CHAPTER XV.
The extent of Antigua—Opinion of some planters—Want of agricultural labourers—Emigration not always profitable to the negroes—“Seizar’s” letter upon the subject—Return of emigrants—Soil of Antigua—Geological matters—Petrifactions—Climate of Antigua—“Yellow fever”—Beautiful evenings—the appearance of the heavens—Evening visitants.
Antigua, as already shewn in another part of this work, contains about 60,000 acres: of which, probably, four-fifths are in a state of cultivation. It was the opinion of many planters, soon after emancipation, that the mountainous estates must, in great measure, be neglected, as the steadiness of the negroes is not always to be relied upon; and from the difficulties of the land, the plough would be almost useless. These prognostications have not been fulfilled—at least, no such instance has ever come under my notice; on the contrary, in my rides through the country I have seen many spots of land, which once bore only grass or wild shrubs, planted with canes, and bearing the title of “a sugar estate,” which, I feel assured, had slavery continued, would never have been cultivated.
Still agricultural labourers are wanted; many of the negroes that were thus employed, while in a state of bondage, think it a disgrace to follow such patriarchal occupations now they are free. They therefore quit the country, take up the business of a mason or a carpenter, or something of the sort; and the result is, that not being competent, they are unable to procure work, and are idling about the street all day, until some vessel from the southern colonies, looking out for emigrants, holds out the temptation of high wages, which is ignorantly caught at by the negro; and he leaves his native island, his wife and children, without remorse, until sickness seizes him, and he is returned upon the country an emaciated being, unable to work at all.
Emigration is not always profitable to the negro, even if he retains his health. Many, many of them, would gladly return, were they not bound for a certain number of years by the captains of the emigration vessels, (who make a complete trade of it by selling their indentures,) or else taken so far up the country as too often prohibit such resolve. A clever letter appeared in one of the West Indian newspapers some time ago, supposed to have been written from a negro at St. Kitts to his friend of the same dye, who had emigrated to Demerara, which I will insert for the amusement of the reader:—
“Sink Hitts, July ——.
“Deer Pomp Eye,
“You no I tould you how it wood be, but you all ways were a wild nagur, and wood neber hear reeson, and lubbed to follow your hedstrong ways. But now you are suffering for it, an I hope you’ll repent, as good Massa Parson says. You no you had no right to run away and leabe you yong pic’nees here to starbe. It was a most wicked act, but I ’spose the Capen who took you away will be made to support ’em as he ought. You are all no better dan Caraline who sent our fren Mushel’s pic’nee widout him knowing at all ’bout it, to Jimmy Radder (Demerara), having sold him me magin to de Capen. What you say ’bout de Spaniards is all bery true, an likely to happen, an me tink wid you our Capens are not to be trusted, for you no what our fren Fletcher did for which he get hang—how he carry off Nagers from Nevis, and trowed dem in de sea and drowned dem. Now me no tink dese Capens will trow de Nagurs in de sea, but me tink it bery like dat dey will hab private signell wid de Spaniards, who will way lay an take de nagurs away at sea—for de Spaniards will gib de Capens two times as much for de free Nagurs to make slabes of dem, as de Capens can get in Jimmy Radder. I hab seen de skul of Fletcher, for me be sumthing of a free-no-low-gist (phrenologist), and I assure you de skul of dese Capens hab gist de same bumps. And not only dis, Massa Pomp Eye, but dere is de law of Englan dat a vessel shall carry passengers cording to he size, dat is, so many Nagurs to so many tun, now dese Capens do break dis law an dese vessels is lible to be seezed and comphiz catted. Dis law was made as me told, to make all de peeple cumfurble dat all may hab room to walk ’bout an lie down, an sleep, an eat, an go safe, an to perwent de Capens from sack wry facing dem passengers, and no noting ’bout dere bizness, for see how dey cram de Nagurs in like toze in de shu, an only de oder day a vessel ful of Nagurs sprung a plank off Mons’ rat an was sinking fast an de Capen noed noting at all ’bout it until a noder ship met him an told him he was going down and dat all he poor Nagurs wood be drown. Oh! Pomp Eye, de Nagurs here be great fool for leabing dis bootiful country for sich muddy place as Jimmy Radder. Here dey hab plenty of fish from de sea, an dem dere be sich bootiful riber from de monting, an sich nice water to drink,—and dere is plenty of wood to cut, and dere is salt-fish, an pork, an beef, an all so cheap—an here nagurs be sirvalized, an de men an wimmin were cloze which dey do not do in Jimmy Radder, an on Sunday dey all go church an hab fine tings on. I’m told dat in Jimmy Radder dey can’t boil or roast dere plantins widout de wurrums (worms) crying and crawling out, an dat derefore dey mash ’em up all togedder in de pot an so eat dem. Brutes! Is de nagur of Jimmy Radder like our Nagurs? Hab dey any beerds? I heer dey hab scales like de fishes from lying in de mud an water, an dat dere shoulder bones stick out like de fins of one fish. An dis is de reeson our wimmin nagurs go to Jimmy Radder, for de wimmin always lobe de monsters. Don’t fret you self Massa Pomp Eye ’bout de dollars for I neber expect ’em. Me no ’tis all de same in de end, if you be paid one quarter dollar here for working, an on half dollar dere, for de tings for eat an drink are twice as deer dere as dey be here, widout being half so good eder. No, no—me be content—me no like snakes an wurrum an dose tings you hab in Jemmy Radder—me lobe me fader land, an no like mud. Here we all be Cristan an can reed and rite, an no be naked savages like aw you. Your poor yong ones send dere lobe to you—but dey shant want bread to eat, as long as your fren Seizer libes.—So good bi, an rub you body wid rum to get rid of de hagur, (ague.)
“Your fren,
“Seizar.”