GENERAL IMPRESSIONS OF BRAZIL.
Religion and Clergy.—Education.—Law, Medical, and Scientific
Schools.—High and Common Schools.—Public Library and Museum
in Rio de Janeiro.—Historical and Geographical
Institute.—Social and Domestic Relations.—Public
Functionaries.—Agriculture.—Zones of
Vegetation.—Coffee.—Cotton.—Timber and other Products of the
Amazons.—Cattle.—Territorial Subdivision of the Great
Valley.—Emigration.—Foreigners.—Paraguayan War. 495–517
APPENDIX.
I. The Gulf Stream 519
II. Flying-Fishes 522
III. Resolutions passed on board the Colorado 525
IV. Dom Pedro Segundo Railroad 527
V. Permanence of Characteristics in different Human Species 529
VI. Sketch of Separate Journeys undertaken by different Members of
the Expedition 533
LIST OF WOODCUTS.
COCOEIRO PALM FRONTISPIECE
A species of Attalea common in the Serra d’Estrella. It
bears two or three large bunches of olive-like berries,
hanging immediately below the crown of leaves. The upper
part of the stem is often overgrown with parasites, as
in the specimen represented here.
From a photograph by G. Leuzinger.
Page
TREE ENTWINED BY SIPOS 54
There are a great many parasites, the stem and roots of
which are attached to larger trees; this woodcut
represents one of those strange “tree-killers,” as they
are called by the natives, belonging to the family of
the Fig-trees, which, beginning their growth among the
upper branches of trees, gradually descend to the
ground, throw out branches around the stem they attack,
and in the end kill it in their embrace. On the right
are Lianas, from which hang parasitic flowers.
From a photograph by G. Leuzinger.
SIDE VIEW OF THE ALLEY OF PALMS 60
Part of the Botanical Garden in Rio de Janeiro. In the
foreground a Pandanus covered with fruits. The Palms
standing in pairs in the great alley are commonly called
Palma Real. Their botanical name is Oreodoxa oleracea.
The peak of Corcovado forms the background.
From a photograph by Messrs. Stahl & Wahnschaffe.
VISTA DOWN THE ALLEY OF PALMS 61
The objects are the same as in the preceding woodcut, only
seen at right angles, to afford a view down the alley.
From a photograph by Messrs. Stahl & Wahnschaffe.
BOTAFOGO BAY 81
The great southeastern bay in the harbor of Rio de
Janeiro. The highest peak in the centre is the
Corcovado, at the foot of which stand the Insane Asylum
and the Military School. On the left are the Gavia and
the Sugar-Loaf; on the right, Tijuca. A beach runs all
round the bay.
From a photograph by G. Leuzinger.
MINA NEGRESS 83
From a photograph by Messrs. Stahl & Wahnschaffe.
MINA NEGRESS AND CHILD 84
From a photograph by Messrs. Stahl & Wahnschaffe.
FALLEN TRUNK OVERGROWN BY PARASITES 91
A comparison with the woodcut facing p. 54 will show how
parasites growing upon living trees differ from those
springing from dead trunks.
From a photograph by G. Leuzinger.
FAZENDA DE SANTA ANNA, IN MINAS GERAES 103
The level grounds in front of the buildings are used for
drying the coffee.
From a photograph by Senhor Machado.
ESPERANÇA’S COTTAGE 179
From a water-colored painting by Mr. J. Burkhardt.
VERANDA AND DINING-ROOM AT TEFFÉ 214
From a drawing by Mr. J. Burkhardt.
HEAD OF ALEXANDRINA 245
Extraordinary as the head of hair of this girl may seem,
it is in no way exaggerated; it stood six inches beyond
the shoulders each way.
From a sketch by Mr. Wm. James.
DINING-ROOM AT HYANUARY 258
The palm on the left is a Pupunha (Guilielma speciosa);
the large-leaved trees back of the building are Bananas,
and the Palm on the right a Javari (Astrocaryum Javari).
From a water-colored painting by Mr. J. Burkhardt.
MAUHES RIVER 304
The Palm in the foreground is a Mucaja (Acrocomia
lasiospatha); near the fence stand Banana-trees, and in
the distance on the right a Tucuma Palm (Astrocaryum
Tucuma).
From a water-colored painting by Mr. J. Burkhardt.
MUNDURUCU INDIAN; male 313
From a photograph by Dr. Gustavo, of Manaos.
MUNDURUCU INDIAN; female 314
Also from a photograph by Dr. Gustavo, of Manaos.
FAN BACCÁBA 335
This Palm, called Œnocarpus distychius by botanists, is
remarkable for the arrangement of its leaves, which are
placed opposite to each other on two sides of the trunk,
and higher and higher alternately, so that, seen from
one side, the two rows of leaves are equally visible,
and have the appearance of a wide fan; seen in profile,
they look like a narrow plume.
From a drawing by Mr. J. Burkhardt.
SUMAUMEIRA 391
This colossal tree is known to botanists under the name of
Eriodendrum Sumauma, and may be seen everywhere in the
basin of the Amazons.
From a photograph presented by Senhor Pimenta Bueno.
GARRAFAŌ, among the Organ Mountains 486
This peak is called the Finger by the English residents of
Rio. The Brazilians liken it to a bottle.
From a photograph by G. Leuzinger.
ORGAN MOUNTAINS 490
The loose boulder alluded to in the text stands on the
fourth peak from the left.
From a photograph by G. Leuzinger.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A JOURNEY IN BRAZIL.
CHAPTER I.
VOYAGE FROM NEW YORK TO RIO DE JANEIRO.
FIRST SUNDAY AT SEA.—GULF STREAM.—GULF-WEED.—LECTURES
PROPOSED.—FIRST LECTURE: “ON THE GULF STREAM IN THE GULF
STREAM.”—AQUARIUM ESTABLISHED ON BOARD.—SECOND LECTURE.—ROUGH
SEA.—PECULIAR TINT OF WATER.—THIRD LECTURE: LAYING OUT
WORK OF EXPEDITION IN BRAZIL; DISTRIBUTION OF FISHES IN
BRAZILIAN RIVERS; ITS BEARING ON ORIGIN OF SPECIES;
COLLECTING OF EGGS.—TROPICAL SUNSET.—FOURTH LECTURE: PLAN OF
GEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO GLACIAL
PHENOMENA IN SOUTH AMERICA.—FLYING-FISH.—FIFTH LECTURE:
GLACIAL PHENOMENA, CONTINUED.—SECOND SUNDAY AT SEA.—ROUGH
WATER.—SIXTH LECTURE: EMBRYOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS AS A GUIDE
TO SOUND CLASSIFICATION.—SEVENTH LECTURE.—MOONLIGHT
NIGHTS.—TRADE-WINDS.—EIGHTH LECTURE: IMPORTANCE OF PRECISION IN
LOCALIZING SPECIMENS.—SOUTHERN CROSS.—NINTH LECTURE: FRESH-WATER
FISHES OF BRAZIL.—EASTER SUNDAY.—FIRST SIGHT OF SOUTH AMERICAN
SHORE.—OLINDA.—PERNAMBUCO.—CATAMARANS.—TENTH LECTURE:
METHODS OF COLLECTING.—ELEVENTH LECTURE: CLASSIFICATION OF
FISHES, AS ILLUSTRATED BY EMBRYOLOGY.—PREPARATIONS FOR
ARRIVAL.—TWELFTH LECTURE: PRACTICAL LESSON IN EMBRYOLOGY—CLOSING
LECTURE: TRANSMUTATION THEORY; INTELLECTUAL AND POLITICAL
INDEPENDENCE.—RESOLUTIONS AND SPEECHES.—SINGULAR RED PATCHES ON
THE SURFACE OF THE SEA.
_April 2d, 1865._—Our first Sunday at sea. The weather is delicious, the
ship as steady as anything on the water can be, and even the most
forlorn of our party have little excuse for sea-sickness. We have had
service from Bishop Potter this morning, and since then we have been on
deck reading, walking, watching a singular cloud, which the captain says
is a cloud of smoke, in the direction of Petersburg. We think it may be
the smoke of a great decisive engagement going on while we sail
peacefully along. What it means, or how the battle ends, if battle it
be, we shall not know for two months perhaps.[2] Mr. Agassiz is busy
to-day in taking notes, at regular intervals, of the temperature of the
water, as we approach the Gulf Stream. To-night we cut it at right
angles, and he will remain on deck to continue his observations.
_April 3d._—The Professor sat up last night as he intended, and found
his watch, which was shared by one or two of his young assistants, very
interesting. We crossed the Gulf Stream opposite Cape Hatteras, at a
latitude where it is comparatively narrow, some sixty miles only in
breadth. Entering it at about six o’clock, we passed out of it a little
after midnight. The western boundary of the warm waters stretching along
the coast had a temperature of about 57°. Immediately after entering it,
the temperature began to rise gradually, the maximum being about 74°,
falling occasionally, however, when we passed through a cold streak, to
68°. These cold streaks in the Gulf Stream, which reach to a
considerable depth, the warm and cold waters descending together in
immediate contact for at least a hundred fathoms, are attributed by Dr.
Bache to the fact that the Gulf Stream is not stationary. It sways as a
whole sometimes a little toward the shore, sometimes a little away from
it, and, in consequence of this, the colder water from the coast creeps
in, forming these vertical layers in its midst. The eastern boundary is
warmer than the western one, for the latter is chilled by the Arctic
currents, which form a band of cold water all along the Atlantic shore.
Their influence is felt nearly to the latitude of Florida. On coming out
of the Gulf Stream the temperature of the water was 68°, and so it
continued for an hour longer, after which Mr. Agassiz ceased his
observations. To-day some of the gulf-weed was gathered by a sailor, and
we found it crowded with life. Hydroids, in numbers, had their home upon
it; the delicate branching plumularia and a pretty campanularia, very
like some of our New England species; beside these, bryozoa, tiny
compound mollusks, crusted its stem, and barnacles were abundant upon
it. These are all the wonders that the deep has yielded us to-day,
though the pretty Portuguese men-of-war go floating by the vessel, out
of reach thus far. Such are the events of our life: we eat and drink and
sleep, read, study Portuguese, and write up our journals.
_April 4th._—It has occurred to Mr. Agassiz, as a means of preparing the
young men who accompany him for the work before them, to give a course
of lectures on ship-board. Some preparation of the kind is the more
necessary, since much of the work must be done independently of him, as
it will be impossible for so large a party to travel together; and the
instructions needed will be more easily given in a daily lecture to all,
than in separate conversations with each one singly. The idea finds
general favor. The large saloon makes an excellent lecture-room; a
couple of leaves from the dining-table with a black oil-cloth stretched
across them serve as a blackboard. The audience consists, not only of
our own company, but includes the few ladies who are on board, Mr.
Bradbury, the captain of our steamer, Bishop Potter, some of the ship’s
officers, and a few additional passengers, all of whom seem to think the
lecture a pleasant break in the monotony of a sea voyage. To-day the
subject was naturally suggested by the seaweeds of the Gulf Stream, so
recently caught and so crowded with life,—“A lecture on the Gulf Stream
in the Gulf Stream,” as one of the listeners suggests. It was opened,
however, by a few words on the exceptional character of the position of
this scientific commission on board the Colorado.
“Fifty years ago, when naturalists carried their investigations to
distant lands, either government was obliged to provide an expensive
outfit for them, or, if they had no such patronage, scanty opportunities
grudgingly given might be granted them on ordinary conveyances. Even if
such accommodation were allowed them, their presence was looked upon as
a nuisance: no general interest was felt in their objects; it was much
if they were permitted, on board some vessel, to have their bucket of
specimens in a corner, which any sailor might kick over, unreproved, if
it chanced to stand in his way. This ship, and the spirit prevailing in
her command, opens to me a vista such as I never dreamed of till I stood
upon her deck. Here, in place of the meagre chances I remember in old
times, the facilities could hardly be greater if the ship had been built
as a scientific laboratory. If any such occasion has ever been known
before, if any naturalist has ever been treated with such consideration,
and found such intelligent appreciation of his highest aims, on board a
merchant-ship fitted up for purposes of trade, I am not aware of it. I
hope the first trip of the Colorado will be remembered in the annals of
science. I, at least, shall know whom to thank for an opportunity so
unique. This voyage, and the circumstances connected with it, are, to
me, the signs of a good time coming; when men of different interests
will help each other; when naturalists will be more liberal and sailors
more cultivated, and natural science and navigation will work hand in
hand. And now for my lecture,—my first lecture on ship-board.”
The lecture was given, of course, specimen in hand, the various
inhabitants of the branch of seaweed giving their evidence in succession
of their own structure and way of life. To these living illustrations
were added drawings on the blackboard to show the transformations of the
animals, their embryological history, &c.[3] Since the lecture, Captain
Bradbury has fitted up a large tank as an aquarium, where any specimens
taken during the voyage may be preserved and examined. Mr. Agassiz is
perfectly happy, enjoying every hour of the voyage, as well he may,
surrounded as he is with such considerate kindness.
_April 6th._—Though I took notes, as usual, of the lecture yesterday, I
had not energy enough to enter them in my journal. The subject was the
Gulf Stream,—the stream itself this time, not the animals it carries
along with it. Mr. Agassiz’s late observations, though deeply
interesting to himself, inasmuch as personal confirmation of facts
already known is always satisfactory, have nothing novel now-a-days; yet
the history of the facts connected with the discovery of the Gulf
Stream, and their gradual development, is always attractive, and
especially so to Americans, on account of its direct connection with
scientific investigations carried on under our government. Mr. Agassiz
gave a slight sketch of this in opening his lecture. “It was Franklin
who first systematically observed these facts, though they had been
noticed long before by navigators. He recorded the temperature of the
water as he left the American continent for Europe, and found that it
continued cold for a certain distance, then rose suddenly, and after a
given time sank again to a lower temperature, though not so low as
before. With the comprehensive grasp of mind characteristic of all his
scientific results, he went at once beyond his facts. He inferred that
the warm current, keeping its way so steadily through the broad
Atlantic, and carrying tropical productions to the northern shores of
Europe, must take its rise in tropical regions, must be heated by a
tropical sun.[4] This was his inference: to work it out, to ascertain
the origin and course of the Gulf Stream, has been, in a great degree,
the task of the United States Coast Survey, under the direction of his
descendant, Dr. Bache.”[5]
We are now fairly in the tropics. “The trades” blow heavily, and
yesterday was a dreary day for those unused to the ocean; the beautiful
blue water, of a peculiar metallic tint, as remarkable in color, it
seemed to me, as the water of the Lake of Geneva, did not console us for
the heavy moral and physical depression of sea-sick mortals. To-day the
world looks brighter; there is a good deal of motion, but we are more
accustomed to it. This morning the lecture had, for the first time, a
direct bearing upon the work of the expedition. The subject was, “How to
observe, and what are the objects of scientific explorations in modern
times.”
“My companions and myself have come together so suddenly and so
unexpectedly on our present errand, that we have had little time to
organize our work. The laying out of a general scheme of operations is,
therefore, the first and one of the most important points to be
discussed between us. The time for great discoveries is passed. No
student of nature goes out now expecting to find a new world, or looks
in the heavens for any new theory of the solar system. The work of the
naturalist, in our day, is to explore worlds the existence of which is
already known; to investigate, not to discover. The first explorers, in
this modern sense, were Humboldt in the physical world, Cuvier in
natural history, Lavoisier in chemistry, La Place in astronomy. They
have been the pioneers in the kind of scientific work characteristic of
our century. We who have chosen Brazil as our field must seek to make
ourselves familiar with its physical features, its mountains and its
rivers, its animals and plants. There is a change, however, to be
introduced in our mode of work, as compared with that of former
investigators. When less was known of animals and plants the discovery
of new species was the great object. This has been carried too far, and
is now almost the lowest kind of scientific work. The discovery of a new
species as such does not change a feature in the science of natural
history, any more than the discovery of a new asteroid changes the
character of the problems to be investigated by astronomers. It is
merely adding to the enumeration of objects. We should look rather for
the fundamental relations among animals; the number of species we may
find is of importance only so far as they explain the distribution and
limitation of different genera and families, their relations to each
other and to the physical conditions under which they live. Out of such
investigations there looms up a deeper question for scientific men, the
solution of which is to be the most important result of their work in
coming generations. The origin of life is the great question of the day.
How did the organic world come to be as it is? It must be our aim to
throw some light on this subject by our present journey. How did Brazil
come to be inhabited by the animals and plants now living there? Who
were its inhabitants in past times? What reason is there to believe that
the present condition of things in this country is in any sense derived
from the past? The first step in this investigation must be to ascertain
the geographical distribution of the present animals and plants. Suppose
we first examine the Rio San Francisco. The basin of this river is
entirely isolated. Are its inhabitants, like its waters, completely
distinct from those of other basins? Are its species peculiar to itself,
and not repeated in any other river of the continent? Extraordinary as
this result would seem, I nevertheless expect to find it so. The next
water-basin we shall have to examine will be that of the Amazons, which
connects through the Rio Negro with the Orinoco. It has been frequently
repeated that the same species of fish exist in the waters of the San
Francisco and in those of Guiana and of the Amazons. At all events, our
works on fishes constantly indicate Brazil and Guiana as the common home
of many species; but this observation has never been made with
sufficient accuracy to merit confidence. Fifty years ago the exact
locality from which any animal came seemed an unimportant fact in its
scientific history, for the bearing of this question on that of origin
was not then perceived. To say that any specimen came from South America
was quite enough; to specify that it came from Brazil, from the Amazons,
the San Francisco, or the La Plata, seemed a marvellous accuracy in the
observers. In the museum at Paris, for instance, there are many
specimens entered as coming from New York or from Pará; but all that is
absolutely known about them is that they were shipped from those
sea-ports. Nobody knows exactly where they were collected. So there are
specimens entered as coming from the Rio San Francisco, but it is by no
means sure that they came exclusively from that water-basin. All this
kind of investigation is far too loose for our present object. Our work
must be done with much more precision; it must tell something positive
of the geographical distribution of animals in Brazil. Therefore, my
young friends who come with me on this expedition, let us be careful
that every specimen has a label, recording locality and date, so secured
that it shall reach Cambridge safely. It would be still better to attach
two labels to each specimen, so that, if any mischance happens to one,
our record may not be lost. We must try not to mix the fishes of
different rivers, even though they flow into each other, but to keep our
collections perfectly distinct. You will easily see the vast importance
of thus ascertaining the limitation of species, and the bearing of the
result on the great question of origin.
“Something is already known. It is ascertained that the South American
rivers possess some fishes peculiar to them. Were these fishes then
created in these separate water-systems as they now exist, or have they
been transferred thither from some other water-bed? If not born there,
how did they come there? Is there, or has there ever been, any possible
connection between these water-systems? Are their characteristic species
repeated elsewhere? Thus we narrow the boundaries of the investigation,
and bring it, by successive approaches, nearer the ultimate question.
But the first inquiry is, How far are species distinct all over the
world, and what are their limits? Till this is ascertained, all theories
about their origin, their derivation from one another, their successive
transformation, their migration from given centres, and so on, are mere
beating about the bush. I allude especially to the fresh-water fishes,
in connection with this investigation, on account of the precision of
their boundaries. Looking at the matter theoretically, without a
positive investigation, I do not expect to find a single species of the
Lower Amazons above Tabatinga.[6] I base this supposition upon my own
observations respecting the distribution of species in the European
rivers. I have found that, while some species occur simultaneously in
the many upper water-courses which combine to form the Rhine, the Rhone,
and the Danube, most of them are not found in the lower course of these
rivers; that, again, certain species are found in two of these
water-basins and do not occur in the third, or inhabit only one and are
not to be met in the two others. The brook trout, for instance (_Salmo
Fario_), is common to the upper course and the higher tributaries of all
the three river-systems, but does not inhabit the main bed of their
lower course. So it is, also, and in a more striking degree, with the
Salmling (_Salmo Salvelinus_). The Huchen (_Salmo Hucho_) is only found
in the Danube. But the distribution of the perch family in these rivers
is, perhaps, the most remarkable. The Zingel (_Aspro Zingel_) and the
Schrætzer (_Acerina Schrætzer_) are only found in the Danube; while
_Acerina cernua_ is found in the Danube as well as in the Rhine, but not
in the Rhone; and _Aspro asper_ in the Danube as well as in the Rhone,
but not in the Rhine. The Sander (_Lucioperca Sandra_) is found in the
Danube and the other large rivers of Eastern Europe, but occurs neither
in the Rhine nor in the Rhone. The common perch (_Perca fluviatilis_),
on the contrary, is found both in the Rhine and Rhone, but not in the
Danube, which, however, nourishes another species of true Perca, already
described by Schaeffer as _Perca vulgaris_. Again, the pickerel (_Esox
Lucius_) is common to all these rivers, especially in their lower
course, and so is also the cusk (_Lota vulgaris_). The special
distribution of the carp family would afford many other striking
examples, but they are too numerous and too little known to be used as
an illustration here.
“This is among the most remarkable instances of what I would call the
arbitrary character of geographical distribution. Such facts cannot be
explained by any theory of accidental dispersion, for the upper mountain
rivulets, in which these great rivers take their rise, have no
connection with each other; nor can any local circumstance explain the
presence of some species in all the three basins, while others appear
only in one, or perhaps in two, and are absent from the third, or the
fact that certain species inhabiting the head-waters of these streams
are never found in their lower course when the descent would seem so
natural and so easy. In the absence of any positive explanation, we are
left to assume that the distribution of animal life has primary laws as
definite and precise as those which govern anything else in the system
of the universe.
“It is for the sake of investigations of this kind that I wish our party
to divide, in order that we may cover as wide a ground as possible, and
compare a greater number of the water-basins of Brazil. I wish the same
to be done, as far as may be, for all the classes of Vertebrates, as
well as for Mollusks, Articulates, and Radiates. As we have no special
botanist in the party, we must be content to make a methodical
collection of the most characteristic families of trees, such as the
palms and tree ferns. A collection of the stems of these trees would be
especially important as a guide to the identification of fossil woods.
Much more is known of the geographical distribution of plants than of
animals, however, and there is, therefore, less to be done that is new
in that direction.
“Our next aim, and with the same object, namely, its bearing upon the
question of origin, will be the study of the young, the collecting of
eggs and embryos. This is the more important, since museums generally
show only adult specimens. As far as I know, the Zoölogical Museum at
Cambridge is the only one containing large collections of embryological
specimens from all the classes of the animal kingdom. One significant
fact, however, is already known. In their earliest stages of growth all
animals of the same class are much more alike than in their adult
condition, and sometimes so nearly alike as hardly to be distinguished.
Indeed, there is an early period when the resemblances greatly outweigh
the differences. How far the representatives of different classes
resemble one another remains to be ascertained with precision. There are
two possible interpretations of these facts. One is that animals so
nearly identical in the beginning must have been originally derived from
one germ, and are but modifications or transmutations, under various
physical conditions, of this primitive unit. The other interpretation,
founded on the same facts, is, that since, notwithstanding this material
identity in the beginning, no germ ever grows to be different from its
parent, or diverges from the pattern imposed upon it at its birth,
therefore some other cause besides a material one must control its
development; and if this be so, we have to seek an explanation of the
differences between animals outside of physical influences. Thus far
both these views rest chiefly upon personal convictions and opinions.
The true solution of the problem must be sought in the study of the
development of the animals themselves, and embryology is still in its
infancy; for, though a very complete study of the embryology of a few
animals has been made, yet these investigations include so small a
number of representatives from the different classes of the animal
kingdom that they do not yet give a basis for broad generalizations.
Very little is known of the earlier stages in the formation of hosts of
insects whose later metamorphoses, including the change of the already
advanced larva, first to the condition of a chrysalis and then to that
of a perfect insect, have been carefully traced. It remains to be
ascertained to what extent the caterpillars of different kinds of
butterflies, for instance, resemble one another during the time of their
formation in the egg. An immense field of observation is open in this
order alone.
“I have, myself, examined over one hundred species of bird embryos, now
put up in the museum of Cambridge, and found that, at a certain age,
they all have bills, wings, legs, feet, &c., &c. exactly alike. The
young robin and the young crow are web-footed, as well as the duck. It
is only later that the fingers of the foot become distinct. How very
interesting it will be to continue this investigation among the tropical
birds!—to see whether, for instance, the toucan, with its gigantic bill,
has, at a certain age, a bill like that of all other birds; whether the
spoonbill ibis has, at the same age, nothing characteristic in the shape
of its bill. No living naturalist could now tell you one word about all
this; neither could he give you any information about corresponding
facts in the growth of the fishes, reptiles, or quadrupeds of Brazil,
not one of the young of these animals having ever been compared with the
adult. In these lectures I only aim at showing you what an extensive and
interesting field of investigation opens before us; if we succeed in
cultivating even a few corners of it we shall be fortunate.”
In the evening, which is always the most enjoyable part of our day, we
sat on the guards and watched the first tropical sunset we had yet seen.
The sun went down in purple and gold, and, after its departure, sent
back a glow that crimsoned the clouds almost to the zenith, dying off to
paler rose tints on the edges, while heavy masses of gray vapor, just
beginning to be silvered by the moon, swept up from the south.
_April 7th._—To-day the lecture was upon the physical features of South
America, something with reference to the geological and geographical
work in which Mr. Agassiz hopes to have efficient aid from his younger
assistants. So much of the lecture consisted of explanations given upon
geological maps that it is difficult to record it. Its principal object,
however, was to show in what direction they should work in order to give
greater precision to the general information already secured respecting
the formation of the continent. “The basin of the Amazons, for instance,
is a level plain. The whole of it is covered with loose materials. We
must watch carefully the character of these loose materials, and try to
track them to their origin. As there are very characteristic rocks in
various parts of this plain, we shall have a clew to the nature of at
least some portion of these materials. My own previous studies have
given me a special interest in certain questions connected with these
facts. What power has ground up these loose materials? Are they the
result of disintegration of the rock by ordinary atmospheric agents, or
are they caused by the action of water, or by that of glaciers? Was
there ever a time when large masses of ice descended far lower than the
present snow line of the Andes, and, moving over the low lands, ground
these materials to powder? We know that such an agency has been at work
on the northern half of this hemisphere. We have now to look for its
traces on the southern half, where no such investigations have ever been
made within its warm latitudes; though to Darwin science is already
indebted for much valuable information concerning the glacial phenomena
of the temperate and colder portions of the South American continent. We
should examine the loose materials in every river we ascend, and see
what relation they bear to the dry land above. The color of the water in
connection with the nature of the banks will tell us something. The
waters of the Rio Branco, for instance, are said to be milky white;
those of the Rio Negro, black. In the latter case the color is probably
owing to the decomposition of vegetation. I would advise each one of our
parties to pass a large amount of water from any river or stream along
which they travel through a filter, and to examine the deposit
microscopically. They will thus ascertain the character of the detritus,
whether from sand, or lime, or granite, or mere river mud formed by the
decomposition of organic matter. Even the smaller streams and rivulets
will have their peculiar character. The Brazilian table-land rises to a
broad ridge running from west to east, and determining the direction of
the rivers. It is usually represented as a mountain range, but is in
fact nothing but a high flat ridge serving as a water-shed, and cut
transversely by deep fissures in which the rivers flow. These fissures
are broad in their lower parts, but little is known of their upper
range; and whoever will examine their banks carefully will do an
important work for science. Indeed, very little is known accurately of
the geology of Brazil. On the geological maps almost the whole country
is represented as consisting of granite. If this be correct, it is very
inconsistent with what we know of the geological structure of other
continents, where the stratified rocks are in much larger proportions.”
Upon this followed some account of the different kinds of valley
formation and of terraces. “Do the old terraces above the rivers of
South America correspond to the river terraces on any of our
rivers,—those of the Connecticut, for instance,—showing that their
waters had formerly a much greater depth and covered a much wider
bottom? There must of course have been a cause for this great
accumulation of water in ancient periods. I account for it in the
northern half of the hemisphere by the melting of vast masses of ice in
the glacial period, causing immense freshets. There is no trustworthy
account of the river terraces in Brazil. Bates, however, describes
flat-topped hills between Santarem and Pará in the narrow part of the
valley, near Almeyrim, rising 800 feet above the present level of the
Amazons. If this part of the valley were flooded in old times, banks
might have been formed of which these hills are a remnant. But because
such a theory might account for the facts it does not follow that the
theory is true. Our work must be to study the facts, to see, among other
things, of what these hills are built, whether of rock or of loose
materials. No one has told us anything as yet of their geological
constitution.”[7]
To-day we have seen numbers of flying-fish from the deck, and were
astonished at the grace and beauty of their motion, which we had
supposed to be rather a leap than actual flight. And flight indeed it is
not, their pectoral fins acting as sails rather than wings, and carrying
them along on the wind. They skim over the water in this way to a great
distance. Captain Bradbury told us he had followed one with his glass
and lost sight of it at a considerable distance, without seeing it dip
into the water again. Mr. Agassiz has great delight in watching them.[8]
Having never before sailed in tropical seas, he enjoys every day some
new pleasure.
_April 9th._—Yesterday Mr. Agassiz lectured upon the traces of glaciers
as they exist in the northern hemisphere, and the signs of the same kind
to be sought for in Brazil. After a sketch of what has been done in
glacial investigation in Europe and the United States, showing the great
extension of ice over these regions in ancient times, he continued as
follows: “When the polar half of both hemispheres was covered by such an
ice shroud, the climate of the whole earth must have been different from
what it is now. The limits of the ancient glaciers give us some estimate
of this difference, though of course only an approximate one. A degree
of temperature in the annual average of any given locality corresponds
to a degree of latitude; that is, a degree of temperature is lost for
every degree of latitude as we travel northward, or gained for every
degree of latitude as we travel southward. In our times, the line at
which the average annual temperature is 32°, that is, at which glaciers
may be formed, is in latitude 60° or thereabouts, the latitude of
Greenland; while the height at which they may originate in latitude 45°
is about 6,000 feet. If it appear that the ancient southern limit of
glaciers is in latitude 36°, we must admit that in those days the
present climate of Greenland extended to that line. Such a change of
climate with reference to latitude must have been attended by a
corresponding change of climate with reference to altitude. Three
degrees of temperature correspond to about one thousand feet of
altitude. If, therefore, it is found that the ancient limit of glacier
action descends on the Andes, for instance, to 7,000 feet above the
level of the sea under the equator, the present line of perpetual snow
being at 15,000, it is safe to infer that in those days the climate was
some 24° or thereabouts below its present temperature. That is, the
temperature of the present snow line then prevailed at a height of 7,000
feet above the sea level, as the present average temperature of
Greenland then prevailed in latitude 36°. I am as confident that we
shall find these indications at about the limit I have pointed out as if
I had already seen them. I would even venture to prophesy that the first
moraines in the valley of the Marañon should be found where it bends
eastward above Jaen.”[9]
Although the weather is fine, the motion of the ship continues to be so
great that those of us who have not what are popularly called
“sea-legs,” have much ado to keep our balance. For my own part, I am
beginning to feel a personal animosity to “the trades.” I had imagined
them to be soft, genial breezes wafting us gently southward; instead of
which they blow dead ahead all the time, and give us no rest night or
day. And yet we are very unreasonable to grumble; for never were greater
comforts and conveniences provided for voyagers on the great deep than
are to be found on this magnificent ship. The state-rooms large and
commodious, parlor and dining-hall well ventilated, cool, and cheerful,
the decks long and broad enough to give a chance for extensive
“constitutionals” to everybody who can stand upright for two minutes
together, the attendance punctual and admirable in every respect; in
short, nothing is left to be desired except a little more stable
footing.
_April 10th._—A rough sea to-day, notwithstanding which we had our
lecture as usual, though I must say, that, owing to the lurching of the
ship, the lecturer pitched about more than was consistent with the
dignity of science. Mr. Agassiz returned to the subject of embryology,
urging upon his assistants the importance of collecting materials for
this object as a means of obtaining an insight into the deeper relations
between animals.
“Heretofore classification has been arbitrary, inasmuch as it has rested
mainly upon the interpretation given to structural differences by
various observers, who did not measure the character and value of these
differences by any natural standard. I believe that we have a more
certain guide in these matters than opinion or the individual estimate
of any observer, however keen his insight into structural differences.
The true principle of classification exists in Nature herself, and we
have only to decipher it. If this conviction be correct, the next
question is, How can we make this principle a practical one in our
laboratories, an active stimulus in our investigations? Is it
susceptible of positive demonstration in material facts? Is there any
method to be adopted as a correct guide, if we set aside the idea of
originating systems of classification of our own, and seek only to read
that already written in nature? I answer, Yes. The standard is to be
found in the changes animals undergo from their first formation in the
egg to their adult condition.
“It would be impossible for me here and now to give you the details of
this method of investigation, but I can tell you enough to illustrate my
statement. Take a homely and very familiar example, that of the branch
of Articulates. Naturalists divide this branch into three
classes,—Insects, Crustacea, and Worms; and most of them tell you that
Worms are lowest, Crustacea next in rank, and that Insects stand
highest, while others have placed the Crustacea at the head of the
group. We may well ask why. Why does an insect stand above a crustacean,
or, _vice versa_, why is a grasshopper or a butterfly structurally
superior to a lobster or a shrimp? And indeed there must be a difference
in opinion as to the respective standing of these groups so long as
their classification is allowed to remain a purely arbitrary one, based
only upon interpretation of anatomical details. One man thinks the
structural features of Insects superior, and places them highest;
another thinks the structural features of the Crustacea highest, and
places them at the head. In either case it is only a question of
individual appreciation of the facts. But when we study the gradual
development of the insect, and find that in its earliest stages it is
worm-like, in its second, or chrysalis stage, it is crustacean-like, and
only in its final completion it assumes the character of a perfect
insect, we have a simple natural scale by which to estimate the
comparative rank of these animals. Since we cannot suppose that there is
a retrograde movement in the development of any animal, we must believe
that the insect stands highest, and our classification in this instance
is dictated by Nature herself. This is one of the most striking
examples, but there are others quite as much so, though not as familiar.
The frog, for instance, in its successive stages of development,
illustrates the comparative standing of the orders composing the class
to which it belongs. These orders are differently classified by various
naturalists, according to their individual estimate of their structural
features. But the growth of the frog, like that of the insects, gives us
the true grade of the type.[10] There are not many groups in which this
comparison has been carried out so fully as in the insects and frogs;
but wherever it has been tried it is found to be a perfectly sure test.
Occasional glimpses of these facts, seen disconnectedly, have done much
to confirm the development theory, so greatly in vogue at present,
though under a somewhat new form. Those who sustain these views have
seen that there was a gradation between animals, and have inferred that
it was a material connection. But when we follow it in the growth of the
animals themselves, and find that, close as it is, no animal ever misses
its true development, or grows to be anything but what it was meant to
be, we are forced to admit that the gradation which unquestionably
unites all animals is an intellectual, not a material one. It exists in
the Mind which made them. As the works of a human intellect are bound
together by mental kinship, so are the thoughts of the Creator
spiritually united. I think that considerations like these should be an
inducement for us all to collect the young of as many animals as
possible on this journey. In so doing we may change the fundamental
principles of classification, and confer a lasting benefit on science.
“It is very important to select the right animals for such
investigations. I can conceive that a lifetime should be passed in
embryological studies, and yet little be learned of the principles of
classification. The embryology of the worm, for instance, would not give
us the natural classification of the Articulates, because we should see
only the first step of the series; we should not reach the sequence of
the development. It would be like reading over and over again the first
chapter of a story. The embryology of the Insects, on the contrary,
would give us the whole succession of a scale on the lowest level of
which the Worms remain forever. So the embryology of the frog will give
us the classification of the group to which it belongs, but the
embryology of the Cecilia, the lowest order in the group, will give us
only the initiatory steps. In the same way the naturalist who, in
studying the embryology of the reptiles, should begin with their lowest
representatives, the serpents, would make a great mistake. But take the
alligator, so abundant in the regions to which we are going. An
alligator’s egg in the earliest condition of growth has never been
opened by a naturalist. The young have been occasionally taken from the
egg just before hatching, but absolutely nothing is known of their first
phases of development. A complete embryology of the alligator would give
us not only the natural classification of reptiles as they exist now,
but might teach us something of their history from the time of their
introduction upon earth to the present day. For embryology shows us not
only the relations of existing animals to each other, but their
relations to extinct types also. One prominent result of embryological
studies has been to show that animals in the earlier stages of their
growth resemble ancient representatives of the same type belonging to
past geological ages. The first reptiles were introduced in the
carboniferous epoch, and they were very different from those now
existing. They were not numerous at that period; but later in the
world’s history there was a time, justly called the ‘age of reptiles,’
when the gigantic Saurians, Plesiosaurians, and Ichthyosaurians
abounded. I believe, and my conviction is drawn from my previous
embryological studies, that the changes of the alligator in the egg will
give us the clew to the structural relations of the Reptiles from their
first creation to the present day,—will give us, in other words, their
sequence in time as well as their sequence in growth. In the class of
Reptiles, then, the most instructive group we can select with reference
to the structural relations of the type as it now exists, and their
history in past times, will be the alligator. We must therefore neglect
no opportunity of collecting their eggs in as large numbers as possible.
“There are other animals in Brazil, low in their class to be sure, but
yet very important to study embryologically, on account of their
relation to extinct types. These are the sloths and armadillos,—animals
of insignificant size in our days, but anciently represented in gigantic
proportions. The Megatherium, the Mylodon, the Megalonyx, were some of
these immense Mammalia. I believe that the embryonic changes of the
sloths and armadillos will explain the structural relations of those
huge Edentata and their connection with the present ones. South America
teems with the fossil bones of these animals, which indeed penetrated
into the northern half of the hemisphere as high up as Georgia and
Kentucky, where their remains have been found. The living
representatives of the family are also numerous in South America, and we
should make it one of our chief objects to get specimens of all ages and
examine them from their earliest phases upward. We must, above all, try
not to be led away from the more important aims of our study by the
diversity of objects. I have known many young naturalists to miss the
highest success by trying to cover too much ground,—by becoming
collectors rather than investigators. Bitten by the mania for amassing a
great number and variety of species, such a man never returns to the
general consideration of more comprehensive features. We must try to set
before ourselves certain important questions, and give ourselves
resolutely to the investigation of these points, even though we should
sacrifice less important things more readily reached.
“Another type full of interest, from an embryological point of view,
will be the Monkeys. Since some of our scientific colleagues look upon
them as our ancestors, it is important that we should collect as many
facts as possible concerning their growth. Of course it would be better
if we could make the investigation in the land of the Orangs, Gorillas,
and Chimpanzees,—the highest monkeys and the nearest to man in their
development. Still even the process of growth in the South American
monkey will be very instructive. Give a mathematician the initial
elements of a series, and he will work out the whole; and so I believe
when the laws of embryological development are better understood,
naturalists will have a key to the limits of these cycles of growth, and
be able to appoint them their natural boundaries even from partial data.
“Next in importance I would place the Tapirs. This is one of a family
whose geological antecedents are very important and interesting. The
Mastodons, the Palæotherium, the Dinotherium, and other large Mammalia
of the Tertiaries, are closely related to the Tapir. The elephant,
rhinoceros, and the like, are of the same family. From its structural
standing next to the elephant, which is placed highest in the group, the
embryology of the Tapir would give us a very complete series of changes.
It would seem from some of the fossil remains of this family that the
Pachyderms were formerly more nearly related to the Ruminants and
Rodents than they now are. Therefore it would be well to study the
embryology of the Capivari, the Paca, and the Peccary, in connection
with that of the Tapir. Lastly, it will be important to learn something
of the embryology of the Manatee or Sea-Cow of the Amazons. It is
something like a porpoise in outline, and seems to be the modern
representative of the ancient Dinotherium.”
_April 12th._—The lecture to-day was addressed especially to the
ornithologists of the party, its object being to show how the same
method of study,—that of testing the classification by the phases of
growth in the different groups,—might be applied to the birds as
profitably as to other types.
We have made good progress in the last forty-eight hours, and are fast
leaving our friends “the trades” behind. The captain promises us smooth
waters in a day or two. With the dying away of the wind will come
greater heat, but as yet we have had no intensely warm weather. The sun,
however, keeps us within doors a great part of the day, but in the
evening we sit on the guards, watch the sunset over the waters, and then
the moonlight, and so while away the time till nine or ten o’clock, when
one by one the party disperses. The sea has been so rough that we have
not been able to capture anything, but when we get into smoother waters,
our naturalists will be on the look out for jelly-fish, argonautas, and
the like.
_April 13th._—In to-day’s lecture Mr. Agassiz returned again to the
subject of geographical distribution and the importance of localizing
the collections with great precision.
“As Rio de Janeiro is our starting-point, the water-system in its
immediate neighborhood will be as it were a schoolroom for us during the
first week of our Brazilian life. We shall not find it so easy a matter
as it seems to keep our collections distinct in this region. The
head-waters of some of the rivers near Rio, flowing in opposite
directions, are in such close proximity that it will be difficult
sometimes to distinguish them. Outside of the coast range, to which the
Organ Mountains belong, are a number of short streams, little rills, so
to speak, emptying directly into the ocean. It will be important to
ascertain whether the same animals occur in all these short
water-courses. I think this will be found to be the case, because it is
so with corresponding small rivers on our northern coast. There are
little rivers along the whole coast from Maine to New Jersey; all these
disconnected rivers contain a similar fauna. There is another extensive
range inland of the coast ridge, the Serra de Mantiquera, sloping gently
down to the ocean south of the Rio Belmonte or Jequitinhonha. Rivers
arising in this range are more complex; they have large tributaries.
Their upper part is usually broken by waterfalls, their lower course
being more level; probably in the lower courses of these rivers we shall
find fishes similar to those of the short coast streams, while in the
higher broken waters we shall find distinct faunæ.” The lecture closed
with some account of the excursions likely to be undertaken in the
neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro on arriving, and with some practical
instructions about collecting, based upon Mr. Agassiz’s personal
experience.[11]
_April 14th._—Last evening was the most beautiful we have had since we
left home; perfectly clear with the exception of soft white masses of
cloud on the horizon, all their edges silvered by the moonlight. We
looked our last for many months to come on the north star, and saw the
southern cross for the first time. With the visible image I lost a far
more wonderful constellation which had lived in my imagination; it has
vanished with all its golden glory, a celestial vision as amazing as
that which converted Constantine, and in its place stands the veritable
constellation with its four little points of light.
The lecture to-day was upon the fishes of South America. “I will give
you this morning a slight sketch of the characteristic fishes in South
America, as compared with those of the Old World and North America.
Though I do not know how the fishes are distributed in the regions to
which we are going, and it is just upon the investigation of this point
that I want your help, I know their character as distinguished from
those of other continents. We must remember that the most important aim
of all our studies in this direction will be the solution of the
question whether any given fauna is distinct and has originated where it
now exists. To this end I shall make you acquainted with the Brazilian
animals so far as I can in the short time we have before beginning our
active operations, in order that you may be prepared to detect the law
of their geographical distribution. I shall speak to-day more especially
of the fresh-water fishes.
“In the northern hemisphere there is a remarkable group of fishes known
as the Sturgeons. They are chiefly found in the waters flowing into the
Polar seas, as the Mackenzie River on our own continent, the Lena and
Yenissei in the Old World, and in all the rivers and lakes of the
temperate zone, communicating with the Atlantic Ocean. They occur in
smaller numbers in most tributaries of the Mediterranean, but are common
in the Volga and Danube, as well as in the Mississippi, in some of the
rivers on our northern Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and in China. This
family has no representatives in Africa, Southern Asia, Australia, or
South America, but there is a group corresponding in a certain way to it
in South America,—that of the Goniodonts. Though some ichthyologists
place them widely apart in their classifications, there is, on the
whole, a striking resemblance between the Sturgeons and Goniodonts.
Groups of this kind, reproducing certain features common to both, but
differing by special structural modifications, are called
‘representative types.’ This name applies more especially to such groups
when they are distributed over different parts of the world. To
naturalists the comparison of one of these types with another is very
interesting, as touching upon the question of origin of species. To
those who believe that animals are derived from one another the
alternative here presented is very clear: either one of these groups
grew out of the other, or else they both had common ancestors which were
neither Sturgeons nor Goniodonts, but combined the features of both and
gave birth to each.
“There is a third family of fishes, the Hornpouts or Bullheads, called
Siluroids by naturalists, which seem by their structural character to
occupy an intermediate position between the Sturgeons and Goniodonts.
There would seem to be, then, in these three groups, so similar in
certain features, so distinct in others, the elements of a series. But
while their structural relations suggest a common origin, their
geographical distribution seems to exclude it. Take, for instance, the
Hornpouts; they are very few in the northern hemisphere, hardly ever
occurring in those rivers where the Sturgeons abound, and they are very
numerous in the southern hemisphere, in southern Asia, Australia,
Africa, and South America, where the Sturgeons are altogether wanting.
In South America the Siluroids everywhere exist with the Goniodonts, in
all other parts of the world without them; the Goniodonts being only
found in South America. If these were the ancestors of the Siluroids in
South America, they were certainly not their ancestors anywhere else. If
the Sturgeons were the ancestors of the Siluroids and of the Goniodonts,
it is strange that their progeny should consist of these two families in
South America, and in the Old World of the Siluroids only. But if all
three had some other common ancestry, it would be still more
extraordinary that its progeny should exhibit so specific a distribution
upon the surface of our globe. The Siluroids lay very large eggs, and as
they are very abundant in South America we shall no doubt have
opportunities of collecting them. Of the reproduction of the Goniodonts
absolutely nothing is known. Of course the embryology of both these
groups would have a direct bearing on the problem of their origin.
“Another family very abundant in various parts of the world is that of
the Perches. They are found all over North America, Europe, and Northern
Asia; but there is not one to be found in the fresh waters of the
southern hemisphere. In South America and in Africa they are represented
however by a very similar group, that of the Chromids. These two groups
are so much akin that from their structure it would seem natural to
suppose that the Chromids were transformed Perches; the more so, since
in the western hemisphere the latter extend from the high north to
Texas, south of which they are represented by the Chromids. Here the
geographical as well as the structural transition would seem an easy
one. But look at the eastern hemisphere. Perches abound in Asia, Europe,
and Australia, but there are no Chromids there. How is it that the
Perches of this continent have been so fertile in producing Chromids,
and the Perches of all other continents, except Africa, absolutely
sterile in this respect? Or if we reverse the proposition, and suppose
the Perches to have grown out of the Chromids, why have their ancestry
disappeared so completely on the Asiatic side of the world, while they
do not seem to have diminished on this? And if Perches and Chromids
should be represented as descending from an older common type, I would
answer that Palæontology knows nothing of such a pedigree.
“Next come the Chubs, or in scientific nomenclature the Cyprinoids.
These fishes, variously called Chubs, Suckers, or Carps, abound in all
the fresh waters of the northern hemisphere. They are also numerous in
the eastern part of the southern hemisphere, but have not a single
representative in South America. As the Goniodonts are characteristic of
the southern hemisphere in its western half, so this group seems to be
characteristic of it in its eastern half. But while the Cyprinoids have
no representative in South America, there is another group there,
structurally akin to them, called the Cyprinodonts. They are all
small-sized; our Minnows belong to this group. From Maine to Texas they
are found in all the short rivers or creeks all along the coast. It is
for this reason that I expect to find the short coast rivers of South
America abounding in Minnows. I remember to have found in the
neighborhood of Mobile no less than six new species in the course of an
afternoon’s ramble. These fishes are almost all viviparous, or at least
lay their eggs in a very advanced state of development of the young. The
sexes differ so greatly in appearance that they have sometimes been
described as distinct species, nay, even as distinct genera.[12] We must
be on our guard against a similar mistake. Here again we have two
groups, the Cyprinoids and Cyprinodonts, so similar in their structural
features that the development of one out of the other naturally suggests
itself. But in South America there are no Cyprinoids at all, while the
Cyprinodonts abound; in Europe, Asia, and North America on the contrary,
the Cyprinoids are very numerous and the Cyprinodonts comparatively
few.” The Characines were next considered with reference to their
affinities as well as their geographical distribution; and a few remarks
were added upon the smaller families known to have representatives in
the fresh waters of South America, such as the Erythrinoids, the
Gymnotines, &c. “I am often asked what is my chief aim in this
expedition to South America? No doubt in a general way it is to collect
materials for future study. But the conviction which draws me
irresistibly, is that the combination of animals on this continent,
where the faunæ are so characteristic and so distinct from all others,
will give me the means of showing that the transmutation theory is
wholly without foundation in facts.” The lecture closed with some
account of the Salmonidæ, found all over the northern hemisphere, but
represented in South America by the Characines, distinct species of
which may be looked for in the separate water-basins of Brazil; and also
of several other important families of South American fishes, especially
the Osteoglossum, the Sudis, &c., interesting on account of their
relation to an extinct fossil type, that of the Cœlacanths.[13]
_April 17th._—Yesterday was Easter Sunday, and the day was beautiful.
The services from Bishop Potter in the morning were very interesting;
the more so for us on account of the God speed he gave us. Wind and
weather permitting, it is the last Sunday we shall pass on board ship
together. The Bishop spoke with much earnestness and sympathy of the
objects of the expedition, addressing himself especially to the young
men, not only with reference to their duties as connected with a
scientific undertaking, but as American citizens in a foreign country at
this time of war and misapprehension.
This morning we were quite entertained at meeting a number of the
so-called “Catamarans,” the crazy crafts of the fishermen, who appear to
be amphibious animals on this coast. Their boats consist of a few logs
lashed together, over which the water breaks at every moment without
apparently disturbing the occupants in the least. They fish, walk about,
sit, lie down or stand, eat, drink, and sleep, to all appearance as
contented and comfortable as we are in our princely steamer. Usually
they go into port at nightfall, but are occasionally driven out to sea
by the wind, and may sometimes be met with two hundred miles and more
from the shore. To-day we have fairly come upon the South American
coast. Yesterday we could catch sight occasionally of low sand banks;
but this morning we have sailed past the pretty little town of Olinda,
with its convent on the hill, and the larger city of Pernambuco, whose
white houses come quite down to the sea-shore. Immediately in front of
the town lies the reef, which runs southward along the coast for a
hundred miles and more, enclosing between itself and the shore a strip
of quiet waters, forming admirable anchorage for small shipping. Before
Pernambuco this channel is quite deep, and directly in front of the town
there is a break in the reef forming a natural gateway through which
large vessels can enter. We have now left the town behind, but the shore
is still in sight; a flat coast rising into low hills behind, and here
and there dotted with villages and fishing-huts.
The lecture on Saturday was rather practical than scientific, on the
best modes of collecting and preserving specimens, the instruments to be
used, &c. To-day it was upon the classification of fishes as illustrated
by embryology; the same method of study as that explained the other day
and now applied to the class of fishes. “All fishes at the time when the
germ becomes distinct above the yolk have a continuous fin over the
whole back, around the tail, and under the abdomen. The naked reptiles,
those which have no scales, such as frogs, toads, salamanders, and the
like, share in this embryological feature of the fishes. From this
identity of development I believe the naked reptiles to be structurally
nearer to the true fishes than to the scaly reptiles. All fishes, and
indeed all Vertebrates, even the highest, have, at this early period,
fissures in the side of the neck. These are the first indications of
gills, an organ the basis for which exists in all Vertebrates at a
certain period of their life, but is fully developed and functionally
active only in the lower ones, in which it acquires a special final
structure; giving place to lungs in the higher ones before they reach
their adult condition. From this time forward not only the class
characters, but those of the family, begin to be distinguished. I will
show you to-day how we may improve the classification of fishes by
studying their embryology. Take, for instance, the family of Cods in its
widest acceptation. It consists of several genera, among which are the
Cod proper, the Cusk, and the Brotula. Naturalists may differ in their
estimation of the relative rank of these genera, and even with reference
to their affinity, but the embryology of the Cod seems to me to give the
natural scale. In its early condition the Cod has the continuous fin of
the Brotula, next the dorsal and caudal fins become distinct, as in the
Cusk, and lastly the final individualization of the fins takes place,
and they break up into the three dorsals and two anals of the Cod. Thus
the Brotula represents the infantile condition of the Cod, and of course
stands lowest, while the Cusk has its natural position between the two.
There are other genera belonging to this family, as, for instance, the
Lota or fresh-water Cusk and the Hake, the relative position of which
may be determined by further embryological studies. I had an opportunity
of observing something in the development of the Hake which throws some
light on the relation of the Ophidini to the Cod family, though thus far
they have been associated with the Eel. The little embryonic Hake on
which I made my investigation was about an inch and a half in length; it
was much more slender and elongated in proportion to its thickness than
any of the family of Cods in their adult condition, and had a continuous
fin all around the body. Although the structural relations of the Eels
are not fully understood, some of them, at least, now united as a
distinct family under the name of Ophidini, are known to be closely
connected with the Cods, and this character of the Hake in its early
condition would seem to show that this type of Eel is a sort of
embryonic form of the Cod family.
“Another well-known family of fishes is that of the Lophioides. To this
group belongs the Lophius or Goose-fish, with which the Cottoids or
Sculpins, and the Blennioids, with Zoarces and Anarrhichas, the
so-called Sea-cat, ought to be associated. It was my good fortune to
have an opportunity of studying the development of the Lophius, and to
my surprise I found that its embryonic phases included the whole series
here alluded to, thus presenting another of those natural scales on
which I hope all our scientific classifications will be remodelled when
we obtain a better knowledge of embryology. The Lophius in its youngest
stage recalls the Tænioids, being long and compressed; next it resembles
the Blennioids, and growing stouter passes through a stage like Cottus,
before it assumes the depressed form of Lophius. In the family of
Cyprinodonts I have observed the young of Fundulus. They are destitute
of ventrals, thus showing that the genus Orestias stands lowest in its
family. I would allude to one other fact of this kind observed by
Professor Wyman. There has been a doubt among naturalists as to the
relative standing of the Skates and Sharks. On geological evidence I had
placed the Skates highest, because the Sharks precede them in time; but
this fact had not been established on embryological evidence. Professor
Wyman has followed the embryology of the Skate through all its phases,
and has found that in its earlier condition it is slender in outline,
with the appearance of a diminutive shark, and that only later it
assumes the broad shield-like form and long tapering tail of the skate.
Were it only that they enable us to set aside all arbitrary decisions
and base our classifications on the teachings of nature, these
investigations would be invaluable; but their importance is increased by
the consideration that we are thus gradually led to recognize the true
affinities which bind all organized beings into one great system.”
_April 20th._—The day after to-morrow we shall enter the Bay of Rio de
Janeiro. One begins to see already that little disturbance in the
regularity of sea life which precedes arrival. People are making up
their letters, and rearranging their luggage; there is a slight stir
pervading our small party of passengers and breaking up the even tenor
of the uniform life we have been leading together for the last three
weeks. It has been a delightful voyage, and yet, under the most charming
circumstances, life at sea is a poor exchange for life on land, and we
are all glad to be near our haven.
On Tuesday the lecture was upon the formation and growth of the egg; a
sort of practical lesson in the study of embryology; yesterday, upon the
importance of ascertaining, at the outset, the spawning season of the
animals in Brazil, and the means to that end. “It will often be
impossible for us to learn the breeding season of animals, a matter in
which country people are generally very ignorant. But when we cannot
obtain it from persons about us, there are some indications in the
animals themselves which may serve as a guide. During my own
investigations upon the development of the turtles, when I opened many
thousands of eggs, I found that in these animals, at least, the
appearance of the ovaries is a pretty good guide. They always contain
several sets of eggs. Those which will be laid this year are the
largest; those of the following year are next in size; those of two
years hence still smaller, until we come to eggs so small that it is
impossible to perceive any difference between their various phases of
development. But we can readily tell whether there are any eggs so
advanced as to be near laying, and distinguish between the brood of the
year and those which are to be hatched later. When the eggs are about to
be laid the whole surface is covered with ramifying blood-vessels, and
the yolk is of a very clear bright yellow. Before the egg drops from the
ovary this network bursts; it shrivels up and forms a little scar on the
side of the ovary. Should we, therefore, on examining the ovary of a
turtle, find that these scars are fresh, we may infer that the season
for laying is not over; or if we find some of the eggs much larger than
the rest and nearly mature, we shall know that it is about to begin. How
far this will hold good with respect to alligators and other animals I
do not know. I have learned to recognize these signs in the turtles from
my long study of their embryology. With fishes it could hardly be
possible to distinguish the different sets of eggs because they lay such
numbers, and they are all so small. But if we cannot distinguish the
eggs of the different years, it will be something to learn the size of
their broods, which differs very greatly in different families.”
The lecture concluded with some advice as to observing and recording the
metamorphoses of insects. “Though much has been written on the societies
of ants and other like communities in Brazil, the accounts of different
naturalists do not agree. It would be well to collect the larvæ of a
great many insects, and try to raise them; but as this will be difficult
and often impossible in travelling, we must at least get the nests of
ants, bees, wasps, and the like, in order to ascertain all we can
respecting their communities. When these are not too large it is easy to
secure them by slipping a bag over them, thus taking the whole
settlement captive. It may then be preserved by dipping into alcohol,
and examined at leisure, so as to ascertain the number and nature of the
individuals contained in it, and learn something at least of their
habits. Nor let us neglect the domestic establishments of spiders. There
is an immense variety of spiders in South America, and a great
difference in their webs. It would be well to preserve these on sheets
of paper, to make drawings of them, and examine their threads
microscopically.”
_April 21st._—Yesterday Mr. Agassiz gave his closing lecture, knowing
that to-day all would be occupied with preparations for landing. He gave
a little history of Steenstrup and Sars, and showed the influence their
embryological investigations have had in reforming classification, and
also their direct bearing upon the question of the origin of species. To
these investigators science owes the discovery of the so-called
“alternate generations,” in which the Hydroid, either by budding or by
the breaking up of its own body, gives rise to numerous jelly-fishes;
these lay eggs which produce Hydroids again, and the Hydroids renew the
process as before.[14]
“These results are but recently added to the annals of science, and are
not yet very extensively known in the community; but when the facts are
more fully understood, they cannot fail to affect the fundamental
principles of zoölogy. I have been astonished to see how little weight
Darwin himself gives to this series of transformations; he hardly
alludes to it, and yet it has a very direct bearing on his theory, since
it shows that, however great the divergence from the starting-point in
any process of development, it ever returns to the road of its normal
destiny; the cycle may be wide, but the boundaries are as impassable as
if it were narrower. However these processes of development may
approach, or even cross each other, they never end in making any living
being different from the one which gave it birth, though in reaching
that point it may pass through phases resembling other animals.
“In considering these questions we should remember how slight are most
of those specific differences, the origin of which gives rise to so much
controversy, in comparison with the cycle of changes undergone by every
individual in the course of its development. There are numerous genera,
including many very closely allied species, distinguished by differences
which, were it not for the fact that they have remained unchanged and
invariable through ages, might be termed insignificant. Such, for
instance, are the various species of corals found in the everglades of
Florida, where they lived and died ages ago, and had the identical
specific differences by which we distinguish their successors in the
present Florida reefs. The whole science of zoölogy in its present
condition is based upon the fact that these slight differences are
maintained generation after generation. And yet every individual on such
a coral stock,—and the same is true of any individual in any class
whatsoever of the whole animal kingdom, whether Radiate, Mollusk,
Articulate, or Vertebrate,—before reaching its adult condition and
assuming the permanent characters which distinguish it from other
species, and have never been known to vary, passes in a comparatively
short period through an extraordinary transformation, the successive
phases of which differ far more from each other than do the adult
species. In other words, the same individual differs more from himself
in successive stages of his growth than he does in his adult condition
from kindred species of the same genus. The conclusion seems inevitable,
that, if the slight differences which distinguish species were not
inherent, and if the phases through which every individual has to pass
were not the appointed means to reach that end, themselves invariable,
there would be ever-recurring deviations from the normal types. Every
naturalist knows that this is not the case. All the deviations known to
us are monstrosities, and the occurrence of these, under disturbing
influences, are to my mind only additional evidence of the fixity of
species. The extreme deviations obtained in domesticity are secured, as
is well known, at the expense of the typical characters, and end usually
in the production of sterile individuals. All such facts seem to show
that so-called varieties or breeds, far from indicating the beginning of
new types, or the initiating of incipient species, only point out the
range of flexibility in types which in their essence are invariable.
“In the discussion of the development theory in its present form, a
great deal is said of the imperfection of the geological record. But it
seems to me that, however fragmentary our knowledge of geology, its
incompleteness does not invalidate certain important points in the
evidence. It is well known that the crust of our earth is divided into a
number of layers, all of which contain the remains of distinct
populations. These different sets of inhabitants who have possessed the
earth at successive periods have each a character of their own. The
transmutation theory insists that they owe their origin to gradual
transformations, and are not, therefore, the result of distinct creative
acts. All agree, however, that we arrive at a lower stratum where no
trace of life is to be found. Place it where we will: suppose that we
are mistaken in thinking that we have reached the beginning of life with
the lowest Cambrian deposit; suppose that the first animals preceded
this epoch, and that there was an earlier epoch, to be called the
Laurentian system, beside many others older still; it is nevertheless
true that geology brings us down to a level at which the character of
the earth’s crust made organic life impossible. At this point, wherever
we place it, the origin of animals by development was impossible,
because they had no ancestors. This is the true starting-point, and
until we have some facts to prove that the power, whatever it was, which
originated the first animals has ceased to act, I see no reason for
referring the origin of life to any other cause. I grant that we have no
such evidence of an active creative power as Science requires for
positive demonstration of her laws, and that we cannot explain the
processes which lie at the origin of life. But if the facts are
insufficient on our side, they are absolutely wanting on the other. We
cannot certainly consider the development theory proved, because a few
naturalists think it plausible: it seems plausible only to the few, and
it is demonstrated by none. I bring this subject before you now, not to
urge upon you this or that theory, strong as my own convictions are. I
wish only to warn you, not against the development theory itself, but
against the looseness in the methods of study upon which it is based.
Whatever be your ultimate opinions on this subject, let them rest on
facts and not on arguments, however plausible. This is not a question to
be argued, it is one to be investigated.
“As I have advanced in these talks with you, I have become more and more
dissatisfied, feeling the difficulty of laying out our work without a
practical familiarity with the objects themselves. But this is the
inevitable position of one who is seeking the truth: till we have found
it, we are more or less feeling our way. I am aware that in my lectures
I have covered a far wider range of subjects than we can handle, even if
every man do his very best; if we accomplish one tenth of the work I
have suggested, I shall be more than satisfied with the result of the
expedition. In closing, I can hardly add anything to the impressive
admonitions of Bishop Potter in his parting words to us last Sunday, for
which I thank him in your name and my own. But I would remind you, that,
while America has recovered her political independence, while we all
have that confidence in our institutions which makes us secure, that so
far as we are true to them, doing what we do conscientiously and in full
view of our responsibilities we shall be in the right path, we have not
yet achieved our intellectual independence. There is a disposition in
this country to refer all literary and scientific matters to European
tribunals; to accept a man because he has obtained the award of
societies abroad. An American author is often better satisfied if he
publish his book in England than at home. In my opinion, every man who
publishes his work on the other side of the water deprives his country
of so much intellectual capital to which she has a right. Publish your
results at home, and let Europe discover whether they are worth reading.
Not until you are faithful to your citizenship in your intellectual as
well as your political life, will you be truly upright and worthy
students of nature.”
At the conclusion of these remarks a set of resolutions was read by
Bishop Potter.[15] They were followed by a few little friendly speeches,
all made in the most informal and cordial spirit; and so ended our
course of lectures on board the Colorado. Later in the day we observed
singular bright red patches in the sea. Some were not less than seven or
eight feet in length, rather oblong, and the whole mass looked as red as
blood. Sometimes they seemed to lie on the very top of the water,
sometimes to be a little below it, so as only to tinge the rippling
surface. One of the sailors succeeded in catching a portion of it in a
bucket, when it was found to consist of a solid mass of little
crustaceans, bright red in color. They were all very lively, keeping up
a constant rapid motion. Mr. Agassiz examined them under the microscope
and found them to be the young of a crab. He has no doubt that every
such patch is a single brood, floating thus compactly together like
spawn.
-----
Footnote 2:
On the 17th of May, nearly a month after our arrival in Rio, this
cloud was interpreted to us. It was, indeed, charged with the issues
of life and death, for it was on this day and the following that the
final assaults on Petersburg were made, and the cloud which marred an
otherwise stainless sky, as we were passing along the shores of
Virginia, was, no doubt, the mass of smoke gathered above the opposing
lines of the two armies.
Footnote 3:
The species of Hydroids most numerous upon the gulf-weed have not yet
been described, and would form a valuable addition to the Natural
History of the Acalephs. For an account of the animals of this class
inhabiting the Atlantic coast of North America, and especially the New
England shores, I may refer to the third volume of my Contributions to
the Natural History of the United States, and to the second number of
the Illustrated Catalogue of the Museum of Comparative Zoloögy at
Cambridge.—L. A.
Footnote 4:
“This stream,” he writes, “is probably generated by the great
accumulation of water on the eastern coast of America, between the
tropics, by the trade-winds which constantly blow there.” These views,
though vaguely hinted at by old Spanish navigators, were first
distinctly set forth by Franklin, and, as is stated in a recent
printed report of the Coast Survey Explorations, “they receive
confirmation from every discovery which the advance of scientific
research brings to aid in the solution of the great problem of oceanic
circulation.”
Footnote 5:
No one can read the account of the explorations undertaken by the
Coast Survey in the Gulf Stream, and continued during a number of
successive years, and the instructions received by the officers thus
employed from the Superintendent, Dr. A. D. Bache, without feeling how
comprehensive, keen, and persevering was the intellect which has long
presided over this department of our public works. The result is a
very thorough survey of the stream, especially along the coast of our
own continent, with sections giving the temperature to a great depth,
the relations of the cold and warm streaks, the form of the ocean
bottom, as well as various other details respecting the direction and
force of the current, the density and color of the water, and the
animal and vegetable productions contained in it. (See Appendix No.
I.)—L. A.
Footnote 6:
This anticipation was more than confirmed by the result of the
journey. It is true that Mr. Agassiz did not go beyond the Peruvian
frontier, and therefore could not verify his prophecy in that region.
But he found the localization of species in the Amazons circumscribed
within much narrower limits than he expected, the whole length of the
great stream, as well as its tributaries, being broken up into
numerous distinct faunæ. There can be no doubt that what is true for
nearly three thousand miles of its course is true also for the
head-waters of the Amazons; indeed, other investigators have already
described some species from its higher tributaries differing entirely
from those collected upon this expedition.
Footnote 7:
Mr. Agassiz afterward visited these hills himself, and an account of
their structure and probable origin will be found in the chapter on
the physical history of the Amazons.
Footnote 8:
See Appendix No. II.
Footnote 9:
It proved in the sequel unnecessary to seek the glacial phenomena of
tropical South America in its highest mountains. In Brazil the
moraines are as distinct and as well preserved in some of the coast
ranges on the Atlantic side, not more than twelve or fifteen hundred
feet high, as in any glaciated localities known to geologists in more
northern parts of the world. The snow line, even in those latitudes,
then descended so low that masses of ice formed above its level
actually forced their way down to the sea-coast.—L. A.
Footnote 10:
In copying the journal from which these notes are taken, I have
hesitated to burden the narrative with anatomical details. But for
those who take an interest in such investigations it may be well to
add here that the frog, when first hatched, is simply an oblong body,
without any appendages, and tapering slightly towards its posterior
end. In that condition it resembles the Cecilia. In its next stage,
that of the tadpole, when the extremity has elongated into a tail, the
gills are fairly developed, and it has one pair of imperfect legs, it
resembles the Siren, with its rudimentary limbs. In its succeeding
stages, when the same animal has two pairs of legs and a fin around
the tail, it recalls the Proteus and Menobranchus. Finally the gills
are suppressed, the animal breathes through lungs, but the tail still
remains; it then recalls Menopoma and the Salamanders. At last the
tail shrinks and disappears, and the frog is complete. This gives us a
standard by which the relative position of the leading groups of the
class may safely be determined.—L. A.
Footnote 11:
On account of the many exploring expeditions for which the Bay of Rio
de Janeiro has been a favorite port, it has acquired a special
interest for the naturalist. It may seem at first sight as if the fact
that French, English, German, Russian, and American expeditions have
followed each other in this locality, during the last century, each
bringing away its rich harvest of specimens, by diminishing its
novelty would rather lessen than increase its interest as a collecting
ground. On the contrary, for the very reason that the specimens from
which the greater part of the descriptions and figures contained in
the published accounts of these voyages were obtained from Rio de
Janeiro and its neighborhood, it becomes indispensable that every
zoölogical museum aiming at scientific accuracy and completeness
should have original specimens from that very locality for the
identification of species already described. Otherwise doubts
respecting the strict identity or specific difference of specimens
obtained on other parts of the Atlantic shore, not only in South
America but in Central and North America, may at any time invalidate
important generalizations concerning the distribution of animals in
these seas. From this point of view, the Bay of Rio de Janeiro forms a
most important centre of comparison, and it was for this reason that
we made so prolonged a stay there. Although the prospect of
discovering any novelties was diminished by the extensive
investigations of our predecessors, I well knew that whatever we
collected there would greatly increase the value of our collections
elsewhere. One of my special aims was to ascertain how far the marine
animals inhabiting the coast of Brazil to the south of Cape Frio
differed from those to the north of it, and furthermore, how the
animals found along the coast between Cape Frio and Cape St. Roque
differed from or agreed with those inhabiting the more northern shore
of the continent and the West Indian Islands. In the course of the
following chapters I shall have occasion to return, more in detail, to
this subject.—L. A.
Footnote 12:
Molinesia and Pœcilia.
Footnote 13:
This lecture was accompanied by careful descriptions and drawings on
the blackboard, showing the structural differences between these
groups. These are omitted, as they would have little interest for the
general reader. The chief object in reporting these lectures is to
show the aims which Mr. Agassiz placed before himself and his
companions in laying out the work of the expedition, and these are
made sufficiently clear without further scientific details.
Footnote 14:
As these investigations have been published with so much detail
(Steenstrup, Alternate Generation, Sars’s Fauna Norwegica; L. Agassiz,
Contr. to Nat. Hist. of U. S.), it has not been thought necessary to
reproduce this part of the lecture here. Any one who cares to read a
less technical account of these investigations than those originally
published, will find it in “Methods of Study,” by L. Agassiz.
Footnote 15:
See Appendix No. III.
CHAPTER II.
RIO DE JANEIRO AND ITS ENVIRONS.—JUIZ DE FORA.
ARRIVAL.—ASPECT OF HARBOR AND CITY.—CUSTOM-HOUSE.—FIRST GLIMPSE OF
BRAZILIAN LIFE.—NEGRO DANCE.—EFFECT OF EMANCIPATION IN UNITED
STATES UPON SLAVERY IN BRAZIL.—FIRST ASPECT OF RIO DE JANEIRO ON
LAND.—PICTURESQUE STREET GROUPS.—ECLIPSE OF THE SUN.—AT HOME IN
RIO.—LARANGEIRAS.—PASSEIO PUBLICO.—EXCURSION ON THE DOM PEDRO
RAILROAD.—VISIT OF THE EMPEROR TO THE COLORADO.—CORDIALITY OF
GOVERNMENT TO THE EXPEDITION.—LABORATORY.—BOTANICAL
GARDEN.—ALLEY OF PALMS.—EXCURSION TO THE CORCOVADO.—JUIZ DE FORA
ROAD.—PETROPOLIS.—TROPICAL VEGETATION.—RIDE FROM PETROPOLIS TO
JUIZ DE FORA.—VISIT TO SENHOR LAGE.—EXCURSION TO THE “FOREST OF
THE EMPRESS.”—VISIT TO MR. HALFELD.—RETURN TO RIO.—NEWS OF THE
GREAT NORTHERN VICTORIES, AND OF THE PRESIDENT’S ASSASSINATION.
_April 23d._—Yesterday at early dawn we made Cape Frio light, and at
seven o’clock were aroused by the welcome information that the Organ
Mountains were in sight. The coast range here, though not very lofty,
(its highest summits ranging only from two to three thousand feet,) is
bold and precipitous. The peaks are very conical, and the sides slope
steeply to the water’s edge, where, in many places, a wide beach runs
along their base. The scenery grew more picturesque as we approached the
entrance of the bay, which is guarded by heights rising sentinel-like on
either side. Once within this narrow rocky portal, the immense harbor,
stretching northward for more than twenty miles, seems rather like a
vast lake enclosed by mountains than like a bay. On one side extends the
ridge which shuts it from the sea, broken by the sharp peaks of the
Corcovado, the Tijuca, and the flat-topped Gavia; on the other side, and
more inland, the Organ Mountains lift their singular needle-like points,
while within the entrance rises the bare bleak rock so well known as the
Sugar Loaf (_Paō de Assucar_). Were it not for the gateway behind us,
through which we still have a glimpse of the open ocean, and for the
shipping lying here at anchor, leaving the port or entering it, we might
easily believe that we were floating on some great quiet sheet of inland
water.
We reached our anchorage at eleven o’clock, but were in no haste to
leave the ocean home where we have been so happy and so comfortable for
three weeks past; and as the captain had kindly invited us to stay on
board till our permanent arrangements were made, we remained on deck,
greatly entertained by all the stir and confusion attending our arrival.
Some of our young people took one of the many boats which crowded at
once around our steamer, and went directly to the city; but we were
satisfied with the impressions of the day, and not sorry to leave them
undisturbed. As night came on, sunset lit up the mountains and the
harbor. In this latitude, however, the glory of the twilight is soon
over, and as darkness fell upon the city it began to glitter with
innumerable lights along the shore and on the hillsides. The city of Rio
de Janeiro spreads in a kind of crescent shape around the western side
of the bay, its environs stretching out to a considerable distance along
the beaches, and running up on to the hills behind also. On account of
this disposition of the houses, covering a wide area and scattered upon
the water’s edge, instead of being compact and concentrated, the
appearance of the city at night is exceedingly pretty. It has a kind of
scenic effect. The lights run up on the hill-slopes, a little cluster
crowning their summits here and there, and they glimmer all along the
shore for two or three miles on either side of the central, business
part of the town.
Soon after our arrival Mr. Agassiz received an official visit from a
custom-house agent, saying that he had orders to land all our baggage
without examination, and that a boat would be sent at any day and hour
convenient to him to bring his effects on shore. This was a great
relief, as the scientific apparatus, added to the personal luggage of so
large a party, makes a fearful array of boxes, cases, &c. It would be a
long business to pass it all through the cumbrous ceremonies of a
custom-house. This afternoon, while Mr. Agassiz had gone to San
Christovāo[16] to acknowledge this courtesy and to pay his respects to
the Emperor, we were wandering over a little island (_Ilha das Enxadas_)
near which our ship lies, and from which she takes in coal for her
farther voyage. The proprietor, besides his coal-wharf, has a very
pretty house and garden, with a small chapel adjoining. It was my first
glimpse of tropical vegetation and of Brazilian life, and had all the
charm of novelty. As we landed, a group of slaves, black as ebony, were
singing and dancing a fandango. So far as we could understand, there was
a leader who opened the game with a sort of chant, apparently addressed
to each in turn as he passed around the circle, the others joining in
chorus at regular intervals. Presently he broke into a dance which rose
in wildness and excitement, accompanied by cries and ejaculations. The
movements of the body were a singular combination of negro and Spanish
dances. The legs and feet had the short, jerking, loose-jointed motion
of our negroes in dancing, while the upper part of the body and the arms
had that swaying, rhythmical movement from side to side so
characteristic of all the Spanish dances. After looking on for a while
we went into the garden, where there were cocoa-nut and banana trees in
fruit, passion-vines climbing over the house, with here and there a dark
crimson flower gleaming between the leaves. The effect was pretty, and
the whole scene had, to my eye, an aspect half Southern, half Oriental.
It was nearly dark when we returned to the boat, but the negroes were
continuing their dance under the glow of a bonfire. From time to time,
as the dance reached its culminating point, they stirred their fire, and
lighted up the wild group with its vivid blaze. The dance and the song
had, like the amusements of the negroes in all lands, an endless
monotonous repetition. Looking at their half-naked figures and
unintelligent faces, the question arose, so constantly suggested when we
come in contact with this race, “What will they do with this great gift
of freedom?” The only corrective for the half doubt is to consider the
whites side by side with them: whatever one may think of the condition
of slavery for the blacks, there can be no question as to its evil
effects on their masters. Captain Bradbury asked the proprietor of the
island whether he hired or owned his slaves. “Own them,—a hundred and
more; but it will finish soon,” he answered in his broken English.
“Finish soon! how do you mean?” “It finish with you; and when it finish
with you, it finish here, it finish everywhere.” He said it not in any
tone of regret or complaint, but as an inevitable fact. The death-note
of slavery in the United States was its death-note everywhere. We
thought this significant and cheering.
_April 24th._—To-day we ladies went on shore for a few hours, engaged
our rooms, and drove about the city a little. The want of cleanliness
and thrift in the general aspect of Rio de Janeiro is very striking as
compared with the order, neatness, and regularity of our large towns.
The narrow streets, with the inevitable gutter running down the
middle,—a sink for all kinds of impurities,—the absence of a proper
sewerage, the general aspect of decay (partly due, no doubt, to the
dampness of the climate), the indolent expression of the people
generally, make a singular impression on one who comes from the midst of
our stirring, energetic population. And yet it has a picturesqueness
that, to the traveller at least, compensates for its defects. All who
have seen one of these old Portuguese or Spanish tropical towns, with
their odd narrow streets and many-colored houses with balconied windows
and stuccoed or painted walls, only the more variegated from the fact
that here and there the stucco has peeled off, know the fascination and
the charm which make themselves felt, spite of the dirt and discomfort.
Then the groups in the street,—the half-naked black carriers, many of
them straight and firm as bronze statues under the heavy loads which
rest so securely on their heads, the padres in their long coats and
square hats, the mules laden with baskets of fruit or vegetables,—all
this makes a motley scene, entertaining enough to the new-comer. I have
never seen such effective-looking negroes, from an artistic point of
view, as here. To-day a black woman passed us in the street, dressed in
white, with bare neck and arms, the sleeves caught up with some kind of
armlet, a large white turban of soft muslin on her head, and a long
bright-colored shawl passed crosswise under one arm and thrown over the
other shoulder, hanging almost to the feet behind. She no doubt was of
the colored gentry. Just beyond her sat a black woman on the curbstone,
almost without clothing, her glossy skin shining in the sun, and her
naked child asleep across her knees. Or take this as another picture: an
old wall several feet wide, covered with vines, overhung with thick
foliage, the top of which seems to be a stand for the venders of fruits,
vegetables, &c. Here lies at full length a powerful negro looking over
into the street, his jetty arms crossed on a huge basket of crimson
flowers, oranges and bananas, against which he half rests, seemingly too
indolent to lift a finger even to attract a purchaser.