Letters of Aristodemus and Sincerus. 231 



Netherlands, was chosen to proceed to the colony, with 

 Mr. C. C. CANNE, an engineer, provided with authoriza- 

 tions and instructions to initiate the new work and settle 

 the site of the new town. 



On their arrival they found the nucleus of a town 

 existing, and after some hesitation it was chosen as the 

 seat of government and named Stabroek. A Directeur- 

 General, Jan. L'Espi.NASSE, and other officials came out 

 in March, 17S5, and took over the Government from 

 JOSEPH Bourda and his three associate councillors, 

 who had remained in office during the English and 

 French occupation, and chose other councillors. JOSEPH 

 BOURDA and his associates having been chosen for life 

 as representative councillors, the planters did not like 

 this state of things, but when the taxes were raised they 

 openly murmured and petitioned against it. "If any 

 colony (said they) had a right to demand freedom of 

 taxes, if only for one year, it is this, when it is taken 

 into account the great losses suffered by war and its 

 results. It commenced with the loss of thirty-two ships 

 at sea and in the rivers, of which many were full and 

 others partly laden with the produce of the colony; this 

 was followed by great scarcity of the necessaries of life; 

 during many months we were without ships to load pro- 

 duce, so that the sugar ran away to molasses, and much 

 coffee was spoilt by weevils. When at the latter part 

 of 1 78 1 some English vessels arrived and took in their 

 loads, then came the French squadron to disappoint our 

 expectations, taking the colony from our enemy, and by 

 right of war the produce in the British vessels became 

 again confiscated, so that the planters and inhabitants 

 suffered a new loss. In the last month of the English 



