. 
"4 
y 
a 
C. His RIA 
_ would not hesitate to name among 
the first dainties of the epicurean 
list. I know not whence the word 
jirked is derived, but it signifies 
cutting or scoring internally the 
flesh of the wild hog, which is then 
smoaked and otherwise prepared in 
amanner that gives it avery fine 
flavour. ‘Ihe taste is a sense more 
peculiarly dependent upon social 
habits than any of the rest; we soon 
‘learn to relish the viands agreeable 
to those about us in the earlier part 
of life, and to eat and drink as our 
parents and friends do. The want 
of a refined palate would not be sur- 
prising among a set of uncivilised 
Africans, but it would be surpris- 
ing to find them preferring wine to 
tum, when we recolleét that they 
are accustomed to the latter from 
their infancy, and that they know 
nothing of the former; that fer- 
mented liquors are insipid to the 
palate used to distilled ones, and 
that one might as well. expect a 
London drayman to prefer pale 
small beer to brown stout. I re- 
member once offering a white man, 
in Jamaica, his choice of wine or 
rum, having, at the time, no brandy 
drawn ; he chose the latter, with this 
vanswer: ‘‘Oh! sir, any thing that 
bites the throat.” 
The Maroons, in general, speak, 
like most of the other negroes in the 
island, a peculiar dialeét of English, 
corrupted with African words; and 
certainly understand our language 
sufficiently well to have received in- 
Struction in it. {£ cannot be of 
opinion, that a sincere and fervent 
endeayour to introduce christianity 
among them, would have failed. It 
is true, that a prejudice in favour of 
the magic of Obeah prevailed among 
them, as among other negroes; but 
‘it is no less true, that the influence 
/__~ 
Ci HAMS; 791 
of this prejudice operated different- 
ly, according to the strength of their 
understanding and experience. The 
greatest dupes to it were the most 
ignorant; and it was a generally 
received opinion, that the charm of 
Obeah could have no power over 
any negro who had heen baptized : 
not but that the weaker ones, whe- 
ther Maroons or others, dreaded 
the arts of Obeah, even after bap- 
tism. Minds forming this estimate 
of christianity, could not but be 
prepared to embrace its soothing 
doctrines ; and it must always be 
lamented, that no attempts were 
ever made to introduce our religion 
among the black people in the colo- 
nies. I mean to resume this sub- 
ject when I come to speak of the 
present state of Jamaica; and shall 
here only observe, that the supersti- 
tion of Obeah would have vanished 
before the power of christianity, 
and that no other power is likely to 
eradicate it. The Maroons con- 
tinued to believe; like their fore-fa- 
thers, that Accompong was the god 
of the heavens, the creator of all 
things, and a deity of infinite good- 
ness: but they neither offered sacri- 
fices to him, nor had any mode of 
worship. 
It is not to be supposed that an 
illiterate body of people, among 
whom ambition was unknown, and 
who spent their lives chiefly in 
hunting, raising provisions, and tra- 
versing the roads in pursuit of run. 
aways, would attend to nice regula- 
tions for their internal government. 
There was no public revenue to ma- 
nage, no army to maintain, though 
the whole formed a wilitary body, 
under appointed officers: right and 
wrong were supposed to be under- 
stood, without being defined. ‘The 
town consisted of a certain number 
3E 4 ef 
