left to die there. He says elsewhere, and it may be hoped that the
explanation is the truer one, that the recently imported negroes often
destroyed themselves, in the belief that when dead they would return to
their own country. In the French islands as well as the English, the
bodies of suicides were exposed in these cages, from which they could
not be stolen, to convince the poor people of their mistake by their own
eyes. He says that the contrivance was successful, and that after this
the slaves did not destroy themselves any more.

CHAPTER V.

West Indian politeness--Negro morals and felicity--Island of St.
Vincent--Grenada--The harbour--Disappearance of the whites--An
island of black freeholders--Tobago--Dramatic art--A promising
incident.

West Indian civilisation is old-fashioned, and has none of the pushing
manners which belong to younger and perhaps more thriving communities.
The West Indians themselves, though they may be deficient in energy, are
uniformly ladies and gentlemen, and all their arrangements take their
complexion from the general tone of society. There is a refinement
visible at once in the subsidiary vessels of the mail service which ply
among the islands. They are almost as large as those which cross the
Atlantic, and never on any line in the world have I met with officers so
courteous and cultivated. The cabins were spacious and as cool as a
temperature of 80 deg., gradually rising as we went south, would permit.
Punkahs waved over us at dinner. In our berths a single sheet was all
that was provided for us, and this was one more than we needed. A sea
was running when we cleared out from under the land. Among the cabin
passengers was a coloured family in good circumstances moving about with
nurses and children. The little things, who had never been at sea
before, sat on the floor, staring out of their large helpless black
eyes, not knowing what was the matter with them. Forward there were
perhaps two or three hundred coloured people going from one island to
another, singing, dancing, and chattering all night long, as radiant and
happy as carelessness and content could make them. Sick or not sick made
no difference. Nothing could disturb the imperturbable good humour and
good spirits.

It was too hot to sleep; we sat several of us smoking on deck, and I
learnt the first authentic particulars of the present manner of life of
these much misunderstood people. Evidently th