SURINAM. 
761 
Pistil: germs five, roundish. Styles solitary, filiform, erect, 
length of the stamens, inserted into the middle and inner 
side of the germ. Stigmas obtuse. Pericarp none. Seeds 
five, roundish .—Essential Character. Calyx: five-leaved; 
S ' ’s five. Styles inserted into the inner side of the germs, 
s five, naked. 
Suriana maritima.—Stem shrubby, a fathom high, unarmed. 
Branches erect, subdivided, round, cicatrised with the fallen 
leaves, glaucous, pubescent. Leaves clustered, in bundles 
towards the ends of the branchlets, erect, wedged, nerveless, 
veinless, villose-pubescent, pale green : on very short petioles. 
Peduncles terminating and axillary, shorter than the leaves, 
from three to five-flowered. Flowers small, yellow. Number 
of stamens always five.—Native of the sea-coast of South 
America and the islands in the West Indies. 
Propagation and Culture .—Sow the seeds on a hot-bed 
early in the spring; when the plants come up, weed them and 
refresh them frequently with water. In the winter these plants 
must be kept very warm, especially whilst they are young. 
They must also be frequently refreshed with water, but it 
must not be given them in large quantities in cold weather. 
These plants make slow progress the first year, but after¬ 
wards will grow pretty freely. 
SURIMENA, a populous settlement of New Granada, 
in the province of Los Llanos de Neiba, on the shore of the 
river Meta. 
SURINAM, a flourishing colony of Guiana, in South 
America, settled and improved by the Dutch. It is bounded 
on the north by the Atlantic, on the east by the river Mara- 
wina, on the south by a country of Indians, and on the 
west by the river Corentin ; about 150 miles from east to 
west, and 60 from north to south. The principal rivers 
that belong to this settlement are the river Surinam, from 
which the colony takes its name, the Corentin, the Copen- 
ame, the Seramica, and the Marawina. Of those rivers the 
first only is navigable ; the rest, not excepting the Mara¬ 
wina, being, though very long and broad, so shallow, and 
so extremely crowded with rocks and small islands, that 
they are of little consequence to Europeans, nor are their 
banks inhabited, except by some of the Indians or natives 
of the country. The other branch into which this large 
river is divided, is named Commewina, and keeps due east 
for about 16 miles, with a depth of about three or four 
fathoms at high-water mark; but as the tide makes a dif¬ 
ference of 15 feet, it is not considered as navigable for any 
ships of burden, though its breadth may be computed at 
about two miles. The banks of this river, though later 
cultivated than those of the river Surinam, are in a more 
flourishing condition; and as it runs parallel with the sea- 
coast, they enjoy the benefit of the sea breezes, and are 
reckoned more healthy. Coffee is mostly planted on the 
estates which lie on the side of this river; and as its pre¬ 
paration requires many buildings, the plantations have a 
fine appearance. At the distance of 16 miles, the river 
Commewina is again divided into two branches, one of 
which bears the same name to the south-east, for a length of 
above 50 miles, and that of Cottica to the east-south-east, 
for more than 40 miles, when this last takes a meandering 
course to the south-south-west for the distance of 24 or 30 
miles. Into all these rivers, the courses of which are not 
straight, but serpentine, are discharged a number of very 
large creeks or rivulets, the banks of which are inhabited 
by Europeans, and cultivated with sugar, cocoa, cotton, 
and indigo plantations, which form the most delightful 
prospects that can be imagined to those who travel by water, 
the universal mode of journeying in this country, as the soil 
is in general ill adapted for the construction of roads; and 
in some places the woods, &c., are absolutely impenetrable, 
a small path of communication between Paramaribo and 
the river Seramica, being the only passable road in the 
settlement. The rivers whose banks are uncultivated, such 
as the Corentin, Copename, Seramica, and Marawina, afford 
but little matter for description. It is therefore only neces¬ 
sary to remark, that they are generally from two to four 
miles in breadth, exceedingly shallow, and crowded with 
Von. XXIII. No. 1606. 
quick-sands, small islands, and rocks, which form a number 
of beautiful cascades. In the river Marawina is frequently 
found a curious stone or pebble, which is known by the 
name of the Marawina diamond, and which, being polished, 
bears a very near resemblance to that most valuable gem, 
and is consequently often set in rings, &c. In all the above 
rivers, without exception, the water rises and falls for more 
than 60 miles from the mouth, occasioned by the stoppage 
of the freshes by the tide, yet fresh water may generally be 
met with about 24 or 30 miles from the mouths of these 
rivers, for watering the ships. The climate of Surinam, 
which was formerly extremely fatal to Europeans, has within 
the last 20 years been considerably improved. The great 
population of the colony, and the better clearing of the 
ground, has been the principal cause of this happy change. 
Formerly extensive swamps exhaled thick clouds of vapour, 
and being shaded by immense forests, the breezes had little 
or no power of dispersing them, so that in the time of the 
heavy rains, they became stationary the greatest part of the 
year. But now a more serene atmosphere prevails. The 
year is divided into two dry and two wet seasons. When 
the sun is advancing from the tropic of Cancer, within 12 
or 10 degrees, light showers refresh the land: this begins 
about the middle of April, and increases till about the middle 
of June, when the rain falls in torrents, and greatly surprise 
those who have lately come from the north of Europe; but 
in the southern part, as Portugal and Italy, the showers are 
sometimes as heavy, though sooner over. At the beginning 
of July these heavy rains begin to decrease, and in August 
the long dry season begins, and continues till November. 
When the sun is approaching to the line from the tropic of 
Capricorn, the second wet season begins; but as at that time 
the sun is more distant from this part of the globe, the 
showers do not then last so long. Captain Stedman found 
no difference in the two rainy seasons; but as he was most 
of his time in the forest in the interior parts of the colony, 
where it always rains more than in the vicinity of Parama¬ 
ribo, he had no opportunity of observing the distinction. 
December and January constitute the short rainy season. 
February and March the short dry season. The highest 
degree of heat during the dry season is stated to be 91 
degrees; but in general the thermometer ranges between 
84 and 75. This equal degree of heat is owing to the sea- 
breezes, which regularly set in at 10 o’clock, and continue 
till 5 in the afternoon, cooling the atmosphere, and refresh¬ 
ing all nature with an equable and constantly flowing stream 
of delightful air. Of the animal and vegetable productions, 
an account will be found under the general article Guiana. 
The uncultivated parts are covered with immense forests, 
rocks, and mountains; some of the latter enriched with 
a great variety of mineral substances; and the whole coun¬ 
try is intersected by very deep marshes or swamps, and by 
extensive heaths or savannas. The stream along the coast 
flows continually towards the north-west, and the whole 
shore is rendered almost inaccessible, from its being covered 
with dangerous banks, quicksands, bogs, and rocks, with 
prodigious bushes, and a large quantity of brush-wood, 
which are so closely interwoven as to be impenetrable. 
That part of Terra Firma which is called Guiana, or The 
Wild Coast, and in which lies the colony of Surinam, is said 
by some to have been first discovered by the justly cele¬ 
brated Christopher Columbus, in the year 1498, when he was 
sent home in chains; though others contend, that it was 
not discovered till the year 1504, by Vasco Unes, a Spaniard: 
In 1579, it was visited by Sir Walter Raleigh, under 
queen Elizabeth, who also sailed up the river Orinoco above 
600 miles, in search of the supposed El Dorado, and in 
hopes of discovering the gold mines, of which he had the 
most lively expectations, from samples of a marcasite, which 
the Spaniards call viadre de oro. In the year 1634, a 
Captain Marshal, and about 60 English, were discovered in 
Surinam, employed in planting tobacco, according to the 
relation of David Pitease de Vries, a Dutchman, who con¬ 
versed with them upon the spot. In 1640, Surinam was 
inhabited by the French, who were obliged to leave it soon 
9 H after. 
