men having orders from the commander in chief not to fire at any game whatever. The animals that were killed were cut in pieces, and distributed among the troops, which proved, though small, a very seasonable dainty. It is certainly very remarkable, that if the first wild boar or leader passes through any danger, all the others stupidly follow, in hopes of a similar escape, which on the contrary, as I have said, frequently proves the cause of their destruction.On the 14th we marched S. W. till about noon, and arrived at Jerusalem, which the van had reached about an hour before us, all thoroughly soaked with mud and heavy rains, and several men unhappily with ruptures in the groin, by falling over the roots of trees, large stones, &c. Here just arrived, we found again, to my astonishment, the identical Mr.Vinsack, with one hundred fresh rangers: he had heard, it seems, of the rebels passing Upper Cottica, and had been prevailed upon to resume his command by the governor; thus he now once more offered his service to Colonel Fourgeoud, who was very happy indeed to accept it.Here, our camp being mostly overgrown with long coarse grass, one of the slaves was unfortunately bitten in the foot by a small serpent, called in Surinam the1Oroocookoo snake, from its colour, which resembles an owl.[134]In less than a minute the man’s leg began to swell, when he was seized with excruciating pains, and soon fell into convulsions. One of his companions, having killed the snake, made the patient drink its gall, mixed with half a glass of spirits, which I gave him. He seemed now (perhaps from imagination) to bear his misfortune better; but the fits soon returned with increasing violence, and he was instantly sent to his master’s plantation, where he expired. That the gall of adders,externallyapplied, is efficacious, I have often heard. In the Grand Magazine for April 1758, may be seen a letter, signed J. H. and dated 24th March, which treats systematically of the application of gall. But these investigations I must leave to the learned of the medical profession; and only observe, in general, that the smaller the snake, at least in Guiana, the more fatal the poison; as is justly and beautifully observed by Thomson:“——But still more direful heThe small, close-lurking minister of fate,Whose high concocted venom through the veinsA rapid lightning darts, arresting swiftThe vital current.”——In this grassy wilderness one of the rangers also killed a snake, called the whip-snake, from its resemblance to that instrument; it was about five feet long, and not very much thicker than a swan’s quill; the belly white, and the back a lead colour: concerning its bite, I can say[135]nothing. I was informed by the negroes, but I cannot speak from my own observation, that it has the power of giving a very severe stroke with its tail, like the lash of a whip, which it so much resembles.I must also notice an amphibious animal which some of the negroes killed this evening, called by them theCabiai; it is a species of water hog, and about the ordinary size of the land animal which goes under that name; it is covered with grey bristles, and armed with a number of very strong teeth; it has no tail; on each foot it has three toes, webbed like those of a duck. This animal, it is said, goes ashore only during the night, where it feeds on young grass, and other vegetables. I have been told it is good food, but never tasted it myself.On the 16th, having rested one day at this place, Colonel Fourgeoud detached two strong parties to reconnoitre,viz.Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes, with 100 men, was sent to the Wana Creek in Upper Cormoetibo; and Colonel Seyburg, with an equal number, was ordered to the Creek Pinenburg, in Upper Cottica. The latter returned about midnight with two canoes, which he had found hauled ashore, on the opposite side of the river, a little below the mouth of the Claas Creek. This convinced us that the rebels were gone westward to plunder, and had brought their empty canoes down the Claas Creek, from the rice country, in order to send them back loaded with booty from the estates they intended to[136]pillage. In consequence, therefore, of this information, the proper preparations were immediately made to pursue them with alacrity. Never did the old warrior display more vigour than on this occasion, swearing aloud that he now would be revenged of them all,coute qui coute.“Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.”But how far his generalship on this occasion proved to be a match for that ofBonny, I must beg leave to reserve for the succeeding chapter.[137]

Among other vegetables we had the good fortune to find here great quantities ofwild purslane, which only differs from the common, by growing nearer the ground, the leaves being less, and more of a blackish green; this vegetable grows wild in the woods of Guiana, and may be either eaten as a sallad, or stewed, without reserve, being not only a cooling and agreeable food, but reckoned an excellent antidote against the scurvy.

Here were also great quantities ofgourdorcalebassetrees, which are very useful to the natives of the country. This tree grows to the height of a common apple-tree, with large thick pointed leaves: the gourds it produces are of different forms and dimensions, some being oval, some conical, and some round, growing often to the size of ten or twelve inches in diameter; the shell is hard and very smooth, covered over with a shining skin or epidermis, which becomes brown when the gourd is dry and fit for use: the heart or pulp is a pithy substance, which is easily extricated by the help of a crooked knife. The uses are various to which these gourds are applied, they furnish bottles, powder-flasks, cups, basons, and dishes: I seldom travelled without one, which served me[120]as a bason, plate, &c. in the forest. The negroes generally adorn them by carving on the outer skin many fantastical figures, and filling up the vacancies with chalk-dust, which sometimes has a very pretty effect.

The rangers having been out to reconnoitre, returned on the afternoon of the 23d, and reported that they had discovered and destroyed another field of rice to the N. E. This pleased Colonel Fourgeoud very well; but when in the dusk of the evening I observed to him, that I saw several armed negroes advancing at a distance, he turned pale, exclaiming, “Nous sommes perdus!” and ordered the whole camp immediately under arms. In a few seconds these negroes were near enough to be discerned, and we now saw that several of them were carried upon poles, in hammocks. Fourgeoud then said, “We still are ruined, though not the enemy: ’tis Captain Bolts, beaten back, with all his party;” and this proved literally to be the fact, when that unfortunate officer (having delivered the wounded to the surgeons) made his report, that having entered the fatal swamp where Captain Meyland had been defeated, he was attacked by the enemy from the opposite shore, who, without hurting a single European, had made a dreadful havock amongst hisrangers; that CaptainValentine, a brave young fellow, belonging to that corps, whilst sounding his horn to animate his countrymen, had it shot away, with his pouch also, and was himself most desperately wounded infivedifferent parts of the body. In this situation he was met[121]by his brother, namedCaptain Avantage, who, upon seeing his mortal condition, a scene of such real fraternal affection ensued as is seldom to be observed in a civilized country:—kneeling at his side, and bending over the mangled Valentine, he sucked the blood and gore from his shattered breast and sides; then cherished him with the manly promise to revenge his death upon his foes, and the hopes that when he himself was killed he should meet him again ina better place.

Colonel Fourgeoud now found that the rebels had kept their promise of massacring the rangers; while Captain Bolts reported that some had fired upon his party from the tops of the palm-trees, and then sliding down with surprising agility, disappeared, whilst the rangers were foaming for revenge on their active adversaries, and could hardly be restrained from an immediate pursuit through the verdure.

Our mighty leader now found his absurd scheme of pursuing the enemy compleatly frustrated, and himself in danger of total destruction; being cut off from every supply, and having neither ammunition nor provisions left in his camp, with very few men, except the sick and wounded, to defend it. Thus he at last began most seriously to consider how to secure a safe retreat; to which he was urged likewise by the general and incessant murmurings of the troops, who were not only almost[122]starved, but indeed dreadfully harassed by daily fatigues and nightly watchings:

“They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way, they found no city to dwell in.“Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.”

“They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way, they found no city to dwell in.

“Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.”

On the 24th, a detachment of one hundred and forty men, commanded by two field officers, were still ordered to destroy the fields, and the old settlement calledCofaay; of this party I had the honour again to be one. We soon performed the service we were sent upon, and also picked up, out of the marsh, several utensils, such as tea-kettles, iron pots and pans, &c. that the rebels had formerly pillaged from the estates, and had thrown into the water to conceal them from us, with an intention, no doubt, of returning to fish them up, as soon as we were gone from Gado-Saby.

Upon the return of the detachment in the afternoon, we immediately decamped, and began to retreat for Barbacoeba. Here I must remark in Colonel Fourgeoud an instance ofbad policy, at least, though many have not hesitated to bestow upon it a harsher epithet. This evening, upon our return, when we entered the ominous swamp, he suddenly caught up one of the empty bread-boxes, and having stuffed a hammock into it, he carried it before him as a shield, crying aloud to his men, “Sauve qui peut!” At this moment a Walloon namedMattowstepped up to him, and said, “Mon Colonel, but[123]few can, and I hope fewer still will, follow your example. Drop your shield, and do not intimidate your soldiers: one brave man creates others, then follow thy Mattow, and fear for nothing.” Upon which he instantly threw open his bosom, and charging his bayonet was the first that mounted the opposite beach: this intrepidity inspired the rest, and they passed the marshy swamp without opposition; for which act of heroism this private marine was since made a serjeant. I should think myself deficient if I did not observe, that the Walloons in general behaved with great spirit, and were in every respect excellent soldiers. This evening we encamped upon the same ground where we had passed the night before the engagement, with excessive bad weather and very heavy rain.

Early on the morning of the 25th, we again marched, and proceeded on our return, having now a beaten path before us. It will suffice to say, that we reached our place of general rendezvous, Barbacoeba, on the afternoon of the following day, but in a most shocking condition; the whole of the detachment being mostly spent and wore out with fatigue, some nearly starved, others mortally wounded; whilst all the slaves were employed in carrying the sick and lame in their hammocks, on long poles, though these poor wretches were scarcely able to support themselves.—Such was the concluding scene of the taking of Gado-Saby. However, if during this expedition we neither captured any of the rebels,[124]nor gained booty, we nevertheless rendered the colony a very essential service, by rooting out this concealed nest of enemies, who being thus discovered and driven away from their capital settlements, never think (as I have already observed) of returning to live near the same spot. I might, indeed, pronounce our victoryalmostdecisive; I say almost, for if we except the demolishing a few plantations for immediate subsistence, and from a spirit of revenge, the rebels were, by being driven from this settlement, so disconcerted and panic-struck, that from the present period their depredations were certainly less, as they soon afterwards retired to an inaccessible depth in the forest, where they neither could do any material injury, nor be joined by negro deserters.

To shew the masterly manœuvres of our sable foes to more advantage, I here present the reader with a plan of this extraordinary settlement, together with our different stages, after leaving our encampment on the borders of the Cottica River,viz.

Nos1, 2, and 3, are supposed to be the general rendezvous at Barbacoeba, and the two succeeding nights encampment.

No4. The spot where we heard the firing and shouting of the rebels, on the night of the 17th.

No5. The latitude where the troops were joined by the black corps or rangers.

No6. The night’s encampment previous to the engagement.[125]

No7. The beach on the opposite side of the marsh, where Captain Meyland with his troops had been defeated.

No8. The advanced post of the rebels, whence the first shot was fired at the troops.

No9. The field with rice and Indian corn, entered without opposition.

No10. The pass or defile in which the firing commenced.

No11. The beautiful rice-field in which the action continued above forty minutes.

No12. The town ofGado-Sabyin flames at a distance.

No13. The spot whence the rebels fired on the camp, and held the conversation, on the night of the 20th.

No14. The ground of the old settlement Cofaay, with the floating bridge that covered the retreat of the rebels.

No15. The fields with cassava, yams, and plantains, that were at different times destroyed.

No16. The field of rice discovered and demolished by Captain Stedman on the 21st.

No17. A field demolished by the rangers on the 23d.

No18. The swamp or marsh which surrounded the settlement.

No19. The quag-mire, or biree-biree, adjoining it.

No20. The forest.

Having formerly described the manner in which we erected our huts, I shall here also add a small plan of[126]the mode of arranging them during our encampment in the woods of Guiana, which camps were generally of a triangular form, as being most secure in case of a surprize, and the easiest to defend our provisions and ammunition; but the situation of the ground would not always permit this, and then we encamped in any form, square, oblong, or circular, &c.—In the annexed plan,

No1. Is the hut or shed of Colonel Fourgeoud, or the commanding officer, in the centre, with a sentinel.

No2. The huts of all the other officers, in a small triangle, surrounding that of the commander in chief.

No3. The angles of the outer triangle formed by the huts of the privates in three divisions,viz.the main body, the van, and the rear guards, with sentinels at proper distances, to cover the front of each.

No4. Powder-chests, provisions, and medicines, with a sentinel.

No5. The fires in the rear of each division to dress the victuals, and round which the negro slaves are lodged upon the ground.

No6. A coppice of manicole-trees to erect the huts or sheds.

No7. A rivulet or creek to provide the troops with fresh water. And,

No8. The surrounding forest.

I must now return once more to my narrative, and observe, that Barbacoeba, instead of being in a state of sending provisions to Gado-Saby, as our chief had expected,[127]it could scarcely afford daily subsistence to his emaciated troops on their arrival; who having for many days lived on rice, yams, peas, and Indian corn, were now most violently attacked by the flux; for although that kind of nourishment will keep the Indians and negroes strong as horses, the Europeans cannot long subsist without animal food; which was at this time so very scarce, that even the Jew soldiers of the Society troops devoured salt pork as fast as they could catch it.

Plan of the Principal Field of Action between the Rivers Cottica and Marawina; with a Sketch of the manner of Encamping in the Woods of Surinam.T. Conder Sculpt.Plan of thePrincipalFieldofActionbetween the RiversCotticaandMarawina; with a Sketch of the manner ofEncampingin theWoodsofSurinam.London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.

T. Conder Sculpt.

Plan of thePrincipalFieldofActionbetween the RiversCotticaandMarawina; with a Sketch of the manner ofEncampingin theWoodsofSurinam.

London, Published Decr. 1st, 1791, by J. Johnson, St. Paul’s Church Yard.

I nevertheless continued among the few that still were healthy; which was almost a miracle, as I had fared very hard indeed for want of my private stores, and whichI had left at the neighbouring estateMocha: however, expecting leave now to bring them in person from that plantation, I was in good spirits also. But here I was disappointed, by Colonel Fourgeoud’s declaring he could not spare me one moment, while I was able to stand upon my feet. I therefore waited patiently for an opportunity of sending for them; in the mean time sharing with my black boy the scanty allowance of a private soldier, with the casual addition of some mountain-cabbage, or palm-tree worms, and perhaps a few warrappa fish.

As for the miserable slaves, they were so starved, that having killed aCoatamonkey, they broiled it, with skin, hair, intestines and all, then tore it to pieces with their teeth, and devoured it like so many cannibals, before it was even half dressed. Of this animal they offered me[128]a limb; but, hungry as I was, my stomach could not relish this kind of venison.

A good constitution, sterling health and spirits, now supported me, or I must have sunk under the load of misery and hardships, which were at this time become so intolerable, that the rangers again forsook the camp; and Mr. Vinsack, their conductor, as brave and active a man as ever entered the wood, threw up his commission, as Mr. Mongol had done before, during Colonel Fourgeoud’s first campaign at the Wana.

In the beginning of September, the bloody flux raged in the camp to such a degree, that the colonel saw himself obliged to send off all the sick officers and privates, without exception, not to Paramaribo for recovery in the grand hospital that is there, but to linger and die on the banks of the rivers, where they relieved others to be encamped, and undergo a similar wretchedness; the sick of his own regiment being dispatched to Magdenburg in the Tempatee Creek, and those of the Society troops to Vreedenberg in Cottica.

Colonel Fourgeoud’s inhumanity to the officers was now actually become such, that he would not even permit those who were past recovery a marine to attend them, whatever price they offered; some of whom I have seen expanded between two trees, while the very filth, for want of assistance, was dropping through their hammocks. Of this number was EnsignStrows, who, in this dreadful situation, was ordered to be transported in an open boat[129]to Devil’s Harwar, where he died. At length Colonel Fourgeoud himself was seized with this dreadful malady, and his belovedptisanproved to be of no more avail; yet he soon recovered, by the plentiful use of claret and spices, whichheseldom wanted, and which his colleague Seyburg also employed as a preservative of his health, though by swallowing too copious doses he frequently lost the use of his reason. In such a situation, and in such a despicable encampment, our commander in chief had the vanity to expect a deputation from the court at Paramaribo, with congratulations on his victory: in consequence of which he had built an elegant shed, and sent for sheep and hogs to entertain them—but the expected deputies never yet arrived.

On the 5th, therefore, the hogs and sheep were slaughtered, and, for thefirst timein his life, he ordered one poundperman, bones and all, to be distributed among the poor emaciated soldiers: indeed the number able to partake of this bounty was at present very small.

On the following day a reinforcement of one hundred men arrived from Magdenburg, in Comewina; and from the Society post Vreedenburg, in Cottica, nearly as many. These confirmed the death of Ensign Strows, besides of a great number of privates, who had assisted at the taking ofGado-Saby, and who had expired in the boats during their removal from Barbacoeba.

Intelligence arrived at the same time that the defeated rebels had actually crossed the river Cottica below Pattamaca,[130]intent on immediate mischief, and that they were marching to the westward. In consequence of this information, a captain and fifty men were immediately detached, by water, to reconnoitre the banks near the Pinenburg Creek. This party returned upon the 8th, and confirmed the intelligence. Our indefatigable chief now again determined to pursue them; but the slaves who were to carry the ammunition and provisions had been sent home to their masters, nothing but skin and bones, to be exchanged for others, not yet arrived, and to be starved in their turn. I shall therefore relate what happened the two following days, until the arrival of these unfortunatebeastsof burden; for so they might with propriety be called.

On the 9th were sold upon credit, and to the highest bidder, the effects of the deceased Ensign Strows, when the poor soldiers, regardless of price, and only wishing to obtain some cloaths and refreshments to keep (in the vulgar phrase) soul and body together, actually paid at the rate of 700 per cent. and this infamous debt was accordingly stated in their accounts. I have seen, for instance, a private marine pay five shillings for a pound of mouldered tobacco, that might be worth six-pence, and double the prime value for a pair of old stockings or shoes. A sick man paid one guinea for a couple of meagre chickens; and for a broken bottle-case to hold his lumber, another paid a similar sum. Thus were these poor dying half-starved wretches deprived of the little property they[131]had earned at the expence of their blood and sweat, while this miserable necessity might have been easily prevented by only supplying them with what was their due. A private marine, of the name ofSem, at this time, swore, in the heat of his resentment, that he would certainly shoot Fourgeoud, whenever he had an opportunity; which being overheard, upon condition of repentance, I bribed the evidence not to inform against him, and so literally saved this poor rash fellow from dying on the gallows.

Fortunately, all the world did not possess this chieftain’s insensibility, for this day the good Mrs. Godefroy once more sent up a flat-bottomed barge, with a fat ox, oranges, and plantains for the private soldiers, which was accordingly distributed amongst them. The same evening a small supply of provisions also arrived for me, from Joanna, with a few bottles of port wine; and though part was stolen, and part was damaged by the way, it made me very happy, and I gavenothingto Fourgeoud.

When we speak of provisions in the woods, we only mean sugar, tea, coffee, Boston biscuit, cheese, rum, ham, or a keg of sausages, since little else can be carried through the forest by a single slave, and we werenowallowed no more. Shirts, shoes, and stockings were also usually accounted among the necessaries, but the last two articles I did not use, being accustomed to walk barefooted, which I had now practised for more than two years, and with great advantage to my limbs, when I[132]compared them with the diseased and ulcerated shanks of my ghastly-looking companions.

On the 12th, the fresh supply of slaves being arrived, the necessary preparations were made to pursue the rebels the next day, directing our first course towards the spot formerly called Jerusalem, mentioned in 1773, when I commanded the fatal expedition in Upper Cottica; and on the 13th, the baggage and provisions being sent before us by water to Jerusalem, escorted by the sick officers and privates, we at last decamped to follow them, and bidding a final farewell to Barbacoeba, re-entered the woods, marching S. and S. E. the whole day, then passed the night on the opposite bank of the Cassiporee Creek, where we encamped.

Nothing could be more diabolically cruel, than the persecution of the new slaves during this march; not only overloaded and starved, but beat like mules or asses by every ill-tempered individual—for instance, I saw Fourgeoud’s black favourite, Gousary, knock down a poor negro slave fornottaking up his load—and the chief himself knock him down for taking it uptoo soon; when the wretch, not knowing what to do, exclaimed, in hopes of pity, “O massera Jesus Christus!” and was actually knocked down a third time by an enthusiast, for daring to utter a name with which he was so little acquainted.

During the last day’s march, a large drove ofWarrehogs or wild boars broke through our line; several of them were cut down by our sabres, and stabbed with[133]the bayonets, the men having orders from the commander in chief not to fire at any game whatever. The animals that were killed were cut in pieces, and distributed among the troops, which proved, though small, a very seasonable dainty. It is certainly very remarkable, that if the first wild boar or leader passes through any danger, all the others stupidly follow, in hopes of a similar escape, which on the contrary, as I have said, frequently proves the cause of their destruction.

On the 14th we marched S. W. till about noon, and arrived at Jerusalem, which the van had reached about an hour before us, all thoroughly soaked with mud and heavy rains, and several men unhappily with ruptures in the groin, by falling over the roots of trees, large stones, &c. Here just arrived, we found again, to my astonishment, the identical Mr.Vinsack, with one hundred fresh rangers: he had heard, it seems, of the rebels passing Upper Cottica, and had been prevailed upon to resume his command by the governor; thus he now once more offered his service to Colonel Fourgeoud, who was very happy indeed to accept it.

Here, our camp being mostly overgrown with long coarse grass, one of the slaves was unfortunately bitten in the foot by a small serpent, called in Surinam the1Oroocookoo snake, from its colour, which resembles an owl.[134]In less than a minute the man’s leg began to swell, when he was seized with excruciating pains, and soon fell into convulsions. One of his companions, having killed the snake, made the patient drink its gall, mixed with half a glass of spirits, which I gave him. He seemed now (perhaps from imagination) to bear his misfortune better; but the fits soon returned with increasing violence, and he was instantly sent to his master’s plantation, where he expired. That the gall of adders,externallyapplied, is efficacious, I have often heard. In the Grand Magazine for April 1758, may be seen a letter, signed J. H. and dated 24th March, which treats systematically of the application of gall. But these investigations I must leave to the learned of the medical profession; and only observe, in general, that the smaller the snake, at least in Guiana, the more fatal the poison; as is justly and beautifully observed by Thomson:

“——But still more direful heThe small, close-lurking minister of fate,Whose high concocted venom through the veinsA rapid lightning darts, arresting swiftThe vital current.”——

“——But still more direful he

The small, close-lurking minister of fate,

Whose high concocted venom through the veins

A rapid lightning darts, arresting swift

The vital current.”——

In this grassy wilderness one of the rangers also killed a snake, called the whip-snake, from its resemblance to that instrument; it was about five feet long, and not very much thicker than a swan’s quill; the belly white, and the back a lead colour: concerning its bite, I can say[135]nothing. I was informed by the negroes, but I cannot speak from my own observation, that it has the power of giving a very severe stroke with its tail, like the lash of a whip, which it so much resembles.

I must also notice an amphibious animal which some of the negroes killed this evening, called by them theCabiai; it is a species of water hog, and about the ordinary size of the land animal which goes under that name; it is covered with grey bristles, and armed with a number of very strong teeth; it has no tail; on each foot it has three toes, webbed like those of a duck. This animal, it is said, goes ashore only during the night, where it feeds on young grass, and other vegetables. I have been told it is good food, but never tasted it myself.

On the 16th, having rested one day at this place, Colonel Fourgeoud detached two strong parties to reconnoitre,viz.Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes, with 100 men, was sent to the Wana Creek in Upper Cormoetibo; and Colonel Seyburg, with an equal number, was ordered to the Creek Pinenburg, in Upper Cottica. The latter returned about midnight with two canoes, which he had found hauled ashore, on the opposite side of the river, a little below the mouth of the Claas Creek. This convinced us that the rebels were gone westward to plunder, and had brought their empty canoes down the Claas Creek, from the rice country, in order to send them back loaded with booty from the estates they intended to[136]pillage. In consequence, therefore, of this information, the proper preparations were immediately made to pursue them with alacrity. Never did the old warrior display more vigour than on this occasion, swearing aloud that he now would be revenged of them all,coute qui coute.

“Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down.”

But how far his generalship on this occasion proved to be a match for that ofBonny, I must beg leave to reserve for the succeeding chapter.[137]

1This, I apprehend, is the snake which Dr. Bancroft calls the small Labora, and which he mentions as having killed a negro in less than five minutes when he was at Demerara.↑

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