ough this expedition met with no
opposition, it served a good purpose, as from that time perfect
quiet and order were brought about.--TAYLOR, _Leaflets from the
Danish West Indies_, pp. 126-132.

VI

CHAMBERLAIN IRMINGER'S ACCOUNT OF THE INSURRECTION OF 1848

After a stay of several days in the island of St. Thomas,
Governor-General v Scholten sailed in the forenoon of the 2nd
July, 1848, for St. Croix, in the brig-of-war "Ornen," which I
commanded.

About four o'clock in the afternoon we anchored in Bassin
(Christiansted), suspecting nothing of the row which the negroes
intended to make. The General dined with me. At sunset he landed
in order to proceed to Buelowsminde, and as he heard that I
intended to have the ship painted, he invited me to pass the time
at his beautiful country seat.

About 10 o'clock, p.m. we retired to rest. The 3rd July, at
about two o'clock in the morning, I was awakened by the General's
servant with a request that I would come to the General as
quickly as possible. I immediately repaired to his presence and
found him already dressed. He then showed me a report from the
Chief Commander of the Fort in West End (Frederiksted), Capt. v
Castonier, which stated that the negroes were restless at that
part of the island--that bells were being rung on the
estates--and they were sounding the alarm on their shells
(conchshells).

When I had read the report, the Governor-General said: "What is
now to be done?" To this I answered that I thought the best thing
to do was to seek as quickly as possible to smother the
disturbance at its birth, because every minute now lost would
lend additional strength to the disturbers of the peace. It was
my impression that twenty to thirty armed men should immediately
be sent on horseback to West End in order to scatter the negroes
apart.

The Governor remarking that he could not dispose of such a force,
I replied that I did not think it would be so difficult to get
such a number of mounted militia collected from the nearest
estates.

In the meantime, the General's horses were saddled and we now
both rode, accompanied by a mounted servant, down to the
Government house in Bassin. The night was a starry one and the
weather exceedingly fine. We stopped now and then on th