A True and Exd& Htfiory 



And leaves his wife to God, and her good fortune, in the room, and 

 ; upon the board alone, and calls a neighbour to come to her, who 

 gives little help to her delivery, but when the child is born, (which 

 me calls her Pickaninny) fhe helps to make a little fire near her feet, 

 and that lerves inftead of PofTets, Broaths, and Caudles. In a fort- 

 night, this woman is at wotk with her Pickaninny at her back, as 

 merry a foul as any is there If the Overfeer be difcreet , ftie is 

 lufFer d to reft her (elf a little more than ordinary , but if not, (lie is 

 compelled to do as others do. Tirties they have of luckling their 

 Children in the fields, and refrclhing themfelves ^ and good reafon, for 

 they carry burthens on their backs , and yet work too. Some women, 

 whofe Pickaninnies are three years old, will, as they work at weed- 

 ing, which is a ftooping work,iiifFer the hee Pickaninny, tofita ftride 

 upon their backs, like St. George a Horle-back , and there Spur his 

 mother with his heels , and fings and crows on her back, clapping 

 his hands, as if he meant to flye^ which the mother is fo pleas'd with, 

 as (he continues her painful ftooping pofture, longer than ftie would 

 do, rather than dilcompofe her Jovial Pickaninny of his plcafure , 

 fo glad fhe is to lee him merryi The work which the women do, is 

 moft of it weeding, a ftooping and painful vvork ^ at noon and night 

 they are call'd home by the ring of aBell,vvherethey have two hours 

 time for their repilft at noon 5 and at night, they reft from fix, till fix 

 a Clock next morning. 



On Sunday they reft,and have the whole day at their pleafure^ and 

 themoftofthemufeitasaday ofreftand pleafure^ but fbme of them 

 who will make benefit of that dayes liberty , go where the Man- 

 graVe trees grow, and gather the bark, of which they make 

 ropes, which they truck away for other Commodities, as Shirts 

 and Drawers. 



In the afternoons on Smidayes , they have their Mufick , which 

 is of kettle drums, and thofe of feveral fizes 5 upon the fmalleft the 

 beftMufitian play cs; and the other come in as ChorafTes : the drum all 

 men know, has but one tone 5 and therefore variety of tunes have little 

 to do in this mufick '•, and yet fb ftrangely they varic their time, as 'tis 

 a pleaftire to the moft curious ears, and it was to me one of the ftran- 

 geft noifesthat ever I heard made df one tone, and if they had the 

 variety of tune, which gives the greater fcope in Mufick, as they have 

 of time, they would do wonders in that Art* And if I had not fain 

 fick before rriy coming away, at leaft (even months in one fick- 

 nefs , I had given them fbme hints of tunes, which being under- 

 ftood , would have ferv'd as a great addition to theit harmony 5 

 fot time without tune , is not an eighth part of the Science of 

 Mufick. 



I found Jlldcow very apt for it ofhimfelf, and one day coming 

 into the houfe, (which none of the Negroes ufe to do, unlefs an OfB- 

 ccr, as he was,) he found me playing on a Theorbo , and finging to 

 it, which he hearkened very attentively to ^ and when I haddone^ 

 he t( ok the Theorbo in his hand, and ftrook one firing, flopping it by • 

 degrees upon every fret, and finding the notes to varie, till it came to 

 the body of the inftrument , and that the nearer the body of the in- 



ftrument 



