its fins, Manati; the skin makes shoes. The tail is cut into pieces, and put in the sun for four or five days; it appears to be nothing but a nerve; but after the moisture is dried away, they put it into a pan, and, frying it, it turns to butter mostly, which is very proper, never turning rancid though kept very long, and being good to fry eggs in, for lamps, and medicines: it has two young ones, and two dugs. There was a fishing of them in Jamaica and Cuba. What is said of the fishing of them with the remora, or reverso, by the Indians, by training them up to it, is fabulous, though they will stick to such fish as these are.*

"This fish yields store of sweet mantega, or lard; is a thousand or fifteen hundred weight; gives two stones in the head, over the eyes, near the brains, which cures the stone in an hour. Purchas saw one voided as big as an almond. Purchas also observes, that it feeds on an herb that groweth by the borders and within the rivers."

Of the animal tribes, we must now take our leave. We have seen enough to convince us, that the widely extended regions of the globe were destined, by the infinitely wise Creator, to hold an intercourse with one another, that a mutual interchange of their various productions might reciprocally take place. The redundancy of one portion seems admirably calculated to supply the deficiency of another. Islands are beneficial to continents, and continents to islands; and we learn, from contemplating the animal and vegetable kingdoms, that God has made nothing in vain.

* Though Sloane, as quoted above, vol. ii. p. 330, says, that the account given of the remora, or reverso, is fabulous, Mr. Edwards has asserted it as a fact, and he quotes Oviedo in support of the assertion. Citing from Oviedo, he observes, that the remora is employed as falconers employ hawks. The remora is not more than a span in length; it is carried out at sea of a calm morning, and is fastened to the canoe by a small but strong line. The instant that a fish is perceived under water, the remora darts away with the swiftness of an arrow, and immediately fastens upon its prey. The line, with a buoy at its extremity, is then thrown overboard; and as it floats upon the surface, it is pursued by the canoe, till the fish on which the remora is fixed is exhausted with swimming, when, by the assistance of the line, both are drawn up together. By this method (adds Oviedo) I have known a turtle caught, of a bulk and weight which no single man could support."

Mr. Edwards then gives some account of the Manati, one of which he saw taken. It is a sort of amphibious creature, neither quadruped nor fish. It has two legs, and is covered with hair; it suckles its young; and from a supposed resemblance in the head, it has been named by the British seamen, the Sea Cow. Its flesh, which tastes somewhat like pork, is thought to be very good, both fresh and salted. Mr. Edwards also concurs with Sloane in this, that it feeds on grass which grows at the bottom of the sea. Acosta, a Roman Catholic, admits the excellency of the food, "but being doubtful whether it was flesh or fish, felt some scruples in eating it on Friday."

Of the numerous plants and trees common to all the islands, very few are exclusively natives of Jamaica. The following are the most worthy of notice, from their great utility.

The Bermudas Cedar, a native tree, grows very plentifully on most of the Blue Mountains, where it is frequently cut down for planks and other convenient uses. It is good timberwood, and admired for its smell, lightness, and close even grain. It is fit for wainscoting, and all the inward parts of cabinet work.

The Papaw Tree grows wild in many parts of Jamaica, and is easily propagated by seeds and layers. There are two species, the male and the female. On the former, the flowers are pretty large, and grow in clusters among the leaves. The seeds are round and rugged, about the size of black pepper, and always enveloped in a soft gelatinous substance within the fruit: they have a sharp biting taste, and are given to children troubled with worms as a certain remedy. The fruit, when ripe, has a pleasant sweet taste, and is much liked by many people; but while young, it is commonly used for sauce; and when boiled, and mixed with lime-juice and sugar, is not unlike or much inferior to real apple-water, or very small sweet cider. It is remarkable, that water impregnated with the milky juice of this tree, renders meat tender, when washed with it; but if it be left steeped in it for ten minutes, it becomes so soft, that it will drop in pieces from the spit before it is roasted, or fall apart like rags in the boiling.

The Cocoa Nut Tree is plentifully cultivated in most of the warm climates of the western world. Its fruit is well known in England, and therefore requires no description. The tree which produces this nectareous fruit rises to a considerable height, and is very plentiful in Jamaica. Both beauty and utility ensure its cultivation; and as it thrives well in the torrid zone, there is no probability that the species will ever be lost. The fibrous parts of the husks in which the nut grows, are converted, in some parts of the East Indies, into various sorts of cordage, for which they seem admirably adapted; though in Jamaica they have rarely been applied to any valuable purpose. The leaves of the cocoa nut tree are occasionally used for thatch; and the tender shoots, when boiled, are an excellent substitute for cabbage. The timber is applied to various purposes. The juices obtained by tapping the tree, when they are mixed and fermented with molasses, yield a pleasant and wholesome spirit, which bears a great resemblance to arrack.

The mountains of Jamaica abound with copper ore of various species; and two mines were worked for some time in the 3 E

VOL. I.

Liguanea Mountains; but neither of them produced sufficient to pay the expenses attending the labour and process of the manufacture. Mr. Long, however, gives it as his opinion, that it is much to be regretted that the copper and lead mines in this island had not been more effectually prosecuted; because, upon the computation that every sugar estate which pro: duces one hundred hogsheads a year, must be at a certain expense of £65 per annum for copper and lead alone, it will appear, that the island expends £45,000, or thereabouts, every year in these articles; which might be saved. The former failure in working the copper mines was owing to their being undertaken by two private gentlemen, whose fortunes were inadequate to the enterprise : it ought to be a public work, at the expense of the collective body of planters, regulated by an act of the legislature.

In the bed of the river called the Rio Minho, in Clarendon parish, bits of gold have sometimes been found after floods. On this subject a memorable anecdote is preserved in Long's history of Mr. Beckford, so well known in England as an alderman and lord mayor of London: "When he was at his estate in this island, situated on the banks of that river, the manager one day brought him a piece of fine gold, which had been picked up in the sand of the river; and, at the same time, advised him to send for a skilful metallurgist, who would probably discover a rich mine within his own land thereabouts. To this proposal Mr. Beckford made no other reply than this"Whilst we have got so profitable a mine above ground (pointing to his cane pieces) we will not trouble ourselves about hunting for any under ground."

Of minerals, fossils, and shells, the accounts are but imperfect and unimportant, independently of the baths and mineral springs already noticed in the respective parishes where they are found; here therefore our sketch of the natural history of the island is brought to a conclusion.

1

CHAP. XII.

HISTORY OF JAMAICA.

Establishment of the Protestant Religion in the island of Jamaica, under the government of Oliver Cromwell-of the Church of England, during the reign of Charles II.-attempts to restore Popery by James II.-prevented by the glorious Revolution which placed William III. on the throne of England-state of religion in the island from that period to the reign of Geo. II.-Settlement of the Moravians in 1732-account of their ministry.

THAT extraordinary revolution which subverted the ancient

monarchical constitution of England, at the same time overturned the ecclesiastical hierarchy of the established church, and substituted in its stead the Presbyterian system, which does not admit of episcopacy, or any other dignified orders or distinctions among the priesthood.

Presbyters, or elders, from whom this party has been commonly denominated Presbyterians, are, in general, the seniors, or principal laymen, of each separate congregation or communion. These manage the temporal affairs of their respective churches jointly with the pastor, who is of course an elder; and elect, with the unanimous concurrence of all the other members, or the majority, being the heads of families, the presiding minister, called the Pastor, and also an assistant, if either the extent of the duty, or the age or infirmities of the pastor, render such an appointment necessary.

In a way similar to these regulations at home, Cromwell, after the surrender of Jamaica to the English government, sent over seven ministers, as the sole religious establishment for the whole island; and in this state the spiritual concerns of the first English settlers remained during his administration.

The restoration of Charles II. was immediately followed by a revival of the old civil and religious establishments in the British colonies; in which the external forms of religion, as well as the laws, were assimilated as nearly as possible to those of the mother country. Consequently, though the established church of England gained the ascendancy, and the parochial clergy of the island of Jamaica were subjected to the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the bishop of London, who claimed it as an appen

dage to his diocese, yet a free toleration, not only of the Roman Catholics, but of different denominations of Protestant Dissenters, was specially enjoined by the king in his instructions to the governors.

But the propensity to Popery which discovered itself in that monarch's reign, and the open encouragement given to it when James II. came to the throne, rendered it absolutely necessary to make restraints by acts of parliament. The island itself was endangered during that short period by the intrigues of the foreign Papists, and the countenance of the Roman Pontiff, under the hopes, then entertained, of a general restoration of the Romish faith and ecclesiastical government throughout the British dominions. This was providentially prevented by the glorious Revolution, and by the constitution settled by the bill of rights signed by William and Mary, on their joint acceptance of the crown. Hereby the enjoyment of the civil and religious liberty of the people was firmly and permanently secured; and all fear of the perversion of the kingdom to the superstition, and to the persecuting principles, of the church of Rome, was totally removed. It was, however, judged consistent with sound policy, for the reasons above mentioned, to prevent professed Papists holding any office or place of trust under the government of Jamaica, by obliging all persons aspiring to enjoy them, to take the customary oaths of allegiance and supremacy, which, according to the tenets of their religion, the Roman Catholics of those days could not. But men of all persuasions are freely admitted as inhabitants, only foreigners are required to take the oath of allegiance.

The bishop of London has at present no jurisdiction, except so far as relates to the conduct of the clergy and their ordina tion; his authority in spiritual concerns in all other respects having been annulled by an act of the legislature of the island, Even in this department he can only send them letters of admonition, caution, or reproof; but it is not in his power to deprive them of their benefices, or to remove them from their cures, whatever immorality may mark their lives. The governor of the island for the time being, personating his majesty, is considered as supreme head of the church; and the right to exercise ecclesiastical dominion constitutes a branch of his prerogative. It is from him that the clergy derive their parochial authority; by him they must be inducted into their respective rectories and livings; and to him they must be accountable for their neglect of duty, and for any irregularity which may disgrace their conduct and degrade their profession. A previous qualification, however, is necessary, before a candidate can be accepted by the governor. He must bring with him testimo