41

N^o 11 Caracas, 26th April 1891

My dear Mother,

To-day I recvd. via New York, your welcome letter of 6th of this month, whereas your prior letters of 23rd & 30th March – counting one for each Monday – have not yet arrived, having been sent no doubt by Royal Mail via Southampton, a very slow & unsatisfactory route. I had also a letter from Addie to-day over which, he writes me, he fell asleep, as of old. He refused an invitation to a dance at Blacks’ (this is “old news” to you), but has called there, & he seems still to prefer quiet visits to giddy hops.^[1]

I arrived here a week ago & I expect to remain here for at least another ten days. Caracas is a large town & like the puffed out frog in the fable, believes itself to be much larger. People here put up to no end of style; – promising youths of 16 or 17 suffer themselves to be admired on the Promenade on Sunday afternoons resplendent in tailed coats, silk hats & patent-leather shoes. As for the ladies, their costumes are more striking & costly than those displayed in the Bois, if not quite so tasteful nor correct. There is a lot of money, – far too much – , spent here in keeping up outside appearances. To have a box in the theatre & to drive a carriage on Sunday afternoons the Caraqueños pre-eminently defraud their daily cheer.

We had a great whist session last night – Lieut. Welles U.S.N.,^[2] whom you know already, Mr de Paulard, Mr Tripp of Trinidad,^[3] & myself; – we played no less than nine rubbers with the gratifying result that I came out top score with plus forty–four points – which result was of course owing to the scientific principles of Cavendish rightly applied, & alas perhaps, to some slight extent, to the liberal supply of trumps which fell to my share.^[4]

I send these few lines by Royal Mail, but I hope to find time & energy sufficient to prepare a longer letter for the American Steamer, – my favorite route.

Best love, Jack

c/o Smith Bros & C^o Trinidad^[5]