The Daily Cincinnati Republican, And Commercial Register

PORT-AU-PRINCE—HAYTI
We have recently conversed with a gentleman, who has resided for a short time at that place, and his account was so interesting and novel, that we shall attempt a few particulars for our readers.

This city, it is well known, is the capital of Hayti, which has now been for more than forty years in possession of the blacks. The city now contains about sixty thousand inhabitants. It is situated on a declivity, is well laid out,—and its principal streets are continually refreshed with regular currents of water which flow from the mountain, and empty into the bay.

The houses are mostly built of wood, and are 2 stories high. One peculiarity which strikes a northern visiter on entering the city, is the utter destitution of glass windows—scarcely a pane of glass can be seen in the whole city. At every place where a door can be hung, one is opened—that the air may circulate freely through the dwelling. Shop mechanics. such as Cordwainers, tailors, &c. instead of working in their shops, may be seen arranged, and diligently employed at their business on the outer edge of the side walks in front of their shops, over which a piazza usually projects. Another peculiarity is that nothing like a chimney is to be seen in a dwelling house. Their cooking is usually done in the back yards, either in the open air or in sheds.

Hayti is under a military Government, (an army of 20,000 is inspected every Sunday by the President at Port-au-Prince,) and nearly a thousand soldiers are continually stationed at different parts of the city, in detachments of eight or ten, to preserve the peace. If a citizen is found guilty of any disorderly conduct, he is at once seized, speedily tried, and in an hour or two is either imprisoned, or chained to a heavy weight, and set at work on the public highways.

The prevailing religion is Roman Catholic, and the Sabbath is but little regarded, except as the greatest market day in the week.

The inhabitants are cleanly; practise frequent bathing, and although some of the lower class are occasionally ragged, it is rare to see any with dirty clothing. Many of the children go naked until ten or twelve years of age. The inhabitants are courteous, and strangers are well received by them —But few white residents however can be found, perhaps not more than a hundred white men then resided in the city, and only three white ladies.

President Boyer resides at Port-au Prince. He has fifteen wives, who live in different houses, and have each assigned to them a piece of land as a garden for their own cultivation. and by its products, support themselves in good style.

Many white residents have black wives. As it is a regulation of the Republic that no white man shall hold real estate, he evades the difficulty by taking a black wife, in whose name his property stands: they however pay but little more respect to their wives, than to treat them as servants, and seldom introduce them to strangers. All burdens are carried on the head, from a single orange to a tub of water. It is not an uncommon thing for a female to be seen walking leisurely through the streets, with her arms swinging, and a barrel of ship bread resting at ease on her head.

The ease with which a living can be obtained from the abundance of fruits—and the little care which is requisite to provide a place to dwell in, tends to create an indolent disposition in many of the inhabitants, who under other circumstances might be more valuable citizens.