232 



himself quite safe and snug in skulking away from 

 his own. 



March 26. 



Young Hill was told at the Bay this morning, 

 that I make a part of the Eboe King's song ! Ac- 

 cording to this report, " good King George and 

 good Mr. Wilberforce" are stated to have " given 

 me a paper" to set the negroes free (i. e. an order), 

 but that the white people of Jamaica will not suffer 

 me to show the paper, and I am now going home 

 to say so, and " to resume my chair, which I have 

 left during my absence to be filled by the Regent." 



Since I heard the report of a rebellious song issu- 

 ing from Cornwall, I have listened more attentively 

 to the negro chaunts ; but they seem, as far as I 

 can make out, to relate entirely to their own pri- 

 vate situation, and to have nothing to do with the 

 negro state in general. Their favourite, " We varry 

 well off," is still screamed about the estate by the 

 children ; but among the grown people its nose 

 has been put out of joint by the following stanzas, 

 which were explained to me this morning. For 

 several days past they had been dinned into my 

 ears so incessantly, that at length I became quite 

 curious to know their import, which I learned 

 from Phillis, who is the family minstrel. It will be 

 evident from this specimen, that the Cornwall bards 

 are greatly inferior to those of Black River, who 

 have actually advanced so far as to make an attempt 

 at rhyme and metre. 



