14 



STREETS. 



large portion of the city in ruins, several years ago, and 

 only a portion of the houses have been rebuilt. These 

 are commonly one story high only and very mean. In 

 the busiest parts of the city, and on every block, may 

 be seen vacant lots, on which are crumbling the founda- 

 tion walls of houses long in ruins. Rents are exceedingly 

 low, less than half a fair interest on the cost of the build- 

 ings alone — while the vacant lots cannot be said to have 

 any market value, there being no sales. There are several 

 fine houses yet extant here, but they were all built many 

 years ago, when the island was prosperous, and very few 

 of them are " in repair." 



There is not a foot of street pavement to my knowledge, 

 in Kingston, and the streets are almost uniformly from one 

 to three feet lower in the centre than at the sides. This is 

 the result of spring rains which wash down the mountains 

 in torrents, and through the streets of the city to the river, 

 oftentimes making such channels in them as to render 

 them impassable. This periodical visitation was suggested 

 to me by a resident, as the reason for not paving the street 

 walks. That may be a good reason for Jamaica people, 

 but it would not be a sufficient one for Yankees, if they 

 had to use the streets. They would either remove the 

 mountains altogether, or make such terms with the rains 

 as would induce them to use the highways to the ocean, as 

 not abusing: them. 



