After the young ladies were all seated in the house, my friend Patterson introduced me to them, and requested me to fill some glasses with gin and pass them round, saying, "They had never drank any gin before, and did not know the strength of it, that we should soon see sport." After remaining some time and drinking freely, they attempted to depart, when one of them, named Betsey Young, a girl possessing a pleasant and beautiful countenance found herself unable to walk, and her comrades took her on their backs and departed apparently much mortified as I was myself. After they returned to their homes Betsey's mother gave her a severe reprimand for her intoxication. The next morning she bent the top of a small tree to the ground, tied a handkerchief to it and putting one end round her neck let the tree straighten up, which hung her in the air. Soon after her mother discovering her unfortunate situation cut her down and restored her to life. A few months after she became one of the king's wives.
I was visited by a respectable Frenchman, named Ellis, residing thirty miles up a river called Waa-waa-han, which empties into the Lagoon a few miles from this place. The Musquito king had given him a tract of land seven miles in length, bounded on the river, a well cultivated plantation, producing coffee, sugar-cane, corn, yams, sweet potatoes, all kinds of tropical fruits, and bread-stuffs in abundance. He owned twenty or thirty slaves, and cultivated a good garden. He informed me that he had fought for my country in the Revolution, under Count de Grass. His nearest neighbor, named Gough, resided twelve miles from him, who had a grant of land extending twelve miles along the river, and owned a few slaves, but paid little attention to cultivation. I found Mr. Ellis a very honest man, and a true friend to me. He kept a mulatto woman as his wife, whose name was Fanny. He sent many orders to me to bring out such articles as he wanted. He told me that one evening he was making out an order for goods and asked his wife if she wanted any thing added to the order. She answered by saying, "Tell Captain Dunham to fetch me out one man-goose and one woman-goose." Mr. Ellis often sent me garden vegetables, cucumbers, water-mellons, tropical fruits, &c.
CHAPTER VI.
Among my new neighbors I found eight runaway negro slaves who had deserted from the Island of St. Andreas, in canoes, a distance of about two degrees, and took refuge here. To make the reader understand the tragic scenes that follow, I shall describe them by giving the names of the tribes they belonged to in their native country. Two of them being called Jim, I shall be obliged to attach to the name of each that of the tribe to which he belonged, to distinguish the parties.
The English traders from Jamaica, who have monopolized the trade of this country, frequently visit this place, stopping at St. Andreas and Corn Island on their passage. They are often commissioned to apprehend runaway slaves, return them to their masters, and receive their rewards. These negroes were well apprised of this custom, and took great precaution to arm and defend themselves if they were attacked. On the arrival of any English vessel in the harbor, they retreated to the woods and remained until the vessel left the port before they made their appearance among us again, when they returned to the house which they occupied when I first landed in the place, situated about fifty rods from my store. When they went upon any excursion they were each armed with a loaded musket and plenty of ammunition, determined never to be taken prisoners alive. In addition to their armament, they purchased from me five cutlasses, which they ground very sharp and carried with them daily. Scotland and Jim belonged to the Ebo tribe in Africa, their native country. Moody and the other Jim to the Mandingo tribe in the same country; another negro, named Prince, was a native of Jamaica. Scotland had a daughter with him, Moody and Mandingo Jim, both had their wives with them. There always appeared a national antipathy existing between the Ebo and Mandingo negroes, which caused many disputes between them. Prince always tried to remain neutral between the parties, often acting as umpire in the settlement of their difficulties. On the arrival of any vessel, or any dangerous report, they compromised all their private quarrels and united for the common defence.
The negroes soon discovered that I had no means to annoy them, and that the English traders were very jealous of me as a trespasser on their exclusive right to trade here, I being the first American who had attempted to open a trade with the Indians within the last fourteen years. These negroes soon commenced trading with me, having fifty or sixty dollars in money, and earnestly solicited my friendly aid, by informing them of any plot I should discover from the English traders, or the Mosquito king's officers to apprehend them, promising on their part to sell me all the tortoise-shell they could catch, and purchase all their goods from me. I readily ratified the treaty for my own safety. To use an old adage, "Those who live in glass houses must never throw stones."
My goods were poorly protected against robbers, my store being covered on the outside with thin slips of wood, resembling lath wove together like a basket and admitting light through the spaces sufficient to read or write without windows. A man could kick a hole through it in two minutes.
Soon after I purchased a mahogany canoe, made a sail to fit her, and took a number of excursions to the neighboring villages, purchasing shell, gum, &c. It frequently happened that I did not see a white man in two or three weeks. The negroes often got alarmed by hearing false reports about their apprehension, and finding that I sometimes did not reach home until after dark, they came to my store and requested me to wear a white chip hat when I went on any excursion, or appeared out after dark, that they might know me, as they had agreed to shoot any strange white man who should approach them in the night. I complied with their request for my own safety. I have frequently called at their house in the night to procure a light, always calling them by name before I approached their door, and always found them laying on their arms, ready to repel any attack.