there seemed signs he couldn't breathe :: :: journal entry james hamilton, 1753 :: thursday 20th May

“…at 2 a.m. weighed with a light breeze at west. made but little headway because of the great swell. sounded several times. at dawn buried a man slave (No. 62) who had died of pleurisy. at noon discovered myself indisposed of a small fever, and my eyes grown very weak. :: mr allen assures me that I am (by God’s blessing) sure to recover. the purchase of a relatively modest 210 slaves may yet ensure my continued mortality. :: in the evening, by the favour of providence, discovered a conspiracy among the men slaves to rise upon us. near 30 of them had broke their irons. should they have made their attempts upon the coast, when we had a half-dozen out of the ship, i cannot imagine the consequences. they appeared gloomy and sullen, their heads full of mischief. :: before midnight buried 3 more women slaves (Nos 71, 104, 109). know not what they died of, for they have not been properly alive since they first came on aboard.”

:: :: :: excerpt from ~ Crossing The River, a novel by Caryl Phillips; Alfred A. Knopf, 1994