Many hackney-coaches and one-horse carts for hire, with very fine horses in {25} them, much better than the horses for the same purposes in England. The horses have much blood in them, and would not disgrace a nobleman's carriage; those that bring provisions to market are of the same description, light and active, and would make good hunters. The hackney-coaches are open on the sides, on account of the heat of the climate, with leather curtains, to let down in wet weather; the drivers principally negroes. But the carmen mostly English, Scotch, or Irish, but most of the latter.
The person with whom I went to Mr. Slater's, purchased of him at the market two cows and calves for 71 dollars, (15l. 19s. 6d.), the cows young and very kind, and when fat, might weigh about 560 lbs. each; the calves eight or ten days old.
There is a market for horses and beasts, &c. twice a-week at Baltimore, and one every day, except Sunday, there and at Fell's Point, but there are two on Saturday, one in the morning, the other in the {26} evening, at each place, for the sale of flour, meal, meat, fish, butter, cheese, vegetables, and fruit, consisting of pine-apples and cocoa-nuts from the West Indies. Sweet and water-melons, apricots, peaches, prunes, plums, limes, lemons, oranges, cherries, currants, whortleberries, blackberries, fox-grapes, apples, pears, earth-nuts, and walnuts. The fruit in general good and reasonable; and vegetables the same, with the exception of cabbages, and they were very dear, owing to the dry season. Pine-apples 3¼d.
Fell's Point has many pumps, but few of them possess good water; there was one near us a very good one, called Jackson's pump. The badness of the water, its low situation, and the quantity of stagnant water, were, I think, the chief, if not the only causes of the fatal fever that broke out soon after we left it; nay, I rather suppose it had commenced before we quitted it, as many people were ill, and some died most days during our stay. But the city {27} standing higher, with good springs, it is much healthier.
The first Sunday after our arrival, we went to the episcopal church, the building was lofty, light, and airy, with five stoves to warm it in winter; the pews were painted a light colour, with mahogany coloured rails. The service much as in England. The psalms for the day, or a selection at the choice of the minister. Prayers for the president and general government, instead of the king, &c. There was a fine organ. The congregation was a very genteel one, and as the heat was great, all the ladies used fans, mostly made of feathers. In the afternoon there was a thunder-storm and some rain, preceded by a very high wind, for about ten minutes; and as the weather had been extremely dry, the dust was driven in such clouds, as almost to make it totally dark. Much colder in the evening; and some of us went to the Methodist meeting; it was numerously attended, the manner much the same as in {28} England; the preacher, who had a strong voice, made the most of it. Towards the close of the service, two men, each with a bag at the end of a long stick, made a collection for the minister, &c.; and while they were so employed, a man with a long beard, and a leather girdle about his loins, (as the prophet Elijah), stood up, and begged to say a few words. First, he reproved the minister for taking money, and then declared himself a preacher sent from God to warn the world of its wickedness, and to inform the people, that before the crop of the year 1818 was consumed, "Time should be no more." I sat very near him, and he stood on one of the seats, that he might be heard the better, but he spoke so rapidly, I could not hear all he said, but I heard him reprove the minister, and all present; at length he was persuaded to sit down, and the preacher again went on. It being late we went home, as did some others. This man was deranged, constantly attending the markets, preaching and {29} prophesying the end of the world. He was often surrounded by a large concourse of people, to hear him; but few, if any, gave any credit to his testimony. He often got insulted by the crowd, but the magistrates did not interfere, but left him to do or say what he pleased. Some of our party went to the African meeting. There are many different religions in Baltimore, and all appear to live together in great harmony. As there is no religion established by law, all are equal in this respect, except the poor negroes, who are not allowed to attend divine worship with the white inhabitants. And although I disapprove of slavery in every point of view, in none so much as in their not being allowed to worship the Almighty with the other inhabitants, I think the treatment of the slaves at Baltimore was mild, but still they were slaves, and at the mercy of their owners, if fellow-creatures and Christians can be called the property of others. But thank God, I never yet considered any person had that right; {30} and as that was my opinion, I could not settle in a slave state, to disgrace myself and family by the horrid practice of slave keeping.
On the 15th there was a very heavy thunder-storm, the thunder was extremely loud, attended by heavy rain, the streets near us looked like rivers; indeed, when the rain ceased, the boys waded in the one before our house for some time. I was informed by several of the inhabitants, that they had seldom heard such thunder, or seen such rain before. This evening, and two other evenings, we had a very disagreeable scene in an alley near us. It was that of an Irish howl or wake, in which the mourners made a dreadful noise, crying and howling; we could hear them enquire, "Why their dear sister died;" "whether she wanted any thing;" "whether her friends were unkind to her," &c. &c. As the mourners made pretty free with whiskey, the noise increased as the night advanced. The watch several times {31} ordered them to be quiet, and they always obeyed for a short time, but soon began again.
Many of the principal people in Baltimore are Catholics, as well as numbers of the lower order of Irish, many of whom were recently arrived from Ireland. Irishmen are numerous every where in the States, but I am informed generally of a higher description than those in Baltimore and in the sea-ports.
One of our company, going out one morning before it was light, to call some of his fellow-passengers to go for a day's shooting, was taken into custody by the city-watch, and taken to the watch-house, but finding he was a stranger, he was liberated; he staid till day-light, and then called his companions and went out, but found no game.
The Americans are not reserved in their manners, they do not scruple asking a stranger any question, nor do they appear to mind answering any that may be asked {32} them. Many of them seemed to like the English amongst them very well, others are more jealous of strangers. On the 14th, I put some letters in the post for England, for which I paid 18¾ cents., about 10d. each. I saw a beggar in Baltimore street, the first I saw in America. We did not purchase any fruit, although it was very cheap, on account of its being unwholesome for people just arrived from Europe.
As I could not settle all my business, several who came over with us, and had been residing in the same house, left us on the 17th for Pittsburg; they hired a waggon to take them and their luggage, for four dollars and a quarter per hundred pounds weight. As they purposed going to the English settlement in the state of Illinois, we expected to see them when we got there; but they stopped at Evansville in Indiana, and hearing of an English settlement ten miles distant,[76] they went there; and I have seen nothing of them since, except one, who has arrived at Wanborough.