These people are very dangerous on any plantations, for although there is no credit to be given to the power of their pretended charms, yet, they are in general well acquainted with the quality of many poisonous herbs that grow in the West Indies, and which they often give to others who apply to them for charms to be administered to the persons upon whom they are to operate. By this means many white people have been killed by poison under the persuasion of these Obeah men, that it was to make them love their slaves by whom it was obtained. Negros are in general much addicted to drunkenness, thievery, incontinency, and idleness. The first vice very few of them will refrain from when they can get liquor, and in their fits of this kind, many of them are very mischievous. Thieving from their owners they look upon as no crime, nor have they any dread of being punished for it, if they do it without detection; and so general is this crime, that there goes a proverb current in all the islands, “Shew me a negro, and I will shew you a thief,” but were their offences of this nature to be as often and as severely punished there as in England, there would seldom pass a day, without some example or other. So little are the sexes attached to each other, or constant in connubial connections, that it is common for the men to have several wives at a time, besides transcient mistresses; and the women to leave their husbands for others, and to submit to the embraces of white men for money or fine clothes. Mothers will dispose of their virgin daughters to white men for a moderate sum, nor do they look upon it as any crime, but an honour to the damsel, who is thereby better qualified for being afterwards taken to wife by one of her own colour. Idleness is so very predominant in negros, especially those brought to the island immediately from Africa, and their dislike of labour is so great, that it is very difficult to make them work: it is sometimes absolutely necessary to have recourse to measures that appear cruel, in order to oblige them to labour. Nay, very often the same means must be used to make them work for themselves, to dress their own victuals, or to keep themselves free from vermine. This vice is so very remarkable in many negros, that they will actually very often, under some tree, sleep out the hours allowed them to get their victuals in, rather than beat the pains of going home to dress them. They are obliged to be attended by the overseers and drivers to make them work their own gardens, at times allowed them for that purpose, which many of them would otherwise spend in sleeping, or doing less necessary things for themselves. Many instances have been known of negros who have unfeelingly endured the pains of the jiggers, by suffering them to breed in their flesh, their feet swelled and perforated like an honey-comb, rather than be at the trouble of taking them out[5].