M,

S95.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL

1828 and 1829.

BY REV. R. WALSH, LL.D. M.R.I. A.
AUTHOR OF "A JOURNEY FROM CONSTANTINOPLE, '' &.O. &C. &.G.

IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. I.

BOSTON:
RICHARDSON, LORD & HOLBROOK, WILLIAM HYDE, CROCKER & BREWS
TER, AND CARTER, HENDEE St BABCOCK \ NEW YORK, O. it C. St H.
CARVILL, AND H. C. SLEIGHT J PHILADELPHIA, CAREY 8s HART.
1831.

CONTENTS OF VOL. I.

CHAP. I.
Portsmouth. — Portuguese Emigrants. — Galatea Frigate — Mode of taking in Water-
Experimental Squadron. — Mother Carey's Chickens. — Sadler's Balloon. — Lisbon
Packet. — Whale and Thresher. — Exercise at Guns.— Brilliancy ofthe Constellation
of Scorpio. — ModeB of Punishment. — Fogbank mistaken for Madeira. — Deserters.,
and absurd Corruption of foreign Names. — Porto Santo— Discovery, and Reason of
the Name. — Extraordinary Opinions entertained of Madeira. — Founded in natural
Causes. — Madeira. — Lights on Shore. — Uncertainty of its Fate. — Portuguese
Squadron lying before it. - page 13
chap. n.
Land at Funchal. — Basaltic Coast. — Streets. — Carriage of Madeira Wine. — Dress>
and Appearance of Peasantry. — Beggar,?. — Markets. — Leathern Bottles. — Grapes
and Wine. — Portuguese Coopers. — Curious Superstition of Bananas. — Citron. —
Water, and dangerous Torrents. — Wooded Mountain. — N. S. d'el Monte —Liz
ards. — Volcanic Soil. — Processions. — Captain Canning. — Premature and sudden
Death. — Idle Rumors ofthe Cause. 25
CHAP. III.
Madeira and Porto Santo, the Fortunate Islands. — Discovery in modern Times. —
Atcaforedo's Account of Macham. — Reasons for and against its Authenticity. —
Wines from Cyprus and Sugar Canes from Sicily., introduced. — English Resi
dents. — Former Intolerance of Islanders. — Constitutional Principles, and first Press
sent from England. — Fluctuation of Politics. — General Valdez assumes the Com
mand. — Military Force. — Strange Project to excite the People in favor of Dora
Miguel. — Valdez and his Friends declare themselves. — Ceremonies and Rejoic
ing. - 38
1* r'

VI CONTENTS.
CHAP. IV.
Portuguese Frigate arrives, and again departs. — Insurrection of the.Peaeants, and the
Bishops sent from the Island. — Resolute Determination of the People. — 'Portu
guese Fleet appears ofT the Island. — Cruises without attempting to land. — Packet
arrives with Constitutional Officers. — Portuguese Fleet disappears. — Returns sud
denly, and lands at Machico. — Defence ofthe Islanders. — Explosion ofthe Military
Chest. — General Valdez harangues the Soldiers. — Funchal surrenders. — Consti
tutionalists take refuge on Board the Alligator. — Transferred to a Merchantman.,
and- sail for England. — Astonishment ofthe Portuguese at their easy Conquest. 51
CHAP. V.
Prayers at Sea. — Superstition of Sailors. — Crane from the Canaries. — GorgadeBof
Hesiod. — Maternal Affection. — Flying Fish. — Singular Occurrence. — Cape Verde
Islands. — Family of Bottle-nose Porpoises. — Bonitos and Albicores. — Suffocating
Heat, and Expectation of a Storm. — Calms, and why. — Visit from Neptune. —
Unhealthy Damps. — Cross the Equator. — Ceremonies omitted, and why. — Not
known when they were first practised. — Some of the Characters emblematic—
Sun vertical, no Shadows, and rapid Descent. — Life of a Sailor on Board. — Pope's
Compass. — Exquisite Beauty of the Stars. — Southern Cross. — Described by
Dante, Amerigo Vespucci, and Camoens. — Luminous Sea. — Probably phospho
rescent. — Midshipman's Origin of Dog- Watch. — Cape Frio, and extraordinary
Cold. - - 61
CHAP. VI.
Sugar Loaf. — Lord Hood's Face, and Physiognomy of Rocks. — Singular Beauty of
the Harbor of Rio. — Villegagnon. — Repercussion of Sound from the Hills round the
Bay. — Land at Palace-Sqnare. — Impression of Slave Population. — First Impressions
corrected. — Negroes as Soldiers ; as Citizens ; .as PrieBts.— Irresistible Conclusion.
— British Merchants. — Barred-up Windows removed by a Decree. — Bua and Tra-
vessa.— Campo de Santa Anna.— Streets blocked up by Hills.— Pleasant Resi
dence on the Sea-Shore. • 79
CHAP. VII.
Discovery of the Country by Cabral.— Name changed from Santa Cruz to Brazil,
why.— Harbor, why called Rio. — Colony of French Hugonots, the First Europe
an Inhabitants.— Expelled by the Portuguese.— First City built outside the Har
bor — Called S. Sebastiao, why. — Present Site very unpromising in its primitive
State. — Ecclesiastics avail themselves ofthe best Situations. — Second Invasion of
the French. — Third under Du GuayTrouim. — Rio made the Capital of Brazil. —
Idea of removing the Seat of Government from Portugal entertained by PombaL —
Revived and carried into Effect.— First Impression of the News on the Brazil
ians. . . ... gg
CHAP. VIII.
First Act of the King on arriving at Bahia.— Proceeds to Rio. — English the first
Strangers settled as Residents. — Restrictions removed from native Industry. 

CONTENTS. Vll
Printing and Gunpowder introduced. — Military Hospital, and Chemical Laboratory
established. — Indians reclaimed and settled'. — Vaccination introduced. — Theatre
built. — First French arrive. — The Slave Trade ameliorated. — Public Library es
tablished. — Treasury, Mint, and Custom-House erected. — Extraordinary increase
of Commerce. — Effects on the People and City. — The King raises the Colony to a
Kingdom, and confers on it distinct armorial Bearings. — First Symptoms of Distur-
1 banceat Pernambuco. — Its Object and Progress. — Suppression and Execution of
the Leaders. — Acclamation of Dom John 96
CHAP. IX.
Birth of Dom Pedro.— Padre Antonio d'Arrabida, his Tutor. — Emigration of the
Royal Family, and Behavior of Dom Pedro. — Suspicious Death of his Tutor Rade-
mak. — Disposition and early Propensities of Dom Pedro. — Marriage. — Takes a de
cided Part in tbe Revolution in Portugal. — Violent Conduct of the Portuguese
Troops in Brazil. — Alarming Consequences apprehended. — Timidity and Irresolu
tion of Dom John. — Energy and Decision of D'om Pedro. — Strange Display at the
Theatre. — The King resolves to return to Europe. — Electors convoked. — Descrip
tion of the Alfandega — Speech ofthe English Merchants to the King. — Conduct
of the Electors assembled there. — Atrocious Massacre of the Citizens. — Fate of
Individuals. — The Place abandoned in Horror ever since. — Departure ofDom John.
— Melancholy Contrast between his Arrival and Departure. 106
CHAP. X.
Question of the Independence of Brazil agitated. — J. B. d'Andrada. — Oppressive
Conduct of the Portuguese, who recall Dom Pedro. — Effect on the Brazilians. —
Mineiros and Paulistas show first and highest Spirit. — Address presented by An-
drada. — Dom Pedro determines not to return. — Composes a Constitutional Hymn.
— Attempt to seize him at the Theatre. — Portuguese Troops take a menacing Posi
tion onthe[Castle-HilI. — Brazilians assemble at the Campo de Santa Anna. — Oblige
the Portuguese to pass over to Praya Grande. — Dismal State of Rio. — Portuguese
Troops compelled to embark.' — Plots and Conspiracies in Brazil. — Prompt and vigor
ous Conduct of Dom Pedro. — Rapid Journey to Villa Rica, and its Effects. — Admi
ration and Enthusiasm of tbe People for his Person. — Confer on him a new Title.
— Conduct of Portugal. — Cradle of Brazilian Liberty. — Bahia occupied by European
Troops. — Female Heroism. — Dom Pedro acclaimed Constitutional Emperor. — In
consistent with the Declarations to his Father. — Lord Cochrane invited from Chile.
— Proceeds against Bahia, and blockades it. — Inhabitants driven from the Town. —
Bold Attempt to burn the Fleet. — Madeira evacuates the Town, and is pursued
across the Equator — Horrible Eventat Para. 118
CHAP. XI.
Coronation of Dom Pedro. — Picture at the Academy — Meeting of the Constituent
Assembly. — First enlightened Proceedings. — Spirit of Democracy begins to appear.
— Dissolution by military Force. — The Andradas and other Members seized and
exiled. — Anecdotes of the Andradas. — Emperor promises another Constitution. —
Accepted by tbe People. — Burning ofthe Theatre. — Independence of Brazil ac
knowledged by Dom John. — Congress of Panama. — Magnificent but impracticable
Conception. — Cause ofthe War with Buenos Ayres.— Monte Video seized by

V1U CONTENDS.
Portuguese. — Absurd Adulation ofthe Cabildo. — Petty Warfare. — Fleet in theEi®
de PIata.-3-Weak Pretensions to blockade. — Evil Consequences ofthe War. — Em
peror embarks for St. Catharine's. - 132
CHAP. XII.
Empress taken alarmingly ill. — Means resorted tafor her Recovery.— Affecting An
ecdotes of her amiable Disposition. — Revolting Conduct of her Camareira. — Death;
and Funeral. — Sensibility of Dona Maria. — Spontaneous Testimonies ofthe Love
which all Classes bore her. — Conduct and Character. — Children, — Death of her
first Child attributed to the English, and strange Impressions of the eldest Sons of
the House of Braganza. — Emperor returns to Rio. — Battle ofltuzango. — War
against human Civilization.— Peace made, but not ratified. — Legislative Body as
sembles* - - 146
CHAP. XIII.
Irish and German Soldiers. — Strong Prejudices ofthe Brazilians. — Treatment ofthe
Irish. — Means taken to exasperate them. — Mutiny -among the Germans at S.
Christovao. — Spreads ,to the Praya Vermelha. — Murder of their Major. — Sangui
nary Orders ofthe Minister at War. — 'Insurrection ofthe Irish at the Campo d'Ac-
clamacao. — French and English Marines landed. — Cruelty of the Moleques.. —
Number of Persons killed. — Irish embarked on board Ships of War. — Kind Conduct
of theJEmperor to them. — Horrid State in which some were found- — Sent Home. —
Disposal of those left behind. — German soldiers tried as Mutineers, and one ex
ecuted. — Intrepid Conduct. — Emperor visits the English Admirals-Dismisses his
Ministry for their Conduct. - . 157
CHAP. XIV.
Peace with Buenos Ayres. — Disappointment and Vexation of the People at Rio. —
Disastrous Effects of the War.— Treatment of Foreign Officers in the Service 
Death of Dom John — Emperor abdicates in favor of his Daughter. — Rapid Compo
sition ofthe Portuguese Constitution.'— British Ambassador the Bearer of it to Eu
rope. — Birth and Baptism of Dona Maria, and why so called.— Marriage with her
Uncle contemplated at her Birth. — Conduct of Dom Miguel in Portugal. — Revives
the obsolete Cortes of Lamego — Abolishes the new Constitution,' and is proclaimed
King. — Anger of Dom Pedro, and cur ous Indications of it.— Sends Dona Maria to
Vienna.— She stops at Gibraltar, and proceeds to England  Treated as Uueen, but
her Ambassador not acknowledged, and why. — Situation of Brazil on our Arri
val. - . m
CHAP. XV.
Emperor'B baptismar Day — British Chapel.— Obstacles opposed to its Erection bv
, Pope's Nuncio, and his strange Proposition.— Different Conduct ofthe Bishop of
Rio, and his furious Argument— First Edifice" raised for reformed Worship in
Sou*t*ra~He7i<' a.^jening of Chapel.— Assault on the Windows.— Present neglected
Statei— Strange Compound "of Liberality and Prejudice in a Brazilian Writer. 
Obstinacy of Mules — Choleric Driver.— Festival on the Eve of All Souls  Drama-
, tic Exhibition.— Visit the Church of St. Francisco on All Souls' Day  Miracles-

CONTENTS. IX
wrought on tho Living. — Moorish Customs in Chapel. — Treatment ofthe Dead.—
Church of Candelaria. — Revolting Appearance of the Rosario. — Convent of S. ,
Bento.— Library. — Anecdote of Dom John. — Convent of S. Antonia, and Tomb of ¦'
General Forbes. — Refectory andLibrary. — Beautiful Site ofthe Nunnery of S. The- *
resa. — Faith m the Protection of Boa Viagem, shaken by an Accident. — St. Do
mingo Chapel for Blacks. — Sta. Rita for Malefactors. - 180
CHAP. XVI.
Nunnery of Ajuda. — Mode of Communication with People outside. — Attend the Pro- ,
fession of a Nun. — Particulars ofthe affecting Solemnity. — Levity ofthe Brazilians
present. — Recolhimentos for misconducted Wives. — For Female Orphans. — Com
mutation of Tithes. — Very injurious to the present Clergy. — Episcopal Establish
ment. — Brazilians hostile to monastic Institutions. — Proposition in the Chambers
for Marriage of tlie Clergy. — Benedictines own many Houses in Rio, and are kind
Landlords. — Supposed Hostility of the Minister of the Interior to the Clergy, and
why. — Rather a Friend to the Character of the Church. — Irmandades. — Their great
Utility and extensive Charity. — Native Clergy, why not learned. — Admission of
Blacks to Holy Orders. — Extraordinary Contrast with our West-Indies. 194
CHAP. XVII.
Bishop of Rio.— Invited to dine at his Palace. — His Simplicity and Urbanity. —
Library. — Anecdote of Sbuthey's History of Brazil. — Temperate and studious
Habits of the Bishop. — General Character of the Clergy. — Abridgement of the Num
ber of Holidays. — St. George and St. Patrick. — Great Patron, S. Sebastiao, Cele
bration of his Festival.— Fire-Works and wax Candles. — Enormous Expense. —
Brazilian Observance of Sunday. — Sometimes work,but never indulge in Intemper
ance. — Greatest Violation of Sabbath by American and English Sailors. — Sebasti-
anists. — Origin of Sect. — Prophetic Disciples. — Number and Character in Brazil. —
Introduced to one. — Strange Bargain of Sebostianist Shopkeeper. — Curious Docu
ment. -...-.- --205
CHAP. XVIII.
Establishments for Education at Rio. — Military Academy. — Officers ofthe Army and
Navy taken from the humble Ranks in Life. — School of Medicine.— Meet a Euro
pean Friend at the Hospital of the Miserieordia. — Immense Establishment, sup
ported by voluntary Contributions of the Irmandades. — Singular Usage, confined
to this Hospital. — Universal Admission. — Lunatics- — Cemetery, and Mode of In
terment. — Number of Patients and Complaints. — Medical Education. — No Preju
dice against Dissection. — Not often practised, and why. — Physicians no fixed Fees,
— State of Health at Rio, someti mes disturbed by Marsh Fevers. — Alarm of People,
and Clergy refuse to attend. — Ascertained to be common Fever. — Small-Pox very
fatal. — Sciatica, Bobas, communicated by singular Contagion. — Bichu. — Doubtful
Cause. — Prickly Heat never leaves some till they recross the Equator. — Lock-jaw
and Worms in the Head. — Poison by human Hair. — Lime and Dirt — Elephantiasis.
— Various Symptoms. — Frightful Effects. — Enormous Tumors.— Unnatural Appear
ance of a Negro at the Miserieordia. — Remedies peculiar to the Brazilians. — Negro
Champooing. — Bolsa das Cobras. — Cupping with Cows' Horns. — Extraction of
Bichu. — Black Cock. — Evil Eye and extraordinary Amulet. — Number of medical
Practitioners, -- „...-- 216

X CONTENTS.
CHAP. XIX.
Academy of Fine Arts. — Picture ofthe Coronation — Its Fate. — Students. — National
Museum.— Indian Remains. — Puerile Models. — Fecundity of Brazil in Objects of
Natural History. — Dawn of Literature. — Works of native Authois printed at Rio. —
Geographical Anecdote. — Fifteen Periodicals at Rio. — Cliaiai^er.flfsiO'Tie^— Aurora,
Analista, Malagueta. — French Paper attacked by them all. — "Noticias Particu
lares" of Journal do Commercio. — Correspondencia, curious Mode of Libel. — Ex
amples. — Certificate of Baptism. — Singular Exposure. — Public Library. — Elegance
and Liberality of the Establishment.— Catholics not Enemies to Knowledge. —
Lancastrian Schools. — English and Portuguese Mode of Writing. — French taught
with Portuguese, but not English. — Remnant of former Ignorance. - 231

CHAP. XX.
Advantages of Rio Harbor.— First extraordinary Exportation of the English Blan
kets, Warming-Pans, and Skates. — Uses to which they were applied. — Interesting
Appearance of Custom-House Q,uay. — Stamping. — Mode of increasing Officers' Sal
aries. — Proper and spirited Conduct of French Consul-General. — Imports.— -Exports.
— Commercial Treaties. — Number of foreign Vessels in the Harbor present a fine
Spoctacle. — Money and Accounts. — Copper the only metallic Circulation. — Mint.
— Diamonds for Sale..— Neglect of Precaution. - - 244

CHAP. XXI.
Extraordinary Increase of the City. — Obstructions to Improvement and Salubrity. —
Numbering of Houses. — Lighting with Gas. — Creaking Carts.— Population of Rio
very uncertain hitherto. — Usual Rates of Calculation not applicable to Rio, and
why. — French. — English. — Probable Amount of present Population. — Manners of
the People, Ministers, Men of Rank, and Ladies. — Shopkeepers. — Make Vows in
Danger. — Brazilian Menage. — Negro Improvidence.— Association of Trades — Glass
and Tea, Barbers and Musicians. — No Beggars nor unfortunate Females ever seen
in the Streets. — Foundlings — singular Advantages of Slaves when illegitimate.—
Amusements, Passeio Publico, barbarous Taste in shutting out the Sea-Air. —
Botanic Garden, improperly so called. — Plants from lie de France and Cayenne,
and Tea from China. — Drink it at the Garden. . - 253.

CHAP. XXII.
Theatre visited with a Judgment for sacrilegious Dilapidation of Church. — Why en
deared to Brazilians.— -L'otteKes.— Post-Office, Mail, and Mode of delivering Let
s'^-''' ters. — Mistakes and Inconveniences. — Corrupt Administration of. Justice. — One
I Tribunal not mercenary. — Curious Anecdpte.— Police7only Natives, seen. intoxi
cated, and generally arrest the wrong Persons- — Onze Lettras, an Offence at Rio,
why. — Execution of Criminals. — Mode of saving their Lives. — Anecdote* — Fune
rals.— Revolting Mode of depositing the Body.— Wax Tapers. - 266

CONTENTS. XI
CHAP. XXIII.
Supply of Water from Corcovado. — Ascend it with some Friends. — Cataract and
Aqueduct.— Car ioc a, and old Inscription. — Name given to Brazilian Cockneys. —
Commotion among the Black Water-Carriers. — Fountain of the Mareccas. — An
other Supply from Tijuca, visit it with a Friend. — Chalybeate Well. — Magnificent
Cataracts. — Water conveyed to Xafariz, in the Campo de Sta. Anna. — City re
quires further Supply. — Meat at Public Matanga.— Prejudice against Mutton. —
Extraordinary Use of it on the Rio.de la Plata. — Fish. — Rumors of an enormous
and voracious Kind in the Bay. — Excellent Pao do Trigo, or wheaten Bread. — Man
dioca and Feijao. — Mindoubi and Fedagosa. — Berries of three Kinds of Myrtle. —
Other Fruits. — Capsule ofthe Passion-Flower. — Bananas and Catalonian Wine. —
Caxas, or Cachasa, a Kind of Rum. 273
CHAP. XXIV.
Birth-Day of Dom Pedro d' Alcantara, grand Gala at the Palace. — Attend at the
Levee. — Palace prepared and painted — imperial Arms of Brazil. — Supporters. —
Liveries. — Guard of Honor- — Mode of Introduction to the Emperor. — His Son, a
fine interesting Boy. — Inconvenience of a Clergyman's Gown. — Melancholy Death
of our young Friend. — English Cemetery at the Gamboa. — Emperor approves and
purposes to establish similar ones. — Monument and Epitaph. 285

NOTICES OF BRAZIL
In 1828 and 1829.

CHAP. I.
Portsmouth. — Portuguese Emigrants. — Galatea Frigate — Mode of taking in Water.
Experimental Squadron. — Mother Carey's Chickdns.— Sadler's Balloon. — Lisbon
Packet. — Whale and Thresher. — Exercise at Guns.— Brilliancy ofthe Constellation
of Scorpio. — Mudes of Punishment. — Fogbank mistaken for Madeira. — Deserters,
and absurd Corruption of foreign Names. — Porto Santo — Discovery, and Reason of
the Name. — Extraordinary Opinions entertained of Madeira. — Founded in natural
Causes. — Madeira. — Lights on Shore. — Uncertainty of its Fate. — Portuguese
Squadron lying before it.
I will follow your advice in. my communications to you,
I will go to a new country with a mind unbiassed °by any
previous account, and set down things for your information
as they strike me personally, and while the impression is re
cent. " What mine eyes have seen," as old Gerard has it, I
will detail from my own experience ; and what mine eyes
have not seen, I will endeavor to supply from the oral com
munications of those intelligent persons for whom I have
letters. Fortunately this latter source of information is
very satisfactory. Many of them have been themselves
eye-witnesses of everything that has passed since Brazil ceas
ed to be a mere province, and became independent — that is,
since it was worth inquiring about.
One inconvenience, however, may result from the mode
you prescribe to me. You must expect to receive much in
formation which is anticipated by my respectable precur
sors and in a mariner superior to what my crude communi
cations can offer ; but 1 will endeavor to glean for you as
much as possible that is new, and this perhaps will not be
very difficult in a young country, just starting into political
2

14 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
existence, where every progressive year is an historical
record of a new state of things.
When I arrived at Portsmouth to embark, the town was
full of Portuguese emigrants, who had been concerned in
the affair of Oporto, and then taken refuge in England.
While walking on the ramparts, I met sundry groups of
them ; they were in general very meanly dressed, looked
hungry, squalid, and dirty ; and had I seen English soldiers
in such a plight, 1 should say they were in the last stage of
disorganization and despondency. But not so these men ;
they were, generally speaking, in high spirits, talked with
volubility and animation ; and their dusky visages were oc
casionally lighted up with hope and determination. They
were, moreover, surrounded with groups of females of the
place, who were teaching them English ; and they seemed
delighted with the attentions of their fair instrueters. A
party of the men asked me some questions as I passed by,
and entered into conversation with me. They talked of pro
ceeding to Brazil, and I expected to have met them again.
Neither I nor they were then aware that this was also a
sealed country, and its people still more hostile and preju
diced against them than their own. They certainly seemed
a fine body of young men, and their fate very severe. They
had already suffered great hardships and privations, and
were at that moment endeavoring to exist in the dearest
town m Europe, on a vintem, or about three half-pence
a-day, which they told me was all they had for their sub
sistence. The Galatea frigate had been appointed to convey us to
Brazil ; and at nine in the morning of August 26, 1828, we
embarked at the Sallyport. One of our companions attach
ed to the embassy was a young gentleman, the Hon. Mr.
Stanhope, whose health was \<sry delicate, and whose friends
had fondly hoped that the bland and temperate climate of
the country would restore him. His mother and brother
had come with him to Portsmouth, and now stood on the
pier to see him embark. By an effort of strong minds, they
endeavored to conceal the appearance of those feelings
which a melancholy presentiment had impressed -. butthough
apparently calm, and even cheerful, I shall never forget the
expression of maternal agony in the countenance of his mo
ther when she turned away after her last farewell ; it was
prophetic of the event — she was doomed never to see him
again.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 15
We found the frigate taking in water from a vessel along
side. This was effected not by the tedious process of casks ;
but the vessel was a floating reservoir of fresh water, from
whence it was conveyed by pipes ahd pumps to a similar
one in the hold of the ship. This mode, which I now saw
for the first time, seemed a great improvement on the for
mer practice, not only in saving time, but in preserving the
quality ofthe fluid. I remember, in my early sea voyages,
in a merchant ship, our water was in a cask on deck ; from
whence it was drawn by a little wooden pump, which every
one applied to his mouth when he was thirsty ; and as one
cask was drunk out, another was set in its place. The
water soon became hot and turbid, and contracted a flavor
of wood which no process could deprive it of. That which
we used in our present voyage acquired no bad taste, and
when it became disturbed and discolored, it was passed
through a filter of gravel and charcoal ; so that we had it
perfectly cool, limpid, and sweet during the whole of our
voyage between the tropics. About 1 1 , a. m. we got under
way with a favorable breeze at south-east, accompanied by
a transport full of convicts, which happened to weigh an
chor at the same time.
The next day, we passed Admiral Blackwood and the
experimental squadron, forming a fine object, standing be
fore a favorable breeze, and attracting the close and un
divided attention of our friends on board. Some trials of
skill had been made lately between vessels of this squad
ron, which were as eagerly witnessed in the nautical, as
the races at Newmarket could have been in the sporting,
world. Songs were made on the occasion, which were
sung on the forecastle, in which the winning ship was call
ed the " Saucy " something, and seemed to excite no small
degree of envy among our crew, who threatened in good
verse, to "take the shine out of her " on the next occasion.
On the 29th, I saw, for the first .time, Mother Carey's
Chickens. These little birds are about the size of thrush
es, but resemble martins in their shape and flight. They
are brown, with white bellies, short forked tails, and long
pointed wings ; but are particularly distinguished by a
hook, formed by a sudden bend of the tip of their beak.
They fly along with uncommon rapidity, wheeling and
skimming overthe surface of the surge, with a lightness
and flexibility which is singularly elegant. They some
times disappeared suddenly, entering the breast of a wave,

16 , NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
like a martin into a sand bank ; and they areendued with
such an amphibious nature, that they frequently remain
half an hour under water without re-appearing. They feed
on the wing, like swallows, and were so familiar, that, like
them, they seemed to love the haunts of men, in the solitary
deep ; and followed the ship, flitting close under the cabin
windows, and within a handspike's length of the side, with
a seeming sense of security, justified by the event ; a3
sailors entertain for them a, superstitious respect, and, I am
told, never injure them. When the elder Mr. Sadler at
tempted to cross from Ireland to England in a balloon, he
fell into the sea, about mid-channel. He was immediately
surrounded by a number of birds of this class, attracted, as
he supposed, by some fragments of his provision in the car
of his balloon. Though nearly in the dark, out of sight of
land, and almost suffocated with the waves, he felt, he told
me afterwards, a kind of social comfort in the company of
these familiar little birds, which surrounded and followed
him like chickens in a farm-yard. In the Western Islands,
where we afterwards touched, they most abound, and they
kill them in quantities, for their oil. They are so plump,
that the islanders merely draw a candle-wick through their
bodies, and it becomes so saturated with the liquid fat, as
to form a lamp without further process. Their appearance
at sea is supposed to foretell a storm ; and if they are not
always the precursors, they are generally, I believe, the
companions of one ; as they are seen in the strongest gales,
topping the ridges ofthe wave, and following its undulation
close to the surface. It is for that reason they are called
by ornithologists " the stormy petterel," (Procellaria pe-
lagica). I send you sketches I made of two, one in the act
of flight, and the other lighting on something floating on
the water. We this day passed a French frigate, the Pal
las, of sixty guns, for Brest or Toulon. She was visited
by our boat with an officer on board. The captain received
him very politely, and offered him refreshments ; but took,
or affected to take, no interest in our ship or her destina
tion, as he asked no questions. She was distinguished by
her broad milk-white flag, which floated on the breeze like
a sheet of snow.
We. next day fell in with the Lisbon packet, and lay-to
to speak to her. A boat which we sent on board brought
back the captain, who reported, with seeming satisfaction^
that the affairs of Portugal, were daily more and more in-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 17
volved — that Dom Miguel had fallen out with his mother,
and two separate parties were forming, between whom the
Constitutionalists were again raising their drooping heads.
He seemed to speak the sentiments ofthe English residents
at least, in Portugal, which were decidedly hostile to the
present order of things. We availed ourselves of the op
portunity to write home. Such meetings of our country
men, in the midst of the lonely ocean, are as cheering as
they are momentary. They form an unexpected variety to
the dismal monotony of our lives, and a link of communica
tion with the dear friends we have left behind.
Early next morning, a whale was seen at some distance
from the ship, blowing and spouting water ; immediately
after, a fish called a thrasher, sprung to a considerable height
out ofthe sea towards the whale, and seemed to attack it.
The unwieldy and defenceless monster appeared as if in
capable of giving- effectual resistance to its active foe, and
rolled and tumbled about in considerable agitation, as long
as they continued in sight. The sailors on the forecastle,
who were enjoying the spectacle, informed me, that the ap
pearance of.a whale in this latitude was rare, and was oc
casioned, -according to their theory, by the thrasher, who
sometimes attacks it among the polar ice, and pursues and
persecuteg--"it down to the equator. Nor is this account of
the sailors altogether fanciful : writers on natural history
affirm That they frequently surround the whale like bull-dogs,
and bait him to death with their sharp teeth. They have
even been known to tear a harpooned whale from the ship's
side, and drag the body to the bottom. The genus, how
ever, of this formidable fish is not well ascertained ; Old
Fabricius, who calls it hahznarmn tyrannw, supposes it to
be a grampus, (Delphinus orca), and Pennant the long-
tailed shark, ( Squalus vulpes).
We this day passed Cape Finisterre ; I was in hopes to
have seen, at least at a distance, this celebrated promontory,
the Finis Terrm ofthe ancient world, beyond which it was
not given to man to explore — where all was mystery and
chaos — but it was not visible. We stood away from it, and
kept a large offing, to avoid the calms always felt when a
vessel passes near it.
The next day, September 2, was beautifully fine and
temperate. The thermometer stood at 69. A number of
grampuses seemed to enjoy the balmy season, and came
tumbling and rolling about our vessel, as if they were per-
2*

18 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
forming feats of agility for our amusement. A boat was
sent out to take a survey round the ship, and she appeared
floating on liquid emeralds, the sea was so exquisitely clear,
green, and lucid. The men were exercised at their guns,
and went through all the evolutions of a sea-fight, now re
pelling, and then boarding their enemy. I followed their
advance and retreat, to the different parts ofthe ship, and
felt like the man in Homer, whom Minerva takes under
her care, and leads by the hand unhurt, through the midst
ofthe battle. Like him, too, I could find no fault with the
evolutions, , for it was a.bloodless encounter. One thing,
however, struck me as among the inconsistent acts of hu
manity, in which our erring nature delights to indulge : it
was intended to shoot balls at a sham vessel, placed at
some distance, but this was omitted. There was a sick
man on board, and with a kind consideration for his state,
they would not fire, lest the explosion should disturb his
head ; while the exercise in which they were engaged had
for its sole object, to make the crew more expert at knock
ing out the brains of other people.
On Thursday, September 4, a gale sprung up at north
east, and increased our way to ten knots an hour ; but it
changed to south-west, and we were obliged to make the
first tack since the commencement of our voyage. A small
bird, of the motacilla kind, was seen in the chains, and it
was pursued by the midshipmen, who wished to cage it.
It never attempted to leave the ship, but flew about the
shrouds-, alighting at short distances, as if it were incapable
of continuing long on the wing. It is not easy to conceive
how such a creature, whose capability of flight seemed so
limited, and who hopped about like a small bird in one of
our hedges, could have traversed an extent of ocean, so
many hundred miles from any land. There is certainly
something mysterious, and hidden from our eyes, in the
movements of some birds. I do not wonder that the Ro
mans made them the prime source of their omens and au
guries. On Sunday, September 7, the weather was so violent
that we could not have public service, and we exercised
our devotions in our own cabins, in which we were inundat
ed by the surge. The sea made its way into all the berths
on the weather side, including mine, and saturated them
with salt water. It was necessary to have the lights caulk
ed and boarded up, the carpets taken off, and everything

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 19
turned out into a drier place ; and I lay in my damp cot,
exceedingly sick, suffocating, and comfortless, which state
continued all night and next day.
On Tuesday, September 9, the gale subsided into light
baffling airs, and we were all on deck, looking out for' the
land of Porto Santo. Two large vessels appeared on our
lee beam, and we conjectured they were part of Dom M-
guel's squadron, proceeding to Madeira, where we hoped
to arrive along with them, and be eye-witnesses to the
events which were likely to follow : they were, however, at
too great a distance, with hulls down, so that we could not
ascertain if they were ships of war. I passed a considera
ble part ofthe night on deck, watching the rising constel
lations of the southern semicircle of the ecliptic, which
were, in the clear atmosphere of our present latitude, singu
larly brilliant and beautiful. The whole figure of Scorpio
was.now high above the horizon, its vast tail glittering with
starry joints, extending to the length assigned by Ovid, and
designating the memorable spot where Phaeton was turned
in his celestial enterprise.* Mars appeared in the bow of
Sagittarius, as large and brilliant as Venus, and exhibiting
an appearance so different from that which he presents in
our hazy atmosphere, that he seemed a new and undescribed
planet. To one whose eye is made familiar with the visi
ble starry firmament, any change of position presents objects
more new, interesting, and beautiful than the finest land
scape on the surface ofthe earth.
This morning, as I was proceeding on deck, I was
struck with the dead silence that reigned above, and seeing
some of the officers pass up in their full uniform, with very
serious looks ; presently the deep moans of a man in pain
explained to roe that a punishment was inflicting. There
was something awfully dismal in the thing, and it was right
to make it as impressive as possible, by the solemnity of
everything accompanying it ; but I shrunk back into my
cabin, with an unconquerable sense of sickness and dis
gust. The idea of corporal punishment of this kind is re
pugnant to every good feeling of our nature ; and it ap
pears to me, that a man so degraded is not fit, and ought
* Est locus ingens in geminos ubi brachia concavat arcus
Scorpios, et Cauda flexisque utrinque lacertis,
Porrigit in spat'tum signorum membra duorum.
This, though seldom visible in the horizon of England, was very dis
tinct on that of Rome, where these Tines were written, and we were
just now in nearly the same latitude. f

20 NOTICES OF BRAZIL,
not, to associate again on terms of equality with his mess
mates ; he cannot rise to their level, and he only sinks
them to his. It is a trite remark, and founded 1 believe in
experience, that " a flogged man is good for nothing ; " he
has lost that feeling of self-respect, which is the most
powerful moral restraint, and he never can regain it. It
will not now be said, that it is an indispensable auxiliary to
good discipline. In many services it is altogether abolish
ed, and I cannot believe that pur brave soldiers and sailors
are so refractory and incorrigible as exclusively to require
the humiliating punishment of stripes and blows, which
other nations think too degrading to inflict. Indeed it is,
comparatively speaking, falling into great disuse in our
army, and not found at all, as I have been informed, to in
jure the service : it is to be hoped it will soon cease in our
navy also. On board the Galatea, several minor punish
ments were resorted to by the humane commander, to
mark disapprobation for petty offences, and they seemed
an effectual substitute for flogging. A man with his ham
mock was ordered aloft, and he was obliged to stand with
his bare feet on the thin rattlingsof the shrouds, for half an
hour. It was like the picketing of a cavalry regiment, and
seemed to 'make the sufferer effectually sorry for his fault,
and tired of his punishment. I found another, one day,
pacing up and down the quarter-deck, with his hammock
on his shoulders, and he was ordered to move about there
for an hour, while all his messmates were enjoying them
selves below. He, too, before the expiration of his time,
seemed heartily tired, aiid not likely to repeat the offence
for which he was punished.
Our latitude this day was 33° 13' north, and our longi
tude 15° 44' west ; so that Porto Santo was only thirtyfour
miles distant. We were all straining our eyes to catch a
glimpse of it, and several conjectures and positive asser
tions, ending in wagers, were made by the sharp-sighted,
that they saw land in different directions, One of our offi
cers, who was to our crew like Linceus to the Argonauts
for like him he "was gifted with the sharpest eyes,"*
affirmed, in a manner that defied all contradiction, that a
dark mass on the horizon, behind which the sun was settino-
was the island of Madeira : before night, however, it van
ished ; and it was ascertained to be one of those deceptive
* 'O^i/thxto/* ixwciwro ofxy.a.a-1. Apol. Rhod.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 21
fog-banks which present an outline, as sharp and well-de
fined as the ridge of a mountain. Our clear-sighted man,
nevertheless, had reason for this conjecture ,• for if those
dense mists now assume the appearance of islands, Madei
ra itself was for several years considered nothing more
than a dark cloud.
Next morning, when I went on deck, I was delighted
with the phenomenon of actual land, which was a sight no
less pleasing than novel to a landsman, who, for the first
time in his life, for sixteen days in succession, had con
templated nothing but the expanse of waters. It consisted
of little more than several large rocks rising from the sea :
two ofthe larger have between them a narrow channel with
perpendicular faces at each side ; they seemed as if they
had been originally one-, and tent asunder by some convul
sion of nature. An enterprising commodore, whose name
I forget, led his squadron through this chasm, to the aston
ishment of the nautical world. The rocks were called by
the sailors, The Deserters, and so set down in our charts.
I inquired into the reason of the odd designation ; some
said they were so named because they had been a place of
banishment for runaway soldiers ; others, that it was an
appellation figuratively applied to the rocks, which seemed
to have deserted from the island of Madeira : but, on refer-
ing to authority, I found they were noted in the Portuguese
maps as Lhus desertas, the barren islands. This was an
other proof of the propensity of our nation to alter the
names of every language to some nonsensical similarity of
sound in our own. Our maps are full of such mistakes.
We set down Yeni Hissari, or tne new castles, at the en
trance of the Dardanelles, as Cape Janissary. We call
the Archipelago, the Jlrches ; Corunna, the Groine ; and
Cape Hoorn, so named by Le Maire, who discovered it,
in compliment to his native town, we corrupt into Cape
Horn, and it affords a standing witticism to nautical poetry.
Next morning we found ourselves lying among one of
those archipelagoes of islands, which are thinly scattered
over the vast Atlantic. The group consisted ofthe Desert
ers, Porto Santo, and Madeira, Porto Santo we distin
guished by several conical hills with pointed peaks, like so
many sugar-loaves floating on the surface of the waters.
The hills, however, are connected by a low undulating
plain, which we could perceive, on a nearer approach, waa
cultivated, aud several white edifices scatteied through it ;

22 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
the greater part seemed totally divested of trees and verdure,
but was, as we were told, one vast rabbit borough, these
animals having Undermined a large portion ofthe vegetable
soil. Almost the only tree growing on the island, was that
which yields the gum, called dragon's blood, ( Pterocarpiis
draco), which is one of its most important productions.
As this was the first land seen by adventurers setting out
from the old in search of new worlds, its discovery is a
remarkable sera in the progress of human knowledge. Dom
John I. having made an end of the wars in Castile, and
" not finding it convenient," as the Portuguese historians
have it, "to abandon his subjects to idleness, he resolved
to employ his arms against the avowed enemies of religion."
He therefore proceeded against the Moors, and made a
conquest of Ceuta, in Africa. From this circumstance an
important benefit accrued. He was accompanied by his
active and enterprising son, Prince Henry, who here met
and had an opportunity of conversing with many intelligent
persons, merchants and others, who had seen and explored
remote regions, and who in person had visited many places,
before known in Europe only by distant rumors. From
their relations, his curiosity was excited to a great degree ;
and on his return to Portugal, he retired to Algarves, and
established an arsenal and observatory, near Cape St. Vin
cent, from whence he purposed to despatch ships of discov
ery, to explore such places as he had heard accounts of.
Here he fitted o.t vessels, and selected Joao Gonsalvez as
the commander of the expedition. Gonsalvez was distin
guished as the first person who introduced the use of
artillery into ships, and was esteemed a captain of great
knowledge and enterprise. With him was associated Tris-
tao Vaz, and they set sail in the year 1417, to proceed to
Cape Bajador, on the coast of Africa, the then ne plus ultra
of European discoveries. They were soon, however, driv
en out of their course by a wind they could not stem, as
Barros quaintly says, — " because their ship was so small,
and the sea so great ; " * and falling upon an unknown
land in the midst of the ocean, they ran for the shore, and
took refuge in the first harbor that presented itself, and
hence they named it Porto Santo, from the protection it
Eifforded their shattered bark. Instead of prosecuting their
voyage, they returned to Algarves when they had refitted,
* Por o navio sev tem pequeno, e o roar Um grosso,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 23
and reported to their patron the discovery they had made.
Prince Henry immediately sent out colonists and the iruits
of Portugal ; and in two years the island was a flourishing
colony, yielding all the products of the continent, which
were soon assimilated to the soil and climate.
It is a fact, which seems hardly credible at the present
day, that Porto Santo was well inhabited for some time be
fore they attempted to visit Madeira, only seventeen leagues
distant. The people saw it before them, but were afraid to
venture to explore a spot which the credulous and super
stitious fancies of the age had clothed in extraordinary and
mysterious circumstances. " The vapors," said Barros,
" sometimes raised by the humidity ofthe soil, and the mul
titude of trees, were so great, that at one time it appeared
to the colonists as a dark cloud, and at another as land."
This doubtful and visionary appearance of the coast gave
rise to the most extraordinary reports, which are detailed
more at length by Alcaforedo. " There ran a rumor among
the Portuguese, that off the Island of Porto Santo, towards
the north-east, there usually appeared a perpetual obscuri
ty, which always extended itself from the sea to the sky, and
never diminished, but continually appeared in the same
manner. This every one knew who lived at Porto Santo,
and they judged it miraculous, if not impossible, to go and
return from the black cloud ; but they who should venture,
would of necessity lose their lives by their rashness. This
obscurity was called an abyss. Some affirmed that it was
the mouth of hell, and were upheld by the opinion of divines,
who offered to prove, from argument and authority, that it
was so. An historian asserted that it was the island an
ciently called Cipango, which God had mercifully created
and hidden in the clouds, to protect the Spanish and Portu
guese bishops, who had retired thither from the persecution
ofthe Moors and Saracens ; — that it was therefore directly
contrary to the Almighty's pleasure to endeavor to make a
clearer discovery of what he had concealed, and divers pro
phecies were quoted which forbid, under severe penalties,
a further search into these mysteries."
To us, where we then lay, these early impressions
did not seem at all improbable, in an ignorant age so ad
dicted to superstitious fears. The summit of the island ap
peared covered with )-. dark dense cap, which sometimes de
scended to the sea, concealing the outline of the land like
one vast extinguisher. It is highly probable, that before

24 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
the island was inhabited and the atmosphere cleared by
felling trees, and other efforts of human industry, in alter
ing the quality of the soil, the -mists and exhalations
were much more dark and frequent. At this day the whole
island is often obscured, and it is likely that at that period
it was seldom visible.
We lay all day hovering between the islands of this group,
contemplating the various phases which Madeira assumed,
and recurring to the extraordinary circumstance ofthe first
impressions it made on the mind of man ; but in the evening
a breeze sprung up, which carried us close in with it. From
the eastern extremity ofthe island runs along ridge of rocks,
for ten or twelve miles, presenting an exceedingly rugged
and bold face to the sea, interrupted by chasms and preci
pices ; behind it rose Madeira, enveloped in dark clouds,
over and through which the sun appeared, giving the most
curious and picturesque features to every object. At the
extremity of the ridge was what seemed a perforated rock,
forming a vast arch, through which the rays of the sun
shone and presented a perspective like the inside of an illu
minated cathedral ; and from hence to the island was a
bridge of bold breakers and rugged rocks, the front of which,
as we advanced along, gave the most magnificent and vary
ing mass of light and shade. Having passed this, we came
opposite the west face ofthe island, which rose before us in
a grand acclivity, covered with green woods and white
villas, as high as the dark cloud which enveloped its summit,
drawing a sable veil across its countenance, and, like the
Turkish women at Athens, suffering the lower features only
to be visible. Our breeze now died away as the sun set,
and we were forced to remain in our present position till
the morning.
Immediately as the twilight set in, a large fire was kind
led near the base of the hill, at the village of Santa Cruz,
and suddenly a number of others blazed out in succession.
We could not discern that they were lighted in the houses,
and they seemed much too bright for candles, so we sup
posed they were signals spreading over the country, like
bale fires or the fiery cross. As we were utterly ignorant
of the state of affairs, we generally concluded that the isl
and was still in possession of the Constitutionalists, who
had supposed our vessel to be a Portuguese frigate, which
indeed she resembled in her unpainted exterior, and had
sent forth their signals to put the island on the alert. In

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 25
this opinion we were confirmed by a merchantman, with
whom we spoke shortly after. He had met a fishing boat,
who informed him, he might approach the island in safety,
as all was quiet.
As we slowly advanced next morning, all our glasses
were directed to the shore, but we could discern no block
ading squadron, and we came to a conclusion that it had ar
rived and returned home re infecta. At length, however,
we discovered to the left of the town, some ships lying at
anchor, under the land, which we soon perceived to be ships
of war ; and on the largest, a ship ofthe line of eightyfour
guns, the Portuguese admiral's flag was flying at the mast
head. W.e were now divided in opinion as to what this
portended ; some of us, unwilling to abandon an opinion
which we wished to be true, affirmed that the navy had
joined Dona Maria's cause and army, and were now lying
together in amicable communion under the island. We
soon perceived among them an English frigate, the Alliga
tor, and a signal was hoisted for the captain. In about an
hour his boat was alongside, and Captain Canning came on
board. He first informed us how matters really stood, and
that the island had surrendered a few days before without
striking a blow.

CHAP. II.
Land at Funchal. — Basaltic Coast. — Stree:s. — Carriage of Madeira Wine. — Dress
and Appearance of Peasantry. — Beggars. — Markets. — Leathern Bottles. — Grapes
and Wine. — Portuguese Coopers. — Curious Superstition of Bananas. — Citron. —
Water, and dangerous Torrents. — Wooded Mountain. — N. S. d'el Monte. — Liz
ards. — Volcanic Soil. — Processions. — Captain Canning. — Premature and sudden
Death. — Idle Rumors ofthe Cause.
Our boat was now ready, and I set out with a party of
friends to visit the island. We passed the Brazen Point,
so called because the face is formed of a red copper-color
ed stone, and the green-sward with which it is covered re
sembles an exudation of verdigris. As we approached,
the town of Funchal lay before us resembling a vast blan-
chisserie, the white patches of houses spread over the face
ofthe hill, like linen put out to bleach. We were chal-
3

26 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
leiiged by a sentinel from a lofty insulated eminence, called
Leeir or Loo Rock, whfch stood out in advance several
hundred yards from the shore, and was surmounted with a
fortress and battery. He shouted down to us with a speak
ing trumpet, to know who we were and what we wanted ;
and on answering, we were directed round to the officers
of health, whom we now saw approaching in a country boat.
They came alongside, but remained at a short distance be
yond the supposed influence of infection, while they interro
gated us as to what passengers we had on board, and wheth
er there were any sick. The answers they wrote carefully
down, annexing^ that we " had pledged our word and hon
or for the truth of them." They all spoke English remark
ably well.
The shore where we were about to land had a very sin
gular appearance ; the face of the rock was columnar, form
ed of regular basaltic pillars, some perfectly straight and
erect, but others crooked and bent, as if the incumbent
mass above had pressed on them while yet they were soft,
and they had yielded to the weight, like those of Boshala at
Staffa, and similar ones at the Giant's Causeway. The
shore was strewed with large joints, having convex and con
cave surfaces, and originally pentagonal and hexagonal
sides, but the angles were generally washed and rubbed off
by constant attrition in the flow and reflux of the tide. In
some places the pillars reposed on strata of red ochre, which
had a very bright and vivid color.
As there was no breakwater or pier yet erected, we were
obliged to pass into one ofthe numerous shore boats that
were plying about, which the boatmen shoved through the
surf, and soon had us high and dry On the beach. Besides
the fortress we had seen on the top of the rock, the landing
place is commanded by a long low fort, many of whose em
brasures were little above the level ofthe water ; they were
fronted with basalt, and some ofthe shelving faces of the
columns were adapted to the expanding sides of the aper
ture, like those of Dunluce Castle, at the Giant's Cause
way. We entered the city from the dirty beach by a town
gate, which was evidently more for show than use, and
climbed up several very steep streets to the house of Mr.
Veitch, the English consul.
The residence was entered through a long passage, the
front next the street having a very ruinous appearance, as
ifitwasthe dilapidated remains of an old house. Beyond

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 27
was a garden filled with palms, bananas, and other tropical
trees, and in the centre was the house, dark, cool, and sha
ded, with all the blinds closed up. The consul was at
breakfast, and we disturbed his family, the ladies of which
disappeared ; but in a short time the table was again re
plenished, and we had a plentiful breakfast of tea, cold
roast mutton, grapes, and figs. The consul confirmed
Captain Canning's account ofthe impotent resistance made
by the Constitutionalists. Behind our chairs sat .three or
four men, who seemed very dejected ; one of them.- was
particularly so. They had been engaged, we understood,
in different ways in the unfortunate affairs of the Constitu
tionalists, and were now in a temporary asylum, in daily
apprehension of being sought after. One of them had been
an officer of a corps, and seemed most anxious to avail him
self of any opportunity to leave the island.
The consul now arrayed himself in his uniform of blue
cloth, embroidered with broad gold lace, and proceeded to
wait on his Excellency on board the frigate ; and we went
through the town, to see sights. The first remarkable ob
ject was a lady carried in a kind of sedan chair. This is a
sort of cage slung on a pole, carried on the shoulders of two
men, from whence it hung down within two inches of the
ground, like a bale of goods on slings between two porters,
frequently striking against any projecting stone in the
pavement. The lady sat at the bottom, with her knees
drawn up, and was covered over with a canopy of some em
broidered stuff, pendant from the top ofthe cage, which she
could place before her so as to hide her face when she
pleased. We met several of these machines, but none of
the inmates chose to resort to this precaution. This very
odd-looking carriage, used by the first people in the island,
is certainly not a very dignified mode of conveyance — a
lady sitting squat, in a very uneasy and awkward position,
at the bottom of a cage, within a few inches of a dirty street,
and looked down on by every passenger.
The streets are exceedingly steep, as they all run up the
side ofthe hill, and are paved with , small stones set edge
ways in the ground, which are not only very sharp, but ve
ry slippery to walk on. Hence they are painfully labori
ous to climb up, and dangerous to ride down. We saw
some Spanish horses drive very hard down one of them, and
expected every moment that they and their riders would be
precipitated ; but, with wonderful sagacity, the horses set

28 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
their hind against their fore feet, whenever they arrived
at apart unusually steep, and without further effort frequent
ly slided down the inclined plane, many yards at a time, by
the velocity they had acquired. The burdens are drawn
up by a small breed of bullocks, which are universally used
for draught. They are yoked two a-breast, and a slide capa
ble of holding a cask of wine is attached by cords ; a peas
ant, with a long pole and a goad at the end of it, leads them
by a cord passed through a perforation in the tip of one of
their horns, and another walks beside the machine with a
large rag of cloth steeped in water ; this he occasionally
throws under the slide, which is thus kept wet by passing
over it, and it glides smoothly and evenly along. The cat
tle are a very small mountain breed, of a mouse-colored
brown. They are encouraged by the long drawling and con
tinued cries of the driver, and seem very gentle and trac
table. The peasantry are robust, but exceedingly dark in their
color, and their breasts, and other parts exposed to the sun,
are nearly as black as those of a negro. This is supposed
to arise from the Moorish origin of many of them who came
from Algarves. They are generally corpulent, and wear
white cotton shirts, which, among the poorest of them,
seemed as white as snow. I have remarked, that there
is something in the air of southern climates, which is favor
able to the process of bleaching. I have never seen cotton
or linen reduced, by repeated washing, to that dingy yellow
so common in ouf cold and foggy atmosphere ; the most
ragged worn fragment, is as white as the new web of cloth.
Their drawers are short, and their boots rise halfway up
their legs, leaving an interval of dark naked skin up to the
knee. Every man has his jacket thrown over his shoulders,
and carries in his hancTa long pole. But the most remark
able part of his dress is a small conical cap of blue cloth,
lined with red ; this scarcely fits on the top of the crown ;
a sharp spike rises from the summit, and at the sides are
two little red claws, by which it is seized and drawn down
as far as it will go on the head. This cap is a singular and
characteristic thing, peculiar, I am told, to the people of
Madeira, and worn by the women as well as by the men : I
saw them take it off by the point, to salute any friend they
met, always adding to the salutation, " God prosper you."
The women are remarkably plain and sallow, and when a,
little advanced in life, singularly ugly and repulsive. Their

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 29
faces have the shape and character of those of baboons,
projecting jaws, retiring foreheads, and high cheek-bones ;
their breasts are long and flabby, and frequently hang down
to an extraordinary length, and these natural deformities
are increased by a squalid negligence of dress. The young
er are more attractive, and attentive to their persons. They
have generally coal-black hair, which they tie in a club be
hind, close to their heads, leaving two large locks on their
cheeks. Their heads are covered either with the pointed
caps just described, or with beaver hats, with a broad ' band
and buckle, in which is stuck an ostrich or other feather ; a
pellerine, or short cloth mantle, covers their neck, scarcely
reaching beyond their shoulders, and their gowns are dark
cotton. Some of these girls were so comely, that it is hard
ly conceivable how they could degenerate into such objects
as their mothers. They are very prolific, and almost every
married woman has from six to twelve children.
One ofthe streets we passed through was full of beggars,
who lay along the walls in the sun like the Lazzaroni of Na
ples, but were very inferior to that robust race. They were
of different ages and sexes, and some of them not badly
clothed. It is usual on one day of the week to distribute
alms at different houses, and all these idlers were collected
here for the purpose. These useless members, which the
better part ofthe community now consider a perfect nui
sance, were about to be more profitably disposed of. Joao
Carvalhal, the most opulent man on the island, had planned
a workhouse, to which they were all to be sent, and there
employed, as in England, in some occupation ofindustry. —
But this enlightened and benevolent man was a constitution
alist — compelled to abandon his property and his plans for
the improvement ofthe island, and is now a fugitive in Lon
don. It was Saturday, and market day ; and we walked through
the market-place, to see the produce ofthe country in the
commodities exposed for sale. They principally consisted
of fruits ; figs black and green, bananas in bunches, apples,
pears, large red onions, and peaches ; these last were as
hard as stones, and are always brought to market in that un
ripe state, in which the people prefer them. There were
venders of grapes of several qualities, particularly a large,
dark brown, fleshy fruit, which we cultivated in the palace
garden at Constantinople ; and a small dark one, called tin-
to, the clustersof which grow to such a size, I was informed,
3*

30 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
as to weigh 201bs. But I was particularly struck with the
abundance of fine potatoes, which were exceedingly good,
and plenty in the island. Grapes and potatoes rarely thrive
together ; the heat and dryness necessary to mature the one,
are very inimical to the other ; but in this fertile and favor
ed is|and, where every stratum of elevation gives a different
soil and climate, all plants and fruits grow up and prosper
together. Among the roots which I saw in the market, was
that ofthe arum, (Caladium esculentum) the only esculent
species of that very acrid tribe ; and even this is so much
so, that if tasted when raw, it immediately blisters the mouth.
The acrid particles, however, are volatile, and dissipated by
heat in the process of boiling or baking. I saw it growing in
a garden outside the town, where a large space of ground
was covered with it. The leaf was larger and less pointed
than that of the A. maculatum, but it had all the lurid and
forbidding aspect of our poisonous, but common, cuckoo-pint.
Not only the tuberous root, but the leaves are eaten, and
called Indian kale.
Among the articles of apparel for sale were yellow shoes
of tanned unblacked leather, of goats' skin, resembling yel
low morocco, and generally used in the island. Another
manufacture of leather was goats' and calves' skins, dressed
whole and inflated, preserving the shape and size of the
animal, and intended to carry water and wine. They were
generally borne along for sale by boys, who swing them
about on the tops of poles. Here, as well as in the east,
the mode of preserving wine at this day is the same as in
the time ofthe apostles, and explains the allusion of the
Evangelist.* They make at Madeira two kinds of wine, white and
red ; the first i8 too well known to require description. It
is the produce of a grape supposed to have been originally
brought from Cyprus, and planted on the island by Prince
Henry on its first discovery. But the change of soil and
climate has altogether altered its qualities, for it resembles
modern Cyprus wine in nothing but color. The latter is
like Tenedoswine ofthe Archipelago, stronger than claret,
but not so strong as port. The fruit producing it is' the
small dark grape we saw in the market ; it leaves a deep
stain on paper, or any other substance which imbibes the
* " Neither do men put new wine into old bottles, lest the bottles
break," Matt. ix. 17. The word in the original is anm, which lite
rally signifies an inflated skin.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 31
juice, and is for that reason called tinio. The soil producing
the best wines is the poorest and most stony, and in that
respect resembles some ofthe vineyards ofthe Rhine, where
the vine grows among dry shingles, with scarcely a particle
of mould. The vintage is in September, and was just com
menced when we arrived. The grapes are thrown into a
vat, and pressed out by the feet of bare-legged peasants,
who get in and trample on them, where they are seen all
stained with the red juice, affording another exemplification
of scriptural allusion.* The wine does not mature till
after a certain age, and is generally sent on a voyage round
the world to please our English palates. It is distinguish
ed, like claret, by degrees of excellence, according to the
estate on which it is made. Negro Mole, Verdelha, and
Buse are the most celebrated. About 30,000 pipes are
annually produced.
The Portuguese are said to be expert coopers, and we saw
instances of it. Some wine was purchased by our purser
for sea store, and the coopers were casing the casks in the
street, under the window of the merchants' store where it
was bought. The staves were jointed, bottomed, and
hooped below with great expedition. The open space above
was then inverted on the wine cask, and reinverted, with it
inside. Shavings were crammed into the space between, to
keep all tight; the open staves were circled with iron hoops,
the top laid on, and when the last iron hoop was driven home,
all the parts closed up with the most exact correspondence ;
and the whole large cask was jointed, put together, and
finished in the completest manner, while we were looking
on, with a speed and dexterity creditable to the workmen.
Among our sea store were bananas and citrons, which, for
the first time, I saw in their native state. The banana is of
two kinds, differing a little in shape and size, (Musa sapien-
tum, and musa paradisica). Its fructification is as perfect an
exemplification of the sexual system as that of the palm.
The fruit is produced on a large spiral branch, issuing from
the side ofthe stem ofthe tree. Over this branch are sus
pended the male blossoms, on a long bending footstalk, con
sisting of several series of stamina, corresponding with the
number of fruit on the branch below. Each series is cov
ered with a dark purple petal. As the fruit ripens, the foot-
* " Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like
him that treadeth in the wine vat ? " Isaiah Ixiii. 2.

32 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
stalk lengthens, the lower petal opens and exposes the
stamina, which impregnate the corresponding fruit, and then
drop off. These are succeeded by the next, and the pro
cess goes on till the whole branch is impregnated. When
the last petal with its stamina falls away, this is supposed to
be complete, and then the fruit is ripe for pulling. The
whole branch of bananas in this state is called cacheio, and
sells for about ten vintems, or fifteen pence. The fruit is
at first very crude, and filled with a milky and rather acrid
juice ; but when hung up for some time in vendas or shops, it
gradually mellows and ripens. It always, however, retains
a heavy and disagreeable smell, resembling those strong
and repulsive vegetable odors, which often warn you that
the plant or fruit is deleterious. This flavor seems to
reside in the skin, which is pulled down at each side,
leaving the esculent part of the fruit covered with a white
downy substance, twice the size of a man's thumb. It is
the great food of the laboring classes, particularly of the
negroes of Brazil, and is considered exceedingly wholesome
and nutritious. Among the higher ranks, it is sometimes
served up at the dessert, and eaten with cheese, which
gives a certain sapidity to its sweet but mawkish taste.
When cut transversely, the division of the seed forms the
-sign of the cross ; and the Portuguese think it a profanation
so to divide it, because it severs in two this sacred emblem ;
they therefore cut the fruit obliquely, so that the cross
may not be seen. A variety of it, called banana da terra,
or plantain, is always roasted and eaten with sugar. When
smoke-dried, it acquires a firm consistence, and keeps for
a long time. The tree on which it grows is conspicuous
by its immense leaves, and it is that which gives the most
peculiar and distinctive character to a tropical landscape.
It is most abundant in the lower and warmer situations of
the country, but so delicate, that it cannot be assimilated
to the higher and more temperate regions. Several soft
and succulent stems shoot out from the same root ; when
one has borne fruit, it is cut down, and succeeded by
another. The citron resembles a very large lemon in exterior.
The rind, however, is exceedingly thick, and the interior is
solid and fleshy, not juicy and pulpy, like the lemon varie
ty. It was first brought from Media, in the east, and hence
its botanical name, (Citrus medico). It has now, however,
travelled to the most distant parts ofthe western world. I

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 33
saw in a large shed behind a shop the process of its prepa
ration : — The fruit was first split and boiled, and steeped in
salt water for a certain number of days. It was then final
ly boiled in sirup, which everywhere penetrated its pores,
and it came out ofthe caldron quite green and transparent,
in which state we purchased it.
The houses ofthe town are generally large and strong,
with long blocks of hewn stone, ornamented with mouldings,
round the doors and window cases ; they look, however, ex
ceedingly neglected and out of repair, and though full of
inhabitants, resembled the ruins of good edifices, that had
been deserted. Frequently a large building, with a fine ex
terior of hewn stone, was without roof or floors, and the
lower part occupied by sheds and shops ; and there seemed,
on the whole, a total absence or disregard of that attention
to neatness and comfort which characterizes an English
town. There was one circumstance, however, in which it pos
sessed an eminent advantage, and that is, the abundance,
purity, and excellence of its water. This fluid, generated
by the clouds which constantly brood over the summit ofthe
island, sometimes descends in immense and dangerous tor
rents, rolling down huge basaltic pillars, detached from the
rocks above, and carrying with it the houses which stood in
the way of its sweeping inundation. One of them formed a
broad bed through the centre of the town, and was the
avenue through which much mischief was periodically in
flicted on the inhabitants, particularly in October, 1803,
when some streets were swept away, and about seven hun
dred persons drowned. To obviate similar accidents, two
massive walls have been built on each side ofthe bed ofthe
torrent, running a considerable way up the sides of the
mountain, beyond the extremity of the town ; and through
this the greater part ofthe water discharged from the clouds,
is conducted safely to the sea. This fine and useful work
is crossed by several bridges, and on one side, for a con
siderable distance, is planted with platanus ;ind other trees,
forming a pleasant walk. While the town is thus secured
against the effects of a great inundation, the streams of sev
eral smaller rills are led in different directions through the
streets, and there is a perennial current of pure and limpid
water continually gurgling down every avenue, a source at
once of health, cleanliness, and beauty, in the driest and
hottest seasons. I have never seen a town so favored,
but Brusa, in Asia Minor, at the foot of Mount Olympus.

34 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
We now proceeded up one of the steep streets, and af
ter climbing, with much labor, under a burning sun, we
arrived at the extremity ofthe town, and had a full view of
the face ofthe mountain above, the city below, and the sea
beyond it ; the whole forming a singularly beautiful pros
pect. Higher up, the summit ofthe mountain was riven into
several deep chasms, the sides of which were clothed with
wood ; the wood consisted of chestnut, walnut and pines,
among which were scattered orange, lemon, the laurel which
produces camphor, and the palm which yields the gum call
ed dragon's blood. Other palms of great size spread their
feathery fronds above the lower vegetation ; we were told
they yielded no fruit, but were not the less important, as
they were used as an indispensable badge of Palm Sunday,
and borne by every person on that day in large branches,
whence the day is so properly called Dominigo de Ramos.
Among the original trees of the island were cedars of a
magnificent size, but they have become very scarce. Above
the woods was raised a canopy of dark dense mist, veiling
the highest ridges, and descending into the chasms with an
infinite variety of light and shade. On the confines of
darkness stood the convent ofNossa Senhora d'el Monte,
the highest inhabited place on this side the mountain. It
was situated on an eminence between two deep ravines,
embosomed in magnificent trees ; presenting, with its white
turrets and battlements, issuing from the dark mist, a very
striking object. Scattered all round it were the quintas or
country seats of the more respectable merchants. They
are called quintas because they originally reserved one
fifth part ofthe produce as rent to the landlord. These
covered all the face ofthe mountain at different elevations,
and were resorted to by the inhabitants of Funchal, when
their business in the town below was concluded.
In the windows and verandas were goldfinches and ca
nary birds, which were found on the island in great abun
dance when first discovered. But of all the aborigines,
the lizard tribe was the most numerous ; we saw them every
where of different sizes and colors ; all the dry walls were
alive with them, peeping from every aperture and over
every angle, with their bright and intelligent eyes. We
were sometimes attracted by the rustling of leaves, and per
ceived it was occasioned by the beautiful green lizard,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 35
which Horace describes as producing the same effect in
Italy, and startling his timid mistress.*
The soil of the country was a rich reddish earth, mixed
with lava, pumice, and vitrified scoria, which was seen every
where covering basalt or whinstone, called by the natives
pedra viva. Some huge fragments of this stone, still pre
serving their ordinate angular form, appeared in the beds
ofthe torrents, but more generally the sharpness was round
ed off by rolling and attrition. At some distance, at An
tonio da Serra, was the huge basin called the Crater, three
quarters of a mile in circumference, once the outlet of in
flammable matter, indicating, with other decided marks, the
volcanic origin ofthe island.
Returning again into the town, we heard the bells of
several churches and convents ringing a merry peal, and
everywhere around us the explosion of great guns. We
saw, planted in the front of one convent, a number of can
nons, made of cut-down gun-barrels, which several boys
were discharging in succession ; while flags were hoisting
and flying in all directions. This we heard was the cere
mony ofthe eve of a festival, which was to take place next
day, with a grand procession up to the church of Senhora
d'el Monte, to return thanks for the deliverance of the isl-
land from the anathematized Constitutionalists ; and the
lights we had seen blazing the evening before, were not
the signals of those victorious men, as we supposed, but
preparatory indications ofthe approaching festival in hon
or of their total defeat.
These processions to our Lady of the Mount take place
on all occasions, from the exceeding sanctity of her shrine
and image, in this place. When the island was first dis
covered, a statue was found on the mountain of this unin
habited island, and must, therefore, have been brought not
by human hands. The convent was built on the spot, and
the statue enshrined placed over the high altar ofthe chap
el. On all occasions of public calamity she is carried out
to arrest its progress, and was of singular service on the
awful day ofthe inundation, which would have drowned the
whole island had she not appeared ; but it instantly stopped
as soon as her image was presented to it. When she does
not go abroad, pilgrimages of people are continually ascend-
Virides rubum

Dimovere lacerte." — Ode xxiii. lib. 1.

36 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ing to visit her at home. Sailors are particularly atten
tive to this duty: whole crews are often found begging in
the streets below, and are then seen, headed hy their cap
tain, climbing up the hill with the offerings they have col
lected. We returned from our excursion to dine with Mr. Borrit,
an English merchant, a pleasing and intelligent gentleman,
from whom we obtained much local information, particularly
on the events which had recently occurred. In the evening
we sent on board nine bullocks, with abundance of water,
wine, and fruits, and then proceeded on board ourselves, in
a shore boat. It had a keel, bent up and curling over the
bow, and bound by a stay, like the bowsprit of a ship. It
was high and dry on the beach when we all got into it ; it
was then launched a considerable way1 through the shingles
and surf, and in a short time we were on board our frigate,
which was standing on and off to receive us, and before
dark we were again on our way. -
The last person who left our ship was Captain Canning,
and we took final leave of this fine young man, whom we
were doomed never to see again. He was the son of the
late minister, and though engaged in a totally different
sphere of life, had much ofthe talent and vivacity of his fa
ther. He early obtained the command of a ship of war,
and he not only appeared, but I believe he really was, the
youngest captain known in his Majesty's navy. He was
appointed lieutenant in February, 1823 ; commander in
1825 ; and post-captain in 1826 ; thus rising from midship
man to his high station in four years. He was tall and
slender, with light hair, and a fair complexion, and had the
youthful look and air of a midshipman who had just passed
for lieutenant ; and his good-humored and unaffected man
ners were in keeping with his appearance. He also inform
ed us of the incidents which occurred on the arrival of the
Portuguese squadron to the coast, of jvhich he was a spec
tator. We soon afterwards heard at/Rio of his premature
death. He was highly popular with every one at Madeira,
particularly with the English, who greatly sought his society.
He was one day engaged to dine at Mr. James Gordon's,
whose quinta was about a mile and a half from Funchal.
He had heated himself by violent exercise at rackets, and
when he proceeded to Mr. Gordon's house, he entered the
room which he used to occupy, and having put on his morn
ing .gown, he went down to a large tank in the grounds,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 37
where he undressed himself, and plunging in, he sank never
more to rise with life. Having waited dinner for some time,
Mr. Gordon preceeded in search of him, and coming to the
tank, he found his clothes on the edge. A young man was
immediately called, who was an expert swimmer ; and he,
having dived down opposite to where his clothes lay, dis
covered his body at the bottom, in about fifteen feet of wa
ter ; it was lying in a bent position, with the head resting
on the knees. A cord was immediately, let down, and be
ing fastened to his arm, the body was drawn up ; but the
«park of life seemed totally extinct, as it was supposed he
had been half an hour in the water. Expresses, however,
were instantly despatched for medical attendance, and it
was found extremely difficult to procure it, in the moment
of emergency. It happened that all the Portuguese physi
cians were implicated as Constitutionalists, and had either
escaped or were incarcerated. Application was immediate
ly made to the governor to permit two of the most eminent
who were in prison to proceed to the place ; but the gov
ernor refused to liberate them r at length, at the pressing
instance ofthe English, and a sufficient security being giv
en for their immediate return, they were suffered to go with
a guard. It was now, however, too late, the time when it
might have been possible to restore suspended animation
was wasted, and all means and appliances were useless.
The death of this fine young man, in the prime of life,
and the vigor of health, so sudden, and as some seem to
say, so extraordinary, excited in the island a strong sensa
tion. There were not wanting of one party, who affirmed
it was a judgment visited on him for favoring the escape of
so many offenders ; and of the other, who affected to say
there was something mysterious and suspicious in the man
ner of it, as if he had been struck by some unknown hand
while in the water, as I myself have heard it insinuated ;
but nothing can be more unfounded than such an idle ru
mor ; unfortunately, the cause of his death is too common '
— apoplexy, arising from collapse, occasioned by sudden
and violent change of temperature in high excitement. In
stances occur every day of people incautiously rushing into
a cold bath, when violently heated by exercise, and sinking
never to rise again ; and to a case of this kind, I was my
self a witness. A soldier had just returned from a review,
on a hot day, and the moment he was dismissed, he stripped
himself, and I saw him plunge into the river, close by the
4

38 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
parade — he never re-appeared, till his lifeless body was
brought up by a drag, which was procured for the purpose.
He was a very strong athletic young man, and a remarka
bly good swimmer.

CHAP. HI.
Madeira and Porto Santo, the Fortunate Islands. — Discovery in modern Times'. — -
Alcaforedo's Account of Mucham. — Reasons for and against, its Authenticity. —
Wines from Cyprus and Sugar Canes from Sicily, introduced  English Resi
dents. — Former Intolerance of Islanders.— Constitutional Principles, and first Press
sent from England. — Fluctuation of Politics. — General Valdez assumes the Com
mand  Military Force. — Strange Project to excite the People in favor of Dom
Miguel. — Valdez and his Friends declare themselves. — Ceremonies and Rejoicing.
Having had here and elsewhere many opportunities of
inquiring into the affairs of the Constitutionalists, I shall
detail to you some of the circumstances attending the un
fortunate issue of their attempted defence ; premising a few
particulars ofthe past and present state ofthe island.
The ancients took much of their information ofthe islands
off the coast of Africa, from the real or supposed voyage of
Hanno, the Carthaginian ; who, about 570 years before the
christian era, was sent by the state to explore the coast be
yond the Pillars of Hercules, and .proceeded as far as a
high mountain, called Currus Deorum,* beyond one of the
great promontories which project int.o the Atlantic. This
promontory Ptolemy places on this side ofthe equator ; but
whether it was Bajador, Blanco, or Cape Verde, is very
doubtful : some affirm that it was the latter, and that our
colony of Sierra Leone is placed on this chariot ofthe gods.
Five groups of islands are mentioned within these limits: —
Cerne, Insula? purpureas, Fortunatae, Hesperides, and Gor-
gades ; but the exceeding vague, indistinct, and contradic
tory manner in which they are described by different wri
ters, gives no information, except that they were known to
exist somewhere along the coast, scattered in the great At
lantic. It appears to me, however, that Madeira and its ap
pendant island, Porto Santo, were best known, and were
the uMxupcu vjfcoi of the Greek, and the Insula? Fortunate of

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 39
the Latin writers, and not the Canaries, as is generally sup
posed. They are described as existing in the Atlantic, at
the extremity of Mauritania, or Morocco, about 600 miles
from the coast, and two in number, according to Sebosus
and Plutarch, all which localities agree with Madeira and
Porto Santo. One was called Ombria, from its mists and
humidity, abounding in trees resembling ferula, or fennel,
and was filled with large lizards ; * permanent natural char
acters which now peculiarly distinguish Madeira.
They were exuberant, temperate, and wholesome, pro
ducing every kind of fruit ; exempting the inhabitants from
ordinary diseases, and insuring to them an extraordinary
degree of longevity. This fertility and salubrity also form
the exact character ofthe islands at the present day. Ser-
torius, according to Plutarch, when he heard them describ
ed, was eager to proceed thither from Lusitania, the modern
Portugal, in the vicinity of which they were more imme
diately situated : so that the Portuguese then, as well as
now, were the proprietors. For a series of centuries, how
ever, they were lost to Europe, till again discovered by an
adventure, as romantic and extraordinary as any recorded
in history, and told with such minuteness, and by so many
•historians, that one can hardly refuse to credit it.
The person who first detailed the account, was Francisco
Alcaforedo, esquire and gentleman of the bed-chamber, to
the intelligent Oom Henry ; and who was himself one of the
adventurers who explored the island. On his return, he
drew up the particulars for his patron, by whom his papers
were carefully preserved. I have not been able to ascer
tain whether they were published at the time ; but long after,
Francisco Manoel incorporated Alcaforedo's account in his
history published in 1660,^ and it has been generally fol
lowed. I have seen a French translation, printed in 1671,
and an English, in 1675 ; and since then, almost all per
sons who visit Madeira allude to it in their accounts. You
would think me unpardonable if I passed it over in silence,
so I give you an abridged translation ofthe original work.
In the reign of Edward III., an English gentlemen, named
* Arbores similes ferulae, lacertis grandibus referta. — Pliny.
t Epanaf. de var Ilistor. par D. Francisco Manoel de Mello, 1660.
He says, that Alcaforedo's account was written, " Com igual singeleza
que individuacao, cujo original eu guardo como joya preciosa, vindo
ft minhamao par extraordinario caminho."

40 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Lionel Macham, fell in love with Arabella D'Arcy,* a lady
of his own country. Her friends disapproved of the con
nexion, and had interest enough to have him placed in con
finement ; and in the mean time compelled her to marry an
other, who brought her to Bristol. When the lady was thus
disposed of, Macham was liberated ; and he, stung with the
oppression and injustice he had endured, called together
some gallants, his friends, and detailed to them his wrongs.
They entered at once into his feelings, and promised to as
sist him in carrying off the object of his love. They pro
ceeded to Bristol, and their plan was to seize a vessel in
the harbor, and run for the coast of France. To this end
they took a pleasure boat, and daily were in the habit of
sailing round the vessel, that their approach to accomplish
their design might not be a subject of suspicion or alarm to
the crew. *
The lady was, in the mean time, apprised of their pro
ceedings, and agreed to meet them at a solitary place on
the banks ofthe Avon, and there embark. She was usual
ly attended by a retinue of servants, but by the contrivance
of her groom, who was in the interests of Macham, she
eluded their vigilance. The horse she rode was kept with
out water for three days ; and on the day appointed, as he
approached the river, his impatience could no longer be
restrained ; he;? rushed forward with an impetuosity with-.
which the others could not keep pace, arrived alone, and
the lady was received on board the shallop which was wait
ing for her, before her attendants could come up or inter
fere to prevent her. To aid this plan, they had selected a
day on which they knew that the officers and crew of the
ship were feasting on shore, »on some festive occasion, so
that it was easily seized by the party, and carried off.
When the circumstance was known, all the ships in the
harbor were ordered in pursuit of the fugitives. " But,'*
says my author, " what noise the recital of this adventure
made, not only in Bristol, but in all England ; what descant
was made thereupon, or what punishment the actors de
served, let others tell, for we do not intend to particularise
them in our relation."
To avoid pursuit, Macham and his friends altered their
course in the night, and in a day or two found themselves.
* There is some variation of the names, in different accounts ; tha
gentlemen is called Rohert Macham, arid the lady, Ann, Dorset,
D'Alfaret and Arfetv

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 41
out of danger ; but the wind now changing, blew violently,
and drove their bark into the Atlantic, without a possibility
of gaining the coast of Franee ; and for thirty days togeth
er, they ran through " the vast and dangerous deserts of
the ocean," hourly expecting death ; when one morning,
at sun-rise, they found themselves close in with a land,
high, craggy, and covered with trees. On running near
the shore, they did not see any trace of human beings ; on
the contrary, an immense number of birds of all sizes and
.descriptions, settled on the masts, yards, and decks, with
an appearance of curiosity, and sense of security, as if they
had never seen or been molested by man before. They
selected for fheir landing place, a beautiful spot, over
shadowed with a large cedar tree, beside a clear rivulet ;
and here the lovers, with part of their friends, reposed and
refreshed themselves for thirteen days, while the remainder
staid on board.
On the fourteenth morning before day, one of those im
petuous tornadoes, which still burst suddenly from the sum
mit ofthe island, and rush down the side, drove the ship
from her moorings, and pursued her for two days, fill she
was wrecked on the Barbary coast, and all the crew who
escaped on shore were made slaves. When it was light in
the morning, those who remained on the island looked out,
and nowhere perceiving their vessel, concluded she must
have perished, from her shattered state, and her weak
crew. This consideration deeply affected the lady, who
now gave herself up to despair ; and after three days silent
affliction, during which she never spoke, she expired.
Her lover could not survive her loss, and at the end of
five days he too died, requesting to be buried in the same
grave, under the tall tree they had chosen as the place of
repose. The stein, by his direction, was hewn into a cross,
and an inscription cut on the trunk, requesting that future
Christians, who should find this place, would erect a chapel
on the spot, in which prayers might be offered up for the
repose ofthe unhappy lovers.
The seamen now built a shallop for themselves, out of
the abundance of timber they found everywhere ; and,
having killed birds and beasts for sea store, they set sail to
endeavor to return to Europe ; but the same wind that had
driven their companions before it, overtook them also, and
they, too, were forced on the coast of Morocco, and like
them were made slaves. In the prison in which they were
4*

42 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
confined, they met a Spaniard, named Morales, to whom,
in their mutual communications, they related their adven
tures, and the discovery ofthe new land. Morales was an
intelligent and skilful pilot — made himself acquainted with
all the particulars, and treasured up the information in his
mind. Some time after, a large sum of money was left by Don
Sancho, youngest son of Ferdinand, king of Castile, in the
spirit of the pious charity of the age, to redeem christian
slaves in Africa from captivity ; and a vessel was sent to>
fetch them home. Morales was among the ransomed, and
he returned in the vessel ; but the war between the Span
iards and Portuguese had not yet ceased ; the ship was
captured by the latter, and Morales was brought to Portu
gal. Having mentioned this extraordinary story, and the
discovery he had made while a prisoner, he was immedi
ately sent to Prince Henry, as one by whom his informa
tion would be highly valued ; and detailed to him, at his
arsenal at Algarves, all the particulars. The ente'rprising
prince without delay fitted out an expedition to complete
the discovery, consisting of a vessel well equipped with
sails, and a shallop propelled by oars, and gave, the com
mand to Gonzalves, who had discovered Porto Santo.
Morales, and several Portuguese gentlemen, embarked with
him, among whom was Francisco Alcaforedo, then an es
quire of the Prince, who has detailed the narrative.
When they arrived at Porto Santo, th#y saw on the dis
tant horizon, the portentous black cloud, which Morales
immediately conjectured to be the land he sought for ; but
the timidity and superstition ofthe rest were so great, that
before they attempted to proceed on the discovery, they re
solved to wait for a quarter of a moon, to see if the phenom
enon would disperse, or alter its shape : it did neither, but
remained the dark, undefined, mysterious object they first
saw it. The crews had determined to return without
tempting their fate ; but Gonzalves, relying on the sagacity
ofthe Spaniard, set sail in the night, and the next morning
they found themselves still nearer the dreaded object.
About mid-day the obscurity increased, and the mist extend
ing all along the horizon, presented one vast black abyss,
which drew forth outcries of alarm and terror from the
¦crews, and they refused to proceed any farther. Gonzal
ves now called them on deck, and made them a long speech,
appealing to their courage and sense of duty, which roused

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 43
them to a frantic resolution, and they urged forward lheir
ships with the same desperate determination as a forlorn
hope enters a breach. As they approached, they thought
they perceived men of gigantic stature, and portentous vis
ionary forms, menacing them ; but the sun now suddenly
bursting out, absorbed the veil of vapor, and displayed the
feature of a lovely land, environed with peaks and rocks,
which the mist had magnified and distorted into giants. —
Having coasted some time, admiring the~prospeet every
where presented, they prepared to land ; but the sun set
ting, they deferred it till the next day, and in the mean time
Gonzalves kept a good look out at night on the strange
coast ; " for sleep is a rock," says my author, " fhe more
dangerous, because no pilot finds it in his sea-chart."
Next day they landed, and Morales immediately discov
ered traces of the English, trees notched with axes, and
other signs of human labor ; but at length they came to
the very tree on which the cross was erected, and read the
inscription, still legible on its trunk. An altar was there
fore immediately raised on the spot,, and mass said for the
repose of the souls of Macham and his unfortunate lady.
On further exploring the island, it was found entirely
destitute of human inhabitants, and the birds so tame, that
they had no apprehension ofthe approach of man, but pas
sively suffered themselves to be taken. The surface was
thickly covered with trees, except that in one part was a
fine plain, producing nothing but luxuriant plants of fennel.
This plain they called Funchal, which means fennel, in
Portuguese ; and here they resolved to build their future
capital. On one spot they encountered a number of seals,
then called sea-wolves, which rushed from a cavern. This
place they named Camera dos Lobos, and their enterpris
ing commander took his future title from it ; his arms hav
ing two sea-wolves for supporters.
During all this time they were under an impression that
the land they were on, was a promontory projecting into
the ocean from the continent, and part ofthe coast of Afri
ca ; but they now returned to the place from whence they
had set out, and having made a complete circuit of it, dis
covered it was an island.
Having thus ascertained every particular ofthe state of
their discovery, they sailed back to Portugal, to make it
known. Gonzalves and his companions were introduced to
the king and court, and at a public audience, gave a

44 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.'
full account of the circumstances detailed in the foregoing
narrative ; and, as the most remarkable feature ofthe isl
and was the vast trees by which it was ' covered, the king
immediately declared it should be called Madeira, or Tim
ber Island.
On the following year Gonzalves returned with a colony,
and ran directly for the harbor which the English had dis
covered, and he himself had entered the year before ; and
this he called Porto Machico, or Machino, in memory ofthe
unfortunate lovers. All these places are still designated
by the same names at the present day.
Such is the very curious and minute account of the dis
covery of Madeira, given by a man who was himself an act
or in, and eyewitness to, the events which he details. Its
authenticity, however, has been questioned, because many
writers of credit are silent on the subject ; because events
are mentioned which must have taken place long afterwards ;
and because Edward III. died in 1378, and Madeira was
discovered in 1420 ; so that the pilot must have been forty
years a slave. To the first, it is replied, that a number of
old writers of credit receive it as true. Galvano mentions
it as the tradition of Aragon ; Hakluyt speaks of it as au
thentic ; Cordeyro details it in his Insulana, and several
others notice it as a fact not disputed ; but Dom Francisco
Manoel de Mello is a host in himself, who says he had
the original papers in his possession. With respect to the
second, all the subsequent events were obviously added by
Manoel to Alcaforedo's original manuscript ; and, with re
spect to the third, we know that unfortunate slaves have been
liberated after a longer confinement. Some of them, manu-
tted when the English palace at Constantinople was fin
ished, had been fifty years in bondage. To this might be
added the ancient tradition of the island. The bay is still
called after Macham's name ; they preserve there a .cedar
cross, as the one carved out of the tree ; and they show a
series of pictures in the government hall, descriptive of the
several events of the story. You will decide for yourself,
but I am disposed to think you will conclude, that if we were
now to claim the island, on the ground of being the first dis
coverers, our pretensions would hardly be acknowledged,
even on the testimony of Alcaforedo.
As Madeira was the first fruits of Prince Henry's dis
coveries, so it was the first object of his care and attention.
He filled it with such productions of other countries, as were

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 45
not indigenous to its own prolific soil. To this end he sent
to Sicily for sugar canes, (Arundo saccharifera), and to Cy
prus for vines ; and they both throve so abundantly, as
soon to render his new island famous. The wines still re
tain their celebrity ; but the culture of sugar has so declined
in these latter years, that there is at present but one engen-
ho, or sugar-mill, on the island. Silk worms were also in
troduced from the east ; but notwithstanding the number of
mulberry trees indigenous to the soil, the experiment did
not succeed, and some few articles of silk wear are man
ufactured from the raw material imported.
Among the foreigners who were induced to settle in this
beautiful island, there was a large proportion of English,
attracted either by the salubrity of the climate, or by com
mercial speculation. So great has been the resort of inva
lids from the former motive, that the place has been called
the " last haven of health ; " and the burial ground is full
of melancholy memorials of those who fled in vain from their
own chill and foggy atmosphere, to this more pure and ge
nial climate. It is now, I believe, ascertained by long ex
perience, that Madeira is no more a refuge to the consump
tive, than any other place : when a human being is once
struck by that incurable malady, it is in vain to seek for
health in any climate ; hceret lateri lethalis arundo, where-
ever the stricken patient flies. Its celebrity, therefore, in
this particular is nearly passed away. The English, how
ever, who reside, form a very respectable part ofthe popula
tion. They consist of about 300 individuals, who have es
tablished about twenty mercantile houses, and are among
the most opulent merchants ofthe place.
The spirit of intolerance, formerly complained of in Cath
olic countries, is now fast disappearing. It had been the
custom, not only to deny heretics the rites of burial in con
secrated places, but to cast their bodies into the sea, as un
hallowed things, which the very ground everywhere rejected.
The Rev. Mr. Ovington visited the island, in his way to the
east in 1696 : an Englishman had just died, and his friends
deposited his body in a place of concealment among the
rocks — but here it was found out, dragged down, and cast
into the water. It should mitigate, however, our horror at
such intolerance, if we recollect at how very late a period
the penal statute against Catholic funerals was enforced in
our own church-yards. In 1770, it ceased in Madeira, and
the English residents have not only a large cemetery, but
they have built a fine church. It is true that the permis-

46 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
sion interdicted them from erecting a steeple with bells, bat
they have ornamented their chapel with a cupola, and they
now freely and publicly exercise the rites of their religion
in an edifice as conspicuous and ornamental as any Catho
lic place of worship in our-own country. It is surely a de
lightful contemplation to a christian mind, to see the asper
ities of mutual intolerance thus wearing away, and the spirit
of the Apostle's precept beginning at length to operate
among all sects, in all countries.
The number of English residents in Madeira seems to have
had a considerable effect on the sentiments and intelligence
ofthe rest, who are deemed an enlightened people, deriving,
like those of Oporto, much of their character from their in
tercourse with the strangers. When, therefore, the first con
stitutional government was formed in Portugal, the people
of Madeira immediately adopted it. On the 28th of January,
1821, about six individuals commenced by an address to the
governor, which in a short time was increased by above 600
more signatures ; but among them no person's name of rank
or consequence. In answer to this address, the governor
drew down the guns ofthe fortress to fire on the petitioners,
but the army refused to act, and the spirit became general
all over the island. The governor, now seeing no alterna
tive, ljappeared on the battlements in token of his acquiescence
with the public wish — the Constitution was proclaimed, a
brillant illumination for two days and nights succeeded, and
four deputies were sent to the cortes at Lisbon. To keep
alive the constitutional spirit, the revolutionists sent to Eng
land for a printing press, which was the first ever seen on the
island ; and the 1st of July, 1821, was made memorable by
the publication of an insular newspaper, called the " Patriota
Funchalense," a thing as novel as it was extraordinary in
the annals of Madeira. A counterrevolution was now plan
ned, and it was intended that it should explode at the thea
tre. The design, however, transpired — the house was filled
with constitutional soldiers ; and the bishop of'Madeira, who
was known to be the instigator, was arrested. A council of
300 persons was formed, as a provisional assembly, to direct
affairs ; and a deputation of nine waited on the bishop to com
municate to him that he must leave the island. He was ac
cordingly embarked on board an Enlgish schooner, and two
military officers were deputed to attend him, and deliver him
up to the authorities in Lisbon. From that time affairs were

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 47
conducted quietly, till the counter revolution in Portugal
entirely changed the face of them.
In 1823, an expedition of troops was sent to Madeira,
and a commission of magistrates appointed to overawe the
island, and prosecute those who had shown an attachment
to the late order of things ; and the people complained that
though there had been no commotion among them, and that
they merely followed the progress of events in the mother
country, they were yet objects of persecution. When,
therefore, the constitutional system was again proclaimed,
it was received at Madeira with great and general satisfac
tion, and a new newspaper, called " O Defensor da Liber-
dade," was established to support its principles. Its em
blems were, a cap of liberty on a pole, crossed by a sword
and. a pen, its two most powerful supporters. Its fate, how
ever, is a proof how little their use was understood. The
paper was subject to a censorship, and many of tlie numbers
contain long passages marked, as erased. Notwithstanding
this, the proprietor was prosecuted and punished for sedi
tion by the constitutional government, though he had cau
tiously omitted all the offensive passages, and the remain
der ofthe paper was supposed to be published with the ap
probation ofthe censor himself.
In April, 1827, Jose Lucio Travassos Valdez was ap
pointed governor and captain-general ofthe island. General
Valdez had already distinguished himself in the constitution
al cause — was iippointed by Dom John VI. to the command
ofthe fortress of Braganza, and had defended it with great
spirit, in 1826, against the insurgents who had then risen to
overturn the existing government. In May, 1828, news
arrived in Madeira that the Constitution was again destroy
ed — that Dom Miguel was proclaimed absolute king, and
the cortes of Lamego substituted forthat which had been by
law established. He therefore wished to uphold the legiti
mate system, which he thought it his duty to support — but
not to declare himself till he provided everything necessary
for defence.
A census had been taken ofthe inhabitants in 1822, and
it was found that they amounted to 99,600 souls. Since
then, an increase was known to have taken place, and the
whole were now estimated at 1 10,000 ; of whom 25,000
were inhabitants of Funchal. The troops consisted of abat-
talion of artillery ofthe line, of 850 men, disciplined to do
duty as infantry, with a company of a regiment of artillery,

48 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
from the army of Portugal, which had been sent to the
island in 1 823, and twentysix field-pieces ; three regiments
of militia of Funchal, Calheta, and S. Vincente, of 1100
men each ; with twentysix forts, batteries, and redoubts in
the city, and different parts of the island, mounting 220
pieces of cannon, the greater part of large calibre, and gar
risoned by 2000 men. With such means of defence, and the
good dispositions ofthe people, it seemed probable that it
could resist any force sent against it.
The general's first care was to visit and inspect his re
sources. He found the artillery reduced to 200 men, and
the militia regiments to a moiety of their complements ; the
garrisons not half manned, and the guns in a very imperfect
state. He raised the regiment of artillery to 500 men, and
the militia 'in proportion ; supplied them with new arms,
repaired the old as far as circumstances would permit, and
reorganized the whole military force, to be ready on an
emergency. He established a telegraph, to communicate
with distant parts ofthe island. The Brazilian minister in
London wrote to him, apprising him of all that had hap
pened in Portugal up to the 12th of May ; he next day des
patched the messenger on to the Brazils, and communicated
to the emperor the state of things at Lisbon, and of the
measures he was taking to protect Madeira.
In these proceedings he was placed in a very difficult sit
uation. His secretary was a decided apostolical, and in
constant communication with the party in Portugal. The
bishop of Madeira was returned, and with the other clergy,
amounting to more than 1400 persons, who everywhere in
sinuated themselves, were laboring to put an end to the
Constitution, and counteracting all his measures, before
they we're matured. But the circumstance that more than
all tended to frustrate his preparations, was the premature
announcement, in the public Gazette of Oporto and Eng
land, that Madeira had declared against Dom Miguel.
From that moment an expedition was resolved on, and pre
pared with all possible despatch, to secure it ; and this
circumstance perhaps tended more than any other to the re
duction ofthe island, for the force appeared, before it was
prepared to resist.
As the bishop of Madeira had hitherto preserved a fair
appearance, and seemed to take no part in affairs, he did
not yet openly avow himself; but he made use of a char
acteristic expedient to communicate his sentiments to the

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 49
people. On the 12th of June, a priest issued from a church
into the streets of Funchal with a crucifix in his hand, and,
assuming the appearance of an idiot, called all the people
round him, and then harangued them as an inspired person.
He said he had just spoken to their lord and master Dom
Miguel, and whoever wished to save himself should follow
him. A sudden commotion of the people, excited by this
fanatic, was about to take place ; but the General, apprised
of it, had the troops immediately under arms, — the rising
was suppressed, and the priest committed, by the direction
of the bishop himself, when his plan had miscarried, to the
lunatic asylum.
On the 16th of June, news was brought to Madeira of
the efforts of the Constitutionalists at Oporto, and their
march on Lisbon : and the General thought that now was
the moment to declare himself in Madeira, and he did so in
the following manner. Without apprising any one of his
intentions, he directed that the chamber ofthe senate should
meet the counsel of state, on the 22d of June, in order to
ascertain exactly what were the real feelings ofthe people,
and await further orders. About half-past eleven, the re
giment of artillery of the line, commanded by Colonel Fran
cisco Manoel Padrone, marched from its quarters to the
public square, and immediately the regiment of Funchal
militia, commanded by Colonel Antonio Jose Espinola
Valdevesso, followed thither, and the area of the cathedral
was filled with the park of artillery. It was now mid-day,
and the square and streets were crowded with a vast con
course of people, who rushed to see what was going on,
without at all knowing its object. Valdez issued from his
palace, accompanied by Colonel Joao de Carvalhal and his
staff, and passing along the line, was saluted by the soldiers.
He then proceeded to the place where the senate and
council had met together, and for the first time announced
his intention of proclaiming Dom Pedro and the constitu
tional charter, and invited them to assist on the occasion.
A shout of applause spontaneously burst from all the mem
bers, indicating that such was the wish of all the citizens
and the corporations which they represented.
The members of the chamber then, preceded by their
ensigns, entered the area of the cathedral, accompanied by
an immense crowd. The military formed a hollow square,
and from the centre General Valdez read a proclamation,
in which he told them the occasion was now arrived which
5

50 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
demanded from them the discharge of their most sacred
duties. This proclamation was followed by a manifesto
breathing the same sentiments — that degenerate men, un
worthy ofthe name of Portuguese, had dared to rebel against
the lawful king and his sacred charter ; l and venal writers,
corrupted by a perfidious ministry, had dared to proclaim an
absolute king, and death to the lawful monarch ; that it was
resolved to protect this beautiful isle, " the flower of the
ocean," from the mania that had seized the kingdom of Por
tugal ; that if it had not been for a few ministers of religion,
who, either through error of judgment or wilfulness, had
joined some disgraced and obscure. demagogues, the island
of Madeira would have been the spot, where alone the seeds
of rebellion had not germinated.
" When these documents were read, there appeared," said
my reporter, " on the face of his Excellency, on that of the
.noble soldiers, and on the whole assembled people, those
sweet tears which excessive joy always produces ; but
when the General himself, assuming the command, shouted
out — ' Long live Pedro, Maria, and the constitutional char
ter !' it would require three hundred mouths, as many tongues,
and a voice of iron, tb describe the enthusiasm of Ma
deira ! "*
The cathedral was now suddenly illuminated, as if by
enchantment, and the constituted authorities, accompanied
by an immense crowd, entered it, and joined a solemn te
deum. Troops of musicians marched about the streets, ac
companied by parties of citizens, singing the constitutional
hymn ; and the evening ended with a grand tea party (cha
magnifies) given at the palace, which was splendidly illu
minated for the occasion.
It had been the anxious wish of the Constitutionalists,
that the English residents should identify themselves with
them, and take a part in the defence of the island ; and
some were well disposed to make a common cause with their
friends and neighbors the Madeirese ; but the great ma
jority wisely thought they ought not to interfere in the con
cerns of a place where they were merely strangers and so
journers, so they prudently sent in a formal protest and
declaration on the subject.
In order to keep alive the spirit and inform the public
* Seria necessario ter cem bocas, outras tantas linguas e a voz de
ferro, para poder descrever o enthusiasmo Madeirense.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 51
mind, a new newspaper was set up, called " Flor do
Oceano," the Flower of the Ocean, from this famous ap
pellation, as the editor says, which General Valdez had
conferred on the island in his manifesto.* The first num
ber was published on the 27th June, 1828, and it is said to
be imprinted, " Funchal con li^enca na officina Britannica."
Even this announcement greatly alarmed and annoyed the
English, as affording a presumption of their participation,
and likely to involve them in the consequences which might
ensue. But the turgid and inflated style of this paper ; the
pompous declarations and mean performances ; the promise
of mighty things, and the lame and impotent conclusions,
would be in themselves intrinsic evidence that the English
had nothing to do with it.
It was considered necessary to remove all suspicious
persons from places of trust. The secretary of the gov
ernment was suspended ; the bishop was obliged to dismiss
his vicar-general ; and about twenty persons, including
eight or ten ecclesiastics, were apprehended and sent out
ofthe island to Porto Santo. In the mean time despatches
were sent off to the provisional council at Oporto, to the
Brazilian minister in London, and to the British ministry,
apprising them of what had been done in Madeira.

CHAP. IV.
Portuguese Frigate arrives, and again departs. — Insurrection of the Peasants, and the
Bishops sent from the Island. — Resolute Determination of the People. — Portu
guese Fleet appears off the Island. — Cruises without attempting to land. — Packet
arrives with Constitutional Officers. — Portuguese Fleet disappears. — Returns sud
denly, and lands at Machico. — Defence ofthe Islanders. — Explosion ofthe Military
Chest. — General Valdez harangues the Soldiers. — Funchal surrenders. — Consti
tutionalists take refuge on board the Alligator. — Transferred to a Merchantman,
and sail for England. — Astonishment ofthe Portuguese at their easy Conquest.
Three days after, an opportunity occurred of trying the
sincerity and firmness of the people ofthe island. A Por
tuguese frigate, the Princeza Real, appeared opposite the
town, and it was at first believed that she was sent with
* This appellation was derived from the Portuguese poet Diniz, who
pails it " do undoso campo Flor," Flower ofthe wavy plain.

52 NOTICES OP BRAZIL.
news that all the authorities in Portugal had acknowledged
the constitution, and that the insurrection, as it was called,
was at an end. While the visitors went on board, the peo
ple assembled on the shore, and continued with music,
singing patriotic songs, till their return. It was now as
certained that the frigate had brought out officers of the
new government to replace those of Madeira and the Azo
res. It was necessary to send on board again to notify the
change that had taken place in the sentiments of the peo
ple of Madeira ; but every one was afraid to go on such an
errand, lest they and the bark which brought them should
be seized and carried off. At length Mr. Veitch, the Brit
ish consul, volunteered his service, and, under the protec
tion of the British flag, went on board, bringing with Kim
the proclamation of General Valdez, and other documents,
declaring the state of affairs on the island. In a short time
after the frigate set sail and disappeared to the south. The
enthusiasm ofthe people was so great, that 500 new recruits,
and some of them the most respectable men on the island,
enrolled themselves in a few hours that evening into a vol
unteer corps.
In the mean time an insurrection, which had been.organi-
zing itself in the north ofthe island, now broke out. Some
ecclesiastics of Porto Delgado, seduced the soldiers, of the
militia regiment of S. Vincente ; and on the 27th, about 300
men, armed with fusils, marched on S. Jorge. In two hours
a strong detachment was sent from Funchal by forced
marches, who came up with the insurgents in the mountains,
killed two, wounded ten, and made about twenty prisoners ;
and returned in three days to Funchal, bringing with them
those whom they found most culpable in exciting the insur
rection. As the bishop was known to be the prime instiga
tor, it was thought right to send him entirely from the
island. He was therefore directed first to draw up a pasto
ral letter to the people, exhorting them to observe and obey
the constitutional government ; and on the 10th he departed,
with fourteen of his disaffected clergy, for Oporto.
Two days after, the disastrous news arrived that the gen
eral officers had abandoned the forces of Oporto, and em
barked for England ; and this was confirmed by the Medina,
an English corvette, which came in thirteen days from Lis
bon ; but though it excited the strongest sensation, it only
increased their activity in preparing to meet events. An
invasion ofthe island was now naturally expected, and the

NOTICES OP BRAZIL. 53
whole line of coast was examined and quartered, from Praia
Formosa on the west, to Machico on the east ofthe capital ;
400 or 500 men daily labored ; new batteries were erected ;
old ones repaired ; and in the short space of twenty days,
120 pieces of cannon, generally of large calibre, and 26 field-
pieces, were in batteries ready to repel an invader. The
troops also showed extraordinary zeal and apparent resolu
tion ; the recruits were eager to render themselves expert
in military evolutions ; and the new corps of volunteers of
Pedro IV. as they were called, who had enrolled them
selves on the appearance of the Portuguese frigate, were
particularly distinguished for their zeal and dexterity.
In order to make up something like a naval force, they
converted two government barges into gun-boats, one of
eighteen, and the other oftwentytwo oars. In a few days
they were well equipped and manned, each carrying a can
non, and the command was given to an American ship cap
tain. One of them was afterwards pointed out to me, cov
ered with a crimson canopy, conveying to shore some of
the suite of Dom Miguel's new government. In a few
days after they were ready, they were called into service.
A corvette and two brigs appeared in the offing, and proved
to be a blockading squadron of Portuguese. The young
fleet of Madeira was appointed to watch them, as a guarda-
costa to the city. On the 31st, however, being the anni
versary ofthe Constitution, the blockading squadron disap
peared early in the morning, wilich the people of Madeira
took for a good omen.
They were now in anxious expectation of promised suc
cor from abroad. Though well disposed, the troops were
altogether inexperienced, and General Valdez had not an
officer to command them who had ever seen service. They-
hourly looked out for 3,000 men, which they requested and
expected would be sent by the ministers of Dom Pedro,
and a detachment of experienced officers to command the
insular troops. The general applied to the Brazilian con
sul at Gibraltar, to forward to him several Portuguese offi
cers there, who were in the confidence of Dom Pedro, and
other succors, by a steam-boat, such as had been sent to
Oporto : and a ship was despatched to St. Michael's, to
request that two companies of Caqadors, quartered there,
should be ordered for the defence of Madeira ; but they had
been conveyed to Terceira, and afterwards formed part of
the gallant garrison which defended that island. They
5*

oi NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
therefore remained without any succor from abroad, and
entirely dependent on their own .resources. They were
left, moreover, ignorant of the intentions of Portugal, ex
cept that they expected every day some powerful armament
would be sent to crush them. And certainly, for a small
island thus to resolve to brave the whole force ofthe mother
country, and hold out the last forlorn hope to an expiring
Constitution, which had been everywhere else utterly
stifled, was a bold and gallant resolution.
In this state of suspense and anxious determination they
continued for nearly a month, without any communication
from Lisbon ; when, on the evening ofthe 15th of August,
1828, the telegraph communicated that there appeared nine
ships of war in the offing, but at such a considerable dis
tance, that they could not ascertain to what nation they be
longed. On the next day they were in with the land, and
they were known to be a Portuguese squadron of one ship
of the line, two frigates, two corvettes, two luggers, and
two brigs. The island was now on the alert ; the hour of
trial was come, and it was to be seen quid tanto ferret pro-
missor hiatu. Every man, however, when the alarm was
sounded, was at his post, and the best disposition was every
where observable.
The wind now freshening and becoming favorable, the
squadron formed in line, and about two o'clock bore down
on the island, apparently to commence an attack, while
every preparation was made on land to repel it. At some
distance, however, and beyond the range ofthe guns ofthe
batteries, the squadron lay to, and sent forward a boat with
a flag. An officer was directed to meet the boat, and
brought back a summons from Vice-Admiral Prego, com
mander ofthe squadron, to surrender the island immediate
ly, or the town would be attacked and razed to the ground.
The messenger was dismissed with a peremptory negative,
and the threatened attack was hourly expected. Instead
of this, the squadron bore away ; and when at a great dis
tance, boats were seen boarding the Admiral, from the dif
ferent vessels, as if holding a council of war. On the fol
lowing day they continued at the same respectful distance,
cruising up and down before Funchal, while the two insular
gun-boats kept a good look out that no launch of the enemy
should approach the land. It was a misfortune that the
large gun-boats, intended as a guarda-costa to Santa Cruz
Sind Machico, required four or five days' more work to fit

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. £5
them for sea. They would have been afterwards of impor
tant service, as the fleet had no armed launches.
While the enemy thus cruised day and night before the
town, threatening different points, but doing nothing, the
English frigate Alligator, Captain Canning, arrived and
cast anchor in the road to Funchal. His coming was hail
ed with great satisfaction by the British residents. They
were naturally in a state of considerable anxiety, their per
sons and property lying, as it were, between the contend
ing parties ; but the arrival of a British ship of war at once
calmed their apprehensions, as affording them the means
of protection.
Two days after, the English packet came in, having on
board a very seasonable though trifling reinforcement. It
consisted of eight officers, who had acquired experience by
actual service, and among them a German Colonel, ofthe
name of Schawalback. These were distributed among the
troops, and commands appointed to them, as suited the exi
gency of the occasion.
After six days' cruising before the town of Funchal, the
Portuguese squadron sailed for the north of the island, and
on the morning of the 22d it had. totally disappeared, hav
ing been deterred, it was universally supposed, from at
tempting to land by the state of preparation in which the
island was found, and the spirit and determination of the
inhabitants, who now gave themselves up to unrestrained
confidence and exultation. So certain where they that
the fleet had returned home, that people went about their
ordinary business ; and several militia men, in the employ
of a merchant, were dismissed from military duty, and suf
fered to assist in loading some ships which were about to
sail with their cargoes. But at eleven o'clock the next
day the telegraph announced that the squadron was return
ing before a brisk and favorable breeze, and rapidly ap
proaching the island ; and in about an hour after, they
were apprised by signals, and the news confirmed by the
explosion of artillery, that an attack was made on the for
tress of Machico, at the east end of the island. Machico
is defended by two forts, one commanding the entrance of
the bay, and the other enfilading it ; and as this district
had been intrusted to Colonel Schawalback, aided by the
officers of experience who had arrived with him, the great
est confidence was entertained, that the forts would be ef
fectually defended ; but as the troops consisted of men im-

66 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
perfectly armed and unused to service, General Valdez
thought it expedient to proceed thither from Funchal him
self, with all his disposable force.
It was generally understood that the Portuguese had no
intention of making a serious attempt on this point ; but
that they had determined to return home and report the
island impregnable, having first made an appearance of
landing, in order to justify their statements. When they
began to cannonade the forts, however, they were instantly
abandoned by the garrisons, who were seen flying out of
them, at the other side, in the greatest terror and disorder.
As far as I could learn at Madeira, but a single shot was fired
from one of them, and that not by a soldier. A mechanic,
who had been there and left it with the military, returned to
pick up something he had forgotten and did not wish to
leave behind ; and seeing the enemy yet at a distance, he
seized a match, and having discharged one of the guns, he
again ran off and joined his companions, who took refuge
in the serras of the neighboring mountains. The enemy
seeing no opposition likely to be made, now seriously de
termined to land ; their boats were put out, and about three
o'clock in the evening they were established in the aban
doned forts. The ground between Machico and Funchal
is very difficult, and one point, called Porto Novo, which
Lt is necessary to pass, is deemed utterly impregnable.
Here then General Valdez determined to make his stand,
and compel the enemy to re-embark, after finding it impos
sible to penetrate in this direction. Three hundred men of
the militia of Funchal were immediately detached to take
post at Santa Cruz, but they had to pass along the shore,
and two ofthe enemy's frigates were now lying there with
in gun-shot, and immediately began to cannonade the de
tachment. On the first discharge they also dispersed, and
ran away to hide themselves in the serras ; and before
seven in the evening all the troops which were collected at
Canico, a central point from which they were to be detach
ed for the defence of Porto Novo and other positions, had
disbanded themselves and disappeared.
After much difficulty, however, the General collected
some detachments, and sent them, with two pieces of field
artillery, to the post of Porto Novo, confided to the care of
Colonel Schawalback, and the officers lately arrived ; and
made preparations to attack the enemy in the morning from
some advantageous point in the serras. Exhausted with

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 57
fatigue in making these dispositions, his horse died the mo
ment he dismounted, and he returned to the city to take
precautions for its security, where he arrived at five in the
morning of the 23d. He found here in the convent of St.
Francisco, the Calheta regiment of militia and the corps of
volunteers, and having made arrangements to preserve ,the
tranquillity of Funchal, he again departed for Porto Novo.
He was met on the way by his aid-de-camp, hastening to
town, who informed him, that the military chest had ac
cidentally exploded at that position, by which Colonel
Schawalback and others were severely wounded, and two
artillery men killed, and that the troops there were in the
greatest disorder. While the General hastened to remedy
this, he met Schawalback borne to the town, his head
bleeding, and nearly scalpt by the explosion. He had left
the post in the command of Major Figuero, who endeavor
ed to. sustain it ; but as the General advanced, he met the
fugitives flying against him towards the city in the greatest
disorder. Finding it now impossible to take up any other
position, without being flanked by the advancing enemy,
he withdrew all the troops towards Funchal.
The town was at this approach defended by a deep fosse,
formed by the bed ofthe Ribeirao, a river which here forms
a torrent as it runs into the sea. The banks of this were
faced with massive walls, to confine the inundation, as I
have already described, and on these, as on a parapet, he
disposed of his artillery. Captain Canning, who happened
to be in the town, was now accidentally passing, and the
General, willing to ascertain how far he might still rely on
his men, assembled them together. He harangued them
on the duty they owed their country, and the shame of fly
ing before so insignificant a force of traitors and rebels.
He then demanded some visible sign from them, and told
every man who was resolved to defend his city, to hold up
his hand. Immediately the whole seemed inspired by a
sudden enthusiasm ; all held up their hands with cheers, and
took up their posts on the banks of the river. After this
scene, Captain Canning proceeded to the Alligator, and
there found a number of officers who had fled from the shore,
and were concealing themselves in different parts of the
ship, while the wife and children of General Valdez had re-
mained behind, determined to abide the fate of her husband.
He thought it right to send these officers out of his ship, and
they proceeded to join their respective corps in the city,

58 • NOTICES OP BRAZIL.
The General having now proceeded to inspect his line of
defence, found arms piled along the banks of the river, but
no men to use them. They had retired to obtain refresh
ments, as they said, and on various other pretexts ; and it
was evident that no reliance could be placed on them. A
council of war was therefore called, and it was resolved to
surrender the place rather than hazard a bombardment, or
the excesses committed on a town taken by assault. A
manifesto was therefore drawn up, and sent round to the
different authorities for their approbation. It notified to the
enemy that it was not their intention to make further una
vailing opposition ; that the people had hitherto acted only
under the orders ofthe governor and the constituted author
ities, and were not to blame ; and that the General himself
was about to retire and recommend that the town should be
quietly surrendered. In the meantime, Major Mitchel, who
had landed but a few days before, on his way to the Cape,
and had previously known General Valdez, proceeded to
the residence of his family, and requested his wife and chil
dren to embark on board the Alligator, or some other vessel,
as a measure of personal security. She for some time re
sisted all entreaty to abandon her husband ; but being now
informed of the state of things, she suffered herself to be
conveyed, with her six children, on board the Alligator ;
and about five o'clock in the evening she was joined by the
General, and the officers who had arrived from England
but three days before, to defend the island.
Besides these, many of the principal residents and pro
prietors abandoned the place, and left all their possessions
behind them. Among them was Joao de Carvalhal, whose
rents yielded him, I was informed, an annual income of more
than 100,000 crowns, and who was distinguished on all oc
casions, for his patriotic exertions to improve the state of
the country. He was accompanied by Joao de Betancourt,
the commendador, and many other opulent relatives. The
town, when abandoned by these influential persons, was in
a state of frightful anarchy for some time, and the English
residents were in hourly apprehension of a general pillage.
Cannon, loaded with grape, had been dragged through the
streets ; and a mad fellow, in his terror and alarm, seizing
a match, discharged one of them at random among his own
friends, before the enemy appeared, which fortunately did
no other damage than shattering some walls and windows,
.and wounding one cr two persons, An English shopkeeper,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 59
ofthe name of Payne, who lived near the place, was charg
ed as the person who fired this shot ; but the worthy man
had abandoned his house in town on the morning ofthe day,
and was at the time with his wife and family in the country.
The Portuguese now advanced, and entered without the
slightest opposition, and proceeded to disarm the inhabit
ants. They, were well received by a party in the town,
whose first feeling was to fire a feu-de-joie to welcome
them. They immediately ran to the batteries, and discharg
ed the guns, without waiting to draw the balls, which went
whistling about the harbor in all directions. No lives were
lost, but several merchant ships were struck with the shot.
The succeeding day was past in arresting all who remained
on shore, who had not contrived to conceal themselves, and
four hundred of the principal inhabitants of the town had
either fled or were cast into prison, so that when we walked
through the streets, some days after, they were so solitary
and deserted, that we did not meet a human being who
seemed of the rank of a Portuguese gentleman. The
houses also of some of the Constitutionalists were assaulted
and tattered ; among others, that of an apothecary, who
sold the " Flor do Oceano." They entered his shop, and
broke all his bottles.
The Portuguese soldiers were, for some days after, very
discontented at not receiving their arrears of pay, and a
mutiny was hourly expected to plunder the town and pay
themselves ; and this, it was supposed, would certainly have
taken place, had not the consul of the United States ad
vanced to their commander the sum of three or four thou
sand pounds. The only foreigner implicated in the affair
was a person ofthe name of Watts, the American, who took
the command ofthe gun-boats. He was liberated, howev
er, and took a similar command in the Portuguese squadron.
The English, with great prudence and good fortune, kept
themselves entirely disentangled from the affair. Their ef
fects, therefore, in the reaction and confiscation which took
place, were particularly respected ; and their houses, we
saw, were all distinguished and protected by papers posted
on them, notifying that the concern was British property.
The fugitives from Madeira were fifteen days on board
the Alligator, surrounded by the Portuguese fleet, who
made frequent demands to have them surrendered, partic
ularly General Valdez. The situation of Captain Canning
was very embarrassing. He was placed between the al-

60 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ternative of seeming to interfere in concerns in which it was
his -duty -to appear perfectly neutral, and the painful neces
sity of surrendering unfortunate men, who had sought an
asylum on board his ship. He adopted the line of conduct
which he thought best became the station he held, and the
nation to which he belonged. He did not give them up,
but availed himself of the earliest opportunity to send them
away from his ship. The Jane, a merchantman, was char
tered by them for six hundred pounds to take them to Eng
land, and she hauled out to a considerable distance from
the shore. When all was ready, he sailed through the
blockading fleet, who never attempted to molest him ; and
at night his unfortunate guests, to the number of fifty, were
embarked on board the Jane, and proceeded to England.
The promptitude and secrecy with which the expedition
had been prepared in Portugal was certainly creditable to
the activity and decision of the existing government ; and
the troops, before they left the Tagus, were even exercised
in all the manoeuvres of embarking and disembarking, to
inure them and render them expert in the new service in
which they were about to engage. The forces, however,
amounted only to 1600 men, and would have been altogeth
er unequal to the attempt of taking the island, had the op
position been at all correspondent to the means of defence.
Indeed it is generally understood, and the Portuguese of
ficers, I am informed, themselves confessed, that their in
tention had been to return from so hopeless an enterprise,
after having made a demonstration of attempting to land.
They were equally astonished and pleased at the non-re
sistance they experienced. On the other hand, the troops
of Madeira were, with few exceptions, entirely raw and un
disciplined, who had never before heard a shot fired in an
ger ; and previous to the arrival of the packet, General
Valdez and his brother were the only two officers who had
ever seen service. The soldiers had, up to a certain point,
made a show of spirit and determination, and they even
talked confidently of availing themselves of the great re
sources of the island, sending forces to Portugal, and so
making it the arbiter ofthe fate ofthe mother country : but
when they were unexpectedly attacked at Machico, they
were confounded with the explosion of artillery, and seized
with a sudden panic, from which they never could recover.
General Valdez, to whom I am indebted for much of the
foregoing communication, seems to have omitted nothing

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 61
which was possible with such troops, in the painful and dif
ficult situation in which he was placed. All his countrymen
speak highly of his good and amiable character, to whichT
can add the testimony pf my limited knowledge. But they
say he wanted energy and decision in the time of need. It
is certain, however, that if the troops had done the duty ex
pected from them, either at Machico or at the impregnable
defile pf Porto Novo, the Portuguese would never have
entered Funchal ; and he would not now be, with many of
his countrymen, exiles from their homes, and suffering the
extremities of distress in a foreign country.
The brig of war, the Infant Dom Sebastao, was imme
diately despatched to Portugal with the news of the impor
tant event of the capture of the island, and illuminations
were ordered in Lisbon for tjiree days - but in the mean
time Dona Maria arrived at Gibraltar, which suspended, it
is said, the rejoicings, and the illuminations intended for
the third day were omitted. An expectation had been en
tertained that she would have proceeded to Madeira, had it
not been too late. The Brazilian frigate also, the Isabel
Maria, had sailed from Falmouth with a reinforcement of
men and officers on board. She went first, however, to
Terceira ; and when she afterwards arrived, at Madeira, the
island had been more than a month in possession of the
Portuguese.

CHAP. V.

Prayers at Sea.— Superstition of Sailors  Crane from the Canaries.— Gorgades of
Hesiod.— Maternal Affection.— Flying Fish — Singular Occurrence.— Cape Verde
Islands.— Family of Bottle-nose Porpoises.— Bonitos and Albicores.— Suffocating
Heat, and Expectation of a Storm.— Calms, and why.— Visit from Neptune.—
Unhealthy Damps.— Cross the Equator.— Ceremonies omitted, and why.— Not
known when they were first practised.— Some of the Characters emblematic-
Sun vertical, no Shadows, and rapid Descent.— Life of a Sailor on board — Pope's
Compass.— Exquisite Beauty of the Stars.— Southern Cross.— Described by
Dante, Amerigo Vespucci, and Camoens.— Luminous Sea.— Probably phospho
rescent.— Midshipman's Origin of Dog-Watch.— Cape Frio, and extraordinary
Cold.
Immediately on leaving Madeira, we fell in with a breeze,
which swept us along all night at the rate of twelve knots,
6

62 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
and in the morning we found ourselves 120 miles distant
from the island. We were in hopes that_ we had fallen in
with the north-west trade, even in this high latitude ; but
towards mid-day the wind died away. It was Sunday,
and we prepared for divine service on deck. A canopy
of ensigns was raised over it as a protection against the sun
and breeze, forming sides and a roof. Seats for the men
were ranged across, and over the grating of the hatchway
or skylight was placed a reading desk, in which the chap
lain in his gown officiated. When the congregation assem
bled and the service commenced, the whole had the solemn
appearance of a church. The ship was advancing steadily
on the calm bosom ofthe sea, scarcely disturbed by any per
ceptible motion. The rays of the sun passing through the
colored ensigns were divested of their bright glare, and
stained the deck with the subdued but vivid hues of many
colored dyes. It was the cathedral of Milton,
" With storied windows richly dight,
Casting a dim religious light."
The congregation was profoundly attentive, and the
whole service had an awfulness inseparably connected with
the vast ocean, and the feeling that we were immediately
and visibly in the presence of that God " who spread out
the heavens, and compassed the waters with bounds, until
day and night come to an end."
With the deep and salutary impressions of such rational
piety on the minds ofthe crew, I was sorry to find still con
nected those absurd and petty superstitions which formerly
rendered the character of sailors so ridiculous, and which
still linger among. them, while they are exploded from every
other class of people. I found that my messmates were firm
ly peijfcuaded ofthe ominous import of four things in a ship,
and whose occurrence they considered as inevitably con
nected with disastrous consequences : sailing from port on
a Friday ; having on board a black cat ; and taking as a
passenger either a pregnant woman or a clergyman. Having
inquired from several the cause of these antipathies to par
ticular things, so apparently inoffensive in themselves, and
unconnected with any disastrous effect, I was generally in
formed that they were known to be unlucky ; but they could
assign no reason, except for the last, and that was, that
Satan, being "the Prince of Air," had of course the direc-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 63
tion ofthe winds ; and as a clergyman is his greatest enemy,
he always visits the crew who receive him with all the in
flictions of his elementary agents — calms, contrary winds,
and storms. It will be said that these things, however ab
surd, are perfectly harmless. But, without insisting on the
injury religion sustains by mixing with it such ridiculous
and debasing notions, or inquiring into how much the ser
vice may suffer by having the straight-forward and active
duties of a sailor warped and paralyzed by an opinion that
he is restrained by some inexorable necessity which the un
lucky thing imposes on him : I must affirm that no super
stition can be harmless which brings the character and func
tions of a clergyman into disrepute, and makes him an ob
ject of suspicion and dislike to the people he is appointed
to instruct.
For the two following days the wind was variable. We
were approaching the confines between the unsettled breezes
of high latitudes and the steady current of air which always
prevails between the tropics ; the sun moreover was cross
ing the equator, and his transit was accompanied here, as
well as elsewhere, by stormy and changeable weather ; the
gales were generally from south-south-west, directly in our
teeth. On the 17th, howevdr, we fell into what we hoped a
regular trade, and proceeded steadily along in a south-west
course. We were now in the latitude ofthe Canaries, and
about 90 miles distant from the Isle of Palmas, the most west
ern, which we looked out for, and hoped soon to see on the
horizon. A large heron appeared, sailing from the direction
in which it lay, and soared and hovered several times round
the ship, as if preparing to alight on one of the yards. We
were all on the alert to seize this stranger if possible, alive,
and cage him on deck : but having accompanied us some
time, observing our motions from his airy height, he wheeled
round, and like some scout sent out to reconnoitre, he re
turned to the place from whence he came, with the result
of his observations.
If Madeira with Porto Santo were, as I think probable,
the Fortunate Isles, lying off Mauritania, the Canaries
must have been the Gorgades, or Island of the Gorgons,
who, as Hesiod and the poets said, lived beyond the ocean.
They were just known to exist, but too far to the south for
any distinct knowledge, and therefore peopled with a race
of beings of Fancy's creation — "Gorgons and hydras and
chimeras dire." Pliny says, the inhabitants were women

64 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
with rough bodies (hirta corpora), and that Hanno brought
home two of their skins, which were to be seen at Carthage
when taken by the Romans. They were first visited in modern
times by the Spaniards, according to Cordeyro, in 1393, be
fore the discovery of Madeira ; and as Pliny had called one
of his Fortunate Islands Canaria, from the multitude of dogs,
they called one of these islands by the same name, sup
posing it to be the same place. The first discoverer found
the islands not deserts, like Madeira and the Azores, but
full of inhabitants — the Grand Canary alone having 10,000
people. The women, though not Gorgons, were yet an ex
traordinary race : one of them, hearing her son was con
demned to die in a neighboring island, plunged into the
sea and swam across to deliver him ; — " Love giving to this
mother," as Cordeyro says, " better wings than fear gives
to coward men." # They are twelve in number, lying off
Cape Bajador. The Grand Canary yields the wine called
sac, a corruption of sec, dry, because produced from raisins,
so highly prized in England in the reign of Elizabeth, and
the beverage of Falstaff. I was in hopes we should have
seen Teneriffe towering to the clouds, but we stood too far
to the west, ahd could not catch a glimpse of it.
We had been for some days looking out for flying-fish,
and we now saw such vast shoals, that the surface of the
sea seemed alive with them to a considerable distance ; but
the greatest number visible was about the ship. As it ad
vanced, they rose in large flocks from under the bows, and
directed their flight from the vessel at each side, as if to
escape an object of terror. It is probable that those per
secuted little creatures supposed it to be some voracious
leviathan, and they sprung from it out ofthe water, as they
do from a bonito or albicore. We remarked that dog-fish
and others swam close along-side, without any such seem
ing sense of danger.
The flying-fish, (Exoccetus exiliens), is distinguished by:
its immense fins, situated immediately behind the gills,
which it uses as wings when it wishes to change its element.
They generally flew forty or fifty yards, when they met a
wave, and plunging into the bosom of it, disappeared. A
few rose over the crest, and apparently bathing their wings
in the spray, pursued their flight with renovated powers.
* " Dando-lhe melhores azas a esta may o amor, que o temor $
alguns covardes homes." Hist. Insulana. Cap. iii.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 65
I know no object of natural history more interesting than
a flock of stormy petterels sporting among a shoal of flying-
fish, and alternating with each other's element — the little
bird descending into the depths of the sea and becoming
an inhabitant ofthe water, the fish ascending to the heights
ofthe atmosphere and becoming an inhabitant ofthe air. It
is one of those exquisitely curious and beautiful links in the
great chain of creation, by which we suppose spiritual and
we know corporeal beings are connected ; forming a reg
ular and insensible gradation of existences, from the minis
tering angels below God's throne, to the lowest mass of
unorganized matter.
A singular occurrence took place in the evening. About
eight o'clock a boy had got into his hammock, which was
swung on the main deck, opposite a port. He was sud
denly startled from his sleep by some living thing exceed
ingly cold, fluttering about his breast, and finally nestling
in his bosom. He started out of bed in affright, and search
ing his hammock, he found a large flying-fish panting and
grasping under the clothes. It was immediately brought
to me as a curiosity, and I examined and sketched it. It
was nine inches long, blue and mottled on the back like a
mackerel, the head scaly, and the mouth toothless ; the bel
ly was white, flat, and angular ; the tail was unequal, the
lower division being longer than the upper ; the wings were
two membranaceous fins, of a triangular shape, about four
inches long, consisting of eleven strong ribs, branching off
from a point, dividing and subdividing with great regularity
as they expanded, and connected by a transparent and very
beautiful membrane, which presented a considerable surface
to the air. They were attached to the shoulders of the
fish, between the gills, at the apex of the triangle, by mus
cles uncommonly strong, and of a solidity and tenacity
very^different from the substance of the body. I ate part
ofthe fish broiled, and found it very good, exceeding a
herring in firmness and flavor. The roe, however, was
very strong, and to a ce'rtain degree pungent and caustic.
A rare and beautiful species or variety of this fish is
sometimes found in the Mediterranean, having four wings
or long fins inserted behind the gills ; the body is a bright
violet color, covered with scales, which easily come off;
the head flat and smooth, and the frontal bone so transparent
that the brain is seen through it.
The apparent motive which induces this fish to leave its
6*

66 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
proper element, is to avoid the pursuit of its numerous en
emies, which everywhere "persecute it — bonitos, albicores,
but particularly dolphins. These last we constantly saw
bounding after them, and frequently out of the water, their
bright green backs and silver bellies presenting very beauti
ful objects. When this pursuit takes place at night and
near a ship, the flying-fish', like all its finny tribe, is strong
ly attracted by light, flies towards it, perhaps for protection,
and enters any part of the vessel where it may be placed.
Lanterns are sometimes set for this purpose in the chains :
and another caught there was afterwards brought to me.
It was the light between decks, gleaming through the port
holes, that attracted the fish to the boy?s hammock, when
the little creature accidentally took refuge in the lad's bosom.
Had such an incident occurred in the days of Ovid, no
doubt he would have invented some mythological metamor
phosis to account for it, and have made a pretty tale of the
loves ofthe sailor boy and the flying-fish.
On Tuesday, September 23d, we were in sight of St.
Antonio, distant twelve leagues east-south-east. This is
the most westerly of the Cape Verde Islands, and the last
land we are likely to see till we make Cape Frio, on the
coast of Brazil. The Cape Verde Islands, by some sup
posed to be the Gorgades or Hesperides, though it is pro
bable that they were far beyond the geographical knowledge
ofthe ancients, to whom the contiguous point of Africa was
unknown, were first discovered in 1 440, by Antonio Noel,
a German, after the-Portuguese had passed Cape Bajador,
andtegan to make discoveries to the southward. They
are ten in number, lying in a semicircle off the Cape, about
three hundred miles distant. One of the isands is called
Fogo, from the circumstance of a volcano still burning there.
It is in fact one vast crater, from which smoke always, and
flame sometimes issues, which compels the inhabitants fre
quently to abandon it altogether from suffering or apprehen
sion. One of the small rocky eminences of the cluster is
called " Bonito Reef," from the great number of bonitos
found there. This peculiarity extends far to the west, for
the sea in which we now were, was full of this fish, who
were seen all day, and in all directions, in pursuit of flying-
fish. In the evening we were all on the alert, roused by a shoal
of bottle-nosed porpoises swimming along-side. Before
them was an immense flock of flying-fish, which they were

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 67
pursuing ; and they swam, to the number of twenty or thirty,
just under the bows of the vessel, which was going at the
rate of eight knots. For more than an hour they kept exact
pace with us, never advancing farther than a few yards
ahead, and generally keeping directly under the bows.
There was immediately a soulevement of the whole ship'3
company, and we rushed forward, armed with harpoons,
and all manner of weapons, and crowded forecastle, bowsprit,
and spritsail yard. It was a most singular and exhilarating
sight to view this family of sea-monsters running a race with
the ship, rolling and tumbling before it, and causing the sur
face of the sea to boil again with their plunges. They
seemed really animated with an eagerness to beat us ; and
when any were left behind, they darted forward, with ap
parent emulation, splashing along, more than half out ofthe
water, then turning their heads and eyes, and looking up
at us, with an extraordinary appearance of consciousness.
They were generally six or seven feet long, of a grey colour,
darker on the back, and their snouts terminated in a pro
boscis, like that of a sturgeon, but much more prominent,
having the appearance ofthe neck of a bottle, and thence
called by the sailors " bottle-hose."* After several attempts
with the harpoon, one was struck in the side, and darted
forward, reddening the sea with his blood. We now had
him suspended from the bowsprit, and were all on the alert
to haul him on board ; but his struggles and the weight of
his body disengaged him before we could heave him up ;
he plunged down and disappeared, and the whole family
followed him.
The next day we were all on the bowsprit again, watch
ing a shoal of bonitos and albicores, which took place of the
porpoises of yesterday. A small harpoon, with four barbed
grains, was darted at one, which penetrated his body, and
we hauled it on deck. It was like a mackerel in shape and
color, but infinitely larger; it is therefore called the great
mackerel, ( Scomber pelamis). It measured two feet long, and
one foot five inches in circumference. Its back was dark blue,
with stripes of blueish green running along the sides, and
the belly was a bright and beautiful azure, changing its
hues into a variety of prismatic shades, according to the
incidence of the light. It had two strong dorsal fins, and
• Delphinus leucas; the cachelot, or physeter macrocephalus, is
sometimes called the bottle-nose whale.

68 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
from the lowest a number of smaller ones, like triangles,
continued down to the tail, which formed a perfect crescent,
and gave the fish a very unusual appearance. Some junks
of it were stewed for dinner ; the flesh was solid and dark
brown, like the pelamis, or thunny fish of the Levant, and
the taste resembled that of a coarse mackerel. The sailors
call it " skip jack," and " St. Helena beef," where it is sold
in steaks for about eighteen pence per pound. The albi-
core (Scomber thynnus) differs only in size from the bonito ;
it is considerably larger.
On Thursday, September 25, we were in latitude 15° 2'
N., longitude 26° 2' W. distant from Brava, the last ofthe
Cape Verde Islands, eightysix miles. The thermometer
stood, in- the shade at noon, at eightysix degrees, and the
sense of heat was very oppressive. Two ships were in
sight ; the nearest was a brig, which hoisted English col
ors, and was supposed to be the Rio packet, but too dis
tant to speak to. Our course was, for the last four days?
due south on the meridian, making regularly a degree of
latitude every day. A swallow, which for some time had
followed the ship, now rested on one ofthe stays, in a state
of complete exhaustion ; it had been blown from Brava, or
some of the Cape Verde Islands.
The next day we experienced a dead calm, and a sense
of intense and suffocating heat, though the thermometer did
not rise higher than eightythree or eightyfour degrees ;
occasionally dark heavy clouds impended, and a portentous
appearance of the sky, with the barometer falling. All
these indications taught us to expect the approach of an
explosion of wind, and we prepared for it by reefing our
courses. These appearances, however, though sometimes
followed by a hurricane, and therefore demanding every
precaution to guard against its effects, are more frequently
fallacious. On this occasion they were so ; the clouds
dispersed in the night, and the sun rose clear and bright in
the morning.
The first object presented to me on going on deck, was
a man walking about with a yoke on his neck. It consisted
of a heavy circle of wood, opening behind with a hinge, and
closing before with a padlock. It was another of those
judicious and humane substitutes for punishment which
mark disapprobation without having recourse to stripes and
blows. On this occasion the man had used improper lan
guage, and called another by an opprobrious name. Such

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 69
attention to the decencies of life in a ship seemed to have an
excellent effect1; we have not heard an oath or a coarse
expression since we have been on board.
The calm and light baffling winds still continued. We
had just got within the verge of those limits were the north
east and south-east trade winds meeting cause dead air, as
two meeting currents ofthe sea cause dead water. These
limits are supposed to extend to ten degrees on each side
ofthe equator, and frequently disturb the wonderful regu
larity which marks the winds which prevail from these lati
tudes to the tropics.
On Saturday, October 4, we were within two degrees of
the equator, and every preparation was making on board
for the well-known ceremony of Neptune and his court ; and
returns were given in of all those who had not crossed the
line, in order that they might be initiated into his mysteries.
At eight o'clock in the evening, the watch were directed,
by the officer on deck, to " keep a good look-out ahead; "
for this purpose, blue lights were burnt on the bows, and
presently a boat was reported coming on board. A voice
was now heard to hail us from the sea, with, " What ship,
ahoy? " The captain immediately answered from the quar
ter deck, " His majesty's ship the Galatea." The voice
replied, " Who commands her ? " and we answered, " Sir
Charles Sullivan." " Whither bound ? " "To Rio." The
voice then announced himself with great solemnity — " I am
Neptune ; I have already had the pleasure of your compa
ny across the line ; but as I am not yet acquainted with
some of your crew, I must pay them a visit. To-morrow
will be the sabbath, and it is not my way to break this holy day ; .
but I request you will inform me when I may come on
board." " I respect your scrupulousness, Mr. Neptune, and
shall be happy to see you on Monday morning, between
one and two bells, when I shall introduce some children to
you." " Very well, Sir, very well ; I shall .be with you; "
and so Neptune departed.
The weather had for some time set in exceedingly wet,
with a dense close atmosphere, generating a heavy damp,
which saturated everything with moisture, and not a breeze
was stirring to ventilate our berths, and dissipate the col
lected humidity. The sun himself, when he did shine out,
seemed wading in mist ; his beams were sultry, but not
drying, and when his rays entered through any aperture in
the ship, they seemed like, so many fenny exhalations.

70 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
- Everything began to exhibit symptoms of this unwholesome
state ofthe atmosphere. Whatever could imbibe moisture
became speedily covered with mould ; books lying on each
other were in a few hours agglutinated together by the mu-
cor which formed between them ; our boots and shoes were
covered over with a green vegetation, and large crops of
fungi formed in every cavity. We ourselves began to feel
we were now placed sub curru nimium propinqui solis; we
were generally affected, first with a sense of lassitude, and
what physicians call anorexia, an inappetence and indiffer
ence to everything, which was succeeded by some distinct
complaint. Our young friend, however, was the greatest
sufferer ; his indisposition became so alarming as to- excite
the most serious apprehension. He had conciliated, in no
small degree, the good will of every one on board ; it was
pleasing to see the prompt alacrity with which the sailors
attended, unbidden, to his accommodation ; when he came
on deck, the man next him secured an ensign to place
under his feet, lest the damp should affect him, and by sun
dry other little kindnesses, spontaneously offered, proved
that the rude element on which they lived had not at all
impaired those kindly feelings which the sight of an inte
resting young man, wasting away in the prime of life, and
the patience and gentleness with which he endured his suf
ferings, tended not a little to excite.
Sunday, October 5, was a day of heavy rain, and pre
vented the possibility of the men assembling for divine
service in any part of the ship. This prevalence of rain
near the line has been remarked by most of the early
navigators. " And here it is to be noted," says Master
John Winter, "that after we came within four degrees of
the equinoctial, until we were as much past it, no daie did
pass without great store of raine." At noon, however, we
had a brief gleam of sunshine, and found, by observation,
that we were twentyone minutes north of the equator.
At eight in the evening we crossed this celebrated division
of the hemisphere, going at eight knots in a course west-
south-west, and cutting it at nearly the 'angle which the
ecliptic makes with it, and so following the course of the
sun, Our longitude at the time was 21° 34' W. It is
usual to cross the equator much more to the west, as being
more likely to afford an advantageous opportunity of profit
ing by the north-east trade wind, which is always found at
the other side ; but by the prevalence of a south-west windj

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 71 ,
we came considerably more to the east than we intended.
Is it possible that our approach in this way to the pestife
rous coast of Africa might have increased the insalubrity of
our atmosphere ?
The next day Neptune did not pay us his promised visit.
Our young friend continued so unwell, that by common
consent the ceremony was omitted, and all disappointment
was absorbed in our sympathy for the cause. Indeed the
riot and turbulence of this nautical saturnalia would ill
accord with sickness and suffering ; and many of us were
well pleased to escape a custom, " more honored in the
breach than the observance." The dramatis persona, who
were prepared on board our ship, were Neptune, Amphi-
trite as his wife, and their child, Triton, two bears, a bear-
keeper, and sundry officers of his court ; forming a goodly
procession of fiftyseven persons, all dressed in appropriate
costume. Neptune was to approach in his chariot drawn
by eight horses, and the novice to be brought, in custody
and blindfolded, before him. He was then to be placed
sitting over a tub of salt water, supported by a blanket,
where he was to be lathered with a composition of tar and
tallow, and shaved with an iron hoop. During this opera
tion he was to be asked sundry questions, and when he
opened his mouth to answer, the lather-brush was to be
thrust into it, the blanket then suddenly withdrawn, and he
plunged into the tub. There were 148 persons on board,
of all ranks, who were set down to undergo this pleasing
ceremony. It is not known, I believe, at what time, or from what
cause, this strange custom originated. It is not noticed in
the voyages of the early navigators, given by Hacluyt and
others, though the circumstance of passing the line is
particularly mentioned. The first person I can meet with
who alludes to the ceremony is not an Englishman. In the
reign of Louis XIV. a Frenchman of the name of Frezier
was sent to visit the Spanish colonies in South America,
and published an account of his voyage. He speaks of
the ceremony " ofthe baptism ofthe line" as a silly custom
practised by all nations, and describes the manner of it,
but without any of the tar and tallow accompaniments of
our sailors.* _
* " Le lendemain quand oh ne douta plus d'etre en partie du sud,
on ne manqua pas de faire la folle ceremonie du bateme de la ligne,
coutume en usage parmi toutes les nations. On Ue les catechumenes

72 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Among the emblematic or allegoric personages who issue
from the sea in Neptune's train, are two bears and a bear
leader : whether they have any reference or allusion to'the
circumstance ofthe descent of North Pole, and the immer
sion of Ursa Major and Minor with their guardian Arcto-
phylax beneath Horizon, and their becoming inhabitants of
the sea in this latitude, I leave jou to determine.
Tuesday, October 4, the sea was again alive with flying-
fish, in all directions, as far as the eye could reach round
the horizon. Some of them elevated themselves several
yards above the surface, and continued their flight to a great
distance. One of them, pursued by a bonito, took refuge
on board the ship, and was brought to me, panting and flut
tering like a bird. Next day our latitude, by observation,
was 6° 50', which being equal to -the sun's declination, he
was vertical to us, and, like the wizard, Michael Scot, we
had no shadows. Another circumstance, strongly illustra
tive of a passage in Rokeby, struck me this evening ; the
perpendicular descent of the sun, and the darkness which
rapidly succeeded, without the intervention of our crepuscu
lar light — " With disk like battle target red
He rushed down to his burning bed,
Dyed the wide waves with bloody light,
Then sunk at once, and all was night."
We had now entered the rapid and steady south-east-
trade wind, which 3wept us along at an unremitting course
of ten or eleven knots an hour. At noon on the 9th, we
had marked on the board, since twelve o'clock the day be
fore, 241 miles, and by observation 250 ; and for the last
four days we had passed over a surface of 850 miles. We
were now within 998 miles of Cape Frio, and congratulated
ourselves that we had at length reduced our distance to
three figures. Our latitude was increased to 10° 55' south :
par les poignets sur des penins tendus devant en arriere, sur le
galliard pour les officiers, et sur le pont pour les matelots ; et apres
plusieurs singeries et mascarades, on les detache pour les conduire
les uns apres les autres au pied du grand mat, ou on leur fait preter
un serment sur une carte, qu'ils feront aux autres comme on leur a
fait, Suivant les statutes. En suite on paie pour n'etre pas mouille,
mais toujours inutilement ; car les capitaines ne sont pas m6me tout"
a fait epargnez.'' — Frezier, Relation du Voyage de ta Met du Sud en
1712. p. 14.

NOTICES OF brazil; 73
so that we had left the sun behind us, and at noon we saw
him in the north, a phenomenon which I now for the first
time witnessed, and which was long unknown to the civil
ized world, and the circumstance deemed impossible.
As we now proceeded with a steady course, and had sel
dom occasion to unbend, furl, or alter the position of a sail,
the men enjoyed a perfect exemption from the ordinary du
ties of the ship, and did little more than amuse themselves,
in the morning by varied light avocations, and in the even
ing by music and dancing. The life of a sailor on board a
king's ship seems, under such circumstances, a happier lot
than any other class ofthe community ofthe same rank en
joys, besides the excellent provision made for all his personal
comforts in food and clothing. During the day the decks
were crowded with busy groups of persons, all engaged in
different avocations of industry, which amused and occupied
their time. After dark it was a perfect jubilee ; all disci
pline was relaxed, and every man pursued whatever harm
less amusement pleased his fancy. The main deck was a
ball-room. On one ofthe guns sat a blind fiddler, the most
popular man in the ship. Two lines of sailors formed a
lane ; and they led one another up and down in the dance
with as much zest and enjoyment as ever I saw in a ball
room. On the other side was a choir of singers, and they
filled up the intervals of the dance with their merry chants.
On the forecastle was a group of droll fellows, for whom
music and dancing were too grave. They were perfect
pickles, and indulged in all manner of fun and frolic at each
other's expense. It is surprising how habits of discipline
modify the actions of men. In the morning they resumed
their duties with the silence and regularity of clock-work,
and again in the evening all was amusement and fun.
My attention had been, since the commencement of our
voyage, directed to a compass made by Pope. The needle
was a flat bar of iron, so attached, as to be allowed to alter
its horizontal position, independent of the card. The ob
ject was to ascertain the dip ofthe needle in the nicest man
ner. When we left England the north pole was depressed
and the south elevated ; and the inclination gradually les
sened as we decreased our latitude. In passing the equa
tor, the needle nearly coincided with the plane of the card,
and at 10° 25' south it was horizontal. In advancing south,
the north pole ofthe needle became elevated, and the south
pole gradually depressed ; and this day, in latitude 15° 30',
7

74 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
it was about three degrees below the card. At Baffin's
Bay, in 76° 8', Captain Ros3 found the depression to be 86,
within four degrees of the perpendicular. These phenom
ena tend to support the opinion that the magnetic influence
resides somewhere near the poles ofthe earth and below its
surface ; hence the north pole of the needle was depressed
in the northern hemisphere, and the south pole in the south
ern ; but at or near the equator, it was horizontal, being
equally acted on by both influences.
As soon as we had passed the line, we experienced a de
lightful alteration of weather ; and the damp, hazy, sultry
heat was exchanged for a dry, bracing, elastic atmosphere,
a bright sun, a clear blue sky, and a refreshing temperature,
in which the thermometer stood at 78. The constellations
of the southern hemisphere were glittering brilliantly above
our horizon every night, and among them the southern Cross
was very conspicuous, and compensated us for the disappear
ance ofthe Bears, which were no longer afraid, as in the days
of Homer and Virgil, to bathe in the streams ofthe ocean.*
The Cross rose after midnight, and at four in the morning
I went on deck to see it. The aspect of the heavens was
singularly beautiful. In the east was Venus just risen,
with a brilliancy and lustre which she does not display in
the foggy northern hemisphere. She gave a light equal to
that of a young moon, casting a slight shadow from opaque
bodies on the deck, and rendering objects very distinct,
both at sea and on board. It was the alma lux nautis afful-
gens ; and surely nothing could be conceived more bland
and bounteous than the light of that lovely star. Orion
was in the zenith, glittering with his belt and other appen
dages, and so bright with so many smaller stars about him,
all now vivid and distinct, that he was hardly to be recog
nized. Among the new objects presented, were the nebu
lae Magellanicae, or Magellan's clouds, two patches of
lighter matter than the dark blue sky, and which seemed to
be fragments broken from the milky-way, and floated to
this spot ; a third appeared more distant towards the pole.
They were fixed, like the constellations, on the starry
vault, and with them revolved round its axle. In the
south was a vast cluster of brilliant stars, many of them of
the first magnitude, figuring the Ship and other constel-
* " Arctos oceani metuente s equore tingi." —
Virgil, Georg. Lib. I. 1. 246.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 75
lations, and among these, and well defined, was a bril
liant Cross formed of four stars — the sacred Cynosure of
the southern hemisphere. The stars which mark the
top and bottom have the same right ascension, and
therefore the figure of the Cross is perpendicular when
on the meridian, as I often saw it afterwards. In this
position it is watched in South America, and they ascer
tain that it is past midnight when the Cross begins to
decline. This constellation was among the first noted
aud named in the southern sky. Amerigo Vespucci saw
it ; Camoens speaks of it as a new star, seen by them
and no other people ; and Dante is more explicit. The
following passage describes the aspect of the starry heav
ens, as I then saw them, so accurately, that it seems to
have been written from actual observation in the same
place :
" The radiant planet that to love invites
Made all tlie orient laugh, and veiled beneath
Tbe Pisces' light, that in her escort came.
To the right hand I turned, and fixed my mind
On th' other pole attentive, where I saw
Four stars, ne'er seen before, save by the ken
Of our first parents. Heaven of their light
Seemed joyous. — Oh, thou nordiern site, bereft
Indeed and widowed, since of them deprived ! " *
* Io notai quattro stelle, figurate como una mandola. — Letter ofAmer.
Vesp. to L. de Medici.
" No novo hemispherio, nova estrella,
Nao vista de outra gente. "— Cameons, Canto V.
" Lo bei pianeta, ch' ad amor conforta,
Faceva tutto rider l'oriente,
Velando i Pesci, ch' erano in sua scorta.
I' mi volsi a man destra, e posi mente
All' altro polo, e vidi quattro stelle,
Non viste mai, fuor ch' alia prima gente :
Goder pareva '1 ciel di lor fiammelle.
O settentrional vedovo sito,
Poiche private se' di mirar quelle ! "
Dante, Purg. Canto I.
Some commentators suppose that tlie four stars mean, metaphorically, tbe car
dinal virtues ; but others, and particularly Porterelli, say, they are " le quat
tro bellissime stelle che formano una croce ; " and to account for Dante's
knowledge of them they affirm, that Marco Paulo, who returned from his trav
els in 1295, the year before Dante published his Divina Commedia, and lived
at Venice when Dante dwelt at Verona, had communicated, to him his observa
tions on the stars of the southern hemisphere. It is remarkable, that when
Amerigo Vespucci saw the four stars, he supposed also they must have been
• those alluded to by the poet. And indeed it is impossible that any one who
viewed the starry heavens in this latitude, with the above passage on his mind,
could imagine it was -written by any person who bad not himself, or who had
not heard them described by others who had, seen them.

76 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Nor was the sea below much less brilliant than the sky
above. The waves came charged with phosphorescent
light, and as they broke against the sides of the ship, they
opened into chasms of fire, so that she seemed to move in
a surface of flame, leaving a long train in the burning wake
behind her. The cause of this beautiful phenomenon,
which I have observed in every part of the world which
I have visited, is generally attributed to one of the many
species of lampyris, or other luminous insects, abounding
in the water ; but I examined with a microscope the water
here and in other places, and I never could detect any liv
ing thing luminous in itself, though the luminous matter
often attached itself to fishes, which seemed to move sur
rounded by an atmosphere of light. I should rather incline
to the opinion of those who attribute it to phosphorus dif
fused through the water, which, as soon as a new surface
is exposed and it comes in contact with the air, combines
with the oxygen ofthe atmosphere, and burns with a slow
and luminous combustion. Of all animal substances, pu
trid fish most abounds with this property. In the cabins
ofthe poor, where whiting or haddock are hung up to dry,
the light is sometimes sufficient for domestic purposes with
out a candle ; and Smollet has availed himself of this cir
cumstance in one of his novels. The water in which fish
is washed becomes frequently luminous from this cause,
and putrid spawn sometimes yields the light in great
abundance. M. Bomaire was bathing in the harbor of
Cette, in Languedoc, with a friend, on a very hot day, and
they both appeared covered with fire at every immersion,
and laying his wet hand on the dry arm of his companion,
who had not dipped himself, the exact marks of his palm
and fingers were seen in characters of fire. A circumstance
of a similar nature occurred to myself. I was crossing the
very inconvenient Menai ferry, in North Wales, with some
ladies, before the bridge was built. The night was very dark,
and the Welshmen would not allow us a light, though we had
a long way to walk through slime and sea-weed from the
boat ; but the water, when disturbed by the oars, was so
luminous that it lighted us across ; and when we landed on
the weeds,, our feet left behind us tracks of fire sufficient to
point out the way to those who followed. I examined the
weed, and found on it abundance of putrid slime, which, on
being disturbed, yielded phosphorescent light. It is not

NOTICES' OF BRAZIL. 77
easy to conceive how agitation of water should be always
necessary, if the light was produced from any other cause.
I was this day invited to dine with my young friends Ihe
midshipmen. They were divided into two messes, the lar
board and starboard. These were little recesses boarded
off on each side the mainmast, lighted by bulls'-eyes, but
so faintly that it was necessary to have candles at mid-day.
It was so intensely hot, that we were all obliged to strip,
and dine in our trousers and shirts. Our dinner consisted
of roast beef, in the midst of the Atlantic, salt fish, and po
tatoes, and our drink was grog, of which each person was
allowed half a pint, or two glasses of rum to make it. My
young friends were very temperate, and most of them
drank nothing but water. Notwithstanding their rude and
primitive accommodation, which I suppose was the same as
existed unaltered in the navy for a century, their manners
and habits were not stationary, but, very runlike the rough
and uncouth animals depicted by Cong'reve and Smollet,
they were courteous, gentleman-like, and intelligent, inti
mating that the schoolmaster was abroad, on sea as well as
on shore, and I derived no less information than amuse
ment from their conversation. In explaining the division
of time on board, they informed me that one watch was di
vided into two, in order to make an odd number, that the
same watch might not fall to the same persons every day,
and that the two short watches were called dog-watches.
On inquiring into the reason of this odd appellation, one
said dog was a corruption of dock, because the watch was
cut short ; but another remarked that it was more probably
named dog-watch because the time was cur-tailed.
In the evening they were called up, and exercised at
furling and unbending the sails. One of them lost his feet,
and it was with infinite anxiety I saw my young friend
hanging pendant by his hands alone, from the mizen-top
gallant yard, in the imminent hazard every moment of being
dashed to pieces on deck. He, however, at last recovered
himself, and completed his task with great dexterity and
despatch. Intelligent minds, and gentlemanly manners,
are not at all incompatible with the rougher duties, and
those only are fit to command who themselves have gone
through and learned them.
On the 15th of October, our approach to land was inti
mated by the color of the sea, which changed from dark
blue to light green ; and at twelve o'clock, Cape Frio burst
7*

78 • NOTICES OF BRAZIX.
upon our view. This bold headland was particularly inte
resting to us ; not only because it was land, after so long a
sojourn on tbe expanse of waters, but because it presented
to us the first view ofthe new world, and the vast continent
of America. It appeared as a high flat mountain, capped
with a grey-colored mist, having others higher, seen in
distinctly behind it, and a chain of hillocks running at each
side from it.. Everything contributed to make an approach
to this promontory delightful, which stood out as it were to
invite us. The temperature of the air was delicious — the
thermometer, in the morning, standing at 72°' and at noon
at 73° ; and our progress was rapid, having made 210 miles
since noon the day before. From hence to the harbor of
Bio, the distance was sixty miles ; and our course was par
allel to, and not far from the shore. The coast was very
bold, high, and varied ; consisting of hills and headlands,
clothed with wood to their summits, and divided by deep
and romantic glens. At the base were strands of snow-
white sand, on which the sea beat with a very high surf.
Several ofthe hills were conical, but of a rude and rugged
outline ; and one of them was called the false sugar-loaf,
to distinguish it from the true and more perfect cone which
marks the entrance into Rio harbor.
Just as we passed Cape Frio, a strong breeze set in from
the *sea, which swept us along at the rate of thirteen knots,
so that we made, from two p. m. to six, fiftythree miles in
four hours. During the continuance of this breeze, the ther
mometer fell to 61°, and the sense of cold from the sudden
transition of temperature was quite painful. After bearing
it for some time, shivering on deck, it became intolerable,
and we all went below, put on our warm clothing and dread-
naughfs, and again appeared with thick woollen jackets and
trousers, as if we were entering Baffin's Bay, and not a
harbor under one of the tropics. This sudden change of
temperature in this place is very usual ; and some persons
at Rio afterwards informed me they had experienced and
remarked it. The name, in Portuguese, implies the Cold
Cape, and no doubt it was given to it by the early naviga
tors from a similar, experience.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 79

CHAP. VI.
Stfgar Loaf. — Lord Hood's Face, and Physiognomy cf Rocks. — Singular Beauty of
tho Harbor of Rio. — Villegagnon. — Repercussion of Sound from tho Hills round tha
Bay. — Land at Palace-Square. — Improssion ofSlavo Population. — First Impressions
corrected. — Negroes as Soldiers ; as Citizens ; as Priests. — Irresistible Conclusion.
— British Merchants. — Barred-up Windows removed by a Decree. — Rua and Tra-
vessa. — Campo de Santa Anna. — Streets blocked up by Hills, — Pleasant Resi
dence on the Sea-Shore.
•At six we passed the islands of Pay and May, father and
mother, and soon after were abreast ofthe Pao d'Assucar,
the real Sugar-loaf. This very remarkable hill is perfectly
conical, from a certain height, with sides so steep, and sur
face so smooth, that it was considered impossible to ascend
to its summit ; the perilous adventure, however, was
attempted, and with success. The vast cone is very
important as a land mark, as it forms one side of the en
trance of the harbor of Rio ; and from its very singular and
perfect shape, cannot be mistaken for another. We were
now all prepared to enter the harbor, the mouth of which
lay open before us, inviting an approach. We were ad
vancing with a steady breeze ; but just as we were about to
enter, the wind suddenly died away, and the tide began to
ebb, so we were obliged to drop anchor. The cold ceased
with the breeze, and we began to feel the influence of the
coast : the stars were no longer glittering in the clear sky,
but a hazy mist hung over us, rendering them, and every
other object, dim and indistinct.
Nothing could exceed the beauty of the place in which
we lay next morning, when light rendered objects distinct.
On our left was a range of fantastic hills, receding behind
each other ; those in front rising into cones, and terminated
by the great Sugar-loaf. The hills behind, which marked
the horizon, presented a rough profile of a human counte
nance turned up, having a hooked nose and chin, and there
fore called by the English, Lord Hood's face, which it is
said to resemble, as much as the perpendicular section of
Arthur's Seat, near Edinburgh, does that of Lord Nelson.
As the attention of people is directed to craniology and
physiognomy, they extract scientific subjects from rocks
and mountains. Lord Hood's head is seen at Rio, Lord
Nelson's at Edinburgh, and Dr. Johnson's on the granite

80 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
rocks of Cornwall, at the Lands-end. The hills were gene
rally clothed with wood to their summit ; the broad leaf of
the banana, and the feathery foliage ofthe palms crowning
their tops, gave them to us a new and singular tropical char
acter. About twelve, the sea breeze sprung up, and we entered
the most magnificent harbor in the world. We steered
between \he Ilha da Lage and the point of Santa Cruz,
through a passage about five thousand feet wide ; and as
there are strong fortresses on the island and the point, the
entrance seems completely closed against a hostile force.
Having passed these points, the bay expanded, forming an
immense basin, surrounded by romantic wooded hills ;
some advancing a considerable way into the harbor, others
retiring, and leaving between them deep recesses and glens,
which were filled with villas. On our left was the town of
Rio, standing between several lofty eminences ; not, like
Rome and Constantinople, ascending over them, but the
streets winding their way in the valleys below, and church
es and convents only crowning the hills above. In the bay
were multitudes of ships of all nations, both of war and com
merce ; not crowded together, as in our contracted rivers,
but spread over the wide expanse of waters, and dotting the
surface in all directions. In the distance were' the Organ
mountains, forming a singular back-ground to this picture.
These are a range of granite pikes, bristling up along
the horizon, and piercing the clouds with their long sharp
summits, projected on the sky like organ-pipes in a vast
cathedral, and hence deriving their extraordinary appella
tion. I had heard much of the beauty of this harbor, but
the reality far exceeded my conceptions. It could hardly
be compared with Constantinople, the character of both
was so different ; but certainly in grandeur, extent, and ro
mantic scenery, it far exceeded it. It looked like what it
is likely to be, the great basin of a magnificent country,
which nature intended should hereafter become the empori
um ofthe world.
Among the objects of great interest that struck me, as
connected with historical detail, was a fort on a small island
lying between us and the town, called Villegagnon, a name
recalling to our recollection the important fact, that the
first colonists of this magnificent part of the new world were
Protestants ; and, had the man who bore it been worthy of
his trust, it would now have been peopled by a race of men

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 81
who would long since have distinguished it by the industry,
activity, and enterprise generally supposed to be connected
with the progress of the Reformation. Had this attempt
succeeded, and a reformed population been then established
in the country, "with all that spring and energy of exertion
that has distinguished it in Europe and North America, in
stead of this magnificent country and its splendid harbor
being sealed up, by intolerant laws and jealous precautions,
from all the world for two hundred and fifty years, it would
now be, what it will hereafter become, the great receptacle
for the wealth and industry of all nations. We have seen
what it has done with its available advantages in a few
years ; what will it not do in revolving centuries ?
We were surrounded at our anchorage by ships of war of
different nations. The French squadron consisted of a
ship ofthe line, two frigates, and three schooners, and oth
er nations in proportion. The English was reduced to two
frigates, the Thetis and Tribune ; the Admiral was out on
a crui&e to Bahia. We hoisted the Brazilian flag at the
mast-head, and saluted the batteries, and an exchange of
salutes took place between us and all the ships of war.
The echo caused by these guns was very remarkable by
the repercussion from hill to hill round the bay. After the
first loud explosion, the return of the sound to the ear was
quick, short, and sharp, in different directions, so that every
discharge of cannon was followed by several distinct mi
nor reports, like a succession of pistol shots at a distance.
Captain Wilson, ofthe Tribune, dined with us, and I inquired
from him, whether there had been any remarkable change
of temperature at Rio the day before. I lefirned that the
weather had continued uniform, and remarkably hot all day,
so that the very cold current of air we had experienced
was confined to' the vicinity of Cape Frio. In a country
where no snow, or other frigorific surface, exists to cool it in
passing, it is not easy to say how it is generated in that par
ticular spot.
The bay next morning presented to us a very busy scene.
The surface was a moving panorama of boats ofall kinds,
passing from one side ofthe water to the other. They were
generally manned by negroes, whose only covering was a
pair of drawers, and an old straw hat. The boats were
large, with a canopy astern, to shade passengers from the
sun, and they were impelled by four long oars, rowed by the
black crew. I took a boat with some ofthe officers of the

82 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ship, impatient to set my foot, for the first time, on the shores
of South America. We landed in front ofthe palace, on
a slip of hewn granite flags, and ascended to a quayprotect-
ed by. a parapet of the same material. I afterwards found
that the town was surrounded by cliffs of this rock ; and
among the many natural advantages of "the place, were
quarries, in all quarters, of the finest and purest building
stone in the world. We passed the Largo do Pa§o, or Pal
ace Square, and proceeded up the Rua Direita, the largest
street in the whole town, and the centre of commerce. It
lies parallel to the bay, and from it all the others run at
right angles. Here is the Alfandega, or custom house, and
here, for the first time, I saw the negro population under
circumstances so striking to a stranger.
The whole labor of bearing and moving burdens is per
formed by these people, and the state in which they appear
is revolting to humanity. Here was a number of beings
entirely naked, with the exception of a covering of dirty rags
tied about their waists. Their skins, from constant expo
sure to the weather, had become hard, crusty, and seamed,
resembling the coarse black covering of some beast, or like
that of an elephant, a -wrinkled hide scattered with scanty
hairs. On contemplating their persons, you saw them with
a physical organization, resembling beings of a grade below
the rank of man ; long projecting heels, the gastronimic
muscle wanting, and no calves to their legs ; their mouths-
and^chins protruded, their noses flat, their foreheads retiring,
having exactly the head and legs ofthe baboon tribe. Some
of these beings were yoked to drays, on which they dragged
heavy burdens. Some were chained by the necks and legs,
and moved with loads thus encumbered. Some followed
each other in ranks, with heavy weights on their heads,
chattering the most inarticulate and dismal cadence as they
moved along. Some were munching young sugar-canes like
beasts of burden eating green provender, and some were
seen near, the water, lying on the bare ground among filth
and offal, coiled up like dogs, and seeming to expect or re
quire no more comfort or accommodation, exhibiting a state
and conformation so.unhuman, that they not only seemed,
but actually were, far below the inferior animals around
them. Horses and mules were not employed in this way ;
they were used only for pleasure, and. not labor. They
were seen in the same streets, pampered, spirited, and rich
ly caparisoned, enjoying a state far superior to the negroes,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 83
and appearing to look down on the fettered and burdened
wretches they were passing as on beings of an inferior rank
in the creation to themselves. Some of the negroes actually
seemed to envy the caparisons of their fellow brutes, and
eyed with, jealousy their glittering harness. In imitation
of this finery, they were fond of thrums of many-colored
threads ; and I saw one creature,- who supported the squa
lid rag that wrapped his waist by a suspender of gaudy
worsted, which he turned every moment to look at, on his
naked shoulder. The greater number, however, were as
unconscious of any covering for use or ornament, as a pig
or an ass.
The first impression of all this on my mind, was to shake
the conviction I had always felt, of the wrong and hardship
inflicted on our black fellow-creatures, and that they were
only in that state which God and nature had assigned them ;
that they were the lowest grade of human existence, and the
link that connected it with the brute, and that the gradation
,Was so insensible, and their natures so intermingled, that it
was impossible to tell where one had terminated and the
other commenced ; and that it was not surprising that peo
ple who contemplated them every day, so formed, so em
ployed, and so degraded, should forget their claims to that
rank in the scale of beings in which modern philanthropists
are so anxious to place them. I did not at the moment my
self recollect, that the white man, made a slave on the coast
of Africa, suffers not only a similar mental but physical
| deterioration from hardships and emaciation, and becomes
j in time the dull and deformed beast I now saw yoked to a
burden. A few hours only were necessary to correct my first im
pressions of the negro population, by seeing them under a
different aspect. We were attracted by the sound of milita
ry music, and found it proceeded from a regiment drawn up
in one ofthe streets. Their colonel had just died, and they
attended to form a procession to celebrate his obsequies.
They were all of different shades of black, but the majority
were negroes. Their equipment was excellent ; they wore
dark jackets, white pantaloons, and black leather caps and
belts, all which, with their arms, were in high order. Their
band produced sweet and agreeable music, of the leader's
own composition, and the men went through some evolu
tions with regularity and dexterity. They were only a
militia regiment, yet were as well appointed and disciplined

84 NOTICES OF- BRAZIL.
as one of our regiments of the line. Here then was the
first step in that gradation by which the black popujation of
this country ascend in the scale of humanity ; he advances
from the state below that of a beast of burden into a military
rank, and he shows himself as capable of discipline and im
provement as a human being of any other color.
Our attention was next attracted by negro men and
women bearing about a variety of articles for sale ; some
in baskets, some on boards and cases carried on their heads.
They belonged to a class of small shopkeepers, many of
whom vend their wares at home, but the greater number
send them about in this way, as in itinerant shops. A few
of these people were still in a state of bondage, and brought
a certain sum every evening to their owners, as the produce
of their daily labor. But a large proportion, I was in
formed, were free, and exercised this little calling on their
own account. They were all very neat and clean in their
persons, and had a decorum and sense of respectability about
them, superior to whites ofthe same class and calling. All
their articles were good in their kind, and neatly kept, and
they sold them with simplicity and confidence, neither
wishing to take -advantage of others, nor suspecting that it
would be taken of themselves. I bought some confectionary
from one ofthe females, and I was struck with the modesty
and propriety of her manner ; she was a young mother, and
had with her a neatly dressed child, of which she seemed
very fond. I gave it a little comfit, and it turned up its
dusky countenance to her and then to me, taking my sweet
meat and at the same time kissing my hand. As yet un
acquainted with ihe coin ofthe country, I had none that was
current about me, and was leaving the articles ; but the poor
young woman pressed them on me with a ready confidence,
repeating in broken Portuguese, outo tempo. I am sorry to
say, the -" other time " never came, for I could not recog
nize her person afterwards to discharge her little debt,
though I went to the same place for the purpose.
It soon began to grow dark, and I was attracted by a
number of persons bearing large lighted wax tapers, like
torches, gathering before a house. As I passed by, one
was put into my hand by a man who seemed in some au
thority, and I was requested to fall into a procession that was •
forming. It was the preparation for a funeral, and on such
occasions, I learned that they always request the attend
ance of a passing stranger, and feel hurt if they are re-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 85
fused. I joined the party, and proceeded with them to a
neighboring church. When we entered we ranged our
selves on each side of a platform which stood near the
choir, on which was laid an open coffin, covered with pink
silk and gold borders. The funeral service was chanted by
a choir of priests, one of whom was a negro, a large comely
man, whose jet black visage formen a strong and striking
contrast to his white vestments. He seemed to perform
his part with a decorum and sense of solemnity, which I did
not observe in his brethren. After scattering flowers on
the coffin, and fumigating it with incense, they retired, the
procession dispersed, and we returned on board.
I had been but a few hours on shore, for the first time,
and I saw an African negro under four aspects of society;
and it appeared to me, that in every one his character de-
pended-on the state in which he was placed, and the esti
mation in which he was held. As a despised slave, he was
far lower than other animals of burthen that surrounded
him ; more miserable in his look, more revolting in his
nakedness, more distorted in his person, and apparently more
deficient in intellect than the horses and mules that passed
him by. Advanced to the grade of a soldier, he was clean
and neat in his person, amenable to discipline, expert
at his exercises, and showed the port and being of a white
man similarly placed. As a citizen, he was remarkable
for the respectability of his appearance, and the decorum
of his manners in the rank assigned him ; and as a priest,
standing in the house of God, appointed to instruct society on
their most important interests, and in a grade in which moral
and intellectual fitness is required, and a certain degree of
superiority is expected, he seemed even more devout in his
impressions, and more correct in his manners, than his
white associates. I came, therefore, to the irresistible
conclusion in my mind, that color was an accident affect
ing the surface of aman, and having no more to do with his
qualities than his clothes — that God had equally created an
African in the image of his person, and equally given him
an immortal soul ; and that an European had no pretext but
his "own cupidity, for impiously thrusting his fellow-man
from that rank in the creation which the Almighty had as
signed him, and degrading him below the lot of the brute
beasts that perish.
The next day I visited Mr. Price, an intelligent English
merchant to whom I had letters. He lived in the Rua dos
8

86 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Pescadores, or Fisherman's street, because it was original
ly inhabited by some of this class when the sea came up to
their doors'. His house was large and massive, built of hewn
stone ; and as it was a representative of all the houses of
the British merchants, I will briefly describe it. Below
was a large shop, or store, filled with all kinds of goods :
between it and the mani wall, was a long narrow entry to a
flight of stone stairs, which led to the second floor, in which
was a large apartment, half of it appropriated to the purposes
of an office, and the ether half filled with boots, saddles, hats,
and other articles of English manufacture. He invited me
to dine with him at two o'clock, and on my return at that
hour, I found all the streets deserted, the houses closed up,
and the whole town in this commercial part, like a city of
the dead — as silent and solitary at mid-day as at mid-night.
All the inhabitants were at their dinner, or taking their
siesta ; and during that time all business is suspended :
every place below was shut up, so I made my way to the
top of the house. Here I found Mr. Price and his fami
ly assembled. I returned with my host to his apartment,
and dressed for dinner, by taking off my coat, and putting
on a calico jacket ; and this preparatory luxury is part of
the entertainment a Brazilian host always provides for his
guests as regular as napkins.
In the evening I proceeded along the Rua dos Pesca
dores, to where it terminated in a large open square, called
the Campo de St. Anna. The shops were again opened,
and filled with all kinds of European merchandize, particu
larly Manchester shawls, handkerchiefs, cottons and calicoes
of the most showy color, broadcloths, silks, hats, boots,
shoes, and stockings, all hung out in front of the houses,
and covering the doors and windows with their rich drapery.
These things were sent out in such profusion, , arid the
market was so overstocked, that they were selling in the
Rua dos Pescadores for less money than in Cheapside.
Having passed the shops, I arrived at that part ofthe
street towards the country, where no. business was carried
on. The solitude and seclusion of the houses were strik
ingly contrasted. The windows were barred up like those
ofthe Turks, with lattices of close cross-barred laths, which
scarcely admitted the light, and through which it was impos
sible to see or to be seen. These were suspended from above
by a hinge, and opened from below, and when any ofthe in
mates wish to look out, they thrust their heads against them,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 87
and push them forward. In almost every house as I went
along I saw some woman's forehead pressed on this blind ;
and in the opening was a black, brown, or sallow visage,
with dark eyes, gleaming obliquely through the aperture,
one up and the other down the street. On the arrival of
the court, the windows of all the houses of the town were
hung with these gelosias, projecting into the narrow streets
when opened, and intercepting the passage ; but an edict
was then published, that as Rio was elevated to a high des
tiny, it should show its sense of it, by abolishing all its
gothic customs, and assimilating itself to the improvements
of Europe : that those barred up windows were as unwhole
some, as they were barbarous and unseemly, by interrupt
ing the free current of air : that, therefore, within six
months, they should all be removed, except from clay-built
houses'. This edict had the desired effect, and they have
now disappeared, except from the low edifices of this de
scription, in the remote streets.
The aspect of the streets was extraordinary ; they were
narrow, and crossed one another at right angles, and were
called Rua and Travessa. The Rua commenced on the
shore ofthe bay, and ran in a right line till it terminated in a
large open space inland. The Travessa, or cross street, was
closed up by two ranges of hills, so that when I stood at the
angle of crossing, and looked both ways, I saw at the ex
tremities of one, the sea and the country ; and at the ex
tremities of the other, the abrupt face of two steep rocks.
If the defile in which this most opulent and populous, as
well as largest portion ofthe town is crammed, lay in the di
rection ofthe bay, it would be ventilated continually by. al
ternate currents of air, caused by the regular land and sea
breezes ; but unfortunately it lies across it, and every breath
of passing wind is interrupted by the two ridges of hills that
cut their course.
On emerging from this suffocating gorge, I found myself
in an open plain, into which all the streets leading from the
sea debouche ; and I perceived that the land views of this
magnificent country were equal to those ofthe coast. The
plain was nearly surrounded by a vast amphitheatre of
mountains ; their bases were sloping lawns of the richest
verdure, terminated by belts of forest trees of immense
growth and variety, from which issued their summits, rug
ged and shaped in all varieties of form ; some ridged, some
peaked, and some abruptly bent. One of these latter is

88 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
called, from its very extraordinary and fantastic shape, the
Corcovado, or broken back ; an appellation which it well
deserves. On advancing into this plain, I found it was en
closed with houses, so as to form an enormous quadrangle,
among which was the senate-house, the museum, the camera,
or town-hall, and other public buildings. It is, therefore,
secured from further encroachment, and reserves to the capi
tal of Brazil the boast of possessing perhaps the largest
square in the world. It had been called the Campo de St. An
na, but its name was changed to the Campo d'Acclama§ao,
and it is sacred to the Brazilians, as some of the most impor
tant events of their revolution were transacted upon it.
The first impressions of the town of Rio were very favor
able. The streets, though narrow, were well paved, and
generally lined at each side by flagged trottoirs, as wide as
the space would admit. The houses were massive, built of
granite, with the windows and doors cased with hewn
blocks of this stone, which the quarries at the end of every
street supply in abundance, of the finest quality. It is
among the happy immunities of the country, that it is not
liable to the accidents which occur in a similar latitude on
the other side ofthe continent. Earthquakes are unknown,
and no danger is ever apprehended from the prostration of
heavy or lofty buildings. The houses are neat, kept in
good order. The streets are clean, and there are no offals
or offensive smells intruded on the senses ofthe passengers.
The house taken for our residence was entirely at the end
of the city, and at a considerable distance. The passing
from one place to another in Rio, is not in a direct line;
mountains literally intervene between one street and ano
ther ; and, as you cannot climb over their summits, you
must wind round their bases. A range of these hills ap
proaches so close to the sea, as to leave only a narrow way
between them and the water. Beyond is another open space
of level ground, somewhat similar to that which I have de
scribed, and called Catete, on which a new town has been
built. A street, with houses on one side, and open to the
sea on the other, connects them both ; and in this wis
our residence. The house belonged to a gentleman who
had been an officer in the British navy, but had ohanged
the service ; and from the rank of lieutenant, was promoted
to that of commodore in the Brazilian service. His house
corresponded with his station, and was fit for the residence
of an Ambassador in Brazil. Indeed, had it been worse, it

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 89
would not have been easy to procure a better. It stood at
the base of a rock, which overhung it with its pendent vege
tation : before it was the sea, immediately under the win
dows, where the waves continually rolled on a bed of fine
white sand, forming a little bay, terminated by the beautiful
promontory of Gloria, its summit crowned with its ornament
al church, and its sides dotted with villas. Opposite were
the romantic highlands, which formed the east side of the
bay, projecting and retiring, with their forest-covered sides,
clothed in eternaLverdure ; sometimes smiling in the sun, and
sometimes veiled in dense mists, which displayed an infinite
variety of light and shade, as they rolled over them. The ex
panse of water between, was an ever-moving surface of ships,
entering or leaving the harbor, with the morning and evening
winds. In this spot, ventilated by the wholesome breezes,
animated by the lovely scenery, we were in hopes our young
friend would soon be restored to health.
Having now ample leisure and opportunities for inquiry,
I made myself acquainted with the particulars of many
events, of which I had, in Europe, but indistinct or incor
rect information. It may be satisfactory, therefore, to give
you a brief detail of the principal circumstances which oc
curred in this place since its discovery, up to the time of our
arrival ; particularly of those which took place from the emi
gration of the court of Portugal, comprehending the transition
of the country to independence, and the formation of its
present constitution.

CHAP. VII.
Discovery of the Country by Cabral. — Name changed from Santa Cruz to Brazil,
why, — Harbor, why called Rio. — Colony of French Hugonots., the First Europe -
' an Inhabitants. — Expellod by the Portuguese. — First City built outside the Har
bor. — Called S. Sebastiao, why. — Present Site veiy unpromising in its primitive
State. — Ecclesiastics avail themselves ofthe best Situations. — Second Invasion of
the French.— Third under Du Guay Trouim. — Rio made the Capital of Brazil. —
Idea of removing the Sea' of Government from Portugal entertained by Pombal. —
Revived and carried into Effect. — First Impression ofthe News on the Brazil
ians.
The discovery of Brazil was an accident. In 1499, Vas
co de Gama returned to Europe with the certainty of
8*

90 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
having found out the long sought for navigation to India ;
and Emanuel, king of Portugal, in the following year des
patched an armada of ten caravels, and three ships, carry
ing twelve hundred persons, under the command of Pedral-
vez Cabral, to form a treaty of commerce with the king of
Callicut. The squadron, in order to avoid the calms ofthe
coast of Africa, stood a considerable way to the west, and,
at the end of April, being in seventeen degrees of south
latitude, he was astonished at seeing certain plants floating,
which he considered as indications of land ; on the next
day, towards evening, he observed a large mountain, with
other smaller ones, on the horizon, and, as it was on the
octave of Easter, he called the highland the Pascal moun
tain. On the 3d of May he landed at Porto Seguro, the
day dedicated to the holy cross ; and having erected one
on shore, and said mass under it, he called the country for
that reason, " Terra Nova da Vera Cruz," or the New
Land of the Holy Cross, and this was the name by which
only it was known to Camoens*
The country was found to produce, in great abundance
in the forests, a tree long known in Europe as a valuable
dye, whose wood resembled fire, and was thence called
Pao Brases. The first cargo of this wood was sent to Eu
rope from Pernambuco, or, as it was then called, Fernam-
buco, by Dias Solis, in 1515. It was generally sought for
from that time as an article of commerce, and was sometimes
known by the name of Fernambuc, from the district of Brazil
from whence it was brought. In process of time, the wood
gave its name to the country that produced it, and the ap
pellation of Vera Cruz was insensibly lost in that of Brazes
or Brazil. , " The unworthy traffic," as the Jesuits call it,
of this name, was pathetically lamented by them ; " that the
cupidity of man should change the wood of the cross, red
with the real blood of Christ, for that of another wood which
resembled it only in color." "f*
*  "co o pso vermelho nota,
Da Sancta Cruz o nome Ihe pore's."
¦ Cam. Cant. X. v. 140.
' " O terceiro norne foi o de Brazil, em que fez troca a. cobicja de
quelles, que depois vierao ao tratto do pao q'agora ohamao deste nome.
Nao sem algum abatimento do primeiro,substituendoze aq'lle Madeiro,
¦vermelho come sangue do Christo et progo da nossa Redempgao,
outro Madeiro que so tem de sangue o cor. Com f ezao se queixa desta
mudacao o historiador Portuguez." — Chron. da Compan. deJesu.: do
estad do Brazil, p. 133.

NOTICES OP BRAZIL. 91
The harbor of Rio was discovered on the 1st of January,
1531, by Martin Alphonso de Souza. It was called by the
natives Nitherohy ; but he, supposing, at the first view, that
the fine expanse of water was only the estuary of some great
river, like the mouth ofthe Amazons, or Oronoko, called it
the Rio de Janeiro, or River of January, from the first day of
the month ofthe new year on which he discovered it. This
very improper name the bay still retains, though it is
not given to any of the numerous small streams that fall
into it ; and the absurd supposition of its being a river is
still kept up in the epithets applied to everything connected
with it. One of the newspapers published here is named
Aurora Fluminense, and the citizens are called Flumi-
nenses, appellations which I was at first at a loss to account
for. This fine harbor, however, remained for many years un
noticed, or unoccupied, by the Portuguese, till their atten
tion was directed to it by other nations, who wished to take
possession of it. In the year 1558, Nicholas Villegagnon,
a man of Provence, in France, and a knight of Malta, was
high in the naval service of that country, and he was select
ed to effect an object which the French were eager to ac
complish. This was to obtain territory in South America,
and Villegagnon was sent out to take possession of this un
occupied harbor, the -region about which was to be called
Antarctic France. He accordingly entered the bay, and
established himself on the small island before mentioned,
which 'still bears his name. It was now determined to
make this country an asylum for Hugonots, and the leaders
of that party in France used every , effort to promote it.
Among these was the celebrated Admiral Coligny, and the
fortress erected on the island was called after his name.
A colony of Protestants was collected, and sent out from
France, and placed under his protection. Two clergymen of
that persuasion were selected at Geneva, with fourteen stu
dents in divinity, to act as pastors for the present, and sup
ply them to future congregations as they should be wanted.
There was, therefore, every reason to hope, that the Re
formation would take root here, and in process of time fill
the south as well as the north ofthe new world with a Pro
testant people. But Villegagnon seems to have been ut
terly unworthy of his trust. He commenced a persecution
against these unfortunate men, who had left their own coun
try for conscience sake, till he drove many of them from

92 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
this place also. Some requested permission to return to Eu
rope, and he provided a vessel so badly found, that they
refused to embark, and were persecuted to death on* the
island. Meanwhile the Portuguese, jealous of this encroach
ment, and alarmed at the progress of these strangers of the
new faith in the country, sent an armament from Bahia, to
dispossess them, under Mendo or Mem da Sa. Weakened,
it should appear, hy their intestine dissensions, the garrison
were not able to make an effectual resistance fo the Portu
guese. They were driven, therefore, from their island, and
the fortress was taken and demolished. The remnant ofthe
Protestant garrison retired to the continent, and were, well
received by the Tamoyas Indians, with whom they had
formed an alliance, and they established themselves outside
the mouth of the harbor, just under the Pao d'Assucar,
or the Sugar Loaf; and here they maintained themselves by
new accessions of people from Europe for ten years. But
in 1565, the Portuguese again set out, with a more power
ful force, from Bahia, and landing at all the intermediate
capitanias on the coast, offered to transport gratuitously all
persons, with their effects, who wished to form a new colony
at Rio. With this accession they again entered the har
bor, and after a struggle of two years more with the Hu-
gonots, took their forts of Urussumiri and Paranapucue,
completely extirpated the colony, and crushed the hopes
ofthe Protestants of Europe of seeing the Reformation es
tablished in this part ofthe new world.
The Portuguese colonists erected their first edifices on
the ground lying between the Pao d'Assucar and the Morro
of S. Joao, now one of the fortresses which defend the en
trance at the harbor. This was called the Villa Velha, or
the Old City ; but I could not find that a vestige of the
houses are traceable at this day. In the year 1567, Cath
erine, who governed the kingdom as regent during the mi
nority of Sebastiao, directed that a city should be built on
the spot where it now stands, and called S. Sebastiao, as
well in honor of the young king, her grandchild, who was
then thirteen years old, as of the saint of that name, whom
Mem da Sa took as his patron in his conflict with the In
dians and the rabble of French Hugonots, as the Portu
guese writers call them. The city made but little progress,
and was principally confined to the point about the Cala-
bou§o, near which some very old houses, with the church

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 93
and fortress of S. Sebastiao, yet remain to attest the first
foundations of the city : but in the end of the seventeenth
century, the Paulistas having discovered the Minas Gera.es,
and extracted from them such abundance of piecious metals
and stones, their fame attracted multitudes from Portugal,
who established themselves at S. Sebastiao, the principal
and most direct port which led to these rich regions ; and
this accession of wealth and people soon caused a corres
pondent extension of houses to accommodate them.
The aspect ofthe country round was singularly unprom
ising for the erection of a large town. It consisted of an
extensive marsh, generally inundated with stagnant pools,
and wholly intersected with putrid steams of muddy water.
Floating on this marsh was a number of hills covered with
mato, or thickets, whose sides were too abrupt to build on ;
they stood in the midst of the plain as heavy incumbrances
to the soil, too vast to be removed, and too steep to be avail
able ; intercepting the free current of air, and rendering
still more deleterious in a tropical climate, the exhalations
of marsh miasma, which rose from the soil below. Yet it
was through this repulsive spot they began to build the new
town, which now bids fair to be not only the largest and
most opulent, but also one ofthe healthiest cities ofthe new
world : the marsli was drained, the mato cut down, and in
dustry having done something, the singular salubrity ofthe
climate and its exemption from ordinary tropical distempers
did the rest.
In 1676 it was erected into a bishopric, and the palace
was built on one of the elevated hills. From this commence
ment sundry other religious edifices were raised in similar
situations ; and while the commercial and lay community
were content to occupy the marsh flats below, the eclesias-
tics, with their usual felicity and good sense, selected the
beautiful situations above, until every hill was crowned with
some monastery, suspended as it were in the air, looking
down on the town below as its guardians, and enjoying above
the most balmy atmosphere and lovely prospect to be met
with in the world.
The riches of Rio de Janeiro now made it an object of
cupidity to other European powers. The French again re
newed the project of Villegagnon. In 1710, General du
Clerc was sent out with a squadron, and a force of 1 ,200
men, to take possession ofthe city ; but not daring to pass
the bar, he disembarked his men at Guarateba, on a dea-

94 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ert shore. From hence he was led by two negroes through
the mountains, and entered the city, penetrating to the prin
cipal largo, or open space, in the towfl. Here he was at
tacked by the people, and forced to retire to the trapiche, or
town store, on the shores ofthe bay, where he was obliged
to capitulate with all his men that remained alive.
But in the year following, the celebrated corsair Du Guay
Trouim, with much superior force, passed the bar, and, un
der cover of a thick fog, advanced up the harbor, and took
possession ofthe Ilha das Cobras, which had been aban
doned, and from hence cannonaded the town. The Con
vent of Sam Bento stands on a hill directly opposite the spot,
and suffered severely from this cannonade. The massive
walls were riddled with the shot, the deep marks of which
yet remain, after an interval of more than a century, and
were pointed out to me by the good fathers when I visited
the library. The monks at the time, with other ecclesiastics,
retired to the wild mountains round the waterfall of Tijuco,
ten or twelve miles from the city, and the hermitages and al
tars they erected among the rocks are yet preserved there.
After inflicting much misery on the city, which he held in
possession for some time, he heard that forces were ap
proaching from the Minas Gera.es, and He agreed to ran
som it and depart. The ransom paid was 1JO,000 crusados
in money, 100 casks of sugar, and 200 oxen to victual his
fleet. The people of Rio still retain a strong memory of
the invasion, and cherish traditionary stories ofthe many
outrages inflicted on them by the French.
It gradually, however, recovered from these effects, and
the natural advantages of the situation were such, that,"
in the year 1763, Dom Joseph transferred hither the vice
regal residence from Bahia, hitherto the capital of Brazil,
and the city of Rio properly commenced. Among the vice
roys distinguished for their improvements of the new capi
tal are the Marquis de Livradio and Luiz de Vasconcellos,
and many of the finest and most useful public works still
bear their image and superscription.
But the circumstance which really conferred on it more
advantages than any other cause, was the emigration ofthe
royal family of Portugal to Brazil ; an event from which
it dates its first commencement of actual prosperity, when it
ceased to be a mere province, appendant on the will and ca
price of another state, but was recognized as a country,
having a name and a national character of its own. The

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 95
idea of removing the court to Brazil, as affording an asylum
to a weak ^government against the oppression of its more
powerful neighbors, had been long entertained in Portugal.
In the ye^r 1761, the Marquis de Pombal had determined
on the measure, and preparations were made to transport
the royal.Family across the Atlantic : but the danger of in
vasion subsided, and the project was at the time abandon
ed, to be revived on the next emergency. This occurred
again in 1807, when a foreign army invaded the. country,
and the court finally resolved to abandon Europe.
On the 14th January, 1808, it was announced at Rio, by
the arrival ofthe brig Guerra Voador, that the French and
Spaniards were entering Portugal to seize on the person of
the prince regent, and that he had embarked, on the 29th
of November, in the harbor of Lisbon, with all the royal
family, with the intention of proceeding to Rio de Janeiro
to establish his court there, and that the squadron which
accompanied him might be daily expected. This news was
received at Rio with an extraordinary mixture of sorrow
and joy — sorrow that such calamities should overwhelm the
mother country, to which the good people of Brazil were
still fondly attached, and joy that an august monarch, of
whom they entertained the most exalted and extravagant
notions, should condescend to visit their humble country,
and take up his residence there. The preparations for his
reception occupied'alJthoughts. The viceroy's palace was
immediately prepared/f*ird all the public offices in the same
square were vacated to accommodate the royal cortege ; and
as they were not deemed sufficient, all the proprietors of
the private houses in the neighborhood were obliged to
quit their residences and send in the keys to the viceroy,
which it appears they did without the least hesitation ; and
couriers were despatched to the governor of St, Paul's and
the Minas Gera.es, to announce the happy event, and de
mand that all the provisions of tlie provinces should be sent
to Rio for the royal entertainment.
In the very commencement of all these preparations it
was, announced on Sunday, the 17th of January, that the
royal squadron were off the coast : but it appeared that a
tempest on the 9th of December had assailed and scattered
them, and the only ship now arrived was that which con
tained some ofthe females ofthe royal family. It happened
to be on the night ofthe festival ofthe patron of S. Sebas
tiao, on which it is usual to illuminate the city ; so it was

96 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
prolonged for three days to commemorate the happy event ;
and in the mean time three days' prayers and supplications
were offered up for the safety of the rest, of whose fate they
were ignorant. In this state of suspense they continued
for a whole month, during which time the royal visitors re
mained on board their ship in the harbor, that they might
not violate the etiquette of respect due to the prince regent
by landing before him. At length a bark arrived from Ba
hia, containing the agreeable information that the royal
squadron had escaped from the tempest, and taken shelter
there ; and then the party who came to Rio were persuaded
by the good citizens to leave their inconvenient residence.

CHAP. VIII.
First Act of the King on arriving at Bahia. — Proceeds to Rio. — English the first
Strangers settled as Residents. — Restrictions removed from native Industry. —
Printing and Gunpowder introduced. — Military Hospital, and Chemical Laboratory
established. — Indians reclaimed and settled. — Vaccination introduced. — Theatre
built. — First French arrive. — The Slave Trade ameliorated. — Public Library es
tablished. — Treasury, Mint, and Custom-House erected. — Extraordinary increase
of Commerce. — Effects on the People and City. — The King raises the Colony to a
Kingdom, and confers on it distinct armorial Bearings. — First Symptoms of Distur
bance at Pernambuco. — Its Object and Progress. — Suppression and Execution of
the Leaders. — Acclamation of Dom John.
Immediately on his arrival there, he laid the foundation
stone of that edifice on which was raised the vast superstruc
ture of a new empire. On the 28th of January, 1808, he
issued his royal charter? abolishing the old exclusive system,
and granting to the people of Brazil the commerce of all
foreign nations, friends of the royal crown, and opening to
their ships all the ports ofthe country. As this edict, which,
as a Brazilian writer says, " ought to be written in letters
of gold," was so important, I send you a copy of it.*
Having performed this great act of justice and policy, he
took leave of Bahia, notwithstanding the pressing solicita
tions of the citizens that he should remain, and their pro
posal to erect for him a magnificent palace. He arrived
off the bar of Rio on the 7th of March, and entered the har-
* See Appendix, No. I.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 97
bor. Nothing could exceed the extravagance and joy of
the citizens at this event ; all the houses were deserted, the
hills covered with spectators, and those who could procure
boats, sailed out to accompany the royal squadron on the
water. On his landing, he proceeded to the cathedral to
offer up thanks for his safe arrival, and besides other demon
strations of joy, the city was illuminated for nine nights.
Among the first benefits conferred on the country by the
arrival ofthe court was an influx of Portuguese, of intelli
gence and rank, from the mother country ; and the con
sequence of opening the ports was, the establishment of for
eign mercantile houses in the city of Rio. Of these the
earliest were the English, many of whom landed soon after
the sovereign, and laid the foundation of that numerous and
respectable population now resident in the city. Immedi
ately after his Excellency Lord Strangford arrived, and gave
a dignity and consequence to the newly opened country in
his character of ambassador from a great European power.
Next to opening the ports to foreign enterprise, was the
encouragement of it among the natives of the country. By
a decree ofthe 1st of April, 1808, Dom John permitted the
free exercise qf every kind of industry to all classes of Bra
zilians. The alvardi or decree states, that, wishing to in
crease the national wealth, by manufactures, agriculture,
and arts, which increase the number of productive hands,
and furnish the means of subsistence to those who are
led into vice by want and idleness, every prohibition of
any kind which existed, was abolished and revoked ; and
all subjects of Brazil were invited and encouraged to engage
in every kind of manufacture to which they were inclined,
on a large or limited scale, without any reservation or ex
ception. The importance of this judicious and benevolent
decree cannot be duly estimated without considering that,
under the late colonial system, permission was scarcely giv
en to manufacture a few articles of coarse ware for slaves,
from the cotton which grew in the country.
In this first year also was established that mighty engine
of knowledge and power, a printing-press. For three cen
turies this simple apparatus had been inhibited in Brazil,
from its supposed dangerous effects ; and it was not till the
year 1808 that this great country was permitted to print, I
am told, a leaf of a book. The greatest boon the good
Prince Regent thought he could confer on his new people
was, to establish this means of enlightening them, on their
9

98 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
best interests, as connected with arts, sciences, agriculture,
manufactures, and all the benefits he hoped to confer on
them. The day, therefore, on which he entered his forty-
first year, he celebrated by conferring this boon, and estab
lished a royal printing-office, and published a Gazette for
the first time in Brazil. Nothing perhaps can mark more
decidedly the deplorable state of darkness and ignorance in
which this fine country 'was kept, or the rapid progress the
people have since made in the diffusion of knowledge, than
this circumstance. It is hardly possible to conceive, that
twenty years ago there was not a single newspaper allowed
in a country, where now there are thirteen periodicals pub
lished, and universally circulated and read, in one city
alone. Immediately after the printing-office, a manufactory of
powder was established at the Lagoa de freitas, which still
exists there. Printing and gunpowder seem but oddly asso
ciated : yet they made their first appearance in Europe
much about the same time, and in Brazil they were con
temporary introductions. He next established a royal trea
sury, and a council of finance to regulate the receipts and
expenditure of the national income, and created a national
bank, consisting of a fund of three millions of crusados, di
vided into 1200 shares or bank actions, each valued at one
conto of reis, and their charter to continue for twenty years.
In the following year he founded a school of anatomy,
surgery, and medicine, annexed to the Royal Military
Hospital ; also a chemical laboratory, and a quarantine laz
aretto on the promontory of Boa Viagem, to obviate the
consequences that might result, from the freedom of com
merce, by foreign ships introducing contagious disorders
from infected ports.
The Indians engaged also the particular attention of the
government. Besides the savage tribes scattered over the
provinces of Mato Grosso and the remote parts of the
country, there still existed in almost the vicinity of the capi
tal, a tribe long distinguished for their ferocity and canni
balisms. These are well known under the name of Bote-
cudos, from an extraordinary deformity, with which they
ornament themselves. This consists of a plug of woodj
called a botoque, which they insert in an incision made in
their lower lip above the chin. They inhabit the banks of
the Rio Doce, and laid waste every settlement attempted
in that beautiful and fertile region. In 1809, a party of

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 99
Europeans were sent up the river, and they found 150, farms
in ruins, whose proprietors had either perished or fled.
Detachments were accordingly ordered in all directions, to
restrain their inroads and to punish their aggressions, and
every encouragement was held out, to establish new settle
ments and civilize them. Every village, consisting of
twelve huts of Indians and ten of whites, was to be consid
ered a villa with all its benefits and privileges, and sesma-
rias or grants of land were made to such as would become
cultivators, giving all the privileges and advantages of origi
nal donatarios. New roads were then opened to form more
easy communications, and considerable effect was produced
on these intractable natives. The Puris, a neighboring
tribe, to the number of 1000, were located in villages,
called aldeas ; and the arts and industry of civilized life
made more progress among them in a few years from this
period, than they had before done for so many centuries.
The year 1811 was memorable by the introduction of
vaccination into Brazil. Vaccine institutions were estab
lished in different provinces, for the. promotion of this most
beneficent measure, and at Rio the church of Rosario was
assigned, as the place for communicating the infection.
The people were directed to bring their children here on
Thursdays and Saturdays, and two surgeons were appoint
ed' to attend. The idea that the operation was performed
in a church tended not a little to remove prejudice, and in
cline the people to a practice conducted under the auspices
of religion. But they hardly required such an inducement.
The bexigas, or small-pox, here, as in other parts of Ameri
ca, had made frightful ravages before the introduction of
this salutary prophylactic.
On the 12th of October, 1813, a new theatre was opened
on the north side of the square, called the Rocio, now the
Praga da Constituicao. It was called the Theatre of St.
John, in compliment to the Prince Regent, under whose
auspices it was completed ; and it was opened on the birth
day of his son Dom Pedro. It was an edifice of consider
able magnificence, and according with the growing improve
ment ofthe city, since the court had established itself there.
In 1314 the French were invited ; some residents estab
lished themselves at Rio, and the first ships of that nation
entered the port in a friendly manner. Their tricolored
flag, as the Brazilians say, which had been the scourge of
their little commerce, was now changed for the white, which

100 NOTICES of brazil:
floated over their ships in the harbor, as an emblem and
symbol of peace. They have so increased as far to exceed
the English who had arrived before them, and whole streets
are now occupied by their shops and bijouterie.
The condition of the slaves next engaged Dom John's
attention. The traffic was to be continued some years long
er, but in the mean time he made sundry regulations to al
leviate the inhuman sufferings of this unfortunate race, in
their passage from the coast of Africa, by cramming so
•many into a confined space, and by the scanty and unwhole
some' provision allowed for their support. He regulated
the number to be taken on board by the tonnage and ac
commodation of the ship, and, under severe penalties, en
joined to them all the comfort and alleviation, which religion
and humanity demanded ; and it is certain that if in this in- •
fernal traffic there can be any redeeming quality, the Bra
zilians are entitled to the reputation of it.
Among other valuable importations to the new country,
the Prince Regent had brought with him his books, of which
he had in Portugal a large and scarce collection. For their
reception the Hospital of the Terceiros do Carmo, in the
Rua Detfaz do Carmo, was fitted up, and the arrangement
was given to two indefatigable and learned men, Joaquim
Damaso and Jose Viegas ; and when it was finished, the
library was thrown open to the public, in the year 1814.
The year 1815 was distinguished by new public edifices,
which the, rapid increase of every department ofthe state
required. ' A new treasury and mint were finished in the
Rua Lampedosa, called henceforth the Rua do Erario ; and
the custom-house becoming altogether too small for the
business, which increased with the products of every coun
try ofthe globe now poured into Brazil, a new one was
erected. This edifice, called the Alfandega, situated on
the water edge in the Rua Dereita, was soon after to be
come the theatre ofthe most painful of the few outrages
against humanity, which have marked the transition of Bra
zil, from the state of a province to that of a kingdom. The
number of ships which entered the port with cargoes, had
increased in an extraordinary ratio. Before the year 1 808
none were seen in the harbor, with the exception of a few
admitted to refit or repair damages, and which, under that
pretext, contrived to carry on some contraband trade ; but
in the year after the opening ofthe ports, 90 strange ships
and 760 Portuguese arrived at the custom-house ; in 1810,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 101
422 strangers and 1240 Portuguese; and so the commerce
proceeded, progressively increasing every year.
In addition to these wise and wholesome improvements,
there were sundry others, which it would, perhaps, be te
dious to particularize. By the influx of strangers and Por
tuguese, the population increased rapidly in different places.
New towns were settled in deserts, and old ones were erect
ed into cities ; roads of communication were opened through
forests which had never before been penetrated, and riv
ers were navigated towards their source, which boats had
never before sailed on ; several Indian tribes were human
ized and located in villages ; and, in effect, the whole face
of the country underwent an improvement which no other
on record evinced in so short a time.
The manners of the people also displayed a sensible
change within a very short period. Many old and respect
able Creole families, whose habits were as rude as their
minds were contracted, from the rustic seclusion in which
they had lived, now repaired to the capital, where frequent
galas, levees, and birth-day ceremonies at court, attracted
crowds together. Here, from mixing with the strangers,
both Portuguese and English, they soon rubbed off the rust
of retirement, and returned home with new ideas and modes
of life, which were again adopted by their neighbors, and
so improvement and civilization spread through the coun
try. The commencement of this new state of things was
perceptible in the town of Rio itself. From the period of
its first improvement by the discovery of the mines, until
the arrival ofthe court, little was effected. Some spots in
tended for streets and squares had been marked out, but
they remained disgusting receptacles of filth which the ne
groes cast there ; and the vicinity of the town and the
islands ofthe Bay continued in their primitive state of mato
or thicket. But from the moment the court landed, every
thing was changed ; new streets and squares were built,
the islands and hills were covered with villas, and Rio as
sumed that lovely aspect of nature, improved by the hand
of art, which now renders it so striking an object.
When all this was effected, it was determined to erect it
into a separate state, and as the condition of a province had
ceased, so also should its name ; a decree therefore was is
sued on the 16th of December, 1815, declaring that from
the date of its publication, the state of Brazil should be
elevated to the dignity of a kingdom, and thenceforth called
9*

102 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
" the Kingdom of Brazil," and should form, with those in
Europe,' the united Kingdoms of Portugal, Algarves, and
Brazil. Of this decree, which was the next important
epocha in the history of this new country, I send you also
a copy.* The effect of this new state of things on the Brazilians
was electric. It was felt, and expressed by a spontaneous
illumination all over the country ; and, as they say, from
the Amazons to the River of Plate was one continued
blaze. The cameras of the different cities sent deputies to
Rio, to convey their sense of gratitude to the sovereign for
this unhoped-for boon ; thanksgivings were offered up in all
the churches, and other indications of great and lively satis
faction were evinced. It added not a little to the pleasure,
that all the foreign sovereigns assembled at the Congress
of Vienna approved of this measure ; the assurance of
Lord Castlereagh, that it was the opinion of his Royal
Highness the Prince Regent of England, that it was greatly
calculated to promote the prosperity of the country, gave
great satisfaction.
Immediately after the consummation of this event, the
Queen, Dona Maria the First, died at Rio ; but the Prince
Regent deferred the acclamation of his succession until the
expiration of a year of mourning for his mother, and in the
mean time adopted suitable arms to designate the new
kingdom, which were settled by a royal decree, — that as
Alphonso III. had joined the arms of Algarves to those of
Portugal when he united the kingdoms, so should those of
Brazil be now added ; that they should consist of an armil-
lary sphere of gold in a field azure, and that an escutcheon,
containing the Quinas of Portugal and the Seven Castles of
Algarves, should be placed on the sphere, surmounted by
the royal crown, — which arms should be borne on the
standards and coins of the country : these arms have been
since changed, but almost all the copper coin in circulation,
particularly the vintems, still bear them.
The first serious symptom of disturbance from political
causes, appeared in Pernambuco. Hitherto the Brazilians,
conciliated by the kind and benevolent proceedings of the
king, had shown, With but few and trifling exceptions, the
most submissive acquiescence ; but on the 5th of March,
1817, news arrived at Rio of an insurrection at Pernambuco.
* See Appendix, No. II.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 103
Pernambuco seems to have imbibed a strong republican spir
it, from various causes, founded in past and present circum
stances. In 1629, the Dutch took possession of all the
northern parts of Brazil, including Salvador and Pernambu
co ; and for several years were masters of those extensive
regions, till dispossessed by a powerful army of Spaniards,
amounting tol2,000 men.- Though expelled from the coun
try, these sturdy republicans left behind them much of
their feelings and principles, which only wanted an occa
sion to call them into activity. When the revolutionary
blaze burst out in South America in modern times, it found
among the population of this part of Brazil, inflammable
materials, which readily caught the flame from the Spanish
territories in their vicinity ; and the people at once entered
into all the measures of their neighbors. Their object
was to unite the northern provinces into a separate republic,
and a plan of insurrection was . matured to effect their pur
pose : it broke out on the following occasion. A captain
of artillery, named De Barros Lima, having been reprehend
ed by his commander, Brigadier Manoel Joaquim, drew
his sword and rah him through the body, and immediately
the regiment which had been previously prepared, burst
into open rebellion. Colonel Alexander Thomaz rushed
among them to bring them to their duty, when they imme
diately fired on him, and killed him also. The revolution
ists now assembled, called on the people to join them, and cau
sed the tocsin to be sounded from the bells ofthe churches.
They then trampled under foot the standards of Portugal,
formed a provisional government of five persons, and pro
claimed Pernambuco an independent country. The old
governor, Caetano Pinto, shut himself up in the fortress,
where he was beseiged by the insurgents, and on the follow
ing day obliged to capitulate. He was embarked, on board
a small vessel, and sent to Rio to communicate the news
ofthe revolution. It did not appear that the Brazilians, in
general, felt at this time any sympathy with the insurgents,
though the flame of insurrection spread all over the prov
ince ; for the people of Bahia immediately fitted out a
squadron of armed merchant ships, and the governor, the
Conde dos Arcos, despatched a land force to suppress the
insurrection ; while at Rio, all people pressed forward to
offer their services. A spontaneous donation of 500,000
crusados were contributed by individuals, and a fleet with
a considerable body of troops, and among them a regiment

104

NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

of volunteers, was promptly sent out on the 4th of May
following. The division from Bahia, from its immediate proximity,
first commenced its operations, and was joined by numbers
of Pernambucans who disapproved of the insurrection.
For some time the affairs of the insurgents seemed to pro
ceed prosperously. A part of their army, called the southern
division, was particularly distinguished for its success, and
a large body of guerillas, formed by Domingo Joze Mar
tins, a civilian, who had taken an early part in the insur
rection, and headed by Cavalcante, a gentleman of rank and
fortune, and a priest named Sonto, greatly harassed the
royalists ; and when the army of Bahia approached, to at
tack Reciffe, they did not wait their arrival, but advanced
to meet them to the plains of Ipojuco, where they hoped to
encounter the Bahian troops, fatigued with their march.
The result was fatal to them, the insurgents were totally-
defeated ; some fled to the matos, where they lay concealed,
but many were wounded, and taken prisoners ; among the
rest, the famous Dr. Martins, who acted as second in com
mand. The insurgents in the city immediately dissolved
their provisional government, and submitted to the fleet of
merchantmen sent against them from Bahia ; and, by the
time the royal expedition had arrived from Rio, everything
was restored to order and quiet at Pernambuco. Much se
verity was exercised against the unfortunate revolutionists,
and their principal leaders, Martins, Mendon§a, and Joa-
' quim de Almeida, were hanged.
The time was now arrived when the hitherto Prince Re
gent was to take upon himself the title of monarch, and the
new state of Brazil was tp be distinguished by the acclama
tion of its first king. The 5th of February, 1818, was ap
pointed for the ceremony. The mode of enthroning mon-
archs by acclamation is among the most ancient usages of '
the Portuguese people, and their first monarch was so crown
ed. Dom Alfonso Henriques, son of Count Henriques,
born about the year 1110, governed Portugal for eleven
years, under the title of Principe de Portugal ; but after his
victory over the Moors in the Campo d'Ourique, he was ac
claimed king by his soldiers, by the title of Alfonso I. The'
mode of this acclama<jao consisted in placing the chief, stand
ing, on a buckler, which was then raised over the heads of
the soldiers, and in this position they proclaimed him king ;
and I saw in the palace at Rio, a fine and spirited painting,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 105
representing this ceremony. From this time, all future
monarchs of Portugal were crowned by acclamation, though
the circumstance of being raised on a shield had fallen into
disuse. The preparations for crowning in this way the first Euro
pean monarch ever elected in America, were attended with
suitable magnificence. A grand veranda was erected in the
palace square, 250 palms in length, in which the ceremony
was performed. On the day previous, the whole ofthe con»
stituted authorities assembled in full costume, and proceed
ed to the palace of St. Christovao, to congratulate the sove
reign on his approaching elevation ; and, on the day of ac
clamation, all the military from Bahia, and other places,
joined to those of Rio, with a concourse of strangers of all
nations, mixed with Brazilians, filled the square and con
tiguous streets.
The monarch, after the celebration of mass in the chapel
royal, entered the veranda in his robes. The king at arms
proclaimed silence in these words : " Hear, hear, and be
attentive! " and the desembargador ofthe palace addressed
him in a speech suitable to the occasion ; then proceeding
to a stool, on which stood a cushion, Dom John knelt down
on it, and taking his sceptre in his left hand and laying his
right on the crucifix, the coronation oath was administered
to him by the secretary of state, while the bishops of Goyaz
and Mozambique stood by as witnesses. The' alferes mor,
or great standard-bearer, then unrolled the sacred standard
of Henry Alfonso, the founder of the Portuguese throne,
and all the nobles and grandees repeated the oath. When
it was reported to the king that they had done so, it was
proclaimed aloud, and the alferes mor, again unfurling the
standard, made acclamation with a loud voice, " Royal, roy
al, royal, by the very high and very powerful Senhor, King
Dom John VI. our lord."* This acclamation was repeat
ed in front of the veranda, and the people below answered
by a burst of music, peals of bells, explosions of artillery,
deafening shouts, discharges of fire-works, and such an uni
versal display of extravagant joy, that, as my author, the
worthy Goncalves dos Sanctos, says, " it would require the
pencil of Zeuxis and the odes of Pindar to describe ; and if
anything on earth could be compared to the joys of heaven,
it was that moment."
* Real, real, real, pelo muito alto et muito poderoso Senhor Rei,
D, Joao VI. nosso Senhor.

106 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
The last public act of Dom John was proclaiming the new
constitution of the Cortes of Portugal in Brazil, in which
his son Dom Pedro, who now began to take an active part
in the affairs ofthe country, so much distinguished himself.

CHAP. IX.
Birth of Dom Pedro. — Padre Antonio d'Arrabida, his Tutor. — Emigration ofthe
Royal Family, and Behavior of Dom Pedro — Suspicious Death of his Tutor Rade-
mak. — Disposition and early Propensities of Dom Pedro. — Marriage. — Takes a de
cided Part in the Revolution in Portugal. — Violent Conduct of the Portuguese
Troops in Brazil. — Alarming Consequences apprehended. — Timidity and Irresolu
tion of Dom John. — Energy and Decision of Dom Pedro. — Strange Display at the
Theatre. — The King resolves to return to Europe. — Electors convoked. — Descrip
tion ofthe Alfandega — Speech ofthe English Merchants to the King.— Conduct
of the Electors assembled there. — Atrocious Massacre of the Citizens — Fate of
Individuals. — The Place abandoned in Horror ever since. — Departure of Dom John.
— Melancholy Contrast between his Arrival and Departure.
The emperor Dom Pedro was born at Lisbon, .on the 12th
of October, 1798 ; he was the second son of Dom John VI.
.and of Carlota Joaquina, daughter of Charles IV. of Spain ;
but by the premature death of his elder brother, Antonio,
he became heir-presumptive to the crown. He was of a
weakly temperament when a child, but showed early some
of that vivacity of character which has since distinguished
him. He was educated by the Padre Antonio d'Arrabida,
an intelligent ecclesiastic, who early impressed him with
sentiments of religion, for which he is still distinguished ;
but his education was in nothing else remarkable, except
that, in common with his sisters, he acquired some know
ledge of Latin, which he has not yet forgotten. His tutor
is at present Bishop of Anamuria, in partibus, and resides
in the convent of San Antonio, where I visited him. He is
a man about sixty, tall and thin, with a very strongly marked
countenance, resembling the idea one conceives of an Ital
ian monk ofthe 16th century. He wears a black stuff robe
and cowl, with a gold cross suspended from his neck, and
large diamond rings on his fingers. He speaks French
well, and it was the language of our communication. I
found him remarkably urbane and gentlemanlike in his man
ner, and, with a ready and unaffected courtesy, he informed

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 107
me on every subject about which I inquired. He spoke of
the royal family and the early years of his pupil, and seemed
to take a pleasure in recurring to the events of these times.
He is now superintendent ofthe education ofthe emperor's
children, and is besides librarian to the imperial library,
where he is editing a splendid work on the botany of Rio
Janeiro, of which he presented me some ofthe plates.
When the affairs of Portugal became critical, and involv
ed in French intrigues, it was resolved on by his father to
send Dom Pedro to Brazil, with his tutor, under the name
ofthe Prince of Beira, that this important branch of the
royal family should be preserved from a convulsion which
might crush the name in Europe ; but the persuasion of his
excellency Lord Strangford, the British minister at Lisbon,
and the approach of the French army under Junot, deter
mined the Regent himself to depart, and he embarked on
board the Portuguese vessel of war the Principe do Brazil,
accompanied by the rest of the fleet. Dom Pedro showed
himself on this occasion a lively, energetic boy. He took
pleasure in attending to the working of the ship, with an
activity and mechanical dexterity which still distinguish
him. When not so engaged, he was seen to sit apart at the
foot ofthe mainmast, reading the voyage of iEneas in Vir
gil, impressed,, as he said, with the similarity of his fate to
his own. The voyage was tedious, from violent and con
trary winds, and, as they had suddenly departed, their con
veniences were soon exhausted. Among other privations,
it is asserted, that Dom Pedro and his brother's stock of
linen was but scanty, and it was found necessary, to cut up
some bedclothes to convert them into shirts ; so that when
the emperor first landed in his future dominions, he was
clad, not indeed, like one of the aborigines, in a blanket,
but in a sheet.
Dom Pedro was ten years old when he set his foot on the
shore of the New World. The first care of his father was
to supply him with a competent tutor, and he fixed on John
Rademalr,, who had been ambassador from Portugal to Den
mark, and from his residence in different parts of the con
tinent, spoke with fluency almost every language in Europe.
He was* supposed to be every way fitted for the task he had
undertaken, and the young prince was about to profit by the
instructions of his gifted preceptor, when Rademak sudden
ly died. It was generally rumored, and I heard it often
affirmed, that he died by_ poison. He had a slave, who had

108 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
formed an attachment for a person in the neighborhood of
a residence from which he was about to remove ; this she
• determined to prevent, and to this end purchased some wine
at a venda, into which she infused poison, and then placed
it beside her master at dinner, who drank it without suspi
cion. I have heard it, however, from one who visited him
in his last moments at his house at Boto Fogo, that he died
of a wounded spirit and broken heart, in consequence of
some ill treatment he imagined he had received from his
supposed rival and enemy, the prince's former tutor".
Deprived thus unexpectedly of his preceptor, the prince did
not seem solicitous for another, and without any fixed plan
of education his attention vacillated between many objects.
He showed an early taste for mechanics, and, like those of
his great namesake of Russia, specimens of his early inge
nuity in this way are still preserved. He made the model
of a ship of war, and completed a billiard-table, on which
latter he now exhibits as much skill in playing the game as
in manufacturing the wood. But the pursuit to which he
most devoted himself was music, for which he conceived, at
an early age, a strong predilection, and showed a decided
talent. He not only learned to play on a variety of instru
ments, but he composed, I have been informed, much ofthe
music for his father's chapel ; and the most popular piece
now in Brazil, both the words and music of which are of his
composition, attests his talent.
These sedentary employments he varied by a very ac
tive life abroad. He was a very bold and skilful horseman,
and at an early age drove a cabriolet with four horses in
hand, an exercise which I generally saw him perform every
day with a dashing dexterity. He was, moreover, ardently
fond ofthe chase, and pursued it with eagerness and intre
pidity, in places ofwhich a European can have no concep
tion. This difficulty is well described by a French writer,
who calls penetrating into a Brazilian forest, breaking the
chain which bound him to his fellow-men.*
* Lacbasse au sein de vastes solitudes duBrezil, n'est point celle de nos
riantes campagnes ; a peine I'homme a-t-il perdu de vue le toit de son hab
itation, qu'il a, pour ainsi dire, rompu la chaine que se le liait k ses sembla-
bles. Aux yeux de chasseur Brazilien se deploit de toutes partes, un ri-
deau d'arbres aussi vietix que la terre, portant jusqu'au ciel un tete gigan-
tesque, et si etroitement uni entre eux par ds plantes rampantes et epineu-
ses, que le- moindre animal cherche en vain une route a, travers cette im
mense cloison de feuillsges. C'est pourtant ce mur qu'il' faut percer, c'est
au milieu de se chaos inconnu a I'homme, qu'il doit se Jeter, c'est a sol en
core tout empreint de Phumidite de la-creatbn, qu'il doit fouler d'un pied
adventereux.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 109
When arrived at a marriageable age, and the peace of
Europe had again established that intercourse which war
had suspended, his father formed the project of uniting him
to a princess of the house of Austria, and the Archduchess
Leopoldina, daughter of the Emperor Francis I. and sister
to Maria Louisa, late Empress of" France, was fixed upon as
his wife. The marriage was negotiated by the Marquis of
Marialva, the Portuguese ambassador at the Austrian court.
It was celebrated by proxy on the 13th of May, 1817, and
that day was fixed on as auspicious, because it was that of
the advancement of his grandmother to the throne, and also
the birthday of his father Dom John. On the 5th of No
vember following the vessel arrived, bearingthe young queen,
who at once secured golden opinions from all the Brazilians.
The princess was described to me, by people who saw her
on her arrival, as a very interesting figure. A person not
tall, but well-proportioned, dark blue eyes, regular features,
very fair, with a good complexion, which, with her light
flaxen hair, formed a strong contrast to the dusky hue and
coal-black tresses of all the native ladies round her. But,
above all, she possessed an air of great good-nature and
kindness of disposition, which always distinguished her du
ring her short life. These personal advantages, with a
gentle temper and an affectionate heart, rendered her an
object of great interest as well to her husband as to her
people. The disturbances now burst out at Pernambuco, and as
Dom Pedro had evinced a liberal feeling in the political
changes which Brazil had undergone, it was insinuated by
his enemies he had some privity in this affair, and the sus
picions of his father were excited. On this occasion, how
ever, to justify himself from such injurious imputations, he
raised a battalion of all the domestics and people employed
about the court, and conferred on it the name ofthe " Vol
unteers ofthe Prince Royal." He clothed them at his own
expense, disciplined them by his own exertions, and offered
them to his father, as the first forces to take the field. Not
withstanding this, the popular feeling which had begun to
evince itself in his favor, was suppressed by every means,
and some people who had cried "vivas ! " for him at the
theatre, were sent to prison as disaffected.
Immediately after the revolution took place at Oporto,
and soon spread over Portugal. This excited a strong sen
sation in Brazil, and Dom Pedro took a decided part in its
10

110 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
favor. The councils held, were conducted with the great
est irresolution and disorder, by men who wanted energy
to take a decided part, and Dom Pedro was excluded from
their deliberations. On one occasion, he suddenly enter
ed unnoticed, charged the members with intending only to
deceive the people, and the sitting was dissolved in great
confusion. On the 18th of February, the king announced
his intention to take into consideration the proposed consti
tution, and published a manifesto, that he would send his
son, Dom Pedro, to Lisbon, to treat with the cortes on the
subject ; but this temporizing expedient had no effect in
calming the public mind.
On the 25th of February, 1821, the city of Rio was thrown
into the greatest state of alarm and agitation, by the auxil
iary division of Portuguese. When the disturbance had
taken place at Pernambuco, and all the disposable force pf
Rio was despatched to suppress it, it was thought expedient
to send to Portugal for an additional supply of troops, and
on the 18th of October, 1817, they arrived, disembarked at
the bridge of S. Christovao, and were encamped in front
of Boa Vista. They consisted of four battalions of the line,
one of light infantry, and a brigade of artillery. The re
volutionary movement at Pernambuco had been suppressed
before their arrival ; but though rendering no service to the
country or government, they assumed an air of insolent su
periority in everything, treated the whole community among
whom they sojourned as disaffected, and acted towards them
as if they only came to trample on and keep them under ;
they required that Brazilian officers above the rank of cap
tain should be dismissed, and their duties filled by Portu
guese alone ; the soldiers paraded and mounted guard in
splendid uniforms, while the natives in the same service ap
peared in rags, with wood in their musket-locks, as if they
could not be trusted with flints ; and in effect, it appeared
to the people as if this " auxiliary division" had it in design
to extinguish altogether that feeling of consequence which
the people of the country had cherished since Brazil was
erected into a kingdom, and to reduce it again to that state
of provincial insignificance from which it had just emerged.
Complaints of mutual aggression were continually made, and
dislike grew into open enmity. The soldiers now took
arms in their barracks, tumultuary groups of the people wan
dered about in a high state of excitement through the streets,
and everything seemed to announce an immediate commo-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL*. Ill
tion. The ministers retired in consternation to the palace
of S. Christovao, to consult with the king, who was there ;
but Dom Pedro, mounting his horse, rode instantly to the
barracks ofthe soldiers, where he caused them to lay aside
their arms ; he then ran through the public places, address
ed the different groups of the people, and by long and ear
nest persuasions induced them all to return to their own
homes ; and having performed this important duty by his
single personal exertions, he repaired to the palace, to report
that all was perfectly quiet.
On the next day, the auxiliary division marched out of
their barracks, and took possession of the Rocio square, in
which the theatre is situated, and again everything seemed
to threaten an explosion in the city. The camera assem
bled in the saloon of the theatre, and the people filled the
streets. The constitution established in Portugal was ear
nestly desired by the Brazilians and the troops, and it was
supposed that the acceptance of it by the king would at once
reconcile and amalgamate all parties. This the prince re
presented to his father in the strongest manner, and the
well-disposed monarch, who seemed to wish for nothing but
what might be for the real benefit of his subjects, allowed his
son to act in the emergency as thought most advisable. He
immediately rode at full speed to the Rocio, and announced
to all he met the king's acquiescence. He then arranged
it so that the Brazilian troops should join with the auxilia
ries, and meet the assembled people ; and a deputation of
the whole was formed to wait on himself, and request that
the ministers should be dismissed, and the constitution pro^-
claimed. Having again conferred with his father, he pre
sented himself at the balcony of the theatre, which looks
into the square, holding in his hand the pen with which he
had drawn out the list of new ministers, displayed a paper
containing their names, and informed the people that the
king had acceded to the constitution ; he then took the fol
lowing oath in his name : " I swear, in the name ofthe king,
my father and lord, veneration and respect for our holy re
ligion, and to observe, keep, and support, forever, the
constitution as it is established by the cortes in Portugal,"
which the king himself ratified afterwards at the window of
the palace. The army and the people were now clamorous
to see the king, and Dom Pedro rode to the palace to re
quest his father would comply with their wishes. The tim
id but good-natured monarch acquiesced, and as he was

112 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
proceeding to the Rocio, he met a detachment of the mob,
who, like their brethren of England, proceeded to unyoke
the horses, and harness themselves to the carriage. The
king, altogether unacquainted with this ceremony, was great
ly alarmed. I have heard from those who were present, that
he grew as pale as death, and fell back in the carriage,
fainting with terror and dismay. The horrors ofthe French
revolution were before his eyes, and he expected that the
fate of its unfortunate monarch, who resembled himself in
irresolution and goodness of heart, would soon be his own.
. Not so Dom Pedro : he showed an ardor and energy
through the whole of this trying transaction that marked a
decided and intrepid character. He rode forward, sword
in hand, from place to place, took the command of the
troops, and killed two horses under him by his continued
exertions. Whatever may have been his private senti
ments, this public conduct was the only one left him to pur
sue. It was impossible at the time to stem the torrent of
public opinion ; he acted more prudently by directing it,
and becoming the idol of the people. Similar popular
movements took place at Bahia and other principal towns,
and in a short time the constitutional government of Portu
gal was recognized, with apparent enthusiasm, all over
Brazil. The next evening was, as usual on all popular movements
in Brazil, distinguished by a brilliant opera ; but the king
was so exhausted by the exertions and alarms of the day
before, that he was unable to attend ; and on this occasion
the people exhibited a trait of national usage rather singu
lar. The portraits of the king and queen went to the thea
tre as proxies for the originals ; they were exhibited in the
front of the box, and received from the people the same
homage and applause as if the persons they represented
were really present. In countries where a certain sanctity
and virtue is supposed to be communicated to a picture or
image, which merely represents the person in whom these
qualities are supposed to have resided, this homage to paint
and canvass may be accounted for.
The king, harassed, it should appear, by storms and agi
tations, which now began to shake his adopted country, so
different from the calm submission and grateful respect of
the people, by which his residence for several years had
been distinguished ; and unable any longer to control or
direct the temper of his formerly tractable subjeqts ia

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 113
America, determined to comply with the invitation he re
ceived from the cortes at Lisbon, and to return to Europe ;
and on the 7th of March, he published a proclamation,
announcing his intention, together with an order that such
deputies to the cortes as might be elected at the time of his
departure, should sail with him, and that the rest should
follow as soon as they were ready. Tranquillity seemed
now restored, and the people had no pretext or apparent
wish to disturb it ; when an incident occurred which excites
the most painful reflections, as it is one ofthe most base and
atrocious to be found even in the records of revolutions.
'While preparing to depart, it was proposed to call the
electors of the deputies together, to submit to them a plan
prepared for the government of Brazil, in order to have their
opinion, and, if approved of, their sanction, — the king pro
posing, with his usual wish to conciliate, that if any part of
the plan ofthe regency was disapproved of, he would adopt
such alteration as they suggested. The electors on this in
vitation were regularly convened by the Ouvidor of the
Commarca, who acted on such occasion as our high sheriff,
and assembled at the Exchange.
When the opening of the ports of Brazil had invited the
commerce of the world, and the increase of trade at Rio
had rendered a new Exchange necessary, it was resolved
to build one on a scale commensurate with the wants of the
port. The place fixed on was in the Rua Direita, beside
the Custom-house ; a number of old edifices were thrown
down, and an arei, open from the sea to the street, was
cleared for the building. It was commenced in October,
1819, and opened for business in the May following. The
house was 160 palms long and 145 broad ; the floor, ele
vated six steps above the level of the street, was entered
and passed through by four large arched gates on opposite
sides, the two principal opening to the street and the sea.
The interior had a central dome, with four transepts issuing
from it at right angles, forming a cross, extending the length
and breadth ofthe building, with galleries at each end, sup
ported by twentytwo doric fluted columns. The coup deceit
of this hall was very striking, as it had a classical air, very
unlike the dull and heavy public edifices in every other part
of the city. Statues of the four quarters of the world in
dicated the extent to which the trade of Brazil had been
thrown open, and Commerce, Navigation, Industry, and
Agriculture, the arts which it cherished and encouraged.
10*

114 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
As the king always wished to distinguish his birthdays by
some act affording agreeable recollections, he appointed the
13th of May for the opening of this edifice, and it formed
a kind of jubilee in Rio. The king took his barge, landed
at the sea portal, and visited the hall, which was brilliantly
illuminated. The British merchants deputed one of their
body, who addressed him in the following words : — " Senhor,
it is incumbent on the British merchants, resident in the city,
to congratulate your Majesty on this occasion, and to thank
you for the protection and favor you have always, afforded to
their commerce. I, with them, sincerely pray that you may
live many years, to animate that commerce, and render hap
py those who live under your prosperous reign." Having
made a suitable answer, the king, with his family, sat down
to a collation prepared for the occasion ; which was follow
ed by a ball, and they departed amidst acclamations and
music. As this building formed a distinguished era in the annals
of Brazil, indicating the great political changes the country
had undergone, and the vast influx of wealth it had acquir
ed, it was a temple to which they attached a kind of vene
ration ; and here the first electors convened in the country,
were determined to hold their important meeting. Several
ofthe citizens combined to add to its ornament on the oc
casion, at their own private expense ; one covered the seats
with velvet, another sent silver candlesticks, and every one
was eager to contribute to the decoration and display of the
first national assembly of Brazil, It was naturally to be
expected that much irregularity should occur in a'meeting
entirely unused to form, and unacquainted with the extent
of its powers. The debates, therefore, were turbulent, and
some of their demands extravagant. They proposed that
the Constitution of Spain should be the model of that of
Portugal, to which the king assented. A rumor was spread
that the Portuguese, troops were coming to disperse them ;
but their commander, being summoned before them, assured
them it was not so. It was affirmed that the king was about
to carry off with him a large treasure from the country ;"and
had actually embarked a quantity of public property, even
the funds of some charitable institutions. It was well known,,
that prodigality and rapacity had been the hesetting sins of
the government of Brazil, and this rumor gained implicit
credit. It was moved, therefore, that the vessels should be
searched, and orders were sent to the commanders of the

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 115
forts of Santa Cruz and Lage, to stop the ships ofthe squa
dron, if they attempted to sail. i
It was now past midnight, and some of the electors had
retired ; but, from the importance of their proceedings, the
hall was still crowded, when the edifice was suddenly sur
rounded by a regiment of soldiers, with fixed bayonets, and
loaded muskets. Without the smallest notice of their ap
proach, or any intimation to the people to disperse, they
rushed on the unarmed meeting, poured a volley among
them, and then charged with their bayonets. Nothing could
be more horrible than the scene of carnage which followed
— a number of brutal soldiers assassinating unarmed citizens
in a closed-up room. Those who were not killed or wound
ed, attempted to escape through the windows ; some were
crushed to death by the fall, and some fled forward into the
sea, and were drowned. Meantime, the soldiers deliberate
ly proceeded to plunder ; they robbed the dead and wound
ed of their watches and valuables, and stripped the room of
the plate and candlesticks, and, having thus glutted them
selves with blood and plunder, dispersed.
I have conversed with several persons who were present
on this occasion, who informed me of the fate of some of
their friends. One man was a Brazilian, doing business in
an English house. Hearing a bustle near the door, he
stood up to see what was the matter, and was shot through
the heart by a soldier, who put his musket close to his breast.
Another was a young man, who, tired with the length ofthe
debate, had lain down, and fallen asleep ; in that position
he was pinned to the bench by a soldier who stood over him,
and thrust his bayonet through his back. An Englishman,
of the name of Burnet, had been employed as caretaker of
the hall ; he was attacked by a fellow who thrust his bay
onet at his belly. Providentially he had in his waistcoat
pocket a large snuff-box, and the point ofthe bayonet pass
ed through the lid, but not the bottom, so his life was saved.
About thirty persons were killed or wounded, and were
found dead or dying on the spot, besides others who had dis
appeared, some of whom were supposed to be drowned, and
many others were hurt more or less severely.
The next day the event was as if it had never happened.
Such was the debasing terror ofthe people, that no inquiry
was attempted to be made as to the instigators of the meas
ure, or the number of victims they had sacrificed. The
king has been acquitted by all ; his habits and feelings were

116 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
acknowledged to have been altogether repugnant to such a
deed of blood. Some consider it an act of the Conde dos
Arcos, whose unrelenting severity had been already exer
cised on the insurgents of Pernambuco. He was some time
after dismissed from the situation he held in the government,
and sent home to Portugal ; and so odious did he become
to the people, that they would not allow him to land at Bahia,
where a short time before he had been so popular. Others,
and the greater number of those I have conversed with, at
tribute it to Dom Pedro himself. When apprised of the
proceedings of the electors, he hastened, they say, to the
Campo de St. Anna at midnight, and taking with him the
regiment of cacjadores, he sent them forward by the Rua
d'Alfandega, and other streets which led to the Custom
house, with orders to disperse the meeting ; the manner of
doing it was their own sanguinary act. To whomever it is
to be attributed, you will agree with me, that a more base
and cowardly assassination was never perpetrated.
Such was the horror conceived by the citizens at this
event, that the place where it happened was totally abandon
ed. No merchant would afterwards enter the Exchange to
transact any business, and it remained deserted like a haunt
ed house, the perforated walls and blood-stained floors con
tinuing for a longtime melancholy memorials of the massacre.
These were, however, at length removed, the walls were re^
paired and painted, aud the whole again elegantly fitted u-p ;
still no one would enter it, and when I visited it, with a
friend, to examine its localities, this fine hall was converted
into an iron store, filled with all manner of lumber. Some
ofthe doors and windows were bricked up ; and the light
and elegant building, which used to be daily crowded with
all the respectable merchants of Rio, -.vas then a dirty vault,
frequented only by negroes, and filled with old iron. ¦
When this affair was mentioned in the cortes at Lisbon,
it was considered only a just chastisement on the turbulent
provincials of Brazil ; and one ofthe sufferers having display
ed a handkerchief stained with his blood, as evidence ofthe
fact, the whole assembly burst out laughing. These men, so
clamorous for liberty themselves, were determined that their
fellow subjects of America should not share in it, and this
was soon evinced by their conduct.
The king, after this melancholy event, hastened his depar
ture. He left his son Prince Regent, with a council of three
ministers, and, in the event of his death, the succession to

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 117
fall to the Princess Leopoldina. He addressed the troops,
and hoped to ensure their attachment by promising an in
crease of pay, but he left nothing in the treasury for that
purpose. He embarked on the 24th of May, and many of
the nobles and opulent men accompanied him. This was a
serious evil, as the money withdrawn from the country, and
brought back by these returned emigrants, amounted to more
than fifty millions of c'rusados, which was deeply felt in Bra
zil, and the cause of much of the discontent and calamity
which followed.
Nothing could form a stronger contrast than the entrance
of Dom Jo"hn VI. into Brazil, and his departure. He was
received with the enthusiasm of respect and love, which
admiration for the person of their king> and pity for his ex
iled fortunes, inspired. All his first acts were acknowledg
ed as the bounteous boons of a benevolent being superior to
man, and are so spoken of in the contemporary publications ;
and, certainly, no nation was ever more indebted to a sove
reign than the Americans to him, for the wise, beneficent,
and liberal decrees which marked the first years of his so
journ among them. He gradually laid the foundation of
that independence which they now enjoy, and fitted them
for it by a succession of acts which tended to improve and
enrich the country, and enlighten the people. But he was
altogether unfitted, by the meekness of his character, and
the timidity and irresolution of his measures, to control or
direct the spirit of independence when once excited. His
kindness was forgotten, his understanding laughed at, his
measures thwarted ; the halo of respect and veneration
which encircled his person was entirely dissipated, and he
lived to see his subjects endeavor to stop him like a fugi
tive, who was carrying away clandestinely a property that
did not belong to him.

118 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

CHAP. X.
Question of tlie Independence of Brazil agitated. — J. B. d'Andrada. — Oppressive
Conduct of the Porfuguese, who recall Dom Pedro. — Effect on the Brazilians. —
Mineiros and Paulistas show first and highest Spirit. — Address presented by An*
drada. — Dom Pedro determines not to return. — Composes a Constitutional Hymn.
— Attempt to seize him at the Theatre. — Portuguese Troops take a menacing Posi
tion on the Castle-Hill. — Brazilians assemble at the Campo de St. Anna. — Oblige
the Portuguese to pass over to Praya Gjande. — Dismal.State of Rio-. — Portuguese
¦Troops compelled to embark.— Plots and Conspiracies in Brazil. — Prompt and rigor
ous Conduct uf Dom Pedro. — Rapid Journey to Villa Rica, and its Effects. — Admi
ration and Enthusiasm of the People for his Person. — Confer on him a new Title.
— Conduct of Portugal  Cradle of Brazilian Liberty. — Bahia occupied by European
Troops. — Female Heroism. — Dom Pedro acclaimed Constitutional Emperor. — In
consistent with the Declarations to his Father.— Lord Cochrane invited from Chile.
— Proceeds against Bahia, and blockades it. — Inhabitants driven from'the Town. —
Bold Attempt to burn the Fleet. — Madeira evacuates the Town, and is pursued
across the Equator. — Horrible Events at Para.
Immediately after the departure of the king, the question
of the entire independence of Brazil on Portugal began to
be agitated, and the determination that it should not again
be reduced to the situation of a province. These feelings
were strongly excited by the conduct of the mother country.
The prince regent had met with some opposition in different
parts of Brazil, where the people declared themselves inde
pendent of Rio de Janeiro, and amenable only to the cortes
and government of Portugal. At Villa Rica and Maranhao
the cortes was proclaimed, and no notice taken ofthe prince ;
and even the troops refused to acknowledge him if they did
not receive the promised pay, which he had not the means
of giving. But the disturbance at St. Paul's was more
serious. The cacadores took up arms, and declared they
would not lay them down till their demands were satisfied ;
and the militia and people, assembled before the camera or
town-hall, demanded a provisional junta for the government
of the province ; and that Jose Bonafacio d'Andrada de
Sylva, an accomplished and patriotic citizen, a native of St.
Paul's, and highly popular, should be president, and a depu
tation was sent to invite him. The standard of the camera
was soon after displayed at one window, and Andrada ap
peared at the other. He accepted the situation, the junta
was installed, and having exhorted the people to peace, and.
submission to the laws, and the prince as Regent, they dis*

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 119
persed, and all was quiet. This was a most important event
for the prince : it caused his disputed authority to be re
cognized in the most influential province of Brazil, and it
was the foundation of an ardent attachment, which for some
time afterwards subsisted between him and the family of
Andrada. When the state and feeling ofthe people of Brazil were
known at Lisbon, the cortes immediately issued their sove
reign orders ; and on the 9th of December, the brig Dom
Sebastiao entered the port of Rio, bearing two decrees ;
one to organize a provisional government, which should re
duce the country again to the condition of a province ; and
the other, ordering the immediate return of the prince re
gent to Portugal, on the pretext of travelling through Eu
rope for his improvement. These decrees the prince pre
pared to obey, and the Union frigate was ordered to be got
ready for his departure.
It was now that the Brazilians seemed moved as one man,
by a feeling in which all equally participated. Hitherto
partial ebullitions of independence and republicanism had
shown themselves ; but, as the objects of those who display
ed them were supposed to be wild and visionary, they met
with but little sympathy among the great mass ofthe people.
On this occasion, however, there seemed to be but one sen
timent universally in Brazil ; and that was, that it should
not be again reduced to the state of a colony of another
country, its commerce restricted, its ports closed, and its in
tercourse with other nations regulated by the narrow and
exclusive policy which had hitherto kept them a secluded
people, and in utter ignorance ofthe rest ofthe world.
Among the engines by which popular feeling was at this
time excited, and kept up, was the press, which teemed
with publications, of which I procured a large collection.
One of them was called " O Despertador Braziliense," the
Brazilian Alarum, which seemed to have had a powerful
effect. It was written, I was told, by an eminent civilian,
O Doutor Fran, de Franza Miranda. I send you the fol
lowing passage on the subject ofthe decrees, as a specimen
of the style and reasoning of these young people : — " The
measure is illegal, impious, and impolitic. Illegal, because
it has been decreed without the co-operation of our repre
sentatives ; consequently, without any manifestation ofthe
national will. Impious, because it shows the contemptuous
indifference with which the cortes disposes of our existence,

120 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
as if we were a band of miserable slaves, created to be sub
ject to the caprice, and abandoned to the will of their mas
ters ; and not a co-equal kingdom as we are, more pow
erful, and possessing more resources than -Portugal herself.
Impolitic, because it is precisely at the moment when our
union will be most advantageous to our allied -country,
that she chooses to fill us with disgust, and to render to
the eyes of the whole world, our separation to be a mat
ter both of justice and necessity." This decided, and
hitherto unheard of language, was received with astonishing
avidity. The pamphlet was everywhere circulated through
the .country, and all classes adopted its sentiments.
The first portion ofthe people who came to a decided re
solution on this subject, were the Paulistas, and the Mine-
iros, who originally formed but one province, and resembled
each other in spirit and independence. They had been the
earliest colonized, and were the richest, as well as the most
intelligent, portion of the country. An address was drawn
up in their name by Joze d'Andrada ; it contained the fol
lowing passage': "How dare those deputies of Portugal,
without deigning to wait for the concurrence of those of
Brazil, legislate on a matter which involves the most sacred
interests of the entire kingdom ? How dare they deprive
Brazil of her privy council, her court of conscience, her
exchequer, her board of commerce, her court of requests,
and so many other institutions, just established among us, and
which promised us such future benefits ? Where now must
the people apply on their civil and judicial concerns ? Must
they once more, after enjoying for twelve years the advan
tages of speedy justice, seek it in a foreign land, across two
thousand leagues of ocean, among the procrastinations and
corruptions of Lisbon tribunals, where the oppressed suitor
is abandoned by hope and life ? " This address concluded
with a request, that the prince would not abandon Brazil,
nor suffer himself to be " led about like a school-boy, sur
rounded by masters and spies,"* and it was followed by an
other, presented by the camera of Rio, breathing the same
sentiment. As the prince had not yet expressed his sentiments, the
Portuguese troops, who entered into all the feelings and as
sumed all the consequence of the mother country, talked
without disguise of his being obliged to perform what they
* Fazer viajar como hum Pupillo, rodeado de aios e .de espias.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL: 131
called his duty, in obeying the mandates of the cortes ; but
the prince determined at once to decide on his line of con
duct, so he replied to the deputation ofthe camera, that " as
it appeared to be the general wish and for the general good,
he would remain." This declaration was received with
huzzas, followed by discharges of artillery and fireworks,
which soon announced the news in every direction. A bril
liant opera, as usual, succeeded, and the prince and princess
appeared full dressed in their box ; orators of all kinds had
speeches ready, and when called on, appeared on the stage
and delivered them : and it was on this evening, I believe,
that the celebrated national hymn was for the first time play
ed and sung. The prince, as I mentioned to you, is an ex
cellent musician, and now proved himself a poet : he com
posed both the words and air of a song for this occasion, of
which the following is a translation.
" Children of your country, prizing
High your honored parents' weal,
See the star of freedom rising,
Radiant o'er your loved Brazil.
" Bold Brazilians, far repelling
Fear that timid dastards feel,
Liberty our laDd shall dwell in,
Or our grave shall be Brazil." *
When the prince's determination was known, the Portu
guese troops spoke openly of taking him by force to the ship
sent for him, and a plan was organized for the purpose while
he was at the opera. The theatre was surrounded by sol
diers, who had orders to seize his person and convey him to
the vessel, which was immediately to set sail before any no
tification of it should transpire. But the prince looking out
of one ofthe windows of the corridor, and seeing an unusual
number of persons, immediately became suspicious that it
was for some purpose with which he was not acquainted,
and he instantly directed General Caretti to order them to
their quarters. The alarm was instantly spread ; the Bra
zilian troops ran to arms ; and the Portuguese, irresolute
and unprepared for this, retired without making any attempt.
They still, however, maintained a menacing attitude : it was
determined that something decided must be done ; and it
was resolved to send them immediately back to Portugal.
, * See Appendix, No. HI.
11

122 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
The troops, however, to the number of 700, took up a po
sition on the castle hill, commanding the principal streets,
and from hence with four pieces of artillery they threatened
to batter down the city. Here they expected to be joined
by the troops at S. Christovao, amounting to about 500 men.
They did not join them ; but tbe reason they assigned for
not doing so, was a subject of much more alarm to the Bra
zilians. They said their duty was to attend the person of
the prince ; and from that moment he was considered a pri
soner in their hands.
This state of things could not be endured, and the whole
city was on the alert. The greatest exertions were made,
without a moment's cessation, all night. The citizens sent
their horses and mules to convey arms and ammunition ;
expresses were despatched in every direction. The militia
and all the Brazilian troops in the neighborhood crowded
into the town and assembled at the campo de St. Anna, and
by sun-rise in the morning there appeared drawn up there,
a force of between 4 and 5000 men, headed by the prince,
and prepared for action. The Brazilian troops now formed
a cordon round the base ofthe hill on which the Portuguese
had taken their station, and cut them off from all communi
cation from below, and from supplies of provision, which
they had neglected to provide ; so, finding themselves in a
hopeless situation, and all chance of success against a whole
population destroyed, they submitted to the terms proposed
to them, and agreed to be transported across the Bay to
the Praya Grande, an open and level plain on the opposite
side. It was the intention ofthe prince to have them imme
diately embarked on their arrival and sent to Portugal ; but
there were no transports or provisions ready, and they were
permitted to encamp while they were prepared.
During all these trying events, Dom Pedro acted with an
energy, promptness, and decision, which could hardly be
expected from his years and inexperience. He had made
his election, and he proceeded firmly to execute it ; but
his ministers, adverse or timid, would not second him ; and
his situation was_ rendered still more trying and embarras
sing by their desertion. They resigned their situations, and
he applied to others to fill up the vacancies. They also,
feeble or irresolute in such doubtful events, declined the
dangerous situation ; till at length he sent to St. Paul's,
and the popular magistrate Andrada, for whom he had
contracted a personal regard, came to his aid and accepted

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 123
the situation of minister of justice and foreign affairs,, and
others followed his example. A remarkable instance ofthe
state of the public mind occurred on this occasion. It was
generally rumored that the Portuguese troops intended to
arrest the ministers on their way to the capital, and it was
deemed necessary to double the patrols and station guards
along the roads for their personal security ; but no attempt
was made against them.
The state of Rio at this time, as described to me, was
very dismal : all the shops were closed, and all the streets
abandoned. The shop-keepers were all enrolled among the
military as militia, and were distinguished by no uniform,
but paraded before their doors, with cross-belts of raw hides
over their ordinary clothes. They are generally persons o
low stature, and who, from their sedentary habits of life, be
come very corpulent and disinclined to move if they can
avoid it. On this occasion, however, they were all activity,
and showed an alertness so superior to the Portuguese, that
the troops acquired distinctive appellations by contrast ; the
Brazilians were called, I think, Pe da Cabra, foot of the
goat, from their activity ; and the Portuguese, Pe de Chum-
bo, foot of lead, from their heavy tread in marching. .These
long after continued as sobriquets ofthe different partisans
of all classes, applied indiscriminately on both sides.
The transports were now ready, but the Portuguese troops
refused, under various pretexts, tb embark. One ofthe ar
ticles of -their removal to Praya Grande stipulated that they
should retain their arms, and they seemed preparing to use
them. Prompt means were taken here also, to frustrate any
attempt they could make. A strong cordon of native troops
was drawn up in their rear, to cut off their return to the
city by land, and two frigates were moored close beside
them at sea. Dom Pedro, accompanied by his new minis
try, appeared on board one ofthe frigates, and calling on the
general of the Portuguese, he informed him he was allowed
till next day to embark ; and if at that time he had not pro
ceeded on board, he would commence a fire on him by sea
and land. To suit the action to the word, I am told, he
held in his hand a lighted match, and declared he would be
the man himself who would discharge the first gun. This
declaration, and the known character ofthe prince, resolute
to carry it into effect, was decisive ; the next day the troops
were all embarked and sailing from the harbor.

124 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
If was hoped that when the Portuguese soldiers were re
moved, all cause of agitation would subside, and the dis
play of public feeling convince the cortes, how unwise as
well as desperate was the project of attempting to reduce
such a country again to the state of a colony. But this
was not the case. Among the political schemes of Portugal
to secure the entire dependence of Brazil, one was to divide
it into several captainces, each independent of all the rest,
and deriving their authority only from the mother-country.
They hoped by these means to destroy the bond of unanimi
ty, and erect a number of petty principalities, all jealous of
each other, ahd looking up for countenance and support
only to the cortes. The effect of this soon began to operate.
Maranhao, Bahia, and other places had been actuated by
this spirit ; and to keep it alive, a fresh force was sent out
from Portugal, under General Madeira, who landed in
Bahia, in February, 1822, and took military possession of
the city.
Meantime plots and conspiracies were every day forming
in the ardent and unsettled mind ofthe people, and wild and
impracticable schemes of all kinds were planned in different
places. The Minas Gerae3 had early distinguished itself
by its independent and revolutionary opinions, and a faction,
headed by the Juiz da Fora, and supported by an officer of
cacadores, set up the standard of insurrection at Villa Rica,
the capital, and refused to acknowledge the authority of the
Prince. On this occasion also Dom Pedro displayed the
untiring activity and energy of his character. He ordered
troops to march to the disaffected places, but he did not wait
for their tardy progress ; leaving Andrada to conduct the
government in his absence, he set out himself in person for
the insurgent capital. The boldness and rapidity of his
movements at once astonished and disconcerted them. The
militia ofthe Comarca, who^ advanced from Villa Rica to
oppose his forces, immediately submitted to himself, when
they met him on the road alone and without an army.
He entered Villa Rica on the 9th of April : the revolution
ary parties immediately dissolved and joined the camera
and magistrates, in a deputation to receive him. He made
them a speech, in which he complimented them on their
zeal, and congratulated them, that the fetters of slavery
which had bound them, were now burst asunder by them
selves ; bade them be free and constitutional, and rely on
him as he relied on them, and concluded by shouting vivas

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 125
for tke constitution, religion, honest men, and the mineiros.
He inflicted no punishment on the conspirators, except sus
pension from office ; and having secured the attachment of
the place, returned with the same rapidity to Rio as he had
advanced. In thirty days he traversed near 1000 miles,
almost unattended, across serras and campos, through wild
and almost impassable roads ; established peace, good order
and attachment, among the disaffected, without a single act
of severity ; and on the evening of his arrival at Rio, he
proceeded to the opera, and announced that the Minas and its
capital had returned to their duty. From that time the city
changed its name, and was called " Cidade Imperiale," to
commemorate this rapid and extraordinary visit.
The admiration and enthusiasm ofthe people for his per
son had now attained their height. The 13th of May was the
anniversary of the birth of his father, and of the advance
ment of his grandmother to the throne of Portugal ; and the
Brazilians determined to distinguish it by another circum
stance. A deputation of the camera waited on him, with
a request that he would accept the title of " Constitutional
Prince Regent, and perpetual defender of Brazil." He ac
cepted the title, the latter part of which is still retained, and
impressed on his coins.* He was then invited, by a depu
tation from St. Paul's and the Minas, to call together a
general council to deliberate on public affairs — he com
plied with their request, and they soon after assembled.
The whole of Brazil seemed now impressed with the con
viction, that, it was no longer possible to continue united
with Portugal, and this feeling was brought to a crisis by
the Lisbon cortes. The most fierce and insulting language
was used towards Brazil in their sittings, in which the peo
ple in the galleries participated. Like all nations under
similar circumstances, their pride was wounded, and their
prejudices roused, that their colonists should dare to think
or act otherwise than they chose to dictate ; and they had no
notion of communicating to them that liberty of thinking
and speaking, which they were so clamorous in demanding
for themselves. Whenever the Brazilian deputies attempt
ed to remonstrate or advocate the cause of their country,
they were put down by acclamation, and decrees were past,
peremptorily ordering the Prince to Europe in four months,
and denouncing all military commanders who obeyed his or
ders, unless by compulsion, as traitors to Portugal.
* Perp. Bras. Def.
11*

126 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
When the news of these proceedings, arrived in Brazi1,
Dom Pedro was at a distance from the capital, at the little
town of Piranga ; and as soon as he received the despatches,
he was struck with their contents, and remained for. some
time in deep meditation on them. At length, roused as it
were from his reverie, and well convinced of the senti
ments of all around him, he exclaimed " Independence, or
Death!" and the exclamation was repeated with enthusiasm
by all who heard it. From this circumstance, I have heard
it said that the town of Piranga is considered by the people,
as the cradle of Brazilian independence.*
Meantime, fresh troops were daily" arriving to reinforce
Madeira in Bahia, continual sorties were made by the garri
son, as if into an enemy's country, and the Brazilians col
lected a large force to suppress their excesses. These took
post at Caxoeira, and were continually augmented by fresh
levies, who shut up Madeira in the town, as the North
Americans did the English army at Boston. It is in revolu
tionary times, when the feelings of men are in a high state of
excitement, that their ingenuity is quickened, and resources
supplied by extraordinary means and inventions. Salt is
an article ofthe first necessity in Brazil, and the patriot army
was greatly distressed for a supply, to preserve their provi
sions, as well as of ammunition for military operations. In
this emergency, an apothecary of the town supplied their
wants, by his own ingenuity. He collected sugar coppers,
in which he boiled down, and evaporated, the sea water ; and
he procured all the nitre of the neighborhood, and applied
himself, with success, to the manufacture of gunpowder.
All the engenhos, or sugar houses, were searched, and a
number of old muskets was found, which were repaired and
rendered fit for use ; and the Brazilians commenced a regu
lar siege of the Portuguese. They were shortly joined by a
reinforcement from Pernambuco, and a squadron arrived
from Rio, and landed an abundant supply of muskets, field-
pieces, cartridges, and other munitions of war. They now
stretched their lines across the whole peninsula, and the Por
tuguese, who had also received a large reinforcement of men,
were cut off from all supplies, except by sea, for their sup
port. * A French writer notices the circumstance in the following turgid
words : " Ce se'rment repete par tous ses compagnons, relentit dans
l'immensite du desert. 11 frappe les vastesflancsdesmontagnesaurif-
erea ; il va plus long encore, il traverse I'Atlantique, reveille les echos
du Tage, et fait pS.lir sur leurs thrones, les monarques du vieux monde."

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 127
The Portuguese made several attempts to remove these
obstructions and dislodge the besiegers, but they were al
ways repulsed by the natives, who displayed many extraor
dinary acts of enthusiastic courage, in which even the wo
men were conspicuous. One girl, the daughter of a pea
sant, rendered herself as famous as Bobelina among the
Greeks, or the Maid of Saragossa among the Spaniards. —
Her name was Maria de Jesus, and she had come to the
army as a substitute conscript for her brother or father. —
She served as a soldier with singular intrepidity, and for a
long time without the smallest suspicion of her sex.
While things remained in this state at Bahia, Dom Pedro
was invited by the council he had assembled, to call together
a general legislative and constituent assembly of deputies
from every part of the country, to deliberate on the urgent
necessities of Brazil, and provide for them. This meas
ure was immediately adopted, and from that moment the
countries were virtually separated, and Brazil an indepen
dent nation.
Prepared now to profit by the enthusiasm his declaration
of independence had excited, and having been in fact ac
knowledged emperor of an independent kingdom by the pro
vinces, he had soon this tacit assent confirmed by an impo
sing ceremony. The 12th of October was the anniversa
ry of his birth, and he determined to make that day also, in
1822, the festival of his election. The citizens and sol
diers assembled in the vast square ofthe Campo de St. An
na, on the morning of that day, to the number, it is suppo
sed, of 100,000 persons, and proclaimed him with shouts,
" The Constitutional Emperor, with the unanimous accla
mation of the people." The kingdom changed its style
and title, and all connexion with Portugal was rent in sun
der, and from that day abjured by the people. Similar
spontaneous acclamations took place at St. Paul's, Minas
Geraes, St. Catherine's, and Rio Grande, and other provin
ces. To commemorate the circumstance, the great square
of St. Anna changed its name to that ofthe Campo d'Ac-
clamacao, and has so been called ever since.
From the period when Dom John proceeded to Lisbon,
his son had kept up a constant correspondence with him on
the events passing in the country. These letters were sub
mitted by his father to the cortes, who ordered a certain
number of copies of them to be printed for the use of the
members. I saw these letters at Rio ; and some of them

128 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
exhibit an extraordinary tissue of duplicity; and if one
brother in Portugal has been stigmatized by his opponents
as a violafer of his solemn pledges, the other in Brazil has
not escaped a similar censure. In one of these letters he
particularly laments the growing embarrassments and diffi
culties of his situation, and earnestly solicits his recall.
" I supplicated your Majesty," said he, " by all that is
sacred in the world, to dispense with the painful functions
you have assigned me, which will end in killing me. —
Frightful pictures surround me continually. I have them
always before me. I conjure your Majesty to permit me
as soon as possible to go and kiss your royal hand, and to
sit on the steps of your throne. I seek only to procure a
happy tranquillity." * He was in consequence recalled ;
a vessel was sent to convey him, and he would not go.
Again he writes — " They wish, and they say they wish,
to proclaim me emperor. I protest to your Majesty I will
never be perjured ; that I never will be false to you ; and
that if they ever commit that folly, it. shall not be till after
they have cut me to pieces — me and all the Portuguese ; a
solemn oath which I here have written ivith my blood, in the
following words : I swear to be always faithful to your Maj
esty, to the Portuguese nation and constitution. " j* In
conformity with this solemn declaration written in his blood, ,
he threatens to fire on his faithful Portuguese, if they do
not instantly return home ; and shortly after he is the first
to propose a separate legislation for Brazil, to have the coun
try proclaimed independent, and himself acknowledged its
sovereign. Il was now resolved to prosecute the war against Bahia
with the utmost vigor, for they considered that their inde
pendence was precarious, as long as a Portuguese soldier
remained in the country. To this end a naval armament
was indispensable, as the Portuguese, though confined on
the land side, were masters ofthe sea, and had all the re
sources which could be supplied in that way open to them.
* Letter III. Sept. 21, 1821.
t The following is the original of this strong document : — " Queriao
me, e dizem que me querem, acclamar Imperador ; protesto a vossa
Magest. que nunca serei perjuro, que nunca Ihe serei falso, e que
elles farao esa loucura, mas sera depois de eu, b todos os Portugueses,
estarem feitos em postas. He o que juro a voss. Magest. escrevendo
nesta com a mea sangue estas seguinles palavras, juro sempre ser fiel a
voss. Magest. a Nacao e a constiluicao Portuguesa." — Letter IV. Oct.
4, 1821.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 129
Every exertion therefore was made to refit the ships lying
in dock, left behind by Dom John. The arsenal was daily
visited by the emperor, liberal voluntary subscriptions were
made to complete them, and agents were sent out to search
for and engage officers and men, either on the spot, or such
as could be induced to enter the service from other coun
tries, to man and command them. Some arrived from
North America, some from Buenos Ayres ; but the man
on whom the Brazilians placed most reliance was Lord
Cochrane, who, having achieved the independence of a con
siderable part of Spanish America, was now lo6ked up to
as the person most capable of rendering the same service
to Brazil also. He was then in Chili ; and an invitation
being sent to him, he arrived at Rio on 13th March, 1823,
to take the command ofthe new Brazilian fleet. It consist
ed of one ship of eighty guns, formerly the Dom Joao VI.
but now named the Pedro Primeiro, in honor ofthe emper
or, with ten others of lesser force, and four armed merchant
men, making in all fifteen ships, commanded by captains of
different nations, and manned by motley crews, the greater
number of whom were anything but sailors. On the 1st of
April the squadron weighed and sailed from Rio.
The Portuguese garrison had been considerably rein
forced, and now consisted of fourteen or fifteen effective
battalions in the town, and a fleet in the harbor, far superior
to that which Lord Cochrane brought with him. His entire
force was seven ships, mounting 250 guns ; while that of
the Portuguese was thirteen, carrying 398 guns. As soon
as it was known that he had arrived, the whole Portuguese
fleet hauled out, and spread themselves along the shores of
the Bay ; and Lord Cochrane, with his accustomed decision,
boldly determined to attack them, though some of his squa
dron had not yet arrived. He instantly separated them, but
he effected nothing ; his ships Sailed, and were worked so
badly, that he could not avail himself of their assistance.
A considerable part of the crews were Portuguese, and
could not be relied on ; and it. is said, that two marines of
that nation stood in the magazine passage of the admiral's
ship, with drawn swords in their hands, and so endeavored
to prevent the powder from being served during the engage
ment. It was determined to renew the attack next day, but
the enemy had withdrawn, and taken refuge under their own
guns on shore ; and here they suffered themselves to be
blockaded by a squadron far inferior to themselves, and so

130 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
were penned in, both by land and sea, where they soon be
came a prey to famine and disorganization.
The blockade was now so vigorously maintained, that
they were compelled to dismiss all the useless mouths from
the town, and three days were allowed the inhabitants to
prepare for their departure. They were then, to the num
ber of 16,000 persons, driven from the place towards the
enemy's lines, like the citizens of Derry, during the memo
rable siege of that city. It was in the middle of the rainy
season, and the unfortunate fugitives, particularly delicate
females, suffered the extremity of misery, from their unpro
vided state in the most inclement weather.
Lord Cochrane now put in practice one of those acts of
intrepidity and enterprise, which distinguish him. He de
termined to burn and destroy the Portuguese fleet as they
lay in the harbor. The commander ofthe English squadron
then in the bay, knowing well the temper and determination
of his lordship, advised the Portuguese admiral to be on his
guard ; and he himself, as a precautionary measure against
the accident of fire-ships, drew off several miles from his
squadron. The admiral disregarded the caution ; and one
night at ten o'clock, while he was on shore dining with the
general, he was alarmed by a shot from the bay, and, on
inquiry, found that his fleet was actually attacked where
they lay. Lord Cochrane, availing himself of the darkness,
hove his ship into the midst of the enemy, and alongside of
the admiral. When he was preparing to board, the breeze
that brought him suddenly failed, and he found himself alone
in the midst of the hostile fleet, and under the guns of their
batteries. In this emergency he had no alternative, but to
escape if he could. He was aware that the concussion of
the air from the discharge of a single gun, might lull the
slight breeze, which yet remained, into a dead calm ; so he
hastily availed himself of what had not died away, and stood
again out ofthe harbor.
The Brazilians meantime, impatient of delay, were de
termined to make an attack on the town on their side. To
this end they formed on the skirts ofthe wood, where they
were encamped, and advanced to the assault in three col
umns, with great appearance of resolution. They were,
however, received with a tremendous shower of grape ; and
the garrison having made a sortie, rushed on them with fix
ed bayonets before they could recover from their confusion.
They were repulsed with great loss ; but the general waa

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 131
unable to derive any advantage from it. Meantime, Lord
Cochrane was preparing for a second attack, but an acci-'
dent happened to his ship, which was well nigh proving fa
tal to himself and all on board. A cask of spirits took fire,
probably applied by some of the disaffected on board, and
communicated to the timbers of the ship. In the alarm,
half of the crew leaped overboard, and a great many were
drowned before they could be picked up again ; but the fire
was happily extinguished before it communicated to the
powder magazine.
It is supposed that apprehension of the total destruction
of his fleet, -by some bold and desperate effort of Lord
Cochrane, as well as the want of provision, determined
Madeira at length to abandon a place he found no longer
tenable. All his stores, and valuables in plate and money,
were embarked in thirtytwo sail of transports ; and with
these, and thirteen ships-of-war, with several others, to the
number of seventy in all, he sailed out ofthe harbor of Ba
hia on the 3d of July, 1823 ; and immediately the Brazilians
entered the city on the land side, and took quiet possession
of it, without committing a single excess.
The Portuguese were pursued by Lord Cochrane, and
part of his squadron, with the most unrelenting rigor across
the Equator ; when having taken more thaji one half of their
transports, and so dispersed the rest, that only thirteen sail
of them continued together, he returned to Brazil, to dis
possess the few foreign troops that remained in Maranhao
and Para. He arrived at the former place, July 26, 1823 ;
a provisional government was established in the name of the
emperor, and the Portuguese troops, to the number of about
300 men, were embarked. Similar proceedings took place
at Para, and the last of the Portuguese left the shore of
Brazil forever.
All these events occurred with comparatively little loss
of life, or extreme suffering to any party, except at Para.
Here the adherents ofthe emperor, thinking they were en
titled to the plunder of the town, as a reward for their ser
vices, rose in a state of insurrection for the purpose. They
were, however, suppressed : some were shot, and others
confined on board a prison-ship ; of these latter more than
250 were found dead next morning in the hold, with fright
ful marks of destruction. In their rage and despair some
had strangled themselves, some their neighbors, but the
greater ' number had died by suffocation : four only sur
vived.

132 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
While these events were passing in the north, every
thing at Rio was maturing to the final and permanent es
tablishment ofthe transatlantic empire. The brothers, An-
drada, who had taken such a distinguished part in affairs,
and were so high in the confidence of the emperor, had,
. from some misunderstanding, resigned the offices they held,
and the people regarded it as a public calamity. One of
them lived at Catete, near the Gloria, and the emperor was
determined to go in person, and request him to resume his
ministry, when a curious scene occurred. The people, ap
prised of his purpose to visit him, anticipated his intention,
and proceeded there before him. When he approached the
house, he saw a large concourse of persons coming towards
him, shouting vivas, and conducting his minister to meet him
He sprung from his carriage, hung upon his neck, and per
suaded him again to resume his situation ; and this waa
publicly announced the same night at the theatre. These
scenes, whether felt or feigned, had a powerful effect on the
multitude.

CHAP. XI.

Coronation of Dom Pedro. — Picture at the Academy — Meeting of tho Constituent
Assembly. — First enlightened Proceedings. — Spirit of Democracy begins to appear.
— Dissolution by military Force. — The Andradas and other Members seized and
exiled. — Anecdotes of the Andradas. — Emperor promises another Constitution. —
Accepted by the People. — Burning ofthe Theatre. — Independence of Brazil ac
knowledged by Dom John. — Congress of Panama. — Magnificent but impracticable
Conception. — Cause ofthe War with Buenos Ayres. — Monte Video seized by
Portuguese.— AbsurdAdulation ofthe Cabildo.— Petty Warfare.— Fleet in the Rio
de Plata — Weak Pretensions to blockade. — Evil Consequences ofthe War.'— Em
peror embarks for St. Catharine's.
The 1st of December was the day appointed for his coro
nation. Dom Pedro, like Napoleon, had attached a certain
prestige to particular days ; and as his acclamation was made
on that of his birth as a political new birth, so this of his
coronation was the anniversary of the deliverance of Portu
gal from the Spanish yoke, as it was intended to commemo
rate that of Brazil from the yoke of Portugal. It was in the
midst ofthe wet season of the country, and it rained in tor
rents the whole day ; but this did not extinguish the ardor

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 133
ofthe spectators, who assembled in the same multitudes as
on former similar occasions ; and triumphal arches, and
other displays, were erected in all parts of the city. The
ceremony was performed m the chapel attached to the pal
ace, which was used as a cathedral, and the evening con-
eluded, as usual, with a grand opera, which exhibited a
most splendid scene. The ladies glittering with the dia
monds of the country; the military in gorgeous uniforms,
covered with stars of different orders ; and the superb
display of the emperor's box, filled with his suite, — all con
spired to add to the impressive effect ; while crowns and
wreaths of laurel were showered down from all parts of
the theatre, and sundry ladies of rank and respectability
spontaneously came forward on the stage, like so many
Corinnes, and sung national hymns and patriotic airs, in
which they were joined by the whole house.
A new academy was founded shortly after, and this coro
nation was taken as a subject to exercise the pencil of the
students. A large and striking picture was executed, rep
resenting the ceremony, where all the figures were portraits,
and nearly as large aa life, and it was intended that this
should be preserved as the first specimen of the arts exe
cuted in the country. I saw it afterwards in the hall ofthe
academy, a sad specimen of the mutability of popular feel
ing ; some disaffected person had cut the cords by which it
was suspended ; it fell to the ground, and was burst into
fragments by its own weight, and it remained there, an object '
of scoff and ridicule to the fickle citizen.
At this time the people of Brazil were greatly alarmed
and afflicted at an accident that threatened the life of their
popular emperor. While riding one day with his usual im
petuosity) his naked sword was forced from his hand against
his leg, so as nearly to lame him ; and while yet laboring*
under the effects of this accident, he fell from his horse with
violence, and broke two of his ribs. These injuries con
fined him to his bed, and obliged him to absent himself for
some time from public affairs. In the mean time, disputes
arose among his ministers, and his friends and counsellors,
the Andradas, retired again from office.
Preparations had been for some time making to regulate
the manner of electing deputies to form the first constituent
and legislative assembly of Brazil, and sundry alvaras and
ordinances had been issued for the purpose. In April,
1823, a number of the members had arrived in the capital,
12

134 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
and on the 17th of the same month they assembled, to the
amount of fiftytwo, in the hall appointed for the purpose,
and elected Dom Jose Caetano, the bishop and grand chap
lain, their ,first president. After some preliminary regula
tions, they all took an oath to the purport that " they would
faithfully execute the trust reposed in them in framing apo
litical constitution for Brazil, and making indispensable re
forms, and that they would maintain the Catholic religion
and the dynasty of Dom Pedro, their first emperor, and his
issue." When these forms were gone through, arid the as
sembly regularly constituted, they invited the emperor to
be present at their first session, and he appointed the 3d of
May for the purpose. This particular day was fixed on be
cause it was connected with another important event in the
annals ofthe country : it was the day on which Cabral dis
covered it, and this new era in politics, was like a second
discovery of its means of prosperity, and the second great
epoch a in its history.
At an early hour the city was on the alert, and the streets
were strewed with flowers and odoriferous herbs, the whole
ofthe way through which he intended to pass. This prac
tice is very common with the Brazilians, and on all occa
sions of any procession I have seen it done more or les3.
A throne was prepared in the assembly for the emperor,
and a box for the empress and her family on his right hand.
The president's chair was on the first step of the throne,
and before him a table, on which lay the gospels. The
emperor was met by a deputation ofthe members, who con
ducted him to his throne, where he laid aside his crown and
sceptre, and addressed the assembly in a long and eloquent
speech, enumerating all the political events which had taken
place in the country, and the measures adopted to amelio
rate and improve its condition, and pointed out the line they
were to pursue in framing a new constitution, in which they
should well define the limits ofthe three powers composing
the state, and oppose insuperable barriers to despotism,
whether royal, aristocratic, or democratic. The emperor
was loudly cheered by the assembly and the spectators, in
the gallery, and conducted with enthusiastic plaudits back
' to his palace.
The assembly, thus constituted under such favorable aus
pices, were naturally looked up to as those who had the
future happiness and prosperity of Brazil in their hands, and
their discussions and decisions seemed at first to realize all

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 135
that had been expected from them. They decided on the
great questions of personal and religious freedom, trial by
jury, liberty of the press, and inviolability of property, and
defined and established wise and judicious limits for them
all. The abolition of religious distinction was also a fair
feature in their proceedings. It was certainly a proud tri
umph in this Catholic land, hitherto shut out from all inter
course with other nations, and supposed to entertain the
most intolerant prejudices against heretics that ignorance
and bigotry could engender, that all strangers naturalized
in the country should be now entitled to equal protection
from the laws, whatever was their religion, and all Chris
tians be eligible to all offices and employments.*
Another object which engaged their attention was, the
state of slavery,* which it would have taken into its consid
eration. This is perhaps the subject of all others in which
the interests and prejudices of all classes are most deeply
involved ; and the immense property vested in slaves, and
their almost exclusive employment in every branch of pro
duct or traffic, had so interwoven the system with everything
in the country, that it seemed as if touching this foundation
would pull down the whole fabric of Brazilian industry and
prosperity. Notwithstanding this, the feelings of natural
right had become now so generally , recognized, that it was
one ofthe subjects which would have engaged the greatest
share ofthe attention of the deputies, had they been suffered
to discuss it.
The Andradas, though no longer ministers, had seats in
this assembly, and were among its most influential members.
They were men of ardent and daring minds ; and while in
vestigating the state ofthe country, and pointing out abuses
which required reform, many questions arose, particu
larly on the subject of the veto, which caused much heat
and excitement, and called forth violent republican opinions.
The emperor himself adverted to this in his proclamation of
the 8th of August : — "Some of the municipalities," said he,
" have given instructions to their deputies, in which democ
racy predominates ; but democracy , in Brazil, in this vast
empire, is an absurdity. The times we live in abound in
sad monitions : let us look to the fate of others, as beacons
to warn ourselves where to avoid the danger."
* By the constitution subsequently formed, those who are not of
the religion of the state may vote at elections, but cannot be returned
as deputies.

136 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
The people without were , equally violent ; and every
apothecary's and barber's shop, the usual places for discus
sing political questions in Rio, became a debating society.
A letter appeared in a newspaper called the Sentinella, in
which were very severe strictures on the officers ofthe
horse artillery. Two of them attacked a young man of the
name of Pamplona, an apothecary, whom they supposed
was the author, and violently assaulted him in his own shop.
This incident was magnified as a military outrage on the
liberty of the subject, and the chamber took it up. The
people of the galleries were permitted to' take their seats on
the benches below, and the deputies were so heated with the
subject, that the most violent speeches were made, and the
most extreme measures talked of ; they first proposed a res-^
olution, that the European military should move six leagues
from Rio.
The emperor was at S. Christovao when he heard of if,
and immediately, without convening a council, or consult
ing any person, took with him the third regiment of infantry,
and some cavalry quartered near the palace, and proceeded
at once to the hall. He surrounded the building with the
military, and then sent General Moraes into the house, to dis
solve the assembly. I have heard from those who were pres
ent, that the scene was singularly awful. When the thing
was rumored in the house, the debate was suspended, and
a dead silence for a moment prevailed. Thi3 was broken by
the tramp of an armed man ascending the stairs, with his
gingling accoutrements : he stood at the door of the hall,
and then presented a paper ordering the deputies to dis
perse. The president did not lose for a moment his self-
possession. He rose with dignity, and denounced any per
son who would violate the sanctity ofthe national represen
tation, as a traitor to his country, and commanded the mil
itary man to retire from the fallowed precincts ofthe legis
lative assembly. The general replied by pointing to the
square below ; and when the president looked out, he saw
it filled with armed men, and cannon planted against the
building ; " To you, gentlemen," said he, with the great
est coolness, " I must yield, and not to any other argu
ment." The atrocious massacre of the Alfandega was yet
recent in the memory of them all, and they justly apprehend
ed the repetition of a similar scene. The deputies, there
fore, yielding to force, but making no opposition, quitted
the hall. As the late minister, Andrada, with his brothers,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 137
and three or four more, descended the stairs, they were ar
rested, put on board a vessel ready in the harbor, which im
mediately sailed, and they were landed on the coast of
France. Of all the men who distinguished themselves in the ear
ly events ofthe Brazilian revolution, none have attracted so
much public notice as the brothers Andrada ; and I collect
ed the following particulars ofthem, from persons who were
well acquainted with them. The family is one ofthe most
respectable in Brazil. It appears, by an inscription in the
aqueduct ofthe Carioca, that it was executed under the di
rection of one ofthe family of Andrada, so that the name is
endeared to the country by the most magnificent monu
ment of public utility which it possesses.
The present family resides at St. Paul's, and consists of
three persons — Joze Bonafacio, Martim Francisco, and
Carlos Rebeiro. The first had been sent from Brazil tb
Portugal, when young, to be educated at the university of
Coimbra, where he was, I believe, a professor, and was lying
dangerously ill when the king departed from Lisbon, and so
could not accompany him. When the French entered Por
tugal, he headed the students of the'college, in a rising which
took place to oppose them ; and afterwards served in the
army, where he obtained the rank of colonel. He then
travelled through Europe, and made the acquaintance of
some ofthe most eminent literary characters ofthe day. —
In Sweden, he devoted himself to the study of mineralogy,
and collected a valuable assortment of rare specimens, to
qualify him for the pursuit ; and he returned to his native
country, with a mind stored with the lights and information
which he had everywhere procured. But the subject to
which he directed his attention in particular was agricul
ture, which he deemed of most importance to the rich, but
uncultivated soil of Brazil ; and he was engaged in the pur
suit on his paternal patrimony, when called into public life
by his fellow-citizens.
His last effort in the constituent assembly was on the sub
ject of slavery ; he drew up an address, in which he makes
an energetic appeal to them to abolish gradually a state in
which, contrary to the laws of God and man, a person is
made a thing, and property claimed in that in which another
can have no property ; and he clearly proves, that the cul
tivating the soil by slaves is the bane of the prosperity of
Brazil. Before he could pronounce this address, the as-
12*

138 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
sembly was dissolved, and he was arrested and exiled. It
was not, however, lost ; for the manuscript was left with a
friend in Brazil, who published it when he was gone. His
lady's name was O'Leary, the daughter of Irish parents,
having much ofthe cordiality of manner which is generally
supposed to distinguish people of her country : when re,tired
from public life, he enjoyed great happiness in her society,
and in that of their children, to whom he is fondly attached ;
among those and his books, of which he has a large collec
tion, in all languages; he receives with great kindness all
strangers who visit them. He is, therefore, not only an en
lightened, but a good moral man, and capable of improving
his countrymen, not more by his knowledge, than by his ex
ample. Martim Francisco is a man held in equal estimation with
his brother for intelligence and moral worth. As minister
at the head of the treasury, it is admitted by all that he con
ducted himself with the most unimpeachable integrity, and
retired from that situation with the respect and regret ofthe
public. But people speak of Carlos Ribeiro in a different
manner. As a public man, he was distinguished by his violence.
In 1817, he was supposed to be a principal promoter ofthe
disturbances of Pernambuco, and was placed by the gov
ernor on an ass, with his face to the tail, and so led through
the town. When "afterwards charged with his turbulence,
he boldly said, in the presence of the monarch, and in the
hearing of a friend who told me the story, that he did not,
nor would not, ever repent of this revolutionary attempt.
The brothers established at Rio a most violent paper,
called the Tamoyo, adopting this name from a tribe of In
dians who had inhabited the country round Rio, and were
noted for their hostility to the Portuguese. It was in this
the emperor was warned to remember, and dread the fate of
other monarchs ; that Pedro I. of Brazil should never for
get Charles I. of England. When it was determined to dis
solve the constituent assembly, one of them declared, like
Mirabeau, that nothing but force should separate them, and
they were the last who retired. After remaining in France
for five years in exile, they determined to return to their
own country, and applied for passports for' that purpose.
The Brazilian charge d'affaires, it is said, opposed their
wishes ; but they applied to M. Ferohays in person, and he
immediately procured for them a safe and speedy passage

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 139
through the territories of France. Martim Francisco and
Ribeiro embarked on board the Vaillant, at Bordeaux, and
arrived in Brazil in June, 1828. On landing, they were
detained in custody in the fortress of the Ilha das Cobras,
and from hence they sent a petition to the chamber of depu
ties, then sitting, that they should be tried, and judged pub
licly; one of them insisting on it as a right, that, as a doc
tor of laws, he should be allowed to defend himself. " If
the chambers," said he in his petition, " suffer that an at
tack be made on the^rights of the constitution, by destroy
ing the inviolability of its members, for their sentiments de
livered in debate, they will vote their own condemnation in
surrendering their best rights and privileges." He forgot
that this inviolability was only subsequently guaranteed by
the constitution, but was not in existence at the time ofthe
constituent assembly. After a protracted process, during
which these restless men had various encounters with the
different newspapers, particularly with the Astro de Minas,
they were discharged of all offence, and on the 13th of Sep
tember, 1828, had an audience of reconciliation with the
emperor. After this they withdrew to St. Paul's, where
they proposed to live a retired life, devoted to agriculture ;
but it was supposed that one of them, at least, would be re
turned a deputy for the province at the next election.
When the emperor dissolved the constituent assembly,
he immediately declared he would call another, and submit
to it a form of government more liberal than the one in
tended to be framed. He redeemed his pledge, and in
December following he himself drew up a constitution to
be submitted to a general national assembly. Before the
assembly met, it was officially published, and the citizens
of all the towns were called on to examine and express their
opinion of it. Books were opened in every place, and all
persons were invited to inscribe their assent or disapproba
tion. The books filled with these signatures were sent to
Rio, and when examined it was found that the assent was
nearly unanimous. This was considered a sufficient indi
cation of public opinion, and the constitution was promulga
ted as that ofthe future government ofthe country, without
undergoing the discussion of any assembly.
It was on the occasion of taking the oath to this consti
tution that a suspicious event occurred, which gave rise to
various conjectures hot yet satisfied. It was to be cele
brated, as usual, at the theatre, on the 25th of March, 1824 ;

140 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
but just as the emperor had left his palace for that purpose,
a fire burst .out in the theatre, and by the time he arrived
it was all in a flame. Fires are of rare occurrence in Brazil,
particularly at Rio. The walls are generally of granite,
and the floors qf jacaranda or other hard wood, which resists
fire like stone. " When this large edifice therefore was burnt
down so unexpectedly, and on such a remarkable day, it
was generally attributed to design, and as a means of re
tarding or preventing the emperor's ratification of the con
stitution by his oath. The theatre was reduced to ashes ;
but the oath was taken the next day in the following words : —
" I swear to maintain the Catholic Apostolic and Roman
religion, and the integrity and indivisibility of the empire ;
to observe and cause to be observed as the political consti
tution of the Brazilian nation, the present project of the
constitution which is here presented, and which the same na
tion accepted and requested should be now sworn to, as the
constitution of the empire. I swear to observe, and to
cause others to observe, all the laws of the empire, and to
watch over the general good of Brazil, as far as in me lies."
On the 6th of May, 1825, the first legislative assembly
met under the constitutional act. It consisted of 102 dep
uties from the different provinces, elected for three years,
and half that number of senators elected for life. They had
little to deliberate on, as all the articles had been already
adopted. The only important act, was the unanimous one
of both chambers, recognizing the eldest son ofthe emperor
as successor to the throne. He had been born in October,
1825, and'the constitution required that this should be done
on the first session after the birth of an heir apparent. Tha
assemblies were prorogued on the 6th of September.
One thing was now only wanting ta give stability to the
new empire, and that was to have all claims on it by any
other nation renounced, and its separate and independent
existence acknowledged by other powers, particularly its
former masters the Portuguese. This last great act was
effected in August, 1825. The emperor concluded a treaty
with his father, by which the entire independence of Brazil
on Portugal was acknowledged, Dom John recognized as
its emperor, with succession to Dom Pedro, and a sum of
two millions sterling paid by Brazil, as a remuneration for
this acknowledgment.
This circumstance seems more than any other to have
established the tranquillity ofthe country, and consolidated

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 141
the existing order of things. Pernambuco and Ceara were
the last of the provinces where any indisposition remained,
but these had withdrawn their opposition and given in their
adhesion. The country therefore seemed in a state of
profound peace ; and its vast resources and growing pros
perity were so appreciated in Europe, that its funds became
a favorite, security for investing capital, and many specu
lators placed their money there, not only in preference to
all the , other more unsettled states in South America, but
even to their own ; and this, as well because they were
more stable, as because they could afford to pay a higher
interest. It was resolved at this time to assemble a congress at
Panama, to be composed of representatives from the several
new states of South America, to mediate between them,
and regulate the different interests that would arise. The
specific objects, to which this amphyctionic council of the
new world was to direct its attention, were these — -to advise
in great conflicts, to interpret treaties with fidelity, to
mediate in domestic disputes, and to be an agent in the
formation of new rights with foreign states. Had this
magnificent idea been carried into effectual operation, and
a due influence been allowed to the assembly, composed
of deputies from all the states, it would have been as much
more important than that ofthe Greeks, as the great south
ern, peninsula ofthe new world is larger than Peloponnesus,
or the isthmus of Panama than the isthmus of Corinth.
But the infant states were not yet mature enough for
such an assembly. Only four acceded to its principle and
sent deputies ; Mexico, Peru, Colombia, and Guatimala.
The Argentine republic regarded it with suspicion and
dislike, and in these sentiments it was followed by Chili.
Brazil seemed to accede to the invitation, and resolved to
send deputies ; but it was generally understood that the
object was to watch and counteract their proceedings,
rather than cordially to promote their object. The assem
bly met and separated without effect ; the embarrassments
and difficulties of each particular state, rather required the
watchful care of all its statesmen at home, than dividing it
by distant objects abroad ; and the situation chosen was
so unhealthy, that many persons in attendance fell victims
to the climate, and the grand project was altogether abor
tive,

142 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
The plan itself, though so magnificent in idea, has been
deemed altogether visionary in practice ; and so perhaps it
is ; but certainly, were it possible to bring it into effectual
operation, those miserable dissensions which have disturbed
the new states, and threatened their very existence, would
have been • amicably adjusted ; and among the rest the
petty but ruinous warfare between Brazil and Buenos
Ayres, an event which, for its folly, is hardly to be paral
leled in the annals of ambition.
The vast region of Brazil, extending from the equator to
thirty degrees of south latitude^ and from the Atlantic to '
the Andes, — abounding in lands of the most exuberant
fertility, but nearly destitute of inhabitants, and whose
greatest want is people to occupy them,— was not deemed
of sufficient extent for its scanty' population, though al
ready as large as all Europe. It was therefore determined
to make, or rather to keep, an accession of territory, to
which the Brazilians had originally no right, and to engage
in a ruinous and expensive war with their neighbors, to
effect their object. There lies on the shore, at the mouth
of the river of Plate, a strip of land, called for that reason
the Banda Oriental, or the eastern bank. The territory
on both sides of this river, it appears, was formerly inclu
ded in the Spanish viceroyalty of Buenos Ayres, of which
the town -of Monte Video, on a promontory at the entrance
of the great estuary, was the capital ; there were, besides,
Maldonado, Colonia, and other less important places. When
Buenos Ayres, in 1620, was erected into a' bishopric,
these towns, with all the rest of the Banda Oriental, were
included in the diocese., so that, in civil and ecclesiastical
relations, it appertained to the government of Buenos
Ayres. Its situation on the shores of the LaPlata, rendered
it indispensably necessary to the security of the commerce
of the city ; as, whoever possessed it, commanded the nav
igation of that great river ; and, therefore, when the inde
pendence of the states of Buenos Ayres was declared, it
made an essential part ofthe Argentine republic.
When the people, however, first proclaimed their inde
pendence, this part was held by General Elio, for the Span
iards, who kept possession of Monte Video, with a large
and efficient force. He was opposed, however, by the cel
ebrated guacho partisan Artigas, and defeated with such
loss, at the battle of Los Piedras, that the conqueror, join
ed by Rondeau, laid siege to Monte Video.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 143
It was now, for the first time, that the Portuguese thought
of interfering with this portion of Spanish territory. Elio,
finding himself hard pressed, immediately applied to the
Portuguese government of Rio, who at once seized on the
project of annexing the whole of this Spanish territory to
their already enormous and unpeopled possessions, and ex
tending their extravagant limits from the Amazons to the
La Plata. An army of 4000 men was sent to support Elio,
but he accepted proposals of peace, and it was agreed that
both parties should withdraw, and leave the people of the
Banda Oriental to themselves.
The war, however, was renewed, when Vigodet, the new
governor, received reinforcements from Spain ; and Artigas
again laid siege to it, and compelled the Spaniards to surren
der. The territory was once more evacuated, and left to
itself, when the Portuguese immediately determined to
march in and seize it. The reason assigned at the time was,
that the revolutionists of Buenos Ayres, not confining their
principles to their own territory, had sent emissaries into
the contiguous Portuguese provinces, of Rio Grande, and
the missions, to excite revolt and entice the Indians. A
force, therefore, of 5000 men was despatched into the coun
try, and they were joined by the continental troops and Pau-
listas, making an army of 10,000 men. Artigas and his ir
regular guachos were not able to resist them ; and the Por
tuguese entered Monte Video on the 20th of January, 1817,
and sung Te Deum for their conquest. Gonzales dos Sanc
tos, in his ""Annals, describes the wonderful benefits the
people of Monte Video derived from them ; but adds, with
great simplicity, " some said it was only a pretext to get
possession of the country for ourselves, for the cursed in-
, surgents have many patrons, Deos os confunda ! "
The inhabitants ofthe province, however, were known to
be exceedingly averse to the domination of Brazil. These
republican principles, which the Spaniards of South Ameri
ca had universally adopted, had rendered them hostile to any
other form of government ; and the conduct of the Portu
guese of Monte Video tended not a little to confirm them.
When the question of the constitution was under discussion,
a few addresses had been got up in different places, calling
on the emperor to cause himself to be made absolute ; but
that from Monte Video exceeded all others in absurdity
and servility. He had sent his picture to the Cabildo, or
common-council of the town. " When it appeared," said

144 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
they, " a mixed sensation of trembling and delight seized us,
as if we were in the presence of the Lord; " and they
humbly advise him to govern like an emperor, and " at
once to assume absolute power." These opinions were ex
ceedingly .repugnant to the feelings and principles ofthe rest
ofthe inhabitants, and they fully accorded with the senti
ments ofthe manifesto of Buenos Ayres, which told them,
that " a king born on the other side of the seas insulted
their repose, and threatened the honor of their children."
General Le Cor, with 2000 troops, and supported by a
small naval squadron, then held possession of Monte Video
and the Banda territory, as a dependency on Brazil ; but a
partisan, named Fruetuoso Rivera, raised the standard of
revolt, and was soon joined by a number of adherents. He
had been originally an officer serving under Artigas, but
had afterwards passed over to the service ofthe Portuguese.
Availing himself, however, of the growing indisposition of
the inhabitants to the Brazilian government, he collected a
force sufficiently strong to lay siege to Monte Video, "and
a detachment of 300 men, under Antonio Lavalleja, set out
from Buenos Ayres to join him. In a short time they over
ran the whole of the "province, with ;the exception ofthe
towns in which the Portuguese garristins were shut up, and
the people of the country established a provisional govern
ment : they declared the act which incorporated them with
Brazil now null and void, and that their universal desire
was to be united with their countrymen of Buenos Ayres.
This was gladly recevived at Buenos Ayres ; and the con
gress decreed also, that the act which joined them to Brazil
was dissolved, and that measures should be taken to have
the country evacuated ; but that they did not wish to go to
war, if the restitution of their province could be amicably
effected. The province was first admitted as a member of
the Argentine republic, and then the government of Buenos
Ayres prepared to support it. Meantime the Brazilians
sent reinforcements to maintain their conquest ; and a petty
warfare ensued, in which the independents had uniformly
the advantage, but the resources of both infant . countries
were unprofitably wasted.
Skirmishes in deserts on the distant frontiers would not
be worth the detail ; but a feature of the war involved con
siderably the interests of other powers. One of the meas
ures ofthe Brazilian government was to blockade the mouth
of Rio de la Plata ; and in the beginning of the year 1826, ,
Admiral Lobo, w,ho commanded a small squadron there, de- '

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 145
clared that this measure was rigorously adopted, but allow
ed all foreign vessels fourteen days to load and leave the
river. Immediately followed a manifesto, or declaration of
war, by the executive government of Buenos Ayres, and a
decree granting reprisals and letters of marque against the
commerce of Brazil. If anything could add to the folly of
this warfare, it was the absurdity of the measures adopted
for carrying it on ; the declaration of the blockade embraced
a coast of twenty degrees of latitude, and the whole mari
time force available to carry it on, amounted to a corvette,
two armed brigs, and some gunboats, which would not suf
fice to watch Buenos Ayres alone. So little was it effi
cient, that nine foreign vessels in one month entered the
port in view of the squadron, which could give them no ef
fectual resistance.
This entire inefficiency invalidated the measure, so that
no foreign state was bound to regard it, and the Americans
in particular remonstrated against it as wholly inadmissible
on the part ofthe United States, and a violation ofthe fun
damental principle of a blockade. Still the effects were
highly injurious. While this contemptible force was cruis
ing in the river, though it could not shut up the port, it pro
duced a total stagnation of business in the capital; com
merce with foreign nations was entirely suspended, and
great commercial distress erTsued.
Small as the Brazilian squadron was, that of Buenos f
Ayres was still smaller ; and to augment it, the govern
ment purchased from Chili their fleet, such as it was, which
they themselves had now no occasion for ; and Admiral
Brown, who commanded the ships of the republic, went
overland to take charge of it round Cape Horn. These
fleets carried on, in the river of Plate, a war of petty skir
mishing similar to those on land ; while the pirates of both
states now swarmed abroad, and neutral ships were boarded
at sea far beyond the limits even ofthe assigned blockades.
Some of them suffered the most atrocious treatment ; and
in fact the belligerents became nests of ferocious pirates.
By land, the warfare was carried out of the Banda into
the Brazilian provlhces of Rio Grande and St. Paul's, in
vited by the spirit of discontent which already existed there ;
and this was another feature of imprudence in provoking
hostilities with the republicans. The throne of Brazil was
scarcely established, and even in time of peace, the demo
cratic feelings of all the states around, presented powerful
13

-146 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
seductions to its subjects to imitate their, example, as they
could entertain only one common desire to see monarchy
and its principles eradicated from America, , as well from
sentiment as from a feeling of insecurity, and a wish to give
stability to their own institutions ; but the war increased
considerably their power of exciting discontent, and afford
ed them a most plausible pretext to take advantage of it.
It was now that the emperor, dreading the consequences
of the growing spirit which was spreading through the
southern states, resolved in person to arrest its progress,
as he had done on former occasions ; and, on the 24th of
November, 1826, he embarked for the isle of St. Catherine,
Rio Grande, from whence he landed on the continent, and
proceeded to the frontiers. The circumstance connected
with the departure was the cause of a domestic calamity,
which has been deeply felt and deplored, all over Brazil.
It is far from my desire to communicate to you the private
scandal which circulates at Rio as profusely as in Europe ;
but I wish to give you a faithful detail of events which in
volve the morals and happiness of a people, without respect
to persons ; for public opinion is a tribunal before which
every one must appear, and the higher his rank in society,
the more he is amenable to its decisions.

* CHAP. XII.
Empress taken alarmingly ill.— Means resorted to for her Recovery.— Affecting An
ecdotes of her amiable Disposition.— Revolting Conduct of her Camareira  Death
and Funeral.— Sensibility of Dona Maria.— Spontaneous Testimonies ofthe Love
which all Classes bore her.— Conduct and Character.— Children— Death of her
first Child attributed to the English, and strange Impressions of the eldest Sons of
the House of Braganza — Emperor returns to Rio.— Battle of Ituzango.— War
against Human Civilization — Peace made, but not ratified  Legislative Body as
sembles.
On visiting the province of St. Paul's oj|a former occa
sion, he had met with a lady who had attracted his attention
in no ordinary degree ; by the connivance, it is said, of her
own brother, an interview was arranged, and from that time
he became attached to her to a passionate excess. He cre
ated her Marchioness of Santos,— built a palace for her close
by that at S. Christovao,_acknowledged her child as his

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 147
own, by the title of Duchess of Goyaz, — and so far forgot
what was due to the private feelings of her he was bound to
cherish and respect, that he had this person appointed
one of the ladies in waiting for his wife. These are mat
ters of public notoriety, of which the evidence exists in the
facts themselves. They were borne with a meek and un
complaining submission by the empress ; but on the night
of his embarkation for St. Catherine's, a circumstance oc
curred which roused even her gentle spirit. She had ac
quiesced, from a sense of duty, in such arrangements as her
husband was pleased to make ; but she would not sacrifice
the respect she owed herself, by visiting her unworthy at
tendant, nor seem to countenance vice by such a public
mark of apparent approbation ; a painful discussion took
place, and immediately after his departure, the empress waa
t.aken alarmingly ill.
The indications of her illness commenced with great se
verity, she being then in the first stage of pregnancy. The
bulletins of her health, published at the time, which I have
read, contain details of symptoms with an indelicate, indeed
I may say, a disgusting accuracy, which I am not disposed
to copy or translate. They were principally affections con
nected with her state, and seriously afflicting her with spas
modic and nervous attacks. The whole science of Brazil
ian medicine was exhausted, and|the enumeration of " epis-
pasticos, fricjcoes, sanguesuxes, banhos, catharticos, anti-
spasmodicos, nauseates," and divers other means which
are pompously detailed, afford abundant proof how much
she must have suffered, both from doctors and disease.—
Beside the aid of medicine, everything was resorted to
which the religion ofthe country prescribed as efficacious
on solemn occasions, — processions ofthe different religious
orders, and visitations of images of reputed sanctity. —
Among these, one is gravely mentioned, which can hardly
fail to excite a melancholy smile, even on so sad an occa
sion. Her particular patroness, and at whose shrine she
paid assiduous adoration during her life-time, was Nossa
Senhora da Gloria ; she, therefore, was particularly inte
rested in her recovery, and " the people," said one account,
" could not see without the strongest emotion of piety, her
image, which never condescended to issue from its temple,
for the first time, on this occasion, under a heavy shower of
rain, visiting the princess, who never failed on Sundays to
be found at the foot of her altar." Alas, poor lady ! even

148 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
such condecension was as unavailing as the medicines un
der which she suffered.
On the 2d of December, premature labor came on ;
she was delivered of a male child a few months old, and
experienced some slight remission of the symptoms ; but
they soon after returned with such violence, that all hope
of life was abandoned, lt was then that her very amiable
disposition displayed itself. After having humbly received
the last rites of her church, she called around her all the
domestics of her establishment, and while they stood, shed
ding tears of real sympathy and feeling, beside her bed, she
asked them in succession whether she had injured or offend
ed them by word or deed, as she could not leave the world
with the impression on her mind that any one remembered
aught against her, for which she could make reparation. —
The whole tenor of her domestic life had been so good and
condescending to others, that nothing could be recollected
that was not so ; and her attendants only answered by irre-
pressible sobs and tears, which her humility and kindness
had excited.
On this occasion, it is said, the person who had been
the cause of all her domestic afflictions was proceeding to
her apartment ; but as she was the last person whom she
could wish to see about her, a representation was made, on
the impropriety of her entering the empress's chamber, and
adding by her presence to the sufferings of her imperial
mistress. — Yet she persisted, in right of her office as ca-
mareira, in making her way, with a total disregard of all
feeling and sense of propriety on such a solemn occasion,
notwithstanding strong remonstrances made to her ; and
was hardly at length repulsed by the firmness and good
sense of some ofthe attendants, who were afterwards dis
missed for their interference.
On the 1 1th of December, at ten o'clock in the morning,
the empress was relieved from her acute sufferings by
death, having to the last sustained her illness with a meek
and pious fortitude. She perished in the prime of life, and
just before in apparent health, at the early age of twenty-
nine years, ten months, and nineteen days!
Her funeral was conducted with a pomp and splendor
hitherto unknown in Brazil. It is not my intention to de
scribe it to you, as it was described to me, with all its gaudy
display. Invest, if you will, the living persons of rank and
power with all the ensigns that rank and power can exact,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 149
they may be necessary to excite the feeling of awe and res
pect in the governed, toward those who govern, which obe
dience to the laws and the good order ofthe state may re
quire ; but to surround the corpse with such distinctions, to
wrap the putrid body in costly robes, and to illuminate it
with glare and splendor, only to make its melancholy de
cay more conspicuous, seems to me the most miserable
mockery ofthe dead, and the greatest, as it is the weakest,
absurdity ofthe living. There were, however, parts of this
solemnity which were no less affecting than they were ra
tional and appropriate to the sad occasion. Of all such
ceremony the beijamao, or kissing the hand, forms an es
sential part. The hand of the deceased is extended, and
for the last time those who loved and respected the living,
come to take an affectionate leave of all that remained of
them. On this occasion, her children approached to pay
this solemn duty to their mother. They were led respec
tively by the chamberlains ofthe court to the side of the
coffin, and there kissed her extended hand. They were all
too young to feel any strong impression of what they were
doing, except the eldest, Dona Maria. The young Queen
of Portugal, I am told, showed extraordinary sensibility
for her age. She sobbed and wept bitterly, and seemed
deeply and affectionately impressed with the recollection of
her good mother.
The funeral procession was at night, and performed by
torch-light, as are those of all the persons of rank in the
country. Seven altars were erected at the veranda of the
palace, at which seven clergymen officiated, and the streets
through which the funeral passed were lined with ecclesiastics
ofthe several religious communities. At eleven at night it
arrived at the convent ofthe Ajuda, where the body was re
ceived by the sisterhood, and deposited, not in a tomb, but
under a canopy, in which state it still remains in the ceme
tery ofthe convent, which does not contain the remains of
a more pure or excellent woman.
When her death was known, it produced a sudden and
spontaneous expression of grief from the nation, no less flat
tering to the memory of the empress, than creditable to
themselves. The Brazilians are a people of strong sensi
bilities, and prize as highly, as they appreciate justly, the
moral qualities of those who are conspicuous among them
for rank or station. The public press is the vehicle through
which these feelings are conveyed ; it is a novel and fasci-
, 13*

150 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
nating medium of communicating what they think, and if it
sometimes displays the bad passions which agitate the mind
ofthe writers, it as often evinces the good and kindly ones.
On this occasion it teemed with letters from individuals of
both sexes, expressing in strong and affecting language
their feelings on this melancholy occasion, of which I send
you one of each, as a specimen of Brazilian style and senti
ment. The first is from a man : — " I render my humble and due
homage to the virtues of the empress. Disinterested, re
tiring, her character was kindness, her conduct modesty ;
a dutiful eonsort , an affectionate mother, an affable princess,
a friend to the sciences, generous, just, and full of sensibil
ity. She loved the human race, and did good to all to whom
her arm could extend : she never saw distress without a
corresponding feeling of affliction and an effort to relieve it.
The day on which princes descend to the tomb belongs to
history ; the people whose destinies they sway, mark, when
they cease to exist, the future place which they ought to fill ;
and severe truth elevates herself on their tombs, and speaks
of them as they really are. Contemporaries are the sub
jects of sovereigns, but sovereigns themselves are the sub
jects of posterity. The virtues which adorned her — her wis
dom, her moderation, her prudence, her charities, her very
sufferings, have endeared her memory to a sincere people.
This is not the language of adulation or the tactic of a court.
It is that feeling which has called unbidden tears into the
eyes of every citizen, and clothed them with spontaneous
mourning." The next is from a woman : — " I never supposed that any
motive could compel me to leave the privacy and retirement
in which I have lived, and become a correspondent of the
public press ; but I am a Brazilian woman, a wife, and a
mother ; and I cannot restrain the impulse which urges me
to give utterance to what I feel on this melancholy occasion,
though I want words in which to express myself; and when
I attempt to write, the only expression of my grief is tears.
Still I cannot rest in my apartment, if I do not publicly avow
the affliction with which my heart is bursting. Who, endued
with the feelings of our common nature, and gifted with a
human heart, that does not weep when the best of women,
the most dutiful of wives, and the kindest of mothers, has
ceased to exist among us ? To woman, wife, mother, I
then appeal to join their tears with mine. Would that they

NOTICES OF BRAZIL 151
could restore her to life ! Would that my blood could re
vive her ! Every drop should be shed for that purpose, in
testimony how dear in person and valuable in character she
was to the Brazilians. But our misfortune is consummated,
and all that remains for us is religion and resignation to the
will of Providence, who has so disposed it."
The writers of these and similar articles were unknown,
and their eulogies were the simple, sincere, and unbought
tribute of respect and affection from persons in the middle
ranks of life. They all praise her, not for. her high station,
but for her moral worth and personal qualities ; and a poet
ical effusion of this kind had so little of the deference and
adulation offered to royalty on such occasions, that it takes
for its motto the classical warning of antiquity to elevated
rank : Pallida mors sequo pulsat pede
Pauperum tabemas
Regumque turres.
When the empress first came to Brazil, she is represent
ed as exceedingly engaging and lovely ; her fair skin, clear
complexion, biue eyes, and blond hair, were pleasingly
contrasted with the dark locks, brown tint, and sallow vis
ages of the ladies about her. But she soon neglected
these advantages : she had not the least personal vanity,
and became utterly careless of her appearance, as of
a thing altogether of no consideration. She went abroad
with large thick boots, loaded with great tarnished
spurs, such as are worn by the mineirois. She wrapped
herself up in a clumsy great coat, and a man's hat,
and in this way sat herself astride on a horse, and rode
through all parts ofthe town. It is true, this mode of riding
is always practised in the provinces, and I have never seen
a woman there ride otherwise ; and she adopted it from a
wish to conciliate, in complying with the customs of the
people among whom she came to reside ; though in Rio,
where European habits and the usages of more polished
countries have modelled the opinions of the natives, it is con
sidered as coarse and indelicate. When she became a mo
ther, she was as negligent of her person at home as abroad.
Her hair, which was long, and without curl, she suffered to
hang lank and loose about her face and shoulders ; and the
defects of her person became every day more conspicuous.
She had a large Austrian nether lip, and the thick neck which

152 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
is characteristic of the people of Vienna, and gives them
the appearance of being bossu. When she first appeared
as bride, with all the advantages of youth and dress, these
defects were not apparent ; but when neglect and indiffer
ence, and the duties of a mother succeeded, they were but
too conspicuous, and added, it is said, to the estrangement
of her husband, who was himself scrupulously neat in his
person, as all the Brazilians are, and exacted a similar at
tention from those about him.
I have heard her much censured for this neglect of her
self, as an attention to her person might have secured to her
the enduring affections of her husband, as well as his high
esteem, which she never lost. But these trifling faults, if
faults they could be called, were lost in her many amiable
and excellent qualities. Her charity was so boundless,
that she never could resist an application. When she went
abroad, she carried her pocket full of silver, which she took
pleasure in distributing to every one in distress. In this
way, her allowance could never keep pace with her gene
rosity. She was a most kind and indulgent mistress to
every one around her ; an affectionate mother, and a dutiful
and submissive wife, under all her provocations. She ad
ded to this, a conduct the most correct and blameless, and
an unaffected affability and condescension in her high state,
which every body felt and acknowledged. Her love of lit
erature and the fine arts was a distinguished feature in her
character, and her talent for letter-writing, both in French
and her native language, is highly spoken of, which she ex
ercised with effect for the benefit of Brazil. Her father-
in-law, Dom John, equally loved and respected her, and it
was her letter to him that effectually reconciled him to the
recognition ofthe independence ofthe country.
I have been more particular in noticing the death and
character of this lady, because she was the first empress of
the new world. Had she lived, her conduct might have
had an important influence on that of her sex here ; and
the females of Brazil would have been formed on her good
model. The exemplary manner in which she performed
her domestic duties, the strict and blameless tenor of her
life, would no doubt have established a spirit of imitation
among those about her ; while her love of literature and
the arts would have made such pursuits fashionable, and
excited a correspondent feeling among those who have hith
erto taken no kind of interest in them. She left behind her

NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

153

an elegant and well-assorted library, and also a very beauti
ful cabinet of minerals, the choicest specimens of the na
tive mines. When I went to S. Christovao, I expressed a
strong wish to the Marquess d'Aracaty, to be allowed to
see them, as remains of the person whose memory I had
been taught so highly to respect ; but I was informed they
were not in order, and it is probable they will continue so.
The empress left behind her five children :
Dona Maria de Gloria, Queen of Portugal, . . born April 4, 1819.
Dona Januaria, .  born March 11, 1821.
Dona Paula Mariana,  born Feb. 17, 1823.
Dona Francisca Carolina,  born August 2, 1824.
Dom Pedro d'Alcantara, Imperial Prince of
Brazil, and heir apparent to the throne, . . born Dec. 2, 1825.
She had another child, a boy, Dom Joao Carlos, but he
fell a victim to the auxiliary Portuguese. When they were
breaking the windows, and outraging the inhabitants in
1822, his father thought it necessary to send off his wife and
family from Rio, to Santo Cruz, a royal residence, about sev
enteen leagues distant. They set out suddenly, in a moment
of great alarm, without any convenience, and were exposed
to a wet and cold night, after a very hot day ; and the death
of the child was the consequence, who caught a fever and
died. This circumstance Dom Pedro pathetically laments,
in his correspondence with his father ; and in accusing the
Portuguese at that time of causing the death of his son and
heir, adds another reason for his hostility tothem. The
Brazilians implicate others in this charge. Application had
been made to the commander of the Doris frigate, then lying
in the harbor, to receive the princess and family on board,
and convey them by sea to Santa Cruz. Though it was the
obvious duty of the English to preserve a strict neutrality,
yet answer was sent that they would be received ; but they,
for some reason, did not go. Notwithstanding, the Bra
zilians still affirm that the English were notoriously favor
able to the Portuguese, and for that reason would not re
ceive the royal family ; and so the heir apparent was sac
rificed. It is remarkable that an eldest son of the house of Bra
ganza has never reigned, some accident or circumstance
always having occurred to prevent it. When this young
prince was born, it was universally said, that he would not
succeed his father ; and the event so unexpectedly occur
ring, has confirmed the Brazilians in the belief that their pre
diction was well founded.

154 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
The first despatches the emperor received on landing in
the south, contained an account of the empress's death.
He was in the act of mounting his horse to proceed to the
object of his journey, when the letters were put into his
hand : he was greatly shocked and deeply affected ; and I
have heard from those about his person, that when any
thing recalls her image to his mind, it never fails to excite
tears. He proceeded no further in his intended campaign,
but immediately returned to Rio, where he arrived on the
I5th of January, 1827. His first act, after his arrival, was
to dismiss his ministry.
As soon as it was known at Buenos Ayres that the em
peror bad proceeded to the frontier, it excited an extraordi
nary sensation. The president addressed a proclamation to
the people, calling on them to defend what he called " the
vanguard of their republic," and large reinforcements were
sent to the army. The republican General Alvear ad
dressed them in an energetic speech, in which he told them,
that the emperor himself had descended frorn his throne to
put himself at the head of his slaves, and they had now to
grapple with a European tyrant and his myrmidons, who
were coming to throw their chains over them. This was a
prelude to the most and only important engagement in the
course of the war. The Brazilian infantry had been rein
forced by a battalion of Germans, a part of the legions in
vited over as settlers, which afterwards caused such dread
ful commotions. They were also supported by a large body
of cavalry, and a park of six pieces of artillery. The re
publicans advanced to Ituzango, and a desperate action
commenced, which was maintained on both sides with vigor
and obstinacy. The Brazilians, however, gave way. The
cavalry of the enemy, used to constant exercise on the ex
tensive pampas, were more expert horsemen than their op
ponents. They broke their ranks in a successful charge,
drove them from the field, and then attacked the infantry,
which lay completely exposed, and were compelled to retire
with the loss of 1200 men, according to the republican ac
count, and ten pieces of cannon. This advantage they fol
lowed up, and it was rendered more complete by the deser
tion of large bodies of Brazilians to their standard, who had
been previously seduced, and only waited an opportunity to
join them. As they advanced, they reinstated numbers of
families, who had fled before the imperialists, in their aban
doned possessions ; and entering the town of San Gabriel,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 155
which had been an imperial depot, they found a great quan
tity of military stores, and the sum of 300,000 dollars, of
which they stood much in need.
The Brazilians, after some unsuccessful efforts to stop
their progress, retired before them, pursued by the republi
cans into their own province of Rio Grande. In his retreat,
the imperial general, in order to impede the advance ofthe
enemy by destroying any resources they might find, com
pelled all the inhabitants to abandon their dwellings and
consume everything behind them ; and thus population,
which for a series of years was slowly and laboriously ad
vancing through this wilderness, was, in one short campaign
of this unhappy warfare, completely obliterated, and the
country again reduced to its primitive desert. This war on
human civilization was carried on in every direction. The
people of Buenos Ayres had established a colony on the
coast of Patagonia, and even this the Brazilians were de
termined to destroy. An armament of four vessels was
Sent to eradicate the incipient traces of civilized life even
from this desert coast ; happily the expedition failed ; three
ofthe vessels were taken, and the fourth narrowly escaped.
These defeats were counterbalanced by some partial suc
cesses. Maldonado, at the mouth of the river La Plata,
was taken, and Admiral Brown lost two of his ships, and
was himself wounded ; but, fortunate for the people, all par
ties were now tired and exhausted with this wild and most
unprofitable contest, and the government of Buenos Ayres
sent M. Garcias to Rio de Janeiro to treat for peace, on the
basis of both sides abandoning the debatable land, and
leaving the people to themselves. Garcias, however, for
getting the instruction he had received, after a few days'
negotiation, signed, on the 24th of May, a treaty of peace,
formally ackowledging Monte Video as an integral part of
the empire of Brazil, and engaging that the republican
troops should immediately evacuate the territories, and be
reduced to the peace establishment.
When these terms were known at Buenos Ayres, they
excited the strongest indignation. The common people
cried out, they were betrayed, and called for war, eternal
war on Brazil. The ministers, with the president, refused
to ratify the treaty, as the envoy had violated his instruc
tions, and the congress unanimously approved of their con
duct. Again, therefore, hostilities commenced, and it was
necessary to provide resources for them.

156 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Meantime the period for assembling the legislative body :
of Brazil arrived, and on the 3d of May, 1827, the mem
bers met at Rio. The session was opened by the emperor
in the senate-house, into which he was introduced by a de
putation of twentyfour representatives and fourteen sena
tors ; and he delivered a speech from the throne, which con
tained the following passages : — " August and honorable
representatives, I meet you here in pursuance of the law,
resolved to open this assembly with the same enthusiasm
.with which I have always performed my duty ; but I can
not say with the same joy, since the place which that feel
ing should occupy in my imperial heart, is filled by grief
and affliction for the death of my dearly beloved and ever
amiable spouse, the empress. On the 11th of December,
at a quarter after ten in the morning, she left this world for
the mansions of the just, wherein she will assuredly dwell, t
as we all through faith believe that place to be destined for
those who, like her, have led a virtuous and religious life."
After stating that the war must be continued, till Buenos
Ayres acknowledged the independence ofthe Brazilian na
tion and the integrity of the empire, with the incorporation
ofthe province of Cis-Platina, and recommending a system
of finance to cover the expenses necessarily to be incurred,
he thus spoke of the judicial power : —
" We have no code, no forms of process suited to the
spirit of the age ; the laws interfere with each other ; the
judges are embarrassed by the decisions ; the parties in suits
are injured ; criminals escape punishment ; the salaries of
the judges are not sufficient to secure them against the temp
tation of a base and sordid interest ; and therefore it is ne
cessary that this assembly should speedily and earnestly pro
ceed to accomplish an object so important to public tranquil
lity and happiness."
Notwithstanding this just and frightful picture of the ad
ministration of justice in the country, and the recommenda
tion which accompanied it, nothing has hitherto been done, /
and the present state of the tribunals is a grievance which
comes home every day to the business and bosoms of every >,
man in Brazil.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 157

CHAP. XIII.
Irish and German Soldiers. — Strong Prejudices ofthe Brazilians. — Treatment ofthe
Irish. — Means taken to exasperato them.. — Mutiny among the Germans at S.
Christoviio. — Spreads to the Praya Vermelha. — Murder of their Major. — Sangui
nary Orders ofthe Minister at War. — Insurrection ofthe Irish at the Campo d'Ac-
ctamacao. — French and English Marines landed. — Cruelty of the Moleques. —
Number of Persons killed. — Iri*h embarked on board Ships of War. — Kind Conduct
ofthe Emperor lo them. — Horrid State in which some were found — Sent home. —
Disposal of those left behind. — Gorman soldiers tried as Mutineers, and one ex
ecuted.— Intrepid Conduct. — Emperor visits the English Admiral.^-I)ismisses his
Ministry for their Conduct.
Among the unfortunate events to which the war gave rise,
was one which was attended with the most fearful and
disastrous effects at the moment, and which, in its conse
quences, may be higbly injurious to the best interests ofthe
country. In order that as few persons as possible might be
drawn from agriculture in the interior, and from the pursuits
of commerce and manufactures in the maritime cities, to
recruit the army on the frontiers, it was determined to en
gage a number of foreigners as soldiers ; first to do duty as
military, and then be located as agriculturists, after a certain
term of service ; and to that end Germans, who from the
family. connexion of the emperor, and Irish, who from the
redundancy of population at home, might be easily procured,
were invited to Brazil for the purpose.
This project was well conceived ; and, had the inducements
held out been fulfilled with punctuality and good faith, this
influx of Europeans, introducing their modes of agriculture
and the mechanic arts into a new country, would have been
of vast advantage to the existing state of Brazil. But the
moment the project was adopted by the government, it rous
ed all the prejudices and suspicions of the people. Since
the expulsion ofthe Portuguese, the greatest jealousy exist
ed against every European ; some imagined the present plan
merely a scheme to introduce and create an army of foreign
mercenaries, who, having no sympathy or bond of connexion
with the people, would be the ready instruments of support
ing a despotic government ; and this, in fact, did enter into
the contemplation ofthe emperor and his ministers, who sup
posed they would be an available check on the growing spirit
of democracy. But even if this objection did not exist, the
14

158 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
amalgamation of Brazilians with foreigners was still, a diffi
cult thing, and all classes had a strong repugnance to the in^
troduction of any strangers but slaves from the coast of Af
rica. Every secret expedient, therefore, was resorted to,
to render the plan abortive, and the event proved with
what success.
In October, 1826, Colonel Cotter, an Irish officer in the
imperial service, entered into an engagement with the Bra
zilian government to bring over a number of his countrymen.
It does not appear what were the precise terms which he
was authorized to offer to them ; but, as far as I can col
lect from several I have conversed with, who remained be
hind in Brazil, and from other sources, they were as
follow : — Every man was to receive pay and allowances
equal to one shilling per day, one pound of beef, and one
pound of bread as rations, and were to be employed four
hours each day in learning military exercises, to be ready
to act as soldiers if called on, but not to be sent out of the
province of Rio, unless in time of war or invasion ; and at
the end of five years of such engagement, to be discharged
from all military service, and located as farmers on land,
each having fifty acres assigned him.
With these powers, Colonel Cotter proceeded to Cork,
caused notices to be affixed to chapel doors, and instructed
clergymen to give it out from the altars, in different parts
of the south of Ireland. The notifications were received
with great joy by the people : the exceeding distress of the
poor peasantry of that part of Ireland, as well from exube
rant population as want of employment, is notorious, and
they were eager to avail themselves ofthe proposal. Land
was the great object of their competition at home, and they
who thought themselves fortunate in obtaining a few acres
at an exorbitant rent in Ireland, were transported at the
idea of receiving a grant of fifty acres, rent free, in Brazil.
Many, therefore, as they told me, sold their farms at home,
and laid out the small portion of money they could raise in
purchasing agricultural implements, conceiving that their
military service was to be merely local, and would no more
prevent their attending to their land; than if they were
members of yeomanry corps in their own country. Among
them were mechanics, who looked forward to exercise their
calling to advantage in Rio, and had brought out the imple
ments of their trade ; and among them certainly were many,
whose idle habits led them to prefer a military life, and were

NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

159

ready to engage as soldiers, careless of the terms of their
service. Of these descriptions, two thousand four hundred
persons were collected, some of them, as was to be expect
ed, of indifferent characters and dissolute manners ; but the
majority decent, respectable people, who brought out with
them their wives and families, and who would be an acquisi
tion to any country as settlers, but particularly to Brazil.
Everything was provided for their accommodation on
leaving their own country ; the ships were well found, stores
and provisions of a good quality were not wanting, and the
people thought themselves highly fortunate in this mode of
emigration. They had been long expected in Brazil, and
it was natural to suppose that everything would have been
ready for their reception ; but their arrival was the signal
for annoying them, and that system of petty persecution
commenced which roused them into mutiny, and finally ef
fected the purposes for which it was resorted to, by driving
them from the country.
The minister of war was at that time S. Barbozo, and
from his subsequent hostility to the foreigners, it is to be
presumed he was the instrument of their first annoyances,
which were in his department. When the transports ar
rived, nothing was ready for the .accommodation ofthe men.
They were kept for three or four days on board, and when
at length tbey were landed, they were thrust into dirty empty
barracks, without the smallest preparation of any kind for
their comforts or wants. They had no beds to sleep on,
not even a mat to keep them from the bare ground, which
is always provided for Brazilian soldiers. This comfortless
state was still increased by want of provisions ; for they were
• kept starving for two days without any distribution of ra
tions, and when at length it was made, they were so bad in
quality that the men could not eat them, but sold them for
a trifle to the English to feed their horses : they were also
deficient in quantity, and so irregularly given, that they
were frequently afterwards fortyeight hours without receiv
ing any issue. Many of them contracted fevers, and other
sickness, from privation and anxiety, and in this state of de
bility were seen crawling about the streets of Rio. Appli
cation was mnde to the Brazilian government to provide
them with medicines and necessaries, but no notice was
taken ; and they would have perished on the roads, where
they were sometimes obliged to lie down, but for the hu
manity of Doctors Coates and Dixon, who supplied them

160 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
with medicine from their own pockets. For some time they
received no pay at all, and when at length it was ordered,
it was much less than they were promised.*
In this state of disappointment and growing discontent,
there was not the smallest pains taken to give them any
habit of order or regularity. They remained in their quar
ters, idle and unemployed, dirty and neglected, and in the
same clothes in which they had arrived, ragged and squalid,
without the habits or appearance of common decency.
Sometimes they were permitted to leave their * barracks
when and how they pleased, and to remain as long as suit
ed their humor, in the vendas or public-houses. Here a
cheap and ruinous kind of rum is sold, called caxa*s, and in
this they were permitted, if not encouraged, to indulge
freely. Thus situated, and highly susceptible of excite
ment, an engine of irritation was applied to them, of an anr
noyance so intolerable, that no person, under any circum
stance, could bear it patiently.
The miserable slaves of Rio, employed only as beasts of
burden in the streets, are, of all classes ofthe human race,
by far the most abandoned and degraded. Used merely as
inferior animals, without, the smallest reference to their be
ing endowed with the faculty of reason, they are driven all
day, and turned loose in the evening ; and by a strange in
consistency, allowed the most licentious and unrestrained
habits. They go along the streets frequently drunk, shout
ing, hallooing, and fighting ; and when one considers that
there are fifty or sixty thousand of this class, in a large and
licentious city, and th&great majority of its population, it is
fearful to contemplate the consequences which may arise,
some time or other, from their ferocious passions. Yet
these were the instruments used to goad and irritate the
strangers. They first insulted them whenever they met
them, by calling them white slaves, " escravos brancos,"
and they pointed to their rags and dirt, as a proof of their
being not so good, or so well treated, as themselves.
Whenever they appeared outside their barracks, they were
attacked in this way, and constant skirmishes and riots oc
curred between individuals and parties on both sides. In
these encounters, if the Irish officers interfered, and seized
* I am told it amounted to seven vintems, which, at the rate of ex
change when I was at Rio, would not average at sixpence, and they
were promised one shilling.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 161
any slaves, who they knew were the aggressors and com
menced the disturbance, to deliver them to the police, they
were detained merely a few hours, and then liberated to re
peat the offence ; if, on the contrary, any of the strangers
were complained of, they were committed to the dungeons
ofthe fortresses, and if not closely confined, were dragged
out only to be worked as galley slaves ; and in tliis way,
respectable people have told me, they often saw them fet
tered in the same chain with black slave-felons, as rf it was
the system to degrade them to that rank, and not suffer them
to be held in higher consideration.
In this state of things, a body ofthe Irish, quartered in the
barracks of Prava Vermelha, were marched to the Campo
d'Acclamacao, and in their way it was necessary to pass
the Carioca, a fountain where a large collection of blacks
continually attend to draw water. The moment they ap
peared, an immediate insurrection ofthe blacks took place,
and an attack was made on these unarmed men, quietly
passing through the streets ; they repelled it with sticks
and fists, and the blacks fied : but from that time no recruit
could appear in any part ofthe town, without being assault
ed. Even the officers failed to preserve that respect for
their rank, which would be secured to any others ; they
were the indiscriminate object of attack by any slaves they
met, as if the general system was to degrade and exasperate
the whole corps without distinction. In the Rua dos Bar-
bonios is a barrack, near a fountain, attended by blacks, and
here the parties came into constant collision. The blacks,
who seemed, as it were, trained to insult the Irish, constant
ly attacked the sentries, and even climbed up the windows,
and assaulted, with stones and other missiles, those who
were inside* quietly sleeping in their quarters. The conse
quence was a very serious riot, which lasted two days, and
the loss of some lives. In these conflicts, the people ofthe
town looked on with satisfaction, and were frequently seen
setting on the negroes, as I have seen Turks hallooing their
swarms of dogs at christian passengers.
The time had now arrived when a fearful retaliation
seemed at hand, and threatened the whole town with de
struction. The Irish had been about half a year in the
country, and they still remained in the same state of neglect,
contempt, and insubordination. A few, indeed, who had
entered as grenadiers, had received clothes, and some par
tial improvement had been attempted in the rations ; but
14*

162 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
the great body remained the same, the causes of discontent
every day increasing. The state of the German troops
was little better. They complained that the promises made
to them were, not fulfilled, that their pay was embezzled ;
and the whole only wanted some spark to set the inflammable
materials in a blaze. They were distributed in three large
barracks in different parts of the town : the Germans, in .
thePraya Vermelha, near the mouth ofthe harbor, at one
extremity of the city, and at the barrack of S. Christovao,
at the other ; and the Irish, nearly midway between both,
at the Campo d'Acclamacao, towaids the centre of the
town. On the 9th of June, 1828, as an alfares, or ensign, was
returning from his rounds, after the ave-maria, or sun-set,
he was met by a German soldier, who refused to take off
his bonnet as he passed. The alfares ordered him into con
finement, and he was sentenced to receive fifty lashes for
insubordination. A representation was made that he had
been a well-conducted man, since the formation of the
corps ; but this did not avail, and he was led out to under
go his sentence in the square of the barrack of S. Christo
vao. He demanded to be tried by a court-martial, and re
fused to take off his jacket ; but he was ordered to be
seized and bound, and the jacket cut from his back ; his sen
tence was quintupled, and two hundred and fifty were order
ed instead of fifty. He received two hundred and ten of
his punishment, but the soldiers now became impatient, and,
actuated by one spirit, began to stamp with their feet, call
ing out not to kill the man ; and as the officer still persist
ed to inflict the full punishment, the whole corps burst into
a spontaneous mutiny, released the prisoner, proceeded with
shouts and menaces to the palace in their neighborhood, and
demanded to see the emperor. He refused to present him
self; but gave them to understand if they had any complaint
to make, they should send a deputation of two or three, and
he would listento them ; and they returned to their barracks.
Meantime the Irish, at the Campo d'Acclamacao, hearing
what had happened, proceeded to S. Christovao, some by
land and some in boats, to the amount of fifty or sixty ; andj
resolving now to make a common cause with the Germans,
encouraged them by shouts and acclamations to persevere.
The mutiny now assumed a most alarming aspect : the
magazine of ammunition was forced open, the quarters of
the officers were attacked, the houses of the major and

NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

163

quarter-master were plundered, and several officers were
pursued and just escaped with their lives.
On the next day, the news of the mutiny at S. Christo
vao was received at the Praya Vermelha. The Germans
quartered here had just returned from Pernambuco, and
were in a state of irritation little less violent than their com
rades. It had been the custom to stop the pay ofthe sol
diers, as in the French army in the time of Napoleon, as a
punishment for offences, and in this way, under various pre
texts, the officers pocketed the greater part of it. The ma
jor, whose name was Teola, was a man of low extraction
and bad character, and was greatly detested by the men.
He was an Italian, and had been waiter at the Hotel du
Nord, in the Rue Direita. It is said that his wife, who was
a comely person, had attracted notice, and he was immedi
ately raised from his humble station to the commission which
he held in the German regiment. He had been long ac
cused of embezzling their pay, and frequent complaints
were made ; but his influence in high quarters had hitherto
baffled all applications, and the soldiers were now deter
mined to take into their own hands that redress, which they
could not obtain. As the prejudice against him was known
to be very strong, he was advised not to appear on parade
this day, where some violence was likely to break out.
He, however, disregarded the caution, and his appearance
was the signal for a general mutiny. He was attacked by
the soldiers, and fled for refuge to Colonel Macgregor, who
would not, it is said, but who probably could not, protect
him. He then ran to make his escape over the walls of
the barracks, but he was overtaken and dragged down ; and
while lying on the ground, he was stabbed by the bayonets
ofthe sentinels, and crushed to death with heaps of large
stones cast on him by the exasperated soldiers. Two other
officers, who attempted to interfere for him, were severely
wounded. It does not appear that the Irish here took any
part in the assassination.
The body ofthe. major was brought to be buried in the.
cemetery, and the two wounded officers to be received into
the hospital ofthe Miserieordia, and a rumor was now indus
triously circulated through Rio, that the German regiments
were marching in from both extremities ofthe city, to join
the Irish at the Campo d'Acclamacao, and then proceed
to burn and plunder the town. It was now that the sangui
nary policy of those who were hostile to the Europeans, be-

164 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ganto display itself. The Brazilian troops were immedi
ately ordered under arms, and the minister of war sent di
rections to the commandant, the Conde de Rio Pardo, " to
destroy every man ; to give no quarter ; but to exterminate
the whole ofthe strangers ;"* andlestthe brave and humane
commandant should not execute these orders, an expedient
was resorted to, as terrible to others as it was dangerous to
themselves — that was, a license to the Moleques, or blacks,
and the rest ofthe rabble, to take up arms. I had seen the
frightful effects of this among the Turks ; but the idea of
fifty or sixty thousand black slaves, arid such slaves in a
state of high excitement, armed with knives and daggers,
let loose on a city, ,was an experiment at which humanity
shudders.. A large crowd of them was soon collected in the Campo
d'Acclamacao, and the tumult immediately commenced with
the Irish. These latter had now become infuriate like the
Germans — had attacked the police barracks in the neighbor
hood, and having seized the arms, began to fire in all direc
tions. They then broke open the vendas, and many of them
having drank caxas to excess, burst into private houses, and
committed great excesses. A regular warfare soon ensued
between them and the armed Moleques, joined by a num
ber of Brazilians ofthe lowest description, and the Campo
and the streets adjoining were filled with dead and wounded
bodies. The Brazilian government now applied to the French
and English ministers for a force of marines, from the ships
of war of their respective nations lying in the harbor, which
was readily granted. The French were immediately landed
at the trem, and the English at the arsenal, and were prepar
ed to protect the city, if any attempt should be made against
it. In the mean time, a battalion ofthe regiment of militia
ofthe Minas Geraes, some cavalry, and a field-piece, pro
ceeded to the Campo, to restore order. They did not act
with the furious inhumanity recommended by the minister of
war. They first argued with the insurgents, then fired
blank cartridges, and at length had recourse to ball as the
last expedient. The insurgents, had no arms of their own,
and used only those they had wrested from the police,
amounting to fifty or sixty muskets. Their ammunition was
* Mata tudo Sr. Conde, nao da quartel a ninguem, mata esses estran-
geiros.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

165

exhausted, and those whom insult and intoxication had driv
en to madness, had returned to their senses, and retired to
their barracks. The Germans quietly submitted, and on the
evening of the 12th of June, everything was tranquil, after
three days of intense anxiety.
While the conduct of the military was humane and praise
worthy that ofthe armed rabble was marked by the most
atrocious ferocity. The Moleques rushed on every for
eigner they met in the neighborhood, with their knives, and
butchered them vytth the most savage mutilation ; and some,
I am cold, were hunted down, and then torn limb from limb,
oy the bloodhounds that pursued them. Several of the Irish,
who were artisans, industriously exercised their trades, and
were doing well at Rio. One of them, a tailor, was return
ing to his barracks, with a bundle of clothes under his arm,
entirely ignorant ofthe insurrection that had taken place. —
He was met by two Moleques in a street leading to the
Campo, who rushed at him with their facas, and having stab
bed him in several places, ripped up his belly, and left him,
with his bowels hanging out, weltering on the pavement. —
One fellow, a corpulent mulatto, of a very ferocious as
pect, was pointed out to me afterwards at the butchery of
S. Luzie, where he has now some appropriate employment.
He was seen, after tranquillity was restored, brandishing a
bloody sabre over his head, and boasting it was stained
with the blood of five foreigners, whom he had killed.
The number of persons who lost their lives is variously
stated at from sixty to a hundred ; and about twice that
number wounded. Many respectable Brazilians, in the vi
cinity ofthe Campo d'Acclamacao, were killed, in defend
ing their houses and properties when the insurgents burst
them open. Many of the insurgents lay down in the streets
and fell asleep, overcome by fatigue and intoxication ; and
in that state of insensibility were stabbed by the Moleques.
As this disposition for blood continued after the cause was
past, and the excitement over, it was found necessary to is
sue, on the 13th of Juner a second edital, prohibiting any
person from carrying arms, but especially slaves, after the
edital was posted, under severe punishment. They had
been most imprudently called on to take them nppara salvar
a patria, and it was found imperatively necessary to compel
them to lay them down, for the same reason.
Of 2,400 Irish who had been invited, and arrived in Bra
zil, not more than 200 were concerned in the insurrection ;

166 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
and these were generally young men, totally neglected, and
left to themselves, to follow the impulse of any passion ex
cited in them. They were without officers or arms, yet
they caused much terror and anxiety, in a large and popu
lous city, for three days. It was determined, therefore, to
send them all hack to their own country ; and the object of
those who labored to bring that end about, was completely
answered. They were immediately embarked, and placed
on board the ships of war in the harbor, till transports could
be provided for them. The emperor hiin=elf seemed very
well disposed towards them ; and I am told oy those -vyho
witnessed the fact, that he shed tears of anxiety and vexa
tion, when he heard the state into which they were degrad
ed. It had been his custom frequently to attend divine ser
vice, when it was performed for the Irish at the Praya Ver-
melha, where he freely knelt down amongst them. His
condescension, however, was suspected. An absurd rumor
had been circulated, that if this ceremony was performed
three times, they were bound to him, as soldiers, for unlim
ited service. On the third Sunday none but the officers
attended — the men all disappeared — a strong proof of their
repugnance to such an engagement, and their determina
tion to resist it. He now gave every direction for their
ample accommodation, on their return home ; and Mr. Gor
don, the British minister, and the English admiral, had pow
er ir. his name to supply them with every necessary.
On this occasion it was expedient to collect them all, and
it was discovered that many of them had been arrested and
confined in various prisons. Mr. Aston, the Secretary of
Legation to the British Mission, with that promptness and
humanity which every one who knows him will give him
credit for, immediately applied to the proper authorities to
have them found out ; but so little interest did they take in
the life or liberty of those foreigners, that they could give
no information about them. At length he found thirty of
them confined in the dungeon ofthe fortress of Villegagnon.
On one.occasion, the whole of the officers had been arrested,
and shut up in the cells ofthe prisons in the different islands.
After eighteen or twenty days' incarceration, however, they
were liberated, and never could learn why they had been
confined ; but numbers of inferior rank remained behind,
till they were altogether forgotten. Such was the case of
these poor men. When they emerged from these cata
combs, they were in the most miserable state of destitution

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 167
and disease, their bodies ulcerated with sores and covered
with vermin, and their skins so raw and tender from putres-
cency and mortification, that when it was necessary to clothe
them for the sake of decency, to enable them again to ap
pear, they could not bear the painful touch of any covering.
They were a fine body of young men, and of good char
acter. They had been called on to take the military oath,
but they refused. They affirmed they had come out as set
tlers ; if they were located as such, they had no objection
to be enrolled as militia, learn military duty, and be ready
to turn out to defend their own or any other part of the
country invaded : but they persisted in refusing to take the
oath tendered to them as mere soldiers, for unlimited ser
vice. For this offence they were represented as mutineers,
and thrown at once into these dismal dungeons, where they
had remained totally neglected, and must in a short time
have perished in a state of putridity, had they not been re
lieved by the humane and timely interference of Mr. Aston.
Two hundred and fifty were embarked in the Moro Castle,
on the 3d July, 1828, and sailed for Ireland. The Phoebe
followed with 150 more, with the Highlander, and a Swed
ish ship, carrying in all 1400 persons back to their native
land. It was industriously given out, that many of these
persons had carried off plate and other valuables from the
houses they had plundered, and a search was made among
their boxes and trunks. Nothing was found to justify the
suspicion, and then it was said, that to avoid detection they
had cast all these valuables into the sea.
About 400 were left behind, engaged in different employ
ments. A body of them, to the amount of 220 persons,
forming 101 families, were conveyed to Bahia, and located
at Taporoa, in the comarca of Ilheos, where they formed a
colony, directed by a commissioner appointed to regulate
their affairs. It was the only portion ofthe emigrants with
whom good faith was observed ; and it appears, from the
report ofthe Viscount Camamu, president of the assembly
of the province, that they were deserving of every care
and attention. Several who remained at Rio, I afterwards
met and conversed with. They were doing well ; and the
whole, had they been properly encouraged, would have
done the same. Some men from Waterford and Lismore
were engaged in a quarry in the rear of our residence, pre
paring blocks of granite for building, and by their industry
and good conduct were earning five patacs (about seven

168 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
shillings) a day, and making a comfortable independence.
Another family, of the name of Cook, from the county of
Tipperary, had been recommended to Messrs. Marsh and
Watson, who located them on a farm in the Organ Moun
tains, where I visited them with Mr. Watson. The farm
was in the depth of a forest, fourteen or fifteen miles with
in the recesses of the mountain. The way led through the
wildest scenery ; and on the bank of a river, in the centre
of a forest, we found these colonists. They had built a large
and comfortable house with a rustic portico, and thatched
it very neatly with palm branches, whose regular fronds
formed a tasty roof, the stems and pinnate leaves of which
were very elegantly disposed in the thatch. On the other
side of the river, which we. crossed by two trees forming a
rustic bridge, was a large shed for cattle, and other con
veniences ; and rising up the hill was an extensive planta
tion of coffee, behind which, descending into a glen, was a
rich field of Indian corn in high health, with gourds, mandi
oca, and a variety of other produce of Brazilian agriculture.
On our return, the good woman had prepared for us a plen
tiful dish of bacon and eggs, with fried cakes of maize ;
and our entertainment concluded with whisky, which our
host had contrived to distil from his coffee plantation. When
I contemplated this comfortable house and abundant farm,
rescued from the heart of a Brazilian forest, cultivated by
persons who in their own country could not make out a
scanty livelihood in a miserable hovel, I could not help feel
ing the deepest regret, that 2400, who had left their homes,
were not, as they might have been, so located. It would
have abstracted so many individuals from an overflowing
people perishing from want, and added a valuable popula
tion to a country, where millions of fertile acres are lying
waste for lack of hands to cultivate them.
The greater part of the Irish who returned home, were
in a disabled state. Hardship, wounds, privation, and sick
ness had affected them more or less ; but the ailment under
which they principally labored was lameness. Not furnish
ed with shoes, nor able to provide, them, their feet were
attacked with the bichu, or insect of the country, which
burrowed in myriads in their naked feet," and caused the
most frightful ulcerations. Many ofthe men, therefore, are
lame beggars about the streets, or incurables in the hospit
als of Cork. Many who had left comfortable farms, are
reduced to common laborers ; and of all who returned home,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 169
there is not one, perhaps, who is not now enduring want
and misery.
The Germans, as they were regularly enrolled, were
subject to martial law as mutineers ; and the ringleaders in
the riot were tried, and some convicted. One of them was
shortly after executed. On the formation of the German
corps, as they were generally Lutherans, the Rev. Mr.
Crane, British chaplain at Rio, officiated for them ; and
when this man was ordered for execution, he was attended,
by order of the emperor, by the chaplain, to prepare him
for death. Mr. Crane, from whom I derived some of the
foregoing statements, informed me he was a tall, vigorous
young man, six feet high, of singularly determined charac
ter. He told him he had neglected his early religious im
pressions, but did not then wish to recall them ; and begged
him not to press him on the subject, as his only wish was to
die like a soldier, and such considerations as he proposed,
would only disturb him. A Catholic clergyman was sent
to him with no better success. He dismissed him at once,
telling him to go and reform his master, who more wanted
it. He walked to the Campo d'Acclamacao, were he was
executed, with a pipe in his mouth, frequently turning round
and conversing with the greatest indifference with his com
rades, who were to shoot him, and who followed immediately
behind him. The only mark of interest or concern he
evinced on any subject, was with respect to the place of
his burial. He asked where he was to be laid, and he was
answered, in the Miserieordia. As this is the cemetery
attached to the hospital, and the great receptacle for negroes,
he expressed a strong repugnance to be buried among them,
and confounded with the Slaves, who had behaved in such a
manner to his comrades. He therefore earnestly requested
permission to be buried in the English burying-ground,
which Mr. Crane promised, and he then died with the most
perfect unconcern. His regiment was sent off to the south.
Thus ended a project for the gradual introduction of
Europeans into Brazil, from which much good was reasona
bly expected. To form a counterpoise to the fearful supe
riority- of the slave population, and increase as much as pos
sible the number of white inhabitants ; to colonize the im
mense tracts of fertile land now lying waste, and cultivate
the soil with the vigorous arms of freemen, bringing with
them the lights and improvements of Europe, instead of the
enormous importations annually of blacks from Africa, was
15

170 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
certainly the object of an enlightened policy. But the vig
ilant suspicion of the people, ever on the watch to guard
against any supposed instruments of despotism, and the uni
versal and inveterate prejudices still existing against stran
gers, rendered the measure highly unpopular in Brazil. It
was supposed that the difference ofthe religion ofthe Ger
mans had some influence in increasing this prejudice, but
the similarity of that of the Irish did not procure them more
favor. The Aurora, the Asfreea, and other genuine na
tional papers, teemed with equal invectives against both,
talked boastfully of " delivering themselves' from the Ger
man and Irish invasion," and studiously avoided all notice
of the French and English marines who landed to assist
them. The emperor, however, acknowledged their services in
a flattering manner, by paying a complimentary visit on the
occasion to the British fleet; They were drawn up in line
to receive him ; and he, with the young queen of Portu
gal and a numerous cortege, repaired on board the admi
ral's ship, the Ganges, on the 20th of June. The imperial
standard was hoisted at the mast-head, and the band play
ed the national and constitutional hymn, composed by the
emperor himself. He examined with great attention the
different parts of the ship ; and when their uses were ex
plained to him, he said, " J'en profiterai." He saw the
crew at dinner, and tasted their soup, which he pronounc
ed to be " bien bon," but he only smelled to their grog. —
In passing between decks, he remarked some thirty-two
pounders lying in the racks, and stooping down in a care
less manner, he laid his hand on the summit of one of them,
raised it with apparent ease, and having examined it, de
posited it again without apparent effort. This was consid
ered an extraordinary effort of muscular strength, as his
fingers are short, and he could only grasp a small portion
ofthe surface. He was entertained in the state-room, the
, admiral and post-captains attending on him, and he and the
young queen alone sitting down. Two of the admiral's
sons, young boys, waited as pages on Dona Maria, and the
little group excited great interest. During the repast, the
emperor gave the health of George the Fourth ; and the
admiral in return gave that of the emperor and the queen,
each of which was followed by a salutation of sixty-three
guns. On his return, he insisted on taking the admiral in

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. ITI
his own barge, and expressed himself highly, gratified by
his visit.
The emperor was exceedingly displeased with his minis
try for their conduct in this unfortunate mutiny. He con
sidered them particularly culpable, first in exciting it, and
then in not taking immediate measures to suppress it ; but
the principal object of his anger was the minister at war, for
lending himself as an instrument to promote the designs of
those who disliked the introduction of the foreign troops,
and had used such means to get rid of them. He, there
fore, directly ordered this minister to surrender his seals of
office. The rest, however, made common cause with their
colleague, and declared, if he resigned, they would do so
too. The emperor, on this occasion, showed his prompt
and determined character. The whole cabinet were on
one day dismissed, and on the next a new one was appoint
ed.

CHAP. XIV.
Peace with Buenos Ayres. — Disappointment and Vexation of the People at Rio. —
Disastrous Effects of the War. — Treatment of Foreign Officers in the Service. —
Death of Dom John. — -Emperor abdicates in favor of his Daughter. — Rapid Compo
sition ofthe Portuguese Constitution.— British Ambassador the Bearer of it to Eu
rope. — Birth and Baptism of Dona Maria, and why so called. — Marriage with her
Uncle contemplated at her Birth. — Conduct of Dom Miguel in Portugal.— Revives
theobsolete Cortes of Lamego — Abolishes the New Constitution, and is proclaimed
King. — Anger of Dom Pedro, and curious Indications of it. — Sends Dona Maria to
Vienna. — She stops at Gibraltar, and proceeds to England.— Treated as Queen, but
her Ambassador not acknowledgedj and why. — Situation of Brazil on our Arrival.
Another result also was connected^with this affair, of real
and important benefit to Brazil. The alarming mutiny of
the troops intended to be employed, and their total disorga
nization, at once deprived government of a resource of men,
which they now began to find it difficult to supply from the
exhausted country, from which, almost all its agricultural
hands had been already abstracted ; and at length this pet
ty warfare, the most unnecessary and unintelligible, as well
as the most ruinous to all concerned, was ended. Negotia
tions were again opened, under the auspices of his Excel
lency, the British minister, and both parties at length

172 . NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
agreed to acknowledge the independence ofthe Banda Ori
ental, and the troops of Brazil and of Buenos Ayres were
mutually to evacuate the country. It was agreed, also,
that a provisional government should be formed by the peo
ple themselves, and a constitution drawn up, to be submitted
to both states, for their approbation, before it was sworn to ;
and when so ratified, to be supported by them, for five
years, against any attempt to alter it ; but, after that period,
the people ofthe new Cis-Platine state to be left in full and
free enjoyment of their independence, to manage all their
own affairs without foreign interference.
This termination to the war was received with universal
disappointment and discontent in Brazil. The Banda Ori
ental, though Originally Spanish, and unjustly seized on by
the Portuguese, had yet been incorporated as a province
with the Brazilian empire, and made one of the nineteen
stars that glittered in the imperial arms. The people had
not forgotten the emperor's declaration, that the war must
continue till it should be recognized as an integral part of
the empire ; and in that determination they had sustained a
ruinous contest. When they now saw this object abandon
ed, and what they considered their territory surrendered,
they could not conceal their mortification and disappoint
ment. The petty feelings of ambition and cupidity inherent
in the mind of man, were never, perhaps, more strongly ex
emplified than on this occasion. They saw the prosperity
of the country totally arrested, its resources wasted, its
commerce impeded, its agriculture neglected, and its pop
ulation diminishing, in this absurd contest ; yet every in
dividual whom I conversed with, would rather have continu
ed to suffer all these evils, than that a remote and small frag
ment should be broken from their' vast dominions, which
was not their own, and which, after all, was not to form any
part of a rival state, but to become independent like them
selves. Every little shopkeeper in Rio thought himself.
personally degraded by the dismemberment of his empire,
though it had been only a few years in existence ; and it
added another motive of dislike to the English, under whose
auspices the treaty of peace had been concluded.
The war was attended with many disastrous effects. It
checked the progress of population, destroyed the improve
ments of agriculture, suspended the diffusion of useful knowl
edge, retarded the formation of the national character, and
diverted the attention ofthe nation from all its intended use-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 173
ful projects ; it impoverished the country, caused a vast
accumulation of national debt, abstracted from circulation
all the valuable metals, and substituted a paper and copper
currency, and even that last at an immense discount ; it
involved the government in serious disputes with friendly
powers, Great Britain, France, and the United States, to
whom they were obliged to pay considerable sums for spolia
tion on their property, by the absurd attempt at blockading
the river of Plate ; and it sunk into the lowest estimation the
military character ofthe people, when a single city, contain
ing a population equal to scarcely one-half of that of its own
capital, could baffle all their attempts, and finally compel a
great empire to succumb to its handful of soldiers and
sailors. Immediately on the cessation of war, and when their ser
vices were no longer necessary, the foreigners who served
in the army were treated with very little ceremony, and
their feelings and wants totally disregarded. Several whose
health had suffered severely, either from wounds or climate,
had requested some little indulgences, which they might
reasonably expect when the campaign was over ; but they
were all harshly refused. Captain Ayre, an Englishman
in the naval service, applied for leave of absence for a few
months, to re-establish his injured constitution, by a visit to
the upper country. He was informed by the minister of
marine, that he had the option at once to resign his com
mission, and quit the service ; but if he wished to retain it,
he must not be absent a moment. On another occasion,
twentyseven foreign officers were dismissed on parade,
without any provision for the future, or remuneration for
past services ; twentyfour' were Germans, who were order
ed to embark in ships provided for them, and that with such
precipitation, that they were not allowed to go back for
their great coats. A few days after, nine more, among
whom were some English or Irish, were discharged in the
same unceremonious manner. '
The death of Dom John at this time, was an event fraught
with important consequences both to Brazil and Portugal.
He had enjoyed good health since his illness in 1805, with
the exception of the hereditary infirmity of his family, an
cedematous swelling of his legs. On the 4th of March,
1 826, hedined with the monks at the convent of S. Jerony-
mo, in Lisbon, in apparent good health ; but, on his return
to the palace of Bemposto, he was suddenly seized with a
15*

1*74 NOTICES QF BRAZIL.
fit of vomiting, which was succeeded by fainting and convul
sions. The next day, after taking some chicken broth, (the
first remedy usually resorted to by Portuguese physicians,.)
the vomiting returned with increased violence. Having ob
tained some remission of the symptoms, on the following day
he appointed his daughter, the Infanta Isabella, regent, as
sisted by a council of ministers, aud continued to linger on
till the 9th, when a fresh access brought on the crisis of his
fate, and on the 10th, at six o'clock in the evening, he
expired. On the 25th- of April following, an official account of his
death arrived in Brazil, and on the next day, the emperor
assumed the character of King of Portugal, and issued a
decree confirming the regency appointed by the late king.
He then published an act of amnesty for all political offences,
drew up a. constitutional charter for the Portuguese mo
narchy, which his father had promised in May, 1823 ; ad
dressed seventy-seven patents for the creation of a chamber
of peers, and on the 2d of May, abdicated in favor of. his
daughter, Dona Maria, having been himself sovereign of
Portugal but six days, and in that short period, completed
a new system, and framed a new eode of laws, for the fi*-
ture government of that kingdom. Sir Charles Stuart hap.-
pened to be at Rio, on public business, and having accom
plished it, he was about to return home. To his care the
emperor confided these important documents, and they were
brought by him to Europe. This has given rise to an
opinion, that the constitution was drawn up with the con
currence, and promulgated with the eo-operation, of the
British ministry ; but it does not appear that, however they
might approve of its principles^ 'they had any further par
ticipation in it than the accidental courtesy of the British
ambassador, for more safe and speedy conveyance, taking
it \o Europe in the ship of war that conveyed himself*
In order to give stability to the new order of things, as a
mark of affection to his brother, and to comply with the
ancient regulation ofthe Portuguese monarchy, established
by the Cortes-of Laraego, that the first daughter ofthe king,
being heiress to the crown, should marry a Portuguese, so
* Sir Charles Stuart's letter is a curious proof of the hasty manner
in which the constitution was framed. " He (the emperor) then pro
duced his project of a constitution already completed, to the compila
tion of which he had devoted the greater part of the week." — Letter
from Rio, April 30, 1826,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 175
that the crown should not come to strangers,* it was re
solved that Dona Maria should marry her uncle Dom Mi
guel, as by ancient usage " such mixture is not held a stain "
in either Spain or Portugal.
Dona Maria had been the first-born ofthe emperor, when
Prince of Beira, and her birth was hailed by the Brazilians
as a circumstance of the highest domestic congratulation.
When the pregnancy ofthe princess was announced, pray
ers were offered up, and the sacrament exposed in all the
churches, for her happy accouchement ; and on Palm Sun
day, the 4th of April, 1819, at five o'clock in the evening,
repeated discharges of cannon from the fortresses, and other
demonstrations of joy, announced " that heaven had given
to the Portuguese nation the first fruits ofthe nuptials ofthe
prince and princess." The 3d of May, so often fixed on
as an epoch of events in Brazil, because it was the day of
its discovery, was appointed for her baptism, and she re
ceived the names of Dona Maria da Gloria, Joanna, Car-
lotta, Leopoldina da Cruz, Francisca, Xavier de Paula,
Izidora, Michaela, Gabriela,*Raphaela, Gongaza.
Particular churches in Brazil, as in other catholic
countries, are celebrated for their efficacious interference
in different cases of human infirmities : that of the church
of Nossa Senhora da Gloria is eminently so, and always re
sorted to by married women in a state of pregnancy, who
offer, at the shrine of our Lady, their vows for a happy
confinement. This was constantly the practice of the
Princess Leopoldina, who was seen every Sunday and holy-
day in this church at the foot of the altar. In gratitude,
therefore, for her propitious protection, she devoted her in
fant to her patroness ; and on the 27th of June, the day of
the Purification in the Portuguese church, she was solemnly
presented at the sanctuary. To this circumstance it is that
she owes the name, by which she has been generally recog
nized, among the numerous ones conferred on her.
It would seem that the project of his daughter's marriage
with her uncle had been contemplated by Dom Pedro im
mediately on her birth, as is evident from the following
passage in his correspondence with his father, from his let
ter, dated 19th June, 1822. " I request your majesty to
permit my dear brother Miguel to come hither, in any man-
* SJt ita in sempiternum, quod prima filia regis recipiat mariturja
de Portugalia, ut non veniat regnum ad extraneos.

176 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ner that you may think proper, because he is much esteemed
here, and the Brazilians wish him to assist me in rendering
service to Brazil, and in due time to marry my pretty daugh
ter Maria.''''* The consummation of it, therefore, at this
time, was merely carrying into effect a project long deter
mined on. The legal part of the ceremony was now per
formed, by procuration, between the parties at Vienna, where
Dom Miguel then was, and the ecclesiastical part was only
wanting to complete it.
Meantime the affairs of Portugal became exceedingly dis
turbed by the conflicting opinions of those who approved
and disapproved of the constitutional charter ; and the agi
tation was greatly increased by the enfeebled state of the
regent. To put an end to these dissensions, and give an
efficient government to the kingdom, the emperor resolved
to anticipate the period when his brother, Dom Miguel, was
to assume that office, and immediately invested him with it.
By a decree, therefore, signed at Rio, on the 3d of July,
1827, he stated that, taking into consideration the intelli
gence, activity, frankness, and character ofthe Infante Dom
Miguel, his beloved brother, he, for many weighty reasons,
appointed him his lieutenant, giving him all the powers
which belonged to himself, as king of Portugal and Algarve,
under the constitutional charter. In consequence of this,
Dom Miguel wrote to his sister from Vienna, that he was
determined to maintain inviolate the laws of the kingdom,
and the institutions legally granted by his august brother,
to cause them to be observed by others, and by them govern
the kingdom. Accordingly he set out from Vienna, with
this apparent resolution, and arrived in England, where he
received the address of the Portuguese residents, on the
same subject, and proceeded to Portugal. On his arrival
in Lisbon, the 26th of February, in the presence of the two
chambers ofthe cortes, and ofthe assembled court, he con
firmed by his oath, what he had written to his sister ; he
solemnly swore to observe the constitution, and cause it to
be observed by others, as established by the charter.
Notwithstanding these appearances, everything portend
ed the approaching abolition of the new order of things.
* " Peco a V. M. que deixe vir o mano Miguel para ca, seja como
for, porque elle he aqui 'muito estimado, e os Brazileiros o querem ao
pe de mim, para me ajudar a servir no Brazil, e a seu tempo cazar com
a minha lindafilha Maria."

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 177
Mobs everywhere insulted the constitutionalists. The of
ficers of the army, supposed to be so, were dismissed. The
chamber of deputies was dissolved, the charter was burnt,
and addresses were got up in the municipalities, praying the
regent to assume the crown ; and such was the general
feeling of disapprobation to his proceedings, that foreign
ministers, at the court of Lisbon, refused to hold any com
munication with him. It was in vain that the Portuguese
endeavored to arrest his despotic progress. An insurrec
tion took place at Oporto, and the troops proceeded towards
Lisbon ; but they hesitated, returned, and were totally dis
persed ; and, indeed, it appeared, that, however large and
respectable a body the constitutionalists were in numbers,
talent, and wealth, they were greatly exceeded by their op
ponents, who, numerically speaking, may be said to have
constituted the people ofthe country.
On the dissolution ofthe constitutional cortes, the ancient
assembly of the kingdom was convened in its place. This
obsolete body had been first convoked, at Lamego, by Al
phonso the First, in 1143, for the purpose of establishing
the succession of the crown. It had, however, fallen lat
terly into such entire disuse, that it had not been called to
gether since the year 1697. It now met again, after an in
terval of 131 years, on the 23d of June, 1828, and, without
hesitation or debate, decided that Dom Miguel was the only
legal sovereign, that Dom Pedro had no right over the king
dom, and all the institutions he had imposed were null and
illegal. On the 28th, Dom Miguel, by an ordinance, con
firmed their decision, and formally assumed the title of Dom
Miguel, by the grace of God, King of Portugal and the
Algarves. When the news of these things arrived in Brazil, it ex
cited a correspondent emotion among all classes. The peo
ple thought they saw the downfal of their own constitution
in that of Portugal, and the emperor saw the kingdom wrest
ed from his daughter, and the crown placed on the head of
an usurper. He immediately addressed a proclamation to
the Portuguese, and, affecting to lay the blame on others,
he displayed the bitterness of his feelings against Dom Mi
guel. To the compulsion under which he labored he at
tributed his conduot. " To entertain a contrary opinion,"
said he, " would amount to considering him a traitor to the
assurances and protestations he made to me whilst I was
his king, and reputing him perjured to his oath which he

178 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
freely took at Vienna, and ratified at Lisbon." In con
versation, I have been told, he could not speak of him with
out bursting into a rage ; and he has seized the breast ofthe
person to whom he was speaking, and shaking him violently,
he said, he wished it was the usurper that was in his grasp.
One of the saloons of the palace contained portraits of all
the Braganza family, and among the rest that of Dom Mi
guel. He one day ordered it to be taken down, Mr. Wal
ton says, with the intention of having it kicked about the
palace with every mark of indignity. It was not, however,
so treated, but it vsjas inverted, and the face turned to the
wall, as a thing he could not bear to look upon.
In order to mark his strong approbation of those men who
had been faithful to his daughter, and hostile-to his brother,
as soon as he heard of the events at Oporto, he conferred
on her the title of duchess of that place, to impress upon
her mind. her inalienable rights, and in memory ofthe brave
city which had dared to maintain them ; and this title she
was to bear at the court of Vienna. Here her father had
now resolved to send her, to visit her mother's relatives,
and reside with her grandfather, who was apprised of her
intended coming. The Imperatriz frigate was immediately
got ready, and on the evening of her departure, he accom
panied Dona Maria on board, and remained there all night.
Next morning, at day-break, the frigate, joined by the cor
vette Dona Francisca, weighed, and proceeded out of the
harbor. The emperor continued with his daughter beyond
the forts, and then returned to Rio in a steam-boat, at that
time plying about the bay. His Majesty's ship, the Gan
ges, accompanied the young queen for several leagues.
She was attended by the Marquis of Barbacena, as cham
berlain, and it was their intention to land at Genoa, where
her aunt, Maria Louisa, ex-empress of France,- and Count
Leibzeltern, late ambassador in Russia, proceeded to re
ceive her, and conduct her to Vienna.
On their way they touched at Gibraltar for refreshments.
Here they found such information as induced her attendants
not to complete their intended voyage, but to proceed to
England. It was expected generally that the arrival of a
young and interesting girl, under the circumstances in which
she was placed, would not fail to excite such a popular feel
ing in her favor, as would be highly advantageous to her in
terests. On the 24th of September, 1828, the frigate ar
rived at Falmouth, where she was received with every mark

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 179
of respect, and immediately visited by the Marquis Palmel-
la, General Valdez, and other unfortunate gentlemen, who
had sacrificed so much in her cause.
It was as yet uncertain, however, whether she would be
received as a queen, or merely as Duchess of Oporto ; but
a royal salute soon announced the character in which the
British government were disposed to consider her, and she
proceeded to the capital, acknowledged everywhere as a sove
reign. As the first exercise of her royal functions, she ap
pointed the Marquis Palmella her ambassador to the British
court ; but as this is one ofthe highest functions of prerog
ative, and could not be exercised by herself because she
was a minor, or by the emperor of Brazil, because he was
no longer king of Portugal, the marquis was not acknow
ledged. A dispatch was immediately sent off to apprize the
emperor ofthe arrival ofthe young queen in England; with
an assurance that she should be treated with the respect
due to her rank and sex, and the regard owed to the sove
reign of a friendly and long allied power ; but, at the same
time, expressing a regret that no communication' had been
previously made, nor the usual etiquette observed, which
always precedes such a measure, as the visit of one sove
reign to another.
The Rio papers were filled with the flattering reception
the young queen had met with in England, and all the sto
ries, however absurd, were copied as proofs, not only that
the people, but the government of England, had espoused
her cause. This was confirmed by the arrival of a deputa
tion from the Constitutionalists, which had such an effect
that three ships of war were ordered to be got ready ; and
so anxious was the emperor for their equipment, that he
went by torch-light to see a schooner coppered at the arse
nal, which was to accompany them. On being, however,
assured by the British minister, that England would observe
a strict neutrality, he countermanded the orders.
Such was the situation of Brazil on our arrival. • A vast
country just separated from its parent state, having adopted
a new and unusual form of government, in which the ele
ments of democracy were largely mixed up with, imperial
principles, and the spirit of it everywhere abroad, and ready
to burst out ; — the young government, embarrassed by va
rious difficulties, brought on by a petty but ruinous warfare ;
— the nation just recovered from the terror and alarm of a
mutiny among strange troops ; — the foreign merchants, par-

180 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ticularly the English, pressing in their demands for compen-.
sation, for the spoliation of their property by the blockade ;
— the gold and silver of the country entirely vanished, and
no currency but paper, which would not circulate beyond
the capital, and large pieces of copper, which bore a dis
count of forty per cent., and even at that could not always
be procured ;— the emperor exasperated at the ingratitude
of his brother, and the base usurpation of his daughter's
kingdom ; — all the people in a high state of excitement, lest
the extinction of the constitution in Portugal was but a pre
lude to a similar thing in Brazil ; — and prejudice against
strangers exceedingly strong and strengthening every day,
but particularly against the English, whom, on all questions
connected with Portugal, they considered as their decided
enemies, and on those purely Brazilian as not their friends,
particularly on the abolition of the slave trade.
Having thus stated to you the most important events
which had happened, from the period when Brazil ceased to
be a mere colony, till the time of our arrival in the country,
in order that you may the better understand the actual state
in which we found it, I shall proceed with incidents as they
afterwards occurred.

CHAP. XV.
Emperor's baptismal Day., — British Chapel. — Obstacles opposed to its Erection by
Pope's Nuncio, and his strange Proposition. — Different Conduct ofthe Bishop of
Rio, and his curious Argument. — First Edifice raised for reformed Wosshipin
.South America.— Opening of Chapel. — Assault on the Windows.— Present neglected
State, — Strange Compound of Liberality and Prejudice in a Brazilian Writer. —
Obstinacy of Mules. — Choleric Driver. — Festival on the Eve of All Souls. — Drama-.
tic Exhibition.— Visit the Church of St. Francisco on All Souls' Day.— 'Miracles
_wrought on the Living. — Moorish Customs in Chapel.— Treatment of the Dead. —
Church of Candelaria — Revolting Appearanee of the Rosario. — Convent of S.
Bento. — Library. — Anecdote of Dom John.— ^Convent of -S. Antonia, and Tomb of
General Forbes. — Refectory and Library. — Beautiful Site ofthe Nunnery of S.The
resa.— Faith in the Protection of. Boa Viagem, shaken by an Accident. — St. Do
mingo Chapel for Blacks. — Sta. Rita for Malefactors.
The Sunday following our arrival-, was the baptismal day
of the emperor, and one of those festivals observed with
great ceremony. Early in the morning, the Brazilian ships
of war hoisted their flags and ensigns, and all the stays and

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 181
yard-arms were covered with them. This example was
followed by the English; ; the French displayed the white
flag only ; and the Americans took no notice by any de
monstration. Towards mid-day, a discharge of sky-rockets,
and other fire-works, was seen over different parts of the
town, and then a general salute of artillery commenced. The
Brazilian vessels began 5 it was returned by the fortresses
all round the bay, and taken up by the foreign ships of war.
The effect was grand ; but I was already sated with such
things at Constantinople. In this kind of display, the Bra
zilians exactly resemble the Turks : the decoration of their
ships with flags, and the continued explosion of artillery,
were precisely the same in Rio harbor and on the Bos-
phorus. After this, display of pomp, I returned to the quiet and
simplicity of our English church service, as more according
with the feelings which our sabbath excites. The edifice
stands on the Rua dos Barbonos, and is distinguished as
being the first ever erected in South America. Before it
was built, divine service was only performed occasionally
on board any king's or merchant's ship, in the bay, of which
the English on shore used to avail themselves. But in the
year 1810, by one of the articles of the treaty then made
by Lord Strangford, with the Brazilian government, it was
stipulated, that the British should be permitted to build a
church for divine service, provided it. was erected, not as a
public edifice, but as a private house, and did not use bells
to assemble the congregation. This latter stipulation was
unnecessary, as the residences of the English were so re
mote, that no bell could be heard, and so would have been
useless. When the article was about to be inserted in the
treaty, the pope's nuncio, Lourenco Calepi, archbishop of
Nisibis, was at Rio. He was a man of the easiest and
most insinuating manners, and seemed so little disposed to
take exception to such a thing, that he appeared rather
careless of more serious matters. Nevertheless, he made
the most strenuous opposition to the measure. He demand
ed an audience with the king, and represented in the strong
est manner, the encouragement such an innovation would
give to the growth of schism in the church. When he
could not succeed in inducing Dom John to retract his as
sent, he then proposed, that if the exercise of Protestantism
was thus publicly permitted, the Inquisition should also be
established along with it, to watch over the interests of the
16

182 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Catholic religion, and restrain the progress of that heresy
among the Brazilians, which this public edifice of the -new
faith could not fail to encourage. This tribunal had, for
the* last half century, fallen into disuse, even in Lisbon,
and it never had been introduced into Brazil, nor was it
likely the people of the country would submit to it; and
this compromise was also rejected.-
The bishop of Rio, on the contrary, was a strenuous ad
vocate for the measure. He is rtot only a tolerant and lib
eral man, but a man of excellent good sense and knowledge
ofthe world. He advocated the cause, in a characteristic
manner, with the prejudiced few who opposed it. "The
English," said he, " have really no religion ; but they are
a proud and obstinate people. If you oppose them, they
will persist, and make it an affair of infinite importance ;
but if you concede to their wishes, the chapel will be built,
and nobody will ever go near it." This argument had its
weight, and the Brazilians say he was right ; for the event
has verified tbe prediction. All opposition- was, therefore,
withdrawn, and the treaty was signed in a tolerant and lib
eral spirit, as creditable to the disposition ofthe king, as of
his American subjects.
In order to meet the expense of such an erection, a duty
of one-half per cent, was laid on all British merchandize
imported into Brazil, and by a very unequal distribution of
the produce, two-thirds were allocated for the consul-gene
ral, and one-third only for pious and charitable uses, in
which were included the chapel, chaplain, sick poor, and
all other similar expenditure. The rapid increase of British
commerce was such, that I am informed the percentage
yielded ten or twelve thousand pounds per annum, to the
consul-general. When a sufficient sum was raised, the
chapel was commenced. The place originally fixed on was
in the Largo da Lapa, nearly opposite the public gardens.
Here was a large square in front, and a space in the rear,
extending nearly to the aqueduct, capable of affording a
considerable area round the church, and space for a chap
lain's residence. This eligible site, however, was given
up for the present contracted, obscure, and inconvenient one.
The place chosen was the court-yard of a.former religious
edifice, belonging to a deceased "CathoUc bishop, Josd
Joaquin Justiniani, at the entrance of the Rua dos Bar-
bonos. The foundation-stone was laid on the 12th of Au
gust, the anniversary of the birth-day of the then Princa

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 183
Regent of England, and a bottle, containing some English
newspapers, with coins of the same date, as is usual, was
deposited with it. It was dedicated to St. George, the pat
ron of England, and St. John the Baptist, in compliment
to John VI. the worthy sovereign, who had permitted the
erection of the first reformed church in South America,
since the Dutch had a temporary possession of Pernam
buco. The original plan ofthe edifice had arched windows. It
was submitted to the king, who objected that such windows
would not resemble those of a private house. The present
plan, with a portico and pediment, was then given -in ; and
it was approved of, though much more deviating from the
original stipulation. The front is that of a small but elegant
public building, thrown back from the street to give it effect,
and separated from it by an ornamental iron railing and gates.
The interior consists of two aisles, one at each side, but
none in the middle. The pews have no doors, and they are
very properly open seats. They and the pulpit are made of
veniatica, a native wood, like mahogany, beautifully grained
and colored, and susceptible of a high polish. The body
ofthe chapel has a spacious and elegant appearance, and is
capable of containing from six to seven hundred persons.
When the edifice was finished, and ready for divine ser
vice, a day was appointed for opening and consecrating it.
The chaplain, Mr. Crane, who had for three years before
performed service for the English congregation in a pri
vate house, while the church was building, now wrote to
the bishop of London, to know in what manner he should
perform the ceremony of consecration ; but the bishop's
answer did not arrive till the ceremony was over. The di
rections sent, however, had been anticipated, and the
prayers prescribed used, with a particular one composed for
the occasion. A guard of police was ordered to attend, as
a matter of precaution against any bigoted or evil-disposed
persons who might be inclined to interrupt the service, or
disturb a congregation introducing anew religion, to which
their prejudices were supposed to be greatly hostile ; but no
disposition ofthe kind occurred. ¦ On the contrary, the com
mon people conducted themselves with great propriety abroad,
and the interior ofthe church was filled with a numerous as
semblage of very respectable Brazilians,^ who equalled the
Protestants, as well in numbers as in reverence for the
place, by a serious and devout demeanor,

184 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
A short time after, however, an assault was made on
the church, of a very disagreeable nature. While the
chaplain was officiating one Sunday morning, a shower 6f
stones was poured into the windows, which shattered all
the glass ; but, fortunately, the blinds interposed and pro
tected the congregation from any injury. An immediate
inquiry was made, and it was found, that the outrage
proceeded from the house of a Spaniard, who kept a venda
near the chapel.. His yard was close by one side, and
some drunken fellows, who frequented his shop, amused
themselves with this attack on the English church. A
strong representation was made to the proprietor, who was
threatened with the police, and the outrage was never re
peated. The permission ofthe treaty was recognized and confirm
ed by the constitutional charter at the revolution, which
contains the following passage : — " All other religions (be
sides the catholic) are permitted, either, in domestic wor
ship, or in particular edifices destined for the purpose,
without, however, having any exterior appearance of a
temple." * The repetition of this exception is merely a
matter of form, to comply with any prejudice which might
linger among the people ; and though it has not been at
tended to, the people seem to retain no prejudice on the
subject. I was concerned to find that this chapel was never entirely
finished ; and at present it exhibits marks not only of neg^
lect,.but decay. The portico-at the entrance was not lead
ed, and the rain having penetrated, has rotted the roof,
which is continually falling on the heads of the scanty
congregation who attend it ; the windows, which were
broken so long ago by the outrage I mentioned, have not
since been repaired ; the blinds inside are all stained and
soiled ; and instead of the neatness and propriety which
always distinguished the house of God in England, it had
an air of dirt and neglect, quite painful to contemplate ;
and the congregation, as if to confirm the prediction of the
bishop of Rio, seemed to take no interest in it when it was
built, notwithstanding their zeal to have it established. It
is capable of containing six or seven hundred persons, and;
* " Todas as ovttras reKgiSes serao* permittidas eom seu culto do
mestico, ou particular em casas para isao destinad'as, sem. forma algu»
ma exterior de templo."— Titulo \. v?r{, 5,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 18,5
there is that number ofthe reformed church at Rio to fill it,
yet I never counted more than thirty or forty. I have
often reflected, with great concern, on this indifference to
public worship among our factories abroad, and I refer you
to Spon and Wheeler for what they witnessed in the Levant
in their day. I have even thought it was one great imped
iment to the progress of the reformation in Catholic coun
tries. Instead of letting " our light so shine before men,"
on the sabbath, " that they seeing our good works," might
be- led to " glorify our Father in heaven " after the same
manner ; they only consider our separation from their church
as an abandonment of all worship, and point out our conduct
in proof of it.
There is nothing which more strongly marks the growing
feeling of toleration in the world, than this concession
among a people, formerly distinguished for their spirit of
persecution. It is creditable to the good sense and kindly
feelings of the Brazilian Portuguese, and the press of the '
country is continually employed in extending it. Among
the distinguished native writers, whose works have been
printed at Rio, is Jose da Silva Lisbon, Visconde Cayru.
He has published several books on various useful subjects,
and in one, the " Escola Brazileira," is a curious instance
of crude opinions where liberality and prejudice mingle
together like gold and dross, in a state of fusion, in the
same crucible ; and it is also important as containing the
opinions ofthe well-informed Brazilians onagreat national
question, before it was carried in England ; the worthy
author did not seem to know, that the Catholics even then
enjoyed the same political privileges in Ireland, which, the
Protestants do now in Brazil— the elective, but not the
representative franchise. He says, " But as the same
constitution admits of different sects, it is solely for the in
dulgence of strangers, in order that no restraint should be
laid on the conscience, in the genuine spirit of that tolera
tion which our Saviour has taught us. Happily this indul
gence has, by the providence of God, made astonishing
progress among nations, distinguished by the diffusion of
the light of the Gospel, which is extended not only to one
hemisphere, but to the other, spontaneously and prodi
giously by a Bible society, protected by the higher powers
of Christendom. Even in England, in the chamber of
commons, already a law has past to abrogate all intolerant
statutes which effect the Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman
16*

186 NOTICES OF BRAZIL".
religion ; but the law was not confirmed in the chamber of
peers, owing to the malign influence of  , whom
all the world has already seen, to the terror of the wicked,
to be called a little while since before the Judge of Eter
nity."** I pointed out this extraordinary passage to several
Brazilians ; to the first part,they cordially assented, to the
second they shook their heads and said nothing.^
On Sunday, November 2, I was engaged to dine with a
friend, and I ordered a sege, or cabriolet, to be in readiness
to convey me to Bota Fogo, about four miles from our
house. After a long delay, at length it came, drawn by a
mule and a horse. The machine had but two wheels, with
a calash to cover over the head, and was driven by a bollero,
who was distinguished by leather breeches, with long wide
military boots, coming over the knees, short jacket, and a
glazed hat. Thebolleros are generally mulattoes, and belong
to the genus irritable, being exceedingly choleric, a feeling
perhaps rendered habitual by the obstinacy and wayward-
of the animals they drive.. As it was now past six o'clock,
and I had a long way to go through a deep sandy road, I di
rected the man to hasten, and he set offat a reasonable pace,
till he arrived at the bridge of Catete, which presents a tri
fling ascent. Here the mule made a dead stand, and neither
the entreaties nor threats, nor the more convincing argu
ment of blows, could induce him to make any other move
ment, than shaking his head and ears. The bollero now
ran into an adjoining house, and returned with a pole as
large as a bed-post, which he applied to the head of the
mule with such force, that he instantly felled him to
the ground ; the horse followed in the harness, and the
shafts falling, I was thrown head foremost into the sand. —
Unwilling to witness such another scene, or encounter such
another fall, I gave up the attempt at reaching Bota Fogo,
and, with a useless monition to the bollero against cruelty
to animals, I left the group at the bottom of the bridge,
and walked back to the city.
It was the eve of All Souls, a festival which is observed
in Catholic countries with great solemnity, and I was glad
to avail myself of the opportunity of seeing how the Brazil
ians-conducted it. After looking into various chapels and
shrines, lighted up and decorated, in the principal streets, I
came to a passage which opened to the sea. The entrance
* Escola Brazileira, Vol. I. p. 46.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 187
to this was a triumphal arch, illuminated by various lamps,
hung round it, which led to an avenue formed by large
palm trees, transplanted here for the occasion, on the
branches of which lamps were also suspended. At one side
was a raised orchestra, where a band of music sat, and at
the other a very beautiful little chapel, lined with satin and
crimson velvet. In front was an altar of artificial flowers,
raised to the ceiling with silver crosses, and other orna
ments. A respectable man, seeing I was a stranger, took
me in courteously by the hand, and told me, with pride and
exultation, that it was the shrine of N. S. da Annunciac_ao.
At the extremity of the alley was a stage, lighted by
mutes holding torches. On this stage they were exhibiting
a dramatic representation. The characters were Moors
with masks, who held in custody two Christians. They were
very grotesque figures of an old man and woman, in antique
European costume. The woman was detained a prisoner,
and the old man attempted to gain her liberty, first by en
treaties and then by force. This latter was expressed by
a ballet, in which swords were drawn and flourished, and a
variety of evolutions practised, which excited much applause
among a numerous audience, who filled the avenues. The
plot, a man informed me, was founded on some legend con
nected with King Sebastiao, after whom the city of Rio was
named, and whose memory they still keep alive by many
allusions. This exhibition was perfectly gratuitous — no
money was demanded either entering or returning, and the
people around me seemed pleased. tp point out to me the
particulars. I left it still going on at eleven o'clock.
The next day was announced in the journals " Com-
memoracao dgs Defuntos," and the whole city were occu
pied in recalling the memory of their departed friends.
The commemoration principally takes place in the great
church of Francisco de Paula ; and I proceeded there be
tween nine and ten in the morning. This church, called
also Caritas, is distinguished all over Brazil, as well far the
miracles the image of its patron performs in healing the
living, as for its sanctity in preserving the bones of the
dead, whom S. Francisco could not save. I entered by a
long aisle at the side ofthe chapel, the walls of which were
covered with tablets and pictures, representing sick persons
in bed, and people suffering under various accidents, in all
which S. Francisco appears in the back ground, descend
ing from the sky, healing or rescuing the persons. They

188 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
were all labelled " Milagre que fez S. Francisco de Pau
la* One of these exhibited a stone extracted from a man,
the size and shape of which were painted on the board.
Beside these were waxen legs, arms, heads, breasts, and
other parts of the body, stained with blood and discolored
with sores, in a very natural though disgusting manner :
but, as anatomical representations of morbid limbs, they
were really excellent imitations. A large portrait of the
saint himself, depicted him as an old man with a long staff;
His only garment was a cloak, through which appeared
his naked breast, inscribed with the word " Caritas." At
tached to the building are long corridores, on each side of
which are apartments for the sick, who are brought here to
be healed by the saint's intercession.
From the examination of these votivoz tabellai, I entered
the chapel to visit the tombs. It was crowded with people
of all ranks dressed in their best clothes, and a continued
concourse was passing in and out. At the side altar a
priest was celebrating mass, and on bis turning round I
perceived he was a negro. He was a tall portly man, and
his black visage formed a strong contrast to his snow-white
vestments. The floor ofthe church was filled with women,
sitting with their feet drawn under them, on small carpets
of varied hues, the greater number of them covered with
black veils. This had quite the appearance of oriental
usage, and I was informed was adopted from the Moors,
who first introduced it into Spain and Portugal. Their at
tention seemed fixed on some internal object, and they
were all moving their lips in silent prayer, recommending
the souls of their departed friends to mercy.
Through the dense mass of women on the floor was a
narrow passage, along which a continual current of people
was flowing. I entered it, and passed with them into a
large garden surrounded with cloisters. Here an immense
number of cases and boxes, of different shapes and sizes,
were ranged against the walls and in the garden, some of
them as large as mausoleums, and some not larger than test-
chests. All had locks and keys, and were labelled in front
with different inscriptions. On one was"Aqiii jazem os
ossos de nosso irmao Joao Marguida dos Neves." On
another, "Aqui seccao os ossos." On another, " Orai por
* A miracle which St. Francisco De Paula wrought.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 189
nos irmaos.* These boxes literally contained the bones of
the persons indicated by th<3;n=>jiiption. The practice is,
to immerse the body of the dead in quicklime ; and when
the fl<=sh is consumed by ita causticity, the bones are col
lected, scraped, and cleaned, and deposited together in a
box, with a lock and key, which is then closed and the key
delivered to the family.. These cases have no resemblance
to coffins. They are of different shapes ; and with their
ornamented exterior, the smaller ones rather resemble a
lady's dressing-bdx. They are deposited in dry receptacles
made in the walls of the cloisters, or other parts of the
church ; and on this annual festival are brought out, and
the living friends come with their keys and inspect them.
Against the walls were raised shrines, on which some of
these mortuary boxes were laid. They were gaudily orna
mented with drapery of gold and silver tissue, worked on satin
and velvet, and made a gay and rich display, altogether
discordant with the solemnity of the occasion.
The whole exhibition was strongly contrasted with a simi
lar ceremony which I have witnessed among the Armeni
ans and Irish. These people, on the day of All Souls,
assemble at the tombs of their families in the open burying
ground, without parade or ornament, and by the help of a
strong imagination, seem actually absorbed in holding a
visionary communication with the. departed-- .This .simple
observance with them is affecting and comparatively ration
al ; but the indifference and gaudy display ofthe ceremony
here, was a mere exhibition of the dead, to form an idle
pageant for the living.
From the chapel of St. Francisco, I proceeded to visit
several others, and I will condense here for you the result
of observations which I made at various subsequent periods.
The edifice ofthe Candelaria stands in a street ofthe same
name. It is so called from an important service in the
Catholic religion, of consecrating candles for its service, on
a festival, still called in England Candlernas-day. This is
the. largest church in Brazil, but it is erected in a small
cross street, which is too narrow to permit a view of the
front of the building, when you are in it, and it cannot be
seen out of it. It is proposed, however, to throw down the
?"Here lie the bones of our brother 'V— " Here dry the bones " —
" Pray for our "jrpthers,"'

T90 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
intermediate hons*^ ana build a square, open to the Rua
Direita, of which this .chxrrch: will form one side. It pre
sents a noble facade of hewn granite, ornamented with
mouldings and entablatures, and flanked by two high towers.
They have rendered it mean, however, by whitewashing, as
they have the front of almost every other in Rio. It is not
yet finished, though it was commenced fifty years ago, and
was intended for the cathedral of the diocese. When I
visited it; a number of negroes, just imported, were under
going the rite of baptism, for which purpose it is the church
generally selected.
The church of the Rosario stands in a street of the
same name, and had been the cathedral, till the digfli'y was
transferred to the royal chapel. The body of the building
is a great cemetery. It was literally floored with corpses ;
and people have told me, it was impossible at one time to
walk up or down, without tripping over heads or toes stick
ing cut ofthe ground, they were so negligently and super
ficially laid in the earth. This very revolting and unwhole
some state of the church, however, is corrected, and it is
one of the many nuisances that have been removed since
the revolution. The floor is now flagged over, but the
bodies are still deposited beneath.
Among the striking peculiarities of Rio are the churches
Sin-d monafit-erj-es whi&k Ofowo the fculln^ inviting the jihssrh-
ger to ascend from the murky street below, to breathe the
purer arid freer air in which they are situated. The prin
cipal of these is the Convent of Sam Bento, or St. Benedict.
It is delightfully situated just over the sea, looking down on
the Uha das Cobras, and commanding a magnificent view
ofthe whole city and bay. It was one of the first religious
edifices erected in Rio ; and it appears, by the inscription
over the gate, to have been repaired in 1671, and has all
the marks of an early and rude structure. It is exceeding
ly strong and massive ; the lower part, with windows closed
by thick iron bars, resembles a gloomy prison ; but on as
cending a stone staircase, you arrive at a long corridor,
terminated at each end by a spacious hall or pavilion, which
commands three distinct and lovely views — one over the
city, another up the bay, and a third down to the mouth of
the harbor. Nothing can exceed the beauty of this pros
pect, or the cheerful scenes expanded before you, while the
ever moving picture of ships and boats, and the busy hum
of meifbelow in the city, give an additional interest to the

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 191
scenic representation of nature. The halls and corridor
are lined and ceiled with jacaranda wood, richly carved in
high relief, and susceptible of a bright polish ; and they
are hung with pictures, by native artists, detailing the
different events ofthe saint's life, whose relics are preserved
in the chapel, and are of great reputed sanctity.
One of the pavilions opens into the large library, where
there are collected ahout six thousand volumes, of a very
select and valuable character. It is open to the public
every day, from nine in the morning till late in the evening,
with the exception ofthe dinner hour, from one till two.
I was received with great urbanity by the good ecclesias
tics I met here, who readily procured for me the books I
required, and among the rest the Ethiopia Resgatada,
which I could find nowhere else, and I was cordially invit
ed to use the books as long as I remained in Rio.
The revenues of the convent are very large, consisting
of fezendas, or farms, in the country, but particularly in the
Ilha do Governador, the largest island in the bay, which al
most wholly belongs to it, A proposal, however, had been
made in the chamber of deputies, to alienate this with other.
conventual property, and it is supposed it will be carried at
some future session. In the mean time a regiment of sol-
die'rs occupy two wings ofthe edifice, which they have com
pletely converted into a barrack ; and the brotherhood, with
the exception ofthe principal and the librarian, have retired
to the Ilha.
It is said that Dom John, on his first arrival at Rio, pro
posed to take up his residence here, and convert it into a
palace, for which its lovely situation particularly recom
mended it ; but the ecclesiastics at the time preserved it for
their own use, by giving out that it had been struck with
lightning, and shaken by an earthquake, to which accidents
its elevated situation rendered it apparently very liable.
Even the hint of such a thing, was sufficient to deter the
timid monarch, and he remained in his palace below till he
was accommodated at S. Christovao,
At the opposite extremity ofthe town stands another ele
vated convent, on a hill looking down on the city, the larg
est and finest in Rio :• this is the convent of S. Antonio.
It is approached by a broad flagged way on a steep inclined
plain, which leads to an extensive platform, surrounded by
a parapet, on which I have often sat to command the fine
prospect around; but it is not equal to that ofS. Bento,

192 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
One side of the platform is formed by the fa§ade of the
building, which runs to .a considerable length. The inte
rior consists of two large chapels, with an extensive cloister
below. Round the latter is a variety of small chapels, ded
icated to different saints, and among them, one on the pa
tron, S. Antonio, whdse birth and death is represented in
statuary. In the chapter-house are deposited the remains
of General Forbes, who was of a distinguished Scotch fami
ly, of the Catholic persuasion, and was known in Europe
as the man who had the encounter with Wilkes, on the sub
ject of the North Briton. He accompanied the royal family
in their emigration to Brazil, where he- died in May, 1808.
In the passage round is a succession of vaults, covered over
with boards or flags, with apertures to insert an instrument,
to raise them up whenever it is necessary to deposit a body.
Beside the cloister is the refectory. The benches are
ranged along the wall, which is glazed with Dutch tiles
giving a remarkably fresh and cleanly look to the hall and
imparting a considerable sense of coolness. From hence
a broad staircase leads to the corridor above, which com
municates with the apartments ofthe brotherhood. On the
summit is a tiled yard, on one side of which is the convent
ual library, consisting of three thousand volumes, principal
ly the works of the early-fathers of the Greek and Latin
churches — -St. Chrysosto'm, St. Jerome, and others. It is
not so, valuable either in extent or selection as that of S.
Bento, and it is not a subject of regret that it is not open to
the public ; but I was given to understand I might have
access to it. Adjoining, the- convent is a large hospital.
The whole establishment is in the highest order and repair.
It is the finest and the most esteemed in Rio ; the chapels
the most frequented, and the shows and processions the
most magnificent ; yet it is supported only by public charity.-
The brothers are not allowed to hold any property, and
this is recognized by a curious document. The Francis
cans had originally the chapel on the sea-shore at S. Luzia •
but disliking that situation, and falling out with their neigh
bors the Jesuits, whose convent was beside them, they re
moved from it ; and in 1608, the cameragranted them their
present situation by a deed of gift, which specified, that the
Franciscans having chosen this situation, they were allowed
to occupy it ; but as they were incapable of holding any
property themselves, it was conferred on the pope and the
church of Rome. It was in this convent I visited the bish
op of Anamuria.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 193
On the hill opposite to that of S. Antonio, stands the con
vent of Santa Theresa. The Brazilians are, very judicious
ly, not partial to convents, particularly for females, whose
celibacy they consider as highly injurious to the growing
prosperity of a country whose greatest want is population.
There are therefore but two convents of nuns in Rio, one
of which is this of Santa Theresa, limited to twentyone
sisters, and it cannot admit more than that number. Its
situation exceeds in beauty even that of S. Bento ; and it is
impossible to conceive any better adapted for sublime or
serious contemplation. The edifice is not surrounded with
walls and paved courts, as those ofthe others ; but its white
facade rises from a green sward, on the summit of the hill,
encircled by a natural plantation of aromatic and flowering
shrubs, from whence it looks down on the rich and varied
scenery presented at the entrance of the harbor. As our
house was situated near the base of the hill, I climbed it,
morning and evening, and never without increasing pleasure.
Crowning another hill which projected into the sea, ap
parently just under Santa Theresa, is the pretty church of
N. S. da Gloria. It is an octagon edifice, with a portico
and steeple, and highly ornaments the beautiful eminence
on which it stands. Here it was that the empress paid her
homage to propitiate a favorable accoucehment : here she
devoted her first-born to her pratroness ; and here the em
peror is seen every Saturday, kneeling at the foot ofthe
altar. Opposite the Gloria, on a high promontory rising abrupt
ly from the middle ofthe bay, is the church of Boa Viagem.
This is distinguished for being as propitious to mariners as
the Gloria to mothers. They come here to make their vows
on going to sea. Their vows consist in consecrating their
equipage to the church, if they return safe. Here may be
seen sails, cables, anchors, and other tackle, suspended
round the walls, as the votivae tabellaB of those who have
-made a prosperous voyage, under the protection of this pa
tron.* As the good fathers could not use these things them
selves, they sold them to those that would ; and, as there
was a certain degree of sanctity annexed to them, and they
evinced a striking proof of supernatural interference in fa
vor of those who had used them, by their safe return, they
were in great request, and brought higher prices than or
dinary tackle. A circumstance, however, happened, some
years before, which considerably weakened the faith of the
17

194 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
people in such things. A boat, loaded with some property
of this kind, belonging to the convent, and in which it was
supposed its patron took a particular interest, was upset in
a squall, on her way to Rio, and every person on board
perished. This misfortune was at first attributed to some
misconduct of the clergy of the church, which offended its
patron ; but as no such thing was known or acknowledged,
the votaries began to suspect, if he could not protect his
own, he would not protect them ; their confidence in the
efficacy of vows at this place was greatly shaken, and it is
not so much frequented now as formerly. The practice,
however, is recommended by the high authority of Colum
bus, who, on his return from his first voyage to the new
world, went to the next shrine he found after his landing, to
make his votive offerings.
Besides "these churches and convents, there are others
distinguished in various ways. That of St. Domingo is
allocated to the blacks, who form a society for its support,1,
and its ministers are negroes. That of Santa Rita is called
the malefactor's chapel : here condemned criminals stop, on
their way to execution, and receive the last rites and con
solations of their religion ; they remain in front ofthe church
till the elevation ofthe host, and then pass on to their final
doom.

CHAP. XVI.

Nunnery of Ajuda. — Mode of Communication with People outside. — Attend the Pro
fession of a Nun. — Particulars ofthe affecting Solemnity. — Levity ofthe Brazilians
present. — Recolhimentos for misconducted Wives. — For Female Orphans. — Com
mutation of Tithes. — Very injurious to the present Clergy. — Episcopal Establish
ment. — Brazilians hostile to monastic Institutions — Proposition in the Chambers
for Marriage ofthe Clergy. — Benedictines ,, own many Houses in Rio, and are kind
. Landlords. — Supposed Hostility of the Minister of the Interior to the Clergy/ and
why. — Rather a Friend to the Character ofthe Church. — Irmandades. — Their great
Utility and extensive Charity. — Native Clergy, why not learned. — Admission of
Blacks to Holy Orders.— Extraordinary Contrast with our West-Indies.
The great convent of the Ajuda, receives an unlimited
number of nuns, though they are generally confined to twen-
tyeight, and is one of the largest edifices in Rio. It runs
the whole length of a street, and is so divested of ornament.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 195
that it looks like a huge barn or prison ; yet it is but half
built. It has one, front to the sea, and another to the street,
and contains two rows of dormitories. Under and against
the high wall, next the sea, is erected the police barracks,
and, by rather an odd coincidence, the sisterhood sleep on
one side of the wall, and a regiment of profligate soldiers
on the other. The chapel is immensely large, and very
sombre and gloomy, the greatest and the most unadorned
religious edifice in Rio. The end opposite the altar is form
ed by a screen of iron railings, with very thick bars, and
narrow apertures, extending from the floor to the ceiling, be
hind which the nuns assemble during divine service.
At the end of the chapel is a large quadrangle, entered
by a massive gateway, surrounded by three stories of grat
ed windows. Here female negro hawkers and pedlars come
with their goods, and expose them in the court-yard below.
The nuns, from their grated windows above, see what they
like, and, letting down a cord, the article is fastened to it ; it is
then drawn up and examined, and, if approved of, the price
is let down. Some that I saw in the act of buying and selling
in this way, were very merry, joking and laughing with the
blacks below, and did not seem at all indisposed to do the
same with my companion. In three ofthe lower windows,
on a level with the court-yard, are revolving cupboards, like
half-barrels, and at the back of each is a plate of tin, per
forated like the top of a nutmeg-grater. The nuns of this
convent are celebrated for making doces, or sweet confec
tionary, which people purchase. There is a bell which the
purchaser applies to, and a nun peeps through the perforat
ed tin ; she then lays the dish on a shelf of the revolving
cupboard, and turns it inside out ; the dish is taken, the
price laid in its place, and it is turned in. While we stood
there, the invisible lady-warder asked for a pinch of snuff;
the box was laid down in the same way, and turned in and
out. This convent is distinguished as the burying-place of the
royal family. The ashes of Dona Maria I., and those of
her sister Miriam, are deposited here; and here also repose
the remains ofthe good and amiable Leopoldina.
There are so few ofthe sisterhood in Rio, and their calm
and temperate lives, in a mild and salubrious climate, are
such causes of health, that they survive to a very advanced
age, and a vacancy rarely occurs for a new sister : profess
ing a nun, therefore, is a' rare occurrence here. An event,

196 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
however, of this kind now took place ; I was careful to be
present at it, and I went on the Sunday appointed, with a
friend. .
The street in which the convent is situated, was filled
with blacks and mulattos, who, as is usual in all religious
' festivals, were exploding fire-works before the door. The
large church was crowded to excess, but the middle ofthe
aisle was kept open by two files of soldiers, extending from
the grating to the chancel. Beside the grating, a tempo
rary gallery was erected for a choir of singers and musicians,
as they have no organ in the chapel, and into this we were
courteously admitted. The curtain which usually hangs in
side the grating, was withdrawn, and the interior was dis
played. It was a large apartment, corresponding with the
chapel, and here the sisterhood were seated, with their veils
thrown on one side, so that their faces were visible. Their
dress consisted of a long black garment, commencing with a
peak projecting below the eyes down the forehead, pinned
close to the ears, and falling to the feet : under it was
folded the white veil. The abbadessa, who sat in front, was
a full, flair, comely woman, with a star on her breast, and a
large golden cross hanging to a rosary.
In the grating was a small wicket, about eighteen inches
square. It was now open, and a cushion and some handker
chiefs of embroidered muslin were laid on the lower bars ;
and before it, on the outside, was alow throne, or stool, with
four large gilt balls at the corners, and a cushion between
them. When the usual mass of the day was ended, the
officiating priests retired from the altar, and the nuns from
their apartments, and then the peculiar ceremony com
menced. The young lady about to be professed was the daughter
of one ofthe rich proprietaries d'Engenho, or owners of a
sugar plantation, who are generally the most opulent peo
ple in the country.* Her name was Maria Luzia, aged
* She was also distinguished in other respects by her connexions.
Tier aunt was the celebrated Maria Bangu, who made a noise as the
richest heiress in Brazil, and had as many suitors as Miss Tilney
Long. She rejected them all, and formed an attachment for her own
feitor, or steward, with whom she lived unmarried till her death, and
then left him all her property. He became a great favorite of the
emperor, and was created Visconde de Gericino, from his estate which
joined Santa Cruz. His brother, Philisberto Caidos, was one of those
sent with the young queen, and visited England with her.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 197
twentytwo. She resolved to take the veil, entirely against
the wishes of her friends, who were anxious to establish her
respectably in life, in a rank to which her expectations en-'
titled her ; but she resisted the attractions, and voluntarily
renounced the world in the prime of youth, and possessed
of considerable beauty and fortune. This propensity in
Brazil is not at all uncommon. In the convent ofthe Ajuda,
were two sisters of the same family, already professed, and
two more as novices, immediately to take the veil.
This young person had been previously examined by the
bishop ; whether she had completed her twentyfifth year,
for then she would have been of a competent age to decide
for herself, without the intervention of friends ; whether it
was with her own free consent that she proposed to renounce
the world ; and whether she designed rigidly to observe her
vows, and preserve her chastity. Having answered all
these things in the affirmative, certain ofthe sisterhood, and
of her own relations, were appointed as her sponsors, to ac
company her during her profession. .
The novice professes 'in two ways ; either behind the
grating, or by advancing up the church to the altar. The
former mode is the rule of this convent. The arch-presbyter
appeared with the bishop, attended by other clergy, at the
altar ; and at the same time the nuns entered their apart
ment below the grating. The arch-presbyter then advancing
down the aisle to the grating, applied himself to the wicket,.
and said, " Prudent virgin, trim your lamp : behold your
Spouse approaches ; come forth and meet him." The
novice hearing the words of the arch-presbyter, lighted a
torch which she held in her hand, and, accompanied by two
nuns already professed, advanced to the wicket, while the
bishop in his robes at the same time approached from the
altar, with his mitre and crozier, and sat on the low throne
placed before it. The arch-presbyter then said : " Most
reverend father, our holy mother, the Church, demands that
you should bless this virgin, and espouse her to our Lord
Jesus Christ, the Son of God." The bishop demanded,
" Is she worthy ? " the arch-presbyter replied, " As far as
human frailty permits me to know, I believe, and certify,
that she is worthy." The bishop then turned to the con
gregation, and said with a loud voice, " God and our Saviuor
aiding, we have chosen this present virgin, to bless and
consecrate her as the spouse of Christ." The arch-presby
ter now chanted Veni — " Come," and the virgin advanced
17*

198 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
to him singing, " and now I follow with my whole heart: "
she then came forward between her sponsors, and knelt at
the aperture before the bishop.
She seemed very lovely ; with an unusually sweet, gen
tle, and pensive countenance. She did not look particu
larly or deeply affected ; but when she sung her responses,
there was something exceedingly mournful in the soft, trem
ulous, and timid tones of her voice. The bishop now ex
horted her to make a public profession of her vows before
the congregation, and said, " Will you persevere in your
.purpose of holy chastity ?" She blushed deeply, and, with
a downcast look, lowly, but firmly answered, " I will." He
again said, more distinctly, " Do you promise to preserve
it ?" and she replied more emphatically, "I do promise."
The bishop said, " Thanks be to God : " and she bent for
ward and reverently kissed his hand, while he asked her,
" Will you now be blessed and consecrated ? " She replied,
"Oh! I wish it."
The habiliments in which she was hereafter to be cloth
ed, were brought forward, and were sanctified by the as
persion of holy water : then followed several prayers to God,
that, "As he had blessed the garments of Aaron, with oint
ment which flowed from his head to his beard, so he would
now bless the garment of his servant, with the copious dew
of his benediction." When the garment was thus aspersed
and blessed, the girl retired with it ; and having laid aside
the dress in which she had appeared, she returned, arrayed
in her new attire, except her veil. A gold ring was next
provided, and consecrated with a prayer, that she who wore
it " might be fortified with celestial virtue, to preserve a
pure faith, and incorrupt fidelity to her spouse, Jesus
Christ." He last took the veil, and her female attendants
having uncovered her head, he threw it over her, so that it
fell on her shoulders and'bosom, and said, " Receive this
sacred veil, under the shadow of which you may learn to
despise the world, and submit yourself truly, and with all
humility of heart, to your Spouse : " to which she sung a
response, in a very sweet, soft, and touching voice : " He
.has placed this veil before my face, that I should see no
lover but himself."
The bishop now kindly took her hand, and held it while
the following hymn was chaunted by the choir with great
harmony:— " Beloved Spouse, come — the winter is pass
ed — the turtle sings, and the blooming vines are redolent
of summer."

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 199
A crown, a necklace, and other female ornaments, were
now taken by the bishop and separately blessed ; and the
girl bending forward, he placed them on her head and neck,
praying that she might be thought worthy " to be enrolled
into the society of the hundred and fortyfour thousand vir
gins, who preserved their chastity, and did not mix with
the. society of impure women. "
Last of all, he placed the ring on the middle finger of her
right hand, and solemnly said, " So I marry you to Jesus
Christ, who will henceforth be your protector. Receive
this ring, the pledge of your faith, that you may be called
the spouse of God." She fell on her knees, and sung, " I
am married to him whom angels serve, whose beauty the
sun and moon admire: " then rising, and showing with ex
ultation her right hand, she said, emphatically, as if to im
press it on the attention of the congregation, " My Lord
has wedded me with this ring, and decorated me with a
crown as his spouse. I here renounce and despise all
earthly ornaments for his sake, whom alone I see, whom
alone I love, in whom alone I trust, and to whom alone I give
all my affections. My heart hath uttered a good word : I
speak ofthe deed I have done for my King."
Having thus renounced all earthly attachments, and laid
aside all human objects of affection, she stood before the con
gregation dressed in her wedding robes, the garb of her .celes
tial Spouse. The bishop then pronounced a general benedic
tion, and retired up to the altar ; while the nun professed
was borne off between her friends, with tapers lighting, and
garlands waving. The curtain was then drawn, and the
ceremony ended. /
I thought this whole service exceedingly affecting and
beautiful ; and it left, a strong impression on my mind, not
withstanding the many circumstances attendant on it, which
weakened the character of its solemnity. Outside was a
crowd of blacks and mulattos, shouting, laughing, and
hallooing, during the whole service ; and discharging squibs
and crackers, which were distinctly seen and heard by the
congregation. Nor did the people inside regard it as a
thing of any interest ; but on this, as on other occasions of
ceremonial observances, the Brazilians seemed to have lost
all impression of sanctity. Those about us laughed and
joked on it, with an unbecoming levity ; and I believe my
companion and I, were the only persons in the gallery, who
seemed to feel any respect for the time or the place. One

20() NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
v
of them openly condemned the thing as a usage that must
be abolished. " I am in a country," said he, " where our
greatest want is people ; it is absurd, as it is unjust, to shut
up a number of females from the intercourse of social life,
who would make the best wives and mothers ; and so not
only counteract the great law of Providence, ' increase and
multiply,' but compel the people, in order to fulfil it, to co
habit with their nearest relations."
Besides the convent of the Ajuda and Theresa, there
are two Recolhementos, or retirements for females : one
where, husbands place their wives, of whose conduct they
have reason to be dissatisfied ; the other for female orphans
till they meet with suitable matches, or are placed out in
eligible situations ; and a certain number of them are por
tioned every year. On a particular day, the visitation of
S. Elizabeth, they are allowed to receive visits, when young
tradesmen and others in humble life attend, ahd select a
wife for themselves. They must, however, produce re
spectable attestations as to their moral character, and their
abilities to support them, and then they receive a portion of
five hundred milreis.
When Brazil was first colonized, the ecclesiastic establish
ments were supported, as in the mother country, by tithes ;
but from the scantiness of the population, and the small
quantity of produce raised in an infant colony, the tithes
were found entirely inadequate to support a church, the
number of whose ecclesiastics bore a large proportion to
the inhabitants. An agreement, therefore, was entered in
to between the court of Portugal and that of Rome, which
gave the whole ofthe tithe to government, on the condition
of their paying the clergy. Instead, therefore, of the laity
giving a tenth of the produce of the soil, to support the
church, they paid it in for the support "of the state, and go
vernment allowed the ecclesiastic, who was entitled to
receive it, a regular stipend of two hundred milreis or dol
lars, at that time equivalent coin. This at the time was an
excellent bargain for the church ; the stipend was a very
ample one, and the government lost considerably by the ex
change, while the parochial clergyman, who received be
sides his fees for baptisms, burials, marriages, Easter dues,
and daily masses, lived in considerable comfort, and even
opulence. But now the order of things is reversed. From
the increase of population and produce, the tithes amount
to an enormous sum, while the stationary stipend of two

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 201
hundred dollars is a comparative trifle, and insufficient to
procure the common comforts of life, so that the state ofthe
clergy in Brazil is, generally speaking, a state of poverty.
The episcopal establishment consists of one archbishop,
six bishops, and two prelates, who are bishops in partibus.
Nor are these dignitaries of the church more amply provi
ded for. The bishops, who are all suffragans of the arch
bishop of Bahia, the primate, are also paid by government
on the same economical plan ; and were it not for the fees,
arising from the ecclesiastical tribunals in their respective
dioceses, they would find it difficult to support, with decency,
the dignity of their station. Such of them as I had the
pleasure to know and visit, appeared to me to live with great
moderation and simplicity ; and, so far from abounding in
superfluities, did not seem to me to enjoy even what, in
England, would be considered necessaries to men of their
rank in life.
The regular clergy in Brazil are not numerous. They
are Benedictines, Carmelites, Franciscans, ancient and re
formed, with Capuchin missionaries. Of these orders the
richest are the Benedictines and the ancient Carmelites.
The others make vows of poverty, and neither do nor can
possess any property.
But the wealthy orders are just now in imminent danger ;
from the very reputation of their wealth, the present feeling
of the country is not in their favor, and they seem to be
held in the same estimation as they were in France at the
commencement ofthe revolution. It is therefore generally
spoken of, as a thing just and necessary, that their property
shouldbe applied to the necessities ofthe state. The cham
ber of deputies have already passed a vote to that effect,
and it is imagined, that many persons about the throne
are equally disposed to the measure, in the hope of annex
ing some ofthe confiscated lands to their own estates, as is
notoriously the case .in every reformation, particularly in
our own. The people of Brazil have always been hostile
to monastic institutions in the country, either male or female,
,and for the same reason — the impediment it throws in the
way of population ; and this feeling extends even to the
secular clergy. On the 24th of. October, 1827, Senhor
Fiego, a member of the ecclesiastical committee, and him
self a priest, I believe, moved in the chamber, " that it
would be proper to apply to the pope, to relieve the clergy
from the penalty annexed to marrying," and at the same

202 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
time to notify to his holiness " that the assembly could not
avoid repealing the law of celibacy." The motion did not
then pass, but it is expected to be brought on again with
success. In the mean time, the regular clergy, the .Bene-
dictines and Carmelites, have been prohibited from taking
novices, an interdict which is believed to be preparatory to
their total extinction.
It is supposed, however, that their loss, at least for a time,
will be very severely felt, not only by the poor, but by many
respectable families of decent appearance, but very scanty
income. The whole mendicity of Rio is supported at their
convents. A beggar is rarely or ever seen in the streets ;
and at first I supposed no such class of persons existed in
the country, till I saw the steps and platform of the convent
of S. Antonio crowded with the lame, the halt, and the blind,
and all receiving their daily portions of meat and soup.
With respect to persons of a better class, great numbers are
tenants to those convents, who with considerate humanity
take very low rents, and exact them with great indulgence
and forbearance. The Benedictines alone are proprietors
of seven hundred houses in Rio. They are, I am told, ex
ceedingly kind landlords to their tenants, who are generally
ofthe humble, but respectable class I have mentioned.
The minister of the interior, Clemente Pereira, is sup
posed to be most hostile to the regular orders, and avails
himself of every opportunity of attacking them. An epi
demic disorder broke out at Macacou, on the low grounds
at the head ofthe bay, and application was made for a cler
gyman to visit the sick. A Fra Jose promised to go, but
did not, and a Fra Luzio positively refused ; by which the
sick were cruelly neglected and disappointed. A complaint
was made to the minister, and his majesty directed, that the
superior should strictly enforce the statutes of their orders
against these refractory regulars; for that it would still more
increase the public dislike to cloisters, if seculars exposed
their lives to dangers, which clergymen refused to encoun
ter. Another instance occurred at the same time. The
Capuchins have no convent, but a small hospicio in the Rua
dos Barbonos, distinguished by a cross of Jerusalem on the
door. There was here but one brother, who is prefect of
the order, and he thought it right to stay and take care of
the hospicio. He was, however, instantly ordered off by
Clemente Pereira, to his aldea, that is, his Indian village
in the interior, which the Capuchin missionaries undertake.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 203
to superintend. ' An Italian ecclesiastic was charged at the
same time with neglect of duty. He was treated with very
little ceremony, but directed immediately to leave the coun
try. From these examples, however, it should appear, that
the minister is rather a friend to the character ofthe church,
than an enemy to its clergy.
Besides these regular societies, there are various irman
dades, or brotherhoods, which seem to be on the plan of our
benefit societies, but on amore extended scale. They take
the name of Carmelites, Franciscans, Minims, and are call
ed " Third Orders," though they consist entirely of the
laity, and are composed of trades-people, and such of a high
er class as may be disposed, from a spirit of devotion, to
become members. About fifteen dollars are paid at en
trance, and an annual contribution of one dollar to the gen
eral fund. For this, every member is entitled to support in
sickness or in poverty, and to a funeral free of expense, and
other advantages conferred by our societies. But besides
this, a considerable part of the expense of public worship is
borne by them. These irmandades, under one denomination
or another, build and repair churches, pay for masses for
the souls ofthe departed, found hospitals for the sick, bury
the dead, and indeed, I am told, it is quite inconceivable to
an Englishman, what immense sums of. money these lay-
brothers annually expend, in what they conceive to be pious
and charitable uses. The large edifice of S. Francisco de
Paula, with its magnificent church and fine hospital, was
built and is supported by their voluntary contributions ; and
their utility is so felt and acknowledged, that many people
at their death bequeath them their property for the same
uses, and in this way they also are proprietors of many
houses in Rio, and distinguished for their kindness and in
dulgence to their tenants.
The native clergy are not, generally speaking, learned
men, for they have not the means of being so. The pover
ty of the bishops, is an impediment to the establishment of
ecclesiastical seminaries, on a scale sufficiently extensive
or liberal to give the candidates the means or opportunities
of a learned education. The inducements to enter the
church also are so small, and its stipend so limited, that
men of opulent families or brilliant abilities always prefer
some more attractive or profitable avocation ; and none but
persons in the lowest ranks of life devote their children to
it : the resources which it affords in other countries, to the

204 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
younger members of respectable families, not being thought
of in this. The candidate, therefore, is a person whose pa
rents are unacquainted with liberal education, who has no
knowledge of, nor desire for it himself, and who, even if he
had, does not find the means of acquiring it, in the semi
nary to which he is sent.
To this cause perhaps may be attributed, in some mea
sure, the admission of negroes to holy orders, who officiate
in churches indiscriminately with whites. I have seen my
self three clergymen in the same church at the same time ;
one of whom was a white, another a mulatto, and the third a
black. The admission of the poor despised race, to the
highest functionstfhat a human being can perform, strongly
marks the consideration in which it is held in different places.
In the West Indies a clergyman has been severely censured
by his flock, for presumingjto administer the sacrament to a
poor negro at the same table with themselves.* In Brazil a
black is seen as the officiating minister, and whites receiving
it from his hands.
Notwithstanding the humble ranks from which the clergy
are raised, and the insufficient means of education afforded
them, they have already felt the effects of that influx of light
and knowledge, which an intercourse with strangers and
free institutions, has spread through the country. A trans
lation of " P.aley's Moral Philosophy " is now very gene
rally read by the Brazilian Ecclesiastics, and found in all
the libraries, and Blair's Sermons are commonly preached
in their churches, the florid style of which is accommodated
to their taste in pulpit oratory. Now assuredly the people
who would study the one, and address their congregations
in the other, must be far advanced beyond those legendary
fables, to which it has been supposed their erudition was
exclusively confined.
* In the island of Barbados, tlie white inhabitants were quite indignant,
that the clergyman, Mr. Hoste, should administer the sacrament to the blacks,
at the same table with them ; and a complaint was made to tlie bishop. It ap
peared, that a few of these poor creatures were admitted to. one end ofthe table,
as a matter rather of necessity than choice, before the whites at the other end
had entirely retired from tlie solemn service ; but that a sufSciently respectful
distance had been kept between them. The bishop, much to his credit, rebuked
their ill-timed vanityon such an occasion, by dismissing the complaint.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 205

CHAP. XVII.
Bishop of Rio. — Invited to dine at his Palace. — Hia Simplicity and Urbanity. —
Library. — Anecdote of Southey's History of Brazil. — Temperate and studious
Habits of the Bishop. — General Character of the Clergy. — Abridgement of the Num
ber of Holidays.— St. George and St. Patrick.— Great Patron, S. Sebastiao, Cele
bration of his Festival. — Fire-Works and wax Candles. — Enormous Expense. —
Brazilian Observance of Sunday. — Sometimes work, but never indulge in Intemper
ance. — Greatest Violation of Sabbath by American and English Sailors. — Sebasti-
anists. — Origin of Sect. — Prophetic Disciples. — Number and Character in Brazil. —
Introduced to one. —Strange Bargain of Sebastianist Shopkeeper. — Curious Docu
ment.
Among the many exceptions I have met with to the charge
of want of learning or information among the Brazilian
clergy is the excellent Jose Caetano da Silva-Coutinho,
Bishop of Rio, than whom a more learned, or, I believe, a
more amiable man does not exist. He is by birth a Portu
guese, and intended to have embarked with the royal family,
but could not obtain a passage in any ship of the crowded
squadron. He was watched by fhe French, but contrived
to elude their vigilance, and arrived at Rio in April, 1808.
He landed at night, and immediately proceeded to the pal
ace, where he was kindly and gladly received by the Prince
Regent, who highly esteemed him, and by the clergy of
Rio, who had been for three years without a bishop. In
June following, by an alvara ofthe prince, he was appoint
ed capellao mor, or chaplain-in-chief to the royal palace.
He is now about fifty, or a little more. He is well versed
in ancient and modern languages ; speaks French and En
glish, not fluently, but reads them both with facility, and is
well acquainted with the literature of both countries.
He is not only capellao mor, to the court ; but his talents
and integrity are so appreciated, that he was recently ap
pointed president ofthe senate in the present sessions. He
is a man of very liberal opinions, perfectly and sincerely tol
erant of every sect, while he is warmly attached to his
own. He was a strenuous advocate for building the Pro
testant church, and is fond ofthe society of English clergy
men, and pays particular attention to the British chaplain.
He is exceedingly charitable to the poor, even beyond his
limited means, and anxious to promote every projeet which
he thinks will benefit the country. He is a man of strict
18

$06 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
observance and blameless life himself, and exceedingly
temperate in his habits. He fasts all the year on one meal
a day. He is anxious to effect a reformation among such
of his clergy, as he thinks require it : but unfortunately for
the cause of morality and religion, the court party has been
for some years in open hostility with him ; and some clergy
men, whom he would have compelled to live more according
to their canonical rules, have been so protected, that he has
not been able to effect his purpose.
From the character I had heard of this worthy man, I
wished much to know him, and was soon gratified, for he is
exceedingly easy of access. He invited me to dine with
him at two o'clock, and I went with a friend. His palace
is on one of the commanding hills ofthe town, forming, like
the churches and convents, a very conspicuous object, and
presenting a magnificent prospect from the platform before
the door. The edifice is very spacious, abounding in stairs
and corridors, but in a state of neglect, like a great man
sion-house, too large to be kept in repair by the limited
means of the proprietor. We found him sitting in a very
bare apartment, with papers before him ; he was a low man,
with hair partly grey, and combed negligently over his
forehead. His dress was a very plain bluev cotton gown,
and he had nothing to distinguish his rank, but a diamond
cross suspended from a rosary.
When dinner was announced, he toot me by the hand,
and placed me in his own chair at the head of the table,
and with a courtesy that really embarrassed me, sat down on
a low chair beside me. His family consisted of six persons,
four of whom were ecclesiastics ; one a secretary and mem
ber of the chamber of deputies ; and one a promising young
Brazilian artist, whom he patronises for his merit, and sends
to the academy. There was no form or ceremony at table,
nor any restraint on the conversation of the young men,
except that instinctive deference all pay to the presence of
a venerable man. It happened to be Friday — our dinner was,
of course, fasting fare of various sorts, plainly dressed, but
plentiful and good ; first, Newfoundland salt, and Rio fresh
fish, of different kinds, all helped together on the same
plate ; then small fish stewed with herbs ; and the entertain
ment concluded with a copious dish of fried eggs. When
these were removed, a large pan of quince marmalade was
set down, which was cut into square blocks and sent round.
The bishop informed me that the quince was an imported

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 207
fruit ; it is now one of the most abundant in every part of
Brazil, where it attains to a prodigious size. During din
ner a black came round with wine, and frequently filled
our glasses, and every time we drank, we pledged each
other's health. In return for mine, I wished prosperity to
Brazil, and then apologized for taking what might be sup-
' posed a liberty. They all declared, they were exceedingly
obliged and complimented by the toast.
After sitting a short time at table, the bishop proposed
that we should retire to the library, and take our coffee
there. We all stood up, and after his example remained
some short time in silent prayer and thankfulness ; he then
led the way to the library, when he again placed me in his
own seat, covered with red morocco — a courtesy I found he
always used to strangers.
The library is a fine spacious apartment, containing
about four thousand volumes in different languages, ancient
and modern, with a large proportion of French and English.
Among the latter he showed me " Southey's History of
Brazil," which he said was a standard work, highly prized
as one of great research and impartial detail ; in the com
pilation of which, he knew the author had access to the
most authentic documents through his uncle, the respecta
ble chaplain at Lisbon. Indeed, in such repute was the
work held in Brazil, that he said a native author, I think
Pizarro, or Cazal, compiled his history in the bishop's li
brary, principally out of Southey's work. It was certainly
a high compliment to the estimation in which a foreigner's
work was held, when a native drew all his information from
it about his own country.
I was so pleased with the conversation of this urbane and
intelligent man, that I quite forgot I was infringing on his
habits, of which I had been previously apprised. Having
passed the morning in his various duties, and dined frugal
ly at two, he immediately after retires to his couch, where
he continues some hours ; then rises and studies al) night,
till the morning calls him again to his episcopal and other
duties. I was sorry to find, I had intruded two or three
hours upon his natural rest.
The bishop, though a decided constitutionalist, has never
exceeded the bounds of moderation, or countenanced the
wild and anarchical projects of those, who have at different
times endeavored to disturb the repose of Brazil. He is
therefore disliked by the violent, and not in favor with the

.208 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
court ; and he has at times been attacked by the scribes of
both parties. He still, however, holds on the even tenor
of his way, and as he is known to be a disinterested man,
sincerely attached to the good of his country, he is respect
ed by all, and the weight of his moral character has con
siderable influence. After a long estrangement from court,
he was sent for, and again treated with an almost superflui
ty of respect and distinction. The rumor of a certain
marriage was, at that time, circulating at Rio, and it was
added that he, as capellao mor, or first chaplain, was called
on to perform it. Happily, the rumor was unfounded ;
but while it continued, I am told it made the good man ex
ceedingly unhappy.
The bishopric of Rio, over which he presides, contains
four provinces : Rio de Janeiro, Santo Espiritu, S*. Cathe-
rina, and Rio Grande do Sui. The population ofthe whole
amounts to eight hundred thousand persons, including about
one thousand clergymen. Of these, very few are regular,
- as there are but ten convents in the diocese, and one of
them contains but a single brother. Many of the clergy
are old, and are every day leaving vacancies by deaths.;
yet by a recent law, which seems dictated by a very unchris
tian spirit, no young canditate can take orders, without a
license from government ; and, as this is not readily granted,
many villages of the interior are already without a pastor.
From what you have heard of the immoral lives of the
clergy in Brazil, you will say that this is no great loss to
the people ; but really I cannot find that they deserve the
character imputed to them. From what I have seen my
self and heard from others, they are, generally speaking,
temperate in their diet ; observant of the rules of their
church; assiduous in attending the sick, and. charitable as
far as their limited means permit them. There is one seri
ous charge, however,^ of which I cannot acquit them ; and
that is, the too frequent violation of the vows, of celibacy.
Their attachments, however, are constant, and want only
legal sanction to render them even laudable ; for they conv
sider their connexion as binding, as if it had taken place;
Many of them are excellent fazendeiros, or farmers, and
leave behind them a family in the midst of the wilderness,
to extend the improvements they have commenced ;' and
this is deemed in the country so important a he.nefit, that
the thing is not regarded with the same degree of scandal
as it ought, or as it is in other places. The Brazilians are

NOTICES -OF BRAZIL. 209
all anxious to have the rule of celibacy, which they say is a
mere matter of regulation, and not of doctrine, immediately
repealed, and the discipline of their church adapted to the
state ofthe country.
In this view, also, it is probable that the number of holy-
days will also be diminished, in imitation of what has taken
place in Peru. The Archbishop of Lima has retained only
twelve, asserting on the promulgation of the edict, that
every *day in the year ought to be kept a holyday, as to
avoiding wicked deeds and^practising virtue. This regula
tion, and the sentiment accompanying it, I have heard great
ly applauded in Brazil.
Among the saints whose holydays are prescribed in the
Brazilian Calendar are St. Patrick and St. George. The
first, as S. Patricio Ab. de Irlanda, on the 17th of March,
as in Ireland ; so that Dr. Ledwich's proof of the non-exist
ence of this saint, has not convinced the Brazilians. The
other is celebrated on the 23d of April ': he has also a church
dedicated to him in the Travessa dos Passos. He is held
in such respect, that his image on horseback is the only one
permitted, in the public procession of Corpus Christi day.
But the day of S. Sebastiao, the great patron of Rio, is
that particularly held in the highest respect. Before the
foundation of this city, he was the saint under whose banners
they fought with the Indians, and expelled the heretic
French ; and it was after him their city was called, though
the name is now lost in that of Rio. His day is celebrated
with great pomp on the 20th of January. It had been the
custom to illuminate the city, for three nights in succession
after his festival, and for the senate of the camera to carry
his image, crowned with a diadem of precious stones, after
the direction of the psalm* which they applied to him. -This
practice had fallen into disuse ; but a sudden epidemic, like
a plague, at Rio, greatly alarmed the people, who could
assign no cause for the visitation, but the discontinuance of
the procession of their patron ; it was therefore revived with
additional splendor, and ordered to be regularly observed.
Notice had arrived at Rio by the brig Guerra Voador, that
the royal family was embarked, and might be expected in
Brazil about the 20th of January. This coincidence was
hailed as a good omen, and the camera, in this expectation,
ordered the ceremony to be got up with, unusual brilliancy ;
* " Posuisti in capite ejus coronam de lapide precioso." Ps. xxi. 3.
\P

210 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
but D. John not arriving during the festival, they were filled
with melancholy forebodings. In 1809, among the first acts
of the king, on bis coming to Rio, was the observance of
this festival with great pomp on its first anniversary, and it
has so continued ever since .
The eve of a saint's festival is always announced at twelve
o'clock the day before, by a discharge of three sky-rockets,
in front ofthe church. These rockets are filled with crack
ers, which explode high in the air, mid then descend in show
ers of white smoke, on the roof of the building. Besides this,
every church h.as a novena, or festival of nine days, during
which there is a constant discharge of rockets and other
fire-works ; so that the whole year is an. uninterrupted suc
cession of those explosions, in some part of the town. I
rarely went out into any street, or at any hour in the day
or evening, that I did not hear some report crackling over
my head, and on looking up saw expulsions of white smoke,
like small dense clouds, floating in the air while it' was light,
and when it was dark, showers of brilliant stars descending
from the atmosphere.
Another circumstance which marks the saint's festival, is
the vast quantity of candles lighted before the shrine, mixed
with artificial flowers and other decorations. This particu
lar mode of ornamenting their church,, is one on which the
greatest care and attention is bestowed, and sometimes with.
fine effect. An inclined plane of lighted tapers, commences
at the floor and ascends to the roof, forming sloping walls of
light, besides, tiiose that are suspended from the ceiling;
so that on entering the church, you find yourself encircled
in a, sheet of blaze. These tapers are all of wax, generally
imported from the coast of Africa expressly for this use.
As this constant display of fire-works and wax candles,.
must add considerably to the expense of public worship, and
abstract large sums from really useful objects, I wished to
ascertain what it amounted to in the year, by finding out the
quantity of wax and powder annually consumed. , I could get.
no data, however, to- enable me to form a correct opinion ;
but a friend undertook to make a calculation, from the con
sumption of single churches. In that of Antonio we count
ed on one night, eight hundred and thirty large wax tapers,
and in that of the Terceira on the same night seven hundred
and sixty, and some of these as large as flambeaux. Wax
cost at the time five hundred and sixty reys per pound, and we
conjectured that in the fortytwo chapels, convents, igrejas,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 211
and other religious houses in Rio, there was annually expend
ed one hundred contos of reis, or about fifteen thousand
pounds sterling, in wax and gunpowder, as essential requi
sites to the worship of God. I trust the worthy irmandades,
who supply a considerable part of the expenses, will at
length see, that it might be more profitably and rationally em
ployed, and will apply it to promote some ofthe benevolent
and useful plans, for which the public are really so much
indebted to them.
The observance of Sunday, however, dedicated only to
God, does not require, in their estimation, any of that dis
play, which marks their devotion for inferior beings. The
sabbath, therefore, is a day of rational piety, and it is observ
ed by some Brazilian families with great propriety and de
corum. I have never seen a more pleasing or edifying sight,
than one of these families going to church on Sunday morn
ing : first the father and mother, dressed with that attention
which respect for the day dictated ; then their children of
different ages, attired with equal care, having each their
prayer-book or breviary in their hand ; last followed the
domestic slaves, male and female, dressed with similar neat
ness, particularly the female negroes. I have sometimes
counted groups of twelve or fourteen persons of this de
scription, proceeding to tbeir parish churches, and I believe.
there is no Brazilian family, which does not think worship
on that day indispensably requisite, either public or domes
tic. I had more than once occasion to call at their houses,
about nine o'clock on Sunday morning, and I always found
them engaged in private devotion ; this was the case twice
at the residence ofthe minster ofthe interior. He and all
his family, and several ofthe neighbors, formed a large and
serious congregation ; and it appeared to me that the im
putation of his indifference to religion, was very unfounded.
It is true, that after having attended divine service in the
morning, many shops are opened, and artisans are frequently
seen following their ordinary trade ; and this to one ac
customed to our rigid restrictions on the sabbath, is really a
painful sight, as breaking down the partition, which should
separate this "prescribed period of rest from ordinary days ;
but then you are ndt shocked by that awful display of drunk
enness and blasphemy, which our sabbaths present ; — you
do not see squalid masses of men and women, besetting
gin-shops, and resting from their ordinary labors, only to
indulge in the excesses of intoxication. The Brazilians.

212 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
consider that the sabbath commences on Saturday evening
after sunset, and terminates at the same time the following
day, founding their opinion on the expression that " the
evening and the morning were the first day ; " and this they
allege as a justification, for opening the opera after sun-set
on Sunday evening. We very properly close our theatres,
but we open our taverns and what are miscalled tea-gardens,
where about one hundred thousand persons in London and
the vicinity, commit more riot and excess on the sabbath-
day, than are found in the whole extent of Brazil in a year.
I mention this to you to remind you, that all our own usa
ges are not the perfection of human wisdom, as we are apt
to consider them ; nor ought we to despise, as we do, those
who deviate from them. The greatest violations of the
Lord's-day which I have seen at Rio, were committed at
the Palace-square, where the crews land from ships in the
bay. Here I witnessed one Sunday evening a desperate
riot of drunken blasphemers ; but I am sorry to inform you,
they all swore in English, and were subjects either of the
United States or the United Kingdom.
It appears to me that the Brazilians are losing much of
their, respect for saints' days and ceremonial processions,
but that they still retain a deep impression of rational piety ;
and while they are attached to the essential parts fof their
own doctrines and discipline, are almost entirely free from
bigotry and intolerance towards those who differ from them.
I have heard some ofthe clergy complain, that infidel opin
ions were making a rapid progress among them, and so
perhaps they are among a very small class of anarchists,
such as are to be found in all revolutionary times ; but as
far as I have seen, the great body ofthe people are zealous
ly attached to their religion, and are every day beginning to
entertain more rational and enlightened views on the subject.
There is one sect, however, that still lingers among them
of very extraordinary character, that of the Sebastianists,
so called from the circumstance which gave rise to their
opinions. Dom Sebastiao, King of Portugal, was educated
by the Jesuits, who, it is generally supposed, were in the
pay and interest ofthe King of Spain. At their instigation
he undertook an expedition into Africa in the year 1577,
and in August of the same year, all his army, which con
sisted of a mixture of Portuguese, Germans, and Italians,
was totally defeated at the battle of Alcazar, and he him
self disappeared, and his body was immediately buried or

NOTISES OF BRAZIL. 213
burned. Few ofthe Portuguese escaped, but none of the
survivors could affirm, that they saw the king perish in the
battle ; on the contrary, there were witnesses who deposed,
that they saw him afterwards on the road that led to the
river. This gave rise to a notion that the king had not
perished, but that he had lost his way in Africa ; the word
used was se perdera, which is an ambiguous phrase, and
means both one and the other.
The consequence of this battle was very serious for Por
tugal. The Spaniards availed themselves of their advan-
tage'over their rivals, like the Spartans, and reduced the
nation to a state of dependence on them. They seized on
the country, and from 1580 to 1640, ruled it with a rod of
iron. The imposition of their government, was like that of
the thirty tyrants, and the Portuguese, like the Athenians,
denominate it a kind of slavery, and call it the sixty years of
captivity. Many persons were incited to be the instruments, of shak
ing off this intolerable yoke, and many Dom Sebastiaos,
availing themselves of the uncertainty and ambiguity of the
fate ofthe king, started up and personated him. The most
remarkable was a Dom Sebastiao of Genoa, who told so
many minute and secret circumstances of the King Sebas
tiao, that the credulous did not doubt he was the real
man, and the better informed were convinced, that he must
have had some personal communication with him. The
Spaniards demanded him, and he was basely delivered up
to them : they condemned him to the galleys, were he end
ed his days.
Dreams, prophecies, comets, portentous signs in the heav
ens, and all manner of preternatual things, were now seen
and heard in Portugal ; and they were circulated by the
authority of the clergy, who gave them countenance and
support. Among the predictions of an early date, and still extant,
are certain Pythian oracles, delivered in verse by a shoema
ker, denominated Francisco Bandarra. These^declare that
Dom Sebastiao was taken by God from his enemies, and con
cealed in a desert island under the care of a holy hermit ; that
he is still" alive and well, and would appear on a cloudy morn
ing, and resume the usurped throne of his ancestors.
Others in high repute, though of muchmore recent origin,
were delivered by a certain Pretinho de Japao, or the little
Negro of Japan.

214 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
But there was a Madre Leonadro, a nun of the convent
of Monchique, in Oporto, who had sundry visions and
dreams on the subject, which she revealed to her father
confessor, and he has published them to the world, with all
the stamp of authenticity which he could give them.
Every person who has rendered any essential service to
Portugal, has been at times recognized as the expected
Dom Sebastiao, in whom the prophecies have been accom
plished, and who has appeared in visions and dreams.
Many believe that Dom .John the fourth, who expelled the
Philips of Spain from the throne of Portugal, was the one
waited for. The Marquis of Pombal, who was called Se
bastiao Joao de Caravalho, also obtained credit with many,
as being actually the person whose name he bore ; and at
the present day the son ofthe Infanta Dona Maria Theresa,
eldest daughter of Dom John VI. is, by a certain party in
Portugal, now given out as the real Simon Pure.
But besides those who avail themelves of popular preju
dices to promote their objects, there is actually a consider
able number of persons, both in Portugal and Brazil, who
simply and seriously believe, at this day, that King-Sebas-
tiao, who disappeared in Africa, is not dead, but will again
reappear in his proper person ; the Portuguese say at Lis
bon, and the Brazilians at Rio de Janeiro, which is a favor
ed city, and originally and properly called after his name.
It is generally supposed that the number in Portugal exceeds
1 ,000 persons, and in Brazil about twice as many more.
They have no particular place of meeting, and form no dis
tinct congregation with any peculiar doctrine ^except this.
Their common article of faith is, that Sebastiao will certainly
appear, and that the event will happen in their own life
time ; and they expect him with as much zeal and simplicity,
as the modern Jews expect the Messiah.*
In the Minas Geraes they are most numerous, where
they resemble the Quakers or Moravians in England, and
are distinguished for their industry, frugality, benevolence,
and simplicity. In Rio they are also numerous, where I
have seen and conversed with many individuals.
I was introduced to one of them at the convent of S. An
tonio ; he was a man about sixty, rather lusty, with a soft
flabby face. He talked a great deal on general subjects ;
* The best account of this sect is to be found in a book now very
rare, entitled, " Portugal Kegenerado," which details many of tjieir
extravagant and wild opinions.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 215
but he was led, at my request, to the subject of King Sebas
tiao, when, as if some chord was struck with which all his
sympathies vibrated, he at once burst out into a rhapsody,
uttering series of prophecies with the greatest volubility and
perseverance. At every commotion which had taken place
during the revolutionary transit ofthe country, he was firm
ly persuaded that it indicated the approach ofthe lost king.
Another whom I saw, keeps a shop in the Rua Direjta,
and sells iron-ware ; and he actually disposed of many ar
ticles in the line of his business, to pay him an advanced
price" when Dom Sebastiao appeared, and he has engaged
not to demand payment till that period.
But people enter into regular and legal deeds and bonds
on this subject, before proper authorities, and I have read
an obligation of this kind which was duly attested before a
tabellion, or notary, and several witnesses. It is as follows:
" The 6th of May, 1 823, in this very loyal and heroic city
of Rio de Janeiro, Colonel Joaquim de Sousa Menellas,
commander of the order of Christ, whom I know for such,
presented himself at my office, and said, in the presence of
the undersigned witnesses, that on the 7th of October last
past, of his own full and entire will, he had promised to Joze
Morao Tello, to pay him the sum of ten contos of reis, if,
in the space often years, to count from this day, Dom Se
bastiao, king of Portugal should appear, and that he would
fulfil the obligation as soon as it could be proved, that he
had reappeared. And the said colonel has declared, more
over, that some days after this promise, he had of his own
free will increased the sum by two contos more of reis, pro
posing to fulfil the obligation by this present act, and bind
ing his person and his present and future goods to the obli
gation, and with perfect knowledge, of his own free will,
that the obligation do subsist and have its full effect, that
none of his heirs can annul it, provided he himself die in the
interval. This he has signed, as I affirm on my faith, and
he has signed it before the undersigned witnesses.
"Jose Perez Garcia, Notary."
I inquired after the contracting parties, and my informant
said he believed one of them was dead, and the other still
living. He holds the obligation, firmly persuaded he should
receive the twelve contos of reis before his death.

216 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

CHAP. XVIII.
Establishments for Education at Rio, — Military Academy. — Officers ofthe Army and
Navy taken from the humble Ranks in Life. — School of Medicine.— Meet a Euro
pean Friend at the Hosp'tal of the Miserieordia. — Immense Establishment, sup
ported by voluntary Contributions of the Irmandades. — Singular Usage, confined
to this Hospital — Universal Admission — Lunatics — Cemetery, and Mode of In
terment.— Number of Patients and Complaints. — Medical, Education. — No Preju
dice against Dissection — Not often practised, and why. — Physicians no fixed Fees.
— State of Health at Rio, sometimes disturbed by Marsh Fevers.— Alarrn of People,'
and Clergy refuse to attend. — Ascertained to be common Fever. — Small-Pox very
fatal.— Sciatica, Bobas, communicated by singular Contagion. — Bichu. — Doubtful
Cause.— Prickly Heat never leaves some till they.recross the Equator. — Loclt-jaw
and Worms in the Head. — Poison by human Hair. — Lime and Dirt — Elephantiasis.
— Various Symptoms. — Frightful Effects. — Enormous Tumors. — Unnatural Appear
ance of a Negro at the Miserieordia. — Remedies peculiar to the Brazilians  Negro
Champooing. — Bolsa das Cobras. — Cupping with Cows' Horns. — Extraction of
Bichu — Black Cock. — Evil Eye and extraordinary Amulet. — Number of medical
Practitioners.
The great seminary for ecclesiastical preparation was at ¦
Mariana in the Minas Geraes ; but recently two universi
ties have been founded for the education ofthe laity, one at
St. Paul's and the other at Pernambuco., They as yet con
fer degrees only in law, but it is supposed their powers and
system of education will be enlarged. Besides these, eve
ry town has its primary schools, and generally one Latin
professor at least. At Rio de Janeiro the following provir
sion is made for education :
One Military Academy, where the student attends regu
lar courses of lectures on mathematics, fortification, &c. for
seven years.
One Naval Academy, from which the student embarks at
the end of three years.
One Surgical and Medical Academy, where students
graduate at the end of five years.
One Academy of the Fine Arts, where painting, sculp
ture, and architecture are taught.
Two Ecclesiastical Seminaries, where Latin, Greek,
English, French, rhetoric, philosophy, and divinity are
taught. To these are annexed, one professorship of Botany, one
of Chemistry, one of Mineralogy, one of Physics, one of
Philosophy, one of Rhetoric, one of English, one of French,
one of Greek, and several of Latin.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 217
For the stipend of these professors 11,000,000 reis are
annually granted.
Besides these there are two general schools on Lancas
ter's principle of mutual instruction, and a primary school
for reading, writing, and arithmetic in almost every street in
tbe town. The salary of the professor of a primary school
is generally about three hundred dollars ; the other profes
sors receive about five hundred. All students are indis
criminately admitted on proper application, nor is any dis
tinction allowed to be made as to rank or color ; the son of
the poorest artisan, or duskiest mulatto, or free negro, is
equally entitled to attend," and receives a gratuitous educa
tion from the different professors in the several classes.
I have visited most of these institutions, and I send you
the result of my observation. In the military and naval
academies, the students, if they pass their first examination
ahd wish to join either service, become aspirantes, and be
gin to receive a monthly pay, and are then promoted in ro
tation. They undergo an annual examination, and if they
do not answer sufficiently well, they may repeat the same
studies for another year ; but if then they be found deficient,
they are dismissed as incapable. In the army they may at
tain to a certain rank afterwards, but in the navy no student
is admitted, who has not fulfilled his term of years and an
swered his examinations.
This facility of education, and general admission into these
seminaries, have filled the army and navy, as well as the
church, with men from the humblest stations in life ; nor is
any idea of rank or family connected with an elevated sta
tion in either service, nor any other respectability, than that
which the personal conduct of the officer may give it.
There is a natural pride among the lower orders, to see
their sons decorated with military distinctions, and they pre
fer this pursuit, while a similar pride withholds persons of
distinction from placing their sons in a service, where they
must associate with people of a grade in society so infe
rior to themselves. Hence I am informed that the greater
number of officers in both services, are sons of mechanics ;
and hence it is supposed that the political sentiments ofthe
army are in accordance with that of the class of people
from whom they are taken. I had not much opportunity of
mixing with them, but those 1 did meet were urbane and
civil, and, did not seem at all deficient in the qualifications
of gentlemen and officers ; and on parade, where I fre-
19

218 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
quently saw them, their dress and deportment were not in
ferior to those in any other service.
The great school of medicine is the hospital of the Miseri
eordia. One ofthe medical attendants is O. D. Mireilles, a
mulatto, and one of those students, sent by the emperor to
Europe for his medical education. While at Paris he was
introduced to me and some of my family, and we had an
opportunity of showing him some little attentions. This
he did not forget ; and when I met him afterwards in Bra
zil, he was anxious to return it fourfold. He was an amia
ble, good-natured, and intelligent young man, and I am in
debted to him for much kindness and information. To Dr.
Coates also, the physician ofthe British embassy and res
ident at Rio, I am much obliged for some communications
on the state of medicine and diseases in the country.
The hospital ofthe Miserieordia, the great school where
students see practice, is an immense edifice situated near
the Calabouco, on the spot where the first houses were built,
after the removal of the town within the harbor. Here
also was the first hospital erected, and it dates its founda
tion so early as the year 1582. By the active benevolence
of the irmandade of the order of Miserieordia, the accom
modations, of the sick we're extended as the town enlarged,
and they are still increasing in proportion to the increasing
population, above one hundred thousand crusados having
been lately expended on this most useful charity. It is
entirely supported by voluntary subscription. There is no
statute of Mortmain to restrain the devout Brazilian ; and
at his death he leaves almost always some of his prop
erty, either in houses or lands, to pious or charitable uses.
The former are generally marked by the signature ofthe
order of the irmandade to which they are left, and amongst
them is the name of this. I have been surprised in walking
through the streets of Rio, to see the numbers of houses
which had the word " Miserieordia " written on them, and
would have inferred tbat a considerable part ofthe town had
been left to support this excellent charity. Among the other
sources of revenue is one peculiar, I believe, to Rio. The
people, as I noticed before, are vain of their funerals, and
go to a considerable expense in decorating their coffins al
together beyond their means. To gratify this desire, and
at the same time to limit the expense, the Miserieordia keeps
and lets out splendid coffins for hire. The body is carried
in one of them to the grave, where it is deposited naked or

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 219
sewed up in a cloth, and the coffin is sent back and hired
to another corpse. This practice creates a considerable
revenue, and the irmandade of the Miserieordia are alone
allowed to employ it.
With my friend D. Mireilles, I frequently visited this
hospital, where he passed every morning in assiduous at
tendance. The edifice is a vast irregular building, formed
of additions made at different periods ; the nucleus of which,
is a quadrangle with galleries round it, which lead to the
different wards. On one side of the hall of entrance is the
board room where the directors sit ; on the other a very
large pharmacy or apothecary's shop, where the medicines
prescribed for the patients are compounded. It is the gen
eral hospital for all ranks, slaves as well as free ; and for
all sexes and diseases, surgical as well as medical ; sepa
rate wards being appropriated for each class of patients.
Every one presenting himself at the gate is indiscriminately
admitted, and placed in the department of his disease, but
you see no separation of persons ; black and white, slave
and free, occupy contiguous beds in the same wards ; and
distemper here, like death elsewhere, levels all distinction.
From the main building runs a long corridor, having
cells at each side for lunatic patients, with whom severity
io novor, and ovoD coercion Seldom, resorted to. The
natural disposition of the Brazilians is averse to both ; but
besides that, they see here, as well as elsewhere, that such
treatment only exasperates the cause of the disease. In
deed the patients seemed very harmless ; their malady
principally had a religious tendency ; and one man always
followed me, and whenever I turned round, I saw him
with uplifted hands behind my back, praying for the sal
vation of my soul ; his own he thought already secure.
At the extremity ofthe corridor is a great cemetery, which *
is the general receptacle of the poor, die where they may.
The mode of burial is very summary : a large deep trench
is dug, in which the bodies are laid. Before they are de
posited here, they are placed on a platform, in a small
house in the middle ofthe cemetery, till several are collect
ed together, when a funeral service is said for them all,
and they are deposited in the trench without coffins ; some
times naked, but more usually sewed up in coarse canvass, or
the fragment of a mat, and their bodies are laid across,
generally the head of one to the feet ofthe other. I never
visited this place when four or five bodies were not lying for

220 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
interment ; and I always met others carried in, while I
went out. Besides the cemetery is a dissecting room,
where every student may freely take whatever body he
pleases to anatomize, without any apprehension from preju
dice or prosecution.
When I went over the wards, there were 670 patients
confined with various complaints. The greater number
were febrile cases, but not of a dangerous, or a contagious
kind, which they suppose do not exist in the country ,- and
I was sorry to find a great many syphilitic. These, with
hydrocele, eruptions of various characters, and different
degrees of tumors resembling elephantiasis, constituted the
great mass of the diseases of the hospital. The doctor
went round, accompanied by a number of students. He
stopped at every bed ; a reporter took down the symptoms,
on which he made clinical remarks, which the students
entered in their books, . and he passed on. Everything
was conducted with the greatest regularity. The place
was whitewashed, clean, and sweet, though the wards were
so crowded, that it was necessary to have three ranges of
beds, with hardly a passage between them. It is pro
posed to build several new additions, to enlarge it to the
rapid increase of population ; and it will then be one of
the most extensive, as welt as one Of the must liberal insti
tutions of the kind, that ever was supported by the volun
tary contributions of private, individuals. Two physicians
and three surgeons are in constant attendance.
Immediately above the Miserieordia, on a hill, is the
great military hospital, which is exclusively for soldiers ;
and is clean and well regulated as any similar institution
in Europe.
Formerly, it was the universal practice for physicians to
graduate at Coimbra, and surgeons only were educated in
the country, who were held in low estimation, classed with
barbers, and the sons of very poor parents. Still a classical
education is not necessary ; as by a particular edict, all
their prescriptions must be written in the vulgar tongue ;
and the quantity ofthe medicine prescribed, not in nume
rals, but written at length in letters, similar to an act passed
in England for that purpose. Students, however, must at
tend a prescribed course of study, during five sessions, each
extending eight or nine, months ; they must understand
French before they can matriculate ; and an examination
of their progress by the whole of the professors, takes place

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 221
at the end of every course. Having completed these stud
ies, they are examined by a faculty, who decide as to their
qualifications and capability to. practise medicine. No de
grees are at any period granted ; but a diploma, or license,
declaring the person qualified, is given ; and under this
sanction he becomes a practitioner. Formerly, it was nec
essary to obtain a license from the physico mor, or cirugiao
mor, of the empire, for which a fee was paid. These two
offices, however, were abolished during a late session ofthe
chambers, as useless, and opening the way to great partiali
ty and corruption ; and in their place was substituted the
faculty of examiners.
As there is no prejudice existing among the people against
the dissection of dead bodies, or no law to prevent it, that
important part of medical education is perfectly free and
unrestricted. It is well known to the public, that anatomy
is necessarily taught by dissection, and the constant prac
tice ofthe students ; but not the smallest repugnance is ev
er expressed on the subject ; nor do poor or destitute per
sons show the least dislike to enter the hospital, because
they know their bodies will be subject to the knife of the
anatomist. The people are remarkably careless about the
disposal of their dead friends. They often told me, that
their immortal souls was the only object of their solicitude,
as they knew their bodies were nothing more than clay, and
deserved no more care when the immaterial spirit had left
it. ThCbones they preserve, as they would a lock of their
hair ; and annex no more sanctity or respect to them than
they would to any other personal memorial. Dissection,
however, is not so often resorted to as might .be supposed,
from the great facility afforded ; the rapid putrescency ofthe
body after death, in a warm climate, and the necessity for
interment within twentyfour hours after decease, are con
siderable impediments to the practice. When a cadaver is
brought for the purpose, it is always removed the next, and
generally the same day, after the demonstration or lecture
is over ; and a pupil has rarely the benefit of tracing the
parts, by a minute and continued inspection ofthe same body,
or of making an anatomical*! preparation ; though there is
nothing to prevent fus taking as many as he pleases for the
purpose. Dr. Coates informed me, that he dissected many
bodies in the anatomy hall, and never met any student, with
in the building, engaged in the same pursuit.
19*

222 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Nor are there many post-mortem examinations. Where
it may be necessary to ascertain the nature of a complaint,
of which a patient died, either for the information or the
benefit of the surviving part of a family, neither the friends
ofthe deceased, nor the sick person before death, ever
seem to have the smallest objection : though the Portu
guese physicians say there were formerly prejudices against
it, and it was necessary to: have the permission ofthe police
for that purpose. During a residence and practice of ten
years in the country, Dr. Coates knew of only three or
four cases of opening bodies ; and two took place because
of some difference of opinion with respect to the cause of
death. There are no fixed fees : physicians and surgeons prac
tise indiscriminately in every branch of the profession.
Both, likewise, are called in as accouchers. The house
of a midwife is distinguished by a white cross, marked on
the door.
The diseases most prevalent and most severe,- are bil
ious remitting fevers, dysentery, and liver complaints ; and
these are of most common occurrence in the hot season,
during the months of January, February, and March. They,
however, are less severe in their character, yield to a mild
er treatment, and are of longer duration when they do ter
minate fatally, than in any country between the tropics.
Indeed, the general salubrity of Brazil, and its exception
from disease, is evinced in many instances. At orle time,
there were here so many ships of war, that it was thought
necessary to establish for them an hospital on shore. Col.
Cunningham, who had a superintendence in it, informed
me, that out of 6000 persons, composing the crews, many
of them were ofthe most careless and intemperate habits ;
and the utmost he remembers to be in the hospital at the
most sickly time, was sixty ; and of these very few died.
Occasionally, however, a greater degree of sickness pre
vails. The low alluvial soil at the opposite side ofthe bay,
extending from the Organ Mountains to the Atlantic, is in
tersected by numerous streams, and liable to inundations
and stagnant water. In February, .1 829, all that district,
particularly ia the vicinity of Mage, was attacked, during
the heats and rains, with an intermittent disease that had
all the character of yellow fever ; and they apprehended
that this scourge of other parts of America, had been at

NOTICES OF BRAZIL, 223
length imported and established in Brazil ; and even priests
refused to visit the sick in that district.
During this time the host was seen in frequent proces
sion through the streets of Rio, sometimes carried by night
in a carriage attended by tapers. The first time I met it,
I was at a loss to conceive what it was ; people on foot
knelt down, and those on horseback alighted, and reverent^-
ly took off their hats while it was passing. The frequency
of this sight added greatly to the alarm of the people. —
Physicians were sent over, however, and a close examina
tion and inspection took place, and their reports calmed the
rising apprehensions. It appeared that it was a common
fever, and neither dangerous nor contagious, though very
general ; and the timid priests, whose conduct tended not
a little to spread the alarm, were severely reprimanded by
their superiors, and one was sent out ofthe country.
Small-pox, called by the people bexigas, sometimes is
very prevalent and dangerous. So early as the year 1811,
vaccination had been introduced by Dom John, and since
then orders were issued to establish in Rio, and other cap-
tainces of Brazil, vaccine institutions ; two physicians now
attend at the consistorial church of the Rosario, and all
persons are directed to bring their children to be inocula
ted by them every Sunday ; and for the support of this in
stitution government allocate annually 1,000 milreis. In
April, 1828, however, the small-pox broke out in the prov
inces of Ceara. and Espiritu Santo, and nearly depopulated
some districts. All the vaccine matter sent from Rio failed,
and those who relied on its efficacy, fell victims afterwards
to small pox. It was supposed that from this and other epi
demic diseases, excessive drought, and the number of per
sons drawn to the army ofthe south, the population of Cea
ra, which four years before consisted of 200,000 persons,
was reduced, when I was in Brazil, to half that number.
The alarm of small-pox was so great, that people eagerly
caught at every information about it. My brother had been
engaged in introducing vaccination among the Indians of
North America, and had published some notices of its effi
cacy, and the terrible effects he had witnessed ofthe rava
ges ofthe small-pox. These notices were extracted into
the Brazil papers, and recommended to general attention ;
and application was made in England for efficacious matter,
to be sent out hermetically sealed.

224 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Sciatica is also a complaint very common to travellers in
Brazil, particularly during the rainy season, It is supposed
by some to arise from the heat of the back of the mule be
low, and the wet above ; and, as a preventive, they fre
quently ride with a saddle-cloth of dressed sheep-skin, with
the wool on, and I was warned not to travel without .such a
precaution. ¦ •
A disease, called in the country bobas, is frequently at
tended with fearful consequences. It resembles the fram-
besia or yaws of the West Indies. The body swells and
breaks out into ulcers, which have often the appearance of
mulberries, and the'patients become exceedingly loathsome.
It is infectious by contact, but is also communicated, ac
cording to the theory of the country, in a manner that de
fies all precaution. The eye sometimes is partially affected,
and a small fly is then attracted by the discharge ; this in
sect comes loaded with the contagious matter, and commu
nicates it to the next person, on whose face he happens to
alight. Another problematical insect communicates a disease
which is followed, in some instances, by very serious effects.
This' is called the bichu or chigre, and by the negroes of
Brazil,' beesh. A small tumor is felt in the foot, generally
in the heel or under the toes, attended with a slight pain,
and some itching. On opening it, a sac is discovered bed
ded in the flesh, sometimes larger than a pea ; and on ex
amining it with a microscope, I found it to be a complete
nidus, filled with perfectly formed eggs. If suffered to con
tinue, or taken out incautiously, so* that the sac be broken,
a considerable inflammation ensues, and it degenerates into
a foul ulcer, which often terminates in a permanent swelling,
and an incurable sore, attended with total lameness. This
disorder is universal among negroes, and the poorer classes
who walk through dust or sand, without covering to the
feet ; nor do even shoes or boots protect those who wear
them, as there was scarcely a single person of my acquaint
ance, who had not been attacked at some time. Many of
the unfortunate Irish returned home incurably lame by it.
But the circumstance which renders the origin of the dis
ease a matter of obscurity, is, that the parent insect, I be
lieve, has never been seen, hor, though the sac is evidently
a nidus, containing organized eggs, has it been known to
mature within it any living offspring. I have been exceed
ingly curious to discover them, but I never could detect

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 225
either one or the other, nor could any person to whom I
applied for information, distinctly describe them, as things
they had ever seen. It is, however, the universal opinion
of the country that the disease is caused by some living
thing, and hence it is called bichu, or the insect, and natur
alists consider it a kind of flea, (Pulex minimus).
Another disease very universal, and which no stranger
escapes, is the prickly heat, which generally attacks Euro
peans in summer, and usually after bathing in salt water.
It first appears in the form of pimples, which burst out on
the neck or waist, or such places as are liable to increased
heat, from the confinement or pressure of any part of the
dress. From hence it proceeds in succession over the face,
breast, back, and limbs, till the whole body is covered by
crustaceous eruptions, exuding sometimes a. fluid, but more
usually chalky particles, the size of a pin's point, with a
white branny scurf between. The eruption is attended with
a very disagreeable and painful sensation of pricking, as if
the skin was actually perforated with pins and needles.
This alternates with a violent itching, which it is impossible
to resist, and it is always followed by a great soreness of
the parts. From the unceaising and constant irritation, the
patient has really no repose night nor day, and the only
consolation is, that it is not only not dangerous, but a proof
of rude and vigorous health, which, in fact, the person en
joys in every other respect, while it continues. No reme
dies, therefore, are ever taken to remove or suppress it, as
it is justly considered a salutary effect of nature, to throw
off morbific matter from some internal part. As the wea
ther cools the pustules gradually disappear, and are suc
ceeded by a swelling of the hands and legg, with an exfolia
tion of the skin, as in the sequela? of scarlatina. . When I
first arrived at Rio, I escaped it by going up to the higher
and cooler country ; but it only postponed its attack, for,
on my return, it seized me, as it had done others, and did
not leave me till I again passed the equator.
Lock-jaw is not a disease so common in Brazil as in the
West Indies ; but it sometimes occurs from punctures and
wounds ; as, also, another of an extraordinary nature. A
negro boy was pointed out to me, who had complained of a
violent pain in his head, particularly across the eyes, at
tended with much fever. This continued for two days, and
on the third a number of worms dropped from his nose, and
in. a short time after, came down also from the roof of his

226 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
mouth. They continued to fall for two or three days, and
then he was entirely free from pain. They were about half
an inch long, white, and terminated by a brown head, ex
actly resembling those generated in putrid flesh : he could
remember nothing of a fly or any other insect getting into
his nose . He was a native of Mozambique, and had never
heard of the disease in his own country. It was supposed
these insects were generated in the frontal sinus.
The people labor under various symptoms of undefined
illness, which are frequently attributed to the effects of poi
son, administered by their slaves. Besides the common
deleterious vegetables and minerals, they have secret means
of destroying life, which, without producing immediate or
alarming effects, gradually undermine the constitution, and
cause slow but certain death. One of these, I was in
formed, was human hair, cut into very minute portions,
which attach themselves to the coats ofthe stomach and in
testines, and produce their effect by continued erosion. It
is probable, however, that many of the symptoms attributed
to such causes, are merely sensations of dyspepsia, to which
the Brazilians are liable.
Negroes often bring on themselves maladies by devour
ing dirt and lime. It is often supposed, however, that this
propensity is the effect, and not tire cause of disease, and
arises from the. morbid state of the stomach, similar to an
affection often found in Europe to accompany worms in
children. But the disease most revolting and most general in Rio,
is a tendency to local swellings and enlargements in the form
of elephantiasis. Elephantiasis, properly so called, is not a
common disease, I am told, in the country; but the enormous
tumors of the lower limbs that cause them to resemble the
legs of an elephant, constricted by bands and rings, is a
frightful deformity that everywhere strikes the stranger,
and is sometimes attended with that blotched scrofulous
skin on the face, which Quintus Serenus describes, as the
distinctive character ofthe elephantiasis. It is supposed to
be a disease ofthe lymphatics. It sometimes begins with a
constitutional disturbance of the system, and sometimes
with a local pain only in the part about to be affected, which
is succeeded by rigors and other febrile symptoms. When
it attacks one of the inferior limbs, it is generally first dis
cerned above the inner ankle, and rapidly extends up the
leg and thigh to the inguinal glands, along the course ofthe

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 227
lymphatic vessels, which feel cordy, exquisitely tender to
the touch, and marked by a line of red in their course.
Sometimes the complaint begins higher up, and extends to
the glands ofthe axilla, which swell and suppurate. When
the inflammation subsides it leaves behind it an enormous
tumor, either in the form of hydrocele or tumified legs, and
sometimes both together, which continue with the patient
generally for the remainder of his life ; but are attended
with no other inconvenience, than loading him with a bur
densome mass of flesh, which he is obliged to carry about
with him, and which seems to be coagulable lymph, thrown
out by the vessels when in an excited state, but now be
come inert and insensible.
Connected with this is the erisepella, as the Brazilians
call it, which sometimes begins with a pain in the gland,
succeeded by fever in a high degree ; after which the dis
ease declares itself, often affecting the head and bringing
on a kind of stupor, considered very alarming. Notwith
standing this, for/the first three days no treatment is applied,
even if the patient should be in the most imminent danger
from excitement. After that, emetics and cathartics are
administered, and flour and absorbent powders applied to
the limb ; the Brazilians being greatly apprehensive of any
wet or cold application. The disease, when it once attacks a
person, is apt to return on the slightest alteration of the
usual diet or exposure to cold, and seems peculiarly con
nected with the digestive organs.
It is not too much to say that one-tenth of the people
of Rio are attacked with this disease, in one form or other.
I never went out that I did not meet with various objects,
both white and black, who exhibited the most horrid appear
ance, dragging after them the parts ofthe body afflicted by
it. The steps of all the convents and churches are filled
with miserable black and mulatto slaves, who being no
longer capable of work, from this complaint, were lingering
out a miserable existence on the charity of the fathers.
Sometimes the tumors were covered with very foul ulcers.
I was one day in the neighborhood of Rio botanizing in a
hedge, and two white men came up to me. Seeing me
gathering plants, they supposed me to be a doctor cul
ling simples, and applied to me for a cure. They pulled
up their pantaloons and showed me misshapen limbs, nearly
as thick as their emaciated bodies, constricted in some places
into folds, by circular bands, and covered with foul green

228 ¦ NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
sores too horrible almost to look at. I was sorry I knew
nothing that could relieve them, particularly so as they said
they had been dismissed-from the hospitals, and given up
by all the physicians as incurable. I was frequently ac
costed in the same way.
The -other modification of it is still more common. I con
stantly met people in the streets of all colors, who seemed
scarcely able to walk, from the immense tumors which they
carried. Their dress is generally enlarged into the form of
a sack, in which the protuberance is deposited ; and how
ever unsightly and morbid it may appear to others, it does
not seem at all to affect the health or spirits of the afflicted
persons, who walk about and do their ordinary business
with as much activity as if they labored under no such im
pediment. I have observed that the corpulent shop-keepers
of Rio, whose habits are generally sedentary and their dis
positions indolent, are affected in this way in a larger pro
portion than any other class. They are very fond of cards
and drafts, and when they sit together, I am told, they form
a table of these various tumors, on which they play their
game. It is almost exclusively confined to the capital, and
but little seen in the upper country of the interior, where it
appears to the people an unknown thing. Some time ago,
a traveller- from Rio affected in this way was proceeding to
the Minas Geraes, and was stopped at the registry of Rio
Parahida, where they make a strict examination. Suppos
ing that he carried concealed goods in his sack, they treated
him so roughly in search of them, that he died ofthe injury
shortly after.
But the most extraordinary and almost preternatural ex
ample of this kind, I saw in the hospital ofthe Miserieordia.
He was a negro, aged about twentyfive, without any injury
or apparent cause to account for it : the tumor began to
enlarge, and continued, unaccompanied by much distress,
to extend itself till it reached the ground. When he stood
sideways, the sack projected itself like a huge bag as big
as the rest of his body, before and behind ; and when he
turned his back, it was so large as to conceal his legs,
though they also were enormously swelled with elephantiar
sis, and stood like misshapen posts, when seen at each side.
From his hips downward he presented the most extraordi
nary and unnatural spectacle that a human being could be
supposed susceptible of; but from his waist upwards, he
was muscular and well proportioned, and his face healthy

NOTICES OF brazil; 229
and comely in a degree unusual in a negro's countenance.
He was in other respects in high health, and so full of spir
its that . he was always singing and dancing. His lower
extremities were clad in a loose bag of coarse cotton, out
of which nothing was seen but his feet. In this way he
supported, without any inconvenience, an excrescence
weighing more than thirty pounds, — was never absent from
the negro dances, which he always led, — and was the mer
riest and most active attendant in the hospital.
Hydrocele in its common form, unconnected with elephan
tiasis, is also a very usual disease, and sometimes a fatal one
to strangers ; several young men in foreign mercantile hous
es, lately fell victims to it. It is usually attributed to excess ;
to indulgence in high seasoned dishes, in which Brazilian
cookery delights ; and to bad water. It is treated as in
Europe, by puncture, tapping, and injection, generally with
success. Besides the remedies adopted from European practice,
now generally followed in the country, there are some which
the natives adhere to, as much more efficacious ; and a
dernier resort when regular treatment fails. A friend of
mine was seized with a painful attack of sciatica, from trav
elling, as he supposed, on a mule in wet weather. Having
used European means without success, a Brazilian per
suaded him to try his remedy. He laid him on his face,
bared his back, and then caused one of his negroes to
stand on his hips, and trample on him with his naked warm
feet. At first he gave him intolerable pain ; but by de
grees he felt himself considerably relieved, and in a short
time the pain entirely ceased ; and he attributes it to this
rough but effectual mode of negro champooing.
On another occasion, a Brazilian, at whose house I stop
ped, told me he had a bag, which he said was the dispensary
which supplied his whole establishment with the only med
icines they used ; and calling his slave, he directed him to
bring his bolsa das cobras, or purse of serpents. His slave
immediately brought a canvass bag, from which he pro
duced some dried skinned snakes ; and he informed me
they were a sovereign remedy for any disease ofthe chest.
Whenever he or any of his family were so affected, he
took a joint of the animal, pounded it in a mortar, and col
lecting some herbs, he boiled them together. A few spoon
fuls of this, he said, sever failed to remove the most obsti-
20

230 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
nate attack. This is a remnant of that faith, which the
Faculty of Europe once placed in viper broth.
For rheumatic pains, they use cupping, in a curious way,
and a negro is generally the operator. I was one day
passing through a street, jn the rear of the palace, and
I saw a negro doctor administering to some patients,
who were sitting on the steps of a church. He bound the
arm and shoulder of a woman, who seemed in great pain ;
and making slight scarifications in several places with the
broken blade of a razor, he patted the parts with the flat,
till the blood began to ooze out ; he then placed small
cow-horns over them, and applying his mouth to a perfora
tion at the tip, he dexterously exhausted the air, and then
stopping it with clay, it remained firmly attached to the
skin. In this way he fastened seven horns from the elbow
to the shoulder, where they exhibited a very extraordinary
appearance. When removed, the arm was covered with
blood ; and the woman said she was greatly relieved.
Negroes are always the operators, also, for extracting
the bich-u. They dexterously, with the point of a blunt
knife, raise the skin and open the flesh round the sore,
without drawing blood or breaking the sac ; and thus ex
tract the whole nidus without disturbing a single egg.
They then fill the aperture left behind with snuff, .or the
ashes of tobacco ; and it generally heals up without any
further inconvenience. I saw a negro extract five of
these little sacs from the heel of a man, which left so many
deep and bloodless cavities, that it looked like a honey
comb. But the last resort of a Brazilian when all other things
fail, is the blood of a black "cock, which is a remedy for
every disease, but particularly erisepella. Walking with a
friend one day, we met a man who was laboring under this
complaint ; he was asked if he had tried some particular
medicines which were named, and he said he had not, be
cause he had tried the only effectual cure in the world, and
as that had not succeeded, he gave up all the rest in des
pair. Curious to know what it was, I inquired, and was
informed it was the blood of a black cock, taken internally,
and smeared over the part affected. The man died some
time after, obstinately refusing to try any other remedy.
Diseases of children that eannot be accounted for, are
attributed to the effects of an evil eye ; and the Brazilians
are as much addicted to a belief in this fascination as the

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 231
Romans of old, or the Greeks of modern times ; and they
take as many precautions against it. One of them is rather
a singular device. They suspend over the head of the
child to be protected, a little hand, with the thumb placed
between the fingers, which they call a figa. It is made of
gold, silver, coral, and other materials, and sold in all the
silversmiths' shops, though they annex to it a gross allusion.
This emblem had been very common among the Romans ;
and in David's engraving ofthe lamps dug up at Pompeii,
is an exact representation ofthe figa of the Brazilian chil
dren, connected with things which leave no doubt of its
coarseness.* But what connexion the device protecting a
child from_an evil eye, can have with this symbol, as used
by the ancients, I am at a loss to conjecture.
The number of native medical men practising at Rio,
who are distinguished as doutores em medicina, amounts to
eighteen ; the surgeons to one hundred and five, and the
dentists to five. There are besides, eight or ten French and
English practitioners.

CHAP. XIX.
Academy of Fine Arts. — Picture ofthe Coronation — Its Fate.— Students. — National
Museum. — Indian Remains. — Puerile Models. — Fecundity of Brazil in Objects of
Natural History. — Dawn of Literature. — Works of native Authors printed at Rio.—
Geographical Anecdote. — Fifteen Periodicals at Rio. — Character of some. — Aurora,
Analista, Malagueta. — French Paper attacked by them all. — "Noticias Particu
lares " of Journal do Commercio. — Correspondencia, curious Mode of Libel. — Ex
amples. — Certificate of Baptism. — Singular Exposure. — Public Library. — Elegance
and Liberality of the Establishment.— Catholics not Enemies to Knowledge-
Lancastrian Schools. — English and Portuguese Mode of Writing. — French taught
with Portuguese, but not English. — Remnant of former Ignorance.

In the year 1820, on the 9th of November, a decree was
passed,' allotting the sum of seven millions of reis to the
formation of an Academy of Fine Arts in Brazil ; and in
the month of March, 1824, it was founded at Rio, under
the auspices ofthe emperor, who was dignified with a new
* This is supposed to illustrate and explain the inf ami digito of Pers.
Sat. IL 1. 22.

232 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
title, as " Fundador e Protector da Imperial Academia das
Bellas Artes." *To form this Academy f several professors
in the different departments of history and landscape paint
ing, sculpture, architecture, engraving, medal cutting, and
mechanics, were invited from France, who were to instruct
a number of pupils, and give lectures in their several de
partments at different hours of the day. For this purpose
a new building was erected in the Rua travessa da Moeda,
close by the Mint, which is not yet finished. The facade
presents a pediment with two long wings, of a mean design,
not very creditable to the professor of the architectural de
partment ; and it is in a narrow street, with a foundry on
the opposite side of the way. It moreover has an inscrip
tion over the door in not very classical Latin, academia
imp. bellarum artium. So that nothing of the exterior
does credit to the elegance and taste naturally expected,
where the projectors were professors ofthe fine arts.
When I visited it, the interior was not finished, and I
saw but one room, round which were several specimens of
the professors' and pupils' talents. One was a very large
picture by De Bret, the professor of historical painting. It
represented the Coronation of the Emperor in the Imperial
Chapel, with all the distinguished characters who assisted
at it, nearly as large as life, and said to be accurate por
traits. The Emperor is sitting on his throne,' in his green
robes, holding in his hand a staff surmounted by a griffin..
Opposite to him, in the gallery, is the Empress, with the
little Queen of Portugal, both, I was told, good likenesses.
Before him is the present Minister of Justice talcing the
constitutional oath on a prayer-book opened at the canon of
the mass, and beside is the Bishop of Rio, with his mitre.
and spectacles, and several other distinguished persons,
who were easily recognized by their resemblance.
This large portraiture, the first of the kind, I believe, that
ever was executed in Brazil, is more valuable for the like-i
nesses than any other quality. It was intended for the
grand saloon ofthe palace of Rio ; but while it was hanging
in the Academy, waiting for a frame, it fell to the ground
from the wall where it was suspended, when, by the con
cussion, the canvass burst in several places, and totally
destroyed the picture. This is, as I mentioned before,
generally believed not to have been accidental, but the
wilful malice of some democrat, who wished to destroy such
a monument of Brazilian monarchy, and cut the cord.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 233
This institution is open to every person who wishes to be
instructed in the fine arts. No other introduction is neces
sary, than for a pupil to present himself at the door in a
long coat, and he is at once admitted. A distinction is al
ways made between persons wearing coats and jackets, as
the latter are always considered in the class of servants and
excluded even from the public gardens.
There are but seven pupils at the Academy, one of whom
I met at the palace ofthe Bishop of Rio, who is his patron.
I expressed to the bishop a wish to take with me to Europe
some specimen of the progress of the arts in Brazil ; and
the next morning his protege called on me with a large
painting in a fine gilt frame. It was his first effort at the
Academy, and gained a prize. It is an excellent attempt,
and promises well for the infant arts in the country. The
annual sum allotted for the support of this institution is
6,980 milreis.
Connected with this department, may be considered the
National Museum. It stands on the east side ofthe Campo
d'Acclamacao, and nearly opposite the Senate-house, and
its erection was one of the last good aets, for which the
people are indebted to Dom John before he left the country.
It is a long edifice, with a pediment and portico in the old
Portuguese fashion. In front is a gilt globe and crown, and
under them the following inscription on a tablet :
JOHANNES VI
REX FIDELTSSIMVS
ARTIVM AMANTISSIMVS
A FVNDAMENTIS EREXIT
ANNO MDCCCXXI
It is open every Thursday to the public, from ten till
three . The hall below is a kind of guard-house for soldiers,
and the museum occupies the rooms above, and consists of
a suite of apartments leading one into the other. They
contain the usual objects found in such a collection, — birds,
beasts, fishes, shells, and minerals, of each of which there
are as yet but scanty specimens, in their respective depart
ments. The birds are well preserved, but the greatest
part of them are lying on their sides on shelves, not yet set
up. Among them I was shown, as curiosities, a swan and
a robin red-breast. The minerals are better arranged, and
20*

234 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
the entomological families contain many beautiful specimens
of butterflies. It is much to be regretted that Spix and
Von Martius, who have filled such magnificent museums at
Vienna and Munich with the spoils of Brazil, should not
have been employed, in the first instance, to fill and arrange
that ofthe country from whence they took them.
Besides these imperfect departments of natural history,
there are a few specimens of Egyptian mummies and other
antiquities from the old world, and two or three from the
new. These are heads taken from some Indian catacombs,
I was informed. They are preserved like mummies, and
tattooed in a very curious manner. With them were dresses,
weapons, and other Indian remains, which form the nucleus
of an exceedingly interesting national department, mark
ing the existence of a race that soon " will go hence and be
no more seen."
As works -of art, there stood in the centre of one of the
rooms, two glass cases divided into several chambers. In
each of these was the process of some trade or manufacture
represented, with all the implements in miniature accurately
made. This juvenile performance was exactly like the rep
resentations in the Book of Trades and Arts, published in
England for the use of children, and seemed very charac
teristic of an infant country, yet in the childhood of know
ledge. This little mechanic's show-box seemed to, excite
the attention of the visitors more than anything else.
The company who entered, were of the humble ranks in
life, and many of them common soldiers. They seemed
greatly amused and instructed by the various objects, which
were quite new to them. Indeed the institution seems a
valuable thing for the country in which it is established. It
is likely to excite a taste and feeling for objects of nature
and art, and create a love for science in the people who visit
it. What a vast field of natural history does the fecundity
of nature present in the country itself, and what a splendid
monument of this department alone might, and perhaps will,
be raised here, when native men of science are sufficiently
informed to undertake it ! The sum paid for the annual
support ofthe museum is 4,512 milreis.
The first dawn of literature in Brazil may be dated from
the king's decree of 1808, by which it was permitted to print
" Todas e qualquers obras ;" it being expedient, as the an
nalist says, that " the brilliant face ofthe king should vivify
the country on which it shone, by enlightening every sub
ject of literature."

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 235
In consequence of this permission, sundry writers ap
peared in Brazil, and their works were printed at Rio ; but
among these the most varied and voluminous, is Jose da
Silva Lisboa Visconde Cayru. He took for his motto, " If
we would perpetuate our fame or reputation, we must do
things worth writing, or write things worth reading ; " and
he still continues, at a very advanced periocfof life, to follow
the latter part of his maxim. In 1815, he published the
Life of "Lord Wellington," 2 vols. 4to ; in 1818,. the
" Benefits conferred on Brazil by Dom Joao VI." 2 vols.
8vo ; in 1819, " Studies for the Common Good," 4to ; ancl
in 1827, the "Brazilian School, or Useful Instruction," 2
vols. 8vo. — Jose d'Alvarenza has published " Memoirs of
the Expedition against the Chinese Pirates of Macao," 1809
and 1810. In 1826, the " Fifth Year of Independence ; "
in 1828, the " Seventh Year of Independence ;" and " Sta-
teira and Zoroastres," a Novel. In 1 827, Jose Victoria
dos Sanctos published a " New Theory of the Universe,"
in 4to, taking for his motto this quotation from Locke,
" Philosophy teaches us to seek nature, in the knowledge
of her laws, for the cause of events. When this knowledge
shall become universal, man will relinquish his attachment
to superstitious and vindictive theology. " "A Compendium
of Science," with plates, on the subject of arts and sciences,
was offered "to the famous and heroic Brazilian nation, by a
citizen; and " Elements of Music," by Ant. Luis Fagundes.
But the most important works are, a " Chorographia Bra-
zilica," containing a history and statistical details of every
province, published in 1817, by Padre Manoel de Cazal, in
2 vols. 4to, and dedicated to the king, who granted the au
thor a copyright in it for fourteen years. It is a curious
and valuable work, detailing important and accurate infor
mation on the parts of this vast country, and does credit to
the industry and research ofthe author ; but it wants great
ly the elucidation of maps, which, I am told, will accompany
a new edition which is now preparing.* Next in interest
* Geography is a seience in which the Brazilians seem most de
ficient. 1 never saw in any house a map even of their own country,
much less of any other ; and sometimes strange mistakes arise. When
it was announced, in the Russian campaign, that the plague was at
Bucharest, a circular was sent round, announcing, that all vessels
from that port, were to perform quarantine, before landing passengers
or cargo in any part of Brazil. It was explained that Bucharest was
not a port, and a second circular was issued, correcting the first, by
stating, that any vessel coming from any port in the Mediterranean,
must perform quarantine, thereby including Spain, France, and Italy !

236 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
and importance, is the " Ecclesiastic History of Brazil,"
by Pizarro, in 9 or 10 vols, folio, published a few years since.
The last I shall mention is the " Flora Fluminensis," under
the superintendence of Ant. d'Arrabida, Bishop of Anamu-
ria, dedicated to the emperor : it is a fine work, in folio,
with plates, executed at Paris, some of which I got speci
mens of, but the work is not yet finished.
These are a few only of the books published at Rio since
printing was permitted, which I have myself read, and of
some of them I have copies. It is sufficient to show you,
that the Brazilians are an improving people, and though
their literary progress is not great, it is, I imagine, much
more so than in any other new state in South America.
In periodicals, gazettes, and newspapers, they are still
more advanced. In the year 1828, there were 133 peri
odical papers printed in the whole Peninsula, pf which twen-
tyfive were published in Brazil ; viz. fifteen af Rio, three
at Bahia, and the rest at Pernambuco, St. Paul's, St. Joao
d'el Rey, and Villa Rica. Those at Rio were, " Imperio
do Brazil," u Diario do Rio Janeiro," and " Journal do
Commercio," daily ; " Analista," " Aurora Fluminene,"
"•"sAstrea," " Courier du.Brezil " (French), three times a
week; "Rio Herald" (English), once a week; " Mala-
gueta," " Diario dos Deputados," " D. do Senado," " Des-
pertador Constitutional, " " Censor Brazilico," occasion
ally ; " Espelho Diamantino," monthly ; " Propagador,"
or Annals of Medicine, Zoology, and Botany, yearly.
Of these, the " Aurora" is the most decided and liberal.
The columns rarely admit foreign news, and are entirely de
voted to keeping alive the constitutional spirit. " It is the
constitution," it says, " full and reduced to practice, which
forms, and is to form, the infallible rule of our social life.
It is for this we live, for this we have fought, and for this
we will fight forever." The " Diario do Rio Janeiro" is
printed on wretched paper, and is scarcely legible ; it con
sists almost entirely of editals and decrees, with from sixty
to seventy advertisements.
The " Analista" is supposed to be the organ of govern
ment. It has succeeded the " Gazeta," which two or three
years ago perfomed the same functions. It was distinguish
ed for its scurrility and vulgarity, and many articles were
attributed to high rank, which people said bore internal ev
idence of their authors. It was succeeded' by the " Cen
sor," better and more moderately conducted, it is said, by

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 237
the present minister of the interior. It merged, however,
into the " Analista," which now affects to be polished and
classical, but is excessively stupid.
Of a style and character directly opposite to the former,
is the " Malagueta," conducted by an ecclesiastic of the
name of May. Malagueta is the native name for a small
species of capsicum, the most biting and pungent of all
peppers, as this is of all periodicals ; it is distinguished for
its bitter personalities. When it first appeared, it attracted
a great deal of notice, as well for the talent it displayed as
for the persons it attacked. The family of Andrada, when
in the zenith of their favor and power, were the objects
pf its particular virulence, and just at the time an attempt
Was made to assassinate the editor. He was wounded
and narrowly escaped with his life, and he accused not only
them, but the emperor, as the assassins. In proof of this
he showed a handkerchief that one of them had dropped,
the owner of which was recognized by its mark. The ac
cused of course denied the fact in the most vehement man
ner, and even visited him in person, when he was confined
with his wounds. Nothing, however, could remove Ms
suspicions, which I am told he perseveres in to this day.
He is generally supposed to be a little deranged. Between
the " Imperio do Brazil," which is the organ ofthe govern
ment, and published at the Imperial printing-office, and the
" Malagueta," there is a constant war ; and as it is part of
the freedom of the press here, to attack the editor by name
and not his paper, editors are every day brought forward in
their proper persons. In a number of the " Imperio " I saw
the following passage : — " In No. 86 of the Malagueta,
which has fallen into our hands, we observe the gratification
with which Senhor May applies to us the epithet tapel ; but
not being able to find the word in any Portuguese dictiona
ry, and being ignorant of the jargon which he speaks, we
beg of him to explain his meaning, that we may answer
him ; although experience has convinced us, that the Sen
hor is one of those persons, who never blush when convict
ed of a lie."
The <( Courier du Brezil " is written in French, and pub
lished on Wednesdays and Saturdays. It gives the fairest
and almost the only statement of things passing in the inte
rior, and the news of other countries much more copiously
than all the rest ; but it is a ministerial paper, and for that
reason bitterly denounced. The " Malagueta " charges it

238 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
with being an emissary of the French government, sent to
invade the country beforehand. The " Farol Paulista," a
provincial paper, thinks it a crime not to be forgiven, that
its editor is a Frenchman ; and the " Aurora " denounces it
to the police. These opinions are evidences ofthe exceed-
ing'jealousy of the people, and their suspicions of all stran
gers, as enemies to their independence and liberty.
The "Journal do Commercio," like the "Diario," is
printed on wretched paper, and the typography so bad that
it is hardly legible, though it is in more demand than any
other. It is almost entirely filled with editals and advertise
ments ; every publication containing from 80 to 100. Un
der the head of " Noticias Particulares," one person is in
formed, that if he does not bring back the books he borrow
ed, his name will be made public ; another, that a particu
lar person wants to speak to him, and warning him at his
peril not to disappoint ; a third, that his stagnant water is
very offensive, and if he does not throw it out, a neighbor
will come and spill it in his parlor. Some curious notices
also appear from ladies: — "The senhor, who was in the
House of Luizada Concjeigao, in the street of Livradio, No.
1 , and who requested from the senhora some paper to write
on ; and having finished his letter, took from her drawer
four milreis in gold, a bank note for eight milreis, a pair of
silk stockings, is requested to restore the articles, if he does
not wish to see his name in public. The same favor is re
quested from the gentleman who carried away her fan, other
wise his name shall also appear."
Distributed frequently with the papers, is a loose sheet,
called " Correspondencia: " — it consists of a letter to -the
editor, attacking some individuals with whom the writer has
had a dispute, and it generally contains the most extraordi
nary libels that ever were published. The editor ofthe pa
per, who prints and circulates the libel, incurs no responsi
bility, provided he does not refuse to print and circulate a
libellous answer. I send you one or two specimens, which
came to me folded up in my newspapers.
" Retribution. — God being pleased to call from this world
to a better, the merchant Joao Pereira Borba, and he being
a man of correct life, wished to prove before his death, by
an authentic testimony, that he was an honest man, whose
ashes should be respected ; and to that end he inserted the
following clause in his will : — ' I declare that I always have
been a neighbor ofthe merchant Jose Loureno Dios, a na-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 239
tive of S. Joao d'El Rey, with whom I lived in close friend
ship ; and for that reason, I strictly enjoin my heir not to de
mand from him a large debt, which he contracted at my
store, by his constant and daily visits to the bung of a cask
of Catalonian wine ; for it would be a burden to my con
science, if what he owes me was demanded, since it was the
vicinity of my store to the saitl merchant's house, that was
the real and proximate cause of his disgracing himself every
day, by constant intoxication, by which he has directly and
indirectly offended all his countrymen. It would, therefore,
be manifest injustice to receive money for that, which ren
ders the merchant this day so contemptible in the eyes of
all fellow-citizens.' " One of the Offended."
" Senhor Editor of the Astrea, I sign this with a cross,
because I can neither read nor write. I was living peace
ably in the district ofthe city of Rezende, where one Simao
de Roza wished to get possession of my farm ; and when
I would not surrender it, he proceeded to denounce me with
false accusations, by persons he had under his thumb.
There is a Padre Marriano Joze de Roza, a brother of the
same Simao, who resembles him in every respect. Yes ;
it was this padre, or rather this monster, that in his own
name denounced me, saying, that I had uttered calumnies
against his Imperial Majesty, on which I was taken up, and
sent to this city under a guard." After detailing a number
of false accusations uttered by this padre against individuals,
and enumerating several whom he attacked in order to as
sassinate ; as, though a minister ofthe gospel, he goes about
with arms in his hands, he continues, " but I will not detail
the lewdness of this monster, how many unmarried woman he
lived with, nor his amour with the wife of Francisco de
Sylva, his comrade, &c. ; or how he sued at law the same
patient Francisco, under the pretext of his having burned
eleven feet of a coffee plantation. The monster also invited
to his house one Anna Ferreira, and gave her a portion of
land near himself, where she had the misfortune to bring her
daughter, a child of eleven or twelve years old," «&.c. After
detailing a number of similar things, and in the coarsest lan
guage, and pointing out, in words not fit to be translated,
how he ought to be used, as he himself had used an un
fortunate mulatto, whom he suspected of stealing his hens,
he concludes — " But I cannot tell you, in one letter, all the

240 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
atrocities perpetrated by a priest, who says he is a minister
of God ; but who, saving your presence, Sir, is really a
minister of the devil.
" Joaquim + Joze."
These libels constitute a considerable portion of the lit
erary entertainment of Rio. In passing through the streets
in the morning, after the issue; of the newspapers, I constant
ly saw groups of neighbors assembled in some shop, and one
of them sitting on the counter, reading a sheet of this Cor
respondencia to the rest. It often happens, that the man
attacked is one ofthe party, who never thinks .of any other
redress, than a reply of similar scurrility.
This correspondence displays, sometimes, extraordinary
traits of national feeling on some points, and the estimation
in which different objects are held. By the constitutional
code, a freed man cannot be an elector ; and to remove the
imputation, and to entitle them to the elective 'franchise,
which the Brazilians prize very high, they sometimes pro
duce very extraordinary certificates. A Colonel Joaquim
Francisco das Chagas Catete, was a candidate in his parish.
for that honor ; and a Manoel de Sousa Silva, a chandler,
objected to bim that he was a freed man. A long scurrilous
correspondence ensued, which amused the counters of Rio
for several mornings ; and at length it ended in the Colonel
producing a certificate of his baptism. — " I certify, that in
the year 1780, I baptized and placed the holy oil on the
child, Joaquim, the illegitimate son of Francisca das Cha
gas, a free mulatto woman unmarried, herself illegitimate,
and baptized in the parish of S. Joao, of an unknown father,
and then a servant in the house of the Rev. Joaquim Gon
calves de Figueiredo, living in the Bairro da Caturra, of
this parish, &c. "Alberto Caetano Alves."
The Colonel concludes this triumphant refutation of his
enemies by this declaration : "I am the chief of my family ;
I hold the high rank of colonel in the first regiment of the
line ; and I am bound by the ties of blood, by the function
of my high employment, and by the honor of an officer, thus
to refute the calumnies uttered against me." And this he
does, by proving that he" was the natural son of a mulatto,
servant maid ; herself the natural daughter of an unknown
father. In Brazil, where so many in high station are them-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 241
selves the founders of their own families, respectable de
scent is but little regarded, except by the few who have a
claim to it. But I doubt if there could be found, amongst
the humblest class in England, a man who would establish
his right to a vote, by such an exposure.
There are two public libraries ; one at the convent of S.
Bento, and the other the imperial library in the Rua De-
traz do Carmo. This latter consists of 60,000 volumes, in
all languages, ancient and modern, with plates, charts,
maps, and manuscripts ; but it is particularly distinguished
for its collection of Bibles, more extensive,- perhapSj than
in any other library in the world : they fill a whole com
partment.* The books are arranged in several rooms, par
ticularly in two grand.long saloons ; one intended exclusive
ly for the use of the royal family, and the other open to the
public, who have free access to all the books in every part
ofthe library.
I passed much of my time in this noble establishment ;
and I think it inferior to nothing ofthe kind I have seen in
Europe, either in extent or liberal accommodation ; though
the number of books at present may be more limited. Ev
ery one is not only admitted, without question or inquiry,
but invited to enter and enlarge their minds. The approach
is by a large stone staircase, decorated with fine paintings
.of the Vatican ; and the reading room is a spacious arched
saloon, extending from side to side ofthe building, and ven
tilated by a breeze or current always passing through it,
from the large windows at the extremities. Here, at a long
table covered with green cloth, and furnished with desks
and apparatus for writing, as at the British Museum, you
take your seat, and several librarians, in different parts of
the room, are prompt in their attendance to provide you in
* One of them is a copy of the first bible ever printed. It is on
vellum, very beautiful, and in high preservation. It has the following
colophon in black letter : — " Pns hoc opusculu artificiosa adinveitione
impr'mendi ceu caracterizandi absq. calami exaratone in civitate Mo-
funt : sic effigiatu ad eusebia Dei industrie per Johe : Fust cive et
etru Schaeffer de Gemfleym clericu dioc : ejusdem est consummatu
Anno dni m.cccci.xII. In vigilia assumpcois Virg. Marie." "This
present work, by a wonderful invention of impressing or marking
characters, without tracing them with a pen, thus effected in the city
of Mentz, to the piety of God, by the industry of John Fust, citizen,
and Peter SehsefTer of -Guernfleyim, clerk, of the same diocese, was
completed in the year of the Lord 146a, in the vigil of the Assumption
ofthe Virgin Mary.'' 21

242 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
a moment with every book you call for. All the periodicals
of Rio and the provinces are sent every morning ; and that,
as Veil as a growing taste for reading, attracts a number of
natives, of all colors,' to this place, in which they seem to
take .no less pleasure than pride. It is open every day,
except holidays, from nine in the morning ; and I know no
spot where it is possible to endure the meridian heat more
agreeably or profitably than in this cool, silent, and ele
gant retirement. Isit not, then, most unjust, my friend, to
accuse the Catholics as enemies to knowledge ? Here is
a noble and public literary institution, filled with books on all
subjects; founded by a rigid Catholic monarch, and super
intended and conducted, by Catholic ecclesiastics, on a plan
even more liberal, and less exclusive, than any similar es
tablishment in aur own Protestant country. The sum of
4,485 milreis are annually allowed for its support.
There are two Lancasterian schools now established at
Rio, supported by government, and it is the intention to
open nine more in different parishes, and compel all private
schools to adopt the same mode of teaching. I visited one
of them near the Academy, and better situated. It con
sisted of a very large and airy hall, capable of holding 300
children, and has been opened nearly three years. About
130 were in attendance ; they were very respectable in
appearance, the sons of shopkeepers and others ofthe same
rank, and were of all colors, white, brown, and black. They
were neatly dressed, and very orderly in their behavior.
The master sat at an elevated desk, and directed their
movements by a. whistle. When the class was called up,
the monitor let down from the wall a semicircle of iron, in
side which he stood, and the children formed a crescent out
side. They were instructed in reading, writing, and ac
counts ; and at the end of two years, a selection was made
of all who showed any particular talent, and they were
passed on to the Academies. The education was entirely
gratuitous, and all were indiscriminately admitted, except
unfortunate slaves. The form of writing seemed a particu
lar object of the master's care. In the old Portuguese
mode, the letters were nearly upright, being only twenty
degrees from the perpendicular. The English letters, in
clining to thirtyfive degrees, were now adopted, and great
pains taken to msike it universal. All the children seem to
have made considerable progress in it, which the master
showed me with some exultation.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 243
In consequence of a decree ofthe sessions ofthe Cham
bers in 1827, similar schools were beginning to be estab
lished in the Minas Geraes, just as we arrived at Rio.
The difficully was to proportion the salary of the teachers,
in a country where population was so dispersed, and the
local resources, for the necessaries of life, so precarious.
It was settled to be according to the number of scholars,
and the consequent labor of the master : 500 reis for each
pupil up to 100, and so in proportion up to 300, when the
master received 1000 for each, but the stipend was not to
exceed 500 milreis, which Was the maximum allowed by law.
All the expenses are defrayed by government ; the children
pay nothing.
In passing through the town, you see primary schools in
every street, which are always crowded with pupils, cleanly
and respectably dressed. Over fhe door is generally this
inscription : " Aula das primeiras literas, Grammatica,
Arithmetica, Portugueza e lingua Franceza," but I have
never seen an announcement that English was taught.
Besides these; schools, which are perfectly free to all, and
- where no money is received from any pupil, there are othJ
ers at the houses of- private masters, where children of the
higher classes are instructed, who pay for their education.
One of them is an English boarding school in the Mata
OUVUITUS; There is no country, perhaps, where education is more
extensively diffused among the rising generation, than in
Brazil, particularly in the capital ; but there yet exists a
practice which, I am told, originated in the ignorance of
former times, and if so, it is a strong proof how universal it
was. When a house is to be let at this day, it is notified by
nailing or pasting on the door, a sheet of blank paper. It
was formerly considered useless to write or print particu
lars, as the persons for whose information they might be
intended, were known universally to be unable to read.
But I have also seen here a sheet of blank paper, fastened
to the legs and horns of horses and cattle, intended for sv.le :
this is also the practice in Portugal, where, a friend informed
me, it was intended as a carte blanche, furnishing materials for
writing down the terms of sale, when the bargain was com
plete, '

244 NOTICES OF BRAZIL,

CHAP. XX.
Advantages of Rio Harbor. — First extraordinary Exportation of the English Blan
kets, Warming-Pans, ancl Skates  Us?s to.which they were applied. — Interesting
Appearance of Custom-House Quay. — Stamping. — Mode ofincreasing Officers' Sal
aries. — Proper and spirited Conduct of French Consul-General. — Imports. — Exports.
— Commercial Treaties. — Number of foreign Vessels in the Harbor present a fine
Spectacle. — Money and Accounts. — Copper the only metallic Circulation. — Mint-;
— Diamonds for Sale. — Neglect of Precaution.
The vast Country of Brazil, abounding with produce of
various kinds, and an almost interminable capability of pro
ducing more, seems likely in time to exceed all others in
commercial pursuits, and a considerable part of the com
merce of the world to centre in the harbor of Rio de Ja
neiro. To this its local advantages give it a fair claim.
The Sugar-loaf is such a perfect direction, that there is no ,
possibility of mistaking its entrance. The passage is so
bold, broad, and deep, that there is no danger of running
ashore, and there is no necessity for a pilot to conduct
strange ships ; in fact, it is almost the only harbor in the
world, where pilots are not established, because it is almost
the only one where they are not wanted. The sea and
land breezes are so regular, strong, aiin steady, rrratTirsnrp
mEiy always count, with nearly a certainty, that she can sail
in in the morning with one, and sail out in the evening with
the other. The harbor on the inside is so extensive, that
all the ships in England could probably anchor* there, with
out impeding one another ; and the anchorage is so good,
that no ship ever cuts her cable or loses her station. The
bay is so land-locked, and so protected from gales of wind
on all sides, that it is perfectly secure, even for boats, at all
seasons of the year. If to this be added the; exceeding salu
brity ofthe climate, that crews are nev.er'affected with those
distempers that sweep them off in otter tropical harbors ;
the great abundance of articles of the first necessity, wood,
water, and provisions in profusion, and an interminable ca
pability (*f producing more, according to the demand ; and
its geographical position, projected into the ocean, midway
on the shores of a great continent, and in the most conveni
ent spot for ships, passing from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
it should seem as if nature had intended it as the great re
ceptacle of commerce in the new world, by conferring on it
all the local advantages which a harbor can possess.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 245
When therefore the country was opened to the enterprise
of foreigners, it is not at all surprising that the city of Rio
and its commerce, should have increased with an unexam
pled rapidity. Such was the avidity of speculation in Eng
land, that everything was sent to Brazil, without the small
est regard to its fitness or adaptation, to the climate or
wants of the people, who were to purchase them. The
shops and ware-rooms of Fleet-street and Cheapside were
ransacked and swept ; and the consideration was not. what
should be sent, but how soon could it arrive. In this way,
when the multitude of cases were opened at the Custom
house, I have been told, the Brazilians could not contain
their astonishment and mirth, at the incongruous things
they saw displayed before them : implements useful only to
Canadians and Greenlanders, and comforts and conveni
ences fit only for polar latitudes, were cased up and sent in
abundance to regions between the tropics.
Among this ingenious selection, was a large supply of
warm blankets, warming-pans to heat them; and, to complete
the climax of absurdity, skates to enable the Brazilians to
enjoy wholesome exercise on the ice, in a region where a
particle of frost or a flake of snow was never seen. How
ever ridiculous and wasteful this may seem, these incon
gruous articles were not lost in a new country, where ne
cessity and ingenuity could apply things to a use, for which
they were never intended by the sage exporters. The peo
ple did not suffocate themselves with woollen coverlets,
where they sometimes found a cotton sheet too heavy and
warm ; they did not lay the blankets, therefore, on their
own beds, but in the beds of their auriferous rivers and
lavras, or gold washings. Here the long elastic wool en
tangled and intercepted the grains of gold that came down,
till they became saturated, and so literally converted the
blanket into a Golden Fleece. They had formerly used
hides with the hair on, for the same purpose, and when the
supply of blankets was exhausted, they returned to hides
again. In the same way they applied the warming-pans to
the uses Of their engenhos, or sugar-houses : they knocked
off the lids, and the bottoms made excellent skimmers, to
collect the scum cm the surface ofthe boiling sugar. Even
the apparently hopeless and inconvertible skate, was turned
to a useful purpose. Then, as well as now, there was no
thing in the country so scarce as wrought iron, for shoeing
mules and horses; and though ferradors or smiths, are to
* 21* v"

246 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
be met at every rancho, ferraduras, or shoes, are seldom to
be had. When the people, therefore, found they could not
use these contrivances on their own, they applied them to
their horses' feet ; and many an animal has actually' tra-
velled on English skates from Rio to Villa Rica. Such of
them as were of well-tempered steel, were, hammered into
facas, or knives ; and a gentleman told me, he found the
iron of a skate in its original shape, forming the latch of a
door in a village in the interior.
I frequently went down to the custom-house to see these
importations, but the season of skates and . warming-pans
was past. I saw, however, such immense quantities of
other goods, that it seemed as if Sheffield and Manchester
were employed in supplying Rio alone ; and this you will
readily conceive when I inform you, that the imports for
the year 1828 amounted to more than three millions sterling,
of which 2,200,000/. was from England alone in manufac
tured goods. The bustle and activity of the place, give a
high idea ofthe commerce of Rio. A multitude of negroes
are constantly employed, who labor without intermission
the whole day, in removing packages of different kinds.
They are generally lying open, either to be, or after having
been examined ; and it presents really a curious and inte
resting spectacle to pass along the courts and ware-rooms,
through manufactures of every kind, and from all parts of
the globe ; but I particularly observed those from England,
and I had the curiosity to note down some of the articles.
There were bales and boxes on all sides lying open, filled
with shawls, handkerchiefs, caps, cottons, ginghams, silks,
boots, shoes, stockings, shirts, gloves, hats, dressing-boxes,
looking-glasses, knives, hammers, hatchets, pins, needles,
trowels, muskets, pictures, pianofortes., barometers, drink-
ing-glasses, mugs, jugs and decanters, with innumerable
other articles of apparel or implements of handicraft or sci
ence, covering a space of an acre or two of ground, just
arrived from the old, and about to be circulated and scatter
ed over the mountains and forests of the new world.
Having waded through these, I mounted up stairs, and I
saw a multitude of persons hard at work, as if it had been
a large factory. These were the stampers : — every, article,
even to a single pair of gloves, stockings, or shoes, when
the duty . is paid, must be distinguished by this stamp.
Three or four hundred persons were engaged in this work.
One ran the thread through the corner of the stockings or

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 247
shoes ; another looped it to a little perforated pellet of lead ;
and a third pressed it flat by striking on it a stamp of the
imperial arms. Any article, however minute, that has not
this attached to it, is liable to be seized as contraband ; and
such is the. timidity or integrity ofthe Brazilians, that
no inducement of profit would tempt them to purchase any
thing, whose sale is not so ' sanctioned, even though it were
offered at a fourth part of its real value. Hence it is that
smuggling is almost unknown in the country. The duty,
ad valorem, is so low, and the depreciation of the milrei so
great, that it would be hardly worth while ; or even if it
were, the people are so scrupulous they would ' not pur
chase. The process of stamping every article, however, is
so tedious and troublesome, that it is found to impede
business very much, and the fees on the leaden stamp come
to twice as much as the duty on the goods, in the cost of
pieces of tape and other smaller things ; so.it is about to be
discontinued, and some other mode adopted.
The salaries of custom-house people are so very small,
that they are increased by means that render revenue officers
in Brazil, more charged with corruption, than the same
class in any other part ofthe world. Men, who are known
to have a stipend of only two or three patacs, or about 3s. Sd.
a-day, keep company, and live in a style which requires a
large revenue to support ;_and there are many ways of in
creasing their salaries, which are notoriously practised
every day. When a vessel arrives full of wearing apparel,
a preventive officer is put on deck, to watch that nothing
is removed ; several of his friends come -to see him on
board in shabby clothes, and they return on shore in a new
, dress, having left the old in the case behind them. Goods
often lie for some time in the stores unclaimed ; when open
ed, they are found to contain nothing but old things left in
exchange, fit only for burning. Books are a common subject
of depredation, and it is committed so ignorantly, that one
or two volumes only are abstracted, and the set spoiled. A
friend told me he had some lying in the stores, and when they
were at length discharged, he got but two volumes of a
work on chemistry which consisted of five, — and so on of
the rest.
A circumstance of this kind occurred to a French gentle
man, and the consul-general, Gestas, immediately applied
for redress. The things abstracted were plates from a,
work which was useless without them ; but he could ob-

248 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
tain no satisfaction. He at length met Calmon, the minis
ter of finance, and the Juiz d'Alfandega, and stated the
case to them both. They retired, and in a short time the
consul was referred to the juiz. He said the affair was of
such a nature, that he thought it would bring scandal on
the establishment, but, at the same time, ought to be redress
ed ; so he took the money at which the work was valued,
out of his pocket, and offered it to the consul. He refused
to compromise felony in that way ; and wrote to the Mar-
quez d'Aracaty, the minister for foreign affairs, stating the
underhand offer made him, and demanding public redress.
This was immediately afforded. The value of the purloin
ed articles was given through the custom-house,, the same
channel as that through which the injury had been received ;
and the French, I am told, are ever since protected from
similar injury.
This petty depredation, however, inflicting so great an
injury, and affording so small a profit, was part of the sys
tem of universal peculation that was practised or permitted
in the reign ofthe easy and good-natured Dom John, but is
now fast disappearing, and better usages established.
X Next. to manufactured goods, flour is the great article of
importation to an infant state, as incapable hitherto of grow
ing the one, as of making the other. From eighty to ninety
thousand barrels of flour are annually consumed at Rio and
its dependencies, which are almost exclusively supplied
from the United States. Dried fish also is consumed in
great quantities, as the great article of food in Lent and on
fast-days, and nearly the whole of it is sent by the English
from the banks of Newfoundland. Bees-wax, from the coast
of Africa, for different religious purposes, is in immense de-
. mand, but it is generally brought in Brazilian ships. Soap
is also much prized, lhat ofthe country being^of a very vile
quality, and generally like soft yellow clay. These, with
Russian canvas and cordage, Swedish iron, Catalonia wine,
the great consumption ofthe people, and India goods^ form
the principal part of the imports. -jit was the exclusive
privilege of tbe Brazilians to import the last into the coun
try, but by a decree of 1827, the commerce was thrown open
to ships of all nations, paying a duty of 15 per cent, ad va
lorem. There are five East Indiamen trading from the har
bor of Rio. The Brazilians have shown a similar liberality
with respect to other monopolies. Formerly a company at
St. Catherine's had the exclusive right to supply the coun-

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 249
try with whale oil. The trade of this also is now made free
to all the world.
>-The great exports ofthe country are coffee, sugar, hides,
horns, tobacco, cotton, and ipecacuanha.
Coffee is gathered twice in the year, in February and
August, and comes to market in greatest abundance and of
the best quality from July to December. It is purchased
from the, planters by a class of intermediate traders, who
pack it in bags containing five arrobas, or 160 lbs., and is
thus sold to the merchants ; full confidence is placed in the
weight, as no instance has occurred in which it was found
defective, and the custom-house receives the duty without
re-weighing. This is certainly creditable (o the honesty of
the Brazilians. In 1828, there were 58,37 1,360 lbs. ex
ported. Two qualities of sugars are known ; one from Campos,
in the north, and the other from Santos, in the south. They
are brought in coasting vessels, in boxes weighing about
2000 lbs., and deposited in trapixes or public stores ; a
large quantity is also made in the district of Rio. The pro
cess is so well known, that you would think me tedious ifl
described it. In 1828 there were 19,126 cases, 465 boxes,
and 13,867 barrels exported.
Hides and horns come from Rio Grande and the flat llanos
on me snores or Tile TfTo ele ice -BWo.^Dn_-tKa_ ^^t omj
fertile Campos of Brazil there are none, either wild or tame.
In 1828, 207,277 hides, and a proportiontible quantity of
horns were exported. ^
Tobacco is principally for the Spanish market. The
quantity exported in 1828 was 24,620 lbs. (jottons are sent
from the Minas to Rio, but the quality is hot so good as
those from Pernambuco. The exports of 18i>8 were 2,440
serrons of 128 lbs. each.
England, France, Prussia, Hamburgh, and Bremen have
commercial treaties with Brazil, and only pay 15 per cent.
duty. All other nations pay 24.
When a vessel .appears off the coast, she is s^en at a con
siderable distance from the signal-hill, which, though near
the middle ofthe city, commands a most extensive view into
the Atlantic. A telegraphic communication is rrWde of her
size and quality, and the approach of every ship\is known
long before she arrives. In the convent of S. Bento and
others, they have maps of signals, and amuse thimselves
with reading the telegraphic communications from the sig-

250 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
nal-hill, which is everywhere visible! A vessel may pass
the fort of Santa Cruz, and enter the harbor at any hour of
the night or day; but she must bring-to under the island of
Villegagnon, and there be visited by the customhouse guard
and the officers of health.
The number of foreign vessels which entered the harbor
of Rio last year was as follows : English, two hundred and
sixtysix ; American, one hundred and fiftyone ; French,
thirtynine ; Swedish, fourteen ; Danish, Dutch, and other
nations, th'irtyfive ; making in all five hundred and five
foreign traders, carrying 151,500 tons ; besides about nine
ty vessels of war. I stood one day on the hill of S. Bento,
which commanded a view of the harbor, and I reckoned
two hundred and sixteen vessels of all sizes lying in the
bay, besides natives' and small craft. If was a goodly
sight to see the flags of all nations, floating together in am
icable union, and the vessels freighted with the produce of
all countries, and the industry of all people ; and I looked
back to the time, only a few years since, when jealousy and
monopoly had excluded them all. I send you a paper on
the present stale of trade at Rio, communicated to me by
my intelligent friend Mr. Price*
The accounts ofthe country are kept in a small nominal
coin called a rei, of which there are_abp_ut _fiye. injm Eng-
rlatr-firrrir^gy-^^ r. : .~ ~ t. -™ Jnjg anasixty in a~a"olIar. mere
was once in circulation a coin, so low as a rei and a half;
but the beggars in. Lisbon, to whom they were always
given, threw them, whenever they received them in charity,
into the Tagus, and they have now all disappeared. I saw
one in a gentleman's collection, and he esteemed it above
price for its rarity.'
When I was first presented with an account at Rio, I
was startled st the number of figures till I was' directed to
strike off tbe last three, and the remainder was milreis,
nearly equivilent to so many dollars.
The coins in circulation are — copper, a half vintem, ten
reis ; a vintem, twenty ; a cobre, forty ; four vintems, eigh
ty ; — silver, a half patacca, one hundred and sixty reis ;
a patacca, three hundred and twenty ; two pataccas, six
hundred aid forty ; a pataccoon, nine hundred and sixty ;
¦ — gold, £ four milrei piece, four thousand reis ; a half
.doubloon, six thousand four hundred ; a doubloon, twelve
<¦ See Appendix, No. IV,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 251
thousand eight hundred. All these have now disappeared,
except the copper, although no specie is allowed to be ex
ported from the country.
The great medium of circulation was notes, which were
current only in the province of Rio ; and in change for
these, silver, when it could be had, bore a discount of six
ty per cent., and even copper of twentyfive. This dis
count on copper, the only coin in circulation, went on every
day increasing ; and when the news of the insurrection at
Pernambuco arrived, it rose to fifty per cent. ; the ex
change rose in proportion, and a British sovereign passed
for ten thousand reis. >
The copper coin most in use, is a large piece of eighty
reis, exceedingly ponderous and inconvenient to carry
about. It was coined from sheet copper sent from England,
but a great loss was sustained by the waste, which the Bra
zilians could make no use of ; and an English merchant
raised a fortune by purchasing it, and sending it again back
to England to be recast into sheets, which again came
out. This, however, has now been put an end lo, and the
people, grown wiser, get the metal from England already
cut into the size ofthe coin, and it is then sent to the mint
to be stamped with the Brazilian impress.
There had been a mint in Brazil so early as 1699,
where they coined moedos, or four milrei pieces, two patac
pieces, and vintems. In the year 1722, John V. ordered
a copper coinage to be struck for Brazil, with the legend,
Pecunia totam circuit orbem ; and another, with JEs usibus
aptius auro. The first is still to be seen on the vintems of
Dom John VI. ; and the latter is a practical hint, which
they have now adopted in its full extent. The present
mint is modern ; it forms part ofthe treasury which stands
behind the theatre. It is a long low building ; up a flight
of stairs is a landing place, from whence are long galle
ries leading to different offices, and if I was to judge from
the number of desks and clerks, it is a most extensive
and active establishment. On the opposite side of a court
yard is the mint where I saw men wheeling barrows full
of circular pieces of copper just as they came from Eng
land, in at one door, and they issued out of another, as
almost the only circulating coin. A few Spanish dollars
are sometimes seen ; their nominal value is 800 reis, but
when they pass through this mint with the Brazilian im-

252 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
press, they pass for 960, without any increase of their in-
. trinsic value.
Near the mint is the establishment for cutting diamonds,
which may be considered part of the treasury. This con
sists of a large, bare, open building, like a stable, as pub
lic as the street, into which everybody is admitted without
question or inquiry. Along the walls, at each side, four
teen presses are arranged t with two horizontal wheels at
tached to each. The wheels are turned by negroes, and
communicate with steel cylinders, which they move round
very rapidly. The diamond-cutter sits inside on a stool,
with the cylinder turning before him. He beds the dia
mond in a composition of lead and tin, placed on the point
of an iron handle. This he lays on the cylinder, which is
previously prepared with diamond dust, and places on it a
weight to press it down, with more or less force, against
the revolving surface. Every man has three or four dia
monds, which he takes out of press occasionally, and in suc
cession!, to observe how the process of cutting is going on.
Government sometimes sell the diamonds in the rough,
but people always prefer buying them after they have been
polished and prepared here, as their flaws and imperfections
are then better seen after this process. They had just at
that time advertised the sale of a lot of 400,000"'. worth,
prepared in this place. It seemed to me extraordinary that
an establishment, where so much precious property is ex
posed, should be as open as a public market, where all
comers are allowed to enter and walk about, and are suf
fered and, indeed, invited to handle and examine the dia
mond, during the process, without the smallest suspicion or
interruption.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 253

CHAP. XXI.
Extraordinary Increase of the City. — Obstructions to Improvement and Salubrity. 
Numbering of Houses. — Lighting with Gas. — Creaking Carts. — Population of Rio
very uncertain hitherto.— Usual Rates of Calculation not applicable to Rio, and
¦why. — French — English. — Probable Amount of present Population — Manners of
the People, Ministers, Men of Rank, and Ladies.— Shopkeepers.— Make Vows in
Danger.— Brazilian Menage. — Negro Improvidence. — Association of Trades — Glass
and Tea, Barbers and Musicians.— No Beggars nor unfortunate Females ever seen
in the Streets.— Foundlings— singular Advantages of Slaves when illegitimate —
Amusements, Passeio Publico, barbarous Taste in shutting out. the Sea- Air. —
Botanic Garden, improperly so called.— Plants from He de France and Cayenne,
and Tea from China.— Drink it at tie Garden. *
The influx of new inhabitants, in consequence of the in
crease of commercial enterprise, has been very great, and
the town has, in consequence, expanded in all directions.
The old city wa» almost exclusively confined to the narrow
space between the hills, extending from the Rua Direita to
the Campo de Santa Anna. It now stretches nearly to
Bota Fogo on one side, and to S. Christovao on the other,
forming a cidade nova ; and when the area within these lim
its is filled up with houses, the city of Rio will be as exten
sive as any in Europe. Nor is this at all improbable, at
no very great distance of time. Already, in the memory
of persons residing there, the most extensive and almost
incredible accessions have been made to the city ; — the
whole of fhe space about the Campo de Santa Anna was a
stagnant marsh ; it is now drained, and covered with streets ;
 from the hill of the Gloria to the river Catete, was a
sandy plain ; it is now a large district of the town, full of
houses ; — the Mata Cavallos* was a rugged thicket, so
called from its fatiguing horses ; it is now a fine and ex
tensive street ; — and the Vallongo and its vicinity, since
rendered infamous as the slave-market of the province, was
not then in existence. The present extent ofthe city may
be estimated from the length of the streets. From the
bridge of Catete to the convent of S. Bento, is a continued
avenue of houses, deviating a little from a right line of
nearly four miles. The style of building, however, is sus-
* Literally, kill-horse. — " Assim chamada por ser huraa vereda cheia
de barrancos, e que muito canjava os animaes."
22

254 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
ceptible of great improvement. The houses in general are
erected without any regard to uniformity, either. in size or
plan. The Rocio, or square, in which the theatre stands,
is a remarkable instance of this; there are not to be seen
in it two edifices ofthe same shape or dimensions.
The great impediment to the salubrity and increase ofthe
town within convenient distances, is the steep hills which
everywhere obstruct the line of streets. Some of these,
however, are mounds of clay, which it would not be impos
sible to level, at least to an inclined plane, sufficiently ac
cessible, for streets to pass over them. This is particularly
the case with the hill of S. Antonio, which rises like a vast
protuberance between the most populous parts ofthe town,
completely interrupting the communication, unless by wind
ing by a tedious circuit round the base. I was informed, it
was in serious contemplation to attempt the removal of some
part ofthe surface of this mound of earth, and build on the
summit a square^, with streets leading up fae sides, which
would at once greatly contribute to the *bea-oty, convenience,
and salubrity of the city. This had been the. plan of Dom
John, whose first inquiry, on his arrival, was about the
health of the place ; and he wished that all future houses
should be built on the hills.
In order to give you an idea of those localities, I had a
plan ofthe town taken by actual survey, in which I myself
partly assisted ; I believe you may rely on it as approxi
mating to a correct representation ofthe actual stfte ofthe
city at present, as I had the houses reckoned, and the length
ofthe streets measured. I showed it, when it was finished,
to the minister of the interior, who approved of it as correct.
It is accompanied by references to the streets and puMic
buildings.* The houses are all numbered, and in a more convenient
manner than ours. The odd numbers are marked on the
right hand side, and the even on the left ; the passenger
being always supposed to have his face towards the palace.
This greatly abridges inquiry, as you always know the side
ofthe street on which the house you want is to be found.
Formerly, the only light afforded to passengers at night
proceeded from the tapers burning before the shrines of
saints at the corners of streets. Lamps, however, are now
sufficiently numerous, and the town is as well provided as
* See Appendix, No. V.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 255
most cities on the continent of Europe. It has been, how
ever, the general wish that gas should be substituted for oil.
At the time of our arrival in Rio, a company was talked of ;
and on the 23d of October, 1828, a decree was issued for its
formation, under the direction of Antonio da Costa, a Bra
zilian merchant. It is intended to light the city with 1500
lamps, suspended from iron posts, at distances not exceeding
twenty fathoms, to be lighted every night when the moon
did not shine, and continued till day-dawn, for which the
government was to pay the company sixty contos of reis ;
the machinery to be imported duty free,- but paid for and
laid down at the expense of the company : lighting arma-
zens, vendas, theatres, or other establishments, to be paid for
in addition by the proprietors. Government purpose to give
every facility and encouragement to the undertaking, and
exempt all persons employed by the company from military
service. If this gas be substituted in the churches for wax
candles, it will be an immense saving to the irmandades, and
add considerably to the splendor of their illuminations.
- / Among the annoyances which tease a stranger in the
streets of Rio, is the everlasting creaking of carts. The
wheels are heavy blocks of wood, fixed to the extremities of
a thick axle, and they turn both together. The extensive
friction ofthe large revolving surface, which is never greased,
against the shafts ofthe machine carrying a heavy load, not
only greatly increases the difficulty of the draught, but
causes a creaking sound, quite intolerable to unused ears.
Every proprietor of a vehicle, offending in this way, is liable
to a fine of six milreis ; but they will not prevent it by any
precaution, for they say the bullocks will not draw kindly
without the noise they are accustomed to ; and as this is a
general prejudice, no one will exact the fine, except the em
peror himself, wht) is anxious to put an end to the absurd
nuisance. He always stops the creaking cart, levies the
penalty, and puts the amount into his pocket.
The present population of Rio is a subject involved in
considerable uncertainty. In 1648 it contained but 2,500
people. In 18 1 1 an incorrect census was taken ofthe whole
country, when the inhabitants were said to amount to three
millions, and those of Rio to 46,944 ; viz. 22,780 whites,
4,701 Indians, 9,888 free mulattos and blacks, and 14,276
mulatto and black slaves. This return was so carelessly
made up, that the totals- did not correspond with the partic
ulars, as you perceive. Another census was taken about

256 ' NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
four years ago, but it also was notoriously defective ; the
war, at that time, was raging with Buenos Ayres, and the
people made false returns, to evade the military conscription.
The gross amount was, however, I am told, supposed to be
130,000. I applied for information on this subject to thes
minister ofthe interior, and he informed me that government
was then engaged in making an accurate census, which
might be relied on ; and he was so good as to promise me
a copy of it, when it should be completed-. I have not yet
received it, and you must be content, for the present, with
such conjecture as I can make from the data before me.
I find there are actually, by my enumeration,- 15,623 in
habited houses in the town ; and as the Brazilians are. a
prolific people, it is no exaggeration to allow six persons
to a family, which would give nearly 100,000 inhabitants,
supposing such a population as is to be found in a EuroPe-
an town. The ratio of calculation, however, is very differ
ent at Rio, and,- indeed, in every slave country. All the
Houses belong to free persons, generally whites ; but, be
sides 'their families, there are seldom less than three or four
slaves in each. In some there are twenty ; and aman was
pointed out to me, in Bota Fogo, whose family consisted of
six persons, and who had besides fifty blacks, all living in his
house, which was not largte. You will say, how is it possible
that such a number of human beings could be accommoda
ted ? but a slave is a human being whose accommodation
is never thought of. A bed or a blanket, much less a sleep
ing room, is out ofthe question. Sometimes, when he is
inclined to indulgence, he procuresfor himself an old estera,
or mat, which he lays anywhere ; but generally the poor
creatures throw themselves down on the floor of the hall,
kitchen, or out>house ; or, if the weather be cold, lie close
to, or on the top of each other, to keep themselves warm,
as you have often seen black pigs in a distillery yard. In
passing through a hall I have observed them coiled up at
the foot of the stairs, like dogs, and often mistaken them for
such. In this way, small low houses, of one story, in Rio,
which in Europe would not be supposed capableof contain
ing more than the average of four or five persons, have ten
or fifteen stowed in them. Many houses also are remark
ably large, and let out in flats, like those in Edinburgh, and
each contains three or four families.
Almost all the persons who sell vegetables about tho
streets, and at stands, are free negroes. Some of them take

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 257
.*
houses in the becos, or blind alleys, off the streets, to which
the rest resort for diet and lodging ; a small room, twelve
feet square, will hold ten or twelve of these negroes, whose
apartment is confined to the space of the floor his extended
body can occupy. Their bed is a mat, five feet by three,
and the room is let out to as many mats as it will contain.
The black population has latterly, enormously increased. —
As the period approached for the total abolition ofthe slave
trade, capital has been everywhere embarked in the pur
chase of negroes, insomuch so, that fortyfive thousand were
imported during the year 1828, into the city of Rio de
Janeiro alone. . It is true, that a great many of these are
sent up the country ; but it is also true, that a great pro
portion remains in the town, to supply the demands of the
expanding white population, so that their increase has been
beyond all ordinary calculation ;' my eye really was so fa
miliarized to black visages, that the occurrence of a white
face in the streets of some parts of the town, struck me as a
novelty. Of all strangers, the French form the most numerous
population. Their first coming was a few, on the resto
ration ofthe Bourbons, in 1813 ; but in the year 1816, the
American ship Calphe arrived, bringing from Havre vari
ous French families. Among these were artists, who were
to be professors of the new academy of arts and sciences,
then proposed to be established by Dom John. They now
form a community of about fourteen hundred persons, and
their shops fill some of the principal streets, where they are
the best furnished, and the most conspicuous. Curtains,
minors, ornamental clocks, and enamelled China vases,
principally distinguish them, and give an elegance and gai
ety to the Rua d'Ouvidor, d'Ourives, and other places where
they inhabit. They have a bazaar and about one hundred
and forty shops, where all manner of trades are exercised,
characteristic ofthe nation ; boulangers, doreurs de metaux,
emailleurs, fabriqueurs de liqueures, horlogers, lampistes,
p<itissiers, tapissiers, &.c. Besides these, there are thirty
marchandes de modes, bijoutiers, chapelins, and other ar
tistes, who ornament the person ; and among the rest, above
twenty marchands de nouveautes Franchises, sellers of
French novelties, whose shops are filled with all manner of
nondescript trinkets and useless ornaments. They are al
so the only booksellers in Rio. There are twelve libraires
and relieurs, some of whom keep circulating libraries, and
22*

258 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
have a good collection of books in all languages, and they
publish the best newspaper in the capital.
The English, though they had the precedence in point of
time, do not "amount to more than half the number. Their
houses make no display, nor have they any elegant shops
which ornament the streets. Their goods are all packed
up in warehouses, and are only exhibited in the shops of
the Brazilians, with whom they generally settle every Sat
urday for the amount. They have lately established a
circulating library, well supplied with all the new publica
tions in Europe, and also a newspaper, which I believe is
now discontinued.
From all these data, then, I am disposed to adopt the
opinion of those with whom I conversed on the subject at
Rio, that the present population of the town is nearly 150,000
persons, of whom two-thirds at least are blacks.
You will think, perhaps, that I have dwelt too long on a
subject apparently of such little importance, as to the num
ber of persons in this American town ; but I consider it as
the future great capital of a mighty empire ; and I love to
dwell on " the state of its childhood," as we search with
avidity in Europe for anecdotes ofthe infancy of great^men.
When it contains, as it probably will hereafter, a million or
more of white freemen, they will be astonished to recollect,
that once on a time two-thirds of the people were, black
slaves. The manners of the people of Rio, though not polished,
are kind and cordial. I had opportunities of witnessing
those of all ranks. Immediately after bur arrival, we din
ed with Baron Mareschal, the Austrian plenipotentiary,
where I met the whole of the ministry, and other distin
guished Brazilians. They were men generally of low
stature, and had not the least appearance or pretension of
a similar class in Europe. The greater number had been
engaged in business, and being men of opulence when the
separation of the countries took place, naturally stepped
into those situations, formerly occupied by strangers of
rank from the parent country. They were men of the
plainest manners, laughing; good-humored, and accessible,
like common-councilmen at a London feast. Their dress,
however, was rich and expensive ; and some of them wore
large golden keys, attached like small swords to their sides,
intimating that they performed the office of chamberlain to
bis Majesty. Among them was a little man, with a sharp

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 259
pock-marked visage, formerly a jeweller, but now the arbi
ter elegantiarum of the court. He holds no official situation,
but has attained the same influence over the Emperor that
Halet Effendi possessed over the Sultan when I was at
Constantinople. He is familiarly called in Rio, Chalassa,
a local term, synonimous I believe with bon vivant.
Shortly after I was at a ball given by M. Pontois, the
French Charge d' Affaires, where I saw the ladies who com
posed the beau monde of Rio, dancing waltzes and quad
rilles. They, like the men, were remarkably low of stature,
with sallow complexions, and dark eyes and hair. The lat
ter was dressed remarkably high, and ornamented with va
rious productions of the country ; among these were the
shells of a very beautiful species of beetle, of a rich vivid
green, more bright and lustrous than the finest emerald.
They danced well, and their manners were very affable and
unaffected. The shopkeepers of Rio are rather repulsive in their ad
dress, ahd so little disposed to take trouble, that a customer
is often induced to leave- the shop, by the careless way in
which he is treated. They are exceedingly fond of seden
tary games of chance, such as cards and draughts, and often
engage at them on their counters. I have sometimes
gone in at those times to purchase an article, and the peo
ple were so interested in their game, that they would not
leave it to attend to me and sell their goods. They are,
\Jiowever, honest and correct in their dealings, and bear
good moral characters. Their charity is boundless, as ap
pears by the sums expended on different objects by the
irmandades or brotherhoods which they form. They are,
as far as I have heard, generally speaking, good fathers
and husbands, and their families are brought up with strict
ness and propriety. It is pleasing to see them walking out
together, the corpulent parents going before, and the chil
dren and domestics following in their orders. The women
are fond Of black, wear no caps, but a black veil is gene
rally thrown over their bare heads, which hangs down be
low their bosom and back ; and as it is generally worked
and spotted, it makes their faces look, at a little distance, as
if they were covered with black patches.- They always wear
silk stockings and shoes, and are particularly neat and care
ful in the decorations of their feet and legs, which are gen
erally small and well-shaped. The boys of this rank are
remarkably obliging ; when I saw anything among them

260 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
that seemed curious, and I expressed a wish to look at it,
they always pressed it on my acpeptance with great good
nature, and seemed pleased at aa opportunity of gratify
ing me.
The Brazilians, in any difficulty or danger, make vows
to perform certain acts, in token of their gratitude to Pro
vidence if they are extricated. These vows they religious
ly keep, and they are sometimes productive of great unhap-
piness. The patrona, or master of a boat, in which I used
to cross the bay, was a remarkably good-looking man. He
was once overtaken by a storm in the same place, and made
a solemn vow, that if he reached the shore, he would marry
the first disengaged woman he met. He faithfully kept his
word ; connected himself with a person he knew nothing
about, who proved to be a vile character, and his domestic
comforts are forever embittered.
They are not indisposed to hospitality, and they constant
ly accept invitations from strangers, but seldom ask them
in return. This arises from the exceeding deficiency of
their domestic economy. A Brazilian never keeps a store
of anything in his house ; but even those ofthe highest rank
send to a neighboring venda for whatever they .want, in the
smallest quantities, and only when they want it. They
never purchase more at a time than a pint of wine, or a few
ounces of sugar or coffee ; and this, they say, is, because
if they laid in a store, it would be impossible to prevent their
slaves from getting at,^ and consuming it. When the .slave
goes for the article, he takes up anything he can lay his
hand on to carry it in. I have often seen one of them re
turning from a venda with a china tureen full of charcoal
under his arm, and a silver cup on his head, holding a few
loose candles.
Some trades are associated in a manner seemingly as in
congruous. On many shops you see written vidros e xa,
glass and tea : intimating that the shopkeeper is both a gla
zier and a grocer. Some, however, are latterly approx
imating to a more natural association, and have added china
to their glass, and so sell both tea and tea-cups.
The avocations of barbers are also very various. They
vend and prepare tortoise-shell to make combs. They bleed
and draw teeth as usual ; and so far are only employed in
business connected with their calling, as barber-surgeons.
But besides that, they exclusively mend silk stockings, and
are remarkable for the neatness with which they sole and

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 201
vamp them. I never passed a barber's shop that I did not
see him, when not otherwise engaged, with a black silk
stocking drawn on one arm, and his other employed in mend
ing it. They are, besides, the musicians of the country,
and are hired alsp to play at church doors during festivals.
All the persons who compose the bands on these occasions
are barbers. Over the middle of every shop is an arch,
on which are susperided the different articles for sale. In a
barber's shop, the arch is always hung round with musical
instruments. This association of trades was formerly the
usage in England, when the lute and cithern were always
found ia a barber's shop, to amuse the customers of better
condition, who came to be trimmed, as they are now pre
sented with a newspaper ; or sometimes to alleviate the
pains of a wound, which the barber, in his avocation of sur
geon, was probing or dressing. But the remains of those
customs which have entirely gone out in Europe, still lin
ger in America among the descendants of those who origi
nally brought them over.
It is highly creditable. to the citizens of Rio, that no na
tive beggars are ever seen in their streets. The only per
sons of that class I ever was accosted by, were foreign
sailors, particularly English and North Americans, who
often attacked me, complaining rudely that they were out
of employment ; they had all the appearance of being worth
less intemperate fellows", whose poverty was their own fault.
All the natives in distress are fed and clothed by the differ
ent irmandades of citizens, or by the convents ; and it is a
pleasing sight to see the steps of religious edifices filled, at
stated times, with poor people disabled by age or infirmity,
and the good Samaritans walking among them, distributing
food and raiment as they require it.
lt is also much to be commended,, that no women of bad
character are ever seen in the streets, either by day or night,
so as to be known as such. The decency and decorum of
this large town, in this respect, is particularly striking to
those who have been accustomed to the awful display of licen
tiousness, which besets them in the streets and public places
of Paris and London.
Opposite the Miserieordia is the Foundling Hospital,
where all the poor exposed children are received without
question or inquiry. There stands below, about the middle
of the edifice, a semicircular box, like that which formerly
stood at the gate ofthe Foundling Hospital in Dublin, called '

262 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
the cradle. On pulling a bell beside it, this is thrust out,
the child is deposited, arid the cradle is drawn in, without
any question asked. When received into the house, they
are considered as orphans, and under the care ofthe Or
phan Society ; they are educated to a competent age, and
then bound out to trades. Twice in the year people come
to select them, and receive a considerable fee with them.
By an alvara of the 31st of January, 1775, all young
slaves exposed were to be brought up free ; but this was
forgotten, and some persons afterwards claimed such poor
children, and received them on paying the expense of their
education. This was justly considered a gross-violation of
the alvara ; and on the 22d of February, 1823, a decree was
issued, declaring that it was most inhuman, and repugnant
to the spirit of existing law, that the foundlings, abandoned
by their masters, and educated at the public expense, should
be again reduced to slavery. It was therefore declared
that they must be considered as orphans, brought up as citi
zens, and enjoy all the privileges that belong to free men,
without any impediment whatsoever.
It seems an extraordinary anomaly, that the circumstance
which, in other countries, sinks the illegitimate outcast into
the lowest ranks of society, should have raised him to a re
spectability which he would never attain, perhaps, had he
not been base born and a foundling. Such is the operation
of slavery ; the bastard becomes a free citizen, and the le
gitimate child continues a bondsman.
The number of children annually received is, on an
average, from seventy to eighty ; and the whole number
remaining in the institution at the same time about five
hundred. There are neither taverns nor tea-gardens, nor any such
places of intemperance or amusement at Rio ; the only
means of enjoyment and association, besides their churches,
are the public gardens and the theatre.
The garden called the Passeio Publico, or Public Walk,
is situated on the sea-shore. From the front of the Cala-
bou§a, to that of N. S. da Gloria, is a fine sweep of strand ;
and near the middle of the arch, the public garden was
laid out by the Viceroy Vasconcellos, a name to which Rio
seems much indebted. It consists of broad walks, bordered
with large trees, some native and some foreign, forming a
dense and delightful shade,.and enclosing compartments withr
in, set with fruit or flowering trees and shrubs. Among the

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 263
former are mangas, (mangofera indica), yambos, (eugenia
yambos), and grumixams, (myrtus lucida), yielding, in their
seasons, a vast quantity of delicious fruit, which every one
is allowed to gather and eat. Among the latter is the poin-
ciana, ( Cwsalpinia pulcherrima), a species of Brazil wood,
whose yellow and orange flowers are exceedingly beautiful,
the coral-tree, (erythryna corallodendron), with long spikes
of scarlet flowers, as large as those of the horse-chestnut,
and the magnificent bombax, (bombax erianthos), covered at
one time with a profusion of large purple flowers, like rich
tulips, and at another with huge pendant pods of silk.
Near the middle ofthe garden is an octagon temple, intend
ed for a botanical lecture room, where the professor ex
plained the structure and qualities of the various plants in
the garden ; if is now, however, entirely out of repair.
This place would be a delightful retreat, were it not for
a large mound which they have thrown up in front, ex
cluding not only the fine prospect of the bay, but the pure
and wholesome breezes which would otherwise ventilate
the walks. The sea, as if indignant at this barbarous taste,
has beaten down the mound with the heavy surge that rolls
in here ; but they have now effectually secured it with a
heavy foundation of blocks of granite, and, I am sorry to
say, there is no chance of its being carried away. Before
the mound are two triangular obelisks of granite ; on one is
the inscription, ao amor do publico; on "another, a' sau-
dade do rio.* The sum of 1,905,000 reis are allowed to
keep it up.
Every evening, this garden is crowded with citizens and
their families, who ascend the mound to breathe the sea air,
which is shut out from the garden. Here I often sat, and
had the opportunity of observing to some Brazilian friends,
the great regularity of a phenomenon very common on sea
shores, but which has never been satisfactorily accounted
for. Three waves always followed one another, in regular
succession, and then a comparatively calm interval succeed
ed, till the receding water collected sufficient for three
more, and so on at regular periods. The first wave was
low and weak, the second somewhat stronger, but the third
of considerable size, curling into an arch, seven or eight
feet in perpendicular height, and then descending with un
common violence, shaking and shattering the whole mound ;
* For tlie public love — For the health of Rio.

264 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
as if we could suppose one side of a bridge to be lifted up,'
and the edge let fall violently on its abutment.*
Besides this public, garden in the city, there is another at
some distance, much more extensive. In the year 1809, a
vessel brought to Rio a number of Portuguese prisoners,
from the He de France ; and in the same ship, twenty cases
of Oriental plants, which had been formerly transplanted
from the East Indies, and assimilated to the climate of the
island by the French. Among these, were camphors,
cloves, mangoes, and other fruits and spices, heretofore un
known in Brazil. These were immediately placed in the
royal gardens, at the Lagoa de Frietas, where they soon
accommodated themselves to the soil and climate, and from
thence young plants were transferred to other places in the
country. In the year 1810, a number was brought also,
from the celebrated gardens of Gabriella, in Cayenne, which
was then occupied by the Portuguese, and transferred to
the same garden. Shortly after, tea was introduced from
China, and a colony of natives invited over to superintend
the cultivation ; and, in order to encourage and extend the
growth and cultivation of these -foreign plants, all spices,
and other productions of exotics, were exempt for ten years
-from all tenths, and import and export duties.
The garden where these were placed, is situated about
eight miles from Rio, and the road leading to it is very de
lightful. It passes along the beautiful bay of Bota Fogo,
and by the fine lake of Rodrigo de Freitas, where one side
is bounded by the magnificent ridges ofthe Corcovado, and
the other by the romantic headlands of the bay and lake.
The garden is a rich flat, comprising about fifty acres, di
vided into compartments by avenues of exotics, among
which the Sumatra nut, (vernicia montana), is the most con
spicuous. It is of rapid growth, yields abundance of shade
with its ample leaves, and such a profusion of fruit, that the
walks were covered with large nuts, which give an immense
* The mechanical cause of tliis is easily assigned. The first wave flows
evenly on, meeting with no obstruction from reflux water ; the second _is some
what impeded in its advance by tlie retiring current_of the first ; and the waves
meeting, cause both to ascend into a ridge ; but the third and last meeting with
the obstruction of the other two united, can only force its way by suddenly infla
ting and overcoming the former, which it does by ascending up tlie mound it
raises, and tumbles over the other side, like a cataract, rushing over a ledge of
rocks. It is this third wave that upsets boats passing the bars of rivers ; and
it was this that battered down part ofthe mound of the Passeio Publico. Why
it is always the third, and not any other number, it is not easy to account for.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 265
quantity of oil, for various useful purposes. Next in abun
dance, is the bread-fruit, (artocarpus incisa), which thrives
with equal luxuriance, bearing among its immense foliage
a spherical fruit, in size, shape, and color, like pendulous
loaves of bread. But the compartment most interesting is
the tea plantations. These occupy several square plots,
of about half an acre each, but do not seem to have answer
ed the expectations formed of them. The shrubs are stunted,
cankered, and moss-grown, and the Chinese, to whose care
they were originally entrusted, have abandoned them ; the
colony is dispersed ; and, with the exception of a few, met
occasionally in the streets of Rio, none are to be seen.
Though experience has proved how well adapted are the
soil and climate of this place for the propagation of every
exotic, and for naturalizing it in the country, the wise and
beneficial intentions of Dom John, seem not to have been
carried into effect. No tea is to be procured, either from
the plantations here, or at Santa Cruz, where it was also
tried on an extensive scale. Every person is invited to take
plants from the garden, and the only expense is, a small
gratuity to the negroes ofthe establishment, for the baskets
they weave, in which specimens of any kind are sent to all
who apply for them. It is called a botanic garden, but has
slight pretensions to' the name. There are very few ofthe
immense variety of indigenous plants to be found here, and
not the smallest attempt is made at classification, or scien
tific arrangement. The garden, in fact, is little more than
a retreat, where people retire to, to walk and take refresh
ment. Our friends, Messrs. Aston and Abercrombie, enter
tained their acquaintances in ah edifice attached to it, and
which is generally procured for the purpose. Among other
rarities, our tea in the evening was the produce of the plan
tation here, and it was the only time when I, or any of the
company, I believe, had tasted it. The sum of 2,902,000
reis, is annually allowed for its support.

23

266 NOTICES OF 'BRAZIL.

CHAP. XXII.
Theatre visited with a Judgment for sacrilegious Dilapidation of Church. — Why en
deared to Brazilians. — Lotteries. — Pojt-Office, Mai], and Mode of delivering Let
ters — Mistakes and- Inconveniences.— Corrupt Administration of Justice. — One
Tribunal not mercenary. — Curious Anecdote. — Police, only Natives, seen intoxi
cated, and generally arrest-tho wrong Persons — OnzeLettras, an. Offence at Rio,
why. — Execution of Criminals. — Mode of saving their Lives. — Anecdote. — Fune
rals. — Revolting Mode of depositing the Body.' — Wax Tapers.
The citizens of Rio are also very fond of the opera.
Some circumstances connected with it, however, greatly
offended the serious. The house was erected in the Rocio,
not far from^the Largo de Francisco de Paula, where they
were at the same time building a large church, As they
were in a. great hurry to finish the new theatre, they not
only stopped the building of the church, but actually took
part of it down, and applied the materials towards complet
ing the other edifice, which was opened with great pomp in
1813, on the, 12th of October, the birth-day of the Prince
of Beira. This sacrilegious dilapidation of a church, to finish
a theatre, shocked, as it ought, the serious citizens, and
they predicted some awful accident to the jjnholy edifice.
Some years after, it was burnt down, and the good people
are firmly persuaded it was a judgment, to warn and chas
tise the impiety ofthe builders. The theatre, however, rose
again, like a phoenix from its ashes, but the church remains
in the same' dilapidated state, torn down nearly to its foun
dation. One circumstance, nevertheless, has endeared the opera
to the Brazilians : it isthe place where all the political events
ofthe country, in which they are so deeply interested, were
announced and completed ; and that association alone, is
sufficient to draw them there, independent of good music
and dancing. The emperor is passionately fond of it, and
is a constant attendant, often with all his children. He has
a large box, which occupies the breadth of the building.
This is generally filled with his chamberlains, and other
officers, who stand behind him, while.he sits in front. The
enthusiasm, however, with which he was generally received
Tiere, has passed away, and, whenever I have been present,
his entrance was never greeted with any mark of applause.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 267
During Lent, the theatre is closed, and the people are amused
with spectacles of a different kind, in the churches and
processions. The English frequently get up plays, for
charitable purposes, in the intervals ofthe opera.
• The theatre is partly supported by lotteries, and the
irmandades, of different orders, increase their funds by the
same means ; so that lotteries are so frequent, as to be al
most perpetual in Rio. The benefits are, twelve per cent.
on the amount of the tickets, which is usually about 7,500,
at twenty milreis each, of which 5,000 are blanks, and 2,500
prizes. The value of the tickets is 150,000 milreis, from
which a deduction of twelve per cent, would produce 18,000
milreis. for the contractors, leaving 132,000 for prizes ; the
highest of which is 20,000, and the lowest twenty. Schemes
for these lotteries, in aid of funds, either for charity or
amusement, are everyday posted in the streets, orin shops,
and the tickets are always soon disposed of, because the
prizes are always honorably paid, and there is no instance of
any defalcation^ though they are merely conducted on the
credit of individuals. Many of the English speculate, and
some have gained considerable prizes.
The post-office is held immediately under the hall of
the chamber of deputies, and is part of the same building.
The post leaves Rio every ten days, for the different remote
places in the interior. Mail coaches are of course un
known, but I have frequently met the post on the road. It
is Carried by two negroes, with poles in their hands, and
a long portmanteau strapped across each of their backs.
They travel on foot, at the rate of a league or four miles an
hour. They proceed without any kind of guard, and with
a feeling of such perfect security, that I have seen their
portmanteaus of letters lying by the road side, without any
.one to watch them, while they themselves had gone to some
distant rancho or venda to get refreshment, yet I never
heard that the mail had been robbed.
When it arrives at the post-office in Rio, the letters are
not sent about, except to mercantile houses, which pay a
certain sum for the advantage ; other letters are adver
tised. The office is a large hall on the ground floor, and.
it is hung round with boards, on which are written the names-
of places from which letters come, at the head of a column*;-*
and underneath the names of persons to whom they are
addressed. The columns are numbered ; and when a per
son expects a letter, he applies, pot to the office but to the

268 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
board, and if he finds his name there,- he takes the number
opposite to it, which he presents at the office ; and he gets,
not a letter directed to his address, but one correspondent
to the number he asks for, which is often for another person.
When any mistake arises, and he gives his name, a par- •
eel of letters is presented to him,, and he takes which he
pleases. Much inconvenience arises from this practice. Many
people, from curiosity or a worse motive, take the letters
that do not belong to them ; and every day there are ad
vertisements in the Diario, from some who could not find a
packet they expected, or from others who had taken what
did not belong to them, and requesting the owners to call
for them. I had the curiosity to count the letters on the
board lying to be called for on a particular day, and I found
them as follows : — From England and France, 167 ; Lis
bon, 5,860; Oporto, 1,166; Asia, 55; Bengal, 106;
Angola, 834 ; Mosambique, 153..; Fayal, 100 ; Monte Vi
deo, 133 ; Maranhao, 392 ; Campos, 542 ; St. Raul's,
814; Swiss Settlement, 40; St. Catherine's, 203; Ilha
Grande, 244 ; Minas Geraes, 3,630 ; Bahia, 1,311 ; Per
nambuco, 1,052; Rio Grande, 1082; Figueira, 1,114;
torn letters, 406 ; total, 18,414.
The administration of justice in Brazil is perhaps the
greatest grievance under which the people labor ; and the
emperor's frightful picture of it, in recommending it to the
consideration ofthe Chambers, was not exaggerated. The
judges have but a small stipend of about three hundred mil
reis, and they expend an income of ten thousand ; the
difference is made up by the most notorious and undisguised
bribery, in which there is no delicacy used, and little con
cealment practised. A respectable merchant informed me,
he had just gained an important but hopeless Suit, by bribing
the judge who tried it with an English carriage, and he
was not ashamed to drive about in this public proof of his
corruption. There is one tribunal, however, to which the people have
access, which is above the suspicion of such mercenary
influence, and that is the throne of the emperor himself.
On every Saturday morning a public levee is held, where
the humblest individual in society may in person claim re
dress. The only qualification required for admission is,
that the applicant shall come with a cocked hat. If he can
not command one, he leaves such as he has behind him at

NOTICES OF BRAZIL, 269
the door, and boldly approaches to the throne, where he is
heard and redressed.
Some very extraordinary scenes take place on these oc
casions. I shall mention one of the many which I heard.
A well-known character, of considerable rank and conse
quence, had become enamoured of the wife of a Juiz da
Fora, who rejected his addresses. Shortly after, her hus
band was assassinated, and this act was attributed to him,
who supposed her attachment to her husband had stood in
the way of his illicit suit. Under this impression, the
widow immediately repaired to court to seek redress at this
public levee. As soon as she was admitted, she threw
herself at the feet of Dom John VI-, told her story, and de
manded justice, which the monarch immediately promised
her. Engaged at the time in very embarrassing affairs, the
king overlooked the circumstance-, and forgot his promise ;
when the widow appeared before him again in deep mourning.
Struck with this circumstance, he now confirmed his assur
ance with an oath, that she should have justice ; butthefriends
ofthe accused being at that time about the person of the
king, it is supposed his attention was again turned purpose
ly from the subject. A third time the widow appeared,
and taking from under her veil a shroud, she displayed and
shook it before him, told him, in the bitterest language, he
must soon come to wear it, and bade him call to mind what
was the punishment reserved in the next world for perjured
sovereigns, who denied justice to their subjects. The well-
meaning, but timid monarch, was deeply affected by this
denunciation, and in great horror of mind, assured her of
immediate redress ; but the widow died in a very short
time after, Dom John was recalled to Portugal, and fhe af
fair was never investigated. ,
The police are a large body dressed like soldiers, with
blue jackets and cross belts of buff leather, and resemble
exactly the gendarmes of France. They are not distin
guished either for temperance or proper conduct, and they
are the only natives I ever saw drunk. If an outrage is
committed, they seize, not the man who perpetrated it, who
generally has time to escape, but the person they find
nearest the spot, who is only accidentally passing. A man
was ridden over by a horse just at our door, and brought
into the hall in a dangerous state. The police came up
and seized a gentlemanly person who was walking by at
the time. It was in vain he pleaded he could not ride over
23*

270 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
the man, for he had no horse. He was, nevertheless/drag
ged off to the police-house.
Some curious circumstances attend the execution of a
criminal here. When he is condemned, he is taken under
the protection of the irmandade of the Miserieordia, and
placed by them in a capella for three days, where he is visited
by persons who provide all comforts and conveniences for
his unfortunate situation ; and among other things, they
prepare for him a shirt. The number eleven is a proverbi
al offence, when applied to an individual, both at Lisbon
and Rio. At the former, to say of another*, he is a man de
onze lettras, is an insult, because the name of a very odious
character is spelled with eleven letters. At the latter, it
is equally offensive so say, )ie is a man de onze varas, " of
eleven ells," as it implies a man condemned to an ignomin
ious death ; the last preparation for which is, putting on
his shroud or shirt of eleven .yards. The irmandade also
provide the cord by which he is executed. This last they
sometimes immerse in some strong acid, by which it is cor
roded, and rendered.. so incapable of supporting a weight,
that it frequently breaks before the criminal is dead.
When this happens, they step in, wave a standard over the
body, and claim it as their right. This is admitted, and
they are allowed to bear it away, and so frequently restore
suspended animation.
There are many persons in Rio, who realize a consider
able income by taming refractory slaves. A shoemaker of
this class lately purchased two. He was a man of th,e most
unrelenting severity, and treated them so cruelly, that they
fell on him one evening in his shop, with their knives, and
killed him. There .was something in the affair, that inter
ested the irmandade to so great a degree, that in a fit of
mistaken mercy, they offered the widow eight contos, if
she would not prosecute the slaves. The attachment of
women in Brazil to the memory of their husbands is prover
bially strong ; so she rejected every offer, and surrendered
the assassins to justice. In all executions, it is the practice
for the executioner to stand on the ladder above the crimi
nal ; and when the clergyman comes to the sentence in tlie
creed, " I believe in Jesus Christ," the ladder is turned,
the hangman leaps on the culprit's neck, and they swing
off together. On this occasion the rope, which had been
previously prepared, immediately broke with the double
weight, and they both fell to the ground. The irmandade

NOTICES OF BRAZIL.

271

now stepped in, waved their flag, and demanded the body.
The juiz, who presided, was a determined man ; he told
them to fake the body if they pleased, as it was their right,
but first he would order the head and hands to be chopped
off. As this would totally defeat their object, they declined
removing the man ; and lie was again hanged up, taken
down apparently dead, and lay beside the gallows, while
the sentence of the law was executed on his companion ;
but before this was concluded, animation returned, and he
was observed to kick and struggle on the ground. He was
again, therefore, tied up till life was entirely extinct ; and
is perhaps the only person on record, who was thus exe
cuted three times for the same offence.
The Brazilians were greatly shocked at this ; and when the
widow, who was reduced to poverty by her husband's death,
went to solicit alms to purchase prayers for the repose of his
soul, she was very coldly received by every one. They
forgot her disinterestedness, in refusing a large sum to
compromise the murder of her husband, and they only re
membered her unchristian feeling of revenge, they said, on
his murderers.
Funerals are among the most pompous and gaudy dis
plays ofthe people. Those of the better class are always
conducted by night, by the light of large wax tapers,
the size of flambeaux. These are borne not only by the
friends ofthe deceased, but by any passing stranger of re
spectable appearance. For this purpose, one of the con
ductors generally stands at the door of the house in which
the corpse lies, and invites the passenger to come in and
take a taper. Every week, at least, I have been in this
way arrested as I passed by, and as it is deemed not good
manners to refuse, I latterly learned to pass over to the
other side„ to avoid the necessity of either complying or
declining. The coffin is carried before, and the taper-bearers fol
low in a long procession behind to the church, where the
funeral service is read. It is there laid on a catafalk, or pe
destal, which stands for that purpose in the middle of every
aisle : priests attend, who chant the funeral service, ac
companied by the organ ; and when this is concluded, either
the flooring of the church is raised and the body deposited
beneath, or it is brought to the cloisters, "where a small re
ceptacle, like an oven, is opened tp receive it. Before it
is so deposited, the lid of the coffin is raised, and a quan-

272 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
tity of quick-lime thrown in ; and when it is decomposed by
this process, the bones are shut in with a lock and key.
Notwithstanding their preservation of the bones of the
dead, the people are remarkably careless of the remains of
their deceased friends. Their only concern is, that they
shall receive the last rites of their church, which they con
sider indispensable to the welfare of their souls. Few or
no relations are present at the interment ; and there is
a great indifference, amounting to levity, not only among
the acquaintance who attend the funeral, but among the
clergy themselves.
On some occasions of the funerals of infants, the coffin
is an elegant embroidered trunk, in which the child lies en
veloped in artificial flowers ; and when'placed on the cata-
falk, it looks like a work-box on a lady's dressing table. The
cloisters where they are deposited are remarkably dry and
neat, kept always fresh with paint and whitewash, and gen
erally in a pretty garden embellished with parterres and aro
matic flowering shrubs ; so tbat the charnel-house is divest
ed of everything offensive or even dismal, and redolent with
incense and perfumes.
The gaiety of this is strongly contrasted with the funerals
of negroes. Their naked bodies are met every day, thrown
into an old mat suspended on a pole between two others,
their arms and legs often hanging down and trailing on the
ground. They are brought in this way to the large ceme
tery attached to the Miserieordia Hospital ; and here they
are thrown into a long trench, where I have seen ten or
twelve bodies lying in a heap without any covering of earth
yet thrown on them.
When the person is deposited under the flooring of the
church, a very offensive spectacle is often exhibited. The
ground is so crammed that it is impossible to find/oom, and
the aperture made is not sufficient to contain ft ; so that
when the naked corpse is laid down, part of it is often seen
rising above the ground. A man then takes a rammer, like
a pavior's, and deliberately pounds the body into alflat mass,
till it is accommodated to its situation ; while all the people
look on with the most perfect indifference. It is true that
it is divested of all feeling, as a Brazilian sensibly remarked
to me when I mentioned the circumstance, and deserves to
be held in no more estimation than the clay with which it
is about to incorporate. But certainly the spectacle js very
revolting, and the odor dangerously offensive ; and many

NOTICES- OF BRAZIL. 273
people are compelled to leave the church from a sense of
sickness. In some churches^ as I have before mentioned,
the toes and foreheads,protrude above the ground.
The provision of wax tapers for the friends ofthe deceas
ed is so essential, that frequent advertisements appear in
the journals, apologizing for there not being enough to ac
commodate all who came. In the "Journal de Commer-
cio," of the 15th November, 1828, I saw a notice from a
Joao Bernardo Neguero, importing, that " being obliged to
bury his grandfather, Major Antonio Ramos, he had invited
various persons to attend the funeral, and was greatly con
cerned to find that tapers had not been provided for them
all. This neglect was to be attributed to the Andador of -
Santa Rita, who had agreed to furnish them ; and he had
no doubt that the same Andador had every wish to do so ;
but as he had buried a monkey a few days before, by taper
light, in consecrated ground, he had consumed all the wax,
and so had disappointed his friends."

CHAP. XXIII.

.Supply of Wator from Corcovado. — Ascend it with some Friends. — Cataract and
Aqueduct. — Carioca, and old Inscription. — Name given to Brazilian Cockneys. — ¦
Commotion among the Black Water Carriers.— .-Fountain of the Mareccas. — An
other Supply from Tijuca, visit it with a Friend. — Chalybeate Well. — Magnificent
Cataracts.— -Water conveyed to Xafariz, in the Campo de Sta. Anna. — City re
quires further ^Supply. — Meat at Public Matanga.— Prejudice against Mutton. —
Extraordinary Use of it on the Rio de la Plata. — Fish. — Rumors of an enormous
and voracious Kind in the Bay. — Excellent Pao de Trigo, or wheaten Bread. — Man
dioca and Feijao. — Mindoubi and Fedagosa. — Berries of three Kinds of Myrtle. —
Other Fruits.. — Capsule ofthe Passion-FIower.— Bananas and Catalonian Wine. —
Caxas3 or Cachaga, a Kind of Rum.
The most conspicuoug object seen from all parts of Rio
and the'neighborhood, is the Corcoyado mountain, not less
striking for the -magnificent singularity of its appearance,
than for its importance and utility to the citizens. It is the
great reservoir which supplies them with water. I visited
this mountain with a party of friends, among whom were
Captain King, ofthe Adventure discovery ship, just return
ed from surveying the coast of Patagonia, and Captain
Fitzroy. We began to ascend from the Laranjeira, and

274 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
proceeded up the very steep sides, through primeval woods,
which never have been cut down. From this belt of forests
the peaked summit emerges, rude and bare, where vegeta
tion had ceased, and nothing was to be seen but a stunted
cactus issuing from a fissure. The peak is rent by a deep
chasm, and, as a flag-staff set up here had been splintered
by lightning, it is supposed that the same cause had rifted
the rock. . On this wild eminence a guard-house had been
erected, and the chasm passed by a wooden bridge. It was
intended as a police station to hunt out fugitive slaves, who
took refuge in this formerly inaccessible mountain, but it is
now abandoned and fallen into decay. Captain Fitzroy
?had climbed up here the night before, and taken observa-,
tions, while similar ones were made below by Captain King,
and the result of them was, that the highest point is 2,329
feet above the level ofthe sea.
The vapors raised from the Atlantic, as they float along,
are intercepted by this lofty peak, round which they collect
and congregate in the form of dense mists, during the great-
<er part ofthe year, and descend in numerous rills down the
sides, particularly on the north, or that which faces Rio.
Here they unite into a considerable torrent, which bursts
from the masses of wood, which had hitherto concealed it,
into light, and tumbles with a copious cataract on the sum
mit of a ridge of lower hills, about three miles from the city.
The water comes down pure, limpid, and cold, over a ledge
of granite rock, in a broad sheet, into a natural reservoir ;
and, from hence, in the year 1719, it was led by an aque
duct, constructed by Albuquerque, the captain-general of
the province, along the ridge, to the convent of Santa There
sa. Nothing can be conceived more picturesque and beau
tiful, than the road formed to conduct this water. It is a
green \level avenue of considerable breadth, winding its
way through primeval woods over the before inaccessible
ridges, on the summit level of these romantic hills, forming
in different places artificial terraces and platforms ; whence
the traveller looks down from his airy height, on each side
of him, on some ofthe most lovely views in nature. Beside
him is the water gurgling along in its stony channel, covered
above, but open at intervals, to afford him the means of
using it ; here he sees it eddying in broad granite reservoirs,
presenting the most cool and refreshing object that can be
conceived. Near Santa Theresa, where I often climbed
to take a morning or evening walk, is one of these artificial

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 275
terraces : it passes a valley which opens to the sea, and
looks down on a part ofthe city ; and I believe I may say,
without exaggeration, that there is not in the world so noble
a combination of art and nature, as the prospect it presents.
From hence, over a magnificent arcade, the water is con
ducted across the valley to ••he opposite hill of S. Antonio.
This arcade was completed in 1750, by order of John V.,
by Gomez Andrade, captain-general ofthe province. It is
constructed of two ranges of arches; which rise from the
ground, one over the other, to the height of eighty palms ;
the lower extends to the length of 100, but the upper 140
fathoms, ancl consists of fortytwo arches. On the latter
range the, aqueduct is formed, conveying the water to the
opposite hill,- whence it descends to the lower parts of the
city. It is first received into a reservoir in the form of a
tower, which communicates with a fountain in the largo or
square ofthe Carioca.
This fountain is a semicircular edifice, approached by five
steps, having eleven brass pipes in front, from which the
water is constantly pouring. The surplus runs off, and is
received in a large tank of hewn stone, where horses drink,
and black women wash clothes. On a tablet in front isthe
following inscription,* the oldest, perhaps, to be met with in
the country, and affording a specimen of the rude, and al
most occult, mode of writing a century ago in Brazil : —

lIREMDOQAXO ePoDKOSOKEDloAO OV/

ESENDO GQRCAP -"GN^S^AdCMlRES
SSii]J!DNH^£^BVQl^<^QRSK^KEC^OSStBE3 B'RoBRiL^SPFlKtmiiWoANmTiTrjlg ESEA,

The traits of Brazilian manners, which occur at this foun
tain, are, perhaps, more striking to a stranger, than any
* " In the reign of the high and powerful King Dom John the Fifth, Ayres
de Saldanhu and Albuquerque, being governor and captain-general of this place,
by his directions this work was made, which was begun in the year 1719, and
completed in the year 1723."

276 notices or brazil.
others which present themselves in Brazil f and convey
such an idea of peculiarity, that the term Carioca is applied
to a citizen of Rio in the same sense as cockney to a citizen
of London. Vast numbers of blacks of both sexes are em
ployed, either in carrying water, or washing clothes ; and
this is their great point of assembling. On one side, rang
ed along the wall, are three or four rows of men sitting on
their cans, with two or three police-men shaking scourges
over them to keep them in order ; nearer to the fountain
are two or three more, in the same position, sitting in a large
semicircle ; on the steps of the fountain is a crowd, with
cans, scrambling to get at the pipes. As their cans are
filled, and they leave vacancies, the police-men scourge up
a range ofthe sitters to supply their place, which in turn is
closed up by those behind, and so a constant movement goes
on. The tank at the other side is filled with women of all
colors washing clothes, standing in the water nearly up to
their hips, and their garments tucked about their waists ;
the greater number with black or tawny pickaninnies strap
ped to their backs. Occasionally droves of horses and
mules come up and thrust their heads among them. In the
middle of the square is a whipping-post, to which some re
fractory member is tied and punished ; and round about are
vendas and stalls, where fish, flesh, and fruit, of a quality
not very agreeable to look at, are sold for the lower classes,
who constantly crowd tbe place, mixed with the blacks.
Notwithstanding the vigilance and severity ofthe police,
frequent commotions take -place here from some trifling,
momentary cause. I was one day looking down on this
extraordinary scene from the convent of S. Antonio, when
suddenly the whole square was in a state of insurrection ;
the men tossing their cans, the women splashing the water,
and the police exercising their whips, and all scrambling,
shouting, screaming, and laughing, with the most extraor
dinary confusion ; while the odor exhaled from such a
surface of perspiring bodies, in a state of excitement on a
wet day, sent up to us a smoaking incense that was quite
intolerable. It was in this place the Irish were attacked
by the black and white rabble, as they were marching quiet
ly through the square, which was one cause of the distur
bance that alarmed the empire.
Not far from the Carioca, in the Rua dos Barbonos, is
another fountain supplied from the same source, called the
Mareccas, because the water issues from brass pipes in the

NOTICES OP BRAZIL. 277
form of a sea-fowl, so named by the Brazilians. ¦ It stands
opposite a good wide street, which leads to the Passio Pub
lico, and presents at one end the pleasing view ofthe public
gardens, and at the other this ornamental fountain. It is
in the new part of the town, and affords a proof of improve
ment in the construction of streets, compared with the old.
The whole of this space was a pestiferous marsh, till it was
filled up and rendered habitable by the indefatigable Vas-
concellos, in the year 1785, as appears by these words in
the inscription on the fountain : — " pestifero quondam ex-
siccato lacu, et ambulationis forma redacto, ingenti
muro marinis a0.uis propulsis, fontanis inductis vo-
mf.nti .ere.''
Besides these, there is a large fountain in the palace
square, close on the water, one in the Mata Cavallos, and
two in the Catete -street, constructed by the Marquez Liv-
radio, which the citizens of Rio commemorate by a classi
cal inscription, concluding with the words " senatvs po-
PULVSQ. : SEBASTIONOPOLIS."
But when the arrival of the court had brought such an
accession of people to the town, it was found necessary to
increase the. supply of water from another source. Besides
the waterfall from the Corcovado, there are two from the
Tijuca, another mountain range, about eight or nine miles
from the city, which I also visited with a friend. We pro
ceeded through Mato Porcosj beyond which the road sud
denly terminated, at a point which the bolleros from the
city will not pass. From hence the road was rugged and
mountainous. As the emperor was one day riding along it,
he perceived a ferruginous appearance staining the rock,
over which a stream trickled. He immediately alighted, ex
amined it, and found it a strong chalybeate, which on trial
was proved , to possess the medicinal virtues of its class of
waters. He therefore caused a reservoir to be formed,
and a neat edifice erected over it with the following inscrip
tion : * —
« FONTE D'AGOA FERREA DESCOBERTO PELO IMPERADOR
PEDRO Imo. EM. 24 DECEMBRO DE 1823."
This is open to the public, and occasionally frequented
by invalids, but more usually the water is bottled and sent
to Rio. On applying some tests, I found it very strong ; a
* " Fountain"of chalybeate water, discovered by the Emperor Pedro I. 24th
December, 1823."
24

278 NOTICES OP BRAZIL.
dense scum covered the surface, and a thick ferruginous
crust was deposited wherever it passed.
Ascending from hence to the summit of the gorge, the
scene was very magnificent ; on one side was the bay
which we had left, and on the other the broad Atlantic.
The steep valley leading to it, was full of enormous bould
ers of granite as large as churches, but perfectly spherical,
like stones upon a beach, the angles rubbed off evidently
from the same cause,, mutual attrition. What a sublime
and awful conception does such an appearance give of the
convulsions of nature, when the mountain masses were hurl
ed down, and rolled about by the undulations of the water,
as if they had been pebbles in the bed of a river.
Over this wild glen the Tijuca impends 1750 feet high,
and sends down two cascades. One tumbles over a broad
ledge, and finally discharges itself through a lake into the
Atlantic ocean. Beside this waterfall, are still seen the re
mains of shrines and cells, said to have been erected by the
Brazilian ecclesiastics when they took refuge in this solitary
spot from the French, under Du Guay Truim, in 1711.
The other cataract falls in an opposite direction, and forms
the river Maracanan, which runs into the bay near S.
Christovao. This is perhaps one of the highest and most
beautiful in South America. The whole river, running
along the mountain above, arrives at the almost perpendic
ular face of the rock, over which it shoots like water from
the eaves of a house, scarcely touching the surface of the
fall. Its height is estimated at fifty bracas, or 300 feet ;
and when you stand nearly under it and loqk up, it is really
a magnificent spectacle. The spray that is ejected from it,
forms a shower like that at Niagara ; and in particular po-
¦ sitions ofthe sun, displays beautiful rainbows. The valley
into which it falls is a deep sequestered glen, and every
natural accessory to it is in keeping with its sublime and
beautiful character. A French artist, struck with its fea
tures, built a dwelling house on the flat sward, close under
the fall, and added a profusion of roses and other cultivated
shrubs to the wild vegetation of the place ; but the utter
solitude soon subdued his enthusiasm, and the lively pro
prietor speedily abandoned it for the busy haunts at Rio.
It is from this beautiful waterfall that a second supply of
water is brought to the city by the river Maracanan. In
the year 1809, the first stream was conducted from this by
wooden pipes by the direction of the king ; but an aqueduct

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 279
to convey, and a large fountain'called Xafariz, to receive
the water in the Campo de S. Anna, were then begun.
They took nine years to complete them ; and on the 24th
of June, 1818, when all was ready, the worthy monarch,
with all his family, attended to see the completion of his be
nevolent and useful work. The fountain, as soon as he
arrived, was set flowing from twentytwo brazen spouts ; and"
he saw with delight all the people run to drink of it, as a
new and extraordinary luxury brought to this distant part of
the town.
Notwithstanding those numerous fountains, the increase
ofthe city again demands an additional supply, of this most
necessary article for the support of human life. On our
arrival at Rio there had been a long period of dry weather,
the water had become very scarce, and not only deficient in
quantity, but deteriorated in quality. Instead of the pure
and limpid element which descended from the mountain, it
was turbid, dirty, foetid, and full of insects ; and even this
was so dear as to be almost inaccessible to the poor. Hap
pily, the rainy season set in soon after, and the supply was
profuse ; but the possibility of a continuance of hot weather
drying up the present sources, greatly alarmed the people ;
and they talked of excavating reservoirs and building more
fountains. Among the improvements which will at no dis
tant time take place, is the conveyance of water by pipes to
the different houses, which this great command of elevation
would enable them easilyfb do. The water, as it is at pre
sent conveyed by negroes, is singularly offensive. It is
impregnated with the perspiration that streams from their
naked bodies, and they Constantly thrust their hands and
arms in the bottom of their cans for any purpose ; and the
water there has always a foul look and a bad odor.
The supply of food is abundant and constant. Herds of
black cattle continually come from the interior, and are dri
ven to the Coral, a large open space on the Praya de Lu
zia, close on the sea shore. Beside this, are erected the
matan§as, or public slaughter-houses, where they are kill
ed, and then conveyed on negroes' heads to different stalls
in the city. The most disagreeable spectacle I have ever
witnessed, is one of these negro butchers with a greasy rag
round his waist, and his naked body, covered with blood and
gore, perspiring under a raw carcass. This Coral is not far
from the public gardens, and situated on a delightful walk
along the sea shore ; but the sight and smell of everything

280 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
about it are so offensive, fliat few venture to pass it. The
beef is sometimes cut into long flakes and dried ; and in that
state called carne secco. When hanging in vendas it looks
like hides of leather.
Mutton is never seen in the markets of Rio. It is a meat
to which the Brazilians seem to have as great a prejudice,
as Jews to pork. When sheep were first imported into
South America, in the temperate southern regions, they
extensively multiplied, and became wild ; but in Brazil they
greatly deteriorated. The wool lost its fleeciness, and be
came stiff and wiry, like the hair of old goats. How far this
unnatural change might haye affected the people, I cannot
say ; but they cio not eat the sheep, and will not rear them.
Beyond the serra of Martiqueira, are the most extensive and
beautiful downs in the world, covered with pasture like those
of Sussex, and in a temperate region;, but there is not to
be seen on them a single sheep. Towards the Rio de la
Plata, on the spacious plains, where they have greatly in
creased, I have been informed they apply them to an extra
ordinary use. Fuel is very scarce, and mutton very plen
tiful, so they throw sheep into the kilns as' a material to burn
bricks. It was formerly not unusual to drive sheep alive
into a lime-kiln ; but an edict was made against this cruel
practice, which is still in force. " I tell you the tale as
't was told to me," by several people ; and on inquiry into
the truth of it, from a gentleman who, had lately come from
that country, and whose veracity I could not doubt, he in
formed me, that he had actually seen a man at Buenos
Ayres, throw a shoulder of mutton as fuel on the top ofthe
fire. Mutton, however, is sometimes purchased at Rio by
Europeans ; for whose use alone it iskilled. It is very bad-
It is "necessary to bespeak it expressly from a butcher, who
charges one patac five vintems, or about ls. 8d. per pound
for it, if at all eatable.
Pork, on the contrary, is the great food ofthe people,
and it is plentiful and very good. It is prepared and eaten
in a peculiar way. When the pig is killed, the butcher
dexterously scoops out the bones and muscular flesh,, leav
ing behind only the covering of fat. In this state it is
salted, folded up, and sent in great quantities to Rio, where
it is called toucinho. All the stores and vendas are full of
it ; and it is used commonly for culinary purposes, and
forms an ingredient in every Brazilian article of cookery.
Fish is in plenty, but not remakable. Prawns are very

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 281
large, resembling young lobsters. Oysters are misshapen,
long and deep, with a very thick shell. Their quality is
dangerous, and a very small quantity, even a single fish,
produces on strangers a violent cathartic effect. Red mul
lets are abundant and very good. There is a species of
gurnet, (trygla evolans), with enormous pectoral fins as long
as its body, and larger in proportion than those of a flying-
fish ; though I do not find they ever use them as wings. I
have frequently seen them taken out of the sea, just before
our windows. Dried cod, from Newfoundland, is the con
stant food during Lent. Among the fish peculiar to the
harbor, there is one of which I have heard extraordinary
stories. It is called a mara. When young it is eaten as
good food ; but when old it. attains an enormous size and a
fearful voracity ; insomuch that the monks of Sam Bento
formerly paid a large sum of money, for every one destroy
ed. Col. Cunningham informed me, that about sixteen
years ago, he remembered that three persons were devour
ed by it in different parts of the bay ; one was taken, im
mediately after destroying a man, on the shore of Praya
Grande, and was then exhibited at the custom-house. It
required ten men, he said, to carry it ; and it was covered
with scales as large as a dollar. I could not learn that it
had been latterly seen by any person ; but the rumor of
its existence still deters persons from bathing. The blacks,
who are elsewhere amphibious, never venture beyond their
knees ; and white men are very rarely seen in the water.
Sharks are not dreaded in the bay.
The people of Rio can raise no trigo, or wheat, them
selves, but are very fond of wheaten bread, and are fasti
dious as to its quality. They consume from eighty to one
hundred thousand barrels of flour annually, which is almost
entirely sent from the United States ; though till lately
it was not much used. It is now a substitute for farin-
ha, or meal of mandioca, the produce ofthe country. The
bakers only purchase a few barrels from a cargo as a sam
ple, before they venture on a large quantity ; and flour of
an inferior quality cannot be sold. In consequence of this,
the wheaten bread at Rio is very excellent ; indeed I have
never in any country met better, and seldom so good. The
consumption, however, is confined to the better classes —
slaves never taste it.
The farinaceous food ofthe poor is feijao preto, black kid
ney beans, and mandioca meal. The former is always
24*

282 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
prepared with toucinho fat ; the latter is a snow-white pow
der, from the pounded mandioca root, and eaten without
any other preparation than drying and grinding ; it is put
into a calabash, and the prepared beans mixed with it,
where they look like black beetles crawling in a heap of
lime. Mandioca is also eaten with carne secco, and in that
state rations of it were served out to the Irish. The beef
was dry and tough, and the flour hard and "gritty ; and an
Irishman afterwards complained to me, that " he got nothing
to eat but saw-dust and sole-leather." They also use the
meal of indian corn, which they call milho ; but it is more
generally given unground to horses, of whose food it forms
a considerable portion. It is often boHed whole with sugar
or treacle, and called angu de milho : it is a good pudding.
They sell in the shops a nut called mindoubi, (arachis
hypogeia), which grows at the root of a small plant. They
extract from it a great quantity of oil, but it is also used for
food, and when parched, ,is very good. Negro women-
are constantly shelling and parching it in the streets.
The seed of a native shrub, called fedagosa, (cassia oc-
cidentalis), is frequently roasted, and used for coffee, and
by some more highly prized. It grows in great profusion
round Rio, adorning the sands with its yellow blossoms.
Fruit is abundant and delicious ; pine-apples are in
immense quantities. On the sea shore, near the mouth of
the .harbor, is along sandy district, entirely covered with
pine-apple plants, and here I rode one day nearly three
miles through a pine-apple garden. It is indigenous to
Brazil, where there are many species growing on the banks ;
they are called, and cried about the streets, by the name
of ananas. I have often bought them very fine for a vin
tem, about three halfpence a-piece.
Next in excellence is the manga. This is a fruit larger
than an apple, always green ; when not ripe, it excludes a
clear juice, as strong and pungent as spirits of turpentine,
of which it never loses the flavor. When ripe, the pulp is
a bright orange, but the stone is covered wiih long tough
fibres, like coarse hair, which penetrate the pulp, and ren
der it difficult to detach it. I have 'often regretted that
from this cause I never could eat more than half the fruit.
The yambos, or rose-apple, is a very beautiful fruit, ex
actly resembling an apple in size, shape, and color. It is,
however, hollow inside, containing two nuts, which rattle

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 283
when the fruit is shaken. Its flesh is the consistence of an
apple, but more insipid.
The berries of three kinds of myrtles are used as escu
lents. The first, called grumixam, (myrtus lucida), is a dark
purple fruit, the size of a small plum, exuding a purple
juice. It is highly wholesome and aromatic, and the most
grateful ofthe native fruits : it makes a delightful conserve.
The next, called pitanga, (myrtus pitanga), is about the
same size, but of a bright red color, distinctly ribbed on
the surface. It is harsh and austere, but makes an excel
lent conserve, and a very agreeable ardent spirit is distilled
from it. The third is called cambuim, (myrtus lusitanica,
var), and covers the sandy shore between Bota Fogo and
the (Sugar-loaf, where the people who sell it, come in crowds
to gather it from the myrtle bushes. The fruit is dark .
brown. The custard-apple, (annona squamosa), is also much es
teemed as a native fruit. It has the appearance of a large
fir cone ; the pulp is exactly ofthe consistence and taste of
custard. A new species, called cherimolea, (annona iripe-
tala), has been lately introduced from Peru and Chili, which
produces an exquisite fruit.
The mamoon, or marrow-apple, (carica papaya), is near
ly as large as a pine-apple. It grows in clusters on the
summit of a tree, with a stem like a cabbage-stalk, and
very large angular leaves. Almost every yard in Rio has
a mamooneiro planted in it, and it is one of the character
istic traits ofthe country . The fruit has a rich, foetid taste,
of an animal flavor, bearing a strong resemblance to mar
row, from which it is justly named.
The acajou, (anacardium acajou), is a singular fruit. It
is a large fleshy appendage, the size of a baking-apple, on
the top of which a single seed stands, as long as a Windsor
bean, and of the same shape, attached by the tip ; you
would naturally suppose the large fruit was intended also
by nature as a matrix of seed, but it contains only a fleshy
pulp, very juicy, cool, and refreshing, but rather austere.
The bean, when held to the candle, emits an inflammable
vapor, which ignites, with an explosion, and causes a little
fire-work, for the amusement of people after dinner.
The fruit of several species of passion-flower is used un
der the general name of maracuja, particularly that of the
beautiful scarlet flpwer, which adorns our hot-houses, but is
the commonest plant in the hedges of Brazil, (passiflora alata).

234 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
The maracuja is held in high respect by the Brazilians, for
the same reason that we call it passion-flower, because its
parts of 'fructification have a near resemblance to many
emblems connected with the cross. It is described by a
poet as having a round form like a diadem, surrounded with
points like thorns ; a pillar in the midst, and distinct em
blems of the holy wounds and the, sacred cross, the nails
and the cruel lance ; and its white color, spotted with violet,
records the sacred blood.*
I should mention, that the banana is still more sacred
and universal here, than at Madeira. The people also en
tertain the same superstitjon of the impropriety of cutting
it across, lest they should sever a sacred emblem ; and
further, they believe, as Du Tertre says, it was the fruit of
Adam in paradise, who saw in it the future sacred cross. "f
It is the common breakfast of the people, who do not cut,
but dip the fruit in farinha meal, and eat it as we do a radish
and salt.
The people of Rio are more intemperate in eating than in
drinking. Port wine is not much used, because it is too
strong and heating for the climate ; that which they hold in
highest esteem — at least use in the greatest quantities, is
Catalonian, of which there is a considerable -importation
every year. The common people, and particularly the
negroes, use caxas, or cachaca, an inferior kind of rum,
distilled from some result of sugar-cane. This is so cheap
and accessible, that foreigners, particularly sailors, get
greatly addicted to it. Much of the misconduct and misfor
tunes of the Germans and Irish arose from it, particularly
the latter, who, when they got rations of bad food, which
they could not eat, exchanged it for caxas, which readily
intoxicated them. It is not, however, an unwholesome or
unpalatable liquor, and in the winter and rainy season, is
often found a salutary antidote against the effects of cold
and wet. A distiller has. lately tried to improve it, and by
a further process converted it into good rum.
* " He na forma redonda, qual diadema
De pontas, como espinhos, rodcada ;
A columna no meio, e um claro emblema
Das chagas santas, e da cruz sagrada :
Vem-se os tres cravos, e na parte extrema
Com arte a cruel langa figurada :
A eor he branca ; mas d'hum roxo exangae
Salpicada, recorda o pio sangue."-— Caramuru. cvii. 39.
t On this Father Labat remarks — " Adam pourroit avoir meilleure
vue que nous, ou la oroix de les Bananes etoit mieux formee." —
Vogagc, torn. iii. p. 307.

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 285

CHAP. XXIV.
Birth-Day of Dom Podro d'Alcantara, grand Gala at tlie Palace.— .Attend at tho
Levee — Palace prepared and painted — imperial Arms of Brazil. — Supponers —
Liveries — Guard of Honor — Mode of Introduction to the Emperor. — His Son, a
fine interesting Boy. — Inconvenience of a Clergyman's Gown. — Melancholy Death
of our young Friend. — English Cemetery at the Gamboa. — Emperor approves and
purposes to establish similar ones. — Monument and Epitaph.
December the 2d, was the birth-day of Dom Pedro d'Al
cantara, the imperial prince, and heir apparent to the crown.
It was one of the many grand gala days when there is a
beijamao, or kiss-hand, for natives, and a presentation for
foreigners ; and we prepared to pay our respects, when I
was to have the honor to be presented to His Imperial Ma
jesty, and be a witness ofthe splendor of his court. About
twelve o'clock we' proceeded to the palace, which, on
this, and similar occasions, was surrounded with a throng of
carriages, and a crowd of people ; for, notwithstanding the
frequent recurrence of these galas, the inhabitants of Rio
have not yet lost their fondness for show and display, though I
am told it is fast wearing away. The palace is approached
by a large portico, and a long hall, which leads to the stair
case. These were filled with soldiers and officers of the
court, in gay uniform, and full-dress, accompanied by a
band, all playing and singing, or rather shouting, the Empe
ror's national hymn.
We passed on through a lane of guards, up the stair-case,
to the suite of apartments above. This consisted of several
rooms, leading into each other, so as to extend the whole
length of one side of the palace-square. They had been
but just finished, were opened on this day for tbe first time,
and were as gay as paint could make them. The windows,
however, had never been cleaned, I believe, since the
palace was erected, and the dim and dingy glass, in some
places cracked and broken, was not in keeping with the
gaiety and brightness of the rest. The walls were hung
with pictures representing eminent men, and remarkable
facts in the history of Portugal ; but that which most attract
ed my notice was a fine portrait of Catharine of Lisbon,
consort of Charles II. of England, painted by Sir Peter
Lely, distinguished by kil the languishing softness of that
artist. It accompanied the court in their emigration.

286 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
In every conspicuous place, the arms of Imperial Brazil
were emblazoned. These arms have been twice changed
in the space of seven years ; when Brazil was united as a
kingdom with Portugal, and when it was separated from it.
On the firsf occasion, Dom John placed the shield, contain
ing the arms of Portugal, on an armillary sphere. The
sphere was first adopted as a device, in the reign of Manoel,
in 1499. Albuquerque, on the capture of Goa, ordered coin
to be struck in different metals, having on one side the
sphere, and on the other the word mea, which read mea
esphera, implying, it should appear, that the Portuguese
now claimed the eastern hemisphere as their allotment.
In 1815, John VI. assumed the sphere as the peculiar
device of Brazil, and placed on it the shield,.containing the
quinas, or five emblems of Portugal, surrounded with the
oria of castles ofthe Algarves. I mention the above origin
of the sphere, because I had imagined it was peculiar to
Brazil, and for the first time adopted by John VI. till I was
better informed.
On the 12th of May, 1822, the people of Rio conferred
on Dom Pedro the title of" Perpetual Defender of Brazil ;"
and on the 18th of September following, a decree was is
sued, conformable to the state of things, and erasing from
the arms the shield of Portugal imposed upon them. It
stated that as Brazil had now occupied that place among
the grand families of the nations of the earth, which of right
appertained to it, it was proper that its armorial bearings
•should correspond to distinguish it, not only from those
of Portugal and the Algarves, but to characterize a rich
and vast continent. Wishing, however, to preserve the
arms conferred on Brazil by his august father, and to com
memorate the name imposed by. the first discoverer, and
also to include the states comprehended within its vast riv
ers, which are its natural boundaries, the following arms
were adopted.
An armillary sphere of gold on a cross of the order of
Christ, surrounded by a circle of nineteen stars of silver,
indicating the number of provinces into which Brazil is di
vided. The imperial crown surmounting the shield, and the
sides supported by two branches, one of coffee and the oth
er of tobacco, represented in their proper colors, as emblems
ofthe commercial riches ofthe country. Coffee and tobac
co, you will say, are not very dignified supporters to na
tional armorial bearings, and I doubt if they are to be found

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 287
in the herald's office; but you will agree with me, that these
great natural productions ofthe soil, as emblematic devices
of the wealth and prosperity of the country, are to the full
as rational and intelligible as griffins and unicorns . The
Banda Oriental was one ofthe nineteen provinces included
between the great rivers alluded to in the decree ; it is now
abandoned, but its representative star is still visible in the
Brazilian arms, and is likely to remain there as long as
France in the arms of England.
At the same time that the emperor decreed the imperial
arms, he regulated the livery of his servants. The edital
stated that the former was too expensive, and he adopted
one more conformable to the climate of Brazil. The color
fixed on was green; and by a subsequent decree, every
other person was prohibited from using it. It was from that
time to be held sacred to the royal family, as it is in Turkey
to the family of Mahomet, and exclusively confined to the
imperial domestics, who were all clad in rich green suits for
this occasion.
All the foreign diplomatic corps were assembled to pay
their respects, and with the naval officers of the squadron
in the bay in full uniform, composed a large and respectable
assemblage at this transatlantic court. There were two
English ministers, Lords Strangford and Ponsonby ; Baron
Mareschal, the Austrian ; Monsieur Pontois, the French ;
Baron Dedel, the Netherlands ; Count Lowenstjerne, the
Danish ; Mr. Tudor, the United States, &c. with their re
spective suites, besides many more distinguished officers and
strangers. Presently the sound of trumpets and the trampling of
horses in the square below announced the arrival ofthe em
peror from his palace of S. Christovao, and on looking out
ofthe window, we saw him sweeping into the square in a
carriage with six horses, accompanied by his guard of honor.
This guard was established by a decree of the 1st of De
cember, 1822. On the preceding January, when the Por
tuguese soldiers had threatened the person ofthe emperor,
the inhabitants of St. Paul's formed a voluntary guard to
protect him. To keep alive the memory ofthe spontaneous
loyalty of the people, it was determined by the emperor to
form a permanent body to be ready always to be about his
person when required, and that it should be called a guard
of honor, consisting of three squadrons of cavalry, one for
each of the provinces of Rio, St. Paul's, and the Minas

288 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
Gera.es, each consisting of two companies of sixty privates,
besides officers, comprising the most respectable men of
their provinces. They assemble four times in the year, are
enrolled four days, and are ready to attend, when the exi
gency ofthe state requires, only on the persons ofthe em
peror and imperial family, particularly on .the two great an
niversaries ofthe Acclamation and the Declaration of Inde
pendence. Any absenting themselves, without reasonable
excuse, are expelled and never again admitted. Their uni
forms are white, with gilt helmets, and they make a fine
display. It appears, however, that their warm attachment
has now quite cooled, and many would heartily wish to be
exempt from a duty which they originally imposed ori them
selves. •
After a short time a chamberlain announced to us, that
the emperor was arrived, and we' proceeded to pay our re
spects. We passed through an ante-chamber, where we
now for the first time saw assembled the Brazilian nobility,
officers, public functionaries, and distinguished ecclesiastics,
in all the respective costumes of their orders ; and as their
dress was very rich, they formed not only a crowded but
brilliant assembly. Having passed through a lane of these,
we entered the presence-chamber. This was a very large
spacious apartment. At the further end was the throne,
raised on several steps, under a canopy, on which stood the
emperor in full uniform, with his son, a fine little fellow of
three years old, standing beside him. With the exception
of a few officers in distant parts, this apartment was quite
vacant ; and the etiquette is for each foreign minister to
walk up singly, with his suite on one side, and when he has
paid his respects to the throne, walk down at the other, and
out at the door. The emperor received us very graciously,
and looked, on his elevation, a fine and portly man. His
boy was not dressed in embroidery, but in a plain jacket
and trousers, such as he would play marbles in, and looked
so simple and pretty that he interested everybody. When
I was presented, he put his hands into his breeches pockets,
and looked very knowing at my dress, which was not ex
actly. that ofthe clergy he was accustomed to.
It is the etiquette to retreat backwards, always with your
face to the throne, and as I had a long apartment to traverse
in this way, I found it very inconvenient with my gown.
In the year 1741, Dr. Burke, the titular Bishop of Ossory,
was sent on a mission from Rome to the court of Portugal,

NOTICES OF BRAZIL. 289
and on retiring backwards from the throne, he trod on the
tail of his gown, and fell flat on his back. From that time
an alvara was issued, that aU clergymen in their robes
should be exempt from this inconvenient ceremony. If the
alvara had been in force in Brazil, I should have been glad
to avail myself of it, for before I reached the end ofthe long
room, I more than once was near sharing the fate of the
titular Bishop of Ossory.
We had hoped that the situation of our house, ventilated
by the wholesome breezes, and open to the lovely prospect
.ofthe bay, with the warm but temperate atmosphere of a
healthy country, would now restore our young friend ; and
for a time he seemed to improve, but he soon became alarm
ingly ill, and rapidly declined till the 25th of November,
when he expired ; and the only duty left us was to perform
the last rites at his grave. The burying ground attached
to the English chapel lies at the north extremity ofthe town,
at the bottom of a small but beautiful bay, called the Gam
boa.. It consists of three or four acres of land, surrounded
by a wall, with a few trees still standing within the area ; and
it is proposed to plant a great number. The situation is ex
tremely beautiful, on an inclined plane, sloping towards the
sea, and commanding an extensive prospect of the bay and
islands. In the centre stands a small chapel, used only on
the occasion of funerals, in which is read a part ofthe buri
al service.
The emperor, whose palace of S. Christovao is not very
distant, has frequently visited this spot, and was much struck
with the appearance of the cemetery. The sober solemnity
of the English service attracted his notice ; but above all,
the removal of bodies from the centre of the city, induced
him to express a strong approbation of our mode of inter
ment ; and it is said he proposes to establish similar ceme
teries near Rio, on the extensive scale of Pere la Chaise,
and gradually reconcile the Brazilians to burials in the open
country .
Here it was I performed the last office for our young
friend, who crossed the Atlantic in search of that health he
could not find ; and I felt as if I_ never performed a more
sad or solemn duty. The evils and infirmities incident to
mature age, are the natural and expected consequences of
the frailty of our perishable nature. But when God is pleas
ed to afflict the young, we contemplate the prime of life
prematurely embittered, and the season of life blighted,,
25

290 NOTICES OF BRAZIL.
when we hoped to see it green and flourishing. As yet
there are but few grave-stones erected in this ground, to
mark the place of the departed ; but a monument has been
sent from England to designate the spot-where his remains
are deposited — and the first ofthe kind that has been erect
ed. It is an urn supported on a pedestal of black marble,
with the following inscription from the pen of his father.
H. S. E.
QUICQUID MORTALE HABUIT
GEORGIUS JOSEPHUS STANHOPE
PHILIPPI HENRICI COMITIS STANHOPE
FILIUS SECUNDO GENITUS
VIRTUTIBUS ET PIETATE INSIGNIS
. PATRIAE AMICIS ET PROPINQJDIS
DESIDERATISSIMUS
NATUS DIE XVII. MARTII A.D. MDCCCVI.
OBIIT HAC URBE
DIE XXV. NOVEMBR: MDCCCXXVIII.
HOCCE MONUMENTUM
MOERENS PONERE CURAVIT
PATER QUEM EXIMIE DELEXIT.

END OF VOL. I.

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