58 THE MAROON PARTY; 



completely died away ; and our sails flapped idly against the masts 

 and yards. It was about ten o'clock the period when the heat is 

 most intolerable ; after this, the ardent solar rays are rendered more 

 supportable by the trade-winds, which generally vary from south- 

 east to north-east ; these are much less constant than is supposed. 

 Our party assembled on the aft-part of the cutter, under an awning, 

 where breakfast was provided, which consisted of chocolate, bread, 

 some caribed snappers, or red fish, and avocado pears,* or, as they are 

 commonly called, " vegetable marrow." During breakfast we were 

 much amused by listening to a dialogue on the subject of religion 

 between Cuffy and one of the negro sailors called Abdalla ; the for- 

 mer was a Creole and a Methodist, the latter a Man dingo, and, like 

 all his countrymen, a Mahometan. Cuffy was labouring hard for the 

 conversion of the other, and, I am sorry to say, took an unjustifiable 

 method to effect his purpose, considering his manoeuvres in the light 

 of what are called pious frauds. He did not scruple to abandon ar- 

 guments in favour of Christianity by appealing to Abdalla's faith in 

 the marvellous ; and related several extraordinary miracles that he 

 protested to have witnessed. Wishing to impress on the Mahometan's 

 mind the necessity of keeping the fourth commandment, he told 

 him, that one Sunday he (Cuffy) visited a friend who was cutting 

 down a tree in his grounds ; he remonstrated in vain against this im- 

 piety ; the other proceeded in his labour, but was converted by the 

 following incident : Just as he gave the tree the coup de grace, much 

 louder than the creaking noise which accompanies the falling of a 

 tree, the friends heard the said tree call out the words, " Oh Lord, 

 Oh!" The next marvellous anecdote of Cuffy's was of a more po- 

 sitive kind. He related that, some years since, he was attached to a 

 plantation in Naparima. An accident happening to a part of the 

 frame of the sugar-mill in the middle of crop, the manager, not to lose 

 time, ordered some of the negroes, and two yoke of oxen, to go into 

 the woods the next morning, although Sunday, for the purpose of 

 bringing home some timber ; but the cattle well knowing they were 

 included in the exemption from labour, " struck work/' In vain the 

 negroes applied whip and goad to stimulate the animals ; they 



would not move. " D n the oxen !" cried the manager ; " why 



won't they draw ?" No sooner had he said this, than according to 

 Cuffy one of them (a black Porto Rico oxen) spoke, and said in 

 reply to the impious manager, * 'Cause Gor-amighty make week 

 wid seben days for work, and one for rest." " Seben days for work, 

 and one day for rest !" rejoined Abdallah, with an incredulous air. 

 "I nebber ben sabby (I never knew) dat week hab eight days be- 

 fore !" " You dam Willy force nigger !" rejoined Cuffy, losing at 

 once his temper and religious scruples at hearing his veracity im- 

 peached. " You dam Willy force nigger ! you tink cattle sabby 

 reckon good as Cristin." 



Of all people I ever met, West India negroes have the art of 

 telling lies with the greatest gravity. Shortly after my first taking 

 up my residence in a distant part of the island, I observed that when- 



* The fruit of the Lauris Persea. 



