_Account of my Adventures at San Sebastian.—Form acquaintance
with a Portuguese Family.—Their Affection for me.—Overtures
made to induce my Stay in South America;—The Ship being
repaired and victualled, we re-embark and sail for Europe._
On coming to an anchor in the usual situation, we were boarded by
several persons of distinction, accompanied by an intelligent gentleman
as interpreter; after a conference between whom and Captain King, it
was determined that the latter should without delay address an official
letter to the Viceroy, stating the causes of his putting into that port,
the nature of his wants, and other particulars. Captain King accordingly
sketched a draught, which I was employed to transcribe. This letter
explained to his Excellency (the Viceroy) the leaky and disabled state
of His Majesty’s ship; her want of provisions and water, _&c._ _&c._;
and concluded with expressing Captain King’s willingness to compliment
the Portuguese flag, by firing a salute of fifteen guns, provided the
Viceroy would pledge himself to return an equal number. It is to be
observed, that among the Portuguese, every thing is conducted with the
utmost formality; and as they are highly jealous of foreigners, Captain
King (whose experience was very great in such matters) was particularly
cautious not to give any cause of offence, or to fail in due respect; at
the same time that he was determined to support the honour of his own
nation, by stipulating for an equal interchange of ceremony, conformable
to the etiquette of the service. No foreign vessels are suffered to
proceed beyond a certain distance within the harbour, without special
permission. One object of request in the letter was therefore, that the
Buffalo might be allowed to anchor above the Island of Cobres, (or Snake
Island) where she could have the benefit of smooth water to undergo the
necessary repairs. Other objects were, to be furnished with shipwrights,
caulkers, _&c._, to have a new rudder (our own being sprung) prepared in
the dock-yard, as also a new boltsprit from the same cause, permission to
land and house the rigging and other stores in convenient receptacles;
a daily supply of fresh meat, vegetables, _&c._, and several other
similar demands. To this letter a most gracious answer was returned,
assuring Captain King of the fullest compliance with his requisitions,
and expressing every sentiment of friendship for the English nation,
and of respect for his person. His Excellency’s letter concluded with
the usual compliment of the Portuguese “God preserve your Excellency
many years.” At the same time was transmitted a long table of rules and
ceremonies, to be observed by our ship’s company, _&c._ These rules were
promulgated by Captain King, who ordered the strictest attention to be
paid thereto. They related to the times and places of landing from boats;
the behaviour of the English when on shore; respect to be paid to the
Catholic religion and its ministers, _&c._ _&c._ Among other injunctions
it was expected that every Englishman on passing a church should move his
hat, and pay the same compliment to the Image of the Virgin Mary, which
you encounter at the corner of every principal street, enclosed in a sort
of cupboard with a glass-door, and silk-curtains drawn open on each side.
These cupboards are affixed to the wall, on a level with the first-floor
windows of the house, and at night a lamp is kept burning over them,
which has a very pretty effect. It was also required that every person,
on meeting the Host (which is a grand procession of priests, friars,
_&c._, followed by an immense rabble) should bend on one knee, and so
remain till the procession was past. The priests, on this occasion,
carry gold or silver images of our Saviour and the saints, accompanied
with musical instruments, flags, numerous lighted flambeaus, and every
other device to render the scene at once grand, solemn, and impressive.
In fact, I witnessed various processions of a religious nature during
my stay here, scarcely a night passing without one or more; but it is
foreign to my purpose, to enter into more minute details. It being the
first Catholic country I was ever in, I was struck with admiration at
the grandeur of the churches, the nightly exhibitions of fire-works,
illuminations, ringing of bells, and other demonstrations of religious
respect, or what we should call superstition. But I am of opinion there
is much policy in carrying these rites to such an extravagant pitch, for
the population of this city being composed of negroes, in the proportion,
I take it, of at least nineteen to one white, and the majority of the
former being slaves, the splendour and enchanting effects of music,
paintings, fire-works, processions, and other devices, together with the
implicit devotion in which they are brought up to the Catholic religion,
keep their minds in a continual state of resigned subjection, amuse their
senses, and leave neither time, nor inducement to attempt, by acts of
rebellion, a release from their habitual bondage.
To resume my narrative: all preliminaries being settled to the
satisfaction of both parties, Captain King, a few days after our arrival,
hired a commodious and handsome house, ready-furnished, in a pleasant
part of the town, to which he with his whole family removed. I, of
course, accompanied them, highly delighted at the prospect of viewing
this beautiful city, and observing the manners and customs of its
inhabitants, from which I anticipated the greatest gratification. Mr.
Marsden and his family, also occupied a genteel house, and in fact, all
the passengers (of whom we had a good number) quitted the ship, which was
intended to undergo a thorough repair.
During our residence ashore, I had much leisure time, which I employed in
walking throughout the city and suburbs, viewing the churches, convents,
and other objects deserving of notice; and I endeavoured to acquire, by
every means opportunity offered, some little knowledge of the Portuguese
language. As the latter bears a great affinity to the Latin and French,
I succeeded beyond my hopes in this object, by virtue of which I was
enabled to extend my inquiries, and to interchange personal civilities
with many of the inhabitants.
In the street in which we resided, I had frequently observed an old lady,
together with three young ones, sitting at the door of a genteel-looking
house, employed, according to their custom, in weaving lace, with a
number of bobbins, and a cushion placed before them. This employment
serves both as an amusement, and a source of profit to the younger
branches of families.—They were seated cross-legged on the floor of the
parlour, the door of which, (composed of lattice-work) was open for the
benefit of air. In the evenings I generally saw them seated in the same
manner, in conversation, the old lady turning over her beads, of which
a string, or rosary, with a cross suspended to the end of it, was hung
upon her wrist, and appeared to receive her devout attention. Having
repeatedly passed this interesting group, and fancying that they noticed
me with some emotion, I ventured to compliment them _en passant_, which
courtesy they returned with evident pleasure; and every succeeding
salutation produced a longer dialogue than the preceding; till at length
the old lady one evening invited me to enter, and sit down; but not on
the floor, for they had chairs, as well as other furniture, of an elegant
but simple kind. These good ladies put several questions to me respecting
the English Governor (as they styled him) my situation in his family,
name, _&c._ I informed them, as fully as I could find words for; and
telling them my name in Portuguese, they ever afterwards called me Senor
Jacobe, it not being their custom to use surnames. I had the pleasure
to find that we understood each other tolerably well, and gathered from
them, that the old lady was called Senora Donna Joaquima Roza de Lacè;
(as the Vicar of Wakefield says, I love to give the name at full length;)
she was the widow of a military officer in the Portuguese service, and
enjoyed a pension from the government, upon which, and the earnings of
her accomplished daughters, she lived in a private, but genteel manner:
the latter were named Donna Anna Precioza, Donna Joaquima, and Donna
Joanina. The mother was a most agreeable woman, courteous and affable to
a degree, but seemingly a strong devotee to her religion. The daughters
were beautiful girls, evidently of a susceptible disposition; but, like
the Portugueze in general, very reserved, and tenacious of their sex’s
dignity. They pressed me to partake of some coffee, which was served in
with much ceremony by a female negro; and after two or three hours most
agreeably spent, I took leave, with an earnest injunction to repeat my
visit.
From this time hardly a day passed without my calling on this worthy
family, and at every visit we parted with a stronger regard for each
other. I felt a growing sentiment in favour of the eldest daughter
(Anna,) and I ingratiated myself with the mother, by warmly praising the
Catholic religion, shewing my respect by kissing the cross attached to
her beads, and every other means in my power. In a few days I became, as
it were, one of the family, visiting them at all hours, and experiencing
the kindest welcome. The ladies took a pleasure in improving my knowledge
in their language, and in return requested me to teach them my own. At
this period there were very few English persons in the Brazils; but
the inhabitants, in general, evinced the greatest fondness for our
nation; so that not the meanest of our ship’s company could walk the
streets without being gratified with hearing the exclamation of “Sta bon
Inglise,” (very good Englishman,) from the mouths of passengers, both
men, women, and children. Myself and other persons, whose appearance was
at all respectable, were also very courteously saluted by the females,
who stand for hours peeping through the lattice-windows of the houses,
which are half opened, so as to give them a view, and although most of
these diffident ladies close the lattice and retire with precipitation,
on the approach of a male stranger, yet many of them suffered me to hold
a conversation for a few minutes; and I sometimes prevailed so far as
to obtain one of their fair hands to kiss, a mark of great favour and
condescension, even to their common acquaintances.
Captain King received every possible mark of respect both public and
private, during his residence in this city. Whenever he appeared abroad
in an open chaise, (which he hired by the month,) or on horseback, the
military-guard at every public post which he passed, were turned out to
pay him the same honours as are usually rendered to the viceroy himself.
The latter officer also shewed him every attention, frequently exchanging
visits with him, lending him his own horses for a ride, _&c._ Most of the
principal inhabitants paid their respects to Mrs. King, and invited her
to various public and private entertainments. The Portuguese excel in
music, particularly the violin and bass-viol; and there were frequently
large parties of amateurs at our house, who formed a most delightful
evening concert. This is, in fact, the custom of all people of fashion
there, who, instead of meeting for the purpose of gaming as in London,
adopt this much more laudable and rational mode of amusement.
I observed, as I traversed the city, that a number of bonfires were
lighted in various streets, as soon as it grew dusk, almost every
evening, which were surrounded by children, negroes, and others,
rejoicing until a late hour. As these fires were never twice in the same
spot, I was at a loss to understand their meaning, until I at length
ascertained that they were in celebration of the birth-days of children.
The custom of observing such days differs, however, from our own country;
for instead of taking place on the anniversary of the child’s nativity,
the observation is confined to the festival of that particular Saint
after whom the child is named; for instance, on St. Anna’s day, all
persons who have a daughter called Anna, celebrate the same by regaling
their friends, and having a bonfire before their door. As almost every
day in the year is dedicated to a male or female saint, whose name is
borne by some hundreds of children, these bonfires are, of course,
frequent and numerous. The effect of them is both lively and gratifying,
especially to those who know their cause; but many of the streets
being extremely narrow, and some of the fires very large, I have been
frequently much embarrassed to effect a passage, in which attempt I was
sometimes in danger of being scorched by the intense heat reflected from
the stone walls of which the houses are composed.
Another object of my attention was the slave-market, which is held on the
arrival of a Guinea ship, in the suburbs of the city. These unfortunate
beings are chained together, and driven to the scene of this disgraceful
traffic, where they are sold like cattle or sheep in Smithfield. A
healthy youth of about fifteen will produce from about thirty to fifty
pounds, this being considered the most advantageous age at which a slave
can be purchased. The condition of this unhappy class of persons is,
however, much more tolerable in this city than a stranger would suppose.
Most of the inhabitants possess a male or female, (some several,)
exclusive of those employed in household affairs. These superfluous
slaves are sent out in a morning to ply for hire on their owner’s
account, and obtain as much as they can by their labour; the majority of
the women confine themselves to carrying water from the fountains, which
they cry as the venders of milk do in London; and on being hailed, they
stop and empty their vessel, for which they receive a vintain, (about
three halfpence;) they then return to the nearest fountain to replenish.
I could not help being surprised at the large size of the vessels in
which they carry this water on their heads; they are a kind of wooden
casks, some of them holding at least ten gallons.
Having mentioned the public fountains, (with which this city abounds,)
it may not be amiss to describe them. There being but few springs in the
town, water is conveyed by means of a noble brick aqueduct (communicating
with others,) from a distance of several miles through the interior,
over the summits of many high hills, and being distributed throughout
the city, it supplies a fountain in most of the principal streets. These
fountains are handsomely constructed of stone, having a large cistern
into which the purest water is constantly running from the beaks of
several ducks, geese, or other birds, which are of cast metal, and well
executed. As the trade of water-carrying furnishes employment for many
hundreds of negro women, and their continual resort to the fountains
would occasion much confusion and quarrelling, a soldier is placed in
attendance to preserve order, and the women seat themselves in a row
on a long bench fixed on purpose, where they are obliged to wait for
their turn to fill. It is a curious and interesting sight to observe
these harmless and industrious creatures conversing with each other, and
smoking their pipes, while they patiently await the sentinel’s intimation
to approach. The incessant prattle of their tongues may be heard by a
passenger long before he reaches the spot, and adds to the novelty of the
scene.
The negroes I saw here, the majority of whom are natives, born of those
imported from Africa, or of their descendants, are upon the whole the
most comely race of blacks I ever met with. The men wear coarse jackets
and trowsers, the women a sort of gown of blue cloth; but their linen is
always remarkably white, of a fine texture, and beautifully wrought with
ornamental work about the sleeves and bosom. They have also bracelets
both on the wrists and ancles, and ear-rings, all of the purest gold.
Both sexes are very cleanly in their persons, and of a most docile and
gentle disposition.
By the kindness of my worthy friends, the ladies, I obtained frequent
admission to the Opera, (as it is called, though the pieces I saw
appeared to be principally comedies and farces, with scarcely any vocal
music.) As I could not understand the plot, or dialogue, my chief
satisfaction was in contemplating the _coup d’œil_, which was very
striking. The house is about the size of our little theatre in the
Haymarket; the pit is solely occupied by the male sex, but the boxes are
filled with beautiful women, dressed in the most elegant and bewitching
manner, and adorned with brilliant ear-rings, bracelets, _&c._ The
viceroy has an elegant box in the centre of the front tiers, so as to
be immediately facing the stage, and to be seen by the whole audience.
The performance is never suffered to commence till his arrival, which is
sometimes protracted; and on his Excellency’s entrance, the whole of the
spectators rise to testify their respect for his person. The admission
to the pit is only a petack (two shillings.) The boxes are engaged by
parties, at the expense of about twelve shillings each, whether the party
is large or small; and there is no gallery. The music is excellent and
the band numerous.
Were I to attempt a minute description of the magnificent churches,
convents, and other buildings, the numerous processions, public
rejoicings, _&c._; the beautiful gardens, romantic walks, and other
objects worthy of the most scrupulous attention, which I met with in this
rich and flourishing city, as well as the various customs and manners
peculiar to its inhabitants, I should swell this work much beyond the
limits I have prescribed; but as I am inadequate to the task, I shall
leave such a subject to some abler pen; and as I only profess to write an
account of my own adventures, shall resume the thread of my narrative.
I was so much delighted with all I saw, and found the climate so
congenial to my constitution, that I could have been content to have
spent the rest of my life in South America; and hinting as much to my
kind friends, the old lady seriously pressed me to that measure, assuring
me of her protection and interest, together with that of her friends, who
were numerous and respectable. She even pledged herself to procure me a
salary of one doubloon (about £3. 12_s._) per month, at the first onset,
as clerk in a mercantile house, which would be increased as I acquired
the Portugueze language. But that longing desire to re-visit my native
country, which is predominant in the breast of every Englishman, together
with a wish to see once more my beloved relations to whom I owed so much,
prevailed over every other consideration; and I declined, but with a
proper sense of gratitude, these flattering offers of favour and service.
Since my departure from Portsmouth, in 1801, I had not heard a syllable
of or from any of my friends in England, and though it was probable that
my dear benefactors in S⸺ had ere this period paid the debt of nature,
I felt a secret hope that they might still survive, and that from the
favourable situation in which I stood with Captain King I might, at
no very distant period, find myself enabled to contribute some little
assistance towards rendering the evening of their lives happy. It was my
firm determination never again to swerve from a course of rectitude; and
I had the fullest confidence that the late governor, my patron, would
procure me the means of adhering to so laudable a resolution. How fatally
I was mistaken, how uncertain are the favours of the great, will be seen
in a future chapter.
The Buffalo having been as effectually repaired as circumstances would
admit, and a tolerable supply of provisions received on board, every
preparation was made for prosecuting our voyage, and a day appointed
for sailing. As the latter period approached, I redoubled my respectful
attentions to the worthy family in the Strada de los Mongares, (or
Monkey-street,) and they every day gave stronger proofs of their concern
at my approaching departure. The day at length arrived, and I waited on
them to take a final leave. On this occasion many tears were shed on
their part, and I confess my sensibility was such that I involuntarily
caught the soft infection. I obtained the favour of a warm embrace
from them all, and the young ladies condescended to deviate from their
usual strict decorum by suffering me to imprint some ardent kisses
on their charming lips. The mother appeared a little disconcerted at
this indulgence, but her affection for me prevented any expressions of
displeasure; she herself presented me her cheek with a very good grace.
I must here observe, that the Portugueze ladies do not allow even their
lovers, before marriage, a greater license than kissing the hand; this
intimation was given me on my first acquaintance with Donna Joaquima, by
that worthy matron herself, with a very serious air, as she discovered,
I suppose, that I evinced too much warmth in my attention to her lovely
daughters. After numerous repetitions of “Adieu” on my side, and of
“Dios guarda, mio Amigo,” (God preserve you, my friend,) on that of
these amiable females, I was obliged to tear myself abruptly from them;
and with a heart overcharged with grief and tenderness, I hastened to the
boat, which conveyed myself and the few other persons remaining on shore,
to the ship, which was then under weigh, and, the breeze freshening, we
with difficulty got alongside her, when abreast of Fort Santa Cruz, (near
the entrance of the Rio de Janeiro,) and just as the Buffalo was saluting
that battery. In about an hour afterwards, we cleared the Heads; the same
evening (August the 12th 1807,) we lost sight of the coast of Brazil, and
proceeded on our course for Europe.