148 



him : the law will not suffer any negro to be 

 shipped off* the island, until he shall have been 

 convicted of felony at the sessions ; I cannot sell 

 him, for nobody would buy him, nor even accept 

 him, if I would offer them so dangerous a present; 

 if he were to go away, the law would seize him, 

 and bring him back to me, and I should be obliged 

 to pay heavily for his re-taking and his maintenance 

 in the workhouse. In short, I know not what I 

 can do with him, except indeed make a Christian 

 of him ! This might induce the negroes to believe, 

 that he had lost his infernal power by the superior 

 virtue of the holy water ; but, perhaps he may re- 

 fuse to be christened. However, I will at least ask 

 him the question ; and if he consents, I will send 

 him — and a couple of dollars — to the clergyman — 

 for he shall not have so great a distinction as baptism 

 from massa's own hand — and see what effect 

 " white Obeah " will have in removing the terrors 

 of this professor of the black. 



As to my sick Obeah patient, Pickle, from the 

 moment of his reconciliation with his brother-in- 

 law he began to mend, and has recovered with 

 wonderful rapidity: the fellow seems really grateful 

 for the pains which I have taken about him ; and 

 our difficulty now is to prevent his fancying him- 

 self too soon able to quit the hospital, so eager is 

 he to return " to work for massa." 



There are certainly many excellent qualities in 

 the negro character; their worst faults appear 



