ver. It has, unfortunately, no trees on its banks, but a good footpath
renders it, in spite of that deficiency, about the best walk on the
island. I passed again to-day one of those beautiful evergreen thickets,
which I described to you in my last letter; it is called a reserve, and is
kept uncleared and uncultivated in its natural swampy condition, to allow
of the people's procuring their firewood from it. I cannot get accustomed,
so as to be indifferent to this exquisite natural ornamental growth, and
think, as I contemplate the various and beautiful foliage of these watery
woods, how many of our finest English parks and gardens owe their chiefest
adornments to plantations of these shrubs, procured at immense cost,
reared with infinite pains and care, which are here basking in the
winter's sunshine, waiting to be cut down for firewood! These little
groves are peopled with wild pigeons and birds, which they designate here
as blackbirds. These sometimes rise from the rice fields with a whirr of
multitudinous wings, that is almost startling, and positively overshadow
the ground beneath like a cloud.

I had a conversation that interested me a good deal, during my walk
to-day, with my peculiar slave Jack. This lad, whom Mr. ---- has appointed
to attend me in my roamings about the island, and rowing expeditions on
the river, is the son of the last head driver, a man of very extraordinary
intelligence and faithfulness--such, at least, is the account given of him
by his employers (in the burial-ground of the negroes is a stone dedicated
to his memory, a mark of distinction accorded by his masters, which his
son never failed to point out to me, when we passed that way). Jack
appears to inherit his quickness of apprehension; his questions, like
those of an intelligent child, are absolutely inexhaustible; his curiosity
about all things beyond this island, the prison-house of his existence,
is perfectly intense; his countenance is very pleasing, mild, and not
otherwise than thoughtful; he is, in common with the rest of them, a
stupendous flatterer, and, like the rest of them, also seems devoid of
physical and moral courage. To-day, in the midst of his torrent of
enquiries about places and things, I suddenly asked him if he would like
to be free. A gleam of light absolutely shot over his whole countenance,
like the vivid and instantaneous lightning--he stammered, hesitated,
became excessively confused, and at length replied--'Free,