G H A A however, fhould he offended with this fbocking exhibit
XXVil. ^ tion, and my dwelling fo long on this unpleafant fiùbjedfc,
let it be fome relief to Ms]ïe&£tidhfrth coTifidleftbis pu>
nifhment'not infliéted as â wânton àhd- unprovoked a£t o f
cruelty, but as the- extreme fevCrity of the Surinam laws,
on a dëfperate wretch, fuffering ak an example* to others
for compiléated crimesf" while at: the feme time it- Cannot
but and I hèpe m any others, fomelcoradiaîation
to reïlëét‘that the-above barbarous- mode o f puniihmeht
Was hitherto never put in ptadtiofe’in' the Britifla colonies1.'
1 I itiUft now relaté àn-incident, which, as it had a 'men-
mentary eflfeét onhay imagination, mightbavé had' adaft-
ingOHe on forhe who -had not anvëftigatedthe real caufe d f
it, and which it gave me lid fmall fatisfadfcion t© :difcOvër.
About three in the afternoon, walking towards the place
o f execution, with my thought full* Of the iafféëting feeing,
and the image o f the fufferer frefh in my mind, the firff
ohjedt I faW was his head at fome diftanee, placed on-a
flake, noddihg to me backwards and forwards, as i f he
had really been alive* 1 inftantly flopped ifhart, and
feeing Ho perfdh in the fevattnah, nor ahrdath > of cüind,
füfficient to move a leaf or a feather, I acknowledge that I
Was ïivetted to the ground, where Lftood withoutrhaviag
ther'efolution of advancing one ftep for fame time,; till
reflecting that I muft be weak indeed not to approach this
dead fkull, and find out the wonderful phaenomenon, if
pofîible, I boldly walked up, and inftantly difeovered the
natural caufe, by the return of a vulture tô the gallows,
§ who
who perched upon .it, as if, he meant to difpute with me CHAP,
for this fCaft o f carrion; which bird, having already picked x x vh ,
out one of the eyes, had fled at my firft approach, and
ftriking the fkull with his talons, as he took his hidden
flight, occafioned the motion already deferibed. I fhall
now only add, that this poor wretch, after living near fix
hours, had been knocked on the head by the com-
miferating fentinel, the marks of whofe mufket were
perfectly vifible by a large openfraflure in the fkull.
Vultures tare'compared b y fome to the eagle, though
thofe of Surinam poflefs very oppofite qualities, They
are indeed birds of prey, but inftead of feeding on what
they;kill» like the »thfer ‘noble animal, their chief pun-
•ftiit is carrion ; wherefore they generally iefort to buriali-
grounds.-and places of,execution, which they jdifeover by
their^very acute fmell, fo muieblfo, that by the negroes
they are called fingee-fowloi or the'flinking bird, if The
Guiana vultures are the fize of a common turkey; they
are of a dark-grCy colour, with black wings and tail; the
bill is ftraight with a. crooked .point, and very ftrong;' the
tongue is cloven, the neck without feathers, and the legs
very fhort. Betides carrion, thefe birds will often dpftroy
and cat ferpents, and indeed every thing .that comes in
their way, until» they are fo much gbfged that they can
hardly fly.
The bird called the. king of; ibe ^ ’uhj^res. is pot very
common in Surinam, though fometimes the Indiansforihg
one of two to Paramaribo for fale, bn account o f its great
Q q 2 beauty.