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Title: Travels in Brazil
Author: Koster, Henry
Language: English
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TRAVELS
IN
BRAZIL.
BY
_HENRY KOSTER_.
LONDON:
PRINTED FOR LONGMAN, HURST, REES, ORME, AND BROWN,
_PATERNOSTER-ROW_.
1816.
Printed by A. Strahan,
New-Street-Square, London.
TO
ROBERT SOUTHEY, ESQ.
_POET LAUREATE_,
MEMBER OF THE ROYAL SPANISH ACADEMY, AND OF THE ROYAL SPANISH
ACADEMY OF HISTORY,
_THESE TRAVELS_
ARE INSCRIBED
BY HENRY KOSTER,
IN
MEMORIAL
OF
AFFECTIONATE RESPECT AND GRATITUDE.
PREFACE.
DURING my residence in Brazil, I had no intention of publishing any
account of what I had seen and heard in that country. Some time after
my return to England, I was encouraged to put together the information
which I might be able to impart. The reader will be more disposed
to excuse what defects he may find, when he is informed that I went
out young, that I did not gather any knowledge of the country in a
systematic manner with the idea of giving it to the public, and that
the idiom of a foreign language is perhaps more familiar to me than
that of my own. But among judicious readers the style of works of this
description will be regarded as of little importance. I have had the
advantage of Mr Southey’s advice and extensive library. I have to thank
Dr. Traill for his aid in preparing the Appendix; though as he did not
see the whole of it, if there are any errors they must be attributed
to me, not to him. The drawings for the plates were executed by a near
relative, from very rough sketches of my own, assisted by description.
The outline of the map is taken from Mr. Arrowsmith’s large map
of South America; and the names and situations of some places are
corrected, and others are inserted from my own knowledge. The plan of
the harbour of Pernambuco was furnished to me by an English gentleman
resident at Recife, who is indefatigable in the search of whatever may
contribute to the increase of knowledge.
CONTENTS.
CHAP. I.
DEPARTURE from Liverpool.—Arrival at Pernambuco.—The Town
and Harbour of Recife.—The Governor.—The Trade Page 1
CHAP. II.
Visit to the Governor.—The Climate.—First Ride into the
Country.—Residence at a Village in the neighbourhood of
Recife.—Olinda.—Holy Thursday.—Good Friday.—Easter
Sunday.—Profession of a Friar.—St. Peter’s Day.—Visit
to a Brazilian Family.—A Dance.—Another Visit to Olinda 12
CHAP. III.
The Government.—The Taxes.—The Public Institutions.
—Criminals.—Prisons.—Military Establishments.—The
Island of Fernando de Noronha 30
CHAP. IV.
Journey to Goiana.—Journey from Goiana to Paraiba, and back
to Goiana 42
CHAP. V.
Journey from Goiana to Rio Grande.—The City of Natal.—The
Governor 56
CHAP. VI.
Continuation of the Journey.—From Natal to Açu 73
CHAP. VII.
Continuation of the Journey.—From Açu to Aracati.—From
Aracati to Searà.—Indians.—The late Governor.—The Family
of the Feitozas 97
CHAP. VIII.
Return.—From Searà to Natal.—Sertanejos.—Cattle.
—Vegetable Wax.—From Natal to Recife 129
CHAP. IX.
Voyage from Pernambuco to Maranham.—St. Luiz.—Trade.—Wild
Indians.—The Governor.—Alcantara.—The Author sails from
St. Luiz, and arrives in England 164
CHAP. X.
The Author sets sail from Gravesend, and arrives at
Pernambuco.—State of Recife.—Journey to Bom Jardim with a
Capitam-mor, and return to Recife 186
CHAP. XI.
Residence at Jaguaribe.—Journey to Goiana.—Illness.—Return
to Jaguaribe 211
CHAP. XII.
Journey to Uninha.—Continuation of my Residence at
Jaguaribe.—Negro Brotherhood of Olinda.—Blessing the
Sugar Works.—Mandingueiras and Valentoens 235
CHAP. XIII.
Removal of the Author to Itamaraca.—The Island.—Conception
and Pillar.—The Festival of Our Lady of the Rosary.
—Journey to Goiana.—The Toque.—The Cowpox 258
CHAP. XIV.
Ants, Snakes, and other Reptiles.—River of Iguaraçu.
—Building a House.—Several Species of Timber Trees.—The
Pinham, Mutamba, and Gameleira Trees.—The Whale 285
CHAP. XV.
Recruiting.—Images.—Animals.—Maracàs.—Apollinario,
Mandinga, and Poultry.—Hieroglyphics.—Festival of Our
Lady of Conception.—Fandangos.—The Fort.—A Christening.
—The Intrudo.—The Author leaves Brazil 305
CHAP. XVI.
Agriculture.—Sugar Plantations 336
CHAP. XVII.
Agriculture.—Cotton 365
CHAP. XVIII.
The Free Population 384
CHAP. XIX.
Slavery 402
CHAP. XX.
Impolicy of the Slave Trade 445
CHAP. XXI.
The Treaties of Friendship and Alliance, and of Commerce and
Navigation between the Crowns of Great Britain and
Portugal, signed at Rio de Janeiro on the 19th February
1810 457
APPENDIX 475
DIRECTIONS FOR PLACING THE PLATES.
Plan of the Port of Pernambuco to face the References.
A Jangada page 3
Map of the Route 42
Crossing a River 53
A Sertanejo 87
Fishing Canoe 175
A Lady going to visit 188
A Cotton-carrier 194
A Sugar-Mill 336
A Planter and his Wife on a Journey 384
REFERENCES
TO THE
PLAN OF THE PORT OF PERNAMBUCO.
A. The bridge of Boa Vista.
B. The bridge of Recife.
C. Fort Bom Jezus.
D. Fort Picam.
E. Fort Brum.
F. Cross of Patram.
G. Fort Buraco.
H. The village of Arrombados.
I. The church of St. Amaro.
K. Jerusalem.
a. Houses and gardens.
b. The Carmelite convent.
c. The Church of Sacramento (parish).
d. The Franciscan convent.
e. The Treasury.
f. The Palace.
g. The cotton wharf (commonly called _Forte do Mato_).
h. The Madre de Deos convent.
i. The church of Corpo Santo (parish).
k. The Intendencia da Marinha (dock yard) and King’s wharf.
To enter the port, coming in from sea, keep Fort Picam and Fort Brum
in one, until you have the point of Olinda bearing N., then steer due
N., until the cross of Patram is in one with the coco-nut trees on St.
Amaro, then steer directly for the same cross of Patram, until you
open the inner part of the reef above water, with Fort Picam to the
southward, where you may come to anchor, or stand on to the southward
into the harbour of Mosqueiro.
To enter the channel for smaller vessels coming from sea, keep the same
mark, Fort Picam and Fort Brum in one, until you are within a quarter
of a mile of Fort Picam, then bring the two southern watch towers on
Fort Brum in one, you clearing the northern extremity of the reef above
water, and hauling short round the same, keep the reef close aboard
until you are in the harbour of Mosqueiro.
[Illustration: PLAN OF THE
Port of
PERNAMBUCO.]
TRAVELS IN BRAZIL.
CHAPTER I.
DEPARTURE FROM LIVERPOOL.—ARRIVAL AT PERNAMBUCO.—THE TOWN AND
HARBOUR OF RECIFE.—THE GOVERNOR.—THE TRADE.
IF my health had not required a change of climate, I should not perhaps
so soon have accomplished the wish I had often expressed of leaving
England for a short time. An immediate removal was judged expedient;
and as the ports of Spain and Portugal were either closed to British
subjects, or at least not in a state to be visited by an invalid, I
determined upon Brazil; to which my friends agreed.—I fixed upon
Pernambuco, because a gentleman, who had for many years been acquainted
with my family, was about to embark for that place, and from the
favourable reports of the people and climate which I had received from
several persons. On the 2d November 1809, I set sail from Liverpool in
the ship Lucy.
We had a very prosperous passage of thirty-five days, without any
occurrence worthy of particular notice.
I was agreeably awakened very early on the morning of the 7th December,
with the news that we were in sight of land, and likely to get into
harbour this day. We soon discovered two vessels, with all sail set,
making for us; these proved to be two English merchant-ships, bound
likewise to Pernambuco; they had never before been at this port, and
therefore wished to receive some information respecting it; they judged
that, from the manner in which our vessel made for the land, her
commander must be acquainted with it, which was the case, this being
the second voyage of the Lucy to Pernambuco.
The land is low, and consequently not to be seen at any considerable
distance; but as we approached it, we distinguished the hill upon
which stands the city of Olinda, a little to the northward; and some
leagues to the southward, the Cape of St. Agostinho; a nearer view
discovered to us the town of St. Antonio do Recife, almost a-head with
the shipping in front of it; the dreary land between it and Olinda,
which is one league distant, and coco[1] groves northward, as far as
the eye can reach; southward of the town are also seen great numbers
of coco trees, woods, and scattered cottages. The situation of Olinda
is the highest in the neighbourhood; and though not very high, is
still not despicable. Its appearance from the sea is most delightful;
its white-washed churches and convents upon the tops and sides of
the hill; its gardens and trees, interspersed amongst the houses,
afford a promise of great extent, and hold out expectations of great
beauty. The sands, which extend one league to the southward of it, are
relieved by two fortresses erected upon them, and by the ships in the
lower harbour. Then follows the town of Recife, with the appearance of
being built in the water, so low is the sand-bank upon which it has
been raised; the shipping immediately in front partly conceal it; and
the bold reef of rocks on the outside of these, with the surf dashing
violently against and over it, give to them the appearance of being
ashore; and as no outlet is seen, they seem to be hemmed in. The small
tower or fort at the northern end of the reef, however, soon claims
attention, and points out the entrance. We approached the land rather
to the southward of the town, and coasted, under very easy sail, at
a short distance from the reef, waiting for a pilot. It was not yet
noon, the sea was smooth, the sun was bright, and every thing looked
pleasant. The buildings are all white-washed; the sun shone upon them,
and gave to them a glittering silvery appearance.
[Illustration: _A Jangada._]
Nothing this day created so much astonishment on board our ship,
amongst those who had not been before upon this coast, as the
_Jangadas_, sailing about in all directions. These are simply rafts
of six logs, of a peculiar species of light timber, lashed or pinned
together; a large latine sail; a paddle used as a rudder; a sliding
keel let down between the two centre logs; a seat for the steersman,
and a long forked pole, upon which is hung the vessel containing water,
the provisions, &c. These rude floats have a most singular appearance
at sea, no hull being apparent even when near them. They are usually
managed by two men, and go closer to the wind than any description of
vessel.
A large row-boat at last made its appearance, doubling the end of the
reef near the small fort, which was declared to be that which brings
off the pilots. The _patram-mor_, harbour-master, in his naval uniform,
likewise came on board. A large launch followed the pilot, manned
chiefly by negroes, almost naked; the colour of these men; the state in
which they were; their noise and bustle, when certainly there was no
occasion for it, and their awkwardness, were to me all new. This very
first communication with the shore gave me an idea, for the moment,
that the manners of the country at which I had arrived, were still more
strange than they actually proved to be. These visitors were followed
by others of a very different description; two boats came alongside,
manned by Englishmen, and conveying several English gentlemen. The
former belonged to British ships loading in the harbour, and the latter
were young men who had come out to Pernambuco to settle as merchants.
The pilot placed himself near to the ship’s windlass; a Portugueze
sailor was sent to take the helm, but still the vociferation was
extreme; the man seemed to think that, by speaking very loud, he would
make the English seamen understand his language; and what with his
bawling to them and to his own people, and their noise, the confusion
was excessive; however, we doubled the fort in safety, and came to
anchor in the upper harbour. The reef is very perpendicular near to the
bar; and to one unacquainted with the port, there is every appearance
of the vessel being about to drive upon it. I then accompanied my
fellow-passenger; we left the ship and proceeded to the shore. Here
was a new scene indeed. We had taken the letter-bag with us; the crowd
of well-dressed persons upon the quay was great; they saw the bag, and
soon their anxiety for news overcame their politeness; the letters were
asked for, and at last we gave them up, and they were scrambled for,
each man seeking his own. We had landed at the custom-house wharf upon
a busy day, and the negroes too were all clamour and bustle. Their
hideous noise when carrying any load, bawling out some ditty of their
own language, or some distich of vulgar Portugueze rhyme; the numerous
questions asked by many persons who met us, and the very circumstance
of seeing a population consisting chiefly of individuals of a dark
colour, added to the sound of a new language, with which, although
I was acquainted, still I had not since very early youth been in a
country where it was generally spoken; all combined to perplex and to
confuse. I was led along by those who were accustomed to these scenes,
and we proceeded to the house of one of the first merchants in the
place. We were ushered up one pair of stairs into a room in which were
several piles of piece-goods, a table covered with papers, and several
chairs. There were four or five persons in the room besides the owner
of the house. I delivered my letter of introduction to him, and was
treated with the greatest civility. Our next visit was to a colonel,
who is also a merchant, from whom I met with the same behaviour.
As there are no inns or furnished lodgings at Recife, or at[2]Olinda,
an acquaintance of my fellow-passenger obtained some temporary rooms
for us, and supplied us with what we wanted. We are therefore at
last quietly settled in our new habitation, if I may be allowed to
call it quiet, whilst some twenty black women are under the windows
bawling out, in almost all tones and keys of which the human voice is
capable,—oranges, bananas, sweetmeats, and other commodities, for sale.
The town of St. Antonio do Recife, commonly called Pernambuco, though
the latter is properly the name of the captaincy, consists of three
compartments, connected by two bridges. A narrow, long neck of sand
stretches from the foot of the hill, upon which Olinda is situated to
the southward. The southern extremity of this bank expands and forms
the site of that part of the town particularly called Recife, as
being immediately within the reef. There is another sand-bank also of
considerable extent, upon which has been built the second division,
called St. Antonio, connected with that already mentioned by means of
a bridge. Yet a third division of the town remains to be mentioned,
called Boa Vista, which stands upon the main land to the southward of
the other two, and is joined to them also by a bridge. The _recife_,
or reef of rocks already spoken of, runs in front of these sand-banks,
and receives upon it the principal force of the sea, which, at the flow
of the tide, rolls over it, but is much checked by it, and strikes the
quays and buildings of the town with diminished strength. The greatest
part of the extent of sand between Olinda and the town which remains
uncovered, is open to the sea, and the surf there is very violent.
Buildings have only been raised within the protection of the reef. The
tide enters between the bridges, and encircles the middle compartment.
On the land side there is a considerable expanse of water, having
much the appearance of a lake, which becomes narrower towards Olinda,
and reaches to the very streets of that place, thus facilitating the
communication between the two towns. The view from the houses that look
on to these waters is very extensive and very beautiful; their opposite
banks are covered with trees and white-washed cottages, varied by small
open spaces and lofty coco trees.
The first division of the town is composed of brick houses of three,
four, and even five stories in height; most of the streets are narrow,
and some of the older houses in the minor streets are of only one
story in height, and many of them consist only of the ground-floor.
The streets of this part, with the exception of one, are paved. In
the Square are the custom-house, in one corner, a long, low, and
shabby building; the sugar-inspection, which bears the appearance of
a dwelling-house; a large church, not finished; a coffee-house, in
which the merchants assemble to transact their commercial affairs; and
dwelling-houses. There are two churches in use, one of which is built
over the stone arch-way leading from the town to Olinda, at which
a lieutenant’s guard is stationed. The other church belongs to the
priests of the _Congregaçam da Madre de Deos_. Near to the gate-way
above-mentioned is a small fort, close to the water-side, which
commands it. To the northward is the residence of the Port-Admiral,
with the government timber-yards attached to it: these are small,
and the work going on in them is very trifling. The cotton-market,
warehouses, and presses, are also in this part of the town.[3]
The bridge which leads to St. Antonio has an arch-way at either end,
with a small chapel built upon each; and at the northern arch is
stationed a serjeant’s guard of six or eight men. The bridge is formed
in part of stone arches, and in part of wood: it is quite flat, and
lined with small shops, which render it so narrow that two carriages
cannot pass each other upon it.
St. Antonio, or the middle town, is composed chiefly of large houses
and broad streets; and if these buildings had about them any beauty,
there would exist here a certain degree of grandeur: but they are too
lofty for their breadth, and the ground-floors are appropriated to
shops, warehouses, stables, and other purposes of a like nature. The
shops are without windows, and the only light they have is admitted
from the door. There exists as yet very little distinction of trades;
thus all descriptions of manufactured goods are sold by the same
person. Some of the minor streets consist of low and shabby houses.
Here are the Governor’s palace, which was in other times the Jesuits’
convent; the treasury; the town-hall and prison; the barracks,
which are very bad; the Franciscan, Carmelite, and Penha convents,
and several churches, the interiors of which are very handsomely
ornamented, but very little plan has been preserved in the architecture
of the buildings themselves. It comprises several squares, and has, to
a certain degree, a gay and lively appearance. This is the principal
division of the town.
The bridge which connects St. Antonio with Boa Vista is constructed
entirely of wood, and has upon it no shops, but is likewise narrow. The
principal street of Boa Vista, which was formerly a piece of ground
overflowed at high water, is broad and handsome: the rest of this third
division consists chiefly of small houses, and as there is plenty
of room here, it extends to some distance in a straggling manner.
Neither the streets of this part of the town nor of St. Antonio are
paved. A long embankment has likewise been made, which connects the
sand-bank and town of St. Antonio with the main land at Affogados[4],
to the south and west of Boa Vista. The river Capibaribe, so famous in
Pernambucan history, discharges its waters into the channel between St.
Antonio and Boa Vista, after having run for some distance in a course
nearly east and west.
Some few of the windows of the houses are glazed, and have iron
balconies: but the major part are without glass, and of these the
balconies are enclosed by lattice-work; and no females are to be seen,
excepting the negro slaves, which gives a very sombre look to the
streets. The Portugueze[5], the Brazilian, and even the Mulatto women,
in the middle ranks of life, do not move out of doors in the day-time;
they hear mass at the churches before day-light-, and do not again
stir out, excepting in sedan chairs, or in the evening on foot, when
occasionally a whole family will sally forth to take a walk.
The upper harbour of Recife, called the Mosqueiro, as has been already
said, is formed by the reef of rocks which runs parallel with the
town at a very small distance. The lower harbour, for vessels of 400
tons and upwards, called the Poço, is very dangerous, as it is open
to the sea, and the beach opposite to it is very steep. The large
Brazil ships, belonging to merchants of the place, lie here for months
at a time, moored with four cables, two a-head and two a-stern. If
precautions are not taken very speedily, the entrance to the harbour
of Mosqueiro will be choaked up, owing to a breach in the reef,
immediately within the small fort, which is called Picam. The port has
two entrances, one of which is deeper than the other. The tide does
not rise more than five and a half feet. The principal defence of the
town consists in the forts Do Buraco[6] and Do Brum, both of which are
built of stone, and are situated upon the sands opposite to the two
entrances. Likewise there is the small fort of Bom Jezus, near to the
arch-way and church of the same name; and upon the south-east point
of the sand-bank of St. Antonio stands the large stone fort of Cinco
Pontas, so called from its pentagonal form. They are said to be all out
of order. From what I have stated, it will be seen that the ground upon
which the town has been built is most peculiarly circumstanced, and
that the manner in which the harbour is formed is equally rare.
The town is principally supplied with water, which is brought in
canoes, either from Olinda, or from the river Capibaribe, above the
influence of the tide; it comes in bulk, and although the greater part
of the vessels are decked, still it is usually filthy, as too much care
is not taken in their cleanliness. The wells that are sunk in the sand
upon which the town stands only afford brackish water.
The three compartments of the town, together, contain about 25,000
inhabitants, or more, and it is increasing rapidly; new houses are
building wherever space can be found. The population consists of white
persons, of mulatto and black free people, and of slaves also of
several shades.
The reef of rocks, of which I have before spoken, continues along the
whole coast between Pernambuco and Maranham, and in some parts it runs
at a very short distance from the shore; and in this case is usually
high, remaining uncovered at low water, as at Recife; but in other
places it recedes from the land, and is then generally concealed. It
has numberless breaks in it, through which the communication with the
sea is laid open.
Recife is a thriving place, increasing daily in opulence and
importance. The prosperity which it enjoys may be in some measure
attributed to the character of its Governor and Captain-General,
Caetano Pinto de Miranda Montenegro, who has ruled the province for the
last ten years with systematic steadiness and uniform prudence. He has
made no unnecessary innovations, but he has allowed useful improvements
to be introduced. He has not, with hurried enthusiastic zeal, which
often defeats its end, pushed forwards any novelty that struck him
at the moment, but he has given his consent and countenance to any
proposal backed by respectable persons. He has not interfered and
intermeddled with those concerns in which governments have no business,
but he has supported them when they have been once established. I here
speak of commercial regulations and minor improvements in the chief
town, and in the smaller settlements of the country. He is affable,
and hears the complaint of a peasant or a rich merchant with the same
patience; he is just, seldom exercising the power which he possesses
of punishing without appeal to the civil magistrate; and when he does
enforce it, the crime must be very glaring indeed. He acts upon a
system, and from principle; and if it is the fate of Brazil to be in
the hands of a despotic government, happy, compared to its present
state, would it in general be, if all its rulers resembled him. I love
the place at which I so long resided, and I hope most sincerely that
he may not be removed, but that he may continue to dispense to that
extensive region, the blessings of a mild, forbearing administration.
In political consequence, with reference to the Portuguese government,
Pernambuco holds the third[7] rank amongst the provinces of Brazil;
but in a commercial point of view, with reference to Great Britain, I
know not whether it should not be named first.[8] Its chief exports
are cotton and sugar; the former mostly comes to England, and may be
accounted at 80,000 or 90,000 bags annually, averaging 160 pounds
weight each bag. The latter is chiefly shipped to Lisbon. Hides,
cocoa-nuts, ipecacuanha, and a few other drugs, are also occasionally
sent from thence, but are exported in trifling quantities. These
articles are exchanged for manufactured goods, earthenware, porter, and
other articles of necessity among civilized people, and also of luxury
to no very great amount. Two or three ships sail annually for Goa in
the East Indies; and the trade to the coast of Africa for slaves is
considerable. Several vessels from the United States arrive at Recife
annually, bringing flour, of which great quantities are now consumed;
furniture for dwelling-houses, and other kinds of lumber, and carrying
away sugar, molasses, and rum. During the late war between the United
States and England, which interrupted this trade, Recife was at first
somewhat distressed for wheat-flour, but a supply arrived from Rio
Grande do Sul, the most southern province of the kingdom of Brazil.[9]
The quality is good[10], and I rather think that some coasting-vessels
will continue to supply the market with this article, notwithstanding
the renewed communication with North America.
CHAPTER II.
VISIT TO THE GOVERNOR.—THE CLIMATE.—FIRST RIDE INTO THE
COUNTRY.—RESIDENCE AT A VILLAGE IN THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF
RECIFE.—OLINDA.—HOLY THURSDAY.—GOOD FRIDAY.—EASTER
SUNDAY.—PROFESSION OF A FRIAR.—ST. PETER’S DAY.—VISIT TO A
BRASILIAN FAMILY.—A DANCE.—ANOTHER VISIT TO OLINDA.
THE numerous arrangements necessary on our arrival, prevented our
making immediately the customary visit to the governor; but on the
following morning we proceeded to the palace, situated in a small
square, with the guard-house on one side, at which is stationed a
captain’s guard. We were ushered up stairs, remained some time in an
anti-chamber with several cadets, and were then desired to enter;
we passed the secretary’s room, and were shown into a very spacious
apartment, in which the governor waited to receive us. He is a large
handsome man, with quite the manners of a gentleman; we all sat down,
and he asked several questions respecting affairs in Europe; I had some
English newspapers, which I left with him, and in about half an hour we
retired.
The first few days after my arrival were spent in delivering my
letters of introduction. I soon became acquainted with all the English
merchants, who live in a very respectable style, and have done much
good in establishing some customs which the Portugueze have had the
sense to follow, preserving at the same time those of their own, which
are fitted to the country and the climate.
As this was the summer season, great numbers of the inhabitants were
out of town; they remove to small cottages at Olinda, and upon the
banks of the rivers, to enjoy a purer air, and the amusement and
comfort of bathing, during the months most subject to hot, parching
weather. The heat is, however, seldom very oppressive; the sea-breeze,
during the whole year, commences about nine o’clock in the morning,
and continues until midnight. When exposed to it, even standing in
the sun, the heat is so much alleviated by its influence, as to make
the person so situated forget, for a moment, that in the shade he
would be cooler. At the time this subsides the land-breeze rises, and
continues until early in the morning, and the half hour in the forenoon
which occasionally passes between the one and the other, is the most
unpleasant period of the day. In the rainy season, just before the
commencement of a heavy shower, the clouds are very dark, dense, and
low; the breeze is suspended for a short time; there is then a sort of
expectant stillness, and the weather is very sultry.
One afternoon I rode out with several young men to a village in the
neighbourhood, for the purpose of delivering a letter to one of the
rich merchants. We passed through Boa Vista, and proceeded along a
narrow sandy road, formed by frequent passing and repassing; and along
the sides of this are many of the summer residences of the wealthy
inhabitants of the town, which are small, neat, white-washed cottages
of one floor, with gardens in front and at the sides, planted with
orange, lemon, pomegranate, and many other kinds of fruit-trees; some
few are inclosed partly by low walls, but for the most part they are
protected by fences of timber. About half way we came out upon the
banks of the Capibaribe; the view is exceedingly pretty; houses, trees,
and gardens on each side: the river bends just above, and appears
lost among the trees; the canoes going gently down with the tide, or
more laboriously forcing their way up against it, formed altogether a
delightful prospect. The river is here rather narrower than the Thames
at Richmond. Along the sides of the road, at this spot, are several
black women selling oranges, other kinds of fruits and cakes, and
canoe-men with their long poles, unable to delay, bargaining with them
for some of their commodities. This was the first time I had left the
town, and I was truly pleased with these first looks of the country of
which I had become an inhabitant. We again left the river, continuing
along the road, still bordered by cottages of a better or worse
appearance, until we reached a small village; through this we passed,
and soon afterwards arrived at the end of our ride. The situation is
very picturesque, upon the northern bank of the Capibaribe, and at the
foot of a steep hill clothed with wood. On our arrival at the house,
we entered immediately from the road into a hall with a brick floor,
of which the doors and windows are very large, so as to leave the
front very nearly open. We were received by the lady of the house, and
her husband soon appeared; they were exceedingly civil, and ordered
sweetmeats to be brought out.
Our English flat saddles created as much surprise to the people of
Pernambuco, as those of the Portugueze appeared strange to us. They are
high before and behind, which obliges the rider to sit very upright,
and the fashion is to be as stiff as possible, and to hold quite
perpendicularly a switch of most enormous length. The horses are taught
a delightful amble, upon which some of them can be made to proceed with
great speed.
The river Capibaribe is navigable during the whole year as far as
Apepucos, half a league beyond Monteiro, the village at which my new
acquaintance was now residing. It overflows its banks in the rainy
season, oftentimes with great rapidity. As the lands through which it
runs in this part of the country are very low, the floods are somewhat
dreaded, as they occasionally extend far and wide. The straw hovels
upon its banks are often carried away, and the whole neighbourhood is
laid under water: canoes have been known to ply between this village
and those of Poço da Panella and Caza Forte.
A Portugueze friend, with whom I had been acquainted in England,
having taken a house at the former of the two last-mentioned places,
I agreed to share the expence of it with him, and we immediately
removed to it, to pass the summer months. The village was quite
full; not a hut remained untenanted; and, as occurs in England at
watering-places, families, whose dwellings in town were spacious and
handsome regardless of inconvenience, came to reside here during the
summer in very small cottages. The Poço da Panella contains a chapel,
built by subscription, a row of houses running parallel with the river,
several washerwomen’s huts in front of them, and other dwellings
scattered about in all directions. Here the ceremonious manners of the
town are thrown aside, and exchanged for an equal degree of freedom.
Our mornings were filled up, either in riding to the Recife or to
some other part of the country, or in conversation at the houses of
any of the families with whom we were acquainted; and the afternoons
and evenings with music, dancing, playing at forfeits, or in dining
with some of the English merchants, a few of whom had also removed to
this place and its neighbourhood. At many of the Portugueze houses I
found the card-tables occupied at nine o’clock in the morning; when
one person rose another took his place; and thus they were scarcely
deserted, except during the heat of the day, when each man either
returned to his own home to dine, or, as is much less frequent, was
requested to remain and partake with the family.
On the last day of this year I was invited to visit Olinda, that I
might witness the festival of Our Lady of the Mountain. The city
is, as I have already observed, situated upon a hill, very steep in
front of the sea, and declining gradually on the land side. Its first
appearance, on arriving upon the coast, is so beautiful, that the
disappointment experienced on entering it is great; but still Olinda
has many beauties, and the view from it is magnificent. The streets are
paved, but are much out of repair; many of the houses are small, low,
and neglected, and the gardens very little cultivated; indeed the place
has been deserted for the Recife. However, one of the regiments of the
line is stationed here[11]; it is the residence of the bishop, and
the site of the ecclesiastical court, the seminary, which is a public
college of education, and some convents and fine churches; therefore,
it is by no means desolate, though its general aspect bespeaks
tranquillity, regularity, and a degree of neglect. The view to the
southward takes in a lake of about three miles in length, of which the
surface is covered with weeds and grass, and the opposite banks lined
with thick woods and some cottages; the Recife and the bay behind it,
formed by the entrance of the tide, extending to Olinda, but concealed
in places by low and thick mangroves are also to be seen. Olinda covers
much ground, but contains only about 4000 inhabitants. At this time
the whole city presented a scene of bustle and amusement. The church,
particularly decorated on this occasion, stands upon the highest point;
the assemblage of persons was great; the church was lighted up, and a
few individuals of both sexes were kneeling promiscuously in the body
of it, but the service was over.
This is the season of cheerfulness and gaiety, and we were likewise
to have our festival at the Poço da Panella. These festivals are
always preceded by nine evenings of hymn-singing, and music, in honour
of the Virgin, or the saint whose day is to be thus celebrated. On
this occasion the performance for the _novena_, or nine evenings,
consisted of a piano-forte played by a lady, the wife of a merchant,
and a guitar, and some wind-instruments, played by several young men
of respectability. The vocal music was also executed by the same
persons, assisted by some female mulatto slaves belonging to the
lady. I was somewhat surprised to hear the airs of country-dances and
marches occasionally introduced. However, on the day of the festival,
the performers were professional men, and in the evening fireworks
were displayed. Every house in the village was crowded this day with
people from all parts. My friend and I had several persons to dinner,
but before we had half finished, some of _their_ friends appeared,
and without ceremony came in and helped themselves; soon all idea of
regularity vanished, and things were scrambled for. In a short time
both of us left our own house, and tried to gain admittance to some
other, but all were in the same confusion. We were invited to a dance
in the evening, at which the Governor was present; and although he is
himself desirous of making every person feel at ease, still such is
the dreadful idea of rank, for I know not what else to call it, in
this country, that the behaviour of every one was constrained, and the
conversation carried on almost in a whisper.
I lost no Festivals, and amongst others, went to that of St. Amaro, the
healer of wounds, at whose chapel are sold bits of ribbon, as charms,
which many individuals of the lower orders of people tie round their
naked ancles or their wrists, and preserve until they wear out, and
drop off.
About the commencement of Lent, the villages in the neighbourhood are
almost entirely deserted by the white people, who return to town to see
the processions customary at this season in Catholic countries. The
rains also usually begin about the end of March. I did not leave the
Poço de Panella until the very last, but in the end found the place
dull, and followed the rest.
On Holy Thursday, accompanied by two of my countrymen, I sallied forth
at three o’clock, to see the churches, which are, on this occasion,
lighted up, and highly ornamented. The whole town was in motion; the
females, too, both high and low, were this afternoon parading the
streets on foot, contrary to their usual custom; many of them were
dressed in silks of different colours, and covered with gold chains
and other trinkets, a general muster being made of all the finery that
could be collected. The blaze in some of the churches, from great
numbers of wax tapers, was prodigious; the object apparently aimed
at was the production of the greatest quantity of light, as in some
instances mirrors were fixed behind the tapers. The middle of the body
of these churches is completely open; there are no pews, no distinction
of places; the principal chapel is invariably at the opposite end from
the chief entrance, recedes from the church, and is narrower; this part
is appropriated to the officiating priests, and is railed in from the
body of the church. The females, as they enter, whether white or of
colour, place themselves as near to the rails as they can, squatting
down upon the floor of the large open space in the centre. The men
stand along either side of the body of the church, a narrow slip being
in most instances railed off lengthways; or they remain near to the
entrance, behind the women; but every female, of whatever rank or
colour, is first accommodated.
On the following day, Good Friday, the decorations of the churches,
the dress of the women, and even the manner of both sexes was changed;
all was dismal. In the morning I went with the same gentlemen to the
church of the Sacramento, to witness a representation of our Saviour’s
descent from the Cross. We entered the church by a side door; it was
much crowded, and the difficulty of getting in was considerable. An
enormous curtain hung from the ceiling, excluding from the sight the
whole of the principal chapel. An Italian Missionary Friar of the
Penha convent, with a long beard, and dressed in a thick dark brown
cloth habit, was in the pulpit, and about to commence an extempore
sermon. After an exordium of some length, adapted to the day, he cried
out “Behold him;” the curtain immediately dropped, and discovered
an enormous Cross, with a full-sized wooden image of our Saviour,
exceedingly well carved and painted, and around it a number of angels
represented by several young persons, all finely decked out, and each
bearing a large pair of out-stretched wings, made of gauze; a man,
dressed in a bob wig, and a pea green robe, as St. John, and a female
kneeling at the foot of the Cross, as the Magdalen; whose character, as
I was informed, seemingly that nothing might be wanting, was not the
most pure. The friar continued, with much vehemence, and much action,
his narrative of the crucifixion, and after some minutes, again cried
out “Behold, they take him down;” when four men, habited in imitation
of Roman soldiers, stepped forwards. The countenances of these persons
were in part concealed by black crape. Two of them ascended ladders
placed on each side against the Cross, and one took down the board,
bearing the letters I.N.R.I. Then was removed the crown of thorns, and
a white cloth was put over, and pressed down upon the head; which was
soon taken off, and shown to the people, stained with the circular mark
of the crown in blood: this done, the nails which transfix the hands,
were by degrees knocked out, and this produced a violent beating of
breasts among the female part of the congregation. A long white linen
bandage was next passed under each arm-pit of the image; the nail which
secured the feet was removed; the figure was let down very gently, and
was carefully wrapped up in a white sheet. All this was done by word
of command from the preacher. The sermon was then quickly brought to
a conclusion, and we left the church. I was quite amazed; I had heard
that something of this kind was to be done, but I had no idea of the
extent to which the representation would be carried.
On Saturday morning we were saluted with the bellowing of cattle, the
grunting of pigs, and the cries of the negro slaves with baskets of
fowls of several kinds for sale; these were to be devoured after the
ensuing midnight, and many families, weary of their long abstinence,
impatiently awaited the striking of the clocks, as a signal for the
commencement of hostile operations, without mercy or scruple, upon
turkies, pigs, &c. and all the rest of the miserable tribes which have
been laid down as the lawful victims of our carnivorous nature.
On Easter Sunday I was invited by a physician to dine with him, and to
attend the christening of one of his grandchildren. At dinner the party
was small; the dishes, were served up two at a time to the number of
ten or twelve, of all of which I was obliged to taste. From the table
we adjourned to the church about four o’clock, where several persons,
likewise invited, waited for us; the ceremony was performed by a friar,
and each guest held a wax taper, forming a semicircle towards the
altar; from hence we returned to the old gentleman’s house to supper.
I met here, among others belonging to the same convent, the friar who
preached the crucifixion sermon. The members of this convent are all
Italians and Missionaries, but as no reinforcement has for a length of
time come out from Europe, very few now remain. A long table was laid
out, loaded with victuals. Several ladies were present, notwithstanding
which enormous quantities of wine were drank, until the whole company
began to be riotous, but still the ladies did not move. At last no
order was left among them, bottles and glasses were overturned and
broken in the vehement wishes expressed for the prosperity of the
whole family of our host, both old and young; when in the midst of
this, I escaped about nine o’clock, accompanied by a Franciscan friar.
We had a journey in contemplation for the next day, and thought it
high time to get away. Parties of this kind are not frequent, and in a
general way these people live in a very quiet manner. The old Doctor is
a native of Lisbon, and a great friend to Englishmen; he was young at
the time of the great earthquake, and says he shall never forget that
he was in part cloathed from the necessaries sent out by the British
government for the assistance of the Portugueze after that dreadful
calamity.
On the following afternoon, the friar, myself, and a servant, proceeded
to Iguaraçu, a small town distant from Recife seven leagues, for the
purpose of witnessing the entrance of a novice into the Order of St.
Francis. We arrived about nine o’clock at night at the gates of the
convent; the friar rang the bell three times, as the signal of the
arrival of one of the Order; a lay brother came, and asked who it was
that demanded admittance; he was answered, that it was brother Joseph
from the convent of Recife accompanied by a friend; the porter shut
the gates again, but soon returned, saying that the Guardian, the name
given to the principal of a Franciscan convent, allowed us to enter.
We were conducted up a flight of steps into a long corridore, at the
end of which sat the Guardian, to whom we were introduced; he directed
us to the brother who had the management of the accommodations for
visitors; this man placed us under the especial care of Frei Luiz, who
took us to his cell. Supper was served up, upon which the Guardian
came in, helped us once round to wine and made many apologies for the
badness of his cook, and also excuses for the want of ingredients at
this distance from Recife. The convents of St. Francis are all built
exactly upon the same plan; in the form of a quadrangle, one side of
which is appropriated to the church, and the remaining three to cells
and to other purposes; the former are above, and to be entered from a
gallery, which runs round the whole building. The beds with which the
friars supplied us were hard, but very acceptable after our ride.
The ceremony to be performed on the ensuing morning collected great
numbers of persons from all quarters, as it is now very rare. Formerly,
of every family at least one member was a friar, but now this is not
the custom; children are brought up to trade, to the army, to any thing
rather than to a monastic life, which is fast losing its reputation.
None of the convents are full, and some of them are nearly without
inhabitants.[12]
Early in the morning the church was lighted up, and about ten o’clock
the family of the person about to take the vows arrived to occupy the
seats prepared for them. Mass was then said, and a sermon preached;
about eleven o’clock the novice, a young man of sixteen years of
age, entered the principal chapel by a side door, walking between
two brothers, with a large cross in his hands, and dressed in a long
dark blue robe: there was then much chanting, after which he knelt
down opposite to the Guardian, received the usual admonitions, was
asked several questions relating to his belief in the doctrines of the
church, and then made the separate vows, of defending his religion, of
celibacy, and others of minor importance. The Guardian then dressed
him in the habit of the Order, made of very thick, rough, dark brown
cloth, which before lay stretched upon the ground in front of the
altar, covered with flowers; this being done, the young man embraced
all the brothers present, took leave of his relations, and left the
church. Many of the friars were laughing during the ceremony, and were
particularly amused at the Guardian accidentally saying, “Brother,
don’t be ashamed[13];” owing to the young man being much abashed.
A visitor who stood near to me in the gallery, from which there are
windows into the church, said, in a low voice to be heard only by those
immediately around him; “See your chief himself thus advises him to put
shame aside, which unfortunately you are all too much inclined to do;”
at this the friars who were within hearing all laughed. Great part of
the community and many other persons dined with the father of the young
friar, and I among the rest; there was much eating, much drinking, and
much confusion. In the evening fireworks were displayed, which ended by
a transparency, representing a novice receiving the benediction of his
Guardian.
It was determined that we should return to Recife this night, and
that the journey was to be commenced as soon as the moon rose. The
party consisted of five friars, several laymen besides myself all on
horseback; some palanquins with ladies, and a number of negroes to
carry them. We sallied forth about midnight; the moon was bright, and
the sky quite clear. The scene was very strange; the road made in
places abrupt turns, so as to give to those who were rather in advance,
on looking back, a view of the whole procession, at times appearing
and at times concealed among the trees; of this the friars formed an
extraordinary part, in their robes tucked up round the waist, and tied
with the long yellow cord of flagellation, and with their enormous
white hats. At Olinda several persons remained, and the rest arrived at
Recife about seven o’clock in the morning.
On the 10th of May I had a sudden attack of fever, which was
accompanied with delirium; however, with the assistance of a medical
man, the disorder subsided in the course of forty-eight hours, but it
left me in a very weak state, from which I was some time in recovering.
These fevers are well known in the country, but are not common, and
in general are preceded for some days by ague. I can only account for
this attack, from having suffered the window of my room, which had a
western aspect, to remain open during the night, and the land breeze
which rises about twelve o’clock is not accounted wholesome. A young
Englishman insisted upon my removal to his house, that I might not
remain in the hands of servants; he brought a palanquin for this
purpose, and made me get into it. With him I remained until my health
was completely re-established, and was treated by him with that sort of
kindness which can only be expected from a very near relation.
I dined with a friend on St. Peter’s day, the 29th June, and in the
evening I proposed walking to the church, dedicated to this saint.
As usual, the blaze of light was great, the congregation numerous,
and the whole affair very brilliant. After the service, we recognised
a party of ladies with whom we were acquainted, and one of them
requested us to look for a young priest, her son; on making enquiries,
we were desired to walk up stairs into a large room over the vestry,
in which were several priests, and a table covered with refreshments
of many descriptions. The young man came to us, and was soon followed
by others, who invited us to stay and partake, but we declined and
went down to the party we had joined; some of the priests accompanied
us, and persuaded the ladies to ascend, and have a share of the good
things; we were also requested to return, which we did. There were
great quantities of fruit, cakes, sweetmeats, and wine. We met with
the most marked attention from these ministers of the Roman Catholic
religion; greater politeness could not have been shown to any person;
even many with whom we had not been acquainted before, offered us
wine, and requested to be introduced to us. I mention the conduct of
these men more particularly, as I think it showed a great degree of
liberality, and a wish to conciliate, and more especially as there were
likewise several laymen present of their own nation[14]. About ten
o’clock we left the church, and taking one family of our party home,
remained with them until a very late hour.
We were invited to pass the following Sunday with this family, which
consisted of the father and mother, and a son and daughter; they
were all Brazilians, and though the young lady had never been from
Pernambuco, her manners were easy; and her conversation lively and
entertaining. Her complexion was not darker than that of the Portugueze
in general, her eyes and hair black, and her features on the whole
good; her figure small, but well shaped. Though I have seen others
handsomer, still this lady may be accounted a very fair sample of the
white Brazilian females; but it is among the women of colour that the
finest persons are to be found,—more life and spirit, more activity
of mind and body; they are better fitted to the climate, and the mixed
race seems to be its proper inhabitant. Their features too are often
good, and even the colour, which in European climates is disagreeable,
appears to appertain to that in which it more naturally exists; but
this bar to European ideas of beauty set aside, finer specimens of the
human form cannot be found than among the mulatto females whom I have
seen.
We went to them to breakfast, which was of coffee and cakes. Backgammon
and cards were then introduced until dinner time, at two o’clock. This
consisted of great numbers of dishes, placed upon the table without
any arrangement, and brought in without any regard to the regularity
of courses. We were, as may be supposed, rather surprised at being
complimented with pieces of meat from the plates of various persons
at the table. I have often met with this custom, particularly amongst
families in the interior, and this I now speak of had only resided in
Recife a short time; but many of the people of the town have other
ideas on these matters. Two or three knives only were placed upon the
table, which obliged each person to cut all the meat upon his own plate
into small pieces, and pass the knife to his next neighbour. There was,
however, a plentiful supply of silver forks, and abundance of plates.
Garlic formed one ingredient in almost every dish, and we had a great
deal of wine during the dinner. The moment we finished, every one rose
from the table, and removed into another apartment. At eight o’clock
a large party assembled to tea, and we did not take our departure
until a very late hour. On our arrival at home, my friend and I sat
together to consider of the transactions of this day, which we had thus
passed entirely with a Brazilian family, and both agreed that we had
been much amused, and that we had really felt much gratification, save
the business at the dining table. The conversation was trifling, but
entertaining; there was much wit and sport. The ladies of the house,
joined by several others in the evening, talked a great deal, and would
allow of no subject into which they could not enter.
It will be observed from what I have described, and from what I still
have to mention, that no rule can be laid down for the society of the
place in question; families of equal rank, and of equal wealth and
importance, are often of manners totally different. The fact is, that
society is undergoing a rapid change; not that the people imitate
European customs, though these have some effect, but as there is more
wealth, more luxuries are required; as there is more education, higher
and more polished amusements are sought for; as the mind becomes more
enlarged, from intercourse with other nations, and from reading, many
customs are seen in a different light; so that, the same persons
insensibly change, and in a few years ridicule and are disgusted with
many of those very habits which, if they reflect for a moment, they
will recollect were practised but a short time before by themselves.
On St. Anne’s day, the 29th July, two young Englishmen and myself
proceeded by invitation to the house of one of the first personages of
Pernambuco; a man in place, and a planter, possessing three sugar works
in different parts of the country. About ten o’clock in the morning,
we embarked in a canoe, and were poled and paddled across the bay, on
the land side of the town. On our arrival upon the opposite shore, the
tide was out, and the mud deep; in fear and trembling for our silks,
two of us clang to the backs of the canoe-men, who with some difficulty
put us down safe on dry land; but the third, who was heavier, for
some minutes debated whether to return home was not the better plan,
however, he took courage, and was, likewise, safely conducted through
this region of of peril. We then walked up to the house, which covers
much ground, and of which the apartments are spacious, and all upon the
first floor. The garden was laid out by this gentleman’s father, in the
old style of straight walks, and trees cut into shapes. A large party
was already assembling, as this was the anniversary of the birth-day of
our hostess; but the females were all ushered into one room, and the
men into another; cards and backgammon, as usual, were the amusements,
but there was little of ease and freedom of conversation. At dinner,
the ladies all arranged themselves on one side, and the men opposite to
them; there were victuals of many kinds in great profusion, and much
wine was drank. Some of the gentlemen who were intimately acquainted
with the family, did not sit down at table, but assisted in attending
upon the ladies. After dinner, the whole party adjourned into a large
hall, and country dancing being proposed and agreed to, fiddlers were
introduced, and a little after seven o’clock, about twenty couples
commenced, and continued this amusement until past two o’clock. Here
was the ceremony of the last century in the morning, and in the evening
the cheerfulness of an English party of the present day. I never
partook of one more pleasant; the conversation, at times renewed, was
always genteel, but unceremonious, and I met with several well-educated
persons, whose acquaintance I enjoyed during the remainder of my stay
at this place.
The rains this season had been very slight, and scarcely ever prevented
our rides into the country in the neighbourhood, to the distance of six
or eight miles; but we never reached beyond the summer dwellings of the
inhabitants of Recife. The villages are at this time very dull, having
people of colour and negroes as residents almost exclusively. However,
as I was fond of the country, I was tempted by the fineness of the
weather, to remove entirely to a small cottage in the vicinity, where
my time passed away pleasantly, though quietly, and in a manner very
barren of events. There stands a hamlet not far distant from my new
residence, called Caza Forte, formerly the site of a sugar plantation,
which has been suffered to decay, and now the chapel alone remains to
point out the exact position. The dwelling-house of these works is said
to have been defended by the Dutch against the Portugueze, who set fire
to it, for the purpose of obliging their enemies to surrender. A large
open piece of ground is pointed out as having been the situation upon
which these transactions took place. It is distant from Recife about
five miles, and the river Capibaribe runs about three quarters of a
mile beyond it. I met with few of the peasants who had any knowledge
of the Pernambucan war against the Dutch, but I heard this spot more
frequently spoken of than any other[15]. Perhaps if I had had more
communication with the southern districts of Pernambuco, I should have
discovered that the war was more vividly remembered there.
I had an offer of introduction to another Brazilian family, which I
readily accepted, and on the 7th August, I was summoned by my friend
to accompany him to Olinda. He had been invited, and liberty had been
given to take a friend. We went in a canoe, and were completely wet
through on the way; but we walked about the streets of Olinda until we
were again dry. The family consisted of an old lady, her two daughters,
and a son, who is a priest, and one of the professors or masters of the
seminary. Several persons of the same class were present, of easy and
gentlemanlike manners; some of them proposed dancing, and although they
did not join in the amusement, still they were highly pleased to see
others entertained in this manner. Our music was a piano forte, played
by one of the professors, who good-humouredly continued until the
dancers themselves begged him to desist. About midnight, we left these
pleasant people, and returned to the beach; the tide was out, and the
canoe upon dry land; we therefore determined to walk; the sand was very
heavy, the distance three miles, and after our evening’s amusement,
this was hard work. I did not attempt this night to go beyond Recife to
my cottage, but accepted of a mattress at my friend’s residence.
Three or four families are in the practice of having weekly evening
card parties, as was usual in Lisbon. I attended these occasionally,
but in them there was no peculiarity of customs.
The foregoing pages will, I think, suffice to point out the kind of
society to be met with in Pernambuco, but this must be sought for, as
the families in which it is to be found, are not numerous. Of these,
very few are in trade; they are either Portugueze families, of which
the chief is in office, or Brazilian planters who are wealthy, and
prefer residing in Recife or Olinda; or, as is frequently the case, a
son or brother belonging to the secular priesthood, has imbibed more
liberal notions, and has acquired a zest for rational society. As may
naturally be supposed, the females of a family are always glad to be of
more importance, to be treated with respect, to see, and to be seen.
The merchants, generally speaking, for there do exist some exceptions,
live very much alone; they have been originally from Portugal, have
made fortunes in trade, and have married in the country; but most
of them still continue to live as if they were not yet sufficiently
wealthy, or at least cannot persuade themselves to alter their close
and retired manner of living, and, excepting in the summer months, when
sitting upon the steps of their country residencies, their families are
not to be seen.
The gentleman, chiefly by whose kindness I had been introduced and
enabled to partake of the pleasantest society of Pernambuco, was
among the first British subjects, who availed themselves of the free
communication between England and Brazil, and he even already observed
a considerable change of manners in the higher class of people. The
decrease in the price of all articles of dress; the facility of
obtaining at a low rate, earthenware, cutlery, and table linen; in
fact, the very spur given to the mind by this appearance of a new
people among them; the hope of a better state of things, that their
country was about to become of more importance; renewed in many
persons, ideas which had long lain dormant; made them wish to show,
that they had money to expend, and that they knew how it should be
expended.[16]
It was the custom in Pernambuco, to uncover when passing a sentinel,
or on meeting a guard of soldiers marching through the streets. Soon
after the opening of the port to British shipping, three English
gentlemen accidentally met a corporal’s guard of four or five men, and
as they passed each other, one of the latter took off the hat of one
of the former, accompanying the action by an opprobrious expression;
the Englishmen resented the insult, attacked and absolutely routed
the guard. This dreadful mark of submission to military power was
universally refused by every British subject, and has been very much
discontinued even by the Portugueze. Another annoyance to these
visitors was the usual respect paid to the Sacrament, carried with
much pomp and ceremony to persons dangerously ill. It was expected,
that every one by whom it chanced to pass, should kneel, and continue
in that posture until it was out of sight; here Englishmen, in some
degree, conformed in proper deference to the religion of the country,
but the necessity of this also is wearing off.[17]
CHAPTER III.
THE GOVERNMENT.—THE TAXES.—THE PUBLIC
INSTITUTIONS.—CRIMINALS.—PRISONS.—MILITARY ESTABLISHMENTS.—THE
ISLAND OF FERNANDO DE NORONHA.
THE captaincies-general, or provinces of the first rank, in Brazil, of
which Pernambuco is one, are governed by captains-general or governors,
who are appointed for three years. At the end of this period the same
person is continued or not, at the option of the supreme government.
They are, in fact, absolute in power, but before the person who
has been nominated to one of these places can exercise any of its
functions, he is under the necessity of presenting his credentials to
the _Senado da Camara_, the chamber or municipality of the principal
town. This is formed of persons of respectability in the place. The
governor has the supreme and sole command of the military force. The
civil and criminal causes are discussed before and determined by the
_Ouvidor_ and _Juiz de Fora_, the two chief judicial officers, whose
duties are somewhat similar, but the former is the superior in rank.
They are appointed for three years, and the term may be renewed[18]. It
is in these departments of the government that the opportunities of
amassing large fortunes are most numerous; and certain it is that some
individuals take advantage of them in a manner which renders justice
but a name. The governor can determine in a criminal cause without
appeal, but, if he pleases, he refers it to the competent judge. The
_Procurador da Coroa_, attorney-general, is an officer of considerable
weight. The _Intendente da Marinha_, port admiral, is likewise
consulted on matters of first importance; as are also the _Escrivam
da Fazenda Real_, chief of the treasury, and the _Juiz da Alfandega_,
comptroller of the customs. These seven officers form the _Junta_,
or council, which occasionally meets to arrange and decide upon the
affairs of the captaincy to which they belong.
The ecclesiastical government is scarcely connected with that above
mentioned, and is administered by a bishop and a dean and chapter, with
his vicar-general, &c. The governor cannot even appoint a chaplain
to the island of Fernando de Noronha, one of the dependencies of
Pernambuco, but acquaints the bishop that a priest is wanted, who then
nominates one for the place.
The number of civil and military officers is enormous; inspectors
innumerable—colonels without end, devoid of any objects to
inspect—without any regiments to command; judges to manage each
trifling department, of which the duties might all be done by two or
three persons; thus salaries are augmented; the people are oppressed,
but the state is not benefited.
Taxes are laid where they fall heavy upon the lower classes, and none
are levied where they could well be borne. A tenth is raised in kind
upon cattle, poultry, and agriculture, and even upon salt; this in
former times appertained, as in other christian countries, to the
clergy[19]. All the taxes are farmed to the highest bidders, and this
among the rest. They are parcelled out in extensive districts, and
are contracted for at a reasonable rate, but the contractors again
dispose of their shares in small portions; these are again retailed
to other persons, and as a profit is obtained by each transfer the
people must be oppressed, that these men may satisfy those above
them and enrich themselves. The system is in itself bad, but is
rendered still heavier by this division of the spoil. The tenth of
cattle, as I have already said, is levied in kind upon the estates
in the interior of the country, and, besides this, a duty of 320
_reis per arroba_ of 32 lbs. is paid upon the meat at the shambles,
which amounts to about twenty-five _per cent._ Fish pays the tenth,
and afterwards a fifteenth. Every transfer of immoveable property
is subject to a duty of ten _per cent._ and moveables to five _per
cent._ Besides these, there are many other taxes of minor importance.
Rum, both for exportation and home consumption, pays a duty of 80
_reis per canada_[20], which is sometimes a fourth of its value, but
may be reckoned as from fifteen to twenty _per cent._ Cotton pays
the tenth, and is again taxed at the moment of exportation 600 _reis
per arroba_ of 32 lbs. or about 1¼_d._ _per_ lb. Nothing can be
more injudicious, than this double duty upon the chief article of
exportation from that country to Europe. The duties at the custom-house
are fifteen _per cent._ upon imports, of which the valuation is left
in some measure to the merchant to whom the property belongs. Here, I
think, ten _per cent._ more might be raised without being felt. A tax
is paid at Pernambuco for lighting the streets of the Rio de Janeiro,
whilst those of Recife remain in total darkness.
Now, although the expences of the provincial governments are great,
and absorb a very considerable proportion of the receipts, owing
to the number of officers employed in every department, still the
salaries of each are, in most instances, much too small to afford a
comfortable subsistence; consequently peculation, bribery, and other
crimes of the same description are to be looked for, and they become
so frequent as to escape all punishment or even notice; though there
are some men whose character is without reproach. The governor of
Pernambuco receives a salary of 4,000,000 _reis_, or about 1000_l._
_per annum_. Can this be supposed to be sufficient for a man in his
responsible situation, even in a country in which articles of food are
cheap? His honour, however, is unimpeached; not one instance did I ever
hear mentioned of improper conduct in him; but the temptation and the
opportunities of amassing money are very great, and few are the persons
who can resist them.
The only manufactory in Recife of any importance is that of gold
and silver trinkets of every description, and of gold lace, but the
quantities made of either are only sufficient for the demand of the
place. The women employ themselves very generally in making thread
lace and in embroidery, but the manufacture of these articles is not
sufficiently extensive to allow of exportation.[21]
The public institutions are not many, but, of those that exist, some
are excellent. The seminary at Olinda for the education of young
persons is well conducted, and many of its professors are persons of
knowledge and of liberality. It is intended principally to prepare
the students for the church as secular priests, and therefore all of
them wear a black gown and a cap of a peculiar form, but it is not
necessary that they should ultimately take orders. Free schools are
also established in most of the small towns in the country, in some
of which the Latin language is taught, but the major part are adapted
only to give instruction in reading, writing, and arithmetic. Neither
in these nor in the seminary is any expence incurred by the pupils. The
Lazarus Hospital is neglected, but patients are admitted; the other
establishments for the sick are very miserable. Strange it is, that
fine churches should be built, whilst many individuals are suffered
to perish from the want of a suitable building under which to shelter
them. But the best institution of which Pernambuco has to boast, in
common with the mother country, is the _Roda dos Engeitados_. Infants
of doubtful birth are received, taken care of, reared, and provided
for. Every person knows what the wheel of a convent is,—a cylindrical
box open on one side, which is fixed in the wall and turns upon a
pivot; near to this is placed a bell, to be rung when any thing is put
into the box, that the inhabitants of the convent may know when it
should be turned. One of these wheels stands ready night and day to
receive the child—the bell is rung and the box turns. Thus the lives
of many are saved—thus numbers are spared from shame. Never let it be
imagined that births of a secret nature will be more frequent, from the
consideration that this institution exists, but it removes all motives
for unnatural conduct in a mother, and it may sometimes produce reform
of future conduct, by the facility afforded of concealing what has
already passed.
The friars are not numerous, though they are far too much so. These
useless beings[22] amount to about one hundred and fifty in number
at Olinda, Recife, Iguaraçu, and Paraiba[23]. But there are no nuns
in the province, though of the establishments called _Recolhimentos_
or Retreats, three exist. These are directed by elderly females, who
have not taken any vows, and who educate young persons of their own
sex, and receive individuals whose conduct has been incorrect, but
whose characters are not notorious, and who are placed here by their
relations to prevent further shame. The number of churches, chapels,
and niches in the streets for saints, is quite preposterous; to these
are attached a multitude of religious lay brotherhoods, of which the
members are merchants, and other persons in trade, and even some are
composed of mulatto and black free people. Some of these continually
beg for a supply of wax, and other articles to be consumed in honour of
their patron. Almost every day in the year, passengers are importuned
in the streets, and the inhabitants in their houses, by some of these
people, and among others, by the lazy Franciscan friars. A Portugueze
gentleman refused to give money for any of these purposes, but after
each application, threw into a bag, placed apart for the purpose, a
5 _reis_ coin, the smallest in use, and in value the third part of a
penny. At the end of a twelvemonth, he counted his 5 _reis_ pieces,
and found that they amounted to 30,000 _reis_, about 8_l._ 6_s._ He
then applied to the vicar of his parish, requesting him to name some
distressed person to whom he should give the money.
The Holy Office or Inquisition has never had an establishment in
Brazil, but several priests resided in Pernambuco, employed as its
familiars, and sometimes persons judged amenable to this most horrid
tribunal, have been sent under confinement to Lisbon. However, the
ninth article of the Treaty of Friendship and Alliance, between the
crowns of England and Portugal, signed at the Rio de Janeiro in 1810,
has completely determined, that the power of the Inquisition shall not
be recognised in Brazil. It will appear surprising to English persons,
that in a place so large as Recife, there should be no printing
press or bookseller. At the convent of the _Madre de Deos_, are sold
almanacks, prints and histories of the Virgin and saints, and other
productions of the same description, but of very limited size, printed
at Lisbon. The post-office is conducted in a very irregular manner. The
letters from England are usually delivered at the house of the merchant
to whom the ship which conveyed them is consigned, or at the office of
the British consul. There is no established means of forwarding letters
to any part of the interior of the country, nor along the coast, so
that the post-office merely receives the letter bags which are brought
by the small vessels that trade with other ports along this coast,
and sends the bags from Pernambuco by the same conveyances, and as
there is not any regular delivery of letters, each person must inquire
for his own at the office. When the commerce of Brazil was trifling,
compared to its present state, a post-office managed in this manner was
sufficient, but in consequence of the increased activity of the trade
along the coast, and with Europe, some attention ought to be given to
the subject, to facilitate communication. There is a theatre at Recife,
in which are performed Portugueze farces, but the establishment is most
wretchedly conducted.
The Botanic Garden at Olinda is one of those institutions which have
arisen from the removal of the Court to South America; it is intended
as a nursery for exotic plants, from whence they are to be distributed
to those persons who are willing and capable of rearing them. Thus the
bread fruit tree has been introduced, the black pepper plant, the large
Otaheitan cane, and several others. I much fear, however, that the zeal
shown at the commencement has somewhat cooled. A botanist has been
appointed with an adequate salary. He is a Frenchman, who had resided
at Cayenne, and with this choice many persons were much dissatisfied,
as it was thought, and with good reason, that a Portugueze subject
might have been found, quite capable of taking the management of the
garden.
The sight, of all others, the most offensive to an Englishman, is that
of the criminals, who perform the menial offices of the palace, the
barracks, the prisons, and other public buildings. They are chained
in couples, and each couple is followed by a soldier, armed with a
bayonet. They are allowed to stop at the shops, to obtain any trifle
which they may wish to purchase, and it is disgusting to see with what
unconcern the fellows bear this most disgraceful situation, laughing
and talking as they go along to each other, to their acquaintance
whom they may chance to meet, and to the soldier who follows them as
a guard[24]. The prisons are in a very bad state, little attention
being paid to the situation of their inhabitants. Executions are rare
at Pernambuco; the more usual punishment inflicted, even for crimes of
the first magnitude, is transportation to the coast of Africa. White
persons must be removed for trial to Bahia, for crimes of which the
punishment is death. Even to pass sentence of death upon a man of
colour, or a negro, several judicial officers must be present. There
does not exist here a regular police; when an arrest is to be effected
in Recife or its neighbourhood, two officers of justice are accompanied
by soldiers, from one or other of the regiments of the line, for this
purpose. A _ronda_ or patrol, consisting of soldiers, parades the
streets during the night, at stated periods, but it is not of much
service to the town. Recife and its vicinity were formerly in a very
tranquil state, owing to the exertions of one individual; he was a
sergeant in the regiment of Recife, a courageous man, whose activity of
mind and body had had no field upon which to act, until he was employed
in the arduous task of apprehending criminals, and at last he received
special orders from the governor for patroling the streets of Recife,
Olinda, and the villages around them; he and his followers were much
dreaded, but at his death no one stepped into his place.[25]
The military establishment is much neglected. The regular troops
consist of two regiments of infantry, which ought to form together a
body of 2,500 men, but they seldom collect more effective than 600;
so that sufficient numbers can scarcely he mustered to do the duty of
the town of Recife, of Olinda, and the forts. Their pay is less than
2¾_d._ _per_ day, and a portion of the flour of the mandioc weekly,
and their clothing is afforded to them very irregularly. From their
miserable pay, rather more than one farthing _per_ day is held back for
a religious purpose. Recruits are made of some of the worst individuals
in the province; this mode of recruiting, and their most wretched pay,
account completely for the depreciated character of the soldiers of
the line[26]. They are formed chiefly of Brazilians, and people of
colour. Besides these regiments, the militia of the town sometimes
do duty without pay, and these make but a sorry shew. The militia
regiments, commanded by mulatto and black officers, and formed entirely
of men of these casts, are very superior in appearance; but these I
shall have again an opportunity of mentioning.
There is one political arrangement of this province which, above all
others, cries aloud for alteration; it is a glaring, self-evident evil,
it is a disgrace upon the government which suffers its existence. I
speak of the small island of Fernando de Noronha. To this spot are
transported, for a number of years or for life, a great number of male
criminals. No females are permitted to visit the island. The garrison,
consisting of about 120 men, is relieved yearly. It is a very difficult
matter to obtain a priest to serve for a twelvemonth, as chaplain
in the island. When the bishop is applied to by the governor, for a
person of this calling, he sends some of his ecclesiastical officers
in search of one; the persons of the profession, who are liable to be
sent, conceal themselves, and the matter usually concludes by a young
priest being literally pressed into the service. The vessel employed
between Recife and the island, visits it twice during the same period,
and carries provisions, cloathing, and other articles to the miserable
beings, who are compelled to remain there, and for the troops. I have
conversed with persons who have resided upon it, and the accounts
I have heard of the enormities committed there, are most horrible;
crimes, punished capitally or severely in civilized states, or which at
least are held in general abhorrence, are here practised, talked of,
publicly acknowledged, without shame, and without remorse. Strange it
is, that the dreadful state of this place should have so long escaped
the notice of the supreme Government of Brazil. But the evil ends not
here; the individuals who return to Pernambuco, cannot shake off the
remembrance of crimes which have become familiar to them. The powers,
likewise, conceded to the commandant, whose will is absolute, have
oftentimes proved too great for due performance; punishment seldom
follows. The most wanton tyranny may be practised almost without fear
of retribution. The climate of the island is good, and the small
portion of it admitting of cultivation, I have understood, from
competent authority, to be of extraordinary fertility. It does not,
however, afford any shelter for shipping.
The supineness of the ancient system upon which Brazil was ruled, is
still too apparent throughout; but the removal of the Sovereign to
that country has roused many persons who had been long influenced by
habits of indolence, and has increased the activity of others who have
impatiently awaited a field for its display. The Brazilians feel of
more importance, their native soil now gives law to the mother country;
their spirit, long kept under severe subjection to ancient colonial
rules and regulations, has now had some opportunities of showing
itself,—has proved, that though of long suffering, and patient of
endurance, it does exist, and that if its possessors are not treated as
men instead of children, it will break forth, and rend asunder those
shackles to which they have forbearingly submitted. I hope, however,
most sincerely, that the supreme Government may see the necessity of
reformation, and that the people will not expect too much, but consider
that many hardships are preferable to a generation of bloodshed,
confusion, and misery.
Freedom of communication with other nations has already been of service
to the country, and the benefits which it imparts are daily augmenting.
This shoot from our European continent will ultimately increase, and a
plant will spring up, infinitely more important than the branch from
which it proceeded; and though the season of this maturity is far
distant, yet the rapidity of its advance or tardiness of its growth
greatly depends upon the fostering care or indifferent negligence of
its rulers. Still, whatever the conduct of these may be, its extent,
its fertility, and other numerous advantages must, in the course of
time, give to it, that rank which it has a right to claim among the
great nations of the world.
CHAPTER IV.
JOURNEY TO GOIANA.—JOURNEY FROM GOIANA TO PARAIBA, AND BACK TO GOIANA.
I HAD much desired to perform some considerable journey into the less
populous and less cultivated part of the country. The chief engineer
officer of Pernambuco had intended to visit all the fortresses within
his extensive district, and had kindly promised to permit me to
accompany him, but unfortunately his projected journey was delayed
from some cause connected with his place, until the following season.
As I did not know how soon I might be under the necessity of returning
to England, I could not postpone my views for this length of time,
and therefore made enquiries among my friends and acquaintance, and
discovered that the brother of a gentleman resident at Goiana, was
about to set off for that place, and would, probably, from thence
proceed further into the country, with some object in view connected
with trade. It was my intention to advance as far as Seara. I applied
to the governor for a passport, which was immediately granted without
any difficulty.
On the afternoon of the 19th October, 1810, some of my English friends
accompanied me to my cottage at the Cruz das Almas, that they might be
present at my departure, in the course of the ensuing night. Senhor
Feliz, my companion, arrived in the evening, bringing with him his
black guide, a freeman. Preparations were made for proceeding upon our
journey, and about one o’clock, as the moon rose, we sallied forth.
Senhor Feliz, myself, and my English servant John on horseback, armed
with swords and pistols; the black guide also on horseback, without
saddle or bridle, carrying a blunderbuss, and driving on before him a
baggage-horse, with a little mulatto boy mounted between the panniers.
My English friends cheered us as we left the Cruz, and remained in my
quarters, the command of which I had given up to one of them during my
absence. That part of the road which we traversed by moon-light I had
already passed over a short time before, and subsequently from frequent
travelling, my acquaintance with it was such, that I might have become
a guide upon it.
[Illustration: Map of the Route]
We rode along a sandy path for three quarters of a league, until we
began to ascend a steep hill, of which the sides and the flat summit
are covered with large trees, and thick brushwood growing beneath
them. The hamlet of Beberibe stands at the foot of the corresponding
declivity; to this place several families resort in the summer, and a
small rivulet runs through it, of which the water is most beautifully
clear. Half a league beyond Beberibe we crossed another rivulet, and
immediately afterwards commenced our ascent of the hill of Quebracu,
which is in most parts very steep and very narrow, being inclosed on
one side by a precipice, and on the other by sloping ground covered
with wood. This ridge of hill is quite flat along the top, and the
path continues for half a league, between lofty trees and impenetrable
brushwood. We descended into the long and narrow valley of Merueira,
through which a rivulet runs, of which the water never fails. The hills
on each side are thickly cloathed with wood, and in the valley are
scattered several cottages, banana gardens, and mandioc lands, with a
large inclosed piece of ground in which cattle graze. The ascent, on
the opposite side of this beautiful vale, is very steep; the path along
the summit of the ridge is similar to that over which we had travelled;
we soon again descended, and on our arrival at the bottom, entered the
long, straggling village of Paratibe, with mandioc lands and plaintain
and tobacco gardens intermixed with the houses. The inhabitants are
mostly labouring free persons, white, mulatto, and black. The houses
are built on each side of the road at intervals, for the distance of
one mile. A rivulet runs through it, which in the rainy season often
overflows its banks to a considerable distance on each side. Beyond
this village the road is comparatively flat, but is still diversified
by unequal small elevations; several sugar-works are seen, and great
numbers of small cottages; the passing of the country people with
loaded horses, carrying cotton, hides, and other articles, the produce
of the country, and returning with many kinds of wares, salt meat and
fish from Recife, may almost be called continual.
The town of Iguaraçu, which we now entered, has been already mentioned
in a former chapter; it is one of the oldest settlements upon this part
of the coast, and stands at the distance of two leagues from the sea
upon the banks of a creek. The woods, that border the paths or roads,
are in parts so thick and close as to be impassable even to a man on
foot, unless he carries in his hand a bill-hook or hatchet to assist in
breaking through the numberless obstacles which oppose his progress. Of
these the most formidable is the _cipo_; a plant consisting of long and
flexible shoots which twist themselves around the trees, and as some
of the sprouts, which have not yet fixed upon any branch, are moved to
and fro by the wind, they catch upon a neighbouring tree, and as the
operation continues for many years undisturbed, a kind of net-work is
made of irregular form, but difficult to pass through. Of this plant
there are several varieties; that which bears the name of _cipo cururu_
is in the highest estimation, from its superior size and strength, and
likewise from its great flexibility. Several kinds of _cipo_ are used
as cordage in making fences, and for many other purposes.
Iguaraçu is partly situated upon a hill and partly in the plain below,
where a rivulet runs, and a stone bridge has been built, as the tide
reaches this spot, and would render the communication difficult[27].
The place plainly denotes that it has enjoyed greater prosperity than
it at present has to boast of; many of the houses are of two stories,
but they are neglected, and some of the small cottages are in decay
and ruin. The streets are paved, but are much out of repair, and grass
grows in many of them. It contains several churches, one convent, and
a _recolhimento_ or retreat for females, a town hall, and prison. Its
affluence proceeded formerly from the weekly cattle fair, which was
held upon a plain in the vicinity, but this has now for some years
past been removed to the neighbourhood of Goiana. Iguaraçu has many
white inhabitants, several shops, a good surgeon, who was educated in
Lisbon, and it is the resort of the plantations, to the distance of
several leagues, for the embarkation of their sugar chests, and for the
purchase of some articles of necessity. The town contains about eight
hundred inhabitants reckoning the scattered cottages in the outskirts.
The view from the tower of the principal church is said to be extensive
and grand. The only regular inn of which the country has to boast is
established here, for the convenience of passengers between Recife and
Goiana, and at this we intended to have stopped had not the early hour
at which we reached it, tempted us to push forwards before the sun
became more powerful.[28]
The road continues flat and sandy, and two leagues beyond Iguaraçu
we entered the village of Pasmado, which is built in the form of a
square; it consists of a church and a number of cottages, most of
them of mean appearance, containing from 300 to 400 inhabitants. We
proceeded through it, crossed the most considerable stream we had yet
seen this day, called Araripe, and entered the inclosed field attached
to the _engenho_, or sugar-works, of Araripe de Baixo, belonging to a
Portugueze. We expected to have obtained a dinner from this good man,
but after considerable delay, to the great discomfort of our stomachs,
we understood from our host, that his intended hospitality would
not be in readiness, until the day would have been too much broken
into by the additional delay; therefore we again mounted our horses
about two o’clock, with a broiling sun, ascended another steep hill,
passed several sugar-works and cottages, and crossed several rivulets,
traversing a most delightful country. We rode through the hamlets of
Bû and Fontainhas, at the former of which there is a chapel. From the
latter the road is chiefly over a sandy plain, almost without wood,
until the _engenho_ of Bujiri is discovered with its field of grass
and woods around. Immediately beyond it is to be forded the river
of Goiana, influenced by the tide as far as this spot. The wooden
bridge which formerly existed was now fast decaying and dangerous for
horses; we gave ours to the guide, who led them through the water,
riding upon his own, whilst we found our way across some loose beams.
This operation did not delay us long; we received our steeds from the
guide, with their saddles wet and themselves all dripping, and in a few
minutes more entered the town of Goiana, between four and five o’clock
in the afternoon. The distance from Recife to Goiana is fifteen leagues.
The road we had travelled over is the highway from the Sertam[29], by
which the cattle descend from the estates upon the river Açu, and from
the plains of this portion of the interior to the markets of Recife;
therefore the continued passing of large droves of cattle has beat
down the underwood and made a broad sandy road; the large trees still
remain, if it has so happened that any grew upon the track; these,
if of any size, brave the crowd of animals, and will remain either
until they decay from age and fall, or till regular roads begin to
be constructed in Brazil. Thus, if the ground is flat, the road is
not bad; but upon the sides of hills, instead of being carried round
the steepest ascents, the track has been made straight up and down or
nearly so, and the winter torrents form deep caverns and ravines, the
sides of which sometimes fall in and make the roads very dangerous; so
that, unless well acquainted with a hill, it is by no means safe to
ascend or descend by night, as one or two days of the usual rain of
Brazil may have made a great difference, and have rendered the road
impassable. In the course of this day we saw four or five large and
rudely constructed crosses erected by the road side, pointing out the
situations upon which murder had been committed.
I was received most kindly by Senhor Joaquim, whom I had before
had the pleasure of meeting at Recife, and he was not a man to be
long in becoming acquainted with. We sat down to dinner about five
o’clock, when his lady and two little girls, his daughters, made their
appearance. We had dishes cooked in Portugueze, Brazilian, and English
style.
The town of Goiana, one of the largest and most flourishing in the
captaincy of Pernambuco, is situated upon the banks of a river of the
same name, which at this spot bends so considerably, that the town is
almost surrounded by it. The dwellings, with one or two exceptions,
have only the ground-floor; the streets are not paved, but are broad,
and of these the principal one is of sufficient breadth to admit of
a large church at one extremity, and the continuation of a street of
considerable width on each side of the church. The town contains a
Carmelite convent, and several other places of worship. The inhabitants
are in number between four and five thousand, and it is an increasing
place. Several shops are established here, and the commerce with the
interior is considerable. In the streets are always to be seen numbers
of the _matutos_[30], countrymen, either selling produce or purchasing
manufactured goods and other articles of consumption. In the vicinity
are many fine sugar plantations. I suppose that some of the best lands
in the province are in this neighbourhood. The proprietors of these
occasionally reside in the town, and as daily intercourse often creates
rivalry among wealthy families, this necessarily increases expenditure,
and the town is in consequence much benefited by the augmented
consumption of luxuries. The planters have the advantage of water
carriage from hence to Recife for their sugar-chests, as this river
is one of the largest for many leagues to the north or to the south,
and is influenced by the tide even to a short distance above the town.
Goiana stands four leagues distant from the sea in a direct line, but
by the river it is reckoned to be seven. Above the town in the rainy
season the river overflows its banks to a great extent.
Goiana and its extensive district is subject in military affairs to
the governor of Pernambuco, but its civil concerns are directed by a
_Juiz de Fora_, a judicial officer appointed by the supreme government
for the term of three years, who resides in the town, and from his
decisions appeal may be made to the _Ouvidor_ of Paraiba.
We dined on one occasion with the proprietor of the Musumbu estate;
this gentleman and a few others, besides ourselves, dined in one
apartment, whilst the ladies, of whom we were not permitted even to
have a transient view, were in another adjoining. Two young men, sons
of the proprietor, assisted their father’s slaves in waiting upon us
at dinner, and did not sit down themselves until we rose from table.
The owner of the place is a Portugueze—it is among this portion of
the population, who have left their own country to accumulate fortunes
in Brazil, that the introduction of improvement is almost impossible.
Many Brazilians likewise, even of the higher class, follow the Moorish
customs of subjection and seclusion, but these soon see the preference
which ought to be given to more civilized manners and easily enter into
more polished habits, if they have any communication with the towns.
On the 24th of October, I delivered a letter of introduction which
I had obtained at Recife, to the Dr. Manuel Arruda da Camara. This
interesting person then lay at Goiana very ill of dropsy, brought on
by residing in aguish districts. He was an enterprising man, and had
always been an enthusiast in botany. His superior abilities would have
caused him to be caressed by a provident Government, when one of this
description is establishing itself in an uncultivated but improving
country. He shewed me some of his drawings, which I thought well
executed. I never again had an opportunity of seeing him; for when I
returned from Seara, I had not time to enquire and seek for him, and
he died before my second voyage to Pernambuco. He was forming a Flora
Pernambucana, which he did not live to complete.
Senhor Joaquim had business at Paraiba, which he intended to have sent
his brother Feliz to transact; but as I offered to accompany him, he
thought it would be pleasant to go with me, and show the lions of
that city. We sent off his black guide and my servant with a loaded
horse before us, and followed the next day with his black boy. We
crossed the _Campinas de Goiana Grande_ about sunrise, and passed the
sugar plantation of that name, belonging to Senhor Giram, standing at
the foot of the hill, which carries you to the Dous Rios. The road
I afterwards followed to Rio Grande, is through Dous Rios, but the
road to Paraiba strikes off just before you reach it, to the right.
The road between Goiana and Paraiba presents nothing particularly
interesting,—the hills are steep but not high, and woods, plantations,
and cottages are, as usual, the objects to be seen. The distance is
thirteen leagues. We entered the city of Paraiba at twelve o’clock, and
rode to the house of the colonel Mattias da Gama, a man of property,
and a colonel of militia. He was an acquaintance of Senhor Joaquim, and
was about to leave the place for one of his sugar plantations, which he
did, giving us entire possession of his house, and a servant to attend
upon us.
The city of Paraiba, (for much smaller places even than this bear the
rank of city in these yet thinly peopled regions) contains from two to
three thousand inhabitants, including the lower town. It bears strong
marks of having been a place of more importance than it is now, and
though some improvements were going on, they were conducted entirely
through the means which Government supplied for them, or rather,
the Governor wished to leave some memorial of his administration of
the province. The principal street is broad, and paved with large
stones, but is somewhat out of repair. The houses are mostly of one
story, with the ground floors as shops, and a few of them have glass
windows; an improvement which has been only lately introduced into
Recife. The Jesuit’s convent is employed as the governor’s palace, and
the _Ouvidor_’s office and residence also; the church of the convent
stands in the centre, and these are the two wings. The convents of the
Franciscan, Carmelite, and Benedictine Orders are very large buildings,
and are almost uninhabited; the first contains four or five friars,
the second two, and the third only one. Besides these, the city has to
boast of six churches. The public fountains at Paraiba are the only
works of the kind I met with any where on the part of the coast which
I visited. One was built, I believe, by Amaro Joaquim, the former
governor,—it is handsome, and has several spouts; the other, which
was only then building, is much larger, and the superintendance of the
workmen was the chief amusement of the governor.
We waited upon this gentleman the day after our arrival; my companion
had been acquainted with him in Lisbon, when he was an ensign. His
parents were respectable people in one of the northern provinces of
Portugal; he was placed at some seminary for the purpose of being
educated for the church, but he escaped from thence, and enlisted as a
private soldier in Lisbon. One of the officers of the regiment in which
he was enrolled, soon found out that he was a man of education,—having
learnt his story, he was made a cadet, as being of good family. He
came over in the same ship with the Princess of Brazil, a captain
of infantry; married one of the maids of honour on their arrival at
Rio de Janeiro, and in about eighteen months, had advanced from a
captaincy to the government of Paraiba, and a commandery of the Order
of Christ. We next crossed to the other wing of the building, and
paid a visit to the _Ouvidor_, a very affable and good-humoured old
gentleman. His chaplain, a jolly little friar, and an old acquaintance
of Senhor Joaquim, made his appearance, and was afterwards very civil
to us during our stay. The prospect from the windows presents Brazil
scenery of the best kind; extensive and evergreen woods, bounded by a
range of hills, and watered by several branches of the river, with here
and there a white washed cottage, placed upon their banks, and these,
though they were situated on higher spots of land, were still half
concealed by the lofty trees. The cultivated specks were so small, as
to be scarcely perceptible.
The lower town consists of small houses, and is situated upon the
borders of a spacious basin or lake, formed by the junction of three
rivers, which from hence discharge their waters into the sea, by one
considerable stream. The banks of the basin are covered with mangroves,
as in all the salt water rivers of this country; and they are so close
and thick, that there seems to be no outlet. I did not follow the
river down to the sea, but I understand that there are in it some fine
islands, with good land, quite uncultivated[31]. Paraiba was the scene
of much fighting during the Dutch war, and I now regret not having
proceeded down the river, to the famous Fort of Cabedello. This war was
conducted upon a small scale, but the deeds which were performed by the
brave defenders of their country, may rank with those which any other
people have displayed in a cause of equal import to the actors.
The trade of Paraiba is inconsiderable, though the river admits of
vessels of 150 tons upon the bar; and when in the basin, opposite to
the lower town, a rope yarn would keep them still, as no harm could
reach them. It contains a regular custom-house, which is seldom opened.
Paraiba lies out of the road from the Sertam[32] to Recife, that is,
out of the direct way from the towns upon the coast further north. The
inhabitants of the Sertam of the interior, will make for Recife rather
than Paraiba, as the more extensive market for their produce. The port
of Recife admits of larger vessels, and has more conveniences for the
landing and shipment of goods, consequently it obtains the preference.
The houses of this place, which may be reckoned handsome from a general
comparison of the country, have been built by the great landholders in
the neighbourhood, as a residence during the depth of the winter, or
rainy season. The lands of the captaincy are, generally speaking, rich
and fertile, but so great a preference is given to plantations nearer
to Recife, that those of Paraiba are to be purchased at a much less
price. The sugar of this province is reckoned equal to that of any part
of Brazil.
I soon saw what was to be seen, and we had no society; time, however,
did not appear to hang heavy, for Senhor Joaquim was a man of
inexhaustible good humour and hilarity. We lived by magic, as the
colonel had ordered his servant to supply every thing for us.
The late governor, Amaro Joaquim, brought the captaincy into great
order, by his necessary severity. A custom prevailed, of persons
walking about the town at night in large cloaks, and crape over their
faces; thus concealed, to carry on their irregular practices. The
governor, not being able to discover who these persons were, gave
orders one night for the patrole to take into custody all who were
so dressed; this was done, and some of the principal inhabitants
were found the next morning in the guard-house. A man of the name of
Nogueira, the son of a black or mulatto woman, and of one of the first
men in the captaincy, had made himself much dreaded by his outrageous
proceedings; he had carried from their parents’ houses, the daughters
of some persons of respectability in the captaincy, murdering the
friends and relatives who opposed his entrance. The man was at last
taken; Amaro Joaquim would have had him executed, but he found this
was not to be done, from the interest which the family made for him,
and therefore ordered him to be flogged. Nogueira said, that being
half a _fidalgo_, a nobleman, this mode of punishment could not be
practised upon him. The governor then ordered that he should be flogged
upon only one side of his body, that his _fidalgo_ side might not
suffer, desiring Nogueira to say which was his _fidalgo_ side. He was
accordingly punished in this manner, and after remaining some time in
prison, was sent to Angola for life. The city of Paraiba still enjoyed
the good effects of Amaro Joaquim’s strict government.
[Illustration: _Crossing a River._]
I was acquainted with him at Pernambuco, before I set off on this
journey; his appearance and his conversation both bespoke a man of
superior abilities. When I saw him in Recife, he was on his way to
Piauhi, of which captaincy he had been appointed governor. He died on
board a coasting vessel, on the passage to Piauhi, of a fever.
Senhor Joaquim wished to return by the sea shore to Goiana, a distance
of twenty-two leagues. We set off at the time the tide was flowing, and
proceeded along the beach, until about eleven o’clock we reached the
house of a _Capitam-mor_, quite a first rate man in this part of the
world. It was a mud cottage, as bad or worse than that of any labourer
in England, situated upon the burning sands, with a pool of salt water
before the door, which is never quite dry, consequently, breeds insects
of all kinds. We crossed two ferries in the course of the morning; the
conveyances are small _jangadas_[33]; the saddle is placed upon it, and
the horse swims by the side, whilst the rider stands upon the raft,
and holds the reins. The ferryman either paddles across the stream, or
poles, if it be not too deep. About three o’clock, we found that we had
entered upon a considerable track of sand, inclosed by perpendicular
rocks, against which the water mark was at some height, however, the
tide was already on the ebb; we made our guide mount the horse, which
until now he had driven before him, and keep pace with us, whilst we
quickened ours. The tide was still very near to the rocks, and we found
that the water still reached one which projected further than the rest,
therefore as we were yet hemmed in, we left our horses, and climbed up
this rock. The guide, in the mean time, drove the loose horses into
the water, they fortunately leaned to the right, passed out far enough
to see the land on the other side of the rock, and made for it. I
was getting over the rock, missed my footing, and fell up to my arms
into a hole between two pieces of it; however, I succeeded in raising
myself, and leaped from it on to the sand on the other side, just at
the return of a wave, by which means I had an unintentional cold bath
up to my waist. We might certainly have waited to have allowed the
tide to retreat, but were afraid of being benighted, which after all
our exertions, did happen to us. The country, on the other side of
the projecting rock, is low, and sandy uncultivated land. At dusk, we
arrived upon the banks of a broad stream, so that by the light which
then remained, we could not see the other side; after several calls,
the ferryman did not make his appearance, and the night closed in.
I advised sleeping under the tree which then sheltered us; to this
my companion would not consent, but asked the distance to Abia, the
nearest sugar plantation; the guide answered three leagues,—we must
either sleep where we were, or go to Abia. We had already advanced
sixteen leagues, and Senhor Joaquim’s horse, a fine highly fed animal,
began to give way. The guide led, and we followed, through a narrow
path, very little frequented, as the bushes oftentimes nearly took off
our hats, and were continually brushing against us the whole way. On
our arrival at Abia, the house was quite deserted, as the steward was
from home, and we did not like to enter a cottage which stood near to
the principal house, when we found that the party in it was larger than
our own, and not likely to be of the best kind. We had now another
half league to go to Senhor Leonardo’s, a friend of my fellow-traveller.
He gave us a good supper, and hammocks, took good care of our horses,
and in the morning we set forth for Goiana, seven leagues. We passed
through Alhandra, an Indian village, containing about six hundred
inhabitants. This village is not so regularly built as many of the
others which I have seen; instead of a square, with houses on each
side, it is built in streets, and though the square is preserved, still
it is not the principal feature of the place. The Indians of Alhandra,
from their vicinity to Goiana, which is distant about three leagues,
are not so pure as those further from a large town; they have admitted
among them some _mamalucos_ and _mestizos_.
Great part of this extent of coast was uninhabited, but wherever
the land was low, and the surf not violent, there we found a few
cottages; the banks of the rivers were also not entirely destitute of
inhabitants. The two streams which we first crossed might be about
eighty or one hundred yards in breadth; they are deep, but do not
proceed far into the country. When the action of the tide ceases, all
these lesser streams become insignificant, and most of them quite dry.
The great river which we were to have crossed is the Goiana; it spreads
very widely when the tide enters, but is easily passed at the ebb, and
the channel becomes much contracted, and very shallow during the spring
tides. It is judged to be about a league in breadth, at its mouth, and
is much deeper immediately within the bar than upon it.
CHAPTER V.
JOURNEY FROM GOIANA TO RIO GRANDE.—THE CITY OF NATAL.—THE GOVERNOR.
I HAD entertained hopes of being accompanied by Senhor Joaquim, at
least as far as Rio Grande, but he changed his mind, and I began to
make the necessary arrangements for going alone. I purchased three more
horses, and hired a guide for the Sertam, who was a white man of the
country, and two Indian lads of about sixteen years of age. On the 3d
November, I again set forth, accompanied by my English John, Francisco
the guide, Julio, and the other boy, his companion. We only reached
Dous Rios the same evening, which is two leagues distant from Goiana;
we had left that place late in the day, and got on very slowly, as
the two loads upon the horses were not well divided and arranged. I
now found, on stopping for the night, that I had not provided as many
things as were necessary; that I wanted an additional piece of baize
to cover myself at night, that we ought to have brought more kitchen
apparatus, and that knives and forks were to be had very rarely. I had
with me a trunk with my cloaths, on one side of the pack-saddle, and
a case, with some bottles of rum and wine, on the other side, and my
hammock in the middle; these made one load. The other horse carried
in the _malas_, a kind of trunk, on the one side, our provisions, and
on the other, the cloaths of my people, additional ropes, and other
tackle. I was far from being well supplied, but afterwards provided
myself with more things as I went on, learning by experience. The
hammocks are all made of cotton, and are of several sizes and colours,
and of various workmanship. Those in use among the lower orders, are
made of cotton cloth, of the manufacture of the country; others are
composed of net-work, from which all the several kinds derive the
general name of _Rede_, a net; others, again, are knit or woven in
long straight threads, knotted across at intervals: these are usually
dyed of two or three colours, and are to be found in the houses of
wealthy persons. This species of bed has been adopted from the Indians,
and nothing more convenient and better adapted to the climate, could
possibly be imagined; it can be wrapped up into a very small compass,
and, with the addition of a piece of baize as a coverlid, is usually of
sufficient warmth.
I could not discover that there was any stream at this place, though
it bears the name of Dous Rios, or the two rivers. It is a large open
piece of land, with cottages upon the skirts, and attached to each is a
pen for cattle. The great weekly fair for cattle from the Sertam, for
the Pernambuco market, is held here.
From Dous Rios, we advanced the following day to the sugar plantation
of Espirito Santo, situated upon the banks of the river Paraiba, which
becomes dry in the summer, at a short distance above this estate. I had
letters to the owner of it, who is a member of the Cavalcante family,
and the Capitam-mor of the captaincy of Paraiba. I was received by
him in a very friendly manner. The house is in the usual style of the
country, having only the ground-floor, and no ceiling, the tiles and
rafters being in full view. Supper of dried meat, and the flour of the
mandioc made into paste, and called _piram_, was placed before me;
also, some hard biscuits, and red wine. I was not then sufficiently
a Brazilian to eat _piram_, and took the biscuits with the meat in
preference, which much astonished my host. Sweetmeats were afterwards
brought in, which are always good in the houses of persons of his rank
in life; the opulent people in Brazil taking as much pride in their
_doces_, as an English citizen in his table or his wines. The cloth
was laid at one end of a long table, and I sat down by myself, whilst
the Capitam-mor placed himself upon the table, near to the other end,
and talked to me; and some of the chief persons of his establishment
stood around, to see the strange animal called an Englishman. We
adjourned from the supper-room into another spacious apartment, and
each of us took a hammock, of which there were several in the room, and
swung and talked until we were half asleep. One of his men supposed,
that as I spoke Portugueze, either I must be an Englishman who did
not speak English, or that any Portugueze, on going to England, would
immediately speak the language of that country, as I did Portugueze.
The Capitam-mor seldom leaves his estate to go to Recife, or even to
Paraiba, and lives in the usual style of the Brazilian gentry, in a
kind of feudal state. He had several young men about him, some of
whom were employed by him; neither his wife, nor any of his children
appeared. The principal apartments of this house are two spacious
rooms, having a great number of doors and windows; in one, were several
hammocks and a sofa; and in the other, the long table upon which I
supped; there were a few chairs in each of them; the floors were of
brick, and the shutters and doors were unpainted. The owner of this
mansion wore a shirt and a pair of drawers, a long bed-gown, called a
_chambre_, and a pair of slippers. This is the usual dress of those
persons who have no work to perform. When a Brazilian takes to wearing
one of these long gowns, he begins to think himself a gentleman, and
entitled, consequently, to much respect.
The next day we advanced about seven leagues, and, for the first time,
I slept in the open air. We intended to have taken up our lodging
for the night at a neighbouring hamlet, but the huts were so small
and miserable, being constructed of the leaves of palm trees, that I
preferred the open air. We made for the rivulet which runs at a little
distance from these habitations; the horses were immediately unloaded,
and their pack-saddles taken off, that they might roll in comfort.
The next thing to be done, was to get firewood,—in most parts of the
country it is very plentiful, and as we were upon the skirts of a thick
wood, there was here no want of it. A light was struck, and two fires
made; we got an additional pan from one of the neighbouring huts, and
our dried meat was cooked. The meat is dried in the old Indian manner,
by laying it upon a platform of twigs, raised about eighteen inches
from the ground, and making a fire underneath. We discovered that not
far off, a field or piece of land, rather more cleared of wood than the
rest, was rented by a cottager, who would allow our horses to be put
into it for a _vintem_, about five farthings each, for the night, which
the guide thought I should consider dear, and therefore told me, it was
the usual price. As may be supposed, I made no great difficulties on
this score, and the horses were taken to the place by Julio, and his
companion. I now thought myself settled for the night, and therefore
ate my supper, sitting in my hammock, which was slung between two
trees, with the plate upon one of the trunks; having finished, I took
my segar, and sat down close to the fire; the guide lighted his pipe,
and placed himself on the opposite side, that we might have a talk
about our proceedings for the morrow. I returned to my hammock about
ten o’clock, but found the air very sharp, and consequently laid
down under the lee of the fire, upon a hide, of which we had two for
covering the loads in case of rain.
This was to me a new scene,—when I thought of the complete change of
habits which this kind of life required, and how entirely different
it was from any thing in England, I may almost say in Europe,—when I
looked round, and saw our several fires, for the cold air had, by this
time, obliged each person to have his own; the men all asleep, our
pack-saddles, trunks, and other parts of our baggage scattered about,
as it was taken from the horses,—when I heard the running of the
water, and the rustling of the trees; and, when I considered, that I
was entering among a people with whose habits I was little acquainted,
whose feelings towards my countrymen I was ignorant of,—I felt a kind
of damp; but this was soon removed, by thinking of the pleasure of
return, and of the accomplishment of what I was deemed incapable of
performing. I was cheered by my recollection of the knowledge I had of
the language, and by the determination I felt within me of conforming
to the customs of the people,—of submitting to their prejudices. I was
not old enough to have contracted any habits, too deep to be laid aside
when necessary. These thoughts were interrupted by the cry of “Jezus,”
which was repeated every half minute in a dismal voice; I called to the
guide, supposing it to proceed from some person in distress; he waked,
and I told him what had made me call to him,—he said, it was only
some person helping another “_a bem morrer_,” that is, that some dying
person, which I found was the usual custom, had a friend to repeat
the word “Jezus,” until the sufferer expired, that it might not be
forgotten, and, perhaps, to keep the devil off.
I dined the following day at the village of Mamanguape, situated upon
the banks of a dry river; it is a thriving place. These more modern
villages have been built in one long street upon the road, the older
ones in a square. It had then about three hundred inhabitants; but
I have since heard, that the number is more than doubled, and that
new houses are building. The river can scarcely be reckoned of any
advantage to the village, but the place forms a convenient break
between Goiana and Rio Grande for the travelling pedlars, a useful,
industrious, and, generally, honest set of men, as their resting-place
and head-quarters; from hence they make daily excursions to the
plantations, at a little distance, and return here to sleep. I passed
the night in the out-houses of some sugar-works; my guide was much
astonished at my not asking for lodgings at the _caza-grande_, or
owner’s house; but I preferred these kind of quarters to better ones,
where I might run the risk of being obliged to remain half the night
awake, for the purpose of giving news. The hospitality, however, of the
planters, is very great; and no recommendation is necessary, though I
had provided myself with a few letters.
The next day we proceeded to Cunhàû, the sugar-plantation of the
Colonel Andre d’Albuquerque do Maranham, the chief of the Maranham
branch of this numerous and distinguished family of the Albuquerques.
He is a man of immense landed property. The plantation of Cunhàû
extends along the road fourteen leagues, and the owner has since
purchased another large estate adjoining; his lands likewise in the
Sertam for breeding cattle are supposed not to be less than thirty to
forty leagues in extent—of those kind of leagues that sometimes take a
man three or four hours to get over one.
I had letters to him from some of his relations and friends at
Pernambuco; he was sitting at his door, with his chaplain and several
of his stewards and other persons employed by him, to have all the
benefit of the fresh air. He is a man of about thirty years of age,
handsome, and rather above the middle size, with genteel manners,
rather courtly, as the Brazilians of education generally are. He lives
quite in feudal state; his negroes and other dependants are numerous.
He commands the regiment of militia cavalry of Rio Grande, and has them
in good order, considering the state of the country. He came forwards
on my dismounting, and I gave him the letters, which he put by to
read at leisure, and then desiring me to sit down, asked me several
questions of my wishes, intentions, &c. He took me to his guests’
apartments at a little distance from his own residence, where I found
a good bed; hot water was brought to me in a large brass basin, and
every necessary was supplied in a magnificent style—the towels were
all fringed, &c. When I had dressed myself, I expected to be called to
supper, but, to my amazement, I waited until near one o’clock, when a
servant came to summon me. I found in the dining-room a long table laid
out and covered with meat of several kinds, and in quantity sufficient
for twenty persons; to this feast the colonel, his chaplain, another
person, and myself sat down; when I had tasted until I was quite tired,
to my utter dismay another course came on, equally profuse of fowls,
pastry, &c. &c. and when this was removed, I had yet a third to go
through of at least ten different kinds of sweetmeats. The supper could
not have been better cooked or handsomer, if it had been prepared at
Recife, and even an English epicure might have found much to please his
palate. I was not able to retire to rest until near three o’clock; my
bed was most excellent, and I enjoyed it still more from not expecting
to find one. In the morning, the colonel would not allow me to leave
his house, until I had breakfasted; tea, coffee, and cakes were brought
in, all of which were very good. He then took me to see his horses, and
pressed me much to leave my own, and take one of his for my journey,
that mine might be in good condition on my return, and he also urged
me to leave my pack-horses, and take some of his; but as mine were
still all in working order, I declined accepting his offer. These
circumstances are mentioned to show the frankness with which strangers
are treated. I could not get away before ten o’clock, and therefore
only advanced two leagues to dinner; I stopped by the side of a rivulet
under some trees, upon a most beautiful spot.
At a short distance from the estate of Cunhàû, is a hamlet of the same
name through which I passed in my way to the colonel’s plantation. This
hamlet, or the estate itself, was the scene of a massacre, which was
committed by the Pitagoares and Tapuyas from the Potengi in the year
1645. A battle was fought by Camaram, the Indian chieftain, to whose
prowess the Portugueze are so much indebted, against the Dutch, in the
following year, between Cunhàû and Fort Keulen which stands at the
mouth of the Potengi.[34]
The captaincy of Rio Grande commences some leagues to the southward
of Cunhàû, at a place called Os Marcos—a deep dell inhabited by
runaway negroes and criminals; the paths of the dell are intricate, and
when once a man has taken up his residence here, it is impossible to
dislodge him.
This season the crop of cotton had failed; it was one of those years
in which a great want of rain was felt. The colonel of Cunhàû had,
for the first time, planted a piece of land, from which he expected
to have gathered 10,000 _arrobas_, but in the end only gathered about
100; and he told me that he should keep to his sugar henceforwards. He
is lenient to his slaves; they looked fat and well, and he has the
character of not making as much of his plantation as he might, which
is one proof of his kindness to them. The estate of Cunhàû is one of
the largest, if not quite the most extensive, in these parts. There are
upon it about 150 negroes, and the lands belonging to it would employ
four or five times the number, but the colonel pays more attention to
cattle, by which his father increased his fortune very largely.
As usual, on our arrival by the side of the rivulet the horses were
unloaded, and my hammock was slung for me. I laid down in my cloaths,
but soon I started up, finding myself uneasy. The guide saw me, and
called out, “O sir, you are covered with _carapatos_.” I then perceived
them, and felt still more their bites. Instantly throwing off part
of my cloaths, but with the remainder upon me I ran into the water,
and there began to take them off. The _carapato_ or tick, is a small,
flat insect, of a dark brown colour; about the size of four pins’
heads placed together, it fastens upon the skin, and will in time eat
its way into it. It is dangerous to pull it out quickly, when already
fixed, for if the head remains, inflammation is not unfrequently the
consequence. The point of a heated fork or penknife applied to the
insect, when it is too far advanced into the skin to be taken out with
the hand, will succeed in loosening it. There is another species of
tick of much larger size, and of a lead colour; this is principally
troublesome to horses and horned cattle, that are allowed to run loose
in lands which have been only partially cleared. I have, in some
instances, seen horses that have had such vast numbers upon them, as
to have been weakened by the loss of blood which they have occasioned.
The insects of this species of _carapato_[35] fasten themselves to the
skin, but do not force their way into it. The hammock had fallen to the
ground accidentally when taken from the trunk to be slung, and had
thus picked up these unpleasant visitors. I had some trouble in getting
them all off, but was successful, as I had attacked the enemy in time.
We set off again about two o’clock; I had intended to have ridden until
sunset, and then to have put up near to some cottage, but a young man
overtook us, and we entered into conversation. He lived at Papari,
a village about half a league out of the road, and he pressed me so
much to accompany him to sleep at his place, that I agreed. Papari is
a deep and narrow valley, a most delightful situation. The whole of
the valley is cultivated, and principally this year, the lands were in
great request, as the rains had failed, and the high sandy lands had
proved barren. For, whilst every other part of the country appeared
dry and burnt up, this spot was in full verdure—it appeared to laugh
at all around it, aware of its own superiority. The inhabitants seemed
by their countenances to partake of the joyful looks of the land they
lived in. Papari yet enjoys another advantage; though it is at the
distance of three or four leagues from the sea, a salt water lake
reaches it, so that its inhabitants have the fish brought to their
own doors. The tide enters the lake, which is never dry, for although
the fresh springs which run into it might fail, still it would always
preserve a certain portion of water from the sea. The fishermen come
up upon their small river _jangadas_, which do not require more than
twelve inches of water. Papari is about five leagues from Cunhàû.
Senhor Dionisio introduced me to his lady; he is a native of Portugal,
and she a Brazilian. They possessed a small piece of land in the
valley, and appeared to be comfortably situated. Papari may contain
about three hundred inhabitants very much scattered. In the course of
this year, I afterwards heard, that many persons flocked to it from
other parts, owing to the absolute want of provisions. I went down to
the edge of the lake to see the fishermen arrive, the people of the
valley had all assembled to receive them; it was quite a Billingsgate
in miniature—save that the Portugueze language does not admit of
swearing.
We dined in Brazilian style, upon a table raised about six inches from
the ground, around which we sat or rather laid down upon mats; we
had no forks, and the knives, of which there were two or three, were
intended merely to sever the larger pieces of meat—the fingers were to
do the rest. I remained at Papari during one entire day, that my horses
might have some respite, that I might purchase another from Senhor
Dionisio, and on poor Julio’s account, whose feet had begun to crack
from the dryness of the sands.
Distant from Papari, from three to four leagues, is the Indian village
of St. Joze, built in the form of a square; this place might contain
about two hundred inhabitants, but it had evidently the appearance of
falling to decay; the grass in the centre of the square was high, the
church neglected, and the whole aspect dull. St. Joze stands upon a
dry sandy soil, and the severity of the season might have contributed
to its dismal look. This day we experienced the utter impossibility of
trusting to the accounts we received of distances, and my guide had no
very clever head for recollecting them, although he, like most of these
people, possessed a kind of instinct with respect to the paths we were
to follow. We were told that Natal was distant from St. Joze three or
four leagues, and therefore expected to arrive at that place by dusk,
but about five o’clock we entered upon the dismal sand hills, over
which lies the road to the city; the whole country is uninhabited, and
I may say uninhabitable, between Natal and St. Joze, consequently we
had very faint hopes of meeting any one to give us information of the
distance; but the guide said he supposed we could not be nearer to it
than from two to three leagues, from the recollection he had of these
hills, which when once passed over cannot be entirely forgotten. When
it was nearly dark, and when our horses were almost giving way, we saw
two boys on horseback, coming towards us: we asked them the distance,
they answered “two leagues, and all deep sand,” adding, that they
belonged to a party, which had come to make _farinha_, upon a spot of
land, half a league distant from where we were, upon which mandioc was
cultivated. They said, that to go on to Rio Grande the same night was
madness, that they were going a short way to water their horses, and
that on their return, they would guide us to their party. I agreed to
wait for them. When they arrived, they struck soon from the road, down
the side of one of the hills,—it was now dark; we followed, entered
some high and thick brushwood, and a considerable way into it, found
the persons to whom the boys told us they belonged. The implements
for making the _farinha_ were placed under a shed, which was thatched
with the leaves of the _macaiba_, and other palm trees. These persons
had fixed upon this spot, as there was a spring of brackish water hard
by, which was, however, only to be reached by descending a precipice;
the pitcher was fastened to a cord, and drawn up, and the person who
descended to fill it, ascended the precipice by means of the brushwood
which grows upon the side. I did not much like the party, therefore we
took up our lodgings at some little distance from them, and none of us
settled regularly for the night. I now much regretted not having a dog
with me. Our horses passed a wretched night, feeding upon the leaves of
the shrubs around us.
The next morning we continued our journey over the sand hills to Natal,
travelling at about two miles within the hour. The distance from Goiana
to Natal is fifty-five leagues. The sand hills are perpetually changing
their situations and forms; the high winds blow the sand in clouds,
which renders it dangerous to travellers; it is white, and very fine,
so that our horses sunk up to the knees at every step,—painful to
a very great degree, when the sun has had full power upon it. Poor
Julio had mounted upon the haunches of one of the loaded horses, and
occasioned our travelling still slower. All was desolate and dreary;
for the great lightness of the sand almost prevented vegetation, though
some of the creeping sea-side plants had succeeded here and there in
establishing a footing.
The track of country between Goiana and Espirito Santo, and indeed even
to Cunhàû, keeping at no great distance from the coast, is appropriated
for the most part to sugar-plantations; but many of the Senhores de
_Engenho_, sugar-planters, also employ part of their time in raising
cotton. The general feature is of an uncultivated country, though a
great quantity of land is yearly employed. The system of agriculture is
so slovenly, or rather, as there is no necessity for husbandry of land,
from the immensity of the country, and the smallness of its population,
lands are employed one year, and the next the brushwood is allowed to
grow up, giving thus to every piece of ground that is not absolutely
in use that year, the look of one totally untouched, until a person is
acquainted, in some measure, from practice, with the appearance of the
several kinds of land. He will then perceive the difference between
brushwood that will not grow because the land is of a barren kind, and
that which is left to rise, that the land may rest for another crop.
From this manner of cultivating their lands, a plantation requires
three or four times more ground than would otherwise be necessary. I
passed through several deep woods, and ascended some steep hills, but
I saw nothing which deserved the name of mountain; I crossed some flat
sandy plains, upon which the acaju, mangaba, and several species of
palm or cabbage trees grow; these are merely fit to turn cattle upon
in winter, and will only be brought into cultivation when lands begin
to be scarce in Brazil. _Varseas_, or low marshy lands, adapted to the
sugar cane, I also frequently saw. The _cercados_, or fenced pieces
of ground, attached to each sugar plantation, upon which are fed the
cattle kept for the work of it, are the only spots which bear the look
of fields; and even in these, the brushwood is not always sufficiently
cleared away, unless the proprietor is wealthy and has an abundance
of persons upon his estate; otherwise, such is the fertility of the
soil, that without great care, the _cercado_ will in time become a
wood. There are several hamlets upon the road, consisting of three and
four cottages, and these are built of slight timber, and the leaves of
the cabbage trees; others have mud walls, and are covered with these
leaves; and now and then, a house built of mud, with a tiled roof, is
to be seen,—this bespeaks a man above the common run of people. I
crossed several rivulets, which were much reduced by the drought; but I
did not see any great streams. The Paraiba was dry where I passed it,
as also was the river near Mamanguape. A rivulet, that runs into the
lake at Papari, was the only stream which appeared still to possess its
usual strength. The road from Goiana to Mamanguape is the great Sertam
track, and is similar to that between Recife and Goiana, excepting that
the plains of the part of the country I had just now traversed, are
more extensive, and the roads over these are dangerous, as they are
only marked by the short and ill-grown grass being worn away upon the
path; but as the cattle extend more upon a plain, and cannot be kept
so close, from the greater extent of ground over which they pass, each
part receives fewer footsteps, and the grass not unfrequently resists
their passing, and vegetation still continues; consequently, in an
imperfect light, an experienced guide is necessary, as on these plains
no huts are ever to be met with, being, for the most part, destitute of
water. These, the Brazilians call _taboleiros_, distinguishing them by
this name, from _campinas_; upon the latter, the soil is closer, and
they afford good grass. Beyond Mamanguape, the road is sometimes a mere
path, with breadth sufficient only for two loaded horses to pass, and,
in some places, it has not even the necessary width for this purpose.
The valley of Papari I have already mentioned, as being much superior
to the rest of the country. The trees in Brazil are mostly evergreens,
and the drought must be great indeed to make them lose their leaves;
but the green of the leaves of a parched plant, though still a green,
is very different from the bright joyful colour of one that is in full
health. This produced the striking difference between that valley and
the burnt lands above it,—besides, the misfortunes of other parts made
its good luck more apparent.
I arrived about eleven o’clock in the morning at the city of Natal,
situated upon the banks of the Rio Grande, or Potengi. A foreigner,
who might chance to land first at this place, on his arrival upon the
coast of Brazil, would form a very poor opinion of the state of the
population of the country; for, if places like this are called cities,
what must the towns and villages be; but such a judgment would not
prove correct, for many villages, even of Brazil, surpass this city;
the rank must have been given to it, not from what it was or is, but
from the expectation of what it might be at some future period. The
settlement upon rising ground, rather removed from the river, is
properly the city, as the parish church is there; it consists of a
square, with houses on each side, having only the ground floor; the
churches, of which there are three, the palace, town-hall, and prison.
Three streets lead from it, which have also a few houses on each side.
No part of the city is paved, although the sand is deep; on this
account, indeed, a few of the inhabitants have raised a foot path of
bricks before their own houses. The place may contain from six to seven
hundred persons.
I rode immediately to the palace, as I had letters of introduction to
the governor, from several of his friends at Pernambuco. He received
me in the most cordial manner. He asked me for my passport, which I
produced; it was scarcely opened, and he immediately returned it,
saying, that he only did this, that all necessary form might be
complied with. He said, that I should stay with him, and he would
provide a house for my people. At one o’clock we dined, and one of his
aide-de-camps was with us. In the afternoon, we walked down to the
lower town. It is situated upon the banks of the river; the houses
stand along the southern bank, and there is only the usual width of
a street between them and the river. This place may contain from two
to three hundred inhabitants, and here live the men of trade of Rio
Grande. The bar of the Potengi is very narrow, but is sufficiently deep
to admit vessels of 150 tons. The northern bank projects considerably,
and for this reason, it is necessary that a ship should make for it
from the southward. The entrance to the reef of rocks, which lies
at some distance from the shore, also requires to be known, so that
altogether the port is a difficult one. The river is very safe, when
once within the bar; the water is deep, and quite still, and two
vessels might swing in its breadth; but it soon becomes shallow, and in
the course of a few miles is greatly diminished. I should imagine, that
six or seven vessels might swing altogether in the harbour. The bars of
rivers that are formed, as in this case, of sand, are, however, not to
be trusted to, without good pilots, as they soon change their depth,
and even their situation. When the tide enters, the northern bank is
overflowed about one mile from the mouth of the harbour, and spreads
over a considerable extent of ground, which, even during the ebb, is
always wet and muddy, but never becomes sufficiently deep to prevent
passing. The governor was raising a road over this piece of land, and
the work was then nearly half finished. The new road would be about one
mile in length. The captaincy of Rio Grande is subject to the governor
of Pernambuco, and those of Paraiba and Seara were formerly in the
same situation, but have of late years been formed into independent
provincial governments.
The governor, Francisco de Paula Cavalcante de Albuquerque, is a native
of Pernambuco, and a younger brother of the chief of the Cavalcante
branch of the Albuquerques. His father, a Brazilian also, was first an
ensign in the Recife regiment of the line; he afterwards established
himself upon a sugar-plantation, and made a fortune. The old man died,
and left to each of his sons considerable property; two remained upon
their estates, and still live upon them; this third son entered the
Olinda regiment, and was much beloved by the men. The regiment had
then only one company, of which he became the commander, and large
sums of money taken from his own purse, were expended by him for their
good equipment. He went to Lisbon on some business relating to his
company, and whilst he was there a _denuncia_, a private accusation,
was given by some enemy to the family—that the brothers were forming
a conspiracy against the government. He was obliged to leave Lisbon,
afraid of being put under an arrest, and fled to England, where his
reception was such, that he has ever wished for opportunities of
shewing kindness to persons of that nation. His brothers suffered
much in person and in property, but matters were at last cleared up,
as the accusation was proved to be false. Francisco was immediately
promoted to a majority, and soon afterwards sent to govern Rio Grande.
He is a man of talent, and of proper feelings in regard of his
duties,—enthusiastic in wishing to better the condition of the people
over whom he was placed. I am grieved to say, that he has been removed
to the insignificant government of St. Michael’s, one of the Azores or
Western Islands.
When he was appointed to Rio Grande, there was scarcely a well dressed
person in it, but he had succeeded in persuading one family to send for
English manufactured goods to Recife—when once these were introduced
they made their way—one would not be outdone by another, and, in the
course of two years, they had become general. We visited the church in
the evening—all the ladies were handsomely dressed in silks of various
colours, and black veils thrown over the head and face. A twelvemonth
previous to this period, these same persons would have gone to church
in petticoats of Lisbon printed cottons, and square pieces of thick
cloth over their heads, without stockings, and their shoes down at the
heels.
The military establishment consists of one hundred and fourteen
men—one company—which were in much better order than those of
Pernambuco, or Paraiba. The captaincy of Rio Grande enjoyed perfect
quietude from robberies through his exertions. The governor promoted
the building of a large house, which was going on very fast, and for
which he had subscribed largely; the rent of it was to be appropriated
to the support of the widows of the soldiers of the captaincy. This
work has, I am afraid, been laid aside since his removal. The situation
of the prisoners was very miserable; he wished to better it, and
requested that the principal persons of the place would take it in turn
weekly to carry a bag round to all the inhabitants, that each might
give some trifle to assist in their support; for some time this went
on well, but after a few weeks it was neglected. He, therefore, took
the bag himself, and, accompanied by one of his aides-de-camps, called
at every house. He said, that this was the most comfortable week the
prisoners had ever passed since their confinement, as more was given
by each person than was usual, and the excellent arrangement was again
taken up with ardour, by the same persons who had neglected it.
A British vessel was wrecked near Natal, and I have always understood
that the proprietors were perfectly satisfied that every exertion
possible had been made use of to save the property.
The drought of this year had caused a scarcity of the flour of the
mandioc—the bread of Brazil—and the price was so high at Recife,
Goiana, &c. that those persons of Rio Grande who possessed it, began to
ship it off for other places; this the governor prohibited; he ordered
it to be sold in the market-place, at a price equal to the gain the
owners would have had by sending it away, and if all was not bought he
took it himself, again giving it out when necessary at the same price.
These anecdotes of him I had partly from himself, but principally from
persons of the place, to whom I was introduced. When he left the city,
on his appointment to St. Michael’s, the people followed him to some
distance, praying for his prosperity.
CHAPTER VI.
CONTINUATION OF THE JOURNEY. FROM NATAL TO AÇU.
THE governor did all in his power to dissuade me from proceeding
further, the drought being so great as to render it not quite prudent;
but as I had come so far, I was resolved, at any rate, to make the
attempt. If I had been certain of being able to undertake the journey
at a future period, it would have been better to have returned, and
to have waited until a more favourable season; but I am rejoiced that
I went at that time, as, otherwise, I should most probably have been
under the necessity of foregoing my plan altogether. Some of the
disagreeable circumstances which I met with, certainly proceeded from
the rigour of the season.
I received from the governor a letter of introduction to Aracati. He
also insisted upon my leaving my own horse, that he might be in good
condition when I returned. I was to sleep at a place from which Rio
Grande is supplied with _farinha_ during the drought; but, in usual
years, it is too wet to be cultivated, unless it was drained, and
of this operation scarcely any notions are entertained. At Natal, I
purchased another horse. I crossed the river in a canoe, and the horses
and men upon _jangadas_; we were landed upon the new raised road, and
immediately beyond it overtook some persons who were going to the
_Lagoa Seca_, or dry lake above-mentioned, where I was to purchase
maize and _farinha_, for crossing the tract of country through which
runs the river Seara-meirim. We left the usual road, and turned down
a narrow path, which leads to this lake; it was overhung with trees.
I struck my head against a branch of one of these, and found that I
had disturbed a large family which had taken up its residence upon
it; my shoulders were quickly covered with small red ants, and I did
not get rid of them without feeling some of their bites. We arrived
at the dry lake about six o’clock in the evening, and put up at one
of the cottages. In the course of the following morning, I made known
my principal errand, and that I likewise wished to purchase another
horse. The people who were residing here, had removed from high lands
which had on this season proved barren; they had erected small huts,
some of which had not been finished, and the family, therefore, lived
in public; these huts had only a roof to shelter their inhabitants,
who expected that the first heavy rain would drive them back to their
usual habitations, as these lands, after violent rains, are laid under
water. Each man possessed his small field of mandioc and maize. I left
John’s horse here in charge of one of these men, as it began to give
way, and I proceeded with four loaded horses; two as before, and one of
_farinha_, and another of maize. I had provided myself at Rio Grande
with leathern bags, for carrying water, and several other necessary
things which I had not been instructed to bring, but which experience
had taught me the necessity of possessing.
We remained at this place during one entire day, and the next morning
set off, intending to sleep at a hamlet, called Pai Paulo. We rested
at mid-day near to a well, and in the afternoon proceeded. Wells are
generally formed in these parts by digging a hole in the ground, to the
depth of two or three feet, until the water appears; if a person in
the neighbourhood of one of them, who takes water from it, should be
nice about these matters, a fence is made round it, but if not, as is
oftener the case, the well remains open, and the cattle come down to
drink at it. These pits or wells are called _caçimbas_. The grass was
much burnt up, but still there was plenty of it. In the afternoon we
passed over some stony ground,—it was the first I had met with, and
it was very painful to the horses which had come from the sandy soil
of Pernambuco; but we soon entered upon a long though narrow plain,
bounded by brushwood, over which the road was clear, and the grass
burnt up entirely on each side. We overtook a white man on foot, with
twelve loaded horses, and a very small poney which carried a saddle;
the loads were all alike, each horse carrying two skins or bags of some
kind of provisions. I was much surprised at the circumstance of this
man having the management of so many horses, because generally, the
number of men is nearly equal to that of the beasts. I observed that
his horses began to spread upon the plain, and seemed inclined to take
to the brushwood; I called to my guide to ride to the right, whilst I
did the same to the left, and go in quickly between them and the wood,
to prevent the animals from separating. The man thanked me, which
brought on further conversation; he asked the guide where we intended
to sleep, and was answered, “at Pai Paulo.” The wells at Pai Paulo,
he told us, were all dried up, and the inhabitants had deserted their
houses. What was to be done: he said, that he intended to remain upon
a plain two leagues distant from where we then were, that no water was
to be had there, but that for our party and himself, his slave would
bring a sufficient quantity, who had remained behind to fill a skin at
a well which we had passed. There was no alternative; to remain here
was impossible, for there was no grass. Therefore I ordered Julio and
his companion to let our horses and those of our new friend remain
together, and to look to them equally. The slave soon joined us with
the water, gave the skin to my guide, and went on to assist Julio,
whilst I advanced very slowly, that I might have some more conversation
with the owner of the _comboio_, or convoy, which we had thus joined.
He was the son of a man of property, who resided upon the banks of
the Açu, and possessed several cattle estates in those parts; the old
man was a colonel of militia, and he with whom I conversed, was the
major of the same regiment. The drought had been so severe with them,
that they feared a famine, and he had been sent down to the coast to
purchase _farinha_ for the family, which the skins contained, with
the exception of one load consisting of maize for his horses. After
he had purchased his _farinha_ he heard of the prohibition of the
governor respecting it, and understood that a guard of soldiers was
to be sent down to the lake to take it from him; he had, therefore,
stolen a march, and that nothing might be suspected, he had left all
his people, excepting this one slave, and had even left his cloaths.
His saddle horse carried a heavy load, and he set off a day before he
had intended; the animal upon which he had placed his saddle was a colt
and too young to bear any further weight. Thus was this major, in true
Brazilian campaigning style, in his shirt and drawers, his _alpargatas_
or sandals, upon his feet, his musquet upon his shoulder, his sword by
his side, hanging from a belt over one shoulder, and his long knife in
his girdle. He was a stout, handsome man, about forty years of age, and
where his skin was not exposed, it was as white as that of a European,
but his face, neck, and legs were of a dark brown colour. This man, who
at other times enjoyed all the comforts that his country affords, who
was respected for his rank and wealth, was obliged to make this journey
absolutely to save the lives of his family. True it is, that he is not
to be considered as we should persons of his situation in Europe; like
most of these people, he had been from his infancy daily accustomed to
what men in a more civilised state would account very great hardships.
The _alpargatas_ are pieces of leather, of a size rather larger than
the soles of the feet of the person for whom they are intended. Two
loops are fastened in front of each, through which two of the toes are
placed; there is a ring of leather round each ankle, through which are
drawn and tied two thongs, which proceed from each side of the hinder
part. These are the shoes of the Brazilians, who live removed from
great and improving towns. Julio was now provided with a pair of them,
else I hardly know how he could have proceeded.
We halted at the place appointed, upon an immense plain; the grass was
all gone, and even the hardy trees, the acaju and mangaba, seemed to
feel the want of water, for their leaves had begun to fall. The two
parties took up their stations under separate clumps of trees; but
upon these plains, the trees scarcely ever grow sufficiently near to
each other, to enable the traveller to hang his hammock between two of
them. The poor horses were taken to a dell at some distance, to try
to pick up what they could find, that had escaped the drought and the
traveller. Our allowance of water was not large, and therefore we were
afraid of eating much salt meat; we did not pass the night comfortably,
for the wind rose, and scattered our fires, nor did we sleep much, and
at four o’clock the horses were fetched to give to each of them a feed
of maize. One of them refused to eat his portion.
The following morning we advanced to Pai Paulo, three leagues further,
still crossing the same plain, at the extremity of which we first
approached the Seara-meirim, and on the opposite side from that on
which we were, stands the village of Pai Paulo, upon rising ground.
This was, without exception, the most desolate place I ever beheld;
the roofs of some of the cottages were falling in, the walls of others
had fallen, but the roofs remained. The course of the river was only
marked by the depth of its bed, for the soil around was a loose sand,
destitute of any covering, and nothing differing from that in the
channel of the river. The trees had mostly lost their leaves. I had now
entered upon the Sertam, and surely it deserves the name. We passed Pai
Paulo, and about noon reached an open well of brackish water, dug in
the bed of the river; our Pernambuco horses at first refused to drink,
but the dirt was cleared away, as much as possible, for them, and the
water left to settle; however, even then, they did little more than
taste it. Here we were to rest, and to give our horses some maize, for
there was no grass. The same horse again refused his feed; the guide
said that he supposed he was not accustomed to it, and therefore must
be taught to like it, otherwise he could not possibly get over this
barren track of country. The first operation was to soak the maize
in water, until it softened,—then the guide forced some of it down
the animal’s throat, closing forcibly its mouth. Whether this had the
effect, or hunger, I know not; but at night he performed his part
pretty well, taking rather more time than the others to finish his
feed. I drank a small portion of the water, mixing it with lemon juice
and sugar, which I had with me. We carried some of this water on with
us, for at night we should find none. The country presented the same
appearance; we crossed the Seara-meirim several times, which in some
parts had large rocks in the centre of the bed. At night I was not
much inclined to eat, but I made up by smoking. We found a sheltered
place behind part of the bank of the river, and slung our hammocks
upon sloping ground, as the wind rises about eleven or twelve o’clock
in these parts, and renders shelter very requisite; it sometimes blows
hard: it is a dry wind, but healthy.
The following day, we proceeded again in the same manner. I had by
this time fully entered into the custom of smoking early, and as we
could never get any thing cooked until twelve o’clock, I found that
this prevented any unpleasant sense of hunger. My people could not have
any thing to eat early, as it would have caused delay, therefore it
would not have been proper for me to show a bad example. I had become
very intimate with my friend the major—he learnt from me that we had
horses, and cows, and dogs in England, and he liked me the better for
this; at first, he wondered how it happened that I could ride; he
thought I must be an apt scholar to have learnt since I had gone over
to Brazil. He was also much surprized to hear that we had churches in
England, which he had never understood before. He said he should not
believe henceforwards that the English were _Pagoens_, heathens. I told
him that one chief point upon which our religion differed from his,
was in ours not enjoining us to confess; he thought confession a great
annoyance, but he could not doubt its propriety.
We reached another dirty pool or well of water in the river, which we
had again crossed several times. Our resting-place at mid-day afforded
no shelter, excepting what could be obtained from one small shrub,
which was in full leaf. The leaves or branches of it reached to the
ground. I lay down upon the sand, and pushed my head in among them,
covering the rest of my body with a hide; this was a hot birth, but
better than to be completely exposed to the sun. I was astonished
at the appearance of this shrub. There are two kinds of trees in
certain parts of the Sertam, which are called Pereiro and Yco; both
seem to flourish most when the seasons are the driest, and both are
particularly dangerous to horses; that is, as they do no mischief to
the wild cattle or wild horses, they may be supposed not to possess
any pernicious qualities if the animals which eat their leaves are
not overheated and fatigued; the latter of these plants kills the
travellers’ beasts, and the former has the effect of appearing to
produce intoxication, and sometimes also proves fatal. The major said,
that this part of the country abounded in these trees, and consequently
our horses were tied to those around us, and to each was given a feed
of maize. The plant, of which I have spoken above, was very beautiful,
the green of its leaves was bright and healthy, and I afterwards saw
many more of them upon this _travesia_ or crossing. I particularly
observed them on this track of country, as other plants had lost all
appearance of life.
We were less unpleasantly situated at night, as the water though
brackish was comparatively clear.
The following day we had still the same country and river to cross.
The consciousness of having advanced upon our journey alone caused the
knowledge of a change of situation, so exactly similar was the face of
the country. At mid-day we had again no shelter from the sun. The water
was little different from that of the preceding day. I laid down under
the shady side of a rock, which afforded sufficient shelter until the
sun began to decline, and throw its rays into the quarter under which
I had taken up my station. We had often seen cattle about the pools
or wells—on this occasion, one miserable cow came down to drink; the
major happened to be near the pool at the time. He looked at the mark
she bore, and knew it to be that of the cattle upon his own estates.
“How can this animal,” he exclaimed, “have strayed so far from its
own home?” The want of water had made it stray at least one hundred
leagues. This day we overtook a party of Sertanejos, as the inhabitants
of the Sertam are called, likewise going our way. They were at the
mid-day resting-place, and one of their horses was, at the time of our
coming up, tottering from having eaten of the Yco; they were trying to
give it maize, in the hope of recovering it, as this is said to have
the effect, if it is taken soon after; but at the time we left them,
the animal, when he fell, was with difficulty raised, and the major
said that he thought him too far gone. I never heard whether these
persons returned, or still advanced after this misfortune. I observed
in the afternoon several heaps of rocks in the bed of the river, which
must form beautiful falls of water when the stream is rapid.
Towards evening my guide began to try me. I found that there had
been some conversation between him and the two Indians respecting
the journey, and now he sounded me about returning. I told him I had
perfectly determined to go on, and that I would most certainly shoot
the man who attempted to go back, and that even if he then escaped
me, I would follow him until I overtook him. He had not said that he
would return, but had hinted at the danger of the undertaking at this
season, and that the two lads were afraid of proceeding, but I knew him
to be the mover. At night he could not have found his way back, as the
only mark of a road that was to be perceived, proceeded from the sand
being more worn away, and the banks of the river being broken down at
the proper crossings. In fact, the marks were such, that even in the
day-time, a man accustomed to this description of road could alone find
it out—therefore I was certain that desertion could only take place in
the day-time, which was almost impossible, as I always rode in the rear
of the whole party. The guide had no fire-arms of his own; besides he
never would have made any attempt to murder me, as he knew how little I
slept, and that my pistols were always with me in my hammock, besides
any thing of this sort could only have been done in concert with Julio,
who, in the sequel, proved worthy of the greatest confidence. I found
more necessity to be on my guard in returning, when John was no longer
with me; however, although this man had sufficient courage he had no
watchfulness. The summary manner in which I threatened to treat the
guide, can only be justified by the necessity of the case, for had he
returned, the two Indians would most probably likewise have deserted
me. If a man suffers himself to be trifled with, he cannot possibly
succeed under circumstances such as these; however, I made the threat
under the conviction of that being sufficient.
We carried water from the resting-place at mid-day, and, as usual,
fixed our quarters at night upon the banks of the river.
The next day we advanced again exactly in the same manner, but at
noon, to our dismay, there was no water; the pool had dried up, but
we rested the horses for a short time, notwithstanding this dreadful
disappointment. My thirst was great, for I had not drank the night
before. We had still some lemons left, which were distributed, and
these afforded much relief. In the afternoon the major told me to
follow his example, and put a pebble into my mouth, which was the usual
resource of the Sertanejos on these occasions. I did so, and certainly
found that it produced considerable moisture. This was a dismal day,
and we knew not whether we should be able to reach a well before some
of our horses failed. One of those belonging to the major, already ran
loose among the others, as he was weak, and his load had been changed
to the horse which had carried the maize, the remainder of this being
distributed in small portions, that it might be carried by the rest.
My horses bore it very well, as those which had been loaded with
provisions were, of course, in part relieved, and the largest load,
that of my trunk and case of bottles, was carried by each of them in
turn, that the hard work might be equally divided. This day we passed
some deserted cottages. Our night was very miserable, for some of the
horses refused to finish their feeds of maize; the danger of their
failing prevented our thinking so much of our own inconvenience—my
spirits were kept up by the necessity I felt of keeping up those of
others. John was not quite well, and this made me uneasy, as it was as
much as we could do to carry ourselves; indeed, had any of the party
fallen sick, I know not how we should have proceeded.
The next morning, about nine o’clock, we reached a well to our great
joy, but, fortunately for us, the water was so bad, that we could
not drink much; it was as usual dirty and brackish, but of the first
draught I shall never forget the delight;—when I tried a second, I
could not take it, the taste was so very nauseous. On looking round,
we saw some goats, Julio went towards them, and then discovered some
fowls, proceeded a little farther and found an inhabited cottage. He
came and gave us the joyful intelligence; we determined to remain here
to rest, if the people could give us any hopes of food for our horses.
I found an elderly woman and her two daughters in the hut; the father
was not at home. The old woman seemed quite astonished to hear that
we had crossed the Seara-Meirim; she said, she did not know how soon
she and her family might be obliged to leave their cottage, as many
others had done. She directed the major and my people to a dell at some
distance, where dry grass and leaves might perhaps still be picked
up; she said, that it was the last place which could have any, for
travellers did not in general know of it, and she and her husband made
a point of not discovering it. But I paved the way, by making her a
present of some _farinha_, throwing maize to the fowls, and by pouring
in an immense number of _minhas Senhoras_. I had purchased a kid and
a fowl, and laid down the money immediately. Persons circumstanced
as these were, are sometimes robbed in a most unpardonable manner by
travellers, who take advantage of their houses, eat their poultry, and
leave them without paying; but considering the entire non-existence
of law in these regions, I am only surprized that greater enormities
are not committed; however, every man feels it to be his own case,
if he has a house and family; he is aware that on going from home,
those he may leave are in the same helpless state. These persons
and their property were at the mercy of any travellers; if they had
been murdered, and the cottage from being deserted began to fall, it
would have been supposed that its inhabitants, like many others, had
decamped, and no enquiry would be made about the direction they had
taken, such is the rambling disposition of the people in general, and
the state of this part of the country, at the period of which I speak.
They have nothing to make them remain upon one spot, neither comfort
nor security.
In the afternoon we advanced as usual, and passed some deserted
cottages, but towards the close of the day arrived at some that were
inhabited, and at dusk put up near to two or three that stood together,
after having crossed the Seara-Meirim for the last and forty-second
time. This river takes its sources from the mountains to the northward,
in the same direction as those of the river Açu, of which I shall
have occasion to speak. The Seara-Meirim falls into the Potengi, and
perhaps some branches of it bend their course as far as the Paraiba.
The face of the country presents one continued flat, from Pai Paulo
to the place at which we left the river; the soil is a loose sand,
which is sometimes, though rarely, intermixed with black earth. The
trees are thinly scattered, and, at the time that I travelled, were
without leaves. The river winds like the coils of a serpent, to have
followed them would have been endless; it sometimes fills after heavy
rain, in the course of a very short time, the water coming down in a
torrent, delayed only by the inequality of the depth of the channel,
and the walls with which the rocks in some parts oppose its progress.
The sand in the bed of the river is little different from that of
which the banks are composed, being however on the whole thicker, and
approaching nearer to gravel. The water which oozes from it, on digging
into the sand, is in all parts brackish, and in some places is too salt
for any use to be made of it. This is not, however, peculiar to the
Seara-Meirim, for I found that all the beds of the rivers which become
dry in the summer contained more or less salt; at best, the water taken
from them was never quite sweet.
The place at which we had arrived is reckoned to be distant forty
leagues from Natal; the league of the Sertam is never less than four
miles, and is often much more; there are _legoas grandes_, _legoas
pequenas_, and _legoas de nada_, or nothing leagues, which I have
found quite long enough, notwithstanding their encouraging name.
Pai Paulo may be about eight or ten leagues from Natal, which makes
the _travesia_ or barren-crossing, thirty or thirty-two leagues.
We advanced at about three miles within the hour or rather more,
and travelled from half-past five to ten in the morning, and in the
afternoon from two, or half-past two, to six o’clock.
We had now reached again the habitations of man; there was still
the same burnt-up appearance, but the wells were taken care of,
the water was better, and grass, although it was dry, was still to
be had. I intended to accompany the Major, part of the way to his
home, or the whole, but it was necessary that I should be guided
by circumstances,—by the accounts we heard of the state of the
country;—we advanced in our usual manner, resting more at mid-day,
traversing a dead flat, and passing two or three _Fazendas_, or cattle
estates, each day, of which the live stock was looking very miserable,
and the people half starved.
After being with the Major four days, since we had left the
Seara-Meirim, I saw that it would not be prudent to proceed farther;
the accounts from the interior were bad, and we arrived at one estate,
of which the cattle were all dying, and the people intending, if there
was no rain very soon, to leave their houses. I now judged myself to be
distant from the coast not less than two hundred miles. We had advanced
northward and westward, and were therefore not far to the southward of
Açu, but were to the westward of it. I now resolved to make for it,
for my horses might fail, and all the country was in so bad a state,
that we might not have found others in a proper condition to go on with
us; in fact, as I was not acting from orders, but merely for my own
amusement, and as the guide was afraid of proceeding, I did not think
I was authorized in persevering; if I had had orders for the purpose,
the case would have been altered, and I must have run all hazards.
Here, also, desertion was easier in the night, as the country was
comparatively inhabited towards Açu—the difficulty was in advancing,
and not in retreating.
Each cattle estate has a tolerably decent house, in which the owner or
herdsman resides, and usually a few smaller habitations are scattered
about upon the plain around it. The pens stand near to the principal
house, and enable the travellers to distinguish immediately, although
at some distance, the site of a _Fazenda_.
I heard of a strange custom existing in these parts of the country
that are so thinly inhabited, which arises from this state of things.
Certain priests obtain a licence from the bishop (of Pernambuco,) and
travel through these regions with a small altar constructed for the
purpose; of a size to be placed upon one side of a pack-saddle, and
they have with them all their apparatus for saying mass. Thus with a
horse conveying the necessary paraphernalia, and a boy to drive it, who
likewise assists in saying mass, and another horse on which the priest
himself rides, and carries his own small portmanteau, these men make
in the course of the year between 150 and 200_l._—a large income in
Brazil, but hardly earned, if the inconveniences and privations which
they must undergo to obtain it are taken into consideration. They stop
and erect the altar wherever a sufficient number of persons who are
willing to pay for the mass is collected. This will sometimes be said
for three or four shillings, but at other times, if a rich man takes
a fancy to a priest, or has a fit of extreme devotion upon him, he
will give eight or ten _mil reis_, two or three pounds, and it does
happen, that one hundred _mil reis_ are received for saying a mass,
but this is very rare;—at times an ox or an horse, or two or three,
are given. These men have their use in the world; if this custom did
not exist, all form of worship would be completely out of the reach
of the inhabitants of many districts, or at any rate they would not
be able to attend more than once or twice in the course of the year,
for it must be remembered that there is no church within twenty or
thirty leagues of some parts; besides, where there is no law, nor real,
rational religion, any thing is better than nothing. They christen and
marry, and thus preserve these necessary forms of religion, and prevent
a total forgetfulness of the established rules of civilised society; a
sufficient link is kept up to make any of these people, if they removed
into more populous districts, conform to received ideas.
I left the Major[36] to pursue his journey homewards, whilst I
retreated, or rather advanced, in a contrary direction, but a retreat
it was from this inhospitable region. We found no change during that
day, and if we had not met with a good natured herdsman, should have
fared very badly for want of water, unless we had seen some other
person equally well disposed. I asked him the way to the nearest
estate, which he told me, and then I made enquiries about water, to
which he answered, that unless I was acquainted with the place, I
should not find the well, and this part of our conversation ended by
his turning back to show it to me, regardless of thus increasing his
journey four or five miles. I asked him when we arrived at the well to
stay and dine with me, for although I had no great dainties to offer,
still he carried only what provision his _boroacas_ contained. These
are small leathern bags, one of which hangs on each side of the saddle.
He would not, however, dismount, and immediately turned his horse and
went his way. My guide had remained behind, as his horse was rather
lame, and now he joined us. We passed over some stony ground, and the
well itself was situated among rocks, between two of which the horses
passed and descended to it.
[Illustration: _A Sertanejo._]
I may give some description of my friend, who turned back to shew me
the well, and this may be taken as the usual appearance of a travelling
Sertanejo. He rode a small horse with a long tail and mane; his saddle
was rather raised before and behind; his stirrups were of rusty iron,
and his bit was of the same; the reins were two very narrow thongs. His
dress consisted of long pantaloons or leggings, of tanned but undressed
leather, of a rusty brown colour, which were tied tight round his
waist, and under these are worn a pair of cotton drawers or trowsers,
as the seat is left unprotected by the leather. He had a tanned goat
skin over his breast, which was tied behind by four strings, and
a jacket also made of leather, which is generally thrown over one
shoulder; his hat was of the same, with a very shallow crown, and small
brim; he had slip-shod slippers of the same colour, and iron spurs upon
his naked heels,—the straps which go under the feet prevent the risk
of losing the slippers. A long whip of twisted thongs hung from his
right wrist; he had a sword by his side, hanging from a belt over one
shoulder; his knife was in his girdle, and his short dirty pipe in his
mouth. Fastened to his saddle behind, was a piece of red baize, rolled
up in the form of a great coat, and this usually contains a hammock
and a change of linen,—a shirt, and drawers, and perhaps a pair of
nankeen pantaloons; his _boroacas_ hung also on each side of the back
of his saddle, and these generally contain _farinha_ and dried meat
on one side, and on the other, a flint and steel, (dried leaves serve
as tinder) tobacco, and a spare pipe. To this equipment is sometimes
added, a large pistol, thrust partly under the left thigh, and thus
secured. The usual pace of the Sertanejo’s horse is a walk, approaching
to a short trot; so that the horses of these people often have acquired
the habit of dragging their hind legs, and throwing up the dust. The
usual colour of the Sertanejos is a dark brown; for even those who are
born white, soon become as completely tanned as the dress which they
wear, from exposure to the sun. The annexed print will give some idea
of the Sertanejo, as he is daily seen in Recife. The colour of the
leather, as it is represented in the print, is brighter than that of
the dresses which are usually to be met with, which is owing to the
drawing having been made from a dress that had not been much used.
At one of the estates I heard an anecdote, which is illustrative of
the neglect or the impossibility, on all occasions, of conforming to
religious duties. A priest, on passing, was requested by the wife of
the owner of the place to stay, for the purpose of baptizing her son;
he consented to this, but after waiting some time, said, that he wished
to proceed upon his journey, and therefore desired that the child might
be brought to him; the woman answered, “Pray, wait a short time longer,
as the boy has taken the horses to water, and will soon return.” The
priest was surprised, but was still more astonished, when he was
required to christen a fellow of thirteen or fourteen years of age.
The next day we still proceeded over the same sort of ground, in parts
stony, and where stony, it was rather hilly; but not sufficiently so
to form a decided ridge of hills. John was, at night, taken suddenly
ill; he had drank too much water, and would not mix any spirit with
it, neither would he smoke. I considered smoking as almost absolutely
necessary for the preservation of health on these occasions; it is
generally practised among the people of the country, and indeed many of
the women are as fond of it as their husbands. Towards the morning, the
man recovered.
The following day we reached, at ten o’clock, the estate of St.
Luzia; it is situated upon a wide plain, similar to those upon which
we had been travelling for many days. This is a _campina_, and not a
_taboleiro_. There were no trees upon it, excepting a few near to the
well. The sight of this place raised our spirits, for there was no
want of water, nor of grass, though it was completely dry. The lots,
_lotes_, of mares came down to drink, all in fine condition, followed
and protected by the master horse of each lot; the cattle, the sheep,
and every other living thing, seemed to enjoy and to be conscious of
the abundance of which they were reaping the advantage. We unloaded
near to the well under the trees. The house of the chief herdsman stood
before us, distant about one hundred yards, upon rather higher ground;
it was a low white washed cottage, with the stables, pens, &c. on each
side. About twelve o’clock, I saw some men employed in milking the
goats; I sent Julio with a half-gourd for some milk, desiring him to
offer payment; the guide cautioned me not, but still I ordered Julio
to present the money. The milk came, but the money was not taken, and
soon afterwards, three of the men, came down towards us; I thanked
them for the milk; and they addressed me saying, that they wished to
know if I had intended to insult them, by offering payment, as such
things were not customary in their country:—the guide had told me I
should affront them, and therefore I had brought this upon myself; but
I put them into good humour by answering that they would pardon my
mistake, when I told them, that I belonged to a country, in which we
were obliged to purchase the sand with which we scoured our houses.
They then said, that the boy, on going for the milk, had mentioned that
there was an Englishman in company, whom they wished much to see, as
it was a _bicho_, an animal, they had never seen. I said that he was
gone with the horses, and would soon return. I meant John,—however
the guide soon told them that I was an Englishman. Their countenances
shewed much disappointment, when they were persuaded that this was
true; they had expected to see some strange beast. John soon came, and
he certainly was a curiosity, for he did not speak Portugueze; and when
any thing went wrong, he swore away in English, at which they were
all astonishment: they said, “He speaks the negro language[37].” They
sat upon the ground near to my hammock, and asked me of the news from
Pernambuco, for they cared about nothing more distant. I was acquainted
at Recife with the owner of the place, which I made them confident was
the case, by describing his house and garden, and they asked me after
him, &c. The conversation concluded by an offer of horses to proceed,
and, on their return to the house, a present of dried meat was sent.
Thus I was in the end a gainer, by offering to pay for the milk; but I
was more careful ever after.
From St. Luzia, we proceeded across the plain, expecting to reach a
lake, of which the guide had some recollection; but when the night had
already closed in, we were still upon the same endless plain, over
which the track was only marked by the sand upon it being more worn
away, consequently, it might easily be lost at night. The lake at which
we had entertained hopes of arriving, never becomes entirely dry in
the summer; but there was only one place at which it could be crossed,
therefore it would be dangerous to reach its borders in the dark. The
plain presented no tempting lodging; there were several rocks upon it
of different sizes, but no trees, and the wind blew hard. The guide
dismounted, to feel if there was any of the long dry grass where we
were; on not finding any, he walked to the left of the road, but was
not successful; he then tried to the right, and found some. We only
discovered his situation by the sound of his voice; he called, and
we answered, several times, until at last we joined him; he had also
discovered a large rock, under the lee of which we unloaded, and then
lighted our fire, and fettered the horses to feed. We soon found, that
to cook any victuals was impossible, for the wind scattered our fire,
which was only formed of the branches of the small shrubs and briars
that grow upon these plains. Water we had by accident, as the guide had
brought a small skin of it, in case he should be thirsty during the
afternoon, for we had made ourselves quite certain of reaching the lake
by night. I slept upon two of our packages, under the lee of the rock,
and the whole party did the same, sharing, as equally as possible, our
scanty means of accommodation. This afternoon I had seen many rocks of
remarkable forms; one, particularly, struck me as extraordinary: it was
placed upon another, of much smaller dimensions, and the resting-point
was so small, as to render its removal apparently easy; but, on trial,
it had not the slightest motion. The discomfort of this night was
great, caused chiefly by the violence of the wind; we had, at last, no
fire,—all was dark around us, and we could scarcely make ourselves
heard. The horses seemed to feel as much as we did, the unsheltered
situation; they were near to us during the whole of the night.
On continuing our journey the following morning, we discovered that we
had halted within half a league of the lake. The water was all gone;
but the ground was boggy, and not to be crossed, excepting at the
place over which is the usual path. It extends to the right and left
to a considerable distance, but is not broad. If the mud was cleared
away, it might, perhaps, afford an inexhaustible source of water to
the neighbourhood; but Brazil is not in a state for such works; hands,
in these parts, are not yet sufficiently numerous. In the afternoon,
we crossed some stony hills, and passed by two _fazendas_. This day, I
observed, at some distance, a high hill, of a circular form, standing
quite alone, and unconnected with any other high ground. Its sides
appeared to be too steep for horses to ascend; and I much regret not
being so situated as to be enabled to delay, for the purpose of taking
a nearer and more exact view of it. The guide was surprised at my
curiosity about it, and told me that horses could not go up its sides,
that there were snakes upon it, &c. All this might be true; but it was
evidently said, to prevent any intention I might have had of delaying
to see it more correctly. The plain appeared in many parts, as if the
sea had at some time covered it;—the dead flat, the sand in places
mixed with particles of a substance which looked like broken shells,
and the rocks worn away in such parts, as, from their situation, could
not have been acted upon by rain. We slept this night at an estate,
where there were several houses forming a hamlet, having passed through
a considerable quantity of wooded land.
The next morning we again proceeded over some lands that were covered
with wood; and, near twelve o’clock, reached the town of Açu. Oh, the
joy of again seeing a church! of the sight of a regular village, and
civilized persons; if even these can be called civilized, according to
European ideas.
The country I passed over from Natal, never can, in any state of
civilization, or from any increase of population, be rendered a fertile
track; but it might be, without doubt, much improved, if proper wells
were sunk, reservoirs made for rain water, and trees planted; much
might be done. The plains I crossed are of three kinds; those of which
the soil is a loose sand, producing the acaju, the mangaba and several
kinds of palm or cabbage trees; upon them the grass is short, and
of a kind which is not reckoned nourishing; in these situations are
likewise produced several creeping plants, similar to those growing
upon the common lands, near the sea-shore, in England, and the trees
are thinly scattered. The fruit of the acaju or cashew tree, and of the
mangaba, are most delightful, and are doubly acceptable in crossing
the sands upon which they are to be met with. The former has been
often described; the latter is a small round fruit, and is not unlike
a crab-apple in appearance, but it is sweet, and is unfit to be eaten
until it drops from the tree; the pulp is fibrous but soft, and three
seeds or kernels are contained in it, of which the taste approaches
that of almonds. The palm or cabbage trees[38] also afford fruits,
which are eaten when other food fails; but these are insipid.
These plains are the _taboleiros_, of which there exists also another
kind, which are covered with brushwood, of stinted height, from the
nature of the soil, but it is close and higher than a man on horseback.
The road lies, in many places, through it; but as it does not afford
any shade, and prevents the wind from alleviating the intenseness of
the heat; it is here that the power of the sun is fully felt. This
brushwood is, however, not too thick to prevent cattle from breaking
their way through it, and feeding among it. The third description
of plains are those of a better kind of soil, which produce good
nourishing grass, but upon these no trees grow; small shrubs and
briars alone are to be seen, and oftentimes not even these. They
are, in parts, stony, and have rising ground upon them, which is not
sufficiently high to deserve the name of a ridge of hills; but is
enough to break the ocean-like flatness and immensity which these
plains sometimes present to the traveller; after proceeding for hours,
the same distance still seems to remain for him to traverse. These are
the _campinas_. I passed over some spots covered with high trees, which
in our own country would be called woods of considerable extent; but in
Brazil, they could not be accounted of sufficient magnitude to compose
a distinguishing feature in the naked regions which I traversed. The
impression which a recollection of this portion of land left upon my
mind, is of a flat uncovered country.
I heard very little of beasts of prey; they had removed to better
districts, I suppose; nor were we much troubled with snakes. But my
people never failed, in taking up our quarters, to look well around,
which proves their frequent appearance, else this cautious behaviour
would not have become habitual with them. I merely say, that they are
not plentiful in this barren part; for elsewhere, near lakes and large
pools of water, in fertile districts, the rattle of the snake, of which
this is the distinguishing mark, is often heard. We saw a small kind
of rabbit, near rocky ground, which is called _moco_. The _carapato_
or tick, and the _chigua_ had entirely disappeared, since we left the
dry lake, near Natal. The _chigua_ has been so often described, that a
minute account of it in this place is unnecessary; it is a very small
insect, which lodges itself principally under the nails of the feet. In
the country, bordering upon the sea, it is to be found most abundantly
in sandy districts; and yet, although the plains of the Sertam appear
to be formed of the same kind of sand, the insect is not to be met with
in the whole track of country between Natal and Aracati.
We arrived at Açu on the 1st December, having travelled about 340
miles in 19 days. The continual anxiety in which I was kept, prevented
me from keeping any regular journal of my proceedings. From Açu to
Aracati, I have preserved the names of the places through which I
passed. The country is more inhabited, and I was nearer to the coast;
I travelled also with more ease; but, between Natal and Açu, excepting
the deserted Pai Paulo, I did not pass any settlement which deserved
even the name of village; single cottages, much separated from each
other, and often uninhabited, contained the whole population of this
district. It is a miserable, desolate country.
The town of Açu is built in a square, and consists of about three
hundred inhabitants; it has two churches, and a town-hall and prison,
at that time building; the governor was the promoter of the work. The
place stands upon the great river of Açu, where it runs in two channels
for a short distance; it is situated upon the northern bank of the
smaller branch. There is an island of sand between the two branches,
and the distance from whence the river is divided to where it is again
united, is about two or perhaps three miles. We crossed their dry beds,
and entered the square, which is not paved, and the sand is deep. Many
of the inhabitants were at their doors, for all travellers are objects
of curiosity, and our appearance increased it. I rode upon an English
saddle, and this particularly attracted the notice of an equestrian
people. The houses have only the ground floor; some of them are
plastered, and white-washed, but the mud of which others are composed,
remains in its natural colour, both within and without, and the floors
also are of earth; so that in spite of the greatest care, when water
is scarce, their inhabitants cannot keep themselves clean. Though the
lower class of Brazilians, of all casts, have many dirty customs,
allied to those of savage life, still they are remarkably clean in
their persons; one of the greatest inconveniences of a situation, when
a Brazilian complains of the place he happens to reside in, is the want
of a river or pool of water in the neighbourhood, for the purpose of
bathing.
We enquired for the house of a man of colour, a saddler by trade, with
whom my guide was acquainted. This person, like many others, had come
to his door to see the travellers; he soon recognised his friend, and
came forwards to speak to him. He procured a house for us during our
stay; it was a small place, upon which neither plaster nor white wash
had been bestowed, with two rooms, one opening to the square, and the
other to the river. When we were a little settled, and I had dressed
myself, I sallied forth to visit the vicar, who resided in the best,
or rather least miserable looking habitation in the town; it was about
the size of the cottages of labourers, or small farmers in England,
but not nearly so comfortable, though the floors were bricked. It is
true, that this climate does not demand, as much as those of bleaker
regions, that necessary of an English dwelling, of English growth,
that undefinable something, called comfort. I told him, I had called
upon him, as the first person of the neighbourhood, and that I should
always be happy in my proceedings to have the prayers and good wishes
of his order, and particularly his, as the governor had spoken so very
highly of him. Some further conversation passed between us; but I did
not stay long, for I was much tired. I made arrangements for sending my
horses towards Piatô, where grass was to be had, and the green stalks
of maize, sugar cane, and other plants; but the guide recommended that
we should not stay here longer than was necessary. He said, that whilst
the horses continued on their journey, they would bear up very well;
but if they were suffered to rest, they would become stiff, lose flesh,
and be rendered entirely unfit for service, for a considerable time. I
did not then quite believe him, but as there was no object in staying,
I desired Julio to return with them to Açu the next day at two o’clock,
that we and they might have, at any rate, a rest of twenty-four hours.
I afterwards learnt, by experience, that the guide was quite right
regarding the horses; that regular work is better than a rest of more
than one whole day.
Our friend, the saddler, among other stories, mentioned having passed
over the same ground which we had traversed from St. Luzia, only a
short time before us. He was in company with another man and a boy, and
had also a dog with him; they had put up for the night under shelter of
one of the rocks, in the vicinity of the lake of which I have spoken.
His companion had taken the horses to some little distance to graze;
the boy and the dog remained with him; he had made a fire, and was in
the act of preparing some dried meat to be cooked, when the boy called
out “where is the dog,”—the man answered “here he is, why what is
the matter?” the boy said, “what eyes, then, are those?” pointing, at
the same time, to the corner of the rock; the man looked, and saw the
eyes, for nothing else was to be seen; he called to the dog, took up
his fowling-piece, and fired, whilst the dog started up, and darted
towards the spot. A jaguar rushed out, and made off; it had been partly
concealed under the rock, which, with the dazzle of the fire had
prevented its body from being seen; it had crouched, and was ready for
a spring, when every thing was quiet, and unprepared.
I learnt, that there are some extensive salt-works at the mouth of
the Açu, and that small craft come from different parts of the coast
occasionally, to carry away the overplus.
I took an additional guide here, as the man I had brought with me from
Goiana was not acquainted with the remainder of the road; but I kept
him with me, for although he was not a person I liked, still he was
master of his employment; he managed the horses well, for they had,
through his attention and knowledge of this business, all arrived here
without sore backs, which I found, from the surprise expressed by all
those who saw them, was not a usual piece of good fortune, or good
management. He was, however, a great bully, when we quartered ourselves
in the houses of poor people, with whom he found he could so act
with impunity: he was also continually reporting, that I was a great
personage, that he might increase his own importance. Of this I said
nothing; but on our return, whilst I was unwell, he gave himself out as
the chief of the party, which I once caught him in the act of doing;
I disconcerted him, by threatening to turn him out of my service; and
when I recovered, he took care to draw in, and be more careful who
overheard him. The additional man I took with me, was a dark-coloured
mulatto, young and stout; his father lived at Açu, and this son had a
fair character. He brought with him a beautiful dog, which I afterwards
possessed.
The next day, Julio came with the horses; and between three and four
o’clock in the afternoon, we left Açu.
CHAPTER VII.
CONTINUATION OF THE JOURNEY.—FROM AÇU TO ARACATI.—FROM ARACATI TO
SEARA.—INDIANS.—THE LATE GOVERNOR.—THE FAMILY OF THE FEITOZAS.
OUR way was through woodlands for about one league, when we came
out upon the borders of the lake Piatô; we proceeded along them for
another half league, and unloaded near to the _caza de palha_, or straw
cottage, of the commandant of the district. Piatô is a lake of three
leagues in length, and about one league in breadth. In the summer its
sides become sufficiently dry to enable them to be cultivated, but the
centre of it is invariably marshy and impassable. The fertility of its
sides is very great, affording most plentifully rice, maize, sugar
cane, melons, &c. and I saw some cotton trees planted very near to the
edge. The lake is filled from the river in the rainy season, and as
the lands around it are much higher than the lake itself, the waters
which run down from them wash away all vestiges of cultivation, till
these again subside and the same operations are continued the following
season. In such dreadfully severe years as that during which I
travelled, the people of the district would be starved if this lake did
not exist; it enabled the inhabitants of Açu, at the time I was there,
to remain in their houses. The appearance of abundance, the bright
green, the well fed horses and cattle, which we saw as we travelled
along its banks, enlivened us all; there was a look of security, a
seeming certainty of at least the necessaries of life let what would
happen, which we had not for a long time felt. The parched hills which
surround the lake, its beautifully cultivated borders, and the dark and
dangerous bogs which compose its centre and prevent the communication
of the inhabitants of either bank, formed a very extraordinary scene.
No water was to be seen, but the mud was too deep, and not of
sufficient consistence for a man to be enabled to wade across; nor
could a passage to the other side be effected by means of a raft, for a
very trifling weight would make it sink.
We unloaded under a small tree on rising ground, with the lake on our
right; between us and the house of the commandant, there was a deep
ravine, down which, in the rainy season, the waters rush from the
hills. This ravine was under cultivation and was inclosed, a narrow
path only being left to cross from where we had stationed ourselves to
the hut on the opposite hill, which was entirely composed of wood and
the leaves of the Carnaùba and other kinds of cabbage trees. This was
only a temporary habitation for the summer months, the usual residence
of the owner being at Açu. He had a large family, who were all very
shy, indeed the females I scarcely saw, though they sometimes did peep
at the Englishmen, not knowing until now, that these were truly and
_bona fide_ nothing but men.
I was this afternoon surprised at a feat of dexterity of one of the
commandant’s sons, a boy of about fourteen years of age. I had often
heard of the manner of catching the wild cattle in the Sertam; the
person employed for the purpose pursues on horseback, with a long pole,
having a goad at one end, the animal which he is desirous of bringing
to the ground, until he overtakes it—he then pierces its side between
the ribs and the hip-bone, which, if it is done at the moment the beast
raises its hind feet from the ground, throws it with such violence, as
sometimes to make it roll over. Some oxen had often trespassed upon the
commandant’s maize; one of the boys could no longer bear this quietly,
he therefore mounted one of his father’s horses, of which there were
several very fine ones, took one of the long poles and set off without
a saddle, and in his shirt and drawers, to attack the animals. He drove
them out of the maize, reached one of them with the goad at the right
moment and threw it down, but before he could turn his horse, another
had attacked him, running his horns into the fleshy part of one of the
horse’s thighs. The boy had taken the precaution of putting a bridle
on to his horse, otherwise, if he had mounted with a halter only, he
would most probably have suffered much more. One of his brothers came
to his assistance, and drove the oxen quite away. The facility with
which the beast was thrown, proved that practice and quickness were
more requisite than strength in this operation.
Towards the evening a shower of rain came on, being the first we had
had since we left Goiana, and indeed this was the only rain which
fell during my journey between Goiana and Seara. However there is not
usually much wet weather at this season of the year; the distress
occasioned by the want of it, arose from the failure of the accustomed
rains in the preceding winter. We removed to the hut across the ravine,
leaving the greatest part of our baggage under the tree, but the shower
did not continue long. The hut was too small to admit of our taking up
our lodging for the night in it, and in case of rain the tree was too
far from the hut to reach it in time to prevent being wet, for which
reason I determined to sleep in the ravine close to the fence, at the
foot of the hill upon which the hut stood. I made a bed for myself
upon two packages, to windward of the fire which we had kindled, but
multitudes of mosquitos rose about midnight, which obliged me to remove
and lie down upon a hide to leeward; the fire was mostly composed
of the dried ordure of cattle, the smoke from which is so thick and
pungent as to prevent entirely any annoyance from these troublesome
insects, but the remedy is bad enough, as it is almost impossible to
open your eyes or to speak. The misery of being exposed to the myriads
of mosquitos which hovered around us this night, made us chuse the
smoke as the more endurable evil. Notwithstanding these inconveniences
we had some amusement at the distress of him whose fire was allowed to
burn low; none of us slept much, for attention to the fires obliged
every one to be on the alert. Towards morning the smoke was scarcely
sufficient to protect us from these tormenting insects. I now learnt
that near to any lake or pool of water, the highest ground is always to
be fixed upon for a night station; even the commandant upon the hill
had fires to windward of the house during the whole of the night.
Early in the morning we continued our journey for some distance along
the banks of the lake, and then entered upon some open land, which was
now quite dry; we slept under a clump of trees, distant about twenty
miles from Piatô. The cattle we saw this day, were in good condition,
plainly showing, that the country enjoyed a plentiful supply of water.
The road of the next day led us through woodlands, and over loose stony
ground; but the woods of this part of the country are not large and
luxuriant; they have not the grandeur of the forests of Pernambuco, nor
is the brushwood which grows under them so close and thick. We passed
through some estates, of which the live stock seemed in good condition;
and saw this day a whole drove or lot (_lote_) of cream-coloured mares.
I asked for water to drink at one of the houses; some was brought to
me by a pretty white girl, who was apparently about seventeen years
of age; she talked a great deal, and in a lively manner, so as to
show that she had inhabited more civilized regions. There were in the
house two children of colour, which she told me were her’s; she was
the daughter of a man of small property, who had married her contrary
to her wishes, to a wealthy mulatto man. She gave a message to the
guide to deliver to her husband, who was superintending the felling
of some timber by the road side, along which we were to pass; we met
with him, he was of dark complexion, and about forty years of age. I
learnt her story from the Açu guide; he said, it had made some noise in
these parts at the time. In the afternoon we passed over a salt marsh,
surrounded by great numbers of carnàûba trees. We bordered the marsh,
looking for a crossing and entered it, where we found the footsteps of
others who had recently passed; the mud was from twelve to eighteen
inches deep where we crossed; but it was in some parts impassable. The
salt had coagulated wherever the footstep of a horse had formed an
opening in the mud, and had collected a small quantity of water. The
breadth of the marsh might be about two hundred yards in the centre,
and its length about one league. After leaving the marsh, we reached
the _taboleiro_, upon which we were to sleep. Towards evening, the
wind was high. I was riding as if I had been seated upon a side-saddle,
with both my legs on the same side of the horse, and with my umbrella
over my head to shade me from the heat of the sun; a sudden gust of
wind took me and my umbrella, and landed us in the sand, to the no
small entertainment of my companions. If the horse had gone off, I
should have been awkwardly situated; but he had travelled too many
leagues to be frightened at trifles such as these.
We continued travelling for two days over the same kind of ground;
plains with trees thinly scattered, and spots of wooded land. We
likewise crossed two salt marshes; but upon these there was no mud.
The water which oozes from the land, on digging into it, is however,
salt; but the soil was dry and hard. Mimoza, the dog belonging to my
new guide, afforded us considerable amusement. She generally made her
way through the wood at a little distance from the road, now and then
returning to the path. She was very expert in discovering the _tatu
bola_, or rolling _tatu_, a small species of armadillo; this animal is
protected by its bony shell; on being touched, it rolls itself up in
the manner of the hedge-hog. As soon as the dog saw one of these, she
touched it with her nose, and barked, continuing the same operation as
often as the armadillo attempted to move, until her master answered the
well-known signal. Several were caught in this manner. The flesh is
as fine as that of a young pig. The _tatu verdadeiro_, or legitimate
armadillo, which is much larger, does not roll itself up, and Mimoza
sometimes pursued it to its hole, and stood at the mouth of it, until
she had her master’s permission to come away. There exists a third
species of armadillo, called the _tatu peba_, which is said to feed
upon human flesh.
On the 7th December, we arrived at ten o’clock in the morning at the
village of St. Luzia, containing from two to three hundred inhabitants.
It is built in a square, and has one church; the houses are small and
low. Here I was able to replenish my spirit bottles, and to purchase
a supply of _rapaduras_. These are cakes of brown sugar or treacle,
boiled to a sufficient consistency to harden, by which means it is
more portable, and much less liable to be wasted in its conveyance.
The day before we reached St. Luzia, our resting place at mid-day was
under some trees, and not far from a cottage. I observed the skin
of a jaguar, the _onça pintada_, in the language of the country,
stretched upon several pieces of wood; it had the appearance of being
quite fresh. I had afterwards some conversation with the cottager,
and he told me, that he had killed the animal to which the skin had
belonged, with the assistance of three dogs, only the day before. It
had committed great destruction, particularly among the sheep; but had
escaped for a length of time, from never appearing at the same place
twice successively. The preceding day this man had gone out with his
three dogs, as was occasionally his practice; his musket was loaded,
but he was without any farther supply of ammunition, and he had his
long knife in his girdle. One of the dogs got scent of the jaguar, and
followed it up to the den; the beast was within, the dogs attacked it;
one of them was killed, and another much maimed, which we saw, and
even the third was hurt. The man fired as soon as the jaguar came out,
and wounded it; and when he saw that it was considerably disabled, he
ran in upon the animal with his knife, and killed it; in doing which,
one of his arms was much lacerated, and this was bound up at the time
I conversed with him. He asked for some powder, saying that there was
still another jaguar in the neighbourhood. The skins are much valued
in Brazil for saddle-cloths; and from the make of the saddles used in
that country, a cloth of some sort, or a skin is required for each. I
have the skin of a jaguar in my possession, which measures five feet
and three inches. The _onça vermelha_, _felis concolor_, and the _onça
preta_, _felis discolor_, are also to be met with; but the jaguar is
more common, and more dreaded than either of these.
The same day we passed over the dry bed of the Panema; it was the third
river we had crossed since our departure from Açu, and all were in the
same state.
St. Luzia stands upon the northern bank of a dry river, in a sandy
loose soil. We took up our mid-day station under the roof of a
miserable hut; the ashes of an extinguished fire in its centre, and
a bench of twisted twigs, alone denoted that it had served as a
dwelling. Several of the inhabitants of the village soon came to us
to enquire for news from Pernambuco; and among others, a young man,
whose accent discovered him to be a native of some of the northern
provinces of Portugal, and whose manner displayed the idea which he
entertained of his own importance; he said, that he had orders from
the commandant to demand my passport, to which I answered, that if the
commandant had wished to see the passport, he would certainly have
sent one of his officers to ask for it; the young man rejoined, that
he was the sergeant of the district. I said that I did not doubt the
truth of what he said, but that I could not know him in that capacity,
because, instead of being in uniform, he had appeared in the usual
dress of shirt and drawers; and I added, that his manner was such,
that I had quite resolved not to show it to him at all. He said, I
must and should show it; I turned to Julio, and asked him, if he heard
what the man said; Julio answered, “Yes, sir, never mind.”[39] The
sergeant went off, and we prepared our arms, much to the amazement and
amusement of some of the more peaceable inhabitants. I soon saw him
again, and he was coming towards us, with two or three other persons;
I called to him to keep at a distance, telling him that Julio would
fire if he did not. This he judged advisable to do; and as I thought
it proper and prudent to advance as soon as possible, we left the
place soon after one o’clock, with a broiling sun; therefore we then
saw no more of the sergeant. The dry river, upon which this village
stands, divides the captaincies of Rio Grande and Seara, consequently
there was much reason for the commandant’s demand of my passport; but
it was necessary to preserve the high opinion generally entertained
of the name of _Inglez_, Englishman, wherever the people possessed
sufficient knowledge to understand that the said _Inglezes_, were
not _bichos_, or animals; and also to keep up my own importance with
the persons about me. It would not have answered, to have thus given
way to a man who was inclined to make me feel the consequence which
he judged his place would allow him to assume. If I had been invited
to the commandant’s house in a civil way, or if the sergeant had come
to me in his uniform, all would have gone well. These trifles, though
apparently of no importance, weigh very heavily with persons who have
made such small advances towards civilization; public opinion is every
thing. If the idea of my being a _bicho_ and a heretic had not been
counter-balanced by that of rank and consequence, I might have had the
whole village upon me, and have been deserted by my own people into the
bargain.
The general features of the captaincy of Rio Grande, may be laid down
as displaying tolerable fertility to the southward of Natal, and as
having a barren aspect to the northward of it, excepting the banks and
immediate neighbourhood of the Potengi.
We passed through the estate of Ilha, distant from St. Luzia one league
and a half, and proceeded, after taking water, four leagues beyond
it, to an uninhabited and unfinished house. The owner had commenced
building during the rains of the former year, and had gone on with
the work until the spring of water, near to the place, failed. The
house was tiled and spacious; but the wood work only of the walls
was erected. It had been the intention of this person to establish a
_fazenda_ here; but the failure of the spring of water would, probably,
deter him from his purpose. The country from Ilha to Tibou, where we
halted at noon on the following day, a distance of ten leagues, was now
without water. Two parties of travellers, besides our own, had taken
up their night’s lodging at this unfinished house. The several fires,
the groups around them, some cooking, some eating, and others asleep;
the pack-saddles and trunks strewed about, as they had been taken
from the horses’ backs, formed a scene worthy of a painter; all was
darkness around, and the wind blew fresh, for the house had no walls,
and no obstruction to oppose its entrance, save the upright posts
which supported the roof. The light of the fires sometimes flashed
upon one or other of the countenances of the travellers, and on these
occasions alone could I discover their colour and consequently, in
some degree, their rank. I might be in the company of slaves or of
white men, for both would have taken up their night’s station in the
same manner. An old man of colour addressed me, asking if I was the
Englishman who had rested at noon at St. Luzia; on my answering in the
affirmative, he said that he was at the commandant’s at the time, and
that there were several debates about the mode of proceeding respecting
me and mine—that my determination not to give up my passport had
caused some demur, and that among other suppositions of who I might
be, one wiseacre said, there was no knowing whether I was not one of
Bonaparte’s ministers, and what might be my diabolical plans. Indeed
I was often amused with the strange ideas which the country people
entertained of distant nations, of which they had heard the names, and
perhaps some further particulars; these were altered in such a manner
by their misapprehension, that it was oftentimes difficult to discover
what the real circumstances were which had been related to them.
We traversed another salt marsh this afternoon. The marsh I have
mentioned as having crossed on the 4th of this month, was the only one
of that description which I met with. The others I have spoken of, and
those which I shall have occasion to mention, are dry, and the soil
upon them in summer is hard, it is dark coloured and produces no grass,
but upon the skirts of the marshes are seen several sea-side plants,
and the water that oozes from them is quite salty.
Our road the next morning lay through brushwood for three leagues over
heavy sand, and three leagues over a salt marsh. Near mid-day we passed
a cottage, in which resided the herdsman of a _fazenda_ and immediately
beyond, ascended a hill of heavy sand called Tibou, from which we
again saw the sea. I scarcely can describe the sensations which were
occasioned by this sight; I felt as if I was at home, as if free to act
as I pleased. The spring of water near to the cottage was dried up,
but there was one on the opposite side of the sand-hill, which still
afforded a small supply; we now took up our mid-day station under a
miserable hut, erected at the summit of the hill, by the inhabitants
of the cottage, for the purpose of curing their fish; they had fixed
upon this spot from its height and consequent exposure to the wind.
The descent to the sea-shore is steep, but not dangerous, as the depth
of the sand prevents any apprehension of a horse falling and rolling
down. The great length of the journies of the two last days, had almost
knocked up the horse upon which my Goiana guide rode; I saw that the
man was not inclined to walk for the purpose of easing the animal, and
therefore wishing to see what could be done by example, I dismounted
and took off the greatest part of my cloaths, removed the bit from my
horse’s mouth, tied the bridle round his neck, and turned him loose
among the others; this had the desired effect, and John also was then
ashamed to be the only person on horseback.
We advanced very quickly over the wet sands, passed two fishermen’s
huts distant from Tibou two leagues; and one league further turned up
from the shore by a steep, sandy path, which took us to the hamlet of
Areias, composed of one respectable looking dwelling and five or six
straw huts. The lands we passed this afternoon, bordering the shore,
are low and sandy, without trees and without cultivation. In seasons
less severe than this there is a small spring of water, not far from
the fishermen’s huts which we had passed, but now it was entirely dried
up; they stand near to a small piece of ground, of which the soil is
less sandy than that in the neighbourhood, and a crop of water melons
is usually obtained from it, which had however completely failed this
year. On our arrival at Areias I made for the principal house, and
asked for a night’s lodging. The front room was offered to me, upon
which our horses were unloaded, and our baggage put into it. I was
surprised to see no elderly or middle aged person belonging to this
house; there were three or four boys only, of whom the oldest was about
sixteen years of age, and he appeared to direct the concerns of the
establishment. He had a piece of inclosed ground near to the house,
into which he allowed our horses to be turned, and this arrangement
being made, I had then time to look round, and see my quarters.
Not a tree or shrub was to be seen in the neighbourhood, but there
were immense sand-hills on one side, and on the other the sea. The
convenience of the spot for fishing could alone have made these people
fix upon it for a residence. I sent out to purchase a fowl; one was
brought, for which I paid 640 _reis_, about 3_s._ 6_d._ Julio told me
that he had seen some goats and kids, upon which I sent him to purchase
one of the latter; he returned with a large one, for which the owner
asked 80 _reis_, less than 6_d._ I thought I was in duty bound to eat
my fowl, but the kid was much finer of its kind. A boy passed in the
evening with a large turtle, which he begged the guide to exchange for
about one pound of the kid; the meat was given to him, but his turtle
would have been of no use to us.
Julio, when he went to purchase the kid, had heard a long story about a
ghost, which made its appearance in the house at which we had stationed
ourselves. The persons from whom he heard it, had advised him to make
me acquainted with the circumstance, that I might move to some other
place for the night. I began to suspect some trick, and told my people
my idea of the sort of ghost we were likely to meet with; I found that
this cheered them, as by them shadows were more dreaded than flesh and
blood. We slung our hammocks in different directions in the large room,
and each took his arms, and settled for the night;—a sudden panic
seized my additional guide, and he was sneaking out of the room; but I
stopped him, and said, that I would send him back to his own country if
he went out; the business was however settled by taking the key from
the door. The story ran thus, the master and mistress of the house had
been murdered by two of their slaves, and it was said that their ghosts
occasionally took a walk in this room; nay, it was even reported that
the old gentleman used his gold headed cane, and woke with it those who
slept in the house. We had not, however, the honour of his company,
and in the morning had much laughter, at the fellow who had been so
dreadfully frightened.
The country through which we proceeded on the morrow, presented a
more cheering appearance. We reached, at a short distance from Areias,
some inclosed and cultivated lands, then passed over a salt-marsh
and arrived at Cajuaes, distant from Areias two leagues. The place
receives its name from the great number of acaju trees, and consists
of six or seven huts. Here we dined, finding good water and abundance
of maize-stalks for our horses. There was some appearance of comfort
and enjoyment of life, at least comparatively speaking. Beyond Cajuaes
three leagues we slept near to a hut, after travelling through some
more cultivated ground. I was asked, by some persons at Cajuaes, at
what place I had slept the preceding night; I answered at Areias,
they then enquired in what house at Areias, as at that village
there was none into which travellers could be received. I replied,
that on the contrary, there was the great house, which I had found
very comfortable; they were perfectly astonished at my sleeping in
this haunted place, and for some time imagined that I was joking.
Afterwards, on other occasions, I heard of the same story, which
appeared to have taken deep root in the faith of all those who spoke of
it.
The next day we reached Aracati, distant seven leagues from where we
had slept, about five o’clock in the afternoon. Great part of this
day’s journey was through salt marshes or plains covered with the
Carnàûba; the tall naked stems of the palms, crowned with branches
like the coco tree at the summit, which rustle with the least breath
of air, and the bare and dark coloured soil upon which no grass grows
and rarely any shrub, give a dismal look to these plains. The computed
distance from Açû? to Aracati is forty-five leagues. When I approached
Aracati, I sent my Goiana guide forwards with the letter which I
had received from the governor of Rio Grande to Senhor Joze Fideles
Barrozo, a wealthy merchant and landed proprietor. On my arrival, I
found that the guide had delivered the letter, and that Senhor Barrozo
had given to him the keys of an unoccupied house, which I was to
inhabit during my stay.
The town of Aracati consists chiefly of one long street, with several
others of minor importance branching from it to the southward; it
stands upon the southern bank of the river Jaguaribe, which is so far
influenced by the tide. At the ebb, the stream is fordable, and as it
spreads considerably from the main channel, some parts remain quite dry
at low water. The houses of Aracati, unlike those of any of the other
small places which I visited, have one story above the ground floor; I
enquired the reason of this, and was told, that the floods of the river
were sometimes so great, as to render necessary a retreat to the upper
part of the houses. The town contains three churches, and a town-hall
and prison, but no monasteries; this captaincy does not contain any
such pest. The inhabitants are in number about six hundred.
The house I was to occupy, consisted of two good sized rooms, with
large closets or small bed-chambers leading from each, called
_alcovas_, and a kitchen, these were all above; and underneath there
was a sort of warehouse. To the back we had an oblong yard, inclosed
by a brick wall, with a gate at the farther end, by which our horses
entered; and here they remained until better arrangements could be
made for them. I slung my hammock in the front room, and desired that
some fowls should be purchased, as stock, whilst we remained here.
One was preparing for me, when three black servants appeared from
Senhor Barrozo; the first brought a large tray with a plentiful and
excellently cooked supper, wine, sweetmeats, &c.—a second carried a
silver ewer and basin, and a fringed towel, and a third came to know if
there was any thing which I particularly wished for, besides what had
been prepared; this man took back my answer, and the other two remained
to attend, until I had supped. I learnt from the guide afterwards,
that another tray had been sent for my people. I supposed that Senhor
Barrozo had thought proper to treat me in this manner on the day of
my arrival, from an idea that I could not have arranged any means of
cooking, &c. until the next day; but in the morning coffee and cakes
were brought to me, and the same major-domo came to know if all was to
my liking. Whilst I remained at Aracati, Senhor Barrozo provided every
thing for me and for my people, in the same handsome manner. This
treatment is usual where persons are well recommended; it is noble, and
shows the state of manners among the higher orders.
In the morning I received a visit from Senhor Barrozo, whose manners
were ceremonious and courtly. On my mentioning the inconvenience to
which I was putting him by my stay, he said, that he could not alter
in any way his mode of treating me, because, if he did, he should
not do his duty to the governor of Rio Grande, to whom he owed many
obligations, and, consequently, took every opportunity of showing his
gratitude by all the means in his power. The reason which he thus gave
for his civility, completely set at rest any thing I could have said
to prevent its continuance. He ordered all my horses to be taken to
an island in the river, upon which there was plenty of grass. I had
resolved to send John back to Pernambuco by sea, and spoke to Senhor
Barrozo upon the subject, when he immediately said, that one of his
smacks was going, in which my servant might have a birth. John was
out of health, and not adapted to the kind of life which we had been
leading, and should be yet under the necessity of continuing. This day
I remained at home, employing the greatest part of it in sleeping; and
in the evening returned Senhor Barrozo’s visit. A white man, with whom
my Goiana guide was acquainted, called upon me, and we arranged an
expedition in a canoe, for the next day, to go down the river to its
mouth.
My guide’s friend came as he had appointed, and his canoe was waiting
for us. His two negroes poled where the water was shallow, and paddled
us along where it became deep. We passed several beautiful islands,
some of which had cattle upon them; and others, of which the land
was too low to produce grass; the latter were entirely covered with
mangroves, which grow likewise on the borders of the river, the
shores being clear of them only where settlements are formed, and
the proprietors have extirpated them. The river is, in parts, about
half a mile in breadth, and in some places, where there are islands,
it is broader, if taken from the outermost sides of the two branches
which it, in these situations, forms. The town is distant from the bar
about eight miles. We boarded Senhor Barrozo’s smack, took the long
boat belonging to it, and proceeded to the bar, which is narrow and
dangerous, owing to the sand banks on each side; upon these the surf
is very violent. The sand is so loose at the mouth of the river, that
the masters of the coasting vessels are obliged to use every precaution
possible each voyage, as if they were entering a harbour with which
they are unacquainted. The river widens immediately within the bar,
and forms rather a spacious bay. Even if no other obstacle presented
itself, the port cannot, from the uncertainty of the depth of its
entrance, ever become of any importance. Coasters alone can enter, and
I understand that the sand in the river also accumulates; the sand
banks project from each side in some places so much as to render the
navigation, even for a boat, somewhat difficult from a short distance
above the bay[40]. On our return, we dined at an estate upon the banks
of the river, of which the owner was an acquaintance of the man who
had proposed this party. Opposite to the dwelling-house of this estate
stands an island, which produces abundance of grass; but there is no
fresh water upon it; this obliges the cattle that feed there, regularly
to pass over to the main land every day to drink, and return to the
island, which they are so much accustomed to do, that no herdsman is
necessary to compel them. We saw them swim across, and all passed
close to the house in their way to the pool. The owner said, that the
calves invariably took that side of their mothers to which the tide was
running, to prevent being carried away by the force of the stream: and
indeed I observed, that all the calves took the same side.
In the evening arrangements were made for the hire of two horses to
carry me and one of my people to Seara, leaving my own beasts to rest
for the journey back to Pernambuco. I again called upon Senhor Barrozo,
to make known to him my plan, and he then gave me a letter to a
gentleman with whom he was acquainted at Seara. A guide for the journey
was also procured.
The horses were ready, and in the morning I set forth, accompanied
by my Goiana guide, and the man whom I had hired for this additional
journey; he rode a horse with which he had been charged to take to
Seara. He was an old man, half mad, and very amusing. We hailed the
ferryman to take us across the river before day-break; but as he did
not answer, we took possession of a large canoe which lay empty, and
was tied to a post; we got into it, and the Goiana guide paddled us
very dexterously to the middle of the river, where the canoe grounded;
it had struck upon a sand bank, owing to the man being unacquainted
with the navigation of the stream. We were obliged to undress, and get
into the water to push the canoe off, which we succeeded in doing, and
reached the opposite side in safety. The horses crossed over, tied to
the sides of the canoe, swimming or taking the ground according to the
depth of the water.
The distance between Aracati and the _Villa da Fortaleza do Seara
Grande_, is thirty leagues, principally consisting of sandy lands
covered with brushwood; in a few places, the wood is loftier and
thicker, but of this there is not much. We passed also some fine
_varseas_, or low marshy grounds, which were now sufficiently dry
for cultivation; and indeed the only land from which any crop could
be expected in this particularly severe dry season. The country is,
generally speaking, flat, and in some parts the path led us near to
the sea shore, but was never upon it. We saw several cottages, and
three or four hamlets; the facility of obtaining fish from the sea, has
rendered living comparatively easy in these parts. We passed through an
Indian village, and the town of St. Joze, each built in a square, and
each containing about three hundred inhabitants. I understood that the
governors of Seara are obliged to take possession of their office at
St. Joze. We made the journey in four days, arriving at the _Villa da
Fortaleza_ on the 16th December, and might have entered it at noon on
the fourth day, but I preferred waiting until the evening. I performed
the journey from Natal to Seara, a distance of one hundred and sixty
leagues, according to the vague computation of the country, in
thirty-four days. The morning after my arrival I sent back to Aracati
the men and horses which I had brought with me.
The town of the fortress of Searà is built upon heavy sand, in the
form of a square, with four streets leading from it, and it has an
additional long street on the north side of the square, which runs in
a parallel direction, but is unconnected with it. The dwellings have
only a ground floor, and the streets are not paved; but some of the
houses have foot paths of brick in front. It contains three churches,
the governor’s palace, the town-hall and prison, a custom-house, and
the treasury. The number of inhabitants I judge to be from one thousand
to twelve hundred. The fort, from which the place derives its name,
stands upon a sand-hill close to the town, and consists of a sand or
earth rampart towards the sea, and of stakes driven into the ground on
the land side; it contained four or five pieces of cannon of several
sizes, which were pointed various ways; and I observed that the gun of
heaviest metal was mounted on the land side. Those which pointed to
the sea were not of sufficient calibre to have reached a vessel in the
usual anchorage ground. The powder magazine is situated upon another
part of the sand-hill, in full view of the harbour. There is not much
to invite the preference given to this spot; it has no river, nor any
harbour, and the beach is bad to land upon; the breakers are violent,
and the _recife_ or reef of rocks affords very little protection to
vessels riding at anchor upon the coast. The settlement was formerly
situated three leagues to the northward, upon a narrow creek, where
there exists now only the remains of an old fort. The beach is steep,
which renders the surf dangerous for a boat to pass through in making
for the shore. A vessel unloaded during my stay there, and part of her
cargo consisted of the flour of the mandioc in small bags; the long
boat approached as near to the shore as it could without striking, and
the bags were landed on men’s heads; the persons employed to bring them
ashore passed through the surf with them; but if they were caught by a
wave the flour was wetted and injured, and indeed few reached the shore
perfectly dry. The anchorage ground is bad and exposed; the winds are
always from the southward and eastward; and if they were very variable
a vessel could scarcely ride upon the coast. The reef of rocks forms
a complete ridge, at a considerable distance from the shore, and is
to be seen at low water. Upon this part of the coast the reef runs
lower than towards Pernambuco, which has obliged the people of Searà
to take advantage of the rocks being rather higher here, and affording
some little protection to ships at anchor. The spot seems to have been
preferred owing to this advantage, trifling as it is, though the rocks
are much inferior to those which form the bold reef of Pernambuco. The
ridge runs parallel with the shore for about one quarter of a mile,
with two openings, one above and the other below the town. A small
vessel may come to anchor between it and the shore; but a large ship
can only bring up either to the northward or to the southward of the
town, in one of the openings of the ridge or on the outside of it. The
opening to the northward is to be preferred. A vessel coming from the
northward should make the point of Mocoripe, which lies one league
to the southward of the town, and upon it stands a small fort; this
being done, she will then be able to make the anchorage ground. On the
appearance of a ship the fort of the town will have a white flag flying
upon a high flag-staff. To the northward of the town, between the reef
and the shore, there is a rock called _Pedra da Velha_, or the Old
Woman’s Rock, which is to be seen even at high water by the breakers
upon it. When a vessel leaves the port she may either pass between this
rock and the shore, giving a birth to a shoal about one hundred yards
to the northward, or she may run between the rock and the principal
ridge or reef.
The public buildings are small and low, but are neat and white-washed,
and adapted to the purposes for which they are intended.
Notwithstanding the disadvantage to the general appearance, imparted
by the wretched soil upon which the town has been erected, I could
not avoid thinking that its look was that of a thriving place; but I
believe that this can scarcely be said to be the real state of the
town. The difficulty of land carriage, particularly in such a country,
the want of a good harbour, and the dreadful droughts, prevent any
sanguine hope of its rise to opulence. The commerce of Searà is very
limited and is not likely to increase; the long credits which it is
necessary for the trader to give, preclude the hope of quick returns,
to which British merchants are accustomed.
I rode immediately on my arrival to the house of Senhor Marcos Antonio
Briçio, the chief of the Treasury and of the Naval department, with
several other titles which are not transferrable into our language; to
this gentleman I had a letter of introduction from Senhor Barrozo. I
found several persons assembled at his house to drink tea and play at
cards. Senhor Marcos is an intelligent and well-informed man, who has
seen good society in Lisbon, and had held a high situation at Maranham
before he was appointed to Searà. I was introduced to Senhor Lourenço,
a merchant, who had connections in trade with England; he recognized my
name, for he had been acquainted with near relations of mine in Lisbon.
I was invited to stay with him and received from him every civility.
The morning after my arrival I visited the governor, Luiz Barba Alardo
de Menezes[41], and was received by him with much affability; he said,
that he wished he had more opportunities of shewing the regard which
he entertained for my countrymen, and that some of them would come and
settle in his captaincy. He built, during his administration of the
province, the centre of the palace, and employed Indian workmen, paying
them half the usual price of labour. He was in the habit of speaking of
the property of individuals residing within the province as if it was
his own, saying, his ships, his cotton, &c. I happened to be at Searà,
on the Queen of Portugal’s birthday; the company of regular troops,
consisting of one hundred and fourteen men, was reviewed; they looked
respectable, and were in tolerable order. In the chief apartment of
the palace stood a full length picture of the Prince Regent of Brazil,
which was placed against the wall, and was raised about three feet
from the ground. Three or four steps ascended from the floor to the
foot of the picture; upon the lowest of these the governor stood in
full uniform, and each person passed before him and bowed, that thus
the state of the Sovereign Court might be kept up. I dined with the
governor this day, at whose table were assembled all the military and
civil officers, and two or three merchants; he placed me at his right
hand, as a stranger, thus shewing the estimation in which Englishmen
are held. About thirty persons were present at the table, of which
more than half wore uniforms; indeed the whole display was much more
brilliant than I had expected; every thing was good and handsome.
I had opportunities of seeing the Indian villages of Aronxas and
Masangana, and there is a third in this neighbourhood, of which I have
forgotten the name; each is distant from Searà between two and three
leagues, in different directions; they are built in the form of a
square, and each contains about three hundred inhabitants. One of my
usual companions on these occasions was acquainted with the vicar of
Aronxas, and we therefore made him a visit. He resided in a building
which had formerly belonged to the Jesuits; it is attached to the
church, and has balconies from the principal corridor, which look into
it.
The Indians of these villages, and indeed of all those which I passed
through, are Christians; though it is said that some few of them follow
in secret their own heathenish rites, paying adoration to the _maracà_,
and practising all the customs of their religion, if I may use this
word, of which so exact a description is given in Mr. Southey’s History
of Brazil. When the Roman Catholic religion does take root in them,
it of necessity degenerates into the most abject superstition. An
adherence to superstitious rites, whether of Roman Catholic ordination
or prescribed by their own undefined faith, appears to be the only
part of their character in which they shew any constancy. Each village
has its priest, who is oftentimes a vicar, and resident for life
upon the spot. A director is also attached to each village, who is
supposed to be a white man; he has great power over the persons within
his jurisdiction. If a proprietor of land is in want of workmen he
applies to the director, who agrees for the price at which the daily
labour is to be paid, and he commands one of his chief Indians to take
so many men and proceed with them to the estate for which they are
hired. The labourers receive the money themselves, and expend it as
they please; but the bargains thus made are usually below the regular
price of labour. Each village has two _Juizes Ordinarios_ or Mayors,
who act for one year. One _Juiz_ is a white man, and the other an
Indian; but it may easily be supposed that the former has, in fact,
the management. These _Juizes_ have the power of putting suspicious
persons into confinement, and of punishing for small crimes; those of
more importance wait for the _Correiçam_, or circuit of the _Ouvidor_
of the captaincy. Each village contains a town-hall and prison. The
administration of justice in the Sertam is generally spoken of as most
wretchedly bad; every crime obtains impunity by the payment of a sum of
money. An innocent person is sometimes punished through the interest of
a great man, whom he may have offended, and the murderer escapes who
has the good fortune to be under the protection of a powerful patron.
This proceeds still more from the feudal state of the country than
from the corruption of the magistrates, who might often be inclined
to do their duty, and yet be aware that their exertions would be of
no avail, and would possibly prove fatal to themselves. The Indians
have likewise their _Capitaens-mores_, and this title is conferred for
life; it gives the holder some power over his fellows, but as it is
among them, unaccompanied by the possession of property, the Indian
_Capitaens-mores_ are much ridiculed by the whites; and indeed the half
naked officer with his gold-headed cane is a personage who would excite
laughter from the most rigid nerves.
The Indians are in general a quiet and inoffensive people, they have
not much fidelity, but although they desert they will not injure
those whom they have served. Their lives are certainly not passed
in a pleasant manner under the eye of a director, by whom they are
imperiously treated, consequently it is not surprising that they
should do all in their power to leave their villages and be free from
an immediate superior; but even when they have escaped from the irksome
dominion of the director they never settle in one place. The Indian
scarcely ever plants for himself, or if he does, rarely waits the crop;
he sells his maize or mandioc for half its value, before it is fit to
be gathered, and removes to some other district. His favourite pursuits
are fishing and hunting; a lake or rivulet will alone induce him to
be stationary for any length of time. He has a sort of independent
feeling, which makes him spurn at any thing like a wish to deprive him
of his own free agency; to the director he submits, because it is out
of his power to resist. An Indian can never be persuaded to address
the master to whom he may have hired himself, by the term of Senhor,
though it is made use of by the whites in speaking to each other, and
by all other free people in the country; but the negroes also use it in
speaking to their masters, therefore the Indian will not; he addresses
his temporary master by the term of _amo_ or _patram_, protector or
patron. The reluctance to use the term of Senhor may perhaps have
commenced with the immediate descendants of those who were in slavery,
and thus the objection may have become traditionary. They may refuse
to give by courtesy what was once required from them by law. However,
if it began in this manner, it is not now continued for the same
reason, as none of those with whom I conversed, and they were very
many, appeared to know that their ancestors had been obliged to work as
slaves.
The instances of murder committed by Indians are rare. They are
pilferers rather than thieves. When they can, they eat immoderately;
but if it is necessary they can live upon a very trifling quantity
of food, to which their idleness often reduces them. They are much
addicted to liquor, and will dance in a ring, singing some of the
monotonous ditties of their own language, and drink for nights and
days without ceasing. Their dances are not indecent, as those of
Africa. The mulattos consider themselves superior to the Indians, and
even the Creole blacks look down upon them; “he is as paltry as an
Indian[42],” is a common expression among the lower orders in Brazil.
They are vilely indifferent regarding the conduct of their wives and
daughters; lying and other vices attached to savage life belong to
them. Affection seems to have little hold upon them; they appear to be
less anxious for the life and welfare of their children than any other
cast of men who inhabit that country. The women however do not, among
these semi-barbarians, perform the principal drudgery; if the husband
is at home he fetches water from the rivulet and fuel from the wood; he
builds the hut whilst his wife takes shelter in some neighbour’s shed.
But if they travel she has her young children to carry, the pots, the
baskets, and the excavated gourds, whilst the husband takes his wallet
of goat-skin and his hammock rolled up upon his back, his fishing net
and his arms, and walks in the rear. The children are washed on the
day of their birth in the nearest brook or pool of water. Both the men
and the women are cleanly in many of their habits, and particularly
in those relating to their persons; but in some other matters their
customs are extremely disgusting; the same knife is used for all
purposes, and with little preparatory cleaning is employed in services
of descriptions widely opposite. They do not reject any kind of food,
and devour it almost without being cooked; rats and other small vermin,
snakes and alligators are all accepted.
The instinct, for I know not what else to call it, which the Indians
possess above other men, in finding their way across a wood to a
certain spot on the opposite side without path or apparent mark, is
most surprising; they trace footsteps over the dry leaves which lie
scattered under the trees. The letter-carriers, from one province to
another, are mostly Indians, for from habit they endure great fatigue,
and will walk day after day, with little rest, for months together.
I have met them with their wallets made of goat-skin upon their
shoulders, walking at a regular pace, which is not altered by rough or
smooth. Though a horse may outstrip one of these men for the first few
days, still if the journey continues long, the Indian will, in the end,
arrive before him. If a criminal has eluded the diligence of the police
officers, Indians are sent in pursuit of him, as a last resource. It
is well known that they will not take him alive; each man who sees the
offender fires, for they do not wish to have any contention. Nor is it
possible for the magistrate to fix upon the individual of the party who
shot the criminal; for if any of them are asked who killed him, the
answer invariably is “_os homems_,” the men.
It is usually said, that a party of Indians will fight tolerably well;
but that two or three will take to their heels at the first alarm.
Some of them however are resolute, and sufficiently courageous; but
the general character is usually supposed to be cowardly, inconstant,
devoid of acute feelings, as forgetful of favours as of injuries,
obstinate in trifles, regardless of matters of importance. The
character of the negro is more decided; it is worse, but it is also
better. From the black race the worst of men may be formed; but they
are capable likewise of great and good actions. The Indian seems to be
without energy or exertion; devoid of great good or great evil. Much
may at the same time be said in their favour; they have been unjustly
dealt with, they have been trampled upon, and afterwards treated
as children; they have been always subjected to those who consider
themselves their superiors, and this desire to govern them has even
been carried to the direction of their domestic arrangements. But
no,—if they are a race of acute beings, capable of energy, of being
deeply interested upon any subject, they would do more than they have
done. The priesthood is open to them; but they do not take advantage of
it[43]. I never saw an Indian mechanic in any of the towns; there is
no instance of a wealthy Indian; rich mulattos and negroes are by no
means rare. I have had many dealings with them as guides and carriers,
and subsequently as labourers, and have no reason to complain, for
I was never injured by any of them; but neither did I receive any
particular good service, excepting in the instance of Julio. For guides
and carriers they are well adapted, as their usual habits lead them
to the rambling life which these employments encourage. As labourers,
I found that they had usually a great inclination to over-reach; but
their schemes were badly made, and consequently easily discovered. I
never could depend upon them for any length of time, and to advance
money or cloathing to them is a certain loss. If I had any labour which
was to be performed by a given time, the overseer would always reckon
upon his mulatto and negro free people; but did not mention in the
list of persons who were to work, any of the Indians whom I was then
employing; and on my speaking of them, he answered “An Indian is only
to be mentioned for the present day[44],” meaning that no reliance is
to be placed upon them.
Like most of the aboriginal inhabitants of the western hemisphere,
these people are of a copper colour. They are short, and stoutly
made; but their limbs, though large, have not the appearance of
possessing great strength, they have no shew of muscle. The face is
disproportionately broad, the nose flat, the mouth wide, the eyes
deep and small, the hair black, coarse, and lank; none of the men
have whiskers, and their beards are not thick. The women, when they
are young, have by no means an unpleasant appearance; but they soon
fall off, and become ugly; their figures are seldom well shaped.
Deformity is rare among the Indians; I do not recollect to have seen
an individual of this race who had been born defective; and the
well-informed persons with whom I conversed were of opinion, that
the Indians are more fortunate in this respect than any other race
with whom they were acquainted. All the Indians of Pernambuco speak
Portugueze, but few of them pronounce it well; there is always a
certain twang which discovers the speaker to be an Indian, although the
voice was heard without the person being seen; many of them however do
not understand any other language. The Indians seldom if ever speak
Portugueze so well as the generality of the creole negroes.
It must be perfectly understood, that although there may be some unfair
dealings occasionally of the director towards the Indian, still this
race cannot be enslaved; the Indian cannot be made to work for any
person against his inclination, he cannot be bought and sold. An Indian
will sometimes make over his child, when very young, to a rich person
to be taught some trade, or to be brought up as a household servant,
but as soon as the child is of an age to provide for itself, it cannot
be prevented from so doing; it may leave the person under whose care it
has been placed if it be so inclined.
Two Indians presented themselves at the gate of the Carmelite convent
of Goiana, and requested and were permitted to see the prior. They put
into his hands a purse containing several gold coins, saying that they
had found it near Dous Rios; they begged that he would order a number
of masses to be said in their behalf, which were to be paid for from
the contents of the purse. The prior, admiring their honesty, asked one
of them to remain with him as his servant, to which the man agreed. The
friar was in the habit of going into the country to a friend’s house to
shoot. On one occasion, after the Indian had served him for some time,
he left the convent and took him on one of these expeditions, but when
they were about half way, the friar discovered that he had forgotten
his powder-horn; he gave the key of his trunk to the Indian and desired
him to fetch the powder whilst he proceeded. In vain he waited at his
friend’s house for his servant, and on his return to the convent in
the evening he heard that he was not there. He went immediately to his
cell, supposing that he had been robbed of all his money, and whatever
else the fellow could carry of; but to his joy he discovered on
examination, that the man had only taken the powder-horn, two silver
coins of about 4s. value each, an old clerical gown, and a pair of worn
out nankeen pantaloons. This story I had from an intimate friend of the
prior.
One of the days of my stay at Searà we passed upon the borders of a
lake, which is between two and three leagues distant from the town, for
the purpose of shooting. This lake was nearly dry. The general feature
of the country about Searà is arid; the captaincy produces no sugar,
but the lands are adapted for cotton, of which however the crop this
year was very trifling. So excessive had the drought become, that a
famine was feared, and great distress would have been experienced if a
vessel had not arrived from the southward laden with the flour of the
mandioc. The usual price of it was 640 _reis per alqueire_, but the
cargo of this vessel was sold at 6400 _reis per alqueire_; a fact which
proves the scarcity to have been very great. Formerly considerable
quantities of beef were salted and dried here, and were exported to
the other captaincies, but from the mortality among the cattle, caused
by the frequent dry seasons, this trade has been unavoidably given up
entirely, and the whole country is now supplied from the Rio Grande
do Sul, the southern boundary of the Portugueze dominions. But the
meat which arrives at Pernambuco from the Rio Grande do Sul, still
preserves its name of Searà meat, _carne do Searà_. The country to the
northward and eastward I understood to be much superior to that in the
neighbourhood of Searà. The captaincy of Piauhi, which lies in that
direction, is accounted fertile, and is not subject to droughts.
Many were the praises which I heard of the late governor of Searà,
Joam Carlos, who was appointed to this province before he had arrived
at the age of twenty years, and who was at the time I visited Searà
captain-general of Mato Grosso. His administration of justice was in
general summary, but on one occasion he waved his usual severity; he
was informed, whilst playing at cards at the house of Senhor Marcos,
which is near to the palace, that a soldier was robbing his garden. He
answered, “Poor fellow, great must be his hunger when he runs the risk
of entering his governor’s garden—don’t molest him.” Some persons
were in the practice of taking doors off their hinges, and other tricks
of the same sort, during the night; the governor had in vain attempted
to discover who they were, and he resolved at last to wrap himself up
in his cloak and to apprehend some of them, if possible, with his own
hands. A young man, with whom I was acquainted, had met the governor on
one of these nights, he demanded his name and, on discovering who it
was, admonished him to be at home at an earlier hour on the following
evening.
The family of the Feitozas still exists in the interior of this
captaincy and that of Piauhi, in possession of extensive estates,
which are covered with immense droves of cattle. In the time of Joam
Carlos, the chiefs had risen to such power, and were supposed to be so
completely out of the reach of punishment, that they entirely refused
obedience to the laws, both civil and criminal, such as they are. They
revenged their own wrongs; persons obnoxious to them were publicly
murdered in the villages of the interior; the poor man who refused
obedience to their commands was devoted to destruction, and the rich
man, who was not of their clan, was obliged silently to acquiesce in
deeds of which he did not approve. The Feitozas are descendants of
Europeans, but many of the branches are of mixed blood, and perhaps
few are free from some tinge of the original inhabitants of Brazil.
The chief of the family was a colonel of militia, and could at a short
notice call together about one hundred men, which is equal to ten or
twenty times the number in a well-peopled country. Deserters were well
received by him, and murderers who had committed this crime in the
revenge of injuries; the thief was not accepted, and much less the man
who for the sake of pillage had taken the life of another.
Joam Carlos had received from Lisbon secret instructions to secure the
person of this chief of the Feitozas. His first step was to inform
the colonel, that he intended on a certain day to visit him at his
village, for the purpose of reviewing his regiment. The village is not
many leagues from the coast, but is distant considerably from Searà.
Feitoza answered, that he should be ready to receive His Excellency on
the appointed day. The time came and Joam Carlos set out, accompanied
by ten or twelve persons; the colonel greeted him most courteously, and
had assembled all his men to make the greatest possible shew. After the
review, the colonel dismissed them, fatigued with the day’s exercise,
for many of them had travelled several leagues. He retired with the
governor to his house, accompanied by a few of his near relations. At
the time all the party was preparing to settle for the night, Joam
Carlos, having arranged every thing with his own people, rose and
presented a pistol to the breast of the chief, his followers doing the
same to the colonel’s relations and servants, who were unable to make
any resistance, as they were unprepared, and not so numerous as the
governor’s men. Joam Carlos told Feitoza, that if he spoke or made the
least noise he should immediately fire, though he well knew that his
own destruction would be certain. He conducted him to the back door,
and ordered him and all the persons present to mount the horses which
had been prepared for them. They made for the sea-shore, and arrived
there very early in the morning; _jangadas_ were in waiting to take
them on board a smack, which was lying off and on near to the coast.
The alarm was given soon after their departure from Feitoza’s village,
and as the governor reached the smack, he saw the colonel’s adherents
upon the beach, embarking in _jangadas_ to try to overtake them, but
it was too late; the smack left the land, and the next day made for
the shore, landed the governor, and then proceeded on her voyage.
Feitoza was supposed to be in the prison of the Limoeiro at Lisbon when
the French entered Portugal, and either died about that time or was
released by them[45]. His followers still look forwards to his return.
The loss of their chiefs broke the power and union of the clan, and
they have had disputes among themselves. Brazil is likewise undergoing
a change of manners, and emerging rapidly from semi-barbarism.
A young man of Searà had been, a short time before my arrival, to
the distance of thirty leagues into the interior, accompanied by two
constables, to serve a writ upon a man of some property for a debt;
they rode good horses, that they might perform their errand before he
could have any knowledge that they were going, and might attempt, in
consequence, any thing against their lives. It is a dangerous service
to go into the interior to recover debts. The Portugueze law does not
allow of arrest for debt, but by serving a writ any property which was
sent down to the town to be shipped might be seized.
I was received at Searà most hospitably; the name of Englishman was
a recommendation. In the morning I generally remained at home, and
in the afternoon rode out with three or four of the young men of the
place, who were much superior to any I had expected to find here, and
in the evening a large party usually assembled at the house of Senhor
Marcos; his company and that of his wife and daughter would have been
very pleasant anywhere, but was particularly so in these uncivilized
regions. Parties were likewise occasionally given at the palace, and
at both these places, after tea and coffee, cards and conversation made
the evenings pass very quickly. The palace was the only dwelling in the
town which had boarded floors; it appeared at first rather strange to
be received by one of the principal officers of the province, in a room
with a brick floor and plain white washed walls, as occurred at the
house of Senhor Marcos.
This gentleman had delivered to me a crimson coloured satin bag,
containing government papers, and directed to the Prince Regent of
Portugal and Brazil, and he gave me directions to put it into the hands
of the post-master at Pernambuco. I obtained, from being the bearer,
the power of requiring horses from the several commandants upon the
road. To him it was convenient, as with me its chance of safety was
greater than if it had been forwarded by a single man on foot, which
is the usual mode of conveyance. The men employed for this purpose are
trust-worthy, but must of course sometimes meet with accidents.
I had in my journey from Goiana to Searà seen Pernambuco, and the
adjoining provinces to the northward, in almost their worst state—that
of one whole season without rain; but extreme wretchedness is produced
by two successive years of drought; in such a case, on the second
year, the peasants die by the road side; entire families are swept
away, entire districts are depopulated. The country was in this
dreadful state in 1791, 2, 3, for these three years passed without any
considerable fall of rain. In 1810, food was still to be purchased,
though at exorbitant prices, and in the following year the rains came
down in abundance, and removed the dread of famine. I had, I say,
seen the provinces through which I passed upon the brink of extreme
want, owing to the failure of the rains; I had myself experienced
inconvenience from this cause, and in one instance considerable
distress from it; now in returning, the whole country was changed, the
rains had commenced, and I was made to feel that great discomfort is
caused by each extreme; but the sensations which the apprehension of
a want of water produces are much more painful than the disagreeable
effects of an immoderate quantity of it—heavy rains and flooded lands.
I was obliged to stay at Searà longer than I had at first intended,
owing to an accident which I met with in bathing; this confined me
to my bed for some days. As soon as I was allowed to move I made
preparations for my return; I purchased four horses, one to carry my
trunk and a small barrel of biscuit, a second for _farinha_, a third
for maize, and the fourth for myself. Senhor Lourenço sent for three
trusty Indians from one of the villages for the purpose of accompanying
me, and on the 8th January, 1811, I commenced my return to Pernambuco.
CHAPTER VIII.
RETURN.—FROM SEARA TO NATAL.—SERTANEJOS.—CATTLE.—VEGETABLE
WAX.—FROM NATAL TO RECIFE.
I LEFT Searà at day-break with three Indians, and three loaded horses,
and one of the young men with whom I had formed an acquaintance
accompanied me to a short distance from the town. I deviated on my
return to Aracati, in some measure, from the road by which I had
travelled to Searà. The first day passed without any circumstance
worthy of being mentioned, and I was chiefly occupied in finding
out what sort of beings my Indians were, for I had had very little
conversation with them before we set off. In the afternoon of the
second day, having asked one of the Indians if the road was intricate
to our next resting-place, and being answered, that there was no
turning by which I could lose the right path, I left the loaded horses
and rode on, being tired of following them at a foot’s pace;—this I
had often done on other occasions. About five o’clock I put up at a
cottage in which were two boys, whose appearance was very wretched, but
they seemed glad to say that they would let me have a night’s lodging.
On enquiry, they told me that their parents were gone to some distance
to make paste from the stem of the Carnàûba, for that their usual
food, the flour of the mandioc, was no longer to be had at any price
in that neighbourhood. I was shown some of this paste, which was of a
dark brown colour[46], and of the consistence of dough that has not
been sufficiently kneaded; it was bitter and nauseous to the taste.
On this substance these miserable people were under the necessity of
subsisting, adding to it occasionally dried fish or meat. My party
arrived about an hour after me, and late in the evening, the younger
boy began to beg; inconsiderately I gave him money, but shortly he
returned, saying his elder brother desired him to tell me, that it
would be of no use to them, as nothing could be purchased with it.
Then I understood their meaning in begging at this moment,—my men
were going to supper,—the children were of course desired to sit down
with them. Here Feliciano, one of the Indians, sewed two hides loosely
round the two bags of _farinha_, saying, that if we proceeded without
disguising what they contained, we should at some hamlet upon the road
be obliged to satisfy the people, who would probably beg part of it
from us. He had not known, before he enquired from these children,
that this part of the country was in such a dreadful state of want.
The inhabitants had eaten up their own scanty crop, and some of them
had even been tempted by the exorbitant price, to carry their stock to
Searà for sale. They had not heard of the supply which had arrived at
that place from the southward. We reached Aracati on the fifth day.
I remained two days at Aracati, that the horses might be brought from
the island upon which they had been put out to grass. I experienced
fully now what the guide had before told me respecting the horses. They
had all lost flesh, and were apparently less fit for work than when I
first arrived at Aracati, though doubtless the relief from daily work
for so long a period must have rendered them better able to renew it
again now. The Spanish discoverers in South America, who understood
the business into which they had entered, strongly inculcated to their
people the necessity of the steady and regular continuance of their
journies, unless a pause could have been made for some length of
time[47]. I bought a large dog at Aracati, which had been trained to
keep watch over the baggage of travellers.
A man presented himself here, requesting to be allowed to go with me to
Pernambuco. He described himself as a Portugueze sailor, a European by
birth, and as having belonged to the Portugueze sloop of war, called
the Andorinha, which was wrecked upon the coast between Parà and
Maranham. He had travelled from the spot at which he had landed to this
place without any assistance from government. No provision had been
made by any of the men in power for the subsistence of the persons who
escaped. I consented to his joining me; he behaved well, and I never
afterwards had any cause to doubt the truth of his story.
I had now a great increase in my number of men and horses, but was
advised to take the men all forwards with me, as the rains might
commence and the rivers fill, in which case the more people I had to
assist in crossing them, with less danger would it be accomplished.
The additional number of horses enabled me to divide the weight into
smaller loads, and to have two or three beasts unencumbered, for the
purpose of relieving the others if necessary. The party now consisted
of nine persons and eleven horses.
Senhor Barrozo’s kindness was still continued towards me, and I hope I
shall never cease to feel grateful for it.
I was advised to get on to the sea-shore as soon as possible on leaving
Aracati, this being the better road; consequently I slept the first
night, distant three leagues from that place, at Alagoa do Mato—a
small lake which was now nearly dried up. The following morning we
travelled over the sands, passed a small village near to the shore
called Retiro, and slept at Cajuaes, a place we were acquainted with;
and from hence to St. Luzia we followed the same route as in going to
Searà. From Cajuaes we passed through Areias, famous for the ghost
story, and rested at Tibou, proceeding in the afternoon with the
intention of sleeping at the unfinished house on the road to Ilha; but
the night was closing in upon us when we were still two leagues short
of it, and for this reason it was thought adviseable to stop and pass
the night among the brushwood. We had had several showers of rain,
occasionally for some days past, and although they were slight, the
grass had begun to spring up in some places. The rapidity of vegetation
in Brazil is truly astonishing. Rain in the evening upon good soil
will by sunrise have given a greenish tinge to the earth, which is
increased, if the rain continues, on the second day to sprouts of grass
of an inch in length, and these on the third day are sufficiently long
to be picked up by the half starved cattle.
The brushwood among which we had determined to pass the night was low
and not close, so that only two shrubs were found to be near enough to
each other and of sufficient strength to support a hammock; between
these mine was hung, whilst the people took up their quarters upon
the packages as to them seemed best. Between one and two o’clock in
the morning the rain commenced, at first, with some moderation; the
guide fastened two cords from shrub to shrub above my hammock, and
laid some hides upon them as a covering for me, but soon the rain
increased, and the whole party crowded under the hides. I got up, and
all of us stood together in some degree sheltered, until the hides
fell down owing to their being quite soaked. Our fires were of course
completely extinguished. I reminded my people of the necessity of
keeping the locks of our fire-arms dry; indeed those persons of the
party who knew the Sertam must be even more aware than myself of the
numbers of Jaguars which are to be met with upon these _travessias_.
I had not spoken many minutes before Feliciano said that he heard
the growl of one of these animals—he was right, for a lot of mares
galloped across the path not far from us, and shortly after the growl
was distinctly heard; either the same or many of these beasts were
near to us during the remainder of the night, as we heard the growl in
several directions. We stood with our backs to each other and by no
means free from the chance of being attacked, though the Indians from
time to time set up a sort of song or howl, (such as is practised by
the Sertanejos when guiding large droves of half tamed cattle) with
the intent of frightening the Jaguars. Towards day-break the deluge
somewhat abated, but still the rain was hard and it did not cease. In
the morning there was much difficulty in finding the horses, as the
Jaguars had frightened and scattered them; indeed we much doubted that
they would all be alive, but I suppose the wild cattle were preferred
as being in better condition. The loads were arranged and we proceeded
to Ilha, distant six leagues, arriving there about two o’clock in the
afternoon, after having sustained twelve hours of continued rain. The
owner of the estate of Ilha sent a message to say that he wished me
to remove from the out-house, in which I had settled myself for the
remainder of the day and ensuing night, to his residence; I accepted
his offer. It was a low, mud cottage covered with tiles, which had been
made from the clay that is to be found upon the skirts of the salt
marsh near to which his house stood. He gave us plenty of milk and
dried meat; there was a scarcity of _farinha_, but a plentiful year
was expected. Immediately on my entrance into his house he offered me
his hammock, in which he had been sitting, but mine was soon slung and
we sat, talked, and smoked for a considerable time. The mosquitos were
very troublesome, indeed from this day we were scarcely ever without
them at night, and they annoyed us more or less, according to the state
of the wind and the quantity of rain which had fallen during the day.
The inconvenience occasioned by these insects is inconceivable, until
it has been experienced.
The next day we advanced to the village of St. Luzia, and rested at
noon there in an unfinished cottage. Soon after we had unloaded our
horses and I had lain myself down in my hammock intending to sleep, the
guide told me that a number of people appeared to be assembling near
to us, and that I ought to recollect the quarrel which we had had here
in going. I got up and asked for my trunk, opened it with as little
apparent design as possible, turned over several things in it, and
taking out the Red Bag, placed it upon a large log of timber near to
me, and then I continued to search in the trunk, as if for something I
could not immediately find. When I looked up again, in a few minutes,
all the persons who had assembled were gone—either the important
consequences attending this bag were known,—that of having the power
of making a requisition of horses, or some other idea of my situation
in life was given by the sight of this magical bag. The river near St.
Luzia had not yet filled. We proceeded in the afternoon and reached
the banks of the river Panema, a narrow but now a rapid stream. One of
the men went in to try if it was fordable, but before he was half way
across he found that it would be impossible to pass, as the rapidity
and depth would effectually prevent any attempt to carry the packages
over upon the heads of the Indians. I desired the people to remain
where they were, whilst I turned back with the Goiana guide to look
for some habitation, because, owing to the commencement of the rains,
sleeping in the open air would have been highly imprudent.
We made for a house, which was situated among the Carnàûba trees, at
some distance from the road, and as the owner of it said that he could
accommodate us, and that there was abundance of grass for our horses,
the guide returned to bring the party to this place, which was called
St. Anna. In the course of the night I had an attack of ague, which
would have delayed me at St. Anna even if the height of the waters had
not prevented me from proceeding. However I became more unwell, and
perhaps I imagined myself to be worse than I really was, but I began to
wish to arrive at Açù, as, by so doing, I should be advancing upon my
journey, and at the same time I should obtain the advantage of being
near to some priest, to whom I could impart any message which I might
have to send to my friends. Although I was not in immediate danger, I
was aware of the sudden changes to which aguish disorders are liable.
As soon as the waters began to subside I determined to remove, but as
I could not mount on horseback, it would be necessary that I should be
carried in a hammock; however the difficulty consisted in procuring
a sufficient number of men. By waiting another day six persons were
obtained from the cottages in the vicinity, some of which were distant
more than a league. On the fifth day from that of my arrival here, we
set off, crossed the river, which was barely fordable, and entered upon
the flooded lands. The waters covered the whole face of the country,
though they were now subsiding a little. The depth was in parts up to
the waist, but was in general less than knee-deep. The men knew the way
from practice, but even the guide whom I had hired at Açu could not
have found it without the assistance of those who carried me. At noon
the hammock with me in it was hung between two trees, resting the two
ends of the pole by which the men carried it upon two forked branches;
and hides were placed over this pole to shade me from the sun, as the
trees had not recovered from the drought and were yet without leaves.
The men slung their hammocks also, the packages were supported upon
the branches of trees, and the horses stood in the water and eat their
maize out of bags which were tied round their noses. The water was
shallow here, as this spot was rather higher than the lands around;
and in one place the ground was beginning to make its appearance. At
dusk we reached Chafaris, a _fazenda_, situated upon dry land, and here
we put up under an unfinished house. The horse upon which my trunk
and case of bottles had travelled, had fallen down, and to add to my
discomfort, my cloaths were completely wetted, and even the red bag did
not entirely escape.
I passed a wretched night, from the ague and from over fatigue. The
following morning I had some conversation with the owner of the place,
and purchased two of his horses. At noon I sent off the _comboio_,
under the care of Feliciano, who was desired to reach Piatô the
following night. I remained with the Goiana guide and Julio, who had
been promoted to John’s place of groom. With considerable difficulty
the packages were carried across the river, which runs just below
this estate; the stream was at present rapid, and the stony bed in
which it runs increased the difficulty. When I passed on the morning
following, the depth and rapidity of the current were considerably
diminished, for no rain had fallen during the night. I had mounted
the two persons who accompanied me upon the two horses which had been
purchased the day before, and I rode a led horse which was quite fresh;
resolving to arrive at Piatô, distant ten leagues, in one day; this I
accomplished, resting only a short time at noon. I was very unfit for
so much exertion, but the necessity of the case did not allow me any
alternative, and I was determined to ride until absolute exhaustion
forced me to give way.
We overtook my people, and all of us rested at the same place.
Feliciano shot an antelope, upon which we dined. It was seldom if
ever absolutely necessary to depend upon our guns for subsistence,
though the provision thus obtained was by no means unacceptable, as
it varied our diet. We could generally either purchase a considerable
supply of dried meat, or as occasionally occurred, it was afforded us
gratuitously. Sheep were sometimes to be bought, and at others, fowls
might be obtained on enquiring at the cottages; but although numbers of
the latter were to be seen about the huts, and a high price offered,
still the owners frequently refused to part with them. The women,
naturally enough, had the management of this department of household
arrangement, and after much bargaining, the housewife would often at
last declare, that all of them were such favourites, that she and her
children could not resolve to have any of them killed. This behaviour
became so frequent, that at last when either the guide or myself rode
up to a cottage to purchase a fowl, it was quite decisive with us,
if the husband called to his wife, saying that she would settle the
matter. Unless we had time to spare for talking, we generally went our
way.
My friend the commandant was still residing at Piatô; I felt as if I
was returning home; my spirits were low, and any trifle relieved them.
This night I was still very unwell, my thirst was great, and nothing
satisfied and allayed it so much as water-melons, of which there was
here a superabundance. I ate several of them. The guide said I should
kill myself; but I thought otherwise, for I liked the fruit. In the
morning I awoke quite a changed person, and the ague returned no more.
The guide often said afterwards that he never had known until the
present occasion, that water-melons might be taken as a cure for the
ague. He was quite certain that they had performed the cure, and that
they would have the same effect upon all persons in the same disease.
Such are the changes to which this strange complaint is subject; often
thus suddenly leaving the patient, but as frequently or more so, ending
in fever and delirium; however it seldom proves fatal.
On the morrow we left Piatô, with the addition to our party of a small
tame sheep, and a tame _tatu-bola_, or armadillo, both having been
given to me by the commandant. The former kept pace with the horses for
many days, and it never gave us any trouble, until the long continuance
of the journey wearied it out, and then I was obliged to make room
for it in one of the panniers; in this manner it travelled for a day
or two at a time. The armadillo was conveyed in a small bag, and
only on one occasion gave us any trouble; when we released it at our
resting-places, it usually remained among the packages, either feeding
or rolled up. It was with some difficulty that Mimoza was prevented
from annoying it; but latterly she and the armadillo were very good
friends. At Açu I changed one of my horses for another that was in
better condition, and gave about the value of a guinea to boot.
Our friends, the saddler and the owner of the house which we had
inhabited in going, received us very cordially, and offered to assist
us in crossing the river, which was full; but they advised me to wait
for a decrease of the depth and rapidity of the stream; however I was
anxious to advance, and my people made no objection. Here I discharged
the young man whom I had taken from hence as a guide to Aracati. We
crossed the smaller branch of the river, with the water reaching to
the flaps of the saddles. When we arrived at the second and principal
branch, it was discovered that a _jangada_ would be necessary to
convey the baggage across. Several of the inhabitants of the place
had followed us, judging that this would be the case, and they were
willing to be of service to us in expectation of being compensated for
their trouble. A few logs of timber were soon procured; some of them
had been brought down by the stream, and were now upon the banks, and
others were conveyed from the town; the cords with which the packages
were fastened to the pack-saddles were made use of to tie the logs
together, for the purpose of forming the raft. The father of the young
man who had been with me to Aracati accompanied us to the river side to
assist, and had brought Mimoza with him. I requested him to secure her,
otherwise I thought she would follow me; he did so, and sent her back
to the town by a boy. When the raft was prepared, the saddles and all
the packages were placed upon it, and I sat down among them. Four men
laid hold of each side of the raft, and shoved off from the shore, and
when they lost their footing, each man kept hold of the raft with one
hand, swimming with the other; but notwithstanding their exertions, the
stream carried us down about fifty yards before we reached the other
side, which however was gained in safety. The Indians were already
there with the horses. The river of Açu is from two to three hundred
yards in breadth; it was now deep and dangerous, and from the violence
of the current, a guide is requisite, that advantage may be taken of
the shallowest parts. The Sertanejos have a curious contrivance for
crossing rivers, which is formed of three pieces of wood, and upon this
they paddle themselves to the opposite side. I heard it often spoken of
by the name of _cavalete_; but as I did not see any of them, I cannot
pretend to give an exact description[48].
The men soon left us to arrange the loads, which we were doing with all
possible expedition, when on turning round, I saw Mimoza running up to
me, half crouched and half afraid. I had often wished to purchase this
animal, but nothing would induce her master to part with her; he said
that he had had her from a whelp, and added, that if he put the pot
upon the fire, and then went out with her, he was sure to return by the
time it boiled, bringing something with which to fill it. He did not
mean that this was literally the case; but thus quaintly he wished to
impress the idea of her great expertness in hunting. She followed us,
as she found that she was well received. We advanced, and halted at St.
Ursula, a _fazenda_, distant from Açu one league and a half, and here
we slept. The roads lay through woods, which were thick and close. From
hence to the Seara-meirim, the country was new to me, as I deviated
from the road by which I had arrived at Açu, on my way northwards. I
now took the shortest road to Natal, but had frequently to cross this
winding river.
Whilst I was at dinner, Mimoza was near to me, watching for her share,
when suddenly she crept under the bench upon which I sat; I soon saw
what had caused this movement, for the old man, the father of her
owner, was coming towards us; he said that he came for his son’s dog.
I persuaded him to sell her, and when he was going his way, Mimoza ran
out from under the bench and fawned upon him. I told him to go on,
and invite her to follow him; but upon this she immediately returned
growling to her old station under the bench. She had been better
treated and better fed with me than when she was with her master. I
always fed her myself, and had several times prevented him from beating
her.
The next day we passed through the _fazendas_ of Passagem and Barra;
the road was over loose stony ground and we crossed one dry marsh. In
the afternoon we travelled from S. Bento to Anjicos, which obliged us
to pass over some higher ground, which was very stony and painful to
our horses. We crossed a small shallow stream several times.
Our next day’s march carried us across more stony ground. The persons
to whom we spoke, said that there had been no rain, and indeed this
was evident. There was no grass, and the country was yet parched and
dreary. The horses had no water at noon, for the well was small, and
the spring which supplied it was insufficient for so great a number
of beasts. I was thirsty in the afternoon, and therefore left the
_comboio_ to follow at its usual pace, and rode on accompanied by
Julio; the two dogs likewise would come with us. We entered upon
a plain, and now for the second time I saw an _ema_, a species of
ostrich. Notwithstanding my attempts to prevent them, the dogs set off
after it, and much against my inclination I was obliged to wait until
their return. The bird ran from them with great velocity, flapping its
wings, but never leaving the ground. The _emas_ outstrip the fleetest
horses. The colour of the one which we saw was a dark grey; its height,
including the neck, which was very long, was about that of a man on
horseback, and it had that appearance at first sight, when at some
distance. The Sertanejos say, that when pursued the _ema_ spurs itself
to run the faster; that the spurs or pointed bones are placed in the
inside of the wings, and that as these are flapped, the bones strike
the sides and wound them. I have heard many people say, that when an
_ema_ is caught after a hard chase, the sides are found to be bloody.
It is possible that this effect may be produced by some cause similar
to that by which a pig cuts its own throat in swimming. The eggs of the
_ema_ are large, and although the food which they afford is coarse,
it is not unpalatable. The feathers are much esteemed. When the dogs
returned we continued our journey; the road led us between high rocks,
and after proceeding along it for some time, the dogs suddenly struck
from the path, and went up the side of a flat rock, which sloped
down towards the road, but was sufficiently low to allow of a horse
ascending it. Our horses stopped and snuffed up the air. Julio cried
out at the same time “water, water,” and spurred his horse to follow
the dogs, and I did the same. Julio was quite correct in what he had
supposed, from the direction which the dogs immediately took, and from
the stopping of the horses. There was a long and narrow but deep cleft
in the rock, which was nearly full of water, clear and cold. The sides
of the cleft slanted inwards, and the water was below the surface,
so that the dogs were running round and howling, without being able
to reach it; the horses too, as soon as we dismounted, and they saw
the water, began to paw, and attempted to press forwards to drink. We
had brought no vessel with which to take up any of it, and were under
the necessity of using our hats to satisfy the horses and dogs. The
rest of the party came up after some time; Feliciano was acquainted
with the spot, but if the dogs and horses had not pointed it out to
Julio, he and I should have missed it. We were delayed considerably
in giving water enough to all the horses, as we had no large vessel
in which to take it up. I heard from Feliciano, and subsequently from
other persons, that these clefts in the rocks are common; but that they
are known to few, and those principally of his rank and occupation in
life, and that this knowledge enabled them to find plenty of water
when others were in great distress. He said, “we never refuse to give
information, but we say as little about it as possible.” I travelled
until ten o’clock at night, wishing to reach some _fazenda_, and not
to remain in the open air, as there were several heavy clouds flying
about, from the look of which we well knew that if the wind abated,
rain would come on. We reached a _fazenda_, and applied for a night’s
lodging, which was granted; but upon a survey of the interior of the
house, I preferred the open air with all its disadvantages. The place
was full of persons who had assembled from the neighbouring estates, in
expectation of rain, as they had come to assist in collecting cattle.
The fellows were eating dried meat, and had by some means obtained a
quantity of rum. I took up my station at a distance from the house,
and we scarcely laid down during the night, from the fear of rain, and
in some measure that we might be prepared to prevent any of our horses
being stolen, as a piece of sport, by the people in the house.
The next day we crossed over a plain which was partly without trees and
in part covered with brushwood; in going over this last portion I had
pushed on with Julio, leaving the _comboio_ to follow us. We had nearly
lost our way at the division of several paths; even Julio’s knowledge
was insufficient, and had we not met some travellers and enquired of
them, I know not how far from the baggage we might have been at night.
On the following morning we advanced again, took water in skins near to
some cottages, and at noon stationed ourselves in the bed of a rivulet,
where there was good grass, but no water. As the bed was lower than the
neighbouring land the very first shower had made the grass spring up,
though there had not been rain sufficient to excite vegetation upon
its banks. Here the armadillo strayed into some brushwood; Feliciano
followed it by the marks of its footsteps over the grass and dry
leaves, and brought it back. I am quite confident that he did not see
which way it went, and to a person unused to tracing footsteps there
appeared to be none. If it had passed over sand, there would not have
been any thing extraordinary in discovering the way which the animal
had taken, but upon grass and dry leaves so small an animal could make
but a most trifling impression. I mentioned at this place accidentally
that the skins had spoiled the water, for it tasted of the grease with
which they had been rubbed. Feliciano heard me, and took up a small
skin that lay empty, which was old and therefore not greasy, and said,
“I’ll try to find some for you that is better;” and away he went. In
about an hour he returned with the skin full of excellent water. He had
recollected a cleft in a rock at some distance, and had gone to see if
any yet remained in it.
We slept at a _fazenda_, and the next day proceeded in the expectation
of reaching the Searà-meirim, which we did. This track of country had
not recovered from the drought, but the trees were beginning to be
cloathed, and the grass under them was in most parts of sufficient
length to afford subsistence to our horses. Water was still scarce and
bad, but the rain had made it less brackish and more plentiful. We
passed over the _travessia_ with all possible haste, as the floods were
expected shortly, and sometimes the water comes down, as I have before
stated, with great rapidity. There is some danger in being caught by
the water upon any of the peninsulas or islands which are formed by its
bends, for to be under the necessity of crossing over a stream which
runs with much violence, perhaps ten times or more successively, would
be too much for almost any horse to bear, and particularly for those
which were already fatigued by a long journey. We left the Searà-meirim
in four days, passed Pai Paulo, and early on the fifth day arrived
again at the dry lake. The people of this place were upon the point of
decamping, as the rains were expected or rather had already commenced.
We now met several parties of travellers, who had taken advantage
of the first rains to pass over this track of country, and who were
hastening before the floods came down the river.
January is not properly speaking the rainy season. The rains at the
commencement of the year are called the _primeiras aguas_ or the first
waters, and continue for about a fortnight or three weeks, after which
the weather generally becomes again settled until May or June, and
from this time until the end of August the rains are usually pretty
constant. From August or September until the opening of the year there
is not usually any rain. The dry weather can be depended upon with more
certainty from September until January, than from February until May;
likewise the wet weather can be looked for with more certainty from
June until August than in January. There are very few days during the
whole course of the year of incessant rain. What I have said regarding
the seasons must however be taken with some latitude, as in all
climates they are subject to variation.
The horse I left at the dry lake was faithfully delivered to me, and
I continued my journey on the following day to Natal. The governor
received me with the same cordiality as before.
I had now left the Sertam, and though it treated me rather roughly,
still I have always wished I could have seen more of it. There is a
certain pleasure which I cannot describe in crossing new countries,
and that portion of territory over which I had travelled was new to an
Englishman. From the sensations which I experienced I can well imagine
what those are, which travellers in unexplored countries must feel at
every step—at every novelty which comes under their view. There is
yet much ground upon the continent of South America to be traversed,
and I most heartily wish that it had been my fate to be the civilized
individual first doomed to cross from Pernambuco to Lima.
I have perhaps hardly said sufficient to give a correct idea of the
inhabitants of the _fazendas_ or cattle estates. Unlike the Peons of
the country in the vicinity of the river Plata, the Sertanejo has
about him his wife and family, and lives in comparative comfort. The
cottages are small and are built of mud, but afford quite sufficient
shelter in so fine a climate; they are covered with tiles where
these are to be had, or, as is more general, with the leaves of the
Carnàûba. Hammocks usually supply the place of beds and are by far
more comfortable, and these are likewise frequently used as chairs.
Most of the better sort of cottages contain a table, but the usual
practice is for the family to squat down upon a mat in a circle, with
the bowls, dishes, or gourds in the centre, thus to eat their meals
upon the floor. Knives and forks are not much known, and are not at
all made use of by the lower orders. It is the custom in every house,
from the highest to the lowest, as in former times, and indeed the same
practice prevails in all the parts of the country which I visited,
for a silver basin, or one of earthenware, or a _cuia_, and a fringed
cambric towel, or one that is made of the coarse cotton cloth of the
country, to be handed round, that all those who are going to sit down
to eat may wash their hands; and the same ceremony, or rather necessary
piece of cleanliness, takes place again after the meal is finished. Of
the gourds great use is made in domestic arrangements; they are cut in
two and the pulp is scooped out, then the rind is dried and these rude
vessels serve almost every purpose of earthenware—water is carried in
them, &c. and they are likewise used as measures. They vary from six
inches in circumference to about three feet, and are usually rather
of an oval shape. The gourd when whole is called _cabaça_, and the
half of the rind is called _cuia_. It is a creeping plant, and grows
spontaneously in many parts, but in others the people plant it among
the mandioc.
The conversation of the Sertanejos usually turns upon the state of
their cattle or of women, and occasionally, accounts of adventures
which took place at Recife or at some other town. The merits or
demerits of the priests with whom they may happen to be acquainted are
likewise discussed, and their irregular practices are made a subject
of ridicule. The dress of the men has already been described, but when
they are at home a shirt and drawers alone remain. The women have a
more slovenly look, as their only dress is a shift and petticoat, no
stockings, and oftentimes no shoes; but when they leave home, which
is very seldom, an addition is made of a large piece of coarse white
cloth, either of their own or of European manufacture, and this is
thrown over the head and shoulders; a pair of shoes is likewise then
put on. They are good horsewomen, and the high Portugueze saddle serves
the purpose of a side-saddle very completely. I never saw any Brazilian
woman riding, as is the case occasionally in Portugal, in the manner
that men do. Their employment consists in household arrangements
entirely, for the men even milk the cows and goats: the women spin
and work with the needle. No females of free birth are ever seen
employed in any kind of labour in the open air, excepting in that of
occasionally fetching wood or water, if the men are not at home. The
children generally run about naked until a certain age, but this is
often seen even in Recife; to the age of six or seven years, boys are
allowed to run about without any cloathing. Formerly, I mean before
the commencement of a direct trade with England, both sexes dressed in
the coarse cotton cloth which is made in the country; the petticoats
of this cloth were sometimes tinged with a red dye, which was obtained
from the bark of the _coipuna_ tree, a native of their woods; and even
now this dye is used for tinging fishing-nets, as it is said that those
which have undergone this process last the longer.
In those times, a dress of the common printed cotton of English or of
Portugueze manufacture cost from eight to twelve _mil reis_, from two
to three guineas, owing to the monopoly of the trade, by which the
merchants of Recife put what price they pleased upon their commodities;
other things were in proportion. Owing to the enormous prices, European
articles of dress could of course only be possessed by the rich people.
However, since the opening of the ports to foreign trade, English goods
are finding their way all over the country, and the hawkers are now a
numerous body of men. The women seldom appear, and when they are seen
do not take any part in the conversation, unless it be some one good
wife who rules the roast; if they are present at all when the men are
talking, they stand or squat down upon the ground, in the door-way
leading to the interior of the house, and merely listen. The morals
of the men are by no means strict, and when this is the case, it must
give an unfavourable bias, in some degree, to those of the women; but
the Sertanejo is very jealous, and more murders are committed, and
more quarrels entered into on this score, by tenfold, than on any
other. These people are revengeful; an offence is seldom pardoned,
and in default of law, of which there is scarcely any, each man takes
it into his own hands. This is without any sort of doubt a dreadful
state of society, and I do not by any means pretend to speak in its
justification; but if the causes of most of the murders committed
and beatings given are enquired into, I have usually found that the
receiver had only obtained what he deserved. Robbery in the Sertam
is scarcely known; the land is in favourable years too plentiful to
afford temptation, and in seasons of distress for food, every man is
for the most part equally in want. Subsistence is to be obtained in an
easier manner than by stealing in so abundant a country, and where both
parties are equally brave and resolute; but besides these reasons, I
think the Sertanejos are a good race of people. They are tractable and
might easily be instructed, excepting in religious matters; in these
they are fast rivetted; and such was their idea of an Englishman and a
heretic, that it was on some occasions difficult to make them believe
that I, who had the figure of a human being, could possibly belong
to that non-descript race. They are extremely ignorant, few of them
possessing even the commonest rudiments of knowledge. Their religion
is confined to the observance of certain forms and ceremonies, and to
the frequent repetition of a few prayers, faith in charms, relics,
and other things of the same order. The Sertanejos are courageous,
generous, sincere, and hospitable: if a favour is begged, they know
not how to deny it; but if you trade with them either for cattle, or
aught else, the character changes, and then they wish to outwit you,
conceiving success to be a piece of cleverness of which they may boast.
The following anecdote is characteristic. A Sertanejo came down from
the interior with a large drove of cattle, which had been entrusted to
him to sell; he obtained a purchaser, who was to pay him at the close
of two or three months. The Sertanejo waited to receive the money, as
his home was too far distant to return for this purpose. Before the
expiration of the term, the purchaser of the cattle found some means
of having him imprisoned; he went to him when he was in confinement,
and pretending to be extremely sorry for his misfortune, hinted, that
if he would allow him to appropriate part of the debt to the purpose,
he would try to obtain his release; to this the Sertanejo agreed, and
consequently soon obtained his freedom. He heard soon afterwards how
the whole of the business had been managed by the purchaser of the
cattle, to avoid paying for what he had bought, and he could not obtain
any part of the money. Having advised his employers in the Sertam of
these circumstances, he received for answer, that the loss of the money
was of little consequence, but that he must either assassinate the man
who had injured him, or not return home; because he should himself
suffer if the insult remained unrevenged. The Sertanejo immediately
made preparations for returning; he had always feigned great
thankfulness towards his debtor for obtaining his release, and a total
ignorance of his unjustifiable conduct. On the day of his departure,
he rode to the house of the man whom he had determined to destroy, and
dismounted, whilst one of his two companions held his horse; he saw
the owner of the house, and as he gave him the usual parting embrace,
ran his long knife into his side; he then quickly leapt on to his
horse, and the three persons rode off. None dared to molest them, for
they were well armed, and although this occurred in a large town, they
soon joined a considerable number of their countrymen who waited for
them in the outskirts, and proceeded to their own country, without any
attempt being made to apprehend them. These circumstances took place
several years ago; but the relatives of the man who was killed still
bear in mind his death, and a determination of revenging it upon him
who committed it, if he was again to place himself within their reach.
Many persons can vouch for the truth of the story.
The colour of the Sertanejos varies from white, of which there are
necessarily few, to a dark brown; the shades of which are almost as
various as there are persons: two of exactly the same tint are scarcely
to be met with. Children of the same parents rarely if ever are of the
same shade; some difference is almost always perceivable, and this is,
in many instances, so glaring, as to lead at first to doubts of the
authenticity; but it is too general to be aught but what is right. The
offspring of white and black persons leans, in most instances, more to
one colour than to the other, when perhaps a second child will take a
contrary tinge[49]. These remarks do not only hold good in the Sertam,
but are applicable to all the country which I had opportunities of
seeing. The Sertanejo, if colour is set aside, is certainly handsome;
and the women, whilst young, have well-shaped forms, and many of them
good features; indeed I have seen some of the white persons who would
be admired in any country. Their constant exposure to the sun, and its
great power at a distance from the sea, darkens the complexion more
than if the same persons had resided upon the coast; but this gives
them a decided dark colour, which has the appearance of durability, and
is much preferable to a sallow sickly look, though of a lighter tint.
The persons who reside upon and have the care of the cattle estates,
are called _Vaqueiros_, which simply means cowherds. They have a share
of the calves and foals that are reared upon the land, but of the
lambs, pigs, goats, &c. no account is given to the owner; and from the
quantity of cattle, numbers are reckoned very loosely; it is therefore
a comfortable and lucrative place, but the duties attending it are
heavy, require considerable courage, and great bodily strength and
activity. Some of the owners live upon their estates; but the major
part of those through which I passed, were possessed by men of large
property, who resided in the towns upon the coast, or who were at the
same time sugar-planters.
The interior of Pernambuco, Rio Grande, Paraiba, and Seara, contains,
properly speaking, no wild cattle[50]. Twice every year the herdsmen
from several estates assemble for the purpose of collecting the cattle.
The cows are driven from all quarters into the area in front of the
house, and here, surrounded by several horsemen, are put into spacious
pens. This being done, the men dismount, and now their object is, if
any of the cows are inclined to be unruly, which is often the case,
to noose them by the horns so as to secure them; or another mode is
adopted, which is by noosing one of the hind-legs, and carrying the
cord quite round the animal, so as to throw it down. The calves are
then caught, and this is done without much difficulty; they are marked
on the right haunch with a red-hot iron, which is made of the shape
that has been fixed upon by the owner as his peculiar mark. When the
oxen are to be collected for a market, the service is more dangerous,
and frequently the rider is under the necessity of throwing the animal
to the ground with his long pole, as I have in another place mentioned.
On the man’s approach, the ox runs off into the nearest wood, and the
man follows, as closely as he possibly can, that he may take advantage
of the opening of the branches which is made by the beast, as these
shortly close again, resuming their former situation. At times the
ox passes under a low and thick branch of a large tree, then the man
likewise passes under the branch, and that he may do this, he leans
to the right side so completely, as to enable him to lay hold of the
girth of his saddle with his left hand, and at the same time his left
heel catches the flap of the saddle; thus with the pole in his right
hand, almost trailing upon the ground, he follows without slackening
his pace, and being clear of this obstacle, again resumes his seat. If
he can overtake the ox, he runs his goad into its side, and if this
is dexterously done, he throws it. Then he dismounts, and ties the
animal’s legs together, or places one fore-leg over one of the horns,
which secures it most effectually. Many blows are received by these
men, but it is seldom that deaths are occasioned.
In crossing the Seara-meirim, I mentioned an instance of a cow having
strayed to an immense distance from its native pasture. This propensity
to ramble is common among horned cattle, even without its proceeding
from the scarcity of grass or water. Often at the time of collecting
the cattle, those persons who have been to a considerable distance to
assist others, drive back a number of beasts with their own mark; the
estate to which they belonged being distant twenty leagues or more.
When a traveller is in distress for water, he cannot do better than
to follow the first cattle-path, as these usually lead to the nearest
pool of water, in a direct line. The paths are easily distinguished,
being very narrow, and the wood uniting above, leaving open below only
a shady walk, of the height of the animals which made it.
Each lot of mares with its master horse is driven into the pens; this
consists of from fifteen to twenty in number. The foals are likewise
marked in the same manner as the calves. It is worthy of remark, and
the circumstance was often repeated to me, that the horse of the lot
drives from it not only the colts but the fillies also, as soon as they
are full grown. The fact was only qualified in two or three instances,
when told to me, by the person who related it adding, that if the
horse did not do so, he was taken from the lot, and broken for the
pack-saddle, being considered of a bad breed. When a horse is to be
tamed for any purpose whatsoever, he is noosed, after being put into
a pen, and is tied to a stake; on the following day, or perhaps the
same afternoon, if he appears at all tractable, a small low saddle is
placed upon him, and a man then mounts with a double halter. The animal
runs off with him, which the man, far from attempting to prevent,
rather urges him to do; though in general the whip and spur are not
made use of, unless he is obstinate and refuses to go forwards. Horses
of good breeds are said to be those most easily tamed. The horse runs
until he becomes weary, and is then brought back quietly by its rider;
and perhaps they do not reach the rider’s home until the following day.
The man must not dismount until he has returned to the spot from whence
he started, as he would probably experience great difficulty when he
wished again to proceed, from the restiveness of the horse. The same
operation is continued as long as the animal is not supposed to be
effectually broken in, and safe to mount. It happens on some occasions,
that by plunging, the horse gets rid of both man and saddle, and is not
again seen for a length of time; however, unless the girths give way,
he has little chance of throwing his rider, for the Sertanejos are most
excellent horsemen.
The horses are small, and some of them are finely shaped, though little
attention is paid to the improvement of the breed. Great stress is
laid upon the colour, in the choice of these animals; some colours
being accounted more demonstrative of strength than others. Thus a
cream-coloured horse, with a tail and mane of the same colour, is
rejected for the pack-saddle, or for any kind of severe labour; and
if horses of this description are sold for these purposes, the price
is lower than that of an animal of an equally promising appearance
in form and size, of any other tinge: they are much esteemed if well
shaped, as saddle-horses, for short distances. A cream-coloured horse,
with a black tail and mane, is reckoned strong. The horses that
have one fore-leg white, and the other of the colour of the body,
are supposed to be liable to stumble. The usual colours are bay and
grey; but chesnut, black, and cream-colour are less common; those
most esteemed for work are dark bays, with black tails and manes, and
greys dotted with small bay spots. Stallions are broken in both for
the saddle and for carrying loads in the neighbourhood of the towns;
but the Sertanejos, both from necessity and from their knowledge of
their superior ability to perform hard labour, make use of geldings.
It is not always safe to ride a high-spirited horse in the Sertam,
because when he begins to neigh, instances have occurred of some master
horse coming to give him battle, and as both are equally desirous of
fighting, the rider may perhaps find himself under the necessity of
placing himself at a distance from the combatants. However, if he
should chance to have a good stick in his hand, and can prevent his own
horse from rearing as the wild horse approaches, he may come off in
safety.
Sheep are kept upon every estate for their flesh, when that of a more
esteemed kind fails; that is, either when the oxen are in a meagre
state, owing to a long continuance of dry weather; or that the herdsman
is too much occupied at home, or too lazy to go out and kill one.
The mutton is never well-tasted, and though it is true that in the
Sertam no care whatever is taken in rearing or feeding the sheep,
still I do not think that this kind of meat is to be brought to any
great perfection[51]. The lambs are covered with fine wool, and this
continues until they are one year and a half or two years old; but
after this age, it begins to drop, and is replaced by a species of
hair. Although the wool should remain longer in some instances, it
appeared to me that it was coarse and short[52]. A wound upon the body
of this animal is more difficult to heal than upon that of any other,
and the flesh of it is of all others the most rapid in its advances to
putrefaction.
The division of property in the Sertam is very undeterminate, and this
may be imagined, when I say, that the common mode of defining the size
of a _fazenda_, is by computing it at so many leagues; or, as in some
cases, by so many hundreds of calves yearly, without any reference to
the quantity of land. Few persons take the trouble of making themselves
acquainted with the exact extent of their own property, and perhaps
could not discover it if they made the attempt.
The climate is good; indeed the inland flat country is much more
healthy than that immediately bordering the coast. I can hardly name
any disorders that appear to be peculiar to it; but several are known.
Agues are not common, but they exist. Dropsy also they are acquainted
with. Ulcers in the legs are common, but less so than upon the coast.
Ruptures frequently occur. The small-pox[53] makes dreadful ravages,
and the measles are much dreaded. When the venereal disease has once
settled, the sufferer seldom gets rid of it entirely; applications of
herbs are used, but as these people are unacquainted with or unable to
follow its proper mode of treatment, some of the patients are crippled,
and the major part of them never again enjoy good health. The yaws also
is to be met with; but I had afterwards more opportunities of seeing
this complaint, and will therefore not now give any account of it.
Instances of consumption occur. The hooping-cough did not appear to be
known in any part of the country which I visited; I made many inquiries
respecting it, but could not obtain any information upon the subject. I
slept many times in the open air, and never felt any bad effects from
so doing. The dew is trifling, and a high wind is usual in the night.
The sun is powerful, and is of course particularly felt in travelling
over sandy loose soil; but it did not seem to do any mischief. I never
suffered from head-ache, and excepting the attack of the ague, which is
accounted for from the heavy rain which we experienced, I never enjoyed
better health.
The food of the inhabitants of the Sertam consists chiefly of meat,
of which they make three meals; and to this is added the flour of the
mandioc stirred up into paste, or rice sometimes supplies its place.
The bean, which is commonly called in England the French bean, is a
favourite food; it is suffered to run to seed, and is only plucked up
when quite dry and hard. I have often been surprised to see of how
little service maize is to them as food, but yet it is occasionally
used. In default of these, the paste of the carnàûba is made; and I
have seen meat eaten with curds. Of green vegetables they know nothing,
and they laugh at the idea of eating any kind of salad. The wild fruits
are numerous, and to be obtained in any quantities, but few species are
cultivated; among the latter are the water-melon and the plantain. The
cheese of the Sertam, when it is fresh, is excellent; but after four or
five weeks, it becomes hard and tough. Some few persons make butter,
by shaking the milk in a common black bottle, but this must of course
be experimental, and not general. In the towns even of the Sertam,
rancid Irish butter is the only kind which is to be obtained. Wherever
the lands admit of it, these people plant mandioc, rice, &c. but much,
I may say the greater part of the vegetable portion of their food, is
brought either from more fertile districts near to the coast, or from
the settlements still further back,—the vallies and skirts of the
Cariris, Serra do Teixeira, and other inland mountains.
The trade of the Sertam consists in receiving small quantities of
European manufactured goods[54]; the cotton cloth of the country, of
which they make some among themselves; a small portion of European
white earthenware, and considerable quantities of the dark brown
ware of the country, which is made for the most part by the Indians
who live in the districts that contain the proper kind of clay; rum
in small casks; butter, tobacco, snuff, sugar or treacle made up in
cakes, spurs, bits for bridles, and other gear for their horses,
excepting the saddles, of which the greater part are made in their
own districts; gold and silver ornaments also find a market to a
certain amount. The pedlars travel about from village to village, and
from one estate to another, bartering their commodities for cattle of
all kinds, cheese, and hides of horned cattle. A colt of from two to
three years, sells for about one guinea; a horse broken in for the
pack-saddle, for two or three guineas; a horse broken in for mounting,
from five to six guineas. A bullock of two years, ten shillings; a
full grown ox, one guinea and a half; a cow varies much, according
to the quantity of milk, from one guinea to five guineas. A sheep,
from two to three shillings; a goat for slaughter is worth even less,
but a good milch goat is valued at one guinea, and sometimes higher.
Children are frequently suckled by goats, which increases the value of
these animals. The goat that has been so employed always obtains the
name of _comadre_, the term which is made use of between the mother
and godmother of a child; and so general is this, that she-goats are
frequently called _comadres_, without having had the honour of suckling
a young master or mistress. Dogs are sometimes valued at from one to
two guineas, and even higher, if they are good sporting, or good house
and baggage-dogs. A fowl is as dear as a sheep or goat; and in one
instance, as has been related, I paid four times the money for one
of these birds that I had given for a kid. The hawkers seldom obtain
money in exchange for their wares; they take whatever is offered, and
hire people to assist in conveying the cattle or produce to a market,
where they are exchanged for goods, and then the owner again returns. A
twelvemonth is sometimes passed in turning over the property once; but
the profits are usually enormous; two or three hundred _per cent._
During my stay at Natal, the governor shewed me a species of wax which
is produced from the leaves of the carnàûba, a tree I have frequently
mentioned. A quantity of this wax was sent by him to Rio de Janeiro;
it is mentioned in one of Dr. Arruda’s publications, and a sample
of it found its way to England, and has been taken notice of by the
Royal Society[55]. The governor, in one of his journeys through his
province, passed the night, as often happened, in a peasant’s cottage.
A wax candle was lighted and placed before him, which was rudely made,
but afforded a good light; he was somewhat surprised at this, because
oil is generally used; on making enquiry, he found out that the wax
dropped from the leaves which covered the cottage, during the heat
of the day;—I suppose the cottage had been newly built, or that a
fresh covering of leaves had been put on to it. He afterwards made the
experiment himself, tried some of the candles, and became confident
of the importance of the vegetable wax. The governor also gave me
a piece of iron ore, which was the produce of the captaincy of Rio
Grande. He told me that he entertained little doubt of the existence
of considerable quantities of this metal in this part of the country,
and that the Government would be well recompensed for their trouble, if
proper persons were appointed for the purpose of making discoveries on
this subject. I saw some cloth which he had ordered to be woven from
the thread of the crauatâ[56]. Its texture was not unlike that of the
coarse linen which is used for sheeting; it is very strong. I have some
of the thread in my possession.
As soon as I had arranged that I should leave Natal in the morning of
the 6th February, the governor told me that he intended setting off on
business relating to his province at the same time. We took leave of
each other at night, and in the morning when I rose, I found myself in
possession of the house, as he had set out at four o’clock. We did not
get away until about seven, owing to the number of horses’ loads, and
other matters which it was necessary to arrange. I felt quite at home
at Natal, though I was yet distant from Recife seventy leagues; but the
country is well watered, well wooded, and comparatively well peopled.
I passed again through St. Joze, the Indian village, but did not
turn off from the road towards Papari. I slept at a hamlet, and in
the morning proceeded to Cunhàû. About ten o’clock we were under the
necessity of turning loose, and leaving behind upon one of the plains,
a horse which I had purchased at Chafaris; he was completely fagged,
and could not proceed farther. The colonel of Cunhàû was not at home,
but his steward wished me to make use of his master’s house; however,
I merely mentioned having left a horse at some distance upon the lands
of the plantation, and the guide drew for his government the mark
which it had upon the haunch. I have often observed the quickness of
these people in recognising a mark which they have once seen, and the
accuracy with which they will draw it after having only taken seemingly
a casual glance, and perhaps after a period of some weeks has elapsed
since they had had even this[57]. We then rode on half a league to the
hamlet. The commandant of this place introduced himself to me, and was
extremely civil; he put my horse into his stable and wished me to stay
until the following morning, but I preferred advancing, and slept the
same night at another hamlet two leagues beyond. This day we passed
several rivulets which were all much swollen, but none of them were
sufficiently full to prevent the continuance of our journey. There
had already been some rain, and the face of the country bore a more
pleasing appearance. Two letter-carriers passed through the place in
the evening, and I wrote by them to a friend at Pernambuco, that the
cottage at the Cruz das Almas might be ready for me on my arrival.
The next day we passed some sugar plantations and over some hills;
the country was most beautiful, for every thing looked green and
healthy. I crossed a considerable rivulet at the foot of a hill, and,
ascending on the opposite side, put up at a single cottage, which was
inhabited by white people; an old man, a widower, with a fine family
of handsome sons and daughters. Their cottage had not room for us
all, and therefore we intended to sleep in the open air altogether,
but the old man insisted upon my going to sleep in the house, and I
was not sorry for this, being rather afraid of a return of the ague.
Nearly at sunset, or at the close of the day, which in that country are
almost about the same time, the tame sheep was missing; great search
was made for it, but to no purpose. The old man ordered two of his
sons to set out, and not to return until every enquiry had been made
in the neighbourhood. I did all in my power to prevent giving this
trouble, but he persisted, saying, “No, you are under my roof, and this
unfortunate circumstance may lead you to have an unfavourable opinion
of me.” Long after dark the young men returned with the sheep and a
mulatto man in custody. I wished the man to be released, but they said
that this could not be, for he was a runaway slave, who had committed
many depredations, and for whose apprehension a considerable reward was
offered by his master. They had followed the footsteps of the sheep
upon a sandy path as long as the day-light lasted, and then had taken
a direction, which they thought might lead to some _mocambos_, or huts
of the wood, made by runaway slaves. After they had proceeded a little
way, the bleating of the sheep was heard, upon which they prepared
themselves and came suddenly upon this fellow and a woman who were in a
hut; the woman escaped, which they regretted, as she was likewise most
probably a runaway slave. The man was taken into the house, and was
tied fast upon a long bench with his face downwards, and the cord was
passed round his arms and legs several times; this was done in the room
which I was to inhabit for the night. The whole of the family retired
to rest, and left us together; I had my knife with me, but naturally
soon fell asleep. In the morning the bench and the cords remained, but
the man was gone; he had crept through a small window at the opposite
end of the room. The young men of the house were sadly vexed, but I
told them it was their own fault, for some of them should have kept
watch, as they could not suppose that I should remain awake, who had
come in fatigued from travelling. We were now afraid that he might have
taken one of our horses for his more convenient escape, but this was
not the case.
Our journey took us again through the village of Mamanguape; and a
little distance beyond it, I left the road, accompanied by the guide,
and went to the principal house of a sugar plantation, where we asked
for a night’s lodging. I was told that the master was not at home,
and great doubts seemed to be entertained of taking us in. Whilst we
were talking at the door, a young man of dark colour came up, mounted
a horse which was standing there without a saddle, and rode off,
seemingly avoiding to observe that there were any strangers present.
One of the black women said, “Why did not you speak to him, for he is
one of our young masters.” I now enquired and discovered that the owner
of the place and his family were mulattos. This was the only instance
of incivility I met with, and the only occasion on which a night’s
lodging was denied to me during the whole course of my stay in Brazil.
We lodged this night under a tree, distant about one hundred yards from
the _engenho_, near to a neat and comfortable looking cottage, of which
the owner was an elderly woman; she was civil to us, and expressed her
sorrow at the treatment which we had received. There had been very
little rain here, for the grass in the field of the plantation had
still a parched look, and the cattle were in bad condition.
Towards the evening of the following day we reached a hamlet, and at
one of the cottages I obtained permission to pass the night. There was
a pent-house standing out from the front; these are usual even for
dwellings of wealthy persons. Under it I slung my hammock, but was
surprised to find, that though the house was inhabited, still the door
was shut, and that the person within spoke to us, but did not open it.
This I thought strange, and began to suppose that he might be afflicted
with some contagious disorder and had been forsaken by his friends, or
rather, that his family had been advised to remove to some neighbouring
cottage. But the guide explained, saying that the man had been bitten
by a snake, and that the bite of this species only became fatal if
the man who had received it saw any female animal, and particularly
a woman, for thirty days after the misfortune. As the lower orders
imagine that all snakes are poisonous, it is not surprising that many
remedies or charms should be quoted as efficacious. It is well known
that many of those reptiles are innoxious, but as this is not believed
by the people in general, it is naturally to be supposed that any cause
rather than the true one is ascribed on a recovery from a bite.
On the morrow we left these good people in expectation of their
friend’s restoration to health at the allotted period, and proceeded
to dine on the banks of the river Paraiba, at a spot which was not
far distant from the plantation of Espirito Santo, where we had slept
on our way northwards. The river was still as dry as it had been
during the drought, that is, the pools or hollows in the bed of it
had water in them, but they did not contain a sufficient quantity to
overflow, unite, and form a stream. We arrived upon the banks about
ten o’clock, and heard from several persons of a report which had
been spread, that the river was filling fast. About twelve o’clock
the water made its appearance, and before we left it the river was
three feet deep. We afterwards heard that the stream was not fordable
at five o’clock of the same afternoon, and that it continued to run
with great rapidity for some days. I went round to Espirito Santo and
spoke to the _capitam-mor_, but did not dismount, as I was more and
more anxious to end my journey. We slept at a single cottage about two
leagues beyond, and on the following morning again set forth. About
noon, for I had pushed on without resting until this hour, we were
descending a long and steep hill, when a violent shower of rain came
on, which soon caused a torrent to run with much noise and velocity
through the gullies in the road. The clay of which the hill was
composed was rendered excessively slippery, and far from proceeding
more quickly, the horses became more cautious; and on these occasions
it is needless to attempt to urge them forwards faster than they
themselves are willing to go; they are aware of the danger of a false
step, and nothing the rider can do will make an old roadster alter his
usual manner of proceeding. At the foot of the hill stood a _venda_ or
liquor shop, at which travellers were in the habit of putting up. Most
of the hamlets contain one of these places, and we had met with them
much more frequently since we had entered upon the great cattle road.
Wet as we were, through and through, it would have been impossible to
go on further this day, therefore we were thankful in having a house
so near; indeed, the rain continued during the greatest part of the
afternoon. We had descended into a narrow and beautiful valley, much of
which was covered with flourishing plantations of sugar cane, looking
very green and luxuriant. This was not the first night that I had seen
the beautiful luminous insect, _elater noctilucus_, which is called by
the Portugueze _cacafogo_. It is to be met with chiefly in well wooded
lands, and emits at intervals a strong but short lived light.
After leaving this place the next morning, we discovered that we had
lost some trifles belonging to our baggage. I sent the guide and
another man back to seek for them; but they returned unsuccessful. We
had, it is true, seldom taken up our lodgings in public houses, but
perhaps if we had done so oftener, I should have had more reason to
complain; however as it is, this was the only occasion upon which I
lost any part of my baggage, with a suspicion of theft attached to its
disappearing.
We rested at mid-day near Dous Rios, and in the afternoon passed
through that place, arriving at Goiana about sunset. It will be
remembered that I purchased some of my horses at Goiana; now on my
return, two of the same animals were still with me, and this alone
proves that they were of the best kind. When we were distant from
Goiana about one league, one of them made towards a narrow path to the
right of the road, and was prevented by his driver from turning up
into it, but immediately after passing it, he began to flag, and in a
few minutes I was under the necessity of having him released from his
load, and of desiring one of the men to lead him, otherwise he would
have turned back. He had from this time the appearance of being quite
fatigued. I can only account for the circumstance by supposing that
the path led to his former master’s residence, and that the animal had
proceeded thus far in expectation of ending his journey here.
I was received by my friends at Goiana in their usual friendly manner;
but I found that the town was in a dreadful state from the scarcity of
provisions. One person was said to have died of hunger, and I was told
by an inhabitant that several respectable women had been at his house
to beg for _farinha_, offering to pawn their gold ornaments for it.
On the morning of the 15th February, I left Goiana, and assisted my
people in crossing the river. As soon as they were all safe on the
Recife side of it, I pushed on accompanied by Julio and Feliciano, all
three of us being mounted upon our best horses. We rested during the
heat of the day at Iguaraçu. My horse recognized the place, for as he
entered the town, he quickened his pace, and without being guided, went
up to the door of the inn, from whence he refused to stir again until
I dismounted. We arrived a little after sunset at the Cruz das Almas.
John was prepared for me, but did not expect me for one or two days.
The following morning I rode to Recife, and was received by my friends
as one who had been somewhat despaired of; and even my particular
friend to whom I had written, did not expect me so soon. When I
returned home in the evening, the rest of the party had arrived; and
Feliciano and his two companions set off two days afterwards on their
return to Searà[58]. Julio likewise left me, with which I was much
displeased.[59]
CHAPTER IX.
VOYAGE FROM PERNAMBUCO TO MARANHAM.—ST. LUIZ.—TRADE.—WILD
INDIANS.—THE GOVERNOR.—ALCANTARA.—THE AUTHOR SAILS FROM ST. LUIZ,
AND ARRIVES IN ENGLAND.
EIGHT days after my return from Searà, arrived a vessel from England,
bringing letters which obliged me to leave Pernambuco and proceed
to Maranham. As a cargo could not be obtained for the brig at the
former place, the consignee determined to send her to Maranham, and
being myself desirous of taking advantage of the first opportunity, I
prepared for the voyage, and sailed in the course of forty-eight hours.
We weighed anchor on the 25th February, and had a prosperous passage
of seven days. We were in sight of the land nearly the whole time, and
occasionally, as the brig was small, and the master wished if possible
to become acquainted with the points of land, we were very near to it.
The Portugueze ships seldom come up this coast without a pilot, nor is
it prudent to do otherwise; but we could not obtain one without delay,
to which the master objected. He had scarcely ever before been out of
the British seas; but their school is good, and now he found his way
to Maranham with as much dexterity as an experienced pilot. This coast
is generally known to be dangerous; and the land has for the most part
a dreary and dismal look, particularly after passing Rio Grande. We
entered the bay of St. Marcos with the lead going, took the channel to
the eastward of the _baixo do meio_ or middle bank, passed the Fort of
St. Marcos, and came to an anchor opposite and very near to the sand
banks at the mouth of the harbour of St. Luiz. As no pilot came off to
us, the master and myself got into the boat, intending to fetch one;
but on coming opposite to the Fort of St. Francisco, a gun without shot
was fired, and the sentinel beckoned us back to the ship. We pulled for
the fort, and when we approached it, an enormous speaking trumpet was
produced, and through it we received orders not to proceed to the city.
However we landed at the fort, and I told the officer that the master
was particularly desirous of having a pilot, as he was unacquainted
with the bay or port; but it is well known that they contain many sand
banks. We were answered that the pilot would come in due time; and
finding remonstrance of no avail, returned to the ship. When the pilot
arrived, he was accompanied by a soldier and a custom-house officer. It
was with some difficulty that I could persuade the master to allow the
former to come into the vessel. Sailors and soldiers never very well
agree, and the blunt Englishman said that he had no idea of his ship
being taken from him by a fellow in a party-coloured jacket. This was a
new regulation. Indeed in most of those regarding the port of Maranham,
I could not avoid recollecting the old proverb of “much cry, &c.” As
the brig came up the harbour, we received the health and custom-house
visit. It was composed of several well-dressed men, some of whom wore
cocked hats and swords; and all of them ate much bread and cheese, and
drank quantities of porter. The _administrador_ of the customs was
among them, and was dressed in the uniform of a cavalry officer. I
scarcely ever saw so much astonishment pictured in the countenance of
any man as in that of the master of the brig. He had been accustomed
to enter our own ports, where so much business is done in so quiet a
manner; and he now said to me in half joke, half earnest, “Why it is
not only one, but they are coming in shoals to take the ship from me.”
After all these personages, and all the trouble they had given us, I
was still obliged to pass the night on board, because the _guardamor_,
the officer especially appointed to prevent smuggling, had not made his
visit. Fortunately, I found means of having the letters conveyed on
shore, otherwise the vessel would have arrived four and twenty hours
before the merchant to whom she was consigned, could have obtained any
information regarding her. To render the night still more agreeable,
some heavy rain fell; the deck was leaky, and about midnight I was
obliged to rise and look for a dry corner.
The city of St. Luiz, situated upon the island of Maranham, and the
metropolis of the _estado_, or state of Maranham, is the residence
of a captain-general and the see of a bishop. It is built upon very
unequal ground, commencing from the water’s edge, and extending
to the distance of about one mile and a half in a N.E. direction.
The space which it covers, ought to contain many more inhabitants
than is actually the case; but the city is built in a straggling
manner, and it comprises some broad streets and squares. This gives
to it an airy appearance, which is particularly pleasant in so warm
a climate. Its situation upon the western part of the island, and
upon one side of a creek, almost excludes it from the sea breeze, by
which means the place is rendered less healthy than if it was more
exposed. The population may be computed at about 12,000 persons or
more, including negroes, of which the proportion is great, being much
more considerable than at Pernambuco. The streets are mostly paved,
but are out of repair. The houses are many of them neat and pretty,
and of one story in height; the lower part of them is appropriated
to the servants, to shops without windows, to warehouses, and other
purposes, as at Pernambuco. The family lives upon the upper story,
and the windows of this reach down to the floor, and are ornamented
with iron balconies. The churches are numerous, and there are likewise
Franciscan, Carmelite, and other convents. The places of worship are
gaudily decorated in the inside; but no plan of architecture is aimed
at in the formation of the buildings themselves, with the exception
of the convents, which preserve the regular features appertaining to
such edifices. The governor’s palace stands upon rising ground, not
far from the water side, with the front towards the town. It is a long
uniform stone building of one story in height; the principal entrance
is wide, but without a portico. The western end joins the town-hall and
prison, which appear to be part of the same edifice; and the oblong
piece of ground in its front, covered with grass, gives to it on the
whole a handsome and striking appearance. One end of this is open to
the harbour and to a fort in the hollow, close to the water; the other
extremity is nearly closed by the cathedral. One side is almost taken
up with the palace and other public buildings, and the opposite space
is occupied by dwelling-houses and streets leading down into other
parts of the city. The ground upon which the whole place stands, is
composed of a soft red stone; so that the smaller streets leading
from the town into the country, some of which are not paved, are full
of gullies, through which the water runs in the rainy season. These
streets are formed of houses consisting only of the ground floor,
and having thatched roofs; the windows are without glass, and the
dwellings have a most mean and shabby appearance. The city contains a
custom-house and treasury; the former is small, but was quite large
enough for the business of the place, until lately.
The harbour is formed by a creek in the island, and is to be entered
from the bay of St. Marcos. The channel is of sufficient depth for
common sized merchant ships; but is very narrow, and not to be entered
without a pilot. Opposite to the town the water is shallow at the ebb.
It is worthy of remark, that the tide rises gradually more and more
along the coast of Brazil, from south to north. Thus at Rio de Janeiro
the rise is said to be trifling; at Pernambuco it is from five to six
feet; at Itamaraca eight feet; and at Maranham, it is eighteen feet.
The forts of Maranham are all of them said to be in bad order. I heard
one person observe, half in earnest, that he did not suppose each fort
contained more than four guns which were in a fit state to be fired.
I did not see that of St. Marcos, which is situated at the entrance
of the bay; but it is reported to be in the same state as the others.
Those I saw are small, and built of stone. The soldiers were well
dressed and well fed, and they looked respectable. The barracks are
new and large comparatively speaking, and have been built in an airy
situation, in the outskirts of the city. The garrison consists of one
regiment of regular infantry of about one thousand men when complete;
but these are much divided, being stationed in several forts. Recruits
are formed of the lower orders of white persons, and of the people
of colour. The men were never exercised with the artillery, and were
merely accustomed to the common routine of mounting guard, though a few
detachments have on some occasions been sent on to the main land at the
back of the island, to assist the planters against the wild Indians.
The island of Maranham forms the S.E. side of the bay of St. Marcos,
consequently this bay is to the westward of it. To the eastward of
the island is the bay of St. Joze. From some similarity between the
point of Itacolomi, by which vessels are in part guided when about
to enter the bay of St. Marcos, and another point of land upon the
small island of St. Anna, which is at the entrance of the bay of St.
Joze, instances have occurred of vessels mistaking the latter for the
former, and entering the bay of St. Joze. This error causes great
danger and inconvenience, because owing to the prevalence of easterly
winds, it is next to impossible for a vessel to beat her way out of
it. It is therefore necessary that she should go through the narrow
channel between the main land and the island of Maranham, a passage
of considerable difficulty[60]. The bay of St. Marcos is spotted with
several beautiful islands, and is of sufficient extent to admit of
considerable grandeur. The width from St. Luiz to the opposite shore
is between four and five leagues; its length is much greater; towards
the south end there are several sand banks, and the water is shallower.
It receives here the waters of a river, along the banks of which are
situated several cattle estates, but the river Itapicuru, which runs
into the narrow channel between the main land and the island, enjoys
the greatest share of cultivation; its banks are extremely fertile,
and upon them have been established the principal plantations of
cotton and rice, which are the two chief and almost only articles of
commerce from the city of St. Luiz. The island is in itself very little
cultivated. There is no considerable plantation upon it. A few of the
rich merchants residing in the city have country houses distant from it
about one league, but the remainder of the lands are left untouched,
owing, as is said, to the unfitness of the soil for the purposes of
agriculture[61]. There is a horse-path through the island to a house
which stands immediately opposite to the mouth of the river Itapicuru;
at this is stationed a canoe, for the purpose of conveying people from
one shore to the other. Another horse-path also leads to the village
and chapel of St. Joze.
The importance of the province has increased very rapidly. Previous to
the last sixty years no cotton was exported, and I heard that when the
first parcel was about to be shipped, a petition was made by several
of the inhabitants to the _Camara_ or municipality, requesting that
the exportation might not be permitted, for otherwise they feared
that there would be a want of the article for the consumption of the
country; this of course was not attended to, and now the number of bags
exported annually is between forty and fifty thousand, averaging about
180 lbs. weight each[62]. The quantity of rice grown there is likewise
great[63]; but the sugar which is required for the consumption of the
province is brought from the ports to the southward. Some sugar cane
has lately been planted, but hitherto molasses only have been made. I
heard many persons say, that the lands are not adapted to the growth
of the sugar cane[64]. The cotton and rice are brought to St. Luiz in
barks of about 25 or 30 tons burthen. These come down the rivers with
the stream from the plantations; their return is not however so easy,
as they are obliged to be rowed or warped, but being then empty, or
nearly so, the difficulty is not very great.
Considerable quantities of manufactured goods have been sent out from
Great Britain since the opening of the trade, as has been done to the
other principal ports upon the coast; but a ready sale has not been
found for them here to any great amount. The province of Maranham will
not bear comparison with that of Pernambuco. It is still in an infant
state; there still exist wild Indians, and the plantations upon the
main land are still in danger from their attacks. The proportion of
free persons is much smaller; the slaves very much preponderate, but
this class can of necessity use but little of what is in any degree
expensive, of what in such a climate is mere luxury. There exists at
St. Luiz a great inequality of ranks; the chief riches of the place
are in the hands of a few men who possess landed property to a great
extent, numerous gangs of slaves, and are also merchants. The wealth
of these persons and the characters of some of the individuals who
enjoy it, have raised them to great weight and consequence, and indeed
one governor knows to his cost that without their concurrence it was
useless to attempt the introduction of the innovations proposed, and
impossible to trample long upon the rest of the community. But the
great inequality of rank bespeaks the advancement of this place to have
been less rapid than that of other settlements further south, where the
society is more amalgamated, and property more divided. As a port of
trade with Europe, St. Luiz may be accounted the fourth establishment
upon the coast of Brazil in point of importance, giving precedence to
Rio de Janeiro, Bahia, and Pernambuco.
The wild Indians have occasionally crossed from the main land to the
island, and have committed depredations upon the houses and gardens
in the neighbourhood of St. Luiz. Some of these people have been at
different times made prisoners and brought to the town, where very
little pains, I fear, have been taken to conciliate them. I did not see
any of them, but they were represented to me as most frightful beings;
their features are excessively ugly, and their hair is black and
preposterously long, both before and behind. They are of a dark copper
colour, darker than Indians that have been domesticated. The last
individuals taken, to the number of four or five, were brought into the
town quite naked, were put into close confinement, and I was informed
that there they died. I could not find out that any attempt had been
made to send them back as mediators, or that any plan of conciliation
had been entered into; and on mentioning something of this kind, I
was in more than one instance told that it would be of no use, that
rigour was the only method. I do not think that this is the general
opinion regarding them, but I much apprehend that, but faint hopes can
be entertained of any zeal being shown for their civilization. There
are now no enthusiastic missionaries; the Jesuits no longer exist in
that country, and the other orders of friars have become lazy and worse
than useless. However the Indians cannot be enslaved; therefore, at
least, they are not hunted down like wild cattle, as formerly was the
practice. The name which is given generally both here and at Pernambuco
to all wild Indians is _Tapuya_; and that of _Caboclo_ is applied to
those who have been domesticated.
Having thus given an outline of the place at which I had arrived, I
may now leave my quarters on board the brig and be allowed to land,
which I accomplished on the morning subsequent to that of our entrance
into the harbour. I was received upon the quay by my friend, a young
Portugueze with whom I had been intimate in England and at Pernambuco.
He told me it was necessary to go to the palace, for the purpose of
presenting my passport, as the regulations of the port had for some
time been most strictly followed, and several indeed had been lately
added. I then, for the first time, recollected that I had no passport,
having forgotten to obtain one, owing to the haste with which I left
Pernambuco. This produced a demur, as my friend was afraid that I
should be imprisoned, the governor not being friendly to Englishmen;
however I determined to call myself the supercargo of the brig. We
proceeded to the palace, the entrance to which was guarded by two
sentinels, and we passed several others in going up the stairs into the
anti-chamber, where we were received by a gentlemanlike officer, who
heard what I had to say, asked no questions, and soon dismissed us. I
thought I had seen the great man himself, but was undeceived, and heard
that he seldom honoured any one with an audience. The officer to whom
we had spoken was the lieutenant-colonel of the regiment of regular
infantry. The guard at the palace consisted of one company; the muskets
were piled in front of the chief entrance and appeared to be in good
order.
I soon discovered that St. Luiz was ruled with most despotic sway; the
people were afraid of speaking, as no man knew how soon it might be his
fate to be arrested, from some trifling expression which he might allow
to escape him. The governor was so tenacious of the honours due to his
situation, that he required every person who crossed the area in front
of the palace to remain uncovered until he had entirely passed the
whole building. Not that the governor was himself always in view, but
this adoration was thought necessary even to the building within which
he dwelt. The distinction, until then reserved, by the Romish church
for its highest dignitaries, was however not thought by His Excellency
too exalted for himself; the bells of the cathedral rang every time
he went out in his carriage. Persons, even of the first rank in the
place, were to stop, if in their carriages or on horseback, when they
met him, and were to allow him to pass before they were again to move
forwards.
I was introduced to several of the first merchants and planters, and
particularly to the Colonels Joze Gonçalvez da Silva and Simplicio Dias
da Silva; the latter is the sub-governor of Parnaiba, a small port
situated about three degrees to the eastward of St. Luiz. They are both
of them men of great wealth and of independent spirit. The former is
an elderly man who has made a large fortune in trade, and latterly has
increased it in planting cotton. He possesses between 1000 and 1500
slaves. On one occasion the mulatto driver of his carriage, though
ordered by his master to stop, that the governor might pass, refused so
to do. The following day an officer came to the old gentleman’s house
with orders to arrest the man. The colonel sent for him and said, “Go,
and I’ll take care of you,” adding to the officer, “tell His Excellency
I have still several other drivers.” To the surprise of every person
about the prison, two servants made their appearance in the evening
with a tray, covered with a cloth which was handsomely embroidered,
and filled with the best kinds of victuals; sweetmeats, &c. were not
forgotten. All this was for the driver, and was repeated three times
every day until the man received an order for his release.
The Colonel Simplicio had been sent for by the governor to St. Luiz.
Had it not been for the circumstances in which he was placed, I should
have gone down to his residence at Parnaiba; he has there a most noble
establishment, part of which consists of a band of musicians, who are
his own slaves; some of them have been instructed at Lisbon and at Rio
de Janeiro. It is through such men as these that improvements are to be
expected. I likewise became acquainted with a gentleman who had been
imprisoned for a trifling breach of some new port regulation. Any of
his friends were allowed free ingress to see him, and I passed some
pleasant evenings with him and other persons who were in the habit
of assembling there; he was allowed two small rooms in the prison,
and was confined in this manner for several months. The _Ouvidor_ of
the province was also suspended from exercising the functions of his
office, was removed from St. Luiz, and imprisoned in one of the forts.
The _Juiz de Fora_, the second judicial officer, performed for the
time the duties of the situation; he was a Brazilian, and a man of
independent character, who spoke and acted freely, notwithstanding the
ostensible place he held, and the danger of it under such a government.
The master of an English merchant ship, I was told, had been arrested
for some breach of port regulation, and was confined in a miserable
dungeon for three days. I heard many more stories of the same nature;
but these will, I think, suffice to shew the state of the city of St.
Luiz at the time and just before I visited that place.
[Illustration: _Fishing Canoe._]
The governor was a very young man, and a member of one of the first
noble families of Portugal[65]. There are few situations in which it is
so greatly in a man’s power to be much beloved or much disliked as that
of governor of a province in Brazil; in which a man may be either the
benefactor or the scourge of the people over whom he is sent to rule.
My friend’s residence, in which I staid during my visit to Maranham,
was situated by the water side, and almost within hail of the ships
at anchor in the harbour. I was amused sometimes at the rapidity with
which the fishermen paddled their canoes; these are long and of just
width sufficient to allow of two men sitting abreast. I have seen in
one of them as many as sixteen men in two rows, with each a paddle,
which they move with quickness and great regularity. The last men upon
the bench steer the canoe when necessary, placing the paddle so as to
answer the purpose of a rudder; one or other of the two men steering,
according to the direction which the vessel is to take. These fellows
are mostly dark-coloured mulattos and blacks, and are entirely naked
excepting the hats which they wear upon their heads; but when they
come on shore, they partially cloath themselves. The print will give
some idea of the strange appearance which they make. The nakedness of
the negro slaves is also not sufficiently concealed; neither males nor
females have any covering from the waist upwards, excepting on Sundays
and holidays. Though the climate may not require any more cloathing,
decency certainly does. I speak here of slaves who are at work in the
streets, for the household servants are at least tolerably covered,
and some of them are neatly and even gaudily dressed. At Pernambuco,
the slaves are always decently cloathed. The criminals who are to be
seen chained together, as at Pernambuco, are here more numerous; and in
walking the streets, the clanking of the chains is continually striking
the ear, reminding every man of the state of the government under which
he resides. Such is the power of a governor, that a respectable person
might be sentenced to this dreadful punishment, at least until redress
could be obtained from the seat of the supreme government at Rio de
Janeiro, a period of four months or more intervening.
I brought with me the horse which had carried me as far as Rio Grande
on my journey to Searà, and took several rides in the neighbourhood of
the city, with an English gentleman who was residing there. The roads
are extremely bad, even in the immediate vicinity of St. Luiz, and our
usual practice was to ride several times round the open piece of ground
upon which the barracks stand. Maranham is again in this respect far
behind the place I had lately left; the number of country houses is
small; the paths are few, and no care is taken of them. Notwithstanding
this, several persons have carriages, which are of a form similar to
those used in Lisbon, and not unlike the cabriolets drawn by a pair
of horses, which are to be seen in France and Flanders. The horses
that may be purchased at St. Luiz are small, and few of them are well
formed. Grass is scarce, and the inducements to take exercise on
horseback are so few, that the number of these animals upon the island
is not considerable; this too may be one cause why fine horses are not
to be met with there; for if a ready sale was found for the beasts of
this description, some would, doubtless, be carried from Piauhi to
Maranham, which might be done with almost as little difficulty as is
experienced in conveying many of them from the interior of Pernambuco
to Recife.
An English gentleman with whom I was acquainted, arrived at Maranham,
a short time after the opening of the trade to British shipping; he
was riding in the vicinity of the city one afternoon, when he was
accosted by an old woman, who said that she had heard of the arrival of
an Englishman, and wished to know if it was true, as she was going to
St. Luiz, and much desired to see this _bicho_ or animal. After some
further conversation upon the subject, he told her that the _bicho_
she was speaking to, was the Englishman himself. Of the truth of this,
some difficulty was found in persuading her; but when she was confident
that it was so, she cried out, “_Ai tam bonito_,” O, how handsome. She
expected to have been shown some horridly ugly beast, which it was
dangerous to approach, and was consequently agreeably surprised to
find that she was mistaken, and to see flesh and blood in human form,
handsomely put together.
I nearly lost a number of books which I had brought with me; the box
containing them was carried to the custom-house; they were taken out,
and I was desired to translate each title-page, which I did. Though
the works were chiefly historical, still I found that the officer who
looked over them, was not inclined to let me have them, and a hint was
given to me by one of my acquaintance, that they might be considered as
irrecoverable; however I made immediately a petition to the governor,
to be allowed to send them on board again; this was granted, and thus
I regained possession. If I had delayed, I am almost certain that I
should not have seen them again. Such are the difficulties which are
experienced with books in the parts of Brazil which I visited, that
the only resource which remains is that of smuggling them into the
country[66]. I hope, however, that the enlightened minister who is
now at the head of affairs, at Rio de Janeiro, will put an end to this
dreadful bar to improvement.
I brought a letter from one of my acquaintance at Pernambuco to a
gentleman who resided at Alcantara, a town on the opposite side of the
bay of St. Marcos. My friend at St. Luiz, another young Portugueze, and
myself, accompanied by two servants, agreed to hire a vessel and go
over, for the purpose of making him a visit, and of seeing the place.
We hired a small bark, and set sail one morning early, with a fair but
light wind. The beauties of the bay are only to be seen in crossing
it; the number of islands diversify the view every five minutes, from
the discovery of some hidden point, or from a change in the form of
the land, owing to the progress of the boat. The entrance into the
harbour of Alcantara, the town itself, and the size of the vessel in
which we were, reminded me much of the models of these realities. The
place, the port, and our boat were all small, and of proportionate
dimensions, having much the appearance of play-things. It was not like
a small vessel entering a large harbour; for in our case, as there was
but little water upon the bar, as much pilotage was necessary as with
a large ship in coming to anchor at St. Luiz. We were about five hours
in reaching the end of our voyage. The boatmen obtained for us a small
cottage, near to the beach; we intended to be independent, and have our
victuals cooked by our own servants; but soon after we were settled in
our new habitation, the gentleman introduced himself to whom we were
furnished with a letter. He said that he had heard of our arrival, and
he insisted upon our removal to his house.
The town is built upon a semi-circular hill, and at first sight from
the port is very pretty; but it falls short of its promise on a nearer
examination. The houses are many of them of one story in height, and
are built of stone; but the major part have only the ground floor. It
extends back to some distance in a straggling manner, with gardens, and
large spaces between each house; and many of the habitations in that
situation are thatched, and some of them are out of repair. As the hill
which rises from the water side is not high, and the land beyond rather
declines in a contrary direction, the meaner part of the town is not
seen at the first view. Alcantara is however a thriving place, and its
importance increases rapidly as the lands in the neighbourhood are in
request for cotton plantations. A handsome stone quay was building upon
the inside of a neck of land, round which the harbour extends for small
craft. The place contains a town-hall and prison, and several churches.
The evening we passed with our new friend and his partner, both of whom
were pleasant men. The latter took us to a neighbouring church, to
hear a famous preacher, and to see all the fashion and beauty of the
place. It was much crowded, and therefore we saw little or nothing of
the congregation; but the preacher, a large handsome Franciscan friar,
with a fine toned and clear voice, delivered a very florid discourse,
with much energy and animation. This man and one other were the only
persons of those I heard preach in Brazil, who deviated from the common
praises usually given to the Virgin and to the Saints. It was a good
practical sermon, inculcating moral duties; but by way of conformity
to established custom, he now and then mentioned the worthy in whose
honour the festival was given[67]. The next day was agreeably passed in
conversation; and in the evening two guitars were introduced, and some
of the young men of the place came in, and added to the amusement of
the party; they sang and played, and there was much sport. There was no
ceremony; but the behaviour of these people was gentlemanly, and their
conversation entertaining.
I heard here of a certain estate, of which the slaves were numerous,
but they had become rebellious; more than one steward had been killed
by them, and for some time they remained without any person to direct
them, but still they did not leave the place. When things had gone on
in this manner for some time, a native of Portugal presented himself
to the proprietor of the estate, and offered to take charge of it if
he would allow him a salary of one _conto_ of _reis_, about 250_l._
annually (which is an enormous stipend); and if he would sign an
agreement by which he should not become responsible for any slaves who
might be killed in reducing the remainder to obedience. To all this
no objection was made; and the man set off, accompanied by two other
persons, his friends, and a guide, all of them being well provided
with fire arms and ammunition. They arrived upon the scene of action
one evening, and finding the door of the principal house open, took
up their lodgings in it. In the morning, several of the negroes, on
discovering the intentions of the persons who were in possession of
the house, assembled in the area in front of it, but at some little
distance. The new steward soon came to the door unarmed, not permitting
his companions to appear, and called to one of the ring-leaders by
name, as if nothing was amiss. The man answered and came out of the
group, but said that he would not approach any nearer than the spot
to which he had advanced. The steward made no reply, but quickly took
a loaded musket, which stood immediately within the door, fired, and
brought the man to the ground, and without delay, called to another of
the slaves also by name. No answer being given, his companions came
forwards, and all of them fired in among the slaves. Such was the
effect of this summary manner of proceeding, that in two or three days
all was quiet, and went on smoothly as had formerly been the case; a
few only of the slaves absconding.
On our return from Alcantara we had a disagreeable passage, as the wind
blew hard and some heavy rain fell, which made us apprehensive of not
being able to fetch the harbour of St. Luiz. Our vessel had no cabin,
but she was decked, and therefore as a matter of necessity we crept
into the hold, in which we could not stand upright, and the bilge water
occasionally reached our feet; but this produced much laughter, and we
ultimately arrived in safety. Not far from the mouth of the port of
Alcantara stands an island of three miles in length and about one in
breadth, called the _Ilha do Livramento_; it is inhabited by one man
and woman, who have under their care a chapel dedicated to Our Lady of
Deliverance, which is visited by the inhabitants of the neighbouring
shores, once every year for the purpose of celebrating by a festival
this Invocation of the Virgin. My departure from Maranham sooner than
I had purposed at first, prevented the fulfilment of my intention of
landing and spending a day upon this spot. I know not what idea I might
have formed of the island if I had more narrowly examined it, but the
view I had of it at a distance was extremely beautiful. From what I
heard of it, I think, that if any one was about to settle at Maranham,
here it is that he should try to fix his residence.
I was introduced by my friend to a respectable family of St. Luiz. We
made them a visit one evening without invitation as is the custom,
and were ushered into a tolerably sized room, furnished with a large
bed, and three handsomely worked hammocks, which were slung across in
different directions; there were likewise in the apartment a chest of
drawers and several chairs. The mistress of the house, an elderly lady,
was seated in a hammock, and a female visitor in another, but her two
daughters and some male relations sat upon chairs. The company, which
consisted of two or three men besides ourselves, formed a semicircle
towards the hammocks. There was much ceremony, and the conversation was
carried on chiefly by the men, and an occasional remark was made by one
or other of the old ladies. An answer was given by the daughters to
a question asked, but no more, and some of the subjects touched upon
would not have been tolerated in mixed society in England. A part of
the formality might perhaps have worn off on further acquaintance.
The education however of women is not attended to, which of necessity
curtails the possibility of their entering into conversation upon many
subjects, even if so to do was accounted proper. Still the ladies of
St. Luiz cannot be said to be generally thus reserved, for gaming among
both sexes is much practised, and is carried to great excess. A young
lady in one instance, when going out with her mother to some evening
company, passed through the apartment in which her father was at play
with several of his acquaintance. He spoke to his daughter, asking
her to take a card, which she did. She went on playing until she had
lost three hundred _mil reis_, about 80_l._, and then said she had no
more money. A fresh supply was afforded to her, and she accompanied
her mother to their party, where most probably play was likewise the
entertainment of the evening. Dancing is an amusement much too violent
for the climate, and is only resorted to on some grand occasion. The
love of gaming may be easily accounted for where there is little or
no taste for reading, and great sums of money are amassed without any
means of expending them. Living is cheap; a fine house, a carriage, and
a number of servants may be had for a small sum. The opening of the
trade has however given to these people a new turn of expenditure, in
the facility of obtaining articles of dress and furniture.
Two English merchants only were established at St. Luiz; the commercial
transactions of British houses of trade were entrusted chiefly to
Portugueze merchants of the place[68]. Many of these were accustomed
to little ceremony, and walked the streets in short jackets, some of
them were without neckcloths and a few without stockings; but others
dress according to the manner of persons in Europe. It was with much
difficulty that I could persuade the generality of those with whom I
conversed that I had no business to transact; they could not comprehend
the motive by which a man could be actuated who was putting himself,
by travelling, to certain inconveniences for the sake of amusement;
indeed many persons would not be convinced, and thought that in so
saying I had some sinister views.
I had not many opportunities of gaining information respecting the
interior, but still I will mention what I heard. The banks of the
river Itapicuru, of which I have already spoken, though they are much
cultivated compared to what they were a few years ago, are yet very
wild, and there is space incalculable for new colonists. The captaincy
of Piauhi and the interior of the State of Maranham abound in cattle,
and these parts of the country are not subject to droughts. The town
of Aldeas Altas[69], which is situated in the latter, and the city of
Oeiras in the former and further inland, are said to be flourishing
places. Great numbers of cattle are annually driven from these quarters
of the Sertam to Bahia and Pernambuco. The proprietors of the estates
which are situated in districts so far removed from the seat of
government are at times unruly, and a party of soldiers, which was sent
up to arrest one of these men, some time before I arrived at St. Luiz,
returned without effecting its purpose.
Among other anecdotes, I heard of a mulatto slave who ran away from
his master, and in the course of years had become a wealthy man,
by the purchase of lands which were overrun with cattle. He had,
on one occasion, collected in pens great numbers of oxen which he
was arranging with his herdsmen to dispatch to different parts for
sale, when a stranger who came quite alone made his appearance, and
rode up and spoke to him, saying that he wished to have some private
conversation with him. After a little time they retired together, and
when they were alone the owner of the estate said, “I thank you for not
mentioning the connection between us, whilst my people were present.”
It was his master, who had fallen into distressed circumstances, and
had now made this visit in hopes of obtaining some trifle from him. He
said that he should be grateful for any thing his slave chose to give
to him. To reclaim him, he well knew, was out of the question—he was
in the man’s power, who might order him to be assassinated immediately.
The slave gave his master several hundred oxen, and directed some of
his men to accompany him with them to a market, giving out among his
herdsmen that he had thus paid a debt of old standing for which he had
only now been called upon. A man who could act in this manner well
deserved the freedom which he had resolved to obtain.
As it was my intention to pass the ensuing summer in England, and no
ships arrived from thence, I was afraid of being delayed some months
for a conveyance, therefore I thought it better to take my passage in
one of the ships which were about to sail. I preferred the Brutus, as I
was intimate with the supercargo, a young Portugueze. We set sail from
St. Luiz on the 8th of April, in company of another British ship; but
we were soon out of sight of each other, owing to one vessel holding
a better wind. On the 18th we reached variable winds, in lat. 22° N.
lon. 50° W. It is not usual to find them so far to the southwards,
therefore we might consider ourselves remarkably fortunate. We passed
our time pleasantly, as the weather was fine and the wind favourable.
On the 7th of May, the wind freshened, but we had a good ship and
plenty of sea-room. A wave struck the stern and entered the cabin on
the 8th in the morning, setting every thing afloat; this occurred soon
after we had risen. On the 9th we discovered two vessels at a great
distance a-head and rather to windward, both of them were laying to,
but soon each appeared to stand on different tacks. One proved to be
an English brig loaded with timber; she was water-logged and about to
sink, and the latter was an American ship, which had lain to, and was
in the act of assisting the people in leaving her. If the brig had not
been loaded with timber she must have gone down long before. As the
American ship was bound to her own country, we took the crew on board
the Brutus, nine persons; they were in most woeful plight; some lame,
others nearly naked, and all of them half starved with cold and hunger.
The vessel had sprung a leak, which increased so rapidly, as to oblige
them to retreat from the deck into the foretop, where they had been for
three days and two nights, almost destitute of provisions.
We arrived safe off Falmouth on the 20th of May. Here the supercargo
and myself landed, and proceeded to London.
CHAPTER X.
THE AUTHOR SETS SAIL FROM GRAVESEND AND ARRIVES AT PERNAMBUCO.—STATE
OF RECIFE.—JOURNEY TO BOM JARDIM WITH A CAPITAM-MOR, AND RETURN TO
RECIFE.
AT the commencement of the winter my friends again recommended a
return to a more temperate climate than that of England; and therefore
understanding that the Portugueze ship Serra Pequeno was upon the point
of sailing, I took my passage in her. She was lying at Gravesend, and
on the 4th October, 1811, I embarked again for Pernambuco.
Contrary winds detained the ship at Portsmouth for about six weeks. On
the 20th November, the wind came round to the northward and eastward,
and the signal guns from the ships of war, appointed as convoys,
awakened us. All was bustle and confusion at Cowes, where great numbers
of persons, belonging to the ships, who were circumstanced as we were,
had stationed themselves. In a few hours the vessels were under weigh,
and before the night closed in, all of them had cleared the Needles.
The Serra Pequeno and other Portugueze ships had taken instructions
from a frigate, which was bound to the Mediterranean, intending to keep
company with her as far as her destination and their’s obliged them to
follow the same course; but in the morning we discovered that we were
with another frigate, which was bound to Lisbon. We soon left her, and
were accompanied by other two Portugueze ships. On the night of the
22d, we fell in with the Kangaroo sloop of war, which was bound to the
coast of Africa, with a few vessels under convoy. On the 24th we parted
from this convoy, and on the 26th proceeded with only one Portugueze
ship. Our passage was most prosperous; we had no boisterous weather,
and few calms. On the 3d December, we fell in with the Arethusa
frigate, when in sight of the Canary islands. The captain of the Serra
was obliged to take the papers of his ship on board the frigate. The
regulations regarding the slave trade, which is carried on by the
Portugueze, perhaps occasioned more enquiry than would otherwise have
been deemed necessary. We crossed the line on the 22d. In the evening
of the 26th we stood for the land, supposing that we had reached the
latitude of our port, but that we were much to the eastward of it;
however, we made the land about two o’clock in the morning, which
was sooner by several hours than the officers of the ship imagined
we should. This frequently occurs on board of those vessels which do
not carry chronometers; the calculation of longitude without their
assistance being of course rendered extremely liable to error. At
day-break, it was discovered that we were somewhat to the northward of
Olinda. We entered the port about nine o’clock, and came to anchor in
the lower harbour called the Poço.
The Serra Pequeno is one of the heavy deep-waisted Brazil ships,
requiring a great number of hands to manage her. The business of the
ship was carried on in a manner similar in almost all points to that
which is practised on board of British merchant vessels; there was
however less cleanliness observed, and more noise was made. The second
officer, who is called in the British merchant service the mate, bears
in Portugueze vessels that of pilot; and the regulations of their
marine confine him to the navigation of the ship, giving up to an
inferior officer the duty of attending to the discharging or stowage
of the hold when loading or unloading, and all other minutiæ of the
affairs either at sea or in a harbour.
I was received on shore by all those persons with whom I had before
had the pleasure of being acquainted, with the same friendliness which
I always experienced at Pernambuco. Several English gentlemen offered
me an apartment in their houses, until I obtained one of my own. I
accepted the offer which was made to me by him through whose great
kindness my health had been so much benefited, after the severe attack
of fever which I had suffered in the preceding year. The first few
weeks were passed in visits to my friends and acquaintance, with some
of whom I occasionally staid a few days in the neighbourhood of the
town, which was now much deserted, according to the usual custom, at
this season of the year.
I perceived a considerable difference in the appearance of Recife and
of its inhabitants, although I had been absent from the place for so
short a period. Several houses had been altered; the heavy sombre
lattice work had given place, in many instances, to glass windows and
iron balconies. Some few families had arrived here from Lisbon, and
three from England; the ladies of the former had shown the example
of walking to mass in broad day-light; and those of the latter were
in the habit of going out to walk towards the close of the day, for
amusement. These improvements being once introduced and practised by
a few persons, were soon adopted by some, who had been afraid to be
the first, and by others who found that they were pleasant. Formal
silks and satins too were becoming a less usual dress on high days and
holidays, and were now much superseded by white and coloured muslins,
and other cotton manufactures. The men, likewise, who had in former
times daily appeared in full dress suits of black, gold buckles, and
cocked hats, had now, in many instances, exchanged these for nankeen
pantaloons, half boots, and round hats. Even the high and heavy saddle
was now less in use, and that of more modern form was all the fashion.
The sedan chairs, in which the ladies often go to church, and to pay
visits to their friends, had now put on a much smarter appearance, and
the men who carried them were dressed more dashingly. These cannot
fail to attract the attention of strangers, in their gay cloaths,
their helmets and feathers, and their naked legs. The annexed print
represents one of these equipages.
[Illustration: _A Lady going to Visit._]
The country residences which had been lately built, were also numerous;
lands in the vicinity of Recife had risen in price; the trade of
brick-making was becoming lucrative; work-people were in request; and
besides many other spots of land, the track between the villages of
Poço da Panella and Monteiro, in extent about one mile, which in 1810
was covered with brushwood, had now been cleared; houses were building
and gardens forming upon it. The great church of Corpo Santo, situated
in that part of the town which is properly called Recife, was now
finished, and various improvements were meditated[70]. The time of
advancement was come, and men, who had for many years gone on without
making any change either in the interior or exterior of their houses,
were now painting and glazing on the outside, and new furnishing
within; modernizing themselves, their families, and their dwellings.
This spirit of alteration produced, in one case, rather ludicrous
consequences. There was a lady of considerable dimensions, who had
entered into this love of innovation, and carried it to a vast extent.
She was almost equal in circumference and height, but notwithstanding
this unfortunate circumstance, personal embellishments were not to
be despised; she wished to dress in English fashion, and was herself
decidedly of opinion that she had succeeded. Upon her head she wore
a very small gypsey hat tied under the chin. Stays have only lately
been introduced, but this improvement she had not yet adopted; still
her gown was to be in English fashion too, and therefore was cut and
slashed away, so as to leave most unmercifully in view several beauties
which otherwise would have remained concealed. This gown was of muslin,
and was worked down the middle and round the bottom in several colours;
her shoes were as small as could be allowed; but the unfortunate
redundance of size also reached the ankles and the feet, and thus
rendering compression necessary; the superabundance which nature had
lavishly bestowed, projected and hung down over each side of the shoes.
I became acquainted and somewhat intimate with the _Capitam-mor_ of
a neighbouring district, from frequently meeting him, in my evening
visits to a Brazilian family. He was about to make the circuit of his
district in the course of a few weeks, and invited one of my friends
and myself to accompany him in this review or visit to his officers,
to which we readily agreed. It was arranged that he should make us
acquainted in due time with the day which he might appoint for setting
out, that we might meet him at his sugar-plantation, from whence we
were to proceed with him and his suite further into the country.
The _Capitaens-mores_, captains-major, are officers of considerable
power. They have civil as well as military duties to perform, and
ought to be appointed from among the planters of most wealth and
individual weight in the several _Termos_, boundaries or districts;
but the interest of family or of relations about the Court, have
occasioned deviations from this rule; and persons very unfit for these
situations, have been sometimes nominated to them. The whole aspect
of the government in Brazil is military. All men between the ages of
sixteen and sixty, must be enrolled either as soldiers of the line,
as militia-men, or as belonging to the body of _Ordenanças_. Of the
regular soldiers, I have already spoken in another place. Of the second
class, each township has a regiment, of which the individuals, with the
exception of the major and adjutant, and in some cases the colonel, do
not receive any pay. But they are considered as embodied men, and as
such are called out upon some few occasions, in the course of the year,
to assemble in uniform, and otherwise accoutred. The expense which must
be incurred in this respect, of necessity, precludes the possibility of
many persons becoming members of this class, even if the Government was
desirous of increasing the number of militia regiments. The soldiers
of these are subject to their captains, to the colonel, and to the
governor of the province. The colonels are either rich planters, or the
major or lieutenant-colonel of a regiment of the line is thus promoted
to the command of one of these; in this case, and in this case only,
he receives pay. I am inclined to think that he ought to possess some
property in the district, and that any deviation from this rule is an
abuse; but I am not certain that the law so ordains. The majors and the
adjutants are likewise occasionally promoted from the line; but whether
they are regularly military men or planters, they receive pay, as their
trouble in distributing orders, and in other arrangements connected
with the regiment is considerable.
The third class, that of the _Ordenanças_, consisting of by far the
largest portion of the white persons and of free mulatto men of
all shades, have for their immediate chiefs the _Capitaens-mores_,
who serve without pay, and all the persons who are connected with
the _Ordenanças_, are obliged likewise to afford their services
gratuitously. Each district contains one _Capitam-mor_, who is
invariably a person possessing property in the part of the country
to which he is appointed. He is assisted by a major, captains, and
_alferes_, who are lieutenants or ensigns, and by sergeants and
corporals. The duties of the _Capitam-mor_ are to see that every
individual under his command has in his possession some species of
arms; either a firelock, a sword, or a pike. He distributes the
governor’s orders through his district, and can oblige any of his men
to take these orders to the nearest captain, who sends another peasant
forwards to the next captain, and so forth, all which is done without
any pay. A _Capitam-mor_ can also imprison for twenty-four hours, and
send under arrest for trial a person who is accused of having committed
any crime, to the civil magistrate of the town to which his district is
immediately attached. Now, the abuses of this office of _Capitam-mor_
are very many, and the lower orders of free persons are much oppressed
by these great men, and by their subalterns, down to the corporals.
The peasants are often sent upon errands which have no relation to
public business; for leagues and leagues these poor fellows are made to
travel, for the purpose of carrying some private letter of the chief,
of his captains, or of his lieutenants, without any remuneration.
Indeed, many of these men in place, seldom think of employing their
slaves on these occasions, or of paying the free persons so employed.
This I have witnessed times out of number; and have heard the peasants
in all parts of the country complain: it is a most heavy grievance.
Nothing so much vexes a peasant as the consciousness of losing his
time and trouble in a service which is not required by his Sovereign.
Persons are sometimes confined in the stocks for days together, on some
trifling plea, and are at last released without being sent to the civil
magistrate, or even admitted to a hearing. However, I am happy to say,
that I am acquainted with some men, whose conduct is widely different
from what I have above stated; but the power given to an individual is
too great, and the probability of being called to an account for its
abuse too remote, to insure the exercise of it in a proper manner.
The free mulattos and free negroes whose names are upon the rolls,
either of the militia regiments which are commanded by white officers,
or by those of their own class and colour, are not, properly speaking,
subject to the _Capitaens-mores_. These officers and the colonels of
militia are appointed by the supreme government, and the subaltern
officers are nominated by the governor of each province.
The above explanation of the state of internal government I thought
necessary, that the reader might understand the grounds upon which
I was about to undertake the journey, of which some account will
immediately be given.
On the 28th January, 1812, the _Capitam-mor_ sent one of his servants
to summon us to his plantation, and to be our guide. Early on the
morning following, my friend, myself, our own two servants, and the boy
who had been sent to us by the _Capitam-mor_, set forth on horseback
in high spirits; my friend and I expecting to see something new and
strange. I had before, as has been already related, travelled into
the less populous parts of the country; but I had had very little
communication with the planters. On that occasion, I proceeded too
rapidly to obtain as much knowledge of their manners and customs as I
wished.
We proceeded to Olinda, and passed through its wretchedly paved
streets, with much care; and when we were descending the hill,
upon which it stands on the land side, there was laid open to us a
considerable extent of marshy ground, which was partly covered with
mandioc, planted upon raised beds or hillocks, which were made of a
circular form, that the water might not reach the roots of the plants;
the remainder of the land was still undrained and unproductive. The
darkness of the green of the plants which grow upon marshy ground
immediately points out the lands that are in this state. The country
which was to be seen in the distance was covered with wood. We crossed
a rivulet, communicating with the marshy land on each side of the
road, and passed on over some rising ground, and by several scattered
cottages, until we reached, distant from Olinda one league, the low
lands surrounding the hill which forms the site of the sugar plantation
of Fragozo. From hence the lands are low and damp, almost without any
rising ground, to the sugar plantation of Paulistas. The beautiful
spots upon this track of country are numerous; cottages are oftentimes
to be met with, half concealed among the trees and brushwood; they are
built of mud, and are covered with the leaves of coco-trees. They have
usually a projecting pent-house with a small area in front, which is
clear of weeds; under this pent-house is slung the hammock, with its
dark-coloured owner, idly swinging backwards and forwards, who raises
his head as he hears the horses’ footsteps; the dog is basking in the
sun, or lying under the shade, or running out to annoy the traveller;
and the fishing baskets and the gourds hang as chance directs upon the
protruding stems of the coco-leaves, which cover the lowly hut. Some
times the sight of these rude dwellings is enlivened by the figure of a
female, who runs off, and conceals herself, as the passenger upon the
road looks down the narrow path which leads to the cottage. The road
itself was likewise narrow, (for this was not the great cattle track)
and all view of the country was generally shut out, by the wood on
each side, against which the legs of the horseman are often brushing,
and into which he is obliged to force his horse, if he should chance to
meet a carrier, with his panniers or his cotton bags on either side of
his beast, or one of the carts which are employed upon the plantations.
The print represents one of the cotton-carriers. In the fore ground is
described the species of palm tree called Tucum[71], and immediately
behind it is the Mamoeiro, which produces its fruit upon the stem; the
fruit is large, and the pulp of it is soft, having much resemblance in
consistence and in taste to a melon that is too ripe; the appearance of
the fruit has some similarity likewise to a small round melon.
To those who are unaccustomed to a country that is literally covered
with woods, which prevent an extensive view of the surrounding objects,
and the free circulation of air, the delightful sensations which are
produced by a fine green field, opening all at once to the sight, and
swept by a refreshing breeze, cannot possibly be felt. The plantation
of Paulistas is so situated. The buildings were numerous, but most of
them were low, and somewhat out of repair. These are the dwelling-house
of the owner, which is spacious, and has one story above the ground
floor; the chapel, with its large wooden cross erected upon the
centre of the gable end; the mill, a square building without walls,
its roof being supported upon brick pillars; the long row of negro
huts, the steward’s residence, and several others of minor importance.
These edifices are all of them scattered upon a large field, which
is occupied by a considerable number of tame cattle; this is skirted
by a dike which runs in front, but somewhat at a distance from the
dwelling-house of the owner, and through it runs the water which turns
the mill. On the opposite side of the field is the chaplain’s cottage,
with its adjoining lesser row of negro huts, its plantain garden, and
its wide spreading mango trees behind it. Beyond the principal house,
are low and extensive cane and meadow lands, which are skirted on one
side by the buildings of another small plantation, and bordered at a
great distance by woods, which are situated upon the sides and summit
of rising ground.
[Illustration: _A Cotton Carrier._]
This valuable and beautiful plantation was in the possession of a near
relation of our _Capitam-mor_. We were acquainted with the son of the
owner, who was chaplain to the estate, and had invited us to make his
residence our resting-place; this we did. He was prepared to receive
us, and after having breakfasted, we proceeded to pay a visit to the
old gentleman at the Great House, as the dwellings of the owners of
plantations are called. He was unwell, and could not be seen; but we
were received by his wife and two daughters. They made many enquiries
about England, and conversed upon other subjects which they supposed we
might be acquainted with. This estate was not much worked; the slaves
led a most easy life, and the Great House was full of young children.
Of these urchins several came in and out of the room, they were quite
naked, and played with each other, and with some large dogs which were
lying at full length upon the floor. These ebony cupids were plainly
great favourites, and seemed to employ the greater part of the thoughts
of the good ladies, the youngest of whom was on the wrong side of
fifty; and even the priest laughed at their gambols. These excellent
women and the good priest possess a considerable number of slaves,
who are their exclusive property. It is their intention eventually to
emancipate all of them, and that they may be prepared for the change,
several of the men have been brought up as mechanics of different
descriptions; and the women have been taught needle-work, embroidery,
and all branches of culinary knowledge. Thus, by the death of four
individuals, who are now approaching to old age, will be set free
about sixty persons, men, women, and children. As these people have
been made acquainted with the intentions of their owners respecting
them, it is not surprising that the behaviour of many of them should
be overbearing. To some, the deeds of manumission have been already
passed conditionally, obliging them to serve as slaves until the death
of the individual to whom they are subject. These papers cannot be
revoked, and yet no ingratitude was feared; but among so considerable
a number of persons, some instances of it cannot, I fear, fail to be
experienced. The owners said that all their own immediate relations
are rich, and not at all in need of assistance; and that therefore
independent of other reasons connected generally with the system of
slavery, these their children had no right to work for any one else. Of
the slaves in question, only a few are Africans, the major part being
mulattos and creole negroes.
We returned to the cottage of the priest to dinner, and in the
afternoon proceeded to the sugar plantation of Aguiar, belonging to the
_Capitam-mor_, which is distant from Paulistas five leagues, where we
arrived about ten o’clock at night, much fatigued. Immediately beyond
Paulistas is the narrow but rapid stream of Paratibi, which near to
its mouth changes this name for that of Doce. In the rainy season it
overflows its banks, and becomes unfordable. The width of it, when it
is in the usual state, near to Paulistas, is not above twenty yards. In
its course to the sea, it runs through much marshy ground. We passed
by four sugar-mills this afternoon; that which bears the name of
Utringa _de baixo_, is situated in an amphitheatre, being surrounded
by high hills, covered with large trees. These woods have not been
much disturbed, and therefore give refuge to enormous quantities of
game, among which the _porco do mato_, or pig of the woods, is common.
I never saw this animal, and therefore cannot pretend to describe it;
but I have often heard it spoken of, as being extremely destructive
to mandioc, and that its flesh is good. This animal is not large, and
is not unlike the common hog[72]. Many criminals and runaway negroes
are harboured in these woods. The inhabitants of Utinga seem to be
shut out from all the rest of the world, as the path which leads from
it is not immediately distinguished. The last three leagues, which we
traversed in the dark, were covered with almost unbroken woods; the
path through them is narrow, and the branches of the trees cross it in
all directions; our guide rode in front, and many times did his head
come in contact with them.
The dwelling of the _Capitam-mor_ is a large building of one story
above the ground floor: the lower part of which forms the warehouse for
the sugar and other articles which the estate produces. We ascended a
wooden staircase, erected on the outside of the building, entered a
small anti-chamber, and were received by our host and one of his sons,
who conducted us into a spacious apartment beyond. A long table, and
one of rather less dimensions, a couple of benches, and a few broken
and unpainted chairs formed the whole furniture of these rooms. Four
or five black boys, who were of a size too far advanced to wear the
bow and arrow, but who were quite as little encumbered with dress as
if they still might wield these dangerous weapons in the character of
cupids, stood all astonishment to view the strange beings that had just
arrived; and at all the doors were women’s heads peeping to see whom we
might be. The supper consisted as is usual of great quantities of meat,
placed upon the table without arrangement.
At five o’clock in the morning, the _capitam-mor_, my friend, myself,
and three servants proceeded to the distance of three leagues without
any addition to our party; but we were soon joined by the adjutant of
the district and several other officers, in uniforms of dark blue with
yellow facings most monstrously broad—the gay cuffs reaching half way
up to the elbows; they wore round hats with short feathers, straight
swords of most prodigious length, and very loose nankeen pantaloons
and boots; the former were thrust within the latter, which caused the
higher part of the pantaloons to appear to be of preposterous width.
We dismounted at a sugar plantation, being the third we had passed
through this morning; here we were invited to stay to breakfast, but
this we could not do, and were therefore regaled with pine-apples
and oranges. The owner of this place had taken great pains with his
garden, and had reared several fruits which require much care; but
it is strange that, although there are many which may be raised with
very little trouble, still upon far the greater number of plantations
even oranges are not to be found. The ant is, I well know, a great
persecutor of this tree, but when care is taken in this respect, and a
little water is afforded during the dry months for two or three years,
none else is necessary. Upon the same plantation have been practised
the most monstrous cruelties; the conduct of the owner towards his
slaves is often spoken of with abhorrence, but yet he is visited
and treated with the same respect which is paid to an individual of
unblemished character. It is however almost the only instance of which
I heard of systematic, continued, wanton enormity; but it has here
occurred and has passed unpunished, and this one is sufficient, even
if none other existed, to stamp the slave system as an abomination
which ought to be rooted out. The estate was inherited by the person in
question, with sixty good slaves upon it; fifteen years have elapsed
since that time to the period of which I speak, and there were then
remaining only four or five individuals who were able to work. Some
have fled and have escaped, others have died, God knows how, and others
again have committed suicide in sight of their master’s residence.
We arrived at mid-day at Santa Cruz, and had now reached the cotton
country. The track through which we had passed was for the most part
well watered and well wooded; the marshy lands being less frequently
interspersed than upon the journey of the preceding day. The sugar
plantations were numerous; we saw eight of them this morning. The
ground was often uneven, and we crossed one rather steep hill. The
lands upon which we had now arrived and those to which we were
advancing are altogether higher, and the grass upon them was now much
burnt up, the “first waters” not having yet fallen. The soil in these
parts retains less moisture than that of the country which we had
left, and soon becomes too hard to be worked. The party was now much
increased, and in the afternoon we proceeded to Pindoba, a cotton
plantation of considerable extent; the owner of it is wealthy and
possesses many slaves. He received us in his dressing-gown, under which
he wore a shirt, drawers, and a pair of stockings. After the first
greetings were over, he brought out a small bottle of liqueur made in
the country, to which he himself helped his guests, one solitary glass,
which was filled, and then emptied by each person, being made use of by
the whole party. After supper a guitar player belonging to the house
entertained us until a late hour, whilst our host sat upon a table
smoking from a pipe of fully six feet in length. Several hammocks were
slung in two large apartments, and each person either talked or went to
sleep, or occasionally did one and the other, no form or ceremony being
observed.
The peasants began to assemble early on the following morning, as three
companies of the _Ordenanças_ were to be reviewed. These were the
first which were to undergo inspection, as the _capitam-mor_ purposed
visiting again the places through which we had passed on his return,
and intended then to perform this duty. The men wore their usual dress
of shirt and drawers, and perhaps a nankeen jacket and pantaloons were
added, and most of them had muskets. The _capitam-mor_ came forth this
day in his scarlet uniform, and sat himself down near to a table. The
captain of the company which was about to be reviewed stood near to
him with the muster-roll. The names of the privates were called over
by the captain, and as each name was repeated by the sergeant, who
stood at the door-way, the individual to whom it belonged came in and
presented arms to the _capitam-mor_, then turned about and retired. It
was truly ridiculous, but at the same time painful, to see the fright
which the countenances of some of the poor fellows expressed, and their
excessive awkwardness when they came to present themselves; whilst
others displayed evident self-sufficiency; these were well-dressed
and performed every manœuvre with as much neatness and promptitude as
they were capable of, expressive of superior knowledge and in hopes
of admiration. There were of course many absentees, and for the
non-appearance of these some reason was given by one of the officers of
the company to which the man belonged, or by a neighbour. The excuses
were usually received as all-sufficient, without any further enquiry
being made. However the absence of one of the captains was not thus
quietly acquiesced in, and therefore an officer was dispatched to his
house to bring him to Pindoba under an arrest. Whether this proceeded
from some private pique, or from zeal for the public service, I do
not pretend to determine, but he soon arrived in custody. He was put
into one of the apartments of the house which we were inhabiting, and
a sergeant was stationed at the door as a sentinel. The _capitam-mor_
soon however relented, upon which he was released and allowed to return
home.
At dinner the great man took the head of the table, and the owner of
the house stood by and waited upon him. Every thing was served up in
enormous quantities, for the party was large and this is the custom;
there was no sort of regularity observed; every man helped himself to
the dish which pleased him best, and this was oftentimes done, with
the knife which the person had been making use of upon his own plate,
and by reaching across two or three of his neighbours for the purpose.
A nice bit was not safe even upon one’s own plate, being occasionally
snatched up, and another less dainty given in return. Much wine was
drank during dinner, and the glasses were used in common. We soon rose
from table, and the party, generally speaking, took the accustomed
_sesta_ or nap after dinner which is usual in warm climates. My friend
and I walked out in the afternoon, but there was nothing to tempt us to
go far, for the neighbourhood possessed no natural beauty and the dry
weather had burnt up the grass, and had made the face of the country
extremely dreary.
Early on the morrow about forty persons sallied forth for the village
of Bom Jardim. It is distant from Pindoba one league and a half. We
arrived there at seven o’clock. This village is built in the form of a
square; the houses are low, but the church is large and handsome. Like
the huts of Açu and of some other places, those of Bom Jardim are not
white-washed, and therefore the mud of which they are composed remains
in its original colour. The place contains about 500 inhabitants.
We ascended a steep hill to arrive at it, and on the opposite side
still another of equal height is to be surmounted in proceeding
farther inland. The village is situated upon a break of the hill. The
soil is chiefly composed of red earth, approaching in places to a
bright scarlet, with veins of yellow running through it; this is the
description of soil, which is said to be the best adapted to the growth
of cotton. Bom Jardim is a great rendezvous for the hawkers who are
proceeding to the Sertam, and for others who merely advance thus far.
It is distant from Recife twenty good leagues, in a N. E. direction.
My friend and I walked out and descended the hill by a path which led
us to the bed of the river, for there was now no water in it. Great
want of water is often experienced at Bom Jardim, but I think that if
wells of sufficient depth were dug, a supply might be obtained[73].
On our return to the village, we discovered that Mass was about to be
said, and therefore we accompanied some of our party to the church.
It was crowded; indeed it is a remark which I was frequently led to
make, that on Sundays and Holidays when the peasantry assemble at the
church doors, their numbers must astonish those persons who merely pass
through the country without opportunities being afforded to them of a
more minute examination. The cottages upon the road side do not promise
so numerous a population as is on these occasions to be seen; but from
the thickness of the woods and the lowness of the huts, even when a
view of the country is by any accident to be obtained from a high hill,
the dwellings of the lower orders of people are not to be perceived;
they are scattered all over the country; and narrow paths which appear
impassable or nearly so, and are scarcely to be observed, often lead to
four or five huts, situated in the centre of a wood or upon some low
ground, adapted to the cultivation of mandioc and maize.
One company was reviewed at Bom Jardim, and from hence a captain was
deputed to continue the review further into the country. We rode this
afternoon one league to the house of Captain Anselmo, being so far upon
our return. On our way to this place we saw the woods on one side of
the road on fire. In the dry season the grass and brushwood become so
completely parched, that the least spark sets a whole track of country
in a blaze. I mean that the fire will sometimes run on for a league,
and even more. It will occasionally blaze forth most violently, and
catching the branches of the large trees, the flames will at intervals
flash above their summit;—it will then subside, but continue smothered
in the hollow of some aged tree, or in a heap of leaves which still
retain some moisture; but a breath of air spreads it abroad, and it
again runs on with violence. The peasants almost invariably smoke as
they go along, and oftentimes they ask for a lighted piece of wood at
a cottage which they may chance to pass. It is astonishing to see with
what unconcern they will hurl this from them still unextinguished,
knowing, as they do full well, the consequences which frequently have
ensued. The act of setting fire to a wood is subject to punishment by
law, if intention or even carelessness can be proved. The crop of canes
of some estates have, in many instances, been injured by these means.
Captain Anselmo resides upon a cotton plantation which is his own
property, and is cultivated by about forty negroes. The house is
situated upon the shelf of a steep hill, with a beautiful plain below,
upon which trees are thickly scattered. At the foot of the hill is a
large fishpond, through which a rivulet runs in the rainy season. The
owner has lately inclosed a piece of land, and was making a garden
upon the borders of the pond. The dwelling-house was new and had a
second floor; it was very clean and well furnished. This was the most
pleasantly situated and the best arranged mansion which we visited
during this journey; the huts for the slaves were well built and looked
comfortable. Here we were entertained with such music as has as yet
found its way into these parts of the country. Three negroes with
bagpipes attempted to play a few tunes whilst we were at dinner, but
they seemed to play in different keys from each other, and sometimes
each appeared to have struck up a tune of his own composing. I think
I never heard so bad an attempt at producing harmonious sounds as
the _charameleiros_ made. The possession of a band of these bespeaks
a certain degree of superiority, consequently the planters pride
themselves upon their musicians.
Our party could not let pass this opportunity of being together without
practising the amusement of the _intrudo_[74], although the usual time
of its celebration was yet distant one week. On the day subsequent to
that of our arrival, dinner was scarcely over before the _farinha_, the
bananas, the rice, and other dainties upon the table, were hurled at
each other’s heads; soon the smart uniform coats were taken off, and in
his shirt sleeves each man began this civil war with heart and soul.
Every thing was borne with perfect good humour, and at last, fatigued
and bedaubed, all of us retired to the hammocks which had been provided
for the party. But as our evil stars would have it, a brave captain
closed quietly all the shutters (as the moon was shining very bright
into the room) and then he placed himself near to an enormous jar of
water, which stood in one corner of the apartment, and with a small
pitcher in his hand soon dealt around him its contents, awakening us
with repeated showers, and obliging us to take shelter under the chairs
and tables. This, and other jokes allied to it, continued until the
break of day, when we prepared for a continuation of our journey. One
company was reviewed here.
We proceeded to the house of Captain Paulo Travasso, distant one
league. As was our usual custom, my friend and I walked out soon after
our arrival, and in returning, instead of pursuing the path, which was
rather circuitous, we attempted to climb up a bank, that we might the
sooner reach the house; my friend was before me, and as he scrambled up
it, his foot slipped, which caused him to catch at the stump of a small
plant, that grew upon the side of the bank. He gave up his idea of
going by that way to the house, and returned to me, bringing with him
the plant, with its root and the earth about it. On going to throw it
away, he perceived upon his hand the glitter of a substance which made
us return to the spot. We gathered some more of the earth, and this
gentleman, who had long resided upon the coast of Africa, judged the
substance which was mixed with it to be gold dust.
At this place the _intrudo_ was continued more violently than before;
for even the blackened pots and pans from the kitchen were introduced
to besmear each other’s faces. We obtained here a view of the females
belonging to the house; but every where else, they had been too
rigorously guarded, or were naturally too reserved to enable us to
see them. Some excuse was made by the young men who were acquainted
with the family, to draw them into the sport; and the ladies and their
slaves were nothing loath to see and to participate in what was going
forwards. A circumstance occurred which created much laughter, and
which is but too characteristic. One man whom we met at this place,
had all along begged of those who were engaged in the sport, that they
would not wet him, because he was unwell; however it was seen that he
did not observe towards others that forbearance which he entreated
from them towards himself. One of our party seeing this, attacked him
with a large silver ladle filled with water; the man ran out of the
house, and the other followed; but when they were at some distance from
it, he turned upon his pursuer, and drawing his knife, stood at some
distance, threatening to stab him if he advanced. The other, striking
his left side at the place in which knives are usually carried,
likewise threatened him, and without delay advanced towards him, having
picked up a thick stick as he approached. But his adversary did not
like the thoughts of a close combat, and soon set off at full speed,
with his knife in his hand. In this manner, he entered the back door of
the house, whilst he of the silver ladle took the front door. They met
in the apartment from which they had started, when the latter opened
his waistcoat and shewed that he had not a knife; thus proving before
the whole party, that he of the knife had run away from one who was
unarmed. This was quite sufficient; the women made a general attack
upon him: he went to the stable, mounted his horse, and set forth;
but his misfortunes had not yet ended, for the path by which he must
retreat lay under two of the windows of the house, and as he passed,
two large tubs of water drenched him and his steed, which immediately
quickened its pace, amidst the hooting of every one present.
We continued our journey in the afternoon to a sugar plantation, the
property of Captain Joam Soares, where we remained until the following
day. Some of us were tired of the _intrudo_, and therefore sought
shelter in the mill and adjoining out-houses, when we saw the sport
again commencing; but we were about to be attacked, when we gained the
roofs of one of the buildings, and from hence could not be dislodged.
I had frequently seen the _saboeiro_ or soap tree, which is to be
chiefly found in these districts. It is a large shrub, which puts forth
numerous branches in every direction, so that when it is in full leaf,
it has somewhat the appearance of trees that have been clipped, (as was
formerly practised in gardens,) which is increased by the leaves being
small and growing very close to each other. The receptacle of the seed
is about the size of a small plum; when this is put into water, and
rubbed with some violence, it produces the same effect as that which is
caused by soap in water, and it has the same property of cleansing[75].
The _pao do alho_ or garlic tree, is to be met with in great abundance
in these districts. The name is derived from the similitude of the
smell of the leaves and the wood of this plant to garlic. The tree
abounds so greatly, and, I suppose, reminded the first settlers so much
of one of their favourite European culinary ingredients, that it has
given name to a town, and to a whole district.
About five o’clock in the afternoon we proceeded to Limoeiro, a large
and thriving village[76]. It is composed of one street of about three
quarters of a mile in length, which is closed at one end by the church
and vicarage: this building belonged formerly to the Jesuits. The trade
of Limoeiro with the interior is considerable, and particularly on the
day of the market, which is held weekly, the bustle is excessive. These
days seldom pass without some murders being committed, or at least many
wounds and blows being given; but the markets of Nazareth or Lagoa
d’Anta are those which are particularly famed for the disturbances that
usually take place there. These became so considerable at one time,
that the governor found it necessary to issue orders for a patrole to
keep the peace on market days.
Limoeiro contains about six hundred inhabitants, and is increasing
daily. It stands upon the banks of the river Capibaribe, which was at
this time quite dry. The distance from Recife is fourteen good leagues.
We were entertained by the vicar, who has taken very little pains to
have a decent residence, and cannot fail to be somewhat indifferent
about his own life, for every step to which we advanced as we ascended
to the apartments above, promised to be the last that would hold us.
The floors of the rooms into which we were ushered, seemed to be laid
out as traps to ensnare those who might not tread cautiously; some of
the boards were broken, and large holes remained; others were loose,
and it was dangerous to pass over them; and besides the several
perils of this mansion, substances which are not pleasant to the
nose might unwarily be trampled upon. Never did I see so miserable a
dwelling, whose inhabitant might with so much ease have bettered the
state in which we found it. However, I ought not to complain, for to
counterbalance all this, we had a teapot, sugar basin, and other parts
of the equipage of silver.
The _Capitam-mor_ had still several posts to visit, which would delay
him for a considerable time; therefore as my friend was anxious to
return to Recife, we left our party, with much regret, and were
accompanied in the morning by the adjutant, who was about to return
home. I had been greatly amused, and wished to have seen the conclusion
of the affair. At Limoeiro, several companies were to be reviewed,
and from thence the _Capitam-mor_ proceeded to Pao do Alho[77] and
Nazareth, or Lagoa d’Anta[78], two large villages of considerable
importance. Both of them are within a few leagues of the place from
which we separated from our companions. We returned to Santa Cruz,
passed through that village, and were entertained at the house of the
adjutant. We reached Aguiar in the afternoon, being received at that
place by one of the _Capitam-mor_’s sons, a young man of eighteen years
of age; and we also saw the _Capitam-mor_’s interesting wife, who is
likewise his niece; she was about fifteen years of age, he being about
forty-six. We slept there, and stopped at Paulistas on the following
day at noon, from whence we proceeded to Recife on the evening of the
6th February.
I heard one of the sugar planters bitterly complaining of his poverty,
and that his want of hands to work his mill obliged him to give up the
cultivation of much of the best land of his estate. Soon after he had
uttered these complaints, the conversation turned upon saddle-horses
and their trappings; and he then told us that he had lately purchased a
new saddle and bridle, which he wished us to see. These new trappings
were most superb affairs; the saddle was made of morocco leather and
green velvet, and silver headed nails and plates of the same metal
were profusely scattered and placed upon all parts of this and of the
bridle. He told us that the whole had cost him four hundred _mil reis_,
about 110_l._ This sum of money would have purchased four slaves. But
the matter did not end here, for he opened a drawer in which were
strewed several broken silver spoons, spurs, &c. and he said that he
was collecting a sufficient quantity of this metal for the purpose of
having his groom’s horse ornamented in the same manner as his own.
The free persons of colour who inhabit the track of country through
which we passed are more numerous than I had previously imagined. The
companies of Ordenanças vary much in strength; some consist of one
hundred and fifty men and more, and others of not above fifty. The
peasantry of the _Mata_, that is, of the country which lies between
the plentiful well-watered districts of the coast and the Sertoens,
have not a general good character. The miserable life which they,
oftener than others, are obliged to lead from the want of water and of
provisions, seems to have an unfavourable effect upon them; they are
represented as being more vindictive and more quarrelsome, and less
hospitable than their neighbours. To say that a man is a _matuto da
mata_, a woodman of the wood, is no recommendation to him.
During this journey I heard the following story; and as I was
acquainted with the person to whom the circumstances occurred, I can
vouch for its veracity. A Brazilian who had been wealthy, but who
had, through many imprudencies, and from many deeds which deserve a
much severer name, reduced himself to a state of comparative poverty,
resided in this part of the country at the time I travelled through
it. He was a man of loose morals and savage disposition, but of
most pleasant manners. He had in one particular instance, which
pre-eminently stamped his character, behaved in a most shameful manner
to a lady to whom he professed himself to be attached. He had possessed
many slaves; but at the time the following occurrences took place
three or four only remained, and of these one alone was in health.
Apprehensive of being assassinated by some of the persons whom he had
injured and insulted, he usually kept the doors and windows of his
residence well secured, excepting one entrance which was likewise
closed at dusk. One evening, three men knocked at the door, and asked
leave to pass the night in some of the out-houses of the plantation;
the owner answered from within, but did not open the door, saying
that they might sleep in the mill. About an hour afterwards there was
another knock, and a person requested that some fruit might be sold
to him. The owner fetched some, and inconsiderately opened the door
to give it to the man; but when he looked out, all the three were
there, and as he reached the fruit to one of them, a second fired, and
the greatest part of the shot entered the abdomen. The known courage
of the wounded man made these fellows hesitate in approaching him
immediately, by which means he had time to reach his sword, which stood
near to where he was, and he was enabled to close and bolt the door.
This being done, he reached his bed with great difficulty, expecting
that every minute would be his last. The men tried to gain admittance
through some of the doors or windows; but not succeeding in this, they
rode off. As soon as the slave who was in health heard the report of
the gun, and saw his master wounded, he left the house, recollecting
(which is somewhat surprising) to lock the door; he made all haste to
a neighbouring plantation, distant one league. The owner of the place
to which the slave had fled, ordered a hammock to be prepared, and
set off with sixteen negroes; he was accompanied by his chaplain, who
brought with him a candle, and all the other necessary appendages to
the bed-side of a dying Catholic. They arrived, and found the wounded
man in a state which led them to suppose that he could not live many
hours; but he was confessed, and anointed with the holy oil, and thus
prepared for the worst. Then they put him into the hammock, and his
neighbour had him conveyed to his residence. The person who related
this story to me, did not fail to add, that a lighted candle was
carried in a lantern, that the wounded man should not run the risk of
dying without having the light in his hand, as is the custom. A surgeon
was sent for to Iguaraçu, which is distant several leagues, and he
succeeded in extracting almost all the shot. Notwithstanding the delay,
and other unfavourable circumstances, I saw this man in good health in
1813. Whilst he still remained in a dangerous state at the house of his
friend, a Sertanejo Indian, well armed, passed through the place, and
asked one of the negroes if he was still alive. It was generally said
that he must remove to some far distant part of the country, otherwise
he might daily expect another attack, and particularly as his enemies
were Sertanejos. The men who had attempted to murder him were dressed
after the manner of these people, and were seen on the following day
travelling towards the interior. They mentioned at some of the cottages
at which they stopped, that they believed they had prevented one man
from eating any more _piram_, which is equal to an European using in
the same manner the word bread. The person whom they had attacked could
not be sure of the quarter from whence the blow proceeded; for many
were those from which he might have expected it. In Brazil, injured
persons or their relatives must either allow their own wrongs and those
of their families to go unpunished, or they must themselves undertake
the chastisement of him who has committed the crime. The evil proceeds,
immediately, from the vastness of the country, and from the want of
attention in the government to counteract this disadvantage.
CHAPTER XI.
RESIDENCE AT JAGUARIBE.—JOURNEY TO GOIANA.—ILLNESS.—RETURN TO
JAGUARIBE.
AFTER the journey to Bom Jardim, I did not again leave Recife for any
length of time, until I entered with a friend into a scheme of farming.
It had been greatly my wish to remove from the town into the country,
from preference, rather than from any other cause.
In the beginning of April, 1812, we rented the sugar-plantation of
Jaguaribe, distant from Recife four leagues, in a northward direction,
and about one league from the coast; it had upon it several slaves,
oxen, machinery, and implements, which enabled the new tenant to
enter it immediately. A few days after these matters were arranged,
I accompanied the owner to the plantation for the purpose of meeting
the person who was about to leave it, being the second visit which I
had made to my intended place of residence. Having agreed with this
man, the owner and myself returned to sleep at the dwelling of one
of his brothers, which was situated about a mile and a half from
the coast; this person had purchased some lands, which he was now
clearing, and upon which he was erecting several buildings. He and his
family inhabited a barn, and we were to sleep in his new house, of
which the roof and the wood-work of the walls were alone erected. The
rainy season had commenced, and this unfinished dwelling was almost
surrounded by pools of stagnant water, inhabited by enormous toads,
whose loud and hoarse croaking continued during the whole of the
night, without intermission. The trunks of the trees which had been
cut down a short time before, were lying as they had fallen in all
directions. In the morning I set off alone, on my return to Recife;
I made for the sea-shore, and soon reached the river Doce, a narrow
stream, which after a course of four or five leagues here discharges
its waters into the sea. The tide enters it, and again recedes with
considerable rapidity; at such times it is not fordable, but at the ebb
the remaining waters are very trifling, and some parts of the channel
are left quite dry. It is necessary to pass quickly over, as the sand
of which its bed is composed is very fine, and although not altogether
what is called quicksand, still to delay in one spot is not quite safe.
When the tide is out the water of the river is quite sweet, which has
obtained for it the name of Doce.
It was upon the borders of this river that the Portugueze and the Dutch
were first opposed to each other in that part of Brazil[79]; here
commenced that memorable struggle upon which the Pernambucans, with
so much reason, pride themselves. The beginning was not propitious,
and did not augur well of the result, but time proved the people to be
worthy of the beautiful country which they inhabit. The river Tapado,
upon the banks of which the Portugueze commander afterwards attempted
to rally his men[80], lies between the Doce and Olinda. It is a rivulet
or dyke (for it resembles more the latter than the former) without any
outlet to the sea, but it is only separated from it by the sands, which
are here about twenty yards across. When the rains have been violent
the additional waters of the Tapado are discharged over the sands, and
sometimes at spring tides, when the wind blows fresh, a few waves will
reach over them and fall into the dyke; this being the only manner in
which they can communicate with each other. At the Doce likewise landed
Pedro Jaques de Magalhaens, the general, and Brito Freire (now known as
an historian), the admiral of the fleet which assisted the patriots of
Pernambuco in the completion of their long-desired and hardly-earned
object,—the re-conquest of Recife and consequent expulsion of the
Dutch.[81]
But to return,—I arrived upon the banks of the Doce, and asked at a
cottage, which was not far distant, if the river was fordable, and
being answered in the affirmative, I rode up to its banks and attempted
to make my horse enter it, which he refused to do. I made a second
and a third trial, when he plunged in swimming; it was with much
difficulty that he gained the outermost point of the sand-bank on the
opposite side. He had passed a bad night and was not in a proper state
to perform this task, nor should I have attempted it if I had known
the depth, but I imagined that the tide had sufficiently retreated.
My clothes were dry before I arrived at home, but I long felt the
consequences of crossing the Doce.
About the middle of May I removed to Jaguaribe. The road to it is
through the plantation of Paulistas, from whence, after crossing
the Paratibi, a narrow path leads to the left through a deep wood
for nearly one league. A steep hill is to be surmounted, and its
corresponding declivity carefully descended. The wood continues to a
break in the hill, on the side nearest to Jaguaribe. On reaching this
spot there was a view before me, which would in most situations be
accounted very beautiful, but in this delightful country so many fine
prospects are continually presenting themselves, that I opened upon
this with few feelings of pleasure at the sight. I cannot avoid owning
that the advantages of the place as a plantation occupied my mind more
deeply than its beauties. Immediately before me was a cottage and a row
of negro huts, surrounded by banana-trees, standing upon a shelf of
the hill. Beyond these to the left was the narrow, but far-extending
valley, upon whose nearest border were situated the buildings of
Jaguaribe upon an open field, with the hills behind, and in front was
the rivulet. To the right was a deep dell, with an expanse of country
not thickly covered with wood; and rather in advance, but also to the
right, were numerous deep-coloured mangroves, which pointed out that
a stream of considerable size ran down among them. On the other side
of the nearest of these mangroves, and yet not very far, was the high
peak of St. Bento, with the mandioc, and maize lands, and wood upon
its side, and the path winding up through them, which is at times
concealed, and at times in view;—but the buildings are not to be seen,
though the tolling of the chapel-bell may be often heard, from the spot
upon which I was standing.
I was under the necessity of taking up my abode in the vestry of
the chapel, as the Great House was still occupied. The negroes were
already at work for us, and under the direction of a proper _feitor_
or manager. The whole neighbourhood was astonished at the place I had
determined to inhabit, until some other dwelling presented itself. I
was certainly not comfortably situated, for the vestry consisted of
only one apartment, with a door-way to the field and another into the
church, the latter being without a door; the church was unfinished,
and was the resort of bats and owls; however it was principally my
unconcern respecting ghosts which my neighbours were surprised at.
A negro boy and myself remained at night to encounter these, if any
should appear, and to receive our constant visitors the bats. My
companion rolled himself up upon the ground in a piece of baize and
a mat, and thus cased, was quite safe. I slept in a hammock, and
oftentimes these unwelcome guests alighted upon it, as if they had come
for the chance of a toe or a finger making its appearance, upon which
they might fix. This way of living did not last long, nor did I wish
that it should.
The house of which I have spoken as being situated upon a shelf of
the hill, and as looking down upon the valley, was soon without an
inhabitant, and therefore to this I removed. It was large, but the
floors of the rooms were without bricks, and the interior walls had
not been white-washed for ages, and some of them had never undergone
the operation. I received visits and presents, as is customary, from
my immediate neighbours,—the white persons and those of colour who
aspire to gentility; and indeed many individuals of the lower class
did not neglect to come and offer their services to the new-comer,
whose character and disposition towards them, they judged that it
was necessary to become acquainted with. In many instances, the
wives of the latter description of visitors came also and brought
sweetmeats, fruit, or flowers. I received them all, sitting in my
hammock; the men sat round on chairs, but the women generally squatted
down upon the floor, though it was formed of earth. I talked to them
of my intentions, and of my wish to conciliate, and I heard much of
bickerings and squabbles among those of their own rank, and of feuds
between their superiors, the same stories being related to me in many
different ways. They were much surprised that I should wear so much
cloaths, saying, that I ought to do as they did and be unencumbered;
and their advice I soon followed. I was much amused, and for some days
these visits took up the largest portion of my time.
The lands around me to the North, belonged to the Benedictine
friars; and to the East to an old lady; those of the latter were
much neglected, but those which were possessed by the former were in
high order. To the South, beyond the wood through which I passed in
coming to Jaguaribe, are the lands of Paulistas; and to the West and
North West are some excellent cane lands, belonging to a religious
lay brotherhood of free negroes of Olinda, which were tenanted by
and subdivided among a great number of persons of low rank, whites,
mulattos, and blacks.
The work went on regularly, and I had soon very little in which to
employ my time, excepting in those things by which I might think proper
to amuse myself.
In the beginning of June, it was necessary that I should visit Goiana;
however I took a circuitous route for the purpose of seeing something
new. I was accompanied by an old free man of colour and by Manoel, a
faithful African. We slept the first night at Aguiar, the estate of
the _capitam-mor_ with whom I had travelled to Bom Jardim; and on
the following morning proceeded through several sugar plantations. We
rested at mid-day at Purgatorio, a small cotton and mandioc plantation,
but we could not purchase any thing of which to make a dinner, and
therefore, as was usual on such occasions, we smoked in place of
eating. When the sun had declined a little we again set forth. A few
of the sugar plantations through which we passed in the afternoon were
in a decayed state. We stopped at a cottage, and begged the owner to
sell us a fowl but she refused;—we had not eaten any thing this day.
I was loath so to do, but I could not avoid saying that she _must_
sell one, that I did not mind the price, but that hunger would not
allow me to let her do as she pleased in this case. She fixed upon one,
and made me pay exorbitantly for it. We parted in the end very good
friends; she offered me some herbs with which to cook the bird, and
after this reconciliation we again advanced. By going to Purgatorio we
had left the usual direct road—cross roads even in England are not
good, so what must they be in Brazil? In one part we were obliged to
lean down upon our horses’ necks, and to proceed in this manner for
some distance, with the branches of the trees completely closed above.
The plantation of Mundo Novo, or the new world, which we reached late
in the afternoon, was in ruins; trees grew in the chapel, and the
brushwood in front of the dwelling-house rose higher than its roof. I
slept at a cottage hard by, which was inhabited by an elderly man and
a number of children, large and small. The ill-fated fowl, and another
which we had also obtained by the way, were dressed by the daughters of
our host. Soon the cooking was effected, and I commenced operations,
literally with tooth and nail, upon one of the birds, for there were
no knives, forks, or spoons to be had; however I did receive some
assistance from my own _faca de ponta_, a pointed knife or dirk, which,
though prohibited by law, is worn by all ranks of persons. At night, my
hammock was slung under the pent-house; at a late hour a shower of rain
came on; our host had a vast herd of goats; these crowded in from the
rain, and soon I was obliged, in self-defence, to rise, as I discovered
that they had very little respect for me;—my head and some of their’s
having come in contact, made me look out for better quarters; and
these I found upon a high table, where I remained until the visitors
again ventured forth. We proceeded on the morrow, and reached Goiana
by the low marshy lands of Catû. The river was scarcely fordable; but
we crossed, and on the opposite side the loose mud in the road reached
above the horses’ knees and continued along it for more than one
hundred yards; we entered it, and the horses gently waded through; but
mine unfortunately felt that his tail was not quite easy in the mud,
and therefore began to move it to and fro on either side; and as it
was long, (much too long on this occasion) it struck me at every jerk.
My dress was a light-coloured nankeen jacket and trowsers, and I came
forth, without exaggeration, one cake of mud from head to foot.
I rode to the residence of a person with whom I had been long
acquainted; he had taken up his quarters at a new mandioc plantation
which had been lately established in the outskirts of Goiana; my friend
had removed to this place to superintend some of the workmen. I stayed
only two days at Goiana, for I soon accomplished the object of my
journey, which was to obtain twenty Indian labourers from Alhandra. My
return to Jaguaribe was by the usual road.
The day after my arrival at my new home, I rode to Recife, and had on
the following day an attack of ague. I had exposed myself lately too
much to the sun, and had been several times wet through. The disorder
left me in a fortnight; my horses were sent for,—they came, and I
set off for Jaguaribe; but in mid-way, I was drenched with rain, and
reaching that place much tired, went to sleep unintentionally in my
hammock, without changing my cloaths. In the morning I felt that the
ague was returning, and therefore ordered my horse and rode out to try
to shake off the attack, which the peasants say it is possible to do.
However, whilst I was talking with a neighbour, on horseback at his
door, the ague came on, and I was unable to return to my own dwelling.
The next day the Indians from Alhandra arrived; they had imbibed
strange notions of the riches of an Englishman; and their captain told
me, that they knew I was very rich, and could afford to give higher
wages than any one else. I tried to undeceive them in this respect,
but all to no purpose. I offered the usual rate of labour in the
country; but their characteristic obstinacy had entered into them, and
they preferred returning as they came to any abatement of their first
demand; although this was 25 _per cent._ higher than any person had
ever been known to give for daily labour. They dined, placed their
wallets upon their shoulders, and went their way. One of my people
said, as they disappeared, ascending the hill, beyond the field, “They
had rather work for any one else for half the money, than lower in
their demands to you.”
I was removed from this neighbour’s house, after a few days, in a
hammock; but finding that the disorder increased, I sent for the
manager, an old man of colour, whose wife attended upon me. By my
desire, he collected a sufficient number of bearers, as it was my
wish to be carried to Recife. About five o’clock in the afternoon we
set off; there were sixteen men to bear the hammock by turns, and
the manager was likewise in company; of these persons only two were
slaves. After we had passed the wood and had arrived upon a good road,
the bearers proceeded at a long walk approaching to a run. Their wild
chorus, which they sung as they went along,—their mischief in throwing
stones at the dogs by the road side, and in abuse, half joking, half
wishing for an opportunity of quarrelling, confident in their numbers,
and that as they were in the service of a white man he would bring them
out of any scrape;—was very strange, and had I been less unwell, this
journey would have much amused me. As we passed through Olinda, a woman
asked my men if they carried a dead body (for it is in this manner that
they are brought from a distance for interment). One of the bearers
answered, “No, it is the devil[82]:” and then turning to me, said, “Is
it not so, my master[83]?” I said, “Yes,” and the good woman walked
away, saying, “Ave-Maria, the Lord forbid[84].” The wind was high and
some rain fell, as we crossed the Olinda sands; we arrived at Recife
between nine and ten o’clock. The bearers stopped before we approached
the gate way at the entrance of the town, that each man might, in some
way or other, conceal his long, unlawful knife; without one of these
weapons no peasant or great man leaves his home, notwithstanding the
prohibition.
I became gradually worse, until my recovery was not expected; but the
kind, attentive hand of another Englishman here again was stretched
forth. My former friend had left the country, but another supplied
his place, and from him I received every brotherly kindness. I cannot
forbear mentioning the following circumstances relating to my illness.
I went on board an English merchant ship, some weeks after my recovery,
and on passing a cask which was lying upon the deck, I struck it
intentionally, but without any particular object. The master, who
was an old gentleman with whom I had come from England, and who had
been long acquainted with me, said, “Yes, you would not have it.” I
asked him what he meant, to which he replied, “It was for you, but
you gave us the slip this time.” I did not yet understand him, so he
then continued, “Why, do you think I would have let you remain among
these fellows here, who would not have given you christian burial?
I intended to have taken you home in that puncheon of rum.” I was
told by one of my medical attendants when I was recovering, that some
old maiden ladies, who lived near to where I resided, had frequently
pressed him, whilst I was in a dangerous state, to have the Sacrament
brought to me, for they were much grieved that I should die without any
chance of salvation. An English merchant of Recife asked my particular
friend when the funeral was to take place; and one of the medical men
wrote a note to the same person late one night, enquiring whether his
attendance on the following morning had been rendered unnecessary.
As soon as I was well enough to remove, I took a small cottage at the
village of Monteiro, that I might have the advantage of better air than
that of Recife, and yet not be too far distant from medical advice.
Here I passed my time very pleasantly in daily intercourse with a most
worthy Irish family, of whom I shall always preserve recollections
of gratitude for the kindness which I received at that time and on
other occasions. On the night of my arrival at Monteiro, one of my
pack-horses was stolen, but the animal was recognised some weeks
afterwards by a boy who was in my service; the man into whose hands he
had fallen happened to pass through the village, and thus I recovered
the horse. It is astonishing to what a great extent horse-stealing has
been carried, in a country which abounds so much with these animals.
It is almost the only species of robbery, for the practising of which
regular gangs of men have been discovered to have been formed; but
these fellows will sometimes also chance to lay hold of a stray ox or
cow.[85]
I was most anxious to return to Jaguaribe, and about the middle of
October was making preparations for the purpose; when the manager
arrived from the plantation, with the intelligence that one of his
assistants had been attacked two nights before, and nearly killed,
by some persons who had been commissioned to perform this deed in
revenge of some real or imagined injury which the man had committed.
This determined my proceedings; the following morning I set off with
the manager and a servant, to see the wounded man. I found him at
his father’s house, in most woeful plight; his face was dreadfully
lacerated, and his body much bruised; the work had been done by
bludgeons, and evidently in fear, else the task would have been
performed less clumsily and more effectually. I never could discover
by whom the murder was intended, nor the persons who attempted it;
they were dressed in leather, like unto Sertanejos; but the sufferer
imagined that this costume was made use of as a disguise. Two men
sprang out upon him, in a narrow lane which had high banks on each
side; he defended himself for some time with his sword, but they
overpowered him at last, and his weapon was the only part of his
property which they carried off. I removed altogether from Monteiro in
a few days; my presence had long been necessary at Jaguaribe, for the
mill was at work, and as frequently happens in every country, some of
the persons who were employed had not remained empty handed.
The poor fellow who had been way-laid, soon returned to the plantation;
he told me that every night large stones were thrown violently against
his door, between the hours of one and four in the morning. I called
the manager the following evening, and both of us being armed, we took
our station near to the gate which leads into the field, one being
on each side, behind the high bank. We could hear the footsteps of
any person long before he could approach us, as the splashing in the
rivulet which runs beyond the gate, would give us timely notice. The
musquitos gave us much employment; however we remained at our post
until half an hour before day break, without seeing any thing; but the
practice was discontinued. Two men had arrived early in the night to
offer themselves as labourers; they were awake when we returned, had
made a good fire upon the ground in the mill (a spacious roof supported
upon brick pillars) and were sitting round it upon their heels; we
joined them, and here I heard their stories of their own prowess, of
charms, and miracles, and other conversation of the same nature, each
of them telling something strange which he had seen or heard.[86]
Much time had been lost, and the cane ought to have been planted for
the crop of the following year; the negroes in my possession could
not perform what ought to be done in proper time, and therefore I
collected free labourers for the purpose; and in a short period between
thirty and forty men, some of whom brought their families, removed on
to the lands of the plantation; and most of them erected hovels of
palm-leaves, in which they dwelt; but a few of them were accommodated
with huts of mud. There were Indians, mulattos, free negroes, and
slaves working together; a motley crew.
I had now taken up my abode at the house which was usually inhabited
by the owner or tenant; this was a low, but long mud cottage, covered
with tiles, and white-washed within and without; it had bricked floors,
but no ceiling. There were two apartments of tolerable dimensions,
several small rooms, and a kitchen. The chief entrance was from a sort
of square, formed by the several buildings belonging to the estate.
In front was the chapel; to the left was a large dwelling-house
unfinished, and the negro huts, a long row of small habitations, having
much the appearance of alms-houses, without the neatness of places of
this description in England; to the right was the mill worked by water,
and the warehouse or barn in which the sugar undergoes the process of
claying; and to the view of these buildings may be added the pens for
the cattle, the carts, heaps of timber, and a small pond through which
the water runs to the mill. At the back of the house was the large open
field, the mill dam beyond, and cottages, mandioc lands and trees along
the valley, bordered on each side by steep hills covered with thick
woods.
Oftentimes I have sat at night upon the threshold of the door, after
all my people had retired to their habitations; they have supposed that
I was asleep; then I have heard the whisperings in the negro huts, and
have observed some one leave his house, and steal away to visit an
acquaintance, residing at some distance; or there has been some feast
or merry-making, thus late at night, thus concealed. Neighbouring
negroes have been invited, and have crept in during the evening
unperceived. It is on these occasions that plans for deceiving the
master are contrived; in these sweet unpermitted meetings, the schemes
are formed. Then the slave owner who is aware of such secret practices,
and reflects, must feel of how little avail are all his regulations,
all his good management. Restraint creates the wish to act contrary
to given rules. The slave has a natural bias to deceive him who holds
him in subjection. A man may love the master whom he may at pleasure
leave; but to be tied down, and as a duty enjoined to esteem, fails
not in most instances to rouse contrary feelings, to awaken a sense
of pleasure rather than of pain, in counteracting the wishes, and in
rendering nugatory the determinations of him who commands.
At other times far different ideas from these have occupied my mind; I
have thought of the strange life I was leading; a remembrance of feudal
times in Europe has crossed me, and I could not forbear comparing with
them the present state of the interior of Brazil. The great power of
the planter, not only over his slaves, but his authority over the free
persons of lower rank; the respect which is required by these Barons
from the free inhabitants of their lands[87]; the assistance which they
expect from their tenants in case of insult from a neighbouring equal;
the dependance of the peasants, and their wish to be under the peculiar
protection of a person of wealth who is capable of relieving them from
any oppression, and of speaking in their behalf to the governor, or to
the chief judge; all these circumstances combined, tend to render the
similarity very great. I even felt the power which had unintentionally
fallen into my hands. I had collected a considerable number of free
workmen, and the estate was respected for miles round. Many of these
fellows would have committed almost any crime under the impression that
my protection would screen them; and if I had not turned some away, and
threatened others that I would aid the law rather than evade it, should
their proceedings be irregular, I know not what evil deeds might not
have followed.[88]
Whilst I was unwell at Recife and Monteiro, the manager and his wife
had taken possession of the house; and here they remained for some
time after my return. Thus, I lived literally among these people; I
had indeed my meals alone, but generally two or three of the persons
employed upon the plantation were in the room, whilst I breakfasted
or dined, and they stood or sat talking to me. Any one reached me a
plate or ought else for which I asked, if he happened to be near to
what I wanted. The manager and his wife told me many strange tales; he
was a man of feudal stamp, honest and faithful in every respect, from
personal regard to the man whom he served, but not in general to the
world; not from a principle of right and wrong. This is very frequently
the case among these people. He was however of the right sort for what
I wanted; and if I was again to travel there, I should seek him out.
I had become somewhat intimate in several families of the
neighbourhood; but was the most amused with my acquaintance in those of
secondary rank, where there is less ceremony than among persons of the
first class. In the former, the females often appear, when the visitor
is a neighbour, has concerns with the master of the house, and becomes
intimate with him.
The Festival of St. Bento was to be celebrated about the close of the
year in the adjoining plantation, belonging to the monks of whom he
is the patron saint. The convent is at Olinda, and there the abbot
resides; the fraternity is rich, possessing much landed property. Upon
the estate adjoining to Jaguaribe, mandioc, maize, rice, and other
articles of food are cultivated, with which the convent is supplied.
The slaves upon it are in number about one hundred, of all ages; and
the last African died whilst I resided in that part of the country. The
festival, at which I intended to be present, was to our Lady of the
Rosary, the patroness of negroes. The expence which was to be incurred
was subscribed for by the slaves of the estate, and the festival was
entirely managed by them. Three friars attended to officiate at the
altar; but the lights, the fireworks, and all other necessary articles
were provided for by a committee of the slaves. The manager of the
estate was a mulatto slave, who made me a visit upon my arrival at
Jaguaribe, and on the occasion of the festival came to invite me to
the _novena_ and to the _festa_, (the nine previous evenings and the
festival); or rather he came to request that I would not fail to go,
as he feared that my people and his might quarrel. I went with a large
party of men and women; we ascended the hill, and on our arrival at its
summit, I was invited by one of the black women to enter her cottage,
the same invitation being made to several other persons of our party.
The chapel is placed quite upon the highest point of the hill; and the
house in which the friars dwell, when they come to the estate, and the
row of negro huts form a semicircle about it, thus in part inclosing
the chapel. These habitations look down upon the broad river of Maria
Farinha, winding below among the mangroves, and there are several
creeks on the opposite side, which look like so many branches.
The crowd which had assembled was considerable, and was not a little
increased by my free workmen; some of whom were unmarried men,
unencumbered, and ready for any mischief. I was armed with a long
pike and the large knife of the country; and had brought three of my
slaves, accoutred much in the same manner,—three resolute Africans,
upon whom I could depend, and whose business it was closely to watch
their master. Before the commencement of the prayers and singing in
the chapel, the black people extended several mats upon the ground in
the open air; and our party sat down upon them to converse and to eat
cakes and sweetmeats, of which many kinds were exposed for sale in
great abundance. All went on quietly for three nights, for the mulatto
manager forbad the sale of rum; but on the fourth night some liquor
unfortunately found its way up the hill, and Nicolau, the manager, came
in haste to inform me that a few of my Indians were earnestly bent on
quarrelling with a party of his people. I rose from the mat upon which
I had been seated, and followed by my body guard, accompanied him back
to the spot, where I soon saw that a fight had commenced; persuasion
was of no avail, and therefore my negroes made use of the butt ends of
their pikes, and brought an Indian to the ground, who was delivered
over to Simam, one of my fellows; and I desired the two slaves who
remained to assist the St. Bento negroes. I thus proved, that I would
not uphold my own people if they acted irregularly; and the matter
fortunately ended with only some trifling bruises, and one broken head.
The Indian was conveyed home by Simam, who returned to tell me that he
had placed the man in the stocks, with the intent of sobering him. No
more quarrels were entered into; for this affair quite sickened all
those who might have been so inclined. In the morning the Indian was
set at liberty, and he quietly went off to his work, not being much the
worse.
I had great pleasure in witnessing the most excellent arrangements of
this plantation; the negroes are as happy as persons in a state of
slavery can be; but although the tasks are, comparatively speaking,
easy, and corporal punishments are only resorted to for children, still
the great object at which they aim is to be free, and to purchase
the freedom of their children[89]. One man, who was a fisherman by
trade, had obtained the manumission of his wife, though he was still a
slave himself, with the intent that if she should still have any more
children, they might be free; and he purposed afterwards purchasing his
own freedom, and that of his young ones. Several instances of the same
behaviour are frequently occurring upon the estates belonging to these
and other friars. Thus every one wishes to be a free agent; and it is
this feeling alone which makes a St. Bento negro do all in his power
to be able to act for himself; for very probably he may be obliged to
labour with more diligence to obtain his living as a free man than as
a slave. The emancipated negro oftentimes becomes an excellent member
of society, for he contracts habits of industry, in which he continues;
but again, if he has been hardly treated by a rigorous master, he
becomes disgusted with, and indifferent to life, is rendered callous to
shame, and drags on an idle, miserable existence.
Another festival was to take place at one of the chapels upon the
coast, which is dedicated to our Lady of the Conception. This was
distant one league and a half from Jaguaribe; however we formed a party
and mounted our horses one moon-light evening; the females riding
behind their husbands and relations, with a sheet or counterpane
thrown over the horse’s haunches, upon which they sat. We came out
upon the sea-shore at the church of our Lady of the O, (of which I
shall presently speak) not far from the Fort of Pao Amarello, and from
thence proceeded along the sands to the place of our destination. I was
introduced to the family of an old Portugueze who resided here; his son
had just taken orders as a secular priest, and was to say his first
mass on the day of the festival. There were puppet-shows, tumblers,
and all their attendants in great abundance; fireworks and bon-fires,
noise, bustle, and no lack of quarrelling. Within the chapel there was
a display of wax tapers, praying, singing, and music, as is usual.
The assemblage of persons was very considerable; indeed wherever the
surf is not violent the sea-shore is well-peopled, along the whole
extent of coast between Olinda and the bar of the river Goiana; in
many parts the low straw huts are united, or nearly so, in long rows
for half a mile together. White-washed cottages with tiled roofs are
frequently interspersed; churches and chapels have been built, and
few intervals of much extent remain unpeopled. The lands are planted
with the coco-trees, which is the most profitable plant of Brazil[90];
the coco-tree appears to be adapted to the sandy soil of the coast,
upon which only very few others will vegetate; here it flourishes and
seems to derive nourishment from its vicinity to the sea, but when
it is situated in rich land the coco-tree droops, and even upon the
sandy plains of the interior, it does not bear its fruit with the
same luxuriance, or reach that height, which it attains when exposed
to the sea breeze. These coco groves through which the eye can reach
for miles, with the hovels composed entirely of the leaves of these
trees spread among them, form in some parts very picturesque views;
and if, as frequently occurs, the cottage is situated upon the border
of a wood, just where the cocos end, and the dark green foliage of the
forest trees is seen behind, then the view is even romantic; and if the
wind is high, the rustling of the coco-trees, and the dashing of the
waves, increases much the wildness of the scene.
However to return. As soon as the church service was ended we mounted
our horses, and rode back to Our Lady of the O. We alighted at a
cottage which stood near to the church, the inhabitants of which were
acquainted with some of our party; the moon was bright and the breeze
moderate. We sat down upon mats before the door, and were regaled
with quantities of young coco nuts, a most delightful fruit when they
are in this state. Some of us walked down towards the beach; the tide
was out, and I observed several large blocks of hewn stone, partly
buried in the sand below high water mark. I enquired what had caused
them to be there, and was answered, that a church had formerly stood
upon that spot; and I heard then, and afterwards often saw, that the
sea was making considerable encroachments along the coast, to the
distance of half a league or more each way. The new church of Our Lady
of the O. was now building, at the distance of about three hundred
yards from the shore. Strange tales are told of the miraculous deeds
of this lady. When the church was about to be rebuilt, many of the
landholders of the neighbourhood were desirous of having the edifice
upon their ground; this proceeded from a religious feeling. Lots were
drawn to determine upon the site of the new church, and although
manifestly inconvenient, from many causes, it has been erected upon
the spot where it now stands, because the same lot was drawn three
times. A very great objection, and one which in common cases would
have been insurmountable, is that this is the lowest piece of land in
the neighbourhood, and is opposite to the place upon which the sea
is making the most rapid advances. Water too, for mixing the lime
and sand, must have been conveyed from a considerable distance; but
a spring of it gushed forth at the moment that one of the labourers
was making preparations for the commencement of his work, and since
the _capella-mor_, or principal chapel, has been built, all kinds of
diseases are said to be cured. The fame of this most powerful lady
has reached far and wide, and from the interior to the distance of
150 leagues, persons who were afflicted with disorders which had been
considered incurable by human means, have come down to make their
offerings to this avaritious personage, whose powerful intercession
is not to be obtained unless she is in return well paid for her
trouble.[91]
As the road from the Sertam to the sea-shore was by Jaguaribe, I saw
many of the travellers; I conversed with many wealthy persons, whose
sole errand was to offer part of their possessions, upon condition of
relief from the malady under which they suffered. The patrimony of this
church is now considerable, from the numerous donations which have been
made; some of these have been advanced on credit, the donors being
fully confident of repayment in the manner which they desire; others
have been made, owing to the persons who gave them having been really
cured;—faith has done what medicine could not do. Such has been the
reliance upon the efficacy of the prayers which were offered up, and
upon the power of the Lady, that the probability of disappointment
has never occurred to them; and when the disorder proceeds more from
the imagination than from the body, I should suppose that a cure may
be effected, much in the same manner that in other countries cures
are said to be performed by medicinal waters; of which, although the
qualities may be very excellent, yet the name may surpass the reality,
in bringing about the desired end. The miracles of Our Lady of the O.
are performed in three ways—by prayer from the patient,—by drinking
the water of the spring or by application of some of it to the part
affected—and by eating or outwardly applying, a small quantity of the
salt which oozes from the wall against which the High Altar stands[92].
A village has risen up around the church, composed of huts for the
sick, who have journeyed far from other districts. The business has
completely succeeded, the money which was required for rebuilding the
church has been obtained, and when I came away the concern was going on
prosperously. I heard the remark made by some firm believers, that such
was the sinfulness of the inhabitants of the vicinity, that the Lady
had scarcely vouchsafed to perform any cures upon them. The wonderful
stories of cures were always of persons who lived in remote districts;
but I did meet with a few cases in which fancied illness from lowness
of spirits was removed. The general credulity of the lower orders of
people, and even of many individuals of the higher ranks, is beyond all
belief; no persuasion, no reasoning is of any service; even a doubt of
the truth of every story which is told is not admitted[93].
From hence we proceeded to pay another visit. The owner of this cottage
had no cocos to offer, but he would have dressed some fish, and he
gave us some wild fruits. The sail of a _jangada_ was extended for us,
and we laid down for some time to converse. At a late hour we set off
homewards, and from carelessness lost our way; we wandered through
the paths of the woods of Mamanguape, until we judged (rightly, as it
happened) that we were in the road which would lead us to Jaguaribe.
There was much merriment notwithstanding the disaster, for we knew that
day-light would end our difficulties, and it was now past two o’clock.
The mill was continually at work; I usually took the first watch, and
superintending the business until midnight; several of my neighbours
and their families came to amuse themselves in conversation, and others
came for the purpose of eating sugar-cane, of which every one who has
tasted must be fond.
About this time a female slave died in child-bed who was generally
regretted. She was a good servant, and an excellent wife and mother.
The grief of her husband bore much the appearance of insanity; he would
not eat until the following day, and then he only tasted food from the
persuasion of one of his children. Until the time of my departure from
Pernambuco, he had not recovered his former spirits, and he never spoke
of his wife without tears in his eyes. Even some of the other slaves
were, for a few days after her death, unsettled; the rude instruments,
upon which they were in the habit of playing in the evening at their
doors, were laid aside;—all merriment was discontinued for some time.
I was requested about this period to be bride’s-man at the marriage of
a mulatto couple. I agreed, and on the day appointed, set forth for
Paratibi, accompanied by a free servant and a slave on horseback. I
arrived about ten o’clock, and found a large party of people of colour
assembled; the priest soon arrived, and he too was of the same cast.
Breakfast of meat and _piram_ (a paste made of _farinha_) was placed
upon the table; some part of the company sat down and ate, others
stood, doing the same, and others again, as if they were afraid of
losing a minute’s conversation, continued to talk loudly, and without
ceasing. I have witnessed few such scenes of confusion. At last we
proceeded to the church, to which I begged to be permitted to ride,
for the distance was considerable, and I was somewhat lame from an
accident; as soon as the ceremony was over, we returned to the house.
The bride was of a dark brown colour, for her father was a negro, and
her mother of mixed blood; she was dressed in a rose-coloured silk
gown, and a black veil was thrown over her head and shoulders; she
wore white shoes and white stockings with open clocks. The bridegroom
was also of dark colour; he wore a coat of brown cloth, a waistcoat
of brocaded silk, and nankeen pantaloons; he had on shoes with large
buckles, and a cocked hat. Both of these persons were young, and they
seemed to be dreadfully hampered with the increased stock of apparel
which they carried. The scene at dinner was a counterpart of the
breakfast affair, with the addition of more noise and more confusion,
which were caused by a larger assemblage of people, and more plentiful
draughts of wine and rum. I escaped as soon as possible; but would not
on any account have missed being present at this day’s work.
On the night of Christmas eve, I did not go to bed; for we were to
hear the _Missa do Gallo_, or cock mass, as is customary. The priest
arrived, and the night was spent merrily. This person did not at that
time come regularly as a chaplain, but he was so engaged afterwards.
CHAPTER XII.
JOURNEY TO UNINHA.—CONTINUATION OF MY RESIDENCE AT JAGUARIBE.—NEGRO
BROTHERHOOD OF OLINDA.—BLESSING THE SUGAR WORKS.—MANDINGUEIROS AND
VALENTOENS.
ABOUT the middle of January, 1813, I went to stay for some days at the
cottage of an acquaintance, who resided upon the plain of Barbalho,
for the purpose of purchasing a few horses. This place is near to the
village of Monteiro; but it is on the opposite side of the river.
Barbalho is a plain of some extent, upon which cattle are turned out to
feed; the soil of it is a stiff dark-coloured clay, and the grass which
grows upon it is of a coarse species; this becomes quite dry during
the summer months, and when in this state it is set on fire, that the
tender shoots which again spring up may serve as food for the animals
that are to graze upon it. The fire will run along the ground, urged by
a fresh breeze; it will sometimes contract, and at others spread each
way, presenting to the beholders a fiery wall. The sight is grand; it
is upon a large scale, which gives to it a terrific appearance. The
inhabitants of the skirts of this plain carefully preserve a circle
around their houses and gardens, clear of vegetation; apprehensive of
some inconsiderate traveller who may chance to light his pipe as he
goes along, and throw away unextinguished the fire-stick of which he
has made use.
The person with whom I was staying persuaded me to ride with him
to the sugar plantation of Uninha, which is distant six leagues to
the southward of Barbalho; he described the place as being very
beautiful, and I consented. This was the only opportunity which
conveniently offered itself of seeing the country in this direction;
but I much regret not having made greater exertions to visit the
southern districts of Pernambuco. We passed through the hamlet and by
the parish church of the Varzea. A considerable extent of country is
known under this name, containing some of the finest cane lands of the
province, which are owned by men of wealth, who know the value of what
they possess, and consequently the plantations are in a flourishing
condition. The Varzea is famous in Pernambucan history, as the site
of a great deal of fighting. Camaragibe, which is in the vicinity, or
rather a part of the Varzea, and is spoken of by the historian of that
country, is now a flourishing sugar plantation.[94]
We reached the sugar plantation of Camasari, belonging to the Carmelite
friars; it is in high order, that is, the slaves and cattle are in
good condition, and every thing upon it appeared chearful; but it
does not yield so much produce as it might, if the strength of the
labourers was pushed to the utmost. I looked into the mill, which is
turned by water, and saw some handsome mulatto girls feeding the mill
with cane; they were dressed in petticoats of printed cotton, and
smocks of cambric muslin, and they wore upon their necks and in their
ears gold ornaments; they were singing in parts very tolerably. The
difference between the plantations which belong to convents, and those
which are possessed by individuals who reside upon them, and have a
direct interest in every trifling increase or decrease of the gains,
is very striking. The estates of friars are worked almost exclusively
by negroes who have been born upon them; every thing goes on easily
and regularly. If much is made, the better satisfied is the chief for
the time being; but if, on the contrary, little is obtained, still the
affairs of the community go on. We proceeded, and at some distance
beyond, descended from a high hill into a narrow valley, which was
completely embosomed by the eminences around, and so enclosed that we
appeared to intrude upon its inhabitants in crossing this spot of their
retirement. The grass upon the hills was dry; but all below was yet in
full health.
At length we arrived at the plantation of Uninha, which is situated
upon an extensive field, composed of uneven ground and watered
by several springs. The mill is turned by oxen, which is a late
improvement; horses being usually employed where water cannot be
obtained. We dined with the owner, and he returned with us to Barbalho
in the afternoon. I was much delighted with the day’s amusement. This
was the most beautiful part of the country which I visited taken as a
whole. The hills and the vallies are not high or extensive, but they
are decidedly marked. Here cultivation formed a considerable feature
in the country, the cane lands were extensive, and the mills for its
manufacture into sugar numerous.
On my return from Uninha, I wished still to remain at Barbalho for a
few days, and therefore the owner of the cottage at which I was staying
went on to Jaguaribe, to remain there until I could join him. I staid
with Manoel and Simam. One morning Manoel had gone to cut a bundle
of grass, and on his return met with an old acquaintance, a creole
negro; they quarrelled by the way, and as they came near to where I was
residing the matter became serious, and blows were given and received,
both of the men being armed with long poles. Simam saw this, took up
a drawn sword which was lying upon a chair, and ran out to assist his
comrade. I went out to put a stop to the business, and discovered
that Simam had cut an enormous gash in the fellow’s head; the man was
brought into the cottage and his wound was dressed. An acquaintance
of mine happened now to come in, and he took charge of the negro, and
carried him home to his master. The negro was taking a load of grass
for the governor’s horses, who was residing at Monteiro, which is
within half a mile of the site of these transactions. Notice would have
been taken of the affair immediately, owing to the circumstance of the
negro being employed? for the governor, if His Excellency had not been
informed that the offending negroes (for such I consider mine to have
been) belonged to an Englishman, upon which no more enquiry was made;
and as it was discovered that the master had nothing to do with the
affray, no cognizance was taken of the matter by the military power. If
the owner of the wounded slave had chosen so to do, he might have put
me to much expence and trouble, for he might have accused my negroes
of assaulting his; but the law of itself seldom does any thing. Even
in cases of murder the prosecutor, or accuser as he is called, has it
at his option to bring the trial forwards or not; if he can be bribed
or otherwise persuaded to give up the accusation, the matter drops to
the ground. Thus the spirit of law is changed, from the principle of
bringing an offender to justice for the general good of society, to
that of prosecuting in revenge for the crime which he has committed
against an individual.
Soon after my return to Jaguaribe, I was one evening surprised at the
arrival of a white man, who was habited in uniform of blue and red, and
accompanied by a great number of loaded horses, and of men, who were
dressed in leather after the manner of the Sertam; he delivered to me
a letter, which I discovered not to be for me, but for an Englishman
who was occasionally with me; however, I of course requested him to
stay, and gave directions for the accommodation of his followers. He
was a commandant from the interior, distant 130 leagues, in the back
settlements of the province of Paraiba, at the foot of the Serra do
Teixiera. He had put on board of _jangadas_ at Paraiba a considerable
quantity of cotton, which he had brought down from his estate, and he
was now travelling to Recife for the purpose of receiving it, and of
purchasing necessaries or rather luxuries for his family; to which
he appeared to be extremely attached. We soon became intimate, and
when he proceeded to Recife at the close of a few days, he left some
of his men and horses at Jaguaribe. It is among the inhabitants of
places so remote as the district from which he came, that clanship more
particularly exists; he had with him ten persons, most of whom were his
_compadres_, that is, the commandant was sponsor to one of the children
of each. This relationship is accounted very sacred in Brazil, and I
believe in all Roman Catholic countries; it is a bond of brotherhood,
which permits the poor man to speak to his superior with a kind of
endearing familiarity, and unites them in links of union, of which the
non-observance would be sacrilegious. The commandant made me several
visits from Recife, and after a delay of two months, he set off on his
return homewards. He was a man of most determined spirit, whose name
is respected all over the part of the country which he inhabits; and
this respect was produced by his wealth and individual character, which
brooks no insult; and yet there was a natural goodness in his nature,
which broke forth very strongly when he shewed me the letters which he
had received from his children, each of them, even to the youngest,
having written to him. He had lately lost his wife; his manner of
speaking of her was most affectionate. He told me, that he had some
intention of taking orders as a secular priest.
Soon after the commandant left me the following occurrence took place
hard by, which is characteristic of the state of the country, and
similar to what frequently happens; although this of which I am about
to speak, might have been avoided, if the actors in it had been a
little older, and a little less hot-headed. A young man who resided
in this neighbourhood had been lately appointed to hold a military
situation in the district, of which he was proud, and owing to which he
had assumed an additional degree of personal importance. He possessed
a high-spirited horse, and would sometimes turn him loose, although he
had no fenced field into which he could put him. The animal soon found
out the cane land of an adjoining estate, and destroyed, considerably,
the young plants; from hence he would open the gate of the field,
(which from the manner that the gates of plantations are usually made,
it was very easy for him to do) and would come and offer battle to some
of the hard worked horses. This was often repeated, notwithstanding
that the animal had been caught each time, and sent home with a request
that this might not again occur. However, at last one of the beasts of
the estate was lamed by the horse, and rendered unfit for service, at
least for some time. The owner was much vexed, and as one of his slaves
was about to carry a message to some distance, he told him to ride
the officer’s horse. He went,—and the owner was informed of this; he
way-laid the slave, and took the horse from him. The planter heard the
next day, that the officer had expressed to many persons a wish to meet
him, however no notice was taken of this. As he rode on the following
morning to see his workmen, he saw the captain in the path on horseback
talking to a mulatto man. The planter spoke to him, saying that he
wished to pass, which he could not do unless he moved, and mentioning
at the same time that he was informed of his wish to see him. The
captain spurred his horse towards his adversary, attempting at the same
moment to draw his sword; but this he did not do with ease, from some
entanglement of the belt. The other man drew his, which was inclosed
in a walking-stick, and rode up to him, putting the point close to
his breast, thus shewing him how easily he might by this unforeseen
advantage have taken his life. The mulatto man had now recovered from
his astonishment, and ran in between the horses, striking them and
driving them asunder. They still remained for some minutes in high
words; but the captain had not, as was afterwards well known, supposed
that the other was armed, and therefore his ardour for the combat had
now cooled considerably.
The Indians who were in my service, occasionally requested leave to
dance in front of my dwelling; I usually complied, and was often much
amused. A large fire was made, that we might the better see what was
going on; and that the evening might be rendered more entertaining, I
frequently invited some of my neighbours. The dance commenced by two
men stepping forwards, and walking round and round, taking a circuit
of a few yards; one of them singing, or rather reciting in a low voice
some ditty of his own language, and the other playing upon a shrill
pipe; and as they went on, at intervals they gave a hop or a skip;
soon, a woman joined them, and walked after them, and then another man
came forwards, and so forth, until a large ring was formed and the
pace was quickened. It was always expected that some liquor should be
prepared for them, and each of these persons, as they felt inclined
to take any of it, stepped out of the ring, and returned again as
soon as they had drank. They continued dancing as long as any rum was
produced, the women as well as the men relishing this, their means of
inspiration; for as the quantities were increased, some new song was
introduced, the tones became louder, and their articulation more rapid.
The free people of colour too would sometimes dance; but they only
asked permission of me, and held their merry-making at the door of one
of their own huts. Their dances were like those of the African negroes.
A ring was formed; the guitar player sat down in a corner, and began
a simple tune, which was accompanied by some favourite song, of which
the burthen was often repeated, and frequently some of the verses
were extempore, and contained indecent allusions. One man stepped out
into the centre of the ring, and danced for some minutes, making use
of lascivious attitudes, until he singled out a woman, who then came
forwards, and took her turn in movements not less indecent, and thus
the amusement continued sometimes until day-break. The slaves would
also request to be permitted to dance; their musical instruments are
extremely rude: one of them is a sort of drum, which is formed of a
sheep skin, stretched over a piece of the hollowed trunk of a tree; and
another is a large bow with one string, having half of a coco-nut shell
or of a small gourd strung upon it. This is placed against the abdomen,
and the string is struck with the finger, or with a small bit of wood.
When two holidays followed each other uninterruptedly, the slaves would
continue their noise until day-break.
I have now to enter upon an affair which gave me much trouble.
The lands belonging to the negro brotherhood of Olinda were very
conveniently situated for Jaguaribe, and for another plantation not far
distant, which was owned by an old man of colour, who harboured around
him a numerous clan of relations and dependants. It was arranged that
we should rent these lands equally; but to prevent competition, one
of us only was to apply for them, and then they were to be divided.
The owner of the plantation in question was to make the application,
and I rested satisfied; but I was surprised to discover, that I run
much risk of remaining without any part of them; therefore I began to
make arrangements for obtaining them for myself. Whilst the matter
was yet in doubt, a person who was under the protection of the rival
plantation, sent a number of negroes to work upon some land which lay
very near to Jaguaribe. I sent a message to the owner of these men,
purporting that the land was tenanted by a person of my acquaintance,
who yearly rented it from the brotherhood, and therefore I requested
him to direct that his slaves should retire. This he refused to do;
consequently I collected a number of my free workmen, and rode towards
the spot in question; the matter had become serious, and as he was
aware that if a scuffle ensued, he might lose the service of a slave,
whilst I who was accompanied by free men, would not sustain any loss,
he gave the desired directions, and I returned home.
I gained my object of renting the lands through the interest of some
persons who were intimately acquainted with the principal officers
of the brotherhood. I attended at the council table of these black
directors, and heard the arguments for and against the policy of
placing the whole of the property in the hands of one person; however
the matter was decided as soon as one of them rose up, and reminded
the rest that the community was in debt, and that the new tenant was
prepared with one year’s rent in advance. All objection was silenced by
this speech, and the papers were signed without any farther remark. The
black gentlemen came down to Jaguaribe to put me in possession of the
lands. I had invited several of my friends on this occasion, and blacks
and whites all sat down and ate together; the health of our Lady of the
Rosary was drank first; then that of the chief of the brotherhood and
of the new tenant. These fellows amused us much; for their politeness
to each other, and to the white persons who were present sat awkwardly
upon them; but was displayed to shew the importance which they imagined
themselves to possess. The _Juiz_ or chief of the brotherhood was a
shoemaker at Olinda, and the rest were of the same rank in life, more
or less.
Possession was given to me, and every thing unpleasant seemed to have
subsided; when one night late, a mulatto man who resided at Jaguaribe,
knocked at my door, and told me that he had just arrived from a
visit to a neighbouring cottage, and that on the way, three men had
come out upon him, and had commanded him to stop; but on seeing him
alone, they had retreated. I had had some intimation of what I was to
expect, and immediately supposed by whom these persons must have been
sent, and for whom the blow was intended. I called two Indians and my
faithful slave Manoel, and accompanied by these, and the mulatto man
who had given me the information, I set off towards the spot. They
were gone,—but we pursued; however, before we reached the nearest
plantation, we heard the heavy gate of its field shut to; therefore it
was useless to proceed farther, for the persons, whosoever they were,
had reached a place of safety. Upon this path resided the families
of the neighbourhood with whom I was the most intimate, and it was
well known that I sometimes returned home at a late hour. This was
a turbulent district in which I had fixed my residence. Some of the
owners of the plantations around were perpetually squabbling, and I had
been led into the same way of proceeding; indeed, if I had not done so,
I should have been trampled upon. The slaves of Paulistas and of Timbô
were constantly at war; and the owners of the plantations of Timbô and
Jenipapeiro were likewise with law-suits always pending, and their
dependants never easy. Some districts are in a quieter state than
others, but very few are totally without disturbance; and there are few
plantations in any part of the province about the boundaries of the
lands of which more than one law-suit has not been entered into.[95]
I was often reminded by many of my new acquaintances, that every
plantation ought to have a chaplain; and I was told, that without a
doubt all those persons who attended to hear mass, would contribute
towards the payment of the priest, as is customary. I spoke to a young
man of this profession for the purpose, and he attended every Sunday
and holiday; but when he was dismissed, at the time I was preparing to
leave the place, I was left to pay him entirely myself; every one was
poor and unable to assist when the day of payment came. This was only
what I expected; but I thought it was right to follow the usual custom
of having Mass said regularly, on account of the slaves.
In April I arranged with the tenant of the lands which lie to the
eastward of Jaguaribe, and are called Maranguape, to allow me to turn
loose upon them all my cattle during the rainy season; for the field of
the plantation was not sufficiently large to support so great a number
of animals, during the whole year, as the work which was performed
upon it required. The lands upon which I intended the cattle to remain
are about one league in length, and of about half the breadth. Part
of them are under water in the rainy season, and in other places they
were covered with woods; but these were, for the most part to be
entered even on horseback, owing to the cattle feeding in them, and
beating down the brushwood. It was astonishing to see in how short a
period the cattle which had been accustomed to labour, became wild and
comparatively fierce. I was in the habit of going occasionally with
another person, both of us being on horseback, to collect the animals
for the purpose of seeing that none were missing; we had many hard
chaces after them, and got many blows from the branches of the trees,
&c. One of the oxen was in the habit of invariably going into a bog
when we appeared, and after having proceeded to a certain distance,
he would turn round and look at us with apparent unconcern, and as if
he was conscious that we could not reach him. This circumstance makes
me recollect another, which occurred with one of my pack-horses. The
animal escaped from Jaguaribe, and was not for a long time heard of;
but at last, I enquired of an old black man, who said that he saw him
every day. The horse fed upon some lands which produced excellent
grass, but the only water in the neighbourhood was to be obtained
from a well or hole, of which the entrance was narrow, and the water
considerably below the surface. The negro said, that one day he found
the horse near to the well, but unable to reach the water; he gave him
some, out of a half gourd, which the old man carried with him, for the
purpose of throwing water over his own head, in default of a better
bath. The following day the horse was there, and this continued for
weeks; but although he had attempted to put his hand upon his neck, the
horse never allowed him to seize his mane. He was caught at last by two
men, mounted on very swift-going horses, whom I sent for the purpose.
A short time after the cattle had been at Maranguape, I agreed with an
Indian to go and stay there, for the purpose of taking care of them.
This man was in my debt for cloathing, and for a gold chain which he
had given to his wife. He came to me a few days after his removal,
asking leave to go to his former place of residence, which was at some
distance, and to take his family with him. I understood what this
meant; he would never have returned, and therefore I answered that
he might go if he thought proper, but must leave some pledge for the
payment of the debt. This he promised to do. Julio, who had been with
me on my journey to Seara, was again in my service. He now displeased
me exceedingly, for he too, led astray by this fellow, wished to leave
me; Julio had been accused of some petty thefts, with which I now
taxed him; he denied having committed them, and that he was innocent
I verily believe. However I did not think so then, consequently this
circumstance, and his wish to leave me with a man whom I knew to be
very unprincipled, for I had lately had information respecting him
from other quarters; and above all, the suspicion that they had come
at an hour when few persons were about me, under the impression that,
being alone, I should be induced to accede to their demands, caused
us to part on bad terms. They went their way towards Maranguape, and
I had some hopes that all would have continued quiet. However in the
afternoon, about half an hour before the close of day, the manager came
to tell me that Francisco Joze, the Indian who was in my debt, had
passed through the field, accompanied by his wife, Julio, and a number
of other Indians. Thus he had determined to go in defiance of any right
which I might have to his services, or to demand payment of what he
owed me, and in breach of promise given to me only a few hours before.
Several other labourers were also indebted to me, and if this man was,
without remark, permitted to make his own terms, I knew not who might
chuse to do likewise.
My horse was brought out; I beckoned to Manoel, my constant companion,
and calling to some freemen, who had returned from their work, and
were now talking together in a groupe; I said, “who follows me?” A
black carpenter, a white brickmaker, a mulatto carrier, and a labourer
of the same cast, and likewise another slave, stepped forwards. Thus
accompanied by six able men, including Manoel, who were all on foot,
I set off on horseback at a round pace, knowing that in ascending the
hill, they would pass me. The hill being surmounted, I again pushed on,
and when I arrived at the short, but steep declivity which overlooks
the plantation of Inhaman, I saw three men below, and heard the shrill
Indian pipe. I looked back and saw that the carpenter and brickmaker
had alone kept pace with me, and I know not how they were able so to
do. I cried out, “Yonder are some of the party.” At the same moment,
Monte, the brickmaker, fairly leapt down the steep declivity, and
passed my horse; we descended upon the men, but were disappointed in
discovering that although they were Indians, they were not those
which we sought. Now we waited for the remainder of our party, who
soon came up, and we returned quietly by another path towards home. On
our arrival at the gate of Jaguaribe, I was informed that the party
had quartered itself in a corner of the field, in and about the hut
of another Indian; to this place we now directed our steps. Francisco
Joze himself came out to speak to me, and soon several others placed
themselves near to him. I sat on horseback, holding a parley, my men
being on the other side of me, until Antonio, the mulatto carrier,
(he who had been way-laid a long time before) came round and leaned
against the horse’s neck, placing himself between me and the Indian. I
afterwards found out, that he had observed that Francisco Joze held a
drawn knife, and Antonio judged that this was intended against me or my
horse, for the Indian well knew that if he wounded me it would probably
enable him to escape. Several persons belonging to the plantation had
now joined us, and the matter ended by the Indian allowing himself to
be taken without resistance, and to be put into the stocks; a party of
mulattos, or of creole negroes, would not have submitted thus quietly.
Late at night he paid the debt, was released, and I saw no more of him
for a considerable time.
I was now dismissing all those workmen who were not in debt to me, and
at last only a few persons remained, whose services I required, and
upon whose character I could depend. It was very seldom that I visited
Recife, but when there was a necessity for so doing, I took advantage
of moon-light nights in preference to travelling in the day-time, and
was on these occasions accompanied by Manoel. The wood of Merrueira,
through which we usually passed, is famous for the numerous stories
of ghosts that wander, and of murders that have been committed in it.
One night when the moon was not at a sufficient height to afford a
tolerably clear view of the objects around, we were passing through
this wood. I saw a figure before me in the middle of the path, which
bore the appearance of a man standing still. I slackened my pace and
called out, as is customary, “Who comes there;” but before I could
possibly have received an answer, Manoel brushed past me, saying,
“Let me see;” however I desired him to be quiet, as no harm might be
intended. On a nearer approach, we discovered that an old stump of a
tree had caused this alarm. On another occasion I sent this same slave
from Recife to Jaguaribe, on foot, early in the morning, telling him
that I intended to follow him, leaving Recife about eight o’clock in
the evening. I was to be accompanied by Zacharias, another slave,
whose courage was somewhat doubtful. Manoel arrived at Jaguaribe and
immediately prepared one of the pack-horses, saying to the manager
that he was going to meet his master who was on the road alone, for he
said, “Zacharias is nobody[96].” The manager could not persuade him to
give up his intention, and therefore as he knew that the slave was much
tired with his walk, he came himself. I mention these anecdotes for the
purpose of shewing the kind of man, who usually followed me wherever I
went.
Several months now succeeded each other without any disquietude. I had
another attack of ague during the rainy season, which was however much
less violent than that of the preceding year. I likewise met with an
accident which had nearly proved fatal, occasioned by a blow from the
fore feet of a high fed horse; he reared and struck me, but this was
done more in playfulness than with the intent to do mischief.
I had had some intention of leaving Jaguaribe, owing to the turbulence
of the neighbourhood, to my ill-health, and to some disagreeable
occurrences which had taken place between my landlord and myself.
However, as this would have been very inconvenient, I resolved to stay,
notwithstanding all these and other disadvantages.
Preparations were made in the month of August for setting the mill to
work; the cane had not attained this year its accustomed growth, in
most parts of the country, and that which I possessed was particularly
stinted in size, for I had not commenced planting until it was almost
too late. Every thing being ready towards the end of the month, I sent
for a priest to bless the works. Unless this ceremony is performed,
every person who is to be employed about the mill, both freeman and
slave, would be afraid to proceed to his destined labour, and if any
accident happened it would be ascribed to the wrath of heaven, for
this breach of religious observance. The priest arrived and said mass,
after which we breakfasted and then proceeded to the mill. The manager
and several other freemen and the negroes stood around the works; a
quantity of cane was placed ready to be thrust in between the rollers,
and the four negroes whose part it was to feed the mill stood at their
posts. Two lighted candles were placed close to the rollers, upon the
platform which sustains the cane, and a small image of our Saviour upon
the cross stood between them; the priest took his breviary and read
several prayers, and at stated places, with a small bunch of weeds
prepared for the occasion, which he dipped in a jug of holy water, he
sprinkled the mill and the persons present. Some of the negroes sprang
forwards to receive a good quantum of this sanctified water; and then
the master of the sugar boiling-house led the way to the portion of
the works of which he had the direction; and here there was another
sprinkling. When we returned to the part of the mill in which the
rollers stood, the priest took a large cane, and I did the same; then
the signal being given the flood-gate was opened and the works were
soon in motion, and according to rule the two canes which the priest
and I held in our hands were the first to be ground. I had heard much
of this ceremony from persons of the country, and I cannot avoid
saying, that although something of the ridiculous may by many persons
be attached to it, still I could not help feeling much respect for
it. The excitement of devout feelings among the slaves, even of those
feelings which are produced by the Roman Catholic religion, cannot fail
to be serviceable, and if men are to exist as slaves this is doubtless
the religion which is the best adapted to persons in a state of
subjection. Slavery and superstition are however two evils which when
combined, are surely sufficient to cause the misery of any country.
The carts, the oxen, and their drivers had not received the priest’s
benediction; they arrived some time afterwards, bringing loads of
canes, and the carts were ornamented with the longest that could be
picked out placed as flag staffs, and bearing upon them handkerchiefs
and ribbons. Each cart in succession stood before the door of the
dwelling-house, and the priest complied with the wishes of the drivers.
There was a tall, thin mulatto man of about fifty-five years of age, of
the name of Vicente, who lived near to Jaguaribe; he was in the habit,
when he saw me about my own place, of stopping, that we might have some
conversation. I liked much to hear his stories. He said, that now the
country was becoming quieter,—that disturbances were less frequent
than formerly. That there were now no _Valentoens_, valiant ones, nor
any _contas verdes_, green beads[97]. He explained to me the precise
meaning of the former, and the species of beads which were intended to
be described by the latter. These _Valentoens_ were men of all casts,
whose whole business consisted in seeking opportunities of quarrelling;
they attended all festivals and fairs, and their desire was to become
so famous for courage as to render the knowledge of their presence on
these occasions sufficient to keep in awe any other individuals who
might wish to create disturbances, considering themselves privileged
to revenge their own and their friends’ injuries; but they would not
allow of any quarrel in which they were not concerned. Two roads cross
each other at about the distance of one league from Jaguaribe, and
at this spot, Vicente told me, that some of these men often stood,
obliging all passers-by either to fight them or to dismount, take off
their hats, and lead their horses whilst they were in their sight.
These men wore round their necks strings of green beads, which had
either come from the coast of Africa, bearing the wonderful property
of conveying in safety their possessors through all descriptions of
perils, or were charmed by _Mandingueiros_, African sorcerers, who had
been brought over to Brazil as slaves, and in secret continued the
prohibited practice of imparting this virtue to them. The men were
accompanied by dogs of extraordinary size and activity, and possessing
courage equal to that of their masters. These animals had been taught
to drink rum, which they would do at their owner’s command, giving to
all beholders an opinion of some supernatural qualities having been
bestowed upon them. Vicente had been acquainted with some of these men,
and was firmly persuaded of the virtues of the green beads, and that
the dogs imbibed from their masters certain qualities, which made them
superior to all the rest of their species. The expression of the man’s
countenance changed entirely when he commenced the relation of these
stories; it was at all times harsh; but now there was imparted to it a
considerable degree of unpleasant wildness. When I expressed my doubts
of the efficacy of the beads against a musket ball well-directed, his
anger rose, but there was pity mingled with it, for one who had not
seen those times of wonder. He seemed to be glad that they were over,
and that all was now quiet; but yet he cherished a sort of regard for
men whose lives had been passed in deeds of danger; for notwithstanding
the charms, such he considered them to be, as the death of these men
was generally violent, owing, as Vicente said, to some unfortunate
removal of the beads from the person of him whose destined hour was
arrived. It was not, however, from this person alone that I heard
accounts of the _Valentoens_.[98]
There was an old creole negro residing in the neighbourhood of
Jaguaribe, whose disposition led him to explore all the woods for
miles around in search of game; he preferred this manner of obtaining
subsistence to that of daily labour with the hoe or bill hook. He was
acquainted with the situations in which the best timber was to be
found; and could, in many instances, name the exact spot upon which
some particular tree stood, which was required for any given purpose.
This man often came to Jaguaribe, and on these occasions I usually
called him into the house to hear his stories, whilst I sat in my
hammock smoking. He was fond of tales of ghosts and _Mandingueiros_.
The latter are famous, among other feats, for handling poisonous
snakes, and can, according to his account and that of many other
persons, by peculiar noises or tunes, call these reptiles from their
holes, and make them assemble around them. These sorcerers profess to
render innoxious the bites of snakes, to persons who submit to their
charms and ceremonies. One of the modes which is adopted for this
purpose, is that of allowing a tame snake to crawl over the head, face,
and shoulders of the person who is to be _curado de cobras_, cured of
snakes, as they term it. The owner of the snake repeats a number of
words during the operation, of which the meaning, if they contain any,
is only known to the initiated. The rattle-snake is said to be, above
all other species, the most susceptible of attention to the tunes of
the _Mandingueiros_. The above accounts I should not have related upon
the authority of one or two persons. I have heard them repeated by
several individuals, and even some men of education have spoken of the
reputed efficacy of the tame snakes of the _Mandingueiros_, as if they
were somewhat staggered in their disbelief of it; the reputation of the
_contas verdes_ is firmly established in the faith of those persons of
the lower ranks who have heard of them. These men certainly do play
strange tricks very dexterously.
I had not been so much inconvenienced by snakes as I had imagined I
should; I had seen several different kinds in going through the woods,
and particularly in that which leads from Jaguaribe to Paulistas. The
path through it is not much frequented, and therefore the snakes have
become bolder, crossing the road or running up a bank as I passed
along. One afternoon I had a visit with which I could have well
dispensed. I happened to look up whilst sitting in my hammock, and saw
one of these reptiles, lying quite still upon the top of the wall of
the room, in the opening which is formed by the supporters of the roof
that rest upon it. I seized a pike and ran it into the snake, thus
rivetting it to one of the beams of the roof, whilst I called to some
person to assist me in killing it; but its writhing was so violent,
that it soon liberated itself, and fell from the wall on the outside,
where several persons waited for it. The people who were present did
not know whether it was of the _caninana or papa ovo_ (egg eater)
species, as these are much like to each other. The former is accounted
venomous, and the latter is by many persons supposed to be harmless.
Both are of a grey colour above, and yellow underneath. The snake which
we killed was about four feet in length.
The _caninana_ is likewise sometimes called the flying-snake, as it
has the power of springing to a considerable distance. It usually lies
entwining the branch of a tree, and from thence darts down upon those
who may molest it. The _cobra d’agua_, or water snake, was often to
be seen in the rivulet which runs just below the dwelling-house of
Jaguaribe; it is sometimes eight or ten feet in length, and of the
thickness of a man’s arm. The colour of the back is a bright black, and
the belly is of a pale yellow. The lower ranks of people say that it
is poisonous; but I have heard this contradicted. The _jararàca_ snake
is from six to nine feet in length; the back is of a dusky yellow, and
the belly is white; the point of the tail is black, the mouth is red,
and it has two black and white streaks upon the throat. The _çurucucù_
snake is of nearly the same size as the _jararàca_; it is black and
yellow. This reptile is attracted by fire, and on this account would
be more dangerous to travellers than any other description of snake,
if its attention was not so totally directed to the fire, as to give
time and opportunity of killing it. It has, as I was informed by many
persons of credibility, been known to spring off the ground at a person
carrying a flambeau. The _çurucucù_ and the _jararàca_ are known to be
poisonous. The _cypô_ snake is so called from its likeness to the thin
and flexible shoots of the plants which bear this name. It is said to
be poisonous.
Charms are often supposed to destroy the venom of snakes, and to
produce, consequently, the recovery of the person who has been bitten
by one of these reptiles. Oil is sometimes used as a remedy, being
given in considerable quantities, which are increased or diminished
according to the quality of the oil. Rum is likewise administered so as
to produce intoxication. I have also seen a small plant, which is known
under the name of _herva cobreira_; wherever I have seen it, the plant
has been carefully preserved in a pot. This would denote that it is
not indigenous to the part of the country in which I was; and indeed I
was told that it had been brought from Africa. I never saw its flower;
the leaves of it are small and heart-shaped; the stem is of four or
five inches in length, and of a deep red colour, which becomes greenish
towards the points of the branches: these are long, crooked, and
spread horizontally. The leaves and the softer branches are bruised,
and are applied to the wound, and the juice which is extracted from
them, when mixed with rum or water, is drank by the patient. I do not
vouch for its success; but its name must, I should imagine, have been
acquired by its reputation.[99]
The mill was yet at work in September, when the owner of the place
applied to me to leave it, as it was convenient to him to come down
from another plantation of which he was the owner, and reside at
Jaguaribe, from its vicinity to Recife. I agreed to this, but did
not wish that he should remove until I was about to leave Jaguaribe.
However, one morning, a young man who was related to and employed by
him, came to my house, and told me, that by order from his kinsman he
had (accompanied by a gang of negroes) taken possession during the
night of the cottage, which was situated upon the shelf of the hill. I
expressed my surprise at this conduct, and said a good deal upon the
subject. He, of course, returned for answer, that he had only acted
according to the orders which he had received. The principal objection
which I had to this premature removal arose from the general turbulent
character of the slaves of this man, and from the frequency of quarrels
between the dependants of those persons whose dwellings were so near to
each other as ours had now become.
Several extremely disagreeable occurrences took place, as I had feared
would be the case, before I could conveniently remove; but as these
proceeded more particularly from the peculiarity of our situation I do
not think that a minute account of them would be interesting. These
anecdotes could not be given in illustration of the general state of
manners in the country. Suffice it to say, that I made a visit to the
owner of the plantation of Amparo, in the island of Itamaraca, upon
whose lands I agreed to plant sugar-canes, and to share with him their
produce, as is a usual practice upon sugar estates.
In the beginning of November, 1813, I sent my manager to prepare a
residence for me, at the town of Conception in the island; and I
removed to that place in the course of the following month.
CHAPTER XIII.
REMOVAL OF THE AUTHOR TO ITAMARACA.—THE ISLAND.—CONCEPTION AND
PILLAR.—THE FESTIVAL OF OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY.—JOURNEY TO
GOIANA.—THE TOQUE.—THE COW-POX.
A FEW days after I had sent the remainder of my people to Itamaraca, I
gave up Jaguaribe to its owner, and rode to Recife, where I remained
for some days.
I had been introduced several months before to the vicar of Itamaraca;
and at the time that I crossed over to the island to agree with the
owner of Amparo about my removal, I made a visit to this priest, and
was received by him with the greatest cordiality. As the plantation
of Amparo had no cottage unoccupied at that time, or indeed that was
fit to be inhabited, I requested the vicar to obtain for me a house
in the town, as it is called, of our Lady of the Conception, in which
stands the parochial church of this extensive vicarage. He returned
for answer, that excepting his own residence, of which he was willing
to give up to me a portion, and the prison, no dwellings could be
met with. However, he desired that I would send a person to speak to
him; this I did, and on the man’s return, the offer of the prison was
accepted.
As I had written to mention the day upon which it was my intention to
arrive there, I was received by one of my people upon the shore of
the main land; and the canoe which plies for the purpose of carrying
passengers across, was ready to take me. The saddles were removed
from the horses’ backs, we entered the canoe, and shoved off from the
shore, the horses swimming by the side of it. The passage across, is,
at this its narrowest part, about half a mile. On landing upon the
island, we saddled the horses, and rode for about one quarter of a mile
along a sandy path, which is bordered to the left by the water of the
channel that runs between the island and the main, and on the right
by coco-trees, until we reached a narrow creek, which is not fordable
at high water and in this state we now found it. I left the horses to
the care of Manoel, until they could be passed conveniently, whilst
I followed the man who had come to receive me. We proceeded over the
bridge which was constructed of loose beams, and scarcely safe even for
foot passengers; immediately beyond it we passed by several cottages
with mango trees before them, and then ascended the steep hill, upon
the summit of which stands the town, built in the form of a square. We
entered it at one corner, and near to my new habitation, which was a
large stone building, much dilapidated, with one story above the ground
floor. In the prosperous days of this settlement, when its rank in
the province was considerable, this edifice was raised as a town-hall
above, and prison underneath; but now that the decay of the place had
rendered it unworthy of its former distinction, the building was no
longer kept in repair, and was now almost in ruins.
The island of Itamaraca, which is in length about three leagues, and
in breadth about two, is situated at the distance of eight leagues
to the northward of Recife, and is entirely separated from the main
land by a channel of unequal width, varying from one league to half
a mile. The island does not contain any stream of water, but in the
neighbourhood of the town water gushes from the hill wherever it is dug
for. That which is obtained from the springs in the neighbourhood of
Pillar, is not however good. Itamaraca is, perhaps, the most populous
part of the province of Pernambuco, taken as a whole, the immediate
vicinity of Recife excepted. It contains three sugar mills, which are
well stocked with negroes; and many free persons likewise reside upon
the lands belonging to them[100]. Besides the lands attached to these
works, there are other considerable tracks which are subdivided among
and owned by a great number of persons of small property. The shores
of the island are planted with coco-trees, among which are thickly
scattered the straw cottages of fishermen; and oftentimes are to be
seen respectable white-washed dwellings, which are possessed by persons
whose way of life is frugal, and yet easy. The salt-works upon the
island are likewise one great source of its wealth; these are formed
upon the sands which are overflowed by the tide at high water.
The long village of Pillar, situated upon the eastern side of the
island, is at the present day the principal settlement, although that
which is called the town of Conception, where I now resided, standing
upon the S.E. side of the island, claims seniority, but its better
times are gone by; its situation was considered inconvenient, others
are at present preferred; and if the parish church did not stand
here, and render necessary the presence of the vicar, the place would
shortly be deserted. It has now a desolate neglected appearance,
an unpleasant stillness, producing sensations of a very different
description from those which are excited by the quietude of a place
that has never witnessed busier scenes. Its site is the summit of the
S.E. point of a high hill, which rises almost immediately from the
water’s edge. The square, in which are situated the parish-church,—my
new residence,—the vicarage, a low, long, white-washed building,—and
about fifteen cottages, is very spacious; but large pieces of ground
now remain unoccupied; the houses which stood upon them have been
removed, or have been allowed to decay and fall, giving room to
banana and tobacco gardens. The centre of the square was covered
with brushwood, and a narrow path went along the four sides of it
immediately in front of the houses, which afforded to the inhabitants
the means of communicating with each other. There is one street
branching from it and leading down towards the creek, over which I
passed on my arrival; it is formed of small low huts, and is closed at
the end farthest from the square, by a church, which is dedicated to
our Lady of the Rosary, the patroness of negroes.
The harbour is good, and the entrance to it is commanded by an old
fort, which is much out of repair; the garrison is scanty, and without
discipline. On one occasion I took a canoe, and went down to the bar. I
wished to sound, but my canoe-man begged that I would not, as it might
bring him into trouble; and indeed we were in sight of the fort, and
the commandant is jealous, being an elderly man and an advocate for
the old system of exclusion. The entrance to the port is formed by an
opening in the _recife_ or reef of rocks which runs along the whole
of this part of the coast. This opening is of considerable width, and
its depth will admit of large vessels; but I could not obtain exact
information upon the subject. From the main land on one side, and from
the island on the other, two long sand banks jut out on each side of
the channel, which separates Itamaraca from the continent. These banks
are dry at low water, and at neap tides are not completely covered.
They shoot out so far that they nearly reach to the reef. The bar is
easily discovered from the sea, as it is immediately opposite to the
channel or river into which it leads, and as there are breakers to the
northward and southward, but none are to be seen at the place which
is to be entered. Having entered the bar, some small breakers will be
seen a-head, or rather towards the south side of the channel, unless
the tide is out, and then the water is quite still. These breakers
are farther in than the outermost point of the south sand-bank. They
are formed by some rocks which lie at a considerable depth below the
water’s edge. I tried to reach them with a pole of two fathoms in
length, at low water during spring tides, but did not succeed; and my
canoe-man said that he doubted whether another fathom and a half would
touch them. The passage for large vessels is between these rocks and
the north sand-bank, for the passage between them and the south bank
only admits of small craft. I could not learn that there were any other
rocks or banks than these which I have mentioned. The anchorage ground
is opposite to the fort, and on the outside of it; but opposite to
the town of Conception, which is farther in than the fort, there is
considerable depth of water. Some parts of the ground are rocky, but
others afford safe riding.
The magnificent prospect which may be enjoyed from the clumsy wooden
balcony of the town-hall, compensates in some degree for the dismal
state of the place in which it stands. In front is an extensive view
of the sea, which is always enlivened by numerous _jangadas_ and
canoes sailing to and fro, and occasionally by the large craft that
trade between Maranham and Recife, and by ships arriving from Europe
or returning thither. To the right is the broad channel immediately
below, and the bay which it forms on the opposite side, with the
picturesque village of Camboa upon its shores, and the pointed hill
of the Engenho Novo, covered with wood, rising behind it; but as this
hill does not extend far, and rather rises in the form of a cone, the
river Iguaraçu runs along the plain, and is now and then discovered,
but oftentimes concealed, by the dark green mangroves; these however
sufficiently point out its course, and lead the eye to the white specks
which beautifully mark the site of the higher buildings of the town
of Iguaraçu, peeping out among the vast expanse of wood of a lighter
green, which reaches as far as the eye can compass. To the left is a
narrow and deep dell, bounded on the opposite side by a ridge of rising
ground of equal height with that upon which the town is situated.
Behind is the flat plain, which runs along the hill to the distance
of one league; it is in places much contracted and in others spreads
widely.
The town of Conception was formerly fortified; the three sides upon
which it is enclosed by the steep declivity to be ascended in reaching
it, have been rendered still more precipitate, even than they would
naturally have been, as they are cut perpendicularly to the height of
twelve feet, presenting a wall of earth to those who ascend the hill,
and as the soil is a stiff clay, and the passing and repassing not
considerable, the paths which have been formed through the wall are
still exceedingly steep. On the fourth side, entrenchments were made
across the plain upon the summit of the hill; these were shewn to me;
for it was necessary that they should be pointed out, as they were
almost concealed by the brushwood; and even large trees which were
growing in them. Upon one spot, on the quarter nearest to the sea,
and now the site of a cottage, is still plainly to be discovered the
situation of a fort, and a short time ago a gun, which appeared to be
of six pounds calibre, was dug up.
The distinctions attending the rank of a town were removed some years
past from hence to Goiana, and the only mark which Conception still
possesses of its former importance, is the obligation by which the
magistrates of Goiana are bound to attend the yearly festival to the
Virgin at the parish church.
Itamaraca is one of the oldest settlements of the Portugueze upon
the coast of Brazil. It was given to Pero Lopes de Souza, who took
possession of it in 1531.[101] The Dutch made an attack upon it in
1630, and although they did not succeed in taking Conception, they
built a fort which they called Fort Orange[102], and this is the
fortress which now exists upon the island. However, in 1633, the Dutch
“dispatched such a force as rendered resistance hopeless; the town of
Conception was yielded to them, and with it the whole island[103].” In
1637, the Dutch deliberated, “whether the seat of government should
be removed to the island[104].” This did not take place; the opinion
of those who proposed the plan being over-ruled, but I cannot avoid
thinking that it possesses many advantages of which Recife cannot
boast. The port of Itamaraca may not admit of vessels of so much
burthen as the Poço harbour of Recife, but the former is much more safe
even than the Mosqueiro port. If Brazil was to be at war with any naval
power, Recife might be destroyed with ease, whereas if a town had been
erected upon the main land, opposite to the island, or upon the inside
of the island, it could not be molested by shipping, for it would be
necessary that a vessel should enter the channel before she could
bring her guns to bear. Besides this advantage, Itamaraca and the
neighbouring shores of the main land, enjoy those of wood and water in
abundance, in the latter of which Recife is particularly deficient. In
1645, Joam Fernandes Vieira, the principal hero of the Pernambucan war,
attacked the island, but did not succeed in dislodging the Dutch[105].
The Portugueze again attempted to regain possession of it in 1646; they
crossed over at a place called Os Marcos[106], which is now a coco-tree
plantation, and a large house is built upon it; the property belongs to
a Portugueze cattle-dealer who resides chiefly at Iguaraçu. Opposite
to Os Marcos is the shallowest part of the channel. The Portugueze did
not gain their point entirely, “but the Dutch abandoned all their other
posts to retire into the fort”[107], which was not surrendered to the
Portugueze until the expulsion of the Dutch in 1654.[108]
I happened to arrive at Conception upon the day of the festival, the
8th of December, however as I had many matters to arrange, I did not
see the ceremony in the church, but was invited to dine with the vicar.
I went at two o’clock, and found a large party assembled, to which I
was happy in being introduced, as it consisted of several priests who
are the men of most information in the country, and of some of the
first laymen of the island. The dinner was excellent and elegant, and
the behaviour of the persons present was gentlemanly. I was placed
at the head of the table, as being a stranger; and a friend of the
vicar took the opposite end of it, whilst he himself sat on one side
of me. I never met a pleasanter dinner-party, there was much rational
conversation and much mirth, but no noise and confusion. The company
continued together until a late hour, and indeed the major part of the
priests were staying in the house.
The parish of Itamaraca has now for some years enjoyed the blessings
which proceeded from the appointment of the present vicar, Pedro de
Souza Tenorio. His merit was discovered by the governor, whom he
served as chaplain, and by whose application to the Prince Regent
was obtained for him his present situation. The zeal of the vicar,
for the improvement of the districts over which he has controul is
unremitted; he takes pains to explain to the planters the utility of
the introduction of new modes of agriculture, new machinery for their
sugar-mills, and many alterations of the same description which are
known to be practised with success in the colonies of other nations;
but it is not every novelty which meets with his approbation. It is
no easy task to loosen the deep-rooted prejudices of many of the
planters. He is affable to the lower ranks of people, and I have had
many opportunities of hearing persuasion and entreaty made use of to
many of his parishioners, that they would reform their habits, if any
impropriety of behaviour in the person to whom he was speaking had
come to his knowledge. His occasional extempore discourses on subjects
of morality when seated within the railings of the principal chapel,
delivered in a distinct and deep-toned voice, by a man of commanding
person, habited in the black gown which is usually worn by men of his
profession, were very impressive. He has exerted himself greatly to
increase the civilization of the higher orders of people in his parish;
to prevent feuds among them;—to persuade them to give up those notions
of the connection between the patron and the dependant, which are yet
too general; he urges them to educate their children, to have their
dwellings in a state of neatness, to dress well themselves, their
wives, and their children. He is a good man; one who reflects upon his
duties, and who studies to perform them in the best manner possible.
He has had the necessity of displaying likewise the intrepidity of
his character; his firmness as a priest, his courage as a man, and he
has not been found wanting. He is a native of Pernambuco, and has not
degenerated from the high character of his provincial countrymen; he
was educated at the university of Coimbra in Portugal.
From the state of society and government in Brazil, the individual
character of the person who holds any office of importance makes a most
wonderful difference, and indeed in some districts a man of an active
mind with some wealth, but without any appointment, has more weight
than a person of a contrary disposition, although the situation of
the latter might give him great power, if he thought proper to exert
himself.
I passed some portion of each day with the vicar and his party; the
conversation never flagged, and I often thought how very superior the
persons were with whom I associated, to any that my friends in England
could suppose a country residence in Brazil to afford. I was myself
agreably surprised at the change which I had made from Jaguaribe.
Among the visitors at the vicarage was Joam Ribeiro Pessoa de Mello
Montenegro, professor of drawing to the seminary of Olinda, and the
friend and disciple of Dr. Manoel Arruda da Camara. This priest, during
his stay at Itamaraca, crossed over to the mainland to say mass at the
village of Camboa every Sunday and holiday. I accompanied him on one of
these occasions, and we were paddled over in a canoe. We entered the
cottage of a man of colour, the chief person of the place; a hammock
was hanging in the room, and into this my companion threw himself, and
three or four children of the house quickly came to him, one or two
of whom he took into the hammock to play with. The females made their
appearance to greet him upon his arrival; he was a favourite seemingly
with all parties, great and small. Indeed I never met with any one
who possessed more pleasing manners. He is generally beloved wherever
he is known, but by the lower orders of people more especially, he is
quite adored. I was long acquainted with him, both before and after the
time of which I speak, and I never heard him make use of a harsh word
to any one; his manner and his tones of voice always indicated that
goodness in him greatly predominated. A free mulatto man, of the name
of Bertolomeu, once said to me in speaking of this priest, “If he sees
a child fall, he runs and picks it up and cleans its face, and this he
does not do, because any one is in sight to see him act in this manner,
but because his heart so inclines him[109].” It is much to be lamented
that his exertions have not been directed to obtaining a situation in
which his excellent qualities might have a wider field for display; but
he is satisfied with what has been given to him.
I was much surprised at the manner in which even the people of colour
dress themselves to go to mass in all the villages; if the family
is in a respectable way of life, the younger females wear on these
occasions gowns of printed cottons, English straw bonnets, stockings
also of foreign manufacture, and neat shoes which are made by workmen
of the country. The young men appear in nankeen pantaloons, and jackets
of printed cottons, shirts of cambric muslin, hats of English make,
stockings and shoes. Indeed, of late years, since articles of dress
have been cheap, and have come into general use,—since a subject of
emulation has arisen, and the means of shewing it has been afforded,
every hamlet sends forth its rival belles and beaux.
I was disappointed with a near view of Camboa; but the country behind
it is picturesque, being formed of uneven ground, which is for the
most part covered with wood; and cottages and mandioc lands are
interspersed. The village consists of one street, composed of small
dwellings. The inhabitants are mostly related to each other, and the
free persons are of mixed blood. The clan is large, but there does
not reside here any wealthy white man; they are a quiet, inoffensive
people. The old man at whose house we staid whilst the neighbours
assembled to hear mass, was respected by all the rest; he had the
management of all their weighty concerns, as being the richest person
of the place, though even his property was small; and as he was
connected in natural or religious relationship with the major part of
the inhabitants. When the priest and I went into the house, we found
a large party sitting round a table and playing at cards, which these
persons continued to do until the church-bell rang, and the priest
went out to prepare for saying mass. The majority of the people of all
classes, excepting Indians, have a great propensity to gaming.
There lived at this village formerly a poor man who died of
consumption, dragging on for some time a miserable existence. The
opinion is general in Pernambuco and other parts which I visited,
that consumption is contagious; and from this notion, any person so
afflicted is immediately separated from the rest of the family. A hovel
is erected at a distance from any habitation, and the miserable patient
is removed to it, and is shunned by every one, even receiving his food
without the bearer approaching the hovel. I can conceive no situation
more wretched than this,—to be in a weak and helpless state, and to be
forsaken,—to be doomed to solitude, and to have, perhaps for years, no
thoughts but those of death; nothing to relieve the mind, and to divert
the attention. I know not, however, whether the opinion of contagion
respecting this disorder is totally founded on prejudice, or whether
there is some truth in it; for I have heard from persons who are not
liable to hasty decisions, many stories which seem to indicate that
there is some reason for the precautions which are taken. They are,
doubtless, carried too far; they are insisted upon to a savage excess,
which fails not to bring to the recollection the custom of some tribes
of Indians, who forsake their aged, their infirm, and their dying
kinsmen.
I frequently visited the plantation of Amparo, which is conducted
in the manner which I had attempted at Jaguaribe; but here it was
performed with more system. The owner of this place employed constantly
great numbers of free workmen, of all casts; but the Indians formed
the principal part of them, and as their master, I suppose, finds it
impossible to keep them under due controul, (for the wish to do so
he must of course have,) the disturbances which are raised upon the
estate, and which are entered into at other places by his men are very
numerous[110]. But this person would have done much service to the
country in general, if he had managed to keep them in due order, for in
that case he would have proved the possibility of the introduction of
free men as daily labourers, without the opinion of their unruliness
being unavoidable, having been adopted by great numbers of the
planters. The state of Amparo is often mentioned as an objection to
hired labourers, from the want of reflecting that in the instance in
question, the evil proceeds not from the plan itself, but from its
execution. It is too true that the lower orders of people are unruly,
and upon slight provocations, murders have been committed; but does not
this proceed from the propensity which the higher ranks shew to protect
those who reside upon their lands? Thus they display their influence
with men in office, when they plead for the pardon of a criminal, and
feel a considerable degree of gratification,—of self-importance in
the idea that an individual should have been preserved from punishment
by their means, even though he had only been treated according to his
deserts if he had not been screened. Where government exists in a state
similar to that of Brazil, wealth will meet with few obstacles in the
accomplishment of its purposes, whatever these may be.[111]
In the month of January, 1814, the vicar summoned me to accompany him
to Pillar, to which I agreed with much pleasure. The master of the
grammar school, Ignacio de Almeida Fortuna, who is likewise a priest,
was of the party; he is a man of considerable talent and information.
His advantages have been very few, for he has resided almost entirely
upon this island; and yet his knowledge is far from being limited, and
his love of it is unbounded. We crossed the narrow creek which has
been already mentioned, and proceeded along a path under the shade of
the coco-trees, until we made for the sands. The sea has made great
encroachments for about two miles in this part of the island; we passed
the mouths of two natural dikes, into which the tide enters with great
rapidity, and is discharged again with increased velocity. After a
ride of an hour and a quarter, we reached Pillar, which is distant
from Conception, two leagues. This village is composed of several
irregular streets, formed of small houses of various descriptions;
they are constructed of brick, of mud, and of the coco-leaves. It
is a place of some trade, and is likewise frequented by the small
craft, which sail between Recife and Goiana. The inhabitants support
themselves by their fisheries, by the hire of their _jangadas_ and
canoes, and lately, by the preparation of the outward husk of the
coco-nut[112] for the manufactory of cordage, which has been recently
established in the vicinity of Recife. The fishery of Pillar is of
considerable importance. The largest portion of the fish which is
caught upon this and the adjacent coast, is obtained by means of pens,
that are generally constructed near to low water mark. Two spaces of
greater or less magnitude are marked off, and stakes are driven into
the sand at given distances in quadrangular form; to these stakes
are fastened large mats (_esteiras_) of basket-work made of thick
twigs. An aperture, constructed in a similar manner to that of a trap
for catching mice, is left in the inclosure farthest from the shore,
opening into the second or smaller inclosure, which has likewise an
entrance on the land side, from which runs a fence of basket-work to
high water mark. Thus the fish that come in contact with this fence
naturally continue along it, in expectation of finding an opening
by which to escape, until they unintentionally enter the pen. The
_jangadas_ also go out to sea, and fish with the hook and line, and
many kinds of nets are used. Yet there is at times a great scarcity
of fish, which is rendered by the ordinances of the Romish church an
absolute necessary of life. I was introduced at Pillar to a Portugueze
gentleman of great respectability, from whom I received in the sequel
much civility; the vicar also made me acquainted with a gentlemanly
Brazilian priest, who was a young and well-educated man. The former
of these persons had been the _Juiz Ordinario_ or Mayor of Pillar, in
the year 1812. He had seen how dreadfully the want of due attention to
the duties of this office had been felt on former years, and now he
was determined to act in the manner which his situation required. He
said, that in building great cities, the first public edifice which
was or ought to be raised, was the prison; and therefore as Pillar
was becoming daily of more importance, it was fit that it should have
this requisite edifice. He ordered a number of trees to be cut down,
and in a few days a roof was built of small but adequate dimensions,
and supported by some of of these trees; the remainder of the timber
was to form the walls of the building after the manner of a stockade.
A rude door was likewise made, and a pair of stocks was put into the
place. “Now,” he said, “Pillar will thrive.” He apprehended some
unruly fellows with his own hands; he is a large and powerful man, and
the requisite though dangerous task of arresting the men who created
disturbances was performed by him with apparent unconcern, and as if he
was occupied in any common occurrence of his life. Notwithstanding the
acknowledged benefit which was produced by the administration of this
man, such is the state of government, that interest was made to prevent
his re-appointment to the office on the following year; and this
influence was successful. He was too upright a man to be liked by those
who wished to have upon their estates a number of turbulent dependants.
The inhabitants of the island had entered into a subscription for
building a bridge over the creek near to the town; this work was
undertaken through the zeal of the priests who resided in Itamaraca,
and was about to be executed under the direction of the master of the
grammar-school.
I was much surprised in the beginning of the month of February, at
the arrival of a mulatto slave, who had absconded in November; he
came alone, and without the customary note from some person of my
acquaintance, requesting him to be forgiven. He ascended the steps of
the place in which I resided, with perfect unconcern, and with his
knife in view and a stick in his hand, begged to be pardoned. I desired
that some food should be given to him, and he remained in the kitchen
during the night. However, I could not help suspecting some evil
intentions, for I knew he had been staying upon the estate of a man
who bore me no good will. He went off, by my order, in the morning, to
assist three free labourers in the work of cutting up some trees that
had been felled. I followed him to the ground about ten o’clock, as was
my usual custom. I called him to me, under the pretence of wishing to
have the curb chain of my bridle loosened; he came, and then I put one
hand upon his head, and with the other drew a pistol, at the same time
desiring him to throw down his hatchet and his knife, which he did.
Then I called to two of the freemen, that they might secure him. The
mulatto’s hands were tied behind his back, and I followed him and his
conductors to Amparo, from whence I wrote to my new friend at Pillar,
forwarding the slave to that village. He was there placed in the
stocks, until I could dispose of him, which I immediately entered into
measures for effecting. I never saw him again. He was a bad fellow, and
had twice attempted the life of the persons under whose orders he was
placed. He had run away in November from having drawn his knife, and
having threatened to stab the manager with it.
There is another road to Pillar, besides that by which the vicar
had taken me; it is through a place called Engenho Velho (the old
mill). Sugar works were formerly established here; but the lands are
poor, and the large red ants upon them are so numerous, as to render
their cultivation almost impossible; so much so, that scarcely any
persons reside upon them. Many individuals of the lower classes, first
obtaining leave from the proprietor, have attempted to rear crops of
mandioc and maize upon them; but their exertions have seldom enabled
any one to prevent the plantations from being destroyed by the ants.
Huts are to be seen, out of which the inhabitants have been driven by
these tormentors; the shelter which the roofs afford is convenient to
the ants, and under them they like to form the chief entrances to
their cities. I never saw any other situation in which this pest of
Pernambuco[113] had so completely taken possession of the land. The
hillocks under which they had formed their nests were innumerable; some
of these were four feet in height, and ten or twelve in circumference;
others were of less dimensions, and some of them might be larger.
Some ruins of the mill are still to be seen at Engenho Velho, and there
is a pond near to them of considerable depth, of which tradition says,
that great riches lie concealed at the bottom. I also heard of an old
African negro, who has been manumitted, and now practised the arts of a
_Mandingueiro_, in this neighbourhood. Among the lower orders of people
I have heard his powers discussed. It is said, that he can cause the
death of any one who is pointed out to him; the unfortunate person will
linger for a long time, but his destruction is inevitable. This old man
is likewise a fortune-teller, and is applied to in cases of unrequited
love.
In March took place the yearly festival of our Lady of the Rosary,
which was directed by negroes; and at this period is chosen the King
of the Congo nation, if the person who holds this situation has died
in the course of the year, has from any cause resigned, or has been
displaced by his subjects. The Congo negroes are permitted to elect
a king and queen from among the individuals of their own nation; the
personages who are fixed upon may either actually be slaves, or they
may be manumitted negroes. These sovereigns exercise a species of
mock jurisdiction over their subjects which is much laughed at by the
whites; but their chief power and superiority over their countrymen
is shown on the day of the festival. The negroes of their nation,
however, pay much respect to them. The man who had acted as their
king in Itamaraca (for each district has its king) for several years,
was about to resign from old age, and a new chief was to be chosen; he
who had been fixed upon for this purpose was an old man and a slave,
belonging to the plantation of Amparo. The former queen would not
resign, but still continued at her post. The old negro who was this day
to be crowned, came early in the morning to pay his respects to the
vicar, who said to him in a jocular manner, “Well, sir, so to-day I
am to wait upon you, and to be your chaplain.” About eleven o’clock I
proceeded to the church with the vicar. We were standing at the door,
when there appeared a number of male and female negroes, habited in
cotton dresses of colours and of white, with flags flying and drums
beating; and as they approached we discovered among them the king and
queen, and the secretary of state. Each of the former wore upon their
heads a crown, which was partly covered with gilt paper, and painted
of various colours. The king was dressed in an old fashioned suit of
divers tints, green, red, and yellow; coat, waistcoat, and breeches;
his sceptre was in his hand, which was of wood, and finely gilt. The
queen was in a blue silk gown, also of ancient make; and the wretched
secretary had to boast of as many colours as his master, but his dress
had evident appearances of each portion having been borrowed from a
different quarter, for some parts were too tight and others too wide
for him.
The expence of the church service was to be provided for by the
negroes; and there stood in the body of the church a small table, at
which sat the treasurer of this black fraternity, (_irmandade_) and
some other officers, and upon it stood a box to receive the money. This
was produced but slowly, much too slowly for the appetite of the vicar,
who had not breakfasted, though it was now nearly mid-day, for he and
his assistant priests were to chaunt high Mass. Therefore he approached
the table, and began to expostulate with these directors, declaring
that he would not go to the altar until every expence was paid. I was
much amused to see him surrounded by the blacks, and abusing them for
their want of punctuality in their contributions. There was soon an
uproar in the church among the negroes; the vicar had blamed some of
them, and now when he left them to themselves, they called each other
to an account, and the consequences were, that many high and angry
words passed between them in the church. It was a most entertaining
scene to me and a few other persons, who stood by and heard what was
going on. However, at last Their Majesties knelt down at the railing of
the principal chapel, and the service commenced. As soon as this was
over, the new king was to be installed; but as the vicar was hungry, he
dispatched the matter without much ceremony; he asked for the crown,
then went to the church-door,—the new sovereign presented himself,
and was requested or rather desired to kneel down; the insignia were
given to him, and the vicar then said, “Now, sir king, go about thy
business.”[114]
As the king belonged to Amparo, the eating, drinking, and dancing were
to be at that place; consequently, in a short time our town remained
quite quiet, and I little thought that I should so soon be disturbed.
About four o’clock in the afternoon, Francisco, one of my negroes,
came running from Amparo, and he said that the people at that place
were killing Manoel, who was fighting against a number of persons, by
whom he had been attacked. I mounted my horse, and proceeded to the
plantation with all possible haste. I found Manoel tied to the middle
of a long cord, of each end of which one man had hold, and these
persons were standing in opposite directions for the purpose of keeping
the negro at a distance from any one. His face was covered with blood,
and his cloaths were much torn. I rode up to him, and spoke to him;
he turned round, as if to strike me; but when he discovered who it
was, he cried out, “It is my master, and now I care for no one;” and
then he again proceeded in his abuse towards those who had maltreated
him. Francisco soon arrived, and I sent Manoel home with him. The
overseer of the plantation (for the owner was not at home) chose to
take umbrage at some of my people who now arrived, because they were
armed. I told him that they were perfectly right in coming prepared for
the worst, but that I felt quite confident that not one person present
would think of insulting me or any other white man; and therefore I
sent my people away; he said that I judged correctly of his feelings,
and some others stepped forwards to confirm the words of the overseer.
The negro who had acted improperly, had been provoked so to do by the
behaviour of some of the free persons towards him; but the affair would
not have occurred, if the overseer had done his duty, or if any man of
weight and importance had been present.
About this time I agreed to take a cottage with a small piece of land
attached to it, in the neighbourhood of Conception. It was situated
upon a shelf of the hill, immediately below the town, and opposite to
the village of Camboa. The break in the hill had only space sufficient
to admit of the cottage in breadth, so that on either side it must
be reached by an ascent or descent. The view from it differed little
from that which was to be obtained from the town-hall; save that now
to the left, the town and the church were to be seen half concealed
among the banana plants and trees. All the lands in this neighbourhood
were subdivided among persons of several casts. That which immediately
joined mine on two sides belonged to the vicar, and on the third side
it was inclosed by the channel, whilst on the fourth, a numerous family
of free negroes possessed a small spot covered with coco-trees. These
latter people had been much impoverished by the obstinacy of the chief
of the family, now deceased, in maintaining a law-suit for many years,
about the boundaries of his plot of land. As soon as I took possession,
one of his sons wished to commence law proceedings with me, in spite of
several awards which had been given against his father. I began to make
a fence around the piece of land which I had taken, and he immediately
did all in his power to prevent me from accomplishing my object;
however, as he saw that whatever he said was of no avail, he set off
to Goiana to seek redress by law. This I discovered accidentally in
the evening. In the morning at four o’clock I mounted on horseback, and
followed him to Goiana, accompanied by Fideles, a creole negro, in the
place of Manoel who was disabled for some time by the occurrence which
has been related.
I proceeded through the plantation of Amparo, and reached the spot at
which passengers embark in the canoe that plies between the island and
the main land. The tide was out, and we entered among the mangroves,
through which a path has been made in the mud; it is dangerous to
allow the horse to step out of this, as the slime is deep on either
side. We stood at the water’s edge, just beyond the mangroves, and
hailed the ferryman, until he shoved off and came towards the island.
The mosquitos persecuted us unmercifully, during this delay, and it
was with difficulty we prevented our horses from treading out of the
path. The channel is here much broader than near to Conception; but
there is a bank near to the centre of it, upon which, when the tide
is out, the horses regain their footing; but still the passage is
distressing to the beasts; however we reached the opposite bank in
safety[115]. Here stands the village of Itapisuma, which consists of a
long street, situated near to the water’s edge, and running parallel
with the channel; it is composed of small low houses. A narrow path
took us to the village of Pasmado, a distance of two leagues, where we
entered the great cattle road; we crossed the river of Araripe, passed
through the village of Bû, and about mid-day stopped at the hamlet of
Fontâìnhas. Here I put up at a cottage, and on enquiry found that there
was some dried meat to be sold at a neighbouring hut; some of this was
purchased, and was cooked for me by the good woman of the cottage.
The people of Pasmado are famous for their proficiency in the working
of iron. The knives which are made at that place are in great request
all over the country, and although these are a prohibited article, as
I have before mentioned, still they are made publicly at Pasmado, and
indeed at many other places in the country.
Whilst I was at Fontâìnhas, three armed men came to the door with a
fourth person whom they had taken into custody, under a suspicion of
his being a horse-stealer. It was proved that he had been seen in
company with a man of this description, but he made it appear that he
had been hired by him to assist in conducting some horses, without his
having any knowledge of their being obtained irregularly, and therefore
they set him at liberty. During the whole of my stay in Pernambuco, I
only heard of two or three instances of houses being broken open, and
scarcely of any murders that were not occasioned by quarrels, or had
been committed in revenge; but cattle-stealing is common. I was in the
constant habit of hearing of thefts of this description[116]. In the
afternoon I reached Goiana, and on the following day presented my
papers to the _Juiz de Fora_. As soon as I had accomplished the end
for which I came, I returned to Itamaraca. Whilst I was at Goiana, an
English merchant vessel, called the Elizabeth, had been on shore upon
the south sand-bank of the harbour of Itamaraca. She had been chased by
an English ship of war, under the supposition that she was an American,
and the merchant vessel was also acting under the same idea regarding
the pursuer. The master made for the harbour of Itamaraca and ran the
vessel ashore; and the mistake under which both of them had been acting
was not cleared up until the ship of war sent a boat on board. She
floated at the height of the tide, and proceeded to Recife without much
damage. Many of the people of Itamaraca put off in their _jangadas_,
for the purpose of rendering every assistance in their power, and were
very indignant at the crew refusing to admit any of them on board.
This, I suppose, proceeded from the fear of being plundered, and of
salvage being claimed, as occurs frequently upon the coast of Ireland
in cases of distress. But far from any mischief being intended, I am
confident that a mere trifle (a few gallons of rum for instance) would
have satisfied those who went to offer to assist.
After my removal in April to the Toque, for so my new dwelling was
called, I led a life of quietude; and to one who has not known other
countries, and does not feel that a residence in Brazil is a species of
banishment, it would be a life of great happiness. I went out young,
and therefore had few unpleasant feelings of this kind to conquer, but
when I reflect upon the line of life in which I had taken my station I
am happy that I was removed. The climate, in particular, fascinates
every one; the heat is scarcely ever disagreeable, and the power of the
sun is rendered less perceptible by the freshness of the sea breeze;
the coolness of the night too removes all lassitude, if any should have
been felt. I have often sat at my door when the moon has been so clear
as to render reading by her light, though somewhat irksome, still not
difficult. When the night has been dark, I have watched the lights
which were to be seen upon the sand-banks, that proceed from the land
on each side of the entrance of the harbour; they were frequented at
low water by numbers of persons in search of shell-fish. The appearance
was singular, for the lights seemed to float upon the water.
The house in which I now dwelt was a long low building, situated, as
I have before observed, upon a narrow break in a steep hill; it was
constructed of timber and mud, and the eaves of the cottage were on one
side about five feet from the ground, and on the other they were only
three feet. The door and window were in the gable-end, and fronted the
sea. The principal apartment was furnished with a few chairs, and a
table, a trunk containing my books, and also a large chest, in which
were deposited the _farinha_ and the beans for the weekly consumption
of the establishment; in one corner likewise stood a large jar of
water, and upon a peg immediately above the jar was hung the usual
ladle of the country;—this is formed of the half of the inner shell of
a coco-nut, and has a long wooden handle fixed to it; some rich persons
make use of silver _cocos_, as these ladles are called. The room which
I have attempted to describe, two cabins or very small bed-chambers,
and a kitchen included the whole building. At one side were erected a
stable and two apartments, which remained unfinished when I came away.
Behind the cottage was the shed which covered the apparatus for making
the _farinha_; and yet farther back, in the same direction, the negroes
had formed their huts of mud and coco leaves. I was now still nearer
to the channel, and so immediately above it as to see every canoe or
raft which passed to and fro. The land about the house was covered with
brushwood and tall coco-trees, and there were likewise a few Acaju
trees. However the small wood was soon cleared away, and the view on
every side remained unobstructed.
The first business of the morning was to see that the people went out
to work at the proper time; then the stable and other matters of the
same kind were to be attended to; for in every thing which is to be
done by slaves the master or his deputy must keep his eye as much upon
what is going forwards as possible. After this I breakfasted, and then
either read or wrote, or mounted my horse and rode to the spot upon
which my people were at work. I dined about two o’clock, and afterwards
sat in my hammock smoking; any of the secondary people, or of those in
the lower ranks of life, would sometimes about three or four o’clock
come to speak to me upon business, or to ask or communicate news, and
so forth. Soon after four o’clock, I usually rode out again to see
the work, and returned about five or half past. The remainder of the
day-light was often expended in reading, and at times the vicar or
some one else would come and sit with me until seven o’clock. Sun-set
in retired situations usually produces melancholy feelings, and not
less unpleasant was this period under the circumstances in which I
was placed. The negroes were coming home straggling from their work,
fatigued and dirty; the church-bell tolled dismally at intervals, that
all Catholics should count their beads; the sea looked black, and the
foliage of the trees became rapidly darker and darker as the sun sank
behind the hills. There is scarcely any twilight in those regions; the
light is in a few minutes changed into darkness, unless the moon has
risen. Her light is not afforded gradually, but her power is perceived
very shortly after the setting of the sun. In the evening I sat and
smoked in the open air, and if it was at the time of spring tides, I
had a fire made to windward, on account of the mosquitos, and of a
very diminutive species of black fly, which is called _maroìm_, and
of which the bite is as painful as that of the mosquito; this last
species of insect is there called _morisoca_. The _maroim_ is usually
to be seen near to mangroves. If these tormentors were too troublesome
to be endured, or if I was so inclined, I would close my door and
window, and read or write until ten or eleven o’clock, and then go to
bed; but frequently I would lie down in my hammock, and rest in it
unintentionally during the greater part of the night.
My time passed less pleasantly during the months of June and July,
owing to the rain, and to the removal of the vicar to Recife during
that period.
Through his persuasion, and from the gradual general disposition
of the feelings of the people in favour of the measure, two boys,
resident at Conception, were sent to Recife for the purpose of being
inoculated with the cow-pox; as soon as they returned, the surgeon of
Iguaraçu, a young man of considerable merit who had been educated at
Lisbon, came over to the island to inoculate any persons who might be
inclined to undergo the operation. Among the children it was almost
general. Their parents and friends were told that the disorder was not
infectious, and consequently no precautions were taken in separating
those who were under its influence from the other inmates of the same
cottage. Soon afterwards an elderly woman, the attendant of a child
who had been inoculated, fell sick and died, and other persons were
likewise afflicted with the same disorder. The infection spread, and
ten or twelve persons died of it in the island. The evil indeed was
only stopped by the inoculation of great numbers of the inhabitants.
It was observed that none of the individuals who had been inoculated
had been in danger, and therefore it was soon seen that the wisest plan
was to undergo the operation. A few however were so much alarmed at
the fate of some of their acquaintances, that they lived for many days
in the woods, scarcely visiting any habitation of man in the dread of
infection. It was proved that the small-pox did not exist at that time
upon the island, for every enquiry was made,—much pains were taken by
many persons of zeal and activity to certify that this was the case;
and indeed when that dreadful malady appears in any neighbourhood
the whole country round is alarmed, and every precaution is taken to
prevent communication. Now, it was generally said that either the
boys who had been sent to Recife were inoculated with the small-pox
instead of the cow-pox, or that the cow-pox degenerated and became an
infectious disease. The boys received the matter from a newly-imported
negro, who had, it is true, been inoculated with the cow-pox, but he
might have had the small-pox upon him at the time, though it had not
made its appearance. It is from the newly arrived Africans, that the
small-pox is often spread abroad, after the country has had a long
respite from this much dreaded disorder. One man who resided near to
Conception caught the disease and died; he had only sat for a short
time in an outward room of a house in the interior of which some
children were confined who had been inoculated.
The unfortunate result of this trial of the new disorder rivetted many
persons in their prejudices against it; and others who had strenuously
recommended its adoption began to stagger, and to fear that they had
been deceived; however, as none of those who were inoculated had been
in danger, the people did not appear to have taken a thorough dislike
to it. To me this was a most anxious time; my establishment of slaves
and free people consisted of twenty-five persons, of whom scarcely
any had had the small-pox. They were too many to inoculate at once,
and therefore I cut off all communication with my neighbours. This
was done without much difficulty; Manoel was armed, and was ready to
prevent any one from approaching the place, and this I could do without
injustice, for the path led only to the house. I had several fierce
dogs, which were all let loose on this occasion, notice being given to
the neighbourhood of such a measure having been adopted.
Considerable zeal has been shewn by the supreme government of Brazil in
the introduction of the cow-pox into the country. An establishment has
been formed at Recife, consisting of a physician and two surgeons for
the inoculation, free of expence, of all persons who apply for this
purpose. The inoculation is expressly confined to the matter of the
cow-pox. The establishment has not however, yet fixed upon any settled
plan for having a constant supply of the matter, and therefore the
medical men belonging to it are often obliged to remain inactive for
several weeks at a time.
CHAPTER XIV.
ANTS.—SNAKES, AND OTHER REPTILES.—RIVER OF IGUARAÇU.—BUILDING A
HOUSE.—SEVERAL SPECIES OF TIMBER TREES.—THE PINHAM, MUTAMBA, AND
GAMELEIRA TREES.—THE WHALE.
I HAVE said that the lands of the Engenho Velho were much infested by
the red ants; but indeed scarcely any part of the island of Itamaraca
is free from these most noxious insects. They are of a dusky red
colour, and vary from one quarter of an inch to one inch in length.
Their bite is painful, and they will sometimes fix themselves so
firmly with their antennæ, as to leave the points of them in the wound
which they have made. Their food is entirely vegetable. I found them
extremely troublesome during the continuance of the rains. They would
often make their way between the bricks of the floor of my house, and
pick up any particles of flour or any grains of maize which might
chance to be strewed upon it. On one occasion, two large bags of maize
of equal size were placed in the room at night; but in the morning
one of them was considerably lower than the other; for this I could
not account until, on a nearer examination, I saw one of the red ants
coming out of a small hole which there was at one side of the bag, with
its load upon its back, and soon another followed, and so forth. I now
accidentally put my hand upon the bag, and it fell still lower; so that
an arch must have been formed within, either by a very singular chance,
or by the management of these most extraordinary insects.
Upon another evening, they made their appearance in such great
numbers as to darken the floor of the corner of the room from which
they proceeded. I sent for some dried leaves of the coco-tree, and
only got rid of the enemy by making in the house a bonfire upon the
spot of which they had taken possession. I had some pomegranate trees
at the back of the cottage, which I was preserving with great care;
and I had one evening particularly admired the beauty of one of these
plants, which was covered with red blossoms. In the morning the flowers
were still upon the tree, but scarcely any leaves remained; these
were upon the ground, and some of the destroyers were cutting off
the few which still were left, whilst their companions were occupied
below in conveying away the spoil. I could not avoid watching them
for some minutes, and admiring their ingenuity and systematic manner
of going to work; but soon I vowed vengeance upon these enemies, and
immediately commenced operations. There was a steep bank a little below
the cottage, which had every appearance of harbouring these insects,
for the red earth which lies at some distance below the surface of the
ground, was thrown up all around it. I placed four negroes below the
bank, to cut it away perpendicularly. They had not worked long before
the war commenced, for a war it was when some of the nests were laid
open. The ants came out in great numbers, but torches of dried coco
leaves were ready and a large fire, and with these weapons we had much
the advantage of them. The bank contained a vast number of circular
holes of about six inches diameter, which were placed at unequal
distances from each other, and many of them were without subterraneous
communications from one to the other. Every one had a passage to the
surface of the ground, and some of them had more than one leading
upwards. These nests or holes contained a substance of a grey colour,
which bore the appearance of thick cobwebs pressed closely together;
and on being squeezed in the hand it had a liquid feel, that is, the
skin was moistened by it. When put into water it swam upon the top.
We had placed a large brass basin upon the fire, and filled it with
water for the purpose of putting this substance into it. In some of the
circular holes there were no ants, but others were crowded with them.
Great numbers were destroyed; and the cottage and its neighbourhood
enjoyed for a short time some respite, but another horde from a
different quarter discovered that the place was untenanted, and we were
again persecuted.
There is another method of destroying the ants, which has only of
late years been introduced; but this is more particularly adapted to
their destruction when they are undermining a building. A mixture of
brimstone, and of any other substances which create a considerable
degree of smoke, is burnt at the entrance of the ant-hill, a hole
being in the first place dug around it, that the combustible matter
may be laid rather lower than the surface of the ground immediately
surrounding. Then a large pair of bellows is made use of to blow the
smoke down the aperture; now it is necessary to observe, that all
the crevices by which the smoke is again ejected, should be stopped
up. If the operation is conducted with due attention it has been
found successful. It is likewise a means of discovering the several
communications of the same ant-hill, and thus being able with less
uncertainty to judge of the situation of the chief pot (_panella_) or
nest.
The red ant is particularly destructive to the mandioc plant, and in
many parts it is almost impossible to preserve the plantations of it
from them[117]. I recollect having planted a considerable quantity of
it in some low marshy ground, upon hillocks, and the land was so moist
that water remained in the furrows round the bottom of each hillock,
after the manner of dykes. On this account, I thought it superfluous
to desire that any precautions should be taken against the ants;
however, I rode one afternoon to see the field, and was surprised to
find that the plants upon some of the hillocks were deprived of their
leaves. I knew by whom this must have been done, but could not for some
minutes discover how the insects had been able to reach the mandioc. I
soon saw an ant-track and a few of the ants going along it; I followed
the track, and observed that they had formed a bridge of leaves across
one of the furrows, upon which they were going over. Some of them
crossed to and from the hillock, as I stood watching them.
There were several other species of ants of less bulk, which were
occasionally seen. The small red ant and the small black ant, both of
which feed on animal substances, would sometimes crowd around a fly,
a spider, a small lizard, or any other small animal or insect which
might lie dead upon the floor; and by degrees, a number sufficient to
move their prey would assemble, and they would convey it slowly along,
even up a white-washed wall, if the load was not heavier than usual. It
was a most unpleasant sight to watch these insects clinging to their
burthen on all sides of it, and so closely packed as to appear to be
one shapeless mass of moving substance. All species of ants have a
disagreeable smell; but the carnivorous small red ant is that which
is the most offensive. There is also another kind of small black ant;
it makes its nest in trees, and not near to and among the timbers of
houses. Though the size of this ant is very diminutive, being smaller
than any other species, it is a dreadful enemy to the large red ant,
owing to the numbers and determined courage of the black ant. These
small insects are sought after, and encouraged to build upon orange and
other fruit trees, which are liable to destruction from the large red
ant; and they effectually defend their appointed posts from the dreaded
invaders, if time has been given for their numbers to be equal to the
task. I have sometimes seen the entrance to the nest of the red ants
surrounded by the dead of both parties; but notwithstanding that the
number of black ants which are engaged is always much greater than
that of the red ant, still I observed that the slain of the latter
always out-numbered the former.[118]
The house in which I resided at Jaguaribe, had been in former times a
barn in which the sugar was put into chests for exportation; and I had
heard from the neighbours that the ants about it were numerous; and
particularly a small black ant called the _formiga douda_, or foolish
ant, owing to its not appearing to have any track, but to wander about
the spot upon which the horde has appeared, running fast to and fro,
and irregularly. These are distinguished from the black ant of the
orange trees by this name of _douda_. One evening I had been asleep
in my hammock, and was not a little surprised on waking, to see that
part of the wall opposite to me, which was white-washed, appeared to
be covered with a piece of black cloth; I got up, and approached it
with the lamp in my hand. I soon saw what it was, and could not help
shuddering, for the sight, I may say, was horrible; myriads of these
ants were marching along the wall, and their numbers were rapidly
increasing. I had scarcely recovered from the first surprise, when
on looking round, I saw that the other side of the room was in the
same state; I left the place quickly, and calling to some of the
negroes, desired them to bring coco and palm-leaves in abundance; this
was done, and operations being actively set on foot against them by
applying lighted leaves to the walls, we soon got rid of the major
part of the ants; however many of them escaped by retreating into the
numerous cracks in the walls. The next morning the walls were again
white-washed, and as many of the crevices filled up as possible. On
another occasion, I was awakened in bed in the middle of the night, by
a sensation in my feet as if they had been pricked gently by many pins.
I jumped up, and as there was a light in the room, I soon perceived
what had caused the uneasy sensations; several of these black ants were
running about my legs, and upon the bed and floor they were every
moment becoming more and more numerous. I escaped, and as soon as the
bed cloaths were removed the scene of burning the host of enemies was
re-acted.
There yet exists another description of ants, called the _tioca_; these
are black, and on the whole are even larger than the destructive red
ant; but I never saw the _tioca_ in great numbers; and when I have
observed them, it has been near to where sugar is kept, running to
and fro without any settled path and seemingly without any plan of
operations. Their bite is still more painful than that of the red ant.
The ants were not my only persecutors at Itamaraca, for these were
assisted by the _copim_, (_termes arborum_), who build their enormous
nests, called in Brazil _panellas_ (pots) among the rafters of houses,
which they destroy in the course of time; and likewise they form their
settlements upon trees. They oftentimes made their covered ways along
the white-washed walls of my house, or up the door posts; but I took
every precaution against them, which was more particularly necessary
in this instance, as my dwelling was not built of the best kinds of
timber. I was advised to besmear the places in which they persisted
in attempting to build with treacle, and I found that this was
successful in making them alter their proceedings. It is well known in
that country by all those persons who have paid any attention to the
subject, that there are certain kinds of timber which are more liable
to be attacked by these insects than others. However, a person who was
about to build a house, chose to think that the distinction which the
carpenters made in the several kinds of timber which they recommended
him to obtain, either proceeded from some sinister views in the men,
or from prejudices which they had imbibed. Therefore, contrary to
the advice of his workmen and of his friends, he purchased any kinds
of timber which were presented to him for sale, not attending to the
quality but to the price. The house was built, and he had already
either removed to it or was upon the point of so doing, when it was
discovered that the _copim_ had attacked some of the principal timbers;
and at last it was judged expedient to pull down a considerable part
of the building, without which the whole would have fallen a sacrifice
to the insects. A solution of the substance of which the nest of the
_copim_ is formed, is used as an injection by the peasants in aguish
disorders.[119]
I have not yet mentioned all the persecutors; for besides those
which have been here named, and the famous _chiguas_, of which I
have elsewhere spoken, there are the _moribondos_, a black insect,
resembling somewhat the large red and the _tioca_ ant in shape; the
_moribondo_ is supplied with wings, and has a most painful sting in
the tail. It forms its nest upon the trunks and branches of trees;
and in clearing lands, the negroes always proceed with much care,
that they may not be taken unawares by these insects; for on a nest
being disturbed, they fly out in great numbers; notwithstanding every
precaution, this will occasionally happen; and I have known a negro to
be unable to work for several days after he has been stung by them. The
parts which are affected swell and become inflamed, and the sufferer
experiences for a day or two the alternate sensations of violent cold
and burning heat, similar to the symptoms of aguish disorders. When the
negroes discover the nest without disturbing its inhabitants, dried
palm leaves are lighted, and the nest is destroyed by fire. The insects
are not often all killed, but those which escape appear to be stupified
by the fire and smoke, and do not leave the nest. I have handled them
when they have been in this state, for they become harmless; however,
after a short time, their activity returns. There are three species of
_moribondo_; the black, of which I have treated; the white, which are
so called, although they are only partially white; and the _moribondo
formiga_, which are distinguished from the black _moribondo_, in
bearing a still greater resemblance to the large black ant.
The bats also failed not here to annoy me, for they persecuted my
horses. They fasten upon the ears of the beasts, or upon their backs,
if there is any spot from which the skin has been rubbed. I have in
travelling sometimes been made particularly uneasy at their attacks
upon the horses; for unless we had some animals above the requisite
complement, it was necessary to load them with the wound open. The skin
of an owl is often hung up in a stable for the purpose of scaring the
bats.
In laying open the ant-hill which I have above-mentioned, we discovered
a couple of the _cobras de duas cabeças_, or two-headed snakes or
worms; each of them was rolled up in one of the nests. These snakes are
about eighteen inches in length, and about the thickness of the little
finger of a child of four or five years of age. Both extremities of the
snake appear to be exactly similar to each other; and when the reptile
is touched, both of these are raised, and form a circle or hoop to
strike that which has molested it. They appear to be perfectly blind,
for they never alter their course to avoid any object until they come
in contact with it, and then without turning about they crawl away
in an opposite direction. The colour is grey inclining to white, and
they are said to be venomous. This species of snake is often found in
ant-hills, and I have likewise killed them in my house; they frequent
dung-hills and places in which vegetable matter has been allowed to
remain for a length of time unremoved.
The island of Itamaraca is said to be less infested with snakes than
the main land, and perhaps this opinion is founded on experience;
but some of those which are generally accounted venomous certainly
exist upon it. A rattle-snake was killed at Amparo two years previous
to the period of which I am speaking. A horse died one night in my
neighbourhood, and his death was attributed to the bite of a snake;
there was a wound upon him, and his body was much swoln. Manoel killed
a _cobra de veado_, or antelope snake (_Boa Constrictor_) which he
brought home to shew me. It was a young one, of seven feet in length,
and about the thickness of a man’s arm. The name which it bears of
antelope snake proceeds from the destruction which it causes among
these animals. The full-grown snake of this species lies in wait for
the antelope and other animals of the same size; it entwines its tail
around a tree, and patiently expects that its prey will pass within
its reach; when this occurs, it encircles the unfortunate animal with
its enormous body, thus securing it. I never could discover, after
much enquiry, that it had ever been found in a torpid state, digesting
its food. Men have sometimes been caught by them; but if the person so
situated can draw his knife, his escape is very possible, though he
will probably receive several wounds. The opinion is general in the
country that the person who receives the bite of one of these snakes,
has nothing farther to fear from that of any other snake of whatever
description.
One of the negroes whom I had hired with the plantation of Jaguaribe,
had one leg much thicker than the other. This was occasioned, as he
told me, by the bite of a rattle-snake; he said, that he had been cured
from the bites of snakes by a _Curador de cobras_ or _Mandingueiro_,
and had therefore not died; but that “as the moon was strong[120],”
he had not escaped receiving some injury from the bite. He had
frequently violent pains in his limbs, at the full and change of the
moon particularly, and sometimes the wound opened, and remained in
this state for weeks together; but if he was careful in not exposing
it to the early dews of the morning, it would again heal without any
medicinal applications being made use of.
The most beautiful reptile which I saw was the _cobra de coral_,
or coral snake or worm. It is about two feet in length, and of the
thickness of a man’s thumb; it is marked with black, white and red
stripes transversally. The general opinion is that it is venomous.[121]
But the snakes do not cause so much annoyance as the smaller species of
vermin which I am about to mention; because the former seldom enter the
houses, nor are they very frequently to be seen in the paths or roads.
But the _aranha caranguejeira_, or crab-spider, (_aranea avicularia_);
the _lacraia_ or scorpion, and the _piolho de cobra_, or snake louse,
(_scolopendra morsitans_), are to be met with in the houses and in
all situations. They should be carefully avoided, for their bites
are painful, and are said to cause inflammation. An instinctive
recollection of the chance of meeting with these or other vermin of
less importance became so habitual with me (and indeed is so with most
persons) that when I was about to begin to read, I closed the book in
the first place violently so as to crush any thing that might have
crept in between the leaves; when my hat, or boots, or cloaths were put
on, some precaution was taken, as a thing of course; this was not done
from a direct idea of the likelihood of finding any thing unpleasant
in that immediate instance; but the precaution was entered into from
habit, unconsciously. I was one day bit by a _lacraia_; I had mounted
my horse, and had taken my umbrella in my hand for the purpose of
shading me from the sun when I had advanced farther upon my ride; when
I was in the act of opening it, I felt suddenly a violent pain upon
the fleshy part of the inside of one of my hands; on looking down I
soon saw what it was that had bitten me, upon which I turned back, and
rode home. I applied the juice of lemons to the part, and in about half
an hour, not finding any particularly disagreeable sensations, again
mounted my horse. The only effect which I experienced from the bite was
a numbness in my hand for the remainder of the day, and a redness about
the point which was immediately affected; but on the following day the
former was removed, and the latter did not last long. Labat mentions an
instance in which the bite of a scorpion caused as little inconvenience
as that which I have related. When I mentioned to some of my neighbours
the slight consequences of the bite, they ascribed it to the state of
the moon.
In the month of September, I went up the river in a canoe to Iguaraçu.
The distance from my residence was two leagues. The river or creek has
two mouths, which are situated in the bay of the village of Camboa,
which is immediately opposite to Conception. In the river there are
several islands which are covered with mangroves, and are too low to
be cultivated; the banks of the river are likewise lined with the same
description of plant, excepting at one point to the left in going up,
where the bank is high and perpendicular, and projects considerably.
At this place the forest trees come down to the edge of the bank. Near
to the town of Iguaraçu the mangroves have been destroyed, and perhaps
upon some particular spots they did not originally grow. When the tide
is out, the quantity of water which remains in the river is trifling,
and in some parts it is nearly dry; indeed, were it not for two places
of inconsiderable breadth, where the water is always deep, a man on
foot might walk along its bed from about one mile above Camboa to the
town. I came down from Iguaraçu one day at the ebb of the tide in a
small canoe, which held one man besides myself; it was with difficulty
that he could find a channel in which there was sufficient water to
float our vessel. It was to Conception that the Portugueze came down
from Iguaraçu for provisions, during the siege of the latter place by
the savages in 1548, as is related by Hans Stade. I also observed one
of the spots at which the savages attempted to sink the boat as it
returned, by means of letting a large tree fall upon it[122]. The town
of Iguaraçu was plundered, and the inhabitants slaughtered by the Dutch
in 1632, under the direction of the dreadful mulatto Calabar.[123]
The mangroves entirely destroy the beauty which it is natural to
suppose that the rivers of the country of which I am treating would
possess. Until they are destroyed a dull sameness presents itself, for
the eye cannot penetrate beyond them. Upon the banks of the Capibaribe
they have given place to houses and gardens, and the alteration is
most pleasing; upon the banks of the Maria Farinha, the mangroves are
beginning to give way to cultivation at the settlements (_sitios_)
of Jardim and Olaria; but the Iguaraçu is without any break, and the
Goiana is, I understand, in the same state. There are plantations along
these rivers, but the owners content themselves with merely cutting
a path through the mangroves down to the water’s edge, so that to a
stranger who goes up the rivers the country appears to be uninhabited,
until he passes some of these small openings, at which a canoe or a
_jangada_ is moored; but the openings are very narrow, and are only to
be seen on coming immediately opposite to them. The mangroves grow as
far down as low water-mark, and when the tide is out their entangled
roots and sprouts, and their stems covered with oysters and besmeared
with mud, are left uncovered; but at the height of the tide these are
concealed, and the water reaches up to the branches of the trees, so
that those which bend downwards are partly wetted, presenting to the
beholder the view of a forest growing in the water. This species of
mangrove sometimes attains the diameter of fifteen or eighteen inches,
and the height of twenty-five or thirty feet. There are two species
with which I am acquainted, the _mangue vermelho_ or red mangrove, of
which I have been speaking, and the _mangue bravo_ or wild mangrove.
The bark of the former is used for tanning, and the timber is much
esteemed for beams and rafters in building, but it cannot be used as
posts, for under ground it decays very quickly; nor as railings, for
it does not bear exposure to the weather. A considerable trade is
carried on from Itamaraca, and from some other parts to Recife, in
the wood of these plants, which is used as fuel. The tree grows again
as often as it is cut down if the root is not injured, and with such
rapidity that the supply of the wood will, for a length of time—I mean
unless the destruction of the plant becomes more extensive than it is
at present—be fully adequate to the demand for it. The fish forsake
those parts to which the trees are brought to be cut up for firewood.
This may be judged to proceed from the properties of the bark. In a
fish-pen, (_cural de peixe_) near to my place no fish was caught after
the fuel-cutters had established themselves at the bridge hard by; of
this I heard much, as there was some squabbling upon the subject. The
ashes of the mangrove plants are used as _temper_ in the sugar boiling
houses.[124]
As I did not, in 1814, suppose that on the following year I should
be recalled, I began to make some addition to my cottage, for it was
too small for me; and besides it was old, and was constructed of
bad timber, which caused it to be much infested by the ants and the
_copim_. I had a considerable quantity of timber of excellent quality
at Jaguaribe, which had been prepared by me for building there, and
therefore I determined to send for it. Permission was also obtained
from the owner of the Engenho Novo, to cut down some trees in his
woods, for which he ultimately refused to be paid. The woods of his
plantation came down nearly to the water’s edge near to Camboa, and
were consequently very conveniently situated for my purpose. The
building was to be constructed of wood and mud,—that is, of thick
posts supporting the roof and smaller posts at fixed distances between
the principal ones, and the openings between each of them were to be
filled up with mud. I could not help regretting that such beautiful
woods as those which were used should be employed in purposes so much
beneath their worth. The _pao ferro_ or iron wood, which is also called
the _coraçam de negro_ or the negro’s heart[125], was the most valuable
of those which I employed. The outward coat of the wood of this tree
is not particularly hard, but the heart destroys many hatchets. I
have seen some of this timber taken out of the ground after standing
for many years as a supporter to the roof of a house; and though
the outward coat was crumbling into dust, the black heart seemed to
be literally of iron, or to have increased rather than decreased in
hardness[126]. This wood admits of considerable polish; but the black
wood, which is most esteemed for furniture, is the _jacaranda_; this is
also hard, but is much more penetrable than the _pao ferro_, and the
polish to which it may be brought is more complete.[127]
The _pao d’arco_ is another valuable wood, and is so called, I imagine,
from the use which the Indians made of it for their bows; it is much
used in building, and is accounted almost as durable as the _pao
ferro_. It admits of being cleft into splinters, which are flexible
without breaking. The _pao d’arco_ has the property of retaining fire
for a long time without being stirred, and of yielding a bright light
if the log be occasionally touched. The peasantry take advantage of
this, and cleave the logs into several narrow splinters, of which they
form a bunch; this being lighted, serves them as a flambeau. Formerly,
likewise, when every thing was in a ruder state even than it is now
in Brazil, the sugar-works were lighted with logs of _pao d’arco_
instead of oil; indeed I have heard that some of the mills in the back
settlements still continue this practice. The ashes of this tree are
used as _temper_ in the boiling houses of the mills. The number of fine
species of timber in Brazil is very great, but I am myself acquainted
only with a few of them.[128]
The _louro_ is a large tree, and of it there are three species, all of
which are used principally for the beams of houses, for the timber of
them rots quickly under ground or if it be exposed to the weather. The
most esteemed timber for doors, window-shutters, floors of houses, &c.
is the _pao amarello_ or yellow wood. This is a large tree, and the
name which it has obtained, continues to be sufficiently appropriate
for the first six months after it has been cut down; but the yellow
colour is after this period lost, and the wood becomes of a dirty
brown. The canoes are almost exclusively made of the _pao amarello_.
The _pao santo_ or holy-wood is scarce, and is much sought after for
certain purposes, as it is not liable to split, bend, or break; it is
particularly required for the teeth of the sugar-rollers. The wood
is beautifully veined with yellow and brown, but becomes after some
time of a dusky brown colour. There is likewise a tree which is called
_cedro_, but whether it is the cedar or not I cannot determine; the
wood is hard, and is much esteemed for building.[129]
I cut down all the mangroves which grew along the borders of my piece
of land, and likewise some other kinds of trees which grew just beyond
the reach of the salt-water; among these was the _aroeira_, a small
irregular tree, of which the wood is soft, and not even fit for timber;
the only use to which the plant is put, is, that as the leaves have
an aromatic smell, they are used in curing fish, to which they impart
a slight portion of their odour; they are placed upon the _girau_ or
_boucan_, and the fish is laid upon them; fish is likewise packed in
the leaves of the _aroeira_ when about to be sent to a distance[130].
The tree only grows in situations near to the sea. Good fences might
be made of it for the stakes take root; I used some of the trees for
this purpose. The _molungo_ and the _pinham_ have likewise this last
property; and as the former is supplied with strong sharp thorns, this
advantage renders it preferable to the _aroeira_. The _molungo_ grows
spontaneously in moist situations, but the stakes take root even if
the soil is dry, unless no rain falls for some time after it has been
planted. Great numbers of the _molungo_ grew near to my house, just
below a spring of water which oozed from the side of the hill. The
cow-itch was also found here in abundance; it is called by the peasants
_machonan_.
The _pinham_ requires less rain and grows quicker than the _molungo_,
but it is without thorns, and the plant is not nearly so large. The
seed of the _pinham_ is used as an emetic by the peasants, and is
violent in its operation, a very small quantity being sufficient even
for an adult. The fruit incloses three seeds, and is about the size
of the common hazel-nut. During the third attack of ague which I had
whilst I was at Jaguaribe, I placed myself under the direction of an
old mulatto woman, than whom I never saw any one more like a witch;
and indeed poor old Antonia had the reputation of being somewhat of a
_mandingueira_. However she gave me a dose of _pinham_, which, I think,
consisted of four seeds, but they were picked out from a heap of others
for their superior size. The dose acted most violently and effectually
produced vomiting, and although excessive weakness followed the
disorder was removed. I begged her to give me a quantity equal to what
she had administered, that I might take it to Recife; this I shewed to
a practitioner, who answered that he should have imagined that such a
dose would have killed any one; but the old reputed sorceress knew full
well, that a dangerous disease requires to be severely attacked[131].
After the ague left me, my nurse would not be satisfied until she
applied the bark of the _mutamba_ tree to my stomach; or rather the
application was made just below the ribs, which she said was to prevent
_dureza_; this she described as a hardness immediately under the lower
rib of each side, which sometimes was produced by the ague, and which,
if precautions were not taken in time ended in dropsy. I did not suffer
her to continue the _mutamba_ for many days, for I found that I was
well, and wanted no more nostrums. The _mutamba_ is a small tree,
having a straight stem; it grows to the height of eighteen or twenty
feet, and to the diameter of twelve or eighteen inches. The bark is
easily torn off, and is extremely glutinous.
The _Gameleira preta_ (black,) so called from the dark colour of its
bark, is a large tree which grows in low marshy grounds; the stem
contains a white juice, which is much sought for as a medicine in all
eruptive complaints and in dropsy; it is likewise given inwardly. The
juice is obtained by making an incision in the stem, and leaving a
vessel into which the liquid may drop. There is another species of the
same tree, which is distinguished by the name of white _gameleira_, and
this is useless.
I was obliged in September to forsake my house for three days from a
most unexpected cause. A whale was stranded upon one of the sand-banks
at the mouth of the harbour; this being the third time that the
inhabitants of Itamaraca had been favoured with visitors of this
description. _Jangadas_ were sent out to it, and when the tide came
in, it floated, and was towed into the harbour, where the persons who
were employed in the business landed it, as near as they could at high
water mark, in front of and distant from my house about three hundred
yards. Many of my neighbours were occupied in making oil; for any one
who pleased was at liberty to take as much of the blubber as he could
make use of; and one man fairly got into the whale, and ladled out the
fat which was melted by the heat of the sun. When the people left the
carcase, either at mid-day or at night, it was attacked by numerous
flights of _urubus_, and was literally covered by them. The trees
round about the spot were occupied by these enormous birds, which were
waiting for an opportunity of satisfying their boundless appetites. The
_urubu_ is nearly twice the size of the common crow of England; it is
quite black, excepting at the point of the beak, which is white, as I
have been told, but this I did not observe. Wherever there happens to
be the carcase of an animal, these birds assemble shortly after the
death of the beast, and they seem to arrive in greater or less numbers
according to the size of the carcase. The peasants tell many stories
about the king of the _urubus_, who has a tuft of red feathers upon his
head, but I never heard any coherent account of this sovereign.
The stench proceeding from the whale became in a few days so
intolerable as to render a removal necessary, and therefore I applied
to an old creole black, a carpenter, to allow me to reside in his
cottage, which was neat and clean. To this he agreed; whilst he went to
live with some of his friends.
CHAPTER XV.
RECRUITING.—IMAGES.—ANIMALS.—MARACAS.—APOLLINARIO,
MANDINGA AND POULTRY.—HIEROGLYPHICS.—FESTIVAL OF OUR LADY OF
CONCEPTION.—FANDANGOS.—THE FORT.—A CHRISTENING.—THE INTRUDO.—THE
AUTHOR LEAVES BRAZIL.
IN the months of August and September, I was fully employed in planting
cane. I hired a number of free labourers, and was under the necessity
in a great measure of attending to the work myself. Of this I shall
take another opportunity of speaking.
About this time were issued orders from the governor for recruiting
the regiments of the line. The men who are required are pressed into
the service. The orders were forwarded to the _Capitaens-mores_, who
again distributed them to the captains. The directions were on this
occasion, and indeed always are, that men of bad character between the
ages of sixteen and sixty shall be apprehended, and sent to Recife for
enlistment; and that every family containing two or more unmarried
sons shall give one for the service of the country. But it is on these
occasions that tyranny has its full sway, that caprice and pique have
their full vent; that the most shameful partiality prevails, that
the most intolerable oppression is experienced; in fact now it is,
that the whole country is seen in arms against itself, and that every
means of entrapping each other are used by the nearest neighbours. It
is one of those impolitic arrangements which are sometimes practised
by governments without perceiving their pernicious effects, and by
which, as in the present case, the bad qualities of mankind are drawn
forth, instead of every thing being done for their correction. Revenge,
violence, deceit, and breach of trust are excited, and instead of
suppression, they meet with encouragement.
The mildness of the provincial government of Pernambuco, under the
present Captain-general, is in none of its proceedings more apparent
than in this. Although this nobleman has for so many years held the
situation of chief of the province, now for the first time were issued
the orders for recruiting; but not until they had become absolutely
necessary from the state of the regiments. And even now, the directions
of the governor to the officers who were to execute his commands were
dictated in the spirit of gentleness;—if this word may be used when
despotism sends forth such mandates as these. The official letter
recommended impartiality, and threatened punishment, in case wounds
were inflicted without the most evident necessity. But many were the
instances of injustice which were committed, and could not reach his
knowledge. Petitions were sometimes made to the governor, in particular
instances of injustice, but these were often of no avail, for the
custom is, that the recruits should be returned as being fit for
service as soon as possible after their arrival at Recife, and their
names placed upon the rolls, from which none can be removed without an
order from the sovereign, although the provincial governor should be
aware of the true state of the case.
A young man of respectability was carried before a certain
_capitam-mor_, and the alternative was proposed to him either to
marry a young woman, whom he had never seen, but who happened to be a
burthen to those persons under whose care she was placed, or to become
a soldier;—he of course preferred the latter, was sent to Recife and
was obliged to enlist. I heard of many instances of young men being
pressed into the service, upon whose exertions depended the support of
their parents; and of others whose lives were spent in idleness, but to
whom the protection of the captain was extended; and some of these were
unlawfully employed in apprehending others. I was in the daily habit
of seeing a young man who led an idle life and who had no duties to
perform, lying in wait for some of his former companions, that he might
give notice to the captain of the place of their concealment.
For some weeks the whole country appeared to be afflicted with a civil
war; parties of armed men were to be seen in all directions, in search
of those who had concealed themselves. An individual who was not well
known could not stir from his home without a pass from the captain of
the district in which he resided, stating him to be a married man,
or naming some other cause of exemption. Nor is a man who is liable
to be pressed, safe in his own house, for the _tropa_ or troop would
surround the cottage in which any of these persons were suspected to
have taken refuge, and they would demand admittance; and if this was
denied, no scruple would be entertained of breaking down the door,
and entering by force; this occurred to my knowledge in many cases,
in several parts of the country. Married men ought to be exclusively
employed in the apprehension of those who are liable to be pressed.
Militia-men are free from acting as oppressors and from being hunted
down; unless the governor applies to the colonels of the regiment to
which they belong. It is among the _Ordenanças_ that the recruiting of
which I am treating is carried on. Negroes and Indians are excluded
from the regiments of the line; the former on the score of colour, and
the latter from their cast; white men and mulattos of all shades being
alone admitted. The great repugnance which is generally felt towards
the service is occasioned by the smallness of the pay, and by the want
of proper cloathing, whilst the almost incessant duty precludes any
hope of working at a trade, or of pursuing any employment that is not
connected with the life of a soldier. Several elderly persons told
me, that in former times the service was arranged in a manner totally
different; that then no difficulty was found in obtaining the number of
men required, but rather, that interest was made for the situation of
a soldier of the line. Each of the forts upon the coast was garrisoned
from the inhabitants of the neighbourhood to a certain number; these
enlisted as soldiers of the line, were embodied, and performed the
duty of the forts, receiving the usual pay; but they were not liable to
removal to any other post; and from their numbers the duty was easy,
by which means they were enabled to have around them their wives and
families, and to follow any trade to which they might have been brought
up. Thus these men had something for which to fight, if the service
required that they should act against any enemy of the State; they had
homes to defend, they had comforts of which they might be deprived,
they had ties which produced local attachments; but the regiments of
the present day are filled up with vagabonds and unmarried men, who
could not be expected to fight with the same ardour as those who had to
provide for the safety of their families; and these unsettled men might
perhaps follow him who gave the highest wages.
The soldier of South America ought to be a being of far different
stamp from the professed soldier of Europe. Any war which it might be
necessary for Brazil to wage against a foreign invader should (indeed
must) be carried on with a direct view to the peculiar advantages of
the country; it would be a _guerilla_ war, a war under the cover of
woods and hills. Therefore, although it may be as well to have a few
disciplined soldiers who may be preserved, for the purpose of forming
the basis of a large force, if circumstances should require it, still
it is not by discipline that success will be ensured; it is through
the affection which the soldiers feel for their government and for
their country, that the result will be propitious or the contrary.
But the limited population will not allow of considerable numbers
of men (comparatively speaking) being cooped up uselessly in forts,
without being of any service to the State, whilst the lands are covered
with woods, and indeed whilst every branch of industry is requiring
additional hands. Besides if you train a large force to military
service, who by being so taught become superior to their countrymen,
and yet form it of the worst of men; if you bring them up without
any affection to the government, and without any hold upon the rest
of the inhabitants, excepting that of being able to injure them; the
likelihood is, that when you require their aid, they will be found
wanting, and perhaps for higher pay may act against those whom they
were expected to defend. If the soldier and the peasant can be combined
usefully in the same person, it is in Brazil that such a system should
be followed.
The foundation of a church which was commenced at the expence of the
_pês de castello_, as the fixed soldiers were called, are to be seen
near to the town of Conception. The building was given up when the
order arrived from the supreme government then at Lisbon, directing
this change of system.
During the recruiting I went to Recife, and in going along by the sea
shore, saw at several cottages parties of armed men, who were waiting
to see if they could entrap any one who might be liable to be pressed.
At the ferry of Maria Farinha there was a large company, which was
stationed there. I happened to be obliged to wait during a shower of
rain at a cottage in which some of these fellows were watching for
their prey. They were talking in high glee of the stratagems which they
had made use of to entrap several recruits, and of the blows which they
had been obliged to give to make some of them surrender. The men who
were stationed here received no pay, and yet they were poor. They would
probably have been quietly at their work at home, without the thoughts
of violence or barbarity which they now entertained, if the perverse
institutions of their country did not bring them forward and teach
them to be ruffians, at first lawfully; but bad habits are not easily
conquered, and the chance is, or rather there is a certainty, that
most of those who had been so employed were rendered worse subjects
than they had been before. The track of coast between the main land
opposite to Conception and the Rio Doce is within one district, and it
was upon this part of the road that the chief disturbance seemed to
be going on. The _capitam-mor_ had taken it for granted that no one
would give his children for the service, and therefore had, without
asking, immediately commenced operations of violence, taking the
people unawares, that as many recruits as possible might be obtained,
and his zeal in the service made manifest. From the Doce to Olinda,
the coast is in the district of Olinda, and here all was quiet; the
_capitam-mor_ had followed the orders of the governor strictly, and
things were as regularly conducted as the system would allow. These
facts are mentioned to shew, that the performance even of the orders
of the provincial governor who resides within a few leagues, depends
upon the individual character of the person to whom they are forwarded.
God grant that I may soon see such a system altered,—that the eyes of
those who have the power of effecting this alteration may be opened,
for their own good as well as for that of the people over whom they
rule.
The river Maria Farinha is that which runs up to Jaguaribe; its mouth
is wide, and the bar will admit of craft of some size; but the port
cannot be considered as being worthy of attention. The horses swim
across, but the passage is distressing to them, for the tide runs
rapidly. In my way to Recife along the beach, I passed the fort of Pao
Amarello, distant from that place four leagues. It is small and built
of stone. The garrison is little more than nominal, but it affords a
comfortable residence for a captain of the Olinda regiment. The port
opposite to which the fort is situated, is nothing more than a slight
curve which the coast makes at this spot, by which vessels at anchor
can scarcely be said to receive any shelter; but the landing-place
is good. Wardenburg, the commander of the Dutch forces which invaded
Pernambuco in 1630, landed at Pao Amarello.[132]
I was in the habit of conversing with several of the people of colour
who resided in my neighbourhood. One man particularly amused me much;
he was a short and stout creole black, and a shoemaker by trade. I
was greatly entertained with his pompous manner, exalting in terms of
extravagant praise the advantages which Itamaraca enjoyed, and the
excellencies of Conception which was his native spot, in particular. He
lamented much the removal of the mayor and chamber to Goiana, giving
me to understand that undue influence had been employed; forgetful of
the insignificance of one place and the importance of the other. He
also told me with much vehemence of voice and action, that the late
vicar had wished to remove the image of our Lady of Conception from
the parish church to Pillar; but that the inhabitants assembled, and
prevented the accomplishment of the plan. “No,” he said, “if that image
was to leave us, we should consider ourselves unprotected, and then
indeed would our town be utterly destroyed.” The vicar of whom the man
spoke, might have gone to reside at Pillar if he pleased, but _he_ too
had his prejudices in favour of the image, and did not like to say Mass
before any other in his own parish. Thus images cease to be regarded as
the representations of those to whom prayer is to be addressed; a value
is placed upon the wood itself, and religion degenerates into unveiled
idolatry.[133]
Another instance of the same description of feeling occurred at Pillar.
Our Lady under that invocation was represented by a small image, which
from age had become very dirty. A priest who used to officiate at
the chapel of the village in question, preferred purchasing a larger
image in the place of directing that the old one should be painted
afresh; he did so, and quietly removing the old image to a house in the
neighbourhood, placed the new Lady upon the altar in its stead; but lo!
many of the inhabitants would not hear mass when they perceived the
change that had been made; however the priest went through the service,
and then returned to his own residence, which was at some distance. The
people discovered that the image still remained in their neighbourhood,
and presently the house in which it was concealed became known.
The owner sent for the priest, being afraid that some disagreeable
consequences to himself might ensue. The priest came, and without
ceremony wrapped up Our Lady in a handkerchief, and rode off with her
to his own house, from whence she was transferred to one of the side
altars of the parish church. Even at the time of which I am treating,
some of the inhabitants came to say their prayers before this image,
unmindful of the inconvenience of the distance.[134]
The sexton of the parish church, who was a mulatto man, had much
peculiarity of character. He had a great deal of penetration, but was
extremely cautious in what he said; and when questions were asked
relating to any affair in which he thought he might become implicated;
he usually answered—“where white men are concerned, negroes must be
silent[135].” This fellow was once holding a candle in the hand of a
dying person, and repeating the word “Jesus,” as is customary; the
patient began to move restlessly, but Gonsalo quietly went on with his
dismal work, and added with perfect unconcern—“Come die, and have done
with your nonsense.”[136]
The creole negro of whom I have above spoken, was fond of shooting
the larger kinds of game, such as antelopes, which are called in the
country _veados_, and _pacas_ (_cavia paca_). This was done in the
following manner. A platform of thick twigs was made among the branches
of a tree, at the height of several feet from the ground, near to some
one of those plants upon whose leaves or fruit these animals feed.
At night two men placed themselves upon this platform, and when the
footsteps of the animal were heard, one of the men would light a small
taper prepared for the occasion, and the other, with his gun ready,
looked round for the game. The animal was allowed to come as near as
it seemed inclined to do unmolested, and was then fired at. The men
immediately descended, and oftentimes did not attempt to find their
prey until the morning; returning to the spot for the purpose. This is
the usual manner of obtaining these animals. The _tatu verdadeiro_ or
legitimate armadillo, was also sometimes caught by him. I requested him
to obtain for me a _tamanduà_, which is a small species of ant-eater;
he brought me one of which the body was about six inches in length, and
the tail about twelve; and the hair of its skin was extremely soft;
the animal was clinging closely to the bough of a tree, and its tail
also was entwining the branch. My black friend, the shoemaker, told
me that he had been ordered to eat the flesh of the _tamanduà_ after
having had an eruptive complaint, and that it was very beneficial for
persons who were recovering from the _bobas_ or yaws. He said that it
had “a taste which was like unto the smell of the ants.” The sloth was
to be seen here occasionally; also the _cotia_ (_cavia caudata_). The
_porco da India_, the guinea-pig, I have only seen in a tame state. At
Jaguaribe, the _capivara_ (_cavia capybara_) was often seen among the
mangroves; the Indians sometimes eat it, but few of the negroes will.
There is also another mangrove animal, which is called in that country
_guachinim_; it feeds on crabs, and from what I could hear, has much
resemblance to a cat, but the tail is much longer; however I never saw
it. Neither did I see the _lontra_ or sea-otter, but the skins of this
animal are much valued for saddle cloths, bearing a higher price even
than the skin of the jaguar.
I heard accidentally, in conversing with persons of the lower ranks in
life, of an instance in which the Indians continued their heathenish
customs. A family resided at a plantation in this neighbourhood, which
had much intimacy with many Indians, but none of the members of it
were of that cast. When the heads of the families were from home, the
young females were in the habit of meeting to amuse themselves. On
one of these occasions, an Indian girl carried one of her companions
into the hut in which she and her parents dwelt, and on this playmate
questioning her, from girlish curiosity, about several gourds which
were hanging up in the room, she appeared much alarmed and said, “You
must not look that way, those are _maracàs_, which my father and mother
generally put into their chest, but they have to-day forgotten them.”
Notwithstanding her entreaties to the contrary, her companion took hold
of one of the gourds, and moving it quickly discovered that there were
pebbles within; they had handles to them, and tufts of hair upon the
top, and they were cut and carved in divers unusual forms. Here this
matter ended, but soon afterwards several of the mulatto women agreed
to watch the Indians, for they knew that they often danced in their
huts with closed doors; this was an uncommon practice and inconvenient
too, for the open air is much pleasanter. They had soon an opportunity
of witnessing one of these meetings. The huts are constructed of
coco-leaves, and through these they managed to obtain a view of what
was going forwards. There was a large earthen pot in the centre;
and round this, both men and women were dancing. A pipe was handed
occasionally from one to the other. Soon afterwards, one of the Indian
girls told one of her companions of a different cast from her own, as
a great secret, that she had been sent to sleep at a neighbour’s hut a
few nights before, because her father and mother were going to drink
_jurema_. This beverage is obtained from a common herb; but I never
could persuade any of the Indians to point it out to me; though when
they positively asserted that they were unacquainted with it, their
countenances belied their words.
I had a visit in October from a strange old man, whose age was
generally supposed to border upon ninety years. He was a creole black,
and had been a slave upon the plantation of Santos Cosmo e Damiam in
the Varzea to the southward of Recife; he had settled at Iguaraçu,
after he obtained his manumission, having married when he was about
seventy years of age, a young woman of his own colour; and he was now
surrounded by a young family. This man did not reckon his age by
years, but by the governors; and as each of these, with few exceptions,
remained at the head of the province only three years, something near
the truth could be collected. This mode of computation is very common.
I have often, on asking the age of any person, received for answer,
that the individual concerning whom the enquiry was made, had been born
in the first, second, or third year of such a governor. The dreadful
famine of 1793 is also an era from which the peasants date many
circumstances.
Old Apollinario was staying at Conception with a friend, and I
requested him to come down to my place every evening for the purpose
of teaching some of the young persons their prayers, a task of which I
knew him to be fond, as he considered this to be a meritorious action;
one by which he would have still further services to plead in his
favour with the Virgin and St. Peter, as he himself told me. When he
came to give his report to me of the progress of each negro, I liked
much to keep him, that I might converse with him. He often spoke of the
Jesuits, under the name of the _Padres da Companhia_; he was fond of
them, but he added, “I must not speak well of them, for our prince does
not like them; and yet they did a great deal of good too.” He said that
they were true and saint-like _padres_, very different to those of the
present day. He was much surprised at my knowing any thing about them;
he said, “You were not alive at the time they were here, and even if
you had been alive, you could not have been in Pernambuco; therefore
how is it that you know of their existence at the time of which I
speak.” I never could make him perfectly comprehend how I obtained my
knowledge of them. But he was not the only person whose comprehension,
thus taken by surprise, could not contain the new ideas which were
imparted, by the knowledge of the existence of books spread all over
the world, and of men who wrote for the instruction of others. Some
of these people with whom I conversed were much puzzled, when I spoke
of the variety of languages and countries in the world; “then,” they
would say, “how is it that people understand each other?” To this I
answered, that these languages were to be acquired by study. “Yes, I
understand you,” they would rejoin “you are all much cleverer than we
are here[137]; we could not learn any language but our own.” These
people were invariably humble, and always ready to receive instruction.
The peasantry of the sugar plantation districts near to the coast, and
the fishermen are of characters nearly similar, but the former are
more favourably spoken of than the latter, and I cannot avoid saying,
that I should prefer as a servant a man who had been brought up as a
planter of mandioc, to one whose life had been passed upon a _jangada_.
These people are said to be less courageous, less sincere, and less
hospitable than the Sertanejos; but they are likewise less vindictive,
more obedient, more easily guided, and more religious; and though their
knowledge is very confined, still their frequent communication with
Recife and other towns renders them, of course, less unacquainted with
what passes in the world, than the inhabitants of the interior. The
free schools which are established in many places are of much service,
and although reading for amusement is totally beyond the comprehension
even of many persons of the secondary rank, still the acquirement of
the rudiments of knowledge prepare them for improvement, when books
begin to make their way. Some of my neighbours, both at Itamaraca
and at Jaguaribe, chanced at times to come in whilst I was reading,
and would be curious to know how it was that I could find amusement
in being so employed. I remember one man saying to me, “You are not
a priest, and therefore why do you read; is that a breviary in which
you are reading?” On another occasion, I was told that I had got the
character among the people of colour in the neighbourhood of being
very holy[138], for that I was always reading. A person who can read,
write, and keep accounts has attained the height of perfection, and is
much respected; or rather of late years, one who does not know how
to do these things is looked down upon. The women particularly, pride
themselves upon the superiority which they enjoy by this means; by
which they are brought to an equality with their husbands. In the above
general character of the free people, I do not include the planters of
large property, for their acquirements are oftentimes considerable;
and the Indians too are quite separate, owing to their degraded
state; however, I include the white persons of small property: it is
surprising, though extremely pleasing, to see how little difference
is made between a white man, a mulatto, and a creole negro, if all
are equally poor and if all have been born free. I say surprising,
because in the English, French, and Dutch colonies, the distinction is
so decidedly marked; and among the Spaniards, lines are even struck
between the several shades of colour.
I recollect Apollinario telling me of his distress on one occasion,
when he resided in the Varzea. He met the vicar of that parish on
horseback with the sacrament, which he had been taking to some sick
person. The rain poured in torrents, and the mud in the road was half
way up to the knees; but yet it was necessary to pay the usual respect,
consequently the old creole went down upon one knee, and as the priest
passed, he cried out, “Pardon me, Sir vicar, for this one knee, but
if I was to put both to the ground, I could not again rise.” He told
me this with perfect gravity, and I perceived that he thought this
circumstance would be recorded against him as one of his heaviest sins.
One day the old man came to me with a face of dismay, to shew me a ball
of leaves tied up with _cypô_, which he had found under a couple of
boards, upon which he slept in an out-house; for he had removed from
the house of his friend in the town to my place. The ball of leaves was
about the size of an apple. I could not imagine what had caused his
alarm, until he said that it was _mandinga_, which had been set for
the purpose of killing him; and he bitterly bewailed his fate, that at
his age any one should wish to hasten his death, and to carry him from
this world before our Lady thought fit to send for him. I knew that
two of the black women were at variance; and suspicion fell upon one of
them who was acquainted with the old _mandingueiro_ of Engenho Velho,
therefore she was sent for. I judged that the _mandinga_ was not set
for Apollinario, but for the negress whose business it was to sweep the
ouhouse. I threatened to confine the suspected woman at Pillar, and
then to send her to Para, unless she discovered the whole affair; this
she did, after she heard me tell the manager to prepare to take her
to Pillar. She said that the _mandinga_ was placed there to make one
of the negroes dislike her fellow slave and prefer her to the other.
The ball of _mandinga_ was formed of five or six kinds of leaves of
trees, among which was the pomegranate leaf; there were likewise two or
three bits of rag, earth of a peculiar kind, ashes which were of the
bones of some animal; and there might be other ingredients besides,
but these were what I could recognise. The woman either could not from
ignorance, or would not, give any information respecting the several
things of which the ball was composed. I made this serious matter of
the _mandinga_, from knowing the faith which not only many of the
negroes have in it, but also some of the mulatto people; however I
explained to every one that I was angry with her from the bad intention
of the scheme, and not from any belief that it would have any effect.
There is another name for this kind of charm; it is _feitiço_, and the
initiated are called _feitiçeiros_; of these there was one formerly at
the plantation of St. Joam, upon the island, who became so much dreaded
that his master sold him to be sent to Maranham.
Old Apollinario was useful to me in taking care of my poultry. I had
great quantities of the common fowl, and as I had cleared the land to
a considerable distance around the house, the fowls had a good range
without being molested by the foxes. I had ducks, turkeys, and pigeons;
the young of these last were frequently destroyed by the _timbu_; this
animal is about the size of a small cat, and has a long tail, which
is scaly and whitish; the colour of the body is dark brown, with two
white stripes from the nose to the tail down the back; the head is
long, and the snout is pointed; it has an abdominal pouch, which is
large. When pursued, it soon surrenders, by coiling itself up in its
tail. I give the description as I received it, for although we watched
oftentimes for the purpose of catching one of these animals, we were
not successful. I had some geese at Jaguaribe and at Itamaraca, but
from what cause I know not, the young ones were scarcely ever reared.
Many other persons had found equal difficulty in this respect with
myself. Guinea-fowls are esteemed, but give much trouble, for their
unaccommodating disposition renders it necessary to keep them separate
from all other kinds of fowl. There is only one pair of peacocks in
Pernambuco; they are in the garden of the widow of a merchant, in the
neighbourhood of Recife. Snipes and wild ducks are to be found in low
marshy grounds; and upon the island at certain times of the year there
were great numbers of wild doves. The bees which I have seen at some
of the farm-houses are preserved in a part of the trunk of the tree in
which they had originally been found; the tree is cut down, and the
portion containing the nest is brought home. The bees are black, and
much smaller than those of Europe, nor is their bite nearly so painful;
the log of wood in which they are preserved is sawed or cut in some
particular manner, which I cannot exactly describe, by which means the
honey can be taken out. The honey is always liquid. It is used as a
medicine rather than as food, for the small quantities of it which are
to be obtained, render the demand of it for the medical men fully equal
to the supply.[139]
In the month of November there arrived a priest upon a visit to the
vicar, whose exertions are incessant on every subject which relates
to the improvement of his country. He had now been staying with a
friend in the province of Paraiba, and had made a drawing of a stone
upon which were carved a great number of unknown characters and several
figures, one of which had the appearance of being intended to represent
a woman. The stone or rock is large, and stands in the middle of the
bed of a river, which is quite dry in the summer. When the inhabitants
of the neighbourhood saw him at work in taking this drawing, they said,
that there were several others in different parts of the vicinity, and
they gave him the names of the places. It was his intention to return
again the following year, and seek them out. I should have brought with
me a copy of this curious drawing, if my departure from Pernambuco had
not been hastened from unavoidable circumstances.
I was invited about this period to attend the funeral of a young
married woman of respectable family. I went about five o’clock to the
house of the vicar, that I might go with him and three other priests.
From hence we adjourned at dusk to the church, where the priests, all
of whom were already in their black gowns, put on over these the short
lace rochet, and the vicar took in his hands a large silver cross.
We walked to the house in which the body was laid; this was habited
in the coarse brown cloth of the Franciscan order, for the deceased
had belonged to the lay sisterhood of the Third Order of St. Francis;
the face was uncovered, and the body was laid upon a bier, the room
being lighted with many torches. The habits in which the bodies of
the deceased lay brothers and sisters of the Third Order are dressed,
are obtained from the convents of St. Francis, and are said to be the
habits of deceased friars; but probably the worn-out dresses of those
who still live are likewise sold, and thus arises a considerable source
of revenue to the convent. There were assembled in the room several of
her male relations and others who had been invited. After a good deal
of chaunting, a wax taper was given to each person present, and these
being lighted, we proceeded to the church which was hard by, walking
in pairs; the bier followed, carried by four persons, and there was
chaunting as we went along. In the middle of the body of the church, a
scaffolding was erected of about four feet from the ground, and upon
this the bier was placed, the attendants standing round whilst the
priests chaunted. The body was soon put into the grave which was in
the church, and there was lime in it. The friends of persons deceased
aim at having as many priests at the funeral as they can collect and
afford to pay; though on the occasion of which I speak, the priests
served without any remuneration, for the young woman was the near
relative of a priest with whom the others were intimate. Likewise
all the neighbours who are of an equal rank with the deceased, are
invited to attend, that the ceremony may be as splendid as possible.
Notwithstanding the manifest inconvenience, and the mischief which the
unwholesomeness of the custom might, and perhaps does cause, all bodies
are buried within the churches. Indeed the prejudice against being
buried in the open air is so great, that even the priests would not
dare to alter this mode of proceeding, supposing that they wished so to
do.
Towards the end of the same month (November) it is customary for
the vicar to determine upon those persons who are to sustain the
expences of the nine evenings previous to the festival of Our Lady of
Conception,—that is to supply the bon-fires, gunpowder, oil, &c. Each
evening is provided for on all these occasions, by one or more persons
of the immediate neighbourhood, and a greater or less expence is
incurred, according to the means and the inclination of the individuals
who have been named. It was my general practice to accompany the vicar
to church on Sundays and holidays, returning with him to his house to
breakfast. I was in the church when he read over the list of the names
of those who were to provide for the nine evenings, and was somewhat
surprised to hear my own in conjunction with that of a neighbour, for
the ninth night. I had however, some suspicion that this would be the
case, for I had heard some whisperings upon the subject among the
secondary people; the custom is, thus to keep the individuals who are
to be concerned ignorant of what is intended. We began on the following
morning to make preparations for the occasion, and sent to Recife for
the colours of several ships, some gunpowder, fireworks, and a few of
the musicians of the band of the Olinda regiment, applying through a
friend for the consent of their colonel. We likewise sent for Nicolau,
a creole black, and a tailor by trade; but whose merry tongue and feet
made him like dancing and singing better than the needle: and we agreed
with him to bring over from the village of Pasmado, a set of _fandango_
performers. The colours were raised upon long staffs, very early in
the morning of our day, in two rows along the area of the town; and
as the sun rose, several guns were fired,—of those which are usually
made use of at festivals; they are composed of a small and short iron
tube, which has a touch-hole of disproportionate dimensions; they are
placed upright upon the ground, and the match is then applied. In the
course of the day the band played, and in the evening were kindled
about twenty bon-fires in the square of the village. The houses were
illuminated with lamps, which were made of the half of the rind of
an orange, each containing a small quantity of oil and cotton. There
were likewise great numbers of large crosses, lighted up in the same
manner in several parts of the square. The church was crowded, and
the noise of the people was great; the guns were fired at intervals;
the musicians of the festival, with violins and violoncellos played
within the church, and the Olinda men on the outside; and rockets
were let off occasionally; indeed the confusion was extreme. Some of
the numerous horses which stood in all quarters, tied to railings or
to door posts or held by little children, whilst their masters were
amusing themselves, took fright and broke loose adding not a little to
the noise and bustle. All the affairs in and about the church ended at
so late an hour, that the _fandangos_ were deferred until the following
evening. The band had been playing close to the door of the vicar’s
residence, which was much crowded with several of the first families of
the island; and in the front of the house a great concourse of people
was assembled. At the moment that the music ceased, an _improvisatori_
or _glozador_, as these persons are there called, set up his voice, and
delivered a few verses in praise of the vicar; he then praised Our Lady
in a strange style, giving her every fine epithet whether appropriate
or not, which came to his recollection. Then he rung changes upon every
body he could think of, and I heard the name of Henrique da Costa, to
which mine was metamorphosed, thrown in every now and then among the
rest. I was praised for my superior piety, in giving so splendid a
night in honour of Our Lady. On the following morning every arrangement
was made for the _fandangos_. A spacious platform was erected, in the
middle of the area of the town, and in front of the vicar’s dwelling,
raised about three feet from the ground. In the evening four bon-fires
were lighted, two being on each side of the stage, and soon afterwards
the performers made their appearance. The story which forms the basis
of this amusement is invariably the same; the parts however, are
not written, and are to be supplied by the actors; but these, from
practice, know more or less what they are to say. The scene is a
ship at sea, which, during part of the time is sailing regularly and
gently along; but in the latter part of the voyage she is in distress.
The cause of the badness of the weather remains for a long time
unknown; but at last the persons who are on board discover that it has
arisen from the devil, who is in the ship, under the disguise of the
mizen-topmast-man. The persons represented, are
The Captain,
The Master,
The Chaplain,
The Pilot or Mate,
The Boatswain,
The _Raçam_, or distributor of the rations,} Two clowns;
The _Vasoura_, or sweeper of the decks, }
The _Gageiro da Gata_, or mizen-topmast-man, _alias_ the Devil.
Twelve men and boys, who are dancers and singers, stand on the stage,
six of them being on each side of it; and the leader of the chorus sits
at the back of the stage with a guitar, with which he keeps the time,
and this person is sometimes assisted by a second guitar player. A ship
is made for the occasion; and when the performers stepped on to the
platform, the vessel appeared at a distance under full sail, coming
towards us upon wheels, which were concealed. As soon as the ship
arrived near to the stage it stopped, and the performance commenced.
The men and boys who were to sing and to dance, were dressed in white
jackets and trowsers; they had ribbons tied round their ankles and
arms, and upon their heads they wore long paper caps, painted of
various colours. The guitar player commenced with one of the favourite
airs of the country, and the chorus followed him, dancing at the
same time. The number of voices being considerable, and the evening
extremely calm, the open air was rather advantageous than the contrary.
The scene was striking, for the bon-fires threw sufficient light to
allow of our seeing the persons of the performers distinctly; but all
beyond was dark, and they seemed to be inclosed by a spacious dome; the
crowd of persons who were near to the stage was great, and as the fires
were stirred and the flame became brighter, more persons were seen
beyond on every side; and at intervals the horses which were standing
still farther off, waiting for their masters.
When the chorus retired, the captain and other superior officers came
forwards, and a long and serious conversation ensued upon the state of
the ship and the weather. These actors were dressed in old uniforms
of the irregular troops of the country. They were succeeded by the
boatswain and the two clowns; the former gave his orders, to which the
two latter made so many objections that the officer was provoked to
strike one of them, and much coarse wit passed between the three. Soon
afterwards came the chaplain in his gown, and his breviary in his hand;
and he was as much the butt of the clowns, as they were of the rest of
the performers. The most scurrilous language was used by them to him;
he was abused, and was taxed with almost every irregularity possible.
The jokes became at last so very indecent, as to make the vicar order
his doors to be shut. The dancers came on at each change of scene, if
I may so say. I went home soon after the vicar’s doors were closed,
and did not see the conclusion; but the matter ended by throwing the
devil overboard, and reaching the port in safety. The performers do
not expect payment, but rather consider themselves complimented in
being sent for. They were tradesmen of several descriptions residing
at Pasmado, and they attend on these occasions to act the _fandangos_,
if requested so to do; but if not, many of them would most probably
go to enjoy any other sport which the festival might afford. We paid
their expences, and gave them their food during their stay; they were
accompanied by their families, which were all treated in the same
manner, to the number of about forty persons.
I here take the opportunity of mentioning another common amusement at
festivals, which is known under the name of _comedias_; but this I did
not chance to see. A stage of the same kind is erected, and regular
farces are performed; but I believe that women do not ever appear upon
these stages, though they do upon the stage of the theatre at Recife.
I slept one night at Pillar, and in the morning following accompanied
the chaplain to the fort, who was going to say Mass at his chapel, as
it was a holiday. The fort is situated upon a projecting sand-bank, and
was formerly quite surrounded by water; but the channel for small craft
which ran between the fort and the island, is now nearly closed by the
accumulation of sand at its mouth[140]. When we dismounted at the gate,
our horses were taken into the fort, and were put into the commandant’s
stable. The sentinel desired me to take off my spurs, and we then
passed through the gate, and along the covered way until we entered the
area in the centre, with the chapel and other buildings along two sides
of it. The commandant is a captain of the Olinda regiment, an elderly
and most formal man, full of etiquette; and all the other officers
are of the same standing. I was introduced to the chief, and we then
proceeded to the chapel. Forgetful of necessary forms, I had placed
myself next to the wall on the right hand side of the chapel; but the
commandant would not give up his right, and therefore reminded me to
move, that he might take that place. As soon as the Mass was ended
we took our leave. Some idea of the state of the works may be formed
from the following anecdote. A former chaplain was dismissed from
his situation owing to the non-observance on his part of established
regulations. The gate was opened for his admission, and that of any
other person who might wish to hear Mass on Sundays and holidays; but
on one occasion, he unfortunately espied the commandant standing in the
area of the fort, through a breach in the walls, upon which, instead
of going round to the gate, he rode unceremoniously through the breach
in his anxiety to greet the commandant, who was much disconcerted at
the occurrence. At the time I was there, the garrison consisted of
militia-men; and an idea of the discipline of these may be formed from
the following circumstance, which took place only a short time before
my visit to the fort. The adjutant, who was between seventy and eighty
years of age, threatened to strike or gently touched with his cane one
of the men who had refused to hear Mass; the fellow way-laid the old
officer one evening, and gave him several blows of which he died. The
soldier absconded, and was not again heard of. The guns were in a very
bad state, and the usual supply of powder was merely sufficient for the
salutes on days of gala; there were indeed some heaps of balls, upon
which the rust surpassed the quantity of sound iron.
In the course of this year some of my friends from Recife came to see
me; I had been often at Amparo, and at the houses of several other
planters; but I do not particularly mention any of these visits, for
they did not discover any thing new. I went to Recife three or four
times. After the commencement of the rains in 1815, I left Itamaraca
with Manoel about four o’clock one afternoon, having been detained thus
late by unforeseen occurrences. The weather was fine, and as the moon
would rise early, I thought that the evening would be pleasant; but
when we were about three leagues from the island, the rain began to
pour, and when we reached the plantation of Inhaman, which is half a
league farther, we were completely wet through. Immediately beyond this
place, the road is on one side bordered by a steep hill, from which the
water ran down in such great quantities, that the horses were nearly
up to their knees in it; however we gained the great cattle track, and
stopped at a liquor shop by the road-side. I bought a considerable
quantity of rum, which I threw over my head and shoulders and into my
boots, and Manoel did the same; each of us likewise drank a good dose
of it. This practice is very general; I had for some time followed
it, and although I had been much exposed to the rain in the course of
the preceding year, had not suffered from it, not having experienced
another attack of ague; but perhaps this is not attributable to
precaution, but to being seasoned to the climate.
When we arrived at the village of Paratibi, night had nearly closed
in. I met with Antonio, (the man who was way-laid when I resided at
Jaguaribe) and he wished me to stay at his cottage, but I preferred
going on, now that we were completely wet through. As we were ascending
the hill beyond Paratibi, I was in hopes of a fine night, for the moon
was clear, but she did not afford us light for many minutes. In the
valley of Merueira the rain again came on, with vivid lightning; and in
going through the wood beyond the valley, the darkness was so great,
as to prevent me from seeing Manoel’s horse, excepting now and then
during the flashes of lightning; although the animal upon which he rode
was of a grey colour, approaching to white, and mine was sometimes
touching his, for he rode in front. When we arrived near to the hill
which descends on the side nearest to Recife, I reminded him to keep to
the left, for the precipice is dangerous on the right hand side; but he
did not understand me or his horse was restive, and was going too much
to the right, when he slipped and fell on one side within a few yards
of the place which he was to avoid. I dismounted to assist Manoel, but
only saw his situation by the flashes of lightning. I asked him after
himself, his horse, and his pistol, and to each question received for
answer that all was well. I then said to him “Where is the road;” for
I had turned round in different ways so frequently in assisting him,
that I had no notion of the direction which we ought to take to find
the road; and indeed at one moment I had formed the idea of remaining
where we were until the break of day. But on again asking Manoel if
he was certain respecting the right direction, his answer was in an
angry voice, for he was wet and bruised, “I see the road, don’t be
afraid Sir.” He led, and I followed him, each leading his horse; we
descended side-ways, for the ground was too slippery owing to the rain
to allow us to advance in any other manner. My horse struck me with
his head several times, and he too every now and then narrowly escaped
falling. The width of the road is about six feet; there is on one side
a precipice of great height, which has been formed by the torrents
in the rainy season; these have caused the ground to fall in, and
have now worn it quite away; on the other side, the declivity is less
perpendicular, but it is covered with the short stumps of trees, among
which there is no possibility of treading safely without a sufficient
light. We reached the bottom without accident, and when we entered the
village of Beberibi, the rain nearly ceased, and the night likewise was
clearer, but the moon had set. We crossed the hill beyond Beberibi very
slowly, and arrived at Agua Fria, the residence of one of my friends
distant from Recife two leagues, between one and two o’clock in the
morning. If the weather had been fine, we should have arrived between
eight and nine o’clock in the evening preceding. The instinct (if I may
so call it) which is possessed by the Indians, by a great number of
the negroes, and indeed by many individuals of mixed casts in finding
out the right roads, often surprised me, but never more than on this
occasion. I could not see any thing, but Manoel certainly did feel that
he was quite sure of being in the right path, else he would not have
spoken so positively; he had a considerable stock of courage; but was
always cool and collected.
At Agua Fria I passed some of the pleasantest hours of my residence
in Brazil. The owner of the place is an English gentleman, to whom I
owe many obligations; we were on most intimate terms, indeed I felt as
much at home at Agua Fria as at Itamaraca. The spot was in the rudest
state when he took possession of it; but although the soil was not
propitious, the _sitio_ (settlement) was advancing; he had built a
good house, and was erecting out-houses, making fences, and planting
useful and ornamental trees. The place had been infested by red ants,
but with much labour they had been destroyed, by digging into the
ground for the nests. Behind the house there was a lake of considerable
extent, which had been formed by the course of a rivulet having been
stopped through the accumulation of loose white sand in the part which
is now the road; so that the road is higher than the lake on one side,
and the land along which the river formerly ran on the other side.
When the waters rise in the winter the lake overflows and runs across
the road, but during the greatest part of the year the road is dry, or
nearly so. If the lake was drained, the settlement of Agua Fria would
be worth ten times its present value, for the boundaries of it are the
channel of the rivulet. This lake is covered over with reeds, rushes
and coarse grass, and the roots of these plants have formed a thick
coating over the water, which would not support the weight of a man,
but much labour is required to cut through it.
There were numbers of _jacarès_ or alligators[141] in this lake, which
rendered it dangerous to work in cutting away the rushes, which it was
necessary to do, for the purpose of forming an open space in which the
horses could be watered and washed, and indeed the grass was eaten by
them when other kinds failed in the dry season. I may here mention some
others of the lizard tribe. The _camaleam_ (_lacerta Iguana_) is often
to be met with; also the _tijuaçu_, which is, I believe, the _lacerta
teguixin_; this is very common. There is likewise the _calango_, which
is smaller than the other two; these three species are all of them
eaten by the lower orders of people. The _vibra_ and the _lagartixa_
are two small species of lizard, which are continually to be seen in
all situations; in and upon the houses, in the gardens and in the
woods; they do good rather than harm, for they eat flies, spiders, &c.
and they are to my eyes very pretty creatures; their activity, and at
the same time their tameness, made me fond of them.
In my rides to Recife through the Merueira wood I always heard the
hoarse croaking of the _sapo cururu_ (_rana ventricosa_), and also of
the _sapo boi_ or ox-toad, both of which made a most disagreeable and
dismal noise; they were particularly active on the rainy night which
I have above described. The constant noise which the crickets make
as soon as the sun sets, fails not to annoy those persons who have
recently arrived in the country; and I recollect that on the first
evening which I spent in the country on my arrival at Pernambuco, I
stopped several times when conversing, as if waiting to let the noise
cease before I proceeded; but this wore off (as it does with every
one), and latterly I did not hear the noise even when it was spoken of
in my presence. However if one of them gets into a house, there is no
resting until it be dislodged, owing to the shrillness of its whistle.
The body of the insect is about one inch or one inch and a half in
length, and the legs are long; the whole of the insect is green. There
is another species which is distinguished by the name of _gryllo
branco_, or the white cricket; it has likewise a sharp whistle; may
not this be the same insect as the former, in a different state? There
is likewise the _gryllo de feijam_ or bean cricket, which is so called
from the destruction which it makes in the plantations of the French
bean; it is of a dusky brown colour, approaching to black.
I was invited in January 1815 to attend a christening at the sugar
plantation of Macaxeira, which is the largest and the most valuable in
every respect of the three in the island. The vicar, another priest, a
captain of the _ordenanças_, and myself, set off early on the morning
of the day appointed. We rode through the plantation of St. Joam, and
spoke to the owner, who was preparing to follow us with all his family.
He is a Portugueze who has accumulated a large fortune in Brazil, and
has married one of the daughters of the owner of the place to which we
were going. This person and his immediate relatives will in the course
of a short time probably possess one half of the island of Itamaraca.
We were received at Macaxeira by the father and uncles of the child;
and afterwards the grandmother, who is a widow lady and the owner of
the estate, made her appearance, and by degrees we saw the younger
ladies of many of the neighbouring families. As soon as the christening
was over, the day was devoted to eating and drinking and playing at
cards. When the men had left the table after dinner, the cloth was
again laid, and the ladies sat down to dine; but one of the priests
declared that this separation was barbarous, and seating himself again,
was followed by several other men, and thus they dined a second time.
The evening ended rather boisterously, but good humouredly; the wine
was poured out into tumblers, and these being as frequently emptied as
if they had been smaller, only a few of the guests returned home the
same night; but those who remained crept off early and quietly on the
following morning.
I accompanied the vicar to Pillar to pass the _intrudo_ at that place.
We set off on the Saturday afternoon, and on our arrival found that
the whole clan from Macaxeira and St. Joam had taken up their quarters
close to the house which we were to inhabit. In the evening a tight
rope dancer was to exhibit in the open air, and at the appointed hour
he took his station, and went through several of the common feats of
activity with considerable neatness. He was paid in a singular manner.
Before he began to dance, the clown cried out, “Here goes to the health
of the vicar,” then, after the performer had danced for a few minutes,
he stopped, and the clown came to our party, and with many jokes and
much pretended ignorance of the vicar’s person, he found him out and
asked for a donation, as is the custom; this being acceded to, and the
vicar having given what he thought proper, the clown returned to the
rope-dancer, upon which a shout was set up by those who were round
about him, which was intended as an acknowledgment for his generosity.
Then the clown mentioned the name of some other person, and so forth.
After the dancer had exhibited to the health of several persons, a
slack rope was hung between two coco trees and at a great height from
the ground: to this the man removed, where he continued dancing until a
late hour to the health of every one whose name his clown could think
of.
On the following day, after the service of the church was over, the
_intrudo_ jokes and tricks began, and before the conclusion of the
sport in the evening, each person had been obliged to change his
cloaths several times. The ladies joined with heart and soul, and
particularly the good old lady of Macaxeira, who was wet through and
through, and yet carried on the war. The priests were as riotous as
the rest, but their superiority of manner even here was perceivable;
their jokes were well timed, and were not accompanied by any brutality
of behaviour; there was a seeming deference in their manner, when they
were drenching the person upon whom they made an attack, and they took
care that what they threw was clean, which with others did not always
happen.
On Monday morning every one rose fresh for action, and to work we
went until three o’clock in the afternoon, scarcely affording time
for eating. We then adjourned to the sea-shore, for the purpose of
witnessing the christening of the king of the Moors. On this day all
the _jangadas_ and canoes were put in requisition; the owners of them
and others of the inhabitants of the neighbourhood were divided into
two parties, Christians and Moors. A stage was erected at low water
mark upon high poles, and this was intended to represent a Moorish
fortress; the affair was so timed that the tide should be at the
height at the commencement of the sport, by which means the stage was
surrounded by the water. Upon the sea-shore were two high thrones,
with canopies made of counterpanes, &c. These were at the distance of
about three hundred yards from each other, and were placed immediately
above high water mark. The Christian king sat upon one of them, and the
Moorish king upon the other, both of them being habited in fine flowing
robes. The affair began by the former dispatching one of his officers
on horseback to the latter, requiring him to undergo the ceremony of
baptism, which he refused to do. Several other couriers passed from
each side, all of whom were on horseback, and fantastically dressed
in loose garments. War being declared the numerous _jangadas_ and
canoes of each party were soon in motion, making towards the fortress
in the water; some were going to assist in protecting it, and others
to obtain possession of it. The persons who were in the fort were now
seen preparing for its defence; there was much firing, and at last,
after many struggles on both sides, it was taken by the Christians. The
Moorish vessels however escaped and landed their crews, the opposite
party doing the same. The armies met on shore and fought hand to hand
for a considerable time, but in the end the Moorish king was taken
prisoner, hurled from his throne, and forcibly baptised. The whole
affair was very gay, for the sands were crowded with people who were
all in their best cloaths, finery of many kinds being displayed—silks,
satins, muslins, and printed cottons; ornaments of gold and of precious
stones; bonnets of straw, and of silks, and ribbons of all colours in
great quantities; shoes, white, black, and of various tints; then there
were coats that had not for many a day seen the light; cotton and cloth
jackets made for the occasion, embroidered waistcoats, and others more
general of less costly materials; pantaloons of nankeen and of various
other light materials; cocked hats, a few of beaver and of straw, and
round ones many; half boots, and shoes and buckles.
There appeared at Pillar one of the _Valentoens_, who had often created
great disturbances in many parts, and although his apprehension was
much desired, he trod the soil of Pillar with great confidence, as if
he was aware that his person was secure owing to his great reputation
for intrepidity; but his safety proceeded from my friend of the
stockade prison not being the chief magistrate of the place for the
year. On the morrow all parties were preparing to return home; we saw
the ladies set off on horseback, and according to a strange custom, a
number of metal pans were collected, and as they went away from the
door the persons who remained beat the pans against each other, so
as to make a gingling noise. This is practised as a joke, and on this
occasion, as is usual, created much laughter.
Shortly after this period I received advices from England, which
rendered necessary my return home. I gave up my plan of residing in
Brazil with reluctance; but I am now much rejoiced that it so happened.
Yet at that time it required some resolution to leave the people,
the place, and the things in which I had taken deep interest,—my
negroes and free people,—my horses and my dogs, and even my cats
and fowls;—the house and the garden which I had been improving and
forming,—and the fields which I had cleared, and was cultivating.
All this, believe me, cost much pain in leaving; but thanks to those
who desired that it should be so. I should have soon become a Brazil
planter; the state in which a man who rules over slaves is placed, is
not likely to make him a better creature than he would under other
circumstances have been. I should perhaps shortly have been totally
unfit to become a member of any other society; my inclinations led me
to like the life which I was leading:—I was young, and was independent
and had power. Although I am fully aware of the evils which attend
a feudal state of society, I liked to have dependants. I might have
become so arbitrary, so much a lover of a half savage life; I might
have contracted so great a relish for rambling, have become so
unsettled, as to have been dissatisfied with what is rational and to be
desired in this world. Until lately I cherished the hope of being able
to return to that country, with the means of crossing the continent
of South America; but I have now given this up from unavoidable
circumstances, and even my wishes have taken another bias; but God
only knows whether it may not yet be my fate to enter into the scheme;
accident, and inclinations over which I have no controul, may so
direct. England is my country, but my native soil is Portugal; I belong
to both, and whether in the company of Englishmen, of Portugueze,
or of Brazilians, I feel equally among my countrymen. My constant
and fervent prayers are offered up for their prosperity, and for a
continuance of that friendship which has borne the test of so many
years. Fresh causes have lately occurred for rivetting the links which
bind the two united nations; their people have fought together, and
neither have been found wanting.
CHAPTER XVI.
AGRICULTURE.—SUGAR PLANTATIONS.
AGRICULTURE in Brazil[142] had not for many years, until very lately,
received any improvement; and even now it is only slowly and with much
difficulty that innovations are made. It is quite hopeless to expect
a rapid change of system among men who had not even heard that there
existed other agriculturists besides themselves; who were astonished
to learn that Brazil was not the only country in which sugar was made;
who know not, or at least did not know until very lately, that there
was any other nation than their own; who imagined that Portugal had
possession of every thing worth having in this world; in fact, whose
ignorance was extreme. Most of the planters of the inland country, and
even most of those near to the coast who reside entirely upon their
estates, were, and many still are, in this state. They continue year
after year the system which was followed by their fathers, without any
wish to improve, and indeed without the knowledge that any improvement
could be made. But the freedom of commercial intercourse with other
nations has here, as in every thing else, had its effect, and the
benefits which are derived from this policy are increasing most
rapidly. One of these is to be perceived in the wish which many of the
planters display to obtain information respecting the management of the
British and French plantations in the Columbian islands. The persons
who thus in enriching themselves, are likewise doing the greatest good
to their country, are the proprietors of sugar-mills, who reside in
Recife altogether or who make frequent visits to it; these men enter
into company, hear what is going on in the world, read the few books
which are to be obtained, and soon assent to new ideas. Many of the
merchants now possess this kind of property, which has fallen into
their hands, either in payment of debts or by purchase; and these
men have no prejudices to conquer respecting any particular plan of
operations. Some of the improvements which are proposed are of such
self-evident utility, as to carry with them conviction as soon as they
are mentioned.
[Illustration: _A Sugar Mill._]
PLANTING THE SUGAR-CANE.
THE lands in Brazil are never grubbed up[143], either for planting the
sugar-cane, or for any other agricultural purposes. The inconveniences
of this custom are perceivable more particularly in high lands; because
all of these that are of any value are naturally covered with thick
woods. The cane is planted among the numerous stumps of trees, by
which means much ground is lost, and as the sprouts from these stumps
almost immediately spring forth, (such is the rapidity of vegetation,)
the cleanings are rendered very laborious. These shoots require to be
cut down, sometimes even before the cane has forced its way to the
surface of the ground. The labour likewise is great every time a piece
of land is to be put under cultivation, for the wood must be cut down
afresh; and although it cannot have reached the same size which the
original timber had attained, still, as several years are allowed to
pass between each period at which the ground is planted, the trees
are generally of considerable thickness[144]. The wood is suffered
to remain upon the land until the leaves become dry; then it is set
on fire, and these are destroyed with the brushwood and the smaller
branches of the trees. Heaps are now made of the remaining timber,
which is likewise burnt. This process is universally practised in
preparing land for the cultivation of any plant. I have often heard
the method much censured as being injurious in the main to the soil,
though the crop immediately succeeding the operation may be rendered
more luxuriant by it. I have observed that the canes which grew upon
the spots where the heaps of timber and large branches of trees had
been burnt, were of a darker and richer green than those around them,
and that they likewise over-topped them. After the plant-canes or those
of the first year’s growth are taken from the lands, the field-trash,
that is the dried leaves and stems of the canes which remain upon
the ground, are set fire to, with the idea that the ratoons, that is
the sprouts from the old roots of the canes, spring forth with more
luxuriance, and attain a greater size by means of this practice[145].
The ratoons of the first year are called in Brazil _socas_; those of
the second year, _resocas_; those of the third year, _terceiras socas_,
and so forth. After the roots are left unencumbered by burning the
field-trash, the mould is raised round about them; indeed if this was
neglected, many of these roots would remain too much exposed to the
heat of the sun, and would not continue to vegetate. Some lands will
continue to give ratoons for five or even seven years; but an average
may be made at one crop of good ratoons fit for grinding, another of
inferior ratoons for planting or for making molasses to be used in the
still-house, and a third which affords but a trifling profit, in return
for the trouble which the cleanings give.[146]
I have above spoken more particularly of high lands; the low and
marshy grounds, called in Brazil _varzeas_, are however those which
are the best adapted to the cane, and indeed upon the plantations that
do not possess some portion of this description of soil, the crops are
very unequal, and sometimes almost entirely fail, according to the
greater or less quantity of rain which may chance to fall in the course
of the year. The _varzeas_ are usually covered with short and close
brushwood, and as these admit, from their rank nature, of frequent
cultivation, they soon become easy to work. The soil of these, when it
is new, receives the name of _pàûl_; it trembles under the pressure of
the feet, and easily admits of a pointed stick being thrust into it;
and though dry to appearance, it requires draining. The _maçapé_ marle
is often to be met with in all situations; it is of a greenish white
colour, and if at all wet, it sticks very much to the hoe; it becomes
soon dry at the surface, but the canes which have been planted upon it
seldom fail to revive after rain, even though a want of it should have
been much felt. The white marle, _barro branco_, is less frequently
found; it is accounted extremely productive. This clay is used in
making bricks and coarse earthen ware, and also for claying the sugar.
Red earth is occasionally met with upon the sides of hills near to the
coast; but this description of soil belongs properly to the cotton
districts. Black mould is common; and likewise a loose and brownish
soil, in which a less or greater proportion of sand is intermixed. It
is, I believe, generally acknowledged that no land can be too rich for
the growth of the sugar cane. One disadvantage, however, attends soil
that is low and quite new, which is, that the canes run up to a great
height without sufficient thickness, and are thus often lodged before
the season for cutting them arrives. I have seen rice planted upon
lands of this kind on the first year, to decrease their rankness and
render them better adapted to the cane on the succeeding season.[147]
Some attempts have been made to plant cane upon the lands which reach
down to the edge of the mangroves, and in a few instances pieces of
land, heretofore covered by the salt water at the flow of the tide,
have been laid dry by means of draining for the same purpose; but the
desired success has not attended the plan, for the canes have been
found to be unfit for making sugar; the syrup does not coagulate, or
at least does not attain that consistence which is requisite, and
therefore it can only be used for the distilleries.[148]
The general mode of preparing the land for the cane is by holing it
with hoes. The negroes stand in a row, and each man strikes his hoe
into the ground immediately before him, and forms a trench of five or
six inches in depth; he then falls back, the whole row doing the same,
and they continue this operation from one side of the cleared land to
the other, or from the top of a hill to the bottom. The earth which
is thrown out of the trench remains on the lower side of it. In the
British colonies this work is done in a manner nearly similar, but
more systematically[149]. The lands in Brazil are not measured, and
every thing is done by the eye. The quantity of cane which a piece of
land will require for planting is estimated by so many cart loads; and
nothing can be more vague than this mode of computation, for the load
which a cart can carry depends upon the condition of the oxen, upon
the nature of the road, and upon the length of the cane. Such is the
awkward make of these vehicles that much nicety is necessary in packing
them, and if two canes will about fit into a cart lengthways, much
more will be conveyed than if the canes are longer and they double over
each other.
The plough is sometimes used in low lands, upon which draining has
not been found necessary; but such is the clumsy construction of the
machine of which they make use, that six oxen are yoked to it[150].
Upon high lands the stumps of the trees almost preclude the possibility
of thus relieving the labourers.
The trenches being prepared, the cuttings are laid longitudinally in
the bottom of them, and are covered with the greatest part of the
mould which had been taken out of the trench. The shoots begin to rise
above the surface of the ground in the course of twelve or fourteen
days. The canes undergo three cleanings from the weeds and the sprouts
proceeding from the stumps of the trees; and when the land is poor, and
produces a greater quantity of the former and contains fewer of the
latter, the canes require to be cleaned a fourth time. The cuttings
are usually from twelve to eighteen inches in length, but it is judged
that the shorter they are, the better. If they are short, and one piece
of cane rots, the space which remains vacant is not so large as when
the cuttings are long, and they by any accident fail. The canes which
are used for planting are generally ratoons, if any exist upon the
plantation, but if there are none of these, the inferior plant canes
supply their places. It is accounted more economical to make use of
the ratoons for this purpose, and many persons say that they are less
liable to rot than the plant canes. In the British sugar islands the
cuttings for planting “are commonly the tops of the canes which have
been ground for sugar[151].” But in Brazil the tops of the canes are
all thrown to the cattle, for there is usually a want of grass during
the season that the mills are at work[152]. In the British colonies,
the canes are at first covered with only a small portion of mould; and
yet they are as long in forcing their way to the surface as in Brazil,
though in the latter a more considerable quantity of earth is laid
upon them. I suppose that the superior fatness of the Brazilian soil
accounts for this. Upon rich soils the cuttings are laid at a greater
distance, and the trenches are dug farther from each other, than upon
those which have undergone more frequent cultivation, or which are
known to possess less power from their natural composition. The canes
which are planted upon the former throw out great numbers of sprouts,
which spread each way; and although when they are young the land may
appear to promise but a scanty crop, they soon close, and no opening is
to be seen. It is often judged proper to thin the canes, by removing
some of the suckers at the time that the last cleaning is given, and
some persons recommend that a portion of the dry leaves should also be
stripped off at the same period, but on other plantations this is not
practised.
The proper season for planting is from the middle of July to the
middle of September, upon high lands, and from September to the middle
of November in low lands. Occasionally the great moisture of the
soil induces the planter to continue his work until the beginning of
December, if his people are sufficiently numerous to answer all the
necessary purposes. The first of the canes are ready to be cut for
the mill in September of the following year, and the crop is finished
usually in January or February. In the British sugar islands the canes
are planted from August to November and are “ripe for the mill in the
beginning of the second year.” Thus this plant in Brazil requires from
thirteen to fifteen months to attain its proper state for the mill;
and in the Columbian islands it remains standing sixteen or seventeen
months.[153]
I did not discover, nor hear it mentioned, that the cane is liable to
destruction from the _blast_, which is spoken of by Mr. Edwards, as
doing much injury to the plantations in the British colonies. The cane
is subject certainly to several pests, but they are of a nature which
may be remedied. The rats destroy great quantities[154], and the fox is
no less fond of it; and when he gets among it he makes dreadful havock,
for he is only satisfied by cutting down great numbers of canes, taking
only a small portion of each. There is also a strange custom among the
lower orders of people; they scruple not in passing a field, to cut
down and make a bundle of ten or a dozen canes, from which they suck
the juice as they go along, or preserve some of them to carry home. The
devastation which is committed in this manner is incalculable, in the
fields that border upon much frequented paths. It is a custom; and
many persons think that the owner has scarcely a right to prevent these
attacks upon his property.
The planters of Brazil have not yet arrived at the period (which is not
however far distant) of being under the necessity of manuring their
lands. I heard of very few instances in which this is the practice. The
cane-trash, that is, the rind of the cane from which the juice has been
extracted, is thus entirely lost, with the exception of the small part
of it which is eaten by the cattle. The manure of cattle is likewise of
no use. Lands are not yet of sufficient value to oblige each planter to
confine himself to certain pieces of ground for certain purposes, with
any sort of regularity. The population of the country is yet too scanty
to make every man husband what he possesses, or to oblige him to draw
in and give room for others, as, imperceptibly, these others require
that he should do so. For the present, the planter finds that it is
more convenient to change from one piece of land to another, as each
becomes unfit to be cultivated; he allows the wood to grow up again as
soon as the ratoons no longer spring forth and yield him a sufficient
profit to compensate for the trouble of cleaning them.
The Otaheitan or the Bourbon cane has been brought from Cayenne
to Pernambuco, since the Portugueze obtained possession of that
settlement. I believe the two species of cane are much alike, and I
have not been able to discover which of them it is. Its advantages are
so apparent, that after one trial on each estate, it has superseded
the small cane which was in general use. The Cayenne cane, as it is
called in Pernambuco, is of a much larger size than the common cane; it
branches so very greatly, that the labour in planting a piece of land
is much decreased, and the returns from it are at the same time much
more considerable. It is not planted in trenches, but holes are dug at
equal distances from each other, in which the cuttings are laid. This
cane bears the dry weather better than the small cane; and when the
leaves of the latter begin to turn brown, those of the former still
preserve their natural colour. A planter in the Varzea told me that
he had obtained four crops from one piece of land in three years, and
that the soil in question had been considered by him as nearly worn
out, before he planted the Cayenne cane upon it. Its rind is likewise
so hard that the fox cannot make any impression upon it. The business
of the boiling-houses is in general so slovenly performed, that I
could not obtain any exact information respecting the returns in the
manufacturing of it; but most persons were of opinion that here too
some advantage was to be perceived.
THE MILL.
A sugar-plantation is doubtless one of the most difficult species
of property to manage in a proper manner. The numerous persons
employed upon it, their divers avocations, and the continual change
of occupation, give to the owner or his manager constant motives for
exertion, innumerable opportunities of displaying his activity. A
plantation ought to possess within itself all the tradesmen which are
required for the proper furtherance of its concerns; a carpenter, a
blacksmith, a mason, a potter, and others which it is needless to name
in this place. It is a manufactory as well as a farm, and both these
united must act in unison with each other, and with the seasons of the
year.
The mill ought, properly, to commence grinding the cane in September,
but few of them begin until the middle of October; for the planting
scarcely allows that they should set to work before the latter period.
This is the time of merriment and of willing exertion, and for some
weeks the negroes are all life and spirit; but the continuance of
constant work for the whole of the day and part of the night at last
fatigues them, and they become heavy and fall asleep wherever they
chance to lay their heads.[155]
The mills for grinding the canes are formed of three upright rollers,
which are made of solid timber, entirely cased or rather hooped in
iron, and the hoops are driven on to the wood before they become quite
cool[156]. The improvement of the “circular piece of frame-work called
in Jamaica the dumb-returner” has not been introduced. Two men and
two women are employed in feeding the mill with cane; a bundle of it
is thrust in between the middle roller and one of the side rollers,
and being received by one of the women, she passes it to the man who
stands-close to her, for the purpose of being by him thrust between
the other side roller and that of the centre. This operation is
continued five or six times until the juice has been extracted. There
appears to be some mismanagement in this part of the work; for in the
British colonies a second compression “squeezes them completely dry,
and sometimes even reduces them to powder;” and the same occurred
in Labat’s time in the French islands. The dumb-returner tends very
greatly to prevent accidents, which occasionally occur in Brazil
through the carelessness or drowsiness of the slaves. The negroes who
thrust the cane in between the rollers have sometimes allowed their
hands to go too far, and one or both of them having been caught, in
some instances, before assistance could be given, the whole limb and
even the body has been crushed to pieces. In the mills belonging to
owners who pay attention to the safety of their negroes, and whose
wish it is to have every thing in proper order, a bar of iron and a
hammer are placed close to the rollers upon the table (_meza_) which
supports the cane. The bar is intended to be violently inserted between
the rollers in case of accident, so as to open them, and thus set at
liberty the unfortunate negro. In some instances I have seen lying
by the side of the bar and hammer, a well-tempered hatchet, for the
purpose of severing the limb from the body, if judged necessary[157].
On these unfortunate occasions the screams of the negro have the
effect of urging the horses which draw the mill, to run with increased
velocity. I am acquainted with two or three individuals who now work
their mills with oxen; and they gave as the principal reason for this
change, the decrease of danger to the negroes who feed the mill;
because such is the slowness of these animals, that an accident of the
above description can scarcely happen, and indeed they are stopped
rather than urged to proceed by noise. Some of the mills are turned
by water, but many more would admit of this improvement than take
advantage of it. Most of the mills are worked by horses. There are no
windmills in Pernambuco or in the other provinces which I visited[158].
The expence which is incurred in making dams and in other alterations,
is doubtless considerable, and few persons can afford to lay out the
money which these works require; but the conveniences of working by
means of water are various; the number of animals required upon a
plantation is reduced to less than one half; less pasture land is
necessary, and fewer persons need to be employed. The animals likewise
which are thus rendered superfluous are those which are of the most
cost, the most liable to disease, and the most difficult to feed. Great
care and attention is requisite in preserving the horses, or rather the
mares (for these are mostly employed in this description of work) in a
condition to go through with the crop; and quantities of cane are cut
up and given to them, as well as molasses. Oxen are usually employed
in drawing the carts, and it is seldom thought necessary to afford any
expensive food to these animals. They pick up as much as they please of
the cane-trash which is thrown out of the mill, and the cane tops are
likewise given to them.
THE BOILING-HOUSE.
IN the boiling-house the manufactory of sugar in Brazil requires
great alteration. The work is done in a slovenly manner, very little
attention being paid to the minutiæ of the business. The ovens over
which the boilers are placed, are rudely made, and they answer the
purpose for which they are intended in an imperfect manner; enormous
quantities of fuel are consumed, and the negroes who attend to the
ovens are soon worn out. The juice runs from the cane as it is squeezed
between the rollers, into a wooden trough below, and is from thence
conveyed into a cistern made of the same material, standing in the
boiling house. It is received from this cistern into the great caldron,
as it is called, which is a large iron or copper vessel. The caldron
has previously been heated, and when nearly full, the _temper_ is
thrown into it, and the liquor is suffered to boil. It is now scummed
with considerable labour. The work of scumming is usually performed by
free persons, which is owing to two causes; it demands considerable
skill, to which slaves seldom attain; and the exertion which it
requires induces the planter to pay a free man rather than injure one
of his own people.
From this first caldron or clarifier, if I may so call it, the liquor
is ladled out into a long trough or cistern, which is generally made
of the trunk of one tree; and in this it remains until it becomes
tepid[159]. The labour which the operation of ladling requires is
excessive, the heat and smoke of a boiling-house in a tropical climate
increasing greatly the violence of the exertion. From this trough
which holds the whole of the contents of the great caldron, the liquor
when sufficiently cool is suffered to run into the first copper, and
from this it is removed into a second and a third copper, and some
boiling-houses contain a fourth. From this it is ladled into large
jars, called _formas_, when the master of the boiling-house judges from
the touch that the syrup has arrived at a proper consistence. The jars
are afterwards taken into the adjoining building, in which the sugar is
to undergo the process of claying. The sugar, after being clayed, is
invariably dried in the sun[160]. The management of the boiling-houses
in the British sugar islands is arranged in such a manner as to
render the labour much less violent, and much greater nicety has been
introduced in the preparation of the juice.
The boilers are fixed at a considerable height over the large ovens
within which the fire is made. Each boiling-house has two ovens, one
for heating the caldron and the other for the three or four coppers.
The mouths of these are about half as broad as the ovens themselves.
Enormous rolls of timber and the branches of trees are prepared for
the purpose of supplying these ovens with fuel. The negroes sometimes
find it almost impossible to approach them, owing to the excessive heat
which they throw out[161]. The manner of conducting the manufacture
of sugar was, from what I can collect, very similar on the whole, in
the Columbian islands about the beginning of the last century, to that
which is practised at present in the parts of Brazil which I visited.
The _temper_ which is usually made use of is the ashes of wood
calcinated, of which there are certain species preferred for this
purpose[162]. Lime is commonly used in the Columbian islands, and
few planters of Pernambuco have lately introduced this alkali into
their boiling houses, but there exists a general prejudice against
lime, under the idea that the sugar with which it has been made is
unwholesome; and this has prevented many persons from adopting it.
No difficulty would be found in introducing it, among the planters
themselves, because the ease with which it is obtained, would soon urge
them to give it a fair trial. Some plantations sell a great portion of
their sugar and rum upon the spot, and several of the lesser ones grind
all their canes for the purpose of making melasses, which they distil
themselves, or sell to the distillers of small capital, who are very
numerous; therefore to the owners of these plantations in particular,
the opinion of the people of the country is of considerable moment.
The planters of Brazil invariably follow the system of claying their
sugars, but the process is too generally known to require any account
of it in this place.
THE STILL-HOUSE.
THE Brazil planters are more backward in the management of their
still-houses than in any other department of their business. The stills
are earthen jars with small necks, and likewise small at the bottom,
widening upwards considerably, but again straightening on approaching
the neck. The foundation of a circular oven is formed, and two of
these jars are placed within it, one on each side of it, in a slanting
position, with the bottom within the oven and the neck on the outside,
and being thus secured the walls of the oven are built up against them,
and the top is closed in. These stills have round caps, _carapuças_,
which fit on to the mouths of the jars, and are rendered perfectly
tight by a coat of clay being daubed round the edges, after the _wash_
has been put into the still and the fire has been lighted underneath.
These caps have on one side a pipe of six inches in length attached
to each of them, and into this is inserted the end of a brass tube of
four feet in length. This tube is placed in a broad and deep earthen
pot or jar containing cold water, and the opposite end of it reaches
beyond the pot. The tube is fixed with a sufficient slant to allow of
the liquor running freely through it. The liquor which is obtained from
the first distillation is usually sold, without undergoing any further
process. A second distillation is only practised in preparing a small
quantity for the use of the planter’s house.
The _wash_ ripens for distillation in earthen jars similar to those
which are used for claying sugar, but they are closed at the bottom
instead of being perforated, as must necessarily occur with the latter.
No exact rules are followed in the quantities of each ingredient for
making the _wash_, because the distillers, who are usually freemen,
differ much in the proportions of each ingredient. Until lately, only
a small number of the planters had any apparatus for distilling, for
it was their practice to sell all the melasses which were produced
to the small distillers. Many of the persons in the lower ranks of
life possess one or two of these rude stills, by which they derive a
small profit without much trouble; fuel is to be had for the pains
of fetching it, and scarcely any man is without a horse. The women
often attend to the still whilst the men are otherwise employed.
However, since the opening of the ports of Brazil to foreign trade,
a considerable quantity of rum has been exported to North America,
and likewise the demand of it for Lisbon has been greater than it was
formerly; the price has consequently risen, and has induced many of
the planters to distil their own melasses. But although this plan has
been adopted, the stills are so totally inadequate to the distillation
of large quantities of rum, that few persons erect a sufficient number
of them to consume the whole of the melasses with which the sugar
furnishes them.[163]
LANDS.
A SUGAR plantation of Pernambuco or Paraiba does not require the
enormous capital which is necessary in purchasing and establishing
an estate of the same description in the Columbian islands; but a
certain degree of capital is requisite, otherwise continual distress
will be the consequence of entering into such a concern. The instances
of persons having purchased sugar plantations without any advance of
money are however by no means rare, and even the slaves, or at least
the major part of them, have sometimes been obtained on long credit
at exorbitant prices. This plan was of more frequent occurrence at
the time that the exclusive trading company existed at Pernambuco;
its directors found that it was for the interest of those concerned
to advance every thing which the agriculturist required, receiving in
payment a certain portion of his produce yearly. Although the company
has for many years been abolished, its accounts have not yet been
wound up, and it is astonishing to learn how considerable a number of
plantations are yet indebted to it. The reputed owners of many of those
which are so circumstanced have oftentimes given to their predecessors
only half the purchase-money; paying interest to the accountant of the
company for the other half. If they can raise a sufficient sum of money
for the purpose, they may strike off the principal of the debt, but if
this is not practicable, they remain in perfect confidence that they
will never be molested for it, provided the interest is paid.
There are a few _morgados_ or entailed estates in Pernambuco, and I
believe in Paraiba likewise; and I have heard that in Bahia there
are a great many. There are also _capellados_ or chapel lands; these
estates cannot be sold, and from this cause are sometimes suffered to
decay, or at any rate they yield much less profit to the State than
they would under other circumstances. The _capellado_ is formed in
this manner: the owner bequeaths a certain part of the produce or rent
of the estate to some particular church, for the purpose of having
masses said for his own soul, or for pious uses of a less selfish
nature. On this account the estate cannot, according to law, be sold,
so that if the next heir is not rich enough to work the mill himself,
he lets it to some one who possesses a sufficient number of negroes.
The portion which is due to the favoured church being paid, the owner
then remains with the residue of the rent as his share of the profit.
Now, lands even with buildings upon them, are let at so low a rate,
that after the church is paid, and the tenant has deducted what he
has expended in repairing the edifices of the plantation, but a poor
pittance remains for the owner. The _engenho_ of Catû near to Goiana is
placed in these circumstances; the owner lives in the neighbourhood of
the Great House or principal residence, and the only advantage which
he derives from the possession of this most excellent and extensive
estate, is that of residing rent free upon one corner of it and now
and then receiving a trifling sum of money. Whereas if it could be
sold, he would immediately receive a sufficient sum to place him in
easy circumstances; and the estate would undergo improvement, for the
occupier would then have a direct interest in its advancement. I might
mention several other plantations which are situated in a like manner.
The property of sugar planters, which is directly applied to the
improvement, or to the usual work of their plantations, is not subject
to be seized for debt; this privilege was granted for the encouragement
of the formation of such establishments, but it may have a contrary
effect. The planter is allowed many means of evading the demands of
his creditors, and every thing is permitted to act in his favour. But
thus it is that the government legislates; the revenue is thought of,
instead of equity being regarded as the primary consideration. Nor does
the plan act in the manner which the establishers of it imagine that
it will, for the estates which are labouring under the disadvantage
of being held by men who require such a law as this to enable them to
keep possession of the property would doubtless, nine times out of ten,
yield a greater profit if they passed into other hands; they could not
be in worse, and they might fall into better. The government need not
fear that good estates will, in the present state of Brazil, remain
long untenanted. Besides, the rulers of that kingdom may be very sure
that the merchants will be more careful how they lend their money;
and this may sometimes prevent an honest man from obtaining what he
requires for the due advancement of his labours.[164]
Most of the plantations of the first class are however in the hands of
wealthy persons, and this is becoming more and more the case every day.
The estates which may be said to constitute this class are those which
are situated near to the sea coast, that is, from two to sixteen miles
from it; which possess a considerable portion of low land adapted to
the planting of the sugar-cane,—another of virgin wood,—good pasture
land, (for nature must do every thing) and the possibility of being
worked by water. The rains are more regular near to the coast than at
a distance from it, and the facility of conveying the produce of the
estate down some of the small streams or creeks to a market, are the
particular advantages which are derived from the vicinity of the sea.
The slaves are fed with more ease, and less expence, and the quantity
of food which they themselves have the means of obtaining from the
sea and from the rivulets, enables them to be less dependent upon the
rations of the master than the slaves of the Mata or districts between
the coast and the Sertam. In a country that is without roads, upon
which a wheeled carriage can be drawn with any degree of regularity
of pace or of safety, the difficulty of removing the large chests in
which the sugar is packed, is a most serious consideration, and this
inconvenience alone decreases the value of lands, however productive
they may be, which are so situated. If a person wishes to purchase
property of this description, he will discover that the plantations
which are conveniently placed, are only to be obtained at high
comparative prices, and by a considerable advance of money; but many of
those in the Mata may be purchased even without any advance, and under
the agreement of small yearly payments of eight to ten _per cent._ upon
the price.
The lands of sugar plantations are appropriated to five purposes. These
are; the woods,—the lands for planting canes,—those which are cleared
for pasturage,—the provision grounds for the negroes,—and the lands
which are occupied by free people.
The woods occupy a very considerable portion of the lands belonging
to a plantation; in most cases much more than half the estate is yet
covered with wood, but still I do not think, from what I saw and heard,
that these forests contain so much fine timber as has been imagined.
A tree of any species of valuable timber must now be purchased. Very
little consideration is given to the quantity of wood that is destroyed
in the work of a plantation, in many cases very unnecessarily. The
fences are made of stakes, which are formed of the trunks of trees,
driven into the ground, and to these are fastened horizontally the
stems of younger plants. The best timber, rather than that of inferior
quality, is selected for this purpose, that it may last the longer
under exposure to the heat of the sun and to the rains. The fuel,
likewise, is another most enormous source of destruction; and although
for this purpose some selection might be made of the qualities of
timber which are less valuable, no thought is given to the matter. The
havock which is committed in bringing out of the woods a tree that has
been felled for any particular purpose is likewise immense; for many
trees are cut down to make a path from the usual road to the spot upon
which the tree which is to be brought out is laying, that the oxen may
enter to convey it away. It will be said, that the great object is to
get rid of the superabundant quantities of wood, and this is no doubt
the case; but according to the present system, very little land is
radically cleared of wood, and yet the large and valuable timber is
undergoing rapid destruction. Virgin woods however certainly do yet
exist to a great extent. It is said that those of Apepucos, which is
near to Recife, are connected with the woods in the neighbourhood of
Goiana, a distance of fifteen leagues.
Of the lands for planting canes I have already treated.
Each sugar plantation has one large field in which the buildings are
placed. It is very rarely that estates are supplied with a second
inclosure, consequently the cattle, or at least that part of it which
is required after and before crop time for the work which is necessary
to be done during the whole of the year, always remains upon the spot.
These fields are sometimes of considerable extent; I have seen some of
three miles in circumference, or even of more. Few owners of estates
can manage to preserve the field free from brushwood. The horses
which work the mill are usually removed from the plantation as soon
as the crop is finished, and are often sent to the Sertam to pass the
winter, and they return again just before crop-time on the following
year. Indeed such is the importance of having good pasturage for these
animals between the crops, and the advantage of allowing some of them
to rest two years, that every plantation should have a cattle estate
in the interior of the country, as a necessary appendage. The oxen are
often driven to the sea shore after the crop is over, if the estate is
conveniently situated for this purpose, and are left to graze under the
coco-trees until the following season. But they are fond of the young
coco-plants, and therefore it is not in every situation that this can
be done.
As the planters commonly feed their slaves, instead of allowing them a
certain portion of each week for the purpose of supplying themselves,
the lands which are set apart for raising their provisions are of great
importance, for it does not answer to the planter to purchase the
vegetable part of the food. The root of the mandioc and the kidney-bean
are the two plants which are chiefly cultivated; of the first of these
I shall soon treat more at large. Maize is not much used in this part
of the country.
An estate contains in general much more land than its owner can manage
or in any way employ, even under the present extravagant system of
changing from one piece of ground to another. I call it extravagant,
because it requires so much space for its operations, and performs
these with more labour than is necessary. This overplus of land gives
room for the habitations of free people in the lower ranks of life, who
live upon the produce which they raise by their own labour. The tenures
by which these persons hold the lands which they occupy, are most
insecure, and this insecurity constitutes one of the great engines of
that power which the landholder enjoys over his tenants. No agreements
are drawn out; but the proprietor of the land verbally permits the
peasant who applies to him for a place of residence, to inhabit a
cottage upon his lands, under the condition of paying him a trifling
rent (from four to eight mil reis, one to two guineas or rather more;)
and he is allowed to cultivate as much ground as he possibly can by
himself, but the rent is increased if he calls in any one to assist
him. Sometimes the verbal arrangement which is entered into, is that
the tenant shall perform some service in lieu of making his payment
in money. The service required is, for instance, that of going upon
errands, or of seeing that the woods are not destroyed by persons who
have not obtained permission from the owner to cut down timber, and
other offices of the same description.
THE BUILDINGS.
THE buildings which are usually to be seen upon the plantations are the
following:
The mill; which is either turned by water or by cattle; some of the
plantations possess both of these, owing to the failure of the water in
the dry season; and indeed there are a few estates upon which the crops
are so large as to require that there should be both.
The boiling-house; which is usually attached to the mill, and is
the most costly part of the apparatus, for the coppers, &c. must be
obtained from Europe.
The claying-house or _caza de purgar_; which is oftentimes connected
with the boiling-house. It is also generally made use of as the
still-house or distillery.
The chapel; which is usually of considerable dimensions. This building
and all the foregoing are almost universally constructed of brick.
The dwelling-house for the owner or manager; to this is usually
attached a stable for the saddle-horses; the dwelling-houses are
frequently made of timber and mud.
The row of negro dwellings; which I have described in another place as
looking like neglected alms-houses in England, and is made of the same
materials as the house of the owner. From the appearance of the negro
huts an idea may usually be formed of the disposition of the owner of a
plantation. All these buildings are covered with tiles.
The estates have no regular hospital for the sick negroes; but one
of the houses of the row is oftentimes set apart for this purpose.
The stocks in which disorderly slaves are placed, stand in the
claying-house.
STOCK.
OF those estates which I have seen, I think that the average number
of negroes sent to daily labour in the field does not reach forty
for each; for although there may be upon a plantation this number of
males and females of a proper age for working, still some of them will
always be sick or employed upon errands, not directly conducive to the
advancement of the regular work. An estate which possesses forty able
negroes, males and females, an equal number of oxen[165], and the same
of horses, can be very well worked; and if the lands are good, that
is, if there is a fair proportion of low and high lands fit for the
culture of the sugar-cane, such an estate ought to produce a number
of chests of sugar of fifteen hundred weight each, equal to that of
the able slaves. I speak of forty slaves being sufficient, because
some descriptions of work are oftentimes performed by freemen; thus,
for instance, the sugar boilers, the person who clays the sugar, the
distiller, the cartmen, and even some others are very frequently free.
Only a very small proportion of the sugar will be muscavado, if the
business is conducted with any degree of management. I have heard it
said by many planters that the melasses will pay almost every expence;
and that if rum is made, the proceeds of the melasses are rendered
fully equal to the usual yearly expenditure.
The negroes may be valued at 32_l._ each; oxen at 3_l._ each; and
horses at the same; but by management the two last may be obtained at
lower prices. A sugar plantation of the first class, with suitable
buildings, may be reckoned as being worth from 7000_l._ to 8000_l._
and some few are valued as high as 10,000_l._; but an advance of
one-sixth of the price would probably be accepted, the remainder to be
paid by yearly instalments. The inland plantations may be reckoned at
from 3000_l._ to 5000_l._ and a few are rather higher; but a smaller
advance would be required than upon the purchase of prime plantations,
and the instalments would be more moderate. Plantations of the first
class ought to have eighty negroes at least, and an increased number of
animals, owing to their capability of employing more hands.[166]
The only carts which are used upon the plantations are very clumsily
made; a flat surface or table (_meza_) made of thick and heavy timber,
of about two feet and a half broad, and six feet in length, is fixed
upon two wheels of solid timber, with a moveable axle-tree; a pole is
likewise fixed to the cart. These vehicles are always drawn by four
oxen or more, and as they are narrow, and the roads upon which they
must travel are bad, they are continually overturning. The negroes who
drive the carts have generally some indulgencies, with which their
fellow-slaves are not favoured, from the greater labour which this
business requires, and from the continual difficulty and danger to
which they are exposed, owing to the overturning of the carts and the
unruliness of the oxen. In the whole management of the concerns of a
plantation, the want of mechanical assistance to decrease the labour
of the workmen must strike every person who is in the habit of seeing
them, and of paying any attention to the subject. I will mention one
instance; when bricks or tiles are to be removed from one place to
another, the whole gang of negroes belonging to the estate is employed
in carrying them; each man takes three or perhaps four bricks or tiles
upon his head, and marches off gently and quietly; he lays them down
where he is desired so to do, and again returns for three or four more.
Thus thirty persons sometimes pass the whole day in doing the same
quantity of work that two men with wheel-barrows would have performed
with equal ease in the same space of time.
CHAPTER XVII.
AGRICULTURE.—COTTON.
THIS most valuable plant has now become of more importance to
Pernambuco even than the sugar-cane, owing to the great demand for the
cotton of that province, and of those adjoining to it, in the British
markets. New establishments are forming yearly for the cultivation
of the cotton plant, notwithstanding the great inconveniences which
must often be experienced in accomplishing this object. The districts
which are chosen for the purpose, and universally allowed to be the
best adapted to its growth, are far removed from the sea coast, arid
and oftentimes very scantily supplied with fresh water. Absolute
distress is felt from a want of water in some of these situations, at
the time that other parts of the country are enjoying perfect ease in
this respect. The opinion is very general that the cotton plant will
not thrive in the neighbourhood of the coast[167], and that frequent
changes of weather are injurrious to it. The dry and wet seasons are
doubtless more regularly marked at a distance from the sea, and if any
variation is felt in such situations, it is from a want of rain, and
not from a superabundance of it. The cotton plant requires that a great
portion of the year should be dry; for if much rain falls when the pod
is open, the wool is lost; it becomes yellow, decays, and is rendered
completely unfit for use. The soil which is preferred for its culture
is a deep red earth, with veins of yellow occasionally running through
it; this becomes extremely hard, after a long interval without rain.
The cotton plantations are yearly receding farther into the interior,
where-ever the Sertam plains do not prevent this recession. The
plantations of this description which were formerly established nearer
to the coast, are now employed in the rearing of other plants. The
constant supply of new lands which the cotton plant requires, for it
is judged necessary to allow the land to rest for several years before
it undergoes cultivation a second time, may in some degree account for
this. Perhaps too, the rapid increase of the population upon the coast
may have had some effect in forcing back those who plant an article of
trade, to give place to others who cultivate the necessary food for the
inhabitants of the country. The cotton is often sold by the planter in
_caroço_, that is, before it has been separated from the seed, to other
persons whose livelihood is obtained in preparing it for the export
market; but as the labour of conveyance is, of course, considerably
increased whilst it is in this state, the dealers establish themselves
near to the plantations; they recede as the planters recede. Some years
ago a number of the machines for separating the cotton from the seed
were to be seen within two leagues of Recife; a few years after they
were removed to Goiana, and now the principal resorts of the dealers
are Limoeiro and Bom Jardim; places, as will have been seen, which are
several leagues distant from the coast.
The lands are cleared for planting cotton in the usual manner,—by
cutting down the trees and burning them; and the holes for the seeds
are dug in quadrangular form at the distance of six feet from each
other. Three seeds are usually put into each hole; in the British
colonies, it is found necessary to make use of eight or ten seeds.
The time for planting is in January, after the _primeiras aguas_ or
first waters; or at any rate as soon in the year as any rain has
fallen. Maize is usually planted among the cotton shrubs. Three crops
and sometimes four are obtained from the same plants; but the second
crop is that which generally produces the finest wool. The shrub
has a pleasing appearance whilst it is in full leaf, and is covered
with its most beautiful yellow blossoms; but when the pods begin to
open and the leaves to wither, its thin and straggling branches are
left uncovered, and the plant much resembles a large black currant
bush, that has been left unpruned for a length of time. The cotton is
gathered in nine or ten months. The machine for detaching it from the
seed is simple, and might be rendered still more so. Two small rollers
are placed horizontally in a frame, and nearly touching each other.
At each end of these rollers there are grooves through which a cord
runs, which is connected at the distance of a few yards with a large
wheel, to which handles are fixed, and this is turned by two persons.
The rollers are so formed as to turn in opposite directions, so that as
the cotton is thrust against them with the hand, it is carried to the
other side, but the seeds remain, for the opening between the rollers
is not sufficiently broad to allow them to pass[168]. The machine which
is used in the British colonies seems to be of the same construction in
the main, but it is still more simple, for the rollers are made to turn
by means of the feet of the person who holds the cotton to them[169].
After it has undergone the above process, some particles of seeds which
have been accidentally broken still remain, and of other substances
which must be removed. For this purpose a heap of cotton is made, and
is beaten with large sticks; this is a most injurious operation, by
which the fibre is broken; but as the value of the commodity to the
manufacturer chiefly depends upon the length of the fibre, no trouble
ought to be grudged to avoid this practice.
The seeds adhere “firmly to each other in the pod.” Mr. Edwards speaks
of this species in the British colonies, and gives to it the name of
kidney cotton, saying that he believes it to be “the true cotton of
Brazil[170].” The yellow or nankeen cotton is likewise to be found
at Pernambuco; but it does not form an article of cultivation, being
regarded rather as a curiosity. I have seen some species of wild
cotton, of which however as I have neither note nor specimen, I cannot
pretend to give a description.
The profits which are obtained in favourable years by the planters of
cotton, are enormous; but frequently disappointments are experienced.
Oftentimes a whole crop is totally lost, and instead of large returns,
the year proves entirely unproductive; or after a fair promise, the
grub, the caterpillar, the rain or the excessive drought destroys
all hope until the following season. The other great agricultural
object,—the sugar-cane, is not subject to these numerous and ruinous
reverses; for even if the year is unfavourable, at least enough to pay
the expences may be expected. I have heard it urged that the market is
very little affected by the supposed failure of a crop; but it must
be remembered that in a country of such vast extent, one quarter may
escape all mishap, whilst another is unfortunate.[171]
The quality of the cotton which is produced in South America, either to
the north or south of Pernambuco, is inferior to that of the province
of which I am treating. The cotton of Seara is not so good, and the
cotton of Maranham is still coarser. Cotton is the staple commodity of
both these ports. Proceeding from Pernambuco to the south, the cotton
of Bahia is not so fine, and the small quantity which is produced at
Rio de Janeiro is not so good as that of Bahia.
In treating of sugar and cotton, I have stated the chief points in
which the planters in the Columbian islands and those of Brazil
principally differ. Those of my readers to whom this subject is
particularly interesting may be referred to the well known work which I
have consulted.[172]
THE MANDIOC PLANTS.
THE mandioc requires good land, and the same spot will not produce two
crops successively; it must be allowed to rest for one or two years
or more. The operation of planting it is simple, and differs in no
respect from that which was practised formerly by the Indians[173].
The flour which is made from this root is called _farinha de pao_, or
stick flour[174]. There are several species of the mandioc plant,
of which some are adapted to high lands, and others to low and moist
situations; but when the plant is cultivated upon the latter, hillocks
must be raised, else the root would decay. Cattle are fed upon the root
and stalk: these are first prepared by being cut into small pieces and
exposed to the sun for several hours; if this was not done, the food
would be injurious to them. I have however seen some of the draught
oxen that have become so habituated to it as to eat the root quite
fresh, without receiving any apparent injury;—in the manner that the
human body becomes callous to the most violent medicines by long custom.
I had in my possession, whilst I resided at Jaguaribe, one of these
animals, who generally once in the course of every week at least
contrived to get out of the inclosure, and pass part of the night in
some neighbouring mandioc ground. He was so dexterous in tearing up the
stalk with the root attached to it, that the marks of his footsteps
alone made us quite confident of the nature of the thief. Whilst I
was at Itamaraca, I lost a sheep, which had drank of the juice of the
mandioc. The negroes and other persons were making _farinha_, and a
trough stood under the press for the purpose of receiving the juice.
The sheep were attempting to come under the shed for the purpose of
reaching some of the roots, of which they are extremely fond; one
of them approached the trough, which was filled with the juice, and
although it was almost immediately perceived and driven away, still the
effect of the small quantity which had been taken began to shew itself
in a very few minutes;—the animal tottered and fell, rising again,
and again falling. Oil was poured down its throat in considerable
quantities, but to no purpose. The body swelled to an enormous size,
and the animal was dead in about ten minutes after it had drank of the
juice.[175]
The insect which is mentioned by Piso (quoted by Mr. Southey) under
the name of _tapuru_, and is said to be generated by the juice of the
mandioc, after it has become putrid, I have often seen. It is still
known under the same name, which however is not peculiar to this worm,
but it is likewise applied to maggots of every kind. The juice is not
kept for any purpose, but it remains in the trough occasionally for
some days, owing to the carelessness of the person under whose care
these things are placed[176]. Of the deadly nature of this worm I never
heard any mention. The species of mandioc which is called _manipeba_ is
prohibited, owing to the greater activity of its poisonous juice, and
it is now almost extirpated; it had the advantage of greater durability
under ground. Those kinds which are usually planted decay if the stalk
is broken off, but the stalks of the _manipeba_ may be cut away, and
the root will still continue sound until, on the following year a new
stalk springs up. I have heard it said, that in the dry soils of the
Mata a few of the other varieties of this plant will allow of the
same treatment. Although the mandioc plant requires a dry situation,
still when the rains fail in January the crops fall short, for it is
in this month, immediately after the first waters, that the principal
plantations of it are made. The Brazilians have a peculiar name for
each part of this plant; the root is called _mandioca_, the stalk
_maniva_, the leaves _manisoba_, and the juice _manipueira_. There is
one species of the plant, of which the juice is harmless; it bears the
name of _macaxeira_. Its root never grows to a great size, and it is
therefore rather planted as an article of luxury than as regular food.
From this species less juice is extracted than from the roots of equal
dimensions of any of the other kinds of mandioc[177]. The rind of those
species of mandioc which are in general use is of a dark brown colour,
but there is one kind of which the rind is white.
The most expensive part of the process of making the flour of the
mandioc, consists in disengaging the rind from the root; this is done
with difficulty, by means of a piece of a broken blunt knife, a sharp
pebble, or a small shell, with one of which each person is supplied; in
this work a considerable number of persons must be occupied, to furnish
employment to the wheel which grinds the root. This wheel is placed
in a frame, and a handle is fixed to it on each side, by which it may
be turned by two men, one of them working at each of the handles. A
trough stands under the wheel, and the wheel is cased in copper, which
is made rough by means of holes punched in it, the sides of the holes
are not filed smooth. The mandioc is thrust against the wheel whilst it
is turned with great velocity, and being by this means ground it falls
into the trough underneath. From hence the ground pulp is put into a
press, that the juice may be extracted; and after it has undergone
sufficient pressure this pulp or paste (_maça_) is removed on to a hot
hearth, upon which a person is employed to keep it in continual motion,
that it may not be burnt; when quite crisp it is taken off the hearth,
and on being suffered to cool is in a state to be made use of.[178]
There is another mode of preparing the mandioc for food; it is put
into water in a pannier or closed basket, and is allowed to remain
there for some days, until the root becomes soft, from which the
mandioc, when in this state, is called _mandioca molle_. It is prepared
in this manner for the purpose of making cakes, &c. but not generally,
for food. I tried to introduce the _farinha_, made from steeped
mandioc, among the slaves whilst I resided at Jaguaribe; the flour
which was made from it, was much finer than that which is obtained in
the usual manner, but the negroes did not like it so well, and I did
not think it wholesome for them on consideration, and therefore the old
way was continued. The mandioc must have made a certain advance towards
putrefaction before it becomes sufficiently soft to be bruised, and
this cannot fail I should suppose to be injurious. The smell from the
_mandioca molle_ is extremely offensive, and is one of the annoyances
in walking the streets of Recife, in which it is sold. The smell is
however entirely removed after the _farinha_ has been for some minutes
upon the oven.[179]
THE COCO-TREE.
THE sandy soils of the coast in which this plant seems to delight
would, if they were not cultivated with it, remain almost useless; but
from the produce which the coco-tree yields, they are rendered very
valuable. The lands which are occupied by this plant alone yield a
settled income to the owners of them without much labour; whilst the
cultivation of any other requires considerable toil; however the long
period, of from five to seven years, which the tree requires before
it bears fruit, cannot fail to be considered as a drawback upon the
profits which it ultimately affords, and upon the great age to which
it arrives. However perhaps there are few trees of equal size that
yield fruit in so short a period. It is a most valuable production, of
which every part is appropriated to some useful purpose. The Brazilians
say, that it affords to them both food and shelter; of the trunk and
of the leaves their huts are built; of its fibrous roots baskets are
made, and cordage of the outward husk. Its fruit renders to them meat
and drink, and an excellent oil is likewise to be obtained by skimming
the juice which may be pressed from the pulp. The coco is in general
use in cookery among all ranks of people, and it forms one of the
chief articles of internal trade[180]. When a plantation of this tree
is about to be established, the ripe cocos from which the plants are
to be reared, are placed in the ground, about twelve inches below
the surface, in long and almost united rows, for the convenience of
being watered. They are frequently placed in this manner, under the
eaves of houses, which saves much trouble, for by the accumulation
of water from the house top, each shower of rain produces sufficient
moisture, and the owner is relieved from any farther trouble in this
respect. At the expiration of five months the shoots begin to make
their appearance above ground, and at the end of twelve months from
the time that the cocos were first put into the earth, the young
plants may be removed[181]. They are then placed at the distance of
eight or ten yards from each other, upon the land that has been cleared
for the purpose of receiving them. As soon as they have once taken
root, and by far the major part of them fail not so to do, very little
care is necessary. They must however be preserved tolerably free from
brushwood, at least during the first years; and indeed at all times the
fruitfulness of the tree will be increased, if it is allowed its due
space.[182]
THE CARRAPATO OR CASTOR TREE.
THIS plant may be, as well as the coco, reared in sandy soils, but it
will flourish with more luxuriance, upon those that are of a richer
kind. The oil, which is extracted from the seed, is in general use
for lamps and other purposes, but neither is it eaten, nor known as
a medicine; but it is administered as an outward application. It is
given to animals that have drank the juice of the mandioc, and is
sometimes successful in forcing the poison back from the stomach. The
plant is much cultivated, but it is frequently to be seen growing
spontaneously.[183]
BRAZIL WOOD.
THE wood from which is extracted the beautiful red dye, which is so
much esteemed in Europe, is, I believe, generally supposed to be
peculiar[184] to the country to which it has given a name[185]. It
is often called in Pernambuco (from whence, I imagine, that it is
exclusively exported) _pao da Rainha_ or Queen’s wood, owing to the
circumstance of the trade in it being a government monopoly; and
it is exported to Europe on account of the Crown. No care has been
taken to prevent a scarcity of the wood, and indeed its ultimate
extirpation; it is cut down unmercifully wherever it is met with by
the officers who are appointed for this purpose, without any regard
being paid to the size of the tree. No plantations have been formed of
it, and consequently it is now rarely to be seen, within many leagues
of the coast. The labour which is required in obtaining it is now
considerable, for the weight of the wood renders its conveyance very
difficult upon the backs of horses, and this is the only manner in
which it can be carried. The pay which is given by the government to
the carriers is below the usual rate for work equally laborious, and
therefore a wide source of oppression is afforded. The carrier receives
with his load a slip of paper, declaring the weight of the wood which
he is conveying; this is to be presented by him at the _Intendencia
da Marinha_, or dock-yard at Recife, and he must wait until the wood
is again weighed and the paper countersigned, before he can return
home. These men are delayed sometimes for several days, before they
are permitted to return; and they find that it is their interest to
make many presents to the inferior officers, that they may be quickly
dispatched. Here the old system of indifference to what is just, still
most glaringly continues. This account of the treatment of the men who
convey the wood, I received from several who had been employed in the
business.
If the trade in the wood was to be laid open, it would only tend to
its scarcity still more speedily than under the existing system; but
as soon as it became scarce it would be rendered an object worthy of
cultivation: however, as long as it is to be obtained in its wild
state, and enormous profits can be made, the government will probably
continue to supply the market on their own account. Every sugar
plantation might cultivate a great number of these trees, without
any additional land being required to be cleared for the purpose of
planting them. The fences of the _Cercados_, or fields, might be
strengthened by the addition of the Brazil inserted at intervals;
instead of other trees being used in this way.
I never saw the plant, but I have heard it described in the following
manner. It is not a lofty tree; and at a short distance from the
ground, innumerable branches spring forth and extend in every
direction in a straggling, irregular, and unpleasing manner. Practice
is requisite to obtain a knowledge of the tree, for the valuable
portion of it is the heart, and the outward coat of wood has not
any peculiarity. The leaves are small, and never cover the branches
luxuriantly.[186]
THE TATAJUBA, or FUSTIC.—This is a species of wood producing a yellow
dye, which is well known in England. It is of spontaneous growth.
A demand has lately been made for it, and destruction has followed
wherever the plant can be met with.
THE FEIJAM or KIDNEY BEAN is planted in April and May with the mandioc.
It is much used in the neighbourhood of the coast by the free part of
the population, but is not produced in sufficient quantities to form a
common food for the negroes. When it is cooked with the juice of the
pulp of the coco-nut it makes a most excellent dish. In the cotton
districts it forms one of the chief articles of the negroes’ food.
MILHO, or MAIZE, is planted with mandioc, and sometimes in the cane
fields; but as the best crop is obtained by planting it with the
mandioc in January, few persons sow it at any other time. In the inland
districts it is sown with the cotton, and in such situations yields
more plentifully than in the lands which border upon the coast. Boiled
maize is a common breakfast for the slaves in the cotton districts; the
dish resembles thick peas’ soup, and is far from being unpalatable if
sugar or treacle is added. The people call it _angu de milho_.
THE BANANA PLANT is too well known to take up much space here. There
are in Pernambuco three species of it; the _banana curta_ or short
banana; this is a small fruit, not exceeding two inches in length;—the
_banana comprida_ or long banana, which is the plantain;—and lately
the third species has been introduced, and has obtained the strange
name of the _banana de quatro vintems_ or four _vintems_ banana,
because the clusters of the fruit are so large that each cluster may be
sold for four _vintems_,—rather more than 5_d._ I do not think that as
much utility is derived from the plant as it is capable of affording;
it is not so generally used as a food by the negroes, as it ought to
be. The _banana curta_, with dry _farinha_, is a common breakfast among
people of colour.[187]
THE BATATAS.—Of these there are several species; but that which I
had the most opportunities of seeing was the _batata roxa_ or purple
potatoe, which is so called from the purple tinge of the pulp after it
has been boiled; this is the best of the tribe. The taste is pleasant,
and would be still more so if it was not rather sweet. The _batata_
is a creeping plant, and is re-produced from the roots, or from the
sprouts of the branches. If the branches of roots that have been pulled
up remain upon the ground, and a shower of rain falls soon after they
have been broken off, their vegetation will recommence. The _batatas_
are at present planted more as a luxury for the planter’s house than
as food for the negroes; but I do not think that there is any plant
which is more capable, or even so capable, of affording assistance
to the mandioc as this; and perhaps it might supply its place. The
mandioc should be supplanted, if any thing else could be discovered to
answer the purpose of a staple article of food; for it is uncertain in
yielding its crops, and requires the best land. To neither of these
disadvantages would, I rather think, the _batata_ be found subject. The
European potatoe has been planted, in several instances, at Pernambuco;
the first crop is as well tasted as the roots from which it was
produced, but the potatoes were small; a second crop, being obtained
from the same family of roots, has been sweetish, and on advancing, the
potatoes become still more similar to the _batata_ of the country[188].
Yet the plants appear to be totally different from each other, for the
Brazil _batata_ or potatoe is produced from a creeper.
TOBACCO is planted upon almost all the sugar-plantations, and by
a majority of persons of the lower classes, for their own use. A
considerable quantity is imported from the southern provinces of Brazil
into Pernambuco. The ants do not molest the plant, but in the parts of
the country which are much infested by these insects, the peasants mix
the seed of the tobacco with wood ashes before they strew with it the
ground which they are about to sow. The ants have an antipathy to the
ashes, and thus the seed is preserved.
RICE is very little cultivated in Pernambuco; but at Maranham it
forms the second object of trade. The use of it in Pernambuco is
inconsiderable, from the idea that it is unwholesome for the negroes;
and indeed I never met with any of the Africans who preferred it to
other kinds of food.
COFFEE and CACAO are yet planted as experiments, for their introduction
into Pernambuco is recent.[189]
IPECACUANHA.—Although this is at present only to be found in a wild
state, I have inserted it here, for it must shortly take its place
among cultivated plants. The small quantity exported is procured by the
Indians and other persons of the same rank and habits of life, in the
thickest woods. It thrives most in the shade. The plant is destroyed
also by many of the larger kinds of game, to which it serves as food.
There are two species of it which are distinguished by the names of
white and black Ipecacuanha; the latter is that which is used for
medicinal purposes in Europe[190]. The white is used by the Brazilians
in colds and coughs, and is taken to purify the blood after a fever.
GINGER is indigenous, but is now rarely to be found in a wild
state[191]. The white ginger is that which is in general use.
MALAGUETA PEPPER is a small shrub which is to be seen under the eaves
of almost every cottage. The pods are of a bright scarlet colour, of
about one inch in length, and one quarter in breadth. It is a hardy
plant; for although it droops under excessive drought, it is seldom
destroyed by it. Often are to be seen at the same time, and upon the
same bush, the blossoms, and the green and the ripe scarlet pods.
Wherever this shrub springs up care is taken of it; for the people of
all ranks are from habit almost unable to eat their food without the
_malagueta_. The pods are bruised when about to be used, and either
form an ingredient in every dish, or they are served up in all the
sauces[192]. The _pimenta de cheiro_, or scented pepper, is likewise
common, but it requires more care in rearing, and is a smaller shrub
than the _malagueta_. The pods are of a bright red in general, but
sometimes they are, naturally, of a pale yellow colour; they are round,
and about the size of a crab apple.
TEA is stated to be indigenous in Brazil[193]. A priest of
considerable reputation as a botanist, told me that he had discovered
this plant in the neighbourhood of Olinda; but afterwards again he
informed me that he was afraid he had been too sanguine.[194]
HORTICULTURE has of late years been rapidly improving, and the markets
of Recife are now well supplied with vegetables and roots. The
gardeners are chiefly Portugueze, from the provinces of the mother
country, or from the Azores. Peas[195], cabbages, and several other
kinds of European vegetables and roots are to be purchased, besides
others which are peculiar to the country, such as _mandubims_ and yams.
The European onion produces a small root of an oblong form[196], which
is known in Pernambuco under the name of _cebolinho_, as the diminutive
of _cebola_, an onion. The vine is to be seen in many of the gardens
in the neighbourhood of Recife and of Olinda; and formerly there were
a great many at Conception upon the island of Itamaraca, but few now
remain. No wine is made. The fruit trees are some of those which are
common to the southern parts of Europe, such as the orange[197], the
fig, and others, but no olives; besides these, there are the manga,
the jack, and a numerous list, some of which have been mentioned
incidentally in the course of this volume; but I have tarried already
too long upon this branch of my subject, and must now proceed to
something else.
[Illustration: _A Planter and his Wife on a Journey._]
CHAPTER XVIII.
THE FREE POPULATION.
THE insufficiency of the population of Portugal to the almost unbounded
plans of the rulers of that kingdom, has, in all probability, saved
her South American possessions from the dreadful contests which are
to be apprehended in the neighbouring Spanish colonies, between the
Creole white inhabitants and those of colour. The struggle yet rages
with exterminating violence between the descendants of Europeans, born
in South America, and the natives of Old Spain; but when this is at
an end, another equally, if not more destructive, is to be looked for
between the former and their countrymen of mixed casts. The appeal
which the creole whites have made to the people, and the declarations
which they have publicly set forth, of directing their proceedings by
their voice; the exposure of those abstract principles of government
which are so delightful in theory, but so difficult of execution,
will, most probably, bring down upon their heads the destruction which
has thus been courted. In the Portugueze South American dominions,
circumstances have directed that there should be no division of
casts, and very few of those degrading and most galling distinctions
which have been made by all other nations in the management of their
colonies. That this was not intended by the mother country, but was
rather submitted to from necessity, is to be discovered in some few
regulations, which plainly shew, that if Portugal could have preserved
the superiority of the whites, she would, as well as her neighbours,
have established laws for this purpose. The rulers of Portugal wished
to colonize to an unlimited extent; but their country did not possess
a population sufficiently numerous for their magnificent plans.
Adventurers left their own country to settle in the New World, who were
literally adventurers; for they had not any settled plans of life, and
they were without families. Persons of established habits, who had
the wish to follow any of the ordinary means of gaining a livelihood,
found employment at home; neither could Portugal spare them, nor did
they wish to leave their native soil. There was no superabundance of
population, and therefore every man might find occupation at home, if
he had steadiness to look for it; there was no division in political
or religious opinion; there was no necessity for emigration, save that
which was urged by crimes. Thus the generality of the men who embarked
in the expeditions which were fitted out for Brazil, were unaccompanied
by females, and therefore, naturally, on their arrival in that country,
they married, or irregularly connected themselves with Indian women,
and subsequently with those of Africa. It is true that orphan girls
were sent out by the government of Portugal[198], but these were
necessarily few in number. In the course of another generation, the
colonists married the women of mixed casts, owing to the impossibility
of obtaining those of their own colour; and the frequency of the
custom, and the silence of the laws upon the subject, removed all idea
of degradation, in thus connecting themselves. Still the European
notions of superiority were not entirely laid aside, and these caused
the passing of some regulations, by which white persons were to enjoy
certain privileges. Thus, although the form of trial for all casts is
the same, in certain places only can capital punishments be inflicted
upon the favoured race; the people of colour are not eligible to some
of the chief offices of government, nor can they become members of the
priesthood.
From the mildness of the laws, however, the mixed casts have gained
ground considerably; the regulations which exist against them are
evaded, or rather they have become obsolete. Perhaps the heroic
conduct of Camaram and Henrique Dias, the Indian and negro chieftains,
in the famous and most interesting contest between the Pernambucans
and the Dutch, and the honours subsequently granted by the crown of
Portugal to both of them, may have led to the exaltation of the general
character of the much-injured varieties of the human species of which
they were members. Familiarity between the chieftains of the several
corps must be the consequence of their embarkation in the same cause,
when the war is one of skirmishes, of ambuscades, of continual alarm,
of assistance constantly afforded to each other; a patriotic war,
against a foreign invader, in which difference of religion exists,
and each party mortally hates the other. On these occasions all men
are equal, or he only is superior whose strength and whose activity
surpasses that of others. The amalgamation of casts which is caused
by this consciousness of equality could not have had a fairer field
for its full accomplishment, than the war to which I have alluded;
and the friendships which were formed under these circumstances would
not easily be broken off. Although the parties who had been so united
might have been, in their situations in life very far removed from
each other, still the participation of equal danger must render dear
the companions in peril, and make the feelings which had been roused
on these occasions of long duration; they would continue to act, long
after the cessation of the series of occurrences which had called them
forth.
The free population of Brazil at the present time consists of
Europeans; Brazilians, that is, white persons born in Brazil; mulattos,
that is, the mixed cast between the whites and blacks, and all the
varieties into which it can branch; mamalucos, that is, the mixed
cast between the whites and Indians, and all its varieties; Indians
in a domesticated state, who are called generally Caboclos; and those
who still remain in a savage state, and are called generally Tapuyas;
negroes born in Brazil, and manumitted Africans; lastly, Mestizos,
that is, the mixed cast between the Indians and negroes. Of slaves,
I shall speak by and by more at large; these are Africans, creole
negroes, mulattos, and mestizos. The maxim of the civil law, _partus
sequitur ventrem_, is in force here as well as in the colonies of other
nations.[199]
These several mixtures of the human race have their shades of
difference of character as well as of colour. First we must treat
of the whites. The Europeans who are not in office, or who are not
military men, are, generally speaking, adventurers who have arrived
in that country with little or no capital. These men commence their
career in low situations of life, but by parsimony and continual
exertion directed to one end, that of amassing money, they often attain
their object, and pass the evening of their lives in opulence. These
habits fail not, oftentimes, to give a bias to their dispositions,
which is unallied to generosity and liberality. They look down upon
the Brazilians, or rather they wish to consider themselves superior
to them; and until lately the government took no pains to remove the
jealousy which existed between the two descriptions of white persons;
and even now, not so much attention is paid to the subject as its great
importance seems to require.[200]
The Brazilian white man of large property, who draws his descent
from the first Donatory of a province, or whose family has for some
generations enjoyed distinction, entertains a high opinion of his own
importance, which may sometimes appear ridiculous; but which much
oftener leads him to acts of generosity,—to the adoption of liberal
ideas,—to honourable conduct. If he has been well educated, and has
had the good fortune to have been instructed by a priest whose ideas
are enlightened, who gives a proper latitude for difference of opinion,
who tolerates as he is tolerated, then the character of a young
Brazilian exhibits much to admire. Surrounded by numerous relatives,
and by his immediate dependants, living in a vast and half-civilized
country, he is endued with much independence of language and behaviour,
which are softened by the subordination which has been imbibed during
his course of education. That this is general, I pretend not to say;
few persons are instructed in a proper manner, and again, few are those
who profit by the education which they have received; but more numerous
are the individuals who now undergo necessary tuition, for powerful
motives have arisen to urge the attainment of knowledge.
I have heard it often observed, and I cannot help saying that I think
some truth is to be attached to the remark, in the country of which
I am treating, that women are usually less lenient to their slaves
than men, but this doubtless proceeds from the ignorant state in which
they are brought up; they scarcely receive any education, and have
not the advantages of obtaining instruction from communication with
persons who are unconnected with their own way of life; of imbibing
new ideas from general conversation. They are born, bred, and continue
surrounded by slaves without receiving any check, with high notions
of superiority, without any thought that what they do is wrong. Bring
these women forwards, educate them, treat them as rational, as equal
beings, and they will be in no respect inferior to their countrymen;
the fault is not with the sex, but in the state of the human being. As
soon as a child begins to crawl, a slave of about its own age and of
the same sex is given to it as a playfellow, or rather as a plaything;
they grow up together, and the slave is made the stock upon which the
young owner gives vent to passion; the slave is sent upon all errands,
and receives the blame of all unfortunate accidents;—in fact, the
white child is thus encouraged to be overbearing, owing to the false
fondness of its parents. Upon the boys the effect is less visible in
after-life, because the world curbs and checks them, but the girls do
not stir from home, and therefore have no opportunities of wearing off
these pernicious habits. It is only surprising that so many excellent
women should be found among them, and by no means strange that the
disposition of some of them should be injured by this unfortunate
direction of their infant years.
As vegetation rapidly advances in such climates, so the animal sooner
arrives at maturity than in those of less genial warmth; and here
again education is rendered doubly necessary to lead the mind to
new ideas, to curb the passions, to give a sense of honour, and to
instil feelings of that species of pride which is so necessary to a
becoming line of conduct. The state of society, the climate, and the
celibacy of the numerous priesthood, cause the number of illegitimate
children to be very great; but here the _roda dos engeitados_, and
a custom which shews the natural goodness of the people, prevent
the frequent occurrence of infanticide, or rather render it almost
unknown. An infant is frequently during the night laid at the door of
a rich person, and on being discovered in the morning is taken in,
and is almost invariably allowed to remain; it is brought up with the
children of the house (if its colour is not too dark to admit of this,)
certainly as a dependant, but not as a servant; however a considerable
tinge of colour will not prevent it from being reared with the white
children. These _engeitados_ or rejected ones, as individuals who are
so circumstanced are called, are frequently to be met with, and I
heard of few exceptions to the general kindness with which they are
treated. Public feeling is much against the refusing to accept and rear
an _engeitado_; the owner of a house, who is in easy circumstances,
and yet sends the infant from his own door to the public institution
which is provided for its reception, is generally spoken of in terms
of indignation. Sometimes a poor man will find one of these presents
at his door, and he will generally place it at the landholder’s
threshold on the following night; this is accounted excusable and even
meritorious, for at the Great House the child has nearly a certainty of
being well taken care of.
I have observed that, generally speaking, Europeans are less indulgent
to their slaves than Brazilians; the former feed them well, but they
require from the poor wretches more labour than they can perform,
whilst the latter allow the affairs of their estates to continue in the
way in which it has been accustomed to be directed. This difference
between the two descriptions of owners is easily accounted for; the
European has probably purchased part of his slaves on credit, and has
during the whole course of his life made the accumulation of riches
his chief object. The Brazilian inherits his estate, and as nothing
urges him to the necessity of obtaining large profits, he continues
the course that has been pointed out to him by the former possessors.
His habits of quietude and indolence have led him to be easy and
indifferent, and although he may not provide for the maintenance of his
slaves with so much care as the European, still they find more time to
seek for food themselves. That avaricious spirit which deliberately
works a man or a brute animal[201] until it is unfit for farther
service, without any regard to the well-being of the creature, which
is thus treated as a mere machine, as if it was formed of wood or
iron, is however seldom to be met with in those parts of the country
which I visited. Instances of cruelty occur (as has been, and will yet
be seen,) but these proceed from individual depravity, and not from
systematic, cold-blooded, calculating indifference to the means by
which a desired end is to be compassed.
Notwithstanding the relationship of the mulattos on one side to the
black race, they consider themselves superior to the mamalucos; they
lean to the whites, and from the light in which the Indians are held,
pride themselves upon being totally unconnected with them. Still the
mulattos are conscious of their connection with men who are in a state
of slavery, and that many persons even of their own colour are under
these degraded circumstances; they have therefore always a feeling
of inferiority in the company of white men, if these white men are
wealthy and powerful. This inferiority of rank is not so much felt by
white persons in the lower walks of life, and these are more easily
led to become familiar with individuals of their own colour who are in
wealthy circumstances. Still the inferiority which the mulatto feels is
more that which is produced by poverty than that which his colour has
caused, for he will be equally respectful to a person of his own cast,
who may happen to be rich[202]. The degraded state of the people of
colour in the British colonies is most lamentable[203]. In Brazil, even
the trifling regulations which exist against them remain unattended
to. A mulatto enters into holy orders or is appointed a magistrate,
his papers stating him to be a white man, but his appearance plainly
denoting the contrary. In conversing on one occasion with a man of
colour who was in my service, I asked him if a certain _Capitam-mor_
was not a mulatto man; he answered, “he was, but is not now[204].” I
begged him to explain, when he added, “Can a _Capitam-mor_ be a mulatto
man[205]?” I was intimately acquainted with a priest, whose complexion
and hair plainly denoted from whence he drew his origin; I liked
him much, he was a well educated and intelligent man. Besides this
individual instance, I met with several others of the same description.
The regiments of militia which are called mulatto regiments, are so
named from all the officers and men being of mixed casts; nor can
white persons be admitted into them. The principal officers are men of
property, and the colonel, like the commander of any other regiment,
is only amenable to the governor of the province. In the white militia
regiments, the officers ought to be by law white men; but in practice
they are rather reputed white men, for very little pains are taken
to prove that there is no mixture of blood. Great numbers of the
soldiers belonging to the regiments which are officered by white men,
are mulattos, and other persons of colour. The regiments of the line,
likewise, (as I have elsewhere said) admit into the ranks all persons
excepting negroes and Indians; but the officers of these must prove
nobility of birth; however, as certain degrees of nobility have been
conferred upon persons in whose families there is much mixture of
blood, this proof cannot be regarded as being required against the
mulatto or mamaluco part of the population. Thus an European adventurer
could not obtain a commission in these regiments, whilst a Brazilian,
whose family has distinguished itself in the province in former times,
will prove his eligibility without regard to the blood which runs in
his veins. He is noble, let that flow from whence it may.[206]
The late colonel of the mulatto regiment of Recife, by name Nogueira,
went to Lisbon, and returned to Pernambuco with the Order of Christ,
which the Queen had conferred upon him[207]. A chief person of one
of the provinces is the son of a white man and a woman of colour; he
has received an excellent education, is of a generous disposition,
and entertains most liberal views upon all subjects. He has been made
a colonel, and a degree of nobility has been conferred upon him;
likewise the Regent is sponsor to one of his children. Many other
instances might be mentioned. Thus has Portugal, of late years from
policy, continued that system into which she was led by her peculiar
circumstances in former times. Some of the wealthy planters of
Pernambuco, and of the rich inhabitants of Recife are men of colour.
The major part of the best mechanics are also of mixed blood.
It is said that mulattos make bad masters; and this holds good
oftentimes with persons of this description, who have been in a state
of slavery, and become possessed of slaves of their own, or are
employed as managers upon estates. The change of situation would lead
to the same consequences in any race of human beings, and cannot be
accounted peculiar to the mixed casts. I have seen mulattos of free
birth as kind, as lenient, and as forbearing to their slaves and other
dependants as any white man.
Marriages between white men and women of colour are by no means rare,
though they are sufficiently so to cause the circumstance to be
mentioned when speaking of an individual who has connected himself
in this manner; but this is not said with the intent of lowering him
in the estimation of others. Indeed the remark is only made if the
person is a planter of any importance, and the woman is decidedly of
dark colour, for even a considerable tinge will pass for white; if the
white man belongs to the lower orders, the woman is not accounted as
being unequal to him in rank, unless she is nearly black. The European
adventurers often marry in this manner, which generally occurs when
the woman has a dower. The rich mulatto families are often glad to
dispose of their daughters to these men, although the person who has
been fixed upon may be in indifferent circumstances; for the colour of
the children of their daughters is bettered, and from the well-known
prudence and regularity of this set of men, a large fortune may be
hoped for even from very small beginnings. Whilst I was at Jaguaribe,
I was in the frequent habit of seeing a handsome young man, who was a
native of the island of St. Michael’s. This person happened to be with
me on one occasion when the commandant from the Sertam was staying at
my house. The commandant asked him if he could read and write, and
being answered in the negative, said, “then you will not do,” and
turning to me, added, “I have a commission from a friend of mine to
take with me back to the Sertam a good-looking young Portugueze of
regular habits, who can read and write, for the purpose of marrying him
to his daughter.” These kind of commissions (_encommendas_) are not
unusual.
Still the Brazilians of high birth and large property do not like to
intermarry with persons whose mixture of blood is _very_ apparent, and
hence arise peculiar circumstances. A man of this description becomes
attached to a woman of colour, connects himself with her, and takes
her to his home, where she is in a short time even visited by married
women; she governs his household affairs, acts and considers herself
as his wife, and frequently after the birth of several children, when
they are neither of them young, he marries her. In connections of this
nature, the parties are more truly attached than in marriages between
persons who belong to two families of the first rank; for the latter
are entered into from convenience rather than from affection; indeed
the parties, on some occasions, do not see each other until a few days
before the ceremony takes place. It often occurs, that inclination,
necessity, or convenience induce or oblige a man to separate from the
person with whom he has thus been connected; in this case, he gives
her a portion, and she marries a man of her own rank, who regards
her rather as a widow than as one whose conduct has been incorrect.
Instances of infidelity in these women are rare; they become attached
to the men with whom they cohabit, and they direct the affairs of the
houses over which they are placed with the same zeal that they would
display if they had the right of command over them. It is greatly to
the credit of the people of that country that so much fidelity should
be shewn on one side, and that this should so frequently as it is,
be rewarded by the other party, in the advancement of those who have
behaved thus faithfully, to a respectable and acknowledged situation
in society. It should be recollected too that the merit of moral
feelings must be judged of by the standard of the country, and not by
our own institutions. I have only spoken above of what occurs among the
planters; for in large towns man is pretty much the same every where.
The Mamalucos are more frequently to be seen in the Sertam than upon
the coast. They are handsomer than the mulattos; and the women of
this cast particularly surpass in beauty all others of the country;
they have the brown tint of mulattos, but their features are less
blunt, and their hair is not curled. I do not think that the men can
be said to possess more courage than the mulattos; but whether from
the knowledge which they have of being of free birth on both sides, or
from residing in the interior of the country where government is more
loose, they appear to have more independence of character, and to pay
less deference to a white man than the mulattos. When women relate any
deed of danger that has been surmounted or undertaken, they generally
state that the chief actor in it was a large mamaluco, _mamalucam_; as
if they thought this description of men to be superior to all others.
Mamalucos may enter into the mulatto regiments, and are pressed into
the regiments of the line as being men of colour, without any regard to
the sources from which their blood proceeds.
Of the domesticated Indians I have already elsewhere given what
accounts I could collect, and what I had opportunities of observing.
The wild Indians are now only to be met with at a great distance from
the coast of Pernambuco; and although they are very near to Maranham,
and are dreaded neighbours, I had no means of seeing any of them.
I now proceed to mention that numerous and valuable race of men,
the creole negroes; a tree of African growth, which has thus been
transplanted, cultivated, and much improved by its removal to the New
World. The Creole negroes stand alone and unconnected with every other
race of men, and this circumstance alone would be sufficient, and
indeed contributes much to the effect of uniting them to each other.
The mulattos, and all other persons of mixed blood wish to lean towards
the whites, if they can possibly lay any claim to relationship. Even
the mestizo tries to pass for a mulatto, and to persuade himself and
others that his veins contain some portion of white blood, although
that with which they are filled proceeds from Indian and negro sources.
Those only who can have no pretensions to a mixture of blood, call
themselves negroes, which renders the individuals who do pass under
this denomination, much attached to each other, from the impossibility
of being mistaken for members of any other cast. They are of handsome
persons, brave and hardy, obedient to the whites, and willing to
please; but they are easily affronted, and the least allusion to their
colour being made by a person of a lighter tint, enrages them to a
great degree; though they will sometimes say, “a negro I am, but always
upright”[208]. They are again distinct from their brethren in slavery,
owing to their superior situation as free men.
The free creole negroes have their exclusive regiments, as well as the
mulattos, of which every officer and soldier must be perfectly black.
There are two of these regiments for the province of Pernambuco, which
consist of indefinite numbers of men, who are dispersed all over the
country. These regiments are distinguished from each other by the
names of Old Henriques and New Henriques[209]. The name of Henriques
is derived from the famous chieftain, Henrique Diaz, in the time of
the Dutch war. I have heard some of the most intelligent of those with
whom I have conversed, speak in enthusiastic terms of the aid which he
gave to the whites in that struggle. I have seen some portion of one of
these regiments, in Recife, accompanying the procession of our Lady of
the Rosary, the patroness of negroes. They were dressed in white cloth
uniforms turned up with scarlet, and they looked very soldier-like.
They were in tolerable discipline, and seemed to wish to go through the
duty of the day in the best manner that they were able; they acted with
an appearance of zeal and the desire of excelling. Those of which I
speak formed a finer body of men than any other soldiers which I had an
opportunity of seeing in that country. On gala days the superior black
officers in their white uniforms, pay their respects to the governor,
exactly in the same manner that the persons of any other cast, holding
commissions of equal rank are expected to go through this form. These
men receive no pay, so that their neat appearance on such occasions
bespeaks a certain degree of wealth among them; neither are the
privates nor any other persons belonging to these regiments paid for
their services. Some of the whites rather ridicule the black officers,
but not in their presence; and the laugh which is raised against them
is caused perhaps by a lurking wish to prevent this insulted race from
the display of those distinctions which the government has wisely
conceded to them, but which hurt the European ideas of superiority.
The old regiment of Henriques was, at the time that I resided in
Pernambuco, without a colonel, and I heard much discussion on several
occasions among the Creole negroes, about the fittest person to be
appointed to the vacant situation.[210]
The creole negroes of Recife are, generally speaking, mechanics of
all descriptions; but they have not yet reached the higher ranks of
life, as gentlemen, as planters, and as merchants. Some of them have
accumulated considerable sums of money, and possess many slaves, to
whom they teach their own trade, or these slaves are taught other
mechanical employments by which they may become useful. They work for
their owners, and render to them great profits, for every description
of labour is high, and that which requires any degree of skill bears
even a higher comparative value than the departments of which a
knowledge is more easily attained. The best church and image painter
of Pernambuco is a black man, who has good manners, and quite the air
of a man of some importance, though he does not by any means assume
too much. The negroes are excluded from the priesthood[211]; and from
the offices which the mulattos may obtain through their evasion of the
law, but which the decided and unequivocal colour of the negro entirely
precludes him from aspiring to. In law all persons who are not white,
and are born free, class equally; manumitted slaves are placed upon the
same footing as persons born free. However, although the few exclusions
which exist against the negroes are degrading, still in some instances
they are befriended by them. They are unable, owing to their colour,
to serve in the regiments of the line, or in any regiments excepting
those which are exclusively their own; but by means of this regulation
they escape the persecutions under which the other casts suffer during
the time of recruiting. The officers and men of the Henrique regiments
are so united to each other, that the privates and subalterns are
less liable to be oppressed by any white man in office even than the
soldiers of the mulatto regiments. Of these latter the officers, having
a considerable tinge of white, sometimes lean towards the wishes
of the _capitam-mor_, or some other rich white officer, instead of
protecting his soldiers.
The men whose occupation it is to apprehend runaway negroes are, almost
without exception, creole blacks; they are called _capitaens-do-campo_,
captains of the field; and are subject to a _capitam-mor do campo_
who resides in Recife, and they receive their commissions either
from the governor or from this officer. By these they are authorised
to apprehend and take to their owners any slaves who may be found
absent from their homes without their master’s consent. Several of
these men are to be found in every district, employing themselves in
such pursuits as they think fit, when their services are not required
in that calling which forms their particular duty. They are men of
undaunted courage, and are usually followed by two or three dogs, which
are trained to seek out, and if necessary to attack and bring to the
ground those persons whose apprehension their masters are desirous
of effecting. The men who bear these commissions can oblige any
unauthorised person to give up to them an apprehended negro, for the
purpose of being by them returned to his owner.
It is scarcely necessary to name the mestizos, for they usually class
with the mulattos; nor are they to be easily distinguished from
some of the darker varieties of this cast. A dark coloured man of a
disagreeable countenance and badly formed person is commonly called a
mestizo, without any reference to his origin.
Yet one race of human beings remain to be spoken of; but the
individuals who compose it are not sufficiently numerous to permit
them to take their place among the several great divisions of the
human family which form the population of Brazil, and therefore I did
not rank this among the others which are of more importance. Still
the _çiganos_[212], for thus they are called, must not be forgotten.
I frequently heard of these people, but never had an opportunity of
seeing any of them. Parties of _çiganos_ were in the habit of appearing
formerly once every year at the village of Pasmado, and other places
in that part of the country; but the late governor of the province
was inimical to them, and some attempts having been made to apprehend
some of them, their visits were discontinued. They are represented as
being a people of a brownish cast, with features which resemble those
of white persons, and as being tall and handsome. They wander from
place to place in parties of men, women, and children; exchanging,
buying, and selling horses, and gold and silver trinkets. The women
travel on horseback, sitting between the panniers of the loaded horses,
and the young ones are placed within the panniers among the baggage.
The men are excellent horsemen, and although the pack-horses may be
overburthened, these fellows will only accommodate matters by riding
slowly upon their own horses, and never think of dividing the loads
more equally; but they preserve themselves and the animals upon which
they ride quite unencumbered. They are said to be unmindful of all
religious observances; and never to hear Mass or confess their sins. It
is likewise said that they never marry out of their own nation.
There are now several British merchants established at Recife, and a
consul likewise resides at that place; but at the time of my coming
away, there was no protestant chapel, no clergyman, nor even a burial
ground for our countrymen. An Act of Parliament has, I believe,
provided for the establishment of these things, but no steps have been
taken towards the accomplishment of the directions of the legislature.
Without any outward appearance of religion, how are we to expect that
the people of Brazil are to regard us as any thing better than what we
were represented to them as being in former times?—as pagans, animals,
and horses—_pagoens_, _bichos_, and _cavallos_, this is literally
true; and although they are now aware that at any rate we have the
forms of human beings, that we have the power of speech, and that we
have our share of intellect in all the common transactions of the
world, still how are we to look for respect from them towards a set
of men, who have no appearance at least, of possessing any religious
feelings? It should be recollected that we are living among a people
who are deeply rivetted to their own forms and ceremonies of worship,
whose devotedness to their church establishment surpasses every
other feeling. It is not thus that the British nation is to become
respectable; we may have relations of trade with these people, but we
must be content to be merely regarded according to our utility; there
can be no respect for our general character as a body of men, none of
that regard which would make us listened to in any great question,
which would make our opinions and our assertions depended upon as
coming from men of steadiness,—of religious habits. Nor can we be
accounted as more than residents for a time, we cannot be considered
as an established community, who are thus without any common bond of
union, who have not any general place of meeting, who have not any one
point to which all are directed; we have no appearance of belonging to
one nation, as if we were brethren meeting in a foreign land. To these
political reasons for the establishment of a place of worship are to
be added those which are of far greater importance, those to which no
Christian ought to be indifferent. I well know that it is not with the
merchants that the evil arises;—but enough, I will go no farther,
although I could tarry long upon this subject. I wish however that I
could have avoided the mention of it altogether. I might have done so,
if I had not felt that I was passing by unnoticed a subject upon which
I have often spoken whilst I was upon the spot; and there my sentiments
are well known to most of those persons with whom I associated.
CHAPTER XIX.
SLAVERY.
THE general equity of the laws regarding free persons of colour in
the Portugueze South American possessions, has been to a certain
degree extended to that portion of the population which is in a state
of slavery; and the lives of the slaves of Brazil have been rendered
less hard and less intolerable than those of the degraded beings who
drag on their cheerless existence under the dominion of other nations.
The Brazilian slave is taught the religion of his master, and hopes
are held out of manumission from his own exertions; but still he is
a slave, and must be guided by another man’s will; and this feeling
alone takes away much of the pleasure which would be felt from the
faithful discharge of his duty, if it was voluntarily performed. The
consciousness that if the directions were not willingly attended to,
the arbitrary will of the master would enforce their performance,
removes much of the desire to please; obedience to a command is not
required with any idea that refusal can possibly ensue, and therefore
no merit is attached to its accomplishment by him whose orders are
obeyed; nor does the slave feel that he is doing in any degree more
than would be enforced if he had made any doubts. The world has heard
so much, and from so many quarters, of the enormities which have been
committed by slave-owners in the colonies with which England has had
any communication; both from her own possessions, and from those of
other nations, that no doubts can be entertained of their existence.
That such evil deeds are of frequent occurrence, I would not wish to
suppose, though that they are dreadfully too frequent is well known; I
had rather not be persuaded that man in so depraved a state is often to
be met with;—that many civilized beings should have made such rapid
returns to barbarism. I have to say, that in Brazil too, such instances
of barbarity are spoken of—that they do exist; they are, however, of
rare occurrence, they are seldom heard of, and are always mentioned
with abhorrence; but it is enough that instances should be recorded,
of the abuse of this absolute power of one man over another; it is
enough that this absolute power itself should be allowed to continue,
to render the system upon which it is founded an evil of such great
importance, as to sanction all exertions for its removal, as to make
any government overlook many inconveniences rather than increase the
numbers of those human beings who suffer this dreadful degradation.
The Indian slavery has been for many years abolished in Brazil, and
the individuals who are now in bondage in that country are Africans,
and their descendants on both sides, or individuals whose mothers are
of African origin; and no line is drawn at which the near approach to
the colour and blood of the whites entitles the child, whose mother
is a slave, to freedom. I have seen several persons who were to all
appearance of white origin, still doomed to slavery.
Slaves, however, in Brazil, have many advantages over their brethren
in the British colonies. The numerous holidays of which the Catholic
religion enjoins the observance[213], give to the slave many days
of rest or time to work for his own profit; thirty-five of these,
and the Sundays besides, allow him to employ much of his time as he
pleases. Few masters are inclined to restrain the right of their
slaves to dispose of these days as they think fit, or at any rate
few dare, whatever their inclinations may be, to brave public
opinion in depriving them of the intervals from work which the law
has set apart as their own, that their lives may be rendered less
irksome. The time which is thus afforded enables the slave, who is so
inclined, to accumulate a sum of money; however this is by law his
master’s property, from the incapability under which a slave labours
of possessing any thing which he can by right call his own. But I
believe there is no instance on record in which a master attempted to
deprive his slave of these hard-earned gains. The slave can oblige
his master to manumit him, on tendering to him the sum for which he
was first purchased, or the price for which he might be sold, if that
price is higher than what the slave was worth at the time he was
first bought[214]. This regulation, like every one that is framed in
favour of slaves, is liable to be evaded, and the master sometimes
does refuse to manumit a valuable slave; and no appeal is made by the
sufferer, owing to the state of law in that country, which renders it
almost impossible for the slave to gain a hearing; and likewise this
acquiescence in the injustice of the master proceeds from the dread,
that if he was not to succeed he would be punished, and that his life
might be rendered more miserable than it was before[215]. Consequently
a great deal depends upon the inclinations of the master, who will
however be very careful in refusing to manumit, owing to the well-known
opinion of every priest in favour of this regulation, to the feelings
of the individuals of his own class in society, and to those of the
lower orders of people, and likewise he will be afraid of losing his
slave; he may escape with his money, and the master will then run much
risk of never seeing him again, particularly if the individual is a
creole slave[216]. In general therefore no doubts are urged, when
application is made for manumission by a slave to his master; who
is indeed oftentimes prepared for it by the habits of industry and
regularity of his slave, and by common report among the other slaves
and free persons upon the estate, that the individual in question is
scraping together a sum of money for this purpose. The master might
indeed deprive the slave of the fruits of his own labour, but this is
never thought of, because the slave preserves his money in a secret
place, or has entrusted it to some person upon whom he can depend, and
would suffer any punishment rather than disclose the spot in which his
wealth lies concealed. A still more forcible reason than any other, for
the forbearance of the master, is to be found in the dread of acting
against public opinion; in the shame which would follow the commission
of such an act; and perhaps the natural goodness which exists in almost
every human being, would make him shun such gross injustice, would make
him avoid such a deed of baseness.
A slave is often permitted by his owner to seek a master more to his
liking; for this purpose a note is given, declaring that the bearer
has leave to enter into the service of any one, upon the price which
the master demands being paid by the purchaser. With this the slave
applies to any individual of property whom he may wish to serve; owing
to having heard a good report of his character towards his slaves, or
from any other cause. This is a frequent practice, and at least admits
the possibility of escape from a severe state of bondage to one that is
less irksome.
A considerable number of slaves are manumitted at the death of
their masters, and indeed some persons of large property fail not
to set at liberty a few of them during their own life-time. A deed
of manumission, however simply it may be drawn out, cannot be set
aside; a register of these papers is preserved at the office of every
notary-public, by which any distress which might be occasioned by the
loss of the originals is provided against, for the copy of course holds
good in law. A slave who has brought into the world, and has reared ten
children, ought to be free, for so the law ordains; but this regulation
is generally evaded; and besides, the number of children is too great
for many women to be enabled to be benefited by it[217]. The price
of a new-born child is 5_l._ (20,000 _mil-reis_,) and the master is
obliged to manumit the infant at the baptismal font, on the sum being
presented. In this manner a considerable number of persons are set at
liberty, for the smallness of the price enables many freemen who have
had connections with female slaves to manumit their offspring; and
instances occur of the sponsors performing this most laudable act. Not
unfrequently female slaves apply to persons of consideration to become
sponsors to their children, in the hopes that the pride of these will
be too great to allow of their god-child remaining in slavery[218].
Thus by their own exertions, by the favour of their masters, and by
other means, the individuals who gain their freedom annually are very
numerous.
The comforts of slaves in different situations are widely
disproportionate; whilst some are doomed to an existence of excessive
toil and misery, from the nature of their occupations and the
characters of their masters, others lead a comparatively easy life.
It is true, that in countries of which the workmen are free, the
daily labour is unequally divided, but their wages are proportioned
accordingly, and as each man is a free agent he seeks that employment
to which his bodily and mental powers are befitted. The slave is
purchased for a certain purpose, and is to follow the line of life
which his master has chalked out for him; he is not to be occupied
in that which he would himself prefer, or at any rate his wishes are
not consulted upon the subject. The price for which a slave is to be
obtained, and the convenience of the purchaser are oftener consulted
than the fitness of his bodily strength to the labour which it is his
lot to be ordered to perform. Besides the obligation of following an
unsuitable trade, or at any rate of following one which he has not
chosen, he has to endure the still incomparably greater grievance of
bearing with a tyrannical, an inconsiderate, or a peevish master, whose
commands are not to be called in question, whose will is absolute, and
from whom the possibility of appeal is far removed, and that of redress
placed at a still greater distance. Masters are punished by the payment
of fines, for cruelty to their slaves, if any account of such behaviour
should reach the ear of the _Ouvidor_ of the province; but I never
heard of punishment having been carried farther than this trifling
manner of correction. The emoluments which proceed from this mode of
chastising the offenders weigh heavily in its favour; the injury which
the slave has received is not, I am afraid, the only cause which urges
the exaction of the stipulated penalty; of this the slave does not
receive any part.
All slaves in Brazil follow the religion of their masters[219]; and
notwithstanding the impure state in which the Christian church exists
in that country, still such are the beneficent effects of the Christian
religion, that these, its adopted children, are improved by it to an
infinite degree; and the slave who attends to the strict observance
of religious ceremonies invariably proves to be a good servant. The
Africans who are imported from Angola are baptized in lots before they
leave their own shores, and on their arrival in Brazil they are to
learn the doctrines of the church, and the duties of the religion into
which they have entered. These bear the mark of the royal crown upon
their breasts, which denotes that they have undergone the ceremony
of baptism, and likewise that the king’s duty has been paid upon
them[220]. The slaves which are imported from other parts of the coast
of Africa, arrive in Brazil unbaptized, and before the ceremony of
making them Christians can be performed upon them, they must be taught
certain prayers, for the acquirement of which one year is allowed to
the master, before he is obliged to present the slave at the parish
church. This law is not always strictly adhered to as to time, but
it is never evaded altogether. The religion of the master teaches
him that it would be extremely sinful to allow his slave to remain
a heathen; and indeed the Portugueze and Brazilians have too much
religious feeling to let them neglect any of the ordinances of their
church. The slave himself likewise wishes to be made a Christian, for
his fellow-bondmen will in every squabble or trifling disagreement
with him, close their string of opprobrious epithets with the name
of _pagam_ (pagan.) The unbaptized negro feels that he is considered
as an inferior being, and although he may not be aware of the value
which the whites place upon baptism, still he knows that the stigma
for which he is upbraided will be removed by it; and therefore he is
desirous of being made equal to his companions. The Africans who have
been long imported, imbibe a Catholic feeling, and appear to forget
that they were once in the same situation themselves. The slaves are
not asked whether they will be baptized or not; their entrance into
the Catholic church is treated as a thing of course; and indeed they
are not considered as members of society, but rather as brute animals,
until they can lawfully go to mass, confess their sins, and receive the
sacrament.
The slaves have their religious brotherhoods as well as the free
persons; and the ambition of a slave very generally aims at being
admitted into one of these, and at being made one of the officers and
directors of the concerns of the brotherhood; even some of the money
which the industrious slave is collecting for the purpose of purchasing
his freedom will oftentimes be brought out of its concealment for the
decoration of a saint, that the donor may become of importance in the
society to which he belongs. The negroes have one invocation of the
Virgin, (or I might almost say one virgin) which is peculiarly their
own. Our Lady of the Rosary is even sometimes painted with a black
face and hands. It is in this manner that the slaves are led to place
their attention upon an object in which they soon take an interest,
but from which no injury can proceed towards themselves, nor can any
through its means be by them inflicted upon their masters. Their ideas
are removed from any thought of the customs of their own country, and
are guided into a channel of a totally different nature, and completely
unconnected with what is practised there. The election of a King of
Congo (which I have mentioned in chapter 13,) by the individuals who
come from that part of Africa, seems indeed as if it would give them
a bias towards the customs of their native soil; but the Brazilian
Kings of Congo worship Our Lady of the Rosary, and are dressed in the
dress of white men; they and their subjects dance, it is true, after
the manner of their country; but to these festivals are admitted
African negroes of other nations, creole blacks, and mulattos, all of
whom dance after the same manner; and these dances are now as much
the national dances of Brazil as they are of Africa. The Portugueze
language is spoken by all the slaves, and their own dialects are
allowed to lay dormant until they are by many of them quite forgotten.
No compulsion is resorted to to make them embrace the habits of their
masters, but their ideas are insensibly led to imitate and adopt them.
The masters at the same time imbibe some of the customs of their
slaves, and thus the superior and his dependant are brought nearer to
each other. I doubt not that the system of baptizing the newly-imported
negroes, proceeded rather from the bigotry of the Portugueze in former
times than from any political plan; but it has had the most beneficial
effects. The slaves are rendered more tractable; besides being better
men and women, they become more obedient servants; they are brought
under the controul of the priesthood, and even if this was the only
additional hold which was gained by their entrance into the church, it
is a great engine of power which is thus brought into action.
But in no circumstance has the introduction of the Christian religion
among the slaves been of more service than in the change which it has
wrought in the men regarding the treatment of their women, and in
the conduct of the females themselves. A writer of great reputation
on West-Indian affairs, states that the introduction of the marriage
ceremony among the slaves of the colonies of which he treats “would
be utterly impracticable to any good purpose;” and again, that he
who conceives that a remedy may be found for polygamy “by introducing
among them the laws of marriage, as established in Europe, is utterly
ignorant of their manners, propensities, and superstitions[221].” Is
it not that by the masters these things are considered to be of little
importance, and therefore unworthy of much trouble? As long as the
work is done, little else is thought of. Where the _interest_ of the
master is concerned, the “manners, propensities, and superstitions”
will soon be overcome. I hope that at the present day such opinions
do not generally exist. All men in the same state of barbarism treat
their women in the same manner; the evil lies not with the race of
beings, but in the dreadful situation to which this one is reduced.
Why, therefore, not attempt to improve and to benefit the individuals
of which it is composed?
The slaves of Brazil are regularly married according to the forms of
the Catholic church; the banns are published in the same manner as
those of free persons; and I have seen many happy couples (as happy
at least as slaves can be) with large families of children rising
around them. The masters encourage marriages among their slaves, for
it is from these lawful connections that they can expect to increase
the number of their creoles. A slave cannot marry without the consent
of his master, for the vicar will not publish the banns of marriage
without this sanction. It is likewise permitted that slaves should
marry free persons; if the woman is in bondage, the children remain
in the same state, but if the man is a slave, and she is free, their
offspring is also free. A slave cannot be married until the requisite
prayers have been learnt, the nature of confession be understood, and
the Sacrament can be received. Upon the estates the master or manager
is soon made acquainted with the predilections of the slaves for each
other, and these being discovered, marriage is forthwith determined
upon, and the irregular proceedings are made lawful. In towns there is
more licentiousness among the negroes, as there is among all other
classes of men[222]. The passion of love is supposed only to exist in a
certain state of civilization, and this may be granted without at the
same time declaring that negroes are incapable of lasting attachment,
without supposing that the regard of each sex is mere animal desire,
unconnected with predilection. That species of affection which is
heightened until personal possession is almost forgotten, doubtless is
not felt by human beings who are in a state of barbarism; but still
a negro may be attached, he may fix upon one object in preference to
all others. That this is the case, I can vouch; I have known and have
heard of many instances in which punishments and other dangers have
been braved to visit a chosen one; in which journies by night have
been made after a day of fatigue; in which great constancy has been
shewn, and a determination that the feelings of the heart shall not be
controuled.[223]
The great proportion of men upon many of the estates, produces, of
necessity, most mischievous consequences. A supply is requisite
to keep up the number of labourers. The women are more liable to
misconduct[224], and the men imbibe unsettled habits; but if an
adequate number of females are placed upon the estate, and the
slaves are trained and taught in the manner which is practised upon
well-regulated plantations, the negroes will be as correct in their
behaviour, as any other body of men; and perhaps their conduct may
be less faulty than that of other descriptions of persons, who have
less to occupy their time, though their education may be infinitely
superior. That many men and many women will be licentious, has been and
is still the lot of human nature, and not the peculiar fault of the
much injured race of which I speak.
I shall now state the manner in which the Africans are transported
from their own country to Brazil, and the disposal of them on their
arrival in South America; the characters of the several African nations
with which the ships are loaded; the condition of those who are
employed in Recife,—upon the sugar plantations,—in the Mata or cotton
estates,—and in the Sertam or cattle districts.
As the voyage from the coast of Africa to the opposite shores of South
America is usually short, for the winds are subject to little variation
and the weather is fine, the vessels which are employed in this traffic
are generally speaking small, and are not of the best construction.
The situation of captain or master of a slave ship is considered of
secondary rank in the Portugueze merchant-service, and the persons
who are usually so occupied are vastly inferior to the generality of
the individuals who command the large and regular trading vessels
between Europe and Brazil. The slave ships[225] were formerly crowded
to a most shocking degree, nor was there any means of preventing
this; but a law has been passed for the purpose of restricting the
number of persons for each vessel. However, I more than suspect, that
no attention is paid to this regulation,—that means are made use of
to evade the law. On the arrival at Recife of a cargo of slaves, the
rules of the port direct that these persons shall be disembarked and
taken to St. Amaro, which is an airy spot, and sufficiently distant
from the town to prevent the admittance of any infectious disorder,
if any such should exist among the newly-imported negroes; and yet
the place is at a convenient distance for the purchasers, St. Amaro
being situated immediately opposite to Recife, upon the inland bank
of the expanse of waters which is formed by the tide on the land side
of the town. However, like many others, this excellent arrangement is
not attended to, and even if the slaves are removed for a few days
to St. Amaro, they are soon conveyed back to the town. Here they are
placed in the streets before the doors of their owners, regardless of
decency, of humanity, and of due attention to the general health of the
town. The small pox, the yaws, and other complaints have thus frequent
opportunities of spreading. It is probable, that if the climate was
not so very excellent as it is, this practice would be discontinued,
but if it was not put a stop to, and the country was subject to
pestilential complaints, the town would not be habitable.
In the day-time some of the streets of Recife are in part lined with
these miserable beings, who are lying or sitting promiscuously upon
the foot-path, sometimes to the number of two or three hundred. The
males wear a small piece of blue cloth round their waists, which is
drawn between the legs and fastened behind; the females are allowed a
larger piece of cloth, which is worn as a petticoat; and sometimes a
second portion is given to them, for the purpose of covering the upper
parts of the body. The stench which is created by these assemblages is
almost intolerable to one who is unaccustomed to their vicinity; and
the sight of them, good God, is horrid beyond any thing. These people
do not however seem to feel their situation, any farther than that
it is uncomfortable. Their food consists of salt meat, the flour of
the mandioc, beans, and plantains occasionally; the victuals for each
day are cooked in the middle of the street in an enormous caldron.
At night they are driven into one or more warehouses, and a driver
stands to count them as they pass; they are locked in, and the door
is again opened at day-break on the following morning. The wish of
these wretched creatures to escape from this state of inaction and
discomfort is manifested upon the appearance of a purchaser; they start
up willingly, to be placed in the row for the purpose of being viewed
and handled like cattle, and on being chosen they give signs of much
pleasure. I have had many opportunities of seeing slaves bought, for
my particular friends at Recife lived opposite to slave-dealers. I
never saw any demonstrations of grief at parting from each other; but
I attribute this to the dread of punishment if there had been any flow
of feeling, and to a resigned or rather despairing sensation which
checks any shew of grief, and which has prepared them for the worst, by
making them indifferent to whatever may occur; besides, it is not often
that a family is brought over together,—the separation of relatives
and friends has taken place in Africa. It is among the younger part of
the assemblage of persons who are exposed for sale that pleasure is
particularly visible at the change of situation, in being removed from
the streets of the town; the negroes of more advanced age do whatever
the driver desires, usually with an unchanged countenance. I am afraid
that very little care is taken to prevent the separation of relations
who may chance to come over in the same ship; and any consideration on
this point lies entirely with the owner of the cargo[226]. A species of
relationship exists between the individuals who have been imported in
the same ship; they call each other _malungos_, and this term is much
regarded among them. The purchaser gives to each of his newly-bought
slaves a large piece of baize and a straw hat, and as soon as possible
marches them off to his estate. I have often in travelling met with
many parties going up to their new homes, and have observed that they
were usually cheerful;—any thing is better than to sit at the door of
the slave merchant in Recife. The new master too does every thing in
his power to keep them in good humour at first, whatever his conduct
may afterwards be towards them.
The slaves which are usually brought to Pernambuco are known under the
names of Angola, Congo, Rebolo, Anjico, Gabam, and Mosambique. These
last have only been imported of late years, owing, I rather imagine,
to the difficulty with which slaves have been obtained on the western
coast of Africa, caused by the vigilance of the British cruisers in
that quarter, and the vexations to which some of the slave ships have
been liable from detention, although they were ultimately suffered to
proceed on their voyages.
The Angola negroes make the best slaves; many of them have been in
bondage in their own country, and therefore to these the change is for
the better. Some of them have even served the whites in the city of
Loanda, which is the principal Portugueze settlement upon the coast
of Africa. But others were free in Angola, and consequently to these
is allotted a life of disappointment and vexation, whenever they
remember their own country. The negroes from Angola are however usually
tractable, and may be taught to perform the menial services of a house
or stable without much pains being taken with them; and they often shew
great attachment[227], fidelity, and honesty. The Angola negroes are
those who most commonly exert themselves to purchase their own freedom.
The Congo negroes partake much of the character of the Angolans, being
equally tractable; but they are steadier, and are particularly adapted
to the regular routine of field labour. They are less quick in their
movements than the Angolans, and do not seem to be so spirited and
courageous; they obtain in a short period a knowledge of the Portugueze
language. The Rebolos can scarcely in person be distinguished from the
two former, being stoutly made, and not tall; they have a black skin,
but it is not shining, and the features are flat. They seem to be a
branch of the Angolans and Congos, but they are more obstinate, and
more subject to despond than the others. These three tribes appear to
have belonged originally to the same nation, for many parts of their
characters are similar, their persons are of the same mould, and the
dialects of each sufficiently resemble each other to be understood by
all the three.
The Anjico negroes shew many marks of being of another nation; they
make good slaves if they are well treated, and are yet preserved
under due controul. They are difficult to train, and bear a heavy
yoke impatiently; there is in them much independence of character, if
they dared to shew it; there is also much cunning, and the desire and
capability of over-reaching. Their persons are tall and well formed,
their skins are of a glossy black, their eyes are expressive, and their
countenances plainly denote that it is not by their own will that they
continue in slavery. They are not however numerous. Great neatness is
shown by them in their household arrangements, and they often exert
themselves to obtain money; but they are less careful and prudent than
the nations of which I have already treated. All the Anjico negroes
have three gashes on each cheek, which are cut in a circular form from
the ear to the mouth.[228]
The _Gabam_ or Gaboon negroes have not been very long introduced, and
from the well known general character of the nation they are sold
at a reduced price. I have heard many persons state that they are
cannibals[229]. They appear to be in a still more savage state than any
of the former-mentioned nations, and are much given to despondency and
consequent suicide; indeed ten and even twenty that have been purchased
together have, in some instances, in the course of a short period, all
died from despair, or have put an end to their lives in a more summary
manner. It is with difficulty that the Gaboons can be taught to perform
any labour above that of the simplest description; and sometimes they
remain for years unbaptized, from the great trouble which is required
in making them articulate any sounds to which they have not been
accustomed. Yet it is rather that they _will_ not be taught, than that
they _cannot_ learn, for I have heard many planters say, that if a
_Gabam_ negro can be made cheerful, and is induced to take an interest
in those persons who are around him and in his occupations, he becomes
a most useful and intelligent slave. The _Gabam_ negroes are tall and
handsome, and their skins are very black and shining; the features of
many of them are good, being much less flat and blunt than those of
their countrymen in general.
The Mosambique negroes are a poor and ugly race of beings, languid and
inactive, and subject to despondency. Their colour inclines to brown,
but still they have completely the negro features. As the price of
these slaves is much below that of any other description of negroes,
some of the planters have taken them on trial, but they are said to
have many of the bad qualities of the _Gaboons_ without their hardiness.
A negro will sometimes tell his master that he is determined to die,
and too often the effects of his resolve begin shortly afterwards to
be perceived; he becomes thin, loses his appetite, and dies almost a
skeleton. One of the means which it is very generally said that these
miserable beings employ for the purpose of destroying themselves, is
that of eating considerable quantities of lime and earth, which either
produces emaciation or dropsy. But it is strange that a habit of eating
lime and earth should be contracted in some instances by African and
likewise by creole children, and as frequently by free children as by
those who are in slavery. This practice is not treated as if it were a
disorder, but it is accounted a habit, which, by attention from those
who have the charge of the children—in watching and punishing them,
may be conquered without the aid of medicine. I know of some instances
in which no medical treatment was deemed necessary, but the individuals
recovered by means of chastisement and constant vigilance. It is a
subject upon which I was often led to converse, and I discovered that
most of the free-born families were acquainted with the practice from
experience among their own children or those of their neighbours, and
that they always considered it as a habit and not as a disease. Among
adults, however, slaves are infinitely more subject to it than free
persons.[230]
Pernambuco has never experienced any serious revolt among the slaves;
but at Bahia there have been several commotions[231]. I believe that
Bahia contains fewer free people than Pernambuco in proportion to the
number of slaves; but I cannot avoid attributing the quietude of the
latter in some measure to the circumstance of few of the Gold Coast
negroes being imported to it, whilst at Bahia the principal stock of
slaves is from that part of Africa. It is by the _Mina_ negroes in
Bahia that the revolts have been made, and by the _Koromanties_ in
Jamaica, in 1760[232]. These are, I believe, the same people under
different names, and they are represented as possessing great firmness
of mind and body, and ferociousness of disposition.
The _Obeah_-men of the Columbian islands and the _Mandingueiros_ of
Brazil[233], are evidently, from their practices, the same description
of persons. The religion which the Brazilian slaves are taught, has
likewise a salutary effect upon this point, for it tends to lessen
or entirely removes the faith which was previously entertained by
the Africans respecting the incantations of their countrymen; the
superstitions of their native land are replaced by others of a more
harmless nature. The dreadful effects of faith in the _Obeah_-men
which sometimes occur in the British colonies, are not experienced in
Brazil from the _Mandingueiros_: belief in their powers is certainly
not extinguished, and indeed even some of the creoles imbibe a notion
of the efficacy of their spells, but the effects of these are not
generally felt.
The slaves who are employed in Recife may be divided into two classes;
household slaves, and those which pay a weekly stipend to their owners
proceeding from the earnings of some employment which does not oblige
them to be under the immediate eye of the master. The first class have
little chance of gaining their freedom by their own exertions, and
are subject to the caprice and whims of their superiors; but some few
are manumitted by the kindness of those whom they have served, and
the clothing and food which is afforded to them is generally better
than that which the other class obtains. This second class consists
of joiners, shoemakers, &c. canoe-men, porters, &c. and these men
may acquire a sufficient sum of money to purchase their own freedom,
if they have the requisite prudence and steadiness to allow their
earnings to accumulate; but too often, the inducements to expend them
foolishly are sufficiently powerful to make these people swerve from
their purpose. They generally earn more each day than the master
exacts, and have besides the Sundays and holidays as their own; and if
the slave feeds and cloaths himself, to these are added the Saturday
of every week[234]. I think that allowing largely for him to supply
every thing requisite for his support and decent appearance, and yet
something for what to a person in such a rank in life may be accounted
luxury, a slave so circumstanced may in ten years purchase his freedom.
If his value is great, it is because his trade is lucrative, so that
these things keep pace with each other. The women have likewise some
employments by which they may be enabled to gain their liberty;
they make sweetmeats and cakes, and are sent out as cooks, nurses,
housekeepers, &c.
Creole negroes and mulattos are generally accounted quicker in learning
any trade than the Africans. This superior aptitude to profit by
instruction is doubtless produced by their acquaintance from infancy
with the manners, customs, and language of their masters. From the
little experience, however, which I have had, and from the general
remarks which I have gathered from others, who might be judged better
acquainted than myself with slaves, I think that an African who
has become chearful, and seems to have forgotten his former state,
is a more valuable slave than a creole negro or mulatto. He will be
generally more fit to be trusted. Far from the latter submitting
quietly to the situation in which they have been born, they bear the
yoke of slavery with impatience; the daily sight of so many individuals
of their own casts, who are in a state of freedom, makes them wish
to be raised to an equality with them, and they feel at every moment
their unfortunate doom. The consideration with which the free persons
of mixed casts are treated, tends to increase the discontent of their
brothers who are in slavery. The Africans do not feel this, for
they are considered by their creole brethren in colour, as being so
completely inferior, that the line which by public opinion has been
drawn between them, makes the imported slave feel towards the creoles
as if they had not been originally of the same stock.
Miserable objects are at times to be seen in Recife, asking alms in
various quarters of the town, aged and diseased; some of these persons
have been slaves, and when, from infirmity they have been rendered
useless, their masters have manumitted them; and thus being turned
away to starve in their old age, or in a crippled state, their only
resource is to beg in the public streets. These instances of gross
injustice and depravity in masters, are not many, but that they should
occur, is sufficient to cause the aid of law to be called in, that the
_existence_ of them should be prevented.
The sugar-plantations which belong to the Benedictine monks and
Carmelite friars, are those upon which the labour is conducted with
the greatest attention to system, and with the greatest regard to the
comfort and ease of the slaves. I can more particularly speak of the
estates of the Benedictine monks, because my residence at Jaguaribe
gave me daily opportunities of hearing of the management of one of
their establishments; and although sugar-works were not erected upon
the estate in question, still the number of negroes which were upon
it, was fully adequate to this purpose. Besides, in some years canes
were planted upon it, which were to be ground at some neighbouring
mill. The frequent communication, likewise, which there was between the
slaves of this plantation and those of the other estates, belonging to
the same convent, upon which sugar is made, enabled me to ascertain
that all the establishments which are owned by the Benedictines, are
conducted in the same manner.
The slaves of the Jaguaribe St. Bento estate are all creoles, and are
in number about one hundred. The children are carefully taught their
prayers by some of the elder negroes, and the hymn to the Virgin is
sung by all the slaves, male and female, who can possibly attend, at
seven o’clock every evening; at this hour it is required that every
person shall be at home. The young children are allowed to amuse
themselves as they please during the greatest part of the day; and
their only occupation for certain hours is to pick cotton for lamps,
and to separate the beans which are fit for seed from those which are
rotten, and other work of the same description. When they arrive at
the age of ten and twelve years, the girls spin thread for making the
coarse cotton cloth of the country, and the boys attend to the horses
and oxen, driving them to pasture, &c. If a child evinces peculiar
fitness for any trade, care is taken that his talents should be applied
in the manner which he would himself prefer. A few of them are taught
music, and assist in the church festivals of the convent. Marriages
are encouraged; as early as the age of seventeen and eighteen years
for the men, and at fourteen and fifteen for the girls, many of these
unions take place. Immediately after their entrance into this state,
the people begin to labour regularly in the field for their owners;
oftentimes both boys and girls request the manager to allow them to
commence their life of daily toil, before the age which is pointed out
by the regulations of the convent; and this occurs because they are
not permitted to possess provision grounds of their own until they
labour for their masters. Almost every description of labour is done by
piece-work; and the task is usually accomplished by three o’clock in
the afternoon, which gives to those who are industrious an opportunity
of working daily upon their own grounds. The slaves are allowed the
Saturday of every week to provide for their own subsistence, besides
the Sundays and holidays. Those who are diligent fail not to obtain
their freedom by purchase. The provision grounds are never interfered
with by the monks, and when a negro dies or obtains his freedom, he is
permitted to bequeath his plot of land to any of his companions whom
he may please to favour in this manner. The superannuated slaves are
carefully provided with food and cloathing.[235]
None of the monks reside upon the Jaguaribe estate, but one of them
comes from Olinda almost every Sunday and holiday to say Mass. Upon
the other Benedictine estates there are resident monks. The slaves
treat their masters with great familiarity; they only pay respect to
the abbot, whom they regard as the representative of the Saint. The
conduct of the younger members of the communities of regular clergy,
is well known not to be by any means correct; the vows of celibacy are
not strictly adhered to. This circumstance decreases the respect with
which these men might otherwise be treated upon their own estates,
and increases much the licentiousness of the women. I have seen
upon these plantations many light-coloured mulatto slaves; but when
the approximation to white blood becomes considerable, a marriage
is projected for the individual with a person of a darker tint. No
compulsion is made use of to oblige any one to marry, and therefore
many of the slaves, contrary to the wishes of their masters, remain
single. The monks allow their female slaves to marry free men, but the
male slaves are not permitted to marry free women. Many reasons are
alleged in favour of this regulation. One is that they do not wish
that a slave should be useless in the way of increasing the stock of
the plantation; likewise the monks do not wish to have a free family
residing among their slaves (for obvious reasons), which must be the
case if a man marries a free woman; they have less objection to a man,
because he is during the whole of the day away from their people, or is
perhaps employed by the community, and thus in part dependant upon it,
and he merely comes to sleep in one of the huts; besides, a stranger is
contributing to the increase of the stock.
The Jaguaribe estate is managed by a mulatto slave, who married a
person of his own colour, and she likewise belonged to the convent.
Her husband has purchased her freedom and that of her children; he
possesses two African slaves, the profits of whose labour are entirely
his own; but he is himself obliged to attend to the business of the
plantation, and to see that the work of his masters is properly
executed. This man has offered his two Africans in exchange for himself
to the monks; but they tell him that the Jaguaribe estate could not
be properly managed without his assistance; and, though much against
his inclination, he continues in slavery. This is one of the strongest
instances of man’s desire to act for himself; Nicolau enjoys the
entire direction of the estate, and every comfort which a man of his
description can possibly wish for; when he moves from home, he is as
well mounted as the generality of the rich planters; he is permitted to
be seated in the presence of his masters, and indeed is allowed all the
privileges of free men; and yet the consciousness of being under the
controul of another always occupies his mind, and leads him to desire
the possession of those privileges as a right, which he at present only
enjoys by sufferance.[236]
Slavery, however, in this less intolerable state exists in only a few
instances; and although a great many of the planters certainly do
treat their slaves with considerable regard and attention to their
comforts, still, upon _none_ of the estates, _excepting_ those of the
religious communities which have been mentioned, is the complete system
of rendering unnecessary a constant supply of new labourers, made the
primary object;—the end to which all other considerations must give
place.
Next to the plantations which belong to the convents, stand some
of those of the rich Brazilian owners, who go on quietly, if not
systematically. Here the labour is not in general done by piece-work,
nor do the labourers provide for their own subsistence; and the slaves
are sent to the field at an earlier age than they ought, and earlier
than is practised upon the convent estates. Some of the plantations,
however, which are owned by individuals, do give the Saturday of each
week for the slave to support himself[237]. Corporal punishments are
resorted to contrary to the custom of the St. Bento and Carmo estates,
and though great cruelties are not _often_ committed[238], still
the mode of punishment produces much suffering, much misery, much
degradation. Confinement and privations, would, I rather imagine, be
more efficacious. The pride of the slave, who is obliged to appear
abroad with his back covered with scars, is at first much hurt; but
the shame of being seen in this state soon wears off, and then all
hopes of reform may be given up; he will continue in his faults, and
be indifferent to the stripes which he must occasionally undergo for
committing them. I have been requested by slaves, who had been often
so treated, to punish them with the whip, and not to make them endure
the misery of sitting in the stocks in solitary confinement. But the
punishment is suffered in private; no exposure is occasioned by it. It
would appear strange that the slave should prefer corporal punishment;
and this would seem to denote that this class of men possesses none of
those feelings of shame of which I have spoken; but I am convinced,
that these are as deeply implanted in the negro, as in any other
race of human beings. The case is this, where a slave has been often
punished with the whip, and is seeing many of his companions and
acquaintance undergoing the same punishment frequently, the knowledge
that it is what he himself has before borne, and that so many are
thus treated, takes away the horror which he would otherwise feel at
the kind of chastisement. This proves the debased state,—the very
low ebb to which human nature may be brought. The additional rigour
which thus the slave seems to consider confinement to be, would be a
recommendation to some persons, and perhaps the feeling is in the main
right; for if the crime is great, the punishment should be adequate,
and by this means of confinement no degradation of the human being
is occasioned. Hopes may be entertained that the time which is given
for reflection, and the depression of spirits which is produced by the
loneliness of the situation, may bring about a correction of error;
but by the whip, angry and vindictive feelings are excited, or despair
is the consequence, and in either case the owner will be injured;
in the former, by a determination to continue in fault, and in the
latter by the death or inaction of the sufferer. The objection which
is principally to be urged against the mode of chastisement, which I
have accounted the least prejudicial to the slave, considered as a
rational being, is to be met with in the loss of time which is incurred
by confinement a due length; but I think, that this would be much more
than compensated by the loss of health and of character which the negro
suffers in undergoing punishment by the whip, and even of time during
the period that the slave is recovering from the stripes. Iron collars,
chains, and other punishments of the same description are likewise
made use of, and are liable to the objection of rendering callous the
sense of shame. I have observed, and have often heard it remarked, that
scarcely any of the slaves who receive frequent correction, ever gain
their freedom through their own exertions. The bad dispositions and
inclinations of many, and the indifference which is produced in others
by severe punishments, sufficiently account for this fact.[239]
The creole slaves are usually employed as tradesmen and household
servants; even upon the sugar plantations this is the case where
they are not more numerous than what are necessary to fill these
departments; to the Africans the field labour is chiefly allotted.
The negroes are sent to work as the sun rises, and far from being
more capable of exertion in the early part of the morning than under
the mid-day heat, the Africans are inactive and languid, until the
increasing power of the sun removes the chill which they receive from
the cool morning air. They frequently leave their huts wrapped up in
their coverlids of baize, seemingly much distressed by the cold. The
negroes breakfast about eight o’clock, and for this meal half an hour
or less is allowed; and some masters expect that their slaves shall
breakfast before they commence their work in the morning;—that is,
before sunrise. The time which is allowed for dinner, is from twelve
o’clock till two, when the labourers again continue their labour until
half past five o’clock. They are now, generally speaking, expected to
pick a small bundle of grass for the master’s saddle-horses, in some
of the neighbouring provision grounds; but if this is not requisite,
the work continues until sunset, about six o’clock. On the arrival
of the people at home in the evening, they are sometimes required to
scrape the rind from the mandioc for about one or two hours; but as
none of the principal estates make a practice of selling the flour of
the mandioc, and only prepare the quantity which is necessary for the
subsistence of the slaves, this labour only occurs about once in each
week, or less frequently. In crop time, the work is only discontinued
on Sundays and holidays; and, as is practised on board vessels at sea,
the negroes relieve each other at stated hours.
The field negroes are attended by a _feitor_ or driver, who is
sometimes a white man; but more frequently a free mulatto is employed
for the purpose. It is the practice likewise of some of the planters
to appoint a Creole, or even an African slave to the situation. Upon
a _feitor_ who is a slave, more reliance is to be placed than upon
a free person of colour, for the slave _feitor_ becomes responsible
to his master for the work which is to be executed, and is therefore
careful that every one should do his duty. It is a remark which is
generally made; that the slave _feitores_ require to be watched, that
they may be prevented from being too rigorous towards those whom they
are appointed to command; their behaviour is usually more overbearing
than that of free men; and next to the slaves the European _feitores_
are the most tyrannical. It is likewise frequently observed that even
manumitted Africans who become possessed of slaves, which occasionally
occurs, treat them in a severe and unfeeling manner, that is nothing
softened, but rather rendered more violent, by a remembrance of
their own sufferings. Experience in trouble too often leads those
who have suffered to the infliction of equal or greater hardships,
when opportunities for so doing are afforded; the human being becomes
callous; it is tormented, and torments with the same indifference.
Medical attendance is not so well provided for as it ought, which
proceeds rather from the small number of practitioners in the country,
than from the negligence of the planters; indeed due attention in this
respect is so much and so evidently their interest, that this alone,
independent of any feelings of humanity, would make them seek every
means of obtaining proper advice for their slaves[240]. I do not think
that the food which the slaves receive is in sufficient quantities,
or of a quality sufficiently nourishing for the labour which they are
required to perform; and it would be undoubtedly much too scanty, if
the days of intended rest did not supply them with an addition to the
stock of provisions which the master affords. I have in another place
stated, that the vegetable part of the food of the sugar plantation
negroes is chiefly the flour of the mandioc; the animal food is
generally the _carne do Searà_, salt meat which comes from Rio Grande
do Sul; and sometimes salt fish supplies its place. The cloathing which
is given to the slaves by the master consists of a shirt and drawers
of the cotton cloth of the country, and a straw hat; a piece of baize
and a mat are likewise afforded to them; but these things are not
renewed as often as a due consideration to their comforts would demand.
Although the negroes are fed by their masters, still as lands are to
be had in abundance, the slaves are permitted to plant whatever they
think fit, and to sell the produce to whom they please. Many of them
rear pigs and poultry, and occasionally a horse is kept, from the hire
of which money may be obtained.[241]
The newly-imported negroes are usually sent to work too soon after
their arrival upon the estates; if proper care is taken of them, they
may indeed be employed in almost any description of labour at the
end of eight or ten months, but not much before this period. Damp
situations should be avoided, and they ought not to be sent out in the
morning earlier than eight o’clock, and they should breakfast before
they leave home: by these precautions the loss of many slaves might be
prevented; and they should be followed without any deviation, at least
until the new negroes have been for a twelvemonth in the country to
which they have been transported.[242]
I have represented slavery in what I conceive to be the state in
which it usually exists upon the plantations; but any comforts which
the human beings who are so circumstanced enjoy, and any respite
from severe labour is so entirely at the will of the master, that
the instances in which the fate of the slave is hard almost beyond
endurance, are dreadfully too frequent. Some planters follow the
system of performing certain kinds of work during the early part of
the night, besides making the negroes labour for the full usual time
during the day;—for instance, the whole of the labour of making the
mandioc flour, preparing with the feet the clay for making bricks and
earthenware, also building mud walls; besides removing bricks, fire
wood, and so forth from one place to another. This extra work is called
_quingingoo_. I even knew of one instance in which the field labour was
continued until twelve o’clock at night, by the light of large fires
which had been kindled in several parts of the ground. For this manner
of proceeding there was no reason, excepting that it was the master’s
pleasure so to act, for the season was favourable, and not too far
advanced to have continued the work in the usual manner and yet have
accomplished the planting of the field in proper time. Of cruelty I
could say much, but I have gone far enough, and must not enter into
farther details upon this part of my subject. The relation of such
misdeeds do more harm than good, they serve as examples for those who
have unprincipled minds and unfeeling hearts; and who may consider them
as paths in which they may tread, because others have trodden in them,
rather than as precipices which ought to be avoided. The power which is
entrusted to an individual is too great, abuses must arise, the system
is radically bad, and every possible means should be put into action
for its extirpation.
I am acquainted with the owners of a few estates who profess to
purchase any slaves however bad their characters may be, if they can
obtain them below the usual price. The persons of secondary rank who
possess only a few slaves, and have not the same means of punishing
them if they misbehave which exist upon the great estates, dispose of
those of their negroes who act improperly to the rich men who will
purchase them. There is an estate in the Mata, of which the owner is
known to buy any slave, however ill disposed he may be, provided he
can obtain him at a low price. This man manages to keep his estate in
the best order possible; every thing goes on regularly upon it. He
even prefers purchasing creole slaves to Africans, although the former
are invariably more difficult to manage. He is a man of determined
character; on the arrival of one of these new slaves, he takes him to
the prison of the estate and shews him the stocks, the chains, the
whips, &c. saying “this is what you are to expect if you continue
in your evil practices;” then a hut is given to the slave; and also
cloaths and other articles of comfort, all of which are in a state
of greater neatness, and are afforded in larger quantities than are
usually bestowed upon the slaves of other plantations. On one occasion
a negro struck the _feitor_, for which he was immediately confined,
until the matter could be investigated; the freeman was found to be
in fault, and was turned away. The negro suffered a certain degree of
punishment for striking a superior, but he was ultimately appointed to
the situation of _feitor_, having before held that of second driver. If
this planter did not rule his people with great severity when guilty,
his estate would soon become a den of thieves and murderers, for it
is well known of what bad materials his gang of slaves is composed.
This man is of mixed blood, but is nearly related to some of the first
families of the province. It is well that a man should appear, who is
willing, for the sake of a trifling difference in the price for which
he may obtain his labourers, to take the trouble, and undergo the risk
of person and of property in controuling a set of uneducated men, who
cannot consequently have any principle of action, and whose habits are
of the worst description. According to present circumstances he is of
service to the country, for these fellows are kept quiet; but what a
dreadful state it is, that the institutions of a country should be
so framed that there should possibly exist in its centre, a body of
human beings of which many of the individuals are criminals; men, who
certainly never will be punished by the laws of the country, though
punishment may or may not be inflicted by the person to whom they are
subservient.
The slaves of the cotton estates undergo, as may be supposed, the same
kind of punishments, and are subject to the same species of treatment
as those which have already been spoken of; their management, as in
other parts, is conducted on the whole in a more lenient or more
rigorous manner, according to the dispositions of the owners. They are
however liable to greater privations from the nature of the country
in which they reside, and they do not enjoy the benefit of crop time,
which is so favourable to the negroes of the sugar plantations. Food
is not so easily obtained in parts which are so distant from great
towns and from the sea-coast; and greater difficulty is experienced
in the sale of the mandioc, the beans and the maize which the slaves
raise upon their own provision grounds. Still the negroes of the cotton
districts sometimes gain their freedom by their own exertions, for as
cotton is a most lucrative plant, and yet may be cultivated and brought
to market with little or no out-lay of money, those of the slaves who
plant regularly and gather their trifling quantities, frequently in the
end meet with the reward of their labours. This is not the case with
the sugar-cane, for in cultivating this plant assistance is necessary,
much work being required to be done within a given time, owing to
the seasons in planting it, and to the nature of the cane when it
ripens; and there is likewise the difficulty of having it ground, and
of receiving the proceeds, &c. In the manufactory the slave has not
his property under his own eye; it passes through the hands of many
other individuals, and as there is no personal respect for the owner
of the property, nor any means of redress in case of injustice, the
slave has only a poor chance of being properly dealt with; the above
circumstances being those to which the culture of the sugar-cane is
subject, it is scarcely ever planted by slaves on their own account.
The cattle districts employ few slaves, and these are occupied at
home, for scarcely any of them, unless they are Creoles, are deemed
capable of undertaking the more arduous employments of pursuing
the cattle, breaking in horses, &c. The slaves remain in the huts
to attend to the less enterprising occupations. The climate of the
Sertam is accounted well adapted to the constitutions of the Africans;
sickly negroes are often purchased at reduced prices by persons who
reside in the interior, under the idea that the climate will soon
re-establish their health. The circumstance of the non-existence of
the _chigua_ or _bicho_[243], in the plains of the Sertam is of much
importance; for this insect is extremely injurious to some of the
negroes;—notwithstanding every precaution, the feet have in some
instances been destroyed by them. The _chigua_ has more effect upon the
flesh of some persons than upon that of others; and the subjects who
are violently attacked by this insect, are sometimes only preserved
from being crippled by their removal to a part of the country in which
it does not exist. The dryness of the air and soil of the Sertam
generally removes agues of long standing, and likewise the complaint
which frequently proceeds from the ague, and is called _amarellidam_,
or yellowness. The Africans are seldom attacked by the ague, but they
have often the _amarellidam_.
In the back settlements, beyond the plains of the Sertam, bordering
upon the mountains where cotton is planted, and from which the plains
are in part supplied with food, the number of negroes is becoming
considerable. I have had opportunities of conversing with negroes
from the Sertam, and have invariably found that they preferred their
residence in the cattle districts even to a removal into the country
bordering upon the sea. The diet of the Sertam negro is preferable to
that of the plantation slave, so that this circumstance, independently
of all others, would make the former be well aware of the superiority
of his situation. Fresh beef and mutton are the usual food of the
Sertam slaves, but upon the plantations these are rarely served out.
The most dreadful complaint to which negroes are subject more than
other descriptions of men, is that which, in the Columbian islands
is known under the name of _yaws_, and in Brazil by that of _bobas_.
I had opportunities of seeing it, and most loathsome is the sight of
the individuals who are afflicted with it. The body becomes covered
with large ulcers, the patient is reduced to a mere skeleton, and is
rendered generally for a time quite helpless. The facility with which
it is communicated to others increases the distress of the patient;
for every precaution must be taken in separating the sufferer to some
distance from the other slaves. The adult who recovers from it seldom
enjoys as perfect health as before. The negroes say that it gets into
the bone; every change of weather is felt by those who have had the
disorder, although they are again accounted in health, and in some
cases the use of one or other of the limbs is occasionally lost for
a time. A certain diet must be observed for many months after the
disorder has apparently left the person who has had it, for the purpose
of preventing a relapse; and sometimes a deviation from this, even some
years after, will cause violent pains in the joints. The following
circumstances occurred under my own eyes. A child belonging to one of
my neighbours, whilst I resided at Jaguaribe, was in the practice of
coming to amuse itself with some of the children of the plantation. He
had this disorder upon him; and soon afterwards the son of a labourer
caught it; all this was not made known to me, until a slave of eight
years of age was reported to me to have the _bobas_; and shortly
afterwards an old man, the father of this child, likewise fell sick. In
the course of a short time, notwithstanding every care was taken, other
persons were afflicted with the disease. A surgeon was applied to, and
he prescribed mercury to all the patients. An infant of a few months
old, which afterwards caught the disease, underwent the same treatment.
The children who had arrived at a certain age all recovered, and until
the period of my departure, they had never experienced any return, nor
had felt any bad effects from it. The old man still laboured under
it, but was recovering. The growth of the infant was stopped by the
disease, and very little hopes were entertained of saving its life.
This horrible disorder is contracted by inhabiting the same room with
the patient, and by inoculation; this is effected by means of a small
fly, from which every precaution is oftentimes of no avail. Great
numbers of the insects of this species appear early in the morning;
but they are not so much seen when the sun is powerful. If one of them
chances to settle upon the corner of the eye or mouth, or upon the most
trifling scratch, it is enough to inoculate the _bobas_, if the insect
comes from a person who labours under the disease. The same person can
only have the _bobas_ once. The scars which it leaves upon the bodies
of the negroes have a most disgusting appearance; for the wounds have
in some cases been of such long standing, and have penetrated so deep
as to have changed the colour of the skin, which becomes of a most
loathsome white colour.[244] However, deep wounds of any description
have the same effect upon the negro skin.
There are considerable numbers of white persons and of colour who
possess two or three slaves, and share with them the daily labour, even
of the field. These slaves are, generally speaking, creoles, who have
been reared in the family, or they are Africans who have been purchased
very young for a trifling sum of money; they are frequently considered
as part of the family, and share with the master the food for which
both are working. These slaves appear on gala days well-dressed, and
they have a certain air of independence, which shews that they think
themselves to be something more in the world than mere drudges. The
difference of the feeling of one of these men towards his master,
and that of the generality of the slaves which are owned by great
proprietors, is very striking. The former will not suffer in his
presence a word to be spoken against his master, whilst the latter
cares not if he hears every injurious epithet made use of. The slaves
of small proprietors are not so liable to imbibe many of the faults to
which those of wealthy men are subject, and they possess more pride,—a
greater wish to act honourably,—a greater dread of being upbraided for
a fault. Upon large estates the assemblage of so many persons tends to
depravation, and the wide distance which there is between the slave and
the master tends to produce a greater feeling of inferiority; but among
the small proprietors the difference of rank is infinitely less, owing,
among other causes, to the assistance which they receive from each
other, in their daily occupations.[245]
From the vastness of the country, it might be supposed that if a slave
escapes from his master, the chances would be against his return,
but this is not the case. The Africans particularly are generally
brought back; they are soon distinguished by their manner of speaking
the Portugueze language; and if any one of them cannot give a good
account of himself, he will not be allowed to remain long unmolested,
for the profit arising from the apprehension of a runaway slave is
considerable. Besides, the manumitted African generally continues to
reside in the neighbourhood of the estate upon which he has served
as a slave; so that when a man of this description, that is, an
African, comes without being known, to settle in a district, suspicion
immediately arises that he is not free. The manumitted creoles remove
to where they are not known, because they do not wish that the state
in which they were born should reach their new place of residence. An
African must have been brought to Brazil as a slave, and therefore his
situation of a freeman proves that his character is good, or he could
not have obtained his liberty; but a creole may have been born free,
and consequently his former state as a slave he wishes to conceal.
Creole slaves, and more especially mulattos, often do escape, and
are never afterwards heard of by their masters; but even these are
sometimes brought back.
A case of great hardship occurred at Recife a short time before I left
that place. A negro and his wife had escaped, and as their master had
not received any tidings of them for sixteen or seventeen years, he
supposed that both of them had died. However, one day there arrived
at his door in Recife, a number of _capitaens-do-campo_ with several
persons in custody. He soon recognized his negro and negress, and
was told that the five young persons who were with them were their
children, and consequently his slaves. These poor creatures had been
brought up until this period of their lives with the idea that they
were free; and thus a young man of sixteen, and his sister of fourteen
years of age, were at the season of joy and gladness to commence a life
of misery. The master confined them all, until he could dispose of them
to some slave-dealer, which he soon accomplished, and they were shipped
from Recife for Maranham. I never heard how the discovery had been
made, that these people were not free. Oh! system accursed, which thus
damps the hopes and prospects of a whole life.
Some of the negroes who escape determine to shun the haunts of man,
they conceal themselves in the woods, instead of attempting to be
received into some distant village as free persons. They form huts,
which are called _mocambos_, in the most unfrequented spots, and live
upon the game and fruit which their places of retreat afford. These
persons sometimes assemble to the number of ten or twelve, and then
their dislodgement is difficult; for their acquaintance with the woods
around gives them the advantage over any party which may be sent to
attack them[246]. Sometimes a whole neighbourhood is disturbed by one
of these communities, who rob the provision grounds, steal calves[247],
lambs and poultry; and stories are told of the _Gabam_ negroes stealing
children.
The slaves of Maranham are in a less favourable state than those of
Pernambuco, on the whole; but the system which is followed respecting
them is radically the same. Their food is usually rice, which is said
to disagree with most of the nations which come from Africa; and the
treatment which they receive upon the estates in that part of the
country, is said to be more rigorous; but of this I cannot myself
speak, for I had no opportunities of judging.
Negroes who are decidedly of incorrigible character, are shipped
from Pernambucco to Maranham, and though the cause for which these
transportations are made, is well known, they are often sold to great
advantage. Nothing tends so much to keep a slave in awe, as the threat
of sending him to Maranham or to Parà.
That the general character of persons who are in a state of slavery
should be amiable, and that goodness should predominate, is not to be
expected; but we ought rather to be surprised at the existence of that
degree of virtue which is to be found among those who are reduced to
a situation of so much misery. Slaves are much inclined to pilfer,
and particularly towards their masters this is very frequent; indeed
many of them scarcely think that they are acting improperly in so
doing[248]. Drunkenness is common among them[249]. A direct answer
is not easily obtained from a slave, but the information which is
required is learnt by means of four or five questions put in various
ways. The necessity for this is frequently caused by stupidity, or from
ignorance of the language in which the slave is addressed, rather than
from any wish to deceive. It is in their behaviour to their families
and companions, that the good part of the human being is displayed,
and natural enough it is that it should be so. The negroes shew much
attachment to their wives and children, to their other relations if
they should chance to have any, and to their _malungos_ or fellow
passengers from Africa. The respect which is paid to old age, it
is extremely pleasing to witness. Superannuated Africans, upon the
estates, are never suffered to want any comforts with which it is
in the power of their fellow slaves to supply them. The old negroes
are addressed by the term of _pai_ and _mai_, father and mother. The
masters likewise add this term to the name of their older slaves,
when speaking to them. That the generality of the slaves should shew
great attachment to their masters, is not to be expected; why should
they? The connection between the two descriptions of persons, is not
one of love and harmony, of good producing gratitude, of esteem and
respect; it is one of hatred and discord, of distrust, and of continual
suspicion; one of which the evil is so enormous, that if any proper
feelings exist in those who are supposed to benefit from it, and in
those who suffer under it, they proceed from our nature, and not from
the system.
It will be seen from the above statement, that the slaves of those
parts of Brazil which I have had opportunities of seeing, are more
favourably situated than those of the Columbian islands; but still
they are slaves, and in this word is included, great misery, great
degradation, great misfortune.
CHAPTER XX.
IMPOLICY OF THE SLAVE TRADE.
FEW persons in Great Britain have now any doubts of the inhumanity
of the slave trade, and none would presume to come forwards as its
defenders. It is a great moral evil, perhaps the greatest in the world,
from which England has at last been delivered. But her work is not yet
done, other nations continue to transport the natives of Africa from
their own shores to those of South America; and even when her efforts
have succeeded in persuading them to forbid this trade, the plan of
abolition must be followed up in her own colonies; she must atone for
the crimes which she has committed, and prove to other countries her
sincerity in the cause, by her zeal in rooting out a most execrable
system with all prudent and possible expedition.
In Brazil there are several excellent men who still entertain the idea
that the Africans are saved from death by the slave-dealers, and that
if they were not purchased by Europeans, their countrymen would murder
them; this _was_ the opinion in England a few years ago, and therefore
we cannot be surprised that the Brazilians should still consider it as
being founded upon truth. It is their interest so to think, (or at any
rate, they imagine that it is their interest) and they have no books or
other means by which they might be undeceived. To the planters I fear
that scarcely any arguments would be of any avail; they imagine that
without slaves their estates must decay, and therefore they fortify
themselves under the notion of the humanity of the trade by which
they obtain their supplies. If the chief body of the priests could be
convinced of its cruelty,—of the effect which this trade has to render
still more prominent than they would otherwise be, the bad qualities
of the natives of Africa in their own country, and to check every
thing that is good;—of its direct tendency to increase the manifold
evils of the state of society existing in the parts of that continent
which are subject to the resort of slave-dealers;—if the clergy could
be made to believe that by their voice they were sanctioning one of
the most shocking systems under which the world ever laboured, I know
that their aid would be given to the abolition. I am aware likewise
of the weight which their opinions carry with them among all other
descriptions of persons. One of the chief arguments with the priesthood
is the advantages which the Africans receive from their entrance into
the Catholic church;—how much better would it be to teach them the
Christian religion upon their native soil, without all the miseries to
which they are subjected by their transportation!
Another opinion has also been adopted, which induces the Brazilians
to suspect the motives of Great Britain in urging their government to
abolish the trade. They say it was from policy alone that she abolished
the slave trade, because her colonies were fully stocked; and that now
she wishes to accomplish the abolition among all other nations who
are not so well provided with labourers, that they may not rival her
transatlantic possessions, and ultimately surpass them by the increased
number of workmen[250]. It is clear that those who hold out that upon
such principles as these the abolition was effected in England, know
nothing of its history;—for if they did, they would soon see from what
pure motives the zeal for the prohibition of the slave-trade proceeded;
they would read of the exertions and perseverance of Clarkson, the
great apostle in this cause, and they would be convinced that the
eloquence of Wilberforce could only emanate from the most disinterested
sources. It would be perceived that these two individuals whose names
will for ever be connected with the famous law to the passing of which
they contributed so materially, were followed by a train of advocates
in this glorious struggle, whose aid was afforded under circumstances
which were as little liable to suspicion as the conduct of their great
leaders. The proofs of the unstained principles upon which this act was
carried through Parliament are so decisive, that a plain statement of
facts would convince all those who were not previously determined to
believe the contrary.
The government of Brazil has a difficult part to act; it rules a
numerous body of slave-owners, who are scattered over a very extensive
country, in which the authority of the sovereign will only of necessity
be loosely recognized; the possibility of resisting his commands does
exist, and though his mandates are issued in the style of despotism,
still he must be careful not to go too far; for he has not the means
of enforcing obedience to his edicts in the chief provinces, if any
one of them chose to withdraw its allegiance. The government would be,
I rather think, inclined to follow the example of the chief powers of
Europe; but it must not be precipitate, the people must be prepared
for the change, and have time given them to think upon a subject,
which, under their present impressions, is supposed to injure them so
materially. It is at Bahia that the slave-dealers and planters have
shewn themselves most violent in favour of the slave-trade; it is
from that place that the most extensive traffic is carried on to the
coast of Africa. In the province of Bahia there are great estates,
possessing two, three, and four hundred slaves; the owners of these
are consequently rich, and they possess power over the free population
as well as over their own immediate dependents. It is in that quarter
that the greatest inclination to resist whatever its people does not
relish, has been experienced. Petitions containing forcible language
have been made to the government at Rio de Janeiro, against the
abolition and against the proceedings of the British cruisers stationed
upon the coast of Africa, by which several slave ships have been
captured[251]. The government of Brazil may, and ought to be persuaded
by all peaceable and friendly means which independent States possess
of urging each other, to do its utmost in accomplishing the much to be
desired end; but still whatever our wishes may be, and however much the
inclinations of the Portugueze ministry may coincide with them, they
must consult the state of the country over which they rule.
A Brazilian writer who has published several pamphlets at Rio de
Janeiro with the permission of the Regent, has spoken against the
trade, as far as it is possible under present circumstances. Slavery he
styles “a terrible cancer in the body politic, which tends to impede
the increase of the white race,” and as he rather quaintly expresses
himself “to Africanize the New World[252].” This is not the only place
in which the same writer speaks of slavery, and of the trade in these
terms. A Portugueze writer of much reputation among his countrymen,
says, “if we have never feared the power of the government, neither
ought we to hesitate in combating the erroneous opinions of the people;
confident that although he who opposes himself to the prejudices of
a nation, renders his name odious, still he may be quite certain
that posterity will do him justice[253].” Another Journal of equal
reputation states, that “it is a great evil for the chief strength
of an empire to consist in the number of its slaves; and if Brazil
had once reflected, that each negro which she exports from Africa, is
necessarily an enemy whom she is nurturing, she would perhaps not have
dared to employ them at all; or at any rate she would have made use of
them in smaller numbers[254].” I hope that other individuals of the
same nation will see the subject in the same light, and will give their
assistance in leading their countrymen to a knowledge of the equity,
humanity, and good policy of abolishing this detestable traffic.
The ruin of Brazil is predicted, the decay of its agriculture and of
its commerce are supposed to be inevitable from the want of labourers
if the trade is prohibited. This is generally asserted wherever I
have been, without the least consideration, without a thought being
given to the possibility of employing the free population of the
country in daily labour. It is said, that if Africans are not to be
obtained, every thing must be at a stand, and the country can make no
progress. This argument against the abolition, the Brazilians bring
forwards even with much less plausibility than the planters of the
Columbian islands. In these the number of free persons of colour, is
comparatively very small, whereas in Brazil, a great proportion of the
population consists of free persons in the lower ranks of life. In some
parts of the country which I have visited, the free people preponderate
considerably, and in none of those districts which I saw, do I conceive
that the slaves outnumber the free people in a greater proportion than
three to one. It will have been seen from foregoing chapters, that
the sugar plantations are not largely stocked with slaves, and that
no estate is without some portion of its lands which are occupied by
families who are in a state of freedom. The villages too contain free
persons almost exclusively, and even in the large towns, the major part
of the mechanics are free.
The slave trade is impolitic with regard to Brazil on the broad
principle, that a man in a state of bondage will not be so serviceable
to the community as one who acts for himself, and whose whole exertions
are directed to the advancement of his own fortune, the increase of
which, by regular means, adds to the general prosperity of the society
to which he belongs. This is an undoubted and indisputable fact, to
which every person assents, owing to the self-evidence of its truth;
and which must be still more strongly imprinted on the mind of every
one who has been in the habit of seeing the manner in which slaves
perform their daily labour. Their indifference, and the extreme
slowness of every movement, plainly point out the trifling interest
which they have in the advancement of the work. I have watched two
parties labouring in the same field, one of free persons, and the other
of slaves, which occasionally, though very seldom, occurs. The former
are singing, joking, and laughing, and are always actively moving hand
and foot; whilst the latter are silent, and if they are viewed from a
little distance, their movements are scarcely to be perceived.
Even if Brazil had only to depend upon its slaves for the increase
of its agriculture and population, it would still be better for that
country in the main, to put a stop to the introduction of Africans;
but in that case, although its advancement would necessarily be
progressive, it would be slow. Every African who enters the country is
an enemy of which the State is sanctioning the introduction. Besides
Brazil is not in want of them, and even if that country made the
greatest possible use of every individual whom it at present possesses,
(which it does not,) and yet urgently and necessarily required an
additional number of hands to continue the cultivation of the lands,
the transportation of Africans is the worst manner of obtaining them,
even in a political point of view. If, however, upon Africans _alone_
its advancement was to depend, many years must pass before any great
change would be seen in its riches and power, and consequently in its
progress to the rank of a great nation. Brazil is, however, in a far
different situation; her free population is numerous, and the time
seems to have almost arrived, when this part of the community would
take its proper place in society in spite of existing regulations[255].
So much do I imagine this to be the case, that I think the abolition
of the slave trade would scarcely be felt at Pernambuco after the first
moment; and even any sensation which might be caused, would rather be
produced artificially than necessarily. The rich slave owners would
immediately rival each other in the purchase of the Africans who might
happen to be on sale, and thus an increase of price would be produced;
but the number of free persons is quite adequate to fill up any vacuum
which it is supposed would be caused in the country by a stop being put
to the supply of the imported part of the population.
Constituted as society is in civilized states, the poor must depend
upon those who are sufficiently wealthy to give them employment; and
again, the latter must depend upon the former for the execution of
their projects. But the situation of Brazil excludes the lower ranks
from the aid of those who are above them, and deprives the rich of the
assistance which they might receive from the labour of the poor. The
peasant is under the necessity of planting for his own subsistence,
without possessing the capital which is requisite for the undertaking.
If the crop fails he remains totally destitute. The exertions of a
number of individuals each occupied singly in clearing and cultivating
separate plots of land, cannot accomplish so easily, or with so much
perfection, the work which might be done by the united efforts of the
same number of persons. Even if the slave trade was to continue for a
considerable length of time, the natural order of things would probably
have their course, and free labourers would be employed upon every well
regulated estate conjointly with the slaves. The lower ranks of people
would become too numerous for each family to be able to possess a
sufficient quantity of land for its own support, and this would oblige
them to hire themselves to those who could afford to pay them; the
planters would see the advantages of hiring their workmen, and thus,
without any care or attention to this most important subject by the
government of the country, would the labour of freemen be admitted. By
the separation of labour into small spots of cultivated ground, (if
cultivated it can be called) as is practised at present, great portions
of land are wasted, and only a few families can possibly exist upon
the extent of surface, (each working for itself) which would give
bread to a much greater number of persons, if they were employed
conjointly;—if the labour was paid for by one who wished to obtain a
good crop from the land, could pay for the work which was requisite,
and gave the necessary attention to its culture; this would bring
together and render useful to each other, the first class of people
who enjoy considerable wealth, and the third class who do not possess
any thing. The second class consisting of small planters, who live
comfortably, have a decent house, three or four slaves, a horse or two
and some other trifling property, would not be affected in the least
by this change in the application of the labour of the class which is
immediately below them. The secondary people, who cannot afford to
increase their number of slaves, and yet are not able to accomplish
their projects in planting with those which they possess, frequently
hire free labourers.
Under the present system, the labour of free persons is not placed to
the greatest advantage; their time is misemployed in performing alone
with great difficulty, what would be done easily if several persons
were occupied together. This is particularly apparent in a new country,
where the obstacles which are to be surmounted in preparing lands for
culture are so numerous and of such magnitude. If a man is aware that
the obtaining of his daily bread depends directly upon the exertions
of each day, it is probable that he will be careful in making use of
the present moment, and not put off until the morrow what will so
materially benefit him; and as he knows that his comforts depend upon
his regular exertions, he will be more inclined to go through his daily
occupations with punctuality. But if his gains do not correspond with
the work which he does daily, the probability is that some carelessness
will be perceived; and he will, from trifling causes, delay the
performance of a task until a future moment. The hire which a labourer
in the service of another man receives, is only rendered to him if
he has performed his allotted work, otherwise the time is lost; no
good fortune, no lucky season can reclaim it; but if his profits are
expected to be meted to him rather from the richness of the land which
he has cultivated, from a favourable season, from the excellence of the
seed, or from these causes combined, or from others which are not under
his controul, he will more willingly stay idling at home, or accept
an invitation to a merriment-making. Labour is not pleasant; men in
general work from necessity, and therefore some stimulant is requisite
to urge them to exertion; this occurs in any climate, and holds good
still more frequently in one which naturally inclines to the indulgence
of indolent propensities.[256]
If all men were free, the capital which is required in the
establishment of a plantation, or the great exertions which, under
existing circumstances, must be used to answer the payments which
are to be made for the property obtained on credit would not be so
necessary; or at any rate the experiment of entering into schemes for
planting would not be so dangerous as it is at present, if the chief
expenditure was not incurred in property which is so precarious and
at the same time so valuable as slaves. In the purchase of any other
description of live stock (to speak in creole language), the risk
lies in diseases of the body only, and in those alone to which bodies
that are inured to the climate are subject; but you transplant the
negro from his native soil, which to him is the best in the world; and
you have his wounded and desponding mind to heal. The vexations and
privations which he must undergo are to be combated; his mind as well
as his body must be kept in health, or little service will his master
receive from him. The loss which is occasioned by untimely deaths would
not, if free men were employed, thus fall directly upon the planter.
The time which is passed by the runaway-slave in the woods, or residing
in temporary freedom at some distant village, would not be so much
property unemployed. The expences attendant upon sickness, and the
loss of time proceeding from the same cause, would be incurred by the
patient, and the place of one individual would be occupied by another.
The constant anxiety of the planter which is caused by the bad habits
of his slaves, and from other reasons inseparably connected with the
system by which one man rules a body of his fellow-creatures who are at
the same time his property, would be removed. The owner of an estate
might have some rest; his attention need not be entirely given up to
the management of his affairs, which must now be the case, if he has
a wish to advance his fortune, and a due regard for the preservation
in an able state, of the beings through whose means this is to be
accomplished. Too true it is that men become callous to the constant
round of intelligence which is communicated by the manager; of slaves
sick, lamed by accident, making their escape, &c. and the accounts
of their recovery and return are received with the same unconcern.
Punishment is ordered for crimes and misdemeanors with the same
insensibility; all these are things of course, and as such are endured
quietly.
In a country which is afflicted with the dreadful disease of slavery
cruelty is frequent, and whilst the punishment of misdemeanors which
have been committed against the master are generally immediate and
proportioned to their bearing upon the interests of the superior,
it is difficult to compass the chastisement of great crimes against
the community. It is the interest of the master to conceal from the
superior authorities those actions of their slaves which might subject
them to the loss of their services. Instances have occurred in which
the law itself has swerved from its direct line of justice, that the
owner might not be injured by the execution or transportation of the
slave. It is for the benefit of the wealthy man, who ought to be the
dispenser of justice, to act contrary to what it is his duty to do; to
counteract the principles of rectitude, to screen from their deserts
the evil deeds of a great portion of the population of the country in
which he resides. He is silent concerning his neighbours’ property,
that like forbearance may be practised towards himself, if he should
require it. But the crimes which slaves commit without the knowledge
of their masters, or those which, although they may be afterwards known
to the owners, have been committed without their concurrence, are not
the only evil actions into which this class of men may be led. The
owner himself who has not courage to revenge his own quarrels, may
command that his purpose shall be accomplished by one of the wretched
individuals over whom he rules. This has absolutely happened.
The general tendency which is produced by slavery, taken in every point
of view, is to rouse all the bad qualities of him who rules and of him
who endures; by this system, a government permits the demoralization of
its people, and that the property of its subjects be laid out in a most
disadvantageous manner; a great number of individuals must be supported
whose benefit to the state is much decreased by the situation in which
they are placed, and another class in society is prevented from taking
its due share in the general advancement of the country.
CHAPTER XXI.
THE TREATIES OF FRIENDSHIP AND ALLIANCE, AND OF COMMERCE AND
NAVIGATION, BETWEEN THE CROWNS OF GREAT BRITAIN AND PORTUGAL, SIGNED
AT RIO DE JANEIRO, ON THE 19th OF FEBRUARY 1810.
I HAVE heard many discussions both in England and in Brazil, upon the
merits and demerits of these Treaties; in such disputations Englishmen
have appeared to suppose that their interests had not been sufficiently
consulted; and the contrary opinion was maintained by the Portugueze,
for they considered their nation to be aggrieved by them, and that
great partiality had been shown to British subjects. I cannot avoid
thinking that the Treaties are as impartial as possible, and that due
regard has been paid to both parties. If British subjects have gained
some advantages, one of considerable importance which they possessed
before, has been given up; and the commercial intercourse between
both parties has been placed in very favourable circumstances. Even
the innovations which by these Treaties have been made in the laws
of Brazil in favour of Englishmen, tend to the general advancement
of that country,—to forward its progress towards a higher pitch of
civilization. In the discussions which I have heard, Englishmen, by
the arguments which they used, appeared to think that Brazil should
have been treated overbearingly, as a country which had been humbled by
misfortune, and that of this circumstance advantage should have been
taken by Great Britain. The idea which is entertained of the weakness
of Brazil, must proceed from the trifling defensive preparations
which are to be seen upon her coasts. Her sea-ports might no doubt
be much injured by attacks from a maritime enemy; but the country
is impregnable, it possesses far stronger fortresses than any which
can be raised by man; in its extent, in its woods, and in a hardy
population, who are accustomed to live on very little food, and that
of a poor kind. However, any ideas of conquest in South America by
Europeans, against the wishes of the people, experience has proved to
be fallacious; the Dutch war with Pernambuco, and our own errors at
Buenos Ayres bear witness to this fact.
The Portugueze on the other hand seem to have imbibed the idea that
Great Britain has taken undue advantage of the state of the Portugueze
monarchy, and has imposed heavy terms, such as suited her own purposes.
Many of the arguments which are made use of by the Portugueze, are
brought forwards by them without any consideration of the state of
Brazil;—of the relative situation of the two high contracting parties.
The following plea for complaint, although it does not relate to the
Treaties, may be mentioned in this place, for it is a favourite one
with many persons. It is said, that the Regent of Brazil has made
grants of land to British subjects, but that the Portugueze are not
permitted to possess landed property in the dominions of His Britannic
Majesty. A complaint of this kind would appear to denote that the two
countries were in the same state with regard to population; that Brazil
did not require an enormous increase of people, and that Great Britain
possessed a superabundance of territory. Far from the grants of land to
foreigners being urged as a breach of the declared reciprocity between
the two nations, the government of Brazil ought to invite foreigners to
purchase lands and establish themselves there; it ought to allow them
to follow their own religion; it should naturalize them and fix them to
the soil by the protection which the laws ought to afford them; and by
the permission which should be given to them of having some share in
the concerns of the society into which they had been adopted.
The Portugueze are continually pointing to the rapid advancement of the
United States of America, and holding up that country as an example
which ought to be followed in the introduction of minor improvements
in Brazil; but they do not seek high enough for the sources of the
prosperity of North America; the statesmen of that country receive
every one who pleases to establish himself under their protection, and
the laws of the republic tolerate all religions; these are the great
fountains from which the increase of her power has been drawn. An
impartial distribution of justice, and a mildness of government have
acted in unison with the views of her rulers. Brazil however is totally
unfit for a republican form of government; _her_ people have been
guided in a far different track from that of the inhabitants of the
United States. The first settlers in North America left their native
shores, because their ideas were too democratic for the mother country,
and because their religious opinions did not coincide with those of
their countrymen; therefore the minds of the descendants of parents
like these were prepared for the declaration of republican principles.
But the colonists of Brazil were regularly invited to settle under
the direction of officers who had been appointed by the government of
Portugal, and who were entrusted with despotic power; they were Roman
Catholics too. Consequently the habits of their descendants lead them
to quiet acquiescence in the mandates of those who govern them; to
follow rather than to direct, to be guided rather than to be obliged
all at once without any previous instruction, to think for themselves.
Still, although a government which is established on principles of
democracy is not suited to Brazil, that country would bear many degrees
of advancement towards a state of freedom,—in religion, in personal
security, and in legislative authority; this last might certainly be
granted to a certain degree.[257]
However to return; I shall attempt to prove that the Treaties in
question have been fairly drawn out, and that they exist for the
benefit of both nations; that each has conceded in some points much
to the well-being of both. Neither party should desire to have every
thing, from whence, says a Brazilian writer, “arise conflicts, hatreds,
and the pretences upon which complaints and wars are founded.”[258]
The Portugueze canvass the Treaties as if they were jealous of what
had been granted to British subjects, without considering whether the
advantages which had been conceded were or were not for the benefit of
Brazil. They should consider what is for their own good, and not what
Great Britain grants to them, or what their government grants to Great
Britain.
I shall only mention those articles of the Treaties which are
particularly interesting, and which may be liable to discussion,
wishing to be as observant of conciseness as possible.
THE TREATY OF FRIENDSHIP AND ALLIANCE.
I PASS over the primary articles as being unimportant, or from the
interest of the subjects to which they relate having already subsided.
ARTICLE 6th. “His Britannic Majesty is allowed the privilege of causing
timber, for the purpose of building ships of war, to be purchased and
cut down in the woods of Brazil.”
This was supposed to afford to Great Britain an inexhaustible and
inexpensive source of supplying her navy with timber; but I have
understood that the expence which must be incurred in felling the
trees, and bringing the timber to the water’s edge, would be too great
to render the project feasible; and that the woods of Brazil were
discovered to contain a less proportion of valuable timber than had
been imagined. If the British government had thought proper to act upon
this article,—if the plan had been judged worthy of being executed,
the advantages which Brazil must have derived from it would have been
considerable. The increased traffic which would have been experienced
by the ports in which dock-yards would have been established, and the
number of mechanics who would have gone over, many of whom would in all
probability have remained ultimately in that country, must have been
beneficial to it. The ship carpenters and caulkers of Brazil are fully
as good as those of England, and if encouragement was given to the most
necessary art of ship-building, no external aid would be requisite. But
due encouragement is what is wanting.
ARTICLE 7th. “Any squadron that may be sent by either of the High
Contracting Parties to the succour of the other, shall be supplied
with fresh provisions by that power for whose assistance it is fitted
out.” This plainly alludes to the British squadron stationed at Rio de
Janeiro for the protection of the coast of Brazil; and it is only fair
that the party which is assisted should feed those who have undertaken
its defence.
ARTICLE 8th. “Any number of ships of war are permitted to enter the
ports of either of the High Contracting Parties.” This is connected
with the foregoing article, and was necessary for its execution.
ARTICLE 9th. “The Inquisition or Tribunal of the Holy Office not having
been hitherto established or recognized in Brazil, H.R.H. the Prince
Regent of Portugal, guided by an enlightened and liberal policy,
takes the opportunity afforded by the present treaty, to declare
spontaneously in his own name, and in that of his heirs and successors,
that the Inquisition shall never hereafter be established in the South
American dominions of the Crown of Portugal.”
A hint is thrown out towards the conclusion of the same article of some
intention to abolish the Inquisition in Portugal, and in all other
parts of the Portugueze dominions. I imagine that Great Britain would
scarcely have stipulated for this change of policy in the government of
Brazil, if some intimation had not been made that the ministry of that
country wished in this manner to get rid of the abominable tribunal.
Great Britain indeed cannot be said to have stipulated for it; the
Prince declares his purpose _spontaneously_. Be this as it may, this
most horrible Court does not exercise its power in Brazil, and thus
has been removed, almost irrevocably, one of the most intolerable
burthens under which any nation ever laboured. The late Secretary
of State for Foreign Affairs, D. Rodrigo de Souza Coutinho, was a
man of a liberal mind; and Brazil has in his death sustained a great
loss; but this misfortune is alleviated by the means which it has
afforded of placing at the head of affairs the Chevalier Araujo[259].
This nobleman seems to have adopted Brazil as his country, to direct
his attention entirely to the concerns of that kingdom, and to wish
to increase the importance of the State over which he has been most
judiciously placed. He appears also to be aware of the means by which
progressive prosperity is to be obtained,—liberality, toleration,
mildness, reformation. The solemn manner in which the rulers of Brazil
have declared their intentions in this respect, is a triumph of
liberality over bigotry which was scarcely to be expected; and still
less was the public avowal of principles like these to be looked for
from the quarter in which they appeared. The misfortunes of Portugal
have produced incalculable benefit to the transatlantic territories
which she held under subjection; and although the mother country has
suffered much, still some advantages cannot fail to proceed from the
change in her situation; at any rate her internal affairs may meet
with some alterations which may better the condition of the people.
Portugal no longer enjoys the exclusive trade with Brazil, but I know
not whether in the end she will not be happier in depending upon her
own resources;—upon a moderate trade with other nations suited to her
political importance, instead of the gigantic commercial intercourse
which was carried on through her ports. The government will probably
undergo some reform, and Portugal will in all likelihood soon see the
Inquisition abolished, and may perhaps witness the re-establishment of
the Cortes.
ARTICLE 10th. “A gradual abolition of the slave trade on the part of
the Regent of Portugal is promised, and the limits of the same traffic
along the coast of Africa are determined.” Of this subject I have
already in another place treated.
THE TREATY OF COMMERCE AND NAVIGATION.
ARTICLE 2d. “There shall be reciprocal liberty of commerce and
navigation between the subjects of the two High Contracting Parties,
and they are allowed to trade, travel, sojourn, and establish
themselves in the ports &c. of the dominions of each, excepting in
those from which all foreigners are excluded.”
The ease with which leave to travel in Brazil may be obtained, I
have myself experienced, and even without a passport an Englishman
might travel in some of the provinces. Great complaint has been
made by the Portugueze of the strictness with which the British
Alien Laws have been enforced; and here a breach of reciprocity is
stated to exist,—not by the Treaty, but in the non-accomplishment
of this article. The extreme difficulty with which one foreigner is
distinguished from another, by persons who do not understand the
language of any, and the vicinity of Great Britain to the Continent
of Europe,—to her greatest enemy, and the immense number of foreign
prisoners which she held in confinement during the war, placed her in
a far different situation from Brazil, in which the only foreigners
excepting Spaniards, who could possibly have found their way into the
country, must have arrived there in British or Portugueze vessels,
consequently little doubt could be entertained of the propriety of
allowing any foreigner to receive a passport to travel in the interior
or along the coast of that country[260]. Difficulties were doubtless
experienced, and vexations submitted to on some occasions, and these
cases have been brought forwards. It must be recollected that the
number of Portugueze subjects travelling in Great Britain was, and is,
much greater than that of British subjects travelling in Brazil; and
that the number of magistrates to whom each of these travellers must
shew his pass is much greater in the former country than in the latter,
owing to the more numerous population of Great Britain. Therefore a
very few cases of hardship in Brazil would only average a much greater
number of like instances of severity in Great Britain.[261]
With respect to naturalization in the dominions of either of the two
crowns, the Portugueze are much more favourably situated than British
subjects, because, according to existing laws, a British subject can
only be naturalized in the kingdom of Portugal and Brazil, if he
professes the Roman Catholic Religion.
ARTICLES 3d, 4th, and 5th. These relate to custom-house duties,
port-charges, &c., which are to be paid with perfect reciprocity by
the vessels of both nations. If the same duties, at the custom-houses
in Brazil, were not paid for goods which were imported in British as
in Portugueze vessels, the consequences would be, that every English
merchant must resort to smuggling, or be obliged to give up all idea
of competition with the Portugueze. The duty on cotton, the chief
article which is exported from Brazil to England, is equal in vessels
of either nation. This duty is not however of such importance to the
commodity as to render the importer of it in a ship which pays a
higher impost unable to vie with him who pays a lower one. But in the
case of manufactured goods shipped from hence to Brazil, the duty is
of primary consequence, because there is very frequently, I may say
generally, a loss upon such shipments, and an increase of 10 _per
cent._ upon a concern which has independently of these 10 _per cent._
undergone a loss, would often be ruinous. I have not a doubt in saying
that the government of Brazil is a gainer by lowering the duties upon
goods which are imported in British vessels to the standard of those
which are imported in vessels that are owned by its subjects. Under
existing regulations all parties come into the market upon an equal
footing, and although some persons will attempt to evade the payment
of any duty, still it is not necessary that a whole body of men should
resort to smuggling for the purpose of bringing their commodities into
the market with any prospect of a successful sale. I own that I think
a higher duty than 15 _per cent._ might be raised by government, but
if any advance was made it should be done generally upon all classes
of traders, whether subjects of Brazil or foreigners, to be done to
any advantage. The reciprocity which is established by these articles
has been followed by most advantageous consequences to both parties.
Great Britain is materially benefited in a commercial point of view by
the importation of the cotton of Brazil, direct from that country; and
the improvement which has been caused, and continues to act in Brazil
by the introduction of British manufactured goods is incalculable,
in point of wealth and civilization, and in producing incentives for
exertion.
The latter part of the 5th Article determines which are the vessels
that shall be accounted British, and which shall be accounted
Portugueze, for the purpose of ascertaining those of both nations
which may enjoy the favourable stipulations. The Portugueze here
again complain that the English have the advantage over them from
the great numbers of vessels which they build, and from the numerous
prizes which they take from their enemies, whilst the Portugueze
construct very few vessels, and take no prizes[262]. The Portugueze
have lately been in the habit of purchasing vessels that have been
built in the United States. As soon as these are owned by Portugueze
subjects, the national colours of the new owners may be hoisted, and
they enjoy all the privileges of vessels of Portugueze build. It is
urged that the British government should have suffered these vessels to
enter the ports of Great Britain enjoying the same advantages as are
granted to such vessels by the Portugueze government. If the subject
is considered it will be perceived that this would be equally against
the interest of both nations. Great Britain would by this means afford
a considerable market for the shipping of one of her maritime rivals.
By the low prices at which such vessels may be obtained, and the small
number of hands which they require, the Portugueze navigation would
likewise be materially injured. Instead of any encouragement being
given to ship-building in Brazil, the subjects of that country would
resort to North America for vessels, and a bar would be placed against
the advancement of this complicated art, in a country possessing many
advantages which adapt it for the formation of a numerous navy.
The latter part of the 8th Article stands thus:—“But it is to be
distinctly understood that the present Article is not to be interpreted
as invalidating or affecting the exclusive right possessed by the crown
of Portugal within its own dominions to the farm for the sale of ivory,
brazil-wood, urzela, diamonds, gold dust, gunpowder, and tobacco, in
the form of snuff.” I hope that ere long the system of gradual reform
will reach these monopolies, and that the trade in the Articles which
they comprise will be thrown open.
ARTICLE 10th. “British subjects resident in the Portugueze dominions
shall be permitted to nominate special magistrates to act for them as
judges-conservator.” This privilege is not conceded to the Portugueze
residing in Great Britain, and has therefore been complained of. Every
Portugueze well knows the dreadful state of the courts of justice in
all the dominions of his sovereign, and how extremely difficult it
is to obtain redress under any grievance. He must be aware of the
advantages which may be obtained by being personally acquainted with
the magistrate before whom a cause is to be agitated. If this is the
case (and that it is, speaking generally, no one will deny) in causes
among themselves, how much more necessary is it that some protection
should be afforded to foreigners, who cannot have opportunities
of using undue influence; and besides, where the decision depends
entirely upon one man, he will probably be inclined to favour his own
countrymen. “The acknowledged equity of British jurisprudence, and the
singular excellence of the British Constitution,” as the same article
of the Treaty observes, render unnecessary any special magistrate to
manage the concerns of foreigners residing in Great Britain. The state
of the British courts of law is the pride of every Englishman; a doubt
of the impartiality of their decisions never strikes the mind of any
reasonable man. Although one party in the State constantly opposes the
measures of government, and seeks out any abuses which may have crept
into its proceedings, still the courts of law continue to act, year
after year, without any suspicion of misconduct,—without any idea
of unfairness in their determinations being entertained. I speak in
this manner of Portugueze courts of law, in the first place, from the
radical badness of the system by which the determination of a cause
depends upon one man; and in the second place, from the practice of one
court, which I have had opportunities of witnessing, and the general
complaints of almost every Portugueze who has had any thing to do with
proceedings of this description. Doubtless there must be some men who
do their duty; but a system of government should be founded upon the
basis of as near an approach as can be formed to the impossibility of
misconduct, and upon responsibility.
It is in the courts of law that a thorough change should be effected in
the Portugueze dominions; their corrupt state calls most loudly for
reformation, and it is from this source that the existing government
has one heavy weight hanging over it, which may lead to most serious
consequences. There are two evils which cannot be long endured when
they have arrived at a certain height. Heavy and injudicious taxation,
and injustice;—these reach every man; in his own hut he feels them,
and they follow him every where, subjecting him to privations, and to
many mortifications; his temper is soured and his anger will at last
break loose.
ARTICLE 12th. “British subjects, and all other foreigners resident in
the dominions of Portugal shall have perfect liberty of conscience,
and shall be permitted to build churches and chapels under certain
restrictions as to their outward appearance; and any person who should
attempt to make converts from, or should declaim against the Catholic
religion publicly, is to be sent out of the country in which the
offence has been committed.” It is disgraceful that such an article
as this should be necessary in any Treaty between two civilized
states; but every step towards liberality should be greeted with great
joy, proceeding from those countries in which the Catholic religion
predominates. That part of the article which concedes liberty of
conscience, not only to British subjects, but to every foreigner, is
another indication of the spirit of liberality having found its way
into the Council of Rio de Janeiro, for, I should imagine that the
British statesman would only have required this stipulation for his
countrymen, without mentioning the subjects of other powers. I have
heard this article much complained of by men who were afterwards
surprised to hear that the Portugueze were allowed to have their
chapels in England; and here these gentlemen would have been desirous
of preventing perfect reciprocity.
ARTICLE 17th. “It is agreed and covenanted that articles of military
and naval stores brought into the ports of H. R. H. the Prince Regent
of Portugal, which the Portugueze government may be desirous of taking
for its own use shall be paid for without delay at the prices appointed
by the proprietors, who shall not be compelled to sell such articles on
any other terms. And it is farther stipulated, that if the Portugueze
government shall take into its own care and custody any cargo or part
of a cargo, with a view to purchase or otherwise, the said Portugueze
government shall be responsible for any damage or injury that such
cargo or part of a cargo may receive while in the care and custody of
the officers of the said Portugueze government.”
I have transcribed this article at full length. What must be the
reputed state of a government from which common equity must be
stipulated for? But I trust that the time for such abuses has gone by,
and that the era of reformation has commenced.
ARTICLE 18th. “The privilege is granted to British subjects of being
_assignantes_ for the duties to be paid at the custom-houses.” The
inability of being _assignantes_ was of considerable inconvenience
to English merchants, and obliged them to pay a _per centage_ to a
Portugueze for the use of his name in this capacity. The _assignantes_
are bondsmen for the duties to be paid at the end of three and six
months; and no reason could be urged against Englishmen being allowed
to serve as _assignantes_, excepting that of leaving the country
without waiting to answer their bonds.
ARTICLE 19th. “All goods, merchandises, and articles whatsoever of
the produce, manufacture, industry, or invention of the dominions or
subjects of either of the High Contracting Parties, shall be received
into the ports of the other, upon the terms of the most favoured
nation.”
ARTICLE 20th. “Certain articles of the growth and produce of Brazil,
which are subject to prohibitory duties in Great Britain, as they are
similar to the produce of the British colonies, are permitted to be
warehoused in Great Britain for exportation.” The non-admission of
these commodities, which are principally sugar and coffee, for the
consumption of the British empire, has been subject to discussion.
It was not to be expected that Great Britain would sacrifice her own
possessions by this alteration in her policy; and particularly towards
a country in which the articles in question can be produced at a
smaller expence than in the British colonies.
ARTICLE 21st. “British East Indian goods and West Indian produce may be
subjected to prohibitory duties in the dominions of Portugal.” British
merchants might complain of this article with as much reason as the
Portugueze do of the former. The relative situations of the two empires
require both of them.
ARTICLE 23d. “His R. H. the Prince Regent of Portugal being desirous
to place the system of commerce announced by the present Treaty upon
the most extensive basis, is pleased to take the opportunity afforded
by it, of publishing the determination pre-conceived in His Royal
Highness’ mind of rendering Goa a free port, and of permitting the
free toleration of all religious sects whatever in that city and its
dependencies.” Here is another most pleasant symptom of change of
policy.
ARTICLE 25th. “Great Britain gives up the right which she enjoyed
of creating factories or incorporated bodies of British merchants
in the Portugueze dominions.” This was a privilege of considerable
importance, from the union which it produced among the merchants of
that nation residing in the same place. They were better able as a body
to urge any petition to the Portugueze government, and to transact
the affairs which interested them generally. However their protection
is sufficiently provided for in other articles of the Treaty, and
therefore it is well that this privilege was given up: it was an odious
one, and not necessary; and certainly was not consistent with the basis
of reciprocity upon which the Treaty was formed.
ARTICLE 26th. This declares that the stipulations existing concerning
the admission of the wines of Portugal into Great Britain, and
the woollen cloths of Great Britain into Portugal, shall remain
unaltered[263]. The article continues thus; “in the same manner it is
agreed, that the favours, privileges, and immunities, granted by either
contracting party to the subjects of the other, whether by Treaty,
Decree or _Alvará_, shall remain unaltered.[264]”
ARTICLE 32d. “It is agreed and stipulated by the High Contracting
Parties, that the present Treaty shall be unlimited in point of
duration, that the obligations and conditions expressed or implied in
it shall be perpetual and immutable, and that they shall not be changed
or affected in any manner, in case H. R. H. the Prince Regent of
Portugal, his heirs or successors, should again establish the seat of
the Portugueze monarchy within the European dominions of that crown.”
Brazil is thus laid open for ever. However, even if the government was
so inclined, it would be impossible to close the ports of that kingdom
to foreign trade; the benefits which have resulted from the direct
intercourse with Great Britain have been too generally felt for the
people to be made to return to the ancient colonial system.
The British North American colonies first shewed the example of
throwing off the yoke of the mother country, and this was to be
expected from the principles of many of the first settlers. The attempt
succeeded, but a doubt still remains whether it would not have been
more to their advantage to have remained subject to Great Britain for
some time longer;—whether they were at the time of emancipation of
a competent age to rely upon their own resources. However the spirit
of their government and of their people, may have made amends for any
prematurity of freedom; and the United States have advanced with most
surprising (I may almost say unnatural) rapidity, in power and wealth,
and consequent importance in the scale of nations. Their change of
situation was not however obtained without years of bloodshed and
desolation.
The Spanish colonies are now making the same experiment; they are
experiencing great misery, and the contest is far from being decided.
Brazil has obtained a government of its own, under most peculiar
circumstances, and these have probably saved that country from the
misery of revolution. If the rulers of that extensive kingdom perform
their duty, if they act with common prudence, their own downfall may be
prevented, and the unhappiness of a whole people for the space of one
generation, may be rendered unnecessary. The government has much to do
before the people will or ought to be satisfied; and the people have
been too much accustomed to submission, to be excited to a change of
government, unless the grievances under which they suffer are of such
magnitude as to be too considerable to be borne.
The reformation which would, I think, reconcile the people is not of
very difficult execution. Judicious taxation, instead of the system
which exists, is requisite in the first place; the articles of primary
necessity are heavily taxed, such as provisions of all descriptions,
and the same occurs with respect to the most important articles of
trade. An impartial administration of justice ought in the second place
to be provided for. The abolition of all monopolies, and of the system
of farming the taxes. A decrease in the power of civil and military
magistrates: a change in the manner of recruiting: a suppression of
great numbers of the civil and military officers of government,—by the
existence of these taxation is rendered much heavier than it otherwise
would be, fees are augmented, and the redress of grievances becomes
more difficult because responsibility is more divided. The misconduct
of each person is not of sufficient moment to be taken notice of, and
mal-practices are too widely diffused to be punished.
The change of policy which would lead to the general advancement of
the country, consists in the abolition of the slave trade, in the
toleration of all religions, in the naturalization of foreigners, and
perhaps ultimately in the establishment of legislative assemblies, and
of a general Cortes.
If my limits would allow, and this was a proper place for the purpose,
I think I could shew that the _reformation_ which is proposed is
perfectly within the power of the Court, and is absolutely necessary
for the security of the present dynasty. The _change of policy_ must
be entered into gradually. The government will not go so far at
present;—neither are the people fit for the reception of the whole of
these innovations, nor would they accord with their ideas. They are
steps to which all countries which are in a state of improvement must
advance; and if those persons who are placed at the head of their
affairs are aware of what is due to them revolutions may be prevented,
by keeping pace with the ideas of the people, and attending to their
progressive state.
I look forwards with hope to a continuance of peace in Brazil; I
trust that the devastations of revolution, that the misfortunes which
political convulsions produce may be averted; that the natural quietude
and goodness of the people of that kingdom, and the wisdom and prudence
of the government will unite in the far preferable plan of continuing
in the path which all those persons who desire their welfare will
pray for;—in conceding to each other, and in agreeing to establish a
lasting empire upon the true basis of perfect confidence.
APPENDIX.
I HAVE in a former part of this volume mentioned Dr. Manoel Arruda da
Camara, as having published two pamphlets at Rio de Janeiro, in 1810.
One of these is entitled “A Dissertation upon the Plants of Brazil from
which fibrous substances may be obtained, adapted to various uses in
society, and which may supply the place of hemp; the enquiry being made
by order of the Prince Regent.” The other pamphlet is called “An Essay
on the utility of establishing gardens in the principal provinces of
Brazil for the cultivation of new plants.”
I shall only give those parts of the works which may be interesting to
English readers.—_Transl._
A DISSERTATION, &c.
SECTION 1st.
_Of Plants which afford Fibres, properly so called._
CAROA, Bromelia variegata:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._—The
description is taken from my Centuria of the genera and species of new
plants of Pernambuco.
CLASS, Hexandria:—ORDER, Monogynia:—DIVISION, Flowers complete.
_Gen. Char._ Calyx superior and trifid. Corolla tripetalous, with
nectariferous scales at the base of each petal. Fruit an umbellate,
trilocular berry.
_Section 1st._ With flowers discrete or separated.
_Spec. Char._ Leaves ciliate, spiny, stained with transverse green and
whitish marks.
_Nat. Char._ No stem.
Leaves radical and few, (from 3 to 7) from three to six feet long,
channelled, revolute and spiny, green in the interior or concave
surface, and stained with transverse whitish marks on the exterior or
convex surface.
FLOWERS, The stalk two feet long, flexuose and almost spiral, with
alternate scales without thorns; the spike simple, the peduncle
or flower stalk short. Bracteæ small, the floral leaves simple,
and at the foot of each flower stalk. CALYX monophyllous, with
obtuse indentations, trifid, tubular, permanent and erect. COROLLA
tripetalous, tubular, of a bluish purple colour, oblong, obtuse, erect,
with nectariferous scales at the bases; from the middle of each petal
to the bottom is a channel which sheaths a single filament of the
stamina. STAMINA consist of six filaments inserted in the receptacle;
of these, three are alternate with, and three are opposite to the
petals; of the last the bases run down the grooves in the petals, and
fix themselves in the receptacle. PISTIL consists of one filiform
style, with a single stigma. PERICARP, an oval, pointed berry, somewhat
angular and umbellate, nearly of the size of an olive.
The plant is to be found in the Sertoens of Pernambuco, Paraiba, Searà,
and principally in the Sertam of Cariri de Fora, and Pajaù, and upon
the banks of the river St. Francisco. It blossoms in the months of
July, August, and September.
USES.
The leaves of this plant are composed of two segments, one exterior and
convex, and the other interior and concave; the former is more compact
and hard, the latter is thinner; between them is to be found a quantity
of longitudinal fibres, of the same length as the leaves, fixed in a
juicy pulp. These fibres are strong, and from them cordage may be made,
and even coarse cloth, if care is taken in preparing the thread. This
may the more easily be done, from the enormous quantities which nature
affords without the aid of cultivation. The inhabitants of the banks of
the river St. Francisco weave their fishing nets of these fibres.
There are two methods of obtaining the fibres of the _caroà_. 1st.
Having taken the leaf from the plant (which is easily done) the convex
side of it should be clipped at the bottom with a knife, and with the
other hand, the fibres pulled out, some force being necessary. They
will bring with them a quantity of vegetable liquid, with which the
pulp is soaked. For this reason the above manner of obtaining the
thread is called _ensuar o caroà_, to sweat the _caroà_. The fibre
which is thus extracted is green, and it is necessary to wash it, for
the purpose of cleaning it. 2d. The leaves being taken from the plant,
and being tied up in bundles, should be thrown into water, where they
must be allowed to remain for four or five days; then they should be
taken out to be beaten in bunches, that the hammers or mallets may not
cut the fibres. This operation will not be sufficient to separate it
from the pulp, but it will be necessary to tie it up again in bundles,
and to steep it for two days or more, at the close of which the beating
should be renewed; it must be yet a third time put into water, and
beat. After this the fibres are usually obtained clean; and they should
be wound up and braided that they may not be entangled.
I have observed, that by beating the leaves, and thus bruising them
before they are in the first instance put into water, the labour is
much diminished; and that maceration in stagnant waters produces the
desired effect in much less time than in a cold running stream. If
the fibres which are obtained by each process above-mentioned, are
examined, it will be found that those which have undergone the first,
are stronger than those of the second, but more labour is necessary;
the difference, however, will not be experienced if the fibre is
bruised before it is steeped, because this operation accelerates
the maceration. The fibre of this, like that of all other plants,
is subject to rot, if it is allowed to remain under water for any
considerable time.
The expence of obtaining the thread which is extracted by the first
process, cannot be calculated with exactitude, because it entirely
depends upon the expertness of the persons who perform the work; and
this again depends upon habit and practice. I have purchased it at 1200
_reis per arroba_ of 32 _lbs._ or at 2½_d. per lb._ The fibre which
is obtained by the second process, is sold at a cheaper rate, because
the labour is less; I have purchased this at 1000 _reis per arroba_,
rather more than 2_d. per lb._
It is not necessary to cultivate the plant; many leagues of land are
covered with it; and there are situations which are so completely
overspread with it, that the ground cannot be passed over. This occurs
in many parts of Curimataû, and of Cariri de Fora; both these places
are in the captaincy of Paraiba. It is in these that I recommend the
establishment of manufactories, for the purpose of extracting the
fibre, for they are the nearest to the coast, and there are good roads
to them by which the produce may be carried in carts and waggons.
Although the _caroà_ is long lived, still many leagues of the lands
which were covered with it have been laid waste by the fires which
mischievous persons, sportsmen, and even the owners of estates annually
let loose (_such is Arruda’s expression_). It is probable that even
the remaining _caroà_ grounds will be destroyed, if government does
not take some measures to prevent a continuance of such practices,
fulminating penalties against the incendiaries of so useful a
plant.[265]
CRAUATA DE REDE, Bromelia Sagenaria:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._ The
description is taken from my Centuria of the genera and species of new
plants of Pernambuco.
CLASS, Hexandria:—ORDER, Monogynia:—DIVISION, Flowers complete.
_Gen. Char._ Calyx superior, and trifid. Corolla tripetalous, with
nectariferous scales at the base of each petal. Fruit an umbellate
trilocular berry.
_Section 2d._ With the flowers united by the receptacles or berries
united in one.
_Spec. Char._ Leaves radical, ciliate serrated; the berries are united
into one pyramidal fruit; the bracteæ long, imbricate, covering the
fruit.
_Nat. Char._ No stem.
Leaves radical and many, (from 3 to 9 feet long) one inch and a half
wide, channelled; the edges ciliate spiny, ash-coloured on the convex,
and green on the concave surface.
FLOWERS, The stalk, a foot and a half long, with alternate leaves,
the flowers of a bluish purple colour, with the receptacles united.
CALYX monophyllous, with obtuse indentations, trifid, erect. COROLLA
tripetalous, tubular, erect, obtuse, blue, each petal has at the base
nectariferous scales. STAMINA consist of six filiform filaments, three
alternate and three opposite, fixed to the receptacle; and of oblong,
bilocular anthers. PISTIL consists of one filiform style with a single
stigma. PERICARP, a trilocular berry, united by the sides to the other
berries, which altogether form one pyramidal fruit, covered, having
long imbricate bracteæ. The seeds are of the size of a grain of maize,
fasciated.
The plant is to be found upon the coast of Pernambuco, Paraiba, and Rio
Grande, it does not extend into the interior more than ten or twelve
leagues. It is commonly called _crauatà de rede_, or net _crauatà_,
because the inhabitants of the parts in which it grows, make their
fishing nets of its fibres. It blossoms in July and August.
This species of _bromelia_ is new; the fruit of it is similar to that
of the _bromelia ananas_, being however smaller; the berries are less
juicy, and of a disagreeable taste; the bracteæ are three inches in
length, erect, and placed one over the other after the manner of tiles,
so as to cover all the superficies of the fruit. I took its specific
name of _Sagenaria_, from the circumstance of its fibres being used by
fishermen for making their nets.
The fibre of the plant varies in length from three to eight feet,
according to the greater or less fertility of the land; in dry land
it is short, fine, and soft; in good land, it is longer but likewise
thicker and rough; the strength of it is great, the following fact
proving that this is the case. Upon the wharf of the city of Paraiba,
there is a rope made of this fibre, which has been in use during many
years, for the purpose of embarking the bales (_of manufactured goods,
I suppose_) and chests of sugar: with the same rope the anchors of a
line of battle ship were embarked, which had been left at Paraiba by
the (_charrua_) ship Aguia; they were intended for Bahia, and could not
be raised by hempen cables of greater diameter.
It is with difficulty that this kind of fibre becomes white by the
common manner of bleaching, which proceeds from a certain natural
varnish (if I may be allowed so to call it) with which the surface
is covered; it does not rot so easily as other kinds of fibre, when
soaked in water. From this property the fishermen prefer it for their
nets; but notwithstanding the natural varnish of its coloured parts,
the fishermen increase its power to resist the water, by carbonising
(if I may be allowed so to say) the threads of their nets with
astringents which they obtain from various plants; such as the bark of
the _aroeira_ and of the _coipuna_, and for this purpose the nets are
steeped for some time in a decoction or infusion of these barks, as is
practised in tanning.
From the qualities which it possesses, and which I have just mentioned,
I am persuaded that the fibre is well adapted to the manufacture of
cables, and cordage; and the specimens of cloth, and one pair of
stockings which by this opportunity I forward to the ministry, made of
it, indicate the possibility of manufacturing sail-cloth from it, and
even finer cloths, if improvements were made in its preparation; but
these are at present entirely disregarded.
The leaf of the plant is composed of two ligneous plates, one convex
and the other concave; and also of a quantity of longitudinal fibres
inserted between them, and united to each other by juicy fecula, but
sufficiently attached to prevent them from being disengaged by the
hand; therefore they can only be extracted by maceration. The plant
is rooted up, which is done by means of a forked stick, and is called
_desbancar_. The leaves must then be taken from the stem, and thirdly
the thorns must be taken off, which is done easily by separating the
spiny edges with a knife. The leaves being thus prepared are steeped
in water for about a fortnight. The maceration is known to be complete
when the outward rind and ligneous bark of the leaves are sufficiently
soft to be pierced by the nail; the leaves are then taken out of the
water one by one, and the base of each of them is opened until the
fibres appear; the rind of each surface must be secured with one hand,
that with the other the fibres may be pulled out; even so they will
be removed with other substances attached to them. For the purpose of
being cleaned, they must be braided and again steeped for one day, and
then beaten with mallets upon a bench, and the maceration and beating
must be repeated until the fibres become clean. I have paid for each
_arroba_ of it 1920 _reis_, or 4_d. per lb._ But the usual price at
which it is sold is from 120 to 160 _reis_, or 8_d._ to 10½_d. per
lb._
ANANAS MANSO, Bromelia Ananas.
CLASS, Hexandria:—ORDER, Monogynia:—DIVISION, Flowers complete.
The use which is made of the _ananas_ at our tables is so common that
in this respect it is unnecessary that any thing should be said;
therefore I shall only mention the purposes to which the fibrous
property of its leaves may be applied. This I discovered in 1801,
when I was directed by a Royal Order to make enquiry into the fibrous
qualities of indigenous plants. I found, on comparing the fibre of
this with that of all others, that it is the strongest and the finest,
and that it is adapted to the manufacture of cloth even of superior
quality. I took the leaves of two of these plants which weighed 14
_lbs._ I beat them with mallets, washing those portions which had been
beat; they yielded rather more than one quarter of a pound of thread.
The operation lasted nine hours, being performed by one man. It is
bleached with great ease. The _ananas_ may be produced in almost all
kinds of land; it will grow in a sandy soil, and still more does it
flourish in that which is argillaceous; the sun does not destroy it,
nor is it injured by rain; no insect attacks it. Each shoot multiplies
so largely, that in a short time the space which has been at first left
between each plant, is soon filled up. After a bed of _ananas_ has
once been planted, very little care is required to keep it in order.
I have known some which have existed sixteen years without requiring
to be replanted. An excellent beverage may be obtained from it by
fermentation.[266]
ANANAS DE AGULHA, Bromelia muricata:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant._
I have given the description of this plant in my first centuria; and do
not describe it in this place because I have not made any experiments
with it, but I suspect that it possesses fibrous qualities. Its fruit
is of the same make as that of the _ananas manso_ and of the _crauata
de rede_, from which it principally differs, in having, instead of
bracteæ, thorns of three inches and a half in length, raised in the
direction of the fruit, so that being covered with these sharp thorns,
it cannot be taken hold of without much care; from this peculiarity it
is that I took the specific name of the species.
CAROATA, Bromelia Karatas:—_Lin._
The little importance which the fibre of this species can claim,
renders it unnecessary for me to give a minute description of it. The
leaves are from 8 to 10 feet long, and afford a great quantity of
fibre, but it is not strong, and can only be applied to very ordinary
purposes.
CAROATA-AÇU, OU PITEIRA, Agave vivipara:—_Lin. Syst. Veg._
CLASS, Hexandria:—ORDER, Monogynia.
The only uses to which at the present time this plant is put, are the
following. Its spungy pith possesses the property of burning gently
without extinguishing; the peasants therefore are in the habit of
putting some of it into their fires when they wish to prevent them
from going out for a considerable time. Hedges are made of it, by
planting the bulbs or tender shoots; these easily take root and grow.
Piso says, “_ex foliis hujus plantæ optimus pannus conficitur, qui si
rite præparetur, panno lineo excedit; folia stupam quoque et filosam
materiam suppeditant, ex qua fila et retia sua contexunt piscatores_.”
From hence it may be inferred that the Dutch knew better than we do how
to take advantage of the natural productions of the country. At the
present time even the fishermen do not make use of its fibre for their
lines and nets, substituting in place of it the _crauata de rede_. The
only use to which the Portugueze apply the fibre of the _agave_, is in
making the cords, which the friars of the Third Order of St. Francis,
commonly called of Jesus, wear round their waists.
The fibre is to be obtained by maceration, but the leaves must in the
first instance be bruised, and afterwards steeped.[267]
COQUEIRO, Cocos Nucifera—_Lin. Syst. Veget._
The oil which is obtained from the pulp of the fruit is easily
separated from the mucilage by means of fire; thirty-two cocos rendered
me 17 _lbs._ of oily pulp, and these gave me three pounds of pure oil.
It is fitted to other purposes besides that of food, for it serves
to give light; and mixed with soda it yields good soap, white and
hard. One hundred cocos give one _canada_ of oil of the _canadas_ of
Pernambuco. So that each coco costing 10 _reis_, a _canada_ may be
obtained for 1280 _reis_, or 7_s._ 1¼_d._
From the fibre of the outward rind of the coco, which is called
_cairo_, may be made all kinds of cordage; even cables are manufactured
from it.
The only means by which the fibre of the coco rind can be obtained,
are by beating and maceration; before the rind is put into water to
steep, it ought to be beaten for the purpose of loosening its texture,
principally that of the outward surface, which is hard and compact;
and this should be done that the water may penetrate with more ease.
After the first operation, it must be left to steep for two or three
days, and then should be beaten; and this should be continued until the
separation is accomplished; great care, however, should be taken that
the rind of the coco be not allowed to dry. Because I have observed,
that if this occurs, the ligneous fecula or spongy pulp, which is found
intermixed with the fibres, adheres still more strongly to them. I have
likewise remarked, that from the rind which has been recently taken
from the coco, the fibre is much more easily extracted than from that
which has been along time separated from it.[268]
The rind of 40 cocos rendered me 6_lbs._ of _cairo_. The annual produce
of the coco groves of Itamaraca is 360,000 cocos, more or less; and
according to calculation these are capable of yielding 1680 arrobas of
prepared _cairo_. The island of Itamaraca is three leagues in length,
and the coast is alone planted with coco trees, and if these are thus
productive what might not the coco groves yield, which extend along the
coast from the river St. Francisco to the bar of Mamanguape, a distance
of 94 leagues all cultivated with coco trees?[269]
ANINGA, Arum liniferum:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
CLASS, Monoecia. ORDER, Polyandria.[270]
_Gen. Char._ Spathe monophyllous, cucullate, large. Spadix shorter
than the spathe, simple, clubbed at the naked end; at the base are the
female flowers, and in the middle the male.
_Spec. Char._ Stem arboraceous, leaves sagittate, about one foot long,
petioles of two feet.
_Nat. Char._ Stem from 6 to 8 feet long, two to three inches in
diameter, straight, cylindrical, of an ashy-green colour, marked with
scars of the fallen leaves; the substance spongy, juicy, soft; and in
this substance are numerous longitudinal fibres, of the thickness of
the hairs of horses’ tails, long.
BRANCHES are uncommon.
Leaves are rather more than one foot long and of the same breadth at
the base, sagittate, simple, coriaceous. PETIOLES, amplexicaul, two
feet long, channelled from the base to the middle, where the channel
ends in an appendix of 23 inches, the remainder is cylindrical.
FLOWERS, axillary, solitary. CALYX a spathe longer than the spadix.
The spadix is almost one foot long. STAMINA numerous. PERICARP, many
berries at the base of the spadix.
The plant is to be found in Pernambuco, and it grows so plentifully in
marshes that many are covered with it.
The substance of the stem of the plant is spongy, and full of an acid
juice which acts upon metals; some of the peasants use this in cleaning
their knives, firelocks, &c. This is the only use to which the plant
has, as yet, been applied; but from the experiments which I have made
upon it, I am persuaded that it may be rendered serviceable in the
manufacture of cordage of great strength.
As the fibres are placed in the pulp longitudinally, and are slightly
fixed to it, the operations of beating and washing will separate them
entirely. I have not made any experiments as to the durability of the
cordage.
TUCUM. This is the name which is given to a species of palm tree,
but I have not yet been able to acquaint myself with what genus it
belongs to. Piso speaks of it, giving a bad print of it and a worse
description. Manoel Ferreira da Camara in his _Descrip. fisica da
Comarca dos Ilheos_, exaggerates the utility of the fibre of the plant.
I tried to obtain the fibre from the leaves in a dry state, or, as the
peasants term it, _suado_ (sweated.) I held with the left hand the
point of the leaf, and with the right rather lower down, I doubled
it as if I was going to break it, at the same time pulling it. After
it was broken, there remained in my left hand some fibres, which had
been loosened from the inner surface of the leaf. I soon saw that this
would not do, for one person would not be able to extract more than
one eighth of a _lb._ of fibre in the course of the day; therefore I
had recourse to maceration, but this did not succeed, for at the close
of eight days I found that both the leaves and the fibre had rotted.
Other species of palms grow in great numbers, forming groves of many
leagues, such as the _Carnâùba_, the _palmeira_, properly so called,
the _uricuri_, and the _catolé_, &c. but the _tucum_ and another kind
called _Maiarà_ grow in the shade of the woods, where they are much
scattered, each tree being at some distance from the other; the _tucum_
has few leaves; it is a thin palm tree of 5 to 6 inches in diameter and
of 12 to 16 feet in length.
MACAIBA or MACAUBA, Cocos ventricosa:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._ The
description is taken from my centuria of the genera and species of new
plants of Pernambuco.
CLASS, Monoecia. ORDER, Hexandria.
_Gen. Char._ Spathe simple; spadix ramose.
MALE FLOWER; calyx, a trifid perianth. Corolla, tripetalous; six
stamina; germen barren. FEMALE FLOWER; calyx trifid; stigmata three;
fruit a drupe.
_Spec. Char._ Stem aculeate, ventricose; leaves pinnate; small leaves
ensiform replicate.
_Nat. Char._ Stem 30 feet long, ventricose, armed with sharp thorns
circularly arranged.
FLOWERS. Spathe monophyllous, lanceolate, concave, large. Spadix
divided into many spikes. The female flowers below, the male flowers
above; close to which the bases are fixed in cups hollowed in the
common peduncle. CALYX, a perianth of three linear pieces, very small,
alternate with the petals of the corolla. COROLLA, tripetalous,
oblong, concave, pointed, yellowish. STAMINA consist of six filiform
filaments of the length of the corolla and of incumbent anthers,
oblong. PISTIL, style thick, without a stigma, barren. FEMALE FLOWERS.
Calyx small, whitish, monophyllous, trifid, irregular, permanent.
COROLLA tripetalous, rounded, the sides imbricate and united in the
middle with the nectary. NECTARY, a monophyllous corolla which lines
and reunites within the bases of the petals. STAMINA, none. PISTIL
consists of a rounded germen, a very short style and three stigmata,
simple. PERICARP, a round drupe, of the size of a large _jambo_ or rose
apple, or of a small common apple, yellowish: it consists of a ligneous
exterior bark which is weak; of a bony nut, an oily almond, and a layer
of oily, yellow pulp.
The plant is to be found in Pernambuco, and in some other parts of
Brazil.
The oily pulp of the fruit and the almond of the inner stone is eaten,
and is sold in the markets. The ventricose or middle part of the
stem contains a fecula which is extracted in times of want, and is
eaten being prepared in various manners. The leaf contains a fibre
fine and strong, like the leaf of the _tucum_; but like that it is
difficult to obtain when dry or _suado_, and impossible to get it by
maceration, for the same happened with this as with the _tucum_ in
the experiments which I made. This is a new species, and owing to the
middle of the stem being much thicker than the extremities, I have
given to it the specific name of _cocos ventricosa_. For some time I
was in doubt whether I should place it in this genus or not, on account
of its monopetalous nectary, which lines and unites the petals of
the corolla within. The female as well as the male flowers are fixed
in cups hollowed in the spike or common peduncle. The female flowers
are solitary, that is, each in its cup; the male flowers are two and
two.[271]
These are the fibrous plants of Brazil which are of the most
importance. It is evident that of all that have been mentioned there
are only four which can be made use of advantageously for cordage.
The _caroa_ (_bromelia variegata_); the _crauatà de rede_, (_bromelia
sagenaria_); the _caroata-açu_ (_agave vivipara_); and the fibre of
the rind of the _coco da praia_ (_cocos nucifera_); their cheapness,
the ease with which they may be prepared, their abundance, and the
possibility of obtaining them still cheaper, render these the fibres of
chief importance. The fibre of the leaf of the _tucum_, which has been
so much extolled, and that of the _macaiba_, and of the _dendezeiro_
(another palm) cannot become of general service to society, and much
less can they be rendered applicable to the use of shipping, from the
difficulty with which they are to be obtained, and from many other
circumstances.
SECTION 2d.
CARRAPIXO, Urena Sinuata:—LIN. SYST. VEGET. edit. 14.
CLASS, Monadelphia:—ORDER, Polyandria.
The bark of this plant is with ease separated by means of maceration
for a fortnight; and from it cords are made for many purposes, and
although they are not very strong, they are much esteemed for slinging
hammocks; when the operation of macerating is made in clean water,
the fibre becomes pretty well whitened. The plant is not cultivated;
and in the neighbourhood of Paratibi it grows spontaneously, in such
quantities that the inhabitants of that village gather it for sale. I
have heard that it grows in abundance at Rio de Janeiro, and is known
there by the name of _guaxuma_. The name of _carrapixo_ is likewise
given in Pernambuco to some other plants, of which the seeds stick
to whatever chances to touch them, by means of small ears which are
thorny; for this reason the plant of which we are treating is sometimes
called _carrapixinho_, for the purpose of distinguishing it.
GUAXUMA DO MANGUE, Hibiscus Pernambucensis:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
CLASS, Monadelphia:—ORDER, Polyandria.
_Gen. Char._ Calyx double, the outside divided into many segments, the
inside into five segments, campanulate. Capsule quinque-locular; many
seeds.
_Spec. Char._ Leaves cordate, entire; stem fruit-bearing, with the
exterior calyx monophyllous, having eight notches.
_Nat. Char._ Stem of six feet and more; bark black, few branches.
Leaves cordate, rounded, acuminated, entire; the petioles cylindrical.
Stipules deciduous, acute.
FLOWERS, Large, yellow, like those of the cotton plant, axillary and
terminal; each peduncle of one, two, and three flowers. CALYX double,
permanent, the exterior monophyllous, with eight notches, acute; the
interior monophyllous, campanulate, divided into five segments, acute
and long. COROLLA pentapetalous, yellow, and the petals hold the
stameniferous column upon their bases. STAMINA numerous, fixed to the
stameniferous column by subulate filaments; anthers rounded. PISTIL
consists of one oval germen acuminate; one style, which is longer than
the column of the stamina, erect, and it has four or five separate
stigmata. PERICARP a capsule of almost one inch long, pentangular and
quinque-locular, inclosed in the calyx, which is much enlarged after
fecundation.
The plant is to be found in Pernambuco in places near to the sea, or
where salt water reaches, and principally upon the banks of the rivers
Goiana and Paraiba. I have found it in flower and fruit in the months
of February and March.
The persons who catch crabs tie them to each other with the bark of the
plant; and this is the only use to which it is applied. Cordage might
be made of its inner rind, as is practised in some parts of America
with the _hibiscus populneus_; also the _hibiscus tiliaceus_, from
which at Cayenne cords for common use are made.
EMBIRA BRANCA or JANGADEIRA, Apeiba Cimbalaria:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant.
Pern._
CLASS, Poliandria:—ORDER, Monogynia.
_Gen. Char._ Calyx, monophyllous, trifid; pericarp a decem-locular
capsule, covered with thorns or spines, depressed, opening only on the
lower side.
_Spec. Char._ Stem of 20 to 30 feet long, and of one foot and a half in
diameter.
Leaves ovate, lanceolate, cordate, reticulate, green and smooth above,
covered with hairs, which are of a copper colour underneath. STAMINA
monadelphic. The plant is to be found in Pernambuco, abounding in the
virgin woods. It blossoms from August to October.
The timber of this tree is not compact, and its specific gravity is
much less than that of water, with which it does not easily become
saturated. The inhabitants of the coast make use of it for the purpose
of constructing rafts; three or four of these trees are put together,
and are well fastened to each other[272]. The bark of the tree is
fibrous, and from it a great quantity of cordage is made for the common
purposes of the country.
Marcgraff calls it _Apeiba_; and Aublet adopted the same name when he
fixed the genus of the three species which he describes in Guiana,
and he supposes that the species _tibourbu_ is the same as that which
Marcgraff speaks of in Pernambuco; they are certainly alike, but I
imagine that it must be a variety, from the size of the tree, which
only grows there to the height of eight feet, and here it exceeds 20
feet. There is less hair upon the leaves, the silky work of the edges
is not so deep; and there is even some difference in the shape; the
stamina are manifestly monadelphic. This last circumstance inclined
me to call it _apeiba monadelpha_, but the use to which the tree
is applied in the construction of rafts decided me in calling it
_cimbalaria_.
EMBIRA VERMELHA, Unona carminativa:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This plant has a red fibrous bark, of which as much use is made in
manufacturing cordage as of the _embira branca_; but the bark ought not
be permitted to be gathered, for the tree produces seeds, of which the
capsules have the taste and the pungency of black pepper. Many persons
make use of them as a spice in cooking, and some even prefer them to
pepper; they are carminative. If the bark is taken off, the tree dies;
the seeds are worthy of becoming an article of trade as a spice.[273]
I have omitted a great number of plants which possess fibrous
properties, that this Dissertation might not be made too long; some of
them are not much in use, and others are not applied to any purpose. I
shall mention some, such as the _guaxuma branca da mata_ (_helicteras
baruensis_) of which the inner bark is white and strong, but on being
wetted, it becomes rotten and breaks. However, I think it might be
applied to the manufacture of paper. The _barriguda or sumàûma_
(_bombax ventricosa:—Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._) and the Sertam plant,
called the _embiratanha_, which I have named _bombax mediterranea_,
also afford fibre from the bark, but they are not much used. All the
species _anona_ (called commonly _areticum_) afford fibre, and of these
the plant which gives the strongest and the most durable fibre is the
_areticum a pé_. The cord with which the flag of Fort Cabedello at
Paraiba is hoisted, is made of the rind of this plant, and it has been
there for many years. Finally all the plants of the genera _hibiscus_,
_sidas_, _altheas_, and in general all the mallows afford fibre of
greater or less strength. The _embiriba_ (_lecythis_) gives tow, and
although it cannot be applied to the manufacture of cordage, its use is
great for caulkers.
_An Essay on the Utility of establishing Gardens in the principal
Provinces of Brazil._
THE first part of this pamphlet treats of the advantages which Brazil
would obtain by the establishment of Royal Botanic Gardens. The second
part contains a list of those plants which it would be expedient to
transplant from other quarters of the globe to Brazil, and from one
part of Brazil to the other. I shall only translate that portion of the
second part which relates to the plants of Brazil.—_Transl._
_Plants of Parà and Maranham._
CRAVO DO MARANHAM, Myrtus caryophylata.
PIXURI.
ABACATI., Laurus Persea:—The fruit of this tree contains a butterous
substance, which is very pleasant; there are two kinds or varieties,
one of which is distinguished by the name of Cayenne.
BACURI, Moronobea esculenta:—This tree grows to a great height; and
the stem is entirely without branches, forming at the top a large
cope. The fruit is nearly of the size of an orange, but it is oval and
contains 23 stones covered with a white pulp, which have a pleasant
taste, being sweet, and somewhat acid. In Pernambuco is to be found
another species of the same genus, growing in marshes, which is
commonly called _gulandim_; on cutting into the stem a white juice
oozes out, which appears to me to be resinous, and perhaps might be
applied to some use. Both these species are described in my Centuria of
the new genera and species of the plants of Pernambuco.
BACABA, Areca Bacaba:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._ This palm tree is a
species of _areca oleracea_, producing however larger fruit; the nut
is covered with a mucilaginous pulp, from which the inhabitants of the
places in which it grows make an excellent beverage, called _bacabada_
or _ticuara de bacabas_.
ABACAXI, Bromelia:—There are three varieties of _ananas_ at Maranham,
called _abacaxi_; of one the fruit is white, and the leaves are not
serrated; of another the fruit is of a purple colour, and the leaves
spiny; the third I have not seen. I brought the two first varieties
to Pernambuco, where they have been planted, and are already becoming
common, and they have been forwarded by some patriotic persons to other
provinces. Their flavour is much superior to that of the species which
has been long well known.
MARACUJA MAMAM, Passiflora Alata.
_Plants of Seara._
PIQUI, Acantacaryx Pinguis:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._ This plant
produces most abundantly a fruit of the size of an orange, of which the
pulp is oily, feculous, and very nourishing. It is the delight of the
inhabitants of Searà and Piauhi. The tree grows to the height of fifty
feet, and is of proportionate thickness. The timber of it is of as good
quality as that of the _cicopira_, for ship-building. It grows well in
the sandy plains which are in Pernambuco called _taboleiros_, and in
Piauhi _chapadas_, therefore its cultivation would be very advantageous
in the _taboleiros_ bordering the coast, which are at present of no
service. It has afforded great assistance to the people in times of
drought and famine.
BURITI, An Borassus?—This species of palm is one of the highest and
most beautiful of trees; it grows only in bogs and marshes; the fruit
is of the size of a hen’s egg, and of the same form; it is of a red
colour at the time of maturation, and is covered with scales spirally
arranged. Under the scales is found a layer of oily pulp of the same
red colour, from which the inhabitants of Piauhi obtain an emulsion;
when this is mixed with sugar, it becomes a substantial drink, which is
by no means unpleasant. However, if it is used to excess, the colour of
the fruit is communicated to the surface of the skin, and to the white
of the eyes, producing the appearance of jaundice, but without any
injury to the health.
MARACUJA SUSPIRO, Passiflora:—This is the finest flavoured fruit of
the genus; it is called _suspiro_, because one of them may be swallowed
at once, leaving upon the palate a most exquisite taste and a sweet
smell. It is to be found in the Serra de Beruoca, upon the borders of
Acaracù.[274]
MANDAPUCA, Myrtus Scabra:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
COCO NAIA, a large palm tree, which is to be found abundantly in Cariri
Novo and Piauhi; the nut contains three or four seeds, from which oil
is extracted, and this is applied to the same purposes as that of the
_cocos nucifera_. The nut is covered with a feculous substantial flour,
which has afforded much relief in times of need. From this fecula
is made a soup or _angù_, as it is called, which is seasoned with
the emulsion or oil obtained from the almond of the same fruit. The
pith of the tops of these palms is a white substance, tender, juicy,
sweetish, and pleasant to the taste, and it is harmless even if eaten
raw. If it be boiled with meat, the taste is not unlike the cabbage,
but it is more solid. After having taken from it the saccharine parts
by means of one boiling, it becomes capable of being seasoned, and many
excellent dishes are made from them, after the manner of the _areca
oleracea_. For the knowledge of these last uses the inhabitants of
those parts are indebted to my example. The same may be practised with
the _palmeira pindoba_ (_cocos butiroza_, _Lin._) which is very common
at Pernambuco. For these purposes the larger trees should not be cut
down, but rather only those which have attained the height of ten or
fifteen feet.[275]
MARANGABA, Psidium Pigmeum:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This is a species of _goiaba_ plant which does not attain more than
two or three feet in height; it abounds in the _chapada_ of the Serra
Araripe of Cariri Novo.[276]
In front of my house at Itamaraca, there was a _dendezeiro_ which stood
alone, and I know that there was no other tree of the same species
anywhere within sight. The tree bore fruit.—_Transl._
_Plants of Pernambuco._
CARAPITAIA, Carlotea formosissima:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
BILROS, Carlotea Speciosa:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
Two beautiful species of a new genus, which I have dedicated to H. R.
H. the Princess of Brazil; the roots of these plants are tuberous,
abounding with soft and nutritive fecula, which has afforded assistance
to the people of the Sertam of Pajaù in times of drought. These plants
are worthy of being cultivated not only from their utility but for the
purpose of ornamenting gardens, their flowers being umbellate, crimson,
and very beautiful.
CANELLA DO MATO, Linharia aromatica:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
CATINGA BRANCA, Linharea tinctoria:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
Of the first of these plants the leaves and bark have a pleasant smell,
which is like that of cloves. It is not as yet used, being unknown. I
have made use of the leaves and bark of this plant in distilling rum,
and have obtained a pleasant liqueur. I have learnt by experience that
the extract of the leaves is not only pleasant to the taste and smell,
but that it likewise strengthens the stomach. It is to be found in the
greatest abundance upon the _taboleiros_, which bound the captaincies
of Paraiba and Searà, upon the borders of Pinhancò, and I have likewise
seen it in Piauhi.[277]
The second of these plants is a shrub which grows abundantly upon the
skirts of the mountains, and upon the banks of the rivulets of the
Sertoens of Pernambuco, Paraiba, and Seara. It yields by boiling a
yellow dye, which is sufficiently durable upon skins. It is probable
that some means might be found of fixing the colour upon cotton cloth,
as is the case with the _tatajuba_ (_morus tinctoria_). Besides this
use, it is applied to that of curing _sarnas_, an eruptive complaint;
the patient being washed in a decoction of the leaves. As I could not
arrange these plants in any of the known genera, I have formed one
for them to which I have given the name of _Linharea_, in memory of
D. Rodrigo de Souza Coutinho, _Conde de_ Linhares, the cultivator and
protector of letters.
CARNAUBA or CARNAIBA, Corypha cerifera:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This palm is one of the most useful plants of the Sertoens; it rises
to the height of thirty feet and more; the _varzeas_ or low lands
upon the borders of the rivers and rivulets of Pernambuco, Paraiba
do Norte, Searà, and Piauhi, and principally the banks of the rivers
Jaguaribe, Apodi, Mossorò, and Açu, are covered with these trees.
When the fruit of it has attained the size of a small olive (which
when green it resembles in form), it should be boiled several times
in different water to take off its astringent properties; and then a
sufficient boiling being given it becomes soft and has the taste of
boiled maize. In this state it is eaten with milk, and is a wholesome
food. The pith of the stem of the young plants, being bruised in water,
affords a nutritive fecula, as white as that of mandioc. The plant
should not much exceed the height of a man when used for this purpose.
It is of great service to the inhabitants of those parts in times of
drought and famine. The leaves of the young plant are of two feet in
length, and are doubled after the manner of a fan, whilst they are yet
young; afterwards they open, and become of little less than two feet in
breadth. If they are cut in this state, and are allowed to dry in the
shade, a considerable quantity of small light coloured scales will be
loosened from the surface. These will melt by the heat of a fire into
white wax, of which it possesses the properties; it is however more
brittle, but this may be remedied by mixing it with the common wax,
which is more oily. In 1797 I made known this discovery to the R. P. M.
Fr. Joze Marianno da Conceiçam Vellozo, who published the account of it
in the _Paladio Portuguez_; but at that time I was not so well aware as
I am now of the importance of the wax.
The fruit of this tree when ripe is black and shining, and of the
size of eggs of tame pigeons. The kernel is covered with a layer of
sweet pulp, which is eaten by cattle, as are also the dry leaves which
fall, when other food fails. The leaves are used for covering houses,
and although thus exposed to the weather, they last for twenty years
without requiring to be renewed. The stem is made use of for building
houses, for fences, pens, &c.[278]
ANIL DE PERNAMBUCO, Koanophyllon tinctoria:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This is a shrub which grows to the height of twelve feet or more. It
is of the class syngenesia; the leaves are from two to three inches in
length, and of proportionate breadth; it is enough to soak a piece of
cotton cloth in its juice for it to become green, and from this colour
it is changed to blue by the absorption of the oxigen of atmospheric
air. The colour becomes so fixed, that it resists the action of soap
and the lye of potash, and it rather brightens than fades after it has
undergone these experiments. It is probable that by fermentation and
beating, it may yield blue fecula, like the common indigo (_indigofera
tinctoria_). I know that it may be cultivated with ease, for I have
sown the seeds which are like those of the lettuce; they come up in a
few days. The land which is adapted to it is _varzea fresca_, or marshy
land composed of _maçape_, or stiff clay.
ANIL TREPADOR, Cissus tinctorius:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
If the leaves of this plant are rubbed upon a white cloth, they impart
to it a green colour like that of any other herb. By exposure to
atmospheric air it changes this colour for a fixed blue, which resists
the lye of potash and soap. It is found in the mountains and low lands
of the Sertoens.
HERVA LOMBRIGUEIRA OR ARAPABACA, Spigelia anthelmia:—_Lin. Syst.
Veget._
This plant has anthelminthic properties, and is sold in our towns. It
grows abundantly in argillaceous low lands.
URUCU, Bixa Orellana. _Lin._
This is a shrub, and is worthy of cultivation from the dye which the
leaves afford; but it is not cultivated by any one in Pernambuco, not
even as a curiosity.
PITOMBEIRA, Meleagrinex Pernambucana:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This tree grows to the height of 30 or 40 feet; the timber of it is
compact and may be applied to some purposes. It produces its fruit in
large rounded bunches, in capsules which do not open. It has a solid
kernel of two cotyledons, covered with a sweetish acid pulp, which is
not unpleasant. If turkeys eat of these kernels they die immediately;
from this circumstance I took the name of the genus, of which I have
only found two species.
IMBUZEIRO, Spondia tuberosa:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This is a tree which grows plentifully in the Sertoens of Pernambuco
and Paraiba. It produces a fruit which is rather smaller than
pullets eggs, obovate, with five points at the lower part, being the
indications of the five stigmata. Its colour is yellow, and below
the coriaceous epidermis, it retains a juicy pulp, of a pleasant
sweetish acid taste. With this juice, and milk, curds, and sugar, a
much esteemed mess is made, called _imbuzada_. This tree throws out
long horizontal roots, which penetrate very little, and upon these are
seen at short distances round tubers of eight inches (_hum palmo_)
in diameter, full of water, like unto water-melons; these supply the
vegetation of the tree in seasons of drought, and sometimes refresh the
sportsman who has penetrated into the woods. The re-production of the
tree is very easy by means of shoots.
PIRANGA, Bignonia tinctoria:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This is a fruit-bearing and sarmentose plant; its leaves yield, by
boiling, a red dye, which can be made a fixed dye upon cotton cloth, by
means of preparations analogous to those which are made for madder.
UMARI, Geoffroya spinosa:—_Jacq. Stirp. Americ._
This plant, which Jacquim found at Carthagena in the sandy lands near
to the coast, grows at Pernambuco upon argillaceous low lands, upon
which it arrives at 30 or 40 feet in height; in Carthagena, according
to the same author, it does not reach more than twelve feet. The
flowers are yellow, and have a smell which is similar to that of the
coco-oil; those of Carthagena have a disagreeable smell. May they not
be two separate species? From the almond of this plant is extracted
a white and nutritive fecula, of which the inhabitants of the Rio do
Peixe, and of the Sertam of Paraiba do Norte make much use. The plant
grows very plentifully in the low lands of those parts, and it is also
to be met with in the province of Rio Grande do Norte.
IPECACUANHA PRETA, Ipecacuanha officinalis:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
Until the present time the botanists of Europe have not known to what
genus this plant belongs. Some of them thought it was the _euphorbia
Ipecacuanha_, others, that it was the _psoralia glandulosa_, others,
the _spiræa trifoliata_, others the _viola ipecacuanha_, finally others
suspected that it was the _psychotria emetica_; but I have observed the
_ipecacuanha preta_ very frequently when in flower, and I think that it
has more affinity to the _tapagomea_ of Aublet. However, I have given
it the name of _ipecacuanha_, for although both are barbarous, still
the latter has been used for a century and a half. The Ipecacuanha is
easily cultivated, for I have made the experiment, but it requires
shade, or at any rate it must not be completely exposed to the heat of
the sun.
IPECACUANHA BRANCA, Viola Ipecacuanha:—_Lin._ Pombalia Ipecacuanha:
_Vandel_.
Although the root of this plant was formerly mistaken for that of the
_ipecacuanha preta_, it is well known now to be of another description.
It is much used in medicine in Pernambuco, as a gentle purgative, &c.
It is easily cultivated, and delights in a moist atmosphere and a sandy
soil. In the neighbourhood of the Campina Grande (of Paraiba) I have
seen large pieces of ground covered with the plant. Of this species of
ipecacuanha our druggists might make their syrup of _viola_, and our
physicians might without scruple apply the flowers and calyx in place
of the flowers of the _viola odorata_, for it promotes expectoration,
and possesses stimulant qualities which strengthen the nerves.
CONTRA-HERVA, Dorstenia rotundifolia:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
CONTRA-HERVA DE FOLHA LONGANA, Dorstenia Pernambucana:—_Arrud. Cent.
Plant. Pern._
These two species of _contra-herva_ are new, and are peculiar to
Pernambuco; besides these two I have not met with any other species.
But they have the same virtue as the true _contra-herva_ of Mexico
(_dorstenia contra-herva_), and the physicians of Pernambuco do not use
any other. They are to be found in great quantities in some parts.
ANGELIM, Skolemora Pernambucensis:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
The fruit of this tree possesses the strongest vegetable anthelminthic
properties with which I am acquainted. It is necessary to be careful
in the use of it, for if the dose is too large, the medicine will
attack the nervous system, and produce convulsions. The common dose is
one-fourth part of a seed for an adult. I know of three species of this
plant.
BATATA DE PURGA, Convolvulus mechoacan.
The root of this species of _convolvulus_ is tuberose; and a dose of
two drachms of the fecula is sufficient as a purgative. The root is
cut into small slices that it may be dried with more ease; a thread
is then passed through the middle of each slice, for the purpose of
exposing them for sale. It is a gentle purgative, and is now much in
use, therefore it is worthy of being cultivated. It may be observed as
being remarkable, that quantities of the root are sometimes sold by
the peasants which have little effect. This ought to be attributed to
its being gathered out of season. All plants should be gathered after
their maturation. Thus the _batata de purga_ should be gathered after
the fruit and leaves have dried, but before the rains come on. I have
observed in Pernambuco two species of _convolvulus_, of tuberose roots,
both of which are purgative, and the prepared root of both is commonly
known under the name of _purga de batata_; one of these is the true
_convolvulus mechoacan_, and is different from the other in leaf,
branch, and fruit; of this I have given the description in my Centuria
of new plants.[279]
PAPO DE PERU, Aristolochia grandiflora:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This beautiful species of _aristolochia_, which I first met with in
the torrents of Cariri Novo, is medicinal, and is worthy of being
cultivated in gardens, not only for its utility, but likewise on
account of the beauty and size of its flower. Besides this, I am
acquainted with five species of _aristolochia_, some of which may be
made useful. The plant is commonly called _angelicò_.
MANGABEIRA, Ribeirea sorbilis. This tree grows well in the sandy lands
of the _taboleiros_; the fruit varies from the size of a pigeon’s
egg to that of a pullet’s; the colour is a greenish yellow, spotted
with red; it is almost of the consistence of the service; and is well
known in the markets of Pernambuco and Bahia. Considerable numbers of
these trees are now cultivated in the neighbourhood of Olinda; and the
attention which is paid to the tree has improved the fruit. If this is
pounded spirituous fermentation takes place with great ease, and from
this passes to acetosity; thus the juice forms most excellent vinegar,
in a very short period, which I found to be stronger than that of the
grape, of the sugar cane, of bananas or of _cambuins_. I have described
this new genus in my _Cent. Plant. Pern._ dedicating it to my disciple
P. Joam Ribeiro Pessoa de Mello Montenegro, professor of drawing in
the seminary of Olinda. He is worthy of this honour, not only from
having attempted to introduce into this captaincy the cultivation of
some useful exotic plants, but from the curious and philosophical
examination which he has made respecting the wonderful phenomenon of
the manner of the fructification of the _mangabeira_ plant, which will
be found in my _Centuria Plant. Pern._
OITI COROIA, Pleragina rufa:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
OITI DA PRAIA, Pleragina odorata:—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
OITICICA OR CATINGUEIRA, Pleragina umbrosissima.
The first species of this genus (_oiti coroia_) produces an irregular
drupe, of which the kernel is covered with a sweet fecula, somewhat
aromatic, pleasant, nutritive. It is large enough to satisfy one
person. It is sold in the markets, and by some individuals it is now
cultivated.
The second species (_oiti da praia_) produces an oval or oblong drupe,
very little smaller than a hen’s egg; it is yellow at the period of
maturation; the kernel is covered with a sweet, aromatic, and nutritive
pulp.
The third species (_oiticica_) is peculiar to the Sertoens, where it
grows upon the borders of rivers and rivulets. It rises to the height
of 50 or 60 feet; its branches are so diffuse, and double so much, that
they nearly reach the ground, forming a spacious cope. The fruit is
an oblong drupe of two inches or more in length, and of half an inch
in thickness; it always retains its green colour, even when ripe. The
kernel is not hard like the kernels of the two preceding species, but
it is ligneous and flexible, and can easily be broken; it is covered
with a layer of astringent pulp. The almond is a seed composed of two
oily cotyledons of a disagreeable taste, but abounding with an oil, of
which some use is now made.
GENDIROBA or ANDIROBA, Feuillea cordifolia;—_Lin._
This is of the natural order of cucurbitaceous plants; the seeds are
very oily, and from them oil is easily extracted, which, as well as
that of the _cocos nucifera_, has the property of coagulating. I have
made good soap from it even with potash, depriving it of carbonic acid
by means of virgin lime.
CAROBA, Kordelestris symphilitica;—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
Bignonia copaia; _Aublet. Guien._
CAROBA MIUDA, OR CASCO DE CAVALLO, Kordelestris undulata;—_Arrud.
Cent. Plant. Pern._
These two species possess antivenereal properties, and are particularly
serviceable against the infection which is called _bobas_, yaws.
BARBATIMAM, Mimosa virginalis;—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This tree is not very large; its bark is one of the strongest
astringents, and is at the same time somewhat stimulating, which
renders it applicable to some disorders. The peasants use it to heal
their own wounds, as well as those of animals. Women use it after
child-bearing, bathing themselves in a decoction of the leaves. I am
persuaded that the extract of it, if it did not exceed would at least
equal in medicinal virtue the _mimoza catechu_.
ALMECEGA, Amyris Pernambucensis;—_Arrud. Cent. Plant. Pern._
This is a tree which sometimes attains a great height; from its bark
oozes a resinous juice which is indissoluble in water, but it is
completely dissolvible in spirit of wine. The woods of Goiana and
of Alhandra abound with these trees, and the Indians of the latter
place gather the gum in considerable quantities, and sell it at from
20 to 40 _reis per lb._ It has almost the same medicinal virtues as
turpentine; when applied in the form of a plaister to the forehead, it
affords relief, and it usually removes the tooth-ach. Our apothecaries
use it in making up some kinds of ointments. It is mixed by our people
with the yellow wax of the country for the purpose of making candles
for common use. A fourth part of tallow is added to it, for caulking
canoes, water wheels of sugar mills, &c.
The gum is known under two forms; that which is white and clean is
called _almecega cozida_ or boiled; for the Indians who gather it, boil
it for the purpose of separating the impurities, and they make loaves
of it of 16 and 20 _lbs._ weight. The _almecega crua_, or raw, when
dissolved in spirits of wine, might be used in the composition of some
kinds of varnish; and being burnt, it might serve instead of incense,
as is practised with the balsam of the Sertam, and as the resin of the
_amyris ambrosiaca_ or _icica heptafylla_ of Aublet is used in some
parts of America.
THE END.
Printed by A. Strahan,
New-Street-Square, London.
ERRATA.
Page 52, line 32, for _Pernaiba_ read _Parnaiba_.
—— 99, —— 1, for _he_ read _the animal_.
—— 123, —— 4, for _we_ read _was_.
—— 182, —— 28, for _dress_ read _dressed_.
—— 189, —— 27, for _sand_ read _land_.
—— 196, —— 19, for _Utringa_ read _Utinga_.
—— 233, —— 2, for _Mamanguape_ read _Maranguape_.
—— 233, —— 8, for _superintending_ read _superintended_.
—— 352, —— 25, for _ou_ read _on_.
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FOOTNOTES:
[1] I have made use of this spelling, from the word cocoa being applied
in the English language indiscriminately to that tree and to the cacao;
and as we most probably derived the word from the Portuguese language,
it may perhaps not be considered improper to distinguish the two plants
in this manner.
[2] A house answering both these purposes has lately been established
at Recife by an Irishman and his wife. 1815.
[3] It is perhaps not generally known, that the bags of cotton are
compressed, by means of machinery, into a small compass, and fastened
round with ropes, that the ships which convey them may contain a
greater number.
[4] I did not discover any vestiges of the fort which stood here at the
time of the Dutch war.
[5] I shall use this word exclusively, when speaking of Europeans of
this nation; and the word Brazilian, when speaking of white persons
born in Brazil.
[6] This is the name by which the fort is usually distinguished, but I
rather think that it is not its proper appellation.
[7] I am not quite certain whether it is the third or fourth.
[8] I sailed from Pernambuco in the very last convoy of 1815, previous
to the peace with the United States, which consisted of twenty-eight
vessels, viz. two ships of war, two prizes to them, and twenty-four
merchant vessels, fourteen of which were from Pernambuco, and the
remaining ten from Rio de Janeiro and Bahia.
[9] An edict has lately been issued at Rio de Janeiro by the Regent,
declaring himself the Prince Regent of the United Kingdoms of Portugal,
Brazil, and the Two Algarves. 1816.
[10] I saw, in the year 1814, a very fine root of wheat that had been
raised in the Campina Grande of the province of Paraiba, about thirty
leagues to the northward of Recife.
[11] This has lately been removed to Recife, owing to a report of
some plan of revolt amongst the negroes, which has since proved to be
without foundation. 1815.
[12] A Portugueze gentleman once observed to me, that in France and
other countries many clever men had written and spoken strongly, and
for a considerable length of time against this way of life, and that
they at last even effected their purpose with much difficulty; but, he
added, in Pernambuco such is the conduct of the friars, that no writing
and no speaking is necessary to bring them into disrepute.
[13] “_Irmam, não tenha vergonha._”
[14] In speaking of the Priesthood, it must be always recollected, that
the Secular and Regular Clergy are two totally different bodies of men,
and as distinct in their utility, their knowledge, and their manners,
as they are in their situation in life.
[15] I think that the Caza Forte and the Cazas de Dona Anna Paes, of
which an account is given in the History of Brazil, vol. ii. p. 124,
distinguish the same place under different names.
[16] When the Englishmen, who first established themselves at Recife,
had finished the stock of tea which they had brought with them, they
enquired where more could be purchased, and were directed to an
apothecary’s shop. They went, and asked simply for tea, when the man
wished to know what kind of tea they meant; he at last understood
them, and said, “O, you want East-Indian tea,” “_Cha da India_,”—thus
considering it as he would any other drug. But at the time of which I
am now speaking, great quantities are consumed.
[17] I once heard, that a person who had been in England, and had
returned to Pernambuco, observed, that the two things which surprised
him the most in that country, were, that the people did not die, and
that the children spoke English. He was asked his reason for supposing
that his first wonder was correct, to which he answered, that he never
had seen the Sacrament taken to the sick.
[18] A _Juiz Conservador_, Judge Conservator, of the British nation
has been appointed for Pernambuco, but at the period of my departure
from Recife, he was not arrived. Very soon after the commencement of
a direct commercial intercourse with Great Britain, a vice-consul was
appointed for Pernambuco, by the consul-general at Rio de Janeiro; this
person was superseded by a consul sent out direct from England, who is
subject to the consul-general of Brazil, but the place is disposed of
by the government at home.
[19] When Brazil was in its infancy, the clergy could not subsist upon
their tythes, and therefore petitioned the government of Portugal to
pay them a certain stipend, and receive the tenths for its own account;
this was accepted, but now that the tenths have increased in value
twenty-fold, the government still pays to the vicars the same stipends.
The clergy of the present day, bitterly complain of the agreement made
by those to whom they have succeeded.
[20] A great confusion exists in Brazil respecting measures. Every
captaincy has its own, agreeing neither with those of its neighbours,
nor with the measures of Portugal, though the same names are used
invariably: thus a _canada_ and an _alqueire_ in Pernambuco represent a
much greater quantity than the same denominations in Portugal, and less
than in some of the other provinces of Brazil.
[21] A patent has been obtained, and a manufactory established upon a
large scale for making cordage from the outward rind of the coco-nut.
Ropes of this description are, I believe, much used in the East Indies.
[22] An old woman applied at the gates of a convent, late one evening,
and told the porter, an old friar, who was quite blind, that she wished
one of the brothers to go with her, for the purpose of confessing
a sick person. The old man, with perfect unconcern, gave her to
understand, that they were all out, adding, “but if you will go to the
garden gate, and wait there, some of them will soon be creeping in.”
[23] The younger members of the Franciscan order enjoy very much the
duty of going out to beg, as opportunities offer of amusing themselves.
A guardian was chosen at Paraiba some years ago, who examined the chest
in which the money belonging to the community was kept, and on finding
a considerable sum in it, gave orders that no one should go out to
beg. He was a conscientious man, and said, that as they had already
enough, the people must not be importuned for more, until what they
possessed was finished. He kept the whole community within the walls
of the convent for the term of two or three years, for which each
guardian is appointed. On another occasion, the friars of a Franciscan
convent chose for their guardian a young man, whose life had been very
irregularly spent in any thing rather than the duties of his calling,
under the idea, that during the continuance of his guardianship, they
would lead a merry life,—that very little attention would be paid to
the rules and regulations of the Order; but they were mistaken, he
changed his habits as soon as he found himself at their head; the gates
were rigidly closed at the proper hour, and according to the old and
vulgar proverb, of “Set a thief,” &c. the duties of the convent were
performed with much greater austerity than before.
[24] An anecdote was related to me of one of these couples, which
occurred some years ago, under a former Governor. A solitary passenger,
between Olinda and Recife, witnessed part of the following scene,
and the remainder was described by one of the actors in it. A couple
of criminals, of which one was a white man, and the other a negro,
accompanied by their guard, were walking over the sands, to reach a
ford, and cross the river at its narrowest part. Three horsemen, one of
whom led a fourth horse, saddled and bridled, rode up, and one of them
knocked the soldier down, whilst the white man of the chained couple
urged his companion to go with him to the led horse, and mount up
behind him: this the black man refused to do, when one of the horsemen,
who seemed to direct the others, called out, “Cut the fellow’s leg
off.” The criminals are secured to each other by the ankle. The negro
now agreed, and both mounted the horse, and the whole party galloped
away, first binding the soldier hand and foot. They passed through
Olinda at full speed, and when they had arrived at some distance, a
large file was made use of, and the negro was set down with all the
chains and bolts. The party then proceeded, and were never afterwards
heard of. It was imagined, that the man who made his escape in this
manner, was the relation of a rich person in the interior, who had
either committed some crime, or had been thus unjustly punished.
[25] Lately, a cadet has come forwards, and has taken the direction
of these matters; he has apprehended several persons of infamous
character, but of determined courage; he has done much good, risking
his life under circumstances of great danger, and even to extreme
rashness has he been carried by his zeal. This young man well deserves
promotion. That thus the police should fall into the hands of inferior
officers, shows the irregular footing upon which it stands.—1814.
[26] The arrival of another colonel to the regiment of Recife, and the
increase of activity in the officers, has altered its appearance much
for the better. The regiment of Olinda or of artillery, has been also
much improved by the attention of its colonel, and the entrance into it
of several well-educated Brazilian officers of the first families.
[27] The lower part of the town is the site of the siege, which, in
its infancy, the settlement sustained against the savages, as is
“related by Hans Stade, the first traveller who wrote any account of
Brazil.”—History of Brazil, Vol. I. p. 46.
[28] I had frequent opportunities afterwards of resting at this inn; on
one of these, I happened to ask for salt, which is not usually placed
upon the table; the master of the house, in the customary familiar
manner of the country, expressed his surprise, at the additional
quantity of salt which I wished for, but it was brought to me, and
nothing further was said. This occurred in the morning, soon after our
arrival at the place; at dinner, to our dismay, the soup and almost
all the other dishes were so plentifully supplied with the unfortunate
ingredient, as to be scarcely eatable. We complained of this to the
master, who answered, “Why, I thought you liked salt.” “_Cuidei que
eram amigos de sal._”
[29] Is this word abbreviated from _Desertam_, used as an augmentative
(according to the Portugueze custom) for _Deserto_?
[30] _Matutos_, woodmen, inhabitants of the _mato_.
[31] A person with whom I was afterwards acquainted, has since cleared
one of these islands, and has formed some salt-works upon it.
[32] The word _Sertam_ is used rather indefinitely, as it does not only
mean the interior of the country, but likewise a great part of the
coast, of which the population is yet scanty, receives this general
name. Thus, the whole of the country between Rio Grande and Pernaiba is
called Sertam. Pernaiba is a small province, situated between Seara and
Maranham.
[33] The rafts employed upon small rivers are of a construction similar
to those already described on a former occasion, save that still less
workmanship is bestowed upon them.
[34] History of Brazil, Vol. II. p. 104 and 155.
[35] The castor tree is known in Brazil under the same name; indeed,
there is much similarity between the seed of this plant, from which the
oil is extracted, and the larger kind of tick.
[36] Between two and three years after this journey, I heard again of
my friend the Major. I became acquainted with a man who resided at
the foot of the Serra do Teixeira, which is beyond the estates of the
major’s father. The old colonel was killed by a bull before his own
door. The animal had been driven into a small inclosure, and became mad
from feeling himself confined. It was necessary to bring him to the
ground, which is done in a peculiar manner, by running a short iron
prong into a certain part of the thigh. The herdsmen were afraid, and
wished to let the beast have time to cool and become less violent; the
old man, who was between seventy and eighty years of age, told them,
that if they were afraid, he would attack him, and immediately entered
the inclosure; but before he could prepare to receive the bull, and was
still leaning against the palings, the animal ran at him, and fixed his
horns through the old man’s body, with sufficient force to run them
into the palings, and in such a manner that before he could extricate
himself, one of the herdsmen ran a long knife into his head between the
horns, and brought him to the ground; but the old man lost his life.
[37] “_Falla a lingua de negro._”
[38] Vide Appendix.
[39] “_Deixa estar meu amo._”
[40] I heard in the beginning of the year 1815, that the bar had been
completely choaked up during a violent gale of wind from the sea,
whilst two coasters were in the river, taking in cargoes for Pernambuco.
[41] This person has since been removed to a province of more
importance.
[42] “_Mofino como caboclo._”
[43] I heard, from good authority, that there are two instances of
Indians having been ordained as secular priests, and that both these
individuals died from excessive drinking.
[44] _Caboclo he so para hoje._
[45] Another member of this family was also to be apprehended, but the
governor could not fix upon any means by which the arrest was to be
accomplished. A man of well-known intrepidity and of some power was
sent for by the governor, to consult with him upon the subject. This
person offered to go alone, and acquaint the Feitoza with the orders
that had been issued against him, and in fact to try to take him into
custody. He set off, but Feitoza was apprized of his coming and of
his errand, and, immediately leaving his estate, proceeded to Bahia,
where he embarked for Lisbon, arriving in due time at that place. The
person who set off to arrest him followed him from place to place,
arrived at Bahia, and embarked for and landed at Lisbon. He enquired
for Feitoza, heard that he had spoken to the secretary of state, and
had again embarked on his return homewards, but that the ship was
delayed by contrary winds. _He_ likewise went to the secretary, and
shewed the orders which he had received for the arrest of Feitoza,
making known the particular crimes which had made his apprehension
requisite. Feitoza was taken into custody and put into the Limoeiro
prison, where his persecutor or prosecutor went to visit him, saying
as he approached,—“Well, did not I say so,”—“_Entam eu que disse_,”
alluding to his determination of apprehending him. He returned to
Brazil and gave an account of his mission to the governor, from whom
he had received his orders. This man was well known in the province of
Searà, and the truth of the story is vouched for by many respectable
persons with whom I conversed. This Feitoza has not been heard of.
[46] Arruda says it is white, vide Appendix, therefore some other
ingredient may have been mixed with that which I saw.
[47] Cabeça de Vaca is particularly mentioned.—History of Brazil, vol.
i. p. 109.
[48] There is a print in Barlæus which represents the Portugueze
crossing the river St. Francisco upon rafts or logs of timber; these
must, I think, have been similar to those which are at present used in
the Sertam.
[49] A mulatto woman once said to me, “The children of mulattos are
like whelps, they are of all colours.” “_Filho de mulatto, he como
filho de cachorro, hum sahe branco, outro pardo e outro negro._”
[50] Dr. Manoel Arruda da Camara says, that before the dreadful drought
of 1793, it was considered to be one of the duties of the herdsmen to
destroy the wild cattle, that which was already half tamed, might not
be induced to mix with it, and by this means become wild; and he adds,
that this is still the case in the Sertoens of Piauhi. He published his
pamphlets in 1810.
[51] When I resided at Jaguaribe, and upon the island of Itamaraca, in
the years 1813 and 1814, I took some pains in this matter; but the meat
was not good, and though all kinds of flesh in Brazil have less flavour
than that of the same species of animal in England, still I think that
the mutton of Brazil is more unequal to the mutton of England, than is
the case respecting the beef of the two countries.
[52] Lieutenant-Colonel Joam da Silva Feijò, in a pamphlet published at
Rio de Janeiro in 1811, on the sheep of the province of Searà, says,
“That the sheep of that part of the country bear wool which has all
the marks of being of a superior quality; that it is in general soft,
shining, well curled, of a good length, and strong.” He again says,
“That the governor,” the same of whom I have spoken, “sent a small
quantity of it to England, which was much admired and esteemed.” I did
not certainly remark particularly the sheep of Searà, and his opinion
must of course be taken in preference to mine, as this gentleman is the
naturalist of the same province; however, I bought several as food, and
their skins were invariably covered in the manner which I have above
described. When I resided at Jaguaribe and Itamaraca, I possessed a
considerable number of sheep, and of these I can speak positively.
[53] Vaccination is finding its way among them in spite of
prejudice.—1815.
[54] This branch of trade increases most rapidly.—1815.
[55] Vide Appendix for a further account of this wax.
[56] Vide Appendix for a further account of this plant.
[57] In the year 1813, I was one evening in company, when I heard a
gentleman request one of the party to ask the Englishmen who were
present, if any of them had ever left a horse upon his plantation. I
turned round and recognised the colonel of Cunhàû. The horse was sent
to me about a month afterwards.
[58] In the year 1812, I met Feliciano and one of the others, who was
his brother-in-law, in one of the streets of Recife. They recollected
me, and I was stopped by both of them getting hold of my coat on each
side. They asked me if I was going again to travel, for if I was, they
said that they were unemployed, and would go with me. Their attack had
so much the appearance of being more in violence than in the gladness
of old friendship, that one or two of my acquaintance who chanced to
pass at the time, stopped and enquired what was the matter, supposing
that I had got into some scrape. These fellows literally held me fast,
until I had answered all their questions. Their fidelity seems to
militate from the general unfavourable character which I have given of
the Indians; but unfortunately, individual instances prove very little.
[59] I had imagined that he did not intend to return again into my
service; but on my second voyage to Pernambuco, I found him at the
house of one of my friends, employed as a household servant, and I
heard that he had come down to Recife two days after I had left the
place, for the purpose of remaining with me; but as I was gone, he had
entered into the service in which I found him. Julio was an exception
to almost all the bad qualities of the Indians; and if I was again to
travel in that country, I should use every endeavour to have him in
company. He belonged to Alhandra.
[60] The information which is contained in this note I had from Captain
Juan Roman Trivino, of the Spanish ship St. Joze, of 300 tons burthen.
He received orders to proceed from Rio de Janeiro to Maranham, for the
purpose of loading cotton, in the commencement of the year 1815. He
arrived off the settlement of Searà, and sent on shore for a pilot to
take him to St. Luiz; he was informed that none resided at Searà, but
that he would find one at Jeriquaqùara, a high hill between Searà and
Parnaiba. On arriving near to this place, he discovered an Indian in
a canoe fishing, who came on board, and offered to pilot him to St.
Luiz. This was agreed to, and they proceeded; but from mistaking the
two points of land in the manner mentioned above, the Indian took the
vessel into the bay of St. Joze, on the 15th March. They kept the lead
going, even before they discovered the error into which they had been
led, as is the custom with all vessels bound to St. Luiz. The ship was
brought to an anchor off the village of St. Joze, which is situated
upon the N.E. point of the island of Maranham, in eleven fathoms water.
Whilst they continued in the mid-channel of the bay, they found from
eighteen to twenty fathoms. The depth of water regularly decreases from
the centre of the bay towards the land on each side; but it contains
no insulated sand banks. The ship was at anchor off the village of
St. Joze two days; they then proceeded through the channel, which is
inclosed on either side by mangroves, and is so narrow in some parts
that the yards at times brushed against the branches. The wind was
fair, and they sailed through without being obliged to tow or warp the
ship. The depth of water varied from five to two and a half fathoms;
the bottom was of mud. About halfway through the channel, the tide from
the bay of St. Joze and that from the bay of St. Marcos meet. This
takes place nearly but not quite opposite to the mouth of the river
Itapicuru. They were two days in sailing from the anchorage ground at
St. Joze to the island of Taua, which is situated near to the S. W.
corner of the island of Maranham. Here the ship came to an anchor in
nine fathoms water, with a sandy bottom; the captain sent to St. Luiz
for another pilot, as the man who had brought them thus far was not
acquainted with the remainder of the navigation. The island of Taua is
rocky, and uninhabited, and is covered with palm trees. The village
of St. Joze appeared to Captain Trivino to be of considerable size,
but, with the exception of two or three, the houses were built of
slight timber and of the leaves of different species of palm trees. Its
inhabitants were mostly fishermen. He mentioned that he saw a shoemaker
at work there. Captain Trivino understood from his pilot that the river
Itapicuru is at its mouth 120 yards wide, and that its depth is one
fathom and a half.
[61] Joam IV. sent over one Bartholomew Barreiros de Ataide with three
miners, one a Venetian and the other two French, to search for gold
and silver. After two years’ search up the Amazons they returned to
Maranham, and offered to supply the people with iron at a _cruzado_,
about 2s. 4d., _per quintal_, 128 lbs. weight, if the state would
engage to take all that they should produce at that price. The people
were afraid to enter into any such contract. The island was so rich in
this ore that foreign cosmographers called it the _ilha do ferro_ in
their maps, and all who came there with any knowledge of the subject
said that it was ore of the best quality. A thing of great importance
to Portugal, which bought all its iron, and yet this discovery was
neglected.—From a Memoir of Manoel Guedes Aranha, Procurador from
Maranham, 1685, in the 6th Vol. Pinheiro Collection of MSS. in the
possession of Mr. Southey.
A royal manufactory of iron has been established in the captaincy of
St. Paulo, called “The Royal Fabric of S. Joam de Ypanema.” I obtained
a knowledge of the fact from two letters in Nos. 45 and 56 of the
_Investigador Portuguez_, a periodical publication published in London.
I am sorry to say, that the two letters to which I allude have arisen
from some differences existing among the directors of the Fabric.
[62] I have just in time received the following statement of the
exportation of cotton from Maranham, from the year 1809 to 1815:
Vessels. Bags.
1809. To Great Britain in 51 55,835
———— To other parts 29 21,006
1810. To Great Britain 37 40,684
———— To other parts 19 11,793
1811. To Great Britain 36 48,705
———— To other parts 19 6,053
1812. To Great Britain 29 35,767
———— To other parts 29 4,803
1813. To Great Britain 35 50,072
———— To other parts 27 10,101
1814. To Great Britain 22 31,205
———— To other parts 34 14,436
1815. To Great Britain 32 28,539
———— To other parts 49 22,216
[63] A person of the name of Belfort first planted rice at Maranham,
and some of his descendants now reside there in opulence.
[64] “There were five sugar works or engines, as they are called, at
Itapicuru, which compounded for 5000 arrobas of their produce. On
the island there were six engines in full employ, 1641.”—History of
Brazil, Vol.II, p. 9.
[65] He has been removed, was ordered to Lisbon, and ultimately, on his
return to Rio de Janeiro, was refused admittance, for a short time, to
the Prince Regent.
[66] It is not perhaps generally known, that there are published in
London three or four Portugueze periodical works. One of them is
prohibited in Brazil, and I have heard it said, that all of them are
so situated; but they are principally intended for Brazilian readers,
and they find their way all over the country, notwithstanding the
prohibition. I have seen them in the hands of civil, military, and
ecclesiastical officers, and have heard them publicly spoken of by
them. It is said that the Regent reads them, and is occasionally
pleased with their invectives against some of the men in power.
[67] About twelve months afterwards, I had an opportunity of being
personally known to this man, and found him to be very superior to any
individual of his or any other order of friars with whom I have been
acquainted.
[68] A British consul has since been appointed to Maranham.
[69] An _ouvidor_ has been appointed to Aldeas Altas, and Piauhi has
been raised to the rank of an independent provincial government. These
are improvements which shew that regular government is gaining ground.
[70] Before I came away in 1815, a considerable portion of the sand
(which was covered by the tide at high water) between St. Antonio and
Boa Vista, had been raised, and houses had been built upon it. The
principal street of St. Antonio has been paved. The bridge of Boa Vista
has been rebuilt of timber; and that between St. Antonio and Recife was
about to undergo considerable repair. The hospitals, likewise, were to
be improved; and as I have heard since my arrival in England, of the
appointment of a most worthy man to the direction of one of them, I
trust that this intention has been acted upon.
[71] Vide Appendix.
[72] Bolingbroke says, that instances are frequent of some of the
European swine escaping into the woods, where they live wild; and he
adds, that their increase has been immense. In another place he speaks
of a species of this animal, which is peculiar to tropical America, and
is called the warree which he says is about the size of an European
hog, and much like it in shape. The _porco do mato_ is not the _sus
tajassu_, which is, I imagine, what Bolingbroke calls the picaree
hog.—Voyage to the Demerary, &c. by Henry Bolingbroke, in Phillips’
Collection of Modern Voyages, vol. x. p. 57 and 129.
The tajaçu is to be met with at Maranham, but is not known at
Pernambuco.
[73] Directions were given by the _capitam-mor_, that a reservoir for
rain water should be formed; and these have been carried into effect.
1815.
[74] The Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday are properly the days
of the _intrudo_, but the sport is, as in the case in question, often
commenced a week before the appointed time. Water and hair powder are
the ingredients which are established to be hurled at each other,
but frequently no medium is preserved, and every thing is taken up
heedlessly and thrown about by all parties, whether it be clean or
dirty, whether it may do mischief or is harmless.
[75] The account which Labat gives of _l’arbre à Savonettes_ does not
agree in all points with mine; the difference may arise from various
circumstances to which some clew might have been discovered, if
attention had been paid to the subject upon the spot. He says that the
leaves are three inches in length, and “_cet arbre est un de plus gros,
des plus grands et des meilleurs qui croissent aux isles_.”—_Nouveau
Voyage, &c._ Tom. vii. p. 383. Du Tertre says, that it grows _en
abondance le long de la mer; dans les lieux les plus secs et les plus
arides_.—_Histoire des Antilles, &c._ Tom. ii. p. 165. I have only
heard of the Saboeiro at some distance from the coast.
[76] Limoeiro was raised to a township by an Alvará issued from Rio de
Janeiro on the 27th July, 1811; but this was not then known. It has now
a mayor, municipality, and _capitam-mor_.
[77] This place was erected a township by the same Alvará, which was
issued respecting Limoeiro; and by the same, the villages of Cape St.
Augustin and of St. Antam were likewise raised to the rank of towns; a
sure sign is this of the increase of population.
[78] This village is as much or more generally known by the name of
Lagoa d’Anta, as by that of Nazareth; but the latter is the name which
it bears in law. The former name, which means the Lake of the Anta,
seems to denote that that animal was known in this part of the country;
but in the present day, I could not meet with any of the peasants who
knew what the word Anta was intended to signify.
[79] History of Brazil, Vol. i. p. 467 and 468.
[80] History of Brazil, Vol. i. p. 467 and 468.
[81] History of Brazil, Vol. ii. p. 237.
[82] “_Senhora nam, he o Diabo._”
[83] “_Que diz, meu amo?_”
[84] “_Ave-Maria, Nosso Senhor nos livre._”
[85] These practices were, or rather are, at present, carried on in
one part of the country with which I am well acquainted. The persons
who commit the crimes are white men and of high birth. Among them was
a priest. The magistrate of the district in question was applied to
by a man who had lost a cow, mentioning that he more than suspected
where she was, and at the same time naming the place. A _tropa_, a
troop or party, of _ordenença_ soldiers was collected, and these men
were dispatched to search the house, which had been pointed out, under
the command of a corporal of well-known courage. They arrived there
and knocked; the door was opened by the owner, who was the priest
connected with the gang; he said that he could not allow his house to
be entered without an order from the ecclesiastical court. This answer
was conveyed to the magistrate who had signed the order, the soldiers
remaining round about the house. A second order arrived, and the bearer
brought with him a couple of hatchets, thus expressively pointing out
to the corporal what he was to do. Forthwith preparations were made
for breaking open the door, when the priest said, that he would allow
the corporal to enter alone; the man fearlessly went in, but as soon
as the door was again closed the priest seized upon him, and some of
his negroes who were in another apartment sprang forwards to assist
their master; but the corporal disengaged himself, and standing upon
the defensive called to his men, who soon broke into the house. Search
was made, and the carcase and hide of the cow were found, and were with
the negroes taken publicly to the nearest town. The mark of the red hot
iron upon the haunch had been burnt out of the hide, that discovery
might be rendered less easy. The priest was punished by suspension
from saying mass for a few months. I was subsequently acquainted with
him; he was received by many persons as if nothing had been amiss;
but he was not received as heretofore, for the individuals of his own
profession would not, generally speaking, associate with him. The
circumstance had not however so completely prevented his re-entrance
into decent society, as such a crime would have done in many others
countries, or so much as would have occurred at Pernambuco, if he had
been a layman.
[86] A free negro, with whom I had been acquainted whilst I resided at
this place, and who came to see me when I removed to Itamaraca, told
me, with much horror pictured in his countenance, of the fate of a man
who had worked for me. He said that this person occasionally became a
_lobos homem_, a wolf man. I asked him to explain, when he said that
the man was at times transformed into an animal of the size of a calf,
with the figure of a dog; that he left his home at midnight in this
metamorphosed state, and ran about with the violence of a mad dog, and
that he attacked any one whom he might chance to meet. The black man
was perfectly persuaded of the correctness of his own statement, when
he related having, with his brother-in-law and his sister, met this
uncommon beast, near to their own cottages. I suppose it was some large
dog which prowled about to satisfy his hunger in the neighbourhood
of these habitations; but no, the man was persuaded that it was poor
Miguel.
[87] On Saturdays only, throughout the country, are cattle slaughtered;
and thus weekly many persons of each neighbourhood assemble, as much
to converse and hear the news as to purchase their portion of meat. On
one of these occasions, a young man of colour was stooping to arrange
upon the end of his walking stick the meat which he had bought, at the
moment that a person of considerable power was riding up. The man of
importance, when he came near to the young mulatto, struck him with
a long cane with which he rode, saying “why don’t you take off your
hat when a white man appears?” The blow was felt severely, and still
more severely answered. The man of colour drew his knife, and quickly
turning round, ran it hilt deep into the groin of him by whom he had
been insulted; and then with the bloody knife in his hand, he ran off,
vowing destruction upon any one who touched him. The rich man had only
time before he died, to direct that the murderer should not be pursued,
owning that his own impetuous tyranny had deservedly produced this
catastrophe. The young man returned in a few weeks to his former home,
and was not molested by the relatives of him whom he had murdered, nor
did the law take cognizance of the deed.
[88] The following anecdote exemplifies the feudal state of the
planters a few years ago. It was related to me by a gentleman upon
whose veracity I have every reason to rely. Some fifteen years ago,
the governor of Pernambuco sent for a sergeant of the only regiment
of the line which existed at that time, whose courage was well known
and much dreaded. He received orders from the governor to proceed with
all expedition possible to the sugar-plantation of Monjope, distant
from Recife four leagues, for the purpose of taking the owner of that
place into custody; or if he found that his apprehension alive was
impracticable, he was then to bring his head to the governor. The
sergeant was desired to pick out as many soldiers as he thought fit to
accompany him; but he said that he should go alone, and consequently
the following morning he set forth. On his arrival at Monjope, he was
received by the owner of the plantation, who was a colonel of militia,
or a _capitam-mor_. Being seated, he quietly made his errand known,
shewing to the great man the order for his apprehension, and mentioning
the additional instructions in case of disobedience. The colonel left
the room, but soon returned with a bag containing about the value of
100_l._ in gold coins, and presenting this to the sergeant, told him
to return and tell the governor that he would visit him as soon as
possible, and explain to him the circumstances which had given rise
to this mission. The sergeant took the money, and set out on his
return; and by the way bought a sheep, killed it, and then cutting
off its head, put this into a bag. On arriving at the palace, he
placed his bloody burthen upon the ground, and pointing to it, said
to the governor, “I have executed your commands; he would not come,
and therefore I have brought his head.” The governor, all amazement,
answered, “and have you really killed the colonel of Monjope?” The
sergeant replied, “I have only acted according to the orders which I
received.” The following morning, what was the astonishment of the
governor, to hear that the colonel of Monjope was in waiting, and
wished to see him. He gave him an audience, matters were explained, and
they parted good friends. The sergeant was sent for after the departure
of the colonel, and on being questioned, told the whole story, and
shewed the bag of money. The governor was displeased, but at the same
time ashamed of the rash orders which he had given. The sergeant was
however too useful a man to be in disgrace.
[89] Slaves are permitted to purchase their own freedom, on tendering
to the master the sum of money which he originally gave for them. But I
shall presently speak more at large of this law and of slavery, as it
exists in Brazil.
[90] Vide Appendix for a farther account of the coco-tree.
[91] An old Portugueze, whose faith in the intercession of saints could
not be very strong, being asked for alms to assist in the decoration
of an image, refused to give any thing, and added, “The saints are in
a much better situation than I am; they don’t want any assistance from
me.”
[92] I insert the following passage from No. 32d. of Dr. Thomson’s
Annals of Philosophy, p. 138. It is given for the purpose of
acquainting the supporters of our Lady of the O, that salt oozes from
walls in an heretical, as well as in a Catholic country:
“The formation of nitre upon calcareous stones in certain situations
has been long known, and advantage has been taken of it to procure that
important salt in great quantities; though no satisfactory theory of
the formation of the salt itself has yet been offered to the public.
The present paper contains a set of observations on the appearance of
an efflorescence of salt-petre on the walls of the Ashmole laboratory
at Oxford, a large ground room, sunk below the area of the street. The
walls are built of Oxford lime-stone, a granular floetz lime-stone,
containing many fragments of shells, of vegetable bodies, and composed
of 96 carbonate of lime, and 4 of ochrey sand. The salt formed was
nearly pure, though it contained traces of lime and of sulphuric and
muriatic acids. What was formed in winter contained most lime. The
formation of this salt was most rapid in frosty weather; it formed
slowly, and the quantity even diminished in moist weather after it had
been deposited. Exclusion from the air did not preclude the deposition
of the salt, though it diminished it considerably.” p. 70.—The paper,
of which the above is an analysis, is by John Kidd, M.D. professor of
chemistry in Oxford.
[93] Some time ago a wooden figure was brought up out of the sea in
a fisherman’s net; it was deposited in a place of safety, and was on
inspection, by some person who was judged competent to decide upon
the subject, declared to be an image of St. Luke; it was removed to a
church, and has taken its place as a representative of that saint. Now,
I have heard it whispered, that this said St. Luke is no more than the
figure-head of some unfortunate vessel which had been cast away, or
that the figure had been broken off by a violent wave.
[94] I am not certain of the situation of the Monte das Tabocas, where
one of the chief battles was fought between the Portugueze and the
Dutch in 1645.—History of Brazil, vol. ii. p. 108. There is now a
plantation called Tabocas, which is owned by one of the chiefs of the
Cavalcante family; but as I was acquainted with him and several other
persons of the same description, I think the circumstance would have
been mentioned, if this had been the place.
[95] At the distance of twenty leagues or more from Recife, there
resided formerly the Padre Pedro, upon the sugar plantation of Agua
Azul, or the blue water. He had obtained a grant from the Crown, of
the surrounding lands, of one square league in extent, and had fixed
his dwelling upon a high hill, the summit of which was only to be
reached by a serpentine road which he had made with great labour.
The sugar works were likewise upon the hill, and the field around
the eminence was inclosed by a deep and broad ditch, and a thick
hedge on the outside. The situation was remote, and the adjoining
country was in a very wild state; the woods were extensive, and almost
impenetrable. The disposition of the priest was as wild as the country
in which he delighted to reside. All deserters from the regiments
of the line, and all persons who had committed crimes in supporting
the insulted honour of their families, in quarrels and provocations
exciting momentary violence of passion, were received by him; but he
did not afford protection to the thief. The fellows who were harboured
by him inhabited the woods around the field, and some of them had
erected their huts upon the sides of the hill, thus forming a line of
communication; so that with a whistle or a conch, soon were assembled
at his door forty or fifty men, who were prepared to perform any
service of whatever description he might name; because they well knew
that if they were bereft of his protection, his aid would be given in
the law’s support. To injure the priest or any of his satellites, was
followed by destruction to the offending person. He was, however, in
the habit of sending many presents to the chief persons in office,
that no notice might be taken of his proceedings; for although the
government might not be able to destroy his feudal independence,
still it might have shaken his power. The priest was once sent for by
a late governor of the province; he obeyed, and brought with him a
considerable number of his determined followers; he dismounted, and
ascended the steps of the palace, leaving directions to his people, who
remained below, that no person should be permitted to enter after him.
The governor complained to him of his avowed practice of harbouring
deserters; to which the priest replied, that he thought his Excellency
was aware of the inutility of speaking to him upon that subject; and
having said this he immediately left the room, mounted his horse, and
proceeded homewards without molestation.
Another anecdote of this strange man was communicated to me by a person
who had witnessed the transaction. Two officers of justice or bailiffs,
arrived at Agua Azul, and served a writ for debt upon him; the priest
received them with great calmness, but shortly afterwards he ordered
some of his people to take these two men and harness them in the mill
(which was then at work) in the places of two of the horses, (eight of
these are employed at the same time). He then ordered that the works
should go on, and that a negro boy should sit above and make these
unfortunate fellows assist in its movement; there they remained for
some minutes, until half dead with fatigue and fear, he turned them
loose, and told them to relate to their employer the manner in which
they had been treated, threatening to do the same to him, if he could
obtain possession of his person. The priest had a considerable number
of blood hounds, which were usually unchained, and were lying about
the house; thus rendering dangerous an approach to his dwelling. The
animals were well trained, for a call from their master was sufficient
to make them lie still, and allow of the advance of a stranger. This
person died only a few years ago; but as I have already elsewhere said,
the time for such characters in Brazil is fast going by.
[96] “Zacharias nam he ninguem.”
[97] Labat, in speaking of the Indians of Guyana, says, “_Leurs plus
grandes richesses consistent dans les colliers de pierres vertes qui
leur viennent de la riviére des Amazones. C’est un limon qu’on peche
dans le fond de quelques endroits de ce grand fleuve_.” He continues
his description of them, and then says, “_ces pierres sont spécifiques
pour guêrir l’épilepsie ou le mal caduc, ou du moins pour en ôter et
suspendre tous les accidens tout autant de tems qu’on les porte sur
soi, et qu’elles touchent la peau_.”—_Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais
en Guinée, isles voisines et a Cayenne_, tom. iv. p. 65 and 66.
The lower orders in Brazil make use of an iron ring round the wrist for
this purpose.
I was informed that the _Contas Verdes_ came from Africa, but some may
have found their way from the Orellana, and been put into requisition
by the _Mandingueiros_.
I refer the reader to the History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 607, for a
farther account of the green stones of the Amazons.
[98] A man of large property being much provoked at some outrage which
had been committed by one of these _Valentoens_, (who was a white man,)
had said at his own home, that when he met the man he would horsewhip
him. This was repeated to the outlaw, and shortly afterwards they met
accidentally in one of the narrow-paths in the neighbourhood. The
_Valentam_ was well-armed with musket, sword, and knife; he requested
the gentleman to stop, as he had something to say to him. The outlaw
asked him for a pinch of snuff, and then offered his own box, from
which a pinch was in like manner taken. He then mentioned the injurious
words which had been repeated to him. The unfortunate offender directly
imagined what would follow, and therefore set spurs to his horse, but
the road was without any bend for some distance; the _Valentam_ knelt
down upon one knee, and fired with the effect which he wished for.
He quietly walked on along the same road, telling the whole story
of his meeting, at the first village through which he passed. This
man was at last taken, tried, and hanged at Bahia, through the very
great exertions of the brother of the person whom he had murdered. He
could not be executed at Pernambuco because he was a white man. The
transaction occurred at a short distance from Jaguaribe, about fifteen
years ago.
[99] Labat speaks of a tree, of which the fruit is a perfect cure for
the bite of the most dangerous snakes. He says that it comes from the
isthmus of Darien; that the buccaniers were informed of its virtue
by the Indians who accompanied them in their expeditions across the
isthmus. He does not give the name of the tree; but says “_sans nous
embarasser du nom de l’arbre nous nous contentons d’appeller son fruit
noix de serpent_.” In his time there were three of these trees at
Martinique, which were of the size of apricot trees in France. He says
that he witnessed the success of the fruit. The account of the plant
and its virtues is too long to be inserted here. It is to be found in
the _Nouveau Voyage aux isles de l’Amerique_, tom. iii. p. 234 to 238.
In the same work, I find the following manner of cure from the bite of
a snake, which will not however be very generally adopted. “_Ceux qui
ont assez de courage ou de charité pour s’exposer a faire cette cure
se gargarisent bien la bouche avec de l’eau-de-vie; et après avoir
scarifié la place, ils la succent de toute leur force, ils rejettent
de tems en tems ce qu’ils ont dans la bouche, et se la nettoyent et
gargarisent à chaque fois, observant de presser fortement avec les deux
mains les environs de la partie blessée. On a vú de trés bons effets de
cette cure, mais elle est trés-dangereuse pour celui qui la fait; car
s’il a la moindre ecorchûre dans la bouche, ou qu’il avale tant soit
peu de ce qu’il retire, il peut s’attendre à mourir en peu de momens,
sans que toute la medecine le puisse sauver._” tom. i. p. 167.
[100] In the year 1630, the island contained three and twenty sugar
works.—History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 476.
[101] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 36.
[102] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 476.
[103] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 489.
[104] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 540.
[105] History of Brazil, vol. ii. p. 143.
[106] History of Brazil, vol. ii. p. 176.
[107] History of Brazil, vol. ii. p. 177.
[108] History of Brazil, vol. ii. p. 241.
[109] “_Porque o seu coracam assim manda._”
[110] One of these Indians was selling crabs at Pasmado, when a
purchaser began to pick out those which he preferred; but the Indian
stopped him, saying, “Don’t begin to pick my crabs, for I belong to
Amparo.” Thus even the crabs which were caught by the dependants of
this great man were to be respected.
[111] The dependants do not always shew the respect which, seemingly,
they ought to render to their patron. One of the Indians of Amparo (not
he of the crabs) met his master, the owner of the place, in the field
near to the dwelling-house. The Indian took off his own hat to speak
to his master, but the same was not done by his superior; however the
fellow quickly performed this for him, saying “When you speak to people
take off your hat.”—“_Quando se falla a gente tira se o chapeo._” The
master took this quietly and when the conversation ended, his hat was
returned.
[112] Vide Appendix.
[113] I do not know whether I might not almost say of Brazil:
Regarding Itamaraca, there exists the following adage, “What is it
that persecutes thee island?” The answer is “The being an island, the
ants and Guedes.” “_Que te persegue ilha? Ilha, formiga, Guedes._” Or
in other words, the inconvenience occasioned by being obliged to cross
the channel from the main land; the ants, which sufficiently explain
for themselves; and Guedes;—these were a family of unquiet spirits who
resided in the island, and kept it in perpetual turbulence from their
quarrels. The remains still exist; but now they are good and peaceable
subjects.
[114] “_Agora Senhor Rei, vai te embora._”
[115] In 1646, after the Portugueze had taken possession of the
guard-ship at Os Marcos, they proceeded to that which was stationed at
Itapisuma or Tapissuma, and this was burnt by the Dutch.—History of
Brazil, vol. ii. p. 177.
[116] A man of colour with whom I was acquainted possessed several tame
oxen, some of which with a cart he used to hire to the planters by the
day, and one or other of his sons attended to drive them. Two of these
animals were stolen, and a suspicion falling upon a man of reputed
respectability in the country, who had rented a sugar plantation not
far distant, one of the sons of the owner of the oxen determined to try
to ascertain the fact. He dressed himself in leather, as a disguise,
and rode to the dwelling of the person in question, where he arrived
at dusk. The master of the house was not at home, but he spoke to the
housekeeper, saying, that he had just arrived from the Sertam with
cattle on sale, which would reach the neighbourhood on the following
morning; he requested to know if she thought her master would purchase
his drove. She answered in the affirmative, but said that he had better
stay all night, for the purpose of seeing the intended purchaser, who
would arrive on the next day. The false Sertanejo told her not to be
uneasy about his accommodation, as he would sleep in the mill, to which
he rode, and there he remained very quietly during the early part of
the night. When all was still he began to search for the hides or horns
of his oxen. The former would be recognised by the private mark, which
was made (as is usual) with a red-hot iron upon the right haunch, and
the latter he would know from the peculiar bore of their tips (by which
they are in part harnessed to the cart) for he had bored them himself,
and was in the constant habit of driving these oxen; besides, tame oxen
are so seldom killed, that if he found any horns which were bored, he
might presume that they were those of his beasts. He had given up his
search, and almost all hope of finding what he sought, when, as he lay
in his hammock, he happened to cast his eyes upwards, and saw two fresh
out-stretched hides hanging to the higher wood-work of the mill. He
scrambled up the timbers with a lighted piece of wood in one hand; and
moving this to and fro near to the hides, that it might give a better
light, he discovered that they bore his father’s mark. He lost no time
in cutting from both of them the pieces which contained the mark, and
carefully preserving these he mounted his horse about two o’clock in
the morning and rode home. He kept the bits of leather as trophies, and
shewed them in proof of his former assertions respecting the person
who had stolen the oxen, but neither did he obtain, nor did he expect
to obtain any redress. These transactions occurred in 1811, and within
five leagues of Recife.
[117] It has obtained the name of _formiga de roça_. The word _roça_
means literally a piece of land that has been planted, of which the
native wood has been cut down and cleared away. But at the present
day, in Pernambuco, the word _roça_ is applied to the mandioc plant
exclusively; thus a peasant will say “_hum bom roçado de roça_,” a good
field of mandioc. The word _roçado_ is used in speaking of any kind of
field; as for instance, a fine _roçado_ for cotton,—a fine _roçado_
for cane, &c.
[118] In the _Nouvelle Relation de la France Equinoxiale_, by _Pierre
Barrere_, I find that the great red ant is as troublesome in the
neighbourhood of Cayenne as in the part of South America which I
visited. p. 60.
[119] Labat says, “_Cet insecte engraisse les volailles_.” I know that
fowls are fond of the insect; but the peasants of Pernambuco prevent
the poultry from eating it, because they say that such food gives a bad
taste to the flesh; this is, I think, by no means improbable, for the
_copim_ has a most disagreeable smell. This author afterwards continues
the same subject, saying, “_Il y a deux sortes de bois qui ne sont pas
de leur goût; l’acajou et le bois amer. Cela vient de ce que le suc et
le bois de ces deux arbres est extrémement amer_.”—Nouveau Voyage,
tom. ii. p. 389 and 392.
I do not know what tree he means by the _bois amer_, which in another
place he calls _Simarouba_. I well know that the red ant will not
molest the leaves of the acaju tree; but the same occurs with regard
to many other plants. The leaves of the acaju are certainly extremely
bitter.
[120] “_Como a lua era forte._”
[121] I have seen Piso’s account of the snakes of Brazil; and although
the description which I have given of those which I saw, and of which
I heard, differs somewhat from his, I have allowed mine to remain as
it originally stood. Piso mentions the root of the _jurepeba_ plant
as being efficacious in curing the bites of snakes. Is this the
_jurubeba_? If so, it is surprising that it should not now be used for
this purpose. The _jurubeba_ is to be found in almost all situations;
a small shrub which yields a fruit resembling the potatoe apple. A
decoction of the root is taken frequently at the present day for coughs
and colds.
Piso likewise speaks of the _caatia_, or _caiatia_, or _caacica_ plant,
which he says, has deservedly obtained the name of the _herva de
cobras_; his description of it at p. 102, agrees in some respects with
that of the _herva cobreira_, of which I have spoken at chapter 12; but
it can scarcely be the same, for mine would have been more plentiful if
it had been indigenous.
[122] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 47.
[123] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 485.
[124] Labat in his _Nouveau Voyage aux isles de l’Amerique_ gives an
elaborate account of the mangrove plants. He speaks of three species,
and treats in the first place of the _mangle noir ou paletuvier_.
To this tree he applies precisely what I should say of the _mangue
vermelho_ or red mangrove, with respect to its manner of growing, and
to the description of the plant altogether, excepting in regard of the
bark which he states in the _mangle noir_, to be _fort brune_, whereas
the red mangrove derives its name from the red colour of the inside of
the bark. He says that it is used for tanning, and “_on peut se servir
du tronc de cet arbre pour les ouvrages où l’on a besoin d’un bois qui
résiste à l’eau_,” tom. ii. p. 195 and 197. I suppose he concluded
that this would be so as the wood grew in the water. Now the _mangues_
with which I am acquainted soon rot, even in salt water when used as
stakes; for although the trees are propagated by means of shoots, if a
part of the stem of one of them is put into the ground it does not take
root, and indeed soon rots in any situation. The pens for catching fish
are made of posts which are obtained from the forest, and these are
scarce and dear. Would not the mangrove be used, if it was sufficiently
durable?
He speaks afterwards of the _mangle rouge_, and this from his
description appears to me to be what the Pernambucans call the _mangue
bravo_; this does not grow in salt water, but in the vicinity of it. It
is a large tree of irregular make, the branches being much twisted and
full of knots.
Bolingbroke in his voyage to the Demerary describes the red mangrove as
I have seen it, but he says that the bark is grey. In the Third Report
of the Directors of the African Institution, p. 8, I find that some
notion was entertained in 1809, of introducing the mangrove bark into
this country for tanning.
[125] I once asked an African negro the name of this tree, and he
answered _coraçam de homem_ or man’s heart; thus he did not chuse to
use the name of negro’s heart. The man knew the usual name perfectly
well.
[126] The iron wood is mentioned by Bolingbroke in his voyage to the
Demerary; and the _bois de fer_, by Labat, in the _Voyage du Chevalier
des Marchais à Cayenne_, &c. he says, “_Le bois de fer se trouve
par-tout en quantité_,” tom. iii. p. 240.
[127] Marcgraff also speaks of a species of _jacaranda_, which is a
white wood.
[128] I shall give the names of those with which I am acquainted:
_parôba_, _jacaranduba_, _guabiraba_, _araroba_, _cicopira_,
_embiriba_, _sapucaia_, _aroeira do Sertam_. This last is only found in
parts far removed from the coast, and is accounted of equal value with
the _pao ferro_.
Labat, in speaking of the kinds of wood which are fit for building,
says, “_Je ne croi pas devoir renvoyer à un autre endroit la remarque
que j’ai faite sur tous les bois qu’on met en terre qui est, que pour
peu qu’ils soient bons ce n’est pas la partie qui est en terre qui se
pourrit ni celle qui est dehors, mais seulement ce qui est au ras de
terre_.” This I have found to be true to a certain extent; but there
are some species of timber which rot very quickly under ground, though
the part which he terms _au ras de terre_ is certainly that which
decays the most speedily. He continues “_Pour éviter cet inconvenient,
il faut brûler la partie qui doit être en terre et quelques pouces
au dessus, c’est-à-dire la sécher au feu ou dans les cendres rouges,
sans la réduire en charbon, afin que la seve ou l’humidité qui s’y
pourroit encore trouver, soit entierement dessechée, que les pores
se renfermant, les parties se raprochent les unes des autres, le
bois devient plus compact et par consequent plus propre à résister à
l’humidité_.”—Nouveau Voyage, tom ii. p. 386.
This is done in Pernambuco, and is found to be of great service; but it
is only practised with those woods which are known not to be naturally
durable under ground.
[129] Labat says, “_L’arbre que nous appellons acajou aux isles du
Vent, est le même que celui que les Espagnols appellent cedre dans la
Terre-ferme et dans les grandes isles. Je ne sai qui a plus de raison;
car je n’ai jamais vû les cedres du Liban, que selon les rélations que
j’en ai lû ne ressemblent point du tout au cedre Espagnol_.” He says
likewise, “_Ce qu’il ne faut pas confondre avec l’acajou à fruit dont
j’ai parlé dans un autre endroit_.”—Nouveau Voyage, tom. viii. p. 208
and 212.
He speaks in vol. ii. p. 94, of two large Indian canoes made of _bois
d’acajou_ or _cedre_. I am inclined to think that the _acajou_ of the
islands and the _cedre_ of the Spaniards is the _pao amarello_ of
Pernambuco.
[130] Piso says, that its small clustering red fruit has the property
of curing meat owing to its acidity and astringency.
[131] The indefatigable and all-observant, although unfeeling and
brutal Labat, has also mentioned the _pinham_, under the name of
_medicinier ou pignons d’Inde_, and he gives a print of it. His account
of the plant is elaborate, and he speaks of three kinds. Of that of
which I have treated, he says, “_Sa fleur n’a rien de beau. Elle ne
vient jamais seule, mais en bouquets composez de plusieurs fleurons
d’un blanc sale tirant sur le verd. Chaque fleuron est composé de cinq
feuilles en maniere d’etoile, qui font comme un cul de lampe arrondi
avec un col plus resserré et terminé par l’extrémité des feüilles qui
se renversent en dehors. Le fond du fleuron est garni et comme renfermé
entre cinq petites feuilles. C’est du centre de ces fleurs que l’on
voit sortir le fruit; ordinairement il est de la grosseur d’une noix
commune d’Europe._” He says again (after speaking of its purgative
quality, which it likewise possesses with that of provoking vomiting)
alluding to the separation of each seed into two parts, “_Lorsqu’elle
est recente, elle se partage naturellement en deux parties, entre
lesquelles on trouve une petite pellicule à qui on attribüe une qualité
de purger plus violemment qu’a tout le reste de la noix_.” My old
woman said, that the _pinham_ should not be given, unless the person
who prepared it was well acquainted with it, because a certain part of
the seed was dangerous; but she would not shew me where the dangerous
substance was to be found. Labat continues, saying that four or five
of the seeds are a proper dose as a purge, “_mais quand on en prend
une plus grande quantité, on s’expose à des vomissemens cruels et à
des évacuations trop grandes_.” He mentions a fact which is curious.
In speaking of Europeans having oftentimes eaten of this nut without
being acquainted with its properties, he says, “_une régle générale
qu’il faut observer a l’egard des fruits qu’on ne connoît point est de
n’y point toucher à moins qu’on ne voye q’ils out été bequetez par les
oiseaux_.”—_Nouveau Voyage_, tom. iii. p. 300, 301, and 302.
In Piso, p. 83, an account will be found of the _Munduy-guacu,
Lusitanis Pinhoes do Brasil, ejusque usu in medicina_.
I have perhaps quoted too copiously in writing an account of those
plants which Labat has described, but I must have followed so nearly
what he has said, that my description might have been supposed to
have had his for its basis. Perhaps these plants need not have been
described at all, but to some readers a confirmation of what other
travellers have said may afford satisfaction.
[132] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 466.
[133] The following story was current at Conception, and I knew all the
persons of whom it was related. A young man was intimate in a family of
a rank inferior to his own, and he frequently made presents to several
individuals of it, which was generally thought strange, as it did not
contain any young female. Therefore to account for this predilection,
it was reported, that the good old woman to whom he was so kind,
possessed a small image of St. Antonio, which was concealed in a bit
of old cloth; and it had several scraps of ribbons and I know not what
else, tied to its neck, legs and arms; and with this she was said to
perform certain mysterious rites, which secured the continuance of the
young man’s affection towards herself and family.
[134] When I resided at Jaguaribe, I was once standing by and hearing
the conversation of a man and woman, who were laughing and joking upon
several subjects; but I was more particularly amused when the man
answered to something that had been mentioned, saying, “I will ask Our
Lady of the Conception.” The woman replied, “But she will not grant
what you ask;” he then said, “Well, I will then apply to Our Lady of
the O.”—Thus entirely forgetting that the same person is intended
under another name.
[135] “_Em negocio de branco, negro nam se mete._”
[136] “_Morra e deixe de bobagems._”
[137] “_A sua gente he mais sabida que a nossa._”
[138] “_Dizem, que Vm. he muito santo._”
[139] Labat, in the _Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais, a Cayenne, &c._
vol. iii. p. 253, gives an account of the bees which corresponds in
some respects with mine. He says, “_Elles n’ont point d’aiguillon,
ou il est si foible qu’il ne peut entamer l’épiderme aussi sans
préparation et sans crainte on les prend a pleines mains sans en
ressentir autre incommodité qu’un leger chatouillement_.”—I do not
think those of Pernambuco would be found to be quite so harmless.
[140] I have seen a print in Barlæus representing this channel as
still being open, and the fort situated upon an island which it almost
entirely covers.
[141] I have been much blamed by one of my friends for not having eaten
of the flesh of the _jacarè_; and indeed I felt a little ashamed of
my squeamishness, when I was shown by the same friend, a passage in a
French writer, whose name I forget, in which he speaks favourably of
this flesh. However, if the advocate for experimental eating had seen
an alligator cut into slices, he would, I think, have turned from the
sight as quickly as I did. The Indians eat these creatures, but the
negroes will not, no not even the _gabam_ negroes who are said to be
cannibals.
[142] In making use of the word Brazil, it must be understood that
I mean to denote that portion of the country which I have had
opportunities of seeing. The agriculture of the provinces of Rio de
Janeiro and Bahia is doubtless in a more forward state than that of
Pernambuco and the line of coast to Maranham.
[143] I insert here a description of a machine for rooting up the
stumps of trees, by Cit. Saint Victor, member of the Society of
Agriculture, for the department of the Seine.
“It consists of a bar of forged iron, about two feet eight inches long,
one inch thick towards the handle, and of two inches towards the breech
or platform. The platform, which is circular, is fourteen inches in
diameter. This platform serves as the base of the chamber or furnace
of the mine, which is three inches in diameter, and three inches eight
lines in the length of its bore. The stopper or tampion, which serves
as a plug to the mine, is of the same diameter, to enter within after
a slight paper or wadding. It is attached by a chain to the gun or
mortar, which last is eight inches in diameter. About two inches above
is added a small touch-hole and pan. The hole is directed in an angle
of forty-five degrees, and is primed with powder to communicate with
the charge with which the chamber is filled up to the stopper. This
engine may be cast even with more facility in brass or bronze, and in
this case it must be a little thicker in all its dimensions, in order
to afford a resistance equal to that of the forged iron.”
“USE OF THE MACHINE.”
“When the machine is charged with powder, a small excavation is made
with a pick-axe, in the centre of the stump. The machine is then placed
in it, so that the plug immediately touches the wood. Care must be
taken to fill all the vacancies, either with stones or pieces of iron
or wood, more especially beneath the platform of the machine, in order
that the explosion of the powder may have its full effect on the stump,
of which, if necessary, the principal roots should first be cut if
any appear on the surface of the ground near the stump that is to be
eradicated.”
“When the machine is firmly fixed in its place, the priming is put into
the pan, a slow match applied, the length of which is sufficient to
allow time to retire to a proper distance from the explosion.”—Journal
of Natural Philosophy, &c. by W. Nicholson, vol. iv. p. 243 to 245.
In Pernambuco the only means of rooting up the stumps which is known,
is that of digging deep trenches round about them.
[144] Labat says, that in clearing lands, it is not necessary to take
up the stumps of the trees, unless they are those _des bois mols dont
les souches poussent des rejettons_; now in Brazil, almost all the
trees that have been cut down put forth shoots.
[145] It has been discontinued of late years by some persons, and I
have heard it said, that the ratoon canes do not grow so well; but that
the land requires to be laid down for a much shorter period.
[146] Labat says, “_Les terres neuves grasses et fortes fournissent
abondamment de la nourriture aux souches, et les entretiennent
pendant quinze et vingt ans et plus, sans qu’on s’apperçoive d’aucune
diminution, ni dans l’abondance, ni dans la bonté, ni dans la grandeur,
ni dans la grosseur, des rejettons_;” and he even says that the stumps
“_conduisent plutôt leurs rejettons à une parfaite maturité, pourvûs
qu’on ait soin de rechausser les souches_,” &c.—Nouveau Voyage &c.
tom. iii. p. 368.
I had previously read the following passage in another work, “_Dans
les plantations situées au bord du Demerari on fait trente recoltes
successives de sucre sans transplanter les cannes, &c._—Voyage a la
Guiane &c.” p. 222.
As this work is of doubtful reputation, I should not have cited any
statement which was made in it unless I was myself aware of its
correctness, or unless the fact was mentioned by other writers; but
when Labat speaks of the same thing, there must be some foundation for
the statement.
[147] Labat says, “_Toutes les terres, en un mot qui sont neuves,
c’est-à-dire qui n’ont jamais été planteés, ni semées, dans lesquelles
on met des cannes aussi-tôt qu’on a abbatu les arbres qui les
couvroient, portent des cannes trés grosses et en quantité, remplis de
beaucoup de suc, mais gras, crud, peu sucré, trés difficile à cuire
et à purifier. Je me suis trouvé quelquefois dans ces circonstances
et particulierement à la Guadeloupe, ou ayant fait défricher une
terre neuve, à plus d’une lieüe du bord de la mer, et l’ayant plantée
en cannes c’etoit quelque chose de surprenant de voir le nombre, la
grosseur et la hauteur de ces cannes, lorsqu’elles n’avoient encore
que six mois; cependant je les fis couper a cet âge, et après que
j’eus retiré ce dont j’avois besoin pour planter, je fis faire de
l’eau-de-vie du reste, et je fis mettre le feu au terrain pour consumer
les pailles, dont la pourriture n’auroit servi qu’à augmenter la
graisse de la terre. Quatorze mois aprés cette coupe, je fis employer
en sucre blanc les rejettons qui étoient crûs, dont la bonté repondit
parfaitement à la beauté, qui ne pouvoit être plus grande._”—Nouveau
Voyage &c. tom. iii. p. 339.
His account of this affair still continues, but I have transcribed the
more important part of it.
The master of the grammar school at Itamaraca, told me that he acted
in the same manner with respect to a quantity of cane which he once
planted upon a piece of land that was afterwards cultivated by me; he
was satisfied that this was the better plan, when the land is in the
state which Labat describes; but the people in general thought that he
was mad, until crop time came, and then they changed their opinion.
In another work Labat says, “_le terrain nouvellement défriché, étant
naturellement gras et humide, et sa situation le rendant encore
aqueux, les cannes qu’il produit, sont à la vérité grosses, grandes,
pleines de suc; mais ce suc est gras et aqueux; il est par conséquent
plus long à cuire, plus difficile à purifier, de sorte qu’il faudra
abbatre et mettre au moulin plus de cannes, purifier et cuire plus de
jus ou de suc pour faire une barrique de sucre, qu’il n’en faut à la
Martinique pour en faire quatre_.”—Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais
a Cayenne, &c. tom. iii. 204. In the little experience which I had,
I was surprised to find an increase or decrease in the quantity of
the product of the same number of cart loads of cane from different
quarters of the plantation; but my mind was then too much occupied to
allow me to look for the cause of this.
At the time that Labat wrote his account of the French portion of
the Columbian islands, (from 1693 to 1705) they were in a state
which resembled much that of Brazil in the present day; that is, the
colonists were forming establishments and clearing lands; agriculture
was in a rude state, and as sugar colonies were then, comparatively
speaking, new things, improvements were daily striking the thinking men
who went out to those places; for it was a subject to which intellect
was at that time turned. The system in the Columbian islands has now
been much benefited, by the advanced state of the mother countries
which possess them; and the communication between the islands belonging
to the several powers which rule them, has led them to adopt and to
profit by each other’s inventions and ideas. But Brazil has been left
to its own resources; no interest has been taken in its concerns from
without, nor has any regard been paid to the mental advancement of
the people belonging to it, so that it cannot be wondered at that the
country should have made very little progress. However the similarity
of the state of the French islands in the time of Labat, to that of
Brazil at the present day, and his powers of observation, induce me to
think that some of his remarks may be useful in the latter country,
although they may be out of date in the places of which he wrote. Thus
much I say, as a reason for making frequent notes from him.
[148] Labat speaks of seeing canes planted down to the water’s edge at
Guadaloupe; he says that he tasted the juice of some of them, and found
it to be rather brackish; “_d’où il étoit aisé de conclure que le sucre
brut qu’on en feroit, pourroit être beau, comme il l’etoit en effet en
tout le quartier du grand cul-de-sac, mais qu’il seroit difficile de
réussir en sucre blanc, comme il est arrivé_.”—Nouveau Voyage, &c.
tom. iii. p.71.
[149] Besides the usual mode of holing, Mr. Edwards mentions the
following method; “the planter instead of stocking up his ratoons,
and holing and planting the land anew, suffers the stoles to continue
in the ground and contents himself, as his cane fields become
thin and impoverished, by supplying the vacant spaces with fresh
plants.”—History of the West Indies, vol. ii. p. 207.
[150] A plough drawn by two oxen, constructed after a model which was
brought from Cayenne, has been introduced in one or two instances.
[151] The passages in this chapter which are marked as being
quotations, are taken from Edwards’ History of the West Indies. I
mention this, once for all, to save room and trouble.
[152] The author of the _Nouveau Voyage &c._ _tom._ iii. p. 218.
mentions having covered the claying house belonging to a mill, the
property of his Order, with the tops of the sugar cane. I never saw
this practised in Brazil, and indeed Labat says, that they were not
commonly put to this purpose in the parts of which he writes. He says,
that a species of reed was usually employed. In Brazil there is a kind
of grass which answers the purpose, and is durable; and this quality,
Labat says, that the cane tops possess; however in Brazil the leaves of
the coco and of other palms are generally used.
Although it was the general custom to employ the cane tops for
planting, Labat objects to them from his own authority, upon the score
of these not possessing sufficient strength to yield good canes. The
same opinion is general in Pernambuco.
[153] Labat lays great stress upon the ripeness of the canes. “_Il faut
donc observer avant que de couper les cannes quel est leur degré de
perfection et de maturité plutôt que leur âge_,” _&c._—Nouveau Voyage,
&c. tom. iii. p. 353.
But when a plantation has a large crop, it is absolutely impossible to
attend so particularly to the ripeness as he inculcates; some of the
cane must be ground unripe, and other parts of the field cannot be cut
until after the proper time.
[154] The French friar complains of the rats, and says that there was
in his time a _chasseur de rats_ upon every estate. He says that he
made his _chasseur_ bring the rats that were caught to him; and he
desired to have the whole rat, for if the heads or tails only came,
the bodies were eaten by the negroes, which he wished to prevent, as
he thought that this food brought on consumption. I know that the
negroes in Brazil eat every rat which they can catch, and I do not
see why they should not be well tasted and wholesome food, for they
feed on sugar-cane and mandioc. I cannot refrain from transcribing
the following statement: “_Il y a des habitans qui se contentent que
le preneur de rats leur en apporte les quëues ou les têtes. C’est une
mauvaise methode, parce que les preneurs voisins s’accordent ensemble
et portent les quëues d’un côté et les têtes d’autre, afin de profiter
de la recompense que les maîtres donnent, sans se mettre beaucoup en
peine de tendre les attrapes._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c., tom. iii. p. 358.
[155] “_Dorminhoco como negro de Engenho_,”—as sleepy as the negro of
a sugar-mill, is a common proverb.
[156] In a few instances the “upright iron plated rollers” used in
the Columbian islands have been erected. These have been sent from
England, and are much approved of, particularly for mills that have the
advantage of being turned by water.
[157] Labat says, speaking of the same dreadful kind of accident, “_Ce
qui pourroit arriver si la largeur des établis ni les en empêchoit_;”
he also mentions the necessity of having “_sur le bout de la table une
serpe sans bec bien affilée, pour s’en servir au besoin_.”—Nouveau
Voyage, &c. tom. iii. p. 406 and 407.
[158] The author of the _Noveau Voyage, &c._ says, the Portugueze,
when they first established themselves in Brazil, and indeed even at
the present time, (1696) in some places make use of mills for grinding
the sugar cane similar to those of Normandy, “_pour briser les pommes
à faire le cidre, et dont on se sert aux päis ou il y a des oliviers,
pour écraser les olives_.”—tom iii. p. 428.
I never heard of any description of mill being employed at the present
day, excepting that which is in general use.
[159] In the French islands the liquor was passed through a cloth when
conveyed from the first cauldron into the second: of the trough I find
no mention.—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iv. p. 24.
[160] In the _Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais a Cayenne, &c._ I
find that “_le sucre séché au soleil est toujours plus susceptible
d’humidité, que celui qui a été bien séché dans une bonne étuve_.” tom.
iii. p. 205.
In the fourth volume of the _Nouveau Voyage_, p. 106 to 110, is
a description of an oven for drying clayed sugars; this would be
interesting to Brazilian readers, but it is too long to excuse
insertion before a British public.
[161] The long improved ovens, such as are used in the Columbians
islands, are beginning to be introduced.
[162] The following method of preparing the _temper_ will be useful
in the country of which I am treating, and therefore I think I may be
permitted to insert it, although it is long.
“_Le barril à lessive étant posé sur la sellette ou sur un trépied, on
en bouche le trou avec une quantité de paille longue et entiere, aprés
quoi on y met une couche composée des herbes suivantes, aprés les avoir
broyées entre ses mains, et aprés les avoir hachées._
“_Herbes à blé; c’est une herbe qui croît par touffes comme le blé qui
est levé depuis deux ou trois mois, et à qui elle ressemble beaucoup.
On arrache la touffe entiere avec sa racine qui est fort petite._
“_La seconde se nomme herbe à pique. Cette plante a une tige droite
de la grosseur d’un tuyau de plume d’oye et de la hauteur de quinze
à dix-huit pouces. Son extrémité porte une feüille comme celle de
l’ozeille pour la couleur et pour la consistance, mais qui ressemble
entiérement au fer d’une pique._
“_La troisiéme est la mal-nommée. C’est une petite herbe déliée, fine
et frizée à peu près comme les cheveux des négres._
“_On met ces trois sortes d’herbes par portion égale, avec quelques
feüilles et quelques morceaux de lianne brûlante. Cette lianne est une
espéce de lierre, dont la feüille est plus tendre, plus mince et les
bois plus spongieux que le lierre d’Europe. On écrase un peu le bois
et les feüilles, avant que de les mettre dans le barril. C’est avec
ces quatre sortes d’herbes qu’on garnit le fond du barril jusqu’ à
trois pouces de hauteur; on les couvre d’un lit de cendre de pareille
épaisseur, et l’on choisit la cendre faite du meilleur bois qu’on ait
brûlé, comme sont le chataignier, le bois rouge, le bois caraibe, le
raisinier, l’oranger ou autres bois durs, dont les cendres et les
charbons sont remplis de beaucoup de sel. On met sur cette couche de
cendre une couche de chaux vive de même épaisseur, et sur celle-ci une
autre couche des mêmes herbes, ausquelles on ajoûte une ou deux cannes
d’inde ou de seguine bâtarde, amorties au feu, et coupées par ruelles
de l’épaisseur d’un ecu. Cette plante vient sur le bord des eaux
marécageuses, sa tige est ronde d’un pouce ou environ de diamétre; sa
peau est fort mince et fort verte; le dedans est blanc, assez compacte,
et rempli d’une liqueur extrémement mordicante, qui fait une vilaine
tache, et ineffaçable sur le linge et sur les étoffes où elle tombe. Sa
feüille est tout-a-fait semblable pour la figure à celle de la porée
ou bette, mais elle est plus verte et plus lisse, et ses fibres ne se
distinguent presque pas; on ne les met point dans la lessive. Toutes
ces herbes sont extrémement corrosives et mordicantes. On remplit
ainsi le barril de cendre, de chaux, et d’herbes, par lits jusqu’à ce
qu’il soit plein, et on le termine par une couche des mêmes herbes
bien broyées et hachées. Quand on se sert des cendres qui viennent de
sortir des fourneaux, et qui sont encore toutes brûlantes, on remplit
le barril avec de l’eau froide; mais lorsque les cendres sont froides,
on fait boüiller l’eau avant que de la mettre dans le barril. On met
un pot ou un autre vaisseau sous le trou qui est bouché de paille,
pour recevoir l’eau qui en dégoûte, que l’on remet dans le barril, et
que l’on fait passer sur le marc qu’il contient, jusqu’à ce que cette
lessive devienne si forte que la mettant sur la langue avec le bout du
doigt, on ne puisse pas l’y souffrir, et qu’elle jaunisse le doigt,
comme si c’étoit de l’eau forte._”—Nouveau Voyage, tom. iv. p. 33 to
35.
[163] A few of the more wealthy planters have sent for large stills
from England, and have, of course, found their infinite superiority
over those in common use.
Even in the time of Labat, his countrymen were much before the
Pernambucan planters respecting the arrangement of the still-houses.
They had copper stills.
[164] The _alvarà_ was passed the 21st January, 1809. One to the same
effect had been passed on the 22d September, 1758, for the captaincy
of Rio de Janeiro; this was extended to other captaincies, at first as
a temporary law, but it was afterwards several times renewed; and it
was at last allowed to be in force in all the ultra-marine dominions
of Portugal, by the _alvarà_ of the 6th July, 1807. However as there
were some restrictions attached to this law, that of 1809 was passed.
By this last, in the first place, executions cannot be made upon sugar
estates which are in a working state and do work regularly, and that
have under cultivation that quantity of ground which is requisite for
the carrying on of the work of the mill, and for the support of the
slaves; executions can only be carried into effect upon one third of
the net produce of such plantations; the other two thirds being left
for the expences of cultivation, and for the administration, that is,
for the support of the owner.
Secondly. Executions can however be made if the debt is equal to or
above the value of the estate; but the whole of the slaves, the cattle,
the lands, and the implements belonging to the _engenho_ must form one
valuation, nor can they be separated; but they must all be taken as
parts of the _engenho_.
Thirdly. If there are more debts than one, and these together make up
the sum which may cause the plantation to be subject to execution,
still some law proceedings must be entered into, by which these several
debts may be placed in such a form as to be considered as one debt.
Thus the government does those things which ought not to be done, and
leaves undone those things which ought to be done.
[165] “_Qu’ils (les cabrouettiers) ayent soin, quand il est nécessaire
de leur faire ôter les barbes, qui sont certaines excrescences de
chair, qui leur viennent sous la langue, qui les empêchent de paître.
Car les bœfs ne coupent pas l’herbe avec les dents comme les chevaux,
ils ne font que l’entortiller avec la langue et l’arracher; mais quand
ils ont ces excrescences, qui leur causent de la douleur, ils ne
peuvent appliquer leur langue autour de l’herbe et deviennent maigres
et sans force._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom iv. p. 179.
Of this disorder I never heard, but there is one to which horses as
well as horned cattle are subject; it is produced by the animals
feeding upon fields of which the grass is very short. The flesh grows
from the roots of the teeth towards their edges, and at last renders it
impossible for the beasts to eat.
[166] The following is a statement of the number of cases of sugar
exported from Pernambuco, from the year 1808 to 1813.
1808. 4271
1809. 12801
1810. 9840
1811. 7749
1812. 8577
1813. 9022
I obtained it from my friend Mr. I. C. Pagen, who resided at Recife
during a considerable portion of the time.
[167] I have seen some fine cotton shrubs at the distance of one or
two leagues, and even less, from the sea coast; but the attempts that
have been made to cultivate it to any extent in such situations, have
not, from what I have seen and heard, met with the desired success.
Might not the Sea-Island seed be sent for, and a trial of it made? The
Pernambuco cotton is superior to that of every other part, excepting
the small quantity which is obtained from those islands.
Bolingbroke, in his “Voyage to the Demerary,” says that “On the sea
coast the British settlers also commenced the culture of cotton, and
found that land to answer much better than the soil up the river.”—In
Phillips’ Collection, &c. p. 81.
The cotton of the settlements upon the part of South America of which
he writes, is very inferior to that of Pernambuco.
In the Third Report of the Directors of the African Institution, p.
23, I find it stated, that “the saline air of the sea-shore, which
generally destroys coffee, is favourable to cotton;” at p. 27, it is
said that cotton never fails to degenerate “when it has been propagated
in the same ground for many years without a change of seed.”
[168] I have heard that the seeds would form a very good food for
cattle, if they could be completely freed from all particles of wool;
here lies the difficulty.
[169] In Labat’s time these machines were likewise worked by the feet
of the person who was employed in thrusting the cotton against the
rollers.
[170] Mr. Edwards calls the species of the cotton plant which is
cultivated in the Columbian islands, the _common Jamaica_, of which
“the staple is coarse but strong.” It is difficult to clean, owing to
the brittleness of the seeds. It is strange, as Mr. Edwards remarks,
that the British cotton planters should be acquainted with species
of the shrub which produce finer wool, and yet continue to rear this
inferior quality.
[171] The following is a statement of the export of cotton from
Pernambuco, from the year 1808 to 1813. It was furnished to me by my
friend Mr. I. C. Pagen, who resided at Recife during a considerable
part of the time.
1808. 26,877
1809. 47,512
1810. 50,103
1811. 28,245
1812. 58,824
1813. 65,327
From this it would appear that in saying, at chapter 1st, that the
export from thence at the present time is between 80,000 and 90,000
bags annually, I have over-rated the real number. But it will be seen
that the increase has been considerable from 1812 to 1813, and I know
that it still continues to increase as rapidly, if not more so.
[172] Edwards’ History of the West-Indies.
[173] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 233.
[174] Mr. Southey says, “When the mandioc failed, what was called
stick flour (in Portugueze _farinha de pao_) was made from the wood of
the Urucuri-iba, which they cut in pieces and bruised; and this being
less liable to corrupt than the mandioc, is now generally used in the
Brazilian ships.” vol. i. p. 233. The _farinha de pao_ which is at
present used in these ships, is made from the mandioc, and the name of
stick-flour is by no means inapposite; for it always requires to be
picked before it is used, to take out the bits of the husk and of the
hardened fibres of the root which may chance to remain. But the name
may have, and most probably did, commence with the stick-flour of the
Urucuri-iba; and when the substance from which it was made was changed,
the name still continued. I refer the reader to the History of Brazil
for a farther account of the mandioc.
[175] Du Tertre gives three remedies for those who have drank of the
juice. “_Le premier que j’ay veu pratiquer heureusement c’est de boire
de l’huile d’olive avec de l’eau tiede, ce qui fait vomir tout ce
qu’on a pris; le second qui est tres-assuré est de boire quantité de
suc d’ananas, avec quelques goutes de jus de citron; mais sur tous les
remedes, le suc de l’herbe aux couleuvres, dont tous les arbres de ces
isles sont revêtus, est le souverain antidote, non seulement contre ce
mal, mais encore contre toute sorte de venin._”—Histoire des Antilles,
&c. tom. ii. p. 118.
Labat does not believe in the virtue of the _herbe de couleuvres_ in
this case.
[176] Du Tertre speaks of the savages making use in their dishes of
_l’eau de manyoc_.—Histoire des Antilles, &c. tom. ii. p. 389.
“_Nos sauvages qui en mettent_ (the juice of the mandioc) _dans toutes
leurs sauces n’en sont jamais incommodez parce qu’ils ne s’en servent
jamais que quand il a boüilli._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. i, p. 400.
Likewise in the “_Voyage a la Guiane_,” p. 101, “_Le suc de manioc cet
instrument de mort devient, travaillé par les creoles de Cayenne, une
sauce appétissante et salutaire_.”
“The juice is boiled with meat and seasoned, and makes excellent soup,
which is termed casserepo, and used in pepper-pot and sauces.”—Voyage
to the Demerary, &c. by H. Bolingbroke, p. 149.
Dr. Pinckard mentions having tasted in the colony of Demerary of the
juice of the cassada prepared as sauce.—Notes on the West-Indies, vol.
ii. p. 257.
During the famine of 1793, the people of Pernambuco made use of the
juice as food; but in times of plenty it is regarded as being unfit for
any purpose. It is by evaporation that it loses its poisonous qualities.
[177] Du Tertre speaks of a species of harmless mandioc, which is
called _Kamanioc_, and he adds, that it is _assez rare_.—Histoire des
Antilles, &c. tom. ii. p. 114.
Labat likewise speaks of the _Camanioc_, “_comme qui diroit le chef
des maniocs. En effet son bois, ses feüilles et ses racines sont
plus grandes et plus grosses que les autres maniocs. Mais comme il
est beaucoup plus long tems à crôitre et à mûrir, et que ses racines
rendent beaucoup moins de farine parce qu’elles sont plus legéres
et plus spongieuses que les autres, on le neglige et peu de gens en
plantent._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. i. p. 411.
It is not only the root of the _macaxeira_ which is smaller, but the
plant is, I think, altogether smaller than the other species.
Barrere, in the _Nouvelle Relation de la France Equinoxiale_, p. 61,
speaks of the harmless species under the name of _maniok sauvage_.
[178] Barrere says, speaking of Cayenne, “_Les Creoles préferent encore
au meilleur pain du monde la cassave qu’elles mange rarement séche; car
elles la font toujours tremper dans l’eau ou dans quelque sauce: c’est
sans doute cette nourriture qui leur donne cette couleur pâle, et qui
fait qu’elles n’ont point de coloris_.” I am afraid he does not look
quite far enough for the want of colour in the ladies of Cayenne.
Then again, he says, “_On ne mange que trés rarement a Cayenne, ou
pour mieux dire, presque jamais de la Coaque, qui est la nourriture
ordinaire des Portugais de Parà, du Maragnan, et des peuples, qui sont
sur les rivages du fleuve des Amazones_.” He describes the _coaque_;
and it is clearly the _farinha_, but he does not explain how the
_cassave_ was made, of which the creole ladies were so fond, and which
did them so much mischief.
He says afterwards, “_Les Indiens Portugais, quand ils veulent prendre
leurs repas, ils mettent une poignée de coaque dans le creux de la
main, qui leur sert d’assiette; et de là ils la font sauter adroitement
dans la bouche; l’on boit par dessus une bonne coüye d’eau et de
boisson; et voila leur repas pris._”—Nouvelle Relation de la France
Equinoxiale, p. 55, and 56.
This mode of eating and the abstemiousness of the repast are both
common in Brazil to all casts of people. With respect to the _cassave_,
I cannot comprehend what he means. But, contrary to his notion, to
eat _farinha_ in the manner that he mentions quite dry, although it
is done by most people, is not reckoned wholesome. In fact, it is one
of the duties of a _feitor_ or manager to see that the negroes do not
make their meals with dry _farinha_, but he should see that they make
_piram_; this is done by mixing the flour with boiling water or gravy.
The negroes do not dislike _piram_, but they are sometimes too idle
or too much fatigued to take the trouble of cooking their victuals;
and therefore they eat the _farinha_ dry, and their salt meat with
it, after having smoke-dried the latter upon a wooden skewer. The
disorder which is said to proceed from constantly eating dry _farinha_
is the dropsy. The flour of the mandioc swells considerably when it
is moistened: if the expansion takes place in the stomach it may be
injurious, and this may perhaps afford some reason for the opinion of
the Brazilians upon the subject.
[179] Du Tertre mentions the same practice,—of steeping the mandioc,
and says that the savages were in the habit “_de la sécher au soleil
et l’ecorce s’ostant d’elle-mesme, ils pillent le manyoc dans un
mortier, pour le reduire en farine, qu’ils mangent sans autre
cuisson_.”—Histoire des Antilles, &c. tom. ii. p. 114.
Labat says, that the maroon negroes used to prepare it in the two
following ways. “_C’est de la couper par morceaux, et de le mettre
tremper dans l’eau courante des rivieres ou des ravines pendant sept
ou huit heures. Le movement de l’eau ouvre les pores de la racine et
entraîne ce trop de substance. La seconde maniere est de le mettre
cuire tout entier sous la braise. L’action du feu met ses parties en
mouvement et on le mange comme on fait des chataignes ou des patates
sans aucune crainte._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. i. p. 410.
I think the said negroes must have been accustomed by degrees to eating
the mandioc in this manner. I should not be willing to recommend either
of these ways of cooking it.
[180] “_Les Espanhols en font des tasses pour prendre le chocolat. J’en
ai vû de très belles bien travaillées, cizelées, enrichies d’argent sur
un pied d’argent, et d’ autres sur un pied fait d’un autre morceau de
cocos bien cizelé._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iii. p. 273.
[181] “_On prétend que l’arbre est autant d’années à rapporter
du fruit, qu’il a été de mois en terre, avant de pousser son
germe._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iii. p. 267.
Labat does not however vouch for the truth of the statement. He speaks
of the cabbage of the coco-tree being very good; and I agree with
him. A coco-tree was cut down at Itamaraca, and the vicar sent me the
cabbage of which several dishes were made, and they were excellent.
[182] Vide Appendix for a further account of the coco-tree.
[183] Labat was a most determined experimental eater, and therefore I
was not surprised at meeting with the following expression of regret,
“_Je suis faché de n’avoir pas expérimenté pendant que j’étois aux
isles, si cette huile ne seroit pas bonne à manger_.”—Nouveau Voyage,
&c. tom. iii. p. 283. I wish he had.
[184] Mr. Clarkson, in his work on the Impolicy of the Slave Trade, p.
13 and 14, mentions that a small billet was brought to England from
the coast of Africa among a parcel of bar-wool; that “it was found to
produce a colour that emulated the carmine, and was deemed to be so
valuable in the dying trade, that an offer was immediately made of
sixty guineas _per_ ton for any quantity that could be procured.”
[185] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 19.
[186] Labat is much enraged, in his work of the _Voyage du Chevalier
des Marchais a Cayenne_, &c. at the idea of the Portugueze monopolizing
the trade in Brazil wood, by persuading all the world that the only
true wood came from Pernambuco, or _Fernambourg_, as he calls it. He
imagines that the Brazil is the same as the logwood.
[187] The long banana or plantain appears to be of much more importance
in Demarary and the adjoining colonies, for Mr. Bolingbroke says,
“This coast (between the Essequibo and Pomaroon rivers) possesses a
considerable advantage over the other sea-coasts, from its being able
to rear any quantity of plantains.”—Voyage to the Demarary, &c. p.
115; and at p. 87, he speaks of the same fruit being the “negroes’
chief food.”
Labat mentions a means of rendering the banana serviceable in
travelling; and as the ingredients of his receipt are all of them good,
the mixture must, I should imagine, be likewise good, and therefore I
insert it for the benefit of those who may, as I have been, be much in
want of something palatable, when crossing the Seará-Meirim. “_Ceux
qui veulent faire cette pâte avec plus de soin, font d’abord sécher
les bananes au four ou au soleil, puis ils les gragent, ils y mêlent
ensuite du sucre pilé, avec un peu de poudre de canelle, de géroffle
et de gingembre, tant soit peu de farine et un blanc d’œuf pour lier
toutes ces choses ensemble, après qu’elles ont été paitries avec un peu
d’eau de fleur d’orange._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iii. p. 314. Fewer
ingredients might be made use of.
Du Tertre says of the banana, “_Quand on le coupe on voit une belle
croix imprimeé sur chaque tronçon; c’est qui a fait croire à plusieurs
que ce fruit est le même qu’Adam mangea dans le Paradis terrestre_,”
_&c._—Histoire des Antilles, &c. tom. ii. p. 140.
Labat speaks of the same story, but adds, “_Adam pouvoit avoir
meilleure vûë que nous, ou la croix de ces bananes étoit mieux
formée_.”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom iii. p. 307. I was once desired by a
Brazilian woman of colour to cut the banana lengthways, and not across,
for by the latter manner of dividing the fruit, I should cut the _Cruz
de Nosso Senhor_, Our Saviour’s Cross.
[188] Labat says, that “_la patate est une espece de pomme de
terre que approche assez de ce qu’on appelle en France les
Taupinambours_.”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. ii. p. 400.
Du Tertre says, “_Lorsque les ouragans ont tant de fois ravagé les
manyocs de nos isles, on a toujours eu recours aux patates, sans
lesquelles bien du monde auroit pery de faim_.” And again, “_Tous les
matins, c’est une coustume generale par toutes les isles de faire cuyre
plein une chaudiere de patates pour dejeûner_.”—Histoire des Antilles,
&c. tom. ii. p. 118 and 119.
[189] Labat says, in speaking of cacao, “_On ne manque jamais de
planter du manioc en même tems qu’on met les amandes en terre_.” This
is done for the purpose of defending the plant from the sun. “_On
arrache le manioc au bout de douze ou quinze mois_”—“_et sur le champ
on en plante d’autres, mais en moindre quantité, c’est a dire, qu’on ne
met qu’un rang de fosses au milieu des allées_;” and he recommends that
the water-melon, the common melon, and such like plants should be sown
between the mandioc and the cacao-trees.—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. vi.
p. 397 and 398.
[190] Labat is angry at a notion which was entertained in his time
by some people, that the black Ipecacuanha was only to be found near
to the gold mines in the interior of Rio de Janeiro. He speaks of a
third species of Ipecacuanha, which he distinguishes by the epithet
of _gris_, and he likewise mentions the white kind; both of these,
he says, answer the same purpose as the black, but a larger dose is
required.—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. vi. p. 29.
[191] “Vieyra, in his letters, mentions a received tradition that
Emanuel ordered all the spice plants to be rooted up, lest the Indian
trade should be injured, and that ginger was the only spice which
escaped, because it was under-ground. He does not appear to have
recollected the impossibility of carrying such an order into effect
upon a continent.”—History of Brazil, vol. i, note to p. 32. Dr.
Arruda alludes to this order in his _Discurso sobre a utilidade da
instituiçam de jardims_, &c. And he adds that a few cinnamon trees at
Pernambuco escaped as well as the ginger, p. 8.
[192] “On one article, guinea-grains or malagueta-pepper, the duty
has been doubled; not with a view of increasing the revenue, but of
operating as a prohibition of the use of it, as it is supposed to have
been extensively employed in the brewing of malt-liquor. The Directors
however have great reason to doubt the existence of the deleterious
qualities ascribed to this drug; as they find it to be universally
esteemed in Africa one of the most wholesome of spices, and generally
used by the natives to season their food.”—Fourth Report of the
Directors of the African Institution, p. 16.
If this article and the _malagueta_ of Brazil are the same, I should be
strongly inclined to agree with the Report; and indeed I conceive that
it is not only harmless but extremely wholesome. A decoction of the
pods is used among the peasantry as an injection in aguish disorders.
[193] _Noticias MSS._ quoted by Mr. Southey, History of Brazil, vol. i.
p. 320.
[194] Labat says, “_a l’égard du thé, il croît naturellement aux
isles. Toutes les terres lui sont propres, j’en ai vû en quantité à la
Basseterre._” &c.—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iv. p. 225.
He mentions it again, and seems to be quite confident that the plant of
which he speaks is the tea shrub.
[195] “_Il faut que les graines se naturalisent au pays, et quand cela
est fait elles produisent a merveille. J’ai experimenté qu’ayant sémé
des pois qui venoient de France, ils rapportoient trés peu, les seconds
rapportoient davantage, mais le troisiémes produisoient d’une maniere
extraordinaire pour le nombre, la grosseur et la bonte._”—Nouveau
Voyage, &c. tom. i. p. 367.
[196] Du Tertre speaks of the same occurring in the Columbian Islands.
[197] Again Labat, “_On employe le suc des oranges aigres avec un
succès merveilleux et infaillible à guerir les ulcéres quelque vieux et
opiniátres qu’ils puissent être_.”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iii. p.
254.
The orange is cut into two pieces, and is rubbed violently upon the
sore.
[198] History of Brazil, vol. i. p. 216.
[199] This was not the case at one time in the French islands. “_Quand
quelque commandeur abuse d’une negre, l’enfant mulastre qui en vient
est libre, et le pere est obligé de le nourrir et de l’entretenir
jusqu’a l’age de douze ans, sans l’amende à laquelle il est encore
condamné._”—Histoire des Antilles &c. tom. ii. p. 460.
Labat tells us that “_Le roi a fait revivre par sa Declaration la
loi Romaine, qui veut que les enfans suivens le sort du ventre qui
les a portez_,” and this revival took place in 1674, when the king
took the islands from the Companies which had held them during his
pleasure.—Nouveau Voyage &c. tom. ii. p. 192.
[200] The majority of the clergy of Pernambuco, both regular and
secular, are of Brazilian parentage. The governor is an European, and
so are the major part of the chief officers, civil, military, and
ecclesiastical; but the bishop is a Brazilian, and so is the _ouvidor_.
[201] Our wicked stage coach and post chaise system.
[202] The term of _Senhor_ or _Senhora_ is made use of to all free
persons, whites, mulattos, and blacks, and in speaking to a freeman
of whatever class or colour the manner of address is the same. Dr.
Pinckard says, in his “Notes on the West Indies,” “the title of Mrs.
seems to be reserved solely for the ladies from Europe, and the white
Creoles, and to form a distinction between them and the women of colour
of all classes and descriptions.”
[203] I refer the reader to Edwards’ History of the West Indies, vol.
ii.
[204] “_Era, porem ja nam he._”
[205] “_Pois Senhor Capitam-mor pode ser mulatto?_”
[206] To this statement some explanation is necessary, owing to
the regulations of the Portugueze military service. Privates are
sometimes raised to commissions by the intermediate steps of corporals,
quarter-masters, and sergeants; these men gain their ensigncies without
any relation to their birth; and though a decidedly dark coloured
mulatto might not be so raised, a European of low birth would. It is to
enable a man to become a cadet and then an officer without serving in
the ranks, that requires nobility of birth.
[207] The son of this man is a priest.
[208] “_Negro sim, porem direito._”
[209] Manumitted creole blacks are, I am nearly certain, admitted into
these regiments.
[210] There was a rumour of the appointment of a white man as colonel
of this regiment, and also of a white colonel for the Recife mulatto
regiment; and I was asked by several individuals of these casts whether
there was any truth in the report. I cannot believe any thing of this
kind; the liberal policy which seems to pervade the Council of Rio de
Janeiro forbids that such a report should be believed; but if this
should be true, most pernicious will be the consequences, which from
such a determination may be expected to proceed.
[211] The priests of the island of St. Thomé, upon the coast of
Africa, are negroes. I have seen some of these men at Recife, who have
come over for a short time. I have heard that they are prohibited
from saying Mass any where excepting upon the island for which they
are ordained; but I can scarcely think that this can be correct.
In the _Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais en Guinée, isles voisines
et a Cayenne_, I find that men of mixed blood were ordained in the
islands of St. Thomé and Principe, and the editor of the work says,
“_presque tout le clergé de la cathedrale_ (of St. Thome) _étoit de
cette couleur_.” Vol. iii. p. 4. “_L’Eglise de S. Antoine qui est la
Paroisse_ (of Prince’s Island) _est déservie par des prêtres noirs ou
presque noirs, c’est à dire mulâtres_.” p. 30.
I have, as is stated in the text, heard from good authority, that the
law forbids the ordination of mulattos; what the practice is I am quite
certain, and I hope the law may be favourable also.
[212] This word is without doubt derived from _Egypçianos_; I am told
that the word _gitanos_ is also used as a name for these people.
[213] A Portugueze writer says, “When permission was given in Portugal
to work upon several of the holidays, the same was not extended to
Brazil from a principle of humanity, that the slaves might not be
deprived of any of their days of rest.”—Correio Braziliense, for
December, 1815, p. 738.
[214] In the island of Grenada “every manumission is by an act of the
island, charged with a fine of one hundred pounds currency;” it is
said that this law has neither operated as a productive fund nor as a
prohibition.—Edwards’ History of the West-Indies, vol. i. p. 380.
At Surinam, says another writer, “_Si un maître voulait affranchir son
esclave, outre la perte qu’il fesait de son negre, il étoit encore
obligé d’acheter fort cher des lettres de franchise, sans lesquelles
aucun noir ne pouvait être instruit dans la religion Chrétienne,
ni baptisé_.”—Voyage a la Guiane et a Cayenne en 1789, et années
suivantes, p. 224.
Bolingbroke says, “It is by no means an uncommon thing in these
colonies for negroes when they have accumulated a sufficiency, to
purchase their freedom; and I have known many instances of negroes who
paid their owners a proportion of the purchase-money, and were allowed
after emancipation to workout the balance.”—Voyage to the Demerary,
&c. p. 65.
I give this statement, and should be happy to transcribe any other,
with which I might meet in the course of reading, of the same tenor;
but it must be recollected that the “Voyage to the Demerary” is
decidedly written in favour of the slave trade and of slavery.
[215] The owner of a sugar plantation, with whose sons I was well
acquainted, possessed a slave, who had the management of the sugar
boiling house during crop time, and who was accounted by all who knew
him and understood the business, to be a most excellent workman.—This
man accumulated a sum of money, which he offered to his master for his
freedom, but it was not accepted; and although the slave made great
interest with persons of consideration in the country, he could not
accomplish his end. His master loaded him with irons, and he was made
to work in this state. He did not obtain his liberty till after his
master’s death, when the widow received his money, and manumitted him.
His trade of sugar-boiler renders him large profits yearly, and this
injured man now lives in ease and comfort. This instance of refusal,
and some others of which I have heard, would make me doubtful of the
foundation upon which the custom of manumitting is placed, if I did not
know how easily the laws relating to many other important points are
evaded through the influence of wealth and power. I did not see a copy
of the law or regulation on the subject, but I never met with any one
who made a doubt of its existence. I never met with any one who doubted
that the slave had a right to appeal, if he thought proper; whether he
would be heard or not was another question.
[216] The major part of the slaves that abscond, are brought back to
their owners, but some do escape, and are never afterwards heard of.
They remove to some distant district and there reside as free men.
Those who have once tasted of the sweets of free agency, for any length
of time, even if they are brought back to their masters, scarcely ever
remain longer than is requisite to seek an opportunity of eluding the
vigilance of those whose business it is to watch them; they soon brave
the risk of another detection. A young and handsome mulatto man of
these unsettled habits once applied to me to purchase him. He had by
mere accident been discovered only a short time before, by a friend of
his master in the Sertam, where he had married a free woman, and had
been considered as free himself. He was brought back to his master, was
sold to another person, escaped, returned, and again fled, and had not,
when I left the country, been heard of for a twelvemonth.
[217] The following circumstances occurred under my own observation:—A
negress had brought into the world ten children, and had reared nine of
them. These remained to work for their owners; the woman claimed her
freedom, for the tenth child did not die until it had arrived at an age
when it did not require any farther care from her; but it was refused.
She was hired to a gentleman as a nurse for one of his children. This
person did all in his power to obtain her freedom, but did not succeed;
he purchased her, and immediately had a deed of manumission made out by
a notary-public. When he returned home to dinner, he desired his wife
to tell the woman that she was his slave, and in the course of the day
the deed was given to her. When I left the country, her only fear was,
that as she was free, her master and mistress might turn her away; thus
proving, by her anxiety, how happy she was.
[218] Du Tertre says, speaking of negro baptismal festivals—“_les
parrains et les marraines qui sont ordinairement de François
amis de leurs maitres, ne laissent pas de contribuer à la bonne
chere_.”—Histoire des Antilles, tom. ii. p. 528.
Fellow slaves, or free persons of colour, are usually the sponsors
in Brazil; but it is better, I think, that fellow-slaves, that is,
belonging to the same master, should be sponsors, for they take a
considerable interest in their god-children. The god-child, indeed,
in any of the ranks of life, never approaches either of its sponsors
without begging for their blessing. Labat, in speaking of a negro
whom he had made _renoncer tous ses pactes implicites et explicites
qu’il pouvoit avoir fait avec le diable_, says,—“_Je chargeai sont
maitre, qui étoit aussi son parrain de vieller soigneusement sur sa
conduite_.”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. ii. p.54.
I never heard of the master in Brazil being likewise the god-father,
nor do I think that this ever happens; for such is the connection
between two persons which this is supposed to produce, that the master
would never think of ordering the slave to be chastised.
[219] The same occurs in the Spanish and French colonies. Du Tertre,
who seems from the general tenor of his work, to have been a much
better man than friars usually are, speaks of the difficulty of
converting the Caribs, and of their indifference to religion, and
then adds, “_Mais les négres sont certainement touchez de Dieu, puis
qu’ils conservent, jusqu’à la mort, la religion qu’ils ont embrassée;
qu’ils en pratiquent les vertus et en exercent les œuvres, et je puis
dire avec verité qu’ils y vivent bien plus Chrestiennement dans leur
condition, que beaucoup de François_.”—Histoire des Antilles, tom. ii.
p. 502.
[220] Labat says that the inhabitants of St. Domingo were in the habit
of marking the negroes which they bought by burning the skin, and he
adds, in his Dominican way, “_De sorte qu’un esclave qui auroit été
vendu et revendu plusieurs fois paroîtroit à la fin aussi chargé de
caracters, que ces obelisques d’Egypt_.” This was not practised, as he
tells us, in the islands (Martinique and Guadaloupe) and he adds that
their negroes, and principally the creole slaves _seroient au desespoir
qu’on les marquât comme on fait les bœufs et les chevaux_. The small
islands did not require this practice, but St. Domingo _un pais aussi
vaste_, could not do without it, because the slaves ran away to the
mountains.—Nouveau Voyage, &c., tom. vii. p. 260.
The St. Domingo planters have paid severely for all their misdeeds,
and therefore of them nothing need to be said in the present day. The
vastness, however, of Brazil, which is a little more _vaste_ than St.
Domingo, does not require that the slaves should be marked like cattle.
[221] Edwards’ History of the West-Indies, vol. ii. p. 82, and 147.
[222] The base, the most abominable practice of some masters and
mistresses, _and of the latter oftener than the former_, increases the
bias which these miserable, these uneducated beings must be expected to
have towards licentiousness. Females have been punished because they
have not increased the number of their owners’ slaves. This is a fact;
but it is almost too much to believe. On which side does the extreme of
depravity lie?
[223] The following circumstances occurred within my own observation.
A negro woman applied to a planter to be purchased, for which purpose
she had brought a note from her master. She was accepted, and a bargain
was concluded between the two persons; however, the day after she had
taken up her abode upon the estate of her new master, she came to him,
and falling down upon her knees, said that she had had a fellow-slave
who wished likewise to serve him, and she begged him to purchase her
companion. The new master spoke to the owner of the slave in question
on the subject, but he refused to sell him, and the matter rested in
this manner; but on the third day, he received a visit from the owner,
offering the slave for sale, adding that the man had refused to work,
and had threatened to hang himself; and as he was a _Gabam_ negro, he
much feared that he might put his threat in execution. The price was
soon fixed, and on the following morning the man made his appearance.
He proved to be a most excellent slave.
[224] The following occurrences took place upon the estate of a wealthy
planter to the South of Recife, and the anecdote was related by the
owner of the plantation himself. A negro complained to his master of
the infidelity of his wife; she was immediately questioned; and other
enquiries being made, and the truth of the statement respecting her
conduct being proved, she was tied to a post to be flogged. Her husband
was present, and at first he rather received pleasure from the sight
of her sufferings; but he soon stopped the driver’s hand, and going to
his master, begged him to order her to be unbound, and that he would
pardon her, for he added, “If there are to be so many men, and so small
a number of women upon the estate, how is it to be expected that the
latter are to be faithful.” “_Para que Senhor tem tantos negros et tam
poucas negras._”
[225] The ships which are employed in this trade oftentimes fill some
of their water casks with salt water, when they leave Brazil, that they
may serve as ballast; and on taking their live cargo on board upon
the coast of Africa, the salt water is replaced by that which is for
the use of the additional number of persons. On one occasion a vessel
had proceeded for some days on her voyage from Africa towards Brazil
with a full cargo, when the discovery was made that the casks had not
been filled with fresh water. The coast of either continent was too
distant to enable the vessel to reach one or the other, before the
greatest distress must be experienced, and therefore a most shocking
expedient was resorted to,—a great number of the negroes were thrown
overboard. This misfortune was accidental and occurred unintentionally,
and a man must have been in a similar situation before he can declare
that he would not act as the Portugueze did on this occasion; but the
circumstances arose from the nature of this execrable trade.
[226] I was present on one occasion at the purchase of some slaves.
The person who was chusing those which suited his purpose, singled
out among others a handsome woman, and a beautiful boy of about six
years old. The woman had been a slave at Loanda upon the coast of
Africa, and she spoke a little Portugueze. Whilst the selection was
going on, the slave-dealer had happened to leave the room; but after
it was concluded he returned, and seeing the persons who had been
set apart to be purchased, said, he was sorry the woman and child
could not be sold, for they formed part of a lot which could not be
separated. The purchaser enquired the reason of the formation of a lot
in this instance, and was answered that it consisted of a family, the
husband, wife, and three children. The dealer was then requested to
point out the individuals which composed it, and they were all bought
together. How few slave-merchants would have acted in this manner!
The whole family was present during the greatest part of the time,
but there was no change of countenance in either the husband or the
wife,—both of them understood the Portugueze language; the children
were almost too young to know what was about to happen, and besides we
spoke in a language which _they_ did not understand. That their parents
did feel deeply the separation which they must have apprehended as
being upon the point of taking place, I have not the slightest doubt,
because I frequently saw these slaves afterwards, and knew how much
they were attached to each other and to their children. But whether
it proceeded from resignation, from despair, from fear, or from being
ashamed to shew what they felt before so many strangers, there was no
demonstration of feeling. Negroes may have feelings, and yet not allow
the standers-by to know what they feel.
[227] An instance occurred at Liverpool of the attachment of some of
these people to their master. At the commencement of the direct trade
from Brazil to Great Britain, some small vessels came to Liverpool
manned in part with slaves, owing to their masters being ignorant that
their arrival upon British ground would make them free. However the
men themselves were soon made acquainted with this circumstance, and
many of them availed themselves of the advantages which were to be thus
obtained. One of the men belonging to a small bark left his vessel,
and having entered himself as a seaman on board some other ship,
returned to persuade three of his companions to do the same; but he
was answered, that they were well treated where they were, had always
been used kindly, and therefore had no wish to try any other way of
life. These three men returned to Brazil in the bark, and I have heard
that they were set at liberty by their master on their arrival there.
I hope it was so. When the advocates of slavery relate such stories as
these, they give them as tending to prove that slaves in general are
happy. Anecdotes of this kind demonstrate individual goodness in the
master and individual gratitude in the slave, but they prove nothing
generally; they do not affect the great question; _that_ is rested upon
grounds which are too deeply fixed to be moved by single instances of
evil or of good.
[228] Mr. Edwards mentions some of the Gold coast negroes, or those of
the adjacent countries, and gives as an instance the _chamba_ negroes,
who follow this custom.
[229] Whilst I resided at Jaguaribe, I heard that two negroes of this
nation had murdered a child of three or four years of age, the son or
daughter of their master, and that they had been caught in the act
of preparing to cook part of the body. The men were carried down to
Recife, but the person who informed me of these circumstances did not
know what punishment had been inflicted upon them.
[230] I merely state what is the general idea upon the subject in that
country, without giving an opinion upon the general question.—Mr.
Edwards says that it is a disease and not a habit.—History of the
West-Indies, vol. ii. p. 141.
Labat is of opinion, that it is a habit and not a disease.—Nouveau
Voyage &c. tom. ii. p. 11.
[231] There was one in 1814, and another in February of the present
year, 1816.
[232] Edwards’ History of the West-Indies, vol. ii. p. 64.
[233] The negroes who are obtained in the province of Senegambia,
“are known to the West-Indian planters by the general name of
_Mandingoes_.”—History of the West-Indies, vol. ii. p. 50.
“There is a sort of people who travel about in the country, called
Mandingo-men; (these are Mahommedans) they do not like to work; they go
from place to place; and when they find any chiefs or people whom they
think they can make any thing of, they take up their abode for a time
with them, and make _greegrees_, and sometimes cast sand from them, for
which they make them pay.”—Correspondence of Mr. John Kizell in the
Sixth Report of the Directors of the African Institution, p. 136.
[234] Mr. Edwards says, “In Jamaica the negroes are allowed one day in
a fortnight, except in time of crop, besides Sundays and holidays, for
cultivating their grounds, and carrying their provisions to market.”
The Protestant church enjoins the observance of three or four holidays,
and the Catholic church of above thirty.
Du Tertre says that the custom of giving a certain portion of time to
the slave for the purpose of providing for his own maintenance, was
introduced into the Columbian islands by “_les Holandois chassez du
Recif_,” and he adds that they “_gouvernent leurs esclaves à la façon
du Bresil_.”—Histoire des Antilles, vol. ii. p. 515.
[235] One of these old men, who was yet however sufficiently hearty to
be often in a state of intoxication, and would walk to a considerable
distance to obtain liquor, made a practice of coming to see me for
this purpose. He would tell me, that he and his companions were not
slaves to the monks but to St. Bento himself, and that consequently,
the monks were only the representatives of their master for the due
administration of the Saint’s property in this world. I enquired of
some others of the slaves, and found that this was the general opinion
among them.
[236] An old slave, who had been invariably well treated, for he had
never deserved punishment, was asked by his master if he wished to be
free; he smiled, but said nothing; the question being repeated, he
answered that of course he wished to be free; the master then told him
that his deed of manumission should be drawn out that same day; upon
this being said, the slave shook his head, saying, “Why do you say
such things to laugh at your old black man.” However, as soon as he
was persuaded that it was true, he began to dance about like one who
was mad, and for some minutes could answer no questions, nor could any
directions be given to him.
[237] The Saturday of each week is not sufficient for the slave to
provide for his own subsistence, unless the labour of his master, is
done by task work, in which case, he may manage to finish this in due
time, and to work a little each day upon his own provision grounds. He
may indeed be able to live, by assisting the Saturdays, through the
labour of his Sundays and holidays, even if the labour of his master is
not done by piece-work; but this is not just, for to the Sundays and
holidays he has a right as his own, even if his master supports him;
but slavery and justice seldom go hand in hand.
[238] A planter with whom I was acquainted, was once seen by a person
who happened to call upon him, occupied with three of his companions
in flogging four negroes; the men were tied at a short distance from
each other to four posts, and as the operation continued, there was
much laughing and joking, for as they lashed their miserable victims,
they cried out,—“Here is to the health of such and such a person.” It
is some comfort to be able to say, that this wretch has been ruined;
but his ruin has been caused by his treatment of his slaves, which has
occasioned the death of some, and the escape of others from his power
in a less melancholy manner.
Another man, on ordering a slave to work in the sugar-mill, was
answered, that he was sick and could not go, but the master persisted.
The negro went, saying, “you will then kill your slave;” and vexed
with the treatment which he received now, and had suffered on other
occasions, he placed his head near to one of the wheels, (for it was a
water-mill) by which it was severed from his body. I could mention many
anecdotes of this description, indicative of individual blackness of
heart, such as have been related of all nations who have had to do with
slaves; but few will suffice. Neither of the stories which are above
related, occurred in the great and pre-eminent instance of depravity of
which the scene was the Mata, and which has been mentioned in a former
part of this work; in that case 55 slaves were consumed in less than
fifteen years.
[239] Might not an act be passed for the British Colonies, obliging the
master to manumit his slave, on the fair value of the individual being
tendered? However, this is not a place for discussion.
[240] I met with the following passage in a work of much reputation
upon the affairs of the British sugar islands. “The circumstance
wherein the slaves in the West Indies seem mostly indebted to their
owners’ liberality are, I think, those of medical attendance and
accommodation when sick.” Would not a man take his horse to a farrier
if any thing ailed him?
[241] Horses are usually marked upon the right haunch with the private
mark of their owners; but the beasts which have been bred by slaves
are marked on the left haunch or on the shoulder-blade. This proves,
among many other corroborating circumstances, that though the law may
prohibit a slave from possessing property, custom has established a
practice which is better adapted to the present state of the country.
[242] The plan of distributing the new-comers among the old established
negroes to be taken care of by them, as is practised in Jamaica,
has not been adopted in Brazil. I think the effect of this must be
good, for thus each established slave takes an interest in one of his
newly-arrived companions; the new slaves too may be sooner reconciled
to their situation, by the interest which is shewn in their behalf; and
their wants may be made known to the master with more ease. The law
which was passed at Rio de Janeiro in 1809 (mentioned in chapter 16th)
for preventing executions for debt upon the property of sugar planters,
may have one beneficial effect;—the slaves cannot, unless the master
pleases, be sold separately from the estate for the purpose of paying
debts; the master cannot be forced to dispose of them, unless the debt
amounts to the value of the estate; and thus the slave is advanced in
some slight degree towards the condition of a serf.
[243] _Bicho_, means an animal, in the common acceptation of the word;
but the insect which is commonly, in other countries, called the
_chigua_, is known at Pernambuco, _only_ under the name of _bicho_.
[244] Dr. Pinckard, in his “Notes on the West-Indies” mentions that
mercury was used for the complaint at Berbice, with very little
success. Mr. Edwards doubts “if medicine of any kind is of use in
this disease.” This writer likewise states that he had heard of the
Gold Coast negroes inoculating their children with the complaint, and
also the notion which they have of the disease getting into the bone.
Bolingbroke says, “No effectual cure has, I believe, ever been found
for it. Salivation will drive it in, but sulphur and other opening
medicines are now preferred to induce its coming out;” and again “There
are black women who inoculate their children for this disorder; its
violence is thereby lessened.”—Voyage to the Demerary, &c. p. 54.
In the “_Voyage à la Guiane et à Cayenne fait en 1789 et anneés
suivantes_,” I find that speaking of the same disorder, “_on la
gagne trés-aisement avec les Indiennes qui en sont presque toutes
attaquées_.” It is supposed by Mr. Edwards to be brought from Africa,
and the same idea exists in Brazil; indeed it is less known among the
Indians than among the people of colour.
[245] A small proprietor in Brazil is a man who possesses from two to
ten slaves. A large proprietor upon an average, in the part of the
country of which I may speak, possesses from twenty to sixty slaves.
[246] A slave belonging to a colonel of militia, who was a planter of
great wealth, was in the frequent practice of concealing himself in the
woods for some days at a time; on being brought back, he was punished,
and soon again ran away; and this behaviour continued for some time.
In one of his rambles he met his master, who was riding alone in one
of the narrow roads of the country. The slave placed himself in the
middle of the path, and taking off his hat, saluted his master as if he
had been only slightly acquainted with him, and addressed him, begging
that he would give him some money. The colonel was much alarmed, and
granted his request, upon which he was suffered to proceed, but was
admonished to be silent upon the subject. The slave was soon taken; but
he continued to run away, to be brought home, to be punished, and again
to go through the same proceeding so frequently and for so many years,
that at last his master allowed him to do as he pleased; indeed he was
somewhat afraid of a second meeting in the woods, when he might not
perhaps be treated so courteously. He as obstinately refused to sell
the negro as the negro objected to serving him; because he knew that
the slave wished to be sold to some one else, and from a notion which
some of the planters entertain of not choosing to dispose of any person
whom they have owned, unless by manumission.
[247] There was a boy of twelve years of age, of African birth, who
belonged to Jaguaribe; this child often inhabited the woods for several
days together. He killed a calf on one occasion, and separated the
quarters of the animal by means of a sharp stone. He was discovered by
the dropping of the blood, from the field to the hiding-place. As soon
as the owner of the calf found the boy, he wished, of course, to take
him to his master; but the boy laid himself down upon the ground and
refused to stir. The man bound him to a tree, and went home to fetch a
horse, upon which he placed the boy and tied him there; he walked after
him to Jaguaribe, driving the horse on before. The boy was punished;
but a few hours after he had been flogged, he said to one of his
companions, “Well, at least I have had the honour of being attended by
a _pagem_,” or page, the usual word for a groom. This happened under a
former tenant of Jaguaribe.
A short time before I left that plantation, the same boy fled with
another of nearly the same age, both of them being about fourteen
years of age. They had been absent some days, when late one evening an
Indian labourer brought them both home. The children had thrown off all
cloathing, and had made bows and arrows suited to their own size, with
which they were to kill poultry, rats, &c. as food. Their appearance
was most laughable, but it was distressing; it was soon known that they
were found, and many of their companions and other inhabitants of the
plantation assembled to see and to laugh at these terrible _negros do
mato_, or _bush_ negroes. The boys had been well treated by me, and
therefore the propensity to continue in practices which had commenced
under severe usage could be their only inducement to prefer the woods
now.
[248] One of the men who was in my possession used to say, on being
tasked with any theft, “to steal from master is not to steal.” “_Furtar
de Senhor nam he furtar._”
[249] Strange notions exist on this subject. Several nostrums are in
repute for the curing of this habit; but that of which the fame stands
the highest, is, earth that is taken from a grave dissolved in water
and given to the negro without his knowing what he is taking.
[250] The _Investigador Portuguez_ and the _Correio Braziliense_, two
Portugueze journals published in London, have arranged themselves on
the side of justice, humanity, and sound policy. The former of them
has been translating Dr. Thorpe’s pamphlet respecting the colony of
Sierra Leone, and has given portions of it in each number. I hope
the editors will be aware of the necessity of fair play, and will
next proceed to translate “The Special Report of the Directors of the
African Institution” in answer to the charges preferred against them
by Dr. Thorpe. I know no more of the matter to which either of the
pamphlets relate than what I have gathered from them, and from Mr.
Macauley’s letter to H. R. H. the Duke of Gloucester. But let there
be fair play, let each side be heard and judged. This is due to the
African Institution, owing to the until now unimpeached characters of
its leading members. By so doing the editors of the journal would prove
most decidedly their sincerity in the cause of abolition.
[251] The cry against the injustice and tyranny which is said to
have been exercised by Great Britain in the employment of her naval
superiority, has been removed at least on this score; for a sum of
money was agreed to be paid by Great Britain to the government of
Brazil for the purpose of reimbursing those of its subjects whom it
might judge to have been unjustly treated.
The captures, of which complaint was principally made, were effected
under the impression that all ships which bore the Portugueze flag,
trading to the coast of Africa for slaves, ought to be of Portugueze
build. This was a mistake arising from misunderstanding the treaties
which were concluded between the two Powers in 1810.
[252] _Observacoens sobre a prosperidade do Estado pelos principios
liberaes da Nova Legislacam do Brazil_, _p._ 16.
[253] _Correio Braziliense_ for December 1815, p. 735.
[254] _Investigador Portuguez_ for June 1816, p. 496.
[255] I met with the following passage in a work of high and deserved
reputation. “The Romans, notwithstanding their prodigious losses
in the incessant wars which they carried on for centuries, never
experienced any want of men in the early periods of the commonwealth;
but were even able to send colonies abroad out of their redundant
population. Afterwards, in the time of the Emperors, when the armies
were generally kept in camps and garrisons, where a soldier is perhaps
the healthiest of all professions, the Roman population in Italy had
greatly diminished, and was visibly declining every day, owing to a
change in the division of property, and to the pernicious and monstrous
increase of domestic slavery, which had left the poorer class of free
citizens without any means of subsistence, but public charity.”—Essay
on the Military Policy and Institutions of the British Empire, by C. W.
Pasley, Captain (now Colonel) in the corps of Royal Engineers. Note to
p. 505.
In the work in which the note appears, it is introduced for the purpose
of proving, that “the total average population in any country can never
be affected by the annual number of deaths, but depends solely and
exclusively upon the means of subsistence afforded to the living.” I
have transcribed it inasmuch as the author of it states, that domestic
slavery was one of the causes of the decrease of population in Italy;
and though the pernicious effects of slavery do not act to the same
extent in Brazil, it does undoubtedly prevent the rapid increase of
the numbers of the people of colour; and if the trade in Africans
continues much longer, it will tend to stop the increase altogether of
the persons of mixed blood. That the increase of the free population of
colour ought to be encouraged, no one will deny; they are the pillars
of the state, the bulwark from the strength of which Brazil becomes
invincible.
[256] I am aware that this is not the case with all nations; but
although it may not be correct when speaking generally, its application
to the people of whom I am treating, will not, I think, be found to be
erroneous.
[257] If the _camara_ or municipality of each township held the rank
which it ought, this alone would produce much zeal in the higher ranks
of people.
[258] _Observaçoens sobre o commercio franco no Brazil_, p. 80.
[259] Antonio de Araujo de Azevedo, Minister and Secretary of State
for Naval and Ultramarine Affairs. He has lately been created Conde
da Barca. It was formerly said that he was a French partizan; but he
is a true patriot, who opposes the entrance of the undue influence of
any foreign power into the affairs of the government of which he is a
member.
[260] These arguments savour somewhat of peevishness; let these plain
questions be asked. Does Great Britain interfere in the police of
Brazil? Would Great Britain take the trouble of negotiating respecting
any regulations which Brazil might enact for the better preserving
of internal good order, and for providing with more ease for the
apprehension of improper persons? The truth is that Brazil does not
require any thing of the kind, and Great Britain does, consequently
each Power acts according to its situation.
[261] The Alien Bill has given offence. Does not all the world
know that it was passed for the purpose of preventing the entrance
into Great Britain of those unquiet spirits who have desolated the
Continent of Europe for so many years; and some of whom aided in
burning the towns and villages of Portugal? Would Great Britain change
her plan of operations for any one Power on earth, or even for all
of them combined? Each government must act as suits its own peculiar
circumstances.
[262] Must not Great Britain build ships because Brazil will not? Why
does not Brazil form a navy?
[263] I do not know how far good policy directs that preference should
be given to the Portugal wines over those of other parts; but it is
rather hard that the people of Great Britain should be obliged to drink
the wines of Portugal, when others of a superior flavour might be
obtained, if restrictions did not exist against their consumption.
[264] The privileges which British subjects have long enjoyed in the
dominions of the crown of Portugal are considerable. I give as concise
an account of them as I possibly can. “D. Joam by the grace of God
Prince Regent of Portugal, &c. To all my _Corregedores_, &c. be it
known, that Joam Bevan declares himself to be a merchant, resident in
this city (Lisbon, I suppose,) and a subject of his Britannic Majesty,
and therefore competent to enjoy all the privileges and immunities
which have been conceded to British subjects, &c. The merchants of
that nation may freely trade, contract, buy and sell in all these
kingdoms and lordships, &c. and where a doubt arises concerning any
business with them, this shall be construed rather with a bias in their
favour than against them(1). British subjects can only be arrested
and confined in their own houses, according to their rank in life, or
in the castle of St. Jorge; and these arrests cannot be carried into
executions by bailiffs (_homems de vara_) but only by the _alcaide_(2).
They are exempted from the payment of certain duties upon those
articles which they can prove to be for the use of their own families.
They cannot be obliged to give up their houses or warehouses against
their consent(3). They cannot be obliged to serve as guardians, and
they are exempted from certain imposts. They may carry offensive and
defensive arms, by day and by night with or without a light, taking
care not to do with them what they ought not to do.”
Then follow the penalties to which those officers will be subjected who
do not pay a due regard to these privileges.
The clerks and servants of Englishmen enjoy the same privileges to the
number of six, provided they are not Spaniards.
British subjects cannot be arrested, nor can their houses be searched
without an order from their judge-conservator. Then follow some
regulations by which their law proceedings may be rendered as easy as
possible. They are not subject to the jurisdiction of the _Juiz de
Orfaons & Auzentes_(4).
The copy of the privileges from which the above has been extracted is
passed in the name of John Bevan. I obtained it at Pernambuco as a
curiosity. If the state of government in Brazil is considered, these
privileges are absolutely necessary for the prevention of oppression;
and even the privilege of wearing arms is not more than is requisite,
because although the laws which prohibit Portugueze subjects from
carrying arms ordain severe penalties, still scarcely any man in Brazil
leaves his own home without some species of weapon; and the crime which
is committed in so doing is too general to be punished.
(1) _Mais em seu favor do que em odio._—What occasion is there for
this? Impartiality is what is required.
(2) An officer of a rank somewhat superior.
(3) An officer of government can turn an unprivileged man out of his
house by placing the letters P. R. upon his door.
(4) The officer into whose hands the property of orphans falls, and
of those persons who die without heirs resident upon the spot. It is
difficult to reclaim what has found its way into this office.
[265] Du Tertre, in speaking of a species of _Karatas_, which is to
be found in the islands, “_dans des deserts pierreux, où il ne se
trouve guere d’eau douce_,” says “_les paysans travaillez de la soif y
courent, parce que ces feüilles sont tellement disposés, qu’elles se
ferment en bas comme un verre, où on trouve quelquefois une pinte d’eau
fraische, claire et trés saine, et cela a sauvé la vie à plusieurs qui
sans cela seroient morts de soif_.”—Histoire des Antilles, tom. ii. p.
100.
I heard this mentioned frequently whilst I was in the Sertam; but at
the time we were in want of water, we were not crossing any of those
lands upon which the plant grows.—_Transl._
[266] Bolingbroke says, that “it is a common thing to feed swine with
pine-apples. My astonishment was increased when our conductor took us
to a large trench fifty rood long, and twelve feet wide, which was
absolutely filled up with pine-apples; they so completely overran the
estate at one time, that he was obliged to root them up for the purpose
of preventing their farther extension.”—Voyage to the Demerary, &c. p.
21.
Neither pigs nor pine-apples are to be found thus by wholesale in
Pernambuco.—_Transl._
Barrere says “_La Pitte, qui est une espéce d’ananas, fournit encore
une filasse d’un bon usage. Le fil en est plus fort et plus fin que la
soye. Les Portugais en font des bas qui ne cedent en rien, dit-on, par
leur bonté et par leur finesse aux bas de soye._”—Nouvelle Relation de
la France Equinoxiale, p. 115.
Old Ligon says “the last and best sort of drinke that this iland or the
world affords, is the incomparable wine of pines; and is certainly the
nectar which the gods drunke; for on earth there is none like it; and
that is made of the pure juyce of the fruit itselfe, without commixture
of water or any other creature, having in itselfe a naturall compound
of all tastes excellent, that the world can yield. This drinke is too
pure to keep long; in three or four dayes it will be fine; ‘tis made
by pressing the fruite, and strayning the liquor, and it is kept in
bottles.”—A true and exact History of the Iland of Barbadoes, 1657.
[267] Du Tertre speaks of a species of _Karatas_, which agrees, from
his description, with this in the height of the stalk, the shape
of the leaves, and the colour of the flowers; which he says are
_estroileés_—_Transl._ He adds, “_Avant que les boutons de ces fleurs
soient ouverts ils sont remplis d’un fort beau et bon cotton, dont
l’on se peut servir utilement: apres que l’on a fait boüillir les
füeilles l’on en tire du fil dont l’on se sert en plusieurs endroits
de l’Amerique, non seulement à faire des toilles, mais encore à faire
des licts pendans. La racine et les füeilles de cette plante broyées
et lavées dans une riviere, jettent un suc qui estourdit si fort le
poisson, qu’il se laisse prendre à la main: ce grand tronc qui est tout
spongieux estant seché, brulle comme une méche ensouffrée, et froté
rudement, avec une bois plus dur, s’enflame et se consume._”—Histoire
des Antilles, tom. ii. p. 106.
Labat gives the same account, and adds that persons who are in the
habit of smoking “_ne manquent jamais d’avoir sur eux leur provision de
tol_.”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. 6. p. 142.
“_Le caratas dont j’ai parlé dans un autre endroit est bien meilleur
que la Savonette pour blanchir le linge. On prend la füeille et aprés
en avoir ôté les piquans, on la bat et l’écrase entre deux pierres
et on frote le linge avec l’eau. Elle produit le même effet que le
mielleur savon, elle fait une mousse ou écume épaisse, blanche, qui
decrasse, nettoye et blanchit parfaitement le linge, sans le rougir ou
le brûler en aucune facon._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. vii. p. 385.
[268] At Pillar, upon the island of Itamaraca, the persons who are in
the habit of preparing the _cairo_, dig holes in the sands below high
water mark, and bury the rind of the coco for several days before they
beat it. I suppose this method is resorted to, owing to the want of a
running stream in which to steep the rind.—_Transl._
[269] There are some breaks, but they are not extensive, as far as I am
acquainted with the country.—_Transl._
[270] In Wildenow this plant is so arranged.—_T._
[271] “The inhabitants of the plains of Iguaraçu make use of it to
fasten together the rushes from which they make the mats that are used
for pack-saddles.”—_Discurso sobre a Utilidade da Instituicam de
Jardims, &c._
Padre Ignacio de Almeida Fortuna told me, that he had had a pair of
stockings made from the fibre of the _Macaiba_. I brought some of the
fibre to England; it is extremely strong and fine. I think Dr. Arruda
may perhaps have been rather hasty in ranking it with the _tucum_, in
the difficulty of obtaining it. At Itapissuma, near to Itamaraca, a
great quantity of thread is manufactured for fishing-nets, &c. and it
has at that place a fixed price.—_Transl._
“Referring the meeting to what was communicated in the last annual
Report on the subject of a species of hemp, manufactured from the
leaves of a particular kind of palm which abounds in Sierra Leone
and its neighbourhood, the directors have now to add, that one of
their Board, Mr. Allen, has lately subjected a small quantity of
cord, manufactured from this substance, to experiments calculated to
ascertain its strength, as compared with the same length and weight of
common hempen cord. The result has been very satisfactory.” In five
trials, the average is as follows “hempen cord 43_lbs._ 3-fifths.
African cord 53_lbs._ 2-fifths, being a difference in favour of the
African cord of 10_lbs._ in 43_lbs._”—Fourth Report of the Directors
of the African Institution, p. 15.
[272] I have often in the course of this volume spoken of the
_jangadas_.—_Transl._
[273] The seeds have a strong aromatic smell, and the taste is very
pleasant.—_Transl._
[274] In the neighbourhood of Goiana I saw a large piece of land
completely covered with the common _maracuja_; the owner of the ground
complained to me of the trouble which he should have in getting rid of
the plant when he should wish to cultivate the land.—_Transl._
[275] Excepting in times of famine, the food which may be thus obtained
causes too much destruction to allow of its becoming general, and even
if it should for a time afford subsistence to the people, this cannot
last long, for the trees will soon be destroyed. The quantity of food
which each tree yields is too small, the growth of the trees too slow,
and the space which each plant occupies too considerable ever to render
the cabbage of the palms a permanent staple food of any country.
Dr. Arruda has not spoken of the _dendezeiro_ or _dende_ tree, which,
next to the coco tree, is the palm which is of the most service to the
Pernambucans. An oil of good quality is made from the nut, and is sold
in Recife as a culinary ingredient, being more generally used than the
coco oil. The fruit resembles much that of the _coco naia_, according
to Arruda’s description of the latter.
Labat, who has a propensity to call in question the opinions of others,
in speaking of the tree which he calls _palmier franc ou dattier_,
says, “_On prétend que cet arbre est mâle et femelle, &c. Je suis fâché
de ne pouvoir pas souscrire au sentiment des naturalistes, mais j’en
suis empêché par une expérience que j’ai trés-sûre, opposée directement
à leur sentiment, qui dément absolument ce que je viens de rapporter
sur leur bonne foi; car nous avions un dattier à côté de notre couvent
du Moüillage à la Martinique, qui rapportoit du fruit quoiqu’il fut
tout seul. Qu’il fut mâle ou femelle, je n’en sçai rien, mais ce que je
sçai trés certainement, c’est que dans le terrain où est le Fort Saint
Pierre et le Moûillage et a plus de deux lieuës à la ronde il n’y avoit
et n’y avoit jamais eu de dattier, &c._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iii.
p. 276.
[276] The _goiaba_ is to be found in all situations in Pernambuco;
there is scarcely a _cercado_ (field) of any sugar plantation which has
not several of these trees scattered about upon it. The _goiaba_ is
never cut down, for the people are fond of it, and the cattle likewise
feed upon it. The _araça_ is another species of the same plant; the
shrub and the fruit of this are smaller than the _goiaba_, and the
inside of the fruit is of a pale yellow colour, instead of a deep
red.—_Transl._
[277] Labat speaks of a species of _canelle bâtarde_, and he adds,
“_On se sert beaucoup en Italie d’une canelle semblable à celle que
je viens de décrire; les Portugais l’apportent du Bresil dans des
paniers de roseaux refendus et à jour; on l’appelle canelle geroflée
(canella garofanata). On la met en poudre avec un peu de gérofle, de
veritable canelle, de poivre et de graines tout-à faite resemblables
à celles de nos bois d’Inde des Isles, et on en fait un debit assez
considérable._”—Nouveau Voyage, &c. tom. iii. p. 92.
[278] In the Philosophical Transactions for 1811 is given, “An Account
of a Vegetable Wax from Brazil,” by William Thomas Brande, Esq. F. R.
S. The work from which I extract part of the account is Nicholson’s
Journal, Vol. xxxi. p. 14.
“The vegetable wax described in this paper was given to the president
by Lord Grenville, with a wish on the part of his Lordship, that its
properties should be investigated, in the hope that it might prove
a useful substitute for bees’ wax, and constitute in due time a new
article of commerce between Brazil and this country. It was transmitted
to Lord Grenville from Rio de Janeiro by the Conde das Galveas(1), as a
new article lately brought to that city(2), from the northernmost parts
of the Brazilian dominions, the _capitanias_ of Rio Grande and Seará,
between the latitude of three and seven degrees north; it is said to
be the production of a tree of slow growth, called by the natives
_carnâùba_, which also produces a gum used as food for men, and another
substance employed for fattening poultry.”
“The wax in its rough state is in the form of a coarse pale grey
powder, soft to the touch, and mixed with various impurities,
consisting chiefly of fibres of the bark of the tree, which when
separated by a sieve amount to about 40 _per cent._ It has an agreeable
odour, somewhat resembling new hay, but scarcely any taste.”
(_Here follow various chemical Experiments which I wish I could
insert, but they are too long._)
“Having been unsuccessful in my attempts to bleach the wax in its
original state, I made some experiments to ascertain whether its colour
could be more easily destroyed, after it had been acted upon by nitric
acid, and found that by exposing it spread upon glass to the action of
light, it became in the course of three weeks of a pale straw colour,
and on the surface nearly white(3). The same change was produced by
steeping the wax, in thin plates, in an aqueous solution of oxymuriatic
gas, but I have not hitherto succeeded in rendering it perfectly white.”
(_Other chemical Experiments follow, which are of considerable
Length._)
“From the preceding detail of experiments, it appears that although the
South American vegetable wax possesses the characteristic properties
of bees’ wax, it differs from that substance in many of its chemical
habitudes; it also differs from the other varieties of wax, namely,
the wax of the myrica cerifera, of lac, and of white lac. The attempts
which have been made to bleach the wax have been conducted on a small
scale; but from the experiments related, it appears that after the
colour has been changed by the action of very dilute nitric acid,
it may be rendered nearly white by the usual means. I have not had
sufficient time to ascertain whether the wax can be more effectually
bleached by long continued exposure, nor have I had an opportunity of
submitting it to the processes employed by the bleachers of bees’ wax.”
“Perhaps the most important part of the present inquiry is that which
relates to the combustion of the vegetable wax, in the form of candles.
The trials which have been made to ascertain its fitness for this
purpose are extremely satisfactory; and when the wick is properly
proportioned to the size of the candle, the combustion is as perfect
and uniform as that of common bees’ wax. The addition of one eighth to
one tenth part of tallow is sufficient to obviate the brittleness of
the wax in its pure state, without giving it any unpleasant smell, or
materially impairing the brilliancy of its flame. A mixture of three
parts of the vegetable wax with one part of bees’ wax, also makes very
excellent candles.”
(1) This nobleman is since dead.
(2) It was sent to Rio de Janeiro by Francisco de Paula Cavalcante de
Albuquerque, Governor of Rio Grande do Norte.
(3) The portion which the Governor of Rio Grande gave to me was in the
form of a cake, which could not be pierced, but was brittle; it was of
a pale straw colour.—_Transl._
[279] “_On l’apporte (the root) en Europe coupeé en rouelles blanches
& assez légéres._”—_Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais a Cayenne, &c._
tom. iii. p. 262.
I brought some of it to England in powder.—_Transl._
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTE:
—Obvious print and punctuation errors were corrected.
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