It must, however, be allowed, that all negroes are not celebrated for their purity of habits; on the contrary, there are many exceptions among the indolent, and these present an appearance painful to behold. Among the men, all the money they can procure is spent upon that plague of the West Indies, “new rum;” consequently, what they wear is of no importance to them. They are, indeed, in a state bordering upon nakedness; and the filthy manner in which they keep their persons renders them disgusting in the extreme. A small insect, which is called a _chegoe_, or, as the negroes express it, “jigger,” gets into their feet; and if not extracted in time, makes its nest and breeds in the flesh. The dirty and indolent beings I am now describing allow these insects to breed so fast, and remain until they attain to such a size, that it is impossible for them to be taken out; and the consequence is, they feed upon the flesh, until the feet are in such a state, that they are often obliged to suffer amputation as far as the knee. Again—the dirt which they allow to remain upon them for so long a time, produces various horrible complaints, which, in the end, also call for the knife of the surgeon. This latter class of persons meet with the abhorrence of all their tribe, who never fail to express their contempt whenever they meet; and was it not for the humane conduct of the Rev. R. Holberton, (whose name must often occur in “Antigua and the Antiguans,”) by seeking them out, and getting them admitted into the lazaretto, (which owes its origin to his exertions,) many must expire in the open roads.
But to return to the good qualities of the negroes. Another thing worthy of remark is, the quiet and decorous manner in which they behave in a place of worship. Upon my first arrival in this country, I was particularly pleased with the conduct of the black congregation at the episcopal church. Not the least noise was to be heard—only the voice of the preacher, and the deep, and apparently heartfelt responses of the people; and during the sermon, the dropping of a pin upon the floor could have been heard, so silent and motionless were they. At particular parts of the service, all were kneeling, with the _appearance_ of the deepest humility. Nearly all the negroes belong to one sect or the other, and keep the outward ordinances of religion with exactness. They all talk of the goodness of God, of their own unworthiness, and their hopes of salvation, &c.; but, alas! among many of them, these are words _only_, as far as their general conduct leads us to conclude. There are others, however, who appear to have benefited by the instructions of their pastors, conducting themselves in a praiseworthy manner, thus giving encouragement to the missionaries,[27] who must feel richly rewarded for their exertions in behalf of this benighted class, and for being made, under the hand of the Almighty, the honoured instruments of snatching them as so many “brands from the burning.”