Portland has had a share of the sickness of the season, a number of persons being now confined to bed, and many meagre convalescents are to be seen walking about the street. In addition to the fevers and the ague, so prevalent, some have been afflicted by an influenza, and are wearing shades over their faces on account of sore eyes. Venice is another new town, which stands about three miles farther west the bay. It has more houses than Portland, but has now only one family in it, a mortal sickness having carried off a considerable part of the population, which caused the survivors to desert the place. The bay no doubt contributes {285} to disease, as the water is shallow, and out of the course of the principal current of the lake, and produces grasses and confervæ that are washed ashore in times of wind, and emit a disagreeable effluvia. Although I have been in the country possessed by the Indians during the two last days of my journey, I did not happen to see any of these people by the way. Since coming to Portland, I have seen a few of them in town. One party had brought for sale a few pots of honey, which they had taken out of hollow trees, and some mats, fabricated from dyed rushes, which were beautifully divided into compartments of different colours. Most of them were clothed with a piece of blanket wrapped round them, and with leather mocasins, or shoes, on their feet, and the habiliments of others approached very near to the form of clothing worn by civilized people. Some of the men are sprightly and well formed in their persons, displaying an energy and frankness in their countenances which indicate the absence of suspicion and fear. My journey has been, on the whole, more pleasant than I could have anticipated. The principal obstructions in the way were the stumps and roots of trees, which obliged me to drive with much caution, and often restricted my horse to a walk. At taverns I sometimes found that the landlord was from home, and that no hostler was kept, and found it necessary to feed and water my horse, and to yoke or unyoke as occasion required; but every landlord that I met with acted in an obliging manner, and of some of them I conceived the most favourable opinion.