ページの画像
PDF
ePub
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

favourable refolution of the 22d * of October; an honour which he ⚫ receives with true reverence and gratitude, not without confufion at his own small defervings, while he views with exultation the univerfal public fpirit difperfed through an united people; and the matchless intrepidity of the ⚫ British failors and foldiers, conducted by officers, juftly famed thro' all the quarters of the world: · to this concurrence of national 'virtue, graciously protected by the throne, all the national profperities (under the favour of heaven), have been owing; and it will • ever be remembered to the glory of the city of London, that thro' the whole courfe of this arduous war, the great feat of commerce has generously fet the illuftrious example of fteady zeal for the dignity of the crown, and of un⚫ fhaken firmnefs and magnanimity.'

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[blocks in formation]

neceffarily kindling a new war in Europe. But, it is with concern, I acquaint you, that, fince your recefs, I have found myself indifpenfably obliged to declare war against Spain. The caufes are fet forth in my public declaration on this occafion; and therefore I fhall not detain you with the repetition of them. My own conduct, fince my acceffion to the throne, as well as that of the late king, my royal grandfather, towards Spain, has been so full of good-will and friendship; fo averfe to the laying hold of several juft grounds of complaint, which might have been alledged; and fo attentive to the advantages of the Catholic king, and his family; that it was matter of the greateft furprize to me, to find, that engagements had, in this conjuncture, been entered into between that crown, and France; and a treaty made to unite all the branches of the house of Bourbon, in the most ambitious, and dangerous defigns against the commerce, and independency of the rest of Europe; and particularly of my kingdoms. be en

Whatever colours may deavoured to be put upon these injurious proceedings of the court of Madrid, I have nothing to reproach myfelf with: and, though I have left nothing untried, that could have prevented this rupture, I have thought it neceffary to prepare against every event. I therefore rely on the divine bleffing on the juftice of my caufe; the zealous, and powerful afliftance of my faithful fubjects; and the concurrence of my allies, who must find themselves involved in the pernicious, and extenfive, projects of my enemies.

I leave these confiderations with

you,

[merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small][graphic][merged small]

CHARACTERS.

THERE is nothing that man is found to take more pleasure in than variety; and of all the varieties he is capable of contemplating, thofe obfervable in his own species, efpecially the noblest part of it, the foul or mind, are the most entertaining, as they certainly are the most interefting. It was for this reason we refolved to begin that part of this work, (calculated equally for amufe ment and inftruction) which is not merely biftorical, with the most firiking characters we could procure, not only of individuals; but of nations and other confiderable bodies of men.

In purfuance of this plan we gave in our last volume the character of a famous nation improved, if we may fay fo, by one, filed a Philofopher, into brutes. In the prefent, we fball lay before our readers as a fuitable companion to it, that of a confiderable number of men tranf formed by neceffity into downright Savages. We mean the Buccaneers of America, in that their original fituation from whence they derived their name. Some amufement, and even utility, must, we prefume, accrue from a comparison of fuch furprising effects of art and

[blocks in formation]

they were refolved that no others fhould do it for them; and therefore made a moft cruel war on all thofe of any other nation, who attempted to fettle in any of the Antiles or Carribee Islands. The French however were at laft lucky enough to acquire fome footing in the island of St. Chriftopher's; but by the time they began to fubfide into a regular form of government, the Spaniards found means to diflodge them. Upon this the wretched fugitives, confidering at how great a distance they were from their mother country, and how near to the island of Hifpaniola or St. Domingo, the northern parts of which were then uninhabited, and full of fwine and black cattle, they immediately refolved to take poffeffion of that country, in conjunction with feveral other adventurers of their own and the English nation; especially as the Dutch, who now began to appear in these feas, promifed to fupply them plentifully with all kinds of neceffaries they might procure, in exchange for the hides and tallow by hunting.

Thefe new fettlers obtained the name of Buccaneers from their cuftom of buccanning their beef and pork in order to keep it for fale, or for their own confumption, the method of which will be prefently defcribed. But fome of them foon grew tired of this new way of life, and took to planting, while many more chofe to turn pirates, trufting to find, among thofe who remained on fhore, a quick fale for all the plunder they

[blocks in formation]

could make at fea. This new body of adventurers were called Freebooters, from their making free prey or booty of whatever came in their way.

The colony now began to thrive at a great rate, by the cheap and ealy manner in which the Freebooters acquired the greatest riches, and the profufion with which they distributed them among their old companions the Buccaneers and Planters for the mereft trifles. This brought numbers of Settlers from Old France in quality of indented fervants, tho' they toiled rather like flaves during the three years for which they generally bound themfelves.

Thus the colony confifted of four claffes; Buccaneers, Freebooters, Planters, and Indented Servants who generally remained with the Buccaneers, or Planters. And these four orders compofed what they now began to call the body of Adventurers. These people lived together in a perfect harmony under a kind of democracy; every free man had a defpotic authority over his own family, and every captain was a fovereign in his own fhip, though liable to be difcarded at the difcretion of the crew.

The Planters fettled chiefly in the little island of Tortuga on the northern coast of Hifpaniola; but it was not long before fome of them going to the great ifland to hunt with the Buccaneers, the reft were furprised by the Spaniards, and all, even those who had furrendered at difcretion in hopes of mercy, were put to the fword, or hanged.

The next care of the Spaniards was to rid the great ifland of the Buccaneers, and for this reafon they affembled a body of 500 lancemen, who, by their feldom going

fewer than fifty in a company, ob tained the name of The Fifties from their enemies, whofe manners and customs we shall now enter upon.

The Buccaneers lived in little huts built on fome spots of cleared ground juft large enough to drý their fkins on, and contain their buccanning houfes. These spots they called Boucans, and the huts they dwelt in Ajoupas, a word which they borrowed from the Spaniards, and the Spaniards from the natives. Though thefe Ajoupas lay open on all fides, they were very agreeable to the hardy inhabitants, in a climate where wind and air are fo very defirable things. As the Buccaneers had neither wife nor child, they affociated by pairs, and mutually rendered each other all the fervices a master could reasonably expect from a fervant, living together in fo perfect a community, that the furvivor always fucceeded his deceased partner. This kind of union or fellowship they called S'emateloter [infailoring], and each other Matelot [failor,] whence is derived the custom of giving, at leaft in fome parts of the French Antilles, the name Matelotage [failorage], to any kind of fociety formed by private perfons for their mutual advantage. They behaved to each other with the greatest juftice and opennefs of heart; it would have been a crime to keep any thing under lock and key, but on the other hand the leaft pilfering was unpardonable, and punished with expulfion from the community. And indeed there could be no great temptation to fteal, when it was reckoned a point of honour never to refufe a neighbour what he wanted; and where there was fo little pro perty, it was impoffible there fhould be many difputes. If any happen

ed, the common friends of the parties at variance interpofed, and foon put an end to the difference.

As to laws, the Buccaneers acknowledged none but an odd jumble of conventions made between themselves, which, however, they regarded as the fovereign rule. They filenced all objections by cooly answering, that it was not the cuftom of the coaft, and grounded their right of acting in this manner, on their baptifm under the tropic, which freed them, in their opinion, from all obligations antecedent to that marine ceremony. The governor of Tortuga, when that island was again fettled, though appointed by the French court, had very little authority over them; they contented themselves with rendering him from time to time fome flight homage. They had in a manner entirely thaken off the yoke of religion, and thought they did a great deal, in not wholly forgetting the God of their Fathers. We are furprifed to meet with nations, among whom it is a difficult matter to difcover any traces of a religious worship: And yet it is certain, that had the Buccaneers of St. Domingo been perpetuated on the fame footing they fubfifted at the time we are fpeaking of, the third or fourth generation of them would have as little religion as the Caffres and Hottentots of Africa, or the Topinambous and Cannibals of America.

They even laid afide their furnames, and affumed nick-names, or martial names, most of which have continued in their families to this day. Many however, on their marrying, which feldom happened till they turned planters, took care to have their real furnames inferted in the marriage contract; and this practice gave occasion to a proverb,

ftill current in the French Antilles, A man is not to be known till he takes a wife.

Their drefs confifted of a filthy greafy fhirt, dyed with the blood of the animals they killed, a pair of troufers ftill more nafty, a thong of leather by way of belt, to which they hung a cafe containing fome Dutch knives, and a kind of very short fabre called Manchette, a hat without any brim, except a little flap on the front to take hold of it by, and fhoes of hogfkin all of a piece. Their guns were four feet and a half in the barrel and of a bore to carry balls of an ounce. Every man had his contract fervants, more or fewer according to his abilities, befides a pack of twenty or thirty dogs, among which there was always a couple of beagles. Their chief employment at firft was ox-hunting, and, if at any time they chased a wild hog, it was rather for paftime, or to make provision for a feaft, than for any other advantage. Bat, in procefs of time, fome of them betook themselves entirely to hunting of hogs, whofe flesh they buccanned in the following manner:

First, they cut the flesh into long pieces, an inch and a half thick, and fprinkled them with falt, which they rubbed off after twenty-four hours. Then they dried thefe pieces in ftoves over a fire made of the fkin and bones of the beaft, till they grew as hard as a board, and affumed a deep brown colour. Pork prepared in this manner will keep in casks a twelvemonth and longer, and when steeped but a little while in lukewarm water, become plump and rofy, and yield moreover a moft grateful fmell, either broiled or boiled, or otherwise dressed, enough to tempt the most languid appetite, and please the most delicate palate.

[blocks in formation]
« 前へ次へ »