[Illustration]

[Transcriber's note: The spelling of the original has been retained. This includes a few apparent mis-spellings and varied spellings of thesame words and names. ]

JOURNAL OF A VOYAGE TO BRAZIL, AND

RESIDENCE THERE, DURING PART OF THE YEARS 1821, 1822, 1823. 

BY MARIA GRAHAM. 

ONCE MORE UPON THE WATERS, YET ONCE MORE, AND THE WAVES BOUND BENEATH ME AS A STEEDTHAT KNOWS HIS RIDER. 

[Illustration]

LONDON:

PRINTED FOR LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, BROWN, AND GREEN, PATERNOSTER-ROW;

AND J. MURRAY, ALBEMARLE-STREET. 

1824. 

LONDON:

Printed by A. & R. Spottiswoode, New-Street-Square. 

PREFACE. 

Although the Journal of a voyage to Brazil, and of a residence of manymonths in that country, was not written without a view to publication atsome time; yet many unforeseen circumstances forced the writer to pausebefore she committed it to press, and to cancel many pages recordingboth public and private occurrences. 

Perhaps there is even yet too much of a personal nature, but what issaid is at least honest; and if the writer should suffer personally bycandour, the suffering will be cheerfully borne. 

As to public events, all that can be new in the Journal is the bringingtogether facts which have reached Europe one by one, and recording theimpression produced on the spot by those occurrences which might beviewed in a very different light elsewhere. Some have, no doubt, beendistorted by the interested channels through which they have reached thepublic; some by the ignorance of the reporters; and most by the partyspirit which has viewed either with enthusiasm or malignity theacquisition of freedom in any quarter of the globe. 

The writer does not pretend to perfect impartiality, for in some casesimpartiality is no virtue; but knowing that no human good can beattained without a mixture of evil, she trusts that a fair picture ofboth has been given, although it has cost some pain in the writing. 

Of the natives of the country, or of those engaged in its service, whatis said, whether of those still employed or of those no longer in theempire, was written under the impression of the moment; and the writer'sconfidence in the good sense and justice of the Brazilian government andpeople is such, that she leaves the passages as they stood at the momentof writing. 

The events of the last three years in Brazil have been so important, that it was thought best not to interrupt the account of them, bycontinuing what may be called the writer's personal narrative after shereached Chile; therefore the two visits to Brazil are printed together, along with an Introduction containing a sketch of the history of thecountry previous to the first visit, and a notice of the public eventsof the year of her absence, to connect it with the second. 

The Journal of a visit to Chile will form the subject of a separatevolume. 

It was thought essential that the narratives concerning Spanish andPortuguese America should be kept quite separate; the countriesthemselves being as different in climate and productions, as theinhabitants are in manners, society, institutions, and government. 

Nothing can be more interesting than the actual situation of the wholeof South America. While Europe was engaged in the great revolutionarywar, that country was silently advancing towards the point at whichlonger subjection to a foreign dominion became impossible. Circumstances, not laws, had opened the ports of the South Atlantic andthe Pacific. Individuals, not nations, had lent their aid to thepatriots of the New World: and more warlike instruments and ammunitionhad gone silently from the warehouses of the merchant to arm the nativesagainst their foreign tyrants, than had ever issued from the arsenals ofthe greatest nations. But, for a period, Brazil did not openly join inthe struggle for independence. The Royal Family of Portugal took refugethere; and converted it, by that step, from a colony into the seat ofgovernment, from a state of slavery to one of sovereignty. Therefore, while the court continued to reside at Rio de Janeiro, the Brazilianshad no inducement to break with the mother country. But it was verydifferent when the King returned to Lisbon, and the Cortes, forgettingthe change of men's minds produced by circumstances, endeavoured toforce Brazil back to the abject state from which she had arisen. Thenarose the struggle, some part of which it was the fortune of the writerto witness; and concerning which she was able to collect some factswhich may serve as materials for future history. She trusts that if the_whole truth_ is not to be found in her pages, that there will be_nothing but the truth_. 

It is with no small anxiety that the Journal is sent into the world, inthe hope that it may tend to excite interest for the country by makingit better known. Perhaps the writer has over-rated her powers, inattempting to record the progress of so important an event as theemancipation of such an empire from the thraldrom of the mother country. The lighter part of her task, namely, the description of the country, its inhabitants, and the manners of the different classes, both ofnatives and foreigners, should have been fuller; but that want ofhealth, and sometimes want of spirits, prevented her from making use ofall the means that might have been within her reach of acquiringknowledge. She trusts, however, that there is no misrepresentation ofimportance; and that the Journal, the writing of which has to herbeguiled many a lonely and many a sorrowful hour, will not give amoment's pain to any human creature. 

PLATES. 

PLATE I. Val Longo, or Slave Market at Rio _to front the Title Page_. 

II. Represents the Great Dragon Tree of Oratava, of which Humboldt hasgiven so interesting an account. He saw it in all its greatness; I drewit after it had lost half its top _to face Page 85_

III. View of Count Maurice's Gate at Pernambuco, with the Slave Market107

IV. Gamella Tree at Bahia 135

V. Larangeiras 163

VI. View from Count Hoggendorp's Cottage 170

VII. View of Rio from the Gloria Hill 169

VIII. Corcovado, from Botofogo 220

IX. Palace of San Cristovaõ 246

X. Dona Maria de Jesus 292

XI. English Burial Ground 307

VIGNETTES. 

I. That at the head of the Journal, page 77, represents two young DragonTrees; that with a single head is twenty years old, and had not, when Isaw it, been tapped for the Dragon's Blood. The other is about a centuryold, and the bark is disfigured by the incisions made in it to procurethe gum _to face Page 77_

II. Part of Pernambuco, seen from Cocoa-nut Island, within the Reef 97

III. Slaves dragging a Hogshead in the Streets of Pernambuco 131

IV. Cadeira, or Sedan Chair of Bahia 133

V. Church and Convent of Sant Antonio da Barre at Bahia, as seen fromthe Roça 157

VI. The Sugar-loaf Rock, at the Entrance to the Harbour of Rio deJaneiro 158

VII. The End of an Island in the Harbour of Rio de Janeiro, drawn forthe sake of the variety of Vegetation 201

VIII. Convicts carrying Water at Rio de Janeiro 217

IX. Stone Cart at Rio de Janeiro 321

INTRODUCTION. 

SKETCH OF THE HISTORY OF BRAZIL. 

I judged it necessary to prefix the following sketch of the history ofBrazil to the journal of my voyage thither, in order that the politicalevents to which I was an eye-witness might be the better understood. 

The early part of the history is almost entirely taken from Mr. Southey. It would have been easy for me to have referred to the Portugueseauthors, as I have read nearly all that are to be found in print of Mr. Southey's authorities, and some that he does not mention; but Mr. Southey had been so faithful as well as judicious in the use he has madeof his authors, that it would have been absurd, if not impertinent, tohave neglected his guidance. From the time of the King's arrival inBrazil, or rather of his leaving Lisbon, I am answerable for all I havestated: it is little, but I hope that little is correct. 

The circumstances of Spanish and Portuguese America were very differentin every stage. In Mexico, in Peru, in Chili, the conquerors encountereda people civilised and humane; acquainted with many of the arts ofpolished life; agriculturists and mechanics; knowing in the thingsbelonging to the altar and the throne, and waging war for conquest andfor glory. But the savages of Brazil were hunters and cannibals; theywandered, and they made war for food: few of the tribes knew even thecultivation of the mandioc, and fewer still had adopted any kind ofcovering, save paint and feathers for ornament. The Spanish conquestswere more quickly made, and appeared more easily settled, because instates so far advanced in civilisation the defeat of an army decides thefate of a kingdom, and the land already cultivated, and the minesalready known and worked, were entered upon at once by the conquerors. 

In Brazil the land that was granted by leagues was _to be won by inches_from the hordes of savages who succeeded each other in incalculablemultitudes, and whose migratory habits rendered it a matter of coursefor one tribe immediately to occupy the ground from which itspredecessors had been driven. Hence the history of the early settlers inBrazil presents none of those splendid and chivalresque pictures thatthe chronicles of the Corteses, and Pizarros, and Almagros furnish. Theyare plain, and often pathetic scenes of human life, full of patience, and enterprise, and endurance; but the wickedness that stains even thebest of them, is the more disgusting as it is more sordid. 

But the very circumstances that facilitated the settling of the Spanishcolonies were also likely to accelerate their liberation. A sense and aremembrance of national honour and freedom, remained among the polishedMexicans and Peruvians. Their numbers indeed had been thinned by thecruelties of the conquerors, but enough were left to perpetuate thememory of their fathers, to hand down the prophecies uttered in thephrenzy of their dying patriots; and the Peruvian, when he visited Lima, looked round the chamber of the viceroys, as he saw niche after nichefilled up with their pictures, till the fated number should beaccomplished, with no common emotion[1]; and many a dreamer on thePeruvian coast, when he saw the Admiral of the Chilian squadron, wasready to hail him as the golden-haired son of light who was to restorethe kingdom of the Incas. [2]

[Note 1: The hall with the pictures of the viceroys was filled:there would be no room in it for Lacerna. ]

[Note 2: This prophecy was recorded by Garcelaço de la Vega; and itis said, that the copies of his Incas were bought up, and an editionprinted, omitting the prophecy. ]

But in Brazil, what was once gained was not likely to be lost by theefforts of the natives, or at least by any recollection of their's, pointing to a better or more glorious time. They have been eitherexterminated, or wholly subdued. The slave hunting, which had beensystematic on the first occupation of the land, and more especiallyafter the discovery of the mines, had diminished the wretched Indians, so that the introduction of the hardier Africans was deemed necessary:_they_ now people the Brazilian fields; and if here and there an Indianaldea is to be found, the people are wretched, with less than Negrocomforts, and much less than Negro spirit or industry. Hence, while theoriginal Mexicans and Peruvians form a real and respectable part of theassertors of the independance of their country, along with the CreoleSpaniards, the Indians are nothing in Brazil; even as a mixed race, theyhave less part among the different casts than in the Spanish colonies;and therefore jealousies among the Portuguese themselves could alone atthis period have brought affairs to their present crisis. Thesejealousies have taken place, and though they did not arise principallyout of the causes of the emigration and return of the Royal family, theywere at least quickened and accelerated by them. 

In 1499, Brazil was discovered by Vicente Yañez Pinçon, a native ofPalos, and one of the companions of Columbus. He and his brothers werein search of new countries, and after touching at the Cape de VerdIslands, he steered to the south-west, till he came to the coast ofBrazil, near Cape St. Augustine, and coasted along as far as the riverMaranham, and thence to the mouth of the Oronoco. He carried home somevaluable drugs, precious stones, and Brazil wood; but had lost two ofhis three ships on the voyage. He made no settlement, but had claimedthe country for Spain. 

Meantime Pedro Alvarez Cabral was appointed by Emanuel, King ofPortugal, to the command of a large fleet, destined to follow the courseof Vasco de Gama in the east. Adverse winds, however, drove theexpedition so far to the westward, that it fell in with the coast ofBrazil, and the ships anchored in Porto Seguro on Good-Friday of theyear 1500. On Easter-day the first Christian altar was raised in the newcontinent under a large tree, and mass was performed, at which theinnocent natives assisted with pleased attention: the country was takenpossession of for the crown of Portugal by the name of the land of theHoly Cross, and a stone cross was erected to commemorate the event. Cabral dispatched a small vessel to Lisbon to announce his discovery, and then, without making any settlement, proceeded to India. 

On the arrival of the news in Europe, the King of Portugal invitedAmerigo Vespucci from Seville, and sent him with three ships to explorethe country. After a long and distressing voyage they arrived, and veryearly in their intercourse with the natives they discovered that theywere cannibals, but nevertheless they established a friendly intercoursewith some of the tribes; and after coasting along South America as faras lat. 52°, finding neither port nor inhabitants, and suffering fromintolerable cold, they returned to Lisbon in 1502. 

Early in the next year Amerigo sailed again with six ships; but havingstood too near the coast of Africa, after passing the Cape de Verds bythe orders of the commander, four of the vessels were lost, but Amerigowith the other two reached a port which they called All Saints. [3] Therethey remained five months, in friendship with the natives, with whomsome of the party travelled forty leagues into the interior. Theyerected a small fort, and left twelve men with guns and provisions, andhaving loaded their two ships with Brazil wood, monkeys, and parrots, they returned to Lisbon early in 1504. 

[Note 3: This cannot be Bahia; for they say, that after coasting 260leagues they were in 18°S. ; now Bahia is in 12° 40', or nearly; thedifference being 120 leagues; it must therefore be a port to thenorthward. ]

But as Brazil, as it now began to be called, did not promise that amplesupply of gold which the Spaniards had discovered in their newcountries, and which the Portuguese gained with less hazard from Africa, and from the East, the country ceased for a time to excite the attentionof government, and the first actual settlements were made by privateadventurers, who, on account of their trade, were desirous of havingsome kind of agents among the people. The first persons employed forthis purpose were criminals, a sort of settlers that may do well in anunpeopled country, where there is nothing to do but to reclaim the land, but that must do ill where there are many and savage natives, becausethey either become degraded to the savage level themselves, if theycontinue friends, or, if not, they are apt to practise such crueltiesand injustice as disgust the natives, render colonisation difficult, andif they teach any thing, it is all the worst part of the life ofcivilised nations. 

But in 1508, Amerigo Vespucci having returned to the service of Spain, the King resolved to take possession of the new land which had beendiscovered; and founding his claims on the grant of Alexander VI. , hesent Vincent Yañez Pinçon and Juan Diaz de Solis to assert them. Theymade Cape St Augustine's, which Pinçon had discovered, and coasted alongto lat. 40° south, erecting crosses as they went; but some disputeshaving arisen between them, they returned to Spain: and it appears thatthe remonstrances of Portugal against the voyage, as an interferencewith her discoveries, had some weight, for it was not until 1515 thatSolis was dispatched on a second voyage, and then it was with the avowedpurpose of seeking a passage to the Great Pacific Sea, which had beensought and seen by Balboa in 1513. 

That extraordinary but unfortunate man was the first European whose eyesrested on the broad Pacific. He had heard from the Indians of itsexistence, and resolutely set out to discover it, well aware of thedangers and difficulties he had to encounter. After twenty-five days ofsuffering and fatigue, he saw the South Sea; he heard of Peru, itsmines, and its llamas, its cities and its aqueducts, and he receivedpearls[4] from the islands that lay in front of St. Miguel's bay, wherehe walked sword in hand up to his middle into the water and tookpossession for the King of Spain. No one in Europe now doubted that thewestern way to the East Indies was discovered. 

[Note 4: Pearl islands, in the bay of Panama. The sand of the beachof those islands is iron, and is as easily attracted by the loadstone assteel filings. ]

Great hopes were therefore entertained from the expedition of Solis. That able navigator made the coast of Brazil far to the southward ofCape St. Augustine, where he had been with Pinçon; and on the 1st ofJanuary 1516 he discovered the harbour of Rio de Janeiro; thence hesailed still to the southward, and entered what he hoped at first wouldbe a sea, or strait, by which he might communicate with the ocean; butit was the river La Plata, where Solis and several of his followers weremurdered and devoured by the natives. The ships then put back to St. Augustines, loaded with Brazil wood, and returned to Spain. 

But the King Don Emanuel claimed these cargoes, and again remonstratedagainst the interference of Spain so effectually, that three yearsafterwards, when Magalhaens touched at Rio de Janeiro, he purchasednothing but provisions. 

Meantime several French adventurers had come to Brazil, and had taken intheir cargoes of Brazil wood, monkies and parrots, and sometimesplundered some of the weaker Portuguese traders. In 1616, two of theseadventurers entered the bay of All Saints, and had begun to trade withthe Indians, when the Portuguese commander, Cristovam Jaques, sailinginto the port, and examining all its coves, discovered them, and sunkthe ships, crews, and cargoes. About the same time, a young Portuguesenobleman, who had been wrecked on the shoal off the entrance of theharbour[5], and who had seen half his companions drowned, and half eatenby the Indians, had contrived to conciliate the natives. He had saved amusket and some powder from the wreck, and having taken an opportunityof shooting a bird in the presence of the inhabitants, they called himCaramuru, or the man of fire; and, as he accompanied them on anexpedition against their enemies the Tapuyas, he became a favourite, married at least one Indian wife, and fixed his residence at the spotnow called Villa Velha, near an excellent spring, and not far from theentrance to the bay. 

[Note 5: I suppose that off St. Antonio da Barre. ]

Caramuru, however, felt some natural longing to see his native land, andaccordingly seized the opportunity afforded by the arrival of a Frenchvessel, and taking his favourite wife, he went with her to France, wherethey were well received by the court, the king and queen standingsponsors at the baptism of the Brazilian lady, whose marriage was nowcelebrated according to the Christian form. Caramuru, however, was notpermitted to go to Portugal; but by means of a young Portuguese studentat Paris[6], he communicated his situation to the King Joam III. , andpressed him to send an expedition to the bay of All Saints. Shortlyafterwards, Caramuru returned to Bahia, having agreed to freight twoships with Brazil wood as the price of his passage, of the artillery ofthe ships, and of the articles necessary for trading with the natives. 

Still, however, as Brazil furnished neither gold, nor that rich commercewhich the Portuguese derived from their Indian trade, it was pretty muchleft to itself for the first thirty years after its discovery; and thenthe regulations adopted by the court were not, perhaps, the mostadvantageous for the country. The coast was divided by Joam III. Intocaptaincies, many of which extended fifty leagues, and each captaincywas made hereditary, and granted to any one who was willing to embarkwith sufficient means in the adventure; and to these captains anunlimited jurisdiction, both criminal and civil, was granted. 

The first person who took possession of one of these captaincies wasMartim Affonso de Souza, in 1531, who sometimes claims the discovery ofRio de Janeiro as his, although it had been named by Solis fifteen yearsbefore. Souza was probably deterred from fixing on the shores of thatbeautiful bay, by the number and fierceness of the Indian tribes thatoccupied them. He therefore coasted towards the south, naming IlhaGrande dos Magos on twelfth-day, when

 "Three kings, or what is more, three wise men went Westward to seek the world's true orient. "

[Note 6: Pedro Fernandez Sardinha, the first bishop of Brazil. ]

St. Sebastian's on the 20th, and St. Vincent's on the 22d; but havingproceeded as far south as the La Plata, he returned to the neighbourhoodof San Vincente, where he ultimately founded his colony, and whence henamed the whole captaincy. 

Martim Affonso de Souza was no ordinary man: his cares for his colonydid not relax even after he had been recalled, and sent asgovernor-general to India, where he had before highly distinguishedhimself. He introduced the sugar-cane from Madeira into his colony, andin it also the first cattle were bred. Thence they have spread all overthe continent of South America, and have proved of more real value to itthan its mines. 

Pero Lopes de Souza, the brother of Martim Affonso, had his fiftyleagues of coast in two allotments; one part, St. Amaro, was immediatelyto the north of San Vincente, and the other was Tamaraca, betweenPernambuco and Paraiba. 

About the same time the Fidalgo Pedro de Goes attempted a settlement atParaiba do Sul; but after two years tolerable prosperity, he wasattacked by the native tribe of Goaytacazes, and five years of warfarereduced him to the necessity of sending to Espirito Santo for vessels toremove his colonists. 

Vasco Fernandez de Coutinho began to settle Espirito Santo in the sameyear (1531) in which the former colonies had been begun. He had amasseda great fortune in the East, and expended most of it in collectingvolunteers for his new colony; sixty fidalgoes and men of the royalhousehold accompanied him. The adventurers had a prosperous voyage. Ontheir arrival they built a fort, which they called N. S. Da Victoria, and established four sugar-works. Coutinho returned to Lisbon forrecruits and implements for mining, the settlers having now obtainedsome indications of gold and jewels to be found in the country. 

The adjoining captaincy of Porto Seguro was given to Pedro de CampoTourinho, a nobleman and a navigator. He sold his possessions at home, and raised a large body of colonists, with which he established himselfat Porto Seguro, the harbour where Cabral had first taken possession ofBrazil. The history of the settlement of Porto Seguro, like that of allthe others, is stained with the most atrocious cruelties; not such assoldiers in the heat of war commit, but cold calculated cruelties, exterminating men for the sake of growing canes, so waiting patientlyfor the _fruit_ of crime. [7]

[Note 7: I hope the following tale is not true, though my authorityis good. In this very captaincy, within these twenty years, an Indiantribe had been so troublesome, that the Capitam Môr resolved to get ridof it. It was attacked, but defended itself so bravely, that thePortuguese resolved to desist from open warfare; but with unnaturalingenuity exposed ribands and toys infected with smallpox matter in theplaces where the poor savages were likely to find them: the plansucceeded. The Indians were so thinned, that they were easily overcome!]

_Ilheos_, so called from its principal river, which has three islands atthe mouth, was settled by Jorge de Figueredo Correa, who had a place inthe treasury, under Joam III. , between 1531 and 1540, and speedilybecame flourishing, being remarkably favourable to the sugarcultivation. 

Bahia de Todo os Santos was, with its adjacent territory, given toFrancisco Pereira Coutinho, a fidalgo who had made himself a name inIndia. He fixed his abode at Villa Velha, where Caramuru had formed hislittle settlement, and two of his followers married the daughters ofCaramuru. 

The bay, or reconcave of All Saints, is a magnificent harbour: theentrance appears to be a league in breadth; but on the right hand, onentering, there is a shoal dangerous to large vessels, called that ofSt. Antonio da Barre; and on the left, coral reefs running off fromItaporica. The country that surrounds it is so fertile, that it mustalways have been an object of desire whether to savage or civilisedinhabitants; and it is not surprising that three revolutions, that is, three changes of indwellers, driven out by each other, should have been, in the memory of the Indians, before the settlement of Coutinho. 

That nobleman, whose early life had been passed in the East-IndianPortuguese wars, imprudently and cruelly disturbed the peace of therising settlement, by the murder of a son of one of the chiefs. Theconsequence was, that after a most disastrous warfare, in the course ofwhich the already flourishing sugar-works were burnt, he and Caramuruwere both obliged to abandon the settlement and retire to Ilheos. Soonafterwards, however, he made peace with the Indians; but on his returnto the Reconcave, he was wrecked on the reef off Itaporica, where thenatives murdered him, but spared Caramuru, who returned to his olddwelling. 

In the settlement of Pernambuco, the first donatory, Duarte CoelhoPereira, was opposed not only by the natives, but by numbers of French, who having carried on a desultory though profitable trade on the coast, now joined the Indians in retarding those regular settlements which werelikely to put an end to their commerce. The colony, however, had beenplanted at Olinda, [8] a situation as strong as it is beautiful, andPereira contrived to engage some of the Indian tribes in his favour. Thewar was but of short continuance, and nothing farther, except theseizure of the little settlement of Garussa, in the woods and near thecreek which separates Itameraca from the main land, occurred to impedethe prosperity of the captaincy. 

[Note 8: There is a note in the first volume of Southey's Brazilconcerning the name of Marino given to Olinda by Hans Staade. The otherBrazilians call the Pernambucans of Recife Marineros still. Is this fromthe town or their nautical habits? or from the name of the Indianvillage Marim which existed in the neighbourhood?]

The last colony which was founded during these ten eventful years wasthat of Maranham. Three adventurers undertook this settlement jointly. The most celebrated was Joam de Barros, the historian; the others wereFernam Alvares de Andrada, father of the writer of the Chronicle, andAires da Cunha. 

Aires da Cunha, Barros's two sons, and nine hundred men, sailed in tenships for their new possession, but were wrecked on the shoals ofMaranham; so that it was long before any success attended theundertaking. Da Cunha was drowned, the sons of Barros slain by theIndians, and the rest of the people with difficulty survived in a verywretched condition. 

Meantime the passage through Magellan's Straits had been discovered, andthe Spaniards, first under Sebastian Cabot, and afterwards under DonPedro de Mendoza, who founded Buenos Ayres, had begun to settle on theshores of the Plata, not without opposition from the Portuguese, and amore obstinate and fatal resistance from the Indians. The tribes in thisneighbourhood appear to have been more civilised than those of the coastof Brazil, and consequently more formidable enemies to the rising towns. Orellana had also made his daring voyage down the mighty river that issometimes called by his name. He had afterwards perished in an attemptto make a settlement on its shores, and nearly the same fate hadattended Luiz de Mello da Silva, who made a similar attempt on the partof Portugal. 

Cabeza de Vacca had also made his adventurous overland journey from St. Catherine's, and after settling himself in the government of Assumption, had conducted various expeditions of discovery, always in hopes offinding an easy way to the gold countries. In one of these he foundtraces of the adventurer Garcia, a Portuguese, who, under the orders ofMartim Affonso de Souza, had, with five companions, undertaken toexplore the interior of South America. This man had by some means soconciliated the Indians, that he was followed by a very considerablearmy, and is said to have penetrated even into Tarija. He is believed tohave perished by the hand of one of his own followers, but noparticulars were ever known of his fate. 

During the next ten years, nothing remarkable occurred with regard toBrazil, except the founding of the city of St. Salvador's, by Thome deSouza, the first Captain General of Brazil, who carried out with him thefirst Jesuit missionaries. For the site of his new town De Souza fixedupon the hill immediately above the deepest part of the harbour ofBahia, which is defended at the back by a deep lake, and lies about halfa league from the Villa Velha of Coutinho and Caramuru. 

The temporal concerns of the new colony, derived inestimable advantagefrom the friendship and assistance of the patriarch Caramuru: as to thespiritual, it was indeed time that some rule of faith and morals shouldfind its way to Brazil. The settlers had hitherto had no instructorsbut friars, whose manners were as dissolute as their own, and whoencouraged in them a licentious depravity, scarcely less shocking thanthe cannibalism of the savages. These latter are said to have eaten thechildren born by their own daughters to their prisoners of war, --a thingso unnatural, that it only gains credit because the Portuguese sold asslaves even their own children by the native women. The apostle ofBrazil, as he may in truth be called, and chief of the six Jesuits whoaccompanied Souza, was Nobrega, the cotemporary and rival in the race ofdisinterested services to his fellow creatures of St. Francis Xavier;and, with regard to his steady attempts to protect as well as to convertthe Indians, another Las Casas. 

Brazil was becoming an object of importance to the crown of Portugal. The new settlement of Bahia was established on the king's account, andat his expense 1000 persons had been sent out the first year, 1549. Infour months there were 100 houses, six batteries, and a cathedral: acollege for the Jesuits, a palace, and a custom-house were begun; thewhole was defended by a mud wall. The next year supplies of all kindsarrived from Lisbon, and the year after that several female orphans, ofnoble family, were sent out as wives for the officers, with dowries innegroes, kine, and brood-mares. 

About this time, a Spanish expedition destined for the river Platamiscarried; one of the ships was wrecked off St. Vincent's, and to HansStaade, one of the crew who survived and after various adventures fellinto the power of the Indians, we are indebted for the most authenticand particular account of the Brazilian Savages. [9] It is curious thatthe Indians of the new world, should so very far exceed all the savagetribes of the old in barbarity. But it is certain that no authenticaccounts of cannibals have ever been brought from Africa; whereas, noneof the early writers on Brazil and its inhabitants have failed to dwellupon their love of human flesh, as characteristic of the people. 

[Note 9: In the Historia da Provincia Sancta Cruz, by Pero deMagalhaens de Gandano, 1576, there is an account sufficiently tallyingwith that which Southey has compiled from Hans Staade and De Lery. Butit is far from being so disgusting. There is a copper-plate representingthe dragging the prisoner with cords, and felling him with a club. Theauthor gives a short account of the then known plants and animals ofBrazil, and concludes with the hope that the mines believed to exist mayspeedily be found. --See the collection of tracts by Barbosa Maehado. ]

The year 1552 is distinguished by the arrival of the first bishop inBrazil. His see was fixed at St. Salvador's, or, as it is generallycalled, Bahia. In the next year, Thome de Souza retired from hisgovernment, and was succeeded by Don Duarte da Costa, who wasaccompanied by seven jesuits, among whom was the celebratedAnchieta. [10] The chief of the order, Loyola, was still alive, heerected Brazil into a new province, and appointed Nobrega and Luis deGran, who had been principal at Coimbra, joint provincials. From thatmoment the labours of the fathers for the real good of the countrycommenced. And whatever may be the opinions entertained, as to theirpolitics and ultimate views, there is not a doubt but that the meansthey employed to reclaim and civilise the Indians, were mild, andtherefore successful; that while they wrought their own purposes, theymade their people happy; and that centuries will not repair the evildone by their sudden expulsion, which broke up the bands of humanisedsociety which were beginning to unite the Indians with their fellowcreatures. 

[Note 10: Anchieta was not only a man of extraordinary firmness ofmind and real piety, but a politician of no common cast, and his civilservices to the Portuguese government were equal to those of thegreatest captains, while his labours as a missionary and teacher werebeyond those of any individual of whom I have ever read. His merits as achristian apostle and a man of literature, have disarmed even Mr. Southey of his usual rancour against the Roman Catholic faith. Thatexcellent writer's book on Brazil is spoilt by intemperate language on asubject on which human feeling is least patient of direct contradiction, so that the general circulation of it is rendered impossible, and thegood it might otherwise do in the country for which it is writtenfrustrated. Oh, that Mr. Southey would remember the quotation which hehimself brings forward from Jeremy Taylor! "Zeal against an error is notalways the best instrument to find out truth. "]

In 1553, the first school was established in Brazil, by Nobrega, in thehigh plains of Piratininga, about thirteen leagues from the colony ofSan Vicente. Anchieta was the school-master. The school was opened onthe feast of the conversion of St. Paul, and the establishment, and theinfant colony rising round it, received the name of the saint. St. Paul's has since grown to be one of the most important towns in Brazil. Its rich minerals, its iron-works, and other manufactures, but, aboveall, the high and free spirit of its inhabitants, who have taken thelead in every effort for the good of the country, distinguish it aboveall the southern towns of Brazil. 

Anchieta, while he taught Latin to the Portuguese and Mamalucos, [11] andPortuguese to the Brazilians, learnt from these last their own tongue, and composed a grammar and dictionary for them. He had no books for hispupils, so that he wrote on separate leaves, in four differentlanguages, the daily lesson for each. He served as physician, as well aspriest and school-master, and practised and taught the most usefuldomestic arts. But the colony had, like all the others, to fight for itsearly existence; it was attacked by the Mamalucos of the neighbouringsettlement of St. André, who regarded the instruction of the Indians asa step towards abolishing their slavery, and exclaimed against it as aninfringement of what they called their right to the services of thenatives. They engaged by other pretences some of the neighbouring tribesto assist them, but they were met and defeated by those of St. Paul's. 

[Note 11: Mamaluco. These were the Creole Portuguese, who had mostof them intermarried with the natives. ]

Meantime some disputes having arisen between the Governor and theBishop, the latter resolved to return to Lisbon, but was wrecked on thecoast at a place called the Baixos de San Francisco, and there seized, and with one hundred other white persons put to death by the Cahetes. The revenge of the Portuguese was horrible, the Cahetes were hunted, slaughtered, and all but exterminated. 

In the year 1557, Joam III. Died. His appointment of Mem de Sa, beforehis death, to the government of Brazil, prevented the country fromimmediately feeling the evils which a regency generally entails even inan established government, but which are sure to fall with tenfoldweight upon a rising colony. 

Mem de Sa was a man of more enlightened mind, and more humane principlesthan most of those to whom the government of the Brazilian provinceshad been intrusted. He arrived at Bahia in 1558, and earnestly appliedhimself to learn the relations in which the Portuguese, the Creoles, theIndians, and the mixed race stood to each other. 

His first acts were directed towards reclaiming the allied Indians fromsome of their most brutal practices, and to induce them to formsettlements near those of the Jesuits. The selfish planters, interestedin keeping up the feuds of the Indians, in order to procure slaves, exclaimed against these proceedings as violations of the freedom of thenatives, and they were equally displeased at the orders issued, to setat liberty all the Indians who had been wrongfully enslaved. Onepowerful colonist alone refused to obey: Mem de Sa ordered his house tobe surrounded and instantly levelled with the ground. Such an act wascertainly calculated to inspire the Indians with confidence in his goodintentions towards them, at the same time that his vigorous measures topunish them for any infraction of their engagements kept them in awe. 

Meantime an adventurer of no ordinary stamp, had formed a settlement inthe finest harbour of Brazil, namely, that of Rio de Janeiro. NicholasDurand de Villegagnon was a native of Provins en Brie, and a Knight ofMalta. In 1648, he had been employed by Mary of Guise, at the entreatyof the French court, to convey her daughter the young Queen of Scots toFrance: in 1651 he was engaged in the defence of Malta, against thePacha Sinan and the famous Dragut Reis, and two years afterwardspublished an account of that campaign. Having visited Brazil in 1558, Villegagnon could not be insensible to the advantages that must arise toFrance from having a settlement there; and, on his return to Europe, hemade such representations at court of these advantages, that Henry II. Gave him two vessels, each of 200 tons, and a store ship of 100 tons, toconvey the adventurers who might wish to leave France, and who at thattime were numerous. Villegagnon, wishing to make use of Coligny'sinterest, gave out that the new settlement was to be a refuge for thepersecuted Hugonots, and this answered the double purpose of securingthe Admiral's friendship, and gaining a number of respectable colonists. With these he reached Rio de Janeiro, and made his first settlement in alow rock at the mouth of the harbour, where there is now a small fortcalled the Laje, but finding it not sufficiently elevated to resist thehigh tides, he pitched on an island within the harbour, where there isonly one landing place, and whose form and situation is singularlyadapted for safety, especially against such enemies as the Indians. Those, however, of the Rio had been long accustomed to trade with theFrench, who, if they had not taught them, had at least encouraged them, to hate the Portuguese, whom Villegagnon flattered himself that heshould be able to keep aloof by the assistance of the Savages. 

Meantime Coligny had exerted himself to send out assistance of everykind; provisions, recruits[12], and protestant ministers. ButVillegagnon now imagined himself secure in his colony, and threw off themask of toleration. He behaved so tyrannically that many of the Hugonotswere obliged to return to France, and of them he made the most maliciouscomplaints, and concluded by saying, that they were heretics worthy ofthe stake. 

[Note 12: Among these was Jean de Lery. ]

But nothing is so short-sighted as wickedness. Villegagnon's treacherywas the cause of the ruin of his enterprise. Ten thousand protestantswere ready to embark for Coligny, as the island, now called Villegagnon, was then named: but the report of those who had returned, stopped them, and the colony was left in a defenceless state. 

At length the attention of the court of Lisbon had been drawn towardsthe French settlement, and orders were sent to the Captain General toexamine into its state first, and then, if possible, to take it. 

Accordingly, Mem de Sa, accompanied by Nobrega and two other Jesuits, attacked it in January, 1560, while Villegagnon was absent in France, and demolished the works, but had not sufficient force to attemptforming a settlement; and had Villegagnon succeeded in returning withthe recruits he expected, he would have found it easy to re-establishand perhaps revenge himself. But his bad faith deterred the Hugonotsfrom joining him, the civil war prevented the government from assistinghim, and the French colony was lost. 

In 1564, Estacio de Sa, nephew of Mem, was sent out from Portugal toform a settlement in Rio, but finding his means inadequate to contendwith the Indians, led on by the few remaining French, he went to SanVincente for reinforcements; these, however, only enabled him to keep upthe war, and to maintain himself in a post he had fortified[13], not farfrom the entrance of the harbour, and near the Sugar-loaf mountain, abare and inaccessible rock, which, from a base of about four hundredfeet, shoots up to a thousand in perpendicular height, on the west sideof the bar. He therefore applied to his uncle for succour, who, collecting what force he could, led them in person, and arrived in theharbour on the 18th of January, 1567. On the 20th, St. Sebastian's day, the Indians and French were attacked in their strongest hold, thencalled Uraçumiri, and having obtained a decisive victory, the Frenchembarked in the four ships they still possessed, and fled to the coastof Pernambuco, where they attempted to form a settlement at Recife, butwere dislodged by the Portuguese of Olinda. 

[Note 13: Mr. Southey says this spot is called Villa Velha. Butthere is no place existing in the neighbourhood of that name, nor couldI find any person at Rio de Janeiro who remembered such a place. It was, however, most probably on the site of the present St. Juan, or of thefort of Praya Vermelha, which answers exactly to the description. ]

Mem de Sa now founded the city of St. Sebastian, more commonly calledthe city of Rio; and for its security the Jesuits, with their Indians, fortified both sides of the entrance to the harbour, which is about fourmiles distant from the city across the bay. Before these works, however, or the walls of the town were completed, the French made a vigorouseffort to disturb the rising colony; but it ended in their defeat, andtheir guns were made use of to fortify the mouth of the harbour. 

Driven from Rio, the French attempted to form a settlement at Paraibathe next year; but the Indians, with the Jesuits at their head, and avery few troops, under the commander Martim Leytam, expelled them. 

Under Mem de Sa the state had been so prosperous, that though he hadbeen Captain-general far beyond the term of his original appointment, Don Sebastian, on assuming the crown, continued him in office for twoyears longer, and then named Luiz de Vasconcellos to succeed him. Thatnobleman never reached Brazil. With him sailed a fleet of seven ships, bearing, besides the governor, sixty-nine Jesuit missionaries, and anumber of orphan girls, whose parents had died of the plague, and whomthe government was sending out to settle in Brazil. The fleet, indifferent divisions, fell in with French and English ships, and theJesuits, save one, to use their own expression, received the crown ofmartyrdom, and the new governor was killed in action off Tercera. Assoon as his death was known at Lisbon, Luiz de Brito de Almeida wasappointed to his vacant office; and Mem de Sa just lived long enough towitness the arrival of his successor. Nobrega, who had begun thatsystem, on which the singular government of the Jesuits in Paraguay wasconducted, had died a few months before, so that Brazil was deprivednearly at once of the two ablest men that had yet been concerned in itsgovernment. 

But Luiz de Brito did not succeed to the government of all Brazil. Itwas judged proper to divide the colony into two captaincies, Rio deJaneiro being the capital of the southern division, which included PortoSeguro and every thing to the south of it; while Bahia remained thecapital of the northern districts. There Luiz de Brito fixed hisresidence, and Doctor Antonio Salerna was appointed governor of thesouth. But this division was soon found inconvenient, and the two partswere re-united[14] about 1578, the year in which a new governor, DiegoLaurenço da Viega, arrived. 

[Note 14: When the Historia da Provincia de Sancta Cruz, by PeroMagalhaēs de Gadano, was printed, 1575, they were still separate; butSouthey's MS. Of 1578 says they had been re-united. ]

This was the year when the loss of Don Sebastian in Africa threwPortugal into the hands of Spain. King Philip, eager to annex thatkingdom for ever to his crown, offered Brazil, with the title of King, to Braganza if he would give up his claim to the crown of Portugal. Butit was reserved for his descendant to achieve the independence ofBrazil, and he refused it. 

The colony was at this period most flourishing, though not altogetherable to do without occasional supplies from the mother country. Butalready the original mud-cottages, supported by frame-work and thatchedwith palm-leaves, of the first settlers, had given way to well built andhandsome houses of stone and brick, covered with tiles as in Europe. Thereconcave of Bahia had sixty-two churches, and upwards of seventysugar-works: the land was well stocked with cattle, all the kinds oforange and lime trees introduced by Europeans had flourished. Thecountry abounded in excellent native fruits, and the mandioc furnishednever-failing stores of bread. Olinda partook of all these advantages, and was itself the best built and most populous town in Brazil. Rio deJaneiro had become a place only inferior in importance to the other two, its natural advantages being still greater, and the climate milder; norwere the other captaincies less prosperous. 

But the transfer of the crown into foreign hands changed the aspect ofaffairs in Brazil. Inferior to the Spanish American countries in mines, it was considered only of consequence as being occupied by Spanishsubjects, and so forming a barrier against the intrusion of othernations. 

By this time the English had begun to trade on the coast of Brazil, andin 1577 Drake had passed through the Straits of Magellan in hismemorable voyage round the world. His appearance in the southern seasalarmed Philip the Second, now King of Portugal as well as of Spain, andconsequently Lord of Brazil. He attempted to form a colony and maintaina fort in the Straits, in order to prevent future navigators frompassing; but of it nothing is left but the name, _Port Famine_, whichattests the miserable fate of the colonists. The English commerce wasalso cut off in Brazil. Some vessels trading peaceably at San Vincentewere attacked in the harbour by the Spaniards in superior force; one ofthe latter was sunk, and the English escaped next day. In 1686, the Earlof Cumberland fitted out an expedition, in which Raleigh served andWitherington was admiral, which entered the reconcave of Bahia andplundered it, remaining there six weeks, the city being only saved bythe Indian archers. Baretto, the governor of Brazil, died the next year, and was succeeded by D. Antonio Barreiros the bishop, and Christovam deBarros as joint governors; and they were soon superseded by FranciscoGiraldes: he, however, never arrived in the country, and Don Franciscode Souza was appointed in his stead. 

During his captaincy some search was made after mines by a descendant ofCaramuru, who offered to discover where he had found the silver of whichhe had services in his house and chapel, on condition of receiving thetitle of Marques. This Philip refused to grant, and the secret, ifindeed the man had one, died with him. 

Meantime the celebrated Cavendish had made one voyage round the world, and had committed such ravages on the coast of Spanish America, as noteven the atrocious habits of naval warfare in those days can excuse. In1591, he embarked in a second expedition, arrived in December on thecoast of Brazil, and took Santos and burned San Vincente. The ships thensailed for the Straits, but were baffled in their attempt to pass, andreturned to the coast of Brazil to obtain provisions. Cavendish, who hadmany great and good qualities, and who might certainly think itallowable to supply himself on an enemy's coast, made an attempt onEspiritu Santo, but by a mistake in executing his orders it failed, andhe sailed for England, but died of a broken heart on the passage. 

The most remarkable expedition of the English to the coast of Brazil wasthat of Sir James Lancaster to Pernambuco. He had the command of threesmall vessels of 240, 120, and 60 tons. At Cape Blanco he learned that arich carrack from India had been wrecked near Olinda, and that her cargowas safely stowed at Recife. He therefore fitted five out of near thirtysmall prizes to accompany him, and built a galley frigate to land with. He was also reinforced by Captain Vernon with two ships, a pinnace, anda prize, and then sailed direct for Recife, where they arrived in March, 1595. On Good Friday of that year the town was taken with littleresistance, and Lancaster permitted not the slightest disorder after theplace was taken. He fortified the sandy isthmus which connects Recifewith Olinda, and then proceeded at leisure to stow his ships with thegoods found in the town, and hired the Dutch vessels lying in the portas store-ships. Some French privateers coming in, he also hired themwith part of the booty to assist in the defence of the place, till thelading of the vessels should be completed. The Portuguese made severalattempts to burn Lancaster's ships, which were all baffled by hisprudence, and after remaining in possession of Recife twenty days heprepared to sail. However, on the very last day of his stay, some of hispeople, both English and French, having advanced too far in a sallyagainst the Portuguese, were killed, and the enemy claimed a victory, which Lancaster being now ready for sea had no inclination to dispute. And this was the last attack made by the English on the coast of Brazil. 

But the French had renewed their attempts, and under Rifault and hissuccessor De Vaux had succeeded in forming a settlement in the island ofMaranham, 1611. And shortly afterwards Henry IV. Sent Daniel de laTouche, Lord of La Rivardière[15], to examine the country, in order toform a permanent colony. His report was favourable; and though on hisreturn to France Henry was dead, an expedition of three ships, containing 500 men, was fitted out, and in 1612 they arrived on theisland, speedily conciliated the natives, and the colony promised tothrive. But the court of Madrid quickly sent out orders to the governorof Brazil to attack the intruders. Various accidents prolonged thewarfare, and it was not until 1618 that they were dislodged, and apermanent Portuguese colony formed. Its distance from the seat ofgovernment determined the court of Madrid to erect Maranham and Parainto a separate state, of which the capital was fixed at San Luiz, atown and fort built by the French on the island. 

[Note 15: In Barbosa Machado's curious collection of pamphlets, inthe library of Rio de Janeiro, is one by the Capt. Symam Estacio daSylveira, printed in 1624. He had been at the taking of Maranham fromthe French, and his paper is evidently a decoy for colonists. He says, that Daniel de la Touche was induced to go thither by Itayuba of the_Iron arm_, a Frenchman who had been brought up among the Tupinambas. Isthis Mr. Southey's Rifault?]

Meantime the Dutch had formed a West Indian Company, trusting that theywould thereby be able to annoy the court of Spain in their Americanpossessions, as they had already done in the East Indies. In 1624, afleet under Jacob Willekins and the famous Peter Heyne was fitted outfor that purpose. The ships having been separated in a gale of wind, Willekins made the Morro de San Paulo, about forty miles south of Bahia, where he waited for the rest of the convoy. When it arrived he sailedboldly into the reconcave, and St. Salvador was taken almost without astruggle. Vandort, the Dutch general, immediately began to fortify theplace, and proclamations being issued promising freedom and redress ofwrongs to all who should submit, many Indians, negroes, and Jewsinstantly joined him. But the Portuguese, who had hoped that the Dutchhad only come to plunder the city, seeing that they were sitting quietlydown as in a permanent establishment, roused themselves, and after somelittle disagreement as to who should command them, pitched on the BishopDon Marcos Texeira. He fixed his head-quarters on the Rio Vermelho. TheDutch were weakened by the departure of Willekins for Holland, and ofPeter Heyne for Angola, the plan of the West India Company being tosecure that settlement, in order to have a certain supply of slaves fortheir new conquests in Brazil. Dort had been killed, and there was nocompetent commander. The Bishop's troops harassed those of the city inevery direction, and the Dutch were prepared to become an easy prey toDon Fadrique de Toledo, who had been sent from Spain with a strong forceto recover the capital of Brazil. They capitulated, therefore, in May, 1625, and conditioned for being sent to Holland with sufficient arms andtheir personal baggage, leaving the city and forts as they were. 

The next year, however, Peter Heyne returned to the reconcave. Everyprecaution was taken against him by the governor. Four large ships withmen and artillery were placed to intercept him; but in his single ship, the rest of his squadron not being able to come up with him, ran inbetween two of them, sunk one, and compelled several others to strike:his own ship, however, grounded, and he burnt her. He added four shipsto his own fleet, loaded four others with prize-goods, and burnt therest. Nor was this his only success; for although the Dutch had beenbaffled in several attempts on the coast, they sent home prizes enoughto be of national importance. 

But a conquest of infinitely more consequence was shortly made; that ofOlinda, which, in 1630, was taken after a feeble resistance on the partof Matthias de Albuquerque. The Dutch general-in-chief was Henrik Loncq, the admiral was Peter Ardian, and Wardenburg commanded the troops. Thelatter landed at Pao Amarello, three leagues to the north, while theships kept up a regular fire opposite to the place; consequently thePortuguese were surprised, and the towns and forts easily taken. 

But the country around continued to be the theatre of a most cruelpredatory war, during which atrocious cruelties were committed by bothparties, but chiefly by the Dutch; and while these things were going on, a number of negroes had escaped from time to time into the greatpalm-forests, about thirty leagues inland, and had multiplied so thatthey are said to have amounted to upwards of thirty thousand. These menwere governed by a chief whom they called Zombi: they had some laws, ashadow of the Christian religion, and were agriculturists. They harassedthe Portuguese, and added by their depredations to the general misery. 

At length the Dutch government sent out Count Maurice of Nassau, to takethe command at Pernambuco. He arrived in 1537, and carried on the war sovigorously that the Portuguese retired out of the province. He also setabout reforming the abuses which existed among the Dutch themselves atRecife, and having established himself firmly there, he sent one of hisofficers, Jan Koin, over to the coast of Africa, who took possession ofSt. Jorge da Mina, by which a supply of slaves was secured, and leavinga garrison there, returned to Recife. The next year, Maurice made anunsuccessful attack on St. Salvador. His fleet anchored in the bay ofTapagipe; but though he obtained at first some important posts, he wasfinally repulsed and returned with loss to Pernambuco. There he occupiedhimself in building a new town, and making the two first bridges thathad yet been built in Portuguese America, besides planting trees, andimproving the fortifications. In 1640 he sent the famous sea-warrior Jolinto the reconcave, to lay it waste; and he accordingly burnt the wholeof the sugar-works in the bay, while the Indians who were friendly tothe Dutch, fell on the land-side of the captaincy, and harassed theunhappy settlers in an equal degree. 

At length the court of Madrid began to be alarmed for the safety ofBrazil, and fitted out a large armament for its relief. Storms andsickness diminished it, ere it arrived, to nearly one half. That halfarrived at Bahia, in 1640, under D. Jorge de Mascasentras, Marques deMonte Alvam. Before he had time either to make open war, or tonegociate, the revolution in Portugal, which placed Braganza on thethrone of his ancestors, took place. The viceroy, unjustly suspected ofadhering to Spain, was sent home, and a commission, composed ofBarbalho, Correa, and the bishop, appointed in his stead. 

One of the first acts of the restored Portuguese government was to makea ten years' truce with the Seven United States. But this did notprevent the continuance of hostilities in Brazil, and the other foreignpossessions of Portugal. Serigipe was surprised, Maranham conquered, andLoanda in Angola and St. Thomas's taken. 

Notwithstanding these successes, the Dutch government disapproved ofCount Maurice's administration. Instead of sending home either to theStates or the Company all the money and produce which he had gained inBrazil, he had laid out great part of it, as well as of his privatefortune, in fortifying the mouths of rivers and harbours, particularlyRecife, in repairing and beautifying the towns, and in other publicworks, which, looking forward to the permanent establishment of theDutch in the country, he considered as absolutely necessary. He wasaccordingly recalled, and returned to Holland in 1644. 

After the departure of Maurice the tyranny of the Dutch became sointolerable, that the Portuguese began to rise against it almostuniversally. 

Maranham had already been wrested from their hands at the time of hisreturning, and that event seemed to be the signal for the long andcalamitous struggle that ensued in Pernambuco and the neighbouringCaptaincies. Joam Fernandes Vieyra, a native of Madeira, had, at a veryearly age, left his native island in hopes of bettering his fortune inBrazil. He had succeeded, and at the time we speak of, he was one of therichest Portuguese of Pernambuco, and highly esteemed by both hiscountrymen and the Dutch. Against the latter, however, he was animatedboth by patriotism and superstition. They oppressed his people, and theywere heretics. After waiting for years for a proper opportunity toattempt their destruction, he seized the first months of Nassau'sabsence, and communicating his plans to none but to two friends, one ofwhom he commissioned to apply to the government of Bahia in person forsuccour, he waited patiently for an answer. This man, André Vidal deNegreiros, executed his commission exactly, and shortly afterwardsAntonio Diaz Cardozo, and sixty soldiers, were sent to Vieyra. Heconcealed them in the woods in the neighbourhood of his dwelling, calledthe Varzea, which was on the plain to the westward of the city, and thensummoned the Indian chief Camaram and the Negro chief Henrique Diaz[16], to his assistance, and communicated his designs to his neighbours. 

[Note 16: The following is an extract from one of the letters ofthis Creole Negro: "Faltamos a obediença, que nos occupava no certam deBahia, por naõ faltarémos as obrigaçoens da patria; respeitando primeiroas leys da natureza, que as do imperio. "

_Castrioto Lusitano_. ]

Early in 1645 the war began in earnest. The most shocking atrocitieswere committed by both parties, especially towards the Indians, whothemselves as they were the most faithful allies, were also the mostinveterate and cruel enemies. In the course of the struggle, whichlasted until 1654, several leaders on both sides were slain, but none soremarkable as the Indian Camaram. He had been educated by the Jesuits;he understood Latin, wrote, read, and spoke Portuguese perfectly, but onall occasions of ceremony used an interpreter, that he might not inpublic do any thing imperfectly, and thereby derogate from the dignityof his chieftainship. When a number of Indians were taken among theDutch, at one of the strong posts of the latter, a relation of Camaram'swas found among them. These men had all been condemned to death. Camaramdid not intercede for the life of his kinsman, but he saved his honour:he slew him with his own hand, and buried him decently. The rest werehanged by the common executioner, and left for the fowls of the air. 

At length this horrible warfare was ended. The two battles of theGararapes[17], had decided the fate of the Dutch in Brazil: but it wasthe co-operation of the fleet of the new Brazilian company that enabledVieyra, who was the real commander in this war, although severalmilitary men of reputation, had, from time to time, had the nominalchieftainship, to reduce Recife, and on the 23d of January 1654, topresent the keys of the city to the Royal Commander Francisco Beretto, and to restore to the crown of Portugal the empire of Brazil, after nineyears of the most cruel war, during which the private fortune, and thedetermined spirit of individuals had sustained the conflict, generallywithout the aid, and often in direct opposition to the commands of thecourt. But men once determined on freedom, or on national independence, must in the end overcome all obstacles and vanquish every difficulty. 

[Note 17:

Ves Agros Gararapes, entre a negra, Nuvem de Marte horrendoQual Jupiter em flegra, Hollanda o vistes fulminar tremendo. --DINEZ. 

The Portuguese reader will do well to read the whole of Diniz's fine odeto Vieyra, as well as that to Mem de Sa, on his conquests at Rio deJaneiro. This writer is one of the best of the Arcadian school. --But hewrote on subjects of a minor interest, while Guidi wrote to the"d'Arcadia fortunate Genti"--of the Eternal city, where every civilisedbeing feels he has an interest. ]

While these things were going on in the northern provinces, the Jesuitshad formed their singular establishments in Paraguay, and endeavoured tostop, or at least limit the slave hunting of the Portuguese in theinterior, though without effect. The best part of the colony of St. Vincent's had been removed to St. Paul's, a settlement on the plain ofPiratininga, and had flourished surprisingly. The people had becomehardy, if not fierce. They had distinguished themselves by the courageand perseverance with which they had explored the country in search ofmines, and the activity with which they had brought in slaves for thenew settlements. The consciousness of their strength begot in them alonging for independence, and seizing the opportunity of the accessionof the House of Braganza to the throne of Portugal, they attempted toset up a king for themselves. Their attempt was baffled by Amador Buenode Ribiero, the very person they intended for their monarch, who, whenthe people shouted "Long live king Amador, " cried out "Long live JoamIV. " and, being swift of foot, ran and took refuge in the Benedictineconvent; and the same day, as there was no alternative, Joam IV. Wasproclaimed by all the people. 

The low state to which Portugal was now reduced, was seen in its effectson the government of Brazil. When the appointed Governors, either ontheir own judgment, or in obedience to the orders of the court ofLisbon, attempted to carry any new measure into execution which thepeople disliked, it was seldom in their power to enforce it, and theycould expect little assistance from home. The Jesuits had undertaken thedefence of the Indians, and endeavoured by every means to restrain thepractice of making slaves of them, and to mitigate the lot of such aswere already enslaved. But the Franciscans and some other orders derivedequal pecuniary benefit with the hunters from the sale of slaves, andtherefore they opposed them with vehemence. Interest was on the side ofthe Friars, and the most disgraceful scenes took place in variouscaptaincies between the parties, the Governors being either not able ornot willing to interfere with effect. 

Meantime, however, the people became accustomed to canvass and tounderstand public questions; their governors began to respect them as areal part of the estate; and a value for independence, and a feelingthat to attain it was in their own power, grew out of these disorders. 

Had it been possible to have purified their religion from some of itsmost superstitious observances, and to reform the moral habits of thepeople, the prosperity of the country would soon have been equal to itsmeans; but wherever slavery is established it brings a twofold cursewith it. It degrades both parties even where the slaves are imported. How much more then, as was the case here, when they were hunted on theirown grounds, where all the details, disgusting and iniquitous as theyare, of the seeking, capturing, and bending to the yoke, pass under theeye till the heart grows callous to the cry of the orphan, the grief ofthe widow, and the despair of the parent in being torn from whatever hasbeen dear to them?

The history of the Jesuit Vieyra's mission to Maranham is as humiliatingto human nature, as his sincere exertions in the cause of the sufferingIndians is creditable to himself; but neither his exertions, nor theroyal authority, could baffle the selfish cruelty and avarice of thepeople of that captaincy; they broke out into open rebellion in defenceof their detestable practices, and even when they returned to obedience, there was a compromise between humanity and avarice, to which theIndians were again sacrificed. 

Rio de Janeiro had enjoyed a greater degree of tranquillity during theeighty years since its foundation than any other settlement, and itstrade had increased together with its population; but the southern partof its jurisdiction was little more peaceable than Maranham, and not atall more inclined to listen to the remonstrances of the friends of theIndians. The Paulistas were the most difficult of all to manage; theyhad been the most active and daring of all that hunted either for slavesor for mines, and they were not willing to participate with others, farless to resign the advantages they had gained by unwearied labour andgreat sacrifices. Their conduct on the restoration of Portugal hadevinced a desire of more than the freedom of a colony, and theirneighbours were little less disposed for independence than themselves. Santos, and even Rio, had joined them, and had shewn a disposition todepose the governor appointed by the crown; and nothing but theunimpeachable character and firm conduct of Salvador Correa de Sa eBenevides (1658) prevented him from falling a sacrifice to thatdisposition. Bahia continued to be the capital of the Brazilian states, and its inhabitants proceeded to beautify it with churches, andconvents, and nunneries, while they defied the spirit of Christianity bythe importation of African, as well as the kidnapping Indian slaves. Pernambuco was still undergoing the miserable effects of the long anddesultory war it had sustained; all the bands of government had beenloosed during that disastrous period; law and justice had fallen intodisuse; and had there not been a redeeming virtue in the free spiritthat lived on in spite of the evils among which it had sprung, its veryemancipation from a foreign power might have been regretted. The negroeswho had escaped to the Palmares, and whose depredations had beendisregarded in comparison with the evils of a foreign government, hadbecome a real source of ill to the Pernambucans. Although theycultivated maize, and mandioc, and plaintains, they wanted every othersupply. They therefore robbed the Creoles of their cattle, their sugar, their manufactured goods, and even of their Mulatto daughters and femaleslaves; till at length the government resolved to free the country ofthem, and called in the aid of a Paulista regiment for the purpose. Tenthousand of the negroes bearing arms had assembled in their chief city, which was surrounded by wooden walls, leaving the lesser onesuninhabited. But their enemies had the advantage of cannon against them, and of supplies of every kind; yet once the negroes beat off theirassailants. But numbers overpowered them, and being weakened by famine, their city was forced, and the inmates seized as slaves. Zombi, however, and the most resolute of his followers, threw themselves from a highrock when they perceived their condition desperate. The Portugueseabused their victory, and murdered the rest. 

But there was an evil that affected Brazil generally--the too much andthe too little power of the governors. They had too much power, if anyappeal lay from them--too little, if they were absolute for the term oftheir government. They were also virtually free from responsibility;their opportunities, nay, their temptations to extortion were almostirresistible; and, to crown all, the corrupt administration of the lawskept pace with the vices and the irregularity of the government. In vainhad the wisest regulations been made, and the most just decrees issued. The judges were in many cases parties concerned; they were so in allcases where Indians and negroes were the objects of their judgment, forthey were possessors of both. Their salaries were insufficient, theirfees arbitrary. What wonder then if the administration was corrupt!

The cultivation of sugar and cotton had proceeded silently amidst allthis confusion. The discovery of the gold and diamond mines assisted thegovernment, both in Brazil and in the mother country, to make a stand inthe midst of the eminent peril which threatened, in consequence of thelosses sustained in the east, while at home there was a scanty andimpoverished population, ruined manufactures, and, above all, a neglectof agriculture, that rendered Portugal dependent on foreigners for corn. Every thing was wanted; there was nothing to return; and at thebeginning of the eighteenth century, Brazil may be truly said to havesaved Portugal, by covering with her precious metals the excessivebalance that was against her in every branch of commerce, in everydepartment of government. 

Yet, though absolute ruin was averted, the weakness of the crownrendered it impossible to defend its foreign possessions from theattacks of a daring enemy. In 1710, a French squadron, under Duclerc, appeared off Rio de Janeiro, but not daring to pass the forts, sailedon, and after making several attempts to land a force at the differentinlets, where he was deterred by the appearance of the militia of thecountry, succeeded at Guaratiba, between thirty and forty miles fromthe city, and thence he marched upon it with about one thousand marines. The governor, Francisco Castro de Moraes, made no attempt to stop himuntil his arrival at the city. There the first check the enemy met wasfrom F. Francisco de Menezes, a Trinitarian friar, who appeared everywhere, and did what the governor, who remained quietly intrenched in aflat space, where the place of the Rosario now is, between two hills, ought to have done. The French having divided, one party attacked thepalace, but the students of the college defended it successfully; andafter a short, but desperate struggle, the French were overpowered, andthe victory disgraced by the inhuman conduct of the Portuguese. Duclercand his people were imprisoned and harshly treated. Duclerc himself issaid to have been murdered in his bed. 

The next year drew on Rio de Janeiro a signal punishment for theseproceedings. The famous Duguay Trouin undertook to inflict it; andaccordingly, in August, 1711, one year after Duclerc's adventure, hearrived off the coast, and taking advantage of a fog, entered the bay, notwithstanding the fire of the forts. 

The Portuguese government had notice of his design, and had sent outstores and ammunition to meet the attack, and had appointed Gasper daCosta commander of the troops. But the sudden appearance of the Frenchactually within the harbour, seems to have palsied the understanding ofevery person on shore, whose business it should have been to opposethem, and the forts and the city were given up almost without astruggle. 

It would, however, have been impossible for the French to maintainthemselves in Rio; therefore Duguay Trouin, after refreshing his people, ransomed the city for 600, 000 cruzadoes. Bad weather alone prevented himfrom laying waste the reconcave of Bahia, as he had done Rio: but he hadfulfilled the ostensible purpose of his voyage by avenging the treatmentof Duclerc and his people, and returned to France early in 1712. 

These circumstances had awakened the greatest anxiety on account ofBrazil in the cabinet of Lisbon: and at the peace of Utrecht, 1713, every precaution was adopted by the Portuguese ministers to avoid anyexpression that might seem to admit of a free trade by any powerwhatever to Brazil, notwithstanding the agreements to that effectactually existing at the time. Disputes without end arose betweenPortugal and Spain concerning the colonies adjoining to the Rio de laPlata, and it was especially stipulated that no other power, particularly England, should be allowed to form settlements there onaccount of the facilities such settlements might afford for smugglingthe precious metals out of the country. These had now become the firstobject in Brazil. St. Paul's had been erected into a city, and thedistrict of the mines had been formed into a captaincy: the inhabitantsof the coast flocked to the interior, where new towns were dailyspringing up; all were desirous of a share in that lottery where theprizes were so enormous, that the great preponderance of blanks wasoverlooked. Great inconvenience must have been felt by the earlyadventurers to the mines: for so many hands were employed in searchingfor gold, that few remained to cultivate the soil, and provide thenecessaries of life. Yet that insatiable thirst of gold is a stimuluswhich has led to useful and to honourable things: it is not the love ofthe metal, but the possession of it gives power, and that is the realobject of most men's ambition: it is certainly that of the ambition ofall nations, and this object is held legitimate: we account those baseor wicked who seek the means; we admire those who attain the end. Thephilosophic historian and the poet are alike ready to condemn the manwho first dug the ore from the mine: the panegyric in prose and in verseis lavished on the hero and the patron. But gold furnished the means forthe hero's conquests and the patron's liberality, and gold, or the worthof gold, is the object of both; whether in the form of continued power, or of that fame which patronage can bring. Sad indeed has been the wasteof human life in searching for gold: but have all the mines togetherconsumed more men than the single revolutionary war? And have not thereligious contests among Christians, and their persecutions andmutilations and burnings cost many more? I would not justify the goldfinders; their actions were horrible, their oppressions atrocious; butlet them have justice: the stimulus was great; urged on by it, theyperformed great things, they braved cold, and hunger, and fatigue, andpersecution, and death; they persevered, they opened the way to unknownlands, they laid the foundations for future civilisation in countrieswhich will have reason to bless their discoveries, when the effect oftheir evil deeds, as well as the memory of the brutal customs of thesavages they so unjustly oppressed, shall have passed away. 

But I have neither space nor inclination to follow their adventures, andmust refer to Mr. Southey's elaborate and excellent account of them. Daniel Defoe alone could have so handled the subject as to makedelightful so dull and so sad a tale. I am but a looker on to whom theactions of the present are more interesting than the past, but yet amnot insensible to the influence that the elder days have had upon us. 

Pernambuco had during the half century which had elapsed since theexpulsion of the Dutch had time to recruit. The sugar plantations hadreappeared, and the commerce of Recife had become extremely important. The merchants, and especially those from Europe, had settled there, andthe town had increased till it became the second of Brazil; while Olindagradually declined, having few inhabitants besides priests and therepresentatives of the old families of the province, who might be calledits nobility: still Recife was but a village until, in 1710, itsolicited and obtained the royal assent to its becoming a town, andhaving a camera or municipal council to govern its internal affairs. Thejealousy of the people of Olinda and the other old Brazilians wasviolently excited by this concession, which they conceived would raisethe plebeian traders and foreigners to an equality with themselves. After several tumultuous meetings on the subject, three of the tenparishes belonging to Olinda were assigned to Recife, and the governor, fearing to set up the pillar which marks a township openly, had iterected in the night. Fresh disturbances ensued, in which some of themagistrates were concerned, and there were not wanting voices to exclaimthat the Pernambucans had shown they could shake off the strong chainsof the Dutch, and that they could as easily shake off others and governthemselves. The seditious magistrates were arrested and thrown intoprison. The soldiers were employed to disarm the people; but they hadnow advanced too far to be easily reduced. The governor was fired at anddangerously wounded, and proofs were not wanting that the judge and thebishop had at least consented to the attempt on his life. The mostserious disturbances followed: the inhabitants of the whole districttook up arms, some blood was shed in the course of their contentionswith the soldiers, and Sebastian de Castro, the governor, weakened bothin body and mind, was induced to fly to Bahia for safety. Six of thechief Pernambucans were now appointed to exercise the functions of aprovisional government till orders should be received from Lisbon, andall Europeans were deprived of their offices and commissions. 

But the bishop, who had been at Paraiba since the time when De Castrowas wounded, now returned to claim his office as governor on the removalof the former one. He began to exercise his authority in the king'sname, and his first act was to declare a general pardon. But he, howeverappears to have been a timid man: willing yet not daring to join theparty who wished to shake off the yoke of Portugal, and by hisvacillating conduct betraying both his friends in that party, and thetrust reposed in him by the crown. At length, in 1711, thesedisturbances were quieted by a new governor, Felix Jose Machado deMendonça. Brazil was not yet ripe for independence; nor indeed could sosmall and ill-peopled a state as Pernambuco have maintained its freedomeven for a year unconnected with the other captaincies. While thesethings were going on in the captaincies of Brazil, the Jesuits werelabouring in the interior to reclaim the Indians, with success farbeyond the apparent means, and some towns, which have since become ofimportance, were built on the coast and on the shores of the Plata, particularly Monte Video, in 1733; but the border war, between theSpaniards and Portuguese, which was waged on account of thesesettlements, disquieted the neighbourhood for a time. Its importance, however, was soon forgotten in the disturbances caused by the treaty ofdivision between Spain and Portugal, which forcing the Indians who hadbeen reclaimed to emigrate, roused them to a vigorous but short anduseless resistance, which only began the evils that the Jesuit missionswere destined to perish under. 

The Portuguese government, under the administration of Carvalho, afterwards Marquis of Pombal, had begun to attend to, and attempt toreform the abuses which existed throughout Brazil, but particularly inthe newly founded captaincies and settlements, when the war with Franceand Spain broke out in 1762. For a time defence against a foreign enemysuperseded every other consideration. The first act of hostility in thewestern world was the seizing of the Portuguese settlement of Columbia, in the Plata, by the governor of Buenos Ayres, before the squadrondespatched by the governor of Brazil, Gomez Freyre, could arrive toprotect it. That squadron consisted of the Lord Clive, of 64 guns, anEnglish ship commanded by Capt. Macnamara; the Ambuscade, of 40 guns, inwhich Penrose, the poet, served as lieutenant; and the Gloria, of 38guns. The Spanish ships retired before Macnamara, and he ran under theguns of the forts of Colonia, in order to retake the place. He hadnearly succeeded in silencing the batteries, when, by accident ornegligence, the ship took fire; the enemy renewed their fire;three-fourths of the crew of the Lord Clive, among which was thecaptain, were drowned. The other ships were nearly destroyed and obligedto retreat; but owing to the neglect of the Spaniards, they were able torefit and return to Rio. And this was the most remarkable action of thewar beyond the Atlantic, and the first in which the Englishdistinguished themselves in the defence of Brazil. 

Pombal, meantime, having resolved on the suppression of the order ofJesuits, overlooked, in the ardour with which he pursued that measure, the important services they had rendered, and were daily rendering, toone of his favourite objects, namely, the improvement of the conditionof the Indians. Their plan of discipline, indeed, hitherto had kepttheir pupils rather in a state of childish innocence than of manlyimprovement. Their fault was, that in order to secure obedience, theyhad stopped short of what they might have effected. Their dominion wasan Utopia; and had it been possible to shut out every European and everywild Indian, it might have lasted. But such artificial polities cannever be of long duration. Some convulsions either from without or fromwithin must end them, and that with a more complete ruin than couldbefal states less curiously framed. But the well-intentioned labours ofthe missionaries had produced one decided good effect, --the habits ofsavage life were abandoned, and the advantages of agriculture andmanufactures had been felt. The rock on which the education of theIndians split, was the community of goods. When a man has no property, but depends for the supply of his daily wants upon the providence ofothers, he has no incitement to particular exertion. The stimulus toindustry cannot exist where a man has no hope of growing richer, no fearof becoming poorer, no anxiety about the provision of his family. Hisjudgment in the portioning and disposing of his property is never calledforth; all the qualities and virtues that arise out of the practice ofdomestic economy lie dormant, and the man remains an infant. It wouldhave been easy to remedy this, by allowing the Indians to possessprivate stock, and to provide for their own families after the firstgeneration. The newly reclaimed did require to be provided for, but thechildren growing up in the Aldeas might have been intrusted with theirown property. They would have become men; and when the removal of theirspiritual fathers took place, that wide and deep desolation would nothave overwhelmed them, nor would Paraguay have gone back as it has donetowards a savage state. 

The Jesuits of Brazil were expelled in 1760, in the most cruel andarbitrary manner. Those of the Spanish American colonies eight yearslater. Whatever might have been their faults, or even their crimes, inother countries, in these their conduct had been exemplary. They hadbeen the protectors of a persecuted race, the advocates of mercy, thefounders of civilisation; and their patience under their unmeritedsufferings forms not the least honourable trait in their character. 

The history of Brazil, for the next thirty years, is composed of themismanagement and decay of the Jesuit establishments; the enlargement ofthe mining districts, particularly in the direction of Mato Grosso; somedisputes with the French on the frontier of Cayenne; and the morepeaceful occupations of opening roads, and the introduction of newbranches of commerce, and the improvement of the old. 

This tranquillity was for a moment interrupted by a conspiracy in theprovince of Minas Geraes, headed by an officer named Joaquim Jose deSilva Xavier, commonly called Tiradentes. The project of theconspirators was to form an independent republic in Minas, and, ifpossible, to induce Rio de Janeiro to unite with it. But their measureswere most inadequate for the end proposed, and their conduct soimprudent, that, although there was a pretty general feeling ofdiscontent on account of the taxes and some other grievances, theconspirators were all seized before they had formed anything like aparty capable of resistance, much less of beginning the meditatedrevolution. 

The direct effects upon Brazil of the first thirteen years of therevolutionary war in Europe were confined to some slight disputesregarding the boundaries of the Portuguese and French Guiana, andconcerning the limits of which, there was an article in LordCornwallis's negotiations with France, or rather the peace of Amiens in1802. 

The indirect effects were greater. Being a good deal left to themselves, the colonists had leisure to discover what sort of cultivation and cropssuited best with the climate, and were fittest for the market; and somebranches of industry were introduced, and others improved, to the greatadvantage of the province. Foreign ships, and even fleets, had alsobegun to resort thither[18]: so that, though the ports had as yet beenclosed against foreign traders, the entrance of men of war, and suchmerchant ships as could find no others to refit in, introduced a virtualfreedom, which it would afterwards have been impossible not to haveconfirmed. 

[Note 18: That under Sir H. Popham, on Sir D. Baird's expedition tothe Cape of Good Hope, for instance, in 1805, and that of the Frenchadmiral, Guillaumez, in 1806. ]

The court of Portugal meanwhile, as if infatuated by the negotiations ofFrance, consented to buy a disgraceful neutrality at the price of1, 000, 000 of livres or 40, 000_l. _ per month, besides granting freeentrance to French woollens into the kingdom. 

It was in vain that frequent representations were made to the ministryat Lisbon on the subject; that the armament at Bayonne, and the refusalof Spain to forbid the passage of French troops through her territories, were pointed out. The Portuguese forces were marched to the sea-coast, as if they apprehended an invasion from England; thus leaving thekingdom defenceless on the land side, and the ports were shut againstEnglish commerce, by a proclamation, dated 20th October, 1807. But theimportance of Portugal to England, as neutral ground, or, in the eventof a French government in Spain, as a point whence to attack the greatenemy, was such, that the resentment which at another time wouldcertainly have been openly declared, was suppressed; but a strongsquadron was always kept up off the coast, partly to watch theproceedings on shore, partly to prevent the Portuguese vessels fromcoming out of port, and joining the French and Spaniards. 

While this system of watchfulness was kept up in Europe, the Englishministry was not less attentive to the designs of France on the SouthAmerican colonies. As long as Spain and Portugal continued to pay theenormous price in money for their neutrality, which France had demanded, the views of Napoleon were better answered than they could have been bythe possession of all their territory and all their colonies. But themoment in which they should become unable or unwilling to pay thatprice, would of course be that of aggression and invasion. So early as1796, Mr. Pitt had contemplated the advantages that must arise toBritain from the possession of a port in South America, and particularlyin the Rio de la Plata, nor did he ever afterwards lose sight of it. Some circumstances occurred in December, 1804, to draw his attention, particularly towards the subject, inasmuch as he had intelligence thatFrance was about to attempt to seize on one of the Spanish settlementson the first opportunity. But we were then at peace with Spain, andhowever willing to prevent such an aggression on the part of France, andto assist General Miranda in his intended expedition to South America, it was impossible to co-operate with him, as he earnestly pressed theministry to do, although the advantage to England of securing such amarket for her manufactures was clearly perceived. Among the officerswho had been most confidentially consulted by Mr. Pitt, on thepracticability of obtaining a settlement on the La Plata, was Sir HomePopham; and it was probably his knowledge of the views so longentertained by that minister, that induced him to take the hazardousstep, of leaving the Cape of Good Hope so soon after it had beenoccupied by the English forces, in 1806, and taking Buenos Ayres withoutorders to that effect. His immediate motive was, the intelligence he hadprocured, that the squadron of the French admiral, Guillaumez, hadintentions of touching on the coast of Brazil, entering the La Plata, and, if possible, seizing, or forming a settlement there; and some NorthAmericans whom he had met, encouraged the undertaking, by observing, that to throw open the ports of South America would be a common benefitto all commercial nations, but particularly to England. [19]

[Note 19: For the political and commercial views entertained withregard to the assisting Miranda, or obtaining for England a port inSouth America, see Lord Melville's evidence on the court martial on SirHome Popham. ]

In 1806, the demonstrations of hostilities against Portugal on the partof France were so evident, that Lord Rosslyn was despatched thither on aspecial mission, in which Lord St. Vincent and General Simcoe werejoined with him. His instructions from Mr. Fox, then prime minister, were to lay before the ministry of Lisbon, the imminent danger whichthreatened the country, and to offer assistance in men, money, andstores from England, to put Portugal in a state of defence, in case thegovernment should decide on a vigorous and effective resistance. If, onthe other hand, Portugal should think itself too weak to contend withFrance, the idea that had once occurred to King Don Alfonso ofemigrating to Brazil, and there establishing the capital of the empire, was to be revived, and promises made of assistance and protection forthat purpose. If, however, Portugal insisted on rejecting assistance ineither case, the troops under General Simcoe were to be landed, thestrong forts on the Tagus occupied by them, and the fleet was to enterthe river and secure the Portuguese ships and vessels, taking care toimpress the government and people with the feeling that this was donefrom regard to the nation, and by no means for the sake of selfishaggrandisement on the part of England. It appears, however, that theFrench preparations for the invasion were not at that time so faradvanced as had been imagined, and at the earnest entreaty of the courtof Lisbon, the troops and the fleet were withdrawn from the Tagus. 

On the 8th of August, the next year, however, (1807) Mr. Rayneval, theFrench chargé d'affaires at Lisbon, received orders from his court todeclare to the Prince Regent of Portugal, that if by the first ofSeptember he did not declare war against England, and send back theEnglish minister, recalling the Portuguese ambassador from London, anddid not seize all the English residents, confiscate their property, andshut the ports of the kingdom against the English; and lastly, if he didnot, without delay, unite his armies and fleets with those of the restof the continent against England, he had orders to demand his passportsand to declare war. 

The Conde de Barca, then prime minister, was certainly aware of thepreparations of the French government. But with that obstinate blindnesswhich sometimes seems to possess men like a fate, he persisted inregarding them only as measures to intimidate and harass England. Thisnobleman had been ambassador at the court of St. Petersburg, and on hisrecall to take the first place in the cabinet at Lisbon, he was orderedto go by sea to London, and thence to Portugal, but he chose to performthe journey by way of Paris, where he saw and conversed both withNapoleon and Talleyrand. There cannot be the least doubt but that he wasduped by those able men. Many considered him as a traitor. But thevanity of the Conde, who always said he had gone to judge of these menby his own eyes, though it makes him weaker, makes him less wicked, andwas, perhaps, the true spring of his actions. He it was who carried themeasures for the detention of the English, the confiscation of theirproperty, and the shutting the ports against English commerce: adopting, in short, the whole of the continental system. The very day before Junotwas to reach Lisbon, however, a Paris newspaper, written in anticipationof the event, announced that "_The House of Braganza no longerreigned_, " and that its members were reduced to the common herd ofex-princes, &c. , giving no very favourable description of them, andholding out no very flattering expectations for the future. Thiscompletely opened the Prince Regent's eyes, and he consented to thatstep, which D. John IV. And Don José had contemplated, namely, thetransferring the seat of his empire to his Transatlantic possessions. 

This was in the month of November, 1807, but the events of that month, the most interesting that had occurred to Portugal since the revolutionthat had placed Braganza on the throne of his ancestors, will be bestunderstood by the following extracts from the despatches received by theBritish ministry from Lord Strangford and from Sir Sydney Smith at thetime. On the 29th November, 1807, His Lordship writes, after mentioningthe Prince's departure for Brazil:--

"I had frequently and distinctly stated to the cabinet of Lisbon, thatin agreeing not to resent the exclusion of British commerce from theports of Portugal, His Majesty had exhausted the means of forbearance;that in making that concession to the peculiar circumstances of thePrince Regent's situation, His Majesty had done all that friendship andthe remembrance of ancient alliance could justly require; but that asingle step beyond the line of modified hostility, thus mostreluctantly consented to, must necessarily lead to the extremity ofactual war. 

"The Prince Regent, however, suffered himself for a moment to forgetthat, in the present state of Europe, no country could be permitted tobe an enemy to England with impunity, and that however much His Majestymight be disposed to make allowance for the deficiency of meanspossessed by Portugal of resistance to the power of France, neither hisown dignity nor the interests of his people would permit His Majesty toaccept that excuse for a compliance with the full extent of herunprincipled demands. On the 8th inst. His Royal Highness was induced tosign an order for the detention of the few British subjects, and of theinconsiderable portion of British property which yet remained at Lisbon. On the publication of this order, I caused the arms of England to beremoved from the gates of my residence, demanded my passports, presenteda final remonstrance against the recent conduct of the court of Lisbon, and proceeded to the squadron commanded by Sir Sydney Smith, whicharrived off the coast of Portugal some days after I had received mypassports, and which I joined on the 17th inst. 

"I immediately suggested to Sir Sydney Smith the expediency ofestablishing the most rigorous blockade at the mouth of the Tagus; and Ihad the high satisfaction of afterwards finding that I had thusanticipated the intentions of His Majesty: for despatches (which Ireceived on the 23d) directing me to authorise that measure, in case thePortuguese government should pass the bounds which His Majesty hadthought fit to set to his forbearance, and attempt to take any furtherstep injurious to the honour or interests of Great Britain. "--

----"I resolved, therefore, to proceed forthwith to ascertain the effectproduced by the blockade of Lisbon, and to propose to the Portuguesegovernment, as the only condition upon which that blockade should cease, the alternative (stated by you) either of surrendering the fleet to HisMajesty, or of immediately employing it to remove the Prince Regent andhis family to the Brazils. "--

"I accordingly requested an audience of the Prince Regent, together withdue assurances of protection and security; and upon receiving His RoyalHighness's answers I proceeded to Lisbon on the 27th, in His Majesty'ssloop Confiance, bearing a flag of truce. I had immediately mostinteresting communications with the court of Lisbon, the particulars ofwhich shall be detailed in a future despatch. It suffices to mention inthis place, that the Prince Regent wisely directed all his apprehensionsto a French army, and all his hopes to a British fleet: that he receivedthe most explicit assurances from me that His Majesty would generouslyoverlook those acts of unwilling and momentary hostility to which HisRoyal Highness's consent had been extorted; and that I promised to HisRoyal Highness, on the faith of my sovereign, that the British squadronbefore the Tagus should be employed to protect his retreat from Lisbon, and his voyage to the Brazils. 

"A decree was published yesterday, in which the Prince Regent announcedhis intention of retiring to the city of Rio de Janeiro until theconclusion of a general peace, and of appointing a regency to transactthe administration of government at Lisbon, during His Royal Highness'sabsence from Europe. "

Sir Sydney Smith writes on the first of December the following letter tothe admiralty:--

His Majesty's Ship Hibernia, 22 leagues west of the Tagus, Dec. 1, 1807. 

"Sir, "In a former despatch, dated 22d November, with a postscript of the26th, I conveyed to you, for the information of my Lords Commissionersof the Admiralty, the proofs contained in various documents of thePortuguese government, being so much influenced by terror of the Frencharms as to have acquiesced to certain demands of France operatingagainst Great Britain. The distribution of the Portuguese force was madewholly on the coast, while the land side was left totally unguarded. British subjects of all descriptions were detained; and it thereforebecame necessary to inform the "Portuguese government, that the casehad arisen, which required, in obedience to my instructions, that Ishould declare the Tagus in a state of blockade. "

(_Sir Sydney then repeats part of Lord Strangford's despatch. _)

"On the morning of the 29th, the Portuguese fleet came out of the Taguswith His Royal Highness the Prince of Brazil, and the whole of the royalfamily of Braganza on board, together with many of his faithfulcouncillors and adherents, as well as other persons attached to hispresent fortunes. 

"This fleet of eight sail of the line, four frigates, two brigs, and oneschooner[20], with a crowd of large armed merchant ships arranged itselfunder the protection of that of His Majesty, while the firing of areciprocal salute of twenty-one guns announced the friendly meeting ofthose, who but the day before were on terms of hostility, the sceneimpressing every beholder (except the French army on the hills) with themost lively emotions of gratitude to Providence, that there yet existeda power in the world able, as well as willing, to protect theoppressed. --I have, &c. 

"W. SYDNEY SMITH. "

[Note 20: _List of the Portuguese Fleet that came out of the Taguson the 29th of November, 1807. _

 Guns. Commanded by

Principe Real 84, Adm. Manoel da Cunha. Capt. Manoel da Canto. 

Rainha de Portugal 74, Capt. Francisco Manoel Soetomayor. _The Princess Dowager and younger daughters came in this ship. _

Conde Henrique 74, Capt. Jose Maria de Almeida. 

Medusa 74, Capt. Henrique de Souza Prego. 

Affonso d'Abuquerque 64, Capt Ignacio da Costa Quinatella. _The Queen and family in this ship. _

D. Joam de Castro 64, Capt. Don Manoel Juan Souça. 

Principe do Brazil 74, Capt. Garçaŏ. 

Martim de Freitas 64, Capt. Don Manoel Menezes. 

FRIGATES. 

Minerva 44, Capt. Rodrigo Lobo. 

Golfinho 36, Capt. Luiz d'Acunha. 

Urania 32, Capt. Tancos, Conde de Viana. 

Cherua Princesa S. S. 20, Commanded by a lieutenant. 

BRIGS. 

Voador 22, Lieut. Fs. Maximilian. Vingança 20, Capt. Nicolas Kytten. Gaivota 22. 

SCHOONER. 

Curiosa 12, _Hoisted French colours and deserted. _

Of these vessels, the _Martin Freitas_ is now the _Pedro Primero_. The_Principe Real_ is the receiving ship at Rio. The _Rainha de Portugal_is at Lisbon, as well as the Conde Henrique. The _Medusa_ is the sheerhulk at Rio. The three other line-of-battle ships either broke up orabout to be so. Of the frigates, the Minerva was taken by the French inIndia. The Golfinho is broken up, and the _Urania_ was wrecked on theCape de Verde Islands. The Voador is now a corvette. The Vingança isbroke up, and the Gaivoto is now the Liberal. 

_List of the Ships that remained at Lisbon. _

 Guns. 

S. Sebastao 64, _Unserviceable without thorough repair. _Maria Prima 74, _Ordered for floating battery--not fitted. _Vasco de Gama 74, [21] _Under repair, nearly ready. _Princesa de Beira 64, _Ordered for floating battery. _

FRIGATES. 

Fenix 48, _In need of thorough repair_ (broke up at Bahia). Aamazona 44, _Do. Do. _ (Do. At Lisbon). Perola 44, _Do. Do. _ (Do. At Lisbon). Trítaõ 40, _Past repair. _Veney 30, _Past repair. _

]

[Note 21: Hulk at Rio. ]

Such are the public accounts transmitted by foreigners to their court ofone of the most singular transactions that has occurred in the historyof kingdoms and of courts. Yet such was the state of Europe at thattime, so momentous the struggle between the principals in the mightywarfare that was going on, that the ancient house of Braganza left theseat of its ancestors, to seek shelter and security beyond the Atlantic, almost without notice and with less ceremony than had formerly attendedan excursion to its country palaces. 

The French Government had waited to invade Portugal till that unhappycountry had exhausted its treasury, in the payment of the enormous sumsdemanded as the price of its neutrality. French influence had removedthe Portuguese troops from the mountain passes, where they might haveopposed the entrance of French armies, and the Prince Regent onlydeclared his adherence to the continental system, and arrested theEnglish on the simultaneous entrance of three Imperial and Spanisharmies. 

Junot invaded Algarve and passed the Zezere, at the same moment whenSolano threw himself upon Oporto, and Carafa occupied Alentejo andAlgarve. --Under these circumstances, the conduct of the ministry, thoughnot courageous, was natural, and it was as natural when Lord Strangfordreturned to Lisbon, which, perhaps, he ought not to have left, that thelast council held in that capital should decide on the emigration of thecourt to Brazil. Had it remained, and Portugal had become a Frenchprovince, the Prince and all his family were prisoners in the hands ofone who had respected no crown; and besides, England had intimated thatin that case she must occupy Brazil for her own security. By emigratingto Brazil the Prince retained in his hands the largest and richestportion of his domains, and secured at least, the personal freedom andsafety of his family. At the end therefore of the last meeting of hiscouncillors the Prince called his confidential servants[22], and orderedthem to prepare every thing _in secret_ for the embarkation of the courton the next night but one. One of these had been actually ordered toprovide quarters for Junot, and on the next morning to have a breakfastready for him at a house half-way between Sacavem and Lisbon. This manhad smuggled his family on board one of the ships, he had been night andday getting provisions, plate, books, jewels, whatever could be moved onboard the fleet, and, remaining to the last, was again ordered toprovide quarters for Junot: but he was fortunate enough to secure a boatto carry him off to the fleet, leaving papers, money, and even his hatbehind him on the beach. 

Such is the picture of the hasty embarkation, given by some of theattendants on the royal family. 

[Note 22: These were the Visconde de Rio Seco, who managed all; theMarquis de Vagos, gentleman of the bed-chamber; Conde de Redondo, whohad the charge of the royal pantries; Manoel da Cunha, admiral of thefleet; the Padre José Eloi, who had the care of the valuables belongingto the patriarchal church. ]

The fleets had no sooner got off the land than they encountered aviolent gale of wind, but by the 5th of December they were all collectedagain; on that day Sir Sidney Smith having supplied the ships with everything necessary for their safety, and having convoyed them to lat. 37°47' north, and long. 14° 17' west, left them to go on under theprotection of the Marlborough, Capt. Moore, with a broad pennant, theLondon, Monarch and Bedford. [23] They proceeded without farther accidentto the coast of Brazil, and landed at Bahia on the 21st of January, 1808. [24]

[Note 23: On the removal of the family of Braganza to Brazil, SirSamuel Hood and General Beresford took possession of Madeira, in trustfor Portugal, till a restoration should take place. ]

[Note 24: The Rainha de Portugal, and the Conde Henrique with thePrincess Dowager and the younger Princesses arrived straight at Rio, onthe 15th of January. The Martim de Freitas and Golfinho arrived on the15th at Bahia for supplies, sailed for Rio on the 24th, and arrived onthe 30th. ]

The Conde da Ponte was at that time governor of Bahia, and is said tohave been very popular[25]: he had married a lady of high family who wasnot less so, and she possessed, besides the manners of the court, aconsiderable portion of both beauty and talent. 

[Note 25: The Conde died in May, 1809, at the age of 35, leaving tenchildren, and an embarrassed estate. ]

The reception of the royal party was rendered so agreeable to the Princeby the governor and his lady, that he remained at St. Salvador's amonth, every day being a festival, and then left it with regret. Incommemoration of the visit, a spot was cleared near the fortress of St. Peter's, and commanding a fine view over the whole of the beautiful bay, and there an obelisk was erected with an inscription, stating itspurpose, and the surrounding ground was planted and converted into apublic garden. 

But, however agreeable a residence at Bahia might have been to His RoyalHighness, the place is too insecure for the purposes for which heemigrated. If it is besieged by sea, and the smallest land force getspossession of the neck of land between the Cape and Rio Vermelha, it isactually without the means of subsistence. The entrance of the bay is sowide, that nothing, can prevent ships from going in when they please. Whereas, the harbour of Rio is easily defended, it not being possiblefor ships to enter without being exposed to the fire of the forts. Besides, it has resources which Bahia has not, being at all times ableto communicate with the rich province of the Minas, which, besides themetals, abounds in corn, mandioc, cotton, coffee, cattle, hogs, and eventhe coarse manufactures such as cotton, &c. , for the use of the slavesand for ordinary purposes. 

Rio was therefore the best adapted for the asylum of the illustrioushouse of Braganza, and, on the 26th February, His Royal Highness sailedfrom Bahia, and arrived in Rio de Janeiro on the 7th March. 

Meantime the French troops had occupied Portugal, and Junot, whocommanded in chief, and had fixed his head-quarters at Lisbon, began bydisarming the inhabitants, and war between France and Portugal wasformally announced, eight days before the signature of the treaty ofFontainbleau, by which Portugal was divided into three great feoffs, which, under the King of Etruria, the Prince of Peace Godoy, and aBraganza, if he would submit to the conditions[26], were to be subjectto the crown of Spain. 

[Note 26: Godoy was to have Alentejo and Algarve; Etruria, EntreMinho e Douro with the city of Oporto, the rest was to be sequestratedtill a general peace, when a Braganza was to be placed at its head, oncondition that England should restore Gibraltar, Trinidad, &c. ToSpain. ]

Junot published a proclamation flattering the people in proportion tohis oppressions and exactions, and nearly ruined them by a forced warcontribution of nearly 3, 000, 000_l. _--In addition to this a conscriptionof 40, 000 men was raised, and thus the means which Portugal possessed, and which, if timely used, might have saved her from invasion wereturned against her. 

The first ministry appointed on the arrival of the court at Rio, consisted of Don Rodriguez de Souza Continho, Don Juan d'Almeida, theVisconde d'Anadia, and the Marquez d'Aguiar. 

The first measure of the court was to publish a manifesto, setting forththe conduct of France towards Portugal, from the beginning of therevolution; the efforts of the government to preserve its neutrality;and detailing all the events which had led immediately to the emigrationof the royal family. The manifesto also denied having, as the Frenchgovernment alleged, given any succours to the English fleet or troops intheir expedition to the River Plate; and it states, that the Frenchgovernment having broken faith with that of Portugal, His Royal Highnessconsidered himself at war with France, and declared that he could onlymake peace by consent of, and in conjunction with, his old and faithfulally the king of England; and this was all the direct interference ofthe Prince in the affairs of his ancient European kingdom, where a juntaof five persons was appointed to govern, and where, before the end ofthe year (1808), the battle of Vimiera had been fought, and theconvention of Cintra had been signed. 

The first sensible effect of the arrival of the royal family in Brazilwas the opening of its numerous ports[27]; and in the very first year(1808) ninety foreign ships entered the single harbour of Rio, and aproportional number, those of Maranham, Pernambuco, and Bahia. Theeffect of the residence of the court was soon felt in the city of Rio deJaneiro. It was before 1808 confined to little more than the ground itoccupied when attacked by Duguay Trouen in 1712; and the beautiful baysabove and below it, formed by the harbour, were unoccupied, except by afew fishermen, while the swamps and morasses which surrounded itrendered it filthy in the extreme. A spot near the church of SanFrancisco de Paulo had been cleared for a square, but scarcely a dozenhouses had risen round it, and a muddy pond filled up the centre, intowhich the negroes were in the habit of throwing all the impurities fromthe neighbourhood. This was now filled up. On one side of the square atheatre was begun, not inferior to those of Europe in size andaccommodation, and placed under the patronage of St. John; severalmagnificent houses rose in the immediate neighbourhood, the square wasfinished, and another and much larger laid out beyond it, on one side ofthe city, while on the other, between the foot of the mountain of theCorcovado, with its surrounding hills, and the sea, every station wasoccupied by delightful country-houses, and the beautiful bay of BotoFogo, where there were before only fishermen and gipsies, soon became apopulous and wealthy suburb. 

[Note 27: 28th January, 1808. ]

It is not in my power to give a detailed account of all the transactionsof this important year. The trade had naturally rapidly increased; themoney brought by the emigrants from Portugal, had called forth greaterexertions and speculations in commerce; and in October a public bank waschartered in Rio, with a capital of from seventy to eighty thousandpounds sterling. 

The establishment of a regular gazette naturally took place, for thespeedier dissemination of whatever tidings might arrive from Portugal, where lay the possessions and the interest of the court and the newpeople of Brazil; and though the press, of course, did not boast of muchfreedom, nor indeed would its freedom at that time have been of anyconsequence, it formed the first step towards awakening rationalcuriosity and that desire for reading, which has become not only aluxury, but even a necessary, in some countries, and which makes a rapidand daily progress here. 

On the arrival of the court many of the old Creole families hastened tothe capital to greet their sovereigns. The sons and the daughters ofthese married into the noble houses of Portugal; the union of the twonations became intimate and permanent; and the manners and habits of theBrazilians more polished. With the artificial wants that sprung up, newindustry was excited, especially near the capital; the woods and hillswere cleared, the desert islands of the bay became thriving farms, gardens sprung up every where, and the delicate table vegetables ofEurope and Africa were added to the native riches of the soil andclimate. 

The numbers of the royal family furnished birth-days for frequent galas, the foreigners vied with the Portuguese in their feasts, so that Riopresented a scene of almost continued festivity. On the 17th ofDecember, the birth-day of the queen, six counts were created, that is, Luiz de Vasconcellos e Souza was made Conde de Figuerio, Don Rodrigo deSouza Continho, Conde de Linhares, the Visconde d'Anadia, Conded'Anadia, D. Joao d'Almeida de Mello e Castro, Conde das Galveas, D. Fernando Jose de Portogal, Conde d'Aguiar, and D. Jose de SouzaContinho, Conde de Redondo. The Papal Nuncio, Sir Sidney Smith, and LordStrangford[28], were honoured with the order of the Tower and Sword; sixEnglish officers were named commanders of the order of the Cross, andfive others were made knights of the same. 

[Note 28: Sir Sydney Smith had followed the Portuguese court to Rio, less as commander of the British naval force in those seas, than as theprotector of the Braganzas. Lord Strangford had resumed his character ofambassador. ]

The beginning of 1809 was marked by an event of some importance. By thetreaty of Amiens, Portuguese Guiana had been given up to France, and wasnow, together with French Guyana and Cayenne, governed by the infamousVictor Hughes. It was long since France had been able to send outsuccour to these colonies. The fleets of England impeded the navigation, and the demands at home were too urgent and too great to permit much tobe hazarded for the sake of such a distant possession. The court of Rio, therefore, resolved to send a body of troops under Colonel ManoelMarquez, to the mouth of the Oyapok. The English ship of war, Confiance, commanded by Captain Yeo, accompanied him, and their combined attackforced the enemy to surrender on the 12th of January. The terms werehonourable to both parties: and among the articles I observe the 14th, by which it is stipulated, that the botanic garden, called theGabrielle, shall not only be spared, but kept up in the state ofperfection in which it was given up. War is so horrible, that a traitlike this, in the midst of its evils, is too pleasing to be overlooked. 

The rest of the year passed in Brazil in quiet though importantoperations; many roads were opened through the still wild country in theinterior; a naval academy was instituted; a school of anatomy wasfounded in the naval and military hospital; and the vaccineestablishment formed in Brazil in 1804 having declined, it was renewedboth at Bahia and Rio, and immense numbers of persons of all colourswere vaccinated. 

Meanwhile the Portuguese arms were employed in another quarter of theworld. The extensive dominions of Portugal in the east had fallen offone by one, as pearls from a broken thread. Yet Macao was stillPortuguese. For twenty years past, it, in common with the coast ofChina, had been plagued with the pirates of the Yellow Sea; till, atlength, the Chinese government found it necessary to take measures forsuppressing them, and therefore made a treaty with the Portuguesegovernment of Macao, signed by the following personages, on the 23d ofNovember. 

 MIGUEL DE ARRIGA, Judge. BRUN DA SILVA. JOSE JOAQUIN BARROS, General. SHIN KEI CHI. CHES. POM. 

The Portuguese were by this treaty to furnish six vessels of fromsixteen to twenty-six guns, but being in want of ball and other storesthey were supplied liberally by the English East India Company'sfactory; and the result was, that after three months' resistance, thepirates surrendered their ships, and promised to become peaceablesubjects, and the people of Macao performed a Te Deum in honour of theirsuccess; but twelve months elapsed ere the happy tidings reached Brazil. 

The great European interests of Brazil and its sovereign might have beenforgotten in the country itself, during the year 1810, so tranquil wasit, but for the packets which brought across the Atlantic the details ofthose desperate battles, which the strength and the treasure of Englandwere waging in defence of them in the Peninsula. On the 19th ofFebruary, Lord Strangford and the Conde de Linhares, in behalf of theirrespective governments, signed a commercial treaty at Rio, by whichgreat and reciprocal advantages were obtained, and the English wereallowed the free exercise of their own form of worship, provided theybuilt no steeples to their churches, and that they used no bells. 

This was followed in the month of May by a formal notice from LordStrangford, that the British Parliament had voted 980, 000_l. _ for thecarrying on of the war in Portugal. In fact, England had now taken thebattle into her own hands, as she had decidedly the greatest interest inopposing France; and the royal house of Braganza was at leisure todevote its whole attention to its American dominions. Several wellappointed detachments were sent into different parts of the country forthe purpose of repelling the Indians, whose inroads had destroyedseveral of the Portuguese settlements, of forming roads to connect thedifferent provinces with each other, and, above all, of furthering thegradual civilisation of the Indian tribes. Strict orders were given thecommanders to proceed peaceably, especially among the friendly Indians;but such as were refractory were to be pursued even to extermination. Tofurther the views with which these expeditions had been formed, aproclamation was issued in the month of September, holding out to suchas should become proprietors and reclaimers of land in the province ofthe Minas Geraes and on the banks of the Rio Doce, all the advantages oforiginal donatories and lords paramount; and promising that everysettlement that should contain twelve huts of reclaimed Indians, and tenhouses of white persons, should be erected into a villa, with all itsprivileges. The party that was sent up the Rio Doce discovered onehundred and forty-four farms that had been ruined by the Indians, andwhich they restored: they formed a friendly treaty with several tribesof Puri Indians, whom they found already settled in villages, to thenumber of nearly a thousand. These people were gentle, and not withoutsome of the arts and habits of industry; but they were heathens andpolygamists; not that a plurality of wives was general, or even common, for there were only one hundred and thirteen wives to ninety fourhusbands. They do not appear to have been cannibals, though it isstrongly asserted that the neighbouring Botecudos were so, and thathaving gained a slight advantage over the Portuguese, they had eatenfour of them who fell into their hands. [29] I confess I am scepticalabout these anthropophagi. That savages may eat their enemies taken inbattle I do not doubt; under the circumstances of savage life revengeand retaliation are sweet: but I doubt their eating the dead found afterthe battle, and I doubt their hunting men, or devouring women andchildren. With the latter atrocities, indeed, they have not been chargedin modern times; and as at the period the missionaries wrote the firsthistories of them, it was politic to exaggerate the difficulties theseuseful men had to encounter, in order to enhance their services, it isnot uncharitable to believe that much exaggeration crept into theaccounts of the savages, especially if we recollect the miraclesascribed in those very accounts to many of the missionaries themselves. Besides these measures concerning the Indians, other steps were takenfor the good of the country of no less importance; several colonies, both of Europeans, and of islanders from the Açores, were invited andencouraged. The fisheries off the coast were attended to, andparticularly that of the island of St. Catherine; and on the same islandsufficient experiments were made upon the growth of hemp, to prove thattime and industry only were wanting to furnish great quantities of thatvaluable article of a very good quality. 

[Note 29: I have in my possession a curious drawing, found in aBotecudo cottage, and done by one of the Creole Brazilians, of mixedbreed, who shows himself hidden in a cave, his white companions dead, and they, as well as the soldiers of the black regiment who accompaniedthem, have the flesh stripped from the bones, excepting the head, hands, and feet. The Botecudos are represented as carrying off this flesh inbaskets. These savages appear quite naked, having their mouth pieces, and being armed with bows and arrows. ]

The year 1811 was the last of the life and ministry of the Conde deLinhares, whose views were all directed to the good of the country. Fully aware not only of its richness and fertility, he also perceivedhow poor and how backward it was, considering its natural advantages. In endeavouring to remedy the evils, he perhaps aimed at doing more thanwas possible in the short time, and under the circumstances, in whichhis active disposition could operate. He had formed roads and plannedcanals; he had invited colonies, which indeed afterwards sunk; but theyleft behind them some of their ingenious practice, and some seeds ofimprovement which have not utterly perished. The possibility ofnavigating both the St Matthew's river and the Gequetinhonha had beenascertained; experiments in every kind of cultivation had been made;even the tea had been introduced from China. A botanical garden had beenformed, in which the spices of the East were cultivated with success;and perhaps as the greatest possible good, a public library had beenformed, and its regulations framed on the most liberal principles. 

Towards the end of 1811 a royal decree was issued, assigning 120, 000crusadoes per annum to be taken from the customs of Bahia, Pernambuco, and Maranham, for forty years, to the Portuguese, who had sufferedduring the French war; a measure regarded even then with jealousy by thenorthern captaincies. But they all continued tranquil for the present, and seemed to attend only to domestic improvement. New buildings, bothfor use and ornament, arose in the cities. Maranham and Pernambucoimproved their harbours. Bahia, besides the handsome theatre openedthere in 1812, paved her streets; and at Rio, a subscription of 30, 000crusadoes was raised towards beautifying the palace square, completingthe public gardens, and draining the campo de Sta. Anna. 

In 1813, some disputes arose between the court of Rio and England onaccount of the slave trade. Three ships had been captured by the Britishsquadron off the coast of Africa, while certainly engaged in illegal_slaving_; remonstrances were made, and the matter continued suspendeduntil after the congress of Vienna, when that illustrious meeting, though most of its highest and most powerful members had exclaimedloudly against the villanous practice, suffered it to be carried on. Then indeed England consented to pay 13, 000_l. _ to indemnify thePortuguese slave traders for their loss (July, 1815)!

In the same year there appears to have been some discontent manifested, or suspected in the provinces. Many of the salaries of officers, bothcivil and military, remained unpaid; yet there were exactions, the moregrievous, because they were irregular, in every department; theadministration of justice was notoriously corrupt; the clergy had falleninto disorder and disrepute; and though much that was useful had beendone, yet that was forgotten, especially in the distant provinces, andsuch a portion of discontent existed, that various officers who had cometo Rio either on private business or to remonstrate on public wrongs, were peremptorily ordered to return to their own provinces. 

It was wisely done at this juncture, to take off the public attentionfrom such vexations by a measure at once just and gratifying to thepride of the Brazilians: by an edict of the 16th of December, 1815, Brazil was raised to the dignity of a kingdom, and the style and titlealtered so as to place it on an equal footing with Portugal. For somemonths addresses of thanks and congratulation poured in to the king fromvarious provinces, and the feasts and rejoicings on that happy occasionoccupied the people to the exclusion of all other considerations. 

Meantime the victories of the allies in Europe, having caused the exileof Napoleon to Elba, the necessity for an English guardian squadron atRio had ceased; and accordingly the British establishment was broken up, and the stores sold, and the family of Braganza, again independent offoreign aid, began to renew its connections with the other courts ofEurope. 

These negotiations suffered some little interruption from an event whichhad long been expected, namely, the death of the queen, on the 20th ofMarch, 1816, whose state, both of body and mind, had long precluded herfrom all share in public affairs. She was buried with great pomp in thechurch of the convent of the Ajuda; and, as is usual, dirges were sungfor her in all the churches in the kingdom. 

In the month of June, the Marquis Marialva was received at Paris asambassador of Portugal and Brazil, and shortly afterwards the way havingbeen prepared by an inferior minister, he went to Vienna, to negotiate amarriage between Don Pedro de Alcantara, Prince of Portugal and Brazil, and the Archduchess Maria Leopoldina, which was happily effected. On the28th of November, she was privately contracted at Vienna to the prince. On the 17th of February following, the contract was made public, and onthe 13th of May she was married by proxy, the Marquis Marialva standingfor Don Pedro; but it was not until the 11th of November that shearrived at Rio. The line of battle ship Joam VI. Had been sent alongwith two frigates for her to Trieste, the voyage was performed withoutaccident, and the person the most important to the hopes and happinessof Brazil, was welcomed with enthusiasm by all classes of people. 

In the autumn preceding, two of the Infantas of Portugal had beenmarried to Ferdinand the 7th of Spain, and his brother the Infant DonCarlos. 

But the frontier of Brazil to the southward now began to feel the effectof those disturbances which had long agitated Spanish South America. Thechief Artigas showed a disposition to encroach on the Portuguese line, and, therefore, a corps of volunteers had been formed for the purposesof observation, and the Porte da Santa Theresa had been occupied inorder to check the motions of that active leader: during the autumn of1816, several skirmishes took place, but the arts of negotiation as wellas of war were resorted to, and on the 19th of January, 1817, the keysof Montevideo were delivered up to the Portuguese general Lecor, bywhich the long-wished-for command of the eastern bank of the Plata wasobtained. 

Meantime the discontents in the northern provinces had broken out intoopen insurrection, in the captaincy of Pernambuco. The people ofRecife, and its immediate neighbourhood, had imbibed some of the notionsof democratical government from their former masters the Dutch. Theyremembered besides, that their own exertions, without any assistancefrom the government, had driven out those masters, and had restored tothe crown the northern part of its richest domain. They were, therefore, disposed to be particularly jealous of the provinces of the south, especially of Rio, which they considered as more favoured thanthemselves, and they were disgusted at the payments of taxes andcontributions, by which they never profited, and which only served toenrich the creatures of the court, while great abuses existed, especially in the judicial part of the government, which they despairedof ever seeing redressed. Such were the exciting causes of theinsurrection of 1817, in Pernambuco, which threatened for many monthsthe peace, if not the safety of Brazil. The example of the SpanishAmericans had no doubt its weight, and a regular plan for obtainingindependence was formed, troops were raised and disciplined, and Recifebeing secured, fortifications were begun at Alagoas and at Penedo. 

The insurgents, however, had probably miscalculated the degree ofconcurrence or assistance they should meet with from their neighbours. The people of Serinhaem as soon as the insurrection was known, namelythe middle of April, posted themselves on the Rio Formosa as a check onthat quarter, and the king's troops under Lacerda, marched immediatelyfrom Bahia. The Pernambucan leader Victoriano, having attacked the Villade Pedras, received a decided check from a body of royalists, underMajor Gordilho, who had been sent forward by Lacerda, on the 21st: andby the 29th Gordilho had occupied that post, as well as Tamandré, wherehe was not long afterwards joined by Colonel Mello, with a strongreinforcement. 

Meantime the Pernambucan chief, Domingos Jose Martins, was activelyemployed in collecting troops, and forming guerilla parties, in order toharass the marches of the enemy. These parties were headed byCavalcante, a man of wealth and family, aided by a priest, Souto, abold and enterprising man, who was far from being the onlyecclesiastical partisan. On the 2d of May, a vigorous attack was made onSerinhaem, by the famous Pernambucan division of the south, which hadhitherto received no check; but the assailants were repulsed with theloss of their artillery and baggage, and a column under Martins comingup met with the same fate, on which he drew off his people with those ofthe south, to the ingenio of Trapiche. On the 6th of May they left thatposition, and meeting the royalists under Mello, suffered a completedefeat. Their chiefs were either killed or taken; and of the latter somewere exiled, others imprisoned, and three, Jose Luiz Mendonça, DomingosJose Martins, and the priest, Miguel Joaquim de Alameida, were hanged inBahia. 

At this juncture Luiz do Rego Barreto was appointed by the government atRio to the office of captain-general of Pernambuco. He was a native ofPortugal, and had served with distinction under Lord Wellington. Of afirm and vigorous mind, and jealous of the honour of a soldier, he wasperhaps too little yielding to the people and the temper of the times. The severe military punishments inflicted on this occasion certainlyproduced irritation, which though it did not break out immediately, wasthe cause of much evil afterwards, and brought an odium upon thatgallant soldier himself, from which his high character in othersituations could not shield him. 

This year the ministry underwent a complete change. The Marquisd'Aguiar, who had succeeded to the Conde de Linhares, died in January, and the Conde da Barca in June; when the Conde de Palmela became primeminister, Bezerra became president of the treasury, the Conde dos Arcossecretary for transmarine and naval affairs, the Conde de Funchalcounsellor of state, and Don Tomas Antonio de Portogal secretary to thehouse of Braganza. 

I cannot pretend to speak of the character or measures of these or anyother Portuguese or Brazilian ministers. My opportunities of informationwere too few; my habits as a woman and a foreigner never led me intosituations where I could acquire the necessary knowledge. I wish only tomark the course of events, and in as far as they are linked with eachother, the causes of those effects which took place under my own eyes. 

In the early part of 1818, some additional restrictions concerning theslave trade, which had been agreed to by Conde de Palmela during thelast year at London, were published at Rio, and a commission of Englishand Portuguese jointly was formed for the examining into and deciding oncauses arising out of the treaties on that most important subject, acertain number of commissioners being appointed to reside in thedifferent ports in Africa and Brazil, where the trade was stillconsidered lawful. That year opened at Rio with unusual festivity. Onthe 22d of January, a great bull-feast was given at San Christovam, theroyal country house, in honour of the young princess's birth-day; it wasfollowed by a military dance, in which the costume of the natives ofevery part of the Portuguese dominions in the east and west weredisplayed. Portugal and Algarve, Africa and India, China and Brazil, allappeared to do homage to the illustrious stranger. Music, in which thetaste of the king was unrivalled, formed a great part of theentertainment, and never perhaps had Brazil witnessed so magnificent afestival. 

On the 6th of February the coronation of his majesty, John VI. , tookplace, and these peaceful festivities gave a character to the year, which was remarkably quiet, the only public acts of note being thefarther prosecution of the plans for civilising the interior, byfacilitating the communications from place to place, and reclaiming theborder tribes of Indians. 

The following year was not less tranquil. The birth of the youngprincess, Donna Maria da Gloria, was an event to gratify both the courtand the people of Brazil. They had now the heir of their kingdom bornamong them, a circumstance which they were disposed to hail as a pledgethat the seat of government would not be removed from among them. 

The early part of 1820 was disturbed by some irruptions of the SpanishAmericans under Artigas, on the eastern side of the Plata. ThePortuguese troops, however, soon repulsed him, and strengthened theirline by the occupation of Taquarembo, Simar, and the Arroyo Grande. 

Meantime the peace in Europe had not brought back all the tranquillitythat was expected from it. In vain did the old governments expect to stepback into exactly the same places they had occupied before therevolutionary war. The Cortes had assembled in Spain. Naples had beenconvulsed by an attempt to obtain a constitution similar to thatpromulgated by the Spanish Cortes; and now Portugal began to feel theuniversal impulse. Lisbon and Oporto were both the seats of juntas ofprovisional government, and both assembled Cortes to take intoconsideration the framing of a new constitution, and the reformation ofancient abuses. On the 21st of August the Cortes of Lisbon had sworn toadopt in part the constitution of the Spanish Cortes, but it was notuntil the month of November that the government of Brazil made publicthe recent occurrences in the mother country. Indeed it was not to beexpected that Brazil should remain unconscious of the proceedings ofEurope. The provinces were all more or less agitated. Pernambuco was asusual foremost in feeling, and in the expression of feeling. Aconsiderable party had assembled at about thirty-six leagues fromOlinda. They declared their grievances to be intolerable, and thatnothing but a total reform in the government should reconcile them tolonger subjection to the government of Rio. The royalist troops weresent out against them and were victorious, after an action of six hours, in which they lost six officers and 19 men killed, and 134 wounded. Theloss on the other side was much greater, and as usual severe militaryexecutions increased the evils of the civil war, at the same time thatthey farther exasperated the people, and prepared them for a future andmore obstinate resistance. 

Bahia was far from tranquil. The old jealousy which had subsisted fromthe time the seat of government had been transferred from the city ofSt. Salvador to Rio, combined with other causes, tended to increase thedesire of a constitutional government, from which all good was to beexpected, and under which, it was hoped, that all abuses would bereformed. Rio itself began to manifest the same feelings. The provincesof St. Paul's and the Minas were always ready to unite in any cause thatpromised an increase of freedom; and the whole country seemed on thebrink of revolution, if not civil war. 

The court party, however, still flattered themselves that thedetermination of the King to remain in Brazil, instead of returning toLisbon to put himself into the power of the Cortes, would be so gratefulto the Brazilians, that they would be contented to forego the probableadvantages of a constitution, for the sake of the positive good ofhaving the seat of government fixed among themselves. But it was toolate; the wish for improvement had been excited. The administration hadbeen too corrupt, the exactions too heavy to be longer borne, whenreform appeared to be within reach. The very soldiers became possessedwith the same spirit, and though highly repugnant to the King'sfeelings, it soon became evident that a compliance with the wishes ofthe people and with the constituton, as declared by the Cortes atLisbon, was inevitable. 

It is said, that some of the wisest ministers hail long pressed HisMajesty to a compliance with the wishes of his people, but in vain. Hisreluctance was unconquerable, until at length, perceiving that forcewould certainly be resorted to, he adopted a half measure which probablyaccelerated the very event he was anxious to avoid. [30] On the 18th ofFebruary, 1821, the King accepted as a junta, to take into considerationsuch parts of the constitution as might be applicable to the state ofBrazil, the following persons:--

[Note 30: Some have imagined that a paper published at Rio, writtenby a Frenchman, and supposed to have been in the pay of the thenministry, desirous of keeping the king in Brazil, had great effect onthe subsequent events; and that greater still had been produced by therevolution of the 10th of February, at Bahia; but the motives of actionwere the same in all Brazil; the event must have been the same at Rio, whether Bahia had stirred or not, though, perhaps, it might beaccelerated by that circumstance. ]

Marquez de Altegrete--_President_Baron de St. Amaro. Luiz José de Carvalho Mello. Antonio Liuz Pereiro da Cunha. Antonio Rodriguez Velloso dc Oliviera. Joaŏ Severiano Maciel da Costa. Camillo Maria ToneletJoaŏ dc Souza de Mendonça Costa Real. José da Silva Lisboa. Mariano José Pereira da Fonseca. Javŏ Rodriguez Pereira de Almeida. Francisco Xavier Pires. José Caetano Gomez. 

_Procurador da Casa. _

José de Oliviera Botelho Pinto Masquiera. 

_Secretarios. _

Manoel Jacinto Noguerra de Gama. Manoel Moreira de Figueiredo. 

_Secretaries Sustituti. _

O Coronel Francisco Saraiva da Costa Refoios. O Desembargador Joaŏ José dc Mendonza. 

These persons were all anxious to retain the King in Brazil. Most ofthem Brazilians, they had felt the advantage of having the seat ofgovernment fixed among themselves, and though the King's foreign alliesand his Portuguese subjects had pressed him to return to Europe, his owndread of the Cortes of Lisbon, together with their natural desire todetain him in Brazil, produced on the 21st a manifesto, describing HisMajesty's affection and relianceon his Brazilian subjects, and stating, that he was resolved to send the Prince Don Pedro to Lisbon, with fullpowers to treat on his behalf with the Cortes, whom he seems to haveconsidered as subjects in rebellion. 

The Prince was also to consult with the Cortes concerning the drawing upof a constitution, and the King promised to adopt such parts of it asmight be found applicable to existing circumstances and to the peculiarsituation of Brazil. This manifesto appears to have produced an effectvery different from what was intended. At four o'clock in the morning ofthe 26th, all the streets and squares of the city were found full oftroops. Six pieces of artillery were planted at the heads of theprincipal streets, and the most lively sensation agitated every part ofthe city of Rio. As soon as this circumstance could be known at SanChristovaŏ, the Prince Don Pedro, and the Infant Don Miguel, came intothe city. The Camara[31] was assembled in the great saloon of thetheatre. [32] The Prince, after conferring for a short time with themembers of that body, appeared upon the balcony of the saloon, and readto the people and the troops, a royal proclamation, antedated the 24th, securing to them the Constitution, such as it should be framed by theCortes of Lisbon. This was received with loud cries of Viva el Rei, Vivaa Religiaŏ, Viva a constituicaŏ. The Prince then returned to the saloon, and ordered the secretary of the Camara to draw up the form of the oathto be taken to observe the constitution, and also a list of a newministry, to be submitted to the people for their approbation. The listof ministers was first read, and each individually approved. [33]

[Note 31: The whole municipal body. ]

[Note 32: The square in front of the theatre, from its size andsituation, was most fit for the assembly of the people and troops on suchan occasion. ]

[Note 33:

_New Ministers. _

Vice-admiral and Commander-in-chief Quintella, secretary of state. Joaquin Jose Monteiro Torres, minister of marine, and secretary for transmarine affairs. Silvestre Pinhero Fereiro, secretary for foreign affairs. Conde de Louça, head of the treasury. Bishop of Rio, president of the board of conscience. Antonio Luiz Pereiro da Cunha, head of police. José Gaetano Gomes, grand treasurer. Joao Fereiro da Costa Sampaio, second treasurer. Sebastian Luiz Terioco, fiscal. José da Silva Lisboa, literary department. Joao Rodriguez Pereira de Almeida, director of the bank. ----Barboza, police. Conde de Aseca, head of the board of trade. Brigadier Carlos Frederico da Cunha, commander-in-chief, &c. 

]

His Royal Highness then proceeded to take the oath for his father, inthe following form:--

"I swear, in the name of the King, my father and lord, veneration andrespect for our holy religion; to observe, keep, and maintain for everthe constitution such as established by the cortes in Portugal. " Thebishop then presented to him the holy Gospels, on which he laid hisright hand, and solemnly vowed, promised, and signed the same. 

The Prince then took the oath in like manner for himself, and wasimmediately followed by his brother, the Infant Don Miguel, after whomthe ministers and a multitude of other persons crowded to follow hisexample. Meantime the Prince rode to the King at his country seat of BoaVista, at San Cristovaõ, to inform him of all that had passed, and toentreat his presence in the city, as the best means of securing orderand confidence. His Majesty accordingly set off immediately, and arrivedat the great square at about eleven o'clock, when the people took thehorses from his carriage and dragged him to the palace, the troopsfollowing as on a day of gala, and forming in the square before thedoors. At one of the centre windows the King presently appeared, andconfirmed all that the Prince had promised in his name, declaring at thesame time his perfect approbation of every thing that had been done. Thetroops then dispersed, and the King held a court, which was mostnumerously attended; and the day ended at the opera, the people againassembling to drag the King's carriage thither. 

It would be curious to investigate the feelings of princes on occasionsso momentous to themselves and to their people. Joam VI. , passionatelyfond of music, was dragged by a people, grateful for a boon granted thatvery day, to a theatre built by himself, where all the music vocal andinstrumental was selected with exquisite taste, and where the piecepresented was a decided favourite. [34] Yet it may be questioned whetherthere existed in his wide dominions one heart less at ease than hisown. All his feelings and prejudices were in favour of the ancient orderof things, and this day those feelings and prejudices had been obligedto bend to the spirit of the times, to a wide-spread desire for freedom, to every thing, in short, most contrary to the ancient system ofcontinental Europe. 

[Note 34: Rossini's Cenerentola. ]

The next day[35], there was nothing but joy in the city, the greatsaloon was again crowded with persons eager to sign the oath to theconstitution, illuminations, feux de joie, and fireworks succeeded; andat the opera, Puccito's Henrique IV. Was ordered in compliment to theKing. But he was too much fatigued with the events of the last two daysto go, and when the curtain of the royal box was drawn up, the picturesonly of the king and queen appeared; but they were received with loudacclamations, as if the royal personages themselves had been present. 

[Note 35: The 27th, on which day Messrs. Thornton, Grimaldi, andMaler, ministers from England and France, waited on His Majesty. Thedifferent motions or interferences of the members of the diplomatic bodyscarcely concern this period. There is no doubt but that they were busy. But circumstances which they could not control, though they mightdisturb, brought about the revolution of the 26th, the visible factsalone of which I pretend to give. ]

Thus was a most important revolution brought about without bloodshed, and almost without disturbance. The junta occupied itself seriously onthe business of the constitution, and began by publishing some edictshighly favourable to the people, and, among others, one insuring theliberty of the press. 

Meantime Bahia, actuated by the same spirit as Rio, had anticipated therevolution at that place. On the 10th of February the troops and peopleassembled in the city, the magistrates were called on to take an oath toadhere to the constitution, a provisional government was formed, andtroops were raised in order to maintain the constitution, in case thecourt at Rio should be adverse to its adoption. Among these the mostforward was a small body of artillery, formed of the students at thedifferent colleges and schools of the city. The new government earlybegan to manifest a determination to be no longer subordinate to Rio, and to acknowledge no other authority than that of the Cortes atLisbon. An intimation of what had taken place at Bahia was immediatelyforwarded to Luiz do Rego at Pernambuco, who assembled the magistrates, the troops, and the people, on the 3d of March, in Recife, and there, along with them, solemnly took the oath to adhere to the constitution; ameasure which gave universal satisfaction. About the same time, severalof the towns in the Comarca of Ilheos also took the oaths to maintainthe constitution; and it appeared evidently that the whole country wasequally desirous of a change, in hopes of relief from the vexations ithad so long suffered under. 

But the agitation of the capital was by no means at an end. Disputesarose concerning the election of deputies to the cortes, which, however, ended in adopting the method laid down in the Spanish constitution. Thetroops found it necessary to publish a declaration, denying that theyhad any factious views when they assembled on the 26th of February, andalleging that they appeared as citizens anxious for the rights of thewhole community. The people assembled in different places, and are saidto have insulted several persons, particularly the members of thecouncil which existed immediately before the revolution; and in order tosave three of them from the fury of the mob, they were placed inconfinement for three days, and then liberated, with a proclamationtending to exculpate them from all criminal charges, and explaining themotives of their arrest. 

The King meanwhile had resolved on returning to Lisbon, and on the 7thof March he published a proclamation announcing his resolution, togetherwith an order for such deputies as should be elected by the time of hisdeparture, to go with him to attend the Cortes, and promising to findmeans of conveying the rest when they should be ready. 

Every thing now appeared to proceed in quiet. The preparations for HisMajesty's departure went on, and he resolved to take the opportunity ofthe assembling of the electors on the 21st of April, to choose thedeputies to the Cortes, to submit to them the plan for the government ofBrazil which he had laid down, in order to receive their sanction. These electors were assembled in the exchange, a handsome new buildingon the shore, and thither a great concourse of people had flocked, somepurely from curiosity, some from a desire, imagining they had a right, to express their opinion on so important a subject. The result of thatmeeting was a deputation sent to the king, insisting on the adoption ofthe entire Spanish constitution. The decree of the assembly received thesignature of the King. But the members of that assembly met again on the22d, many of whom had no legal title to be present, and proceeded topropose to stop the ships prepared for the King's return to Portugal. Some went so far as to propose an examination of the vessels, in orderto stop the exportation of the quantity of wealth known to be on boardof them, and the meeting at length assumed so alarming an aspect, thatHis Majesty revoked his royal consent to the act passed on the 21st, andsent a body of soldiers to intimidate the assembly. Unhappily, an orderproceeding from some quarter, never known or never acknowledged, causedthe soldiers to fire into the exchange, where the unarmed and innocentelectors, as well as the others who had crowded thither, it might be, with less pure motives, were assembled, but all were there on the faithof the royal invitation given through the judge of the district. 

About thirty persons were killed, many more were wounded: and the wholecity was filled with an indescribable consternation. The sudden stopthat was put to this strange, unwise and cruel attack, has always beenattributed to the Prince Don Pedro, who, on this as on other occasions, has well merited the title of perpetual defender of Brazil. The attackitself, perhaps unjustly, was imputed to the Conde dos Arcos by some, toother individuals by others, according as passion or party directed thesuspicion: the truth is, that it seems to have been the result ofill-understood orders, given hastily in a moment of alarm, for it isimpossible to think, for an instant, that any man could wantonly have socruelly irritated the people at the very time when so much depended ontheir tranquillity. This shocking event, however, seems to havequickened the King's resolution to leave Brazil. That very day he madeover the government of that country to the Prince, with a council to becomposed of

 The Conde dos Arcos, Prime Minister. Conda da Louça, Minister of Interior. Brigadier Caula, Minister of War. 

And in case of the prince's death, the regency to remain in the hands ofthe Princess Maria Leopoldina. 

The next day the King publicly addressed the troops, recommending tothem fidelity to the crown and constitution, and obedience to the PrinceRegent, and as a royal boon on leaving the army, promising a greatincrease of pay to all, and that the Brazilian officers should be put onthe same footing as those of the Portuguese army. The ministers whoadvised this step, acted cruelly towards the government they leftbehind. The treasury was left empty at the King's departure, yetincrease of pay beyond all precedent was promised, as well as otherburdens on the prince's revenue. His Majesty published on the same day, a farewell to the inhabitants of Rio; and it cannot be imagined that hecould leave the place which to him had been a haven of safety, duringthe storm in which most of his brother monarchs had suffered, withoutfeelings of regret, if not affection. 

The Prince also addressed the Brazilians on assuming the government by aproclamation, which, as it sets forth his intentions, I shall giveliterally:

"Inhabitants of Brazil;

"The necessity of paying attention to the general interests of thenation before every other, forces my august father to leave you, and tointrust me with the care of the public happiness of Brazil, untilPortugal shall form a constitution, and confirm it. 

"And, as I judge it right, in the present circumstances, that all shouldfrom this time understand what are the objects of public administrationwhich I have principally in view, I lose no time in declaring, thatstrict respect for the laws, constant vigilance over the administrationof the same, opposition to the quibbles by which they are discreditedand weakened, will be the objects of my first attention. 

"It will be highly agreeable to me to anticipate all such benefits ofthe constitution as shall be compatible with obedience to the laws. 

"Public education, which now demands the most especial attention of thegovernment, will be provided for by every means in my power. 

"And in order that the commerce and agriculture of Brazil may be in aprosperous state, I shall not cease to encourage whatever may favourthese copious sources of national riches. 

"I shall pay equal attention to the interesting subject of reform, without which it will be impossible to use liberal means for the publicgood. 

"Inhabitants of Brazil! all these intentions will be frustrated ifcertain evil-minded persons should accomplish their fatal views, andpersuade you to adopt antisocial principles, destructive of all order, and diametrically opposed to the system of liberality, which from thismoment it is my intention to follow. "

The ceremonies of taking leave, occupied the following day. On the 24th, the royal family embarked, and with it many of the Portuguese nobles whohad followed their king into exile, and many others whose fortunes wereentirely attached to the court. 

But this great re-emigration produced evils of no common magnitude inBrazil. It is computed that fifty millions of crusadoes, at least, werecarried out of the country by the Portuguese returning to Lisbon. Agreat proportion of specie had been taken up in exchange for governmentbills on the treasuries of Bahia, Pernambuco, and Maranham. But theseprovinces, from the revolution in February, had disclaimed thesuperiority of the government at Rio, and had owned no other than thatof the Cortes at Lisbon, and above all the ministry well knew, even atthe time of granting the bills, that they had refused to remit anyportion of the revenue to Rio. Hence arose commercial distress of everydescription, and as long-standing government debts had been also paid bythese bills which were all dishonoured, the evil spread far and wide, not only among the natives but the foreign merchants. It was of littleavail that the Prince acknowledged the debts[36]; the treasury was leftso poor, that he was obliged to delay or modify the increase of militarypay promised on the King's departure, a circumstance that occasionedmuch disquiet in several provinces. The funds for carrying on severalbranches of industry, and several works of public utility were destroyedby this great and sudden drain; and thereby much that had been begunafter the arrival of the court, and which it was hoped would have beenof the greatest benefit to the country, was stopped. Colonies that hadbeen invited to settle with the most liberal promises perished for wantof the necessary support in the beginning of their career, and thewonder is, not that disturbances in various quarters took place afterthe departure of the King, but that they were not of a more fierce andfatal tendency. 

[Note 36: It was of little avail at the time. But as soon as it waspossible, his royal highness's government began payments by instalments, which are still going on, notwithstanding the total change ofgovernment. This is highly honourable. ]

The Prince who remained at the head of the government was deservedlypopular among the Brazilians. His first care was to examine into andredress causes of grievances; particularly those arising from arbitraryimprisonment and vexatious methods of collecting taxes. The great dutieson salt conveyed into the interior, were remitted. Something was donetowards improving the condition of the barracks, hospitals, and schools. Books were allowed to be imported duty free, and every thing that couldbe effected under the circumstances, was done by the Prince for theadvantage of the people, and to preserve or promote public tranquillity. 

But the question of the independence of Brazil had now come to bepublicly agitated, and out of it arose several others. Was it to bestill part of the Portuguese monarchy, with a separate supremejurisdiction civil and criminal under the Prince? or was it to return tothe abject state in which it had been since its discovery, subject toall the vexatious delays occasioned by distant tribunals, by appealsbeyond sea, and all that renders the state of a colony irksome ordegrading? Then if independent so far, was it to form one kingdom whosecapital should be at Rio, or were there to be several unconnectedprovinces, each with its supreme government, accountable only to theking and cortes at Lisbon? Those who had republican views, and wholooked forward to a federal state, favoured the latter views, and so didthose who dreaded the final separation of Brazil from the mothercountry; for they argued that the separate provinces might be easilycontrolled, but that Brazil united would overmatch any force thatPortugal could send against it, should a hostile struggle between themever take place. 

The people, jealous of all, but particularly of the ministers, accusedthe Conde dos Arcos of treachery, and of a wish to reduce Brazil oncemore to the state in which it had been before 1808. They insisted on hisdismissal, and on the appointment of a provisional junta, which shoulddeliberate on the best measures of government to be adopted, until theconstitution of the cortes should arrive from Lisbon, and the fifth ofJune, the day of his dismissal, was held as a festival. [37]

[Note 37: When he touched at Bahia on his way home, the junta ofgovernment there, prejudiced by letters from Rio, refused him permissionto land; and he had the mortification of being treated as a criminal, inthat very city where he had governed with honour, and where he had beenbeloved. On his arrival at Lisbon, he suffered a short imprisonment inthe tower of Belem. Yet his misconduct, if it amounted to all he wascharged with, seems to have been an error in judgment. ]

Yet, distressed as the government was by an empty treasury, and bydemands increasing daily on all sides, it was impossible to remove atonce all causes of discontent; and the new junta was so well aware ofthis, that, on the 16th of June, on publishing an invitation to allpersons to send in plans and projects for improvements, and statisticalnotices concerning the country, they also published an exhortation totranquillity and obedience, and patient waiting till the event of thedeliberation of the cortes, now to be joined by their own deputies, should be known. That same night both the Portuguese and Braziliantroops were under arms in the city, violent jealousies had arisenbetween them, and it required all the authority and all the popularityof the Prince to restore order. On the morning of the 17th His RoyalHighness called together the officers of both nations, and in a shortspeech he ordered them as soldiers, and recommended to them as citizens, to preserve the subordination of the troops they commanded, and unionamong those troops, bidding them remember that they had sworn to supportthe constitution, and that they were to trust to that for the redress oftheir grievances. 

Meanwhile the more distant provinces had acknowledged the authority ofthe cortes, and had sworn to support the constitution. But Maranham inits public acts took no notice whatever of the Prince, professing onlyto recognise the government of Lisbon. At Villa Rica, when theconstitution was proclaimed, the troops refused to acknowledge thePrince, accusing him of withholding the pay promised by the King. At St. Catherine's, though the measures were less violent, yet the refusing toadmit a new governor who had been sent, was decidedly an act ofinsubordination; but the political agitations at St. Paul's were notonly of a more serious nature, but had more important results than thoseof any other province. 

The ostensible cause of the first public ferment in that city was thediscontent of the Caçadores at not receiving the promised augmentationof pay, which, indeed, it was not then in the power of the Prince tobestow on them. 

The regiment, however, took up arms on the 3d of June, and declared theywould not lay them down until they received the pay demanded, and wereproceeding to threaten the municipal government of the city, when theywere stopped by the good sense, and presence of mind of their captain, José Joaquim dos Santos. But though the ferment was soothed for thetime, it continued to agitate not only the troops, but the people, tosuch a degree, that the magistrates and principal inhabitants thought itnecessary to take some steps at once, to rule and to satisfy them. Theytook advantage of the occasion furnished by the assembling of themilitia, on account of a festival on the 21st, and, keeping themtogether, they placed them on the morning of the 23d, in the squarebefore the town-house, where the camara held its sittings. The greatbell of the camara then tolled out, the people flocked to the square, with shouts of "Viva el Re, Viva o Constituiçao, Viva o PrincipeRegente. " They then demanded a provisional junta to be appointed for thegovernment of the province, and that José Bonifacio de Andrada e Silva, should be appointed president. This truly patriotic citizen andaccomplished scholar, was a native of the country, and had now beenresiding in it some years, after having studied, travelled, and foughtin Europe. As soon as he was named, a deputation was sent to his owndwelling, to bring him to the town-house. 

Meantime the standard of the camara had been displayed at one of thewindows, and there the magistrates were placed in sight of the people. José Bonifacio appeared at another window, and addressed the people in ashort, but energetic speech, calculated to give them courage, and at thesame time to inspire peace and all good and orderly feeling. He thennamed, one by one, the members proposed by the chief citizens, to formthe provisional junta, beginning with Joaŏ Carlos Augusto de Oyenhausen, to continue general of arms in the province. Each name was received withcheers. [38] The troops and people then marched in an orderly manner tothe house of José Bonifacio, to install him formally as president, andthence to the cathedral where a Te Deum was sung. At night the theatrewas illuminated as for a gala, the national hymn was sung repeatedly;and from that moment all remained quiet in the city, and resolved tomaintain the constitution, and the Prince Regent, for whom theyexpressed unbounded attachment. 

[Note 38: _Provisional government of St. Paul's. _

 The Archpriest Felisberto Gomes Jardin. The Rev. Joaŏ Ferreiro da Oliviero Bueno. Antonio Lecto Perreiro da Gama Lobo. Daniel Pedro Muller. Francisco Ignacio. Manoel Rodriguez Jordaŏ. Andre da Sylva Gomez. Francisco de Paulo Oliviera. Dr. Nicolaŏ Perreira de Campos Noguerros. Antonio Maria Quertim. Martin Francisco de Andrada. Lazaro José Gonçalez. Miguel José de Oliviero Pinto. 

]

Nothing could have been so important to the interest of the Prince atthat time. The Paulistas are among the most hardy, generous, andenlightened of the Brazilians. Their country is in the happiest climate. The mines of St. Paul's are rich, not only in the precious, but in theuseful metals. Iron, so rich as to yield 93 per cent. And coal abound. The manufactures of that province are far before any others in Brazil. Corn and cattle are plenty there, as well as every other species ofBrazilian produce. Agriculture is attended to, and the city by itsdistance from the sea, is safe from the attacks of any foreign power, while it is totally independent of external supplies. 

Unfortunately, the port of Santos presented a different scene during thefirst days of June. The first battalion of the Caçadores assembledbefore the government house, and, accusing the governor and the camaraof withholding their pay, seized and imprisoned them, in order to forcethem to give the money they demanded. Several murders were committedduring the insurrection, and various robberies, both in the houses andthe ships in the harbour. Some armed vessels were, however, speedilydespatched from Rio, and a detachment of militia from St. Paul's. Fiftyof the insurgents were killed, and two hundred and forty takenprisoners; after which, every thing returned to a state of tranquillity;and as the most conciliatory measures were adopted towards the people, the peace continued. 

The next three months were spent almost entirely in establishingprovisional juntas in the different capitals. Many of the captaincieshad, upon swearing to maintain the constitution, spontaneously adoptedthat measure. Others, such as Pernambuco, had been restrained by theirgovernors from doing so, until the Prince's edicts of the 21st ofAugust, to that effect, reached them. These edicts were followed byanother of the 19th of September, directing the juntas to communicatedirectly with the cortes at Lisbon; and the whole attention of thegovernment was now directed to preserve tranquillity until the arrivalof instructions from the cortes concerning the form of government to beadopted. 

It was fondly hoped, that the presence of Brazilian deputies, theimportance of the country, and the consideration that it had been theasylum of the government during the stormy days of the revolutionarywar, would have induced the cortes to have considered it no longer as acolony, but as an equal part of the nation, and that it might haveretained its separate courts, civil and criminal, and all the consequentadvantages of a prompt administration of the laws. 

Such was the state of Brazil, generally speaking, on our arrival in thatcountry, on the 21st of September, 1821. Much that might be interestingI have omitted, partly because I have not so correct a knowledge of it, as to venture to write it; much, because we are too near the time ofaction to know the motives and springs that guided the actors; and much, because neither my sex nor situation permitted me to inform myself moreespecially concerning the political events in a country where theperiodical publications are few, recent, and though by law free, yet, infact, owing to the circumstances of the times, imperfect, timorous, anduncertain. What I have ventured to write is, I trust, correct as tofacts and dates; it is merely intended as an introduction, withoutwhich, the journal of what passed while I was in Brazil would bescarcely intelligible. 

[Illustration]

JOURNAL. 

At about six o'clock in the evening of the 31st of July, 1821, afterhaving saluted His Majesty, George IV. , who at that moment went on boardthe Royal George yacht, to proceed to Dublin, --we sailed in the Doris, a42 gun frigate, for South America. After touching at Plymouth, andrevisiting all the wonders of the break-water and new watering place, wesailed afresh, but when off Ushant, were driven back to Falmouth by aheavy gale of wind. There we remained till the 11th of August, when, with colours half-mast high, on account of the death of Queen Caroline, we finally left the channel, and on the 18th about noon came in sight ofPorto Santo. 

We passed it on the side where the town founded by Don Henry ofPortugal, on the first discovery of the island, is situated, andregretted much that it was too late in the day to go in very near it. The land is high and rocky, but near the town there is a good deal ofverdure, and higher up on the land, extensive woods; a considerablequantity of wine is made there, which, being a little manufactured atFunchal, passes for true Madeira. As usual in Portuguese colonial towns, the church and convent are very conspicuous. When we passed Porto Santo, and the Desertas, and anchored in Funchal roads, I was disappointed atthe calmness of my own feelings, looking at these distant islands withas little emotion as if I had passed a headland in the channel. Well doI remember, when I first saw Funchal twelve years ago, the joyouseagerness with which I feasted my eyes upon the first foreign country Ihad ever approached, the curiosity to see every stone and tree of thenew land, which kept my spirits in a kind of happy fever. 

 "Sweet Memory, wafted by thy gentle gale, Oft up the stream of time I turn my sail, To view the fairy haunts of long lost hours, Blest with far greener shades, far fresher flow'rs. " ROGERS. 

Now I look on them tamely, or at best only as parts of the lovelylandscape, which, just at sunset, the time we anchored, was particularlybeautiful. Surely the few years added to my age have not done this? MayI not rather hope, that having seen lands whose monuments are allhistory, and whose associations are all poetry, I have a higher taste, and more discriminating eye? One object never palls--that ocean wherethe Almighty "Glasses himself in tempests, " or over which the gentlewings of peace seem to brood. The feeling that there was a change, however, either in the scene or in me, was so strong, that I ran to mycabin and sought out a sketch I had made in 1809. I compared it with thetown. Every point of the hill, every house was the same, and again NossaSenhora da Monte, with her brilliant white towers shining from on highthrough the evening cloud, seemed to sanctify the scene, while a fewrough voices from the shore and the neighbouring ships chaunted the AveMaria. 

Early in the morning of the 19th, we took a large party of themidshipmen on shore to enjoy the young pleasure of walking on a foreignland. To them it was new to see the palm, the cypress, and the yucca, together with the maize, banana, and sugar-cane, surrounded byvineyards, while the pine and chesnut clothe the hills. We mounted theboys on mules, and rode up to the little parish church, generallymistaken for a convent, called Nossa Senhora da Monte. My maid and Iwent in a bad sort of palankeen, though convenient for these roads, which are the worst I have seen; however, the view made up for thedifficulty of getting to it. The sea with the Desertas bounded theprospect: below us lay the roadstead and shipping, the town and gardens, and the hill clothed with vineyards and trees of every climate, whichdeck the ashy tufa, or compact basalt of which the whole island seems tobe composed. Purchas, who like Bowles, believes the story of thediscovery of Madeira by the Englishman Masham and his dying mistress, says, that shortly after that event, the woods having taken fire burnedso fiercely, that the inhabitants were forced out to sea to escape fromthe flames. The woods, however, are again pretty thick, and someinferior mahogany among it is used for furniture. The pine is too softfor most purposes. In the gardens we found a large blue hydrangea verycommon: the fuschia is the usual hedge. Mixed with that splendid shrub, aloes, prickly pear, euphorbia, and cactus, serve for the coarserfences; and these strange vegetables, together with innumerable lizardsand insects, tell us we are nearing the tropics. 

We spent a very happy day at the hospitable country house of Mr. Wardrope, and our cavalcade to the town at night was delightful. Theboys, mounted as before, together with several gentlemen who had joinedus at Mr. W. 's, enjoyed the novelty of riding home by torch-light; andas we wound down the hill, the voices of the muleteers answering eachother, or encouraging their beasts with a kind of rude song, completedthe scene. The evening was fine, and the star-light lovely: we embarkedin two shore boats at the custom-house gate, and, after being dulyhailed by the guard-boat, a strange machine mounting one old rusty 6lb. Carronade, we reached the ship in very good time. 

20th. We walked a good deal about the town, and entered the cathedralwith some feelings of reverence, for a part of it at least was built byDon Henry of Portugal, who founded and endowed the college adjoining. The interior of the church is in some parts gaudy, and there is a silverrail of some value. The ceiling is of cedar, richly carved, and remindsme of some of the old churches at Venice, which present a style halfGothic half Saracenic. Near the church a public garden has lately beenformed, and some curious exotic trees placed there with great success. 

In rambling about the town, we naturally enquired for the chapel ofskulls, the ugliness of which had shocked us when here formerly, andwere not sorry to find that that hideous monument of bad taste isfalling fast to ruin. I cannot imagine how such fantastic horrors canever have been sanctified, but so it is; and the Indian fakir whofastens a real skull round his neck, the Roman pilgrim who hangs a modelof one to his rosary, and the friar who decks his oratory with athousand of them, are one and all acted upon either by the same realsuperstition, or spiritual vanity, craving to distinguish itself even bydisgusting peculiarities. 

Of late years superstition has been used as an instrument of no smallpower in revolutions of every kind. Even here it has played its part. Asmall chapel, dedicated to St. Sebastian, had been removed by thePortuguese government in order to erect a market-place, where allarticles of daily consumption were to be sold, a small tax being leviedon the holders of stands. This innovation was of course disagreeable tothe people, and on the night of the revolution, in November last, someof their leading orators accused the market-place of having, by rudelythrusting out St. Sebastian, occasioned the failure of the vineyards, and threatened the ruin of the island. The market-place was instantlydevoted; it was down in a few seconds, and a chapel to St. Sebastianbegun. Men, women, and children worked all night, and the walls wereraised to at least two-thirds of the intended height; but day broughtweariness, and perhaps the morning breeze chilled the fever ofenthusiasm. The voluntary labourers worked no more, and no subscriptionadequate to the hire of workmen to complete it has yet been raised: sothat the new St. Sebastian's stands roofless, and the officiating priestperforms his masses with no other canopy than the heavens. 

Other and better consequences have, however, arisen from the revolutionof November. The grievances of the inhabitants of Madeira were severe. The sons of the best families were seized arbitrarily, and sent to servein the armies of Europe or Brazil: scarcely any article, howevernecessary, or however coarse, was permitted to be manufactured; the verytorches, made of twisted grass and resin, so necessary for travellingthese mountain roads after sunset, were all sent from Lisbon, and everyspecies of cultivation, but that of the grape, discountenanced. Thussituated, every class joined heart and hand in the revolution: deputieswere sent to the Cortes; petitions respecting the state of agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, were presented; and many, perhaps most, ofthe grievances were redressed, or at least much lightened. 

Till the year 1821, there had never been a printing-press in Madeira;but the promoters of the revolution sent to England for one, which isnow set up in Funchal; and on the 2d of July, 1821, the first newspaper, under the name of PATRIOTA FUNCHALENSE, appeared. It contained a wellwritten patriotic preface; and the first article is a declaration of therights of citizens, and of the pretensions of the Portuguese nation, itsreligion, government, and royal family, as adopted by the Cortes for thebasis of the constitution to be formed for its government. The paper hascontinued to be published twice a week: it contains a few politicaladdresses and discourses; all foreign intelligence; some tolerablepapers on distilling, agriculture, manufactures, and similar topics;some humorous pieces in prose and verse; poems _on several occasions_;and, at the end of the month, a table of the receipts and expendituresof government. Among the advertisements I observe one informing thepublic where _leeches_ may be bought at about two shillings and sixpencea piece. 

I thought it curious to observe this first dawning of literature andinterest in politics in this little island. There are certainly enoughanglicisms in the paper, to point out the probable country of some ofthe writers; and there are, as might be looked for, some traces of theresidence of British troops in the colony; but on the whole, the paperis creditable to the editors, and likely to be useful to the island. Ihear the articles on the making of wines and brandies very highly spokenof. Madeira, lying in the finest climate in the world, beautiful andfertile, and easy of access to foreigners, ought not to be a mere halfcivilised colony. 

23d. --We sailed yesterday from Funchal, and soon lost sight of the

 "Filha do oceano Do undoso campo flor, gentil MADEIRA. " DINIZ. 

At night, I sat a long time on the deck, listening to the sea songs withwhich the crew beguile the evening watch. Though the humorous songs wereapplauded sufficiently, yet the plaintive and pathetic seemed thefavourites; and the chorus to the Death of Wolfe was swelled by manyvoices. Oh, who shall say that fame is not a real good! It is twiceblessed--it blesses him who earns, and those who give, to parody thewords of Shakspeare. Here, on the wide ocean, far from the land ofWolfe's birth, and that of his gallant death, his story was raising andswelling the hearts of rough men, and exciting love of country and ofglory by the very sound of his name. Well may _he_ be called abenefactor to his country who, by increasing the list of patrioticsailors' songs, has fostered those feelings and energies which haveplaced Britain's "home upon the mountain wave, and her march upon thedeep. "

The charms of night in a southern climate have been dwelt upon bytravelled poets (for I call Madame de Stael's writings poetry), and eventravelled prose writers; but Lord Byron alone has sketched withknowledge and with love, the moonlight scenery of a frigate in fullsail. The life of a seaman is the essence of poetry; change, newcombinations, danger, situations from almost deathlike calm, to themaddest combinations of horror--every romantic feeling called forth, andevery power of heart and intellect exercised. Man, weak as he is, baffling the elements, and again seeing that miracle of his invention, the tall ship he sails in, tossed to and fro, like the lightest featherfrom the seabird's wing--while he can do nothing but resign himself tothe will of Him who alone can stay the proud waves, and on whom heart, intellect, and feeling, all depend!

25th. --Nothing can be finer than the approach to Teneriffe[39], especially on such a day as this; the peak now appearing through thefloating clouds, and now entirely veiled by them. As we drew near thecoast, the bay or rather roadstead of Oratava, surrounded by a singularmixture of rocks, and woods, and scattered towns, started forth at oncefrom beneath the mists, which seemed to separate it from the peak, whosecold blue colour formed a strong contrast to the glowing red and yellowwhich autumn had already spread on the lower grounds. 

[Note 39: The Chinerfe of the Guanches. ]

We anchored in forty fathoms water with our chain-cable, as the bottomis very rocky, excepting where a pretty wide river, which, though nowdry, rolls a considerable body of water to the sea in the rainy season, has deposited a bed of black mud. There are many rocks in the bay, withfrom one to three fathoms water, and within them from nine to ten. Theswell constantly setting in is very great, and renders the anchorageuncomfortable. 

26th. --- I went ashore with Mr. Dance, the second lieutenant, and two ofthe young midshipmen, for the purpose of riding to the Villa di Oratava, which is situated where the ancient Guanche capital stood. We landed atthe Puerto di Oratava, several miles from the villa: it is defended bysome small batteries, at one of which is the very difficultlanding-place, sheltered by a low reef of rocks that runs far out, andoccasions a heavy surf. I took my own saddle ashore: and being mountedon a fine mule, we all began our journey towards the hill. The road isrough, but has evidently once been made with some pains, and paved withblocks of porous lava; but the winter rains have long ago destroyed it, and it does not seem to be any body's business to put it in repair. 

The first quarter of a mile on either hand presented a scene so blackand stony, that I was surprised to learn that we had been passingthrough corn land; the harvest was over, and the stubble burned on theground. The produce here is scanty; but being so near the port, itrepays the labour and expense of cultivation. We saw the botanicalgarden so much praised by Humboldt; but it is in sad disorder, havingbeen for some time entirely neglected. However, the very establishmentof such a thing brings in new plants, and perhaps naturalises them. Here, the sago-palm, platanus, and tamarind, as well as the flowers andvegetables of the north of Europe, flourish so well as to promise to addpermanently to the riches of this rich island. As we ascended towardsthe villa the prospect improved; the vineyards appeared in greatestbeauty, every other crop still standing in the luxuriant valleys, therocky cliffs of the mountains clothed with wood, and every thing glowingwith life. Wheat, barley, a few oats, maize, potatoes, and caravansas, all grow freely here. The food of the common people consists chiefly ofPolenta, or maize flour, used nearly as the Scotch peasants use theiroatmeal, in cakes, brose, or porridge, which last is suffered to growcold, and then most commonly cut in slices and toasted. After the maize, potatoes are the favourite food, together with salt fish. The potatoe isalways in season, being planted every month, and consequently producinga monthly crop. The fishery employs from forty-five to fifty vessels offrom seventy to ninety tons' burden, from the island of Teneriffe alone;the fish are taken on the coast of Africa, and salted here. 

To a stranger the sight of the long walls of black porous lava, builtterrace-wise to support the vegetable mould, is very striking; but thewalls cannot be called ugly, while the clustering vine andbroad-spreading gourd, climb and find support on them: these, however, soon disappeared, and were replaced by field and garden enclosures. After a pleasant but hot ride, we arrived at the villa about noon, andwent to the house of Señor Don Antonio de Monteverde, who accompanied usto M. Franqui's garden, to see one of the wonders of the island, thefamous Dragon Tree. Humboldt has celebrated this tree in its vigour;it is now a noble ruin. In July, 1819, one half of its enormous crownfell: the wound is plaistered up, the date of the misfortune marked onit, and as much care is taken of the venerable vegetable as will ensureit for at least another century. I sat down to make a sketch of it; andwhile I was drawing, learned from Mr. Galway the following history ofthe family of its owner, which a little skill in language and a littleadorning with sentiment might convert into a modern novel. --About theyear 1760, the Marquis Franqui, upon some disgust, made over his estatesin trust to his brother, and emigrated to France, where he remaineduntil 1810, regularly receiving the proceeds from his estates inTeneriffe. Meantime, during the early period of the revolution, hemarried; and his only child, a daughter, was born. This marriage, however, was only a civil contract, such being then the law of France, and with a woman divorced from another, who was still living. Butneither the validity of the union nor the legitimacy of the child wasever questioned; and the Marquis Franqui returning to his nativecountry, brought with him his daughter, introducing and treating her ashis heiress. She appeared to be received as such by his family; and athis death he appointed trustworthy guardians to her and her estates, oneof whom is her husband's father. No sooner, however, was the Marquisdead, than his brother claimed his property, alleging that the churchhad never sanctioned the Marquis's marriage, and that the daughterconsequently, as an illegitimate child, could have no claim on hisestates. He therefore commenced a lawsuit against her and her guardians, and the suit is still pending. Meantime the court receives the rents;the garden, the chief ornament of the town, is running wild, and thehouse is deserted. 

[Illustration]

The dragon tree is the slowest of growth among vegetables; it seems alsoto be slowest in decay. In the 15th century, that of Oratava hadattained the height and size which it boasted till 1819. It may havebeen in its prime for centuries before; and scarcely less than athousand years must have elapsed, before it attained its full size. Excepting the dragon trees at Madeira, the only many-headed palm I hadseen before was that at Mazagong in Bombay. It is crowned, however, witha leaf like that of the palmetto; but the tufts of the dragon treeresemble the yucca in growth. The palm tree at Mazagong, like theadansonia in Salsette, is reported to have been carried thither by apilgrim from Africa, probably from Upper Egypt, where late travellersmention this palm. 

On our return from the garden to Don Antonio's house, we were mostkindly received by his wife and daughter, the latter of whom played along and difficult piece of music most excellently. It was, however, English, in compliment to us, though we should have preferred some ofher own national airs. After the music, we were conducted to a tablespread in the gallery that surrounds the open court in the middle of thehouse, and covered with fruits, sweetmeats, and wines, which werepressed upon us most hospitably; till finding it time to return, theladies both embraced me, and we began our journey down the hill, havingfirst looked into the churches, which are spacious and handsome, a gooddeal in the style of those of Madeira, but finer. 

As we rode along, we observed a large Dominican convent, the only onenow on the island. The recent law passed by the Spanish Cortes for thesuppression of religious houses, has been strictly enforced here. Nomore than one convent of each denomination is allowed to subsist, andgreat checks are put on the profession of new members. As to therevolution here, the inhabitants had known from authentic though notofficial authority of what had taken place in the mother country, threeweeks before they received any notification from either court or cortes. When notice did arrive, the magistrates assembled the people, read theirorders, and took their oaths to support the cortes; the people shouted, and made a bonfire: next day the forms of law and justice were declaredto be changed, the tribunals proceeded accordingly, and all was over andquiet. 

The Canary Islands boast of two bishoprics, both of which are nowvacant, yet have not one newspaper. The only printing press has been solong in disuse that there is nobody who can work it in the country. Icould not learn that there are any manufactures in Teneriffe; if thereare, I conclude they must be in the neighbourhood of Laguna or SantaCruz. Oratava appears to be the district of corn and wine. 

We returned to the port by a longer road than that by which we left it. In the hedges, the boys, with no small delight, gathered fine ripeblack-berries, which were growing among prickly pear and other tropicalplants. The fields, vineyards, and orchards we had seen from the formerroad we now passed through; and as it was a _fiesta_, we saw thepeasants in their best attire, and their little mud huts cleanly sweptand garnished. They seem gentle and lively, not much darker than thenatives of the south of Europe; and if there be a mixture of Guancheblood, it is said to be traced in the high cheek-bones, narrow chins, and slender hands and feet which in a few districts seem to indicate adifferent race of men. I regret that I had not time to see more of thepeople and the country; but not being travellers from curiosity, andbelonging to a service that may not swerve from the strictest obedience, we dared not even think of a farther excursion. 

Halfway down the hill, we entered a ravine, the dry bed of a wintertorrent, where there were rue, lavender, prickly pear, hypericum, andspurge; but not a blade of grass had survived the summer's drought. Wepassed a heap of black ashes, which anywhere but at the base of the peakwould be called a respectable mountain. It has not been cold long enoughto be disguised by vegetation; and though on one side the vine isbeginning to clothe its rugged surface, yet the greater part isfrightfully barren. Shortly after we passed it, we arrived at Mr. Galway's garden-house, and found his lady, a Spaniard of Irishextraction, ready to receive us. As I had seen in some old Scotchhouses, the best bed-chamber served as drawing-room; but thedressing-room is apart, and from the front there is an opening to apleasant terrace, commanding a charming view. Our dinner was a mixtureof English and Spanish cookery and customs: the Spanish part consistedof part of a Darter, a very fine fish, white, but resembling a salmonin taste, with sauce made of small lobsters, oil, vinegar, garlic, andpimento; some excellent stews, and mixtures of vegetables and quailsroasted in vine leaves; the rest were all English; and the wines, thegrowth of the island, and ices[40] were delicious. Neither thepine-apple nor water-melon grow in Teneriffe, but abundance of thelatter are brought from Grand Canary. All the common garden fruits ofEurope flourish here; but too little attention is paid to horticulture. This island, or at least the part I have seen, evidently belongs to astate that has once been great; but is now too poor or too weak tofoster its foreign possessions. Some fine houses begun are in anunfinished state, and appear to have been so for years; others, thoughfalling, are neither rebuilt nor repaired; and the only things likepresent prosperity, are the neat English country-houses. 

[Note 40: The ice is procured from a large cavern near the cone ofthe peak; it is almost full of the finest ice all the year round. ]

It was sunset before we reached the boats that were to convey us to theship; and we had some difficulty both in getting off and in goingalongside of the frigate, owing to the great swell. The night, however, was fine, and the scene enlivened by the lights in the fishing boats, which, like those in the Mediterranean, are used to attract the fish. Onshore, the lights of the ports and villa, and the fires of the charcoalburners shining from amidst the dark hanging forests of pine, and thoseof the limekilns in the direction of Laguna, appeared like a brilliantillumination; and there being not a cloud, the outline of the peak waswell defined on the deep blue of the nocturnal sky. 

27th _August_. To-day, some of our new friends, both Spanish andEnglish, came on board; but the swell was so great, that only oneescaped sea-sickness. Mrs. Galway was fearful of suffering, so did notcome, but she sent me some of the beads found in the sepulchres of theGuanches: they are of hard baked clay. Mr. Humboldt, whose imaginationwas naturally full of South America, has conjectured that they mighthave been used for the same purpose as the Peruvian _quipos_, but theyare inconveniently large for that use. They are not unlike the beadsBelzoni found in the mummy pits in Egypt, and they closely resemble someof the many kinds of beads with which the Bramins have counted theirmuntras time immemorial. The Oriental custom of dropping a bead forevery prayer having been adopted by the Christians of the west, andstill continuing in Roman Catholic countries, appears, on that account, too common to deserve the notice of a philosophical traveller; andtherefore the Guanche shepherds, or goatherd kings, are rather supposed, like the polished Peruvians, to have recorded the annals of their reignswith clay beads, than allowed to tell them with their orisons, like theBramins of the Ganges, the shepherds of Mesopotamia, or the anchorets ofPalestine and Egypt, because the modern monk does the same. The Guanchemummies are now of very rare occurrence. During the early times of theSpanish government of the island, their sepulchres were carefullyconcealed by the natives; now, intermarriage with their conquerors, andconsequent change of religion and habits, have rendered them careless ofthem, and they are, generally speaking, really forgotten, and onlydiscovered accidentally in planting a new vineyard, or ploughing a newfield. 

28th. This morning left the "still vext" bay of Oratava, and beforesunset saw Palma and Gomera. The Canary Islands, supposed to be theFortunate Islands of the ancients, were discovered accidentally in 1405. Betancour, a Frenchman, took possession of them for Spain; but thenatives were brave, and it cost both the Spaniards and Portuguese, whopossessed them by turns, much blood and treasure to conquer the countryand exterminate the people, for their wars ended in nothing less. Purchas complains that he could not obtain the reading of some travelsby an Englishman who had visited the Peak; the good pilgrim's curiosityhad been strongly excited by the particulars he had learnt from books, and the journals of some of his friends who had travelled, which he hascarefully related: they are such as to make me regret that he has notrecorded more, and that I cannot see more. We brought with us fromOratava one of the finest goats I ever saw; I presume she was adescendant of the original flock which the supreme deity of the Guanchescreated to be the property of the kings alone: she is brown, with verylong twisted horns, a very remarkable white beard, and the largest udderI ever saw. 

29th. Passed the island of Hierro or Ferro, the old first meridian;which honour, I presume, it enjoyed from having been considered as themost western land in the world until the discovery of America. We werevery close to it, and all agreed that we never saw so hard-looking andinaccessible a place. We saw some fine woods, a few scattered houses, and one village perched upon a hill, at least 1500 feet above us. ThePeak of Teneriffe still visible above the clouds. 

_Sept. _ 1st. The flying-fish are become very numerous, and whole fleetsof medusæ have passed us; some we have picked up, besides a verybeautiful purple sea-snail. This fish has four horns, like a snail, theshell is very beautifully tinted with purple, and there is a spongysubstance attached to the fish which I thought assisted it to swim: itis larger in bulk than the whole fish. One of them gave out fully aquarter of an ounce of purple fluid from the lower part of the fish. Afine yellow locust and a swallow flew on board; and as we believeourselves to be four hundred miles from the nearest land, Cape Blanco, we cannot enough admire the structure of the wings that have borne themso far. 

Our school for the ship's boys is now fairly established, and does Mr. Hyslop, our school-master, great credit; that for the midshipmen isgoing on very well, being kept in the fore-cabin under the captain'seye. The boys have his presence, not only as a check to idleness ornoise, but as an encouragement to industry. He is most anxious to makethem fit to be officers and seamen in their profession, and good men andgentlemen both at sea and on shore. Happily they are all promising; butif G---- should disappoint us, I never will believe in youthful talent, industry, or goodness more. Our days pass swiftly, because busily. Theregular business of the ship, the school, astronomical observations, study of history and modern languages, and nothing permitted to passwithout observation, fill our time completely. 

Lord Bacon says, "It is a strange thing that in sea voyages, where thereis nothing to be seen but sky and sea, men should make diaries; but inland travel, wherein so much is to be observed, for the most part theyomit it, as if chance were fitter to be registered than observation. "However, for once, his lordship has only seen, or perhaps only spoken, in part. Sea and sky must be observed before we can know the laws bywhich their great changes or chances are regulated. Observations on theworks of man, as cities, courts, &c. May be omitted, for we know theirauthors, and can have recourse to them, their motives, and theirhistory, whenever we please; but the great operations of nature are soabove us, that we must humbly mark them, and endeavour to make theirhistory a part of our experience, in order that we pass safely throughtheir vicissitudes. Hence it is, that the commonest details of the earlynavigators, their sunrise and sunset, their daily portionings of foodand water, are read with a deeper interest than the liveliest tourthrough civilised countries and populous cities; that Byron's passagethrough Chiloe continues to excite the most profound sympathy; whileMoore's lively view of society and manners in France or Italy, are nowseldom or languidly read. The uncertainty, the mystery of nature, keepup a perpetual curiosity; but I suspect that if we knew the progress anddependance of her operations, as well as we do those of an architect orbrick-layer, the history of the building of a theatre or adwelling-house might vie in interest with that of a sea voyage. 

The books we intend our boys to read are, --history, particularly that of_Greece_, _Rome_, _England_, and _France_; an outline of generalhistory, voyages, and discoveries; some poetry, and general literature, in French and English; Delolme, with the concluding chapter ofBlackstone on the history of the law and the constitution of England;and afterwards the first volume of Blackstone, Bacon's Essays, andPaley. We have only three years to work in; and as the _business_ oftheir life is to learn their profession, including mathematics, algebra, nautical astronomy, theory and practice of seamanship, and dutyas officers, with all the _technicalities_ belonging to it, --this is allwe dare propose. 

5th. We have begun to look forward to that festival of the seamen, thecrossing the line. I know not whence the custom is derived, but theArabs observe it with ceremonies not very unlike those practised by ourown sailors. To-day a letter, containing a sketch of the intendedfestival, with thanks for permission to keep it, was sent into thecabin. I shall copy it with its answer. I find that some captains havebegun to give money at the next port, instead of permitting this day ofmisrule. Perhaps they may be right, and perhaps in time it may beforgotten; but will it be better that it should be so? It is thesailors' only festival; and I like a festival: it gives the heart roomto play. The head in one class, and the limbs in another, work everyday, and in divers, if not opposite directions; but on a festival, thehearts of all beat the same way: yet I would not have them too often, for

 "If every day were playing holiday, To sport would be as tedious as to work;"

the converse of the proverb, "All work and no play, makes Jack a dullboy. " But to our letters. 

"The sons of Neptune, of His Majesty's ship Doris, commanded by CaptainT. G. , return their most grateful thanks for his kind condescension forgranting them the favour that has been allowed to them from timeimmemorial, in crossing the Equinoctial, on our Old Father Neptune'sdominions, when we hope the characters will meet your Honour'sapprobation, which will appear in the margin. 

Thomas Clark, quarter-master, -- Neptune. J. Ware, forecastle, -- Amphitrite. W. Knight, -- Amphitrite's Son. W. Sullivan, 2d captain main-top, -- Triton. C. Brisbane (_negro_), -- Triton's Horse. J. Thompson, gunner's mate, -- High Sheriff. J. White, forecastle, -- Sub Sheriff. W. Sinclair, captain forecastle, -- Barber. J. Smith, J. Forster, Michael Jaque, -- Barber's Mates. J. Gaggin, -- Clerk. W. Bird, captain fore-top, -- Chief Constable. Nine assistants. J. Duncan, boatswain's mate, -- Coachman. J. Clark, -- Postilion. J. Leath, -- Footman. J. Speed, -- Painter. W. Lundy, -- Bottle-holder. W. Williamson, -- Satan. J. Williams, -- Judge Advocate. Eight Sea-horses. 

"So we have given you as good a relation as possibly our weak abilitiesafford us; and, honoured Captain, believe us when we say, we wish youevery happiness this life can afford, and your honoured lady entirelyincluded, and believe us yours, &c. &c. &c. 

"BRITTON'S SONS. "

_Answer. _

"I received your letter with the list of characters that are to appearin Father Neptune's train on our crossing the line, of which Icompletely approve. I have to thank you for your kind wishes both forMrs. G---- and myself, and to assure you, that the greatest pleasure Ican feel in the command of this ship, will be in promoting the happinessand comfort of the whole of Britain's sons on board the Doris. 

"Believe me your sincere friend, THOS. G----, "H. M. S. Doris, at Sea, Sept 5th, 1821. To Britain's Sons, H. M. S. Doris. "

It would be worth while to enquire into the origin of the merry-makingon crossing the line. As the Arabs, an astronomical people, have it, ithas probably some reference to their now-forgotten worship of theheavenly bodies. Like us, they set on fire some combustible matter orother, and let it float away, but they add some food to it, as if therehad once been a sacrifice accompanying the festival. Such, at least, Ihave been assured by several gentleman well acquainted with the Arabtraders in the Eastern sea, is their practice. 

18th. We have done nothing but sail on with very variable weather, forthe last thirteen days. 

 "From world to world our steady course we keep, Swift as the winds along the waters sweep, Mid the mute nations of the purple deep. "

One night we observed that luminous appearance of the sea so oftendescribed, but it was not so brilliant as I remember to have seen itnear the same latitude. The next morning we found the temperature of thesea, at the surface, two degrees higher than that of the atmosphere. Last night at 8 P. M. We crossed the line: to-day, accordingly, ourSaturnalian festival took place. 

About six o'clock P. M. Yesterday, the officer of the watch was informedthat there was a boat with lights alongside, and begged to shorten sail. The captain immediately went on deck, and Neptune hailed from the forepart of the rigging, "What ship?" "Doris. " "Who commands?" "Captain T. G. " "Where from?" "Whitehall. " "Where bound?" "A man of war's cruize. "Upon which Triton mounted upon a sea-horse, admirably represented, appeared as bearer of a letter containing the names of all who had notyet crossed the line, and who were consequently to be initiated into themysteries of the Water God. Triton having thus executed his commission, rode off, and was seen no more till 8 o'clock this morning, when Neptunebeing announced, the captain went on deck to receive him. 

First came Triton mounted as before, then a company of sea-gods orconstables dressed in oakum and swabs, but having their arms andshoulders bare, excepting the paint which bedaubed them. Neptune withtrident and crown, Amphitrite by his side, and their son at their feet, appeared in a car drawn by eight sea-horses, and driven by a sea god:the train followed in the persons of the lawyers, barbers, and painters. The whole pageant was well dressed, and going in procession, fully aspicturesque as any antique triumphal or religious ceremony; the fineforms of some of the actors struck me exceedingly. I never saw marblemore beautiful than some of the backs and shoulders displayed; and thesingular clothing to imitate fishes instead of legs, and seaweed skirts, which they had all adopted, carried one back for centuries, to the timewhen all this was religion. 

After the progress round the decks, a conference with the captain, and alibation in the form of a glass of brandy, to which the god and goddessvied with each other in devotion, the merriment began. Mock-shaving, ora fine paid, was necessary to admit the new comers to the good graces oftheir watery father; and while he was superintending the business, allthe rest of the ship's company, officers and all, proceeded to duck eachother unmercifully. None but women escaped, and that only by staying inmy cabin. The officer of the watch, sentries, quartermasters, and suchas are absolutely necessary to look after the ship, are of course heldsacred; so that some order is still preserved. It seemed really that"madness ruled the hour;" but at the appointed moment, half past eleven, all ceased: by noon, every body was at his duty, the decks were dried, and the ship restored to her wonted good order. The whole of our gunroomofficers dine with us, and we flatter ourselves that we shall end theday as happily as we have begun it. [41]

[Note 41: Frezier, who crossed the line, March 5th, 1712, says, "When it was no longer to be doubted that we were to the southward ofthe line, the foolish ceremony practised by all nations was not omitted. 

"The persons to be so served are seized by the wrists, to ropesstretched fore and aft on the second deck for the officers, and beforethe mast for the sailors; and after much mummery and monkey tricks, theyare let loose, to be led after one another to the main mast, where theyare made to swear on a sea chart that they will do by others as is doneby them, according to the laws and statutes of navigation: then they payto save being wetted, but always in vain, for the captains themselvesare not quite spared. "

Jaques le Maire, the first who sailed round Cape Horn, mentions in hisJournal, 8th July, 1615, baptizing the sailors when he arrived at the_Barrels_. --Has this any thing in common with the ceremony of crossingthe line?]

20th. The long tiresome calms, and the beautiful moonlight nights nearthe equator, have been talked of, and written of, till we know all aboutthem. Mention but passing the line, and you conjure up a wide, apparently interminable, glassy dull sea: sails flapping, a solitarybird sinking with heat, or a shark rising lazily to catch a bait; or, atbest, a calm warm night, with a soft moonlight silvering over the_treacherous_ deep, and rendering the beholders, who ought to be loversif they are not, insensible of the rocks that may lurk below. --But our'swas not the _beau idéal_ of crossing the line: we had fresh breezes inthe day, and thunder and lightning at night; saw few tropic birds, andthose very vigorous, and fish more nimble than sharks, or even sun-fish, of which, however, we met a due proportion. I had once been in atropical calm, and I really, after trying them both, prefer the breezesand thunder-storms. The other night we had one, such as Milton talks of:

 "Either tropic now 'Gan thunder, and both ends of heav'n: the clouds From many a horrid rift abortive poured Fierce rain with lightning mixt, water with fire In ruin reconciled; nor slept the winds Within their stoney caves, but rush'd abroad From the four hinges of the world, and fell On the vext wilderness. "

I never see a thunder-storm at sea, but it reminds me of the vision ofEzekiel:

 "The sapphire blaze, Where angels tremble while they gaze. "

It is awful and grand every where: fearful in the plain, sublime amongthe mountains; but here, on the ocean, with nothing to intercept itsbolt, the horrible is superadded, and he must be more or less than manthat does not at least take thought during its continuance. 

_Friday, September 21st. _ At length we are in sight of the coast ofBrazil, which here is low and green, about two degrees to the northwardof the point first discovered by Vincente Pinzon, in 1500. [42] Theweather is very squally, and there is a heavy swell: we are anchoredabout eight miles from Olinda, the capital of Pernambuco, in fifteenfathoms water, but though we have fired more than one gun for a pilot, none seems to be coming off. 

[Note 42: Cabral first took possession of the country which hecalled _that of the Holy Cross_, for the crown of Portugal; AmerigoVespucci 1504, called it Brazil, on account of the wood. ]

[Illustration]

_Pernambuco, September 22. 1821. _--At nine o'clock the commodore of thisplace, whose office is a combination of port-admiral and commissioner, came on board with the harbour-master, and the ship was guided by thelatter to the anchorage, which is about three miles from the town, ineight fathoms water. The roadstead is quite open, and we find here avery heavy swell. It is not wonderful that our guns were neitheranswered nor noticed last night. Mr. Dance, having been sent on shorewith official letters to the governor and the acting English consul, found the place in a state of siege, and brought back with him ColonelPatronhe, the governor's aide-de-camp, who gave us the following accountof the present state of Pernambuco:

Besides the disposition to revolution, which we were aware had longexisted in every part of Brazil, there was, also, a jealousy between thePortuguese and Brazilians, which recent events had increased in no smalldegree. On the 29th of August, about 600 men of the militia and othernative forces had taken possession of the Villa of Goyana, one of theprincipal places in this captaincy, and had forcibly entered thetown-house, where they had declared the government of Luiz do Rego to beat an end. They proceeded to elect a temporary provisional governmentfor Goyana, to act until the capital of the province should be in acondition to establish a constitutional junta; and in order toaccelerate that event, they had collected forces of every kind, andamong them several companies of the Caçadores who had deserted from Luizdo Rego; with these troops, such as they are, they had marched towardsPernambuco, and last night they had attacked the two main points ofOlinda, to the north, in four different places, and Affogados to thesouth. They were, however, repulsed by the royal troops, under thegovernor, with the loss of fourteen killed and thirty-five prisoners, while the royalists had two killed, and seven wounded. This morning thealarm of the town's people was increased by finding several armed menconcealed in the belfreys of the churches, whither also they hadconveyed several stands of arms. Luiz do Rego is a soldier, and attachedto the royal cause. He served long with the English army in Portugal andSpain, and, if I mistake not, distinguished himself at the siege of St. Sebastian's. He is rather a severe man, and, especially among thesoldiers, more feared than loved. --Great part of the regiment ofCaçadores has left him to join the patriots, and formed the mostefficient corps in the attack last night. The towns-people have beenformed into a militia, tolerably armed and trained. The town is prettywell supplied with mandioc flour, jerked beef, and salt fish; but thebesiegers prevent all fresh provisions from coming in. All shops areshut, and all food scarce and dear. Most people who have property ofvalue, in plate or jewels, have packed it up, and lodged it in thehouses of the English merchants. Many persons with their wives andfamilies have left their homes in the out-skirts of the town, and havetaken refuge with the English. The latter, who, for the most part, sleep, at least, in country houses in the neighbourhood, called sitios, have left them, and remain altogether at their counting-houses in theport: every thing, in short, is alarm and uncertainty. 

_23d. _--The night passed quietly, and so indeed did the day. Manymessages have passed between us and the land, but I could not go onshore: we have excellent oranges, and tolerable vegetables from thetown, and have been quite enough amused in observing the curious littleboats, canoes, catamarans and jangadas, that have been sailing, andpaddling, and rowing round the ship. The jangada resembles nothing Ihave ever seen before; six or eight logs are made fast together by twotransverse beams; at one end there is a raised seat, on which a manplaces himself to steer, for they are furnished with a sort of rudder;sometimes the seat is large enough to admit of two sitters, anotherbench at the foot of a mast, immense for the size of the raft, holdsclothes and provisions, or an upright pole is fixed in one of the logs, to which these things are suspended, and a large triangular sail ofcotton cloth completes the jangada, in which the hardy Brazilian sailorventures to sea, the waves constantly washing over it, and carriescargoes of cotton or other goods, or, in case of necessity, letters anddespatches, hundreds of miles in safety. 

About three o'clock a large canoe with two patriot officers came alongside, to ascertain if we were really English; if we had come, as wasreported, to assist the royalists, or if we would assist them: so aptare men, under the influence of strong feeling themselves, to doubt ofperfect indifference in others, that I question much whether theybelieved in the strict neutrality we profess. They left us, however, without betraying any particular anxiety, and made a very circuitouspassage home, in order to avoid the Recife cruizer, which was lookingout for straggling boats or vessels of any description belonging to thepatriots. 

_Monday the 24th. _--Col. Patronhe arrived early this morning, to requestthat the English packet might put into Lisbon with the Governmentdespatches. We felt glad that the strict rules of service prevented thecaptain from giving any such order to the master of the packet. It wouldbe at once a breach of that neutrality we profess to observe, and, in myopinion, an aiding of the worst cause. The colonel, adverting to thetown being in a state of siege, and the uncertainty of the next attackas to time and place, advised me strongly to stay altogether on board;but I had never seen a town in a state of siege, and therefore resolvedto go ashore. Accordingly, Mr. Dance, being the only officer on boardwho speaks either Portuguese or French, was commissioned to accompanyme; and I took two midshipmen, Grey and Langford, also to call on Madamedo Rego. 

The name of Pernambuco, which is that of the captainship, is nowgenerally applied to the capital, which consists of two parts; 1st, thecity of Olinda, which was founded by the Portuguese, under Duarte CoelhoPedreiro, about 1530 or 1540, and, as its name implies, on a beautifulspot, where moderate, but abrupt hills, a fine river, and thick wood, combine to charm the eye; but the approach to it by sea must always havebeen difficult, if not dangerous: and, 2nd, the town of Recife dePernambuco, or the Reef of Pernambuco, built by the Dutch, under Mauriceof Nassau, and by them called Maurice Town. It is a singular spot, wellfitted for trade; it is situated upon several sand banks, divided bysalt water creeks and the mouth of two fresh water rivers, connected bythree bridges, and divided into as many parts; Recife, properly socalled, where are the castles of defence, and the dock-yard, and thetraders; Sant Antonio, where are the government house, the two principalchurches, one for the white and one for the black population; and BoaVista, where the richer merchants, or more idle inhabitants, live amongtheir gardens, and where convents, churches, and the bishop's palace, give an air of importance to the very neat town around them. 

All this I knew before I landed, and thought I was pretty well preparedfor Pernambuco. But no previous knowledge could do away the wonder withwhich one must enter that very extraordinary port. From the ship, whichis anchored three miles from the town, we see that vessels lie within areef on which the sea is perpetually breaking, but till I was actuallywithin that reef, I had not the least idea of the nature of the harbour:the swell going ashore would have seemed tremendous, had we not beenprepared for it, and made our passage of three miles a very long one. Weapproached the sandy beach between Recife and Olinda so nearly, that Ithought we were going to land there; when coming abreast of a tower on arock, where the sea was breaking violently, we turned short round, andfound ourselves within a marvellous natural break-water, heard the surfdashing without, and saw the spray, but we ourselves were sailing alongsmoothly and calmly, as if in a mill-pond. The rock of which the reef isformed, is said to be coral; but it is so coated with barnacle andlimpet above barnacle and limpet, that I can see nothing but theremainder of these shells for many feet down, and as deep into the rockas our hammers will break. It extends from a good way to the northwardof Paraiba to Olinda, where it sinks under water, and then risesabruptly at Recife, and runs on to Cape St. Augustine, where it isinterrupted by the bold granite head, that shoots through it into theocean: it then reappears, and continues, interruptedly, towards thesouth. The breadth of the harbour here between the reef and the mainland varies from a few fathoms to three quarters of a mile; the water isdeep close to the rock, and there the vessels often moor. There is a barat the entrance of the harbour, over which there is, in ordinary tides, sixteen feet water, so that ships of considerable burden lie here. [43]His Majesty's brig Alacrity lay some time within the reef; and two feetmore water on the bar, would have enabled the Doris to have entered, though, as far as I have seen, there would be no room to turn about ifshe wished to go out again. The reef is certainly one of the wonders ofthe world; it is scarcely sixteen feet broad at top. It slopes off morerapidly than the Plymouth break-water, to a great depth on the outside, and is perpendicular within, to many fathoms. Here and there, a fewinequalities at the top must formerly have annoyed the harbour in hightides or strong winds, but Count Maurice remedied this, by laying hugeblocks of granite into the faulty places, and has thus rendered the toplevel, and the harbour safe at all times. The Count had intended tobuild warehouses along the reef, but his removal from the governmentprevented his doing so. A small fort near the entrance defends it, andindeed always must, so narrow and sudden is the passage. Near it, alight-house is in a fair way of being soon finished, at the veryextremity of the reef, and these are the only two buildings on thisextraordinary line of rock. We rowed up the harbour among vessels of allnations, with the town on one side, and the reef on the other, until wecame to one of the wide creeks, over which the Dutch built a fine stonebridge, now in decay. We were a a good deal struck with the beauty ofthe scene; the buildings are pretty large, and white; the land low andsandy, spotted with bright green tufts of grass, and adorned withpalm-trees. A few years ago a violent flood nearly destroyed the greaterpart of the centre of the bridge, yet the arches still serve to supportlight wooden galleries on each side of it, and the houses and gatewaysare still standing at either end. We landed pretty near the bridge, andwere received by Colonel Patronhe, who apologised for the governor, whocould not come to receive us, as he was in the council room. [44] Thecolonel conducted us to the government house, a very handsome building, with a square in front, and a tower, and we entered what had evidentlybeen a splendid hall. The gilding and painting still remained on someparts of the ceiling and walls; but now it is occupied by horsesstanding ready saddled; soldiers armed, and ready to mount at a moment'swarning; every thing on the alert; guns in front with lighted matches bythem, and an air of bustle and importance among the soldiers, thatexcites a sort of sympathetic curiosity as to their possible andimmediate destination. On going up stairs we found almost as muchconfusion: for the governor has hitherto lived in the very out-skirts ofthe town, and has but just come to the house in Sant Antonio, which wasformerly the Jesuits' college, partly to be in the centre of business, and partly to secure his family, in case of accident, as the besiegers'out-posts are very near his former residence. I found Madame do Rego anagreeable, rather pretty woman, and speaking English like a native: forthis she accounted, by informing me that her mother, the Viscondeça doRio Seco, was an Irish woman. Nothing could be kinder and moreflattering than her manner, and that of General do Rego's two daughters, whose air and manner are those of really well-bred women, and one ofthem is very handsome. After sitting some little time, refreshments werebrought in, and shortly after, the governor himself appeared; a finemilitary-looking man. He appeared ill, being still suffering from theeffects of a wound, he received some months ago, while walking throughthe town with a friend. It has since been ascertained, that theinstigator of the crime was a certain Ouvidor (judge) whom he haddisplaced shortly after he assumed the government. The assassin firedtwice; Luiz do Rego received several shots and slugs in his body, butthe most severe wound was in his left arm. His friend's life was forsome time despaired of, but both are now nearly well. At the time thecrime was committed, the perpetrator was seized more than once by someof the bye-standers; but as often, a baker's basket was pushed inbetween him and whoever seized him; he threw away his pistols andescaped. [45]

[Note 43: In 1816, under the governor, Monte Negro, the harbour wascleared and deepened, and particularly the bar. ]

[Note 44: The council or junta of provisional government consistedof ten members, of which Luiz do Rego was the head; they were drawing upan address to the inhabitants of Recife, assuring them of safety andprotection; exulting in the advantage gained in the night, and assertingthat there were plenty of provisions within the town; and encouragingthem in the name of the king and cortes, to defend the city against theinsurgents, who were of course branded with the names of enemies to theking and country. ]

[Note 45: Luiz do Rego was not the first governor of Pernambuco whohad been shot at. In 1710, when Sebastian de Castro, in conformity tohis orders from Lisbon, had erected a pillar, and declared Recife atown, San Antonio da Recife, the Olindrians shot him on his walk to BoaVista, in four places. The Ouvidor was one of the conspirators. Thebishop had a share in this unchristian action. The object of the peopleof Olinda and of the assassin's party was, to confine Recife to its ownparish, extending only to the Affogados on one side, and Fort Brun onthe other. ]

Having paid our visit, we proceeded to walk about the town. The streetsare paved partly with blueish pebbles from the beach, partly with red orgrey granite. The houses are three or four stories high, built of awhitish stone, and all are white-washed, with door-posts andwindow-frames of brown stone. The ground floor consists of shops, orlodging for the negroes, and stables: the floor above is generallyappropriated to counting-houses and ware-rooms; and the dwelling-housestill higher, the kitchen being universally at the top, by which meansthe lower part of the house is kept cool, I was surprised to find it sopossible to walk out without inconvenience from the heat, so near theequator; but the constant sea-breeze, which sets in here every day atten o'clock, preserves a temperature, under which it is at all timespossible to take exercise. The hot time of day is from eight, when theland breeze fails, to ten. As we were to pass the stone bridge on ourway back to the boat, which was ordered to meet us at the point ofRecife, because the receding tide would have left it dry in the creekwhere we landed; we left it on one hand, and walked through Sant Antoniotowards Boa Vista. When we came to the wooden bridge, 350 paces long, connecting it with Sant Antonio, we found that it had been cut throughthe middle, and is only now passable by means of two planks easilywithdrawn, in case the besiegers should get possession of Boa Vista. Nothing can be prettier of its kind than the fresh green landscape, withits broad river winding through it, which is seen on each hand from thebridge, and the white buildings of the treasury and mint, the convents, and private houses, most of which have gardens. The verdure isdelightful to an English eye; and I doubt not that the flat meadows, andslowly-flowing water, were particularly attractive to the Dutch foundersof Recife. We walked back by the stone bridge, 280 paces long, as weintended; in vain did we look for shops; not one was open, theshopkeepers being all on military duty. They form the militia, and, asmany of them are from Europe, and as they all expect to be plunderedshould the country Brazilians take the town by force, they are mostzealous in their attendance as soldiers. 

At each end of every street we found a light gun, and at the heads ofthe bridges two, with lighted matches by them, and at each post we werechallenged by the guard. At the end of the stone bridge, at the pontedos tres pontes[46], next to Recife, the guards are more numerous andstrict. In this quarter, the chief riches of the place are lodged, andthat is the point most easily defended. It is very nearly surroundedwith water, the houses are high, strongly built, and close together, thestreets being very narrow, and the strong gateways at each end of thebridge might secure time to demolish it entirely, and thus render thatpart of the town secure, except by the sand bank communicating withOlinda, and that is guarded by two considerable forts. 

[Note 46: A little fort which defends the entrance to Recife. ]

We had hardly gone fifty paces into Recife, when we were absolutelysickened by the first sight of a slave-market. It was the first timeeither the boys or I had been in a slave-country; and, however strongand poignant the feelings may be at home, when imagination picturesslavery, they are nothing compared to the staggering sight of aslave-market. It was thinly stocked, owing to the circumstances of thetown; which cause most of the owners of new slaves to keep them closelyshut up in the depôts. Yet about fifty young creatures, boys and girls, with all the appearance of disease and famine consequent upon scantyfood and long confinement in unwholesome places, were sitting and lyingabout among the filthiest animals in the streets. The sight sent us hometo the ship with the heart-ache: and resolution, "not loud but deep, "that nothing in our power should be considered too little, or too great, that can tend to abolish or to alleviate slavery. 

_27th. _--I went on shore to-day to spend a few days with Miss S. , theonly English lady in the town. She is now living in her brother'stown-house, where the office and warehouses are, because thecountry-house is within reach of the patriots. I do long to walk or rideout to the tempting green hills beyond the town; but as that cannot be, I must content myself with what is within the lines. To-day, as we werecoming in from Boa Vista, we met a family of Certanejos, who had broughtprovisions into the town some days ago, returning home to the Certam, orwild country of the interior. These Certanejos are a hardy, active setof men, mostly agriculturists. They bring corn and pulse, bacon andsweetmeats, to the sea-coast, hides and tallow also at times. But thesugar, cotton, and coffee, which form the staple exports of Pernambuco, require the warmer, richer lands, nearer the coast. Cotton is, however, brought from the Certam, but it is a precarious crop, depending entirelyon the quantity of rain in the season; and it sometimes does not rain inthe Certam for two years. The party we met formed a very picturesquegroupe, the men clad in leather from head to foot, of which their lightjerkin and close pantaloons are fitted as closely as the clothing on theEgina marbles, and have something of the same effect: the small roundhat is in the form of Mercury's petasus; and the shoes and gaiters ofthe greater number are excellently adapted to defend the legs and feetin riding through the thickets. The colour of all this is a fine tanbrown. I was vexed that the woman of the party wore a dress evidently ofFrench fashion: it spoiled the unity of the groupe. She was mountedbehind the principal man, on one of the small active horses of thecountry; several sumpter horses followed, laden with household goods andother things in exchange for their provisions: cloths, both woollen andcotton, coarse crockery, and other manufactured articles, especiallyknives, are what they chiefly take in barter; though I saw somefurniture, with pretensions to elegance, among the stuff of the family Imet. After the horses came a groupe of men, some walking and keepingpace with the amble of the beasts; others riding and carrying thechildren; the procession being closed by a very stout good-looking man, smoking as he went along, and distinguished by a pair of green baizetrowsers. 

In the evening we rode out; whether it was because we had been so manyweeks on board ship, and without horse-exercise, or because of thepeculiar sweetness and freshness of evening after the sultry tropicalday we had just passed, I know not, but I never enjoyed an hour in theopen air so much. We rode out of the town by some pretty country-houses, called _sitios_, to one of the out-posts at Mondego, which was formerlythe governor's residence. The tamarind, the silk-cotton tree[47], andthe palm, shaded us, and a thousand elegant shrubs adorned the gardenwalls. It is impossible to describe the fresh delicious feel of such anevening, giving repose and health after the fiery day. We were verysorry when obliged to return home; but the sun was gone, there was nomoon, and we were afraid that the guards at the various posts of defencemight stop us. As we came back, we were challenged at every station; butthe words, _amigos ingresos_ were our passport, and we got to Recifejust as the evening hymn was singing, harshly and unmusically enough, bythe negroes and mulattoes in the streets; but yet every thing thatunites men in one common sentiment is interesting. The church doors wereopen, the altars illuminated, and the very slave felt that he wasaddressing the same Deity, by the same privilege with his master. It isan evening I can never forget. 

[Illustration]

[Note 47: Bombex pentandrium. _Jaquin. _]

_28th. _--This morning before breakfast, looking from the balcony of Mr. S. 's house, I saw a white woman, or rather fiend, beating a youngnegress, and twisting her arms cruelly while the poor creature screamedin agony, till our gentlemen interfered. Good God! that such a traffic, such a practice as that of slavery, should exist. Near the house thereare two or three depôts of slaves, all young; in one, I saw an infant ofabout two years old, for sale. Provisions are now so scarce that no bitof animal food ever seasons the paste of mandioc flour, which is thesustenance of slaves: and even of this, these poor children, by theirprojecting bones and hollow cheeks, show that they seldom get asufficiency. Now, money also is so scarce, that a purchaser is noteasily found, and one pang is added to slavery: the unavailing wish offinding a master! Scores of these poor creatures are seen at differentcorners of the streets, in all the listlessness of despair--and if aninfant attempts to crawl from among them, in search of infantileamusement, a look of pity is all the sympathy he excites. Are thepatriots wrong? They have put arms into the hands of the _new_ negroes, while the recollection of their own country, and of the slave-ship, andof the slave-market, is fresh in their memory. 

I walked to-day to the market-place, where there is but little;--beefscarce and dear, no mutton, a little poultry, and a few pigs, disgusting, because they feed in the streets where every thing isthrown, and where they and the dogs are the only scavengers. Theblockade is so strict, that even the vegetables from the gentlemen'sprivate gardens, two miles from the out-posts, are detained. No milk isto be had, bread of American flour is at least twice as dear as inEngland, and the cakes of mandioc baked with cocoa nut juice, too dearfor the common people to afford a sufficiency even of them. Fire-woodis extravagantly high, charcoal scarce. The negroes keep the markets: afew on their own account, more on that of their masters. The dress ofthe free negroes is like that of the creole Portuguese; a linen jacketand trowsers, or on days of ceremony one of cloth, and a straw hat, furnish forth either a black or a white gentleman. The women, in-doors, wear a kind of frock which leaves the bosom much exposed. When they walkout they wear either a cloak or mantle; this cloak is often of thegayest colours; shoes also, which are the mark of freedom, are to beseen of every hue, but black. Gold chains for the neck and arms, andgold ear-rings, with a flower in the hair, complete a Pernambucanwoman's dress. The new negroes, men and women, have nothing but a clothround their loins. When they are bought, it is usual to give the women ashift and petticoat, and the men at least trowsers, but this is veryoften omitted. 

Yesterday the motley head-dresses of the Portuguese inhabitants wereseen to great advantage, in a sally through the streets, made by a kindof supplementary militia to enforce the closing of all shop-doors, andthe shutting up of all slaves, on an alarm that the enemy was attackingthe town to the southward. The officer leading the party was indeeddressed _en militaire_, with a drawn sword in one hand, and a pistol inthe other. Then followed a company that Falstaff would hardly haveenlisted, armed in a suitable manner, with such caps and hats as becamethe variety of trades to which the wearers belonged, the rear beingbrought up by a most singular figure, with a small drum-shaped black capon the very top of a stiff pale head, a long oil-skin cloak, and in hisleft hand a huge Toledo ready drawn, which he carried upright. Themilitia are better dressed, and are now employed in regular turn of dutywith the royal troops, who are going over to the patriots daily. 

Calling at the palace this forenoon, we learned that a hundred Indiansare expected in the town, by way of assistance to the garrison. Theywear their aboriginal dress, and are armed with slings, bows, andarrows. We are told their ideas of government consist in believing thatimplicit obedience is due both to king and priests. Brandy is the bribefor which they will do any thing; a dram of that liquor and a handful ofmandioc flour being all the food they require when they come down to theport. 

This evening, as there are no horses to be hired here, we borrowed somefrom our English and French friends, and rode to Olinda by the longsandy isthmus, which connects it with Recife. This is the isthmusfortified with a palisade, by Sir John Lancaster, during his stay atRecife, which he plundered. [48] The beach is defended by two castles, sufficiently strong when their situation is considered; on one side afurious surf breaking at their base, on the other a deep estuary andflat ground beyond, so that they cannot be commanded. The sand ispartially covered by shrubs; one is very splendid with thick leaves andpurple bell-shaped flowers; many are like those of the eastern world;many are quite new to me. I was surprised at the extreme beauty ofOlinda, or rather of its remains, for it is now in a melancholy state ofruin. All the richer inhabitants have long settled in the lower town. The revenues of the bishopric being now claimed by the crown, and themonasteries suppressed for the most part, even the factitious splendourcaused by the ecclesiastical courts and inhabitants is no more. The verycollege where the youths received some sort of education, howeverimperfect, is nearly ruined[49], and there is scarcely a house of anysize standing. 

[Note 48: See Introduction, p. 20. ]

[Note 49: This was the Jesuits' college founded under theadministration of the admirable father Nobrega, and his companion DeGram. Here at eighteen years' old the celebrated Viera read lectures onrhetoric, and composed those commentaries on some of the classics, whichwere unfortunately lost in the course of the civil wars. ]

Olinda is placed on a few small hills, whose sides are in somedirections broken down, so as to present the most abrupt and picturesquerock-scenery. These are embosomed in dark woods that seem coeval withthe land itself: tufts of slender palms, here and there the broad headof an ancient mango, or the gigantic arms of the wide spreadingsilk-cotton tree, rise from out the rest in the near ground, and breakthe line of forest: amidst these, the convents, the cathedral, thebishop's palace, and the churches of noble, though not elegantarchitecture, are placed in stations which a Claude or a Poussin mighthave chosen for them; some stand on the steep sides of rocks, some onlawns that slope gently to the sea-shore: their colour is grey or paleyellow, with reddish tiles, except here and there where a dome isadorned with porcelain tiles of white and blue. Just as we reached thehighest point of the town, looking across the woody bason round whichthe hills are grouped, the smoke from one of the out-posts caught oursight. The soldiers were standing or lying around, and their arms piledby them: they were just shadowed by tall trees behind, between whosetrunks the scattered rays of the setting sun shed such a partial lightas Salvator Rosa himself would not have disdained. These same soldiers, however, circumscribed our ride: we had intended to return by the inlandroad, but were not allowed to pass into it, as part, at least, lieswithout the posts, therefore we were obliged to return by the way wecame. 

At the spot where the present guard is placed, and where indeed a strongguard is peculiarly necessary, the river Bibiriba falls into theæstuary, which was formerly the port of Olinda. A dam is built acrosswith flood-gates which are occasionally opened; and on the dam there isa very pretty open arcade, where the neighbouring inhabitants wereaccustomed in peaceable times to go in the evening, and eat, drink, anddance. It is from this dam that all the good water used in Recife isdaily conveyed in water-canoes, which come under the dam called theVaradouro, and are filled from twenty-three pipes, led so as to fill thecanoes at once, without farther trouble. We saw seven-and-twenty ofthese little boats laden, paddle down the creek with the tide towardsthe town. A single oar used rather as rudder than paddle guides the tankto the middle of the stream, where it floats to its destination. 

The sun was low, long before we reached even the first of the twocastles on our way back to the fort. The dogs had already begun theirwork of abomination. I saw one drag the arm of a negro from beneath thefew inches of sand, which his master had caused to be thrown over hisremains. It is on this beach that the measure of the insults dealt tothe poor negroes is filled. When the negro dies, his fellow-slaves layhim on a plank, carry him to the beach, where beneath high-water markthey hoe a little sand over him; but to the new negro even this mark ofhumanity is denied. He is tied to a pole, carried out in the evening anddropped upon the beach, where it is just possible the surf may bear himaway. These things sent us home sad and spiritless, notwithstanding theagreeable scenes we had been riding among. 

_29th_. The feast of St. Michael's has drawn out the Portuguesegentlewomen, of whom we had not yet seen one walking in the streets. Thefavourite dress seems to be black, with white shoes and white orcoloured ribbons and flowers in the hair, with a mantle of lace orgauze, either black or white. We have seen a few priests too for thefirst time. I think the edict desiring them to keep within their conventwalls, is in consequence of their being among the fomentors of thespirit of independence. The appropriation of so much of the churchrevenue by the court of Lisbon is of course unpopular among the clergyof the country; and it is not difficult for them to represent, whatindeed is truth, to the people, that the drawing of so much treasurefrom the country to support Lisbon, which can neither govern nor protectthem now, is a rational ground of complaint. It is said, that the moralsof the clergy here are most depraved. This is probably true. Men cut offby vows like those of the Roman clergy, from the active charities ofsocial life, have only the resources of science and literature againsttheir passions and vices. But here the very names of literature andscience are almost unknown. The college and library of Olinda are indecay. There is not one bookseller in Pernambuco, and the population ofits different parishes amounts to 70, 000 souls! A tolerably well writtennewspaper, of which I have not been able to procure the first number, was set up in March, under the title of "Aurora Pernambucana, " with thefollowing motto from Camoens:

 Depois da procellosa tempestade, Nocturna sombra e sibilante vento, Tras a manha serena e claridade, Esperança de porto e salvamiente:

alluding to the arrival of the news of the revolution in Portugal, onthe 26th of that month, and the swearing of the governor, magistrates, &c. To adhere to the constitution as established by the Cortes. I amsorry to say that this only paper has been discontinued for the two lastmonths, the editor having, as it seems, become a secretary ofgovernment, and having no longer time to superintend the press. [50]

[Note 50: Not only has this paper been continued since, but othersare now published in Recife. ]

_30th. _--Last night the patriot troops attacked the line of defence atOlinda for four hours, but I do not believe there was any loss on eitherside. This morning a Portuguese frigate, the Don Pedro, with troops fromBahia, arrived. The reinforcement of 350 men, partly European, partlyBahian, has put the inhabitants, from the governor downwards, into thehighest spirits; so that for once we see Pernambuco active, andcheerful, and alive. Men and women are out in their gayest habits, andthe military are running and riding in all directions, not a littlepleased to have some to relieve them in their constant watch and ward. 

Among other things which I learned by looking on, while the elders offamilies were engaged in the streets with the new-comers, was that theyoung Pernambucans are as dexterous in the use of signs as the Turkishlovers themselves, and that often a courtship is carried on in this way, and a marriage settled, without the parties having ever heard eachother's voices. However, the general mode is for parents to settle theirchildren's nuptials, without consulting any thing but pecuniaryconvenience. 

This day several of the officers and midshipmen of the Doris accompaniedus to dine at the governor's, at half-past four o'clock. Our welcomewas most cordial. His excellency took one end of the table, and anaide-de-camp the other: I was seated between M. And Madame do Rego. Heseemed happy to talk of his old English friends of the Peninsula, withmany of whom I am acquainted; and she had a thousand enquiries to makeabout England, whither she is very anxious to go. They apologised forhaving so little plate, but their handsome services were packed up in anEnglish store-house, together with her excellency's jewels and otherprecious things. The cookery was a mixture of Portuguese and French. After the soup, a dish was handed round of boiled lean beef, slices offat salt pork, and sausages, and with this dish, rice boiled with oiland sweet herbs. Roast beef was presented, in compliment to the English, very little roasted. Salads, and fish of various kinds, were dressed ina peculiar manner; poultry and other things in the French fashion. 

The dessert was served on another table. Besides our European dessert offruit, cakes, and wine, all the puddings, pies, and tarts, formed partof it. It was decorated with flowers, and there was a profusion ofsugar-plums of every kind. The company rose from the dining-table, andadjourned to the other, which Madame do Rego told me should have beenspread in a separate apartment; but they have so recently takenpossession of their house, that they have not one yet fitted up for thepurpose. The governor and his guests proposed many toastsalternately--The King of England, the King of Portugal, the navy ofEngland, the King of France[51], Luis do Rego, and the captaincy ofPernambuco, &c. --When we all rose at once from table; some of thecompany went on board ship, but most adjourned to the drawing-room, acomfortable apartment, furnished with blue satin damask, where we werejoined by the French naval officers of His Most Christian Majesty's shipSappho, and several ladies and gentlemen of the city. We had someexcellent music. Madame do Rego has an admirable voice, and there wereseveral good singers and players on the piano. It was a more pleasant, polished evening than I had expected to pass in Pernambuco, especiallynow in a state of siege. 

[Note 51: Mr. Lainé, the very pleasing and gentlemanlike Frenchconsul, was present. ]

_Wednesday, 3d October. _--I went on board on Monday, and, provokinglyenough, the patriots chose that very night to make an attack upon theout-post of the Affogadas, so I did not see the governor, at the head ofhis troops, march out to meet them; nor did I hear the national hymnsung by the regiments as they filed along on their return from asuccessful sally. [52] Yesterday, nothing occurred worth noting; we hadthe consul and British merchants on board to dinner, and the day passedas such days usually do. 

[Note 52: Since writing my Journal, I have seen the official accountof this attack on the Villa of the Affagados. It was a well plannedexpedition; but the raw troops were easily driven out of the villa ofwhich they had already possessed themselves, by throwing a bridge over abranch of the Capabaribe, by the veteran soldiers of Do Rego. 

The same morning, i. E. That of the 1st of October, the provisional juntaof Pernambuco had addressed that of the patriots of Goyana, offeringpeace, saying, that as their avowed object was the dismissal of L. DoRego, he was ready to withdraw himself; that he had twice offered thecouncil of Recife to do so, and had besides sent to the Cortes to begthey would appoint a successor, and allow him to retire; that his motivefor this was the desire of peace, and of procuring the tranquillity ofthe province, so disturbed by these civil broils. They tell the patriotsalso, that the Don Pedro is arrived, and assure them that the troopsbrought by the frigate shall be employed only in the defence of Recife. They also intimate, that they are sure of assistance from the French andEnglish frigates then there, such assistance having been offered, on theground of the English and French property in the place. Now I know thatno such assistance was offered by the English frigate. It was asked; buta strict neutrality had been enjoined by the government, allinterference was refused, and no more was offered than _personal_protection to either English, French, or Portuguese; and of courseprotection for English property being the purpose for which the frigatewas there, was understood by all parties. ]

Having learned that the patriots have refused to allow the linenbelonging to the ship, which had been sent to the country to be washed, to return to the town, it was determined that we should send to theirhead-quarters, and remonstrate against this very inconvenient mode ofannoying the port. I obtained leave to accompany the messengers, andaccordingly we all went on shore immediately after breakfast. Our firstbusiness was to procure passports, and to learn the countersigns; afterwhich Capt. Graham, with Col. Cottar, the governor's principalaide-de-camp, rode with us to the out-posts, where we left them, with anintention of returning to dine at Mr. Stewart's, to meet Luis do Rego'sfamily. Our party consisted of M. Caumont, to act as interpreter, Mr. Dance, bearing the letter, my cousin Mr. Glennie as my cavalier, andmyself. It was the first time we had had an opportunity of passing thelines, and we felt like school-boys who had stolen beyond bounds, andwell we might; the scenery was fresh and lovely, and the day as fine aspossible. 

Pernambuco is not a walled town, but broad rapid rivers and æstuariessurround it, and it is only approachable by the roads and causeways; thebanks thrown up across these, for present defence, are such as mightstop the Brazilian cavalry for a few minutes, or afford cover formusketry; but their best defence is the swamp at the mouth of theCapabaribe, which is flooded at high water, and which extends nearly tothe Bibiribi. At the edge of the swamp there is a wooden palisade, wherewe left the last post of the royalists, and took leave of our friends, who had accompanied us so far. After riding across the marsh, which bythe by is very fit for rice ground, and is surrounded by cocoa-nut andtamarind trees, we came to the main stream of the Capabaribe, a deep, broad, and very rapid river; its sides are steep, and the waterbeautifully clear[53]: its banks are studded with country-houses, andadorned with groves and gardens, for the present abandoned by theirowners, who have taken refuge in Recife. 

[Note 53: The Capabaribe has a course of about fifty leagues, but isonly navigable to about six miles from the sea, on account of rapids andfalls in the upper part; it has two mouths, one at Recife, and the otherat Os Affogados. Chor. Braz. ]

The hedges on each side of the road are woven of palm-leaves, and wherenot quite new, are covered with all splendid creeping plants; the commonand winged passion-flower, white, blue, and yellow clematis, jasmine, china-rose, and many others, both gay and sweet. The ditches, too, werefull of colour, but we rode too fast to stay to collect plants; and Icould only promise myself, at some future time, to gather one thatappeared like a bog bean, but its colour bright purple. 

About two miles from Do Rego's last out-post, we came to the first postof the patriots, at a country-house on a rising ground, where arms piledat the door, and a sort of ragged guard, consisting of a merry-lookingnegro with a fowling-piece, a Brazilian with a blunderbuss, and two orthree of doubtful colour with sticks, swords pistols, &c. , told us anofficer was to be found. After a few minutes parley, we found he was notauthorised to receive our letter, so we rode on under the direction ofthe old Brazilian with his blunderbuss, who, being on foot, threatenedto shoot us if we attempted to ride faster than he walked. The slow paceat which we advanced gave us leisure to remark the beauties of aBrazilian spring. Gay plants, with birds still gayer hovering over them, sweet smelling flowers, and ripe oranges and citrons, formed a beautifulfore-ground to the very fine forest-trees that cover the plains, andclothe the sides of the low hills in the neighbourhood of Pernambuco. Here and there a little space is cleared for the growth of mandioc, which at this season is perfectly green: the wooden huts of thecultivators are generally on the road-side, and, for the most part, eachhas its little grove of mango and orange-trees. At one of these littlehomesteads, we found a pretty large guard-house, established where fourroads meet, and there our foot guide left us, and a gentlemanlike youngofficer, of the Brazilian Caçadores, rode with us, and entertained us bycalling Luis do Rego a tyrant, and attributing the siege of Pernambucoentirely to the governor's obstinacy, in not joining the people of theprovince in throwing off the dominion of his master. Round theguard-house a number of negro girls, with broad flat baskets on theirheads, were selling fruit and cold water: they had decked their woollyhair, and the edges of their baskets, with garlands of the scarletalthaea; their light blue or white cloaks were thrown gracefully acrosstheir dusky shoulders, and white jackets, so that it was such a pictureas the early Spaniards might have drawn of their Eldorado. 

After riding a few miles, we came suddenly to the foot of an abrupthill, on whose sides there were scattered groups of the most magnificenttrees I ever beheld. There we were met by a small military party, which, after a parley with our guide, rather ordered, than invited us to rideup. In a few seconds, we came to a steep yellow sandstone bank, shadedon one side by tall trees, and open on the other to a lake surroundedby woody hills, on the most distant of which, the white buildings ofOlinda sparkled like snow. On the top of the bank, and in the act ofdescending, was a group of forty horsemen, one of the foremost of whombore a white banner; several were dressed in splendid military habits, others in the plain costume of the landed proprietors. These weredeputies from Paraiba on their way to propose terms to Luis do Rego;they had just left the head-quarters of the besieging army, where theprovisional government of Goyana is stationed, and were accompanied by aguard of honour: after exchanging civilities, part of the guard turnedback with us, and the deputies went on their way. Having reached the topof the hill, we found about a hundred men, tolerably well armed, butstrangely dressed, awaiting us; and there we were detained till ourguide rode forward to ask leave to bring us to head-quarters. I wassorry I had no means of sketching any part of the beautiful landscape, which, besides the striking features I have mentioned before, nowdisplayed a broad river, over which there is a white stone bridge ofseveral arches; at one end, a large house, more like a palace, with itsarches and corridors, and the encampment of the army and the horsepicquets, and, in short, a bustle and animation that seldom happen toadorn so fine a scene. Our guide soon returned with eighteen or twentymounted soldiers, whose appearance was rather wild than military: theguard presented arms as we parted from them, and we soon cantered downthe hill towards the main body of the troops. Not above two hundred hadthe arms or accoutrements of soldiers; but there were dresses andweapons of every kind, leather, cloth, and linen; short jackets and longScotch plaids, and every tint of colour in their faces, from the sallowEuropean to the ebony African. Military honours were paid us by theseragged regiments, and we were conducted to the palace square, where Mr. Dance and Mr. Caumont dismounted, and I determined to await the issue oftheir conference, with my cousin in the court. 

This, however, was not permitted. In a few minutes, a smart little man, speaking tolerable French, came and told me the _government_ desired mycompany. I suspected a mistake of the word government for governor, andendeavoured to decline the honour; but no denial could be taken, and thelittle man, who told me he was secretary to government, accordinglyassisted me to dismount, and showed me the way to the palace. The hallwas filled with men and horses, like a barrack stable, excepting acorner which served as an hospital for those wounded in the lateskirmishes, the groans of the latter mingling uncouthly with thesoldiers' cheerful noisy voices. The stairs were so crowded, that we gotup with difficulty, and then I found that I was indeed to be confrontedwith the whole strength of the provisional government. At the end of along dirty room, that had once been handsome, as the form of the windowsand carving of the panels on which there were traces of colour andgilding, indicated, there was an old black hair sofa, on the centre ofwhich I was placed, with Mr. Dance on one side, and Mr. Glennie on theother; by Mr. Dance sat the little secretary, and next to him ourinterpreter, in old-fashioned high-backed chairs; the rest of thefurniture of the room consisted of nine seats of different sizes andforms, placed in a semicircle fronting the sofa, and on each of thesesat one of the members of the junta of the provisional government, whoact the part of senators or generals, as the occasion may require. Toeach of these I was introduced; the names of Albuquerque, Cavalcante, and Broderod, struck me, but I heard imperfectly, and forget most ofthem: some wore handsome military coats, others the humbler dress offarmers. They politely told me they would not read the letter while Iwas waiting below, but as soon as we were seated, the secretary read italoud. Instead of taking any notice of its contents, the secretary begana long discourse, setting forth the injustice of the Portuguese governorand government towards Brazil in general, and the Pernambucans inparticular; that in order to resist that injustice, they had formed thepresent respectable government, pointing to the junta, without intendingthe least detriment to the rights of the king. That surely they couldnot be called rebels, as they marched under the royal flag of Portugal;but Luis do Rego might be reasonably stigmatised as such, for he hadfired on that banner. He then went off into a long harangue upon thegeneral principles of government; but as I understood little of thelanguage, much of it was lost upon me, as well as on my companions; butI have no doubt that it served to impress the respectable junta with ahigher idea of their secretary's understanding and eloquence:altogether, the speech reminded me of some of the best written of theCarbonari addresses of Italy; and there was something in the air, manner, and scene, not unlike what one imagines of the Barraca meetingsof those ill-guided, misused people. [54] We then talked a great deal inFrench to the secretary, who repeated every word to the respectablejunta, and at length got him to attend to a proposal for releasing ourlinen, and another for supplying the ship with fresh provisions. We hadbeen paying forty dollars per bullock in the town; they agreed thattheir price should not exceed ten, if we sent boats to the Rio Doce, orParatije[55] for them. This is the mouth of a small stream on thenorthside of Olinda. And I must not omit to mention, that they offeredto allow us to take off fresh provisions for our English or Frenchfriends in the town. 

[Note 54: I regret exceedingly that I was then so ignorant of thelanguage. I have since learned that there were many causes of particulargrievance in this province. I do not mean to speak disrespectfully ofthe popular meetings of Brazil; they had all in view the best objects, national independence and civil liberty under reformed laws. The firstobject has been secured to them by their constitutional emperor, thelast is growing up under his government; time only can perfect it. Happywould it have been for Italy, if its popular meetings had possessed themild character of those of Brazil, and still happier, had they found intheir prince a defender and protector. ]

[Note 55: At Rio Doce, Brito Freire and Pedro Jaques landed toassist Vieyra in the recovery of Pernambuco. See p. 25. Of theIntroduction. ]

The junta was extremely anxious to learn if there was a probability ofEngland's acknowledging the independence of Brazil, or if she took partat all in the struggle; and many were the questions, and very variouslywere they shaped, which the secretary addressed to us on that head. Theyare of course violent in their language concerning Luis do Rego, inproportion as he has done his military duty, in keeping them at baywith his handful of men: and like all oppositions they can afford toreason upon general principles, because they have not to feel thehindrances of action, and the jarring of private interests in thedisposal and fulfilment of office. 

I was sitting opposite to one of the windows of the council-room, andhad been remarking for some time, that the sun was getting very low, and, therefore, rose to go, having received a note from the secretary, ordering the officers at their advanced posts to offer no hindrance tothe passing of any thing belonging to His British Majesty's frigate, Doris. But we were not suffered to depart without a hearty invitation tosup and spend the night: and a stirrup-cup (a huge glass) was brought, and a bottle of wine, with about half as much water, poured into it; itwas then handed to me to begin, and all fourteen received it in turn. Bythis time the guard was drawn out, the band played the national hymn, towhich we all listened bare-headed, and so we mounted among thosewild-looking men, in that strange, yet lovely landscape, just as theevening mist began to veil the lower land, and the bright red eveningsun to gild the topmost branches of the forest. 

Our journey home was much more rapid than our journey out. The eveningwas cool, and the horses eager to return; but we did not reach Mr. S. 'still two hours after sunset, when we found that, after the party hadwaited till six o'clock, Captain Graham had insisted on their dining. The governor was uneasy, and offered to send a party of Caçadores insearch, as he kindly said, of me, --but this, of course, was refused; thecaptain assuring his excellency, that if the patriots detained hislieutenant, he would take him back with his own men, and that as to me, while I was with my two companions, he had not the least fear concerningme. We were accompanied by the same officer, who had been our companionon the latter part of the ride to head-quarters, back almost to the townlines; and when we told this to the governor, he was sorry we did notknow his name, that in case he should ever have it in his power to showhim kindness, he might do so. A pleasant chat on the adventures of ourride, a hearty supper, and a little concert closed the day, which, uponthe whole, was to me a most agreeable one. 

_Thursday, 4th. _--Received Madame do Rego, one of her daughters, MissS. , and several gentlemen, on board. Most of the party were sea-sick, from the rolling of the ship, caused by the heavy swell at theanchorage. They were, however, highly charmed with their visit, particularly with the fireworks with which we saluted the ladies, whohad never been on board a British frigate before, on their departure. 

_Friday, 5th. _--According to the agreement made with the patriotofficers, on Wednesday, one launch and the second cutter went to RioDoce to receive bullocks and other provisions. The officers and men weremost kindly received, and returned with many presents of fresh stock andvegetables, which the patriots forced upon them. A military bandattended them on landing, and conducted them to the place of meetingwith the chiefs. 

Messrs. Biddle and Glennie, being on shore surveying, near Cabo de SantAugustin[56], were detained as prisoners for a few hours, by a patriotdetachment; but, as it appeared to be only for the purpose of obtainingmoney, and done by some subaltern, no notice was taken of it. 

[Note 56: The easternmost land of South America. It has two littleharbours, for small vessels, each of which is defended by a small fort, and has a celebrated chapel to our Lady of Nazareth. ]

_Saturday, 6th. _--The frigate got under weigh to take a cruize, and ifpossible find a quieter anchorage. Mr. Dance with a party went for moreprovisions, to Rio Doce. The surf at the landing place was so high, thatthey were obliged to get into canoes, and leave the boats grappled atsome distance from the beach. A guard of honour and military bandattended them, as on the former day, and they were, moreover, pressed todine with the commander of the post, which they gladly did. Thedining-room was a long hut, built of wood and plaited palm leaves. Inthe centre, was a long table spread with a clean and very handsomecloth. The few chairs the place afforded were appropriated to thestrangers, and the rest of the company stood during the meal. To thestrangers, also, were given the spoons and forks, but the want of themdid not appear to incommode the Brazilians. To each person a smallbasin of good beef broth, _bien dorée_, was served, and for the restevery man put his hand in the dish. Two principal messes occupied thecentre of the table, one, a platter, containing a quantity of mandiocflour, raw; and the other a pile of fish, dressed with oil, garlic, andpimento. Each person began by stirring a quantity of the flour into hisbroth, till it acquired the consistence of brose, and then helpinghimself to the fish, which was cut up in convenient pieces, dipped itinto the brose, and eat it with his fingers. Around the two principaldishes, were others of a most savoury nature, --eels fried with sweetherbs, shellfish stewed with wine and pimento, and others of the samekind. Into these also each man put his hand indiscriminately, anddipping his morsel into his basin, set our officers the example ofeating that substitute for wheaten bread, and of swallowing, withoutregard to neatness or order, all manner of messes, mixed together, andtouched by all hands. After dinner, a slave handed round a silver basin, with water and towels, after which a number of toasts were given, andthe entertainment concluded with vivas, when the guard and band attendedthe officers to the boats, where the bullocks were ready to embark, andslaves to carry the English through the surf to the canoes, whichconveyed them to the boats. On their return, I saw for the first time, the pitanga, a berry of which an excellent preserve is made; it growsupon a beautiful shrub, scarcely to be distinguished, either in floweror leaf, from the broad-leaved myrtle; the berry is as large as afilbert, and divided and coloured like the large red love-apple. Mr. Dance brought me, also, a beautiful green paroquet, the tamest, loveliest thing, with his emerald coat, and sparkling eye, I eversaw. [57]

[Note 57: All the parrot tribe in Brazil is beautiful: but neitherparrots nor parroquets talk well. However, no slave ship comes fromAfrica without a grey parrot or two; so that in the towns they arealmost as numerous as the native birds, and much more noisy, for theytalk incessantly. ]

_Sunday, 7th. _--We continued to cruize opposite to Olinda and Recife, and alarmed some of our friends on shore, by sailing round the Englishbank, a thing hitherto believed impossible, for so large a ship. 

_Monday, 8th. _--We find to-day, on anchoring, that terms have beenentered into with the patriots, by which their deputies are to be in thecouncil, and take an equal share in the administration, and on the otherhand, they are to withdraw the investing troops, and leave Luis do Regoat the head of the military department, until the arrival of the nextdespatches from Lisbon. These pacific measures were brought about by theParaiban deputies whom we met on Wednesday. 

_Tuesday, 9th. _--Mr. Dance, Mr. Glennie, and I, were deputed to takecharge of a large party of midshipmen, who had not been able before totake a run on shore, to spend the day on Cocoa-nut Island, which lies agood way up the harbour, and within the reef of Pernambuco. As we sailedalong the rock, we observed that it is covered with echini, polypii, barnacles, limpets, and crusted with white bivalves less than oysters orcockles, yet containing a fish not unlike the latter in appearance, andthe former in flavour. We had not exactly calculated the effect of thetide so far up the harbour as Cocoa-nut Island, consequently we gotaground in the outer channel, at a considerable distance from the shore. The sailors pushed me over one flat bank in the gig, and then carried meto the beach; the midshipmen waded, and the officers and boats with thecrews, went in search of a deeper passage, where they might approachwith our provisions. Meantime the boys and I had full leisure to examinethe island. It is perfectly flat and covered with white sand; the shorescattered with fragments of shells and coral. As its name imports, it isone grove of cocoa-nut trees, excepting where the present occupant hascleared space for a market-garden and fishponds. These last are veryextensive; and as they secure a supply of fish at times when the roughseas of the outer roads prevent the canoes from going out, they haveanswered extremely well to the speculator. The garden produces Europeanas well as Brazilian vegetables, in great perfection: Fruit-trees alsothrive very well. [58] In the cuts for the fishponds I observed belowthe sand, a rich black earth, full of decayed vegetables, which probablyrenders this apparently sandy land, so fertile. The ponds were halfcovered with the white water-lily, and some other aquatic plants of thecountry. The whole island abounds in gay shrubs and gaudy flowers[59], where the humming-bird, here called the _beja flor_ or kiss-flower, withhis sapphire wings and ruby crest, hovers continually, and the paintedbutterflies vie with him and his flowers in tints and beauty. The veryreptiles are beautiful here. The snake and the lizard are singularly so, at least in colour. We found a very large rough caterpillar, each hairor prickle of which is divided into five or six branches; the rings ofits body are scarlet, yellow, and brown; and the country people believethat it hurts the udders of cows, and prevents their giving milk, if itdoes not actually suck them. They are therefore very unpopular here, because the whole island that is not garden-ground is pasture, andsupplies a great deal of the milk for the market of Recife. 

[Note 58: All the orange and lemon tribe, papaws, cashew nuts, melons and gourds, pomegranates, guavas, &c. ]

[Note 59: The Madagascar perriwinkle is the most common, manyparasitic plants, and almost all the papilionaceous and the bell-shapedcreepers: the passion flowers also are common. ]

While we were endeavouring to forget our hunger by examining the island, and drinking cocoa-nut juice, and wondering at many an ordinary thing, though new to young untravelled eyes, and such were those of most of theparty, our boats were taking a circuitous track, and at length at teno'clock landed our provisions, when we made a hearty breakfast, sittingon a sail spread under the palm shade. The elder boys with their guns, then accompanied Mr. Dance and the captain of a merchant vessel, whovolunteered to act as Cicerone, to shoot; and the younger ones staidwith me to collect flowers, gather vegetables, and with the assistanceof the boats' crews, to superintend the preparations for dinner. At fouro'clock the sportsmen returned, bringing red-crested woodpeckers, finches of various hues, humming-birds, black and yellow pies, andothers of gay plumage and delicate shape, quite new to us all. A merrierparty certainly never met, but the best of the expedition was to come. The tide was now favourable; and we determined to do a spirited thing, and instead of going all the way down the harbour, which would havekept us out beyond the time allowed us, we ran through a passage in thereef called Mother Cary's passage, because few things but the birdsthink of swimming there. The merchant-boat went first, our gig next, andas I sat in the stern of the large boat that was to follow, it wasbeautiful, but something fearful, to see them dash through that boilingsurf between the rocks and rise over the wave secure beyond it, nor wasthe sensation less mixed when we followed. There is at all timessomething triumphant in the sensation of sailing over the waters; butwhen they are roughened by storms, or rendered fearful by rocks orshoals, the triumph approaches to the sublime, and in it there is asecret dread, though not of ocean, and a raising of the soul to him whomade the ocean, and gave man mind to master it. I am not ashamed to own, that as I looked round on my young charge, when Mr. Dance whispered "sitstill and say nothing, " and then stepping to the bow of the boat calledaloud to the helmsman, "steady!" I had a moment, though but a moment, ofexquisite anxiety. But we were through in an instant, and soon alongsideof the frigate, where we were praised for doing what few had donebefore, and having shown the possibility of doing that safely, which atsome future time it might be of importance to know could be done at all. 

_Wednesday, 10th. _--We went on shore early for the first time since thearmistice. The guns are removed from the streets and a few of the shopsare re-opened; the negroes are no longer confined within doors, and thepriests have reappeared; their broad hats and ample cloaks give them animportance among the crowd, which now is busy and active, and seeminglyintent on redeeming the time lost to trade by the siege. I was struck bythe great preponderance of the black population. By the last census, thepopulation of Pernambuco, including Olinda was seventy thousand, ofwhich not above one third are white: the rest are mulatto or negro. Themulattoes are, generally speaking, more active, more industrious, andmore lively than either of the other classes. They have amassed greatfortunes, in many instances, and are far from being backward inpromoting the cause of independence in Brazil. Few even of the freenegroes have become very rich. A free negro, when his shop or garden hasrepaid his care, by clothing him and his wife each in a handsome blackdress, with necklace and armlets for the lady, and knee and shoe bucklesof gold, to set off his own silk stockings, seldom toils much more, butis quite contented with daily food. Many, of all colours, when they canafford to purchase a negro, sit down exempt from further care. They makethe negro work for them, or beg for them, and so as they may eat theirbread in quiet, care little how it is obtained. 

The European Portuguese, are extremely anxious to avoid intermarriagewith born Brazilians, and prefer giving their daughters and fortunes tothe meanest clerk of European birth, rather than to the richest and mostmeritorious Brazilian. They have become aware of the prodigiousinconvenience, if not evil, they have brought on themselves by theimportation of Africans, and now no doubt, look forward with dread tothe event of a revolution, which will free their slaves from theirauthority, and, by declaring them all men alike, will authorise them toresent the injuries they have so long and patiently borne. 

_Thursday, 11th. _--As every thing seems quietly settled between theroyalist and patriot chiefs, we are preparing to take leave ofPernambuco, and it is not without regret, for we have been kindlytreated by the Portuguese, and hospitably received by our owncountrymen. We went on shore to provide necessaries and comforts for ourfarther voyage. Among the latter I bought some excellent sweetmeats[60], which are made in the interior, and brought to market in neat littlewooden kegs, each containing six or eight pounds. It is astonishing tosee the weight brought from two and three hundred miles' distance, bythe small and slight but very swift horses of the country. The baggagehorses are not shod any more than those for riding: the latter arealmost universally trained to a kind of running pace, easy in itself, but not very agreeable at first, to those accustomed to English horses. To-day I saw and tasted the jerked beef, _charqui_, of Spanish SouthAmerica. It appears, when hanging in bales at the shop-doors, likebundles of thick ragged leather. It is prepared by cutting the flesh inwide strips, clean off the bones, slightly salting, pressing, and dryingin the air. In this state it might well have served for saddle-cloths tothe Buccaneers, as tradition says they dressed their meat under theirsaddles. However that may be, the beef is good. Here the common mode ofusing it is to cut it in small squares, and boil it in the mandiocpottage, which is the principal food of the poorer inhabitants and theslaves. 

[Note 60: The convents are, generally speaking, the places where themore delicate preserves are made. Those I bought were of Guava, cashewapple, citron, and lime. The cashew particularly good. They go by thegeneral name of _Doce_. ]

After I had ended my marketing, I went to call on a Portuguese family, and as it was the first private Portuguese house I had been in, I wascurious to notice the difference between it and the English houses here. The building and general disposition of the apartments are the same, andthe drawing-room only differed in being better furnished, and with everyarticle English, even to a handsome piano of Broadwood's; but thedining-room was completely foreign; the floor was covered with paintedcloth, and the walls hung round with English prints and Chinesepictures, without distinction of subject or size. At one end of the roomwas a long table, covered with a glass case, enclosing a large piece ofreligious wax-work; the whole _præsepia_, ministering angels, threekings, and all, with moss, artificial flowers, shells and beads, smothered in gauze and tiffany, bespangled with gold and silver, SanAntonio and St. Christopher being in attendance on the right and left;the rest of the furniture consisted of ordinary chairs and tables, and akind of beaufet or sideboard: from the ceiling, nine bird-cages werehanging, each with its little inhabitant; canaries, grey finches with anote almost as fine, and the beautiful widow-bird, were the favourites. In larger cages in a passage room, there were more parrots and paroquetsthan I should have thought agreeable in one house; but they arewell-bred birds, and seldom scream all together. We were no soonerseated in the dining-room, than biscuit, cake, wine, and liqueurs, werehanded round, the latter in diminutive tumblers; a glass of water wasthen offered to each, and we were pressed to taste it, as being the verybest in Recife; it proceeds from a spring in the garden of the conventof Jerusalem, two miles from town, and the only conduit from that springleads to the garden of a sister convent here. From the lady, I learned, that the porous jars for cooling water, that we find here, are all madein the neighbourhood of Bahia, there being no manufactory here, except afew coarse cottons for clothing for the slaves. The air and manners ofthe family we visited, though neither English nor French, were perfectlywell bred, and the dress pretty much that of civilised Europe, only thatthe men wore cotton jackets instead of cloth coats, and were withoutneck-cloths; when they go out of doors, however, they dress likeEnglishmen. 

Returning from our visit, we met a monk, carried out to be buried byseveral of his brethren, with candle, book, and bell, and all thesolemnities which human feeling has invented to solace its own fears andgriefs, under the pretence of honouring the dead, and to which theRomish church has in such cases as these, added all her pageantry. Icould not help contrasting it with the burials on the beach of Olinda, and smiling at the vanities that attach themselves even to corruption. "But man, vain man, plays such fantastic tricks before high heaven, asmake the angels weep. "

But our horses were awaiting us, and we left our indignation and ourpity for the follies of some, and the miseries of others, to enjoy, forthe first time since the posts were free, the country air. When we wentto Bibiriba, soldiers stopped us to question at every turn; piles ofarms, and horses ready accoutred at the door of every considerableresidence, showed that military posts had taken place of the pleasuresof the country-houses, and accounted for the solitariness of the roads. Now the scene is changed--the paths are crowded with negroes, young andold, in their picturesque, though gaudy dresses, with baskets of fruit, fish, and other provisions, on their heads; little carts, of which wehad not before seen one, begin to appear, and the fine oxen which drawthem form no bad contrast to the half-starved bullocks of the town. 'Twas a cool evening, and the sun was just low enough to gild the edgesof the palms and other tall trees, which shot up with their deep blackshadows into the thin pure light, making an effect, that even Titian'slandscape pencil has not reached. Our ride extended to Mr. S. 'scountry-house, which is, I believe, on the same plan with all the othershereabouts, and which I can only compare to an Oriental bungalow; onestory very commodiously laid out, a veranda surrounding it, and standingin the midst of a little paddock, part of which is garden ground, andpart pasture, generally hedged with limes and roses, and shaded withfruit trees, is the general description of the country sitios aboutPernambuco; the difference arising from the taste of the inhabitant, orthe situation of the ground, being allowed for. The low rent of thesepleasant little gardens is surprising; but it arises in great measurefrom the indolence and consequent poverty of the holders of originalgrants of land here: as long as their negroes and estates maintainedthem, they paid no attention to the particular parts that, being nearthe town, might have been at all times productive. Now, that sugar andcotton are no longer in such demand, nearly half the fazendas orfactories are ruined, and such is become the indolent temper of thepeople, that rather than seek to redeem their estates, they will takethe smallest annuity for a portion. 

On our way to the sitio, we stopped at a kind of public-house or venta;it is like an English huckster's, and contains a little of every thing, cloth and candles, fruit and lard, wine and pimento, which are retailedat no very extravagant profit to the poor; the draught wine is reallygood, being port of excellent quality, without the quantity of brandywhich the English market requires. By the time we repassed it on our wayhome, many a negro was spending his day's savings, and becoming as happyas wine could make him; and many a traveller was regaling himself withbread, garlic, and salt, and preparing to spread his mat, and lie downin the open air for the night. Night within the tropics is always agayer and more peopled time than with us; the heat of the day detainsmany within doors all day, and evening and night become the favouritehours for walking. As we returned through Boa Vista we passed manygroups enjoying like ourselves the pleasant air, and gazing idly on thereflections of the white houses and waving trees in the water; while thefire flies flitting from bush to bush, seemed like fragments of starscome down to adorn the moonlight. 

_Friday, 12th. _--- The Prince Royal of Portugal's birth-day. There is alevee at the palace. The company bow first to the governor, then to thePrince's picture, which is placed in the middle of the audience-room, toreceive its due honours; and then the _beja mano_, or kiss hands, takesplace. The forts and ships saluted; we of course did the same; and thepeople all dressed and went to mass, as on a holiday. One thingcontributed, however, in no small degree to the enjoyment of the day. The troops, which lately arrived from Bahia, re-embarked in order toreturn. Their whole behaviour had been disorderly, and their drunkennessand riot, during the ten days they were here, had quite disgusted thepeople; while the disposition they manifested to join the patriots, hadrendered them but suspicious auxiliaries to the governor. 

_Saturday, 13th. _--I took leave of my amiable friends at the palace. Madame do Rego gave me several specimens of amethyst, and the stonecalled minha nova (like aqua marine), and also a fine piece of gold oreof the province. She told me that Luiz do Rego had sent home many fineminerals from the captaincy, and also some fossils. She described someenormous bones, which may have belonged to the elephant or the mammoth, found at no great distance from Recife in digging a well, and, as far asI could understand, in such soil as I had observed lay under the sand inCocoa-nut Island. [61]

[Note 61: The Sugar-loaf Hill, in the ridge of Priaca, about eightleagues N. E. Of the villa of Penedo, has a lake on its westerndeclivity, where enormous bones have been found; and on the north sidethere is a fearful cavern. --_Chor. Brazil. _]

A great dinner was given to-day, by the merchants, to the captain andofficers. The governor, and other persons of dignity in the town, metthem; I am told it was a very handsome dinner, that there was plenty ofevery kind of wine, and that nothing could exceed the friendlypoliteness of the governor and his party. I had remained at Mr. S. 's, where most of the company visited me after tea; and then we took leaveof Pernambuco, where we had received much kindness, and had at least theenjoyment of novelty. The scene at our embarking was very pretty. Ourfriends went with us to the jetty, and our boats lying in the clearmoonshine beneath it, with sailors going up and down preparing for us, the harbour and the shipping doubled by the clear reflection in thestill water, heightened and set off the sparkling of the breakers thatdashed against the outer fort and light-house. Through these we soonmade our way and reached the ship, where I have once more takenpossession of my cabin, and put it in order for sea. 

We leave Pernambuco, with a firm persuasion that this part of Brazil atleast will never again tamely submit to Portugal. Where the firmness andconduct of Do Rego have failed to hold the captaincy in obedience, itwill be in vain for other governors to attempt it, particularly so longas the state of the mother country is such as that she can neither fightwith nor for her colonies; and while she considers them only as taxableparts of her states, that are bound to support her in her weakness. [62]

[Illustration]

[Note 62: We left Pernambuco on the 14th Oct. 1821. Before Nov. 18thof the same year, the Cortes of Lisbon had recalled Luiz do Rego and allthe European troops; had repented of that recal, and had countermandedit, and sent reinforcements. But by the time they arrived, thecaptain-general had embarked on board a French ship for Europe; and thejunta, after provisioning the ships with the troops, forbid them toland, and sent them towards Rio Janeiro. ]

_Sunday, Oct. 14th. _--We got under weigh after breakfast, and soon lostsight of Pernambuco. All Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, we coasted alongwithin sight of the shores of Brazil. They are hilly and very woody, thegreen of the sloping banks being often interrupted by bright whitepatches, which seem to be of sand. In the evening of Tuesday the 16th, we anchored in the bay of All Saints, opposite to the town of St. Salvador, commonly called Bahia. It was quite dark before we got in, sothat we lost the first entrance-view of that magnificent harbour; butthe scattered lights show us the great extent and high situation of thetown. 

_Wednesday, 17th. _--This morning, at day-break, my eyes opened on one ofthe finest scenes they ever beheld. A city, magnificent in appearancefrom the sea, is placed along the ridge and on the declivity of a veryhigh and steep hill: the richest vegetation breaks through the whitehouses at intervals, and beyond the city, reaches along to the outerpoint of land on which the picturesque church and convent of SantAntonio da Barre is placed. Here and there the bright red soil showsitself in harmony with the tiling of the houses. The _tracery_ of forts, the bustle of shipping, hills melting in the distance, and the very formof the bay, with its promontories and islands, altogether finish thischarming picture; then the fresh sea-breeze gives spirit to enjoy it, notwithstanding its tropical climate. 

Early in the day we moved our anchorage closer in-shore; and then, onthe invitation of Mr. Pennell, the British consul, we went ashore tospend the day with him. We landed at the arsenal, or rather dock-yard, where there is nothing of the neatness observable in such establishmentsat home. The first object we saw, however, was a fine 58-gun frigate onthe stocks, the model of which I hear connoisseurs praise as beautiful. There is nothing besides the new ship, and some handsome pieces of oldbrass cannon, worth looking at. Every thing is visibly either suspendedor on the decline, and there will probably be no improvement, until thepolitical state of Brazil is a little more settled. We find things here, though not quite so unquiet as at Pernambuco, yet tending the same way. 

The street into which we proceeded through the arsenal gate, forms, atthis place, the breadth of the whole lower town of Bahia, and is, without any exception, the filthiest place I ever was in. It isextremely narrow, yet all the working artificers bring their benches, and tools into the street: in the interstices between them, along thewalls, are fruit-sellers, venders of sausages, black-puddings, friedfish, oil and sugar cakes, negroes plaiting hats or mats, caderas, (akind of sedan chair, ) with their bearers, dogs, pigs, and poultry, without partition or distinction; and as the gutter runs in the middleof the street, every thing is thrown there from the different stalls, aswell as from the windows; and there the animals live and feed! In thisstreet are the warehouses and counting-houses of the merchants, bothnative and foreign. The buildings are high, but neither so handsome norso airy as those of Pernambuco. 

It was raining when we landed; therefore, as the streets leading out ofthe filthy lower town do not admit of the use of wheeled carriages, onaccount of the steepness of the ascent, we hired caderas, and foundthem, if not comfortable, at least commodious. They consist of a canearm-chair, with a foot-board and a canopy covered with leather;curtains, generally of moreen, with gilt bordering and lined with cottonor linen, are contrived to draw round, or open at pleasure; and thewhole is slung by the top to a single pole, by which two negroes carryit at a quick pace upon their shoulders, changing occasionally fromright to left. [63]

[Illustration]

[Note 63: When Frezier travelled, a cotton hammock with a canopy wasused. ]

As we ascended from the street, every step brought us in sight of somebeautiful scene, generally terminated by the bay and shipping. There issomething in the landscape here peculiarly agreeable. The verdure, thewood, the steep banks, and gently sloping lawns, generally opening tothe sea or the lake behind the town, have a freshness and amenity that Iscarcely remember seeing before. We saw but little of the upper city, but that little was handsome, in our way to the consul's. His house, like those of all the British merchants, is a little way out of town, and is in the suburb Vittoria, which occupies the greater part of a longnarrow ridge extending from the town towards Sant Antonio: between itand the town is Fort Pedro, built, I think, originally of mud, by theDutch. It was faced with stone, on the recovery of Bahia from the Dutch, about the beginning of the last century. We found the Consul and hisdaughter ready to receive us at their very pleasant garden-house, whichliterally overhangs the bay, --flowers and fruits mingle their sweetseven down to the water's edge, --while

 "Seaborn gales their gelid wings expand, To winnow fragrance round the smiling land. "

Eager to seize the opportunity of walking out after our voyage, weaccepted Miss Pennell's kind offer, to show us some of the surroundingcountry before dinner, and accompanied her as far as the churchdedicated to N. S. Da Graça. It was the first offering of piety, Ibelieve, to Christian worship by a native Brazilian. 

When the famous Caramuru was wrecked, together with the DonatoryCoutinho, on Itaparica, Coutinho was put to death; but, Caramuru, beingbeloved by the natives, was spared, and he returned to his oldsettlement of Villa Velha. His wife, Catherine Paraguaza, who hadaccompanied him to France, saw an apparition in the camp of the Indians, and believing it to be a real European female, Caramuru followed in thedirection his wife pointed out: he discovered, accordingly, in one ofthe huts, an image of N. S. Da Graça; and according to the directions hiswife had received from the vision, built and dedicated the church, andbestowed it, and a house by it, on the Benedictines. It was at firstof mud, but soon after was built of stone. 

[Illustration]

_Thursday, 18th. _--We rode out before breakfast, through landscape sofine, that I wished for a poet or a painter at every step. Sometimes wewent through thick wild wood into bushy hollows; then emerged on clearlawns, sprinkled with palm trees, through which country-houses, farms, and gardens were seen; and from every eminence, the bay, the sea, or thelake, formed part of the scene. Here and there the huge gamela tree[64]stands like a tower, adorned, besides its own leaves, with numberlessparasite plants, from the stiff cactus, to the swinging air plant[65];and the frequent tower of church and monastery soften and improve thefeatures of the country. 

[Note 64: The gamela, like the banyan, easily takes root in othertrees, and its branches meet together in the same manner. It is the treeof which the canoes of Brazil are made, and serves besides for troughsof various kinds. ]

[Note 65: Air-plant or Tillandsia, of which there are several sorts. The Tillandsia Lingulata is the largest, and agrees with Jaquin's plate;the others are different from those described by him, and are much morebeautiful. ]. 

Mr. Pennell has most kindly given our young men a general invitation tohis house; and accordingly, to-day several of them dined with him, andwe had a party in the evening, when some of the ladies playedquadrilles, while others danced. 

_Friday, 19th. _--I accompanied Miss Pennell in a tour of visits to herPortuguese friends. As it is not their custom to visit or be visited inthe forenoon, it was hardly fair to take a stranger to see them. However, my curiosity, at least, was gratified. In the first place, thehouses, for the most part, are disgustingly dirty: the lower storyusually consists of cells for the slaves, stabling &c. ; the staircasesare narrow and dark; and, at more than one house, we waited in a passagewhile the servants ran to open the doors and windows of thesitting-rooms, and to call their mistresses, who were enjoying theirundress in their own apartments. When they appeared, I could scarcelybelieve that one half were gentlewomen. As they wear neither stay norbodice, the figure becomes almost indecently slovenly, after very earlyyouth; and this is the more disgusting, as they are very thinly clad, wear no neck-handkerchiefs, and scarcely any sleeves. Then, in this hotclimate, it is unpleasant to see dark cottons and stuffs, without anywhite linen, near the skin. Hair black, ill combed, and dishevelled, orknotted unbecomingly, or still worse, _en papillote_, and the wholeperson having an unwashed appearance. When at any of the houses thebustle of opening the cobwebbed windows, and assembling the family wasover, in two or three instances, the servants had to remove dishes ofsugar, mandioc, and other provisions, which had been left in the bestrooms to dry. There is usually a sofa at each end of the room, and tothe right and left a long file of chairs, which look as if they nevercould be moved out of their place. Between the two sets of seats is aspace, which, I am told, is often used for dancing; and, in every house, I saw either a guitar or piano, and generally both. Prints and pictures, the latter the worst daubs I ever saw, decorate the walls prettygenerally; and there are, besides, crucifixes and other things of thekind. Some houses, however, are more neatly arranged; one, I thinkbelonging to a captain of the navy, was papered, the floors laid withmat, and the tables ornamented with pretty porcelain, Indian and French:the lady too was neatly dressed in a French wrapper. Another housebelonging to one of the judges was also clean, and of a more statelyappearance than the rest, though the inhabitant was neither richer norof higher rank. Glass chandeliers were suspended from the roof; handsomemirrors were intermixed with the prints and pictures. A good deal ofhandsome china was displayed round the room; but the jars, as well asthe chairs and tables, seemed to form an inseparable part of the walls. We were every where invited, after sitting a few moments on the sofa, togo to the balconies of the windows and enjoy the view and the breeze, orat least amuse ourselves with what was passing in the street. And yetthey did not lack conversation: the principal topic, however, was praiseof the beauty of Bahia; dress, children, and diseases, I think, made upthe rest; and, to say the truth, their manner of talking on the lattersubject is as disgusting as their dress, that is, in a morning: I amtold they are different after dinner. They marry very early, and soonlose their bloom. I did not see one tolerably pretty woman to-day. Butthen who is there that can bear so total a disguise as filth anduntidiness spread over a woman?

_Saturday, 20th. _--As the charts of this coast hitherto published arevery incorrect, the captain asked permission from government to soundand survey the bay: it is refused on the ground of policy; as if itcould be policy to keep hidden rocks and shoals, for one's own as wellas other people's ships. 

I walked through the greater part of the town. The lower part extendsmuch farther than I could see the day I landed; it contains a fewchurches, one of which, belonging to the monastery of _A concepçaô_, isvery handsome, but the smell within is disgusting; the flooring is laidin squares with stone, and within each square there is a panelling ofwood of about nine feet by six; under each panel is a vault, into whichthe dead are thrown naked, until they reach a certain number, when witha little quick-lime thrown in, the wood is fastened down, and thenanother square is opened, and so on in rotation. From that church, passing the arsenal gate, we went along the low street, and found itwiden considerably at three quarters of a mile beyond: there are themarkets, which seem to be admirably supplied, especially with fish. There also is the slave market, a sight I have not yet learned to seewithout shame and indignation[66]: beyond are a set of arcades, wheregoldsmiths, jewellers, and haberdashers display their small wares, andthere are the best-looking shops; but there is a want of neatness, ofthat art of making things look well, that invites a buyer in England andFrance. One bookseller's shop, where books are extravagantly dear, exists in the low town, and one other in the ascent to the upper. 

[Note 66: Frezier says of Bahia, "Who would believe it? there areshops full of those poor wretches, who are exposed there stark naked andbought like cattle, over whom the buyers have the same power; so thatupon slight disgust they may kill them, almost without fear ofpunishment, or at least treat them as cruelly as they please. I know nothow such barbarity can be reconciled to the maxims of religion, whichmakes them members of the same body with the whites, when they have beenbaptized, and raises them to the dignity of the sons of God--_all sonsof the Most High_. 

"I here make this comparison, because the Portuguese are Christians whomake a great outward show of religion. "--_Voyage to the South Sea_. ]

The upper town is most beautifully situated on the ridge between the seaand the fresh water lake, and from its height, and the great slope ofmost of the streets, it is incomparably cleaner than the port. Thecathedral dedicated to St. Salvador is a handsome building, and standson one side of a square, where the palace, prison, and other publicbuildings are placed. The finest of these, the Jesuits' college, themarble columns of which came from Europe ready cut, is now convertedinto a barrack. The most useful is the hospital of Nossa Senhora daMisericordia[67], founded by Juan de Matinhos, whose statue in whitemarble, with a wig like Sir Cloudesley Shovel's in Westminster Abbey, stands at the first landing-place, and is the ugliest piece of carving Iever saw. 

[Note 67: Part of the funds for supporting this and other hospitalsis derived from lotteries. See advertisements in the different Bahianewspapers. ]

This hospital, besides its use as a refuge for the sick, of whom thereare generally about 120, maintains 50 young girls of decent parentage, to whom a suitable education is given, and a dowry of 200 crownsbestowed on them when they marry. [68] The building of the Misericordiais a fair specimen of the style of the convents, public buildings, andmore noble houses, --rather handsome than elegant. It surrounds a largearea, subdivided into smaller courts; the staircase is of marble, inlaidwith coloured stucco, and the sides are lined with tiles of porcelain, so as to form arabesques, often of very pretty design. This is both acool and a cleanly lining to a wall, particularly for an hospital. Theprincipal rooms are also decorated in the same manner; and many of thefronts and cupolas of the churches are covered with similar tiles, theeffect of which is often exceedingly agreeable, when seen among thetrees and plainer buildings of the city. The chapel belonging to thehospital is handsome, a little gaudy, however. The ceiling isrespectably painted, and was probably the work of an amateur monk ofthe seventeenth century. The treatment of the sick is humane, and theyare well provided with food and other necessaries; but the medicalpractice, though much improved of late years, is not the mostenlightened. 

[Note 68: Joaõ de Matos Aguiar, commonly called Joaõ de Matinhos, from his diminutive size, was the founder of this Recolhimento. Hebequeathed 800, 000 crusadoes for the retired women, 400, 000 for thepatients, one to each on leaving the hospital, and 400, 000, dowry to 38girls every year, at the period of the foundation, 1716. ]

There is a great deal of jealousy of foreigners in the presentgovernment, hence I was not able to enter many of the public buildings. The government treasury was one I was desirous to see, but there wereobjections. The treasury here was formerly considered as subordinate tothat of Rio de Janeiro, and accordingly paid a portion of its receiptsto bills drawn monthly by the treasurer in the capital, upon this, andthose of the other provinces. But since the revolution of the 10th ofFebruary, the provisional government has taken upon itself to refusepayment, on the grounds that it is entirely independent of Rio, untilthe pleasure of the cortes at Lisbon shall be known. The revenue isderived from direct taxes on land and provisions, excise upon exportsand imports, and harbour dues. Land is subject to a tax of one-tenth ofthe whole of its produce, and since the revolution, church lands areunder the same law, and the clergy are paid by the government. 

The taxes on provisions are annually farmed out to the highest bidder:they are imposed on beef, fresh fish, farinha, and vegetables. Eachparish has its separate farmer, who pays the amount of his contract intothe treasury, and then makes the most he can of his dues. 

The import and export duties are paid at the custom-house, between whichand the treasury a monthly settlement takes place. 

The port dues for foreign ships are 2000 reals per day, a trifle for thelight house, and rather heavy charges for entering, clearing, &c. Portuguese and Brazilian ships pay no anchorage, but are subject to atonnage. 

We ended our perambulation of the town, by going to the opera at night. The theatre[69] is placed on the highest part of the city, and theplatform before it commands the finest view imaginable. It is a handsomebuilding, and very commodious, both to spectators and actors. Within itis very large and well laid out, but dirty and in great want of freshpainting. The actors are very bad as such, and little better as singers;but the orchestra is very tolerable. The piece was a very ill-actedtragedy, founded on Voltaire's Mahomed. During the representation, thePortuguese ladies and gentlemen seemed determined to forget the stagealtogether, and to laugh, eat sweetmeats, and drink coffee, as if athome. When the musicians, however, began to play the overture to theballet, every eye and voice was directed to the stage, and a loud callfor the national hymn followed, and not till it had been played againand again, was the ballet suffered to proceed. During the bustleoccasioned by this, a captain in the army was arrested and hurried outof the pit; some say for picking pockets, others for using intemperatelanguage on politics, when the national hymn was called for. Meantimeone of the midshipmen of our party had his sword stolen, adroitlyenough, from the corner of the box, yet we perceived nobody enter; sothat we conclude a gentleman in regimentals in the next box thought itwould suit him, and so buckled it on to go home with. 

[Note 69: It was begun by the Conde da Ponte, and finished by theConde dos Arcos after the arrival of the king in Brazil. It was openedMay 13th, 1812. ]

The police here is in a wretched state. The use of the dagger is sofrequent, that the secret murders generally average two hundred yearly, between the upper and lower towns. To this evil the darkness andsteepness of the streets mainly contribute, by furnishing almost acertainty of escape. The nominal _intendente da policia_ is also thesupreme judge in criminal cases. No law, however, has as yet determinedthe limits or scope, either of his power, or that of thelieutenant-colonel of police, who calls upon a few soldiers from any ofthe garrisons whenever he has to act, and who appoints military patrolesalso from among the soldiers on duty. It often happens that personsaccused before this formidable officer are seized and imprisoned foryears, without ever being brought to a trial; a malicious information, whether true or false, subjects a man's private house to be broken openby the colonel and his gang; and if the master escapes imprisonment itis well, though the house scarcely ever escapes pillage. In cases ofriot and quarrels in the street, the colonel generally orders thesoldiers to fall on with canes, and beat people into their senses. Suchbeing the state of the police, it is, perhaps, more wonderful thatmurders are so few, than that they are so many. Where there is little orno public justice, private revenge will take its place. 

_Sunday, 21st. _--We went to the English chapel, and were well pleasedwith the decent manner in which the service was performed. The Rev. Robert Synge is chaplain, a man of cheerful convivial manners, yetexceedingly attentive both as chaplain, and as guardian of his poorercountrymen. The chapel and clergymen are supported by the contributionfund, as are also the hospital for English sailors and others, and itssurgeon, Mr. Dundas: both the hospital and chapel are under the sameroof. I was surprised, perhaps unreasonably, to hear Mr. Synge pray for"Don John of Portugal, Sovereign of these realms, by whose graciouspermission we are enabled to meet and worship God according to ourconscience, " or words to that effect. We were not so polite in Rome, Iremember, as to pray for His Holiness, though it would have been butreasonable. 

Returning from chapel, we saw great part of the troops drawn up ininspecting order, on the little green between _Buenos Ayres_ (the nameof the hospital) and Fort Pedro. Every Portuguese is, it seems, by birtha soldier; and nothing exempts a man from military duty, but his holdinga place under government. There are six corps of militia in the city ofBahia: 1st, one company of mounted gentlemen, forming the governmentguard of honour; 2d, one squadron of flying artillery; 3d and 4th, tworegiments of whites, almost all tradespeople; 5th, one regiment ofmulatoes; and 6th, one of free blacks, amounting altogether to 4000 men, well armed and equipped; but the black regiment is unquestionably thebest trained, and most serviceable, as a light infantry corps. Theregiments of country militia, as those of Cachoeira, Piraja, &c. Are muchstronger, and with those of the city, amount to about 15, 000 men. Theofficers are chosen from among the most respectable families, and withthe exception of the majors and adjutants, who are of the line, receiveno pay. 

The troops of the capital are generally reviewed or inspected onSundays, and sometimes the regular Portuguese are reviewed with them. There is always something gay and inspiriting in martial sounds andmartial sights; and the fine weather, gay landscape, and above all, theidea that in a day or two, nay, this very night, these same soldiersmight be called into action, did not render the scene less interesting. The native artillery have long garrisoned some of the forts. It appearsthat the royal troops of Portugal have claimed some superiority, andabove all, have demanded their guns and ammunition; and so there is adispute, in which the royalists and independents take part, and everyday hostilities are expected; but both parties seem so willing to bepeaceable, that I trust the matter will end without bloodshed. 

_Monday, 22d. _--This evening there was a large party, both Portugueseand English, at the consul's. In the well-dressed women I saw to-night, I had great difficulty in recognising the slatterns of the othermorning. The senhoras were all dressed after the French fashion: corset, fichu, garniture, all was proper, and even elegant, and there was agreat display of jewels. Our English ladies, though quite of the secondrate of even colonial gentility, however, bore away the prize of beautyand grace; for after all, the clothes, however elegant, that are notworn habitually, can only embarrass and cramp the native movements; and, as Mademoiselle Clairon remarks, "she who would _act_ a gentlewoman inpublic, must _be_ one in private life. "

The Portuguese men have all a mean look; none appear to have anyeducation beyond counting-house forms, and their whole time is, Ibelieve, spent between trade and gambling: in the latter, the ladiespartake largely after they are married. Before that happy period, whenthere is no evening dance, they surround the card tables, and with eagereyes follow the game, and long for the time when they too may mingle init. I scarcely wonder at this propensity. Without education, andconsequently without the resources of mind, and in a climate whereexercise out of doors is all but impossible, a stimulus must be had; andgambling, from the sage to the savage, has always been resorted to, toquicken the current of life. On the present occasion, we feared theyoung people would have been disappointed of their dance, because thefiddlers, after waiting some time, went away, as they alleged, becausethey had not their tea early enough; however, some of the ladiesvolunteered to play the piano, and the ball lasted till past midnight. 

_Tuesday, 23d. _--I rode with Mr. Dance and Mr. Ricken along the banks ofthe lake, decidedly the most beautiful scenery in this beautifulcountry; and then through wild groves, where all the splendours ofBrazilian animal and vegetable life were displayed. The gaudy plumage ofthe birds, the brilliant hues of the insects, the size, and shape, andcolour, and fragrance, of the flowers and shrubs, seen mostly for thefirst time, enchanted us, and rendered our little journey to the greatpepper gardens, whither we were going, delightful. Every hedge is atthis season gay with coffee blossom, but it is too early in the year forthe pepper or the cotton to be in beauty. It is not many years sinceFrancisco da Cunha and Menezes sent the pepper plant from Goa for thesegardens, which were afterwards enlarged by him, when he became governorof Bahia. Plants were sent from hence to Pernambuco, which havesucceeded in the botanical garden. 

From the pepper gardens we rode on to a convent at the farther extremityof the town, and overlooking both the bays, above and below thepeninsula of Bon fin, or N. S. Da Monserrat. It is called the Soledad, and the nuns are famous for their delicate sweetmeats, and for themanufacture of artificial flowers, formed of the feathers of themany-coloured birds of their country. I admired the white water-lilymost, though the pomegranate flower, the carnation, and the rose areimitated with the greatest exactness. The price of all these things isexorbitant; but the convents having lost much of their property sincethe revolution, the nuns are fain to make up by the produce of thispetty industry, for the privations imposed on them by the reduction oftheir rents. 

_Wednesday, October 24th. _--Mr. Pennell, his daughter, and a few otherfriends, joined us in an expedition to Itaparica[70], a large islandthat forms the western side of the Bay of All Saints. A shoal runs offfrom it a long way to sea, and there are reefs of coral rocks ondifferent parts of its coast. The distance from the city to the nearestlanding place on the island is five miles and a half, which our boats'crews rowed in less than two hours. We put in between two ledges ofrock, to a little jetty, belonging to the fazenda or factory of Aseoli, or Filisberti, both of whom were partners in Jerome Buonaparte'scommercial establishment here. There is no town on Itaparica; but thereis a villa, or village, with a fort on the Punto de Itaparica, whichcommands the passage between it and the main land, and also the mouth ofthe river, on which stands Nazareth da Farinha, so called from theabundance of that article which it produces. There are also a great manyfazendas, which, with their establishment of slaves and cattle, may beconsidered as so many hamlets. Each sugar farm, or ingenho, as thefazendas are oftener called here, has its little community of slavesaround it; and in their huts something like the blessings of freedom areenjoyed, in the family ties and charities they are not forbidden toenjoy. I went into several of the huts, and found them cleaner and morecomfortable than I expected; each contains four or five rooms, and eachroom appeared to hold a family. These out-of-door slaves, belonging tothe great ingenhos, in general are better off than the slaves of masterswhose condition is nearer to their own, because, "The more the master isremoved from us, in place and rank, the greater the liberty we enjoy;the less our actions are inspected and controuled; and the fainter thatcruel comparison becomes betwixt our own subjection, and the freedom, oreven dominion of another. " But, at best, the comforts of slaves must beprecarious. Here it is not uncommon to give a slave his freedom, when heis too old or too infirm to work; that is, to turn him out of doors tobeg or starve. A few days ago, as a party of gentlemen were returningfrom a _pic nic_, they found a poor negro woman lying in a dying state, by the side of the road. The English gentlemen applied to theirPortuguese companions to speak to her, and comfort her, as thinking shewould understand them better; but they said, "Oh, 'tis only a black: letus ride on, " and so they did without further notice. The poor creature, who was a dismissed slave, was carried to the English hospital, whereshe died in two days. Her diseases were age and hunger. [71] The slaves Isaw here working in the distillery, appear thin, and I should sayover-worked; but, I am told, that it is only in the distilling monthsthat they appear so, and that at other seasons they are as fat andcheerful as those in the city, which is saying a great deal. They have alittle church and burying-ground here, and as they see their little lotthe lot of all, are more contented than I thought a slave could be. 

[Note 70: _Itapa_ is the Indian name: the Portuguese termination, _Rica_, indicates the fertility of the island. On this island FrancescoPereira Coutinho, the first donatory, was killed by the savages. He hadfounded his city near the watering place called Villa Velha, by what isnow the fort of Gamboa, and not far from the habitation of theadventurer Caramuru. The first Christian settlement formed here was in1561, when the Jesuits founded an Aldea, and collected and humanisedsome of the natives. ]

[Note 71: "The custom of exposing old, useless, or sick slaves, inan island of the Tyber, there to starve, seems to have been prettycommon in Rome; and whoever recovered, after being so exposed, had hisliberty given him, by an edict of the Emperor Claudius; where it waslikewise forbid to _kill any slave, merely for old age orsickness_. "--"We may imagine what others would practise, when it was theprofessed maxim of the elder Cato, to sell his superannuated slaves forany price, rather than maintain a useless burden. "--_Discourses of thePopulousness of Ancient Nations_. ]

Sugar is the principal product of Itaparica; but the greater part of thepoultry, vegetables, and fruit, consumed in Bahia, are also from theisland, and lime is made here in considerable quantities from themadrepores and corals found on the beach. This island used to furnishthe neighbourhood with horses. When the English fleet and army stoppedhere, on the way to the Cape of Good Hope, the horses for the cavalryregiments were procured here. However, there is nothing remarkable inItaparica but its fertility; the landscape is the same in character withthat of Bahia, though in humbler style; but it is fresh and green, andpleasing. After dining in a palm-grove, and walking about till we weretired, we re-embarked to return; but the tide was unfavourable; wedrifted among the rocks, where Coutinho, the first founder of the colonyof Bahia, was wrecked and afterwards murdered by the natives, and wewere in consequence four hours in returning home. 

26th, 27th, 28th, passed in pleasant enough intercourse with ourcountrymen, though neither of us were well enough to go much on shore, therefore our friends came to us. There are eighteen English mercantilehouses established at Bahia, two French, and two German. The Englishtrade is principally carried on with Liverpool, which suppliesmanufactured goods and salt, in exchange for sugars, rums, tobaccos, cottons, very little coffee, and molasses. Lately, sugars have beenshipped, on English account, for Hamburgh to a great extent, and Ibelieve part of the returns are in German or Prussian woollen-cloths. The province of Bahia, by its neglect of manufactures, is quitedependent on commerce. But the distance from the sea of the province ofMinas Geraes, has induced the inhabitants to weave not only enoughcoarse cotton cloths for home consumption, but even to become an articleof trade with the other captaincies. 

In the province of Esperitu Santo, cotton sail-cloth is made; but thechief trade of this place is _slaving_. This year no less thanseventy-six slave-ships have sailed, without reckoning the smugglers inthat line. 

_Sunday, 28th. _--Mr. Pennell had kindly fixed to-day for giving us aparty in the country, and accordingly some of our young people were togo and assist in putting up tents, &c. ; but a miscalculation of tide andtime, and a mistake as to the practicability of landing on part of thebeach beyond the light-house, occasioned a variety of adventures andaccidents, without which I have always heard no fête champêtre could beperfect. However that may be, our party was a pleasant one. Instead ofthe tents, we made use of a country-house called the Roça, where beautyof situation, and neatness in itself and garden, made up for whatever wemight have thought romantic in the tents, had they been erected. It isthe fashion to pave the courts of the country-houses here with darkpebbles, and to form in the pavement a sort of mosaic with milk-whiteshells. The gardens are laid out in alleys, something in the orientaltaste. The millions of ants, which often in the course of a single nightleave the best-clothed orange-tree bare both of leaves and flowers, render it necessary to surround each tree with a little stucco wall, orrather canal, in which there is water, till they are strong enough torecover if attacked by the ants. In the garden at Roça, every shrub ofvalue, either for fruit or beauty, was so fenced, and there were seats, and water channels, and porcelain flower-pots, that made me almost thinkmyself in the East. But there is a newness in every thing here, a wantof interest on account of what has been, that is most sensibly felt. Atmost, we can only go back to the naked savage who devoured his prisoner, and adorned himself with bones and feathers here. In the East, imagination is at liberty to expatiate on past grandeur, wisdom, andpoliteness. Monuments of art and of science meet us at every step:_here_, every thing, nature herself, wears an air of newness, and theEuropeans, so evidently foreign to the climate, and their Africanslaves, repugnant to every wholesome feeling, show too plainly that theyare intruders, ever to be in harmony with the scene. However, Roça isbeautiful, and all those grave thoughts did not prevent us fromdelighting in the fair prospect of

 "Hill and valley, fountain and fresh shade;"

nor enjoying the scent of oleander, jasmine, tuberose, and rose, although they are adopted, not native children of the soil. 

Of the Portuguese society here I know so very little, that it would bepresumptuous to give an opinion of it. I have met with two or threewell-informed men of the world, and some lively conversable women; butnone of either sex that at all reminded me of the well-educated men andwomen of Europe. Here the state of general education is so low, thatmore than common talent and desire of knowledge is requisite to attainany; therefore the clever men are acute, and sometimes a little vain, feeling themselves so much above their fellow-citizens, and the portionof book-learning is small. Of those who read on political subjects, mostare disciples of Voltaire, and they outgo his doctrines on politics, andequal his indecency as to religion; hence to sober people who have seenthrough the European revolutions, their discourses are sometimesdisgusting. The Portuguese seldom dine with each other; when they do, itis on some great occasion, to justify a splendid feast: they meet everyevening either at the play, or in private houses, and in the last casegamble very deeply. The English society is just such as one may expect. A few merchants, not of the first order, whose thoughts are engrossed bysugars and cottons, to the utter exclusion of all public; matters thatdo not bear directly on their private trade, and of all matters ofgeneral science or information. Not one knew the name of the plantsaround his own door; not one is acquainted with the country ten milesbeyond St. Salvador's; not one could tell me even the situation of thefine red clay, of which the only manufacture, pottery, here is made: inshort, I was completely out of patience with these incuriousmoney-makers. I was perhaps unjust to my countrymen: I dare say thereare many who _could_ have told me these things, but I am sure none _did_tell me, and equally sure that I asked information of all I met with. But a woman is not, I believe, considered as privileged to know anything by these commercial personages. The English are, however, hospitable and sociable among each other. They often dine together: theladies love music and dancing, and some of the men gamble as much as thePortuguese. Upon the whole, society is at a low, very low scale hereamong the English. Good eating and good drinking they contrive, to have, for the flesh, fish, and fowl are good; fruits and vegetables variousand excellent, and bread of the finest. Their slaves, for the Englishare all served by slaves, indeed, eat a sort of porridge of mandioc mealwith small squares of jerked beef stirred into it, or, as their greatestluxury, stewed caravansas; and this is likewise the principal food ofthe lower classes even of the free inhabitants. In the fruit season, pumpkins, jackfruit, cocoa-nut, and melons, nearly take place of themandioc. The huts of the poor are formed of upright poles, with branchesof trees wattled between, and covered and lined either with cocoa-leafmats, or clay; the roofs are also thatched. The better houses are builteither of a fine blue stone, quarried on the beach of Victoria, or ofbrick. They are all white-washed: where the floor is not laid with wood, a fine red brick, six to nine inches square, and three in thickness, isused, and they are roofed with round red tiles. The houses are generallyof one story high, with a room or two above by way of a look-out house. Under the house is generally a sort of cellar, in which the slaves live;and really I have sometimes wondered that human beings could exist insuch. 

_Friday, 2d November. _--Several of our people having yielded to thetemptations of some worthless persons in the town, who induce sailors todesert in order that they themselves may profit by the premium given forthe discovery of deserters, and having consequently swam on shore, thefrigate has been moved up the harbour as far as Bom Fim, and it isintended to take her up still higher. I am glad of the opportunity ofseeing more of this beautiful bay, and shall endeavour to land on theIlha do Medo, or the point of Itaparica, where the first adventurersfrom Europe underwent hardship that appear hardly credible in our moderndays. We also wish to examine the harbour within the funil or passagebetween the two islands, and into which the river or creek of Nazareth, which supplies Bahia with great part of the mandioc flour consumedthere, runs. 

_Saturday, 3d November. _--Our plan of proceeding farther up the harbouris suspended for the present. The disputes between the EuropeanPortuguese and the Brazilians in the city, seem to be about to come to acrisis. Early this morning, we learned that troops were assembling fromall quarters, and that therefore it was advisable, for the protection ofthe British property and the persons of the merchants, that the shipshould return to her station opposite to the town. The first provisionaljunta has lost several of its members, two of them being gone asdelegates to Lisbon, and others being absent on account of ill health ordisgust. The party opposing this junta talk loudly of independence, andwish at least one-half of the members of the provisional government tobe native Brazilians. They also complain bitterly, that instead ofredressing the evils they before endured, the junta has increased themby several arbitrary acts; and assert that one of the members who has agreat grazing estate, has procured a monopoly, by which no man cansupply the market with beef without his permission, so that the city isill supplied. Such a ground of complaint will always excite popularindignation, and it appears now to be at its height. There has alreadybeen some skirmishing, in which, however, I hear there have been onlythree men killed. The Brazilian artillery occupies Fort San Pedro; thegovernor, and the wreck of the junta, have the town and the palace. Thegovernor, indeed, has arrested several, I think seventeen persons, in anarbitrary manner; among these, two of my acquaintance, ColonelSalvador[72] and Mr. Soares, and have put them, some on board the DonPedro, some on board transports in the bay, for the purpose oftransporting them to Lisbon. Some of these persons are not permitted tohave any communication with their families; others, more favoured, areallowed to carry them with them. These are not the means to conciliate. We have sent on shore to offer shelter to the ladies, and Captain Grahamhas agreed upon certain signals with the consul, in case of increaseddanger to his family. 

[Note 72: Colonel Salvador, though born in Portugal, has all hisproperty and connections in Brazil; he served with credit in thepeninsula. Mr. Soares, a Brazilian, had been long in England. ]

_Sunday, November 4th. _--On looking out at daylight this morning, we sawartillery planted, and troops drawn up on the platform opposite to theopera house. I went on shore to see if Miss Pennell, her sister, or anyof our other friends would come on board; but they naturally preferstaying to the last with their fathers and husbands. Notwithstanding thewarlike movements of these last two days, it appears most likely thatthe chiefs of the opposite parties will agree to await the decision ofthe cortes at Lisbon, with respect to their grievances, and at least atemporary peace will succeed to this little disturbance. 

It appears, however, next to impossible that things should remain asthey are. The extreme inconvenience of having the supreme courts ofjustice so far distant as Lisbon must be more and more felt as thecountry increases in population and riches. The deputies to the cortesare too far removed from their constituents to be guided in theirdeliberations or votes by them; and the establishment of so many juntasof government, each only accountable to the cortes, must be a cause ofinternal disorder, if not of civil war, at no distant time. 

_Monday, 5th. _--A day of heavy tropical rain, which has forced bothparties on shore to house their guns, and to desist for the present fromall farther hostility. The governor, however, continues his arbitraryarrestations. It is curious how ancient authority awes men; for surelyit is the accustomed obedience to the name of the king, and the dread ofthe name of rebellion, that prevents the Brazilians, armed as they are, from resisting these things. 

_Tuesday, November 6th. _--The Morgiana, Captain Finlaison, came in fromRio de Janeiro. She belongs to the African station, and came to Brazilabout some prize business connected with the slave trade. CaptainFinlaison tells me tales that make my blood run cold, of horrorscommitted in the French slave ships especially. Of young negresses, headed up in casks and thrown overboard, when the ships are chased. Ofothers, stowed in boxes when a ship was searched; with a bare chance ofsurviving their confinement. But where the trade is once admitted, nowonder the heart becomes callous to the individual sufferings of theslaves. The other day I took up some old Bahia newspapers, numbers ofthe Idade d'Ouro, and I find in the list of ships entered during threemonths of this year, Alive. Dead. 

1 slave ship from Moyanbique, 25th March, with 313 180

1 do. 6th March 378 61

1 do. 30th May 293 10

1 do. 29th June from Molendo, 357 102

1 do. 26th June 233 21 ____ ___ 1574 374 ____ ___

So that of the cargoes of these five ships reckoned thus accidentally, more than one in five had died on the passage!

It seems the English ships of war on the African coast are allowed tohire free blacks to make up their complements when deficient. There areseveral now onboard the Morgiana, two of whom are petty officers, andthey are found most useful hands. They are paid and victualled like ourown seamen. [73]

[Note 73: The negroes of the _Cru_ nation come to Sierra Leone froma great distance, and hire themselves out for any kind of labour, forsix, eight, or ten months, sometimes for a year or two. They have thenearned enough to go home and live like idle gentlemen, for at leasttwice that time, and then return to work. When their engagements onboard men of war are fulfilled, they receive regular discharges andcertificates. ]

_Thursday, November 8. _--We went on board Morgiana to call on Mrs. Macgregor, a lively intelligent Spaniard, who with her husband, ColonelMacgregor, is a passenger. She joined me in visits on shore, where theonly news is, that the governor continues to arrest all personssuspected of favouring independence. 

_November 9. _--The Brazilians who occupy the forts of San Pedro andSanta Maria, had threatened to fire on the Don Pedro, if she attemptedto get under weigh with the state prisoners on board. Neverthelessduring the night she bent her sails, and sailed early this morning, carrying, it is said, twenty-eight gentlemen, who have been taken upwithout any ostensible reason. They are understood to have spoken infavour of the independence of Brazil. Several of our officers went onshore to dine with the gentlemen of the English club, who meet once amonth, to eat a very good dinner, and drink an immoderate quantity ofwine for the honour of their country. 

_Tuesday, November 13. _--We have had, for ten days past, some of theheaviest showers I remember to have seen, and in going to and from theship, we have generally been wet through; nevertheless some of ourfriends ventured on board to-day to dine with us, among the rest Coloneland Mrs. Macgregor; they were a little late, owing to a skirmish betweenthe Portuguese and Brazilians, that occurred close to their house, justas they were setting off. Apparently it had not been premeditated, forthe parties were fighting with sticks and stones, as well as swords andfire-arms. The combatants would not allow any officer in Portugueseregimentals to pass, so that Colonel Macgregor was obliged to go backand change his dress before he could come. All this appears to proceedmore from a want of police than any other cause. 

_16th_. --Several of our young people and I myself have begun to feel thebad effects of exposing ourselves too much to the sun and the rain. Yesterday I was so unwell as to put on a blister for cough and pain inmy side, and several of the others have slight degrees of fever. Butgenerally speaking, the ship's company has been remarkably healthy. 

_Friday, 16th_. --Captain Graham taken suddenly and alarmingly ill. Towards evening he became better, and was able to attend to a mostpainful business. Last night a man belonging to the Morgiana was killed, and the corporal of marines belonging to the ship severely wounded, onshore. It appears that neither of these men had so much as seen themurderer before. He had been drinking in the inner room of a venda withsome sailors, and having quarrelled with one of them, he fancied therest were going to seize him, when he drew his knife to intimidate them, and rushed furiously out of the room. The young man who was killed wasstanding at the outer door, waiting for one of his companions who waswithin, and the murderer seeing him there, imagined he also wished tostop him, and therefore stabbed him to the heart. Our corporal, who waspassing by, saw the deed, and of course attempted to seize him, and inthe attempt received a severe wound. It is said, I know not with whattruth, that Captain Finlaison is so hated here, on account of hisactivity against the slave trade, that none of his people are safe, andthe death of the unfortunate man is attributed to that cause; but itappears to have been the result of a drunken quarrel. The town, however, appears to be in a sad disorderly state: besides our two men, aBrazilian officer was dangerously wounded in the dark, and threeBrazilian soldiers and their corporal were found murdered last night. Captain Graham had sent one of his officers to act for him on theoccasion, and to apply through the British consul to the policemagistrate, Francisco Jose Perreira, for redress. [74] He himself issensibly worse since he exerted himself to attend to this painfulbusiness. 

[Note 74: Mr. Pennell accordingly wrote to Mr. Perreira, stating thecircumstance and also that the prisoner was taken. The magistrateassured him that he had laid his communication before the provisionalgovernment, and that the punishment directed by law should be inflicted, and the greatest sorrow was expressed by the junta for the accident. Colonel Madera, commanding the active military police, also assuredMr. ---- the lieutenant of the Doris, on his honour, that the assassinshould be brought to trial. But it was not done while we remained inBrazil, and it is probable not at all. The political state of Bahiashortly afterwards would scarcely leave leisure for such a matter. ]

The disorders of this climate are sadly enfeebling; they attack bothmind and body, producing a painful sensitiveness to the slightestincident. 

_November 18th. _--Our invalids have been sadly disturbed by the rocketswhich have been fired, ever since sunrise, from the church of our Ladyof Conception[75], whose feast is on the 8th of December. But the threeSundays previous to it the church and convent are adorned, sermons arepreached, rockets are fired, contributions are made, and the shipping inthe harbour fire salooes at sunrise, at noon, and at sunset. The annualexpense of rockets, and other fireworks, is enormous. Those used inBrazil all come from the East Indies and China. Sometimes, whenmanufactured goods are unsaleable here, the merchant ships them on boarda Portuguese East Indiaman, and gets in return fireworks, which neverfail to pay well. I have seen a set of cut-glass sent to Calcutta forthe purpose, or a girandole, too handsome for Brazilian purchasers. 

[Note 75: One of the two parishes of the lower town. ]

Yesterday the ship's pinnace, which had been absent five days with themaster, my cousin Glennie, and young Grey, returned. They had gone toexamine the river of Cachoeira, and came back highly delighted withtheir trip, though they had some very bad weather; however, withtarpaulines, cloaks, and a blanket or two, which I insisted on theirtaking, they managed so well as to have returned in good health. 

Cachoeira, about fifty miles from Bahia, is a good town, where there isone English merchant resident. It is populous[76] and busy; for it isthe place where the produce, chiefly cotton and tobacco, of a veryconsiderable district, is collected, in order to be shipped for Bahia. It is divided into two unequal parts, by the river Paraguazu. Its parishchurch is dedicated to our Lady of the Rosary. It has two convents, fourchapels, an hospital, a fountain, and three stone bridges over the smallrivers Pitanga and Caquende, on which there are very extensivesugar-works. There are wharfs on both sides of the river. The streetsare well paved, and the houses built of stone, and tiled: the country isflat, but agreeable. The river is not navigable more than two milesabove the town; it there narrows and becomes interrupted by rocks andrapids, and there is a wooden bridge across it. About five miles fromCachoeira, there is an insulated conical hill, called that ofConception, whence there often proceed noises like explosions. Thesenoises are considered in this country as indicative of the existence ofmetals. Near this place a piece of native copper was found, weighingupwards of fifty-two arobas. It is now in the museum of Lisbon. 

[Note 76: In 1804 it contained 1088 hearths. ]

Our exploring party landed on several of the islands, on their way upthe river, and were every where received with great hospitality, anddelighted with the beauty and fertility of the country. 

_22d. _--At length all the invalids, excepting myself, are better; but, with another blister on, I can do little but write, or look from thecabin windows; and when I do look, I am sure to see somethingdisagreeable. This very moment, there is a slave ship discharging hercargo, and the slaves are singing as they go ashore. They have left theship, and they see they will be on the dry land; and so, at the commandof their keeper, they are singing one of their country songs, in astrange land. Poor wretches! could they foresee the slave-market, andthe separations of friends and relations that will take place there, andthe march up the country, and the labour of the mines, and thesugar-works, their singing would be a wailing cry. But that "blindnessto the future kindly given, " allows them a few hours of sad enjoyment. This is the principal slave port in Brazil; and the negroes appear to meto be of a finer, stronger race, than any I have ever seen. One of theprovisional junta of government is the greatest slave merchant here. Yet, I am happy to say, the Bahia press has lately actually printed apamphlet against the slave trade. Within the last year, seventy-sixships have sailed from this port for the coast of Africa; and it is wellknown that many of them will slave to the northward of the line, inspite of all treaties to the contrary: but the system of false papers isso cunningly and generally carried on, that detection is far from easy;and the difficulties that lie in the way of condemning any slave ship, render it a matter of hazard to detain them. An owner, however, is wellsatisfied, if one cargo in three arrives safe; and eight or ninesuccessful voyages make a fortune. Many Brazilian Portuguese have nooccupation whatever: they lay out a sum of money in slaves; which slavesare ordered out every day, and must bring in a certain sum each night;and these are the boatmen, chairmen, porters, and weavers of mats andhats that are to be hired in the streets and markets, and who thussupport their masters. 

_24th. _--Yesterday the Morgiana sailed for Pernambuco, whence she willreturn to the coast of Africa. To-day the Antigone French frigate, commanded by Captain Villeneuve, nephew to the admiral of that name whowas at Trafalgar, came in. Whenever France and England are not at war, the French and English certainly seek each other, and like each othermore than any other two nations: and yet they seem like two great headsof parties, and the other nations take the French and English sides, asif there were no cause of opposition but theirs. Others may account forthe fact, I am satisfied that it is so; and that whenever we meet aFrenchman in time of peace, in a distant country, it is something akinto the pleasure of seeing a countryman; and it is particularly the casewith French naval men. Frequent intercourse of any kind, even that ofwar, begets a similarity of habits, manners, and ideas; so I suppose wehave grown alike by fighting, and are all the more likely to fightagain. 

There is a report, but I believe not well founded, that placards arestuck up about the city threatening that all Europeans, especiallyPortuguese, who do not leave the place before the 24th of December, shall be massacred. I listen to these things, because reports, even whenfalse, indicate something of the spirit of the times. 

_December 8th. _--This place is now so quiet that the merchants feelquite safe, and therefore we are leaving Bahia. I have taken leave ofmany hospitable persons who have shown us much attention; but my healthis so indifferent, that but for the sake of that civility which I feltdue to them, I should not have gone ashore again: however, it is alldone, and we are in the act of getting under weigh. 

[Illustration]

_9th. _--As we sailed out of the bay, we amused ourselves withconjecturing the possible situation of Robinson Crusoe's plantation inthe bay of All Saints. Those who had been at Cachoeira chose that itshould be in that direction; while such as had been confined to theneighbourhood of the city pitched on different sitios, all or any ofwhich might have answered the purpose. There is a charm in Defoe's worksthat one hardly finds, excepting in the Pilgrim's Progress. The languageis so homely, that one is not aware of the poetical cast of thethoughts; and both together form such a reality, that the parable andthe romance alike remain fixed on the mind like truth. And what istruth? Surely not the mere outward acts of vulgar life; but rather themoral and intellectual perceptions by which our judgment, and actions, and motives, are directed. Then, are the wanderings of Christiana andMercy, and the sufferings of the shipwrecked mariner, true in the rightsense of the word truth? True as the lofty creations of Milton, and theembodied visions of Michael Angelo; because they have their basis andtheir home in the heart, and soul, and understanding of man. 

But we are once more upon the ocean, and our young people are againobserving the stars, and measuring the distances of the planets. Igrieve that one of the most promising of them is now an inmate in mycabin, in a very delicate state of health. 

_12th. _--Yesterday we found soundings, which indicated the neighbourhoodof the Abrolhos, and lay-to all night, that we might ascertain the exactposition of those dangerous shoals; which, at the distance of threeleagues, bearing N. W. By W. , appeared like one long ragged island tothe westward, and two smaller very low to the east. 

The banks extend very far out to the eastward. There is a deep passagebetween them and the mainland. With a little attention, a mostprofitable fishery might be established here. 

_Rio de Janeiro, Saturday, December 15th, 1821_. --Nothing that I haveever seen is comparable in beauty to this bay. Naples, the Firth ofForth, Bombay harbour, and Trincomalee, each of which I thought perfectin their beauty, all must yield to this, which surpasses each in itsdifferent way. Lofty mountains, rocks of clustered columns, luxuriantwood, bright flowery islands, green banks, all mixed with whitebuildings; each little eminence crowned with its church or fort; shipsat anchor or in motion; and innumerable boats flitting about in such adelicious climate, --combine to render Rio de Janeiro the most enchantingscene that imagination can conceive. We anchored first close to a smallisland, called Villegagnon, about two miles from the entrance of theharbour. That island, however small, was the site of the first colonyfounded by the Frenchman Villegagnon, under the patronage of Coligny, whom he betrayed. The admiral had intended it as a refuge for thepersecuted Hugonots; but when Villegagnon had, by his means, formed thesettlement, he began to persecute them also: the colony fell into decay, and became an easy conquest to Mem de Sa, the Portuguese captain-generalof Brazil. [77]

[Note 77: See Introduction, p. 15. ]

We moved from this station to one more commodious nearer the town, andhigher up the harbour, towards the afternoon, which soon became sorainy, that I gave up all hopes of getting ashore. I was reallydisappointed to find that my excellent friend, the Hon. Capt. S. Hadleft the station with his frigate before we arrived; I had, however, thepleasure of receiving a kind letter from him, and he had left me a copyof the great Spanish dictionary. Nobody that has always lived at home, can tell the value of a kindness like this in a foreign land. 

_Sunday, 16th_. --I had the pleasure of seeing on board Mr. W. May, whohas long been a resident in Brazil, and with whom I had spent many happyhours in early life. The pleasure such meetings give is of the purestand wholesomest nature. It quiets the passions by its own tranquillity;and, in recalling all the innocent and amiable feelings of youth, makesus almost forget those harsher emotions which intercourse with theworld, and the operation of interest, passion, or suffering have raised. 

_Monday, 17th_. --By the assistance of some friends ashore, we haveprocured a comfortable house in one of the suburbs of Rio, called theCatete, from the name of a little river which runs through it into thesea. To this house I have brought my poor suffering midshipman, Langford; and trust that free air, moderate exercise, and a milk diet, will restore him. We have been visited by several persons, who allappear hospitable and kind, particularly the acting consul-general, Col. Cunningham, and his lady. 

_December 18th_. --I have begun house-keeping on shore. We findvegetables and poultry very good, but not cheap; fruit is very good andcheap; butcher's meat cheap, but very bad: there is a monopolistbutcher, and no person may even kill an animal for his own use withoutpermission paid for from that person; consequently, as there is nocompetition, he supplies the market as he pleases. [78] The beef is sobad, that it can hardly be used even for soup meat, three days out offour; and that supplied to the ships is at least as bad: mutton isscarce and bad: pork very good and fine; it is fed principally onmandioc and maize, near the town; that from a distance has the advantageof sugar cane. Fish is not so plentiful as it ought to be, consideringthe abundance that there is on the whole coast, but it is extremelygood; oysters, prawns, and crabs are as good as in any part of theworld. The wheaten bread used in Rio is chiefly made of American flour, and is, generally speaking, exceedingly good. Neither the captaincy ofRio, nor those to the north, produce wheat; but in the high lands of St. Paul's, and the Minas Geraes, and in the southern provinces, a good dealis cultivated, and with great success. The great article of food here isthe mandioc meal, or farinha; it is made into thin broad cakes as adelicacy, but the usual mode of eating it is dry: when at the tables ofthe rich, it is used with every dish of which they eat, as we takebread; with the poor, it has every form--porridge, brose, bread; and nomeal is complete without it: next to mandioc, the feijoam or drykidney-bean, dressed in every possible way, but most frequently stewedwith a small bit of pork, garlic, salt, and pimento, is the favouritefood; and for dainties, from the noble to the slave, sweetmeats of everydescription, from the most delicate preserves and candies to thecoarsest preparations of treacle, are swallowed wholesale. 

[Note 78: This was no longer the case at my second visit to Rio, andevery thing eatable was much improved. ]

We have hired a horse for our invalid, and I have borrowed one formyself. These animals are rather pretty at Rio, but far from strong;they are fed on maize and capim, or Guinea grass, which was introducedof late years into Brazil, and thrives prodigiously: it is cultivated byplanting the joints; the stem and leaves are as large as those ofbarley; it grows sometimes to the height of six or seven feet, and theflower is a large loose pannicle. The quantity necessary for each horseper day costs about eightpence, and his maize as much more. The commonhorses here sell for from twenty to one hundred dollars; the fine BuenosAyres horses fetch a much higher price. Mules are generally used forcarriages, being much hardier, and more capable of bearing the summerheat. 

_December 19th_. --I walked by the side of Langford's horse up one of thelittle valleys at the foot of the Corcorado: it is called theLaranjeiros, from the numerous orange trees which grow on each side ofthe little stream that beautifies and fertilises it. Just at theentrance to that valley, a little green plain stretches itself on eitherhand, through which the rivulet runs over its stony bed, and affords atempting spot to groups of washerwomen of all hues, though the greaternumber are black; and they add not a little to the picturesque effect ofthe scene: they generally wear a red or white handkerchief round thehead; and a full-plaited mantle tied over one shoulder, and passed underthe opposite arm, with a full petticoat, is a favourite dress. Some wrapa long cloth round them, like the Hindoos; and some wear an uglyEuropean frock, with a most ungraceful sort of bib tied before them. Round the washerwoman's plain, hedges of acacia and mimosa fence thegardens of plantains, oranges, and other fruits which surround everyvilla; and beyond these, the coffee plantations extend far up themountain, whose picturesque head closes the scene. The country-houseshere are neither large nor magnificent; but they are decorated withverandas, and have often a handsome flight of steps up to thedwelling-house of the master, beneath which are either store-houses, orthe habitations of the slaves: they have all a gateway, large andhandsome, whatever the house may be; and that gateway generally leads toat least one walk where every kind of flower is cultivated. Brazil isparticularly rich in splendid creeping flowers and shrubs; and these aremingled with the orange and lemon blossoms, and the jasmine and rosefrom the East, till the whole is one thicket of beauty and fragrance. Iscarcely know whether my invalid or myself enjoyed the morning most. Afew more such, and I should think all sickness must disappear. 

_December 20th. _--Spent in paying and receiving visits in theneighbourhood. The houses are built a good deal like those of the southof Europe: there is generally a court, on one side of which is thedwelling-house, and the others are formed by the offices and garden. Sometimes the garden is immediately close to the house, and in thesuburbs this is generally the case. In town, very few houses have theluxury of a garden at all. These gardens are rather like orientalflower-plots, but they assimilate well with the climate. The flowers ofthe parterres of Europe grow by the side of the gayer plants and shrubsof the country, shaded by the orange, banana, bread-fruit (now nearlynaturalised here, ) and the palms, between straight alleys of limes, overwhose heads the African melia waves its lilac blossoms; and on theraised water channels, china vases are placed, filled with aloes andtuberoses, and here and there a statue intermixed. In these gardensthere are occasionally fountains and seats under the trees, formingplaces of no undelightful rest in this hot climate. 

_Friday, December 21st. _--Mr. Hayne, one of the commissioners of theslave trade commission, and his sister, having proposed a party to seethe botanic gardens, we set off soon after daylight; and drove totheir house on the bay of Boto Fogo, perhaps the most beautiful spot inthe neighbourhood of Rio, rich as it is in natural beauty; and itsbeauty is increased by the numerous and pretty country-houses which nowsurround it. These have all grown up since the arrival of the court fromLisbon; before that time, this lovely spot was only inhabited by a fewfishermen and gipsies, with, it might be, a villa or two on the slopingbanks by the fruit gardens. Beyond the bay, we drove through a beautifullane to the Lake of Rodrigo de Freitas: it is nearly circular, and aboutfive miles in circumference; it is surrounded by mountains and forests, except where a short sandy bar affords an occasional outlet to the sea, when the lake rises so high as to threaten inconvenience to thesurrounding plantations. It is impossible to conceive any thing richerthan the vegetation down to the very water's edge around the lake. 

[Illustration]

We were to breakfast at the gardens, but as the weather is now hot, weresolved first to walk round them. They are laid out in convenientsquares, the alleys being planted on either side with a veryquick-growing nut tree, brought from Bencoolen originally, nownaturalised here. The nut is as good as the filbert, and larger than thewalnut, and yields abundance of oil; the leaf is about the size, and notunlike the shape, of that of the sycamore. The timber also is useful. The quick growth of this tree is unexampled among timber trees, and itsheight and beauty distinguish it from all others. The hedges between thecompartments are of a shrub which I should have taken for myrtle, butthat the leaves though firm are not fragrant. This garden was destinedby the King for the cultivation of the oriental spices and fruits, andabove all, of the tea plant, which he obtained, together with severalfamilies accustomed to its culture, from China. Nothing can be morethriving than the whole of the plants. The cinnamon, camphor, nutmeg, and clove, grow as well as in their native soil. The bread-fruitproduces its fruit in perfection, and such of the oriental fruits ashave been brought here ripen as well as in India. I particularlyremarked the jumbo malacca, from India, and the longona (_EuphoriaLongona_), a dark kind of lechee from China. I was disappointed to findno collection of the indigenous plants. However, so much has been doneas to give reasonable hopes of farther improvement, when the politicalstate of the country shall be quiet enough to permit attention to thesethings. 

The stream that waters the garden flows through a lovely valley, wherethe royal powder-mills are situated; but being fearful of too muchexertion for Langford we put off visiting them to another day, andreturned to the garden gate to breakfast. His Majesty John VI. Built asmall house there, with three or four rooms, to accommodate the royalparty, when they visited the gardens. Our breakfast was prepared in theveranda of that house, from whence we had a charming view of the lake, with the mountains and woods, --the ocean, with three little islands thatlie off the lake; and in the fore-ground a small chapel[79] and village, at the extremity of a little smooth green plain. 

[Note 79: Dedicated to St. John Baptist. I am not sure whether thisor N. S. Da Cabeça is the mother church; the same clergyman officiates inboth. ]

After waiting with our agreeable and well-informed friends till thesea-breeze set in, we returned part of the way along the lake, and thenascended to the parsonage of Nossa Senhora da Cabeça, where we werejoined by several other persons who had come to dine there with us. ThePadre Manoel Gomez received us very kindly, and our pic-nic was spreadin the ample veranda of his parsonage. Behind the veranda three smallrooms served for sleeping-room, kitchen, and pantry. Half a dozen smallcottages in the field behind contain the healthy-looking negroes who areemployed in his coffee-grounds, and a swarm of children of every shade, between black and white. On a little eminence in the midst of thesestands the chapel of Our Lady, which is the parish church of a largedistrict. It is exceedingly small; but serves as the place where thesacraments are administered, and the licences granted for marriages, burials, and christenings. The owners of estates have generally privatechapels, where daily mass is performed for the benefit of their ownpeople; so that the parish church is only applied to on theabove-mentioned occasions. About a stone's throw behind the chapel, aclear rivulet runs rapidly down the mountain, leaping from rock to rock, in a thousand little cascades, and forming, here and there, delightfulbaths. Nor is it without its inhabitants, which increase the simpleluxuries of the Padre's table. He tells me the crawfish in his streamare better than any in the neighbourhood; the water itself is pure, light, and delicate. 

At length all our friends had assembled, and we returned to the verandato dine. To judge by the materials of the feast, so blended were theproductions of every climate that we could scarcely have pronounced inwhat part of the world we were, had not the profusion of ananas andplantains, compared with the small quantity of apples and peaches, reminded us of it. As is usual on such occasions, the oldest inhabitantsof Brazil praised most what came from afar; while _we_ all gave thepreference to the productions of the country. 

I was soon drawn away from the table by the beauty of the prospect, which I endeavoured to sketch. The coffee plantations are the onlycultivated grounds hereabouts; and they are so thickly set with orangetrees, lemons, and other tall shrubs, that they form in appearancerather a variety in the woods, than that mixture of cultivated with wildground, which might be looked for so near a large city, where we expectto see the labour of man encroaching in some degree on the wild beautiesof nature. But here vegetation is so luxuriant, that even the pruned andgrafted tree springs up like the native of the forest. 

As every body was determined to be pleased, we all felt sorry when itwas time to separate; but Burns has made all the reflections one canmake on breaking up a pleasant party--

 "Pleasures are like poppies spread, -- You seize the flower, the bloom is shed; Or like the snow-falls in the river, -- A moment white, then lost for ever; Or like the rainbow's fleeting form, Evanishing amid the storm; Or like the borealis race, That flit ere you can point their place. No man can tether time or tide: The hour approaches, --_we_ must ride. "

And so we did. --We walked down to the foot of the hill, and each tookhis or her several conveyance; Colonel and Mrs. Cunningham theircomfortable English chariot, Mr. And Miss Hayne their pretty curricle, and I my Rio caleche or _sege_, --a commodious but ugly carriage, veryheavy, but well enough adapted to the rough roads between the garden andthe town. The gentlemen all rode, and most of us carried home something. Fruit and flowers attracted some; Langford got a number of diamondbeetles, and a magnificent butterfly, and I a most inadequate sketch ofthe scene from the Padre's house. 

_December 27th. _--Since the jaunt to the botanical gardens, some of ourinvalids have been gaining ground: others who were well have becomeinvalids, and I have done nothing but ride about or talk with them, andlook at the beautiful views of the neighbourhood, and get a littlebetter acquainted with the inhabitants; of whom the most amusing, so faras I have yet seen, are certainly the negroes, who carry about the fruitand vegetables for sale. The midshipmen have made friends with some ofthem. One of them has become quite a friend in the house; and after hehas sold his master's fruit, earns a small gratuity for himself, by histales, his dances, and his songs. His tribe, it seems, was at war with aneighbouring king, and he went out to fight when quite a boy, was takenprisoner, and sold. This is probably the story of many: but our friendtells it with action and emphasis, and shows his wounds, and dances hiswar dance, and shouts his wild song, till the savage slave becomesalmost a sublime object. I have been for an hour to-night at a verydifferent scene, a ball given by Mr. B----, a respectable Englishmerchant. The Portuguese and Brazilian ladies are decidedly superior inappearance to those of Bahia; they look of higher caste: perhaps theresidence of the court for so many years has polished them. I cannotsay the men partake of the advantage; but I cannot yet speak Portuguesewell enough to dare to pronounce what either men or women really are. Asto the English, what can I say? They are very like all one sees at home, in their rank of life; and the ladies, very good persons doubtless, would require Miss Austin's pen to make them interesting. However, asthey appear to make no pretensions to any thing but what they are, to methey are good-humoured, hospitable, and therefore pleasing. 

_Monday, 31st Dec. 1822_. --I went to town for the first time; our roadlay through the suburb of the Catete for about half a mile. Somehandsome houses are situated on either hand, and the spaces between arefilled with shops, and small houses inhabited by the families of theshopkeepers in town. We then came to the hill called the Gloria, fromthe name of the church dedicated to N. S. Da Gloria, on the eminenceimmediately overlooking the sea. The hill is green, and wooded andstudded with country-houses. It is nearly insulated; and the road passesbetween it and another still higher, just where a most copious streamissues from an aqueduct (built, I think, by the Conde de Lavradio), andbrings health and refreshment to this part of the town from theneighbouring mountains. Farther on, after passing the beach of theGloria, we turned to the left, and entered the new part of that townthrough the arches of the great aqueduct built in 1718 by the viceroyAlbuquerque. This supplies four copious fountains. The largest is theCarioca[80], near the convent of Sant Antonio; it has twelve mouths, andis most picturesque in itself: it is constantly surrounded by slaves, with their water-barrels, and by animals drinking. Just beyond aretroughs of granite, where a crowd of washerwomen are constantlyemployed; and over against these, benches are placed, on which there areconstantly seated new negroes for sale. The fountain of the Marecas isopposite to the public gardens, and near the new barracks; and, besidesthe spouts for water for the inhabitants, there are two troughs alwaysfull for the animals. The third is a very handsome one, in the palacesquare; and the fourth, called the Mouro, I did not see. The aqueductis of brick, and is supported on two ranges of arches across the valleybetween two of the five hills of the city. The public buildings at Riohave nothing very remarkable about them. Even the churches present noarchitectural beauty, and owe the good effect they have in the generalview to their size and situation. There are seven parish churches, andnumerous chapels dependent on each. The first and eldest parish is thatof St. Sebastian; the church dedicated to whom is the royal chapel, theonly one I saw to-day. It is handsome within, richly gilt, and thepictures on the ceiling are far from contemptible; but I cannot praisethat of the altar-piece, where Our Lady is covering with her cloak theQueen Dona Maria, and all the royal family, on their arrival in Brazil. The choir is served in a manner that would not disgrace Italy. Iattended at vespers, and have seldom been more gratified with the musicof the evening service. This the chapel owes to the residence of theroyal family, whose passion and talent for music are hereditary. Adjoining to this chapel is the church and convent of the Carmelites, which forms part of the palace; and within which is the royal library of70, 000 volumes, where on all days, except holidays, the public areadmitted to study from nine till one o'clock in the forenoon, and fromfour o'clock till sunset. This part of the palace occupies one side of ahandsome square: the palace itself fills up another; a third has privatehouses, built uniformly with the palace, besides the fish-market; andthe fourth is open to the sea. The water-edge is faced with a handsomegranite pier and steps, the blocks of which are bolted with copper. Inthe centre of the pier there is a fountain, supplied from the aqueductof Albuquerque; and altogether the appearance of the palace square isextremely handsome. We went thence into a street behind it, and saw thefront of the senate-house, which is connected with the palace, and thecemetery of the Carmelite church, which is a prettier thing thanchurch-yards usually are. In the centre of a small quadrangle there is across, and by it a young cypress tree: all around there are flowers, andsweet herbs, and porcelain vases, containing roses and aloes placed onlittle pedestals and on a broad low wall that surrounds the square. Ilooked at first in vain for graves; at length I observed on these lowwalls, and on the higher ones in the outer circle, indications ofarches, each being numbered. These are the places for the dead, who arewalled up there with quick-lime; and, at a certain period, the bones andashes are removed to make room for others. At the time of removal, ifthe dead has a friend who wishes it, the remains are collected in urnsor other receptacles, and placed in a building appropriated for them, orwhere the friend pleases; otherwise they go to the common receptacle, and perish totally by the addition of more quick-lime. This is, I doubtnot, the wholesomest way of disposing of the dead; and, even to thesense, is better than the horrid burials at Bahia, where they mustinfect the air. But there seems to me so little feeling in thus gettingrid at once of the remains of that which has once been dear to us, thatI went away in disgust. 

[Illustration]

[Note 80: The nickname of the inhabitants of Rio is Carioca, fromthis fountain. ]

The city of Rio is more like an European city than either Bahia orPernambuco; the houses are three or four stories high, with projectingroofs, and tolerably handsome. The streets are narrow, few being widerthan that of the Corso at Rome, to which one or two bear a resemblancein their general air, and especially on days of festivals, when thewindows and balconies are decorated with crimson, yellow, or greendamask hangings. There are two very handsome squares, besides that ofthe palace. One, formerly the Roça, is now that of the Constituçaõ, towhich the theatre, some handsome barracks and fine houses, behind whichthe hills and mountains tower up on two sides, give a very nobleappearance. The other, the Campo de Santa Anna, is exceedinglyextensive[81], but unfinished. Two of the principal streets run acrossit, from the sea-side to the extremity of the new town, nearly a league, and new and wide streets are stretching out in every direction. But Iwas too tired with going about in the heat of the day to do more thantake a cursory view of these things, and could not even persuade myselfto look at the new fountain which is supplied by a new aqueduct. 

[Note 81: It is 1713 feet square. ]

There is in the city an air of bustle and activity quite agreeable toour European eyes; yet the Portuguese all take their siesta afterdinner. The negroes, whether free blacks or slaves, look cheerful andhappy at their labour. There is such a demand for them, that they findfull employment, and of course good pay, and remind one here as littleas possible of their sad condition, unless, indeed, one passes thestreet of the Vallongo; then the slave-trade comes in all its horrorsbefore one's eyes. On either hand are magazines of new slaves, calledhere _peices_; and there the wretched creatures are subject to all themiseries of a new negro's life, scanty diet, brutal examination, and thelash. 

_Tuesday, January 1st, 1823_. --I went to pay a second visit to anillustrious exile, Count Hogendorp, one of the Emperor Napoleon'sgenerals: my first had been accidental. One morning last week, ridingwith two of our young midshipmen, we came to a pleasant-looking cottage, high on the side of the Corcovado, and at the door we saw a verystriking figure, to whom I instantly apologized for intruding on hisgrounds, saying that we were strangers, and had come there accidentally. He instantly, with a manner that showed him to be no common person, welcomed us; asked our names, and on being told them, said he had heardof us; and, but for his infirmities, would have called on us. Heinsisted on our dismounting, as a shower was coming on, and takingshelter with him. By this time I perceived it was Count Hogendorp, andasked him if I had guessed rightly. He answered, yes; and added a fewwords, signifying that his master's servants, even in exile, carriedthat with them which distinguished them from other men. 

The Count is the wreck of a once handsome man: he has not lost hismartial air: he is tall, but not too thin; his grey eyes sparkle withintelligence, and his pure and forcible language is still conveyed in aclear well-toned voice, though a little the worse for age. He ushered usinto a spacious veranda, where he passes most of the day, and which isfurnished with sofas, chairs, and tables: he then ordered his servant tobring breakfast; we had coffee, milk, and fresh butter, all the produceof his own farm; and, as we sat, we saw the showers passing by andunder us across the valley, which leads the eye to the bay below. TheGeneral entered frankly into conversation, and during breakfast, andwhile the shower lasted, spoke almost incessantly of his imperialmaster. Early in life the Count had entered the army, a soldier offortune, under Frederick of Prussia. On his return to his nativecountry, Holland, he was employed by the States, successively, asgovernor of the eastern part of Java, and as envoy to one of the Germancourts. During his residence in Java, he had visited many of the Englishsettlements on the main land of India, and had learned English, which hespoke well. 

[Illustration]

On the annexation of Holland to France, he entered the French servicewith the rank of full colonel. He was always a great favourite withNapoleon, to whom his honesty and disinterestedness in money mattersseem to have been valuable, in proportion as these qualities were scarceamong his followers. The Count's affection for him is excessive, Ishould have said unaccountable, had he not shown me a letter written tohim by the emperor's own hand, on the death of his child, in which, besides much general kindness, there is even a touch of tenderness I hadnot looked for. During the disastrous expedition to Russia, Hogendorpwas entrusted with the government of Poland, and kept his court atWilna. His last public service was performed in the defence of Hamburgh, where he was lieutenant governor. He would fain have attended theemperor into exile; but that not being allowed, he came hither, where, with the greatest economy, and, I believe, some assistance from theprince, who has great respect for him, he lives chiefly on the produceof his little farm. 

Most of these particulars I learnt from himself, while resting andsheltered from the rain, which lasted nearly an hour. He then showed mehis house, which is small indeed, consisting of only three rooms, besides the veranda; his study, where a few books, two or three castsfrom antique bas reliefs, and some maps and prints, indicate theretirement of a gentleman; his bedroom, the walls of which, with acapricious taste, are painted black, and on that sombre ground, skeletons of the natural size, in every attitude of glee, remind one ofHolbein's Dance of Death; and a third room occupied by barrels of orangewine, and jars of liqueur made of the grumaxama, at least as agreeableas cherry brandy which it resembles, the produce of his farm; and thesale of which, together with his coffee, helps out his slender income. 

The General, as he loves to be called, led us round his garden, anddisplayed with even fondness, his fruits and his flowers, extolled theclimate, and only blamed the people, for the neglect and want ofindustry, which wastes half the advantages God has given them. Onreturning to the house, he introduced to me his old Prussian servant, who has seen many a campaign with him, and his negroes, whom he freed onpurchasing them: he has induced the woman to wear a nose jewel, afterthe fashion of Java, which he seems to remember with particularpleasure. I was sorry to leave the count, but was afraid some alarmmight be felt at home concerning us, and therefore bade him adieu. 

This evening I paid him another visit, and found him resting afterdinner in his veranda. We had a good deal of conversation concerning thestate of this country, from which, with prudence, every thing good maybe hoped; and then the Count told me he was engaged in writing hismemoirs, of which he showed me a part, telling me he meant to publishthem in England. I have no doubt they will be written with fidelity, andwill furnish an interesting chapter in the history of Napoleon. I wassorry to see the old gentleman suffering a good deal; and his age andinfirmities seem to threaten a speedy termination to his activelife. [82]

[Note 82: Count Hogendorp died while I was in Chile. Napoleon hadleft him by his will five thousand pounds sterling, but the old man didnot live to know this proof of the recollection of his old master. As heapproached his end, the Emperor Don Pedro sent to him such assistance, and paid him such attention as his state required or admitted of, andhad given orders concerning his funeral; but it was found at his deaththat he was a protestant, and one of the protestant consuls thereforecaused him to be properly interred in the English burial-ground. Onundressing him after death, his body was found to be tattooed like thoseof the natives of the eastern islands. I never saw the count after the1st of January. ]

_January 8th, 1822. _--The only variety in my quiet life since the first, was afforded by a large and pleasant party at Miss Hayne's. There I sawabundance of jewels on the heads and necks of the elderly Portugueseladies, and a good deal of beauty, and some grace, among the youngerones, whom I begin to understand pretty well. We had some good music, and there was a great deal of dancing, and not a little card-playing. 

To-day we left the house on shore, and are again at home on board theDoris, with all our invalids much better. Having settled every bodycomfortably, I went ashore to the opera, as it is the benefit night of afavourite musician, Rosquellas, whose name is known on both sides of theAtlantic. The theatre is very handsome; in size and proportion, some ofour officers think it as large as the Haymarket, but I differ from them. It was opened on the 12th of October, 1813, the Prince Don Pedro'sbirth-day. The boxes are commodious, and I hear, that the unseen part ofthe theatre is comfortable for the actors, dressers, &c. ; but themachinery and decorations are deficient. The evening's amusementsconsisted of a very stupid Portuguese comedy, relieved between the actsby scenes from an opera of Rossini's by Rosquellas, after which, hewasted a great deal of fine playing on some very ugly music. 

_Wednesday, January 9th. _--To-day is expected to be a day of muchimportance to the future fate of Brazil. But I must go back to thearrival of a message from the cortes at Lisbon, intimating to the Princetheir pleasure, that he should forthwith repair to Europe, and begin hiseducation, and proceed to travel incognito through Spain, France, andEngland. This message excited the most lively indignation not only inHis Royal Highness, but in the Brazilians from one end of the kingdom tothe other. The Prince is willing to obey the orders of his father andthe cortes, at the same time he cannot but feel as a man the want ofdecency of the message, and being thus bid to go home; and especiallyforbidden to carry any guards with him, as it should seem, lest theymight have contracted too much attachment for his person. The Braziliansregard this step as preliminary to removing from this country the courtsof justice, which have for fourteen years been held here, and soremoving causes to Lisbon, by which means, Brazil would be again reducedto the condition of a dependent colony instead of enjoying equal rightsand privileges with the mother country, a degradation they are by nomeans inclined to submit to. 

The feelings of the people are sufficiently shown, in the address sentto the Prince, a few days ago, (24th of December, ) from St. Paul's; asfollows:--

"SIR, "We had already written to Your Royal Highness, before we received theextraordinary gazette of the 11th instant, by the last courier: and wehad hardly fixed our eyes on the first decree of the Cortes concerningthe organization of the governments of the provinces of Brazil, when anoble indignation fired our hearts: because we saw impressed on it asystem of anarchy and slavery. But the second, in conformity to whichYour Royal Highness is to go back to Portugal, in order to travel_incognito_ only through Spain, France, and England, inspired us withhorror. 

"They aim at no less than disuniting us, weakening us, and in short, leaving us like miserable orphans, tearing from the bosom of the greatfamily of Brazil the only common father who remained to us, after theyhad deprived Brazil of the beneficent founder of the kingdom, Your RoyalHighness's august sire. They deceive themselves; we trust in God, who isthe avenger of injustice; He will give us courage, and wisdom. 

"If, by the 21st article of the basis of the constitution, which weapprove and swear to because it is founded on universal and publicright, the deputies of Portugal were bound to agree that theconstitution made at Lisbon could then be obligatory on the Portugueseresident in that kingdom; and, that, as for those in the other threeparts of the world, it should only be binding when their legitimaterepresentatives should have declared such to be their will: How darethose deputies of Portugal, without waiting for those of Brazil, legislate concerning the most sacred interest of each province, and ofthe entire kingdom? How dare they split it into detached portions, eachinsulated, and without leaving a common centre of strength and union?How dare they rob Your Royal Highness of the lieutenancy, granted byYour Royal Highness's august father, the King? How dare they depriveBrazil of the privy council, the board of conscience, the court ofexchequer, the board of commerce, the court of requests, and so manyother recent establishments, which promised such future advantage? Wherenow shall the wretched people resort in behalf of their civil andjudicial interests? Must they now again, after being for twelve yearsaccustomed to judgment at hand, go and suffer, like petty colonists, thedelays and chicanery of the tribunals of Lisbon, across two thousandleagues of ocean, where the sighs of the oppressed lose all life and allhope? Who would credit it, after so many bland, but deceitfulexpressions of reciprocal equality and future happiness!!!

"In the session of the 6th of August last, the deputy of the Cortes, Pereira do Carmo, said, (and he spoke the truth, ) that the constitutionwas the social compact, in which, were expressed and declared theconditions on which a nation might wish to constitute itself a bodypolitic: and that the end of that constitution, is the general good ofeach individual, who is to enter into that social compact. How thendares a mere fraction of the great Portuguese nation, without waitingfor the conclusion of this solemn national compact, attack the generalgood of the principal part of the same, and such is the vast and richkingdom of Brazil; dividing it into miserable fragments, and, in a word, attempting to tear from its bosom the representative of the executivepower, and to annihilate by a stroke of the pen, all the tribunals andestablishments necessary to its existence and future prosperity? Thisunheard-of despotism, this horrible political perjury, was certainly notmerited by the good and generous Brazil. But the enemies of order in theCortes of Lisbon deceive themselves if they imagine that they can thus, by vain words and hollow professions, delude the good sense of theworthy Portuguese of both worlds. 

"Your Royal Highness will observe that, if the kingdom of Ireland, which makes part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, besides that itis infinitely small compared to the vast kingdom of Brazil, and isseparated from England but by a narrow arm of the sea, which is passedin a few hours, yet possesses a governor-general or viceroy, whorepresents the executive power of the King of the United Kingdom, howcan it enter the head of any one who is not either profoundly ignorant, or rashly inconsiderate, to pretend, that the vast kingdom of Brazil, should remain without a centre of activity, and without a representativeof the executive power: and equally without a power to direct ourtroops, so as that they may operate with celerity and effect, to defendthe state against any unforeseen attack of external enemies, or againstinternal disorders and factions, which might threaten public safety, orthe reciprocal union of the provinces!

"Yes, august Sir! It is impossible that the inhabitants of Brazil, whoare honest, and who pride themselves on being men, particularly thePaulistas, should ever consent to such absurdity and such despotism. Yes, august Sir, Your Royal Highness must remain in Brazil, whatever maybe the projects of the constituent Cortes, not only for the sake of ourgeneral good, but even for the sake of the future prosperity andindependence of Portugal itself. If Your Royal Highness, which is not tobe believed, were to obey the absurd and indecent decree of the 29th ofSeptember, besides losing, in the world, the dignity of a man and of aprince, by becoming the slave of a small number of factious men, youwould also have to answer before heaven for the rivers of blood whichwould assuredly inundate Brazil on account of your absence: because itsinhabitants, like raging tigers, would surely remember the supine slothin which the ancient despotism kept them buried, and in which a newconstitutional Machiavelism aims even now to retain them. 

"We therefore entreat Your Royal Highness with the greatest fervour, tenderness, and respect to delay your return to Europe, where they wishto make you travel as a pupil surrounded by, tutors and spies: Weentreat you to confide boldly in the love and fidelity of yourBrazilians, and especially of your Paulistas, who are all ready to shedthe last drop of their blood, and to sacrifice their fortunes, ratherthan lose the adored Prince in whom they have placed their well-foundedhopes of national happiness and honour. Let Your Royal Highness wait atleast for the deputies named by this province, and for the magistracy ofthis capital, who will as soon as possible present to Your Highness ourardent desires and firm resolutions; and deign to receive them, and tolisten to them, with the affection and attention, which your Paulistasdeserve from you. 

"May God preserve Your Royal Highness's august person many years. 

 "From the Government House of St. Paul's, 24th Dec. 1821. 

 John Carlos Augusto de Oeyenhausen, President. Jose Bonifacio de Andrada e Sylva, V. President. Martim Francisco de Andrada, Secretary. Lazaro Jose Gonçalves, Secretary. Miguel José de Oliveria Pinto, Secretary. Manoel Rodrigues Jordaen. Francisco Ignacio de Souza Guimaies. Joao Ferreira de Oleveira Bueno. Antonio Leite Pereira de Gama Lobo. Daniel Pedro Muller. Andre da Silva Gomes. Francisco de Paulo e Oliveira. Antonio Maria Quartini. "[83]

[Note 83: The Prince answered this on the 4th of January, byassuring the Paulistas that he had transmitted the letter to Lisbon, andthat His Royal Highness hoped from the wisdom of the Cortes that theywould take measures for the good and prosperity of Brazil. ]

This letter to the Prince expresses the sentiments of all the southernpart of Brazil, and to a certain degree those of the northerncaptaincies also. The latter are certainly as averse as the former tothe removal of the courts of justice to Lisbon, but they would prefer amore northern city for the capital; while here, there is a wish among aconsiderable number of persons to remove the capital to St. Paul's, onaccount of its safety, and its neighbourhood to the mines, where thegreatest proportion of the riches, industry, and population of Brazil issituated. His Royal Highness has not yet expressed his determination. The officers of the Lisbon troops talk loudly of his being obliged to dohis duty, and obey the mandate of the Cortes. The Brazilians are earnestin their hopes that he may stay, and there are even some that lookforward to his declaring openly for the independence of this country. Whatever his resolution may be, it is feared that there will be muchdisturbance, if not a civil war. Our English merchants are callingmeetings, I believe for the purpose of requesting this ship to remain, at least until one of equal force shall arrive, fearing that theirpersons and property will not be safe, and every body looks a littleanxious. 

10_th. _--Yesterday there was a meeting of the camara of Rio; and after ashort consultation the members went in procession, accompanied by agreat concourse of people, to the Prince, with a strong remonstranceagainst his leaving the country, and an earnest entreaty that he wouldremain among his faithful people. His Royal Highness received themgraciously, and replied, that since it appeared to be the wish of all, and for the good of all, he would remain. This declaration was receivedwith shouts of enthusiasm, which were answered by the discharge ofartillery, and every mark of public rejoicing. 

The day as usual, on any occasion of public interest, was ended at theopera, but I unfortunately could not get ashore; however some of theofficers went. The house was illuminated. The Prince and Princessappeared in full dress in the king's box, which is in the centre of thehouse. They were received with enthusiasm by the people, the nationalhymn was sung, and between the acts of the play the people called onseveral of their favourite orators to address the Prince and people, onthe event of the day. This call was obeyed by several speakers, and someof their addresses were printed and handed about the theatre; the best, or at least the most applauded, was the following by Bernardo Carvalho. 

"It is now only necessary to exhort you to UNION andTRANQUILLITY!!![84] Expressions truly sublime, and which contain thewhole philosophy of politics. Without UNION you cannot be strong, without strength you cannot command TRANQUILLITY. Portuguese! Citizens!You have a Prince who speaks to you with kindness of your own work; whoinvites you to rally with him round the constitution; who recommends toyou that moral force which embraces justice and is identified withreason, and which can alone accomplish the great work we have begun. To-day you burst the bonds which threatened you with suffocation. To-dayyou assume the true attitude of free men. But yet all is not done. Intrigue and discord, muttering furies, perhaps even now meditate freshplans, and still endeavour to sow division, and to overthrow thetrophies you have just raised to glory and to national honour. The sameenthusiasm, ill directed, might produce the greatest crimes. Fellowcitizens! UNION and TRANQUILLITY. The giddiness of party is unworthy offree men. Fulfil your duties. Yield to the gentle exhortation of youraugust Prince;. .. But in return say to him 'Sire! ENERGY and VIGILANCE. Energy to promote good, --Vigilance to prevent evil. The whole world hasnow its eyes fixed on you. The steps you are about to take, may placeyou in the temple of memory, or confound you among the number of weakprinces, unworthy of the distinctions which adorn them. Perhaps you mayinfluence the destinies of the whole world. Perhaps even Europe, anxiously and on tip-toe, reposes her hope upon you! PRINCE! ENERGY andVIGILANCE. Glory is not incompatible with youth, and the hero of the26th February may become the hero of the 9th January. Unite yourselfwith a people which loves you, which offers you fortune, life, everything. Prince! how sweet is it to behold the cordial expansion ofthe feeling of free men! but how distressing to witness the withering inthe bud of hopes so justly founded! Banish, Sire, for ever from Brazil, multiform flattery, hypocrisy of double face, discord with her viperoustongue. Listen to truth, submit to reason, attend to justice. Be yourattributes frankness and loyalty. Let the constitution be the pole-starto direct you: without it there can be no happiness for you nor for us. Seek not to reign over slaves, who kiss the chains of ignominy. Ruleover free hearts. So shall you be the image of the divinity amongus;--so will you fulfil our hopes. ENERGY and VIGILANCE, and we willfollow your precept, UNION and TRANQUILLITY. '"

[Note 84: Referring to a speech of the Prince on determining to stayin Brazil. ]

A priest, one of the favourites of the people, was called on to speakrepeatedly. The national hymn[85] was sung again and again, and thePrince and Princess, who were observed to be chiefly surrounded byBrazilian officers, were again loudly cheered. And everything in thecity, which was brilliantly illuminated, went off in the utmost harmony. 

[Note 85: Composed by the Prince. ]

Nothing can be more beautiful of the kind than such an illumination seenfrom the ship. The numerous forts at the entrance to the harbour, on theislands, and in the town, have each their walls traced in light, so theyare like fairy fire-castles; and the scattered lights of the city andvillages, connect them by a hundred little brilliant chains. 

To-day our friends the merchants are under fresh alarm, and have made aformal request to the captain to stay. With that petty spirit whichpasses for _diplomatic_, the deputy-consul and merchants, instead ofsaying what they are afraid of, only say, "Sir, we are afraid, circumstances make us so, and we hope you will stay till, " &c. &c. ; asmuch as to say, "You are answerable for evil, if it happens, " althoughthey are too much afraid of committing themselves to say why. I do nottrouble myself now about their official reports, which I perceive arelarge sheets of paper, and large seals, without one word that might notbe published on every church wall, for their milk and water tenor, butwhich I consider as absurd and mischievous, because they tend to excitedistrust and alarm where no danger is. The truth is now, that theremight be some cause of fear, if they would openly express it. Thelanguage of the Portuguese officers is most violent. They talk ofcarrying the Prince by main force to Lisbon, and so making him obey theCortes in spite of the Brazilians; and both parties are so violent, thatthey will probably fight. In that fight there will doubtless be dangerto foreign property; but why not say so? why not say such is the case?However, the wisest of the sons of men in modern times[86], has long agoset in the second place those who could not afford to be open and candidin matters of business; so _I_ may leave them alone. 

[Note 86: Bacon, _Essay on Dissimulation and Simulation_. ]

11_th_. --I went ashore last night to the opera, as it was again a galanight, and hoped to have witnessed the reception of the Prince andPrincess. The Viscondeça do Rio Seco kindly invited me to her box, whichwas close to theirs; but, after waiting some time, notice arrived thatthe Prince was so busy writing to Lisbon, that he could not come. Thedouble guard was withdrawn, and the play went on. I had, however, thepleasure of seeing the theatre illuminated, of hearing their nationalhymn, and of seeing the ladies better dressed than I had yet hadoccasion to do. 

There is a great deal of uneasiness to-day. The Portuguesecommander-in-chief of the troops, General Avilez, has demanded andreceived his discharge. It is said, perhaps untruly, that hisremonstrance to the Prince against his remaining here has beenungentlemanlike and indecent. I hear the troops will not consent to hisremoval, and they are particularly incensed that the choice of asuccessor should fall on General Curado, a Brazilian, who, it is said, will be called from St. Paul's to succeed Avilez. He is a veteran, whohas commanded with distinction in all the campaigns on the southernfrontier, and his actions are better known among his countrymen thanthose distant battles in Europe, on which the Portuguese officers ofevery rank are apt to pride themselves here, however slight the sharethey had in them, to the annoyance of the Brazilians. 

_12th_. --Yesterday the military commission for the government of thearmy here was broke up, and Curada appointed commander-in-chief, andminister of war. The Portuguese General Avilez made his appearance atthe barracks of the European soldiers to take leave of them; they wereunder arms to receive him, and vowed not to part with him, or to obeyanother commander, and were with difficulty reduced to such order as topromise tolerable tranquillity for the day at least. It is said, thatas it had been understood that they had expressed some jealousy, becausethe guard of honour at the opera-house had been for the two lastevenings composed of Brazilians, the Prince sent to the Portuguesebarracks for the guard of last night, but that they refused to go;saying, that as His Royal Highness was so partial to the Brazilians, hehad better continue to be guarded by them. I am not sure this is true, but from the circumstances of the day it is not improbable. 

The opera-house was again brilliantly lighted. The Prince and Princesswere there, and had been received as well as on the ninth, when, atabout eleven o'clock, the Prince was called out of his box, and informedthat bodies of from twenty to thirty of the Portuguese soldiers wereparading the streets, breaking windows and insulting passengers in theirway from barrack to barrack, where everything wore the appearance ofdetermined mutiny. At the same time, a report of these circumstanceshaving reached the house, the spectators began to rise for the purposeof going home; when the Prince, having given such orders as werenecessary, returned to the box, and going with the Princess, then nearher confinement, to the front, he addressed the people, assured themthat there was nothing serious, that he had already given orders to sendthe riotous soldiers, who had been quarrelling with the blacks, back totheir barracks, and entreated them not to leave the theatre and increasethe tumult, by their presence in the street, but remain till the end ofthe piece, as he meant to do, when he had no doubt all would be quiet. The coolness and presence of mind of the Prince, no doubt, preserved thecity from much confusion and misery. By the time the opera was over thestreets were sufficiently clear to permit every one to go home insafety. 

Meantime the Portuguese troops, to the number of seven hundred, hadmarched up to the Castle-hill, commanding the principal streets in thetown, and had taken with them four pieces of artillery, and threatenedto sack the town. The field-pieces belonging to the Brazilians, whichhad remained in the town after the 26th of February, had been sent tothe usual station of the artillery, at the botanical gardens, no longerago than last week, so they entertained no fear of artillery. But theywere disappointed in their expectation of being joined by that part ofthe Portuguese force which was stationed at San Cristovaŏ. This amountedto about 500 men[87], who said the King had left them to attend on theperson of the Prince, and they had nothing to do with anything else; adeclaration that was looked on with suspicion by the Brazilians. 

[Note 87: I am not sure of the correctness of these numbers, but Ibelieve I am nearly right. ]

While the Portuguese were taking up their new and threatening position, the Brazilians were not idle. Every horse and mule in the town waspressed, and expresses despatched to all the militia regiments, andother Brazilian troops, as well as to the head-quarters of theartillery. The Prince was most active; so that by four o'clock thismorning (12th), he found himself at the head of a body of four thousandmen, in the Campo de Santa Anna, not only ready, but eager for action;and though deficient in discipline, formidable from their numbers anddetermination. 

The Portuguese had by no means expected such promptness and decision;they had besides not taken provision to the hill, and they wereconvinced that it would be an easy matter to starve them, by means ofthe immense superiority of numbers in the Campo. They therefore preparedto obey an order which the Prince communicated to them early in the day, to remove from the city to Praya Grande, on the other side of theharbour, only conditioning to carry their arms with them. His RoyalHighness wished to have put them instantly on board of transports, to beconveyed to Lisbon, but the port admiral reported that there was neithershipping nor provision ready for the purpose; and therefore they are tobe quartered at Praya Grande, until such shall be provided. 

I went ashore with an officer as early as I could, chiefly for thepurpose of seeing the troops in the Campo de Santa Anna. In consequence, however, of the press of horses and mules, it was sometime before Icould get a chaise to convey me there, and it was much too hot to walk. At length, however, I procured one, and determined to call on theViscondeça of Rio Seco in my way, to offer her refuge in the frigate. Wefound her in a Brazilian dishabille, and looking harassed and anxious. She had remained in the theatre as long as the Prince last night, andhad then hurried home to provide for the safety of her family and herjewels: her family she had despatched to her estate in the country; forthe jewels, she had them all packed in small parcels, intending toescape with them herself in disguise to us, in case of a serious attackon the city; and she had left a quantity of valuable plate exposed indifferent parts of the house to occupy the soldiers on their firstentrance. Everything, however, looks better now; and we assured her wehad seen the first part of one of the Lisbon regiments ready to embarkas we landed. We promised her, that on her making a signal from herhouse, or sending a message, she should have protection. She appearsvery apprehensive of evil from the liberation of the prisoners by theBrazilians during the night, and says, that there are some fears thatthe Portuguese will seize the forts on the other side, and hold themtill the arrival of the reinforcements daily expected from Lisbon. Thiswould, indeed, be disastrous; but I believe the apprehension to be illfounded. 

Having comforted my good friend as well as I could, we went on to theCampo, and found the Brazilians housed for the most part in someunfinished buildings. The men, though slight, looked healthy, active, and full of spirit; their horses were the best I have seen in thecountry; and, it might be fancy, but they gave me the idea of menresolute in their purpose, and determined to guard their rights andtheir homes. 

The scene in the Campo presented all manner of varieties. Within theenclosure where the artillery was placed, all was gravity andbusiness-like attention: the soldiers on the alert, and the officers ingroups, canvassing the events of the preceding night, and thecircumstances of the day; and here and there, both within and withoutthe circle, an orator was stationed with his group of auditors aroundhim, listening to his political discussions, or patriotic harangues. Inthe open part of the Campo were straggling soldiers, or whole companies, escaped from the heated crowd of the enclosure: horses, mules, andasses, many of all lying down from sheer fatigue. In all directions, negroes were coming, laden with capim or maize for the horses, orbearing on their heads cool drink and sweetmeats for the men. In onecorner, a group of soldiers, exhausted with travel and watching, layasleep; in another, a circle of black boys were gambling: in short, allways of beguiling the time while waiting for a great event might beseen; from those who silently and patiently expected the hour, in solemndread of what the event might be, to those who, merely longing foraction, filled up the interval with what might make it pass mostlightly. I was well pleased with the view I had of the people in theCampo, and still better as the day wore away, for I staid sometime, tofeel assured that all was to pass without bloodshed, beyond the two orthree persons killed accidentally during the night. 

On our return to the ship, we were stopped for some time in the palacesquare, by a great concourse of people assembled to witness the entranceof the first Brazilian guard into the palace, while the last Portugueseguard marched out, amid the loud huzzas of the people; and on reachingthe stairs, where we were to embark, we found the last of one regiment, and the first of another, about to sail for the Praya Grande, so thatthe city may sleep in security to-night. 

The inhabitants generally, but especially the foreign merchants, arewell pleased to see the Lisbon troops dismissed; for they have long beenmost tyrannically brutal to strangers, to negroes, and not unfrequentlyto Brazilians; and, for many weeks past, their arrogance has beendisgusting to both prince and people. [88]

[Note 88: The heavy step of the Portuguese infantry has earned forthem the nickname of _Pedechumbo_, or leaden foot; now applied to allpartisans of Portugal. ]

The appearance of the city is melancholy enough: the shops are shut up, guards are parading the streets, and every body looks anxious. Theshopkeepers are all employed as militia: they are walking about withbands and belts of raw hides over their ordinary clothes, but theirarms and ammunition were all in good order, and excepting these and theEnglish, I saw nobody at all out of doors. 

_13th_. --Every thing seems quiet to-day. From the ship we see the restof the troops going over to the Praya Grande. Yet there is necessarily agreat deal of anxiety among all classes of persons. Some persons havesent some of their valuables on board the frigate, for safety; and amessage, I do not know on what authority, arrived to know if the Princeand Princess, and family, could be received and protected on board. --Theanswer, of course, is, that though the ship must observe the strictestneutrality between the parties, yet that we are ready at once to receiveand protect the Princess and children, and also, whenever he has reasonto apprehend personal danger, the Prince himself. My cabin is thereforeready. I hope they will not be forced to come afloat. The more they cantrust to the Brazilians the better for them, and for the cause of thatindependence which is now so inevitable, that the only question iswhether it shall be obtained with or without bloodshed. 

We have determined to have a ball on board, the day after to-morrow, that the people may get acquainted with us, --and then if any thingoccurs to render it advisable to take refuge with us, they will know whothey are to come amongst. 

_14th_. --The shops are open, and business going on as usual to-day. ThePrince is granting discharges to both officers and men of the Portugueseregiments, who wish to remain in Brazil instead of returning to Europe. This is stigmatised by the Portuguese as _licensing desertion_, from thearmy of the King and Cortes; whatever they may call it, I am convincedthat the measure tends to the present tranquillity of the capital. ThePrincess and children are gone to Santa Cruz, a country estate, formerlybelonging to the Jesuits, now to the crown, fourteen leagues on the roadtowards St. Paul's. [89]

[Note 89: This journey was very disastrous, as it caused the deathof the infant Prince. ]

_15th_. --Our ball went off very well: we had more foreigners thanEnglish; and as there was excellent music from the opera-orchestra, anda great deal of dancing, the young people enjoyed it much. I should havedone so also, but that Captain Graham was suffering with the gout soseverely, that I could have wished to put off the dance. I hadcommissioned the Viscondeça do Rio Seco and some other ladies to bringtheir Portuguese friends, which they did, and we had a number of prettyand agreeable women, and several gentlemanlike men, in addition to ourEnglish friends. 

A dance on ship-board is always agreeable and picturesque: there issomething in the very contrast afforded by the furniture of the deck ofa ship of war to the company and occupation of a ball that is striking. 

 "The little warlike world within, The well-reeved guns and netted canopy, "

all dressed with evergreens and flowers, waving over the heads of gaygirls and their smiling partners, furnish forth combinations in whichpoetry and romance delight, and which one must be stoical indeed tocontemplate without emotion. I never loved dancing myself, perhapsbecause I never excelled in it; but yet, a ball-room is to me adelightful place. There are happy faces, and hearts not the less happyfor the little anxious palpitations that arise now and then, andcuriosity, and hope, and all the amiable feelings of youth and nature;and if among it a little elderly gaiety mingles, and excites a smile, I, for my part, rather reverence the youth of heart which lives through thecares and vexations of this life, and can mingle in, without disturbing, the hilarity of youth. 

_17th_. --Nothing remarkable yesterday or to-day, but the perfect quietof the town. The Prince goes on discharging the soldiers. 

_19th_. --This day the new ministers arrived from St. Paul's; the chiefof whom in station, as in talent, is Jose Bonifacio de Andrada e Silva. According to the opinion entertained of him by the people here, I shouldsay that Cowper had described him, when he wrote

 Great offices will have Great talents. And God gives to every man The virtue, temper, understanding, taste, That lift him into life, and lets him fall Just in the niche he was ordained to fill. To the deliverer of an injured land He gives a tongue to enlarge upon, a heart To feel, and courage to redress her wrongs. 

He had been sent early from Brazil to study at Coimbra, where he laysick at the time of the King's departure from Lisbon; and afterwards, during the time of the French, he could not find means to return to hisnative country; but upon the first rising of the people in the districtsround Oporto and Coimbra, he put himself at the head of the students ofthe university, in their successful resistance to Junot, and afterwardsserved in the campaign against Soult. When he returned to Lisbon, Ibelieve, he there entered the regular army; for after bearing armsagainst Massena, I find that at the end of the war he had the rank oflieutenant-colonel, with which he returned to Brazil in 1819. But hiswhole time in Europe was not spent in warfare: he had travelled, and hadbecome acquainted with several among the most distinguished charactersin England, France, and Italy, and had contracted a particular esteemfor Alfieri. The object of his travels was rather to see and learn whatmight be useful to his own country, than the mere pleasure of visitingdifferent parts of the world; and I am told, that he has particularlyattended to those branches of science which may improve the agricultureand the mining of Brazil. 

One of his brothers, Martin Francisco, is possessed of scarcely lesstalent than himself; and their family, their character, and the esteemin which they are held, add weight not only to their own interest, butto the government which employs them. 

The guards and patroles were doubled along the road, by which they andthe veteran General Corado arrived, as it was feared the Portuguese, whosince the 12th have been completely distinct from the Brazilians, mighthave impeded their progress. However, every thing was perfectlytranquil. 

20_th_. --The Aurora arrived from Pernambuco and Bahia, at both whichplaces it appears that every thing is quiet. But as the meeting of thecamara of Bahia is to take place early next month, for the purpose ofchusing a new provisional government, the English are apprehensive ofsome disturbance, and therefore we are to return thither to protect ourfriends in case of need. 

21_st_. --I went ashore to shop with Glennie. There are a good manyEnglish shops, such as saddlers, and stores, not unlike what we call inEngland an Italian warehouse, for eatables and drinkables; but theEnglish here generally sell their goods wholesale to native or Frenchretailers. The latter have a great many shops of mercery, haberdashery, and millinery. For tailors, I think, there are more English than French, and but few of either. There are bakers' shops of both nations, andplenty of English pot-houses, whose Union Jacks, Red Lions, Jolly Tars, with their English inscriptions, vie with those of Greenwich orDeptford. The goldsmiths all live in one street, called by their name_Rua dos Ourives_, and their goods are exposed in hanging frames at eachside of the shop-door or window, in the fashion of two centuries back. The workmanship of their chains, crosses, buttons, and other ornaments, is exquisite, and the price of the labour, charged over the weight ofthe metal, moderate. 

Most of the streets are lined with English goods: at every door thewords _London superfine_ meet the eye: printed cottons, broad cloths, crockery, but above all, hardware from Birmingham, are to be had littledearer than at home, in the Brazilian shops; besides silks, crapes, andother articles from China. But any thing bought by retail in an Englishor French shop is, usually speaking, very dear. 

I am amused at the apparent apathy of the Brazilian shopkeepers. If theyare engaged, as now is not unfrequently the case, in talking politics, or reading a newspaper, or perhaps only enjoying a cool seat in the backof their shop, they will often say they have not the article enquiredfor, rather than rise to fetch it; and if the customer persists andpoints it out in the shop, he is coolly desired to get it for himself, and lay down the money. This happened several times during the courseof our search for some tools for turning to-day along the Rua Direita, where every second house is a hardware shop, furnished from Sheffieldand Birmingham. 

_22d_. --The Princess's birth-day was celebrated by firing of cannon, areview, and a drawing-room. Capt. Prescott, of the Aurora, and Capt. Graham, attended it. It seems the Prince took little or no notice ofthem, or any of the English. I think it probable that the Brazilians arejealous of us, on account of our long alliance with Portugal; andbesides, they may take the converse of the maxim, "those that are notagainst us are for us;" and think because we are not for them, we areagainst them. [90]

[Note 90: I have since learned that some very warm expressions ofpersonal regard and sympathy used by an English officer (not, however, belonging either to the Aurora or Doris) to a Portuguese, with whom hehad but a slight acquaintance, on occasion of his embarking for PrayaGrande, had led the Portuguese to believe that it meant something more, and that, in case of need, the English would join with the Portuguese. This at least was whispered in the town, and very naturally accounts forthe jealousy entertained against us. ]

_24th_. --We sailed at daylight for Bahia. It was one of the finestmornings of this fine climate, and the remarkable land behind theSugar-loaf was seen to its best advantage in the early light. Theextreme beauty of this country is such, that it is impossible not totalk and think of it for ever; not a turn but presents some scene bothbeautiful and new; and if a mountainous and picturesque country havereally the power of attaching its inhabitants, above all others, the_Fluminenses_ ought to be as great patriots as any in the world. 

_February 8th, Bahia_. --After a fortnight's sail, the two first days ofwhich were calm, followed by a gale of wind, which lasted nearly threedays, we anchored to-day in the bay of All Saints, which we foundlooking as gaily beautiful as ever. The election of the new provisionalgovernment took place yesterday, quite peaceably; and of the sevenmembers of the junta, only one is a native of Portugal. 

I remark, that the language of the writers of gazettes here is muchbolder than at Rio; and I think that there is here a truly republicanspirit among a very considerable number of persons: whether it extendsthroughout the province I cannot judge; but I am assured that a desirefor independence, and a resolution to possess it, is universal. 

_10th_. --We went ashore yesterday. The advance of the season has ripenedthe oranges and mangoes since we left Bahia, and has increased thenumber of insects, so that the nights are no longer silent. The hissing, chirping, and buzzing of crickets, beetles, and grasshoppers, continuefrom sunset to sunrise; and all day long the trees and flowers aresurrounded by myriads of brilliant wings. The most destructive insectsare the ants, and every variety of them that can hurt vegetable life isto be found here. Some form nests, like huge hanging cones, among thebranches of the trees, to which a covered gallery of clay from theground may be traced along the trunk: others surround the trunks andlarger branches with their nests; many more live under ground. I haveseen in a single night the most flourishing orange-tree stripped ofevery leaf by this mischievous creature. 

_16th_. --We sailed from Bahia, finding every thing, to all appearance, quiet[91]; and no apprehension being entertained by the English, a ballat the consul's, another at Mrs. N. 's, and a third at Mrs. R. 's, at eachof which, as many of our young men as could get ashore were present, made them very happy, and we had some very pleasant rides into thecountry. I had intended, if possible, visiting a huge mass, said to beso similar to the meteoric stones that have fallen in different parts ofthe world as to induce a belief that it is also one of them, although itweighs many tons, and I hoped to get a piece of it; but I find it isnear Nazareth de Farinha, on the other side of the bay, and too far offfor this present visit to Bahia. The first time we were at Bahia, Icould not even learn where it was, so incurious are my countrymen hereabout what brings no profit. 

[Note 91: Very shortly after we sailed, I believe within a day ortwo, those disturbances broke out at Bahia, which lasted until the 2d ofJuly, 1823. ]

_24th. Rio de Janeiro_. --Nothing remarkable occurred on our passage herefrom Bahia. The school-room proceeds exceedingly well, both with themaster and the scholars; and as we are all in tolerable health, we lookforward with no small pleasure to our voyage to Chile, for which we arepreparing. 

During our absence, the Prince Don Pedro has been very active, and hasdismissed all the Portuguese troops. On the ships being provided totransport them to Europe, they refused to embark, on which His RoyalHighness caused a heavy frigate to anchor opposite to their quarters, and went on board himself the night before the morning appointed by himfor their sailing. The steam-vessel attended for the purpose of towingthe transports, in case of necessity; and several gun-vessels werestationed so as to command the barracks of the refractory regiments, while a body of Brazilian soldiers was stationed in the neighbourhood. The Prince was, during the greater part of the night, in his barge, going from vessel to vessel, and disposing every thing to make good histhreat, that if the Portuguese were not all on board by eight o'clockthe next morning, he would give them such a breakfast of Brazilian ballsas should make them glad to leave the country. This he had been provokedto say, by a message from the officers and men, insolently deliveredthat very night, desiring more time to prepare for their voyage. SeeingHis Royal Highness in earnest, which they could hardly be brought tobelieve he was, they thought it most prudent to do as they were bid; andaccordingly embarked, to the no small joy of the Brazilians, who hadlong cordially hated them. 

_Friday, March 1st_. --The weather is now excessively hot, thethermometer being seldom under 88°, and we have had it on board at 92°Fahrenheit. Capt. Graham has had a slight attack of gout, for whichreason I have not been ashore since our return from Bahia; but as he isa little better to-day he has insisted on my accompanying a party of ouryoung men in an expedition up the harbour to see a country estate andfactory. 

At one o'clock, our friend, Mr. N. Called for us, with a large boat ofthe country, which is better for the purpose than our ship's boats. These vessels have a standing awning, and two very large triangularsails: they are managed according to their sizes by four, six, eight, ormore negroes, besides the man at the helm: when rowing, the rowers riseat every stroke, and then throw themselves back on their seats. I thinkI have heard that within the memory of persons now in the navy it wasthe fashion to row the admiral's barges so in England. The boatmen arehere universally negroes; some free, and owners of their boats; othersslaves, who are obliged to take home a daily fixed sum to their masters, who often pass a life of total indolence, being fed in this way by theirslaves. 

The place we were going to is Nossa Senhora da Luz, about twelve milesfrom Rio, up the harbour, near the mouth of the river Guaxindiba, whichriver rises in the hills of Taypu; and though its straight course isonly five miles, its windings would measure twenty or more: it isnavigable, and its banks are astonishingly fertile. 

The evening was charming, and we sailed past many a smiling island andgay wooded promontory, where gardens and country-houses are thicklyscattered, and whence provisions in innumerable boats and canoes crossthe bay every morning for the city. Our first view of N. S. Da Luzpresented such a high red bank, half covered with grass and trees, overhanging the water in the evening sun, as Cuyp would have chosen fora landscape; and just as I was wishing for something to animate it, theoxen belonging to the factory came down to drink and cool themselves inthe bay, and completed the scene. The cattle here are large andwell-shaped, something like our own Lancashire breed, and mottled incolour, though mostly red. On doubling the point of the bank, we cameupon a small white church, with some venerable trees near it; beyondthat was the house, with a long veranda, supported by white columns; andstill farther on, the sugar-house, and the pottery and brick-work. Welanded close to the house; but as the beach is shallow and muddy, wewere carried ashore by negroes. Nothing can be finer than the sceneryhere. From the veranda, besides the picturesque and domesticfore-ground, we see the bay, dotted with rocky islands; one of these, called Itaoca, is remarkable as having, in the opinion of the Indians, been the residence of some divine person: it is connected with thetraditions concerning their benefactor, Zome, who taught them the use ofthe mandioc, and whom the first missionaries here contrived to convertinto St. Thomas the apostle. It consists of one immense stone cleftthroughout, and a little earth and sand gathered round it, on which aretrees and shrubs of the freshest verdure; some of the other islets arebare, and some again have houses and villages on them: the whole sceneis terminated by the Organ Mountains, whose spiry and fantastic summitsattracting the passing clouds, secure an everlasting variety to the eye. 

We found, that owing to our neglect in not sending beforehand toannounce our visit, neither the master of the house nor his housekeeperwere at home: however, Mr. N. Being an old friend, went into the poultryyard, and ordered thence an excellent supper; and while it waspreparing, we went to look at the pottery, which is only for thecoarsest red ware. The wheel used here is the clumsiest and rudest Iever saw, and the potter is obliged to sit sideways by it. The clay, both for the pottery and the bricks, is dug on the spot; it is coarseand red: it is tempered by the trampling of mules; but all that we usespades and shovels for is done by the bare hands of the negroes: thefurnaces for baking the bricks and jars are partly scooped out of thehill, and faced with brick. Leaving the pottery, we climbed the hillthat marks the first approach to N. S. Da Luz; and on the way up itssteep and rugged side, our dogs disturbed a flock of sheep, aspicturesque and as ragged as Paul Potter himself could have desired:they had been lying round the root of a huge old acacia, decorated withinnumerable parasite plants, some of which cling like ivy to the trunk, and others climbing to the topmost boughs, fall thence in grey silkygarlands, or, like the tillandsia, adorn them with hundreds of pink andwhite flowers; among these, many an ant and bee had fixed his nest, andevery thing was teeming with life and beauty. 

The moon was up long before we returned from our ramble, and long beforeour host arrived. Had the Neapolitan ambassador, who told George theThird that the moon of his country was worth the sun of England, everbeen in Brazil, I could almost forgive the hyperbole. The clear mildlight playing on such scenery, and the cool refreshing breeze ofevening, after a day of all but intolerable heat, render the nightindeed the season of pleasure in this climate: nor were the rude songsof the negroes, as they loaded the boats to be ready to sail down theharbour with the morning’s land-breeze, unpleasing. 

As we were looking over the bay, a larger boat appeared: it neared theshore; and our host, Mr. Lewis P. , who superintends the fazenda, landed, and kindly received our apology for coming without previous notice. Thevisit had long been talked of; but now our time at Rio was likely to beso short, that had we not come to-day, we might not have come at all. Heled the way to the garden, where we passed the time till supper wasready. The midshipmen found more oranges, and better than they had yetmet with, and did full justice to them. The fruit and vegetables ofEurope and America, of the temperate and torrid zones, meet here; norare their flowers forgotten: over against the little parterre, an orangeand a tamarind tree shade a pleasant bench; close to which, in somethingof oriental taste, the white stucco wall of the well is raised andcrowned with flower-pots, filled with roses and sweet herbs. 

_2d. _--I rose at daylight, and rode with Mr. N. Through the estate, while Mr. Dance, my cousin Glennie, and the two boys, went to shoot inthe marsh by the river side. 

Every turn in our ride brought a new and varied landscape into view:beneath, the sugar-cane in luxuriant growth; above, the ripening orangeand the palm; around and scattered through the plain enlivened by thewindings of the Guazindiba, the lime, the guava, and a thousand odorousand splendid shrubs, beautified the path. --But all is new here. The longlines of fazenda houses, that now and then take from the solitariness ofnature, suggest no association with any advance either of old or presenttime, in the arts that civilise or that ennoble man. The rudestmanufactures, carried on by African slaves, one half of whom are newlyimported, (that is, are still smarting under the separation from allthat endears the home, even of a savage, ) are all the approaches toimprovement; and though nature is at least as fine as in India or inItaly, the want of some reference to man, as an intellectual and moralbeing, robs it of half its charms. However, I returned well pleased frommy ride, and found my young sportsmen not less pleased with theirmorning's ramble. Not, indeed, that they had shot snipes, as theyintended, but they had gotten a huge lizard (_Lacerta Marmorata_), of akind they had not seen before. They had seen the large land-crab(_Ruricola_), and they had brought down a boatswain bird, a sort ofpelican, (_Pelicanus Lencocephalus_), which they proposed to stuff. Accordingly after breakfast, as the weather was too hot to walk farther, the bird and the lizard were both skinned, the guns were cleaned, and Imade a sketch of the landscape. 

In the evening I took a long walk to a point of view whence the wholebay with the city in the distance is distinctly seen, and on the waystopped at a cottage, where Mr. P. Who is, literally, here "king, priest, and prophet, " had some enquiry to make, concerning the health ofthe indwellers: these were two negroes, who have grown old in theservice of the estate, and are no longer useful. I have seen examples ofsuch being freed, that is, turned out of doors to starve. Here theywould be entitled, by the rules of the estate, if not by law, to comeevery day for the same allowance as the working negroes: but they do notchoose it. They indeed live in a hut, and on the ground of their master;but they maintain themselves by rearing a few fowls, and making baskets:so dear is the feeling of independence, even in old age, sickness, andslavery. 

_Sunday, 3d. _--I went out before breakfast, with a negro carpenter formy guide. This man, with little instruction, has learned his art so asto be not only a good carpenter and joiner, but also a very tolerablecabinet-maker, and in other respects displays a quickness ofunderstanding which gives no countenance to the pretended inferiority ofnegro intellect. I was much pleased with the observations he made onmany things which I remarked as new, and with the perfect understandinghe seemed to have of all country works. After breakfast, I attended theweekly muster of all the negroes of the fazenda; clean shirts andtrowsers were given the men, and shifts and skirts to the women, of verycoarse white cotton. Each, as he or she came in, kissed a hand, and thenbowed to Mr. P. Saying, either "Father, give me blessing, " or "The namesof Jesus and Mary be praised!" and were answered accordingly, either"Bless you, " or "Be they praised. " This is the custom in oldestablishments: it is repeated morning and evening, and seems toacknowledge a kind of relationship between master and slave. It mustdiminish the evils of slavery to one, the tyranny of mastership in theother, to acknowledge thus a common superior Master on whom they bothdepend. 

As each slave passed in review, some questions were asked concerninghimself, his family, if he had one, or his work; and each received aportion of snuff or tobacco, according to his taste. Mr. P. Is one ofthe few persons whom I have met conversant among slaves, who appears tohave made them an object of rational and humane attention. He tells methat the creole negroes and mulattoes are far superior in industry tothe Portuguese and Brazilians; who, from causes not difficult to beimagined, are for the most part indolent and ignorant. The negroes andmulattoes have strong motives to exertion of every kind, and succeed inwhat they undertake accordingly. They are the best artificers andartists. The orchestra of the opera-house is composed of at leastone-third of mulattoes. All decorative painting, carving, and inlayingis done by them; in short, they excel in all ingenious mechanical arts. 

In the afternoon I attended Mr. P. To see the negroes receive theirdaily allowance of food. It consisted of farinha, kidney-beans, anddried beef, a fixed measure of each to every person. One man asked fortwo portions, on account of the absence of his neighbour, whose wife haddesired it might be sent to her to make ready for him by the time hereturned. Some enquiries which Mr. P. Made about this person, induced meto ask his history. It seems he is a mulatto boatman, the most trustyservant on the estate, and rich, because he is industrious enough tohave earned a good deal of private property, besides doing his duty tohis master. In his youth, and he is not now old, he had become attachedto a creole negress, born, like him, on the estate; but he did not marryher till he had earned money enough to purchase her, in order that theirchildren, if they had any, might be born free. Since that time, he hasbecome rich enough to purchase himself, even at the high price whichsuch a slave might fetch; but his master will not sell him his freedom, his services being too valuable to lose, notwithstanding his promise toremain on the estate and work. Unfortunately these people have nochildren; therefore on their death their property, now considerable, will revert to the master. Had they children, as the woman is free, theymight inherit the mother’s property; and there is nothing to prevent thefather’s making over all he earns to her. I wish I had the talent ofnovel writing, for the sake of this slave’s story; but my writing, likemy drawing, goes no farther than sketching from nature, and I makebetter artists welcome to use the subject. 

The evening was very stormy: deep clouds had covered the OrganMountains; and vivid lightning, sharp rain, and boisterous wind, hadthreatened the fazenda with a night of terror. But it passed away, leaving all the grand and gloomy beauty of a departed thunder-storm in amountainous country; when the moon broke through the clouds, and thenight seemed, from the contrast with the last few hours, even lovelierthan the last. Then just as the

 "Sable clouds Turned forth their silver lining on the night, And cast a gleam over the tufted grove. "

I heard the sounds of music; not such, indeed, as Milton’s echo, withHenry Lawes’s notes, would have made, --of which the night and the scenehad made me dream; but the voice of the slaves on this their night ofholiday, beguiling their cares with uncouth airs, played on rude Africaninstruments. Taking one of my ship-mates with me, I immediately went tothe huts of the married slaves, where all merry-makings are held; andfound parties playing, singing, and dancing to the moonlight. Asuperstitious veneration for that beautiful planet is said to be prettygeneral in savage Africa, as that for the Pleiades was among theIndians of Brazil; and probably the slaves, though baptized, dance tothe moon in memory of their homes. As for the instruments, they are themost inartificial things that ever gave out musical sounds; yet theyhave not an unpleasing effect. One is simply composed of a crookedstick, a small hollow gourd, and a single string of brass wire. Themouth of the gourd must be placed on the naked skin of the side; so thatthe ribs of the player form the sounding-board, and the string is struckwith a short stick. A second has more the appearance of a guitar: thehollow gourd is covered with skin; it has a bridge, and there are twostrings; it is played with the finger. Another of the same class isplayed with a bow; it has but one string, but is fretted with thefingers. All these are called Gourmis. There were, besides, drums madeof the hollow trunks of trees, four or five feet long, closed at one endwith wood, and covered with skin at the other. In playing these, thedrummer lays his instrument on the ground and gets astride on it, whenhe beats time with his hands to his own songs, or the tunes of thegourmis. The small marimba has a very sweet tone. On a flat piece ofsonorous wood a little bridge is fastened; and to this small slips ofiron, of different lengths, are attached, so as that both ends vibrateon the board, one end being broader and more elevated than the other. This broad end is played with the thumbs, the instrument being held withboth hands. All these are tuned in a peculiar manner, and with greatnicety, especially the marimba[92]; but, as I am no musician, I cannotexplain their methods. 

[Note 92: The simplest of these stringed instruments, and two kindsof marimba, have found a place in the Jesuit Bonnanis’ _GabinettoArmonica_, printed at Rome, 1722, and dedicated to Holy King David. Thegreat marimba consists of a large wooden frame; in which a number ofhollow canes, about nine inches long, are placed, with the mouthupwards; across these open ends are laid pieces of sonorous wood, whichbeing struck with another yield a pleasant sound, like the woodenarmonicas of Malacca. The whole is suspended round the neck, like theold man’s psaltery in the Dance of Death. Each nation of negroes has itsown peculiar instrument, which its exiles have introduced here. A kingof each tribe is annually elected, to whom his people are obedient, something in the way of the gipsy monarchy. Before 1806 the electiontook place with great ceremony and feasting, and sometimes fighting, inthe Campo de Sta. Anna; and the king of the whole was seated during theday in the centre of the square under a huge state umbrella. Thisfestival is now abolished. ]

_4th_. --I was very sorry indeed this morning at sunrise, when I saw theboats ready to convey us from N. S. Da Luz, where we had enjoyed ourthree days as much as possible; a cheerful party, a kind host, freedisposal of our time, and no business but such as might beseem theindividuals of this castle of indolence, "where every man strolled offhis own glad way. "

 "There freedom reigned without the least alloy; Nor gossip's tale, nor ancient maiden’s gall, Nor saintly spleen, durst murmur at our joy, And with envenomed tongue our pleasures pall. For why? There was but one great rule for all; To wit, that each should work his own desire. "

We returned to the ship by a different way from that by which we went, through the archipelago of beautiful islands on the eastern side of theharbour; and I had the pleasure to find the Captain really better, though still with tender feet. 

_6th_. --His Majesty’s ship, Slaney, Capt. Stanhope, sailed from Rio. 

_7th_. --The Superb arrived from Valparaiso, bringing no news ofimportance. Indeed, if she had, we are scarcely in a state to attend toit: we have sat up all night with B. , one of our midshipmen, who isdangerously ill. 

_8th_. --Captain Graham not feeling well enough to leave the ship, I wentwith Captain Prescott of the Aurora, to visit the French CommodoreRoussin on board the Amazone. I have seldom been better pleased. Thecaptains of the other French ships were there, to receive us. All theurbanity of Frenchmen, joined with the delightful frankness of theprofession, assured us we were welcome. The ship itself, every part ofwhich we saw, is a model of all that can be done, either in thedock-yard at home, or by officers afloat, for comfort, health, andcleanliness, and is well as a man of war. Her captain, however, is asuperior man; and many ships of every and any nation might be visitedbefore his equal would be met with. I wish it were possible that weshould introduce into our ships the oven on the lower deck, which givesfresh bread twice a week for the whole ship’s company, not only for thesake of the bread, but the heating it must air and ventilate the ship. 

_9th_. --The Portuguese squadron from Lisbon, with a reinforcement oftroops, arrived off the harbour. Troops are sent to reinforce thegarrisons in the forts, at the entrance; and the ships are forbidden toenter, but promised victuals and water to carry them to Lisbon. I was onshore all day on business, preparatory to our sailing for Valparaiso. Captain Graham being too unwell to venture out of the ship himself, hetherefore undertook to nurse the invalid for me. I returned late. Ifound B. Dangerously ill, and Captain Graham very uneasy. 

I received many persons on board, and took leave of many. 

[Illustration]

_10th_. --We sailed at daylight from Rio, in full hope that the coolweather we shall find on going round Cape Horn, and the fine climate ofChile, will do us all good. I have not been in bed for three nights; myinvalids are in that state, that night watching is necessary for them. 

_13th_. --In addition to our other troubles, the first lieutenant istaken dangerously ill: but Captain Graham appears better, though not yetable to go on deck. 

_16th_. --Yesterday afternoon the mercury in the barometer sunk in avery short space of time a whole inch, and we had a gale of wind. Thecold is sensibly increased. Fahrenheit’s thermometer often stood at 92°in Rio harbour; it is now 68°, and we have many sick. B. Is gettingbetter. 

_17th_. --Wind and sea abated, and the barometer rising once more; themercury stands at 30 inches and two-tenths. I have lain down at fouro'clock these two mornings, Glennie having kindly relieved my watchingat that hour. We have removed the dead-lights from the cabin windows. 

_18th_. --Every thing better. The young people again at school. Somelunars taken. We are in 36° 55' S. Latitude, and the thermometer is at68°. ; barometer 30-2. 

On the 19_th_ and 20_th_ the mercury in the barometer sunk graduallyfrom 30 to 29-02, and rose again as before on the 21st. It blew hard;the thermometer fell to 58°, in latitude 42° S. There are manyalbatrosses and stormy petrels about the ship. 

_22d_. --Latitude 46° 25' S. , longitude 52° 40' W. The weather very cold, though the thermometer is at 56°, barometer 29-08; a very heavy swell. Great numbers of the Cape pigeon about the ship. 

_24th_. --Latitude 50° 30'; thermometer 44° morning and evening, 47° atnoon. Seeing two penguins to-day, we supposed some land must be near, but found no bottom with 100 fathoms line. The cold weather seems tohave a good effect on our invalids. The barometer fell suddenly, and astrong S. W. Wind succeeded, and we were glad to light a fire in thecabin. 

I am sorry we have passed so far out of sight of the Falkland Islands, Sir John Hawkins’s maiden land. The idea of seeing a town left standingas it was, by all its inhabitants at once, and of the tame animalsbecoming wild, had something romantic. It seemed like a realisation ofthe Arabian tale of the half-marble prince, and in real interest comesnear the discovery of the lost Greenland settlements. I do not know anything that gratifies the imagination, more than the situations andincidents that by bringing distant periods of time together, placesthem, as it were, at once within our own reach. I remember some yearsago spending a whole day with no companion but my guide at Pompeii, andbecoming so intimate with the ancients, their ways, and manners, that Ifelt, when I went home to Naples, and its lazaroni, and its Englishtravellers, as I suppose, that one of the seven sleepers to have done, who went to purchase bread with money five centuries old. As to themarble cities of Moorish Africa, when we consider their exposure to thesirocco, and read Dolomieu's Experiments on the Atmosphere, during theprevalence of that wind at Malta, we shall find but too probable areason for their existence as reported. 

_25th_. --Latitude 51° 58' S. , longitude 51° W. , thermometer 41°. Strongsouth-westerly gales and heavy sea. Just as our friends in England arelooking forward to spring, its gay light days and early flowers, we aresailing towards frozen regions, where avarice’ self has been forced togive up half-formed settlements by the severity of the climate. We arein the midst of a dark boisterous sea; over us, a dense, grey, cold sky. The albatross, stormy petrel, and pintado are our companions; yet thereis a pleasure in stemming the apparently irresistible waves, and inwrestling thus with the elements. I forget what writer it is whoobserves, that the sublime and the ridiculous border on each other; I amsure they approach very nearly at sea. If I look abroad, I see thegrandest and most sublime object in nature, --the ocean raging in itsmight, and man, in all his honour, and dignity, and powers of mind andbody, wrestling with and commanding it: then I look within, round mylittle home in the cabin, and every roll of the ship causes accidentsirresistibly ludicrous; and in spite of the inconveniences they bringwith them, one cannot choose but laugh. Sometimes, in spite of all usualprecautions, of cushions and clothes, the breakfast-table is suddenlystripped of half its load, which is lodged in the lee scuppers, whitherthe coal-scuttle and its contents had adjourned the instant before: thensucceed the school-room distresses of _capsized_ ink-stands, brokenslates, torn books, and lost places; not to mention the loss of many apainful calculation, and other evils exquisite in their kind, butabundantly laughable, especially, as it happened just now, if theschool-master is induced to measure his length on the deck, when in theact of reprimanding the carelessness which subjects the slates and booksto these untoward chances. 

_28th_. --Latitude 55° 26' S. , longitude 56° 11' W. Captain Graham andthe first lieutenant still both very ill. At one o'clock this morningthe mercury in the barometer sunk to 28-09; at seven it rose again to29-01. The thermometer is at 38° of Fahrenheit, and we have had squallsof snow and sleet, and a heavy sea. There are flocks of very small birdsabout the ship, and we have seen a great many whales. 

_30th_. --Latitude 56° 51' S. , longitude 59° W. ; the thermometer at 30°this morning, and 32° at noon. A violent gale of wind from thesouth-west; the only thing like a hard gale since we left England. I hadbreakfast spread on the cabin deck, as it was not possible to secure anything on a table. Clarke, one of the quartermasters, had two ribs brokenby a fall on deck; and Sinclair, a very strong man, was taken ill afterbeing an hour at the wheel. We have made gloves for the men at the wheelof canvass, lined with dreadnought; and for the people at night, waistbands of canvass, with dreadnought linings. The snow and hailsqualls are very severe; ice forms in every fold of the sails. This ishard upon the men, so soon after leaving Rio in the hottest part of theyear. 

Yesterday morning, about an hour before sunrise, a bright meteor wasseen in the south-west. It was first taken for the signal lanterns of alarge ship; then the officer of the watch thought it was a blue light, and we made no doubt of its being Sir T. Hardy in the Creole. Itremained a long time stationary; then it was lost behind the clouds, andreappeared between them about 10° high, when it disappeared. [93]

[Note 93: Frezier mentions seeing such a meteor in latitude 57° 30'S. , and longitude 69° W. , in 1712. ]

_April 1st_. --Latitude 57° 46'; the weather much more mild and moderate. Our young men have caught a number of birds, principally petrels; the P. Pelagica, or Mother Cary's chicken, is the least; the P. Pintado isgayest on the water; but the P. Glacialis, or fulmer, is most beautifulwhen brought on board: I cannot enough admire the delicate beauty of thesnow-white plumage, unwet and unsoiled, amid the salt waves. The poetshave scandalised both the arctic and antarctic regions as

 "A bleak expanse, Shagg'd o'er with wavy rocks, cheerless and _void Of ev'ry life_;"

yet, on Capt. Parry's approach to the north pole, he found the solitudeteeming with _life_; and the farther south we have sailed, the more_life_ we have found on the waters. Yesterday the sea was covered withalbatrosses, and four kinds of petrel: the penguin comes near us; shoalsof porpoises are constantly flitting by, and whales for ever rising tothe surface and blowing alongside of the ship. 

With the thermometer not lower than 30°, we feel the cold excessive. Yesterday morning the main rigging was cased in ice; and the ropes wereso frozen after the sleet in the night, that it was difficult to workthem. I never see these things but I think of Thomson's description ofSir Hugh Willoughby's attempt to discover the northwest passage, when

 "He with his hapless crew, Each full exerted at his several task, Froze into statues; to the cordage glued The sailor, and the pilot to the helm. "

I was glad to-day, when the dead-lights were removed, to see the bright, blue, but still boisterous sea, spreading with ample waves curled withsnowy tops, in the sunshine; it is many days since we have seen the sun, and the white birds flying and chattering, or wrestling on the water, while the ship, like them, sometimes bravely mounts the very top of thewave, and sometimes quietly subsides with it. These are the things webehold "who go down to the sea in ships, "and occupy our business in thegreat waters. " No one can imagine, who has not felt, the exhilarationof spirits produced by a dry clear day of sunshine at sea, after a weekof rain and snow. 

_April 2d_. --A few minutes after noon, an iceberg was reported on thelee-bow. As I had never seen one, I went on deck for the first timesince we left Rio to see it. [94] It appeared like a moderately highconical hill, and looked very white upon the bleak grey sky; it might beabout twelve miles from us. The temperature of the water was 36° ofFahrenheit's thermometer, that of the air 38°, when the ice was nearest. 

[Note 94: We passed another on the 8th, which Glennie calculated tobe 410 feet high; it was near enough for us to see the waves break onit. In conversing on this subject with the officers since, --for at thetime I was indeed unable to think of it, --I find there is reason tothink that, instead of an iceberg, we saw land on the 8th. It was seenin the latitude and longitude of an island visited by Drake, marked inthe old charts. ]

For some few days the violent motion of the ship, occasioned by theheavy sea, has rendered writing and drawing irksome; for, as LordDorset's song has it, "Our paper, pens, and ink, and we, Roll up and down our ships, at sea. "

Nevertheless we are not idle. As the cabin has always a good fire in it, it is the general rendezvous for invalids; and the midshipmen come inand out as they please, as it is the school-room. In one corner Glenniehas his apparatus for skinning and dissecting the birds we take; and wehave constantly occasion to admire the beautiful contrivances of naturein providing for her creatures. These huge sea-birds, that we find sofar from any land, have on each side large air-vessels adapted forfloating them in the air, or on the water; they are placed below thewings, and the liver, gizzard, and entrails rest on them. In eachgizzard of those we have yet opened, there have been two small pebbles, of unequal size; and the gizzard is very rough within. We have foundmore vegetable than animal food in their stomachs. 

_20th April, 1822_. --To-day we made the coast of Chile. I had continuedto write my Journal regularly; but though nearly two years are pastsince I wrote it, I cannot bring myself to copy it: from the 3d of Aprilit became a register of acute suffering; and, on my part, of alternatehopes and fears through days and nights of darkness and storms, whichaggravated the wretchedness of those wretched hours. On the night of theninth of April, I regularly undressed and went to bed for the first timesince I left Rio de Janeiro. All was then over, and I slept long andrested; but I awoke to the consciousness of being alone, and a widow, with half the globe between me and my kindred. 

Many things very painful occurred. But I had comfort too. I foundsympathy and brotherly help from some; and I was not insensible to theaffectionate behaviour of _my boys_, as the midshipmen were called. AndI had the comfort to feel that no stranger hand had closed his eyes, orsmoothed his pillow. 

Mr. London and Mr. Kift, the surgeon and assistant surgeon, never leftthe bed-side; and, when my strength failed, my cousin Mr. Glennie, andMr. Blatchly, two passed midshipmen, did all that friends could do. 

Mr. Dance, the second lieutenant, --though, from the illness of the firstlieutenant, the whole business of the ship devolved on him, --found timeto be near his friend's death-bed; and, whether at noon or midnight, wasnever absent where kindness could be shown. 

But what could any human kindness do for me? My comfort must come fromhim who in his own time will "wipe off all tears from our faces. "

SECOND VISIT TO BRAZIL. 

Before I begin the Journal of my Second Visit to Brazil, from which Iwas absent a year and three days, it will be necessary to give a shortaccount of the principal events which took place during that year, andwhich changed the government of the country. 

The Prince Regent had in vain sent the most pressing representations infavour of Brazil to the Cortes. No notice whatever was taken of hisdespatches; and the government at Lisbon continued to legislate forBrazil as if it were a settlement on the coast of savage Africa. Theministers who had served Don John had seen enough of the country, duringtheir residence in it, to be persuaded that Brazil, united, was at anytime competent to throw off all subjection to the mother country; theobject, therefore, became to divide it. Accordingly a scheme for thegovernment of Brazil was framed, by which each captaincy should be ruledby a junta, whose acts were to be totally independent on each other, andonly recognisable by the authorities in Portugal; and the Prince wasordered home in a peremptory and indecent manner. I have mentioned in myJournal the reception those orders had met with, and the resolution HisRoyal Highness had adopted of staying in Brazil. As soon as thisresolution became known to the provinces, addresses and deputationspoured in on all sides from every town and captaincy, excepting the cityof Bahia and the province of Maranliam, which had always had agovernment independent of the rest of Brazil. 

In December, 1821, the King had appointed General Madeira governor ofBahia and commander of the troops. He entered on his office in February;and shortly afterwards the first actual warfare between the Portugueseand Brazilians began in the city of St. Salvador, on the 6th of themonth, when the Brazilians were defeated with some loss. [95] Meantime, the province of St. Paul's had made every exertion to raise and armtroops; and early in February 1100 men marched towards Rio, to putthemselves at the disposal of the Prince. Some recruits for the seamenand marine corps were raised, and a naval academy established, theobject of all which was to prevent the carrying away the Prince byforce. It was now thought advisable that the Prince should visit the twomost important provinces, St. Paul's and the Mines; and on the 26th or27th of March he left Rio for that purpose, leaving the executivegovernment in the hands of the minister José Bonifacio. His RoyalHighness was received every where with enthusiasm, until he arrived atthe last stage, on his way to Villa Rica, the capital of the province ofMinas Geraes; there he received intelligence of a party raised to opposehis entrance by the Juiz de Fora, supported by a captain of one of theregiments of Caçadores. He immediately caused some troops to beassembled and joined with those which accompanied him, and then remainedwhere he was, and sent to the camara of the town, to say he was able toenter by force, but had rather come among them as a friend andprotector. Several messages passed; the conspirators discovered that thePrince was, indeed, sufficiently strong to overpower them; and besides, they met with no support, as they had hoped, from the magistrates orpeople. His Royal Highness, therefore, entered Villa Rica on the 9th ofApril, and on the magistrates and people attending to compliment him, headdressed them thus:--

"Brave Mineros! The shackles of despotism, which began to be loosened onthe 24th of August in Porto, are now bursting in this province. Befree, --be constitutional! Unite with me, and proceed constitutionally. Irely entirely on you. Do you depend on me. Let not yourselves be deludedby those who seek the ruin of your province, and of the whole nation. 

 Viva, The Constitutional King! Viva, Our Religion! Viva, All honest men! Viva, The Mineros!"

[Note 95: On the 25th of May following a solemn mass was performedfor the souls of those who had fallen on both sides, at the expense ofthe Bahians resident at Rio, in the church of San Francesco de Paulo. The cenotaph raised in the church was surrounded by inscriptions, inLatin and Portuguese; one of the most striking is, "Eternal glory tothose who give their blood for their country. "

 ("He quha dies for his cuntre Sal herbyrit intil bewyn be, " says _Barbour_. )

The day was one of those Brazilian rainy days, when it should seemanother deluge was coming: but the Prince and Princess were the first atthe ceremony. ]

The next day the Prince held a general court, and remained eleven daysat Villa Rica. The only punishment inflicted on the conspirators, wassuspension from their offices; and this royal visit attached thisprovince to him, as firmly as those of St. Paul's and Rio. 

He returned to Rio de Janeiro on the 25th, where he was received in themost flattering manner, and where he became daily more popular; and onthe 13th of May, King John's birth-day, the senate and people bestowedon him the title of Perpetual Defender of Brazil, and thenceforward hisstyle was, CONSTITUTIONAL PRINCE REGENT, AND PERPETUAL DEFENDER OF THEKINGDOM OF BRAZIL. 

The impossibility of continuing united to Portugal had become daily moreapparent. All the southern provinces were eager to declare theirindependence. Pernambuco and its dependencies had long manifested asimilar feeling, and the province of Bahia was equally inclined tofreedom although the city was full of Portuguese troops under Madeira, and receiving constant reinforcements and supplies from Lisbon. 

The Cortes seemed resolved on bringing matters to extremities; thelanguage used in their sessions, with respect to the Prince, was highlyindecent. Such commanders either by sea or land as obeyed him, unlessby force, were declared traitors, and he was ordered home anew withinfour months, under pain of submitting to the future disposition of theCortes; and they decreed that the whole means of government should beemployed to enforce obedience. The Brazilian members did indeedremonstrate and protest formally against these proceedings; but theywere over-ruled; and the spectators in the galleries, on one occasion, went so far as to cry, "Down with the Brazilian!"

In the months of June and July, Madeira began to make sallies into thecountry around Bahia, as if it had been possessed by an enemy; and, indeed, he quickly found one most formidable. The town of Cachoeira, large and populous, and intimately connected with the hardy inhabitantsof the Certam, soon became the head-quarters of crowds of patriots, whoassembled there, and resolved to expel the Portuguese from theircapital. 

They began to form regular troops; but though they were abundantlysupplied with beef and other provisions, they were in want of arms andammunition, and sent to Rio de Janeiro to represent their situation tothe Prince, and request assistance. They were also in great distress forsalt to preserve their provisions; and as to accoutrements, raw hidessupplied the place of almost every thing. An apothecary, in Cachoeira, shortly began to boil sea-water in sugar-coppers, to make salt, and soonreduced the price of that article, so that the quantity at first soldfor ten pataccas (eighteen shillings) fell to seven vintems (sevenpence). The same apothecary, collecting all the salt-petre in theneighbourhood, applied himself to making of gunpowder, and a fortunatediscovery of some hundred barrels smuggled into Itaparica by someEnglish, was of essential use to them. But they had no cannon, no leadfor ball for their muskets and matchlocks; the lead, indeed, and aquantity of gun-locks, their friends within the city contrived tosmuggle to them; and their guns were supplied in the following manner. In each engenho, there was an old gun or two for the purpose ofbalancing some part of the machinery; these were at once sent toCachoeira, where, being cleaned and bushed by an ingenious blacksmith, they were rendered serviceable; and the patriots ventured to take thefield against Madeira's parties, even before the arrival of anyassistance from Rio. 

Meantime, news of these transactions arrived at Rio, as well as noticeof the decrees of the Cortes at Lisbon. The Prince and people no longerhesitated. His Royal Highness, together with the senate, issuedproclamations on the _3d_ of June, calling together a representative andlegislative assembly, to be composed of members from every province andtown, to meet in the city of Rio; and on the first of August hepublished that noble manifesto, by which the independence of Brazil wasopenly asserted, the grounds of its claims clearly stated, and thepeople exhorted to let no voice but that of honour be heard among them, and to let the shores, from the Amazons to the Plata, resound with nocry but that of independence. On the same day, a decree was put forth toresist the hostilities of Portugal, containing the followingarticles:--1st, All troops sent by any country whatever, without leaveobtained from the Prince, shall be accounted enemies: 2d, If they comein peace, they shall remain on board their ships, and shall notcommunicate with the shore; but, having received supplies, shall depart:3d, That in case of disobedience, they shall be repulsed by force: 4th, If they force a landing in any weak point, the inhabitants shall retireto the interior, with all their moveables, and the militia shall makewar as guerillas against the strangers: 5th, That all governors, &c. Shall fortify their ports, &c. : 6th, Reports to be forthwith made of thestate of the ports in Brazil, for that end. 

This last decree had been anticipated by the Pernambucans, who hadmarched a body of troops to the assistance of the patriots of Cachoeira, and a most harassing warfare was commenced against the Portuguese in St. Salvador: these last had received a reinforcement of seven hundred menon the 8th of August; but they had hardly had time to exult in theirarrival, when a squadron from Rio Janeiro disembarked at Alagoas 5000guns, six field-pieces, 270, 000 cartridges, 2000 pikes, 500 carbines, 500 pistols, 500 cutlasses, and 260 men, chiefly officers, underBrigadier-general Lebatu[96], who soon joined the patriots, and fixedhis head-quarters at Cachoeira, having stretched a line of troops acrossthe peninsula on which the town is placed, and thus cut it off fromprovisions on that side; but the sea being still open, supplies wereabundant, not only from abroad, but from the opposite island ofItaparica. That fertile district, however, was soon occupied by theBrazilians; and Madeira had only his supplies from seaward, unless hecould by force dislodge the Brazilians from their quarters on thatisland. 

[Note 96: This gentleman was an officer under Napoleon, in theSpanish war. For some military irregularity, he was dismissed; butpardoned on condition of living in Cayenne, and procuring informationfor the French government. He left that country, however, and settled inBrazil; where, with the exception of a short time spent in the serviceof Bolivar, he had lived quietly and respectably till the presentjuncture. ]

The cabinet of Rio became sensible that it was necessary to provide anaval force, if they wished to preserve the kingdom from the fartherattacks of Portugal, or to dislodge the enemy from his strong-hold inBahia. Accordingly, the agents of the government in England wereemployed to engage officers and men: some were collected on the spot;others, such as Captain David Jewet, from Buenos Ayres and America, wereinstantly employed; and all exertions were made to repair such of theships left behind by King John as would bear the repairs. 

At length, on the 12th of October, the birth-day of the Prince, thetroops being, as usual, assembled in the great square of Santa Anna, anda great concourse of people attending, the Prince was suddenly hailedEmperor of Brazil, and the kingdom changed in style and title, and alldependence on, or connection with Portugal, for ever abjured. 

This event seemed to give new spirit to the war of Bahia: as itexasperated the Portuguese, so it encouraged the Brazilians, now assuredof independence. Madeira, resolved, if possible, to gain a communicationwith Nazareth on one of the rivers of the Reconcave, which is mostfertile, and furnishes abundance of farinha, sent one hundred men ofthe Caçadores, under Colonel Russel, to attempt to gain possession ofthe Ulha do Medo, which commands the Funil, or passage between themainland and Itaparica leading to Nazareth; but their boats grounded, and they were obliged to wait for the tide, while the Brazilians, whoare excellent marksmen, and were concealed among the bushes ashore, picked them off at leisure. Another expedition, equally unfortunate, wassent with a large gun-vessel to Cachoeira, and arrived off the publicsquare, just as it was filled with people proclaiming the Emperor. Theguns began to play on the mob; but the tide was low, and the shot, instead of reaching the people, only struck the quays, and did littledamage. The Brazilian soldiers now crowded to the wharfs, and thencecommenced so brisk a fire on the enemy, that the commander of the vesselretreated hastily without killing a man, though he lost many. In thisaction Dona Maria de Jesus distinguished herself; for the spirit ofpatriotism had not confined itself to the men. [97]

[Note 97: Of her, see more in the Journal. ]

The most considerable expedition sent by Madeira from Bahia was to thePunto de Itaparica, the possession of which was becoming daily moreimportant, as the provisions in the town diminished. For this purpose1500 men were embarked on board the Promtadao, and two other brigs ofwar; they were to land half on one side and half on the other of thelittle peninsula forming the Punto, on which there is a small fort andtown, which the troops were to attack while the brigs fired on the fort. The passage from Bahia to this point is usually of six or seven hours atmost, allowing for a contrary wind; but these vessels were two days inreaching it, by which time the Brazilians had thrown up heaps of sand;behind which they lay concealed, and deliberately fired on theLusitanians as they passed, and committed great slaughter, without theloss of a man, though they had several wounded. This action, if it maybe called so, took place on the 2d of January, 1823, and lasted fromnoon till sunset. 

Meantime the land side of the city had been harassed by continualattacks, and the troops worn out with constant watching; for theBrazilians were continually riding about in the woods, and beatingmarches, and causing their trumpets to sound to charge in the night, andby the time the enemy could reach the spot they were fled. On the 18thof November, 1822, however, Madeira made a sortie, and was met by theBrazilians at Piraja, between two and three leagues from the city, whena severe action took place, with some loss on both sides, and bothclaimed the victory; but as the Lusitanians retired to the town, and theBrazilians took up new positions close to the city gates, the advantagemust undoubtedly have been on the side of the latter. Meantime thescarcity of fresh provisions was such, that all the foreign merchantswho had families, and who could by any means remove, did so. All thecountry-houses were abandoned, and the people crowded into the town. Theheaviest contributions were levied on all natives and foreigners, andthe misery of a siege was coming upon the city. 

Rio de Janeiro presented a very different spectacle. The inhabitantswere decorating their town with triumphal arches for the coronation oftheir Emperor, who, on the 1st of December, was solemnly crowned in thechapel of the palace, which serves as the cathedral; and it is noexaggeration to say, that the whole of southern Brazil presented onescene of joy. 

The ministers, no less than the monarch, were beloved. The financesbegan to assume a flourishing aspect: large subscriptions flowed in fromall quarters for the equipment of a fleet; and an invitation had beensent to Lord Cochrane to command it. The Emperor had accepted the mostmoderate income that ever crowned head was contented withal[98], inorder to spare his people. He visited his dock-yards and arsenalshimself; attended business of every kind; encouraged improvements inevery department, and Brazil had begun to assume a most flourishingaspect. Such was the state of things when I arrived for the second timein Brazil, along with Lord Cochrane, on the 13th of March, 1823. 

[Note 98: Less than twenty thousand pounds sterling a year. ]

[Illustration:]

_March 13th, 1823. On board the Col. Allen, at anchor in Rio deJaneiro_. --One of the most windy and rainy days that I ever rememberseeing in Brazil; so that the beautiful landscape of the harbour isentirely lost to the strangers from Chile, and I cannot get ashoreeither to provide lodgings for myself and my invalid[99], or to assistmy friends in any way. When the officer of the visiting boat came onboard, the captain of the ship showed him into the cabin, and left himwith me. I found he spoke English, and immediately began to enquire ofhim concerning the news of Rio. And first he mentioned the coronation ofthe Emperor, and then the war at Bahia; on which I questioned him veryclosely, on the ground of having formerly visited the place. It appearsthat last night only His Imperial Majesty's ships Unaŏ, (now Piranga, )Nitherohy, and Liberal, with a fleet of transports, had returned fromAlagoas, where they had landed reinforcements for General Labatu; whosehead-quarters are at Cachoeira, and who is investing the city of Bahiaclosely. General Madeira has a strong force of Portuguese soldiers, besides 2000 seamen which occasionally do duty ashore, and aconsiderable naval force. [100] But it appears, that the seamen are onthe point of mutining for want of pay. Having told me so much, theofficer began to question me in my turn, --Did I come from Chile? Did Iknow Lord Cochrane? was he coming to Rio? for all eyes were turnedtowards him. When he found that His Lordship was actually on board, heflew to his cabin door, and entreated to kiss his hands; then snatchedhis hat, and calling to the captain to do as he would, and anchor wherehe pleased without ceremony, jumped over the side to be the first, ifpossible, to convey to the Emperor the joyful intelligence. Nearly thesame scene was acted over when Perez, the port-captain, came on board;and in a few minutes Captain Garçaŏ of the Liberal came to pay hisrespects, and shortly afterwards Captain Taylor of the Nitherohy, fromwhom we learned something more of the state of His Imperial Majesty'sfleet. The Pedro Primeiro, formerly the Martim Freitas, had been left bythe King in want of thorough repair; this she has had, and came out ofdock yesterday; she is said to sail well. The Caroline is a finefrigate, but not commissioned, for want of men. The Unaŏ is a very fineship, wants copper, and is commanded by Captain Jewitt. The Nitherohy isa corvette, well found, and in good repair, but a heavy sailer; and theMaria da Gloria, a fine corvette, is commanded by a French officer, Captain Beaurepair. The great difficulty the navy here has to dread isthe want of men. [101] Portuguese sailors are worse than none; fewBrazilians are sailors at all, and French, English, and Americans arevery scarce. The Emperor is fond of the navy, and very active in lookinginto every department. He is often in the dock-yards by daylight, andthe Empress generally accompanies him. 

[Note 99: My cousin Mr. Glennie invalided, from the Doris, havingbroken a blood-vessel. ]

[Note 100: Don Joam Sesto, 80 guns. --Constituiçam, 56. --Corvette, 10de Fevreiro, 29. --Active, 22. --Calypso, 22. --Regeneraçaŏ, 22. --Astore-ship, 28. --Brig Audaz, 18. --Promptidaŏ, 16. --Smack Emilia, 8. --Conceiçam, 8. 

_Armed Merchant Vessels_. --San Domingo, 20 guns. --Restauraçam, 24. --SanGualter, 26. --Bisarra, 18. ]

[Note 101: The pay of seamen is but scanty. The advertisement ofFebruary for seamen to man the Pedro Primeiro is as follows:--Toable-bodied seamen 8 mil. Bounty; 4 mil. 800 rees to ordinary seamen. Monthly pay, 8 mil. To able-bodied seamen, 6mil. 500 rees to ordinary, 4mil. 800 rees to others, and 3 mil. To landsmen. --This very day, 13th ofMarch, the able seamen's monthly pay was raised to 10 mil. ; that ofordinaries to 8 mil. 

Shortly afterwards a farther advance was made, and petty officersreceived extra pay, which they had not hitherto done. The bounty wasalso increased. 

The pay in Bellard's foreign regiment, 8 mil. Bounty, 80 rees per day, 40 rees stranger money, (both together 6_d_. Sterling, ) 24 oz. Bread, 1lb. Meat, and clothing. ]

Their Majesties appear by all accounts to be highly popular. Theiryouth, their spirit, the singular situation in which they are placed, are all interesting. It is seldom that a hereditary prince, ventures tostand forth in the cause of freedom or independence; and a son of thehouse of Braganza, and a daughter of that of Austria, leading the way tothe independence of this great empire, cannot but excite the love aswell as the admiration of their fortunate subjects. 

The weather cleared up in the afternoon, and I went ashore to see if Icould find any of my old friends, or hear any news; but all the Englishwere gone to their country-houses, and the opera, the proper place forgossip, is shut, because it is Lent; so I returned to the brig, andfound Lord Cochrane ready to go ashore to wait on the Emperor, who hadcome in from San Cristovaŏ to meet him at the palace in town. HisLordship and Captain Crosbie, who went with him, did not return tilllate, but then well pleased with their reception. 

_March 14th_. --Another day of such heavy rain, that I have no chance oflanding my invalid. Mr. May came on board, and told me I might have SirT. Hardy's house for a few days, till I can get one for myself. He alsogives us good accounts of the government, its finances, &c. 

An embargo has been laid on all vessels to-day, to prevent the news ofLord Cochrane's arrival from reaching Bahia. 

_15th_. --I went early ashore to prepare for leaving the brig. I observedtwo of the arches, under which the Emperor had passed on the day ofcoronation, designed in extremely good taste, and well executed. Theyare of course only temporary. Some more solid works have been executed, since I last saw Rio; new fountains opened, aqueducts repaired, all theforts and other public works visibly improved, and the streets newpaved. There is besides every where an air of business, I carriedGlennie ashore in the afternoon, and was foolish enough to feel verysorry to leave my fellow-passengers, and still more foolish to be vexedat the perfect indifference with which they saw me go: both perhapsnatural enough. I, am once more without any one to lean to, and alone inthe world with my melancholy charge; they, have business and pleasurebefore them. 

It was a fine evening, and the little voyage in the boat to Botafogoseemed to do Glennie good; but we had the mortification to find thatneither the provisions I had bought in the town had arrived, nor theservant one of my friends had promised to procure me. So we were aloneand supperless, --but, thank God, not helpless. I have learned so much inmy wanderings as not to be dependent; and so, after a time, I had fromthe huckster’s shop in the neighbourhood a tolerable tea to give myinvalid, and sent him to bed in pretty good spirits, and took timeafterwards to be pretty miserable myself. 

_March 20th_. --These past days I have employed in looking about for ahouse, and have succeeded, in receiving and returning the visits of myold acquaintance, and in being very unwell. 

I hear there is nothing yet settled about Lord Cochrane’s command. Theworld says that he was asked to serve under two Portuguese admirals andfor Portuguese pay. Of course, these are terms he could never accept. Ihave not seen him, so am not sure about this. I suppose, however, it istrue; or he would not still be living on board that dirty little brig inwhich we arrived. 

_21st_. --Whatever difficulties were in the way of Lord Cochrane’scommand, they are over. I have a note from him announcing that he hoistshis flag at four o’clock this afternoon, on board the PedroPrimeiro. [102]

[Note 102: Much was said among the English as well as Brazilians ofHis Lordship’s high terms. I have reason to think (not from hisinformation) that his pay and that of the English officers is only equalto that of England, rank for rank. ]

_22d_. --Captain Bourchier of His Majesty’s ship Beaver kindly lent mehis boat to-day, to convey me with my cousin and my goods to mycottage on the Gloria hill, close to Mr. May's, and not very far fromthe house the government has given as a temporary residence to LordCochrane. It is pleasant to me on many accounts: it is cool, and thereis a shady walk for the sick. It is almost surrounded by the sea, whichbreaks against the wall; and not being near any road, we shall beperfectly quiet here. 

[Illustration:]

_Friday, 28th_. --This has been a busy week, both to me and to myfriends, who are hurrying every thing to get to sea as quickly aspossible; as it is of the utmost consequence to free Bahia of the enemy. 

_Saturday, 29th_. --His Majesty's ship Tartar, Captain Brown, arrivedto-day from England, bringing no good news of any kind. In the firstplace, Lord Cochrane suffers extreme distress on learning that LadyCochrane and her infant daughter are on their way to Chile, so that theywill have to perform the rough passage round Cape Horn twice before hesees them;--and in the next, Captain Brown gives a most formidableaccount of a Portuguese fleet bound for Bahia, which he met on this sideof the line. I trust he is mistaken in the last, and I try to comfortLord Cochrane as to the first piece of intelligence, by suggestions, ofthe probability, if not certainty, that the ship Lady Cochrane will sailin, must touch in this port; however, his natural anxiety is not to beovercome. 

_Monday, March 31st_. --Yesterday the Pedro Primeiro dropped down theharbour, as far as Boa Viage, and to-day I went with Lord Cochrane onboard of her. We found that the Emperor and Empress had been on board atdaylight. On some of the Portuguese officers complaining that theEnglish sailors had been drunk the day before, the Empress said, "Oh, 'tis the custom of the North, where brave men come from. The sailors areunder my protection; I spread my mantle over them. " The Pedro Primeirois a fine two-decker, without a poop. She has a most beautiful gun-deck;but I could not see her to advantage, as she was still taking in stores, and receiving men. Her cabins are beautifully fitted up with handsomewood and green morocco cushions, &c. ; and I am told the Emperor takesgreat pride in her. Captain Crosbie commands her; and three lieutenantswho came with us from Chile are appointed to her. 

_April 1st_. --I had expected the Admiral to breakfast with me; but, tomy great disappointment, I saw the ship get under weigh, and sail. Iafterwards learned that the Emperor and Empress were on board, andaccompanied him out of the harbour as far as the light-house, so that hecould not leave them. The morning was dull and grey when the PedroPrimeiro, the Maria da Gloria, the Unaŏ, and the Liberal got underweigh; but just as the little squadron came abreast of Santa Cruz, andthe fort began to salute, the sun broke from behind a cloud, and abright yellow flood of light descended behind the ships to the sea, where they seemed to swim in a sea of glory; and that was the last sightI had of my kind friend. 

_10th_. --Nothing of any note or variety has taken place during these tendays. Glennie is gaining ground: I write and read, and attend to him. The Nitherohy sails to-morrow to join Lord Cochrane off Bahia, withthree mortars on board, two 10, and one 13-inch. I find, with surprise, that the cartridges are still made up here in canvass, not flannel; andI fear that the ships are not so well found as I wish them: great partof the canvass and cordage have been seventeen years in store, and, Ishould fear, partly rotten. But all this is nothing to the evilattending the having Portuguese among the crews. 'Tis not natural theyshould fight against their countrymen. 

I have had the pleasure of reading Peveril of the Peak within these fewdays. 'Tis a sort of historical portrait, like Kenilworth, where theDuke of Buckingham, he who

 "In one revolving moon Was hero, fiddler, statesman, and buffoon, "

is the principal figure: Charles II. And the rest of the court serve forthe black boy and parrot in costume; while the story of Peveril isnothing more than the carved-work frieze of the very pleasant apartmenthe has been placed in. 

_14th_. --The Fly sloop of war, and the packet from England, came in andbrought the news of the war between France and Spain. This news is, ofcourse, interesting here, as Portugal is considered to be implicated inthe disputes in Europe; and then, the part England may take, and howthat may affect this country, is a subject of anxious speculation. Themore domestic news is not quite agreeable. The Imperial General Lecor, in the south, has suffered some loss in an action with the Portuguese:however, it is not considerable enough to give any serious uneasiness. The same vessel that brought the news from Lecor, also givesintelligence that the head of the Buenos Ayrian government, Rodriguez, having taken the field against some Indian tribes, who have latelycommitted great ravages in his territories, an attempt was made by oneof the ex-chiefs to subvert his government; happily, without success. Isay happily, because I am convinced that every week and month passedwithout change, is of infinite consequence both to the present andfuture wellbeing of the Spanish colonies. While they had still tostruggle for their independence, while they had to amend the abuses oftheir old government, frequent changes were unavoidable, but natural;but now that they are independent, and that they have constitutions, which, if not perfect, contain the principles of freedom and greatness, those principles should have time and peace to grow, and to suitthemselves to the genius of the people. 

_15th_. --Glennie has been gaining so much strength lately, that he hasdetermined on joining the Commodore at Bahia; and this day he left me, to sail in His Majesty's ship Beaver. 

After having had him to attend to for six months, and being used toconstant intercourse with an intelligent inmate, I feel so very lonely, that I believe I must leave off some of my sedentary habits, and visit alittle among my neighbours. 

_25th_. --A French brig of war came in to-day from Bahia. We learn thatthe ships seen by the Tartar were only a frigate, with a convoy oftransports, on board of which was a reinforcement for Madeira of 1500men. They will but increase the distress of the garrison, which isrepresented as very great, as they have brought no provisions. 

_28th_. --I spent the day with Miss Hayne, and accompanied her in theevening to compliment Dona Ana, the wife of Senhor Luis Jose de Carvalhoe Mello, on her birth-day. The family were at their country-house atBotafogo; and a most excellent house it is, very handsomely built andrichly furnished. The walls are decorated with French papers incompartments, with gold mouldings, and every thing corresponds. But thebest decoration, was this night, the presence of a number of thehandsomest women I have seen in Brazil, most of them sisters, orcousins, or nieces of the lady of the house, whose mother, the Baronesade Campos, may boast of one of the finest families in the world. Thedaughter of the house, Dona Carlota, is distinguished here by talent andcultivation beyond her fellows. She speaks and writes French well, andhas made no small progress in English. She knows the literature of herown country, draws correctly, sings with taste, and dances gracefully. Several of her cousins and aunts speak French fluently; so that I hadthe pleasure of conversing freely with them, and received a good deal ofinformation on subjects that only women attend to. Soon after all thecompany was assembled, the ladies sitting all together in a formalcircle, the gentlemen walking about generally in other rooms, theceremony of tea-drinking commenced, and was conducted pretty much as inEngland; the servants handing round tea, coffee, and cakes, on broadsilver salvers. But we all sat and took our refreshments at leisure, instead of standing with cups in our hands, and elbowing our way throughcrowds of persons, who all look as if they were bound on some particularbusiness, and could scarcely afford time to recognise their passingacquaintance. We then adjourned to the music-room, where themusic-master[103] attended to accompany the ladies, many of whom sangextremely well; but when it came to Dona Rosa's turn, I was ready toexclaim with Comus--

 "Can any mortal mixture of earth's mould Breathe such divine enchanting ravishment?"

[Note 103: This man is brother to the instructor of Catalani. ]

The music ended, and who was not sorry at its conclusion? the dancingcommenced, and then those who like myself were not dancers sat by togossip. An Englishman who has been in this country many years, seeing mefull of admiration of the beautiful and gay creatures before me, beganto give me such a picture of the private morals in Brazil, as wasbeginning to darken their countenances and to dim their eyes, whenluckily he went a step too far, and offered to wager, (the true Englishway of affirming, ) that there were in that room not less than tenladies, each provided with her note to slip into the hand of hergallant, and that the married and unmarried were alike; and referred meto my friend M----, who has long been here, and knows the people well. He looked slowly round the room, and I began to fear, --but he said, "No, not here; though I do not deny that such things are done in Rio. But, Mrs. G. , do not you know, as well as I, that in all great cities, inyour country and in mine as well as in this, a certain portion of everyclass of society is less moral than the rest? In some countriesimmorality is more refined indeed; and when manners lose theirgrossness, they are stripped apparently of half their vice. But supposethe fact, that women, even the unmarried, are less pure here than inEurope, remember that with us, besides the mother, there is the nurse ofthe family, or the governess, or even the waiting-maid of every youngwoman, who is supposed to be well brought up, and of good character andmorals. These are all checks on conduct, and form a guardianship onlyinferior to a mother's. But here the servants are slaves; thereforenaturally the enemies of their masters, and ready and willing to deceivethem, by assisting in the corruption of their families. " Here then isanother curse of slavery; and this view of the subject has opened myeyes on many points, on which I have hitherto been wondering ignorantly. 

There were several very pleasant French naval officers here to-night, and a few, very few English. I conversed with some sensible andwell-bred Brazilians, so that I was scarcely aware of the lateness ofthe hour, when I left my younger friends dancing at midnight. 

While at the ball, the tragic story of two lovely girls was told me. When mere children, they had accompanied their mother to some gala, andon returning at night, just as the mother advanced from the carriage, she was shot from the veranda of her own house. All search for themurderer was vain: but conjecture points to two possible causes of thecrime. One, the jealousy of a woman, who it seems had been injured, andwho hoped to succeed her rival as the wife of the man she loved; but hehas not married again. Another conjecture is, that she was acquaintedwith some political secrets, and that fear caused her death. However itwas, the girls have ever since lived with their grandmother, who cannotsleep if they are not both in the room with her. The family attachmentshere are quite beautiful; they are as close and as intimate as those ofclanship in Scotland: but they have their inconveniences, in theconstant intermarriages between near relations, as uncles with theirnieces, aunts with their nephews, &c. ; so that marriages, instead ofwidening connections, diffusing property, and producing more generalrelations in the country, seems to narrow all these, to hoard wealth, and to withdraw all the affections into too close and selfish a circle. 

_30th_. --I went early to town, and found that the English packet hadarrived. She fell in with Lord Cochrane's squadron near Bahia, so thatHis Lordship must be there long ere this time; she brings reports thatthe royalist party are becoming too strong for the Cortes at Lisbon. 

I spent the day with Madame do Rio Seco. Her house is really amagnificent one; it has its ball-room, and its music-room, its grottoand fountains, besides extremely handsome apartments of every kind, bothfor family and public use, with rather more china and French clocks thanwe should think of displaying, but which do not assort ill with thesilken hangings and gilt mouldings of the rooms. 

The dinner was small, as we were only three persons, but excellentlydressed. Soup of wild-fowl, a variety of small birds, and sweetmeats ofthe country, were rarities to me: the rest of the dinner might have beenEnglish or French; it was served in plate. I heard a great manyanecdotes to-day of a great many persons of all degrees, for which M. Dutems would have given any price to enrich the _souvenirs_ of the_voyageur qui se repose_ withal, but which I will not write, because Ithink it neither honest nor womanly to take the protection of the lawsand the feelings of a foreign country, and--record the foibles of itsinhabitants so as to give others the opportunity of laughing at them. Weknow well enough the weak parts of human nature: if they are treatedtenderly, they may mend. Vice indeed may require the lash, but weaknessand folly should meet with indulgence. In a society rising like this, Iam persuaded that men may be flattered into virtue. If a general callshis soldiers brave before the battle, it becomes a point of honour toprove so. And were it in my power, I had rather persuade the Braziliansthat they have every virtue under heaven, than make them so familiarwith the least of their failings, as to lose the shame of it. 

_May 1st_. --I have this day seen the Val Longo; it is the slave-marketof Rio. Almost every house in this very long street is a depôt forslaves. On passing by the doors this evening, I saw in most of them longbenches placed near the walls, on which rows of young creatures weresitting, their heads shaved, their bodies emaciated, and the marks ofrecent itch upon their skins. In some places the poor creatures werelying on mats, evidently too sick to sit up. At one house the half-doorswere shut, and a group of boys and girls, apparently not above fifteenyears old, and some much under, were leaning over the hatches, andgazing into the street with wondering faces. They were evidently quitenew negroes. As I approached them, it appears that something about meattracted their attention; they touched one another, to be sure that allsaw me, and then chattered in their own African dialect with greateagerness. I went and stood near them, and though certainly moredisposed to weep, I forced myself to smile to them, and look cheerfully, and kissed my hand to them, with all which they seemed delighted, andjumped about and danced, as if returning my civilities. Poor things! Iwould not, if I could, shorten their moments of glee, by awakening themto a sense of the sad things of slavery; but, if I could, I would appealto their masters, to those who buy, and to those who sell, and implorethem to think of the evils slavery brings, not only to the negroes butto themselves, not only to themselves but to their families and theirposterity. 

After all, slaves are the worst and most expensive servants; and oneproof of it is this, I think. The small patch that each is allowed tocultivate for his own use on many estates generally yields at leasttwice as much in proportion as the land of the master, though fewerhours of labour are bestowed upon it. [104] I have hitherto endeavoured, without success, to procure a correct statement of the number of slavesimported into all Brazil. I fear, indeed, it will be hardly possible forme to do so, on account of the distance of some of the ports; but I willnot rest till I procure at least a statement of the number entered atthe custom-house here during the last two years. The number of shipsfrom Africa that I see constantly entering the harbour, and themultitudes that throng the slave-houses in this street, convince me thatthe importation must be very great. The ordinary proportion of deaths onthe passage is, I am told, about one in five. 

[Note 104: Since I returned to England, I have seen the account ofthe proceedings of Joshua Steele in Barbadoes. I need not add one wordon this part of the subject; but I present the reader with the twofollowing statements of custom-house entries at Rio for the years 1821and 1822. 

1821. 

 _January_ | _April_ | _October_ |Muzambique 483 | Angola 430 | Angola 452 |Muzambique 337 | Quilumana 280 | Angola 375 |Amhuebe 352 | Cabinda 287 | Benguela 510 |Cabinda 348 | Cabinda 451 | ---- |Luanda 549 | ---- | 1337 |Benuela 396 | 1448 | ---- | ---- | ---- | | 2914 | | | | _May_ | _November_ | ---- | | | _February_ | Angola 342 | Ambuiz 220 |Cabinda 193 | Angola 361 | Benguela 390 | ABSTRACTCabinda 342 | Angola 231 | Angola 579 | OF 1821Cabinda 514 | Quilumana 225 | Angola 544 | January 2914Muzambique 277 | Muzambique 122 | Angola 388 | February 1926Muzambique 600 | ---- | Quilumana 446 | March 3170 ---- | 1281 | ---- | April 1448 1926 | ---- | 2567 | May 1281 ---- | _June_ | ---- | June 680 _March_ | Angola 680 | | August 2578Quilumana 311 | | _December_ | September 685Quilumana 385 | _August_ | Angola 516 | October 1337Quilumana 342 | Luanda 514 | Angola 523 | November 2567Quilumana 257 | Luanda 460 | Angola 309 | December 2634Quilumana 260 | Luanda 734 | Muzambique 394 | -----Quilumana 291 | Luanda 304 | Muzambique 330 | 21, 199Quilumana 287 | Luanda 227 | Cabinda 562 | ------Angola 345 | Benguela 339 | ---- |Angola 433 | ---- | 2634 |Angola 259 | 2578 | ---- | ---- | ---- | | 3170 | | | ---- | _September_ | | | Angola 685 | |

 1822 _January_ | _April_ | _September_ | Cabinda 744 | Quilumana 323 | Angola 572 | Cabinda 417 | Quilumana 203 | Angola 534 | Cabinda 459 | Angola 519 | Cabinda 466 | Cabinda 144 | Angola 418 | Benguela 524 | Muzambique 305 | Cabinda 291 | Benguela 298 | Muzambique 278 | Cabinda 377 | ---- | ---- | ---- | 2394 | 2347 | 2181 | ---- | ---- | ---- | |

 _February_ | _May_ | _October_ |Muzambique 421 | Angola 398 | Luanda 467 |Muzambique 419 | Benguela 388 | Benguela 428 |Muzambique 399 | ---- | Cabinda 434 | ABSTRACT OF 1822. Muzambique 520 | 786 | Cabinda 337 |Angola 406 | ---- | ---- | January 2347Angola 400 | | 1666 | February 4273Angola 406 | _June_ | ---- | March 4401Quilumana 436 | Cabinda 432 | | April 2131Quilumana 446 | Cabinda 533 | _November_ | May 786Benguela 420 | Angola 302 | Cabinda 417 | June 2418 ---- | Angola 761 | Cabinda 499 | July 1118 4273 | Benguela 390 | Luanda 561 | September 2394 ---- | ---- | Benguela 425 | October 1666 | 2418 | ---- | November 1902 _March_ | ---- | 1902 | December 1498Cabinda 667 | | | ------Cabinda 400 | _July_ | _December_ | 24, 934Quilumana 504 | Cabinda 427 | Luanda 514 | ------Quilumana 487 | Angola 691 | Cabinda 534 |Quilumana 406 | ---- | Quilumana 450 |Muzambique 452 | 1118 | ---- |Muzambique 455 | ---- | 1498 |Angola 305 | | ---- |Angola 354 | | |Angola 371 | | | ---- | | | 4401 | | | ---- | | |

]

_May 3d_. --Early this morning the French naval captain, La Susse, calledon me to take me in his boat to town, for the purpose of going to SenhorLuis Jose's house in the Rua do Ouvidor, to see the Emperor go in stateto the opening of the Constituent and Legislative Assembly. All thegreat officers of state, all the gentlemen of the household, most of thenobility, and several regiments accompanied him. First marched thesoldiers, then the carriages of the nobility and other persons havingthe entree, nobody driving more than a pair, such being the expressorder of the Emperor, in order that the rich might not mortify the poor;then the royal carriages, containing the household, the ladies ofhonour, and the young Princess Dona Maria da Gloria; the Emperor andEmpress followed in a state-coach with eight mules. The crown was on thefront seat. The Emperor wore the great cape of state, of yellowfeathers, over his green robes. The Empress, much wrapped up on accountof a recent indisposition, was seated by him, and the procession wasclosed by more troops. 

The carriages displayed to-day would form a curious collection for amuseum in London or Paris. Some were the indescribable sort of calecheused here; and in the middle of these was a very gay pea-green andsilver chariot, evidently built in Europe, very light, with silverornaments, silver fellies to the wheels, silver where any kind of metalcould be used, and beautiful embossed silver plates on the harness ofthe mules. Many other gala carriages seemed as if they had been built inthe age of Louis XIV. Such things! mounted on horizontal leathern bands, and all other kind of savage hangings; besides paint and gilding, and, by-the-bye, some very handsome silver and silver gilt harnesses. Thenthere were splendid liveries, and all manner of gaudiness, not withoutsome taste. 

The houses were hung with all the damask and satin of every colour thatthey could supply; and the balconies stored with ladies, whose brighteyes rain influence, dressed in gala dresses, with feathers and diamondsin profusion; and as the royal carriages passed, we waved ourhandkerchiefs, and scattered flowers on their heads. 

When the procession had passed, I found it was expected that we shouldawait its return, which I was well pleased to do. My young friend DonaCarlota improves on acquaintance; and as I begin to venture to speakPortuguese, I am becoming intimate with the elder part of the family. Iwas taken into the study, and for the first time saw a Brazilian privategentleman's library. As he is a judge, of course the greater part islaw; but there are history and general literature, chiefly French, andsome English books. I was introduced to several Portuguese authors; andDon Carlota, who reads remarkably well, did me the favour to read someof Diniz's fine verses to me, and to lend me his works. We then returnedto our station at the window, and saw the procession return in the orderin which it came, when our pleasant party dispersed. 

Yesterday, the assembly having finished its preliminary sittings, sent adeputation, headed by Jose Bonifacio, to His Imperial Majesty, toentreat that he would honour the assembly with his presence at theirfirst sitting as a legislative body, and he was pleased to name halfpast eleven o'clock to-day for that purpose. [105]

[Note 105: Various ordinances of the 3d and 19th June and the 3d ofAugust, 1822, and of the 20th and 22d February, 1823, had been publishedfor the assembling or regulating the election of deputies from theprovinces of Brazil, to form a constituent assembly. Early in April, 1823, the greater number of those who could be collected in the presentstate of the country had arrived in the capital. On the 14th of thatmonth, the Emperor fixed their first meeting for the 17th. Accordinglyon the 17th of April, 1823, the deputies, in number 52, entered theirhouse of assembly at nine o'clock in the morning, and proceeded to electa temporary president and secretary, when the Right Reverend Don JoseCaetano da Silva Coutinho, bishop and grand chaplain, was electedpresident, and Manoel Jose de Sousa França secretary. 

The first act was to name two committees; one of five members, to hold ascrutiny on the election of the deputies generally; and the other ofthree, to examine those of the five. This necessary business, and someconsequent discussion, occupied the whole of the first and greater partof the second session; towards the end of the latter, the form of theoath to be administered to the members, was decided:--

"I swear to fulfil, faithfully and truly, the obligations of deputy tothe General Constituent and Legislative Assembly of Brazil, convoked inorder to frame a political constitution for the empire of Brazil, and tomake indispensable and urgent reforms. Maintaining always the RomanCatholic and Apostolic religion, and the integrity and independence ofthe empire; without admitting any other nation whatever to any bond ofunion or federation which might oppose that independence. Maintainingalso the constitutional empire, and the dynasty of the Lord Don Peter, our first Emperor, and his issue. "

The third session was occupied in regulating the forms of the assembly. The throne to be placed at one end of the hall; on the first step on theright-hand side, the President shall have his chair when the Emperorpresides, otherwise the chair to be in front of the throne, with a smalltable, separate from the table of the members, and on it the Gospel, acopy of the constitution, and a list of the members. When the Emperoropens the assembly, his great officers may accompany him, and theministers may sit on his right; proper places are appointed forambassadors, and a gallery is open to strangers. Some other forms as tothe reception of the Emperor, or a regent, or a minister commissioned byhim, were also settled; and then the 1st of May was fixed on for thewhole body of the members to go to the chapel royal, and after hearingthe mass of the Holy Ghost, to take their oaths. The 2d was appointedfor a deputation to wait on the Emperor, and inform him that they wereready to proceed on the 3d, and with his assistance to open theimportant business on which they had met. ]

This morning, therefore, the people of Rio de Janeiro had strewed theway with evergreens, sweet herbs, and flowers, from the bridge withoutthe town by the street of St. Peter's, the Campo de Santa Anna, nowPraça da Acclamaçaŏ, the Theatre Square, and the streets Do Ouvidor andDireita to the palace; troops lined the whole space; the houses weredecorated, and the bands of the different regiments relieved each otheras their Imperial Majesties passed. I observe the Brazilians never say_the_ Emperor, but _our_ Emperor, _our_ Empress; and seldom name either, without some epithet of affection. 

In the House of Assembly, a throne had been prepared for the Emperor, and on his right hand a tribune for the Empress, the Princess, and theirladies. As soon as it was known that the Imperial party had arrived, adeputation from the assembly went to the door of the house to meet them, and conducted the Emperor, with his crown[106] on his head, to thethrone; the Empress, Princess, and ladies, being at the same time placedin the tribune. 

[Note 106: The crown is of a purple velvet, enriched with diamonds. There was some mistake or misunderstanding about the fact of wearing thecrown at the opening of the assembly. As the crown is only a ceremonialbadge of dignity, it should have been worn during the ceremony; butowing to the mistake alluded to, it was not. ]

The Emperor having deposited the crown and sceptre with the properofficer, and received the oaths of several of the deputies, spoke asfollows; and it was remarked, that so far from the speech having the airof a thing read from a paper or studied, that it was spoken as freely asif it was the spontaneous effusion of the moment, and excited a feelingas free in his favour. 

"This is the greatest day that Brazil has ever seen; a day on which, forthe first time, it may show that it is an empire, and a free empire. Howgreat is my delight, to behold real representatives from almost everyone of its provinces, consulting together on its true interests, and onthese founding a just and liberal constitution to govern them! We oughtlong since to have enjoyed a national representation. But either thenation did not in time perceive its real interests, or, perceiving them, was unable to declare them, on account of the forces and ascendancy ofthe Portuguese party; which, perceiving clearly to what a degree ofweakness, littleness, and poverty, Portugal was reduced, and to how lowa state it had fallen, would never consent (notwithstanding theirproclamation of liberty, fearing a separation, ) that the people ofBrazil should enjoy a representation equal to what they themselves thenpossessed. They had miscalculated their plans for conquest, and fromthat miscalculation arises our good fortune. 

"Brazil, which for upwards of three hundred years had borne thedegrading name of a colony, and had suffered all the evils arising fromthe destructive system then pursued, exulted with pleasure when my LordDon John VI. , King of Portugal and Algarve, my august father, raised itto the dignity of a kingdom, by his decree of the 16th of December, 1815; but Portugal burned with rage, and trembled with fear. The delightwhich the inhabitants of this vast continent displayed on the occasionwas unbounded; but the politic measure was not followed up, as it oughtto have been, by another, that is, by the convocation of an assembly toorganise the new kingdom. 

"Brazil, always frank in her mode of proceeding, and mortified at havingborne the yoke of iron so long, both before and after that measureechoed the cry for the constitution of Portugal, immediately on theproclamation of liberty in Portugal; expecting that after this proof ofconfidence given to her pseudo brethren, they would assist her todeliver herself from the vipers that were consuming her entrails, andlittle thinking she should be deceived. 

"The Brazilians, who truly loved their country, never intended, however, to subject themselves to a constitution in which all had not a voice, and whose views were to convert them at once from free men into vileslaves. Nevertheless, the obstacles which, before the 26th April, 1821, opposed the liberties of Brazil, and which continued to exist, beingmaintained by the European troops, caused the people, fearing that theyshould never enjoy a representative assembly of their own, even for thevery love of liberty, to follow the infamous Cortes of Portugal, andthey even made the sacrifice of submitting to be insulted by thedemagogue party which predominated in this hemisphere. 

"Even this availed not. We were so oppressed by the European forces, that I was obliged to send them to the opposite shore of the Rio; toblockade them; to force them to embark and pass the bar, in order tosave the honour of Brazil, and to procure that liberty which we desireand ought to enjoy; but in vain shall we labour to procure it, if wepermit to exist among us a party inimical to our true cause. 

"Scarcely were we well free from these enemies, when in a few daysarrived another expedition, which Lisbon had sent for our protection;but I took upon myself to protect this empire, and I refused to receiveit. Pernambuco did the same. And Bahia, which was the first place tounite with Portugal, as a reward for her good faith, and because sheperceived too late the track she ought to have followed, now suffersunder a cruel war for those Vandals; and her chief city, occupied onlyby them, is on the point of being rased, for they cannot maintainthemselves there. 

"Such is the freedom Portugal sought to bestow on Brazil: it was to beconverted into slavery for us; and would have ruined us totally if wehad continued to execute her commands; which we must have done, but forthe heroic remonstrances conveyed by petitions, first from the junta ofgovernment of St. Paul's, then from the camara of this capital, andafterwards from all the other juntas of government and camaras, imploring me to remain here. It appeared to me that Brazil would beruined, if I did not attend to the petitions; and I did attend to them. I know that this was my duty, though at the risk of my life; but as itwas in defence of this empire, it was ready, as it is now, and ever, when it shall be requisite. 

"I had scarcely pronounced the words, _As it is for the good of all, andthe general happiness of the nation, tell the people that I remain_, recommending to them at the same time _union_ and _tranquillity_, when Ibegan to take measures to put ourselves in a state to meet the attacksof our enemies, then concealed, since unmasked; one part amongourselves, the rest in the Portuguese democratic Cortes; providing forall the departments, especially those of the treasury and foreignaffairs, by such means as prudence dictated, and which I shall notmention here, because they will be laid before you in proper time by thedifferent officers of state. 

"The public treasury was in the very worst state, as the receipts hadbeen much reduced; and, principally, because till within four or fivemonths they had been solely those of this province. On this account itwas not possible to raise money for all that was necessary, as we hadalready too little to pay the public creditors, or those employed ineffective service, and to maintain my household, which cost one-fourthof that of the King, my august father. His disbursements exceeded fourmillions; mine did not amount to one. But although the diminution was soconsiderable, I could not be satisfied when I found that my expenseswere so disproportioned to the reduced receipts of the treasury; andtherefore I resolved to live as a private man, receiving only 110, 000milrees for the whole expenses of my household, excepting the allowanceof the Empress, my much-beloved and valued wife, which was assigned toher by her marriage contract. 

"Not satisfied with these small savings in my household with which Icommenced, I examined into every department, as was my duty, in order toregulate its expenditure, and to check its abuses. Yet, still therevenue did not suffice; but by changing some individuals not wellaffected to the cause of the empire, but only to that of the infamousPortuguese party, and who were continually betraying us, for others wholoved Brazil with all their hearts, --some from birth and principle, others from the intimate conviction that the cause is that of reason, --Ihave caused, and I say it with pride, the bank, which was on the pointof losing its credit, and threatened bankruptcy every moment, --as on theday of the departure of my august father, Don John VI. , there onlyremained the sum of two hundred contos in money, --to discount its bills, to re-establish its credit so completely, that no one can imagine thatit can ever fall again into the wretched state to which it had beenreduced. The public treasury, which, on account of the extraordinaryexpenses which should have been borne in common by all the provinces, but which fell solely upon this, was totally exhausted, and withoutcredit, has gained such credit, that it is already known in Europe; andso much cash, that the greater part of the creditors, and they were notfew, or for trifling sums, have been so far satisfied, as that theirhouses have not suffered; that the public servants have no arrears dueany more than the military on actual service; that the other provincesthat have adhered to the holy cause, --not by force, but from conviction, for I love just liberty, --have been furnished for their defence withwarlike stores, great part of which are newly purchased, besides thosealready in the arsenals; and, moreover, they have been assisted withmoney, because their funds did not cover their necessary expenses. 

"In a word, the province now yields from eleven to twelve millions; itsproduce, before the departure of my august father, having been at mostfrom six to seven. 

"Among the extraordinary expenses are, the freights of the ships onboard of which the different expeditions sent back to Lisbon wereembarked; the purchase of several vessels; the repair of others; pay tocivil and military officers who have arrived here on service, and tothose expelled from the provinces for their private sufferings in thetumults there raised. 

"The expenditure has certainly been great: but hitherto, nevertheless, there remain untouched, the gratuitous contributions; the sequestratedproperty of the absentees on account of political opinions; the loan of400, 000 milrees for the purchase of ships of war indispensably necessaryfor the defence of the empire, and which exists entire; and theexchequer of the administration of diamonds. 

"In every department there was an urgent necessity for reform; but inthis of finance still more, because it is the chief spring of the state. 

"The army had neither arms, men, nor discipline: with regard to arms, itis now perfectly ready; the men are increasing daily in proportion tothe population; and in discipline it will soon be perfect, being alreadyin obedience exemplary. I have twice sent assistance to Bahia: first 240men, then 735, forming a battalion called the Emperor's Battalion; whichin eight days was chosen, prepared, and sailed. 

"Besides these, a foreign regiment has been raised, and a battalion ofartillery of freed men, which will shortly be completed. 

"In the military arsenal they have wrought diligently to prepare everything necessary for the defence of the different provinces; and all, _from Paraiba of the North to Montevideo_, have received the assistancethey have requested. 

"The walls of the fortifications of this city were totally ruined: theyare now repaired; and important works necessary in the arsenal itselfhave been finished. 

"As to military works, the walls of all the fortresses have beenrepaired, and some entirely new-constructed. These are formed in thedifferent points fittest to oppose any enemy's force approaching by sea;and in the defiles of the hills, to oppose the approach of an enemyalready landed, (which would not be easy, ) entrenchments, forts, redoubts, abatis, and batteries. The barracks of the Carioca are built, and the other barracks are prepared. That in the Praça da Acclamaçaŏ isalmost finished, and that ordered for the grenadiers will shortly beso. 

"The fleet consisted only of the frigate Piranga, then called the Union, not fitted; the corvette Liberal, only a hull; and of a few other smalland insignificant vessels. Now we have the ship of the line, PedroPrimeiro; the frigates Piranga, Carolina, and Netherohy; the corvettesMaria da Gloria and Liberal, ready; a corvette, in Alagoas, which willsoon be ready, named the Massaió: of the brigs of war, Guarani ready, and the Cacique and Caboclo under repair; besides several ships inordinary, and various schooners. 

"I expect six frigates of fifty guns, manned and armed, and completelyformed for action, for the purchase of which I have already givenorders; and according to the information I have received, they will notcost above thirteen contos of rees. 

"In the dock-yard, the works are the following:--all the ships nowactually employed have been repaired; gun-boats, and others of smallsize, which I need not name, have been built; and many others, which, altogether, are numerous and important. 

"I intend this year, in the same place, where for thirteen years backnothing has been done but caulking, rigging, and careeningvessels, --swallowing immense sums, which might have been more usefullyemployed for the nation, --to lay down the keel of a forty-gun frigate;which, if the calculation I have made, the orders I have given, and themeasures I have taken do not fail, I hope will be finished this year, orin the middle of the next, and will be called the _Campista_. 

"As to public works, much has been done. The police office in the Praçada Acclamaçaŏ has been rebuilt: that large square has been drained ofthe marsh water, and has become an agreeable walk, with paved paths onall sides, and others across, and we are still continuing to embellishit. The greater part of the aqueduct of Carioca and Maracanaŏ, have beenrepaired; besides the numerous bridges of wood and stone which have beenrenewed, several new ones have been made, and a great extent of roadshas been mended. 

"Besides what I have mentioned, and much more which I have not touchedon, the funds for these works, which in April, 1821, owed 60 contos ofrees, now is not only out of debt, but possesses upwards of 600, 000crusadoes. 

"In different departments we have made the following progress. We havegreatly increased the national typography; the public gardens have beenput in order; the museum repaired, and enriched with minerals and agallery of good pictures, --some of which were purchased, some werealready in the public treasury, and others were my private property, which I have ordered to be placed there. 

"Every exertion has been made on the Caes da Praça de Commercio, so thatit is nearly finished; the streets of the city have been new-paved; andin a very short time this house for the assembly, with all the restadjoining, were properly fitted for their purpose. 

"Many works which are of less importance have been undertaken, begun, and finished; but I omit them, that I may not render my speech too long. 

"I have encouraged the public schools, as far as I could; but this willdemand some peculiar provision of the legislature. What has been done isthis:--In order to augment the public library I have bought a largecollection of choice books; I have augmented the number of schools, andincreased the salary of some of the masters, besides licensinginnumerable private schools; and, aware of the benefits of the method ofmutual instruction, I have opened a Lancasterian school. 

"I found the college of San Joaquim, which had been designed by itsfounders for the education of youth, employed as the hospital of theEuropean troops. I caused it to be opened anew, for the purposesoriginally intended; and having granted to the _Casa de Misericordia_, and the foundling hospital, of which I will speak farther, a lottery forthe better maintenance of those useful institutions, I assigned acertain portion of the said lottery to the college of San Joaquim, thatit might the better answer the useful end which its worthy founders hadin view. It is now full of students. 

"The first time I visited the foundling hospital, I found (and it seemsincredible) seven infants with only two wet-nurses; no beds, noclothing: I called for the register, and found that in the last thirteenyears nearly 12, 000 children had been received, but scarcely 1000 wereforthcoming, the Misericordia not knowing in fact what had become ofthem. Then by granting the lottery, a house proper for the establishmentwas built, where there are upwards of thirty beds, almost as many nursesas children, and on the whole, much better management. All these thingsof which I have now spoken merit your particular attention. --After thisprovince was settled, and important provisions made for the rest, I feltit necessary to call together a council of state; and, therefore, by thedegree of the 16th of February of last year, I convoked one, composed ofprocurators-general, chosen by the people, being desirous that theyshould have some persons near me to represent them, and who might at thesame time advise me, and demand such things as should be conducive tothe good of each of the respective provinces. Nor was this the only endand motive for which I called such a council together: I wishedparticularly that the Brazilians might know my constitutional feelings. How I delighted to govern to the satisfaction of the people, and howmuch my paternal heart desired (though at that time secretly, becausecircumstances did not then permit me to manifest such wishes, ) that thisloyal, grateful, brave, and heroic nation, should be represented in ageneral constituent and legislative assembly; which, thank God, has beenbrought about in consequence of the degree of the 3d of June of the lastyear, at the request of the people conveyed through their camaras, theirprocurators, and my counsellors of state!

"It has been very painful to me that, till now, Brazil should not haveenjoyed a national representation, and to be forced by circumstances totake upon myself to legislate on some points: but my measures cannotappear to have arisen from ambition to legislate, arrogating to myselfthe whole power, of which I only could claim a part--for they were takento save Brazil, --because when some of them were adopted the assemblyhad not been convoked, and when others were necessary it had not yetmet; therefore, as Brazil was totally independent of Portugal, the threepowers then existed in fact and by right in the person of the supremechief of the nation, and much the more as he was its perpetual defender. 

"It is true that some measures appeared extremely strong; but as theperil was imminent, and the enemies who surrounded us were innumerable(and would to God they were not even now so many), it was necessary theyshould be proportionate. 

"I have not spared myself; nor will I ever spare toil, however great, iffrom it the smallest portion of happiness can be derived to the nation. 

"When the people of the rich and majestic province of _Minas_ weresuffering under the iron yoke of their mistaken governors, who disposedof it as they pleased, and obliged the pacific and gentle inhabitants todisobey me, I marched thither, only attended by my servants: I convictedthe government and its creatures of the crime they had committed, and ofthe error in which they seemed desirous of persisting; I pardoned them, because the crime was more an offence against me, than against thenation, as we were then united to Portugal. 

"When a party of Portuguese and degenerate Brazilians attached to theCortes of miserable, worn-out Portugal, arose among the brave people ofthe beautiful and delightful province of St. Paul's, I instantlyrepaired thither, and entered the province _fearlessly, because I knewthe people loved me_. I took the measures that appeared to me to benecessary; and there, before any other place, our independence wasdeclared, in the ever-memorable plain of Piranga. 

"It was at the country seat of the most faithful, and never-enoughpraised Amador Bueno de Rebeira, that I was first proclaimed Emperor. 

"My soul itself was grieved that I could not go to Bahia, as I hadintended, but which I did not do on the remonstrance of my privycouncil, to mingle my blood with that of those warriors who have sobravely fought for their country. 

"At all hazards, at that of life itself, if necessary, I will maintainthe title that the people of this rich and vast empire honoured me withon the 13th of May, of the past year--PERPETUAL DEFENDER OF BRAZIL. Thattitle engaged my heart more, than all the splendour I acquired by theirspontaneous and unanimous acclamation of me as Emperor of this desirableempire. 

"Thanks be to Providence, that we now see the nation represented by suchworthy deputies! Would to God it could have been so earlier! But thecircumstances preceding the decree of the 3d of June did not permit it;and since that time, the great distance, the want of public spirit insome, and the inconveniences of long journeys, especially in a countryso new and extensive as Brazil, have retarded this much-wished andnecessary meeting, notwithstanding all my repeated recommendations ofspeed. 

"At length the great day for this vast empire has arisen, which will bethe grand epocha of its history. _The assembly is met to constitute thenation: what joy--what happiness for us all!_

"As CONSTITUTIONAL EMPEROR, and most especially as PERPETUAL DEFENDER ofthis vast empire, I told the people on the 1st of December, the day whenI was crowned and anointed, '_That with my sword I would defend thecountry, the nation, and the constitution, if it were worthy of Braziland of me_. " I this day, in your presence, most solemnly ratify thispromise, and I trust you will assist me in fulfilling it, by framing awise, just, and practicable constitution, dictated by reason, notcaprice; and having solely in view the general happiness, which cannever be great if the constitution be not founded on solid grounds, grounds which the wisdom of ages has shown to be just, in order to givetrue liberty to the people, and sufficient strength to the executivepower. A constitution in which the limits of the three powers shall bewell defined, that they may never arrogate rights not their own; butshall be so organised and harmonised, that it shall be impossible forthem, even in the lapse of time, to become inimical to each other, butshall every day jointly contribute to the general happiness of thestate. In short, a constitution which shall oppose insuperable barriersto despotism, whether royal, aristocratic, or democratic; defeatanarchy; and plant that tree of liberty under whose shadow the honour, tranquillity, and independence of this empire, which will become theadmiration of the Old and New World, must grow. 

"All the constitutions which have modelled themselves upon those of 1791and 1792, have been shown by experience to be entirely theoretical andmetaphysical, and therefore impracticable. Witness those of France, Spain, and Portugal: they have not, as they ought, produced publichappiness; but after a licentious freedom, we see that in some countriesthere has already taken place, and in others there is on the point ofdoing so, a despotism of one, after that of many; and, by a necessaryconsequence, the people are reduced to the wretched state of registeringand suffering all the horrors of anarchy. 

"But far from us be such melancholy reflections: they darken the joy andexultation of this happy day. You are not ignorant of them; and I amsure, that firmness in those true constitutional views, which have beensanctioned by experience, will characterise every one of the deputieswho compose this illustrious assembly. I trust, that the constitutionwhich you will frame will merit my Imperial assent; that it will be aswise and just as suited to the local situation and to the civilisationof the Brazilian people: also that it may be praised among the nations, so that even our enemies may imitate the sanctity and wisdom of itsprinciples, and at length practise them. 

"So illustrious and patriotic an assembly will have in view no objectbut to cause the empire to prosper, and to fill it with happiness: itwill wish its Emperor to be respected, not only at home but amongforeign nations; and that its _Perpetual Defender_ should exactlyfulfil his promise of the first of last December, solemnly ratifiedto-day, in the presence of the nation legally represented. "

When the Emperor had done speaking, the bishop of the diocese, acting aspresident of the assembly, made a short answer of thanks, praise, andpromise; after which, the whole of the members, the spectators in thegalleries, and the people without doors, cheered His Imperial Majestyenthusiastically, and the procession returned to San Cristovaŏ in theorder in which it came. 

The theatre of course concluded the ceremonies of the day; and myfriend, Madame do Rio Seco, having kindly offered me a seat in her box, I went thither, for the first time since my return to Brazil. She was inhigh spirits, because that day the Emperor had conferred on her husbandthe order of the Cruzeiro; and therefore she went really in grand galato the opera. Her diamonds worn that night may be valued at 150, 000_l_sterling, and many splendid jewels remained behind in the strong box. For my part, I had gone to town in my morning dress; therefore I sent toa milliner's, and bought such a plain crape head-dress as the customs ofthe place warrant, in deep mourning; and wrapping myself in my shawl, accompanied my magnificent friend. The house appeared very splendid, being illuminated and dressed, and the ladies one and all in diamondsand feathers. Some decorations have been added since last year, and anallegorical drop-scene has been painted. The Empress did not come, onaccount of her recent illness; but the Emperor was there, looking pale, and a little fatigued. He was received with rapturous applause. Themembers of the assembly were seated one-half on his right, and one-halfon his left, in boxes handsomely fitted up for them; and as soon as theyhad all taken their places, a poem on the occasion was recited by thePrima Donna, in which there were some good points, which called forthgreat applause. I think it is Gresset who, in one of his odes _Au Roi_, says, "Le cri d'un peuple heureux est la seule éloquence Qui sait parler des rois. "

And indeed this night that eloquence was powerful. I cannot conceive asituation more full of interest to both prince and people. 

There was nothing in the principal piece played to-night, for it was aclumsy translation of Lodoiska, without the songs. But the after-pieceexcited much emotion: it was called "The Discovery of Brazil. " Cabraland his officers were represented as just landed: they had discoveredthe natives of the country; and, according to the custom of thePortuguese discoverers, they had set up their white flag, with the redholy cross upon it, whence they had first named the land. At the foot ofthis emblem they kneeled in worship, and endeavoured to induce the wildBrazilians to join them in their sacred rites. These, on their part, tried to persuade Cabral to reverence the heavenly bodies, anddissension seemed about to trouble the union of the new friends, when bya clumsy enough machine, a little genius came down from above, andleaping from its car, displayed the new Imperial standard, inscribed_Independencia o Morte_. This was totally unexpected in the house, which, for an instant, seemed electrified into silence. I believe Iclapped my hands first, but the burst of feeling that came from everypart of the house was long ere it subsided. Now I know nothing sooverpowering, as that sort of unanimous expression of deep interest, from any large body of men. It overset me; and when I ought to have beenwaving my handkerchief decorously from the great chamberlain's box, Iwas hiding my face with it, and weeping heartily. When the house wasquiet again, I looked at Don Pedro: he had become very pale, and haddrawn a chair close to his own; on the back of which he leaned, and wasvery grave to the end of the piece, having his hand before his eyes forsome time; and, indeed, his quick feelings could not have escaped whataffected even strangers. 

At the close of the piece there were loud cries of "Viva la Patria!""Viva o Emperador!" "Viva a Emperatriz!" "Vivaŏ os Deputados!" alloriginating in the body of the house; when Martim Francisco de Andradastepped to the front of one of the boxes of the Deputies, and cried"Viva o povo leal e fiel do Rio de Janeiro!" a cry that was extremelywell seconded, especially by the Emperor, and kindly taken by thepeople; and so this important day ended. 

_May 6th. _--To-day I rode to San Cristovaŏ, through a very beautifulcountry. The palace, which once belonged to a convent, is placed upon arising ground, and is built rather in the Moresco style, and colouredyellow with white mouldings. It has a beautiful screen, a gateway ofPortland stone, and the court is planted with weeping willows; so that agroup of great beauty is formed in the bosom of a valley, surrounded byhigh and picturesque mountains, the chief of which is the Beco doPerroquito. [107] The view from the palace opens to part of the bay, overan agreeable plain flanked by fertile hills, one of which is crowned bythe very handsome barracks that were once a Jesuit establishment. I roderound by the back of the palace to the farm, which appears to be in goodorder; and the village of the slaves, with its little church, looks morecomfortable than I could have believed it possible for a village ofslaves to do. The Imperial family now live entirely here, and only go totown on formal business or occasions of state. 

[Note 107: Nearly 2000 feet high. ]

_May 12th. _--I have been too unwell to do any thing; and only writeto-day to notice the arrival of the Jupiter frigate, with Lord Amherston his way to India, and the rumour that he has some official characterat this court. 

_16th. _--Lord Amherst and suite went to court in such ceremony asinduces people to believe he really has a diplomatic character here. TheAlacrity has arrived from Valparaiso, and has brought me some oldletters from England that have helped my sickness to depress my spirits. 'Tis after all a sad thing to be alone and sick in a foreign land! TheDoris also is arrived from Bahia. She has had no direct communicationwith Lord Cochrane's little squadron; but it seems, that with his sixships, he keeps the enemy's fleet of fifteen sail in check. The town ofBahia is said to be in a dreadful state for want of provisions. Theslaves are daily dying in the streets. Some houses, after appearing shutup for some days, have been opened by the police officers, who havefound the masters escaped, and the slaves dead. --Twice a day the gateshave been opened to allow the women and children to leave the town. Someof the officers of the Doris had the curiosity to attend on one of theseoccasions, and saw 500 persons, laden with as much furniture andclothes, as in their weak hungry state they could carry, leave the city. The little fresh provision that finds its way into the town isexorbitantly dear. General Madeira has proclaimed martial-law in theplace; he has seized some corn and flour out of a neutral ship, and hasraised forced loans from all classes, both native and foreign. 

[Illustration]

The ship has brought two or three newspapers from Bahia. As might beexpected, they breathe the most violent, and inveterate spirit againstthe Imperial government, and every body employed by it; calling theEmperor a Turkish despot, a sultan, &c. , and José Bonifacio a tyrannicvizier. Lord Cochrane, of course, does not escape; and to all oldcalumnies against him, they now add that he is a coward, for whichagreeable compliments they are likely to pay dearly I should think. TheSupplement to the Idade d'Ouro of the 25th of April gives lists of thetwo squadrons, drawn up for the purpose of inspiring confidence in thePortuguese, under-rating the force of Lord Cochrane's ships, andrepresenting them as so ill manned, --although, according to them, themost oppressive measures were adopted to man them, --as not to be able toface the Portuguese. However, they have thought fit to call in all theirvessels from the Funil and other stations where they had their smallships placed, in order to reinforce their fleet. [108] They havepublished a circular letter, calling on all officers and crews to exertthemselves, promising them the destruction of the Brazilian fleet. And, on the same day, the 24th of April, the Admiral Joaŏ Felix Pereira deCampos, under pretence of indisposition, turns over the command toanother officer. 

[Note 108: _Brazilian Ships_. 

Line-of-battle ship D. Pedro I. 64 guns, really, 78 guns

Frigate Uniăo 44 do. 50

Frigate Carolina 36 do. 44

Frigate Successo[*] 36 do. 38

Corvette Maria da Gloria 32 do. 32

Corvette Liberal 22 do. 22

Schooner Real 16 do. 16

 ---- Nightingale 20 Total 250 guns. ---- ---- 300 ----

There is besides one fire-ship and one gun-boat. Note: *(Now _Nitherohy_. )

_Ships of the Portuguese Squadron_. 

 Guns. 

Line-of-battle ship D. Joăo 6 74 {Commandante Capităo de Fragata {Joaquin José da Cunha

Frigate Constituiçăo 50 {Capităo de Fragata Joaquim Maria {Bruno de Moraes. 

Dita Perola 44 Capităo de Fragata José Joaquim d'Amorim. 

Corvette Princeza Real 28 Capităo Tenente Francisco Borja Pereira de Sá. 

Dita Calypso 22 Capităo Tenente Joaquim Antonio de Castro. 

Dita Regeneraçăo 26 Capităo de Fragata Joăo Ignacio da Silveira e Motta. 

Dita Dez de Fevereiro 26 Capităo de Fragata Miguel Gil de Noronha. 

Dita Activa 22 Capităo Lieut. Isidoro Francisco Guimarăes. 

Brig Audaz 20 Capităo Tenente Joăo da Costa Carvalho. 

Corvette S. Gaulter 26 1º Lieut. Graduado Manoel de Jesus. 

Corvette Principe do Brazil 26 Lieut. Antonio Feliciano Rodrigues. 

Dita Restauraçăo 26 1º Tenente Graduado Flores. 

Sumaca Conceiçăo 8 2º Tenente Carvalho. ---- Total 398 guns. ----

]

These measures were adopted, in consequence of the news of LordCochrane's arrival in Brazil having been conveyed to General Madeira byHis Britannic Majesty's ship Tartar, the only vessel that sailed fromRio during the time of the embargo. We are becoming very anxious indeedfor news from His Lordship: many rumours are afloat; but as there hasbeen no direct communication from the squadron, they only increase thegeneral anxiety. 

_May 17th_. --Soon after I arrived here, in March, or rather as soon asmy patient Glennie left me, I felt that, as a stranger here, andsituated as I am, I was peculiarly unprotected, and therefore I spoke tothe minister José Bonifacio, telling him my feelings; and saying, thatfrom the amiable character of the Empress, I should wish to be allowedto wait on her, and to consider her as protecting me while I remain inthe empire. She accordingly promised to fix a day for me to see her; buta severe indisposition has hitherto confined her to her room. Now, LadyAmherst having requested to see Her Imperial Majesty, the day afterto-morrow is fixed on for the purpose; and I have an intimation that Ishall be received on the same day, as the Empress wishes not to receiveany other foreigner before me. This is polite, or rather it is more; itis really kind. 

_19th_. --Though I was suffering exceedingly this morning, I resolvednevertheless to attend the Empress at noon, at San Cristovaŏ. I wasobliged to take a quantity of opium, to enable me to do so. However, Iarrived at the appointed time; and, as I had been desired to do, askedfor the _camarista môr_, Jose Bonifacio's sister, and was shown into thepresence-chamber, where I found that lady and Lady Amherst, MissAmherst, and Mrs. Chamberlain. The Empress entered shortly after, in ahandsome morning dress of purple satin, with white ornaments, andlooking extremely well. Mrs. Chamberlain presented Lady and MissAmherst; and Her Imperial Majesty spoke for some minutes with HerLadyship. After which she motioned to me to go to her, which I did. Shespoke to me most kindly; and said, in a very flattering way, that shehad long known me by name, and several other things that persons in herrank can make so agreeable by voice and manner; and I left her with themost agreeable impressions. She is extremely like several persons whom Ihave seen of the Austrian Imperial family, and has a remarkably sweetexpression. 

The corridor through which I passed from the palace steps, and thepresence-room, are both plain and handsome. As it might be called aprivate audience, there were neither guards, officers, nor attendants, excepting the camarista môr. 

The Emperor is at present at his country-house of Santa Cruz; so thatSan Cristovaŏ appeared like a private gentleman's seat, it was so still. 

_Saturday, June 7th_. --Since the day I was at San Cristovaŏ, I have beenconfined to my room, and totally unable to exert myself, either mind orbody, from severe indisposition. The Creole is come in from Bahia, toget provisions, preparatory to going home. The Commodore has offered mea passage in her, and has written to that purpose; but I am in no stateto embark for a long voyage. The accounts from Bahia are sadder thanever: as to the Bahians, though favourable to the Imperial cause themisery, of the poor inhabitants is great indeed. 

_12th. _--We have been for three days kept in a state of agitation, byreports that Bahia has fallen, and various rumours attending thosereports: they all turn out to have arisen from a _russe de guerre_ ofMadeira, who contrived to despatch a small vessel to a port on the coastfor flour, pretending that it was for Lord Cochrane, and spreading thatreport to cover its real purpose. 

_23d. _--A brig, prize to the squadron, arrived, and also the Sesostris, a merchant ship bound to Valparaiso, on board of which were LadyCochrane and her family going to Chile. Thank God, by putting in here, she has learned where Lord Cochrane is, and is thus spared the tediousvoyage, and her excellent husband much anxiety on her account. 

_14th. _--At length we have true news both from and of Lord Cochrane. Iwrote to Lady Cochrane, excusing myself on account of illness from goingto her, and she kindly called on me as she landed; and a few minutesafterwards I received letters from the Admiral, and from some others inthe squadron. 

As might have been expected, from the haste in which the squadron wasequipped, the ships had to encounter some difficulties at first. Some ofthe sails and cordage, which had been seventeen years in store, werefound almost unserviceable; the guns of some of the ships were withoutlocks, as the Portuguese had not adopted them: the cartridges weremostly made up in canvass: but the real evil was the number ofPortuguese, both men and officers, among the crews, which kept them in acontinual state of discontent, if not mutiny. 

Lord Cochrane had chosen as head-quarters for the squadron, the harbourbehind the Moro of San Paulo, about thirty miles south of Bahia, andcommanding the channel behind Itaparica; a country well watered andwooded, and in the neighbourhood of all supplies of fresh necessaries. There is good and sheltered anchorage in from seven to twenty fathomswater, and on the whole it was well adapted for its purpose. As soon asit was known that His Lordship was off Bahia, the Portuguese squadroncame out, and spread itself along the shore north of the bay. LordCochrane, who had waited in vain at the place of rendezvous at sea forthe two fire-ships, which he expected from Rio, had fitted one of hissmall vessels, the schooner Real, as a fire-ship, and had intended torun into Bahia on the 4th of May; when he fell in with the Portuguesefleet, in number thirteen[109], he having with him five ships, a brig, and the fire vessel. He instantly ran through their line, cutting offthe four sternmost ships; and had the men done their duty, nothing couldhave saved the ship they were first alongside of: but they fired toosoon; and though the fire did great execution, wounding and killingmany, both on board that ship and the Joam VI. , which was immediately tothe windward of the Pedro, yet the Admiral was disappointed. The slowsailing of the Piranga and Netherohy kept them farther behind the Pedrothan their brave commanders wished; the others were forced to keepaloof, it is said, by the conviction that their crews could not betrusted against the Portuguese. As to the crew of the Admiral's ship, two of the Portuguese marines went into the magazine passage, and withtheir drawn swords impeded the handing up the powder. The squadronsseparated after this. Lord Cochrane determined to attack the Portugueseagain next day. Captain Crosbie, Lieutenant Shepherd, and eleven otherswere wounded; but no other damage was sustained by the Imperialsquadron, while that of the Europeans had suffered much both in crewsand rigging. 

[Note 109: One ship of the line, five frigates, five corvettes, abrig, and a schooner. ]

On the morning of the 5th, Lord Cochrane looked in vain for the enemy. He had apparently been satisfied with the skirmish of the 4th, and hadtaken refuge in the harbour; so that His Lordship returned to the Morode San Paulo, with only the satisfaction of having driven the enemy fromthe open sea. 

Meantime the Brazilian Imperial force that was posted behind the city, taking advantage of the absence of the fleet, and consequently of thetwo thousand seamen who served the artillery ashore, advanced from thesitio of Brotas, where their centre was quartered, towards the town. Madeira marched out to meet them, and an action took place entirely infavour of the Imperialists; and it is said that the King's fleet wasrecalled in consequence of this disaster. 

Lord Cochrane had no sooner returned to San Paulo than he made suchprovisions with regard to his squadron, as he judged most prudent forthe public service. The vessel that has arrived here has brought downsome of the ill-affected Portuguese. All, I believe, from the report ofthe officer who arrived in the prize, have been dismissed from the PedroPrimero. 

Lord Cochrane has taken the officers and English seamen of the Pirangaand Nitherohy on board the Pedro, so that now he has one ship he maydepend on: he has exchanged the eighteen-pound guns of the main-deck, for the twenty-four pounders of the Piranga, and has placed guns alonghis gang-ways; and we trust the next news we have from him, we shalllearn something favourable to the cause of independence. 

As far as the government here could supply every thing to the squadronto insure its success, it was done in the most liberal manner; and thefailures, where they occurred, were owing to the peculiar circumstancesof the times and country, which admitted of no controul. That somethings should have been imperfect was to be expected: that so muchshould have been done, and well done, excites admiration. But theEmperor appreciates the brave man who commands his fleet; and while thatis the case, a difficulty as soon as felt will be obviated. 

_19th_. --My health grows worse and worse. The Creole sailed to-day. Ihave amused myself for two days with some English newspapers. If anything can rouse me to health it surely ought to be news from England. 

Lord Althorp has, I see, made a spirited but ineffectual effort for therepeal of the foreign enlistment bill; a most interesting subject inthis country: and I see with pleasure a virtual acknowledgment from theEnglish ministers of the independence of Spanish America. 

_22d_. --This is the eve of St. John's, whereon the maidens of Brazilpractise some of the same rites as those of Scotland do at Hallowe'en, to ascertain the fate of their loves. They burn nuts together; they puttheir hands, blindfold, on a table, with the letters of the alphabet;and practise many a simple conjuration. I think I recollect long ago, tohave seen the maid-servants of a house in Berkshire place an herb, Ithink a kind of stone-crop, behind the door, calling it Midsummer men, that was to chain the favoured youth as he entered. For me I only wishfor the _nucca_ drop of the Arab to fall this night, so I might catchit, and be relieved from my weary sickness. 

_June 26th_. --My friend, Dr. Dickson, who has attended me all this timewith unvarying kindness, having advised change of air for me, he and Mr. May have pitched on a small house on Botafogo beach, having an upperstory, which is considered as an advantage here, the ground-floor housesbeing often a little damp; and to-day Captain Willis of the Brazenbrought me in his boat to my new dwelling. My good neighbours, Coloneland Mrs. Cunningham, try by their hospitality to prevent my feeling somuch the loss of my friends Mr. And Mrs. May, who were every thing kindto me while at the Gloria. 

Botafogo bay is certainly one of the most beautiful scenes in the world;but, till of late years, its shores were little inhabited by the higherclasses of society. At the farthest end there is a gorge between theCorcovado mountain and the rocks belonging to what may be called theSugar-loaf group, which leads to the Lagoa of Rodrigo Freites, throughwhich gorge a small rivulet of fine fresh water runs to the sea. Just atits mouth, there has long been a village inhabited by gipsies, who havefound their way hither, and preserve much of their peculiarity ofappearance and character in this their trans-atlantic home. They conformto the religion of the country in all outward things, and belong to theparish of which the curate of Nossa Senhora da Monte is pastor; buttheir conformity does not appear to have influenced their moral habits. They employ their slaves in fishing, and part of their families isgenerally resident at their settlements; but the men rove about thecountry, and are the great horse-jockies of this part of Brazil. Some ofthem engage in trade, and many are very rich, but still they are reputedthieves and cheats; and to call a man _Zingara_ (gipsy) is as much as tocall him knave. They retain their peculiar dialect; but I have not beenable, personally, to get sufficiently acquainted with them to form anyjudgment of the degree in which their change of country and climate mayhave affected their original habits. 

His Majesty's ship Beaver arrived, two days since from Bahia. It seemsthat Madeira, unable to hold the place any longer, is resolved to leaveit. He is pressed to the utmost by Lord Cochrane's squadron, which cutsoff his provisions, and by continual alarms kept up on the coast, by HisLordship's own appearance from sea, and by the preparations he is makingin the Reconcave for an attack with fire-ships and gun-boats on thetown. It is expected, therefore, that Madeira will abandon the place assoon as he can get shipping together to embark the troops. It isasserted even that he has fixed the day, that of San Pedro, forevacuating the place. The following proclamation is certainlypreparatory to his doing so; but as the time must depend oncontingencies, it cannot be so certain:--

"Inhabitants of Bahia!

"The crisis in which we find ourselves is perilous, because the means ofsubsistence fail us, and we cannot secure the entrance of anyprovisions. My duty as a soldier, and as governor, is to make everysacrifice in order to save the city; but it is equally my duty toprevent in an extreme case the sacrifice of the troops that I command, of the squadron, and of yourselves. I shall employ every means to fulfilboth these duties. Do not suffer yourselves to be persuaded thatmeasures of foresight are always followed by disasters. You have alreadyseen me take such once before: they alarmed you; but you were afterwardsconvinced that they portended nothing extraordinary. Even in the midstof formidable armies, measures of precaution are daily used; becausevictory is not constant, and reverses should be provided against. Youmay assure yourselves, that the measures I am now taking are purelyprecautionary: but it is necessary to communicate them to you, becauseif it happens that we must abandon the city, many of you will leave italso; and I should be responsible to the nation and to the King, if Ihad not forewarned you. (Signed)

"IGNACIO LUIZ MADEIRA DE MELLO. 

Head-quarters, Bahia, May 28. 1823. "

This proclamation increased the general alarm to the highest pitch. Theeditors of even the Portuguese newspapers use the strongest language. One of them says, "The few last days, we have witnessed in this city amost doleful spectacle, that must touch the heart even of the mostinsensible: a panic terror has seized on all men's minds, " &c. [110] Andthen goes on to anticipate the horrors of a city left withoutprotectors, and of families, whose fathers being obliged to fly, shouldbe left like orphans, with their property, a prey to the invaders. Thesefears abated a little on the 2d of June, when a vessel entered Bahia, having on board 3000 alquieres of farinha; and the spirits of the troopswere raised by a slight advantage obtained on the 3d over the patriots. But the relief was of short duration. On a rigorous search there werefound in the city no more than six weeks' provisions besides thosenecessary for the ships, and the General proceeded in his preparationsfor quitting Brazil. He now allowed the magistrates to resume theirfunctions suspended by the declaration of martial-law, and produced aletter from the King, naming five persons to form a provisionalgovernment; and though some of them were unwilling to accept of theoffice, he caused them to take the oaths, and enter directly on theirfunctions. 

[Note 110: _Semanario Civico_ of the 5th June. ]

Madeira's preparations for his departure were accelerated by an attackmade by Lord Cochrane on the night of the 12th of June, with only thePedro Primeiro. The Portuguese Admiral was ashore, dining with GeneralMadeira; when, at ten o'clock at night, a shot was heard. "What is it?"exclaimed the latter to the messenger, who, in alarm, entered theroom. --"'Tis Lord Cochrane's line-of-battle ship, in the very midst ofour fleet. "--"Impossible!" exclaimed the Admiral; "no large ship canhave come up with the ebb tide. " And there was as much consternation andas much bustle of preparation, as if the fleet of England had entered ina hostile manner. The Pedro Primeiro was indeed close alongside of theConstituiçaŏ; but the Admiral disdained so small a prize, and pushed onto the Joam VI. ; had he reached her, he might have carried the wholesquadron out with him; but just as he seemed on the point of doing so, the breeze that had brought him in over the tide failed, and it fell adead calm: by this time every ship was in motion, the forts began toplay, and, reluctantly, the Pedro dropped out of the harbour with thetide, untouched by the enemy. 

The daring of this attempt has filled the Portuguese with astonishmentand dismay, and they are now most willing to abandon Bahia. The churchplate, and all the cash that can be collected, are believed to be onboard the British ships of war. [111]

[Note 111: This is reported only. I have never asked, nor should I, I imagine, receive an answer if I did ask, any English officer aboutsuch things. The general disposition among them is evidently towards theold government; but their conduct is, as it ought to be, strictlyneutral. ]

_July 1st_. --A good deal of sensation has been excited to-day of rathera painful nature: the Emperor has fallen from his horse, and has brokentwo of his ribs, and is otherwise much bruised; however, his youth andstrength prevent any serious apprehension from the consequences of hisaccident. There is no public news, and I am much too ill to care for anyother. A foreigner, and alone, and very sick, I have abundant leisure tosee the worth to the world of riches, or the appearance of them, andshow and parade; and to feel that if I had them all, they could neitherrelieve the head nor the heart of the suffering or the sorrowful. 

I think I am grown selfish: I cannot interest myself in the littlethings of other people's lives as I used to do; I require the strongstimulus of public interest to rouse my attention. It is long since Ihave been able to go out among the beautiful scenery here, to enjoy thecharms of nature. 

_11th_. --Once more I begin to feel better, and to go out of doors alittle. All sorts of people crowd daily to visit the Emperor, who isrecovering, but is still confined to the house. For the first time forthese many weeks, I took a drive to-day; and went, as far as SanCristovaŏ, to enquire after His Imperial Majesty, and leave my name. Theroad, both as I went and returned, was crowded with carriages andhorsemen, on the same errand. Besides that the people do love him, hislife is of the utmost importance to the very existence of Brazil as anindependent nation at present, at any rate in peace. 

_13th_. --I have become acquainted with two or three pleasant Brazilians, and one or two of the better kind of Portuguese, who have adoptedBrazil. [112] There are not above five Fidalgos of the number, and theseancient nobles are objects of jealousy to the new, in number about adozen, who infinitely surpass them in riches; so that we have the usualgossip and scandal of courts and cities, in which, as the women areusually the most active, so they suffer most: nor are our English onewhit behind them. There is not much formal visiting among the English, but a good deal of quiet tea-drinking, and now and then parties formedto dine out of doors in the cool weather. 

[Note 112: On the 9th of March, an Imperial edict was published, desiring all such as would not conform to the laws of the empire to quitit within two months, if they dwelt on the coast, and within four, ifinland, on pain of loss of property; and thenceforth all good subjectsto wear on their arms the green rose and gold badge, with _Independenciao Morte_, engraved on it. ]

In short, my countrywomen here are a discreet sober set of persons, withnot more than a reasonable share of good or bad. They go prettyregularly to church on Sundays, for we have a very pretty protestantchapel in Rio, served by a respectable clergyman; meet after church toluncheon and gossip: some go afterwards to the opera, others play cards, and some few stay at home, or ride out with their husbands, and instructthemselves and families by reading; and all this much as it happens inEurope. However, they are all very civil to me; and why should I seefaults, or be hurt at the absurd stories they tell of me, because theydon't know me? Besides, 'tis no great affront to be called wiser thanone is. 

_14th_. --Several prizes have arrived from the Moro of San Paulo. One ofthese vessels has brought news from the Moro that I only half like. After Lord Cochrane's visit to Bahia on the night of the 12th of June, he had been employed for the eight ensuing days in maturing a plan for afarther attack, which seemed sure of success; when, on the 20th[113], "some careless or malignant person set fire to a cask of spirits, whichcommunicated to other casks, and created such terror, that more than ahundred persons jumped overboard; some of whom were drowned. It iscalculated that we should have been blown up if the fire had raged onlythree minutes longer; and its extinction is chiefly to be ascribed tothe presence of mind and personal exertion of His Lordship himself; who, I am grieved to add, was so overheated by the blaze and his ownexertions, as to be too ill this morning to leave his bed. "

[Note 113: Extracted from a letter written to me on the 21st by afriend on board. ]

_17th_. --At length Bahia has fallen. Madeira, in pursuance of the plansannounced in his proclamation of the 28th, had prepared all his ships ofwar, and a great number of merchantmen, with provisions, and ammunition, and stores: the plate, money, and jewels, were transhipped from theEnglish vessels to his own, and it was believed he was to sail on the 3dof July. Lord Cochrane, having intelligence to that effect, had comealone in the Pedro Primeiro to look into the harbour, on the morning ofthe 2d, when he saw the Portuguese squadron loose all their topsails andprepare to move. This manœuvre was not considered by the English withinthe bay as decisive, because it had been practised daily for some time. His Lordship, however, immediately made signals to the Maria de Gloriaand Nitherohy to join him with all despatch. The Piranga, useless fromher bad sailing, owing to the state of her copper, had been ordered toRio; and she and the Liberal, who both arrived to-day, are the bearersof the official intelligence. Lord Cochrane, whose kindness isnever-failing, writes to me as follows. I do not like to quote, even inmy journal, private letters; but this is short, and tells in few wordsall that can be said:--

"MY DEAR MADAM, "I have been grieved to learn your indisposition; but you must recover, now that I tell you we have starved the enemy out of Bahia. The fortswere abandoned this morning; and the men of war, 13 in number, withabout 32 sail of transports and merchant vessels, are under sail. Weshall follow (i. E. The Maria da Gloria and Pedro Primeiro) to theworld's end. I say again expect good news. Ever believe me your sincereand respectful friend, COCHRANE. 2d July, 1823. Eight miles north of Bahia. "

I learn from the officers of the ships arrived, that the guns were allspiked, and the magazines blown up in Port Pedro, but otherwise everything was left in good order in the town; and on the marching in of theBrazilian troops not the smallest disorder took place, nor was a lifelost; a circumstance highly honourable to all parties. 

Though the Admiral mentions only forty-five vessels, it appears thatthere were many more, amounting to at least eighty, who took theopportunity of getting out with the fleet. When the Piranga left theMoro, a reinforcement of men had arrived there for the Admiral; and theNitherohy was manning herself, and preparing to follow him in a fewhours. 

This news is highly acceptable here, except among a class eithersecretly attached to, or interested in, Portugal. These are murmuring, and saying, "Is it not enough for Lord Cochrane to have driven the poorsoldiers out of Bahia, without following to persecute them?" &c. Andothers are affecting to despise what they call an easy service. But thegovernment knows that it was not an easy service to keep the sea with sosmall a squadron, so recently formed, against a fleet completely armedand manned, --vessels of the best class; far less to cut off theprovisions of the enemy, so as to reduce him to the necessity ofabandoning his city. 

There are illuminations and a gala opera to-night; but as the Emperor isnot yet able to go, his picture, and that of the Empress, will appearinstead. It is an old Portuguese custom, I believe, to display thepicture of the monarch in his absence on occasions of ceremony. 

_18th_. --The city has been thrown into considerable agitation to-day, bythe knowledge, that yesterday the ministry of the Andradas ceased. Itappears that a few days ago, I believe on the 16th, an unknown personpresented a letter at the palace-door, and told the servant who receivedit, that his life should not be safe if he did not deliver it into theEmperor's own hand. The letter was delivered accordingly, and read; uponwhich His Imperial Majesty sent for Jose Bonifacio: they remainedcloseted for a length of time, and the result of the conference was, that Jose Bonifacio resigned his employment; and Brazil has lost an ableminister, and the Emperor a zealous servant. It is rumoured that theletter was written from St. Paul's, and contained at least 300signatures of persons complaining of the Andradas' tyrannical conduct inthat province; particularly imprisoning persons who had opposed theelection of certain members of the assembly, and ordering others, onvarious pretexts, to repair to Rio, where they had been kept away fromtheir families. 

These things, however, are capable of a favourable interpretation; and, in such stormy times, some severity may have been necessary, or, indeed, the zeal of the minister may have carried him too far. [114]

[Note 114: The discussions in the assembly of the 9th of May throwmuch light on this transaction. ]

However that may be, the resignation of Jose Bonifacio is certain; andnot less so that of his brother, Martim Francisco, whose unimpeachableintegrity at the head of the treasury it will not be easy to supply. Theconjectures, reasonings, and reports, on these subjects, are, of course, very various. The most general idea is, that the Andradas areoverpowered by a republican party in the assembly; which, though small, has a decided plan, and works accordingly; and, oddly enough, their fallis said to have been brought about by an attempt, on their part, to getrid of old monarchy men. Monis Tavares, a clever man, whose name will beremembered in the sittings of the Lisbon Cortes as an advocate forBrazil, proposed in an early sitting of the assembly, May 22, theabsolute expulsion from Brazil of all persons born in Portugal. Theproposal gave rise to a warm discussion, and was negatived. This defeatwas the signal for all the Portuguese party, and they are not weak, tojoin with the republicans to overthrow the Andradas; and they havesucceeded. Such is the view taken of this business by many intelligentpersons. However the fact may be, the Emperor's feeling to disclaim alltyranny or connivance at tyranny, is praiseworthy; but a well-wisher toBrazil may be permitted to desire that such able men had proved theirinnocence to his satisfaction, and had retained their situations. Thisevening the Emperor has circulated the following address to hispeople:--

"Inhabitants of Brazil, "The government which does not guide itself by public opinion, or whichis ignorant of it, must become the scourge of humanity. The monarch whoknows not this truth will precipitate his empire into a gulf ofmisfortunes, each more terrible than the preceding. Providence hasgranted to me the knowledge of this truth. I have founded my system onit, and to that system I will be faithful. 

"Despotism and arbitrary acts are detested by me. It is but a short timesince that I gave you one among many other proofs of this. We may all bedeceived; but monarchs rarely hear the truth: if they do not seek it, itseldom appears to them. When once they know it, they should follow it. Ihave known it, and I do act accordingly. Although we have not yet afixed constitution to govern ourselves by, we have at least thosefoundations for one, built on reason, which ought to be inviolable. These are the sacred rights of personal security, property, and theinviolability of the home of every citizen. If these have hitherto beenviolated, it was because your Emperor knew not that such despotism andacts of arbitrary power, improper at all times, and contrary to thesystem we profess, were exercised. Be assured that henceforth they shallbe religiously supported: you shall live happy and safe in the bosoms ofyour families, in the arms of your tender wives, and surrounded by yourbeloved children. In vain shall imprudent men try to belie myconstitutional principles; they will always triumph, as the sun breaksthrough the darkest clouds. Rely upon me, as I on you, and you will seedemocracy and despotism annihilated by rational liberty. 

THE EMPEROR. "

The address has been well received; and perhaps those incidents, which, in a time like the present, bring the monarch and people more together, are really conducive to the harmony and stability of the whole politicalsystem. Meantime, Jose Joaquim Carneiro de Campos is prime minister, andManoel Jacintho Noguerra de Gama is at the head of the treasury; a manso rich as to be above temptation, and whose character for integrity isscarcely lower than that of his predecessor. 

_July 23d_. --I had for some time promised to paint a sketch of SanCristavaŏ for the Empress, and to-day I resolved to carry it to her. SoI went, and on my way breakfasted at my good friend the Viscondeça doRio Seco's; I then proceeded to the palace, and went up first to enquireafter the Emperor's health: while I was writing my name, he, havingperceived me arrive from the window, politely sent to say he would seeme, and accordingly I was ushered into the presence-chamber by theViador Don Luiz da Ponte; there I saw ministers and generals all instate. The Emperor was in a small inner room, where were his piano, hisshooting apparatus, &c. ; he was in an undressed cotton jacket with hisarm in a sling, but looking well, although thinner and paler thanformerly: he sent for the little picture, with which he seemed muchpleased; and after speaking for some time very politely in French, Imade my courtesy and retired. I then went to the Empress's apartment:she was out, but I was asked to wait for her return from her walk; andin the meantime I saw the young Princesses, who are extremely fair, andlike Her Imperial Majesty, especially the eldest, Dona Maria da Gloria, who has one of the most intelligent faces I have seen. The Empress camein soon, and talked to me a good while on a variety of subjects, andvery kindly of my late illness. Setting aside the consideration of herhigh rank, it is not a little pleasing to me to meet so well-educatedand well-bred a woman; and I felt quite sorry to leave her withouttelling her so: she is in all respects an amiable and respectable woman. No distressed person ever applies to her in vain; and her conduct, bothpublic and private, justly commands the admiration and love of herfamily and subjects: her personal accomplishments would adorn thestation of a private gentlewoman; her temper, prudence, and courage, fither for her high situation. On my way back to town I stopped at acountry-house belonging to M. Do Rio Seco: it is called Rio Comprido, and is remarkable for its garden; the outer hedge of which is like afairy bower, or rather might adorn the gardens of Armida. A fence, breast-high, of myrtle and other evergreens, is surmounted by arcadesof ever-blowing roses; among which a jessamine, or a scarlet or purplecreeper, twines itself occasionally, enriching the flowery cornice ofthe pillars between which the paths of entrance lie. The inner part onemight indeed wish less stiff; but then all is kept in such order, andfilled with such rich flowers and shrubs, that one knows not how thechange might be made with advantage. The house is low, and pleasant forthe climate; the orchard, kitchen garden, and grass fields behind, delightful; and the whole is surrounded by beautiful views. The PadreJose, who is the chaplain, is also the overseer of the estate; acombination of offices that I find is usual here. 

After passing some hours there with my hospitable friends, I returned totown, and spent an hour with my friend Dona Carlota de Carvalho e Mello, and met a number of the ladies of her family; and among the rest, heraunt, the wife of Manoel Jacintho, the new minister of finance, one ofthe most pleasing women I have seen in Brazil. I had the pleasure ofcomplimenting Dona Carlota's father, on having just received hiscommission as member of the assembly for Bahia, now it is free: I might, with truth, have complimented Bahia on so judicious a choice. I returnedhome early, notwithstanding the entreaties of my young friend that Iwould stay, as she considered the evening scarcely begun: the family isso large, that, at the house of one or the other, there is always apleasant evening society. The men converse apart till tea-time, afterwhich music or dancing brings at least the younger part to join theladies; and it is seldom that they separate before midnight. 

_July 25th_. --Our society at Botafogo is enlivened by the arrival ofCommodore Sir T. Hardy, who occupies the house of the disembargadorFrança, and who is not only cheerful and sociable himself, but causescheerfulness around him. The officers of his own ship, and those of therest of the squadron, are of course great acquisitions to the parties atRio; but I see little of them: my dull house, and duller self, offeringnothing inviting except to the midshipmen of my old ship, who visit mevery constantly. I have bought a small horse[115] for the sake ofexercise, and sometimes accompany the boys on their evening rides. Lastnight I went with two of them to the Praya Vermelha; and finding theofficer of the guard at the gate of the fort, we asked leave to go in, which being granted, we entered, and walked about admiring the views. Itwas the first time I had seen the little bay Vermelha from the landside, the fort being built quite along the isthmus that unites theSugar-loaf with the mainland. We remained without thinking of the timetill the sun was fairly set; and then, on returning to the gate, wefound it shut, and that the keys had been carried to the governor. So Ihad to go to the officer of the guard, who understanding what hadhappened, ordered the guard under arms, and went himself for the keys, and conducted us out of the fort with great politeness. Wherever I havemet with Brazilians, from the greatest to the meanest, I must say I havealways experienced the greatest politeness: from the fidalgo who callson me in full court costume, to the peasant, or the common soldier, Ihave had occasion to admire, and be grateful for, their courtesy. 

[Note 115: For this beast, which is really fit for nothing but theriding of an invalid like myself, I gave 35 milrees; a price for which, in Chile, one might buy a very fine horse. ]

_August 1st, 1823_. --The English packet arrived to-day; and brings newsthat the royal party in Lisbon have overpowered that of the Cortes. Thisintelligence is looked on as very important here, because it is hopedthat the court may be more easily induced to acknowledge theindependence of Brazil; and it is said that the authorities in Madeirahave already orders to receive, and treat amicably, ships under theBrazilian flag. The general tone of politics here is less pleasing thanit has been. There have been some disagreeable discussions in theassembly: a vote has passed refusing the veto to the Emperor; and it issaid that the republican party is so elated on the occasion, that theythink of proposing to refuse him the command of the army. TheImperialists are of course indignant at all this. However, we shall seewhat will happen when the deputation of the assembly carries up thenotice of the vote, as it is said will be done next week, when theEmperor will be strong enough to receive it. He is now so well that heintends in ten days to return thanks at the church of Santa Maria daGloria, and means on the same day to review the troops at San Cristovaŏ. They are collecting there for that purpose; and I saw the artillerymarching that way to-day while I was in town, whither I went to purchasesome newspapers, particularly the Diario da Assemblea. I take it veryill that ladies may not attend the sittings of the assembly, not that Iknow there is any formal prohibition; but the thing is considered as soimpossible, that I cannot go. It is provided with a gallery? scarcelylarger in proportion than that of the English House of Commons, forstrangers; and the proceedings are published. The members speak standingin their places: they are something more dressed than the Commons inEngland; but they have no peculiar costume. The President or Speaker ischanged monthly. 

_3d_. --I drank tea at the Baronesa de Campos'; and met a large familyparty, which always assembles on Sundays to pay their respects to theold lady. The tea was made by one of the young ladies, with theassistance of her sister, just as it would be in England. A large silverurn, silver tea-pots, milk-jugs, and sugar-dishes, with elegant china, were placed on a large table; round which several of the young peopleassembled, and sent round the tea to us, who sat at a distance. Allsorts of bread, cakes, buttered toast, and rusks were handed with thetea; and after it was removed, sweetmeats of every description werepresented, after which every body took a glass of water. 

_6th_. --Sailed to-day, H. M. Ship Beaver, with my friend Mr. Dance asacting captain; the world says she takes some very important despatchesrelating to the commerce of England with the independent provinces of LaPlata; but as the world often tells what is not true, and as what istrue is never confessed by those who know officially, I never troublemyself to ask about these things. I am sorry to see almost my lastfriend leave the station before me: but I am now so used to losing, oneway or another, all who from any motive have ever acted or felt kindlyto me, that I hope soon to grow callous to the pain such loss stillgives. It is in vain that I flatter myself that I have recovered thetone of my mind. I am affected even to weakness by every littleincident, and am obliged to take refuge from my private feelings, in theinterest that I have lately forced myself to take in the affairs of thiscountry; and surely, where the happiness of millions of itsfellow-creatures is at stake, the human heart may unblamed busy itself. 

This morning Sir T. Hardy, who is always anxious to do kind offices, carried me to call on Mrs. Chamberlain: I can truly say, if I had knownher ideas on the subject of etiquette, I should have called on herbefore; and therefore I am glad to do what is expected. [116] She seemsto be a well-informed woman, with pleasant manners. 

[Note 116: Notwithstanding the peculiar circumstances, both on myown account and that of the invalid I had with me, of my return to Rio, Mrs. C----, the wife of the British consul, took no notice of myarrival. I learnt afterwards, that it is expected that women, as well asmen, should call on the consuls. I was not aware of this, having_formerly_ received the first visits in such cases. ]

After I returned, I joined a party in a pleasant ride to the _CopaCabana_, a little fort that defends one of the small bays behind that ofVermelha, and whence there are to be seen some of the most beautifulviews here. The woods in the neighbourhood are very fine, and produce agreat deal of the excellent fruit called the Cambucá; and among thehills the small oppossum and the armadillo are frequently found. 

_8th_. --The discussions and vote concerning the Emperor's veto haveexcited a great commotion, of words at least; and the English fetchersand carriers of news have agreed that there will be some seriousinsurrection on the part of the soldiers, to defend the Emperor fromsome indefinite oppression of the Assembly. I believe it is true thatthe Assembly itself, being convinced that their vote concerning the vetois impolitic and unjust, have determined to cancel it; and it is equallytrue, that there have been some military clubs, whose language has beenrather violent on the subject. But that there are the slightest groundsfor expecting any serious disturbance, I cannot think. The Emperorappears too sincere in his desire to see the greatest possibleprosperity in Brazil, to encourage any violent proceedings to overawethe Constituent Assembly; and at the same time he has too much spirit tosubmit to terms, from any quarter, derogatory to his dignity and rights. I have just received his proclamation on the occasion, which I doubt notwill produce a good effect. These proclamations are agreeable to thetaste of the people; and in fact are the only channels through whichthey can learn any thing of the disposition of the Emperor in thepresent state of the country. To-day's is as follows:--

"Brazilians!

"On not a few occasions have I laid open to you my mind and my heart: onthe first you will always find engraven constitutional monarchy, on thelast your happiness. I am now desirous of giving you a fresh assuranceof my sentiments, and of my detestation of despotism, whether exercisedby one or by many. 

"Some of the municipalities of the northern provinces have giveninstructions to their deputies, in which the spirit of democracypredominates. Democracy in Brazil, in this vast empire, is an absurdity;and not less absurd is the pretending to give laws to those who are tomake them, threatening them with the loss or diminution of powers whichthe constituents neither have given nor have power to give. 

"In the city of Porto Alegre, the troops and the people, the junta ofgovernment and the civil and ecclesiastical authorities, have also justcommitted an error, which they have confirmed, or rather aggravated, bysolemn oath. Troops which ought to obey the monarch holding a council;incompetent authorities defining an article of the constitution, whichis the business of the General Constituent and Legislative Assembly (andsuch is the veto, whether absolute or suspensive);--are most scandalousabsurdities, and crimes which would merit the severest punishment, butfor the consideration that they were suggested by ignorance, or producedby base deceptions. 

"Listen not therefore to those who flatter the people, or to those whoflatter the monarch: they are equally base, and moved by personal andlow interests; and under the mask of liberality or that of servility, seek alike, only to rear their proud and precarious fortunes on theruins of their country. The times in which we live are full ofmelancholy warnings. Let us use the catastrophes of foreign nations asbeacons. 

"Brazilians! confide in your Emperor and Perpetual Defender, who seeksno legal powers; nor will he ever suffer those to be usurped whichbelong to him of right, and which are indispensable in order that youmay be happy, and that this empire may fulfil the high destinies suitedto its boundaries of the wide Atlantic, and the proud floods of thePlata and the Amazons. Let us await reverently the constitution of theempire, and let us hope that it may be worthy of us. 

"May the Supreme Disposer of the Universe grant us union andtranquillity, strength and constancy; and the great work of our libertyand independence will be accomplished. 

THE EMPEROR. "

9_th August_. --The day on which the Pes de Chumbo predicted aninsurrection has passed in perfect tranquillity, excepting for onemelancholy accident. Their Imperial Majesties, as had been appointed, went to the Gloria church to return thanks for the Emperor's recovery. They were attended by the officers of state, and of the household, andas many officers of the different regiments as could attend. While thecompany were all on their knees, and just as the sacring-bell announcedthe elevation of the Host, the Chamberlain, Magalhaens, was struck withapoplexy, and died. 

12_th_. --This day, as well as yesterday and the day before, there havebeen illuminations and dressed operas on account of the Emperor'srecovery; and to-night a vessel, prize to the squadron, arrived, bringing news of their wellbeing, and of the arrival of many prizes atBahia and Pernambuco. As officers and men from the Imperial ships cannotbe spared in sufficient numbers to work the prizes into port, LordCochrane makes sure of their going thither by starting the water, excepting what is sufficient for a certain number of days, and cuttingaway the main and mizen masts, so that they must run for the ports toleeward. Seamen will appreciate this. 

_August 14th_. --I went with M. Plasson, a very intelligent Frenchman, towhom I am indebted for a good deal of information about this country, tothe museum, which I had seen in a hurried way, on my first visit to Rio. It is greatly improved since I was here, both externally and internally. The minerals of the country form the richest part of the collection. Thediamonds, both colourless and black, surpass any thing I have seen; butI believe the crystals of gold to be the most precious articles here:there are several pieces of native gold, weighing three or four ounces;and some beautiful specimens of silver, as fine and as delicate as alady's aigrette. I confess that the fine coloured copper, and thebeautiful grained iron, pleased me as well as most things: some of thelatter specimens yield 99 parts of iron. These are from the mines of St. Paul's, and I was shown some specimens of coal, as fine as Scotch coal, that has been recently discovered in the immediate neighbourhood ofthose very mines. The amethysts, topazes, quartzes of all colours, areinnumerable: there are beautiful jaspers with veins of gold, and allmanner of gorgeous works of nature, fit for Aladdin's cave, and theinsects, especially the butterflies, fit to flit about in it. But theother branches of natural history are not rich here. Of birds there arefew of note, beyond a splendid set of toucans; and of quadrupeds, a fewmonkies, two fawns like the roe-deer[117], and some very curiousarmadillos, are all I remember. The collection of Indian weapons anddresses is incomplete, and wants arrangement: this is a pity; forby-and-by, as the wild natives adopt civilised habits, these will beunattainable. The African curiosities are scarcely better kept, but someof them are very curious in their kind. One very remarkable one is aking's dress made of ox-gut, not in the state _le valliant des cubes_, but carefully cleaned and dried, as we do bladders. It is then splitlongitudinally, and the pieces sewed together, each seam being set withtufts or rather fringes of purple feathers; so that the vest is light, impervious to rain, and highly ornamental from its rich purple stripes. There is another entirely of rich Mazarine blue feathers; a sceptre mostingeniously wrought of scarlet feathers; and a cap of bark, with a longprojecting beak in front, and a quantity of coloured feathers and hairbehind, ornamented with beads. Besides all these things, there is thethrone of an African prince of wood, beautifully carved. I could wish, since the situation of Brazil is so favourable for collecting Africancostume, that there were a room appropriated to these things, as theyare curious in the history of man. 

[Note 117: I have eaten of the venison, and it is like roe-deer. ]

_15th_. --The feast of Our Lady of the Assumption, called here NossaSenhora da Gloria, the patroness of the Emperor's eldest child, iscelebrated to-day, and of course the whole of the royal family attendedMass in the morning and evening. I was spending the day with Mrs. May, at her pleasant house on the Gloria hill, and we agreed to go in theafternoon to see the ceremony. The church is situated on a platform, rather more than half way up a steep eminence overlooking the bay. Thebody is an octagon of thirty-two feet diameter; and the choir, of thesame shape, is twenty-one feet in diameter. We entered among a greatcrowd of persons, and placed ourselves within the choir; and shortlyafterwards the Imperial party entered, and I was not disagreeablysurprised at being most pleasantly recognised. The salutation, as thisevening's service is called, was well performed as to music, and veryshort: after it, for the first time, I heard a Portuguese sermon. It wasof course occasional. The text, 1 Kings, chap. Ii. Ver. 19. --"And theking rose up to meet his mother, and bowed himself unto her, and satdown on his throne, and caused a seat to be set for the "king's mother, and she sat on his right hand. " The application of this text to thelegend of the Assumption is obvious, and occupied the first division ofthe discourse. The second part consisted in an application of thehistory of the early part of Solomon's reign to the presentcircumstances of Brazil; the restoration of the kingdom, the triumphover faction, and the institution of laws, forming the grounds ofcomparison. The whole people of Brazil were called upon to join inthanksgiving and prayers to the Virgin of Glory: thanksgiving that shehad given to her people, as rulers, the descendants of the Emanuels, theJohns, and the Henrys of Portugal, and of the Maria Theresas of Austria;and prayers that she would continue her gracious protection, and thatmost especially to the eldest hope of Brazil, named after her anddedicated to her. The whole was gravely and properly done, with aslittle of the appearance of flattery to the illustrious persons presentas possible, and did not last above fifteen minutes. On this occasion, the veadors, and other persons attendant on the Imperial family, worewhite silk surplices, and bore torches in their hands. 

I went in the evening to a ball and concert at the Baronesa de Campos:on entering, I was met by the young ladies of the family, and led up totheir grandmother; and after paying my compliments to her, I was placedamong the division of the family where I had most acquaintance. Therewere only two Englishwomen besides Lady Cochrane and myself, and thesewere the wives of the consul and the commissioner for the slavebusiness. A foreign gentleman present remarked, that though we were butfour, we hardly conversed together. This was perfectly true: I like, when I am in foreign society, to talk to foreigners; and think itneither wise nor civil to form coteries with those of one's own nationin such cases. Several rooms were open, for cards; the stakes, I fancy, were high. The tea-room was no sooner full, than tea was handed round;and I perceived that some of the older servants, with great respectindeed, spoke to such of the guests as they were acquainted with. Aftertea, I had the pleasure of again hearing Dona Rosa sing, and almostgrudged my gayer companions their ball, which broke in upon that "sobercertainty of waking bliss, " which music inspires into all, andespecially to those who have known sorrow. I am no musician; but sweetsounds, especially those of the human voice, whether in speaking orsinging, have a singular power over me. 

After the first dance was over, we walked all about the house, and founda magnificent dining-room as to size, but scarcely furnished tocorrespond with the rest of the house; the bed-rooms and dressing-roomsof the ladies are neat and elegantly fitted up with English and Frenchfurniture; and all as different as possible from the houses I saw inBahia. I am told that they are likewise as different from what they werehere twenty years since, and can well believe it; even during the twelvemonths of my absence from Rio, I see a wonderful polishing has takenplace, and every thing is gaining an European air. 

I took the liberty of remarking to one of the ladies, the extreme youthof some of the children who accompanied their mothers this evening; andsaying, that in England we should consider it injurious to them in allrespects. She asked me what we did with them. I told her that some ofthem would be in bed, and others with their nurses and governesses. Shesaid we were happy in that: but that here, there were no such persons, and that the children would be left to the care and example of theslaves, whose manners were so depraved, and practices so immoral, thatit must be the destruction of the children; and that those who lovedtheir children must keep them under their own eyes, where, if they werebrought too forward in company, they at least could learn no ill. I loveto collect these proofs of the evils of slavery--even here where itexists in a milder form than in most countries. --I left the dancersbusily engaged at twelve o'clock, and I heard that they continued theball until three. There is no peculiarity in the dancing here; theladies of Rio being like ourselves, the pupils of the French, in thatbranch of the fine arts. 

_19th_. --Sir T. Hardy gave a ball and supper to English, French, andBrazilians: where every thing was handsome, and well-ordered; and everybody pleased. 

_20th_. --I had long wished to see a little more of the neighbourhood ofRio than I have hitherto done; and had resolved on riding at least toSanta Cruz, about fourteen leagues from hence, and as the road is toowell travelled to fear extraordinary accidents, and I am not timid as tocommon inconveniences, I had determined to hire a black attendant and goalone. This determination, however, was over-ruled by Mr. And Mrs. May, whose brother, Mr. Dampier, kindly offered to escort me. I confess I wasvery glad to be relieved of the absolute charge of myself, and not alittle pleased to have the society of a well-bred, intelligent youngman, whose taste for the picturesque beauties of nature agrees with myown. --I think that if there is one decided point in whichfellow-travellers agree, however different in age, temper, ordisposition, there may always be peace and pleasant conversation, moreespecially, if, as is our case, they travel on horseback. A differenceof opinion is so easily evaded by a reference to one's horse, which mayalways go too fast or too slow, or exercise one's tongue or one's whipwithout any offence to one's two-legged companion. --We were well triedto-day. I had taken it into my head, that after having postponed ourjourney from week to week on one account or an other, if we did notbegin it this day we never should go at all: and, therefore, though theafternoon was most unpromising, we left Mr. May's at half-past fouro'clock, that we might reach Campinha, the first stage, to sleep; for, alas! these horses are not like my Chilian steeds, that would carry metwenty leagues a day without complaining. We mounted then, Mr. Dampieron a tall bay horse high in bone, with a brace of pistols buckled roundhim, in a huge straw hat, and a short jacket; I on a little grey horse, my boat-cloak over my saddle; otherwise dressed as usual, with a strawriding hat, and dark grey habit; and our attendant Antonio, the merriestof negroes, on a mule, with Mr. Dampier's portmanteau behind, and my bagbefore him. --We proceeded by the upper part of the town, and along thewell-trodden road to San Cristovaŏ, and after crossing the little hillto the left of the palace, entered on a country quite new to me. Fromthe western side of the entrance to Rio Janeiro, a high mountainousridge extends close to the sea, as far as the Bay of Angra dos Reyes, formed by Ilha Grande and Marambaya. On the northern side of this ridgethere is a plain, here and there varied by low hills, extending quite tothe most inland part of Rio de Janeiro, and reaching in a windingdirection to the bay of Angra dos Reyes: itself having probably at novery remote period been covered with water, connecting these two bays, and insulating the mountains above mentioned. Along this plain our roadlay between grand scenery on the one hand, and soft and beautifullandscape on the other; but to-night all was dark and louring; the topsof the mountains were wrapped in mists, that rushed impetuously downtheir sides, or through their clefts, and every now and then a hollowsound of wind came from out of them, though the blast did not quitereach us. Under this sort of cloud we passed the picturesque Pedragulha, and the little port of Benefica, formed by a creek of the Rio. By thetime we reached Praya Pequena, where a good deal of produce is embarkedfor the city, the clouds had closed dully in, and the grand mountainmists had lost their character. Still we went on, leaving the bayentirely: and first we passed the Venda Grande, where every necessaryfor horse or man travelling, is to be sold; then the Capon do Bispo, apretty village, which the rain clouds made me long to stop at; and thenthe stone bridge of Rio de Ferreira, where the rain at length began tofall in large cold drops; then tremendous gusts of wind came out of themountain gaps, and long before we reached the Casca d'ouro, theprotection of cloaks and umbrellas had ceased to avail. There we mighthave stopped; but having been told that the Venda of Campinha was thebest resting-place, we resolved to proceed, and with some painsprevailed on my horse to go on: we reached the venda. But if it bedelightful, after a long wet ride in a dark and boisterous night, toarrive at a place of rest, it is at least as wretched to be turned fromthe door where you hope to find shelter, with dripping clothes andshivering limbs; yet such was our fate. There was nothing at the vendato eat, no place for us, none for our horses, and so we set out again tobrave the pitiless storm; a few yards, however, brought us to a lowcottage on the road side, and there we knocked. A mulatto serving-mancame round cautiously to reconnoitre from the back of the house, whenhaving ascertained that we really were English travellers benighted andwet, the front door was opened, and we found within a middle-aged verykind-looking woman, and her little daughter; her name is Maria Rosad'Acunha. Her husband and son were absent on business, and she and thelittle girl were alone. As soon as we had changed our wet clothes, andhad provided for the horses, which our hostess put into an emptybuilding, she gave us warm coffee, bread and cheese, and extended herhospitable care to the negro. She gave Mr. Dampier her son's bed, andmade up a couch for me in the room where she and the child slept. Thesepeople are of the poorest class of farmers, not possessing above four orfive slaves, and working hard themselves. They appear happy however, andI am sure are very hospitable. 

_21st_. --This morning looked at least as threatening as yesterday, butwe determined to go as far as the Engenho dos Affonsos, for whose owner, Senhor Joam Marcus Vieira, we had letters from a friend in town. Accordingly we took leave of our kind hostess, who had made coffee earlyfor us, and proceeded along a league of very pretty road to theAffonsos. Where that estate joins Campinha there is a large tiled shedwhere we found a party of travellers, apparently from the mines, dryingtheir clothes and baggage after the last night's storm. A priest, andtwo or three men apparently above the common, appeared to be the mastersof the party; the baggage was piled up on one side of the shed, and thearms were stuck into the cordage which bound it. There was a great firein the middle, where a negro was boiling coffee, and several personsround drying clothes. Generally speaking, the men we met on their wayfrom the mines are a fine, handsome race, lightly and actively made. Their dress is very picturesque. It consists of an oval cloak, lined andbordered with some bright colour such as rose or apple green, worn asthe Spanish Americans wear the poncho. The sides are often turned upover the shoulders, and display a bright coloured jacket below. Thebreeches are loose, and reach to the knee, and loose boots of brownleather are frequently seen on the better sort, though it is very commonto see the spurs upon the naked heel, and no boot or shoe of any kind. The higher classes have generally handsome pistols or great knives, theothers content themselves with a good cudgel. A short league from thelast house of Campinha, brought us to Affonsos, where we presented ourletter, and were most kindly welcomed. --The estate belongs in fact tothe grandmother of Senhor Joaŏ Marcus, who is a native of St. Catherine's, and a widow. His mother, and sister, and brother, and twodumb cousins also reside here, but he is only an occasional visitor, being married, and living near his wife's family. The dumb ladies, nolonger young, are very interesting; they are extremely intelligent, understanding most things said in Portuguese by the motion of the lips, so that their cousin spoke in French, when he wished to say any thing ofthem; they make themselves understood by signs, many of which, I may saymost, would be perfectly intelligible to the pupils of Sicard orBraidwood. They are part of a family of eight children, four of whom aredumb, the dumb and the speakers being born alternately. One of them madebreakfast for us, which consisted of coffee, and various kinds of breadand butter. 

After breakfast, as the day continued cold and showery, we were easilyprevailed on by our host to remain all day at Affonsos. I was indeedglad of the opportunity of spending a whole day with a country family. The first place we visited after breakfast was the sugar-mill, which isworked by mules. The machinery is rather coarse, but seems to answer itspurpose. 

The estate employs 200 oxen and 180 slaves as labourers, besides thosefor the service of the family. The produce is somewhere about 3000arobas of sugar, and 70 pipes of spirits. The lands extend from Tapera, the place where we met the travellers, and where 200 years ago there wasan aldea of reclaimed Indians, about a league to Piraquara. There areabout forty white tenants who keep vendas, and other useful shops on theborders of the estate near the roads, and exercise the more necessaryhandicrafts. But a small portion of the estate is in actual cultivation, the rest being covered with its native woods; but these are valuable asfuel for the sugar-furnaces, and timber for machinery, and occasionallyfor sale. The owners of estates prefer hiring either free blacks, ornegroes let out by their masters[118], to send into the woods, onaccount of the numerous accidents that happen in felling the trees, particularly in steep situations. The death of an estate negro is theloss of his value, of a hired negro, only that of a small fine; and of afree black, it is often the saving even of his wages, if he has no sonto claim them. 

[Note 118: The wages from a patac and half to two patacs per day, besides food. ]

Wheat does not grow in this part of Brazil, though in the southern andinland mountainous districts it thrives admirably. The luxury of wheatenbread is introduced everywhere, North America furnishing the flour. Wherever one travels in this neighbourhood, one is sure of excellentrusk at every venda, though soft bread is rare. 

The sugar-canes are planted here during the months of March, April, May, and even June and July. In the ridges between them maize andkidney-beans are planted, the cultivation of which is favourable to thesugar-cane: first the beans are gathered in, when the ground is weeded, and cleared, and loosened around the roots of the canes; then the maizeis pulled, when a second weeding and clearing takes place; after whichthe sugar is tall enough to shade the ground, and prevent the growth ofweeds. The first canes are ripe about May. The Cayenne cane yields best, and thrives in low grounds, the soil a mixture of sand and loam. TheCreole cane takes the hill, and, though less productive, is supposed toyield sugar of a better quality. The cool months from May to Septemberare the properest for boiling sugar. After October, the canes yield lessjuice by one-eighth, sometimes by one-fourth, and nearly as much moreis lost in claying by the lightness of the sugar, the pots of threearobas not returning after the operation more than two and a half atmost. The clay used in refining the sugar is dug close to the mill; itfeels soft and fat in the fingers. It is placed in a wooden trough, witha quantity of lie made by steeping the twigs of a small shrub, which hasa taste of soda[119], and worked up and down with a machine, somethinglike a churn-staff, until it is of the consistence of thick cream, whenit is ready for use. I suppose that the main business of expressing thejuice, boiling it, and drying the sugars, as well as cleansing them, arecarried on here as in every part of the world, though probably there maybe some difference in every country, or even in every sugar-work; norcan the distilling the spirits be very different. Nothing is wasted in asugar-house; the trash that remains after the canes are pressed, whendried, assists as fuel in heating the furnaces; the sweet refuse waterthat runs off from the still is eagerly drank by the oxen, who alwaysseem to fatten on it. 

[Note 119: This is brought to the Engenhos of the district from thelake of Jacarepagua. I had no opportunity of seeing the whole plant. ]

By the time we had examined the sugar-work, and seen the garden, it wastwo o'clock, and we were summoned to dinner. Every thing was excellentin its kind, with only a little more garlic than is used in Englishcookery. On the side-table there was a large dish of dry farinha, whichthe elder part of the family called for and used instead of bread. Ipreferred the dish of farinha moistened with broth, not unlike brose, which was presented along with the bouillie and sliced saussage afterthe soup. The mutton was from the estate, small and very sweet. Everything was served up on English blue and white ware. The table-cloths andnapkins were of cotton diaper, and there was a good deal of plate used, but not displayed. After dinner some of the family retired to thesiesta; others occupied themselves in embroidery, which is verybeautiful, and the rest in the business of the house, and governing thefemale in-door slaves, who have been mostly born on the estate, andbrought up in their mistress's house. I saw children of all ages andcolours running about, who seemed to be as tenderly treated as if theyhad been of the family. Slavery under these circumstances is muchalleviated, and more like that of the patriarchal times, where thepurchased servant became to all intents one of the family. The greatevil is, that though perhaps masters may not treat their slaves ill, they have the power of doing so; and the slave is subject to the worstof contingent evils, namely, the caprice of a half-educated, or it maybe an ill-educated master. Were all slaves as well off as the houseslaves of Affonsos, where the family is constantly resident, and nothingtrusted to others, the state of the individuals might be compared withadvantage to that of free servants. But the best is impossible, and theworst but too probable; since the unchecked power of a fallible beingmay exercise itself without censure on its slaves. 

One of the dumb ladies made tea, and afterwards we passed a couple ofhours at a round game of cards, where the sisters felt themselves quiteon an equality with the speakers, and enjoyed themselves accordingly. Iremember an account given by Bishop Burnet in his Travels, of a dumblady who had invented a way of communicating with her sister, even inthe dark, before the instruction of such unfortunate persons had becomean object of public attention. Some such method these ladies possess ofdiscoursing together, and of making themselves understood by their youngcousin, an intelligent girl, who is always at hand to interpret forthem. They have also invented arbitrary signs for the names of theflowers and plants in their garden, which signs all the family know; andI was delighted with the quickness and precision with which theyconversed on every subject within their knowledge. 

The cards made way for the supper, a meal almost as ceremonious, andquite as constant, as the dinner. After it, toasted cheese wasintroduced, with girdle cakes of farinha freshly toasted, and spreadwith a very little Irish butter; they are the same as the Casava breadof the West Indies, but prepared here are more like Scotch oat-cakes. On retiring to my room at night, a handsome young slave entered, with alarge brass pan of tepid water, and a fringed towel over her arm, andoffered to wash my feet. She seemed disappointed when I told her I neversuffered any body to do that for me, or to assist me in undressing atany time. In the morning she returned, and removing the foot bath, brought fresh towels, and a large embossed silver basin and ewer, withplenty of tepid water; which she left without saying a word, and toldher mistress I was a very quiet person, and, she supposed, liked nobodybut my own people, so she would not disturb me. 

_Friday, August 22d_. --The day as fine as possible; and after breakfastwe pursued our journey to Santa Cruz, the road improving in beauty as weproceeded. 

 "Here lofty trees to ancient song unknown, The noble sons of potent heat, and floods Prone rushing from the clouds, rear'd high to heav'n Their thorny stems, and broad around them threw Meridian gloom. "

And above all these the mountains rose in the distance, and lower hillsmore near, between which, long valleys stretched themselves till the eyecould follow them no farther; and the foregrounds were filled up withgigantic aloes, streams, and pools, and groups of passing cattle andtheir picturesquely clad conductors. Near Campo Grande, the scenery isdiversified by several little green plains, with only an insulated treehere and there, decorated with air plants in bloom, and scarletcreepers. Beyond this lies one of the most beautiful spots I ever saw, namely, Viaga; where the rocks, trees, plains, and buildings, seem allplaced on purpose to be admired. Having loitered a little to admire it, we rode on to the New Freguezia of Sant Antonio, where we stopped at avery neat venda to rest and feed our horses. The church is on a littlehill, overlooking a very pretty country and a neat village, but thegreater part of the parish is very distant. While the horses were eatingtheir maize, we procured for ourselves some rusk, cheese from theprovince of Minas exactly like Scotch kebbuck, and port wine from thecask of excellent quality. These provisions are always to be had, withbeans, bacon, and dried beef. But the hospitality of a Brazilian inndoes not extend to cooking food for travellers, who generally carry theutensils for that purpose with them, and who in some shed attached tothe inn cook for themselves, and generally sleep in the same shed. AtSant Antonio there are decent sleeping-rooms provided with benches andmats, to which the guests add what bedding they please; but travellerscommonly wrap themselves in their cloaks, and so rest. As soon as ourhorses were ready, we rode on to Mata Paciencia, the engenho of DonaMariana, the eldest daughter of the Baroness de Campos, and to whom wehad a letter of introduction. Here we met with a most polite receptionfrom a handsome ladylike woman, whom we found attending to her engenho, which is indeed an interesting one. We were received at first by thechaplain, a polite and well-informed person; and with him was thechaplain of Santa Cruz, who having been formerly a professor in thecollege at Rio, is commonly known by the name of the Padre Mestre. 

Dona Mariana led us into the engenho, where we had seats placed near therollers, which are worked by an eight-horse power steam-engine, one ofthe first, if not the very first, erected in Brazil. There are here 200slaves, and as many oxen, in constant employ. The steam-engine, besidesthe rollers in the sugar-house, moves several saws; so that she has theadvantage of having her timber prepared almost without expense. While wewere sitting by the machine, Dona Mariana desired the women, who weresupplying the canes, to sing, and they began at first with some of theirown wild African airs, with words adopted at the moment to suit theoccasion. She then told them to sing their hymns to the Virgin; when, regularly in tune and time, and with some sweet voices, the evening andother hymns were sung; and we accompanied Dona Mariana into the house, where we found that while we had been occupied in looking at themachinery, the boilers, and the distillery, dinner had been prepared forus, though it was long after the family hour. On our departure, we werehospitably pressed to return on our way back to Rio, which we, "nothingloath, " promised to do. 

It was quite dark long before we reached Santa Cruz, and exceedinglycold: when there, we easily found the house of the gentleman to whom wehad a letter of introduction, the Capitaŏ de Fragata Joam da Cruz deReis, who is the superintendant of the palace and estate. The Viscondedo Rio Seco had kindly furnished us with this letter, and mentioned thatthe object of the journey was mere curiosity, so that the Capitaŏ toldus that he would next day do all he could to satisfy us. Soon after ourarrival, several persons dropped in to converse half an hour; among therest, a surgeon, who comes from Rio once a year to vaccinate thechildren born in the twelve-months on the estate. The Padre Mestre andanother friar also came in; and I soon found that Santa Cruz has itspolitics and gossip as well as the city, all the difference being in alittle more or less refinement. Nothing can exceed the good-humouredhospitality of our host and hostess, who soon made us feel quite athome; and by the time tea was over, we were quite initiated into all theways of the house and the village. 

_Saturday, 23d_. --The morning was excessively cold but clear, and theview of the extensive plains of Santa Cruz, with the herds of cattleupon it, most magnificent. The pasture, which extends many leagues oneach side of the little hill on which the palace and village aresituated, is here and there varied by clumps of natural wood; thehorizon extends to the sea in one direction, and every where else theview is bounded by mountains or woody hills. The palace itself occupiesthe site of the old Jesuits' college. Three sides are modern: the fourthcontains the handsome chapel of the very reverend fathers, and a fewtolerable apartments. The new part was built for King John VI. , but theworks were stopped on his departure. The apartments are handsome, andcomfortably furnished. In this climate hangings, whether of paper orsilk, are liable to speedy decay from damp and insects. The walls aretherefore washed with a rich creamy white clay, called TaboaTinga[120], and cornices and borders painted on them in distemper. Someof these are exceedingly beautiful in design, and generally very wellexecuted, the arabesques of the friezes being composed of the fruits, flowers, birds, and insects of the country. One of the rooms representsa pavilion; and between the open pilasters, the scenery round Santa Cruzis painted, not well indeed, but the room is pleasant and cheerful. Theartists employed were chiefly mulattoes and creole negroes. 

[Note 120: Taboa tinga, a very fine white clay, proper for makingporcelain, very abundant in Brazil, and, as far as I can judge, the sameas is found in the valleys of Chile. ]

After breakfast, we rode along the causeway that crosses the plain ofSanta Cruz, to the Indian aldea of San Francisco Xavier de Itaguahy, commonly called Taguahy, formed by the Jesuits not very long beforetheir expulsion. The situation of the aldea and church is extremelyfine; on the summit of a hill overlooking a rich plain, watered by anavigable river, and surrounded by mountains. We entered several of thehuts of the Indians, whom I had understood to be of the Guaranee nation. I enquired of one of the women, in whose hut I sat down, if she knewwhence her tribe came: she said no; she had been brought, when a merechild, from a great distance to Taguahy, by the fathers of the company;that her husband had died when she was young; that she and her daughtershad always lived there; but her sons and grandsons, after the fathers ofthe company went, had returned to their fathers, by which she meant thatthey had resumed their savage life. This is not surprising. The Indianshere must work for others, and become servants; a state they hardlydistinguish from slavery. Besides, slaves are plentiful; and as thenegro is hardier than the Indian, his labour is more profitable;therefore, a willing Indian does not always find a master. The produceof his little garden, or his fishing, is rarely sufficient for hisfamily; and without the protection of the priest, whose chief favour wasprocuring constant occupation, the half-reclaimed savage droops, andflies again to the liberty of his forest, to his unrestrained huntingand fishing. The Chilian Indians rarely or never return to their forestswhen their villages are once formed; but that depends on circumstances, which have nothing in common with the state of Brazil. Many of theIndian women have married the creole Portuguese; intermarriages betweencreole women and Indian men are more rare. The children of such couplesare prettier, and appear to me to be more intelligent, than the purerace of either. The Indian huts at Taguahy are very poor; barelysufficient in walls and roof to keep out the weather, and furnished withlittle besides hammocks and cooking utensils; yet we were every whereasked to go in and sit down: all the floors were cleanly swept, and alog of wood or a rude stool was generally to be found for a seat for thestranger, the people themselves squatting on the ground. 

At the foot of the hill of Taguahy there is a very fine ingenho, sold byKing Joam VI. To one de Barros; the rollers are worked by a horizontalwater-wheel about twenty-two feet in diameter, turned by the littlestream Taguahy. The quantity of sugar made in a given time is somethingmore than that produced by the steam-engine at Mata Paciencia, thenumber of slaves employed being the same. 

After we had admired the neatness of the engenho and the beauty of thesituation sufficiently, we left Taguahy to return to Santa Cruz, andre-crossed the river Guandu, where there is a guard-house by the bridge, where passes from the police are required from ordinary travellers; butas we had a servant from Santa Cruz with us, we were not questioned. TheGuandu rises in the mountain of Marapicu, in the barony of Itanhae; andhaving received the Tingui, it passes to the engenho of Palmares, occupied by the Visconde de Merendal; where there is a wharf where theproduce of the neighbouring estates is embarked, and conveyed toSepetiva, a little port in the bay of Angra dos Reyes, where it isshipped for Rio, the passage thither being generally of twenty-fourhours. 

In 1810 there was an intention of uniting the Guandu with the Itaipu bya short canal; by which means the produce, not only of this district, but of the Ilha Grande, would have been conveyed directly to Rio, without the risk of the navigation outside of the harbour: I know notwhy the project was abandoned. 

Every time I pass through a grove in Brazil, I see new flowers andplants, and a richness of vegetation that seems inexhaustible. To-day Isaw passion-flowers of colours I never observed before; green, pink, scarlet, and blue: wild pine apples, of beautiful crimson and purple:wild tea, even more beautiful than the elegant Chinese shrub:marsh-palms, and innumerable aquatic plants, new to me: and in everylittle pool, wild-ducks, water-hens, and varieties of storks, werewading about in graceful pride. At every step I am inclined to exclaimwith the minstrel--

 "Oh nature, how in every charm supreme! Whose votaries feast on raptures ever new: Oh, for the voice and fire of seraphim To paint thy glories with devotion due!"

After dinner I walked about a little in the village of the negroes. There are, I believe, about fifteen hundred on the estate, the greaterpart of whom belong to the outlying farms or feitorias, of which thereare, I believe, three; Bom Jardin, Piperi, and Serra: these yieldcoffee, feijoă, and maize. The immediate neighbourhood of Santa Cruz isappropriated to the rearing of cattle, of which there are this yearabout four thousand head; and a good deal of pasture land is annuallylet. The negroes of Santa Cruz are not fed and clothed by the Emperor, but they have their little portions of land; and they have half ofFriday, all Saturday and Sunday, and every holiday, to labour forthemselves; so that they at most work for their master four days, inreturn for their house and land; and some even of the external marks ofslavery are removed, as the families feed and clothe themselves withoutthe master's interference. The Emperor has appropriated great part of avery commodious building, erected by his father for the royal stud, tothe purpose of an hospital. I visited it, and found a white surgeon andblack assistant; decent beds, and well-ventilated apartments: thekitchen was clean, and the broth, which was all I found cooked at thetime of night when I was there, good: there were about sixty patients, most of them merely for sores in their feet, some from giggers, others asort of leprosy from working in damp grounds, and a few withelephantiases; fevers are very rare; pulmonary complaints not uncommon. Several of the inmates of the hospital were there merely from old age;one was insane; and there was a large ward of women, with youngchildren: so that, on the whole, I consider the hospital as affording aproof of the healthiness of the negroes of Santa Cruz. 

_Sunday, 24th_, presented a very respectable congregation on its way tothe chapel of Santa Cruz. There were all the officers belonging to thepalace, with their wives and families; also the shopkeepers of thevillage and neighbourhood, besides a good many of the negro people; allof them, I think, better dressed than persons of the same classelsewhere in this part of Brazil. 

I walked up to the tea-gardens, which occupy many acres of a rocky hill, such as I suppose may be the favourite _habitat_ of the plant in China. The introduction of the culture of tea into Brazil was a favouriteproject of the King Joam VI. , who brought the plants and cultivators atgreat expense from China. The tea produced both here and at the botanicgardens is said to be of superior quality; but the quantity is so small, as never yet to have afforded the slightest promise of paying theexpense of culture. Yet the plants are so thriving, that I have no doubtthey will soon spread of themselves, and probably become as natives. HisMajesty built Chinese gates and summer-houses to correspond with thedestination of these gardens; and, placed where they are, among thebeautiful tea-shrubs, whose dark shining leaves and myrtle-like flowersfit them for a parterre, they have no unpleasing effect. The walks arebordered on either hand with orange trees and roses, and the gardenhedge is of a beautiful kind of mimosa; so that the China of Santa Cruzforms really a delightful walk. The Emperor, however, who perceives thatit is more advantageous to sell coffee and buy tea, than to grow it atsuch expense, has discontinued the cultivation. 

Our hospitable friends the Capitaŏ and his lady would not allow us toleave them till after dinner, having invited several persons to dohonour to us, and to a sumptuous feast they had prepared, where everygood thing that can be named was present. However, due honour havingbeen done to the table, we took our leave; and at about four o'clock ora little earlier set off for Mata Paciencia, where we arrived a littlebefore sunset. 

On our arrival we went with Dona Mariana and the chaplain into thegarden, which unites the flower, kitchen-garden, and orchard in one. Oranges and roses, cabbage and tobacco, melons and leeks, neighbouredeach other, as if they belonged to the same climate; and all werethriving among numbers of weeds, of which the wholesome calliloo and thesplendid balsam attracted my eye most. A side-door in the garden let usinto a beautiful field, whither chairs were brought, that we might sitand enjoy the freshness of the evening. Overhanging that field there isa steep hill, on whose side a great deal of wood has been cleared away, and the gardens and coffee plots of the negroes occupy the ground. Thisday--and blessed be the Sabbath!--is the negroes' own: after morningMass they are free to do their own will; and then most of them run tothe hill to gather their coffee or maize, or prepare the ground forthese or other vegetables. They were just beginning to return from thewood, each with his little basket laden with something of his own, something in which the master had no share; and again and again as theypassed me, and displayed with glistening eye the little treasure, Iblessed the Sabbath, the day of freedom to the slave. Presently the lastfew stragglers dropped in. The sun by this time was only the tops of thehills. The cattle flocked in from the pasture, and lowed impatiently atthe gate of the corral: we opened it, and passed in with them, andcrossed the court where the negroes live. All was bustle there: theywere bargaining with a huckster, who, knowing the proper hour, hadarrived to buy the fresh-picked coffee. Some sold it thus; others choseto keep it and dry it, and then to take the opportunity of one of thelady's messengers to town and send it thither, where it sells at ahigher price. I do not know when I have passed so pleasant an evening. 

After supper I had a great deal of conversation with Dona Marianaconcerning the sugar-work, the cultivation of the cane, and the slaves, confirming what I had learnt at Affonsos. She also tells me, as I hadheard before, that the Creole negroes are less docile and less activethan the new negroes. I think both facts may be accounted for withouthaving recourse to the influence of climate. The new negro has theeducation of the slave-ship and the market, the lash being administeredto drill him; so that when bought he is docile from fear, active fromhabit. The creole negro is a spoiled child, till he is strong enough towork; then, without previous habits of industry, he is expected to beindustrious, and having eaten, drunk, and run about on terms of familiarequality, he is expected to be obedient; and where no moral feelingshave been cultivated, he is expected to show his gratitude for earlyindulgence by future fidelity. Dona Mariana tells me, that not half thenegroes born on her estate live to be ten years old. It would be worthwhile to enquire into the cause of this evil, and whether it is general. 

I conversed also a good while with the chaplain on the general state ofthe country. He is a native of Pernambuco; of course a staunchindependent. * * * It is needless to say that every thing in the mannerof living at Mata Paciencia is not only agreeable but elegant. And ifthe stories of older travellers concerning the country life of theBrazilians be true, the change has been most rapid and complete. 

_25th August_. --- I was very sorry to leave Mata Paciencia this morningwhen it was time to return; however, the hour came, and we departed forAffonsos. 

On the road we stopped to make some sketches, and at Campo Grande torefresh our horses; and were glad ourselves, as the day was pretty cool, to partake of a beef-steak which the good woman of the house cookedaccording to our directions, the first she had ever seen, regretting allthe time that their own dinner was over, and that there was not time toboil or roast for us. But hospitality seems the temper of the country. 

On our arrival at Affonsos we were received as old friends, and muchpressed to stay a couple of days, in order to make excursions to somepicturesque spots in the neighbourhood, which I would fain have done, but my young friend, Mr. Dampier, could not spare the time; so I wasobliged to content myself with only hearing of the beauties of the lakeof Jacarepagua, and N. S. Da Pena, &c. 

26_th. _--We left Affonsos by times this morning, and shortly afterwardsmet an original-looking group of travellers. First came rather ahandsome woman, in a blue joseph and broad black hat, riding astride;then three gentlemen in Indian file, all natural Falstaffs, in enormousstraw hats, and mounted on good well-groomed horses; next followed thelady's maid, also astride, with her mistress's portmanteau buckledbehind her; and behind her the valet, with three leathern bags hangingto his saddle by long straps, so as to swing as low as the stirrups, andwhose size and shape denoted the presence of at least a clean shirt;and, lastly, a bare-headed slave with two mules, one laden with baggageand provisions, and the other as a relay. They all saluted us gravelyand courteously as they passed; and I thought I had gotten among some ofGil Blas' travellers in the neighbourhood of Oviedo or Astorga, socompletely did they differ from any thing usual with us. 

We stopped, of course, at Campinha, to call on our hospitable hostess, Senhora Maria Rosa, and found her at a neighbour's house; whither wefollowed her, and found her surrounded by four of the prettiest women Ihave seen in Brazil. From the veranda, where we sat talking with themfor some time, we had leisure to admire the country about Campinha, which was totally obscured the first time we passed by rain. It is ofthe same beautiful character with the rest we have seen, beingdistinguished by a new mud fort, now building on a little insulatedknoll, which commands the road through the hills, and by the plain tothe capital. The want of some such point of defence was felt when DuClerc landed in the bay of Angra dos Reyes, at the beginning of the lastcentury, and marched without stop to the city. 

After feeding our horses at the very pretty station of Rio Ferreira, weproceeded homewards; and arrived at Mr. May's in good time to dinner, having had a very pleasant excursion, and, on my part, seeing more ofBrazil and Brazilians in these few days, passed entirely out of Englishreach, than in all the time I had been here before. 

On my arrival at home I found news from Lord Cochrane of the 9th July, in latitude 6° S. , longitude 32° W. ; when half the army, colours, ammunition, and stores of Madeira had fallen into his hands, and he wasin pursuit of the rest, intending afterwards to follow the Joaŏ VI. Andfrigates. Should he be able to separate them, no doubt he will capturethem; but alone, under his circumstances, against them, so armed andmanned, I fear it will be impossible. --He has already effected more thancould have been expected, or perhaps than any commander besides himselfcould have done. He attributes much to the imprudence, or imbecility ofthe enemy, whose plan of saving an army he likens to Sterne's marblesheet. However, others are just enough to him, to feel that no faults ofthe enemy's commander lessen his merit, or obscure the courage necessaryto follow up, attack, and take half at least of a fleet of seventysail, [121] well found and provisioned, and full of veteran troops. 

[Note 121: It is now certain that Joaŏ Felix had at least thatnumber. ]

There is a letter from Lord Cochrane to the magistrates of Pernambucopublished in the gazette. His Lordship, after mentioning his success, and stating his want of seamen, says, "We must have sailors to end thewar. If Your Excellencies will give 24 milrees bounty, as at Rio deJaneiro, drawing on government for the same, you will do a great serviceto the country. I do not say Portuguese sailors, who are enemies; butsailors of _any other nation_. "

His Lordship mentions farther in his letters to Pernambuco, that hisreasons for rather following up the transports at first, instead of theships of war, which were the objects he had most at heart, were, lestthe troops should land, as they had threatened, in some other port ofBrazil, and commit new hostilities in the empire. And he concludes withannouncing that he sends several flags taken from the enemy. 

_August 29th. _--To-day I received a visit from Dona Maria de Jesus, theyoung woman who has lately distinguished herself in the war of theReconcave. Her dress is that of a soldier of one of the Emperor'sbattalions, with the addition of a tartan kilt, which she told me shehad adopted from a picture representing a highlander, as the mostfeminine military dress. What would the Gordons and MacDonalds say tothis? The "garb of old Gaul, " chosen as a womanish attire!--Her fatheris a Portuguese, named Gonsalvez de Almeida, and possesses a farm on theRio do Pex, in the parish of San José, in the Certaŏ, about fortyleagues inland from Cachoeira. Her mother was also a Portuguese; yet theyoung woman's features, especially her eyes and forehead, have thestrongest characteristics of the Indians. Her father has anotherdaughter by the same wife; since whose death he has married again, andthe new wife and the young children have made home not very comfortableto Dona Maria de Jesus. The farm of the Rio do Pex is chiefly a cattlefarm, but the possessor seldom knows or counts his numbers. SenhorGonsalvez, besides his cattle, raises some cotton; but as the Certaŏ issometimes a whole year without rain, the quantity is uncertain. In wetyears he may sell 400 arobas, at from four to five milrees; in dryseasons he can scarcely collect above sixty or seventy arobas, which mayfetch from six to seven milrees. His farm employs twenty-six slaves. 

The women of the interior spin and weave for their household, and theyalso embroider very beautifully. The young women learn the use offire-arms, as their brothers do, either to shoot game or defendthemselves from the wild Indians. 

[Illustration]

Dona Maria told me several particulars concerning the country, and moreconcerning her own adventures. It appears, that early in the late war ofthe Reconcave, emissaries had traversed the country in all directions, to raise patriot recruits; that one of these had arrived at her father'shouse one day about dinner time; that her father had invited him in, andthat after their meal he began to talk on the subject of his visit. Herepresented the greatness and the riches of Brazil, and the happiness towhich it might attain if independent. He set forth the long andoppressive tyranny of Portugal; and the meanness of submitting to beruled by so poor and degraded a country. He talked long and eloquentlyof the services Don Pedro had rendered to Brazil; of his virtues, andthose of the Empress: so that at the last, said the girl, "I felt myheart burning in my "breast. " Her father, however, had none of herenthusiasm of character. He is old, and said he neither could join thearmy himself, nor had he a son to send thither; and as to giving a slavefor the ranks, what interest had a slave to fight for the independenceof Brazil? He should wait in patience the result of the war, and be apeaceable subject to the winner. Dona Maria stole from home to the houseof her own sister, who was married, and lived at a little distance. Sherecapitulated the whole of the stranger's discourse, and said she wishedshe was a man, that she might join the patriots. "Nay, " said the sister, "if I had not a husband and children, for one half of what you say Iwould join the ranks for the Emperor. " This was enough. Maria receivedsome clothes belonging to her sister's husband to equip her; and as herfather was then about to go to Cachoeira to dispose of some cottons, sheresolved to take the opportunity of riding after him, near enough forprotection in case of accident on the road, and far enough off to escapedetection. At length being in sight of Cachoeira, she stopped; and goingoff the road, equipped herself in male attire, and entered the town. This was on Friday. By Sunday she had managed matters so well, that shehad entered the regiment of artillery, and had mounted guard. She wastoo slight, however, for that service, and exchanged into the infantry, where she now is. She was sent hither, I believe, with despatches, andto be presented to the Emperor, who has given her an ensign'scommission and the order of the cross, the decoration of which hehimself fixed on her jacket. 

She is illiterate, but clever. Her understanding is quick, and herperceptions keen. I think, with education she might have been aremarkable person. She is not particularly masculine in her appearance, and her manners are gentle and cheerful. She has not contracted anything coarse or vulgar in her camp life, and I believe that noimputation has ever been substantiated against her modesty. One thing iscertain, that her sex never was known until her father applied to hercommanding officer to seek her. 

There is nothing very peculiar in her manners at table, excepting thatshe eats farinha with her eggs at breakfast and her fish at dinner, instead of bread, and smokes a segar after each meal; but she is verytemperate. 

Sept. 8_th_, 1823. --I went with Mr. Hoste and Mr. Hately, of HisMajesty's ship Briton, to Praya Grande, to see a party of BotecudoIndians, who are now there on a visit. As it is desired to civilisethese people by every possible means, whenever they manifest a wish tovisit the neighbourhood of the city, they are always encouraged andreceived kindly, fed to their hearts' content, and given clothes, andsuch trinkets and ornaments as they value. We saw about six men, and tenwomen, with some young children. The faces are rather square, with veryhigh cheek-bones, and low contracted foreheads. Some of the young womenare really pretty, of a light copper-colour, which glows all over whenthey blush; and two of the young men were decidedly handsome, with verydark eyes, (the usual colour of the eyes is hazel, ) and aquiline noses;the rest were so disfigured by the holes cut in their lower lips andtheir ears to receive their barbarous ornaments, that we could scarcelytell what they were like. I had understood that the privilege of thusbeautifying the face was reserved for the men, [122] but the women ofthis party were equally disfigured. We purchased from one of the men amouth-piece, measuring an inch and a half in diameter. The ornamentsused by these people are pieces of wood perfectly circular, which areinserted into the slit of the lip or ear, like a button, and areextremely frightful, especially when they are eating. It gives the mouththe appearance of an ape's; and the peculiar mumping it occasions is sohideously unnatural, that it gives credit to, if it did not originallysuggest, the stories of their cannibalism. [123] The mouth is still moreugly without the lip-piece, the teeth appearing, and saliva runningthrough. 

[Note 122: See Southy's Brazil, for the manners of the Tupayas. I amnot sufficiently acquainted with the filiation of the Indian tribes, toknow what relation the Botecudos bear to the Tupayas. ]

[Note 123: Perhaps all the Indians may have been so far cannibals, as to taste of the flesh of prisoners taken in battle, or victimsoffered to the gods; but I cannot believe that any ever fed habituallyon human flesh, for many reasons. But their traducers had their reasonsfor inventing and propagating the most atrocious falsehoods, as a sortof excuse for their own barbarity in hunting and making slaves of them. These practices, indeed, were so wicked, and so notorious, that in 1537, the Dominican Frey Domingos de Becançoo, provincial of the order inMexico, sent Frey Domingos de Menaja to Rome to plead the cause of theIndians before Paul III. ; who having heard _both sides_, pronounced that"The Indians of America are men of rational soul, of the same nature andspecies as all others, capable of the sacraments of the holy church, andconsequently free by nature, and lords of their own actions. "]

When we entered the room where the savages are lodged, most of them werelying in mats on the floor; some on their faces, and some on theirbacks. Three of the women were suckling their infants, and these weredressed only in coarse cotton petticoats; the rest of the females hadcotton frocks, the men shirts and trousers, given them on their arrivalhere. As they are usually naked in the woods, their garments seemed tosit uneasily on them: their usual motions seemed slow and lazy; but whenroused, there was a springy activity hardly fitting a human being, inall they did. They begged for money; and when we took out a few vintems, the women crowded round me, and pinched me gently to attract myattention. They had learned a few words of Portuguese, which theyaddressed to us, but discoursed together in their own tongue, whichseemed like a series of half-articulate sounds. 

They had brought some of their bows and arrows with them of the rudestconstruction. The bow is of hard wood, with only two notches for thestring. The arrows are of cane; some are pointed only with hard wood, others with a flat bit of cane tied with bark to the end of the hardwood: these arrows are five feet long; and I saw one of them penetrateseveral inches into the trunk of a tree, when shot by an Indian from hisbow. I purchased one bow and two arrows. Most of these people had theirhair closely clipped, excepting a tuft on the fore part of the head; andthe men, who had slit their lips, had also pulled out their beards. Thetwo handsome lads had cut their hair; but they had neither cut theirlips nor pulled their beards. I tried to learn if this was a steptowards civilisation, or if it was only that they had not reached theage when the ceremony of lip-slitting, &c. Is practised, the interpreterattending them not being able to explain any thing but what concernstheir commonest wants and actions. 

_September 9th. _--I took two very fine Brazilian boys, who are about toenter the Imperial naval service, to spend the day at the botanicalgarden, which appears in much better order than when I saw it two yearsago. The hedge-rows of the Bencoolen nut (_Vernilzia Montana_) areprodigiously grown: the Norfolk Island pine has shot up like a younggiant, and I was glad to find many of the indigenous trees had beenplaced here; such as the _Andraguoa_, the nut of which is the strongestknown purge; the _Cambucá_, whose fruit, as large as a russet apple, hasthe sub-acid taste of the gooseberry, to which its pulp bears a strongresemblance; the _Japatec-caba_, whose fruit is scarcely inferior to thedamascene; and the _Grumachama_, whence a liquor, as good as that fromcherries, is made: these three last are like laurels, and as beautifulas they are useful. I took my young friends to see the powder-mills, which are not now at work, being under repair; but they learned themanner of making powder, from the first weighing of the ingredients tothe filling cartridges: and then we had our table spread in a pleasantpart of the garden, under the shade of a jumbu tree, and made the headgardener, a very ingenious Dutchman, partake of our luncheon; whichbeing over, he showed us the cinnamon they have barked here, and theother specimens of spice: the cloves are very fine, and the cinnamonmight be so; but the wood they have barked is generally too old, andthey have not yet the method of stripping the twigs: this I endeavouredto explain, as I had seen it practised in Ceylon. The camphor tree growsvery well here, but I do not know if the gum has ever been collected. The two boys were highly delighted with their jaunt, and I not less so. Poor things! they are entering on a hard service; and God knows whetherthe two cousins da Costa may not hereafter look back to this day passedwith a stranger, as a bright "spot of azure in a stormy sky. "

_Sept. 13th_. --I rode again to the botanic gardens with Mr. Hoste andMr. Hately. Our chief object this time was the powder-mills. Afterwalking round the garden, we proceeded along the valley of the mills;and so beautiful and sequestered a place, in the bosom of the mountains, was surely never before chosen as a manufactory for so destructive anarticle: I suppose the great command of water for the machinery is thechief inducement to fix it here. The powder is mixed by pounding, themortars being of rosewood, and the pestles of the same shod with copper;yet the mortar-hoops are iron, which seems to me to be a strangeoversight. I do not understand these things, however; but the machineryinterested me: it is extremely simple, and the timber used in theconstruction very beautiful. The principal mill blew up a few monthssince, and is now under repair; so that we had an opportunity of seeingthe watercourses, dams, wheels, &c. , which we could not otherwise haveenjoyed. We could not learn the relative strength of the powder. I haveheard, however, that it is good. What I have seen is about as fine ingrain as what we call priming powder in the navy. While we were walkingabout we were invited into several houses, by the overseers and otherpersons employed in the works, and pressed to eat and drink with greathospitality. The greatest liberality to strangers, indeed, exists in allpublic establishments here. For instance, at the botanic garden there isa constant nursery of the rare and the useful plants, which are givenaway, on application, to strangers and natives alike; so that not onlythe gardens of Brazil are stocked with the rarer productions of theEast, but they are carried to different countries in Europe, prepared bythis cooler climate for their farther transplantation. 

_14th_. --I observed on the beach to-day a line of red sandy-lookingmatter, extending all along the shore, and tinging the sea for severalfeet from the edge. At night this red edge became luminous; and I nowrecollect when on the passage to India in 1809, that on observing apeculiar luminous appearance of the sea, we took up a bucket of water, and on examining it next morning, we observed a similar red grainysubstance floating in it. It is the first time I have seen it here, andI cannot find that any body has paid any attention to it. Perhaps it isnot worth noticing; but I am so much alone, that I have grown more andmore alive to all the appearances of inanimate nature. Besides, I mustmake much of the country, as in a few days I have to take up my abode inone of the narrow close streets of Rio; and this not from choice. It isthe custom here, and a very natural and pleasant one it is, for everyfamily that can, to live in the country all the summer: so that thehouses of every kind, in the country, are in great request. The term forwhich that I live in was hired is expired, and I am therefore obliged toleave it. My going to town, perhaps, might be avoided, but there aresome things I shall probably learn more perfectly by living there; and, besides, does not Lord Bacon advise that in order to profit much fromtravel, one should not only move from city to city, "but change hislodgings from one end and part of the city to another?"

The last fortnight has been extremely foggy, and rather cold; and wehave had some fierce thunder-storms, that seem almost to rock themountains, and threaten to bring them down upon us. 

_16th_. --At length I am fixed in No. 79. , Rua dos Pescadores, in thefirst floor of an excellent house, belonging to my kind friend Dr. Dickson, who himself inhabits a villa out of town; where he has a farm, a garden, a collection of minerals and insects, and all sorts ofagreeable and profitable things, which he dispenses to others with thegreatest good-nature. I am obliged to Sir Thomas Hardy for a pleasantpassage to town from Botafogo, his carriage conveying me, and his boatsmy goods: so in a few hours I have changed my home, and have probablytaken my leave of all English society, every body has such a dread ofthe heat of the town. However, as I look forward to going to England ina few months, perhaps in a few weeks, the more time I have for Brazilthe better. My private affairs have so occupied me that I have scarcelyhad time to think of the public. Yet in the course of the last week theproject of the constitution for Brazil, framed by the committeeappointed, was sent from the Assembly to the Emperor; and yesterday thediscussion of it, article by article, began in the full assembly. 

_17th_. --One advantage has already arisen from my removal into town. Ihave received the very first news of the arrival of a ship from Lisbonwith commissioners on the part of the King to the Emperor. I find, too, that at Lisbon they can publish false news, as well as in some othercountries in Europe. That city had illuminated in consequence of newsthat Lord Cochrane had been beaten, and the Imperial navy destroyed bythe Bahia squadron; and this illumination must have taken place justabout the time that Madeira was evacuating the city, and flying beforethe Imperial Admiral's flag. As to the reception the commissioners areto meet with, it is doubtful. Some days since the brig 3° de Maioarrived here, having on board Luiz Paolino as successor to Madeira; who, finding he could not get into Bahia, came hither, to present, it issaid, his commission as governor of Bahia to His Imperial Majesty asPrince Regent; and it is also said that he was the bearer of someletters. But as none of these acknowledged the title, or independence ofthe empire of Brazil, they were not received; and the vessel hasalready sailed on her return to Lisbon. It is believed that the samefate will attend the present commissioners, Vieira and his colleague, ifindeed the ship should not be condemned as a prize. But hitherto ofcourse nothing is known. 

Another vessel also arrived with intelligence of some moment from BuenosAyres. It appears that the captain of His Majesty's ship Brazen has beenat variance with the authorities there concerning the old subject of theright of boarding vessels, the priority of which the Buenos Ayriansclaim for their own health-boat. The Commodore means to go thitherhimself on the business, and I have no doubt all will be well andreasonably settled. 

_18th_. --I went to-day to the public library to ask about some books, and am invited to go and use what I like there: the librarians are allextremely polite, and the library is open to all persons for six hoursdaily. 

I have also walked a great deal about the town, and have again visitedthe arsenals; in which very great improvements have been made and aremaking, particularly building sheds for the workmen. After an Englisharsenal, to be sure, the want of machinery and all the luxuries oflabour is conspicuous; but the work is well done, and reminds me of thatI used to see under the old Parsee builder in Bombay. They are layingdown new ships and repairing old ones. I only wish they could form anursery for seamen, because Brazil must have ships to guard her coasts. Fisheries off the Abrolhos, and from St. Catherine's, might perhaps dosomething towards it. From the arsenal I climbed the hill immediatelyoverlooking it, where there is the convent of San Bento; where, it issaid, there is a good library, but it is not accessible to women. Thesituation of the convent is delightful, overlooking both divisions ofthe harbour and the whole town, and the hills many a mile beyond. I amnot sure whether a cloister or a prison, commanding a fine view, bepreferable to one without. Whether the gazing on a beautiful scene be initself a pleasure great enough to alleviate confinement; or whether itdoes not increase the longing for liberty in a way analogous to that inwhich a well-remembered air creates a longing, even to death, for thehome where that air was first heard;--it seems to me as if, onceimprisoned, I would break every association with liberty, and keep myeyes from wandering where my limbs must no longer bear me. However, I dosuppose some may be, and some have been, happy in a cloister. I cannotenvy them; I would fain not despise them. 

_September 19th_. --Our little English world at Rio is grieving in onecommon mourning for the death of one of the youngest, and certainly theloveliest, of our countrywomen here. Beautiful and gay, and the latelymarried and cherished wife of a most worthy man, Mrs. N. Died a shorttime after the birth of her first child. She had appeared to berecovering well; she relapsed and died. It is one of those events thatexcites sympathy in the hardest, and commiseration in the coldest. 

_23d_. --I have been unwell again--but I find that staying at home doesnot cure me; so I went both yesterday and to-day to the library, where apleasant, cool, little cabinet has been assigned to me, where whateverbook I ask for is brought to me, and where I have pen, ink, and paperalways placed to make notes. This is a kindness and attention to a womanand a stranger that I was hardly prepared for. The library was broughthither from Lisbon in 1810, and placed in its present situation, whichwas once the hospital belonging to the Carmelites. That hospital wasremoved to a healthier and more commodious situation, and the rooms, admirably adapted to the purpose, received the books, of which there arebetween sixty and seventy thousand volumes. The greater number are booksof theology and law. There is a great deal of ecclesiastical history, and particularly all the Jesuits' accounts of South America. General andcivil history are not wanting; and there are good editions of theclassics. There are some fine works on natural history; but, exceptingthese, nothing modern; scarcely a book having been bought for sixtyyears. But a noble addition was made to the establishment by thepurchase of the Conde de Barca's library; in which there are somevaluable modern works, and a very fine collection of topographicalprints of all parts of the world. 

I have begun to read diligently every scrap of Brazilian history I canfind; and I have commenced by a collection of pamphlets, newspapers, some MS. Letters and proclamations, from the year 1576 to 1757, bound uptogether[124]; some of these tracts Mr. Southey mentions, others heprobably had not seen, but they contain nothing very material that hehas not in his history. This morning's study of Brazilian history in theoriginal language is one great advantage I derive from my removal intotown. Besides which, I speak now less English than Portuguese. 

[Note 124: To this collection is a printed and engraved title-page, as follows: "Noticias Historicas e Militares da America Collegidas porDiogo Barboso Machado Abbade da Igreja de Santo Adriano de Sever, eAcademico da Academia Real. Comprehende do Anno de 1579 até 1757. " Itcontains twenty-four pamphlets, &c. The Abbade Machado's name is inalmost all the historical books I have yet seen in the library. I knownot how the collection of the author of the Bibliotheca Lusitania becamepart of the royal library. ]

_24th_. --Having now received the portrait which Mr. Erle, an ingeniousyoung English artist, has been painting of the Senhora Alerez Dona Mariade Jesus, I took it to show it to her friend and patron, Jose Bonifaciode Andrada e Silva. 

I never spend half an hour any where with more pleasure and profit thanwith the ex-minister's family. His lady is of Irish parentage, anO'Leary, a most amiable and kind woman, and truly appreciating the worthand talent of her husband; and all the nephews and other relations Imeet there appear superior in education and understanding to thegenerality of persons I see. But it is Jose Bonifacio himself whoattracts and interests me most. He is a small man, with a thin livelycountenance; and his manner and conversation at once impress thebeholder with the idea of that restless activity of mind which

 "O'er-informs its tenement of clay, "

and is but too likely to wear out the body that contains it. The firsttime I saw him in private was after he ceased to be minister, hisoccupations before that time leaving him little leisure for privatesociety. I was curious to see the retreat of a public man. I found himsurrounded by young people and children, some of whom he took on hisknee and caressed; and I could easily see that he was very popular amongthe small people. To me, as a stranger, he was most ceremoniously yetkindly polite, and conversed on all subjects and of all countries. Hehas visited most of those of Europe. 

His library is well stored with books in all languages. The collectionon chemistry and on mining is particularly extensive, and rich inSwedish and German authors. These, indeed, are subjects peculiarlyinteresting to Brazil, and have naturally been of first-rate interest tohim. But his delight is classical literature; and he is himself a poetof no mean order. Perhaps my knowledge of Portuguese does not entitle meto judge particularly on the vehicle or language of his poetry; but iflofty thoughts, new and beautiful combinations, keen sensibility, and alove of beauty and of nature, be essential to poetry, the poems he readto me to-day have them all. There is one in particular, on the Creationof Woman, glowing as the sun under which it was written, and as pure ashis light. Perhaps it derived some of its merit from his manner ofreading it, which, though not what is called fine reading, is full ofcharacter and intelligence. 

To-day, Jose Bonifacio gave me a translation from Meleager, which seemsto me very beautiful. It was written at Lisbon in 1816, and two or threecopies printed by one of his friends, and the last of these is nowmine. [125]

[Note 125:

 _Traducçăo_. 

 Já do ether fugio ventosa inverno, E da florida primavera a hora Purpurea rio: de verde herva mimosa A Terra denegrida se corôa, Behem os prados já liquido orvalho, Com que medraŏ as plantas, e festejaŏ Os abertos botŏes das novas rosas. Com as asperos sons da frauta rude Folga o Serrano, o Pegureiro folga Com as alvos recentes cabritinhos. Jú sulcaŏ Nantas estendidas ondas; E Favonio innocente as velas boja. As Menades, cubertas as cabeças Da flor d'hera, tres vezes enrolada, Do uvifero Baccho orgias celebraŏ: A Geraçaŏ bovina das abelhas Seus trabalhos completa; j'a produzem Formoso mel; nos favos repousados Candida cera multiplicaŏ. Cantaŏ Por toda a parte as sonorosas aves: Nas ondas o Aleyaŏ, em torna aos tectos Canta a Andorinha; canta o branco Cysne Na ribanceira, e o Rouxinol no bosque. Se pois as plantas ledas reverdecem; Florece a Terra; o Guardador a frauta Tange, e folga co'as maçans folhudas; Se aves gorgeiaŏ; se as abelhas criaŏ; Navegaŏ Nautas; Baccho guia as choros: Porque naŭ cantará tambem o Vate A risonha, a formosa Primavera?

]

Let no one say, 'that he is too miserable for any comfort to reach him. I am alone, and a widow, and in a foreign land; my health weak, mynerves irritable, and having neither wealth nor rank; forced to receiveobligations painful and discordant with my former habits and prejudices, and often meeting with impertinence from those who take advantage of mysolitary situation: but I am nevertheless sure that I have more_half-hours_, I dare not say _hours_, of true enjoyment, and fewer daysof real misery, than half of those whom the world accounts happy. And Ithank God, who gave me the temper to feel grief exquisitely, that he atthe same time gave me an equal capacity for joy. And it is a joy to findminds that can understand and communicate with our own; to meetoccasionally with persons of similar habits of thinking, and who, whenthe business of life rests a while, seek recreation in the samepursuits. This delight I do oftener enjoy than I could have hoped, sofar from cultivated Europe. One or two of my friends are, indeed, likecostly jewels, not to be worn every day; but there are several ofsterling metal that even here disarm the ills of this "working-dayworld" of half their sting. 

_Sept. 26th, 1823_. --A marriage in high life engages many of the talkersof Rio. A fidalgo, an officer distinguished under Beresford, DonFrancisco----, whose other name I have forgotten, is fortunate enough tohave obtained one of the loveliest grand-daughters of the Baroness deCampos, _Maria de Loreto_; whose extraordinary likeness to our ownPrincess Charlotte of Wales is such, that I am sure no English personcan have seen her without being struck with it. Here, no unmarried womenare allowed to be present at a marriage; but the ceremony is performedin the presence of the nearest relations, being married, on both sides. The mother of the bride sends notice to court, if she be of rank to doso, afterwards to other ladies, according to their degree, of themarriage of her daughter. The bride then goes to court; after which theladies visit her, and proceed to congratulate the other members of thefamily. It is said this match is one in which the lawful lord of suchthings, i. E. Master Cupid, has had more to do than he is usually allowedto have in Brazil, even since it was independent; and truly a handsomercouple will not often be seen. I am glad of it. Surely free choice onsuch an important subject is as much to be desired as on any other. Onthis occasion, "The god of love, who stood to spy them, The god of love, who must be nigh them, Pleased and tickled at the sight, Sneezed aloud; and at his right The little loves that waited by, Bow'd and bless'd the augury;"

as my favourite Cowley says; and I hope we shall have more such freematches in our free Brazil, where, hitherto, the course of true love isapt not to run smooth, that is, if my informants on the subject are inthe right. Seriously, perhaps there has not hitherto been refinementenough for the delicate metaphysical love of Europe; which, because itis more rational, more noble, than all others, is less easily turnedaside into other channels. Grandison or Clarissa could not have beenwritten here; but I think ere long we may look for the polish andprudent morals of Belinda. 

_Sept. 29th_. --I went to the orphan asylum, which is also the foundlinghospital. The orphan boys are apprenticed at a proper age. The girlshave a portion of 200 milrees; which, though little, assists in theirestablishment, and is often eked out from other funds. The house isexceedingly clean, and so are the beds for the foundling children, onlythree of whom are now in-door nurslings, the rest being placed out inthe country. Till lately they have died in a proportion frightfulcompared with their numbers. [126] Within little more than nine years, 10, 000 children have been received: these were placed out at nurse, andmany were never accounted for. Not perhaps that they all died, becausethe temptation of retaining a mulatto child as a slave, would mostlikely secure care of its life; but the white ones had not even thischance of safety. Besides, the wages paid for the nursing of each wasformerly so little, that the poor creatures who received them couldhardly have afforded them the means of subsistence. A partial amendmenthas taken place, and still greater improvements are about to be made. There is a great want of medical treatment. Many of the foundlings areplaced in the wheel[127], full of disease, fever, or more often adreadful species of itch called sarna, and which is often fatal to them. Nay, dead children are also brought, that they may be decently interred. 

[Note 126: See the Emperor's speech on the 3d May. ]

[Note 127: A wheel or revolving box, like that at a convent, intowhich the infants are put. ]

[Illustration:]

From the asylum, I crossed the street to the great hospital of theMisericordia. It is a fine building, and has plenty of room; but it isnot in so good a state as might be wished: there are usually fourhundred patients, and the number of deaths very great; but I could notlearn the exact proportion. The medical department is in great want ofreform. The insane ward interested me most of all: it is on the groundfloor, very cold and damp; and most of those placed in it die speedilyof consumptive complaints. I found here a contradiction to the vulgaropinion, that hydrophobia is not known in Brazil. A poor negro had beenbitten by a mad dog a month ago; he did not seem very ill till yesterdaymorning, when he was sent here. He was at the grate of his cell as wepassed him, in a deplorable state: knowing the gentleman who was withme, he had hoped he would release him from confinement; this of coursecould not be: he expired a few hours after we saw him. The burial-groundof the Misericordia is so much too small as to be exceedinglydisgusting, and, I should imagine, unwholesome for the neighbourhood. Ihad long wished to do what I have done to-day. I think the more personsthat show an interest in such establishments the better: it fixesattention upon them; and that of itself must do good. Yet my courage hadhitherto failed, and I owe the excursion of this morning to accidentrather than design. 

I rode this evening to the protestant burial-ground, at the Praya deGamboa. I think it one of the loveliest spots I ever beheld, commandingbeautiful views every way. It slopes gradually towards the road alongthe shore: at the highest point there is a pretty building, consistingof three chambers; one serves as a place of meeting or waiting for theclergyman occasionally; one as a repository for the mournful furnitureof the grave; and the largest, which is between the other two, isgenerally occupied by the body of the dead for the few hours, it may bea day and a night, which can in this climate elapse between death andburial: in front of this are the various stones, and urns, and vainmemorials we raise to relieve our own sorrow; and between these and theroad, some magnificent trees. Three sides of this field are fenced byrock or wood. Even Crabbe's fanciful and delicate Jane might havethought without pain of sleeping here. [128] In my illness I had oftenfelt sorry that I had not seen this ground. I am satisfied now; and ifmy still lingering weakness should lay me here, the very, very few whomay come to see where their friend lies will feel no disgust at theprison-house. 

[Note 128: See Tales of the Hall. --The Sisters. ]

_30th_. --I called at a very agreeable Brazilian lady's house to-day; andsaw, for the first time in my life, a regular Brazilian _bas-blue_ inthe person of Dona Maria Clara: she reads a good deal, especiallyphilosophy and politics; she is a tolerable botanist, and draws flowersexceedingly well; besides, she is what I think it is Miss Edgeworthcalls "a fetcher and carrier of bays, "--a useful member of society, who, without harming herself or others, circulates the necessary literarynews, and would be invaluable where new authors want puffing, and newpoems should have the pretty passages pointed out for the advantage ofliterary misses. Here, alas! such kindly offices are confined tocomparing the rival passages in the Correiro and the Sentinella, oradvocating the cause of the editor of the Sylpho or the Tamoyo. But, insober earnest, I was delighted to find such a lady. Without arrogatingmuch more than is due to the sex, it may claim some small influence overthe occupations and amusements of home; and the woman who brings booksinstead of cards or private scandal into the domestic circle, is likelyto promote a more general cultivation, and a more refined taste, in thesociety to which she belongs. 

_October 1st, 1823_. --The court and city are in a state of rejoicing. Lord Cochrane has secured Maranham for the Emperor. Once more I break inon my own rule, and copy part of his letter to me:--

"Maranham, August 12th, 1823. 

"My dear Madam, "You would receive a few lines from me, dated from off Bahia, and alsofrom the latitude of Pernambuco, saying briefly what we were about then. And now I have to add, that we followed the Portuguese squadron to thefifth degree of north latitude, and until only thirteen sail remainedtogether out of seventy of their convoy; and then, judging it better forthe interests of His Imperial Majesty, I hauled the wind for Maranham;and I have the pleasure to tell you, that my plan of adding it to theempire has had complete success. I ran in with this ship abreast oftheir forts; and having sent a notice of blockade, and intimated thatthe squadron of Bahia and Imperial forces were off the bar, thePortuguese flag was hauled down, and every thing went on withoutbloodshed, just as you could wish. We have found here a Portuguese brigof war, a schooner, and eight gun-boats; also sixteen merchant vessels, and a good deal of property belonging to Portuguese resident in Lisbon, deposited in the custom-house. The brig of war late the Infante DonMiguel, now the Maranham, is gone down with Grenfell to summon Para, where there is a beautiful newly-launched fifty-gun frigate, which Ihave no doubt but he has got before now. Thus, my dear Madam, on myreturn I shall have the pleasure to acquaint His Imperial Majesty, thatbetween the extremities of his empire there exists no enemy either onshore or afloat. This will probably be within the sixth month from oursailing from Rio, and at this moment is actually the case. "

Together with this letter, His Lordship has sent me the public papersconcerning the taking possession of the place for the Emperor, and theofficer who brought the despatches has obligingly favoured me withfarther particulars; so that I believe the following to be a correctaccount, as far as it goes, of the whole. 

As soon as it was perceived on board the Pedro Primeiro, by the ordersgiven by Lord Cochrane for the course of the ship, that he had resolvedon going to Maranham, the pilots became uneasy on account of thedangerous navigation of the coast, and, as they said, the impossibilityof entering the harbour in so large a ship. I have often felt that therewas something very captivating in the word _impossible_. The Admiral, however, had better motives, and had skill and knowledge to support hisperseverance; and so on the 26th of July, he entered the bay of San Luisde Maranham, under English colours. Seeing a vessel of war off theplace, he sent a boat on board; and though some of the sailorsrecognised two of the boat's crew, the officer, Mr. Shepherd, performedhis part so well, that he obtained all the necessary information; andthe Admiral then went in with his ship, and anchored under fort SanFrancisco. Thence he sent in the following papers to the city. 

 "_Address to the Authorities_. 

 "The forces of His Imperial Majesty the Emperor of Brazil, having delivered the city and province of Bahia from the enemies of their independence, I, in conformity to the wishes of His Imperial Majesty, am desirous that the fruitful province of Maranham should enjoy a like freedom. I am now come to offer to the unfortunate inhabitants the protection and assistance necessary against the oppression of foreigners, wishing to accomplish their freedom, and to salute them as brethren and as friends. But should there be any who, from vexatious motives, oppose the liberation of this country, such persons may be assured that the naval and military forces which expelled the Portuguese from the South, are ready to draw the sword in the same just cause: and that sword once drawn, the consequences cannot be doubtful. I beg the principal authorities to make known to me their decisions, in order that, in case of opposition, the consequences may not be imputed to the hasty manner in which I set about the work which I must achieve. God keep Your Excellencies many years!--_On board the Pedro Primeiro, 26th July, 1823_. 

 "_Proclamation_

 "By His Excellency Lord Cochrane, Admiral and Commander-in-Chief of the naval forces of His Imperial Majesty. 

 "The port, river, and island of Maranham, the bay of San José, and roads adjacent, are declared to be in a state of blockade, as long as the Portuguese shall exercise the supreme authority there; and all entrance or departure is strictly prohibited, under those pains and penalties authorised by the law of nations against those who violate the rights of belligerents. --_On board the Pedro Primeiro, 26th July, 1823_. "

These papers were received by the junta of Provisional Government, atwhose head was the Bishop. There had previously been some movements infavour of independence, but they had been over-ruled by the Portuguesetroops, of whom there were about 300 in the town. The junta of courseaccepted all Lord Cochrane's proposals; the 1st of August was appointedas the day for electing a new government under the empire, and theintermediate days for taking the oaths to the Emperor, and for embarkingthe Portuguese troops; a step the more necessary, as they had shown adisposition to oppose the Brazilians, and had even insulted CaptainCrosbie and others as they were landing to settle affairs with thegovernment. Besides, they were hourly in expectation of a reinforcementof 500 men from Lisbon. Meantime the anchorage under Fort Francisco wasfound inconvenient for so large a ship as the Pedro Primeiro, and theAdmiral took her round the great shoal which forms the other side of theharbour, and anchored her between the Ilha do Medo and the main infifteen fathoms water; where he left her, and returned to the town inthe sloop of war Pambinha, in which vessel he could lie close to thecity itself. One of his first steps was to substitute Brazilian forPortuguese troops, in all situations where soldiers were absolutelynecessary to keep order; but he did not admit more than a very limitednumber within the walls. He caused all who had been imprisoned onaccount of their political opinions to be liberated; and he sent noticesto the independent military commanders of Céara and Piauhy to desistfrom hostilities against Maranham. 

On the 27th, Lord Cochrane published the following proclamation:--

"_The High Admiral of Brazil to the Inhabitants of Maranham_. 

"The auspicious day is arrived on which the worthy inhabitants ofMaranham have it in their power to declare at once the independence oftheir country, and their adhesion to, and satisfaction with, theirpatriot monarch, the Emperor Peter I. (son of the august Sovereign DonJohn VI. ); under whose protection they enjoy the glorious privileges ofbeing free men, of choosing their own constitution, and of making theirown laws by their representatives assembled to consult on their owninterests, and in their own country. 

"That the glory of such a day should not be darkened by any excess, eventhough proceeding from enthusiasm in the cause we have embraced, must bethe desire of every honest and thinking citizen. It is not necessary toadvise such as to their conduct: but, should there be any individualscapable of interrupting the public tranquillity on any pretext, let thembeware! The strictest orders are given for the chastisement of whoevershall cause any kind of disorder, according to the degree of the crime. To take the necessary oaths, to choose the members of the civilgovernment, are acts that should be performed with deliberation: forwhich reason, the first of August is the earliest day which thepreparation for such solemn ceremonies demands, will permit. --Citizens!let us go forward seriously and methodically, without tumult, hurry, orconfusion; and accomplish the work we have in hand in such a manner asshall merit the approbation of His Imperial Majesty, and shall give usneither cause for repentance, nor room for amendment. Viva, our Emperor!Viva, the independence and constitution of Brazil!--_On board the PedroPrimeiro, 27th July, 1823_. 

COCHRANE. "

On the 28th, the junta of government, the camara of the town, thecitizens and soldiers, with Captain Crosbie to represent Lord Cochrane, who was not well enough to attend, assembled to proclaim theindependence of Brazil, and to swear allegiance to the Emperor, DonPedro de Alcantara; after which there was a firing of the troops, anddischarge of artillery, and ringing of bells, as is usual on suchoccasions. The public act of fealty was drawn up, and signed by as manyas could conveniently do so, and the Brazilian flag was hoisted, a flagof truce having been flying from the arrival of the Pedro till then. 

The next day the inhabitants proceeded to the choice of their newprovisional government of the province, which was installed on the 8thof August, as had been appointed. The members are, Miguel Ignacio dosSantos Freire e Bruce, _President_; Lourenço de Castro Belford, _Secretary_; and José Joaquim Vieira Belford. 

The first act of the new government was to issue a proclamation to theinhabitants of the province of Maranham, congratulating them on being nolonger a nation of slaves to Portugal, but a free people of the empireof Brazil; exhorting them to confidence, fidelity, and tranquillity; andconcluding with vivas to the Roman Catholic religion; to ourConstitutional Emperor and Perpetual Defender Don Pedro I. , and hisdynasty; to the Cortes of Brazil, and the people of Maranham. 

The letter of the new government to His Imperial Majesty is dated the12th of August, when every thing was finally settled. It begins bycongratulating him on the happy state of things in general in Brazil. Itthen sets forth the wishes of the people of Maranham to have joinedtheir brethren long since, but that these wishes had been thwarted bythe Lisbon troops. --"But what was our joy and transport whenunexpectedly we saw the ship Pedro Primeiro summoning our port!!! Oh, 26th of July, 1823! Thrice happy day! thou wilt be as conspicuous in theannals of our province, as the sentiments of gratitude and respectinspired by the virtues of the illustrious Admiral sent to our aid bythe best and most amiable of Monarchs will be deeply engraven on ourhearts and those of our posterity! Yes, august Sire! the wisdom, theprudence, and the gentle manners of Lord Cochrane, have contributedstill more to the happy issue of our political difficulties, than eventhe fear of his forces, however respectable they might be. To anchor inour port; to proclaim independence; to administer the proper oaths ofobedience to Your Imperial Majesty; to suspend hostilities throughoutthe province; to cause a new government to be elected; to bring thetroops of the country into the town, and then only in sufficient numbersfor the public order and tranquillity; to open communication between theinterior and the capital; to provide it with necessaries; and to restorenavigation and commerce to their pristine state: all this, SIRE, was thework of a few days. Grant, Heaven, that this noble Chief may end theglorious career of his political and military labours with the likefelicity and success; and that Your Imperial Majesty being so wellserved, nothing more may be necessary to immortalise that admirablecommander, not only in the annals of Brazil, but in those of the wholeworld!"

And this, I think, is all of importance that I have learned with regardto the capture of Maranham to-day. It is true, the brig Maria, despatched by His Lordship on the 12th of August, only arrived to-day;so that much may be behind. 

_2d October_. --A friend who was present at the Assembly to-day gives methe following account of the debate. --In the first place, the Emperorsent notice of Lord Cochrane's success at Maranham; and Martim FranciscoRibiero de Andrada rose and proposed a vote of thanks to His Lordship. The deputy Montezuma (of Bahia) opposed this, on the ground that he wasthe servant of the executive government, and the government ought tothank him. He felt as grateful to Lord Cochrane as any member of theAssembly could do, and would do as much to prove his gratitude; but hewould not vote to thank him there. Dr. França (known by the nickname ofFranzinho) seconded Montezuma, and said it derogated from the dignity ofthe legislative assembly of the vast, and noble, and rich empire ofBrazil, to vote thanks to any individual. On which Costa Barros, in aspeech of eloquence and enthusiasm, maintained the propriety of thankingLord Cochrane. That the triumphal road, as in ancient Rome, did not nowexist; but the triumph might be granted by the voice of the nationalrepresentatives. The gentleman who thought no thanks should be votedwas a member for Bahia, and talked of his gratitude. He could tell him, that grateful as he (Costa Barros) now felt, were he, like thatgentleman, a member for Bahia, his gratitude, and his eagerness toexpress it, would be tenfold. Who but Lord Cochrane had delivered Bahiafrom the Portuguese, that swarm of drones that threatened to devour theland? But he supposed the greatness of Sen. Montezuma's gratitude wassuch, that it smothered the expression. This produced a laugh, and thata challenge, and then a cry of "order, order" (_a ordem_). 

Sen. Ribiero de Andrada then said, that as to the observation that hadfallen from França, that His Lordship had only done his duty, was no manto be thanked for doing an important duty? Besides, though the blockadeof Bahia was a duty, the reduction of Maranham was something more--itwas undertaken on his own judgment, and at the risk of consequences tohimself. Sen. Lisboa observed, that as to its being beneath the dignityof the Representative Assembly of Brazil to thank an individual, theEnglish Parliament scrupled not to thank its naval and military chiefs;and could what it did be beneath the Assembly of Brazil? Would to Godthe Assembly might one day emulate the British Parliament!

After this there was more sparring between Montezuma and Costa Barros:the former resuming the subject of the challenge; Barros bowing, andassuring him he did not refuse it: on which a member on the same sideobserved sarcastically, only half rising as he spoke, that those whomeant really to fight would hardly speak it aloud in the _GeneralAssembly_. This ended the dispute; and the vote of thanks was carriedwith only the voices of Montezuma and França against it; and so passedthis day's session. 

I must say for the people here, that they do seem sensible that in LordCochrane they have obtained a treasure. * * * * That there are some whofind fault, and some who envy, is very true. But when was it otherwise?Sometimes I cry, "O, what a world is this, where what is comely Envenoms him that bears it!"

At others, I take it more easily, and say coolly with the Spaniard, "Envy was honour's wife, the wise man said, Ne'er to be parted till the man was dead:"

and neither envy, nor any other injurious feeling, nor all themanifestations of them all together, can ever lessen the real merit ofso great a man. 

The acquisition of Maranham is exceedingly important to the empire: itis one of the provinces that, from the time of its first settlement, hascarried on the greatest foreign trade. [129]

[Note 129: See the Appendix. ]

_6th_. --We had three days of public rejoicing, on account of the takingof Maranham; and on Friday, as I happened to be at the palace to showsome drawings to the Empress, I perceived that the Emperor's levee wasunusually crowded. During these few days, though I have been far fromwell, I have improved my acquaintance with my foreign friends; but ofEnglish I see, and wish to see, very little of any body but Mrs. May. 

_9th_. --I resolved to take a holiday: so went to spend it with Mrs. May, at the Gloria, only going first for half an hour to the library. Thatlibrary is a great source of comfort to me: I every day find my cabinetquiet and cool, and provided with the means of study, and generallyspend four hours there, reading Portuguese and Brazilian history; forwhich I shall not, probably, have so good an opportunity again. 

This day the debate in the Assembly has been most interesting. It issome time since, in discussing that part of the proposed constitution, which treats of the persons who are to be considered as Brazilians, entitled to the protection of the laws of the empire, and amenable tothose laws, the 8th paragraph of the 5th article was admitted without adissentient voice: it is this--"_All naturalised strangers, whatever betheir religion_. " To-day the 3d paragraph of the 7th article came underdiscussion. This article treats of the individual rights of Brazilians;it runs thus--"The constitution guarantees to all Brazilians thefollowing individual rights, with the explanations and limitationsthereafter expressed:--

"I. Personal Freedom. II. Trial by Jury. III. Religious Freedom. IV. Professional Freedom. V. Inviolability of Property. VI. Liberty of the Press. "

The 14th article goes on to state, that all Christians may enjoy thepolitical rights of the empire: 15th, "Other religions are hardlytolerated, and none but Christians shall enjoy political rights;" andthe 16th declares the Roman Catholic religion to be that of the state, and the only one beneficed by the state. 

Now this day's discussion was not merely one of form; but it hasestablished toleration in all its extent. A man is at liberty toexercise his faith as he pleases, and even to change it: should he, indeed, have the folly to turn Turk, he must not vote at elections, norbe a member of the Assembly, nor enjoy an office in the state, civil ormilitary; but he may sit under his vine and his fig-tree, and exercisean honest calling. All Christians are eligible to all offices andemployments; and I only wish older countries would deign to take lessonsfrom this new government in its noble liberality. The Diario of theAssembly is so far behind with the reports of the sessions, that I havenot, of course, a correct account of the speeches; but I believe that Iam not wrong in attributing to the Bishop the most benevolent andenlightened views on this momentous subject, together with that laudableattachment to the church of his fathers that belongs to good men ofevery creed. 

_October 12th_. --This is the Emperor's birth-day, and the firstanniversary of the coronation. I was curious to see the court of Brazil;so I rose early and dressed myself, and went to the royal chapel, wherethe Emperor and Empress, and the Imperial Princess were to be with thecourt before the drawing-room. I accordingly applied to the chaplainfor a station, who showed me into what is called the _diplomatic_tribune, but it is in fact for respectable foreigners: there I met allmanner of consuls. However, the curiosity which led me to the chapelwould not allow me to go home when the said consuls did; so I went tothe drawing-room, which perhaps, after all, I should not have done, being quite alone, had not the gracious manner in which their ImperialMajesties saluted me, both in the chapel and afterwards in the corridorleading to the royal apartments, induced me to proceed. I reached theinner room where the ladies were, just as the Emperor had, with a mostpleasing compliment, announced to Lady Cochrane that she was Marchionessof Maranham; for that he had made her husband Marques, and had conferredon him the highest degree of the order of the Cruceiro. I am sometimesabsent; and now, when I ought to have been most attentive, I felt myselfin the situation Sancho Pança so humorously describes, of sending mywits wool-gathering, and coming home shorn myself: for I was so intenton the honour conferred on my friend and countryman; so charmed, thatfor once his services had been appreciated, --that when I found theEmperor in the middle of the room, and that his hand was extendedtowards me, and that all others had paid their compliments and passed totheir places, I forgot I had my glove on, took his Imperial hand withthat glove, and I suppose kissed it much in earnest, for I saw some ofthe ladies smile before I remembered any thing about it. Had thishappened with regard to any other prince, I believe that I should haverun away; but nobody is more good-natured than Don Pedro: I saw therewas no harm done; and so determining to be on my guard when the Empresscame in, and then to take an opportunity of telling her of my fault, Istayed quietly, and began talking to two or three young ladies who wereat court for the first time, and had just received their appointment asladies of honour to the Empress. 

Her Majesty, who had retired with the young Princess, now came in, andthe ladies all paid their compliments while the Emperor was busy in thepresence-chamber receiving the compliments of the Assembly and otherpublic bodies. There was little form and no stiffness. Her ImperialMajesty conversed easily with every body, only telling us all to speakPortuguese, which of course we did. She talked a good deal to me aboutEnglish authors, and especially of the Scotch novels, and very kindlyhelped me in my Portuguese; which, though I now understand, I have fewopportunities of speaking to cultivated persons. If I have been pleasedwith her before, I was charmed with her now. When the Emperor hadreceived the public bodies, he came and led the Empress into the greatreceiving room, and there, both of them standing on the upper step ofthe throne, they had their hands kissed by naval, military, and civilofficers, and private men; thousands, I should think, thus passed. Itwas curious, but it pleased me, to see some negro officers take thesmall white hand of the Empress in their clumsy black hands, and applytheir pouting African lips to so delicate a skin; but they looked up to_Nosso Emperador_, and to her, with a reverence that seemed to me apromise of faith _from them_, a bond of kindness _to_ them. The Emperorwas dressed in a very rich military uniform, the Empress in a whitedress embroidered with gold, a corresponding cap with feathers tippedwith green; and her diamonds were superb, her head-tire and ear-ringshaving in them opals such as I suppose the world does not contain, andthe brilliants surrounding the Emperor's picture, which she wears, thelargest I have seen. 

I should do wrong not to mention the ladies of the court. My partialeyes preferred my pretty countrywoman the new Marchioness; but therewere the sweet young bride Maria de Loreto, and a number of others ofmost engaging appearance; and then there were the jewels of theBaronessa de Campos, and those of the Viscondeça do Rio Seco, onlyinferior to those of the Empress: but I cannot enumerate all the riches, or beauty; nor would it entertain my English friends, for whom thisjournal is written, if I could. 

When their Imperial Majesties came out of the great room, I saw Madamedo Rio Seco in earnest conversation with them; and soon I saw her andLady Cochrane kissing hands, and found they had both been appointedhonorary ladies of the Empress; and then the Viscountess told me she hadbeen speaking to the Empress about me. This astonished me, for I had nothought of engaging in any thing away from England. Six months before, indeed, I had said that I was so pleased with the little Princess, thatI should like to educate her. This, which I thought no more of at thetime, was, like every thing in this gossiping place, told to Sir T. Hardy: he spoke of it to me, and said he had already mentioned it to afriend of mine. I said, that if the Emperor and Empress chose, as a warmclimate agreed with me, I should not dislike it; that it requiredconsideration; and that if I could render myself sufficiently agreeableto the Empress, I should ask the appointment of governess to thePrincess; and so matters stood when Sir Thomas Hardy sailed for BuenosAyres. I own that the more I saw of the Imperial family, the more Iwished to belong to it; but I was frightened at the thoughts of Rio, bythe impertinent behaviour of some of the English, so that I shouldprobably not have proposed the thing myself. It was done, however: theEmpress told me to apply to the Emperor. I observed he looked tired withthe levee, and begged to be allowed to write to her another day. Shesaid, "Write if you please, but come and see the Emperor at five o'clockto-morrow. " And so they went out, and I remained marvelling at thechance that had brought me into a situation so unlike any thing I hadever contemplated; and came home to write a letter to Her ImperialMajesty, and to wonder what I should do next. 

_Monday, October 13th. _--I wrote my letter to the Empress, and waspunctual to the time for seeing the Emperor. He received me very kindly, and sent me to speak to Her Imperial Majesty, who took my letter, andpromised me an answer in two days, adding the most obliging expressionsof personal kindness. And this was certainly the first letter I everwrote on the subject; though my English _friends_ tell me that I had amemorial in my hand yesterday, and that I went to court only to deliverit, for they saw it in my hand. Now I had a white pocket-handkerchiefand a black fan in my hand, and thought as little of speaking about myown affairs to their Imperial Majesties, as of making a voyage to themoon. But people will always know each other's affairs best. 

_16th. _--I have continued going regularly to the library, and havebecome acquainted with the principal librarian, who is also theEmperor's confessor. He is a polished and well-informed man. He showedme the Conde da Barca's library, which, as I knew before, had beenpurchased at the price of 15, 530, 900 rees, and added to the publiccollection. To-day, on returning from my study I received a letter fromthe Empress, written in English, full of kind expressions; and in thepleasantest manner accepting, in the Emperor's name and her own, myservices as governess to her daughter; and giving me leave to go toEngland, before I entered on my employment, as the Princess is still soyoung. 

I went to San Cristovaŏ to return thanks. 

_19th. _--I saw the Empress, who is pleased to allow me to sail forEngland in the packet, the day after to-morrow. I confess I am sorry togo before Lord Cochrane's return. I had set my heart on seeing my bestfriend in this country, after his exertions and triumph. But I have nowput my hand to the plough, and I must not turn back. 

[Illustration]

_October 21st. _--I embarked on board the packet for England. Mrs. Maywalked to the shore with me. Sir Murray Maxwell lent me his boats tobring myself and goods on board. I had previously taken leave of everybody I knew, English and foreign. 

After I embarked, Mr. Anderson brought me the latest newspapers. Thefollowing are the principal ones published in Rio:--The DIARIO DAASSEMBLEA, which contains nothing but the proceedings of the Assembly;it appears as fast as the short-hand writers can publish it. TheGOVERNMENT GAZETTE, which has all official articles, appointments, navalintelligence, and sometimes a few advertisements. The DIARIO DO RIO, which has nothing but advertisements, and ship news, and prices current;it used to print a meteorological table. The CORREIRO, a democraticjournal, which the editor wrote from prison, only occasionally for sometime, but lately it has been a daily paper. The SENTINELA DA LIBERDAD EA BEIRA DO MAR DA PRAYA GRANDE is edited by a Genoese, assisted by oneof the deputies, and is said to be pure _carbonarism_. The SYLPHO, alsoan occasional paper, moderately ministerial, and engaged in a war ofwords with several others. The ATALAIA, an advocate for limitedmonarchy, whose editor is a deputy of considerable reputation, isanother occasional paper; as is also the TAMOYO, entirely devoted to theAndradas: it is, in my opinion, the best-written of all. The SENTINELADA PAŎN D'ASUCAR is on the same side; its editor formerly published the_Regulador_, but this has ceased to appear since the change of ministry. The _Espelho_ was a government paper; but the writer has discontinuedit, having become a member of the Assembly. The _Malaguetta_ was a paperwhose first number attracted a great deal of attention; it fell offafterwards, and ceased on the declaration of the independence of Brazil. It was remarkable for its hostility to the Andradas. Indeed the war ofwords the author waged against the family was so virulent, that theywere suspected of being the instigators of an attempt to assassinatehim. This they indignantly denied, and satisfactorily disproved; and theman being almost maniacal with passion, accused any and every person ofconsequence in the state, and conceived himself, even wounded as hewas, not safe. In vain did all persons, even the Emperor himself, visithim, to reassure him; his terrors continued, and he withdrew himself themoment he was sufficiently recovered from his wounds. He was by birth aPortuguese, and his strong passions had probably rendered him an objectof hatred or jealousy to some inferior person, the consequences of whichhis vanity made him attribute to a higher source. --I believe there aresome other occasional papers, but I have not seen them. 

_Oct. 25th_. --Happily for me there are no passengers in the packet, andstill more happily, the captain's wife and daughter are on board; sothat I feel as if lodging in a quiet English family, all is so decent, orderly, and, above all, clean. I am under no restraint, but walk, read, write, and draw, as if at home: every body, even to the monkey on board, looks kindly at me; and I receive all manner of friendly attentionconsistent with perfect liberty. 

_Nov. 1st_. --"The longest way about is often the nearest, way home, "says the proverb; and, on that principle, ships bound for England fromBrazil at this time of the year stand far to the eastward. We are stillin the latitude of Rio de Janeiro, though in long. 29° W. , and shallprobably stand still nearer to the coast of Africa, before we shall beable to look to the northward. To-day the thermometer is at 75°, thetemperature of the sea 72°. 

_9th_. --Lat. 14° 19' S. , long. 24° W. , thermometer 74°, sea 74-1/2°. 

_17th_. --Lat. 5° N. , long. 25° W. For several days the thermometer at80°; the temperature of the sea at noon 82°. We spoke the Pambinha, 60days from Maranham. She says Lord Cochrane had gone himself to Para, whence he meant to proceed directly for Rio; so that he would probablybe there by this time, as the Pedro Primeiro sails well. I had noopportunity of learning more, as the vessel passed hastily. 

We have, generally speaking, had hot winds from Africa, and there is asultry feel in the air which the state of the thermometer hardlyaccounts for. I perceive that the sails are all tinged with a reddishcolour; and wherever a rope has chafed upon them, they appear almost asif iron-moulded. This the captain and officers attribute to the windfrom Africa. They were certainly perfectly white long after we left Rio;they have not been either furled or unbent. What may be the nature ofthe dust or sand that thus on the wings of the wind crosses so manymiles of ocean, and stains the canvass? Can it be this minute dustaffecting the lungs which makes us breathe as if in the sultry hourspreceding a thunder-storm?

_Dec. 3d_. --We came in sight of St. Mary's, the eastern island of theAzores. I much wished to have touched at some of these isles; but thisis not a good season for doing so, and the winds we have had have beenunfavourable for the purpose. This afternoon, though near enough to haveseen at least the face of the land, the weather was thick and rainy, sothat we saw nothing. 

_18th_. --After passing the Azores, a long succession of gales from thenorth-east kept us off the land. These were succeeded by three finedays; and the sea, which had been heavy, became smooth. Early the daybefore yesterday, however, it began to blow very hard from thenorthwest; and yesterday morning it changed to a gale from the south andsouth-west, and we lay-to under storm stay-sails, in a tremendous sea. About one o'clock the captain called to me, and desired me to come ondeck and see what could not last ten minutes, and I might never seeagain. I ran up, as did Mrs. And Miss K----. A sudden shift of wind hadtaken place: we saw it before it came up, driving the sea alongfuriously before it; and the meeting of the two winds broke the sea ashigh as any ship's mast-head in a long line, like the breakers on a reefof rocks. It was the most beautiful yet fearful sight I ever beheld; andthe sea was surging over our little vessel so as to threaten to fillher: but the hatches were battoned down; we were lying-to on a righttack, and a hawser had been passed round the bits in order to sustainthe foremast, in case we lost our bowsprit, as we expected to do everyinstant. But in twenty minutes the gale moderated, and we bore up forFalmouth, which we reached this morning, having passed the cabin deckof a ship that doubtless had foundered in the storm of yesterday. --Oncemore I am in England; and, to use the words of a venerable thoughapocryphal writer, "Here will I make an end. And if I have done well, and as is fitting the story, it is that which I desired; but ifslenderly and meanly, it is that which I could attain unto. "[130]

M. G. 

[Note 130: 2 Maccabees, chap. XV. Ver. 37, 38. ]

APPENDIX. 

It will appear from the following TABLES of the Imports and Exports ofthe Province of Maranham, from 1812 to 1821, of how much importance theacquisition of that Province is to the Empire of Brazil. Some otherTables are added, which may serve to give a clearer idea of the state ofthe country. The amount of the duties on the importation of Slaves, paidby Maranham to the treasury at Rio de Janeiro during those ten years, was 30, 239 milrees. 

Nothing is wanting to the prosperity of that fine Province but a steadygovernment, and a regular administration of justice. Without these twothings, it will be in vain to expect either prosperity or tranquillity. The people are multiplying too fast to be managed by the former clumsyadministration; and their intercourse with the rest of the world hastaught them to wish for something better. 

Although there are veins of metal in Maranham, they have never beenworked; but some saltpetre-works have been established there. There aremineral and medicinal waters in some districts; but I believe they havenot been analyzed: in short, little attention has hitherto been paid toany thing but the woods, and the growth of coffee, cotton, and sugar; inall of which Maranham is abundantly rich. 

GENERAL STATEMENT OF THE IMPORTS TO MARANHAM, FROM THE YEAR 1812 TO 1820. (Continued below)-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|COUNTRIES WHENCE IMPORTED. | 1812 | 1813 | 1814 | 1815 | 1816 |--------------------------|--------------|--------------|--------------|--------------|--------------| | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. |Brazil | 244, 506, 690 | 284, 211, 812 | 416, 508, 747 | 284, 418, 270 | 271, 326, 160 |Portuguese ports in Africa| 146, 817, 000 | 181, 610, 811 | 221, 219, 843 | 371, 238, 250 | 408, 590, 000 |Lisbon | 167, 431, 350 | 256, 407, 277 | 417, 018, 290 | 458, 595, 340 | 752, 051, 810 |Oporte | 69, 103, 210 | 74, 842, 710 | 70, 429, 900 | 98, 399, 750 | 173, 794, 080 |England | 581, 682, 700 | 654, 891, 057 | 696, 425, 620 | 465, 997, 240 | 550, 217, 190 |Gibraltar | 13, 848, 800 | ------------ | 3, 246, 400 | ------------ | ----------- |United States | 49, 729, 600 | ------------ | ------------ | 12, 250, 600 | 32, 906, 840 |Western Isles | ------------ | 2, 964, 400 | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ |France | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | 60, 662, 700 | 55, 459, 000 |Holland | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ |Spain | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ | ------------ |Annual amount |1, 273, 119, 340 |1, 454, 927, 667 |1, 824, 848, 800 |1, 751, 563, 150 |2, 244, 245, 080 |Silk Goods Portuguese | 8, 694, 300 | 9, 836, 200 | 8, 880, 920 | 11, 622, 780 | 22, 217, 900 | Do. Foreign | 6, 601, 600 | 6, 447, 500 | 15, 647, 400 | 22, 720, 600 | 18, 863, 200 |Linen Goods Portuguese | 26, 832, 100 | 22, 170, 300 | 19, 476, 800 | 29, 872, 200 | 50, 266, 000 | Do. Foreign | 69, 031, 100 | 125, 357, 220 | 172, 292, 860 | 74, 989, 100 | 162, 170, 280 |Cotton Goods Portuguese | 3, 085, 640 | 10, 375, 730 | 10, 859, 000 | 21, 273, 380 | 54, 732, 250 | Do. Foreign | 349, 295, 440 | 324, 792, 020 | 316, 213, 050 | 377, 886, 820 | 444, 593, 640 |Woolen Cloths Portuguese | ------------ | ------------ | 198, 720 | 272, 000 | 774, 000 | Do. Foreign | 33, 487, 300 | 39, 377, 950 | 43, 725, 900 | 17, 259, 300 | 50, 546, 900 |Fine Hats Portuguese | 946 | 2, 292 | 4, 400 | 3, 402 | 5, 419 | Do. Foreign | 4, 228 | 5, 140 | 8, 795 | 3, 193 | 7, 422 |Coarse Hats Portuguese | 11, 689 | 9, 623 | 6, 225 | 9, 424 | 16, 380 | Do. Foreign | 3, 774 | 2, 735 | 4, 976 | 17, 836 | 14, 555 |Clothes and Shoes | | | | | |Portuguese | 2, 465, 600 | 1, 817, 600 | 3, 054, 600 | 3, 346, 880 | 2, 389, 100 | Do. Foreign | 1, 232, 000 | 500, 000 | 2, 200, 000 | 1, 729, 200 | 1, 080, 800 |Movables Portuguese | 4, 494, 600 | 3, 360, 000 | 8, 700, 000 | 10, 600, 000 | 18, 600, 000 | Do. Foreign | 1, 244, 700 | 2, 734, 000 | 1, 120, 000 | 1, 400, 000 | 5, 000, 000 |Portuguese brandy Pipes | 45 | 48 | 139 | 104 | 220 | Do. And Gin, foreign | 46 | 11 | 20 | 21 | 38 |Portuguese Wines | 745 | 645 | 1, 427 | 1, 320 | 761 | Do. Foreign | 247 | ------------ | 81 | 4 | 55 |Wheaten Flour, arrobas | 10, 228 | 26, 524 | 18, 538 | 25, 872 | 21, 838 |Salt Fish, quintals | 401 | 252 | 296 | 818 | 938 |Butter, arrobas | 5, 785 | 4, 628 | 4, 220 | 5, 198 | 4, 625 |Cheese, arrobas | 1, 179 | 642 | 1, 243 | 1, 750 | 2, 229 |Balance in favour of } | ------------ | 190, 867, 692 | ------------ | 325, 175, 700 |1, 090, 305, 135 | Maranham } | | | | | | Do. Against | 203, 167, 456 | ------------ | 30, 586, 797 | ------------ | ------------ |Proceeds of the Customs | 74, 648, 957 | 83, 963, 025 | 83, 429, 147 | 81, 317, 345 | 112, 633, 410 |Portuguese Ships arrived | 52 | 64 | 70 | 69 | 80 | Do. Foreign | 34 | 29 | 12 | 43 | 58 |Total Ships | 86 | 93 | 82 | 112 | 138 |New Slaves from Africa | 992 | 1, 221 | 1, 592 | 2, 692 | 2, 615 | Do. From Brazil | 680 | 508 | 394 | 684 | 762 |Total Slaves imported } | 1, 672 | 1, 729 | 1, 986 | 3, 376 | 3, 377 | in the Year } | | | | | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|Total Number of Slaves imported, from 1812 to 1821, - - - 45, 477. 

GENERAL STATEMENT OF THE IMPORTS TO MARANHAM, FROM THE YEAR 1812 TO 1820. (Continued)--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 1817. | 1818. | 1819. | 1820. |Mean of first five| Mean of second | 1821. | | | | | Years. | Five Years. | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------|--------------| Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | Rees. | 635, 642, 720 | 687, 505, 720 | 616, 297, 520 | 271, 501, 280 | 300, 194, 336 | 496, 454, 680 | 293, 618, 720 | 988, 100, 000 | 759, 320, 000 | 934, 069, 500 | 326, 230, 200 | 265, 895, 180 | 685, 061, 940 | 193, 583, 790 | 743, 334, 230 | 569, 961, 450 | 527, 062, 435 | 474, 282, 020 | 410, 380, 813 | 613, 338, 389 | 331, 483, 280 | 255, 289, 960 | 149, 862, 520 | 144, 499, 960 | 149, 927, 240 | 97, 313, 930 | 175, 674, 752 | 112, 652, 710 | 878, 979, 730 | 908, 004, 920 | 562, 534, 950 | 435, 639, 960 | 589, 842, 761 | 667, 075, 350 | 442, 757, 290 |--------------|--------------|--------------| 9, 491, 000 |------------------|----------------|--------------| 77, 940, 200 | 108, 261, 640 | 92, 154, 390 | 66, 430, 800 |------------------| 75, 538, 774 | 116, 099, 750 |--------------| 20, 076, 200 | 14, 947, 260 | 7, 374, 460 |------------------|----------------| 2, 325, 600 | 102, 164, 290 | 178, 041, 520 | 75, 136, 180 | 132, 282, 730 |------------------| 108, 616, 744 | 40, 091, 590 |--------------| 13, 625, 600 | 2, 320, 000 | 12, 091, 000 |------------------|----------------|--------------|--------------| 17, 169, 400 |--------------|--------------|------------------|----------------|--------------|3, 681, 451, 130 |3, 411, 828, 970 |2, 983, 022, 195 |1, 885, 250, 690 |1, 709, 760, 809 |2, 841, 179, 613 |1, 532, 612, 730 | 27, 706, 200 | 11, 797, 100 | 6, 059, 565 | 5, 392, 360 | 12, 250, 420 | 14, 634, 625 |--------------| 33, 375, 120 | 33, 161, 620 | 13, 619, 060 | 13, 838, 600 | 14, 056, 060 | 22, 571, 520 |--------------| 57, 456, 520 | 49, 855, 700 | 23, 041, 480 | 28, 261, 380 | 29, 723, 480 | 41, 776, 216 |--------------| 307, 923, 950 | 175, 888, 560 | 111, 670, 680 | 83, 702, 900 | 120, 768, 112 | 168, 261, 274 |--------------| 89, 924, 400 | 44, 665, 120 | 49, 258, 310 | 33, 272, 580 | 20, 065, 200 | 54, 370, 532 |--------------| 506, 977, 320 | 579, 338, 910 | 359, 983, 900 | 212, 115, 710 | 362, 556, 194 | 420, 601, 896 |--------------| 1, 746, 000 | 672, 000 | 490, 000 | 240, 000 |------------------| 784, 400 |--------------| 103, 453, 400 | 96, 565, 780 | 55, 042, 700 | 46, 099, 960 | 36, 879, 470 | 70, 341, 748 |--------------| 3, 663 | 3, 966 | 4, 579 | 5, 263 | 3, 292 | 4, 578 |--------------| 12, 826 | 21, 868 | 10, 196 | 9, 219 | 5, 755 | 12, 186 |--------------| 27, 552 | 12, 180 | 9, 324 | 2, 876 | 10, 668 | 13, 662 |--------------| 22, 686 | 25, 224 | 4, 961 | 5, 122 | 8, 775 | 14, 509 |--------------| 1, 254, 440 | 3, 347, 040 | 7, 002, 920 | 7, 312, 400 | 2, 614, 756 | 4, 261, 180 |--------------| 4, 886, 400 | 6, 934, 300 | 3, 305, 000 | 1, 477, 000 | 1, 348, 400 | 3, 536, 700 |--------------| 22, 220, 000 | 24, 240, 000 | 23, 590, 000 | 4, 020, 000 | 9, 150, 920 | 18, 534, 000 |--------------| 10, 800, 000 | 17, 400, 000 | 6, 600, 000 | 9, 800, 000 | 2, 298, 400 | 9, 920, 000 |--------------| 288 | 265 | 303 | 221 | 111 | 259 | 657 | 76 | 109 | 132 | 269 | 27 | 124 |--------------| 2, 047 | 694 | 1, 879 | 2, 226 | 1, 179 | 1, 921 | 1, 620 | 382 | 442 | 54 | 204 | 77 | 227 | 260 | 40, 080 | 53, 082 | 52, 689 | 45, 687 | 20, 600 | 42, 675 | 82, 221 | 2, 237 | 5, 786 | 1, 799 | 1, 669 | 541 | 2, 485 |--------------| 9, 624 | 10, 453 | 8, 187 | 8, 751 | 4, 891 | 8, 328 |--------------| 3, 398 | 3, 621 | 2, 717 | 3, 541 | 1, 427 | 99 |--------------|--------------| 257, 858, 230 |--------------| 352, 145, 615 |------------------|1, 379, 412, 568 |--------------| 132, 588, 568 |--------------| 470, 596, 983 |--------------|------------------|----------------|--------------| 150, 145, 175 | 247, 213, 751 | 219, 786, 377 | 158, 517, 700 | 87, 198, 376 | 167, 659, 282 | 115, 686, 300 | 89 | 79 | 80 | 61 | 67 | 77 | 48 | 63 | 100 | 57 | 80 | 35 | 71 | 56 | 152 | 179 | 137 | 141 | 102 | 149 | 104 | 5, 797 | 3, 377 | 4, 784 | 2, 381 | 1, 822 | 3, 790 | 1, 718 | 2, 325 | 3, 259 | 1, 269 | 483 | 713 | 1, 619 |--------------| 8, 122 | 6, 636 | 6, 053 | 2, 864 | 2, 535 | 5, 409 | 1, 718 |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

GENERAL STATEMENT OF EXPORT FROM MARANAHAM FROM 1812 TO 1821. (Continued below)------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------| COTTON | RICE |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|Y| | LISBON | OPORTO | ENGLAND | FRANCE | UNITED | Different | High | TOTAL | LISBON | OPORTO |E| | | | | | STATES | Ports. |and Low | | | |A| | | | | | | | Price. | | | |R| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 3, 305 | 562 | 36, 523|--------------| 150 | 30 | 2, 700 to| 40, 570| 47, 780| 17, 150 |8|Arrobas| 17, 591 | 2, 997 | 196, 154|--------------| 827 | 135 | 3, 400 | 217, 754| 253, 890| 90, 080 |1|Amount | 56, 087, 050 | 9, 298, 293 | 598, 742, 727|--------------| 2, 317, 787 | 519, 925 | | 666, 965, 782| 257, 719, 470| 94, 777, 080|2| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 8, 938 | 1, 127 | 50, 108|--------------|--------------|------------| 3, 000 to| 60, 173| 39, 728| 21, 211 |8|Arrobas| 48, 003 | 5, 960 | 272, 730|--------------|--------------|------------| 4, 600 | 326, 693| 206, 787| 112, 453 |1|Amount | 188, 275, 184 | 23, 515, 043 |1, 058, 815, 456|--------------|--------------|------------| |1, 245, 605, 683| 206, 448, 300|116, 376, 750|3| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 12, 144 | 1, 204 | 31, 236| 2, 087|--------------|------------| 4, 100 to| 46, 671| 45, 615| 24, 444 |8|Arrobas| 65, 045 | 6, 351 | 166, 459| 10, 527|--------------|------------| 5, 000 | 248, 385| 242, 417| 125, 747 |1|Amount | 401, 063, 336 | 36, 790, 539 | 913, 032, 959| 63, 692, 999|--------------|------------| |1, 414, 579, 833| 219, 802, 820|111, 238, 700|4| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 18, 276 | 1, 672 | 30, 804|--------------|--------------| 5 | 4, 400 to| 50, 757| 51, 161| 20, 068|8|Arrobas| 100, 000 | 8, 977 | 168, 877|--------------|--------------| 25 | 7, 000 | 277, 879| 272, 607| 104, 738|1|Amount | 577, 330, 200 | 50, 109, 500 |1, 077, 256, 700|--------------|--------------| 160, 000 | |1, 704, 856, 400| 229, 406, 200| 84, 260, 500|5| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 19, 040 | 2, 082 | 38, 835| 3, 570|--------------|------------| 4, 500 to| 63, 527| 57, 585| 24, 550|8|Arrobas| 105, 448 | 10, 822 | 214, 538| 19, 413|--------------|------------| 8, 500 | 350, 257| 293, 787| 123, 830|1|Amount | 892, 691, 100 | 93, 221, 455 |1, 857, 112, 006| 166, 226, 425|--------------|------------| |3, 003, 250, 986| 248, 658, 750| 98, 699, 085|6| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 25, 830 | 3, 788 | 38, 369| 3, 145|--------------|------------| 7, 000 to| 71, 182| 31, 804| 19, 658|8|Arrobas| 144, 904 | 20, 925 | 218, 343| 17, 557|--------------|------------| 10, 000 | 401, 729| 168, 565| 103, 668|1|Amount |1, 106, 601, 700 | 157, 833, 900 |1, 703, 908, 950| 132, 448, 300|--------------|------------| |3, 100, 792, 850| 194, 752, 275|130, 820, 437|7| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 16, 294 | 3, 251 | 49, 083| 4, 899| 33 | 170| 7, 000 to| 73, 730| 48, 252| 25, 037|8|Arrobas| 88, 488 | 18, 595 | 267, 164| 27, 488| 205 | 853| 9, 000 | 402, 793| 224, 263| 133, 167|1|Amount | 680, 206, 400 | 145, 041, 000 |2, 083, 879, 200| 233, 313, 800| 1, 599, 000 | 6, 658, 400| |3, 150, 692, 800| 260, 115, 600|158, 600, 400|8| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 16, 625 | 2, 629 | 40, 291| 5, 910|--------------| 8| 7, 500 to| 65, 463| 41, 993| 22, 934|8|Arrobas| 91, 074 | 14, 212 | 222, 623| 31, 326|--------------| 45| 8, 600 | 359, 280| 220, 562| 116, 184|1|Amount | 517, 821, 500 | 81, 745, 500|1, 333, 142, 384| 203, 052, 350|--------------| 238, 833| |2, 136, 000, 537| 201, 039, 450|104, 074, 950|9| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 12, 799 | 2, 311| 48, 279| 2, 915|--------------| 315| 4, 900 to| 66, 619| 43, 034| 21, 205|8|Arrobas| 67, 730 | 12, 493| 268, 736| 16, 502|--------------| 1, 732| 5, 500 | 367, 193| 214, 842| 106, 764|2|Amount | 357, 766, 700 | 66, 169, 900|1, 406, 080, 282| 36, 508, 600|--------------| 9, 006, 400| |1, 925, 531, 882| 159, 720, 609| 79, 815, 814|0| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|1|No. | 10, 930 | 873| 26, 364| 3, 655|--------------|------------| 3, 900 to| 41, 822| 42, 289| 13, 391|8|Arrobas| 58, 836 | 4, 592| 143, 771| 18, 899|--------------|------------| 4, 850 | 226, 118| 212, 824| 68, 969|2|Amount | 253, 675, 950 | 18, 825, 000| 600, 658, 671| 85, 097, 600|--------------|------------| | 958, 257, 221| 161, 116, 775| 53, 557, 814|1| | | | | | | | | | | |---------|--------------|--------------|-------------|--------------|--------------|------------|---------|-------------|-------------|-----------|

GENERAL STATEMENT OF EXPORT FROM MARANAHAM FROM 1812 TO 1821. (Continued)----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| RICE. | TANNED HIDES | HIDES | SKINS | GUM. | SUNDRIES. | | | Dry and Green. | | _Alqueires_ | |----------------------------------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| Different |High and | Total ||Lisbon|Oporto|Different|Medium |Lisbon |Oporto| Divers |Medium |Lisbon|Oporto|Medium|Lisbon |Oporto|Medium | Divers Ports. | Ports. |Low Prices| | | | Ports. | Price | | | Ports. | Price | | | Price| | | Price | |-----------|----------------------|-------|------|---------|-------|-------|------|--------|-------|------|------|------|-------|------|-------|----------------| 2, 099| 600 to | 67, 029| 1593 | 480| 570 | 2100 | 5229| 243| 6811 | 770| 3263| 36| 750| 1903| 834| 2050| | 10, 676| 1, 300 | 354, 646| 5, 550, 300 | 9, 457, 140 | 2, 474, 250 | 5, 610, 850 | | 11, 811, 200| |354, 308, 220| | | | | 25, 581, 550 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| 5, 275| 650 to | 66, 214| 6671 | 300| | 2100 | 7353| 1114| 248 | 750| 4769| 5072| 730| 1752| 503| 3000| | 28, 165| 1, 200 | 854, 646| 14, 639, 100 | 6, 536, 250 | 7, 380, 750 | 6, 916, 500 | | 28, 145, 000| |350, 970, 050| | | | | 12, 667, 025 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| 892| 800 to | 70, 957| 7380 | 758| | 2000 | 6785| 1071| 2277 | 900| 7693| 3554| 900| 1891| 368| 2400| | 4, 088| 1, 000 | 372, 252| 16, 276, 000 | 9, 919, 700 | 10, 122, 300 | 5, 428, 600 | | 3, 536, 200| |334, 577, 720| | | | | 5, 585, 250 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| 50| 800 to | 71, 279| 8649 | 1785| | 2500 | 15288| 2419| 1282 | 1200| 8235| 5102| 950| 1743| 4| 1800| | 270| 1, 000 | 377, 605| 26, 085, 000 | 22, 786, 800 | 12, 670, 150 | 3, 144, 605 | | 249, 600| |313, 916, 300| | | | | 8, 190, 000 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| --------- | 700 to | 82, 135| 7085 | 1142| | 2500 | 22133| 3867| 235 | 1200| 17268| 8690| 950| 1547| 104| 1300| | --------- | 1, 000 | 417, 617| 20, 567, 500 | 31, 482, 000 | 24, 660, 100 | 2, 971, 800 | | --------- | |347, 317, 835| | | | | 4, 400, 000 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| 4, 921| 1, 000 to | 56, 383| 7456 | 1406| | 2500 | 1595| 4287| 496 | 1200| 31449| 7397| 950| 2577| 684| 800 | | 25, 134| 1, 300 | 297, 417| 22, 155, 000 | 24, 889, 200 | 36, 903, 700 | 5, 869, 800 | | 24, 524, 000| |350, 096, 712| | | | | 8, 155, 300 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| 677| 1, 150 to | 68, 966| 8342 | 720| 50| 2700 | 4531| 1177| 5669 | 1250| 32460| 6395| 950| 1994| 202| 1800 | | 3, 663| 1, 400 | 360, 093| 24, 602, 400 | 14, 221, 250 | 36, 912, 250 | 3, 952, 800 | | 4, 362, 500| |432, 078, 500| | | | | 8, 651, 500 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| --------- | 700 to | 64, 927| 200 | 1977| 3411| 3000 | 150| 55| 27895 | 950| 4385| 3720| 875| 2883| 500| 1950 | | --------- | 1, 300 | 336, 746| 16, 764, 000 | 26, 695, 000 | 19, 007, 625 | 6, 596, 850 | | --------- | |505, 114, 400| | | | | 2, 246, 800 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------| 497| 700 to | 64, 736| 9813 | 1394| 140| 2800 | 3620| 687| 13795 | 1500| 2241| 3138| 1100| 1771| 417| 2000 | | 2, 575| 900 | 324, 121| 31, 771, 600 | 27, 453, 000 | 5, 905, 930 | 4, 376, 000 | | 1, 650, 000| |241, 184, 423| | | | | 1, 173, 500 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|------------------------------------------------------------| 590| 600 to | 56, 270| 9615 | 678| 144| 2800 | 4226| 850| 22306 | 1800| 18414| 850| 1000| 2845| 957| 2000 | | 1, 428| 640 | 284, 721| 28, 921, 600 | 41, 073, 000 | 49, 261, 000 | 6, 404, 000 | | 1, 071, 000| |216, 765, 975| | | | | 33, 971, 279 |-----------|----------|-----------|--------------------------------|-------------------------------|--------------------|----------------------|----------------|

RECAPITULATION OF EXPORTS. (Continued below)---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| DESTINATION. | 1812. | 1813. | 1814. | 1815. | 1816. |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|Lisbon | 329, 129, 250 | 431, 910, 360 | 657, 262, 706 | 850, 902, 450 |1, 207, 011, 150 |Oporto | 109, 206, 658 | 147, 234, 848 | 154, 551, 839 | 146, 581, 700 | 208, 018, 640 |England | 601, 688, 917 |1, 060, 051, 156 | 917, 043, 259 |1, 078, 845, 100 |1, 852, 712, 000 |France |--------------|--------------| 63, 971, 999 |--------------| 166, 908, 425 |United States | 10, 304, 419 |--------------|--------------|--------------|---------------|Different Ports | 19, 522, 655 | 6, 569, 000 | 1, 432, 200 | 409, 690 |---------------|Total of the Exports |1, 069, 951, 894 |1, 645, 795, 359 |1, 794, 262, 003 |2, 076, 738, 850 |3, 434, 650, 215 |Export Duties on Cotton| 130, 654, 878 | 196, 016, 626 | 148, 634, 103 | 166, 727, 400 | 210, 154, 200 |National Ship sailed | 52 | 62 | 66 | 66 | 77 |Foreign Ships sailed | 35 | 27 | 14 | 39 | 54 |Total Ships sailed | 87 | 89 | 80 | 105 | 131 |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

RECAPITULATION OF EXPORTS. (Continued)-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------| 1817. | 1818. | 1819 | 1820 | Mean of First | Mean of Second | 1821. | | | | | Five Years. | Five Years. | |----------------|-----------------|--------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------| 1, 377, 936, 025 | 1, 012, 630, 550 | 730, 509, 375| 556, 768, 709 | 695, 249, 183 | 976, 971, 161 | 483, 451, 725 | 309, 450, 087 | 316, 367, 700 | 196, 421, 700| 155, 742, 814 | 153, 138, 735 | 237, 200, 138 | 88, 312, 150 | 1, 728, 432, 950 | 2, 084, 502, 450 | 1, 333, 142, 354| 1, 406, 996, 782 | 1, 102, 068, 086 | 1, 681, 157, 507 | 602, 368, 671 | 132, 448, 300 | 242, 214, 100 | 203, 392, 000| 86, 879, 600 | --------------- | 166, 368, 185 | 85, 130, 200 | -------------- | 7, 319, 000 | 48, 720, 959| 20, 168, 000 | --------------- | --------------- | 43, 332, 000 | 595, 200 | 6, 653, 400 | 238, 833| 9, 126, 400 | --------------- | --------------- | 1, 020, 250 | 3, 548, 862, 562 | 3, 669, 687, 200 | 2, 512, 425, 212| 2, 237, 396, 305 | 2, 004, 279, 664 | 3, 080, 604, 298 | 2, 304, 685, 996 | 241, 037, 400 | 241, 675, 800 | 215, 568, 000| 220, 315, 800 | 170, 437, 441 | 225, 750, 240 | 153, 319, 999 | 86 | 77 | 78| 63 | 64 | 76 | 49 | 65 | 78 | 66| 70 | 34 | 66 | 65 | 151 | 155 | 144| 133 | 98 | 143 | 114 |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

 STATE OF INDUSTRY. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| All the Provinces. | Where. |Quantity| Daily | Daily | Total | | | |Maximum |Minimum. | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|Commerce and |National Houses |City of Maranhaó | 54| | | |Industry. |Ditto foreign | Ditto | 4| | | | |Men living by their own | | | | | | | industry |All the provinces | 29 580| | | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------| |Steam engine for |City of Maranhaó | 1| | | |Machines, | shelling rice. | | | | | | |Machines, with mules, | Ditto | 22| | | |Potteries, | for shelling rice | | | | | | |Ditto for sugar |Interior | 7| | | |Furnaces, |Ditto for bruising cane | | | | | | | for distilling | Ditto | 115| | | |and Forges. |Hand machines for | | | | | | | cleansing cotton | Ditto | 521| | | | |Manufactory of |Isle of Maranhaó | 1| | | | |Looms for weaving cotton|In the city | 230| | | | |Potteries | Ditto | 27| | | | |Lime kilns |Isle of Maranhaó | 26| | | | |Saw pits |All the provinces | 18| | | | |Forges | Ditto | 132| | | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Taylors. |Freemen | Ditto | 61| 1, 000 | 320 | 157 | |Slaves | Ditto | 96| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Braziers. |Freemen | Ditto | 4| 600 | 320 | 5 | |Slaves | Ditto | 1| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Carpenters. |Freemen | Ditto | 86| 800 | 320 | 269 | |Slaves | Ditto | 183| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Woodcutters. |Freemen | Ditto | 96| 1, 200 | 400 | 138 | |Slaves | Ditto | 42| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------| Ship |Freemen | Ditto | 80| 800 | 320 | 118 |Carpenters. |Slaves | Ditto | 38| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------| Smiths |Freemen | Ditto | 5| 800 | 400 | 5 | |Slaves | Ditto | | Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Blacksmiths. |Freemen |City of Maranhaó | 37| 700 | 320 | 60 | |Slaves | Ditto | 23| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Coopers. |Freemen | Ditto | 2| 48 | 320 | 3 | |Slaves | Ditto | 1| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Joiners. |Freemen |All the provinces | 30| 800 | 400 | 57 | |Slaves | Ditto | 27| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Goldsmiths. |Freemen | Ditto | 49| 640 | 400 | 60 | |Slaves | Ditto | 11| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Masons and |Freemen |City of Maranhaó | 404| 800 | 320 | 1, 012 |Stone-cutters|Slaves | Ditto | 608| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Painters. |Freemen |All the provinces | 10| 640 | 400 | 15 | |Slaves | Ditto | 5| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Carpenters. |Freemen |City of Maranhaó | 92| 800 | 400 | 235 | |Slaves | Ditto | 143| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Sadlers. |Freemen | Ditto | 4| 800 | 400 | 5 | |Slaves | Ditto | 1| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Tanners. |Freemen | Ditto | 4| 480 | 320 | 10 | |Slaves | Ditto | 6| Ditto | Ditto | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Workwomen and|Free | | | | | 1, 800 |Female |Slaves | Ditto | 1 800| 240 | 160 | | Servants. | | | | | | |-------------|------------------------|----------------------|--------|--------|---------|---------|Servants |Whites |All the provinces | 560|Variable|Variable | 760 |and Factors. |Free blacks |All the provinces | 200|Variable|Variable | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

 STATEMENT OF PRODUCE. -------------------------------------------------------------------| In the whole province. | Produce. | Consumption | Medium | | | | Value. |----------------------------|-------------|-------------|----------|New Cotton arrobas | 225518 | 11600 | 3900 |Spirits pipes | 385 | 405 | 60000 |Rice alqueires | 570079 | 380945 | 570 |Sugar arrobas | 417 | 20000 | 3200 |Oil canadas | 68386 | 30018 | 600 |Potatoes arrobas | 2420 | 8600 | 1200 |Currie ditas | 83 | 32 | 2500 |Coffee ditas | 1020 | 880 | 3200 |Dry Beef ditas | 48924 | 64200 | 2000 |Wax ditas | 37 | 500 | 3200 |Hides numero | 28876 | 2578 | 1800 |Beans alqueires | 3128 | 3500 | 1400 |Fruits number | 36 | todas | variable|Ginger arrobas | 28 | 6 | 2400 |Mandioc alqueires | 207899 | 198810 | 900 |Treacle barrels | 6988 | 2381 | 170 |Maize alqueires | 77172 | todo | 700 |Salt Fish arrobas | 15254 | todo | 1000 |-------------------------------------------------------------------| STATEMENT OF AGRICULTURE. -----------------------------------------------------------------------| |In the whole | Employed | Existing. |Mean Worth. | Daily. | | Province | | | | |-------|-------------|----------|-----------|-----------|--------------|Persons|Freemen | 19960 | 35618 |-----------|de 240 a 326 | |Slaves | 69534 | 84434 | 200000 |de 160 a 240 |-------|-------------|----------|-----------|-----------|--------------| |Oxen | 8811 | 130640 | 10000 |--------------| |Asses |----------| 28 | 20000 |--------------| |Goats |----------| 7400 | 1200 |--------------| |Sheep |----------| 1800 | 2000 |--------------|Cattle. |Horses | 600 | 12240 | 20000 |--------------| |Mares |----------| 9400 | 10000 |--------------| |Mules | 1100 | 3200 | 45000 |--------------| |Ewes |----------| 890 | 1200 |--------------| |Cows |----------| 20400 | 12000 |--------------| Total Amount of Agriculture 1, 897, 271, 846 | Capital employed 27, 813, 600, 000 | Number of Farms 4, 856 | Number of Proprietors 2, 683 |-----------------------------------------------------------------------|

_Note_. --The worth is calculated in rees, the 1, 000, or milree, beingworth 5s. 2d. Sterling. 

THE END

LONDON:

Printed by A. & R. Spottiswoode, New-Street-Square. 

ERRATA. (already corrected)

Page 30. Line 20. For _hopes_ read _losses_. 

41. 21. For _1817_ read _1807_. 

45. In the list of ships that remained at Lisbon, last line but one, for_Ferlao_ read _Trítaõ_. 

47. Line 12. For _Ponta_ read _Ponte_. 

57. 4. For _ambassader_ read _ambassador_. 

59. 17. For _sodier_ read _soldier_. 

61. 4. For _government_ read _governments_. 

64. In the first line of note + for _not_ read _most_. 

65. Line 13. For _Custovaõ_ read _Cristovaõ_. 

69. 6. For _Cauler_ read _Caula_. 

79. 21. For _fuchsia_ read _fuschia_. 

126. 16. For _impotation_ read _importation_. 

130. 23. For _nove_ read _nova_. 

141. 4. From bottom, for _Pinja_ read _Piraja_.