Curacao. Has resolved to spend leisure hours writing letters to Jay. The harbor here is the finest in the world. The city lies on both sides of the river and is a beautiful sight, with its painted white houses and red tiled roofs. The weather is usually mild but in case of severe winds ships anchor in the Lagoon or Spanish Harbour a mile up river. Vessels of the largest dimensions can anchor here, in water upwards of 16 fathoms. Does not know much else about the country other than that many vegetables are produced. The people here are mostly brutes who spend their time getting drunk before sunrise, "frollicking and whoaring and playing the devil every night." The ladies are "the most ignorant, insignificant, foolish devils in the world - fond of Englishmen & after you are once intimate with them, you receive many presents." Sending the present of limes for Jay, also a pound of "J. water," melon (?) seeds and Jamaican newspapers.
Subjects
United States--History--Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775; Jay, John, 1745-1829