 Part VIII. About this time we were in many mortal fears about some disputes the English had with the Indians, so that we could scarce trust ourselves, without great numbers, to go to any Indian towns or place where they abode, for fear they should fall upon us, as they did immediately after my coming away, and the place being in the possession of the Dutch, they used them not so civilly as the English, so that they cut in pieces all they could take, getting into houses, and hanging up the mother and all her children about her, and cut a footman, I left behind me all in joints, and nailed him to trees. This feud began while I was there, so that I lost half the satisfaction I proposed in not seeing in visiting the Indian towns. But one day, bemoaning of our misfortunes upon this account, Caesar told us we need not fear, for if we had a mind to go, he would undertake to be our guard. Some would, but most would not venture. About eighteen of us resolved, and took barge, and after eight days arrived near an Indian town, but approaching it, the hearts of some of our company failed, and they would not venture on shore, so we polled, who would and who would not. For my part, I said, if Caesar would, I would go. He resolved, so did my brother and my woman, a maid of good courage. Now none of us speaking the language of the people, and imagining we should have a half diversion in gazing only, and not knowing what they said. We took a fisherman that lived at the mouth of the river, who had been a long inhabitant there, and obliged him to go with us. But because he was known to the Indians as trading among them, and being by long living there become a perfect Indian in colour, we, who had a mind to surprise them, by making them see something they never had seen, that is, white people, resolved only myself, my brother and woman should go. Though Caesar, the fisherman, and the rest, hiding behind some thick reeds and flowers that grew in the banks, let us pass on towards the town, which was on the bank of the river all along. A little distant from the houses, or huts, we saw some dancing, others busyed in fetching and carrying of water from the river. They had no sooner spied us, but they set up a loud cry that frightened us at first. We thought it had been for those that should kill us. But it seems it was of wonder and amazement. They were all naked, and we were dressed, as so as is most commode for the hot countries, very glittering and rich, so that we appeared extremely fine. My own hair was cut short, and I had a taffety cap, with black feathers on my head. My brother was in a stuffed suit, with silver loops and buttons, and abundance of green ribbon. This was all infinitely surprising to them, and because we saw them stand still till we approached them, we took heart in advance, came up to them, and offered them our hands, which they took, and looked on us round about, calling still for more company, who came swarming out, all wondering, and crying out, to peme, taking their hair up in their hands, and spreading it wide to those they called out to, as if they would say, as indeed it signified, numberless wonders, or not to be recounted, no more than to number the hair of their heads. By degrees they grew more bold, and from gazing upon us round, they touched us, laying their hands upon all the features of our faces, feeling our breasts and arms, taking up one petticoat, then wondering to see another, admiring our shoes and stockings, but more our garters, which we gave them, and they tied about their legs, being laced with silver lace at the ends, for they much esteem any shining things. In fine we suffered them to survey us as they pleased, and we thought they would never have done admiring us. When Caesar and the rest saw we were received with such wonder, they came up to us, and finding the Indian trader whom they knew, for tears by these fishermen, called Indian traders, we hold a commerce with them, for they love not to go far from home, and we never go to them. When they saw him, therefore, they set up a new joy, and cried in their language, Oh! here's our Tagami, and we shall now know whether these things can speak. So advancing to him, some of them gave him their hands, and cried, Amora Tagami! Which is as much as, how do you do, or welcome, friend? And all with one din began to gabble to him, and asked if we had sense and wit, if we could talk of affairs of life and war as they could do, if we could hunt, swim, and do a thousand things they use. He answered them we could. Then they invited us into their houses, and dressed venison and buffalo for us, and going out gathered a leaf of a tree called a sarumbo leaf, of six yards long, and spread it on the ground for a tablecloth, and cutting another in pieces, instead of plates, set us on a little low Indian stools, which they cut out of one entire piece of wood, and paint in a sort of Japan-work. They serve every one their mess on these pieces of leaves, and it was very good, but too highly seasoned with pepper. When we had et, my brother and I took out our flutes, and played to him, which gave him new wonder, and I soon perceived, by an admiration that is natural to these people, than by the extreme ignorance and simplicity of them, it were not difficult to establish any unknown or extravagant religion among them, and to impose any notions or fictions upon them. For seeing a kinsman of mine set some paper on fire with a burning glass, a trick they had never before seen, they were like to have adored him for a god, and begged he would give them the characters or figures of his name, that they might oppose it against winds and storms, which he did, and they held it up in those seasons, and fancied it had a charm to conquer them, and kept it like a holy relic. They are very superstitious, and called him the great P.I., that is, prophet. They showed us their Indian P.I., a youth of about sixteen years old, as handsome as nature could make a man. They consecrate a beautiful youth from his infancy, and all arts are used to complete him in the finest manner, both in beauty and shape. He is bred to all the little arts and cunning they are capable of, to all the leisure-demand tricks and sleight of hand, whereby he imposes upon the rabble, and is both a doctor in physics and divinity, and by these tricks makes the stick believe he sometimes eases their pains, by drawing from the afflicted part little serpents, or odd flies, or worms, or any strange thing. And though they have besides undoubted good remedies for almost all their diseases, they cure the patient more by fancy than by medicines, and make themselves feared, loved, and reverenced. This young P.I. had a very young wife, who, seeing my brother kiss her, came running and kissed me. After this they kissed one another, and made it a very great jest, it being so novel. And new admiration and laughing went round the multitude, that they never will forget that ceremony, never before used or known. Caesar had a mind to see and talk with their war-captains, and we were conducted to one of their houses, where we beheld several of the great captains, who had been at council. But so frightful a vision it was to see them, no fancy can create, no sad dreams can represent so dreadful a spectacle. For my part I took them for hobgoblins or fiends rather than men. But however their shapes appeared, their souls were very humane and noble. But some wanted their noses, some their lips, some both noses and lips, some their ears, and others cut through each cheek with long slashes, through which their teeth appeared. They had several other formidable wounds and scars, or rather dismemberings. They had comatias, or little aprons before them, and girdles of cotton, with their knives naked stuck in it, a bow at their back, and a quiver of arrows on their thighs, and most had feathers on their heads of diverse colours. They cried, Amora to Goumy to us, at our entrance, and were pleased we said as much to them. They seated us, and gave us drink of the best sort, and wondered as much as the others had done before, to see us. Caesar was marvelling as much at their faces, wondering how they should all be so wounded in war. He was impatient to know how they all came by those frightful marks of rage or malice, rather than wounds got in noble battle. They told us, by our interpreter, that when any war was waging, two men, chosen out by some old captain whose fighting was passed, and who could only teach the theory of war, were to stand in competition for the generalship, or great war-captain, and, being brought before the old judges, now past war, they are asked, what they dare do, to show they are worthy to lead an army? When he who is first asked, making no reply, cuts off his nose and throws it contemptibly on the ground, and the other does something to himself that he thinks surpasses him, and perhaps deprives himself of lips and an eye, so they slash on till one gives out, and many have died in this debate, and it's by a passive valour that they show and prove their activity a sort of courage too brutal to be applauded by our black hero. Nevertheless he expressed his esteem of them. In this voyage Caesar begat so good an understanding between the Indians and the English, that there were no more fears or heart-burnings during our stay, but we had a perfect open and free trade with them. Many things remarkable and worthy reciting we met with in this short voyage, because Caesar made it his business to search out and provide for our entertainment, especially to please his dearly adored Imoinda, who was a sharer in all our adventures, we being resolved to make her chains as easy as we could, and to complement the prince in that manner that most obliged him. As we were coming up again we met with some Indians of strange aspects, that is of a larger size and other sort of features than those of our country. Our Indian slaves that rode us asked him some questions, but they could not understand us, but showed us a long cotton string with several knots in it, and told us they had been coming from the mountains so many moons as there were knots. They were habited in skins of a strange beast, and brought along with them bags of gold dust, which, as well as they could give us to understand, came streaming in little small channels down the high mountains, when the rains fell, and offered to be the convoy to any body or persons that would go to the mountains. We carried these men up to Parham, where they were kept till the Lord Governor came, and because all the country was made to be going on this golden adventure, the Governor, by letters, commanded, for they sent some of the gold to him, that a guard should be set at the mouth of the river of Amazons, a river so cold, almost as broad as the river of Thames, and prohibited all people from going up that river, it conducting to those mountains of gold. But we going off for England before the project was further prosecuted, and the Governor being drowned in a hurricane, either the design died, or the Dutch have the advantage of it, and is to be bemoaned what his majesty lost by losing that part of America. Though this digression is a little from my story, however, since it contains some proofs of the curiosity and daring of this great man, I was content to omit nothing of his character. It was thus for some time we diverted him. But now Imoinda began to show she was with child, and did nothing but sigh and weep for the captivity of her lord, herself, and the infant yet unborn, and believed, if it was so hard to gain the liberty of two, it would be much more difficult to get that for three. Her griefs were so many darts in the great heart of Caesar, and taking his opportunity one Sunday, when all the whites were overtaken in drink, as there were abundance of several trades, and slaves for four years, that inhabited among the Negro houses, and Sunday being their day of debauch, otherwise they were a sort of spies upon Caesar. He went, pretending out of goodness to him, to feast among them, and sent all his music, and ordered a great treat for the whole gang, about three hundred Negroes, and about an hundred fifty were able to bear arms, such as they had, which were sufficient to do execution with spirits accordingly. For the English had none but rusty swords, that no strength could draw from a scabbard, except the people of particular quality, who took care to oil them and keep them in good order. The guns also, unless here and there one, or those newly carried from England, do no good or harm, but is the nature of that country to rust and eat up iron, or any metals but gold and silver, and they are very unexpert at the bow, which the Negroes and the Indians are perfect masters of. Caesar, having singled out these men from the women and children, made an harangue to them, of the miseries and ignominies of slavery, counting up all their toils and sufferings under such loads, burdens and drudgeries as were fit for beasts than men, senseless brutes than human souls. He told them it was not for days, months, or years, but for eternity. There was no end to be of them as fortunes. They suffered not like men who might find a glory and fortitude in oppression, but like dogs that loved the whip and bell, and formed them all they were beaten, that they had lost the divine quality of men, and were become insensible asses fit only to bear. Nay worse, an ass, or dog, or horse, having done his duty could lie down and retreat, and rise to work again, and while he did his duty endured no stripes. But men, villainous, senseless men such as they, toiled on all the tedious week till Black Friday. And then, whether they worked or not, whether they were faulty or meriting, they promiscuously, the innocent with the guilty, suffered the infamous whip, the sordid stripes from their fellow slaves, till their blood trickled from all parts of their body, blood whose every drop ought to be revenged with the life of some of these tyrants that impose it. And why, said he, my dear friends and fellow sufferers, should we be slaves to an unknown people? Have they vanquished us nobly in fight? Have they won us an honorable battle? And are we by the chance of war become their slaves? This would not anger a noble heart. This would not animate a soldier's soul? No, but we are bought and sold like apes or monkeys, to be the sport of women, fools and cowards, and the support of rogues and runnigates that have abandoned their own countries for rapine, murders, theft, and villainies. Do you not hear every day how they upbrade each other with infamy of life below the wildest savages? And shall we render obedience to such a degenerate race, who have no one human virtue left to distinguish them from the vilest creatures? Will you, I say, suffer the lash from such hands? They all replied with one accord, No, no, no, Caesar has spoke like a great captain, like a great king. After this he would have proceeded, but was interrupted by a tall negro of some more quality than the rest. His name was Tuscan, who, bowing at the feet of Caesar, cried, My Lord, we have listened with joy and attention to what you have said, and where we only men would follow so great a leader throughout the world. But oh! consider! We are husbands and parents too, and have things more dear to us than life. Our wives and children unfit for travelling those unparsable woods, mountains and bogs. We have not only difficult lands to overcome, but rivers to wade and mountains to encounter, ravenous beasts of prey. To this Caesar replied that honour was the first principle in nature, that was to be obeyed. But as no man would pretend to that, without all the acts of virtue, compassion, charity, love, justice and reason, he found it not inconsistent with that to take equal care of their wives and children as they would of themselves, and that he did not design, when he had led them to freedom and glorious liberty, that they should leave that better part of themselves to perish by the hand of the tyrant's whip. But if there are women among them so degenerate from love and virtue, to choose slavery before the pursuit of a husband, and with the hazard of her life to share with him and these fortunes, that such a one ought to be abandoned, and left as a prey to the common enemy. To which they all agreed, and bowed. After this he spoke of the impassable woods and rivers, and convinced them the more danger, the more glory. He told them that he had heard of one Hannibal, a great captain, had cut his way through mountains of solid rocks, and should a few shrubs oppose them, which they could fire before him? No, it was a trifling excuse to men resolved to die or overcome. As for bogs, they are with a little labour filled and hardened, and the rivers could be no obstacle, since they swam by nature, at least by custom, from the first hour of their birth, that when the children were weary, they must carry them by terms, and the woods and their own industry would afford them food. To this they all assented with joy. Tuskin then demanded what he would do. He said they would travel towards the sea, plant a new colony, and defend it by their valour, and when they could find a ship, either driven by stress of weather or guided by providence that way, they would seize it and make it a prize, till it had transported them to their own countries—at least they should be made free in his kingdom, and be esteemed as his fellow sufferers, and men that had the courage and the bravery to attempt at least for liberty, and if they died in the attempt it would be more brave than to live in perpetual slavery. They bowed and kissed his feet at this resolution, and with one accord vowed to follow him to death, and that night was appointed to begin their march. They made it known to their wives, and directed them to tie their hammocker about their shoulders and under their arm like a scarf, and to lead their children that could go, and carry those that could not. The wives, who pay an entire obedience to their husbands, obeyed, and stayed for them where they were appointed. The men stayed but to furnish themselves with what defensive arms they could get, and all met at the rendezvous, where Caesar made a new encouraging speech to them, and led them out. CHAPTER IX But as they could not march far that night, on Monday, early, when the Overseas went to call them all together to go to work, they were extremely surprised to find not one upon the place, but all fled with what baggage they had. You may imagine this news was not only suddenly spread all over the plantation, but soon reached the neighbouring ones, and we had by noon about six hundred men, they called the militia of the country, that came to assist us in the pursuit of the fugitives. But never did one see so comical an army march forth to war. The men of any fashion would not concern themselves, though it were almost the common cause. These arch-revoltings are very ill examples, and have very fatal consequences often times, in many colonies. But they had respect for Caesar, and all hands were against the Paramites, as they called those of Param plantation, because they did not in the first place love the Lord Governor. And secondly, they would have it that Caesar was ill-used and baffled with, and is not impossible but some of the best in the country was of his counsel in this flight, and depriving us of all the slaves, so that they of the better sort would not meddle in the matter. The deputy governor, of whom I have had no great occasion to speak, and who was the most forning, fair-tongued fellow in the world, and one that pretended the most friendship to Caesar, was now the only violent man against him, and though he had nothing, and so need fear nothing, yet talked and looked bigger than any man. He was a fellow whose character is not fit to be mentioned with the worst of the slaves. This fellow would lead his army forth to meet Caesar, or rather to pursue him. Most of their arms were of the sort of cruel whips they call cat with nine tails. Some had rusty, useless guns for show, others old basket-hills, whose blades had never seen the light in this age, and others had long staffs and clubs. Caesar trefry went along, rather to be mediated than a conqueror in such a battle, for he forsoor and knew, if by fighting they put the negroes into despair, they were a sort of sullen fellows that would drown or kill themselves before they would yield, and he advised that fair means was best. But Byam was one that abounded his own wit, and would take his own measures. It was not hard to find these fugitives, for as they fled they were forced to fire and cut the woods before them, so that night or day they pursued him by the light they made, and by the path they had cleared. But as soon as Caesar found he was pursued, he put himself in a posture of defence, placing all the women and children in the rear, and himself with Tuscan by his side, or next to him, all promising to die or conquer. Encouraged thus, they never stood to parley, but fell on pel mel upon the English, and killed some, and wounded a great many they having recourse to their whips as the best of their weapons. And as they observed no order, they perplexed the enemy so sorely, with lashing him in the eyes, and the women and children seeing their husband so treated, being of fearful cowardly dispositions, and hearing the English cry out, yield and live, yield and be pardoned. They all run in amongst their husbands and fathers, and hung about them crying out, yield, and leave Caesar to their revenge. That by degrees the slaves abandoned Caesar, and left him only Tuscan in his heroic amoinder, who grown big as she was, did nevertheless press near her lord, having a bow and a quiver full of poisoned arrows, which she managed with such dexterity that she wounded several, and shot the governor into the shoulder, of which wound he had liked to have died, but that an Indian woman, his mistress, sucked the wound and cleansed it from the venom. But however he stirred not from the place till he had parlayed with Caesar, who he found was resolved to die fighting, and would not be taken, no more would Tuscan or amoinder. But he, more thirsting after revenge of another sort, than that of depriving him of life, now made use of all his art of talking and dissembling, and besought Caesar to yield himself upon terms which he himself should propose, and should be scarcely assented to and kept by him. She told him it was not that he any longer feared him, or could believe the force of two men, and a young heroine could overthrow all them, and with all the slaves now on their side also. But it was the vast esteem he had for his person, the desire he had to serve so gallant a man, and to hinder himself from the reproach hereafter of having been the occasion of the death of a prince, whose valour and magnanimity deserved the empire of the world. He protested to him, he looked upon this action as gallant and brave, however attending to the prejudice of his lord and master, who would by it have lost so considerable a number of slaves, that this flight of his should be looked on as a heat of youth and a rashness of a too forward courage, and an unconsidered impatience of liberty, and no more, and no more, and that he laboured in vain to accomplish that which he would effectually perform as soon as any ship arrived that would touch on this coast. So, that if you will be pleased, continued he, to surrender yourself, all imaginable respect shall be paid you, and yourself your wife and a child, if it be borne here, shall depart free of our land. But Caesar would hear of no composition, though Byam urged, if he pursued and went on in his design, he would inevitably perish, either by great snakes, wild beasts, or hunger, and he ought to have regard to his wife, whose condition required ease, and not the fatigues of tedious travel, where she could not be secured from being devoured. But Caesar told him there was no faith in the white men, or the gods they adored, who instructed them in principles so false that honest men could not live amongst them, that no people professed so much, none performed so little. That he knew what he had to do when he dealt with men of honour, but with them a man ought to be eternally on his guard, and never to eat and drink with Christians, without his weapon of defence in his hand, and for his own security, never to credit one word they spoke. As for the rashness and inconsiderateness of his action, he would confess the governor is in the right, and that he was ashamed of what he had done, in endeavouring to make those free who were by nature slaves, poor wretched rogues, fit to be used as Christians' tolls, dogs, treacherous and cowardly fit for such masters, and they wanted only but to be whipped into the knowledge of the Christian gods, to be the vilest of all creeping things, to learn to worship such deities as had not power to make them just brave or honest. In fine, after a thousand things of this nature, not fit here to be recited, he told Byam he had rather died than live upon the same earth, were such dogs. But Trefry and Byam pleaded and protested together so much, that Trefry, believing the governor to mean what he said, and speaking very cordially himself, generously put himself into Caesar's hand, and took him aside, and persuaded him with tears, to live by surrendering himself, and to name his conditions. Caesar was overcome by his wit and reasons, and in consideration of a moinder, and demanding what he desired, and that it should be ratified by their hands in writing, because he had perceived that was the common way of contract between man and man among the whites. All this was performed, and Tuskin's pardon was put in, had they surrendered to the governor, who walked peaceably down into the plantation with them, after giving order to bury their dead. Caesar was very much toiled with the bustle of the day, for he had fought like a fury, and what mischief was done, he and Tuskin performed alone, and gave their enemies a fatal proof that they dursed do anything, and feared no mortal force. But they were no sooner arrived at the place where all the slaves received their punishments of whipping, but they laid hands on Caesar and Tuskin, faint with heat and toil, and surprising them, bound them to two several stakes, and whipped them in a most deplorable and inhuman manner, rending the very flesh from their bones, especially Caesar, who is not perceived to make any moan, or to alter his face, only to roll his eyes on the faithless governor, and those he believed guilty, with fierceness and indignation, and to complete his rage, he saw every one of those slaves, who but a few days before adored him as something more than mortal, now had a whip to give him some lashes, while he strove not to break his fetters, though if he had it were impossible, but he pronounced a woe and revenge from his eyes, that darted fire, which was at once both awful and terrible to behold. When they thought they were sufficiently revenged on him, they untied him, almost fainting with loss of blood, from a thousand wounds all over his body, from which they had rent his clothes, and led him bleeding and naked as he was, and loaded him all over with irons, and then rubbed his wounds to complete their cruelty with Indian pepper, which had liked to have made him raving mad, and in this condition made him so fast to the ground that he could not stir, if his pains and wounds would have given him leave. They spared a moinder, and did not let her see this barbarity committed towards her lord, but carried her down to Parim and shut her up, which was not in kindness to her, but for fear she should die with the sight, or miscarry, and they should then lose a young slave, and perhaps the mother. You must know that when the news was brought on Monday morning that Caesar had be taken himself to the woods, and carried with him all the negroes, we were possessed with extreme fear, which no persuasions could dissipate, that he would secure himself till night, and then that he would come down and cut all our throats. This apprehension made all the females of us fly down to the river to be secured, and while we were away, they acted this cruelty, for I suppose I had authority and interest enough there, had I suspected any such thing, to have prevented it, but we had not gone many leagues but the news overtook us, that Caesar was taken and whipped like a common slave. We met on the river with Colonel Martin, a man of great gallantry wit and goodness, and whom I have celebrated in a character of my new comedy, by his own name, in memory of so brave a man. He was wise and eloquent, and from the fineness of his parts bore a great sway over the hearts of all the colony. He was a friend to Caesar, and resented this false dealing with him very much. We carried him back to Parham, thinking to have made an accommodation. When he came, the first news we heard was that the Governor was dead of a wound a moinder had given him, but it was not so well. But it seems he would have had the pleasure of beholding the revenge he took on Caesar, and before the cruel ceremony was finished, he dropped down, and then they perceived the wound he had on his shoulder was by a venomed arrow, which, as I said, his Indian mistress healed by sucking the wound. We were no sooner arrived but we went up to the plantation to see Caesar, whom we found in a very miserable and unexpressible condition, and I have a thousand times admired how he lived in so much tormenting pain. We said all things to him that trouble, pity, and good nature could suggest, protesting our innocencey of the fact, and our abhorrence of such cruelties, making a thousand professions and services to him, and begging as many pardons for the offenders, till we said so much that he believed we had no hands in his ill treatment. But he told us he could never pardon Parham, and as for Trafri, he confessed he saw his grief and sorrow for his suffering, which he could not hinder, but was like to have been beaten down by the very slaves who were speaking in his defense. But for Bayam, who is their leader, their head, and should by his justice and honour have been an example to him, for him he wished to live to take a dire revenge of him, and said, It had been well for him if he had sacrificed me, instead of giving me the contemptible whip. He refused to talk much, but begging us to give him our hands, he took them, and protested never to lift up his to do us any harm. He had great respect for Colonel Martin, and always took his counsel like that of a parent, and assured him he would obey him in anything but his revenge on Bayam. Therefore, he said, for his own safety, let him speedily dispatch me, for if I could dispatch myself, I would not till that justice were done to my injured person and the contempt of a soldier. No, I would not kill myself, even after a whipping, but will be content to live with that infamy, and be pointed at by every grinning slave, till I have completed my revenge, and then you shall see that Orinoco scorns to live with the indignity that was put on Caesar. All we could do could get no more words from him, and we took care to have him put immediately into a healing bath, to rid him of his pepper, and ordered a surgeon to anoint him with healing balm, which he suffered, and in some time he began to be able to walk and eat. We failed not to visit him every day, and to that end had him brought to an apartment at Parham. The governor had no sooner recovered, and had heard of the menaces of Caesar, but he called his counsel, who, not to disgrace them or belask the government there, consisted of such notorious villains as Newgate never transported, and possibly, originally was such, who understood neither the laws of God nor man, and had no sort of principles to make them worthy the names of men, but at the very council table would contradict and fight with one another, and swear so bloodily that it was terrible to hear and see them. Some of them were afterwards hanged when the Dutch took possession of the place, others sent off in chains. But calling these special rulers of the nation together, and requiring their counsel in this weighty affair, they all concluded that, dam'em, it might be their own cases, and that Caesar ought to be made an example to all the negroes, to fright them from daring to threaten their betters, their lords and masters, and at this rate no man was safe from his own slaves, and concluded, na mime contra disente, that Caesar should be hanged. He then thought it time to use his authority, and told Byam his command did not extend to his lords' plantation, and that Parham was as much exempt from the law as Whitehall, and that they ought no more to touch the servants of the Lord, who there represented the king's person, than they could those about the king himself, and that Parham was a sanctuary, and though his law were absent in person, his power was still in being there, which he had entrusted with him, as far as the dominions of his particular plantations reached, and all that belonged to it, the rest of the country, as Byam was lieutenant to his lord, he might exercise his tyranny upon. Trefrye had others as powerful or more, that interested themselves and Caesar's life, and absolutely said he should be defended. So turning the governor, and his wise counsel, out of doors, for they sat at Parham house, we set a guard upon our lodging-place, and would admit none but those we called friends to us and Caesar. The governor, having remained wounded at Parham till his recovery was completed, Caesar did not know that he was still there, and indeed, for the most part, his time was spent there, for he was one that loved to live at other people's expense, and if he were a day absent, he was ten present there, and used to play, and walk, and hunt, and fish with Caesar, so that Caesar did not at all doubt, if he once recovered strength, but he should find an opportunity of being revenged on him. So after such a revenge, he could not hope to live, for if he escaped the fury of the English mobile, who would, perhaps, have been glad of the occasion to have killed him, he was resolved not to survive his whipping, yet he had some tender hours, a repenting softness, which he called a spitz of cowardice, wherein he struggled with love for the victory of his heart, which took part with his charming amoinder there. But for the most part, his time was passed in melancholy thoughts and black designs. He considered, if he should do this deed, and die either in the attempt or after it, he left his lovely amoinder a prey, or at best a slave to the enraged multitude. His great heart could not endure that thought. Perhaps, said he, she may be first ravaged by every brute, exposed first to their nasty lusts, and then a shameful death. No, he could not live a moment under that apprehension, too insupportable to be born. Those were his thoughts, and his silent arguments with his heart, as he told us afterwards, so that now resolving not only to kill Byam, but all those he thought had enraged him, pleasing his great heart with the fancied slaughter he should make over the whole face of the plantation. He first resolved on a deed that, however horrid it first appeared to us all, when we had heard his reasons, we thought it brave and just. Being able to walk, and, as he believed, fit for the execution of his great design, he begged to fry to trust him into the air, believing a walk would do him good, which was granted him, and taking amoinder with him as he used to do in his more happy and calmer days, he led her up into a wood, where after a thousand sighs and long gazing silently on her face while tears gushed in spite of him from his eyes, he told her his design, first of killing her, and then his enemies, and next himself, and the impossibility of escaping, and therefore he told her the necessity of dying. He found the heroic wife faster pleading for death than he was to propose it, when she found his fixed resolution, and on her knees besought him not to leave her a prey to his enemies. He, grieved to death yet pleased at her noble resolution, took her up, and embracing of her with all the passion and languishment of a dying lover, drew his knife to kill this treasure of his soul, this pleasure of his eyes, while tears trickled down his cheeks, hers was smiling with joy she should die by so noble a hand, and be sent into her own country, for that their notion of the next world. By him she so tenderly loved, and so truly adored in this. For wives have a respect for their husbands equal to what any other people pay a deity, and when a man finds any occasion to quit his wife, if he love her she dies by his hand. But, he sells her, or suffers some other to kill her. If being thus, you may believe the deed was soon resolved on, and is not to be doubted, but the parting, the eternal leave-taking of two such lovers, so greatly born, so sensible, so beautiful, so young, and so fond, must be very moving, as the relation of it was to be afterwards. All that love could say in such cases being ended, and all the intermitting resolutions being adjusted, the young, lovely, and adored victim lays herself down before the sacrificer, while he, with a hand resolved, and a heart breaking within, gave the fatal stroke, first cutting her throat, and then severing her yet smiling face from that delicate body, pregnant as it was with the fruits of tenderest love. As soon as he had done, he laid the body decently on leaves and flowers, of which he made a bed, and concealed it under the same coverlade of nature. Only her face he left yet bare to look on. But when he found she was dead, and passed all retrieve, never more to bless him with her eyes and soft language, his grief swelled up to rage. He tore, he raved, he roared like some monster of the wood, calling on the loved name of a moinder. A thousand times he turned the fatal knife that did the deed towards his own heart, with a resolution to go immediately after her. But die a revenge, which was now a thousand times more fierce in his soul than before, prevents him, and he would cry out, No. Since I have sacrificed a moinder to my revenge, shall I lose that glory which I have purchased so dear, as the price of the fairest, dearest, softest creature that ever nature made? No. No. Then at her name grief would get the ascendant of rage, and he would lie down by her side, and water her face with showers of tears, which never were won't to fall from those eyes. And however bent he was on his intended slaughter, he had not power to stir from the sight of this dear object, now more beloved, and more adored than ever. He remained in this deplorable condition for two days, and never rose from the ground where he had made her sad sacrifice. At last rousing from her side, and accusing himself of living too long, now a moinder was dead, and that the deaths of those barbarous enemies were deferred too long, he resolved now to finish the great work. But offering to rise, he found his strength so decayed that he swayed to enfro, like boughs assailed by contrary winds, so that he was forced to lie down again, and try to summon all his courage to his aid. He found his brains turned round, and his eyes were dizzy, and objects appeared not the same to him as they were won't to do. His breath was short, and all his limbs surprised with the faintness he had never felt before. He had not yet in two days, which was one occasion of his feebleness. But excessive grief was the greatest. Yet still he hoped he should never recover vigor to act his design, and lay expecting it yet six days longer, still mourning over the dead idol of his heart, and striving every day to rise, but could not. In all this time you may believe we were in no little affliction for Caesar and his wife. Some were of opinion he was escaped never to return. Others thought some accident had happened to him. But however we failed not to send out a hundred people several ways to search for him. A party of about forty went that way he took, among whom was Tuscan, who was perfectly reconciled to Byam. They had not gone very far into the wood, but they smelled an unusual smell, as of a dead body. For stinks must be very noisome that can be distinguished among such a quantity of natural sweets, as every inch of that land produces. So that they concluded they should find him dead, or some body that was so. They passed on towards it, as loathsome as it was, and made such rustling among the leaves that lie thick on the ground by continual falling, that Caesar heard he was approached. And though he had, during the space of these eight days, endeavour to rise, but found he wanted strength, yet looking up and seeing his pursuers, he rose and reeled to a neighbouring tree against which he fixed his back, and being within a dozen yards of those that advanced and saw him, he called out to them, and bid them approach no nearer if they would be safe. So that they stood still, and hardly believing their eyes, that would persuade them it was Caesar that spoke to him, so much was he altered. They asked him what he had done with his wife, for they smelled a stink that almost struck them dead. He, pointing to the dead body, sighing, cried, Behold her there! They put off the flowers that covered her with their sticks, and found she was killed and cried out, Oh, monster, that has murdered thy wife! Then, asking him why he did so cruel a deed, he replied he had no leisure to answer impertinent questions. You may go back, continued he, and tell the faithless governor he may thank fortune that I am breathing my last, and that my arm is too feeble to obey my heart and what it had designed him. But his tongue faltering and trembling, he could scarce end what he was saying. The English, taking advantage of his weakness, cried, Let us take him alive by all means. He heard him, and as if he had revived from a fainting or a dream, he cried out, No, gentlemen! You are deceived! You will find no more Caesars to be whipped! No more find a faith in me, feeble as you think me, I have strength yet left to secure me from a second indignity. They swore all anew, and he only shook his head, and beheld them a scorn. Then they cried out, Who will venture on this single man? Will nobody? They stood all silent, while Caesar replied, Fatal will be the attempt of the first adventurer, let him assure himself. And at that word held up his knife in a menacing posture. Look ye, ye faithless crew, said he, To his not life I seek, nor am I afraid of dying. And at that word cut a piece of flesh from his own throat, and threw it at him. Yet still I would live if I could, till I had perfected my revenge. But oh, it cannot be! I feel life gliding from my eyes and heart, and if I make not haste I shall fall a victim to the shameful whip. At that he ripped up his own belly, and took his bowels, and pulled him out, with what strength he could, while some on their knees imploring besought him to hold his hand. And when they saw him tottering, they cried out, Will none venture on him? A bold Englishman cried, Yes, if he were the devil, take encourage when he saw him almost dead, And swearing a horrid oath for his farewell to the world, he rushed on him. Caesar with his armed hand met him so fairly, as struck him to the heart, and he fell dead at his feet. Tusken seeing that, cried out, I love thee, O Caesar, and therefore will not let thee die if possible. And running to him took him in his arms. But at the same time, warding a blow that Caesar made at his bosom, he received it quite through his arm. And Caesar having not the strength to pluck the knife forth, though he attempted it, Tusken neither pulled it out himself nor suffered it to be pulled out, but came down with it sticking in his arm, and the reason he gave for it was, because the air should not get into the wound. They put their hands across, and carried Caesar between six of them, fainting as he was, and though they thought dead or just dying. When they brought him to Parham, and laid him on a couch, and had the surgeon immediately to him, who dressed his wounds and sewed up his belly, and used means to bring him to life, which they effected. We all ran to see him, and if before we thought him so beautiful a sight, he was now so altered that his face was like a death's head, blacked over, nothing but teeth and eye-holes. For some days we suffered nobody to speak to him, but caused cordials to be poured down his throat, which sustained his life, and in six or seven days he recovered his senses, for you must know that wounds are almost to a miracle cured in the indies, and less wounds in the legs, which they rarely ever cure. When he was well enough to speak, we talked to him, and asked him some questions about his wife, and the reasons why he killed her, and then he told us what I have related of that resolution, and of his parting, and he besought us we would let him die, and it was extremely afflicted to think it was possible he might live. He assured us, if we did not dispatch him, he would prove very fatal to a great many. We said all we could to make him live, and gave him new assurances, but he begged we would not think so poorly of him, or of his love to a moinder, to imagine we could flatter him to life again. But the surgeon assured him he could not live, and therefore he need not fear. We were all, but Caesar, afflicted at this news, and the sight was ghastly. His discourse was sad, and the earthy smell about him was so strong, that I was persuaded to leave the place for some time, being myself very sickly, and very apt to fall into fits of dangerous illness upon any extraordinary melancholy. The servant sent Trefry and the surgeons, promised all to take what possible care they could of the life of Caesar, and I, taking boat, went with other company to Colonel Martin's, about three days' journey down the river. But I was no sooner gone than the Governor, taking Trefry, about some pretended earnest business, a day's journey up the river, having communicated his design to one banister, a wild Irishman, and one of the council, a fellow of absolute barbarity and fit to execute any millenie but rich. He came up to Parham, and forcibly took Caesar, and had him carried to the same post where he was whipped, and causing him to be tied to it, and great fire made before him. He told him he should die like a dog, as he was. Caesar replied that this was the first piece of bravery that ever banister did, and he never spoke cent till he pronounced that word, and if he would keep it, he would declare in the other world, that he was the only man of all the whites that he ever heard speak truth. And turning to the men that had bound him, he said, My friends, am I to die, or to be whipped? And they cried, Whipped? No, you shall not escape so well. And then he replied, smiling, a blessing on thee, and assured them they need not tie him, for he would stand fixed like a rock, and endure death so as should encourage them to die. But if you whip me, said he, be sure you tie me fast. He had learned to take tobacco, and when he was assured he should die, he desired they would give him a pipe in his mouth, ready-lighted, which they did, and the executioner came, and first cut off his members and threw them into the fire. After that, with an ill-favoured knife, they cut off his ears and his nose and burned them. He still smoked on, as if nothing had touched him. Then they hacked off one of his arms, and still he bore up, and held his pipe. But at the cutting off of the other arm, his head sunk, and his pipe dropped, and he gave up the ghost, without a groan or a reproach. My mother and sister were by him all the while, but not suffered to save him. So rude and wild were the rabble, and so inhuman were the justices who stood by to see the execution, who after paid dearly enough for their insolence. They cut Caesar in quarters, and sent them to several of the chief plantations. One quarter was sent to Colonel Martin, who refused it, and swore he had rather see the quarters of Bannister and the governor himself than those of Caesar on his plantations, and that he could govern his negroes without terrifying and grieving them with frightful spectacles of a mangled king. Thus died this great man, worthy of a better fate, and a more sublime wit than mine to write his praise, yet I hope the reputation of my pen is considerable enough to make his glorious name to survive all the ages, with that of the brave, the beautiful, and the constant to moinda. End of Part 10, End of Orinoco, by Afra Ben