Morning journal and courier., 1883-09-06
Gu1anese Negroes.


 Othello excites sympathy upon the stage, ! and black Bishops are social pets in lands where the negro is an exo@Rc. Mrs. Stowes Uncle Tom metamorphoses himself into quite 8 new conception after year CT two's resi- dence in the tropics. Longitude in religious phrsseology too often cloaks an unfortunate l latitude in morals The clergyman, or, as he I is called, ''the Reverend" soon ands this fact 8 large source of difficulty in his dealings with his Sock who also have an unpleasant habit of looking to him for assistance in al most every possible circumstance of life. He eral, or to give splendor to the ceremonial of marriage, which they occasionally patron ike. The poorest man of African descent is ambitious of ia good funeral. D If care ever assumes an acute form with him, apprehen- sion for festivities that should grace the ter. imitation of his life must be the cause. If when alive carriage exercise is beyond his means, he never dreams of not being driven to the cemetery when he is dead, followed by. five or six vehicles at least In these his friends will reoline as easy and self-possessed as the ttGubnah self"
 little labor procures him the necessaries of existence. More work is needed to pro- cure some indispensable luxuries. Among these are frock- coat, a silk hat and other outward appurtenances of responsibility. Thus he may be seen on Sundays, at a party, for which he receives the following card of invitation:
 Miss Caesarina Bloomah present her com pliments to Mir. Pompey Van Groningen, and request the pleasure of your company at my ball on Thursday, 18th of October. Dancing at S." Pompey is initiative. If you see his back only when he is dancing with Caesarina, or watch him making himself agreeable to the ladies, you might imagine him a Caucas ian.
 The Iaziness eff the negro is not the an guor that shrinks from all exertion. Amuse- ment evokes captivity. He plays every out door game with enthusiasm. The women even in some parts of British Guiana have formed cricket clubs. It is the restraint of continuous labor that is dislked Consequent ly few pure-blooded blacks rise to positions of colonial eminence, yet negro boys to certain age are as intelligent as Euro pean.
 The race has strong sense of humor. A wittioism of any kind is seldom lost on them They look upon life as somewhat of joke. Sorrow beclouds their horizon for a moment; but the ripple of laughter which is the visible condition of their being soon succeeds the transient grief, as quickly as sunshine follows the shower which trickles in tear-drops through the dense foliage of the equatorial forest.
 Superstition is rife. Ghosts seem to have quite partiality for color. Their readiness to manifest themselves should imply that ra- cial prejudices are unknown in the spirit world. The belief in Obeah is widespread. Death that does not readily explain itself arouses suspicion of malign infuences-- The ancient horror of the 'eevil eye" enjoys full share of vitality. An elderly white lady was within the last few years subjected to gross persecution by an ignorant and terrified pop nlace.r Her house was nightly assailed with stones. She was compelled to seek in the colonial press an efficient protector.
 A negro pisused his mistress, an Indian woman. Disguised. at his behavior, she fled to the forest and the shelter of her friends. They were very angry. A spirit was sent to Georgetown to torture and annoy the brutal lover. A man and . ghost make discordant household. Hadfeld street was disturbed by cries so dreadful that their cause was at once conjectuEed to be something unearthly. Every evening people thronged to hear the din. Offerings of rum and beer, and even more expensive liquors, were made to the demon.. As often as one yotlve glass was placed by hurried and trembling hands in the doorway of the haunted dwelling it's contents were disposed of. Strangely enough the yells of the victim became more terrific with each sacrifice to his tormentor. At length Sad- ducees got the ear of the rulers of the coun- try, and one summer evening the votaries to the malignant forest sprite were escorted to the central police station fn the Brickdam. This act of authority terminated the cpl sode.
 | There is an ordeal by grass used to detect petty thefts. Sharply pointed herbage IS laid upon 8 plate, the tips of the blades turned outward. The suspected person kneeis, ana repeats form of incentation with head bent down If he is guilty, the grass springs up on end and the pointed tips slightly pierce and grip the throat of the liar. Although the commercial value of the ne-
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