tyranny of violent and insolent clerks, who caused seditious movements in the islands during almost the whole time they had been the masters. All this disappeared when the royal officers took possession. Lord William Willoughby, governor of Barbadoes, died, and was succeeded by Sir Jonathan Atkins. The population of Barbadoes, at this time, amounted to 120,000, being 30,000 less than in 1670. Upon the 10th of August, a hurricane at Barbadoes blew down 300 houses, and destroyed the plantations, so that the inhabitants made but little sugar the two succeeding years. Eight ships were wrecked in the harbour, and 200 persons killed. Colonel Thomas Warner, the son of Sir Thomas Warner, (the first settler upon St. Christopher's), died, as lieutenant-governor of Dominica. 1675. In January, the Marquis de Baas arrived at Martinico, as governor and lieutenant-general of the French West India islands. He sent the Marquis de Grancy to assist the colonists in Mariegalante, who were attacked by the English. The marquis, with two men of war and some troops, succeeded in obliging the English to quit the island, but returned to Martinico in distress, with five feet water in his ship's hold. After she was refitted, De Baas sent De Grancy, with whom he was upon bad terms, to Europe, to report his exploit. Univ. Hist. vol. xxxvi. pp. 197. 261. tant seigneuriaux que de capitation, de poids, et autres que se levent à son profit, en consequence des cessions et transports que les Directeurs et comissaires de ladite Compagnie ont fait à sa Majesté, suivant le contrat passé entr'eux et les Sieurs Colbert, Poncet, Pussort, et Hotman, commis à cet effet par sa Majesté. "Et pour faire connoitre qu'elle consideration, elle a, pour ceux qui s'engagent en de pareilles entreprises, qui tournent à l'avantage de l'Etat, comme aussi pour donner à tous ses sujets la liberté de faire le commerce dans les pais de l'Amerique, en prenant seulement les passeports et congés ordinaires, et contribuer par ce moyen au bien et à l'avantage de ses peuples: Sa Majesté, de l'avis de son Conseil, de sa certaine science, pleine puissance et autorité Royale, revoque, Labat, tom. v. p. 242. eteint, et supprime, la Compagnie des Indes Occidentales, erigée par l'Edit du mois de May 1664. Elle permet à tous ses sujets d'aller trafiquer dans lesdits pais, ainsi que dans tous les autres de son obeissance. Elle unit et incorpore tous lesdits pais au domaine de sa Couronné, ainsi qu'il est plus amplement porté par cet Edit. Donné à St. Germain-en-Laye, au mois de Decembre, 1674."-Labat, tom.v. p. 240. 1 "Comme il n'etoit point du corps de la marine, et que ces messieurs avoient peine à obeir à d'autres qu'à des officiers de leur corps, tous les marins s'etoient ligués contre lui, et plus que les autres le Marquis de Grancey. Monsieur de Baas eut avis que les Anglois avoient attaqué l'isle de Mariegalante, il assembla aussi-tot des troupes pour l'aller degager, et envoya The inhabitants of Martinico being without salt provisions, De Baas sent for an English vessel, with 1500 barrels of salt-beef on board-had her moored under the fort-fixed a price upon the beef, and had it distributed among the inhabitants. The French minister, in answer to the marquis's letter, reporting his having done this, said that the marquis had risked the loss of his head upon a scaffold, by taking upon himself to order a foreign merchant vessel to one of the King's islands. The marquis replied, that he should always be ready to give his head, to preserve the life of such a number of the King's good subjects. Lord Vaughan, governor of Jamaica, called an assembly, which met on the 26th of April, and passed a new body of laws. In his commission, the members of the privy council were expressly named by the king. Forty families came in one ship, from Surinam, on the 1st September; and on the 8th, 1100 persons arrived at Jamaica, under the care of Mr. Cranfield from the same place. In August, a dreadful hurricane spread desolation in Barbadoes. The crops were destroyed, and the inhabitants petitioned the British government to relieve them from the impost of four and a half per cent. upon their exports. The prayer of their petition was refused. A ship, with a cargo of Mocoe negroes, was wrecked upon Bequin, a small island two leagues from St. Vincent: they were afterwards joined by great numbers of fugitive negroes from the other islands. The Red Caribs at first kept them in slavery; but finding their numbers increase, came to a resolution to put Coke's West Indies, vol. ii. p. 116. Labat, tom. v. p. 250. Harris's Voyages, vol. ii. p. 254. Edwards, vol. iii. p. 296. —vol. i. p. 412. Long's Jamaica, vol. i. pp. 166. 625. ordre au Marquis de Grancey, d'y aller avec son vaisseau. L'ordre etoit en ces termes : Il est ordonné au Sieur de Grancey d'aller attaquer les Anglois qui assiegent Mariegalante. Il les chassera, et ensuite nous viendra rendre compte de sa mission, afin que j'en puisse rendre compte à sa Majesté !" "Le Marquis de Grancey fut extremement choqué des termes de cet ordre. Il mit, pourtant, sur le champ, à la voile avec un autre vaisseau du Roi, bien moins fort que le sien. Il arriva à Mariegalante, et attaqua les Anglois avec le courage et la prudence qui lui etoient ordinaires, quoiqu'ils etoient deux fois plus forts que lui, il les battit, coula à fond quelquesuns de leurs vaisseaux, les obligea de rem. barquer leurs troupes avec precipitation, et revint victorieux à la Martinique, quoi qu'il avoit cinq pieds d'eau, quand il arriva au mouillage. Le "Le Marquis de Grancey, à qui le mot de Sieur tenoit de cœur, s'avisa de dire publiquement qu'il ne retourneroit point en France, sans un ordre exprès de la cour. M. de Baas l'ayant sçu, lui envoya un ordre de partir sur le champ, et d'aller porter lui-même la nouvelle au Roi, de la belle action qu'il venoit de faire. mot de Sieur fut encore mis dans cet ordre, et le Marquis de Grancey en fut encore plus piqué. Il voulut avant de partir prendre congé du general, il fut à son logis, un garde l'ayant été annoncer, M. de Baas lui dit assez haut pour etre entendu, Tu as menti, le Marquis de Grancy est à la voile, fermes la porte.' Cette hauteur obligea le Marquis de Grancey de se retirer, et d'appareiller sur their male children to death: upon which the blacks rose, and became masters of the island. M. d'Ogeron, governor of the French in St. Domingo, returned to France, for the purpose of presenting a plan for driving the Spaniards out of that island. He died without being able to see either the King or his minister. [Labat says he died in 1679, vol. vii. p. 93.] His nephew, M. Pouancy, succeeded him in the government of the French in St. Domingo, and the Sieur Tarin de Cussy in that of Tortuga. Soon after M. d'Ogeron left the West Indies, the Dutch admiral Binks, with a fleet of four vessels and 900 men, appeared off Petit Goave, and on the 15th of July destroyed all the vessels there. 1676. Upon the 21st of April, the legislature of Barbadoes passed a law to prevent negroes from attending the Quakers' meeting in that island. The following are extracts from the act: "Whereas of late many negroes have been suffered to remain at the meetings of the Quakers, as hearers of their doctrine, and taught in their principles, whereby the safety of the island may be much hazarded:-If, at any time after the publication hereof, any negro or negroes be found with the people called Quakers, as hearers of their preaching, he or they shall be forfeited (if belonging to any of the Quakers); half the money to go to the informer, the other half to the public use of the island, provided the action be brought within three months. If the negro should not belong to any person present at the meeting, then the informer may bring an action upon this statute against any of the persons present at the said meeting, at the election of the informer, and so recover ten pounds for every negro. And no person whatsoever shall keep any school to instruct any child in any learning, unless, within one month after the publication hereof, he first take the oaths of allegiance and supremacy, on pain of three months' imprisonment, and forfeiture of 3000 lbs. of Moscovado sugar; one half to go to the informer. And no person to preach at the Quakers' meeting, unless he hath been twelve months upon the island, on pain of six months imprisonment, and forfeiture of 1000 lbs. of Moscovado sugar, one half to go to the informer Provided that all actions upon this statute be brought within six months after the offence." "Read and passed the Council the 21st of April, 1676. Consented to by his Excellency the governor the same day. EDWYN STEED, Deputy Secretary.” Charlevoix, tom. iii. pp. 146, 147. Sewell's Hist. of the Quakers, p. 535. The trade of Barbadoes employed 400 ships of 150 tons burthen each upon an average. Governor Atkyns reported the number of inhabitants in Barbadoes to be 21,725 Whites, and 32,473 Negroes. A new assembly met, upon the 26th of March, in Jamaica; and having passed several laws, they were dissolved on the 26th of July. The laws passed by this assembly and that of 1675 were transmitted to England, and sent to the Attorney-General, to form a new body of laws for the government of the island. Vice-Admiral Jacob Binkes sailed from Holland March the 16th, with seven sail of the line, one fire-ship, and five small craft, to retake Cayenne. He arrrived there the 4th of May, and with 900 men carried the castle by assault. The governor, M. Lesi, with two priests, were sent prisoners to Holland. The Dutch loss was fourteen killed and seventy-two wounded. The court of France, hearing of this success in the October following, sent the Count d'Estrées to retake the island. He arrived there in December, and landed 800 men three leagues below the castle, under the command of the Count de Blinac and M. St. Faucher: these were obliged to march by night, in consequence of the excessive heat, and the fleet kept near them. The 19th of December, D'Estrées sent M. de Lesi, the former governor, to demand the surrender of the castle: the garrison refused. The following night, the castle was stormed at seven different parts at the same time, and carried, after a loss to the Dutch of thirty-eight killed and several wounded. Two hundred and sixty-two prisoners were sent to France, and very harshly treated. The French plundered the island of Trinidad, and left it. M. Pouancy received his appointment the 16th of March, from the French government, as governor of Tortuga, as well as the Cul de Sac, in St. Domingo: he sent orders to his countrymen on the Peninsula of Samana, to remove to Cape François. Previous to complying with it, they made an excursion to Cotuy, a Spanish town about fifteen leagues to the westward, and plundered it. Soon afterwards, a deserter giving information to the Spaniards, that the French left their houses without protection when they went hunting, they attacked and destroyed almost all of both the hunters and their families-some few only escaped. Other buccaneers afterwards attempted to settle on Samana, but De Pouancy obliged them to quit so exposed a situation. Harris's Voyages, vol. ii. p. 256. Report of the Lords of the Committee, 1789. Supplement to No 15. Edwards, vol. iii. p. 296. Esquemeling's Hist. of the Buccaneers, chap. xxiv. Colquhoun's Brit. Emp. p. 363. Charlevoix, tom. iii. p. 151. 1677. M. d'Estrées, having settled every thing at Cayenne, sailed for Martinico, and from thence proceeded to attack the Heer Binkes, at Tobago. Upon their approach, Binkes landed some of his sailors, and the soldiers under the command of Captains Vander Graaf, Van Dongen, and Ciavone, to man the batteries and fortress of Sterrshans. Two days after, the French anchored in Palmit Bay, and landed their troops. February the 23d, D'Estrées sent a flag of truce to demand the surrender of the fort, which was refused. After this, nothing was done till the 3d of March, when the French fleet stood in to engage the Dutch fleet: at the same time, the troops attempted to storm the castle. After repeated attacks, they were forced to retire, with the loss of 150 killed and 200 wounded, who were with difficulty carried off. The battle lasted with the ships from day-break till evening. D'Estrées' ship, the Glorieux, of seventy guns, was blown up, and two others were stranded under sail- leaving the Dutch victorious, though with the loss of several ships, which were burnt. D'Estrées returned to Brest, and was ordered back again to Tobago, with a reinforcement of eight sail of the line, and eight smaller vessels. He left Brest the 7th of October, arrived off Barbadoes the 1st of December, and at Tobago the 7th, with twenty sail of vessels of war, besides a great number of small craft. One thousand five hundred men were landed under the command of M. de Blinac, and they had approached, by the 9th, within 600 paces of the post called Le Cort. On the 10th, D'Estrées summoned the Heer Binkes to surrender. On the 12th, the French began their attack by throwing fire-balls into the castle: the third ball fell upon some loose powder, which communicating with the magazine, the whole was blown up, and Binkes and all his officers, with the exception of Van Dongen, killed. Five hundred French immediately stormed the works, and carried them: only 300 men were found alive, who were sent to France. D'Estrées then destroyed every fort and house upon the island, and left it the 27th of December. A medal was struck upon this occasion. Lord Vaughan, governor of Jamaica, issued a commission, according to the statute of Henry VIII., for the trial of Brown for piracy, upon which he was condemned to die, and the Esquemeling's Hist. of the Buccaneers, chap. xxiv. Charlevoix, tom. iii. p. 154. Long's Jamaica, vol. i. p. 211. |