I Made Him A Very Handsome Present In Return,
And Oedidee Gave Him Every Thing He Had Left Of What He Had Collected
During The Time He Was With Us.
After this ceremony was over, I ordered one of the pigs to be killed and
dressed for dinner, and attended myself to the whole operation, which was
as follows:
- They first strangled the hog, which was done by three men; the
hog being placed on his back, two of them laid a pretty strong stick across
his throat, and pressed with all their might on each end; the third man
held his hind legs, kept him on his back, and plugged up his fundament with
grass, I suppose to prevent any air from passing or repassing that way. In
this manner they held him for about ten minutes before he was quite dead.
In the mean time, some hands were employed in making a fire, to heat the
oven, which was close by. As soon as the hog was quite dead, they laid him
on the fire, and burnt or singed the hair, so that it came off with almost
the same ease as if it had been scalded. As the hair was got off one part,
another was applied to the fire till they had got off the whole, yet not so
clean but that another operation was necessary; which was to carry it to
the sea side, and there give it a good scrubbing with sandy stones, and
sand. This brought off all the scurf, &c. which the fire had left on. After
well washing off the sand and dirt, the carcase was brought again to the
former place, and laid on clean green leaves, in order to be opened. They
first ripped up the skin of the belly, and took out the fat or lard from
between the skin and the flesh, which they laid on a large green leaf. The
belly was then ripped open, and the entrails taken out, and carried away in
a basket, so that I know not what became of them; but am certain they were
not thrown away. The blood was next taken out, and put into a large leaf,
and then the lard, which was put to the other fat. The hog was now washed
clean, both inside and out, with fresh water, and several hot stones put
into his belly, which were shaken in under the breast, and green leaves
crammed in upon them. By this time the oven was sufficiently heated; what
fire remained was taken away, together with some of the hot stones; the
rest made a kind of pavement in the bottom of the hole or oven, and were
covered with leaves, on which the hog was placed on his belly. The lard and
fat, after being washed with water, were put into a vessel, made just then
of the green bark of the plantain tree, together with two or three hot
stones, and placed on one side the hog.
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