372 TRAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



chased land in the fever-hole in question where I 

 was assured that a habitable house and two negro 

 huts were already built and awaiting me. The im- 

 provements alone, the land-speculator was ready to 

 take his oath, were worth every cent of two thousand 

 dollars. In short, I concluded my blind bargain, and 

 in the month of June prepared to start to visit my 

 estate. I was at New Orleans, which city was just 

 then held fast in the gripe of its annual scourge and 

 visitor, the yellow fever. I was in a manner left 

 alone ; all my friends had gone up or down stream, 

 or across the Pont Chartrain. There was nothing 

 to be seen in the whole place but meagre hollow- 

 eyed negresses, shirtless and masterless, running 

 about the streets, howling like jackals, or crawling in 

 and out of the open doors of the houses. In the 

 upper suburb things were at the worst ; there, whole 

 streets were deserted, the houses empty, the doors 

 and windows knocked in ; while the foul fever-laden 

 breeze came sighing over from Vera Cruz, and nothing 

 was to be heard but the melancholy rattle of the 

 corpse- carts as they proceeded slowly through the 

 streets with their load of coffins. It was high time 

 to be off, when the yellow fever, the deadly vomito, 

 had thus made its triumphant entry, and was ruling 

 and ravaging like some mighty . man of war in a 

 stormed fortress. 



I had four negroes with me including old Sybille, 

 who was at that time full sixty-five years of age ; 



