Within these last few years, a few houses have been erected, with low roofs and parapet walls; the usual plan is to have that necessary part of the dwelling raised in the fashion of an English barn, or an Egyptian pyramid. One peculiarity which strikes the eye of a stranger in these dwellings, is the absence of chimneys—the kitchens being, in most instances, detached from the house; and the heat of the climate, as a matter of course, renders all grates or stoves, and their accompanying flues, unnecessary.
Since the serious droughts in 1833, springs or wells have been dug in various parts of the town, which, although the water is brackish, are of great use for many domestic purposes, particularly to the lower classes, who do not possess a cistern. These springs have been lately modified by having water-engines attached to them, and enclosed by a low wall and wooden palisadings, painted of a bright sky-colour. Methinks, however, that Master Sol will soon spoil their flaunting beauty. It is a pity the directors of these improvements did not choose green instead of the other colour; for, from the whiteness of the streets, and the extreme glare of the sunbeams, we require something to relieve and cool the eye; and much as we admire the lovely tint of the heavens, light blue palings do not equally fascinate our gaze.
In different parts of the town are numbers of small shops, of about six or eight feet square, in which varieties of trades are carried on. In one may be seen a cobbler—no! I beg their pardon—a cordwainer; himself shoeless, busily employed in forming, from his not very fragrant materials, a pair of creaking high-heeled boots, for the use of some black exquisite. A bunch of human hair attached to the end of a long stick, and moving with every breeze, bespeaks the abode of a barber and hair-dresser; while a multiplicity of shreds of cloth, half-finished vests, a goose, and other et ceteras, with a group of mortals seated à la Turque, proves beyond doubt that the inmates are of that particular class of beings, nine individuals of which are required to form one ordinary man. Others, again, of the receptacles of trade, are stocked with provisions, such as small quantities of salt pork, corn, flour, candles, butter, (of the consistence of honey,) a few dried peas, or horse-beans, and any other little matters; while some contain dry goods, as it is customary, in this island, to term all articles of drapery. Small as these tenements are, many of them are divided by a lathed partition, forming on one side a butcher’s shamble, where an array of sheep’s heads, miserable specimens of legs of mutton, and saffron-coloured pork, may be met with, which, carnivorous as it must be allowed we all are, few like their eyes to dwell upon; while, on the other side, gown-pieces, and “blue checks,” with other “odds and ends,” claim the frequenters’ attention.
Next to these small shops, come the stores of the retail provision dealers, which are upon a larger scale, and of course better supplied with goods. Then there are the grog shops, as they are termed, where to the heterogeneous mass of eatables, crockery, and tin-ware, is added the more exciting articles of brandy, rum, gin, porter, wine, &c.; and where of an evening, amid fumes of every description, (from Yanky cheese to Virginia tobacco,) and dim smoky oil lamps, parties of soldiers, sailors, dingy-looking blacks, and unfortunate females—ay! and men of better rank of life, who ought to blush to be found in such places—love to congregate, and barter health and money, for dirty goblets of those fiery liquids.
When passing, in an evening, these store-houses for crime, they forcibly bring to my mind thoughts of Pandemonium. The dusky lamps, at one moment sending forth their long flaming tongues, the next, only serving to make darkness visible; the crowds of negroes, with their gleaming eyes and glittering teeth, presenting the appearance of so many attending demons; the groups of white soldiers or sailors, looking more pallid in the flickering lamp-light, and greedily quaffing the deleterious fluid, which, sooner or later, preys upon their very vitals—and then the various sounds of cursing and quarrelling, idiotic laughter, discordant singing, and incoherent talking, as the miserable frequenters arrive at the different stages of intoxication,—conspire to render it more like a council-chamber of tormented spirits, than the self-chosen place of amusement of rational creatures.
The next grade of these places of merchandise are, the merchants’ stores or warehouses, with their attached lumber-yards. These are, in most instances, large, dismal-looking buildings, whose unwashed rafters afford safe protection to innumerable spiders of every size, or present a desirable spot for the freemasons (the ichneumon bee) to erect their clayey dwellings upon. One corner of these vast emporiums is latticed off, forming a counting-house, decorated with a coat of white, green, or yellow paint, and shewing its chequers of red tape, for the purpose of sticking orders, letters, or bank-notices for payments, due at the Colonial or West India Bank. Here, on a high-legged stool, of dingy look, sits the merchant, dressed in his round, white jacket, snowy pantaloons, Panama or Paget hat; and, with pen in hand, and a pinch of Lundy-foot between his fingers, (to assist his ideas, I suppose,) calculates the probabilities of his ’specs, which in other days afforded such golden harvests as to give rise to the belief, that the streets in the West Indies were paved with doubloons and dollars.
But let it not be imagined that this worthy and numerous class employ all their business-hours in calculating their gains and losses, poring over the leaves of a dusty ledger, or puzzling their brains over their “bank accounts.” Oh! no, no—the Antiguan merchants are far too wise for that—many a bowl of “pepper-punch” is brewed; many a long cork of approved brand is drawn, and the “rosy red” Vin de Bordeaux is poured into the tendered crystal; and many a bottle of champagne, or “Tennent’s pale ale,” is unwired, uncorked, and its creamy excellence effused for them. Nor is the tongue idle; well-seasoned jests and brilliant repartees abound; news is discussed, wit flies like arrows, and many a rosy face grows more roseate, and many a laughing eye becomes dewy before they part.
But I must say something more about the stores—what a scene of confusion they present to the unaccustomed eye!—what varied and multiplied articles do they display! In one part are hogsheads of salt cod, herrings, and other salted fish; bins of Indian corn, rice, peas, and salt; flour, tobacco, barrels of blacking, and kegs of lard. In another part may be found barrels of beef and mess-pork; hogsheads of prime Cumberland hams, kits of ox tongues, and barrels of biscuits; sparkling Moselle, hock, seltzer-water, and lamp-oil; preserved meats and soups, and kegs of crackers; pitch, tar, rosin, and oats; block-tin tureens, spirits of turpentine, and Cognac brandy; crates of earthenware, rose nails, and hogsheads of tin-ware; with London pickles, agricultural implements, and hair-brooms. On another side of the store lie huddled together hogsheads of Barclay’s brown stout, boxes of soap, bundles of wood-hoops, and cases of gilded cornices; boxes of raisins and currants, paving flags, and masts and oars; firkins of Cork butter, hogsheads of lime, and patent corkscrews; Hyson teas, Durham mustard, loaf-sugar, and Havannah cigars; potatoes, onions, Bologna sausage, and blacksmiths’ coals; artificers’ tools, anti-corrosion paint, currycombs, and gold watches; the whole wound up with Rowland’s Macassar oil, floating soap, and quack medicines, consisting of Morrison’s pills, and Swain’s Panacea, which, if we believe the labels, are to cure every ill “that flesh is heir to;” while from the ceiling dangle in graceful negligence, coils of rope, and horses’ halters.
To prove to any of my readers who may be sceptical of the truth of such a various assemblage of goods, as I have stated the merchant’s stores contain, I will give a correct copy of a cargo handed about to the different merchants, as brought by an American vessel arrived to-day:—
CARGO ON BOARD BRIG “RANDOLPH,” FROM PHILADELPHIA.