SlewarVs Past and Present State of Jamaica, 



61 S 



tnent. It is contrary t&tlie law for the 

 slaves to beat their drums after ten o'clocli 

 at ni^ht; but tiiis law they pay little 

 regard to. Their music is vrry rude; 

 it consists of the iroomhaij or drum, seve- 

 ral rattles, and the voices of the female 

 slaves, which, by the hyc, is the best 

 part of the music, tl)0Ui;li altogether it 

 is very rude. The drums of the Africans 

 vary in shape, size, &c. according to the 

 different countries, as does also their 

 vocal music. In a few years it is proba- 

 ble that the rude music here described 

 will be altogether exploded among the 

 Creole negroes, who shew a decided pre- 

 ference for European music. Its instru- 

 ments, its tunes, its dances, are now 

 pretty generally adopted by the young 

 Creoles, who indeed sedulously copy their 

 masters and mistresses in every thing. 



On new-year's day, it is customary for 

 the Creole negro girls of the towns, who 

 conceive themselves superior to those on 

 the plantations, to exhibit themselves in 

 all the pride of gaudy finery, under the 

 denomination of Blues and Reds — \)\\t- 

 ties ui rivalship and opposition to each 

 other. They arc generally dressed with 

 much taste, sometimes at the expense 

 of their white and brown misti esses, who 

 take a [)ride in shewing them off to tlic 

 greatest advantage. 



At their funerals, the African negroes 

 use various ceremonies, among which is 

 the practice of pouring libations, and 

 sacrificing a fowl, on the grave of the 

 <lcceased — a Iribiile of respect tliey af- 

 terwards occasionally repeat. Duiing 

 the whole of the ceremony, many fan- 

 tastic motions and wild grslicidalions 

 are practised, accompanied with a suita- 

 ble beat of their drums and otlior rude 

 instruments, while a nielanrholy iliige 

 is sung by a feniale, the chorus of which 

 is performed by tiic whole of the other 

 females, with admirable precision, and 

 full toned and not unmelodious voices. 

 When the deceased is interred, the 

 plaintive notes of sympathy are no Ion 

 ger heard, the drums resound with a 

 livelier beat, the song grow s jnore ani- 

 mated, dancing and apparent merriment 

 commcneo, and llic remainder «)f tlic 

 night is usually spent in feasting and 

 riotous d('ban<;h('ry. 



The most daiig<'r4>us practice, arising 

 from a su|)erKlilioiis credulity, pre\ailing 

 among the negraes, is, wl at is called 

 vbf.uli, a j)retend(d soit of wileheraft. 

 ( )ne negro « ho desires (o be revenged on 

 another, and is afr:'.id to make an open 

 and manly attack (Mi bis adveisary, has 

 lisually recourse to obtah. This is cgn- 

 1 



sidered as a potent and irresistible spell, 

 withering and palsying, by uuilescribable 

 terrors and unwotiled sensations, the un- 

 happy victim. Like the witches' cauldron 

 in Macbeth, it is a combination of many 

 sirange and ominous things— earth ga. 

 thered from a grave, human blood, a 

 piece of wood fashioned in the shape of 

 a coffin, the featliers ot tiie carrion-crow, 

 a snake's or alligator's tooth, j)icces of 

 egg-shell, and other nameless ingredients, 

 composi; the fatal mixture. 



The Afiican negroes of the West 

 Indies, whatever superstitious notions 

 they may bring with them from their 

 native country, agree in believing the 

 existence of an omnipotent Being, who 

 will reward or punish us in a futine life 

 for our good or evil actions in this. 

 But their ideas in other respects are pe- 

 culiar and faneilul. They think that 

 for some uncxpiatcd guilt, or through 

 some unaccoimtahle folly ol the primitive 

 blacks, servitude was the unfortunate 

 lot assigned to them, while dominion 

 was given to the more favoined whiles. 

 Their superstitious f-everenee for certain 

 animals, common in their own country, 

 they retain in some degree. Some tri!)es 

 are far more rational than others in their 

 religions o|)inions. By intercomsc with 

 each other, and witli the i'linojjeaus, tlio 

 absurdity of many of their native super- 

 stitions is gradually laid aside — at least 

 in practice. One opinion they all agree 

 in, and that is the expectation that, after 

 death, they shall first return to their na- 

 tive country, and enjoy again the society 

 of kindred and friends, from whom they 

 have been torn away in an evil hour. 

 This idea, combined with their terrors, 

 used lo prompt nunilx'rs, on their first 

 arrival, to acts of suici<lc. 



Alter a term of years, the Africans, 

 liowevir, bieome more reronciled to 

 their new situation, particularly if they 

 have the good fortune to full into Ihc 

 hatxls of a humane master, and are in- 

 dustrious and get famili<.'s ; in \vlii(di 

 case II1C3 retain, as has been said, but 

 little of their primitive sujierstilion, and 

 cxpcritiKM; no wish to return, bad they 

 it even in th( ir power, to their original 

 wild life and savage .slate of pret.'arious 

 lilMTly. 



l^itile lierotoforo has b(-en done to- 

 wards instructing (he sl.avesin (.'hristian- 

 ilv, and that little cliielly through the 

 ed'orts of diss(-nting missionaiics. Some 

 of these were low ignoiant nun, «ho 

 p(ilia|)s did mole harm than good by 

 tlieir inslinetions, if Ihcy mii;lit lu< so 

 c;ilicd. Insl(ad of inculcating the plain 

 practical 



