Category: Blank and Empty Things; A History of

JF Ptak Science Books LLC  Post 458

This is
the second in a series on the History of the Dot.  This engraving of the ingenious and very
once-upon-a-time difficult-to-break cipher appeared in the mammoth (45-volume) Cyclopædia,
or The New Cyclopaedia, or, Universal Dictionary of the Arts and Sciences, edited by Abraham Rees (1743-1825).  The
book was published between 1802 and 1820, and was the work of 100 contributors,
who generally wrote monograph-length entries, as the completed effort ran close
to 40 million words.  I’ve particularly enjoyed
the illustrations—some of which have become iconic—and especially the fine and
deep engraving of Wilson Lowry. 

The engraving, “Writing by Cipher”,
employs dots placed above, on and below a line, representing the numbers 1,2
and 3, respectively, which in turn form one of four numbers which are letters;
a key would then be transmitted to reference the letters formed by the dots to
the alphabet.  It was a tough bugger to
break, and survived most of the 19^th century without being
broken. 

JF Ptak Science Books LLC Post 373

In another (twentieth) in this blog’s series on Blank, Empty and Missing Things, I offer this map, a heartbreaking map, of an empty, abandoned village of peacefully-living runaway slaves in Jamaica, in about 1825.

The name of the town, extraordinarily, was “We No Sen, You No Come”.  It meant, basically, that the slaves living there would not leave their town, wouldn’t seek anything from the outside, would not interact, would not interfere; in return, they didn’t want anyone visiting, coming to them. interfering in any way; just wanted to be left alone, to live.  And from the account of this supportive, understanding and sympathetic publication, that is exactly what these people had done for eleven years.

But then something happened.  The owners of the enormous estate wanted the “banditi runaways” gone.  The slaves evidently had 200 acres under domestication, hidden in the far reaches of an enormous 100,000 acre estate.  The “hunting party” left heavily armed, accompanied by 250 troops, as well as “confidential and baggage negroes”.  (The term “baggage negroes”, as impossible as it might seem today, was a well-worn, heavily used term through the 18th and mid-19th centuries.)  They approached the small town and encountered a very slight resistance, something like a guard, and killed them.  Retreating somewhat after the initial attack, the scouting party returned, and then found the village completely empty.  (Some reports say that there was more limited fighting, with casualties on both sides; some say that there were more slaves killed.) After whatever happened happened, though, the return to the little village found it abandoned, with everything still in place.  The members of the village had “disappeared”.  Or at least I hope that they did, and didn’t get “disappeared”, men, women and children all, as in the famous Floridian “Negro Fort” case and Andy Jackson.  Perhaps these people were fortunate to actually escape. 

Key to the numbers on the map:

1 The track of the Militia and Maroons.
2 House built of cedar, shingled and floored.
3 The largest building, 70 feet long, and open in the centre.
4 A hut.
5 Hogsties.
6 Wood.
7 Provision Grounds and Coffee Piece.
With the exception of No. 2, the houses were all wattled and thatched, the
floors terraced.

Two Contemporary Accounts

From the British Slavery Record, 1825:

“WE NO SEN’, YOU NO COME.”

“Some years ago a number of Negroes, in Jamaica, escaped fromthe cruel bondage of their task-masters ; and, retiring into an uninhabited part of the island, built a little town, which they called, ” We no sen\ you no come.” Here they lived some years peaceably, industriously, and comfortably, upon the fruits of their labor ; having about two hundred acres of land, thickly planted with provisions, in the finest condition, with abundance of hogs and poultry. They thought that, if they kept themselves at home, ihey could not be discovered ;
and if they did not meddle with others, others could not meddle with them. However, in the year 1825, they were discovered by the whites, who sent out an armed force against them, destroyed their  town and provision-grounds, and killed, took prisoners, or dispersed, the whole of this happy and peaceable community.”

A less-sympathetic position appears in the Montego Bay Gazette: 

“THE RUNAWAYS IN TRELAWNY.
[From the Montego Bay Gazette, j “
We have been favoured with a perusal of a letter from a respectable gentleman
at Dromilly, who has taken the earliest opportunity of relieving the
anxiety of the community respecting the [second] party who went after
the runaways in Trelawny. It states, that about 4 o’clock on Monday
evening, the party entered the town belonging to the runaways, when they
were fired upon by them, but happily without effect. The fire was returned
by the Militia, when two of the runaways fell, and another was taken prisoner;
the remainder dispersed. They had about 200 acres of very fine
provisions, in full bearing, with abundance of hogs and poultry. The Maroons
were left in possession of the town, and the Militia returned to Dromilly,
from whence Col. Scott proposed sending a gang of negroes to destroy
the provisions, &c. The houses appear to be of considerable magnitude,
are well built, shingled and floored. This expedition then, if such
it may be called, has succeeded in so far as dislodging from one of their
haunts a Banditti that have been for years collecting; but we fear much is
still left to be done; and we think, that instead of destroying the provisions
and houses at the settlement, now in possession of the Maroons, it would
have been better to have sent troops to occupy it, and from thence to send
out detachments to scour the woods, as there cannot be a doubt of the
runaways having other places of retreat, and are still in possession of arms
and ammunition ; and until they are totally routed or destroyed, the pursuit
should not be abandoned. — The bodies of Mr. Sutherland and Mr.
Gallimore, who were shot on the 26th ult. were found within a few yards
of each other.
It would appear, from a plan taken by order of Lieutenant-Colonel
Scott, that the number of runaways is very great, or that they have been
many years in constructing the buildings : one is 70 feet long, another
40, and few under 25: and we again repeat, that instead of being destroyed,
they ought to have been preserved and occupied as a military post for
some time at least, or until the whole of the Banditti are properly accounted
for.”