Narrative, of a five years' expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam, in Guiana on the Wild Coast of South America; from the year 1772 to 1777 ... Volume 2 (of 2)Stedman, John Gabriel
History
Narrative, of a five years' expedition against the Revolted Negroes of Surinam, in Guiana on the Wild Coast of South America; from the year 1772 to 1777 ... Volume 2 (of 2)
Stedman, John Gabriel
Indians of South America -- Guiana; Slavery -- Suriname -- History -- 18th century; Stedman, John Gabriel, 1744-1797 -- Travel -- Suriname; Suriname -- Description and travel; Suriname -- History -- To 1814
On the 9th, my boy Quaco returned from Paramaribo; his master, Mr.
Walter Kennedy, having, to my great joy, sold him to me for the sum of
five hundred Dutch florins, amounting with the expences to near fifty
pounds, for which Colonel Fourgeoud very civilly gave me a bill on his
agent. The payment of this faithful servant’s ransom, of course revived
my impatience for the long-wished moment of emancipation of my poor
Joanna and her boy; from whose new master I had not yet received any
answer.
While we continued here, a negro brought me a beautiful butterfly,
which I copied with all the correctness I was master of; and which I
saw since in Madam Merian’s collection, where it is coloured very ill.
This fly was a dark blue tinged with green, and variegated with spots
like a peacock’s feather, and on each wing it had a spot of pale
yellow; the under part of the wings were a charming crimson and purple;
the body a pale red.—The caterpillar is green and yellow; it is crowned
with eight horns on the head, and has two on the tail. About the same
time Captain Fredericy returned also from traversing the woods. He had
a corporal drowned by slipping off a tree in crossing over a creek;
which accident frequently happened, but the men were generally picked
up, except this poor fellow, who sunk to the bottom instantly with all
his accoutrements.
Another negro also brought me a regale of groe-groe, or cabbage-tree
worms, as they are called in Surinam.
This reptile is produced in a tree called the mountain-cabbage-tree,
which is one of the palm species. The worm grows to the size and
thickness of a man’s thumb, is produced from the spawn of a black
beetle, and is extremely fat. However disgusting to appearance, these
worms are a delicious treat to many people, and they are regularly sold
at Paramaribo. The manner of dressing them, is by frying them in a pan
with a very little butter and salt, or spitting them on a wooden
skewer. In taste they partake of all the spices of India, as mace,
cinnamon, cloves, nutmegs, &c. Several species of these worms are
produced in all the palm-trees when beginning to rot, but some are
larger than others. They are all of a pale yellow colour, with black
heads. In the plate annexed are represented the above-mentioned fine
butterfly, and the cabbage-tree-worm, both of the natural size, taken
from the life. By the Indians and negroes they are called toecoema.
On the 13th, a detachment departed for La Rochelle in Patamaca, and the
following day a captain was sent with a few men back to the Hope, in
Comewina, to protect the estates in that river.
On the same day, the miserable old negro who had cut his throat on the
5th day of March, but had since recovered, was seen by some slaves to
enter the wood with a knife, from which he no more returned, being soon
after found stabbed to death. We were afterwards informed by his
master, that for some time before he had attempted to do the same
almost regularly from month to month.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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