beagles. Their chief employment at firft was ox-hunting; and if at any time they chafed a wild hog, it was rather for paftime, and to make provifion for a feaft, than for any other advantage. But in process of time, fome of them 'betook themselves entirely to hunting of hogs, whose flesh they buccanned in the following manner:

First, they cut the flesh into long pieces an inch and a • half thick, and sprinkled them with falt, which they rubbed off after twenty-four hours. Then they dried thefe pieces in ftoves, over a fire made of the skin and bones of the beast, till they grew as hard as a board, and of a deep brown colour. Pork prepared in this manner will keep in casks a twelvemonth and longer; and when fteeped but a little while in luke-warm water, become plump and rofy, and yield moreover a moft grateful fmell, either broiled or boiled, < or otherwife dreffed, enough to tempt the most languid appetite, and pleafe the most delicate palate. Thofe who hunt the wild boar, have of late been called fimply • Hunters.

In hunting, they set out at day-break, preceded by their beagles, and followed by their fervants, with the rest of their dogs. The beagles often led their mafters, who ven⚫tured to follow them, through moft dreadful roads. As foon as they had roufed the game, the rest of the dogs ftruck up, and furrounded the beaft, ftopping it, and keeping a conftant barking till the Buccaneer could approach to 'fhoot it, in which he commonly aimed at the pit of the breaft, and as soon as the beaft was down, he ham-ftrung it, to prevent its rifing again. It has fometimes happened ⚫ that the creature, not wounded enough to fall to the ground, has run furiously at his pursuer, and ripped him open. But in general the Buccaneer feldom miffed his aim, and when he did. was nimble enough to get up the tree behind which he had the precaution to place himself. What is more, 'fome of them have been seen to overtake the beaft in chace, and ham-ftring him with all the dexterity and dispatch • imaginable,

As foon as the prey was half fkinned, the Master cut out a large bone, and fucked the marrow for breakfast. The reft he left to his fervants, one of whom always remained behind to finifh the fkinning, and bring the fkin, with a choice peice of meat for the huntfmen's dinner. They then continued the chace, till they had killed as many beafts as there were heads in the company. The master was the laft to return to the Boucan, loaded like the reft

• with

with a skin and a piece of meat. Here the Buccaneers found their tables ready, for every one had his feparate table, which was the first thing, any way fit for the purpofe, that came to hand, a stone, the trunk of a tree, and the like. No table-cloth, no napkin, no wine, appeared; bread, potatoes, and bananas, were not wanting, if they came in their way; otherwise the fat and lean of the game, taken alternately, ferved to fupply their place. A little pimento, and the squeeze of an orange, their only fauce; contentment, peace of mind, a good appetite, and abundance of mirth, made every thing agreeable. Thus they lived, and spent their time, till they had compleated the < number of hides for which they had agreed with the Merchants, which done, they carried them to Tortuga, or fome port of the great island.

As the Buccaneers ufed much exercife, and fed only on fresh meat, they generally enjoyed a good state of health. They were, indeed, fubject to fevers, but either fuch as lafted only a day, and left no fenfible impreffion the day following, or little flow fevers, which did not hinder them from action, and were of courfe fo little regarded, that it C was usual with the patient, when asked how he did, to anfwer" Very well, nothing ails me but the fever." It was impoffible, however, to prevent their wafting away in time, under a climate, to whofe intemperature they had not been early enough inured, and to fupport befides, for many years, fo hard and laborious a way of living. Hence the most confiderate among them, after they had got money enough to commence housekeepers, relinquished it. The reft foon spent the fruits of their fatigues, in taverns and tippling-houfes; and many had fo habituated themfelves to this kind of life, as to become incapable of any other. Nay, there have been inftances of young men who < have perfifted in this painful and dangerous profeffion, in which they had at firft embarked, merely through a principle of libertinifm, rather than return to France, and take poffeffion of the most plentiful fortunes.

.

The principal places of affembly, or Boucans, as they called them, of these people, were at the Peninfula of Sa' vana, a little island in the center of the bay of Samana, Port Margot, la Savane Brule, or the Burnt Savanna, near the Gonaives, the Embarcadero of Mirbalet, and the > bottom of the bay of ifle Avache, from whence they made excurfions to the gates of the Spanish fettlements.

• Such

Such then were the Buccaneers of St. Domingo, and fuch their fituation, when the Spaniards undertook to extirpate them.'

As every thing relating to Guadaloupe is become at this time peculiarly interesting, we doubt not that the Readers of this Hiftory will perufe, with particular curiofity, the relation of the various revolutions to which this island has been fubjected, by the avarice, cruelty, and injuftice of the feveral Governors of that and the neighbouring ifles.

One cannot read the following relation, among many others, of the fame kind, without conceiving the utmost indignation at the characters of men, worfe than the Savages they were fo follicitous to deftroy.

In the year 1636, when the Colony of Guadaloupe was in its earliest infancy, and but in a low, diftreffed condition, one d'Olive being Governor of the island, formed a project of making war on the friendly natives, in hopes to better the circumftances of the Colonifts, by plundering those poor people of their Manioc, and other provifions; and, indeed, determining to deftroy them all. He therefore, fays our Author, loft no time, but forming the minds of the few people that remained to his purpose, he began to make war upon the Savages, January 26, 1636, by ordering fome of them, who appeared in a canoe making ' for the fort, to be cut to pieces the moment they landed; but they providentially fteered another courfe. Some of these poor wretches, deftined for flaughter, having 'carried off fome cotton from the Cul-de-Sac, to which 'perhaps they had been enticed by fome of d'Olive's wicked emiffaries, tho' they had left in the room of it a hog, and fome fruit, really more in value, it was thought a fufficient 'motive for commencing hoftilities. By precaution, however, one Fontaine was difpatched, with fifteen ftout foldiers, to make a tour round the island, and bring off by 'fair means a few French, who had for two or three months paft fojourned among the Savages. Thefe poor people, fufpecting nothing, received Fontaine and his men with great fatisfaction, regaled them in the best manner they could, reftored their countrymen to them, and warned ⚫ them that a fmall English veffel had landed fome men upon the island, who had vifited them, and propofed an alliance ⚫ against the French; that they had openly rejected their overtures; and that the English were now gone up the * country in search of game. Fontaine made fo good use of

• this

this intelligence, that he took the English veffel, and brought her to Fort St. Peter..

Three days after this action d'Olive, with fome defperadoes inured to villany, embarked to vifit the habitations of the Savages in that part of the island where now ftands Fort Royal, reporting that they were going in fearch of a more convenient fpot than that which they at present occupied. The Savages, having by fome means or other been advertised of their cruel intention, had abandoned the place, carried off their provifions, and fet fire to their huts; fo that when d'Olive landed, he found only an old man, aged • 66, named Yance, with two of his fons, and two other young men, who had not time to make their efcape. These people, when they faw the French approach, made all poffible figns of fubmiffion, crying out, France, no angry with us; and, being affured no hurt was defigned them, they . furrendered at difcretion.

• D'Olive now changed both his looks and discourse, and with a stern countenance, called the old man Villain and Traitor; accufing him of confpiring with other natives against the colony, and agreeing to cut all the throats of the French. The poor man denied the charge, with all the opennefs and honeft affurance that always accompanies truth; declaring, at the fame time, that he and all his countrymen were fo ftrongly attached to the French, that they would leave nothing undone to ferve them. But d'Olive, taking a watch out of his pocket, fhewed it to him, telling him it was the Devil of France, and that he had been affured by him of what he had now affirmed. The Indian, aftonifhed at the noife and motion of this little machine, which he really fuppofed a fpirit, and the author of the calumny, exclaimed against it with ftrong invectives and refentment, declaring it to be an impoftor and a liar, and fwearing folemnly, that neither he nor any of his countrymen, had conceived the leaft defign against the French. To confirm the truth of his affeveration, they commanded him to order the women, who were in fight, to come in and furrender; to which he readily confented, giving a commiffion for that purpose to one of his fons; but the young man, instead of returning, took his flight with the

women.

This fo enraged d'Olive, that dragging Yance and his other fon into the fhallop, they killed the young man with their poiniards, in fight of the unhappy father, whom they 'afterwards

4

afterwards ftabbed in feveral parts of the body, and then flung him into the fea, where, being of a robust conftitution, he kept himfelf up for fome time by fwimming, intreating them with tears, and the most pitious cries, to fave his life; but in vain, for these mercilefs villains knocked him • on the head with their oars. The two other young men they ⚫ preserved alive, only till they should guide them to the retreat of the women, in the way to which one of them took an op'portunity of leaping from a precipice, and tho' he was much bruifed, made a fhift to travel five leagues to the women. and his comrades, whom he informed of the approach and infatiate cruelty of the French. On this they hastily retired farther up the country, having first grubbed up all the manioc, and other provisions in the ground, in such a manner, that when these bloody villains arrived here, they trod upon the relief which they fought, without knowing it fo near. The other Savage, whom they had preferved alive to be their guide, having found an opportunity of escaping in the night, they were forced to return without their • errand.'

Nor was the cruelty of thefe tyrannical Governors exercifed only on the innocent natives: their own countrymen felt equally the effects of their villainy, when daring to oppose their inhuman or illegal meafures. The adventure of two brave Frenchmen, who oppofed the rebellion of Poincy, Lieutenant-General of the islands, affords so noble an instance of difinterested and manly friendship, that we cannot refift the temptation of inserting it here.

The Captains Fontaine and Camo, finding themfelves unable to oppose the fuperior force of the rebels, and that their cause was irreparably loft, betook themselves to the woods, where they were reduced to fuffer the most cruel severities of thirst and hunger. One of their Negroes, who was tracked in carrying them victuals, was almoft whipped to death, to make him confefs where his Mafter lay hid; no artifice, perfuafion, threat, or cruelty availing, they cut off all his toes, to difable him from walking. These two unhappy foldiers, deprived of their faithful flaves, cut off from fubfiftence, and left without even hope, one of them • moreover afflicted with a dropfy, determined to make to the • fea-fide in the middle of the night, and la Fontaine un⚫dertook to swim to the firft fhip, and implore fuccour. They reached the beach in fafety; and, a veffel lying at anchor within fight, Fontaine plunged, and foon reached • her, and was hauled on board by means of a rope hung out

to