Appendices. — Surinam as a Dutch Possession. 179 



V. 

 1668, June 9. 



The King has protested on the Dutch Ambassadors his displeasure 

 that Surinam has been surrendered by Lord Willoughby. 

 lb. No. 985, pp. 56. 



VI. 



1668. November 6. Antigua — William Byam To [Sir Robert 

 Harley. The last I received from you was of the 30th of October [16] 

 66 from Brampton Castle, advising the sale of what you had in Surinam, 

 which arrived not to my hands till December last. The sad miseries 

 which war and pestilence brought on that colony I formerly advised, but 

 lest my letters have been misguided I shall present you with a short 

 account of that unfortunate colony which you well know. 



In June [16]66 I received orders to erect a fort at Pramorabo, and 

 to attack the French at Wynwad at Cheyan, and Syunamaru, which was 

 done with great succes, taking the fort of Synnamaru by storm, and 

 brought the governor and near fifty prisoners to Surinam ; and for fear 

 that the Dutch and Arwaks Leward should in the mean attempt us in 

 the absence of our force, I sent a fleet of periagosto fall on their quarters, 

 which was so fully prosecuted that they brought up about seventy slaves. 

 At the return of our forces, which was in August following, we were 

 visited with such a contagious pestilence that in a short time we lost a 

 great part of the chiefest men of the land. This retarded our fort, and 

 spread over all the country. In February following arrived a Dutch 

 fleet from Zealand, by the advice of Scott, to take the colony, which 

 found us in a most weak condition, near half our men dead, and half that 

 were living, miserably weak, ill armed, and our fort not half built, but 

 one bastion perfected. Viewing our exposed condition they came with 

 four frigates to an anchor very near the fort, where they battered with 

 all the nimble fury they could for three hours, and our walls being but 

 half built, commanded from their frigates the inside of the fort. I had 

 but five barrels of powder which was spent to fifty weight and that very 

 bad. They then landed about seven hundred men with scaling ladders, 

 grenades &c, and finding our works not tenable nor amunition to defend 

 them, if they had been finished, I called a council of war of all officers 

 and gentlemen that were with me and surrendered with their advice upon 

 most honourable terms. I had about ninety men, such as they were, with 

 me, most of which immediately clave to the Dutch. From hence I went 

 up to Toorarica where rallying all that ever I could with Jews and all, 

 old and young, sick and well, I could reach but to a hundred and sixty- 

 eight, and then with the advice of the Council and desire of the country 

 we articled with the Dutch, and the sooner because we expected every 

 minute a French fleet. In our capitulations we stood very much for the 

 same terms for all absent persons interested in the colony as for our- 

 selves, which by no means they would grant, having positive orders from 



