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was not one of them drunk ; except indeed, one 

 person, and that was an old woman, who sang, 

 and shouted, and tossed herself about in an elbow 

 chair, till she tumbled it over, and rolled about 

 the room in a manner which shocked the delicacy 

 of even the least prudish part of the company. 

 At twelve, my agent wanted to dismiss them ; but 

 I would not suffer them to be interrupted on the 

 first holiday that I had given them ; so they con- 

 tinued to dance and shout till two ; when human 

 nature could bear no more, and they left me to 

 my bed, and a violent headache. 



January 7« (Sunday.) 

 In spite of their exertions of last night, the 

 negroes were again with me by two o'clock in the 

 day, with their drums and their chorusses. How- 

 ever, they found themselves unable to keep it up 

 as they had done on the former night, and were 

 content to withdraw to their own houses by ten in 

 the evening. But first they requested to have to- 

 morrow to themselves, in order that they might 

 go to the mountains for provisions. For although 

 their cottages are always surrounded with trees 

 and shrubs, their provision grounds are kept quite 

 distinct, and are at a distance among the moun- 

 tains. Of course, I made no difficulty of acceding 

 to their request, but upon condition, that they 

 should ask for no more holidays till the crop 

 should be completed. For the purpose of culti- 



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