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"Private Examination of Cinquez,"New York Commercial Advertiser., 13 Sept. 1839.
For the N. Y. Commercial Advertiser.
TO THE COMMITTEE, &c.
PRIVATE EXAMINATION OF CINQUEZ, alias JINGUA.
This morning I went into the hospital department of the prison with Dr. Hooker. Five or six are sick with the white flux or diarrhea, peculiar to warm climates--one or two of them dangerously, as the physician thinks, who, through the interpreter, conversed for the first time with his patients. Some of the sick are convalescing. The doctor says he has seldom had patients who showed so much gratitude when relieved by medicine. One of the sick men named Jooeh, writes in some unknown language, which does not appear to be the Arabic. They said they were forced to drink a great deal of salt water, on board the slaver, and that made them sick. Dr. Hooker brought them woolen socks, and administered medicine, which they took very readily. It seems a providential circumstance that these men were thrown upon the American coast near here, and that they were brought to this city. Where could they have been better situated? The doctor asked the Congo if he should not pull out his two tusk-like teeth, and he said no, no, evidently prizing them very much. This man has been described in some of the papers as a man-eater, and almost a monster in his appearance, but he is neither.
Between nine and ten o'clock a private examination of Cinquez (or as it should be spelled, Jingua,) and one of his comrades, name Bowle, took place in a room in the jailer's house. There were present Norris Wilcox, Esq., R. S. Baldwin, Esq., Professors Olmstead and Gibbs, Rev. Messrs. Bacon and Ludlow, Anthony, the black boy, who speaks Spanish only, the native African interpreter and myself. Cinquez (or rather Jingua,) and Bowle are natives of the same tribe, the Mandingo, but as the latter can speak the Gallinas dialect better than the former, the interpreter, who, though neither a Mandingo nor a Gallina, but a Kissi, (which was incorrectly spelled in a previous communication Geeshee) found it easier to converse with Jingua by the aid of Bowle, who translated the Gallinas to him in Mandingo.-- We endeavored to impress upon their minds, in the first place, that we were their friends, and that they must speak the truth. Both of them appeared to have some idea of a good Spirit, and also of an evil Spirit. They said "God is good," and if they told lies, the evil Spirit would take them somewhere, they did not know where. Jingua had been asked if he did not know that God would punish him if he did not speak the truth, and he replied "yes," and added in his own language--"me tell no lie; me tell the truth." Jingua said he knew that if they do good they will go to God, and if they do bad the evil one will get them. On being asked where God was, he pointed upward.
Jingua repeated that he left his father, mother, wife and three children in Africa, and Bowle aid he left his mother, three brothers and two sisters and his native place, Badebou. Bowle said it was six or seven days travel from Mandingo to Gallinas near the sea, and he did not know any town named Manding. It is supposed that they came from a place near the sources of the river Niger. When he first saw Jingua he was at Manu, and the next time, he met him on board the slave brig. The river on whose banks the interpreter was born is called the Moau.-- It runs through the district where Jingua was born to the sea. It is sometimes very deep. They stated that they had been in battles, in their own country, using muskets, but had never been kidnappers. I would never take any advantage of any one, said Jingua, but would always defend myself. Bowle said his oldest brother was in debt, and they sold him, to pay it. They have no money there, said he, and trade away to the Spaniards, for powder and guns. Bowle said there was great slavery in Gallinas.--[This is the place where Don Blanco, the great slave trader, pursues his hellish business.] They stated that they were brought down the country to the sea coast, and were chained when put on board the slaver, which was a brig. It was crowded with slaves, there being 200 men, 300 women, and "plenty of children." Jingua here got down on the floor, to show us how they were stowed on board, then moved about on his knees, and as he rose put his hand of the top of his head, to indicate how low the deck was. They said their sufferings were great on the passage, and several of their number had died.
They stated that they were nearly two months going to Havana. There they were put on shore, at the city, in the night, and ironed hand and foot.--Besides this, every two were chained together at the waist and by the neck. When they were put on board the Amistad it was in the evening, and they sailed about midnight. Their irons were then taken off. Some slept below, and the rest on deck. Two of the Spaniards on board were armed with muskets. The captain of the schooner was very cruel; he beat them on the head very hard with any thing he could catch, and he kept them almost starved. [The fact stated in the examination before Judge Judson, that the captain sought to quell their rising by ordering the cabin boy to throw biscuit among them, seems to confirm this.] They say there was no person on board the schooner besides themselves and comrades, and the captain, the two Spaniards, the cabin boy, the cook, and two men who acted as guard. The cook was a mulatto, and the cabin boy is a negro. Jingua and Bowle both said they were down in the hold, and did not see the fight.
Antonio, who can speak only in the Spanish language, which the African interpreter well understands, said he was rather over fourteen years of age, that he was born at Havana, and had been a servant to the captain of the Amistad. He had been attached to that vessel three years, during which time she had made regular trips from Havana to Principe, with slaves. N. Wilcox, Esq. the marshal, here said that the schooner, could not be American built, as she was very different from vessels built in this country for the slave trade. She is only about 75 or 80 tons burden and her decks are made of mahogany. From another source I learned that, wherever built, she was evidently intended for a slaver, having ten sweeps, five on a side, and a very large hatchway. Her cargo was worth about $8000. The negroes left the hatches off during all weathers, and some of the goods are much damaged, so that the cargo will not probably bring over $5000. The money which the negroes had, belonged to the captain, and has gone into possession of the Spaniards and Lieut. Gedney. It will probably be proved that one of the Spaniards has said in this country that he bought the slaves from a slave ship, on speculation. Antonio said the brig that brought the negroes from the coast of Africa was under the Portuguese flag, and was call La Facora. They were put on board the Amistad, and she sailed from Havana in the night because English men of war were lying in the harbor. The quarrel took place when they had been about two days from Havana; the beginning of it was the cook's fault, who told the Africans that they were going to carry them where they would kill and eat all of them. Before that night they were treated badly, but that night they fought fair. No African was killed, but all that were killed were on the other side. Antonio said that Jingua did not kill any body.
Jingua appeared to be highly gratified to be taken from his cell, and to have the opportunity to look at the public buildings and the beautiful park, for the first time, from the windows of the chamber. When he entered the room his bearing was like another Othello. He seemed, at first, under some apprehension, but, after a while, appeared to be well aware that he was interrogated by persons friendly to him. He told his story in an animated manner, and when Antonio was making his statement, he watched his countenance with deep interest. Occasionally he would shake hands with the interpreter, and laugh very heartily. When removed from the chamber, he was allowed to visit his countrymen. They shouted for joy, on seeing him, called him 'massa,' and every one of them immediately, of their own accord, gave into his hands all the money, &c. they had received from the visitors. He took it, but before he reached his cell, he suddenly handed the money to his brother, who is one of the prisoners, thinking probably, and justly enough, too, that it would not be very safe when he should return to the the convicts with whom he is incarcerated.
One of the men attached to the prison was the occasion of great amusement on the part of the prisoners, as well as the spectators, by taking a large lump of ice to show these strangers from the tropics. They all handled it in turn, but each one, after holding it a moment, screamed out as if their hands had been burned, and entreated the man to take it out of their hands. They would then look at their hands to see of the skin was off, examine very closely the novelty, then taste of the water on their hands, then touch the ice with their tongues, or take a small piece into their mouths. As the ice was passed around, they laughed immoderately at the momentary agony of their comrades.
One of the physicians of the city, who happened to be at the prison, and who expressed his surprise to find that the prisoners, as a body, were all well formed, and appeared quite as intelligent as an equal number of of colored persons in New Haven, or any other part of the country, took hold of the head of one of them, to examine it phrenologically, when the young man burst into a rough laugh saying, "it is a very poor head." Some of them are not only cheerful, but merry, and show much agility, wit and shrewdness. Jingua is generally grave and thoughtful, but his countenance is occasionally light up, when the expression is very prepossessing, indicating much natural benevolence of heart.
The curiosity to see the prisoners appears to be unabated. Most of the visitors express much sympathy with these much abused strangers, and utter sentiments of strong indignation against those who have torn them from their native land, or meditated their enslavement. But there are a few persons, even in Connecticut, who unblushingly aver that these Africans are not men; that it is right to enslave them, and that they will undoubtedly be given up by our government. It remains to be seen whether a grand jury can be found in the land of Roger Sherman to find a bill of indictment against these victims of cupidity, or a petty jury to find them guilty of crime, or whether the judge will pronounce that they have violated American Law, or the Executive attempt to surrender them to a foreign owner. The wise and good throughout Christendom will watch our proceedings; and the result, be it what it may, will materially affect the character of this nation, both with contemporaries and posterity.
We found, during the investigation, that the prisoners speak at least six dialects, that the Gallina dialect is the Vey or Tey, and that one or more speak the Susoo. In addition to the works already requested, any person having the following books will confer a great favor on the committee by loaning them, or informing them where they can be procured immediately. A. Grammer and Vocabulary the Susoo language, Edin. 1802, 8vo. A Spelling Book for the Susoos, Edin. 1802, 8vo. Six Catechisms of[r] the Susoos, Edin. 1802, 8vo.
If there are native Africans in this city, or elsewhere in this country, who were born near the sources of the river Niger, or in Mandingo, or who can converse readily in the Susoo, Kissi, Mandingo, or Gallinas dialects, they will confer a great favor by calling or sending to the undersigned, for the committee, at 143 Nassau street, New York City. The committee will gratefully receive donations, however small, to enable them to employ able and efficient counsel, and to defray the other expenses of the trial, and they trust their appeal will be responded to by their fellow citizens.
Very truly yours,
LEWIS TAPPAN.
Long Island Sound, Sept. 10, 1839.
