130 Timehri. 



Dutch colonies in 1796 and gave a chatty account of what he saw and ex- 

 perienced in the form of letters. Here is his account of Vhssengen 

 before any leases had been given for building purposes. The middle walk 

 of the plantation is now Regent street. 



" I have made a visit to a coffee plantation near the town, where I 

 saw an extensive display of the luxuriancy of the soil of Guiana. This 

 estate differs from the wide fields upon the coast : only in being a flat 

 surface of coffee, instead of cotton ; but is rendered rich and invit- 

 ing, from being traversed with green walks, shaded with fine rows of trees, 

 whose loaded branches bend under the various species of tropical fruits, 

 serving at the same time to delight the eye, regale the olfactories and re- 

 fresh the palate. A pleasant path, more than a mile in length, and of 

 sufficient width for carriages, leads down the middle of the estate, the 

 sides being decorated with mangoes, oranges, Avigata pears, and many 

 other kinds of fruit." 



Dr. Pinckard was very impartial and could give the dark side of the 

 plantation system, but he does not fail to praise it in some cases. His 

 account of Pin. Profit, now part of Providence, shows well the bright 

 side : — 



" The slaves of Mr. Dougan are not only fed and clothed, and tenderly 

 watched in sickness, without any personal thought or concern ; but each 

 has his appropriate spot of ground and his cottage, in which he feels a 

 right as sacred as if secured to him by all the seals and parchments of 

 the Lord High Chancellor of England and his Court ! " 



Bolingbroke's " Voyage to Demerary," 1807, is interestiug but not 

 very reliable ; his account of the systems of fees so common when officials 

 had small salaries is interesting : — 



" All official documents and colonial papers pass through the 

 Governor's office, and for every time he signs his name, his private 

 secretary receives two dollars, for which he no doubt accounts to the 

 principal. Evidences given before the courts of justice are in the form of 

 affidavits, which must be made before His Excellency. Passports for 

 people leaving the country, permissions for ships to load or discharge, 

 powers of attorney, and various other papers of a similar tendency, must 

 undergo his signature ; thus besides suffering a previous tax from the 

 office, out of which tbey are first granted, they are burthened by paying 

 for the Governor's signature. No wonder our West Indian Governors 

 grow rich, when they have such opportunities." 



" Those who approach tho altar of hymen, are principally people of 

 colour, who in conformity with the laws, are obliged to receive permis- 

 sion from this ecclesiastical court, for which they pay the extravagant fee 

 of one hundred and ten guilders. ... An English gentleman who was 

 on the eve of marrying a Dutch lady, attempted to break through this law, 

 and intended to be married according to the established form of the 

 Church of England ; when the vice-president of the court, fearing he 



