Chapter I: Front Matter

A SUMMER
ON
THE BORDERS
OF
THE CARIBBEAN SEA.

BY J. DENNIS HARRIS.

WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY
GEORGE WILLIAM CURTIS.

NEW YORK:
A. B. BURDICK, PUBLISHER,
No. 145 NASSAU STREET.
1860.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1860, by

J. DENNIS HARRIS,

In the clerk’s Office of the District Court of the United States,
for the Southern District of New York.

ADVERTISEMENT.

Through the columns of leading journals in New York, St. Louis, and other localities, we have had occasion to acknowledge the fact that the political views which gave rise to the present volume, though comparatively new, have generally met the approval of distinguished statesmen and philanthropists, North and South.[A]

The following note from the venerable Mr. Giddings indicating the proposition, is but one of a large number which we have received from various parts of the country:--

_Jefferson, Ohio, July 13, 1859._

MY DEAR SIR:--I am heartily in favor of Mr. Blair’s plan of
furnishing territory in Central America for the use of such of our
African brethren as wish to settle in a climate more congenial to
the colored race than any that our government possesses.

I hope and trust you may be successful in your efforts.

Very truly,

J. D. HARRIS, ESQ. J. R. GIDDINGS.

The subjoined, respecting the work itself, is from Mr. William Cullen Bryant, by whom, in addition to Mr. George W. Curtis, a portion of these communications was reviewed:--

_Roslyn, Long Island, August 26, 1860._

DEAR SIR:--I have looked over with attention the letters you left
with me, and return them herewith. It appears to me it will be very
well to publish them. Of the Spanish part of the island of San
Domingo very little is known--much less than of the French part;
and the information you give of the country and its people is
valuable and interesting.

I am, Sir, Respectfully yours, W. C. BRYANT.

MR. J. D. HARRIS.

CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTION.....vii

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.

LETTER I.

From New York to Puerto de Plata--Smoothness of the Voyage--Hayti in the Distance--The Custom-House Officers--Description of the Standing Army--Unparalleled Scenic Beauty.....13-19

LETTER II.

Want of Information--One side of a Question--The other side--Causes of the decline of the Spanish Colony--Subsequent history.....20-30

LETTER III.

Corpus Christi--The Farm of the Fugitive Slave.....31-35

LETTER IV.

First Ride in the Country--Pastorisa Place.....36-41

LETTER V.

Valley of the Isabella--Customs of the People--A Call for Dinner.....42-50

LETTER VI.

On the way to Porto Cabello--Antille-Americana--Immigration Ordinance.....51-61

LETTER VII.

Proposed American Settlement--A Picture of Life--Tomb of the Wesleyan Missionary.....62-67

LETTER VIII.

Summary of Dominican Staples, Exports, and Products.....68-75

REPUBLIC OF HAYTI

HISTORICAL SKETCH.

LETTER IX.

State of Affairs previous to 1790.....76-83

LETTER X.

Affairs in France--Case of the Mulattoes--Terrible Death of Ogé and Chavine.....84-92

LETTER XI.

Tragedy of the Revolution--A Chapter of Horrors (which the delicate reader may, if he pleases, omit).....93-104

LETTER XII.

Tragedy of the Revolution, continued--Rigaud succeeded by L’Ouverture--L’Ouverture duped by Le Clerc.....105-115

LETTER XIII.

The War Renewed--“Liberty or Death”--Expulsion of the French--Jean Jacques Dessalines, First Emperor of Hayti--The Aurora of Peace--Principal Events up to present date--Geffrard on Education.....116-127

GRAND TURK’S AND CAICOS ISLANDS.

LETTER XIV.

An Island of Salt--Honor to the British Queen--Sir Edward Jordan, of Jamaica--A Story in Parenthesis--The Poetry of Sailing.....128-137

BRITISH HONDURAS.

LETTER XV.

Off Ruatan--The Sailor’s Love Story--Sovereignty of the Bay Islands--English _vs._ American View of Central American Affairs.....138-150

CONCLUSIVE SUMMARY.

LETTER XVI.

Concise Description of the Spanish Main--Dominicana Reviewed--The magnificent Bay of Samana--Conclusive Summary.....151-160

APPENDIX.

The Anglo-African Empire--Opinions of distinguished Statesmen and Philanthropists.....161-179