Our departure being decided upon, he wished to start even the very next day; and while we were instructing our sisters Elinore and Marie concerning some trunks that we should leave behind us, and which they must pack and have ready for the flatboat, papa recommended to mamma a great slaughter of fowls, etc., and especially to have ready for embarkation two of our best cows.  Ah! in those times if the planter wished to live well he had to raise everything himself, and the poultry yard and the dairy were something curious to see.  Dozens of slaves were kept busy in them constantly.  When my mother had raised two thousand chickens, besides turkeys, ducks, geese, guinea-fowls, and pea-fowls, she said she had lost her crop.[10] And the quantity of butter and cheese!  And all this without counting the sauces, the jellies, the preserves, the gherkins, the syrups, the brandied fruits.  And not a ham, not a chicken, not a pound of butter was sold; all was served on the master’s table, or, very often, given to those who stood in need of them.  Where, now, can you find such profusion?  Ah! commerce has destroyed industry.

The next day, after kissing mamma and the children, we got into the large skiff with papa and three days later stepped ashore in New Orleans.  We remained there a little over a week, preparing our traveling-dresses.  Despite the admonitions of papa, we went to the fashionable modiste of the day, Madame Cinthelia Lefranc, and ordered for each a suit that cost one hundred and fifty dollars.  The costume was composed of a petticoat of camayeu, very short, caught up in puffs on the side by a profusion of ribbons; and a very long-pointed black velvet jacket (casaquin), laced in the back with gold and trimmed on the front with several rows of gilt buttons.  The sleeves stopped at the elbows and were trimmed with lace.  Now, my daughter, do you know what camayeu was?  You now sometimes see an imitation of it in door and window curtains.  It was a stuff of great fineness, yet resembling not a little the unbleached cotton of to-day, and over which were spread very brilliant designs of prodigious size.  For example, Suzanne’s petticoat showed bunches of great radishes—­not the short kind—­surrounded by long, green leaves and tied with a yellow cord; while on mine were roses as big as a baby’s head, interlaced with leaves and buds and gathered into bouquets graced with a blue ribbon.  It was ten dollars an ell; but, as the petticoats were very short, six ells was enough for each.  At that time real hats were unknown.  For driving or for evening they placed on top of the high, powdered hair what they called a catogan, a little bonnet of gauze or lace trimmed with ribbons; and during the day a sun-bonnet of silk or velvet.  You can guess that neither Suzanne nor I, in spite of papa’s instructions, forgot these.

Our traveling-dresses were gray cirsacas,—­the skirt all one, short, without puffs; the jacket coming up high and with long sleeves,—­a sunbonnet of cirsacas, blue stockings, embroidered handkerchief or blue cravat about the neck, and high-heeled shoes.