SEVERITY OF DUTCH CROIIXAL LAWS. 189 



Sir David Dimdcas, better known afterwards by the name 

 of " Old Pivot," who commanded our brigade. He gave us 

 a sharp reprimand, and threatened to put us under arrest 

 for t^uitting tlie cohimn ; however, it all ended in threats, 

 and we heard no more of it, and several of our officers 

 regretted much they had not been of our party. The 

 horrid sight we had just witnessed proved incontestably 

 how severe the Dutch criminal laws must have been at 

 that period. I am not aware whether they have been 

 ameliorated, like our own, but I believe that most think- 

 ing people are of opinion that we have gone from one 

 extreme to another ; for there are even members of Par- 

 liament, who are desirous that capital punishment should 

 be done away with altogether. I know that the Dutch 

 have ahvays been considered the most severe and 

 rigorous slavemasters, and, I regret to say, the English 

 stand next upon the list, and, what wall appear rather 

 extraordinary, the Spaniards are the most lenient. 

 This I can safely state from what I saw during nearly 

 two years that I resided in the republic of Columbia. 

 I have made use of the word " extraordinary," be- 

 cause one feels horrified on perusing the accounts of 

 the cruelties which were practised by Cortes, Pizarro, 

 and other Spaniards on the unfortunate Indians in the 

 working of the gold and silver mines in Mexico and 

 Peru ; but one may easily account for this by learning 

 that avarice and bigotry were the predominant passions 

 of those times. 



Our brigade consisted of the Grej^s, Bays, and Ennis- 

 killeus, literally all Scotch, English, and Irish regi- 

 ments. They were called the China Brigade. The 

 Bays, all bay horses with long tails ; the Grreys, all grey 

 horses with long tails ; and Enniskillens, all black with 



