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texture, they are fondest of strong, stout-backed

men.

Both married and fingle ladies are very dexterous at preparing of pots, as they call them, for their husbands or lovers: a pot is a mefs made of a small piece of falt pork or beef sliced, with a fowl diffected, fome 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 ftrengthens the back, and fomething elfe too, but in my opinion, though it ftirs up the blood to force a luftful defire, it impairs the conftitution: for nature when forced is impoverished; hence, it is no way ftrange that her children are weak and fickly.

Notwithstanding the little foibles of Creole women, they have many good qualifications, and are vaftly better than the men, and much cleanlier in fome refpects than British or Irish women. It is often the cafe for the little innocent country miffes to make love to men, though ftrangers, by billetdoux or meffages: I have been fometimes honoured with importunities of this kind, and did not reject their offers; as much as I could learn, the fummit of their wishes was only to "please their inclinations," (as they fay 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 feldom or

never

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 obfcenity. Says the little wanton mifs with Rochester,

"Marriage! O hell and furies, name it not."

Or, with POPE,

"Not Cæfar's emprefs would I deign to prove,
"No-make me mistress of the man I love."

A man who enters into the marriage bond with a Creole lady who has poor relations or friends, though he gets fome property with her, will repent his bargain, and will find himself difagreeably circumstanced in various refpects; for it will not be his wife and little progeny alone he will have to provide for, but all the poor brothers and fifters, uncles and aunts, coufins and halfcoufins of his good-natured spouse; nor can he without offending her prevent their hanging on; nor will they endeavour to provide for themselves, or defcend to honeft industry, whilft they are fupported by him in idleness :-his better half tells him, "My dear, if you love me, you should love my relations and friends alfo; my dear, if you wish to support me and my little ones, you fhould fupport them alfo:" hence it would be, "As

H 4

"As you married me, you should marry them alfo;" the equations are all equal-fine Algebra!

When a little mifs makes a flip, it is foon overlooked by her indulgent parents or fond friends; she will love a man dearly for making her a mother, till which time the is a maid; and the dear little pledge of their ftolen blifs will be tenderly nurfed; but it commonly happens when they wish to conceal their tricks, that they are fent to Europe for their education; one of them feldom remains any time in England, till fame founds "a rich West Indian heiress." She foon gets a number of admirers, and at laft fome English fharper, Irish fortune-hunter, or Scotch gentleman worth nothing, makes her an honeft wo

man.

After Creole mafters and miffes 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 feems flat and infipid 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 paffions are at war: Mifs Jenny: Gauva, nor mafter Billy Pompion, cannot endure the fultry heat of the climate, nor the vulgar infipid converfation and difagreeable company of Mifs Marice Firefly, Mifs Kitty Barebones, Tommy Caliloo, or Jacky Salamander,

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 flaves, though once their youthful companions, whofe calibafhes they often affifted to drain when full of high-feafoned pepperpot, are become filthy brutes or hottentots to them :-no, dear England's white-headed, white-legged, fwingingly 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 goofe to Dover,

"And a goose it will come over."

Creole fifters living in the country, though fingle, have commonly each a number of sheep, goats, fwine, and poultry; in this I must give them fome credit for their induftry; they are fond of their little flocks, and enjoy a pleafure 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 thefe foft authors of delight, and fpent many happy vacant hours among them: their rural ha-` bitations were to me terreftrial paradifes-but one was an elysium: when the fcorching toils of

the

the day were over, I often escorted them along lime or cane intervals, and fometimes through thickets of Guinea grafs fix or feven feet high, to pluck ftar apples, neefeberries, oranges, &c. &c. at the neighbouring gardens and orangeries; and when the starry mantled night overspread her fable canopy, and luna only guided our fteps, we frequently went to a river, where we all bathed naked together, without reftraint 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 flaves; the old lady, well knowing from her own youthful experience how brittle female ware was, anxiously wished to difpofe of her daughters to advantage, and was remarkably attentive to every gentleman who frequented her houfe; at a certain time he invited a number of gentlemen to a dinner, in hopes that fome of them would be fmitten; for five or fix days preceding this great and grand entertainment, every thing was hurry, bustle, and confufion the house was wafhed infide and outfide, the floors and piazzas of fine cedar were rubbed with wax, and fhone like polished mahogany; the young young ladies chamber was cleared of all

nafty

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