Busha's Mistress or Catherine the Fugitive

Recovered from the archives is Cyrus Francis Perkins' novel entitled Busha's Mistress or Catherine the Fugitive: A Stirring Romance of the Days of Slavery in Jamaica which was written in the mid-1800s and published in Jamaica in 1911 as a series of instalments in the local newspapers, the Daily Telegraph and the Jamaica Guardian. Cyrus Francis Perkins, a white Jamaican (of Canadian descent), lived through the period of Jamaica's history during which the colony was undergoing the transition from slavery to emancipation. The resulting story is, thus, rich in historically insightful details which bring that era to life and which make the book a valuable resource for scholars of Caribbean history. Revealed here are interesting tit-bits about the relationship between slave and master, the daily life on the sugar plantations, the business transactions involved, the depiction of the culture of the African slaves, the Maroon resistance and varied perspectives on the abolition of slavery. But apart from its historic dimensions, Busha's Mistress is a satisfying ageless story of romance and heartbreak. The book recounts the tale of Catherine, the slave concubine of a cruel white overseer on the Greenside Estate, near Falmouth on Jamaica's north coast. This young beauty's adventures begin with her flight from the estate where she finds refuge with friends who eventually smuggle her off the island to England. Her story continues with her travels and experiences in England, and culminates in her return to Jamaica where she delivers a final act of love.