texture, they are fondest of strong, stout-backed men. Both married and single ladies are very dexte rous at preparing of pots, as they call them, for their husbands or lovers: a pot is a mess made of a small piece of falt pork or beef sliced, with a fowl dissected, some ocras, yams, plaintains, caliloo, and plenty of fire-balls, or red pepper; this inflammable, glutinous preparation is favory, and a great provocative; they think it strengthens the back, and something else too, but in my opinion, though it stirs up the blood to force a lustful defire, it impairs the constitution: for nature when forced is impoverished; hence, it is no way strange that her children are weak and fickly. Notwithstanding the little foibles of Creole women, they have many good qualifications, and are vastly better than the men, and much cleanlier in fome respects than British or Irish women. It is often the cafe for the little innocent country miffes to make love to men, though strangers, by billetdoux or messages: I have been sometimes honoured with importunities of this kind, and did not reject their offers; as much as I could learn, the summit of their wishes was only to " please their inclinations," (as they say in their fongs). Their ideas of marriage and the folemn engagement of the connubial tye, are rather fuperficial: and that may be well accounted for from what I have already faid, as they seldom or never 1 never go to church; and though taught a fmattering of reading and writing, are obligated to negroe and mungrel wenches for the principal part of their education, amongst whom they fee nothing from their infancy but jilting, intrigues, and scenes of obscenity. Says the little wanton miss with Rochester, "Marriage! O hell and furies, name it not." Or, with POPE, "Not Cæfar's empress would I deign to prove, A man who enters into the marriage bond with a Creole lady who has poor relations or friends, though he gets some property with her, will repent his bargain, and will find himself disagreeably circumstanced in various respects; for it will not be his wife and little progeny alone he will have to provide for, but all the poor brothers and sisters, uncles and aunts, cousins and halfcousins of his good-natured spouse, nor can he without offending her prevent their hanging on, nor will they endeavour to provide for themselves, or descend to honest industry, whilft they are supported by him in idleness : -his better half tells him, "My dear, if you love me, you should love my relations and friends also ; my dear, if you wish to fupport me and my little ones, you should fupport them also:" hence it would be, "As H4 "As you married me, you should marry them also;" the equations are all equal-fine Algebra! When a little miss makes a slip, it is soon overlooked by her indulgent parents or fond friends; she will love a man dearly for making her a mother, till which time she is a maid; and the dear little pledge of their stolen bliss will be tenderly nursed; but it commonly happens when they wish to conceal their tricks, that they are fent to Europe for their education; one of them seldom remains any time in England, till fame sounds " a rich West Indian heiress." She foon gets a number of admirers, and at last some English sharper, Irish fortune-hunter, or Scotch gentleman worth nothing, makes her an honest wo man. After Creole masters and mises have been fome years in England, and introduced into all the fashionable pleasures and vices of London, Bath, Bristol, &c. and return to their native regions, every thing seems flat and insipid to them: they cannot bear to live peaceably and quiet on their plantations-no, they must have superb houses and grand retinues in town, far beyond their abilities; and there again their restless passions are at war: Miss Jenny Gauva, nor master Billy Pompion, cannot endure the fultry heat of the climate, nor the vulgar infipid conversation and disagreeable company of Miss Marice Firefly, Miss Kitty Barebones, Tommy Caliloo, or Jacky Salamander, 1. Salamander, their once favourite companions; no, dear London for ever. Ranelagh, Vauxhall, Sadler's Wells, and the theatres, are their themes; nay, even their poor faithful slaves, though once their youthful companions, whose calibashes they often assisted to drain when full of high-seasoned pepperpot, are become filthy brutes or hottentots to them:-no, dear England's white-headed, white-legged, swingingly polite and obliging footmen and waiters for ever. But this great and affected nicety foon wears off, till they return to their original creolifm. "Send a goose to Dover, Creole fisters living in the country, though single, have commonly each a number of sheep, goats, swine, and poultry, in this I must give them fome credit for their industry; they are fond of their little flocks, and enjoy a pleasure in feeding them; they call them by their different names, and know each feparately by particular marks or features; even their chickens and ducklings are named by them. I once lived contiguous to a few families of these soft authors of delight, and spent many happy vacant hours among them: their rural habitations were to me terreftrial paradises-but one was an elysium: when the scorching toils of the the day were over, I often escorted them along lime or cane intervals, and sometimes through thickets of Guinea grass six or seven feet high, to pluck star apples, neeseberries, oranges, &c. &c. at the neighbouring gardens and orangeries; and when the starry mantled night overspread her sable canopy, and luna only guided our steps, we frequently went to a river, where we all bathed naked together, without restraint or formality. In murmuring Mina oft and oft again, We brac'd our limbs and gambol'd in the stream. I was well acquainted with a widow lady and her two daughters, who lived in a lonely retired part of the country furrounded by hills and woods, where they had a plantation and about one hundred and forty slaves; the old lady, well knowing from her own youthful experience how brittle female ware was, anxiously wished to difpose of her daughters to advantage, and was remarkably attentive to every gentleman who frequented her house; at a certain time she invited a number of gentlemen to a dinner, in hopes that fome of them would be smitten; for five or fix days preceding this great and grand entertainment, every thing was hurry, bustle, and confufion: the house was washed inside and outside, the floors and piazzas of fine cedar were rubbed with wax, and shone like polished mahogany; the young ladies chamber was cleared of all nasty 1 |