CHAPTER III.

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 theSenado 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 theOuvidorandJuiz 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 governmentthat 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. TheProcurador da Coroa, attorney-general, is an officer of considerable weight. TheIntendente da Marinha, port admiral, is likewise consulted on matters of first importance; as are also theEscrivam da Fazenda Real, chief of the treasury, and theJuiz da Alfandega, comptroller of the customs. These seven officers form theJunta, 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, andthis 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 320reis per arrobaof 32 lbs. is paid upon the meat at the shambles, which amounts to about twenty-fiveper cent.Fish pays the tenth, and afterwards a fifteenth. Every transfer of immoveable property is subject to a duty of tenper cent.and moveables to fiveper cent.Besides these, there are many other taxes of minor importance. Rum, both for exportation and home consumption, pays a duty of 80reis per canada[20], which is sometimes a fourth of its value, but may be reckoned as from fifteen to twentyper cent.Cotton pays the tenth, and is again taxed at the moment of exportation 600reis per arrobaof 32 lbs. or about 1¼d.perlb. 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 fifteenper cent.upon imports, of which the valuation is left in some measure to the merchant to whom the property belongs. Here, I think, tenper 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 4,000,000reis, or about 1000l.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 ofwhich 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 theRoda 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 areno nuns in the province, though of the establishments calledRecolhimentosor 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 5reiscoin, the smallest in use, and in value the third part of a penny. At the end of a twelvemonth, he counted his 5reispieces, and found that they amounted to 30,000reis, about 8l.6s.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 itsfamiliars, 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 theMadre 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 somewhatcooled. 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 removedfor 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. Arondaor 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 2¾d.perday, 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 farthingperday 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 depreciatedcharacter 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 placeshould 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 tardinessof 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.i057Map of the RouteWe 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 distanceof 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 thecipo; 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 ofcipo cururuis in the highest estimation, from its superior size and strength, and likewise from its great flexibility. Several kinds ofcipoare 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 prosperitythan 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 arecolhimentoor 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 wehad yet seen this day, called Araripe, and entered the inclosed field attached to theengenho, 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 theengenhoof 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, andwill 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 thematutos[30], countrymen, eitherselling 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 aJuiz 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 theOuvidorof 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 theCampinas de Goiana Grandeabout 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. Itbears 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 theOuvidor’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 crossedto the other wing of the building, and paid a visit to theOuvidor, 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 afidalgo, 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 hisfidalgoside might not suffer, desiring Nogueira to say which was hisfidalgoside. 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.i072Crossing 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 aCapitam-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 smalljangadas[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 considerabletrack 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 anotherhalf 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 somemamalucosandmestizos.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 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 theSenado 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 theOuvidorandJuiz 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 governmentthat 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. TheProcurador da Coroa, attorney-general, is an officer of considerable weight. TheIntendente da Marinha, port admiral, is likewise consulted on matters of first importance; as are also theEscrivam da Fazenda Real, chief of the treasury, and theJuiz da Alfandega, comptroller of the customs. These seven officers form theJunta, 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, andthis 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 320reis per arrobaof 32 lbs. is paid upon the meat at the shambles, which amounts to about twenty-fiveper cent.Fish pays the tenth, and afterwards a fifteenth. Every transfer of immoveable property is subject to a duty of tenper cent.and moveables to fiveper cent.Besides these, there are many other taxes of minor importance. Rum, both for exportation and home consumption, pays a duty of 80reis per canada[20], which is sometimes a fourth of its value, but may be reckoned as from fifteen to twentyper cent.Cotton pays the tenth, and is again taxed at the moment of exportation 600reis per arrobaof 32 lbs. or about 1¼d.perlb. 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 fifteenper cent.upon imports, of which the valuation is left in some measure to the merchant to whom the property belongs. Here, I think, tenper 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 4,000,000reis, or about 1000l.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 ofwhich 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 theRoda 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 areno nuns in the province, though of the establishments calledRecolhimentosor 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 5reiscoin, the smallest in use, and in value the third part of a penny. At the end of a twelvemonth, he counted his 5reispieces, and found that they amounted to 30,000reis, about 8l.6s.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 itsfamiliars, 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 theMadre 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 somewhatcooled. 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 removedfor 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. Arondaor 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 2¾d.perday, 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 farthingperday 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 depreciatedcharacter 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 placeshould 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 tardinessof 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.

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 theSenado 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 theOuvidorandJuiz 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 governmentthat 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. TheProcurador da Coroa, attorney-general, is an officer of considerable weight. TheIntendente da Marinha, port admiral, is likewise consulted on matters of first importance; as are also theEscrivam da Fazenda Real, chief of the treasury, and theJuiz da Alfandega, comptroller of the customs. These seven officers form theJunta, 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, andthis 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 320reis per arrobaof 32 lbs. is paid upon the meat at the shambles, which amounts to about twenty-fiveper cent.Fish pays the tenth, and afterwards a fifteenth. Every transfer of immoveable property is subject to a duty of tenper cent.and moveables to fiveper cent.Besides these, there are many other taxes of minor importance. Rum, both for exportation and home consumption, pays a duty of 80reis per canada[20], which is sometimes a fourth of its value, but may be reckoned as from fifteen to twentyper cent.Cotton pays the tenth, and is again taxed at the moment of exportation 600reis per arrobaof 32 lbs. or about 1¼d.perlb. 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 fifteenper cent.upon imports, of which the valuation is left in some measure to the merchant to whom the property belongs. Here, I think, tenper 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 4,000,000reis, or about 1000l.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 ofwhich 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 theRoda 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 areno nuns in the province, though of the establishments calledRecolhimentosor 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 5reiscoin, the smallest in use, and in value the third part of a penny. At the end of a twelvemonth, he counted his 5reispieces, and found that they amounted to 30,000reis, about 8l.6s.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 itsfamiliars, 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 theMadre 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 somewhatcooled. 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 removedfor 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. Arondaor 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 2¾d.perday, 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 farthingperday 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 depreciatedcharacter 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 placeshould 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 tardinessof 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.i057Map of the RouteWe 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 distanceof 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 thecipo; 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 ofcipo cururuis in the highest estimation, from its superior size and strength, and likewise from its great flexibility. Several kinds ofcipoare 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 prosperitythan 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 arecolhimentoor 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 wehad yet seen this day, called Araripe, and entered the inclosed field attached to theengenho, 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 theengenhoof 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, andwill 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 thematutos[30], countrymen, eitherselling 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 aJuiz 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 theOuvidorof 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 theCampinas de Goiana Grandeabout 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. Itbears 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 theOuvidor’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 crossedto the other wing of the building, and paid a visit to theOuvidor, 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 afidalgo, 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 hisfidalgoside might not suffer, desiring Nogueira to say which was hisfidalgoside. 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.i072Crossing 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 aCapitam-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 smalljangadas[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 considerabletrack 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 anotherhalf 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 somemamalucosandmestizos.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.

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.

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Map of the Route

Map of the Route

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 distanceof 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 thecipo; 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 ofcipo cururuis in the highest estimation, from its superior size and strength, and likewise from its great flexibility. Several kinds ofcipoare 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 prosperitythan 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 arecolhimentoor 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 wehad yet seen this day, called Araripe, and entered the inclosed field attached to theengenho, 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 theengenhoof 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, andwill 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 thematutos[30], countrymen, eitherselling 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 aJuiz 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 theOuvidorof 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 theCampinas de Goiana Grandeabout 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. Itbears 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 theOuvidor’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 crossedto the other wing of the building, and paid a visit to theOuvidor, 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 afidalgo, 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 hisfidalgoside might not suffer, desiring Nogueira to say which was hisfidalgoside. 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.

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Crossing a River.

Crossing a River.

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 aCapitam-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 smalljangadas[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 considerabletrack 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 anotherhalf 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 somemamalucosandmestizos.

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.

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