Rose at eight—Rains this morning, the weather is also warmer. Mr Carter has sent his son Ben to his head Overseer, to take notice and account of the measuring the Crop of Corn—For the Planters now have just gathered in their Summers Crop!—To Day I write a letter to Laura: Waft it, kind Oppertunity, soon to the dear Maid, and Make it easy, & desirable for her to make me a Return!—
At Dinner Mr & Mrs Carter gave their opinion concerning what they thought pleasing and agreeable in a person; Mrs Carter said she loved a sociable open, chatty person; that She could not bear Sullenness, and stupidity—Mr Carter, on the other-hand, observed that it is just which Solomon says, that there is a "time for all things under the Sun"; that it discovers great Judgment to laugh in Season, and that, on the whole, he is pleased with Taciturnity—pray which of the two should I suit?—It is a custom with our Bob whenever he can coax his Dog up stairs, to take him into his Bed, and make him a companion; I was much pleased this morning while he and Harry were reading in Course a Chapter in the Bible, that they read in the 27th Chapter of Deuteronomy the Curses threatened there for Crimes; Bob seldom, perhaps never before, read the verse, at last read that "Cursed be he that lyeth with any manner of Beast, and all the People shall say Amen." I was exceedingly Pleased, yet astonished at the Boy on two accounts.—1st At the end of every verse, befor he came to this, he would pronounce aloud, "Amen." But on Reading this verse he not only omitted the "Amen," but seem'd visibly struck with confusion!—2d And so soon as the Verse was read, to excuse himself, he said at once, Brother Ben slept all last winter with his Dog, and learn'd me!—Thus ready are Mankind always to evade Correction!—This Evening, after I had dismiss'd the Children, & was sitting in the School-Room cracking Nuts, none present but Mr Carters Clerk, a civil, inoffensive, agreeable young Man, who acts both in the character of a Clerk and Steward, when the Woman who makes my Bed, asked me for the key of my Room, and on seeing the young Man sitting with me, she told him that her Mistress had this afternoon given orders that their Allowance of Meat should be given out to them to-morrow.—She left us; I then asked the young man what their allowance is? He told me that excepting some favourites about the table, their weekly allowance is a peck of Corn, & a pound of Meat a Head!—And Mr Carter is allow'd by all, & from what I have already seen of others, I make no Doubt at all but he is, by far the most humane to his Slaves of any in these parts! Good God! are these Christians?—When I am on the Subject, I will relate further, what I heard Mr George Lees Overseer, one Morgan, say the other day that he himself had often done to Negroes, and found it useful; He said that whipping of any kind does them no good, for they will laugh at your greatest Severity; But he told us he had invented two things, and by several experiments had proved their success.—For Sulleness, Obstinacy, or Idleness, says he, Take a Negro, strip him, tie him fast to a post; take then a sharp Curry-Comb, & curry him severely til he is well scrap'd; & call a Boy with some dry Hay, and make the Boy rub him down for several Minutes, then salt him, & unlose him. He will attend to his Business, (said the inhuman Infidel) afterwards!—But savage Cruelty does not exceed His next diabolical Invention—To get a Secret from a Negro, says he, take the following Method—Lay upon your Floor a large thick plank, having a peg about eighteen Inches long, of hard wood, & very Sharp, on the upper end, fixed fast in the plank—then strip the Negro, tie the Cord to a staple in the Ceiling, so as that his foot may just rest on the sharpened Peg, then turn him briskly round, and you would laugh (said our informer) at the Dexterity of the Negro, while he was releiving his Feet on the sharpen'd Peg!—I need say nothing of these seeing there is a righteous God, who will take vengeance on such Inventions!—Miss Priscilla and Nancy returned in the evening.
Fryday 24.
Ben Rode off this morning before day to Mr Fantleroys, for Christmas I dismiss'd the children while next Wednesday. I was introduced by Mr Carter at Dinner, to Dr Jones[104] a practitioner in Richmond. I spent my Day in my Room alone as agreeably as I have done any since I have been in virginia coppying off my Sermon, & correcting it. Retirement is as pleasing, & desirable to me here as at princeton, or Cohansie! & by Gods blessing I hope to make it as profitable. In the Evening I read the two first Books of popes Homer. Dr Jones supped with us, & is to stay the Night. The conversation at supper was on Nursing Children; I find it is common here for people of Fortune to have their young Children suckled by the Negroes! Dr Jones told us his first and only Child is now with such a Nurse; & Mrs Carter said that Wenches have suckled several of hers—Mrs Carter has had thirteen Children She told us to night and she has nine now living; of which seven are with me. Guns are fired this Evening in the Neighbourhood, and the Negroes seem to be inspired with new Life.[105] The Day has been serene and mild, but the Evening is hazy.
Supp'd on Oysters.
Saturday 25.
I was waked this morning by Guns fired all round the House. The morning is stormy, the wind at South East rains hard Nelson the Boy who makes my Fire, blacks my shoes, does errands &c. was early in my Room, drest only in his shirt and Breeches! He made me a vast fire, blacked my Shoes, set my Room in order, and wish'd me a joyful Christmas, for which I gave him half a Bit.—Soon after he left the Room, and before I was Drest, the Fellow who makes the Fire in our School Room, drest very neatly in green, but almost drunk, entered my chamber with three or four profound Bows, & made me the same salutation; I gave him a Bit, and dismissed him as soon as possible.—Soon after my Cloths and Linen were sent in with a message for a Christmas Box, as they call it; I sent the poor Slave a Bit, & my thanks.—I was obliged for want of small change, to put off for some days the Barber who shaves & dresses me.—I gave Tom the Coachman, who Doctors my Horse, for his care two Bits, & am to give more when the Horse is well.—I gave to Dennis the Boy who waits at Table half a Bit—So that the sum of my Donations to the Servants, for this Christmas appears to be five Bits, a Bit is a pisterene bisected; or an English sixpence, & passes here for seven pence Halfpenny, the whole is 3s 1½d.—
At Breakfast, when Mr Carter entered the Room, he gave us the compliments of the Season. He told me, very civily, that as my Horse was Lame, his own riding Horse is at my Service to ride when & where I Choose.
Mrs Carter was, as always, cheerful, chatty, & agreeable; She told me after Breakfast several droll, merry Occurrences that happened while she was in the City Williamsburg.—
This morning came from the Post-office at Hobbes-Hole, on the Rappahannock, our News-papers. Mr Carter takes the Pennsylvania Gazette, which seems vastly agreeable to me, for it is like having something from home—But I have yet no answer to my Letter. We dined at four o-Clock—Mr Carter kept in his Room, because he breakfasted late, and on Oysters—There were at Table Mrs Carter & her five Daughters that are at School with me—Miss Priscilla, Nancy, Fanny, Betsy, and Harriot, five as beautiful delicate, well-instructed Children as I have ever known!—Ben is abroad; Bob & Harry are out; so there was no Man at Table but myself.—I must carve—Drink the Health—and talk if I can! Our Dinner was no otherwise than common, yet as elegant a Christmas Dinner as I ever sat Down to—The table Discourse was Marriage; Mrs Carter observ'd that was she a Widow, she should scruple to marry any man alive; She gave a reason, that She did not think it probable a man could love her grown old when the world is thronged with blooming, ripening Virgins; but in fact Mrs Carter looks & would pass for a younger Woman than some unmarried Ladies of my acquaintance, who would willingly enough make us place them below twenty!—We dined at four; when we rose from table it was growing dark—The wind continues at South East & is stormy and muddy.