In the evening at six o’clock I arrived once more at Paramaribo, and found Joanna with her little boy perfectly [[187]]well, after having both been blind for above three weeks; with whom being now invited to lodge, at the house of my friend Mr. De Graaf, I was completely happy.
The following day I dined with Colonel Fourgeoud, who now also was as sound as ever, and who gave me a very indifferent meal of salt provisions[2], but an uncommonly hearty welcome. He acquainted me that two new companies of free mulattoes, and two of free negroes, all volunteers, had just been raised; that the Serameca and Owca negroes encouraged and favoured the rebels, and were deceitful rascals; that a few rebels had been killed in the Cassiwinica Creek; and that he was in hopes of rooting out Fissy Hollo; that Bonny, with his people, were almost starving in the forest, notwithstanding their late depredations, which could not last much longer; and that he was fully determined, if he should lose his last man, to make this rebel surrender, or harass him till he and his gang, through hunger and distress, should be obliged to quit the colony. I learned further from him, that a Frenchman had just escaped hanging for betraying the state of the fortifications, &c. to the governor of Cayenne; that he had pardoned Captain Tulling for his clandestine marriage; and that Lieutenant Colonel de Borgnes was just entered into matrimony with a rich widow, a Mrs. Crawford. [[188]]
The Colonel, in a word, was now quite the reverse of what he had been before, and upon the whole so very agreeable in his manners, that I would never wish to spend my time in better company; but how I should become at once the favourite of both these rival commanders, was a secret I could never yet discover, unless it might proceed from a desire of gaining me from each other, as they still continued mutual enemies: be that as it may, I resolved to preserve the most inflexible neutrality, as I also did between them and the governor, where I was invited next day, and dined not on salt-beef, but found as usual a truly magnificent entertainment.
Thus I continued daily visiting my friends, viz. Mrs. Godefroy, the Demellys, the Gordons, the Mac Neyls, &c. I also spent a very agreeable day with the black Mrs. Sampson, or Zubly, who was now a widow.
I was present too at a mulatto ball, composed however not of slaves, but of free independant settlers. Here the music, the lights, the country dances, the supper, and, above all, the dresses were so superb, and their behaviour so decent and genteel, that the whole might serve as a model for decorum and etiquette to some of the fairer and more polished inhabitants.
On the 20th, observing a number of Indians and black people of both sexes swimming at the back of Fort Zelandia, young Donald Mac Neyl and myself compleated the groupe, by stripping and getting in among them; and I must confess I never beheld more surprising feats [[189]]of activity in the water, than were performed by the negroes, who fought a sham battle, by plunging or rather tumbling like porpoises, when they struck each other with their legs, as they never used their hands; while the Indians, who were of the Arrowouka nation, swam and dived like amphibious animals.
Being sufficiently refreshed, we sat down upon the beach, near the twenty-one gun battery, where I had an opportunity of examining the features and figure of one of their young females, as she approached us, like Venus rising out of the sea. These people being very different from all the other Indian nations that I have already described, I shall embrace the opportunity of fulfilling my promise, and giving a particular account of them.—In the first place, the skin of the young woman who was now emerging clean from the river, and divested of arnotta-paint, appeared much fairer than the copper-colour of the other Indians; neither were her limbs deformed by those strait-laced bracelets or cotton-bands so much in use with the rest; nor did her hair hang down, but was neatly plaited close round the crown of her head, and fastened in the centre with a broad silver plate[3]. Her only dress consisted, both during the time she bathed and after, of a small square apron made of beads, as I have mentioned before: in every other respect she was perfectly naked: nor could a finer figure be imagined—[[190]]erect, vigorous, active, young, and healthy, which convinced me that when the body is exposed, as it certainly was ordained by nature, the face is but little noticed.
“——Such as Arcadian song
Transmits from ancient uncorrupted Time;
When tyrant Custom had not shackled Man,