MDPOD - Masson du Parc Online Database

Another list of seabirds seen around the Isle. Whether whales are seen there and whether they are sometimes caught. Whether porpoises are fished there and what colour they are. Whether green and dried cod, salted salmon and other species of fish are brought to St Christopher and where they come from. If bears, wolves, cows and sea lions are sometimes caught. If ambergris is sometimes found on the coast or in the sea around the island, and in what circumstances it is most commonly found. The coast is covered with a large number of shellfish. What species are they, and which are the best to eat? Whether there are mussels and oysters and of what species. Whether mother-of-pearl is found there and whether it is fertile. Whether there are many land crabs and soldier crabs, and in what season they come to lay their eggs on the coast and the latter to change their shells. Whether there are many crocodiles and whether they are very dangerous.Many lizards are caught and the use made of them, whether they are eaten and how they are prepared.

[?] in Saint-Christophe or in any Windward Islands. This fish has moved away and we no longer see them. We catch a lot of sardines in Saint Christophe. There are two kinds. One which is as big as those in Royan. It has a golden collar and head, a white belly and a green back. It is dangerous to eat and causes death to foreigners and new negroes who are not aware of it. It is only caught in the Windward Islands in the Cayenne and Canaris neighborhoods. The other species is called cayeux and is very good to eat. It is caught down wind of the island along the coast with baskets. It is smaller than the first and less golden. We salt them for Negro food. The English of this island are negligent about fishing and when some French of Saint Christophe come, they bring their fish to sell in the English neighborhoods. Our Frenchmen had several small local canoes equipped with two to three men and went a league away to the town of Basseterre on a bank near Nioeul to line fish for excellent fish, namely sardes, thazards, beaumes and vieilles. These last ones have been seen weighing up to 150 pounds. It is an excellent fish and when it is well sprinkled with salt twice in 24 hours, it equals the green cod, thazard and beaumes that are caught on the bank. They are not harmful but when we take them on the side of the Anse ? Louvet, towards the bottom of Basseterre, they are as dangerous as the golden sardine. Some French inhabitants have nets called senne that they use to catch, apart the above-mentioned fish, some carangues along the coast which are good fish. We see some of the latter weighing up to two hundred pounds. They also go on dark nights with their canoes along the rocks with lit torches to take lobsters which is a large sea crayfish. They also took king thazards, couronn?s, sardes, orphies, otherwise aiguilles. There is a small shrub in Saint Christophe as in the other islands called drunken wood. We plunder the branch and the leaf, which we enclose in small bags made of bad nets and in the lowlands of Basseterre near the Anse ? Louvet, negroes with water up to their shoulders beat water with these bags which intoxicate the fish which come to the surface of the water. Those in the canoes take them by hand or with small baskets and in very large quantities. The locals do these fishing trips more for pleasure than for utility. Bream (dorades) are rarely caught in all of the above-mentioned fisheries. Many seabirds are commonly seen around the island: mauves (Stern), gray and white egrets (Egretta), herons, great gullets, fous (Northern Gannet?), frigates (Frigate bird), sparrows. And in the months of July, August and September, there are plenty of of marine game, in such a large quantity in the salt fish district that in one day a hunter kills up to 500, namely, ducks, sarcelles (Eurasian teal), pluviers (Plover), sandpipers, snipe and sea larks. We see a few whales along the coast, and we have never heard of one being caught. No porpoises are caught there but sailing vessels going from one island to another sometimes harpoon them. They are of the same shape, color and size as those of the seas of Europe. No bears, cows, wolves or sea lions are taken there, and never ambergris along the coast...

[?] in Saint-Christophe or in any Windward Islands. This fish has moved away and we no longer see them. We catch a lot of sardines in Saint Christophe. There are two kinds. One which is as big as those in Royan. It has a golden collar and head, a white belly and a green back. It is dangerous to eat and causes death to foreigners and new negroes who are not aware of it. It is only caught in the Windward Islands in the Cayenne and Canaris neighborhoods. The other species is called cayeux and is very good to eat. It is caught down wind of the island along the coast with baskets. It is smaller than the first and less golden. We salt them for Negro food. The English of this island are negligent about fishing and when some French of Saint Christophe come, they bring their fish to sell in the English neighborhoods. Our Frenchmen had several small local canoes equipped with two to three men and went a league away to the town of Basseterre on a bank near Nioeul to line fish for excellent fish, namely sardes, thazards, beaumes and vieilles. These last ones have been seen weighing up to 150 pounds. It is an excellent fish and when it is well sprinkled with salt twice in 24 hours, it equals the green cod, thazard and beaumes that are caught on the bank. They are not harmful but when we take them on the side of the Anse ? Louvet, towards the bottom of Basseterre, they are as dangerous as the golden sardine. Some French inhabitants have nets called senne that they use to catch, apart the above-mentioned fish, some carangues along the coast which are good fish. We see some of the latter weighing up to two hundred pounds. They also go on dark nights with their canoes along the rocks with lit torches to take lobsters which is a large sea crayfish. They also took king thazards, couronn?s, sardes, orphies, otherwise aiguilles. There is a small shrub in Saint Christophe as in the other islands called drunken wood. We plunder the branch and the leaf, which we enclose in small bags made of bad nets and in the lowlands of Basseterre near the Anse ? Louvet, negroes with water up to their shoulders beat water with these bags which intoxicate the fish which come to the surface of the water. Those in the canoes take them by hand or with small baskets and in very large quantities. The locals do these fishing trips more for pleasure than for utility. Bream (dorades) are rarely caught in all of the above-mentioned fisheries. Many seabirds are commonly seen around the island: mauves (Stern), gray and white egrets (Egretta), herons, great gullets, fous (Northern Gannet?), frigates (Frigate bird), sparrows. And in the months of July, August and September, there are plenty of of marine game, in such a large quantity in the salt fish district that in one day a hunter kills up to 500, namely, ducks, sarcelles (Eurasian teal), pluviers (Plover), sandpipers, snipe and sea larks. We see a few whales along the coast, and we have never heard of one being caught. No porpoises are caught there but sailing vessels going from one island to another sometimes harpoon them. They are of the same shape, color and size as those of the seas of Europe. No bears, cows, wolves or sea lions are taken there, and never ambergris along the coast...

[?] in Saint-Christophe or in any Windward Islands. This fish has moved away and we no longer see them. We catch a lot of sardines in Saint Christophe. There are two kinds. One which is as big as those in Royan. It has a golden collar and head, a white belly and a green back. It is dangerous to eat and causes death to foreigners and new negroes who are not aware of it. It is only caught in the Windward Islands in the Cayenne and Canaris neighborhoods. The other species is called cayeux and is very good to eat. It is caught down wind of the island along the coast with baskets. It is smaller than the first and less golden. We salt them for Negro food. The English of this island are negligent about fishing and when some French of Saint Christophe come, they bring their fish to sell in the English neighborhoods. Our Frenchmen had several small local canoes equipped with two to three men and went a league away to the town of Basseterre on a bank near Nioeul to line fish for excellent fish, namely sardes, thazards, beaumes and vieilles. These last ones have been seen weighing up to 150 pounds. It is an excellent fish and when it is well sprinkled with salt twice in 24 hours, it equals the green cod, thazard and beaumes that are caught on the bank. They are not harmful but when we take them on the side of the Anse ? Louvet, towards the bottom of Basseterre, they are as dangerous as the golden sardine. Some French inhabitants have nets called senne that they use to catch, apart the above-mentioned fish, some carangues along the coast which are good fish. We see some of the latter weighing up to two hundred pounds. They also go on dark nights with their canoes along the rocks with lit torches to take lobsters which is a large sea crayfish. They also took king thazards, couronn?s, sardes, orphies, otherwise aiguilles. There is a small shrub in Saint Christophe as in the other islands called drunken wood. We plunder the branch and the leaf, which we enclose in small bags made of bad nets and in the lowlands of Basseterre near the Anse ? Louvet, negroes with water up to their shoulders beat water with these bags which intoxicate the fish which come to the surface of the water. Those in the canoes take them by hand or with small baskets and in very large quantities. The locals do these fishing trips more for pleasure than for utility. Bream (dorades) are rarely caught in all of the above-mentioned fisheries. Many seabirds are commonly seen around the island: mauves (Stern), gray and white egrets (Egretta), herons, great gullets, fous (Northern Gannet?), frigates (Frigate bird), sparrows. And in the months of July, August and September, there are plenty of of marine game, in such a large quantity in the salt fish district that in one day a hunter kills up to 500, namely, ducks, sarcelles (Eurasian teal), pluviers (Plover), sandpipers, snipe and sea larks. We see a few whales along the coast, and we have never heard of one being caught. No porpoises are caught there but sailing vessels going from one island to another sometimes harpoon them. They are of the same shape, color and size as those of the seas of Europe. No bears, cows, wolves or sea lions are taken there, and never ambergris along the coast...

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

The English from Boston bring to Saint Christopher's in boats of 40 to 50 tons a great deal of dried cod, a little green cod, salmon and sturgeon in barrels, along with barrels of marinated oysters. There are a few shellfish along the coast, namely sea urchins, barnacles and burgotes. The latter are the best to eat and if, when collecting them, you place them in a basket on a white cloth, they release a foam that dyes the cloth a beautiful purple red colour that only disappears after two washes. There are no mussels, oysters or pearls. There are red crabs at the top of the mountains which are excellent but a little musky. In March, they change their shells and retreat into their holes, which they block with earth. When they are fat and full of roe, they are dug up. They are excellent to eat in the following May. Once their shells have hardened and their eggs have formed, they leave the woods to bathe in the sea and lay their eggs. There are soldiers along the coast. This animal changes its shell in March and April. We have never seen crocodiles. We catch large lizards in the woods that live only on leaves. We skin them, cut them into pieces, blanch them in warm water and make a fricassee like chicken. Done at Fort Royal on 5 December 1722 Lepau-Feuquiere Benard

[up to 4 and a half feet long. Very large in its species, appearing short, with a monstrous head, this fish is found throughout the coast and rivers of the country.] It has a flesh that one would mistake for meat, mainly veal. It is of unparalleled excellence.We cut it into slices and prepare it like veal and any other meat. We lard it like beef. This is one of the most common and best. It seems that it could be marinated like tuna. There are plaice all the time along the entire coast and in the rivers to a certain extent. This fish is shaped like a limande or plie and comes in all sizes, from 9 to 10 inches to almost 2 feet. It is about two thirds of its length wide. It?s a fish that would be priceless in France. For its quality, it still surpasses all others and could be presented to a king as a delicacy. There are still burgos that have scales of almost the same shape. It is still one of the best fish you can find. It's not quite that big, or that strong.There are sometimes real hake or cod there, but rarely like those that we fish along the coast and in the rivers and that we do not fish offshore like everywhere else. It is presumed that there are a very large number of unknown fish which usually never come to the coast.There are monstrous carp in the rivers, not the best, but somewhat passable. There are also eels in different places as good as those of Europe. There are two species of river fish that are usually called big mouths and big ears. These two kinds of fish would be priceless in France for their taste and goodness. In Mobile, there are a very large number of brochelansin in swamps, which makes one believe that they could be found everywhere else. There is also a species of small fish called patassar, up to 7 to 8 inches long, mostly less than that. It is still a very exquisite and very excellent fish. There are crayfish and shrimp in very large quantities. There are sardines not in the shape of those from France. They are much larger and wider, but they have the same taste and goodness. There is such a large quantity that we find whole shoals of them, and in its season, all the rivers are filled with them. We salt it. There are French people in the country who trade it with other inhabitants. The whole country, that is to say, the coast and the river, are full of very large cancres which are better than in Europe. We are not aware of any salmon there. We are only talking here about the coast in general up to 10 or 12 leagues in the rivers. The beaver is found in the upper parts of rivers. We did not see any seals, nor any sea ox or sea calf of this species. No whale has ever been seen in the country. There are no turtles like in Madagascar and Bourbon Island. There are small land turtles like at the Cape of Good Hope. There are also a lot of sea turtles on different banks and islets almost all the time, except during very cold weather. They lay eggs there during two seasons, in March-April and September-October. There?s no [?]