22 TiMEHRI. 



colony and it was agreed that expeditions should be 

 sent out by both colonies. Accordingly Charles 

 Edmonstone was appointed to lead the Demerara 

 contingent which resulted in a very great success. The 

 following is one of the reports of the Captain to 

 Governor Bentinck, read in the Court of Policy on 

 January i8th 1810: — 



" My former despatches from Mahaicony would ac- 

 quaint you of my succeeding equal to my most sanguine 

 expe6lations ; for, on holding out a promise of freedom, 



23 negroes surrendered ; 43 were surprised while con- 

 certing on the proffered terms, 10 were taken prisoners 

 and 26 more were killed, making altogether 102. The 

 conditions on which they surrendered were, besides a 

 free pardon of life or corporal punishment, that they are 

 never to be returned to their former owners, but be sent 

 from the colony and disposed of in some of the adjacent 

 islands. These I conceive are agreeable to your Ex- 

 cellency's wishes, and are stri6lly the conditions. I 

 trust that as I have pledged my word of honour, no 

 objection will be made by any member of the Court, for 

 I must candidly assure your Excellency that were these 

 negroes left alone the consequences would be serious, 

 not only to that colony, but to this also. Such however 

 is the confidence I have in the negroes brought in, that 

 with all due deference to your Excellency and the Hon- 

 ourable members of the Court, I beg to suggest that 20 

 or 25 might be sele6led to aft as guides, or to form part 

 of a Yager Corps to assist in any future expedition. I 

 consider it highly necessary that two of the negroes 

 should be sent immediately from Mahaicony with an offer 

 of pardon to the remainder, and in two weeks after, a 



