32 
Marketing Conditions. 
ed by proceeds from the land-tax and land-sales. As regards weights and 
measures, English ones are taken as the standard, though the Dutch is 
still far more used in the former case: the latter's hundredweight differs 
from the English by 10 lbs., 110 Ihs. Dutch equalling 100 lbs. English. 
The whole receipts and expenditure for the Demerara, Essequibo and 
Berbice Districts from 1st January to 31st December 1812 amounted 
to:— Receipts 965,621 dollars 71% cents. Expenditure 965,621 dollars 
71% cents. The credit balance of the Colonial Treasury on 1st January 
1843 amounted to 103,749 dollars 91 cents. 
113. The recently built Market-place situate in the neighbourhood of 
the new Town Hall forms a highly interesting and lively picture, and as 
regards elegance of surroundings could undoubtedly be surpassed by but 
few European ones. The whole place is bordered by the finest shops up to 
which the clean and spotless butchers’ stalls extend: these again lead to 
the large slaughter-houses built over the river where all cattle have to be 
killed and cleaned, only after which can they be brought in to the stalls.* 
\ 11 dirt and useless remains immediately fall into the stream running 
along below where they are straightway caught in the greedy jaws of 
countless sharks and other carnivorous fish or else carried away with the 
falling tide. The numlier of these voracious monsters in the neighbour- 
hood of the slaughter: house is ineoneeivable and Cod help him who acci- 
dentally or imprudently slips into the water. In the case of a negro who 
during my stay fell into the water one only found a few gnawed bones 
when the tide fell not half an hour later. 
114. But however plentifully the market is supplied with meat and 
poultry, they both command an unusually high figure, for the reason 
that, in the former case, unless sold on the same day as slaughtered the 
meat turns bad, and in the latter because poultry-farming is no longer 
fostered to the extent it used to be previous to Emancipation when the 
slaves specially carried it on as a side business, although even now the 
main trade in fruit, ducks, fowls, turkeys and guinea-fowl is in the hands 
of the negroes. A large number of geese and turkey are in the meantime 
imported from North America. The usual pieces of meat and bread per 
pound are: — beef 25 eents, ham 45 cents, pork 22 cents, and bread 11 
cents. Fish and poultry are still dearer in comparison. Although the 
rivers of Guiana harbour the most valuable and tasty fish, it is yet im- 
possible to bring them down from the interior into the city in a fresh 
condition, because owing to the damp warm atmosphere they hardly re- 
main eatable beyond a few hours: Georgetown has therefore to rest con- 
tent with those caught in its immediate vicinity. North America almost 
always supplies butter and such like, for which the ice-ships offer the 
grandest opportunity. Fresh butter prepared in the Colony is one of the 
greatest luxuries': the cows supply so little milk that butter manufacture 
can only be thought of on the largest estates and farms. 
115. It is unnecessary to state that the poor people can rarely pro- 
vide themselves with fresh meat. Their main food accordingly consists of 
imported salt, meat, for even the local meat salted immed- 
iately after slaughtering is unite spoilt in a few days owing to meteor- 
ological conditions, and so-called salt-fish, a sort of stock material that is 
* In 1 920 one would have to search far and wide for the spotless butcher's stall ! (F.G.R.) 
