JOURNEY TO AND RESIDENCE IN THE ORGAN MOUNTAINS.
Principal Summer Resort of the English Residents—Journey from
Piedade to Magé and Frechal—Ascent of the Mountains—Description
of Virgin Forests—Mr. March’s Plantation in the Serra—Treatment
of his Slaves—Case of One bitten by a venomous Snake—Limb
amputated by the Author—Mode of Treatment in such Cases among
the Natives—Charms—Tapir-Hunting in the Mountains—Beasts,
Birds, and Reptiles found there—Visit to a Brazilian
Fazendeiro—To Constantia—Ascent of the loftiest Peaks—Vegetable
Productions in those elevated regions—Pleasant Sojourn on the
Estate.
The collections which had accumulated during the period of my residence
in the vicinity of Rio de Janeiro, having been put into a proper
state and sent to England, I made arrangements for visiting the Organ
Mountains. The peaks which receive this appellation form part of a
mountain range, situated about sixty miles to the north of Rio, which,
branching out in various directions, stretches from about Bahia, in lat.
12° S., to S. Catharina, in lat. 29° S. The name (Serra dos Orgãos)
bestowed on them by the Portuguese, originated in a fancied resemblance
which the peaks, rising gradually one above the other, bear to the pipes
of an organ. About ten years before my visit a Sanatorium, or health
station, had been established on this range, at about 3,000 feet above
the level of the sea, in a beautiful valley behind the higher peaks. A
large tract of country there belongs to Mr. March, an English gentleman,
on which he has a farm for the breeding of horses and mules, and a large
garden, from which the Rio market is regularly supplied with European
vegetables. On this property a number of cottages have been erected,
which are resorted to by the families of the English residents at Rio
during the hot months. He also receives boarders into his own house, and
it rarely happens that the place is without visitors. About one-third of
the journey has to be performed by water, the other is accomplished on
mules, which are sent down from Mr. March’s farm (Fazenda).
As Mr. March happened to be in Rio at the time I purposed visiting the
mountains, we started together, on the 24th of Dec., along with two
or three English merchants, who were going up to spend the Christmas
holidays with their families. It was mid-day before we could leave
the city, and, under the influence of a strong sea-breeze, we reached
Piedade, the landing-place, at half-past three o’clock, the distance
being about twenty miles. The boat in which we embarked belongs to a
class which is very common in the harbour, and much employed in conveying
goods to the head of the bay, and produce from the interior, from thence
to Rio. They are also much made use of by pleasure parties frequenting
the islands and opposite shores of the bay. They are called Faluas, and
are manned by six rowers, and a steersman who is called the Patrão. The
latter is very frequently the owner, and most of them are natives of
Portugal. They have two masts, each of which carries a large sail; the
stern part is covered over and enclosed with curtains. The negroes who
man these boats are generally strong muscular men. Seated on one thwart,
they place their feet against another, and rise up at each stroke of the
oar, keeping time to a melancholy chant all the while they are pulling.
These boats can be hired for an entire day at about eighteen shillings.
The day was a most delightful one, the sun shining out brightly from a
clear sky, and the air cooled by the fresh sea-breeze. We passed close
to the Ilha do Governador, which is the largest island in the bay. It
is about eight miles in length, but narrow in proportion, and thinly
inhabited. Shortly before my arrival in the country, an Englishman
commenced a soap and candle manufactory on it, both of which articles
bring the same price in Rio as those imported from Europe. The muddy
shores of this island, as well as those of the whole bay, abound with
crabs of all sizes, and every variety of colour, from nearly black to a
bright scarlet. On one occasion when I visited the island, I observed
within a very short space about eight species. They are gregarious, and
each kind inhabits a distinct colony; they burrow in the mud, under the
shade and among the roots of the mangrove and other shore-loving trees.
It was here that I first saw the apparent anomaly of trees bearing crops
of oysters. These animals, when young, attach themselves to the lower
part of the trunks, and long pendulous roots, of the mangrove and other
trees, which grow in the sea even to low-water mark. The oysters are
small and not well-flavoured. Others are found in the bay of enormous
size, some of their shells, which I collected as specimens, measuring
upwards of a foot in length. Near the head of the bay there are many
little islands, some of which are inhabited, and present the agreeable
prospect of cultivation, while others are little more than masses of
rock, among the clefts of which grow a few stunted shrubs, and grotesque
prickly pears.
At Piedade, mules from Mr. March’s Fazenda were waiting for us and our
luggage, and, after a short stay for the arrangement of the latter, we
began the land part of our journey. At Piedade, which only consists of a
few scattered houses, a large hotel was being erected by Col. Leite, a
Brazilian gentleman, who, at his own expense, was then making a new road
across the Organ Mountains, to join the one which leads to the mining
districts from Porto de Estrella, another landing place at the head of
the bay. The latter place has hitherto been the common harbour between
Rio and the interior. The Colonel, however, expects that his new road
will ultimately be preferred, as it is much shorter. Four years after
when I again visited this part of the country, I found that this road
was still in an unfinished state. To save the expense of an engineer he
had traced the road himself, and the consequence was, that it afterwards
required many alterations. The road from Piedade to Magé, a small town
about four miles distant, leads through a flat, sandy, and, in several
places, marshy plain, abounding with low trees and beautiful flowering
shrubs. The hedges were covered with numerous climbers, one of them a
small sweet-flowered kind of Jasmine, the only one which has hitherto
been found in a wild state on the continent of America. In moist places,
_Dichorizandra thyrsiflora_, with its spikes of azure blossoms, was
not uncommon, while the sandy fields were covered with a large kind of
_Cactus_, among which many plants of the aloe-like _Fourcroya gigantea_
were to be seen throwing up their flowering stems to a height of thirty
and forty feet.
The town of Magé is rather prettily situated on the banks of the
Magé-assú, one of the many small rivers which take their rise in the
Organ Mountains, and fall into the head of the bay. It contains a neat
church, and a number of well-furnished shops. The river is navigable, for
craft of a small size, about eight miles from its mouth. A considerable
quantity of Farinha de Mandiocca (Cassava) is exported from this place to
Rio. Its low situation, and the surrounding swamps, render it unhealthy
at particular seasons; intermittent fevers are here common, and they
frequently terminate in others of a more malignant nature. From Magé to
Frechal, the place where we slept for the night, the distance is about
fourteen miles. The road still continued flat, but wound round many low
hills, the sides of which are covered with plantations of Mandiocca. We
met several troops of mules coming down from the interior, loaded with
produce. Unaccustomed to such a mode of transport, the European looks
with astonishment at the great number of animals which are here required
to carry what, in his own country, would scarcely form a load for one.
Loaded mules start daily from Rio, Piedade, and Porto d’Estrella, to
make journeys into the interior of from five hundred to two thousand
miles and upwards. They seldom travel above twelve or sixteen miles a
day, and the load allowed to each varies from six to eight arrobas of
thirty-two pounds each. The loads are protected from the weather by
dried ox-hides, which are strapped lightly over them. Frechal is a small
village, consisting of a few scattered houses, and situated about two
miles from the foot of the mountains. The place at which we put up for
the night is a large kind of public house (Venda), where there is an open
room for the accommodation of travellers; around this room a number of
beds are arranged, which gives it very much the appearance of a hospital
ward. Here, unlike most other places of the same kind between Rio and the
mining districts, a very comfortable meal may always be obtained.
Next morning by break of day we again continued our journey. At about
two miles from Frechal the ascent of the mountains begins. From thence
to Mr. March’s Fazenda, which stands at an elevation of upwards of 3,000
feet above the level of the sea, is twelve miles. During the whole way
the road is very bad, and in many places so steep, that it is with
considerable difficulty the mules make their way up it. Indeed, to one
unused to travel on such paths, which have more the appearance of the
bed of a mountain torrent than a road for beasts of burden, many parts
of it appear impassable; but he is soon undeceived by the slow yet sure
manner in which the mules pass along the worst portion of it, especially
if left entirely to themselves. The whole length of the road is through
one dense forest, the magnificence of which cannot be imagined by those
who have never seen it, or penetrated into its recesses. Those remnants
of the virgin forest which still stand in the vicinity of the capital,
although they appear grand to the eye of a newly-arrived European,
become insignificant when compared with the mass of giant vegetation
which clothes the sides of the Organ Mountains. So far as I have been
able to determine, the large forest trees consist of various species of
_Palms_, _Laurus_, _Ficus_, _Cassia_, _Bignonia_, _Solanum_, _Myrtaceæ_,
and _Melastomaceæ_. In temperate climates natural forests are mostly
composed of trees which grow gregariously. In those of tropical countries
it is seldom that two trees of a kind are to be seen growing together,
the variety of different species is so great. Many of the trees are of
immense size, and have their trunks and branches covered with myriads
of those plants which are usually called parasites, but are not so in
reality, consisting of _Orchideæ_, _Bromeliaceæ_, _Ferns_, _Peperomiæ_,
&c., which derive their nourishment from the moisture of their bark, and
the earthy matter which has been formed from the decay of mosses, &c.
Many of the trees have their trunks encircled by twiners, the stems of
which are often thicker than those they surround. This is particularly
the case with a kind of wild fig, called by the Brazilians, Cipo
Matador. It runs up the tree to which it has attached itself, and at
the distance of about every ten feet throws out from each side a thick
clasper, which curves round, and closely entwines the other stem. As both
the trees increase in size, the pressure ultimately becomes so great,
that the supporting one dies from the embrace of the parasite.
There is another kind of wild fig-tree, with an enormous height and
thickness of stem, to which the English residents give the name of
Buttress-tree, from several large thin plates which stand out from the
bottom of the trunk. They begin to jut out from the stem at the height
of ten or twelve feet from the bottom, and gradually increase in breadth
till they reach the ground, where they are connected with the large roots
of the tree. At the surface of the ground these plates are often five
feet broad, and throughout not more than a few inches thick. The various
species of _Laurus_ form fine trees; they flower in the months of April
and May, at which season the atmosphere is loaded with the rich perfume
of their small white blossoms. When their fruit is ripe, it forms the
principal food of the Jacutinga (_Penelope Jacutinga_, Spix), a fine
large game bird. The large _Cassiæ_ have a striking appearance when in
flower; and, as an almost equal number of large trees of _Lasiandra
Fontanesiana_, and others of the _Melastoma_ tribe, are in bloom at the
same time, the forests are then almost one mass of yellow and purple from
the abundance of these flowers. Rising amid these, the pink-coloured
flowers of the _Chorisia speciosa_—a kind of silk cotton-tree—can be
easily distinguished. It is also a large tree, with a stem, covered with
strong prickles, from five to eight feet in circumference unbranched
to the height of thirty or forty feet. The branches then form a nearly
hemispherical top, which, when covered with its thousands of beautiful
large rose-coloured blossoms, has a striking effect when contrasted with
the masses of green, yellow, and purple of the surrounding trees.
Many of these large trunks afford support to various species of climbing
and twining shrubs, belonging to the natural orders _Bignoniaceæ_,
_Compositæ_, _Apocyneæ_, and _Leguminosæ_, the stems of which frequently
assume a very remarkable appearance. Several of them are often twisted
together and dangle from the branches of the trees, like large ropes,
while others are flat and compressed, like belts: of the latter
description I have met with some six inches broad, and not more than
an inch thick. Two of the finest climbers are the beautiful large
trumpet-flowered _Solandra grandiflora_, which, diffusing itself among
the largest trees of the forest, gives them a magnificence not their own;
and a showy species of Fuchsia (_F. integrifolia_, Cambess.),[3] which is
very common, attaching itself to all kinds of trees, often reaching to
the height of from sixty to one hundred feet, and then falling down in
the most beautiful festoons.
At the foot of the mountains the underwood principally consists of shrubs
belonging to the natural orders _Melastomaceæ_, _Myrtaceæ_, _Compositæ_,
_Solanaceæ_, and _Rubiaceæ_, among which are many large species of
herbaceous ferns, and a few palms. About the middle, palms and tree ferns
abound, some of the latter reaching to the height of not less than forty
feet. These trees are so unlike every other denizen of the forest, so
strange in appearance, yet so graceful, that they have always attracted
my attention more than any other, not even excepting the palms. At an
elevation of about 2,000 feet, a large species of bamboo (_Bambusa
Togoara_, Mart.) makes its appearance. The stems of this gigantic grass
are often eighteen inches in circumference, and attain a height of
from fifty to one hundred feet. They do not, however, grow perfectly
upright, their tops forming a graceful curve downwards. Throughout the
whole distance, the path was lined on each side with the most beautiful
herbaceous plants and delicate ferns.
We reached Mr. March’s Fazenda early in the forenoon. His estate embraces
an extent of country containing sixty-four square miles. The greater
part of it is still covered by virgin forests; that which is cleared,
consists of pasture land, and several small farms for the cultivation of
Indian corn, French beans, and potatoes. Plentiful crops are yielded of
the two former, but the produce of the latter is neither so abundant nor
so good as in England. He has also near his house a large garden, under
the management of a French gardener, in which nearly all the European
fruits and vegetables grow tolerably well. The peach, the olive, the
fig, the vine, the apple, the quince, the loquat, the pear, the orange,
and the banana, may be seen growing side by side, and all, with the
exception of the two latter, bearing abundance of fruit. The orange and
the banana also bear, but the cold seldom allows the fruit to come to
perfection. The strawberry yields but little fruit, and the gooseberry
none at all. The apples are quite equal to any I have tasted in England,
but the peaches are very inferior; bushels of them are given to feed the
pigs. The figs are delicious, especially a variety which produces small
green-coloured fruit. Excellent crops of cauliflower, cabbage, asparagus,
artichokes, turnips, carrots, peas, onions, &c., are freely produced, and
sent weekly to the city. The most fertile part of the estate is a large
valley, situated between the higher chain of the Organ Mountains and a
smaller range which runs nearly parallel with it, and many of the smaller
valleys, which run up to the peaks themselves, are cultivated; these are
all well watered with small streams of cool and limpid water.
At this elevation the climate is very much cooler than it is at Rio,
the thermometer in the months of May and June sometimes falling as low
as 32° just before daybreak. The lowest at which I observed it myself,
was on the 26th of May, when, at 8 o’clock A.M., the mercury indicated
39°. The highest to which it rose during the six months I resided on the
mountains, was on the 23rd of February, when the mercury stood at 84° at
noon. The hot season is also the season of the rains, and violent thunder
storms occur almost daily, during the months of January and February.
They come on with great regularity about four o’clock in the afternoon,
and when they pass over, leave a delightfully cool evening. Like the
mountains near Rio, the whole of the Organ range consists of granite. The
alluvial soil is very deep and rich in the valleys, and underneath it
there exists the same red-coloured argillaceo-ferrugineous clay which is
so common at Rio.
It being Christmas-day on which we arrived, and a great holiday, we found
the whole of the slaves belonging to the estate, amounting to about one
hundred, dancing in the yard before the house, and all attired in new
suits of clothes, which had been sent out to them the day before. In
the evening, a party of the best conducted, principally creoles, were
admitted into the verandah of the house, where I had a good opportunity
of witnessing their dances—some of them not being very delicate. One
of the best was a kind of dramatic dance, of which the following is
a programme. Near the door of a house belonging to a Padre (priest),
a young fellow commences dancing and playing on the viola, a kind of
guitar. The Padre hears the noise, and sends out one of his servants to
ascertain the cause. He finds the musician dancing to his own strains,
and tells him that he is sent by his master to enquire why he is thus
disturbed. The musician tells him that he is making no disturbance at
all, but only trying a new dance from Bahia, which he saw the other day
at Diario. The servant asks if it is a good one: “Oh, very good,” replies
the other, “will you not try it?” The servant claps his hands, cries
“Let the Padre go sleep!” and immediately joins in the dance. The same
thing is repeated till the Padre’s servants, men, women, and children,
amounting to about twenty, are dancing in a circle before the house. Last
of all the supposed Padre himself makes his appearance in a great rage,
dressed in a large Poncho for a gown, a broad-brimmed black straw hat,
and a mask with a long beard to it. He demands the cause of the noise,
which, he says, prevents him from enjoying his dinner. The musician
tells him the same story that was told to his servants, and after much
persuasion, gets him to join in the dance also. He dances with as much
zeal as any of them, but, watching his opportunity, he takes out a whip
which he has concealed under his gown, and, lashing the whole of them
out of the apartment, finishes the performance. A stricter discipline is
kept up among the slaves on this estate, than on any of the same size I
have been on in Brazil, but, at the same time, they are carefully and
kindly attended to. There is a hospital for the sick, and Mr. Heath, the
manager of the estate, has had great experience in the treatment of those
diseases to which negroes are liable.
Although there are not so many kinds of venomous snakes in Brazil as is
supposed even by the inhabitants, yet accidents frequently occur from
their bites to those slaves who are engaged in the plantations. In the
whole course of my travels in Brazil, I did not meet with more than half
a dozen kinds, which, from examination, were found to have poison fangs.
Some of these are, however, very numerous in individuals. In the province
of Rio, and in the southern provinces generally, the Jararáca, (_Bothrops
Neuwiedii_, Spix.) a genus nearly allied to that which the Rattle Snake
belongs to, is perhaps the most common. When full grown it is usually
about six feet long. It is frequently met with in plantations, and in
bushy and grassy places by the sides of woods, but is scarcely ever found
in dense forests. That which is most abundant in the central and northern
provinces, is a true Rattle Snake (_Cascavel_), but most probably a
distinct species from that of North America. On the day previous to my
arrival at Mr. March’s, one of his female slaves, about thirty-two years
of age, and the mother of four children, whilst weeding Indian corn on
a plantation about eight miles distant from the house, was bitten on
the right hand, between the bones of the fore-finger and thumb, by a
Jararáca. The accident took place about eight o’clock in the morning, and
immediately after she left to return home, but only reached half way,
when she was obliged to lie down from excessive pain and exhaustion. At
this time she said the feeling of thirst was very great. Some slaves
belonging to the estate happening to be near, one of them rode off to
inform Mr. Heath. When he arrived, he found the arm much swollen up to
the shoulder, beneath which he applied a ligature. From a cottage in the
neighbourhood he got a little hartshorn, some of which he applied to the
bite, and caused her to swallow about a tea-spoonful in water. Being in a
state of high fever, he took about a pound of blood from her, after which
she became faintish. She was then removed to the Fazenda, and had two
grains of calomel administered to her, and about an hour after a large
dose of castor oil.
When I saw her on the following day, she still complained of excruciating
pain in the hand and arm, to relieve which a linseed-meal poultice was
applied. The pulse being 130, and full, about another pound of blood
was taken from the other arm. Next day a number of little vesicles
made their appearance on the back of the hand and a little above the
wrist, which, when opened, discharged a watery fluid. For the next two
days she continued to suffer much pain, to relieve which poultices
were constantly applied. More vesicles formed, and the cuticle began
to peel off in the vicinity of the bite. On the morning of the 29th,
that is, on the fourth day after the accident, when the poultice was
removed, she complained of no pain at all in her hand, and on careful
examination I found that gangrene had taken place, all below the wrist
being dead. From the state of the arm, there was every appearance of the
mortification extending. On making an incision into the living portion
above the wrist, a considerable quantity of a very fœtid whitish watery
fluid discharged itself; and, on pressing the arm between the finger and
thumb, a crepitation was felt from the air which had generated beneath
the integuments. She was now very weak, the pulse 136, small and feeble,
and she appeared to be fast sinking. Amputation being the only means that
seemed to offer her a chance of recovery, I decided at once to take off
the arm. As the crepitation extended to a few inches above the elbow, and
the swelling itself to the shoulder, I determined to take it off as close
to the latter as possible. As there was no room for the application of
the tourniquet, I got Mr. Heath to apply pressure with a padded key over
the artery where it passes under the clavicle, and Mr. March held the arm
while I performed the operation. A good deal of blood was lost before I
could secure the artery, which had to be done before the bone was sawn
through. In a fortnight after, the stump had nearly healed up, and she
was walking about the room. Four years afterwards I again saw her, and
her general health had not suffered in the least, but she had become
extremely irritable and ill-tempered.
Neither the natives nor the inhabitants have any remedy for snake
bites, in which they put implicit faith. This I found out from their
frequently applying to me for medicine, after their own resources had
been completely exhausted. When an accident of this nature happens, the
patient, in the interior particularly, is generally put under the charge
of a class of people called Curadores, who apply their remedies with many
mysterious ceremonies. The first operation of the Curador is to suck the
wound, which, if immediately had recourse to, I believe to be the next
best thing to excision or cauterization. The patient is then put into a
dark room, and care is taken that he is not exposed to currents of air.
One of the remedies which they believe to be the most efficacious, is
that which is well known in Minas and the other inland provinces, by the
name of Black Root (_Raiz Preto_), and Snake Root (_Raiz de Cobra_). It
is the root of a common shrub, now well known to botanists by the name of
_Chiococca anguifuga_. It has a pungent disagreeable smell, not unlike
that of the common Valerian. Decoctions of this are given to drink, and
poultices of it are applied to the wound. The _Raiz Preto_ acts as a
violent emetic and purgative, and also induces copious perspiration. If
it operates freely in this manner, they augur favourably of the patient’s
recovery. Besides this plant they use many others. Snakes have generally
a disagreeable musky smell, and it is a common opinion among the people,
that any plant possessing one similar is sure to be valuable in the cure
of their bites.
In the province of Pernambuco, I found that a common method of cure
was to give the patient rum to drink, till he was in a perfect state
of intoxication; and this they affirm is very frequently a successful
remedy. But the most extraordinary method of cure which I have ever heard
of, is one which was communicated to me by a farmer (Fazendeiro), who
accompanied me to Rio on my return from the mountains. Only three days,
he said, before he left his estate, one of his oxen was bitten on the leg
by a Jararáca, but having immediately applied his remedy, it became as
well as any of the others before he quitted home. This remedy consists
of the following well-known Latin acrostic, or, as he termed them,
magical words:—
S. A. T. O. R.
A. R. E. P. O.
T. E. N. E. T.
O. P. E. R. A.
R. O. T. A. S.
Each line is to be written separately on a slip of paper, and then
rolled into the form of a pill, the whole five to be given as soon as
possible after the person or animal has been bitten. He also gave me
quite as ridiculous a remedy for the cure of drunkenness. This was to
place a piece of bread in the arm-pits of a dying man, and allow it to
remain there till he was perfectly dead. The smallest portion of this
bread, he affirmed, given, without their knowledge, to those addicted to
intemperance, would produce a perfect cure.
Catesby mentions that in North America he has seen death result from
the bite of a Rattle Snake in less than two minutes; I have also heard
of death taking place very shortly after the bite in Brazil, but I have
never actually seen it in less than ten or twelve hours. In those cases
where the poison acts so quickly, it must be so strong as to destroy
the nervous energy at once. In those in which the patient lingers
for one or more days, death generally takes place from inflammation
and mortification of the subcutaneous cellular substance. During the
course of my journeys in the interior, I met frequently with persons
who had recovered from severe snake bites, but almost all of them had
broken constitutions, and suffered from ulcerated limbs. From all that
I have seen, I candidly confess, that I have no faith in any medicine
intended to act as a specific for a snake bite, whether used internally
or externally. I do not of course allude to those which are usually
applied for the reduction of inflammation and fever, as under any mode of
treatment they cannot be withheld. A ligature attached above the wound,
and instant incisions into the wound itself, and the application of a
cupping-glass, which, in the shape of a wine glass, is always at hand,
are more to be depended on than any other external remedial agency.
My first journey of any length into the virgin forest here, was made in
company with M. Lomonosof, the Russian minister at the court of Brazil,
and Mr. Heath. M. Lomonosof was desirous to witness a Tapir (_Anta_)
hunt, that animal being very common on this range. It is the largest
South American quadruped, but is not of greater size in the body than a
calf about six months old, and it stands upon much shorter legs. We left
the Fazenda about half-past six o’clock in the morning, and entered the
forest at about three miles to the north of it. We were accompanied by
four negroes, and took provisions with us for two days. We had also our
guns and six good dogs. For the first mile and a half we had a tolerable
path, leading through a forest of fine trees, with very little underwood
except young palms, hundreds of which were cut down by the blacks who
were clearing the way for us. In going up the valley we crossed and
recrossed a small river, called the Imbuhy, several times, on the banks
of which I added largely to my botanical collections. The most difficult
part of our path was about half a mile which had to be cut through a
thick forest of bamboos. Having accomplished this, we came upon an old
track of a tapir. It was about two feet broad, well beaten, and had foot
marks of the animal on it, but they were several days old. This path led
us through a densely wooded part of the forest, to one which was less so,
the larger trees being fewer, but instead, an abundance of shrubs and
large herbaceous plants. We here came upon several paths, which we found
led to a deep pool in the river, and evidently a place which the tapir
repairs to for the purpose of drinking and bathing. While Mr. Heath was
endeavouring to get the dogs upon a recent track, I occupied myself in
collecting a number of curious plants, which grew on a sloping bank by
the side of the stream. It now began to rain, and the dogs not having
gone out, we again crossed the river, and proceeded up the valley about
a mile further. From thence one of the dogs set off, but returned in
about a quarter of an hour without having turned up anything. It was now
nearly four o’clock in the afternoon, and the rain was beginning to fall
heavily; we therefore sought for a place where we might encamp for the
night, as we were ten miles distant from the Fazenda, and M. Lomonosof
was too much fatigued to be able to return. The place we selected was
under the shade of some large trees, near which grew abundance of the
small cabbage palm (_Euterpe edulis_, Mart.), the terminal bud of which
is so much made use of as a vegetable by the Brazilians. A hut was soon
erected, and thickly thatched over with the leaves of this palm. At first
we were dreadfully annoyed by mosquitoes and a little sand-fly, but the
kindling of a large fire in front of our hut soon dispersed them. Palm
leaves were spread upon the floor for our bed, and we had a small log of
wood for a pillow. It rained heavily all night, but we did not suffer
from it. We got up next morning by break of day, and prepared to return
home, as it still continued to rain. I was somewhat amused at the vessel
in which the blacks cooked their breakfast. It was a pot made from a part
of the thick stem of a bamboo, the bottom being formed by the division
which occurs at each joint. It is placed upright on the fire, and so long
as it contains water will not burn through. Among the many uses to which
the bamboo may be put, that is one which I never heard of before nor have
seen since. After a slight breakfast we commenced our journey homewards;
but before getting out of the forest, M. Lomonosof, little accustomed
to a hunter’s life, became so exhausted from fatigue, that it was with
difficulty he reached the place where horses had been ordered to be sent
to await our return.
The animals which inhabit the vast forests of the Organ mountains are,
perhaps, no less various than the forms of the vegetable creation.
Formerly the Ounce, or Jaguar (_Felis Onca_), used to be common, but
now it is only occasionally that its roar is heard at night, or that
cattle or sheep suffer from its depredations. The black variety, to
which the Brazilians give the name of Tiger, is still more rare. The
woods, however, abound with a very pretty species of wild cat (_Felis
pardalis_). Monkeys are very numerous. In the morning the forests resound
with the unearthly howling of the Barbado (_Mycetes barbatus_), which
is as large as an ordinary dog; they live in bands of many together.
There are several others quite as large, but they are seldom to be seen.
The grey Marmoset, which is so common in the forests of the northern
provinces, is not to be met with here, but another, and perhaps a still
more beautiful species is occasionally found. It is the _Jaccus auritus_.
It is easily distinguished from all the other species by its nearly
uniform dark colour, and the pencils of long white hairs which come out
from its ears. The Sloth (_Acheus Ai_) is also occasionally found feeding
on the leaves of the _Cecropia peltata_, which form his favourite food.
One which I had for some time in captivity, was of a timid and fretful
disposition. Like most other animals in which the brain is small in
proportion to the development of the nervous system, it is very tenacious
of life. Although more tardy in its movements than most quadrupeds of
its size, it passes with considerable rapidity from branch to branch,
from which in its progress it always hangs by the legs and feet. It owes
much to Waterton, for being the first to remove the stigma which Buffon
and others put upon its character. In the river which flows through the
valley, the Brazilian Otter (_Lutra Brasiliensis_), and the Capybara
(_Hydrochærus capybara_), are still occasionally to be met with. A pretty
little deer (_Cervus nemorivagus_) frequently attracts the sportsman to
the woods, as do also the two species of Pecari (_Dicotyles labiatus_
and _torquatus_), which are so common all over the intertropical parts
of South America. A kind of Opossum (_Didelphis Azaræ_) is as much the
pest of the fowl-house as the fox is in Europe. It is very tenacious of
life, getting up and running away when every bone in its body appears to
be broken by the blows which have been inflicted on it. In the woods an
Armadillo (_Tatusia peba_) is not uncommon, the stewed flesh of which
makes excellent food; and in the forests a prehensile-tailed kind of
Porcupine (_Sphigurus spinosus_) is also often met with; they both burrow
in the ground. The great Ant-bear (_Myrmecophaga tamandua_) is rarely,
though occasionally, to be met with. Along with the monkeys, a little
brown squirrel is often to be seen sporting among the branches of the
trees.
Besides the numerous fly-catchers and other small birds, the wild
pigeons, the flocks of parroquets and parrots, the hawks, owls, and the
various species of Toucans, remarkable for their brilliant colours,
and the great size of their bills, there are several large birds which
are much sought after by the sportsman. These are the Jacú, Jacutinga,
Jacubemba, Jacuassú, all gallinaceous birds, belonging to the genus
_Penelope_; two species of Quail, the Macúcu (_Tinamus macaco_), and the
Nhambú (_Pezus niamba_); and, lastly, a Partridge (_Perdix Guianensis_),
the Capoeira of the Brazilians. Of reptiles there are numerous snakes,
many of which are beautifully coloured, a vast variety of lizards, and
innumerable hordes of frogs and toads of all sizes, from the small tree
kind not more than an inch long, to those marsh ones which are nearly
large enough to fill a hat. Till one gets accustomed to the sounds which
they produce, particularly previous to rain, they are almost deafening.
During the day the air is full of beautiful butterflies of all colours,
now flying from flower to flower, and now alighting on the moist sandy
banks of pools and small streams in countless numbers. The large nests
of wasps hang from the boughs of the trees, and smaller ones are often
hidden among the leaves and small branches of shrubs, the inhabitants of
which, when disturbed, rush out and inflict summary punishment on the
unhappy transgressors. In open places the leaves and flowers of bushes
and other plants, abound with Diamond and other beetles; while at night
the air is lighted up with fire-flies of various sizes, which, from their
brilliancy, give the idea that part of the stars have fallen from the
firmament, and are floating about without a resting place.
While I resided at Mr. March’s I frequently paid a visit to a Brazilian,
Joaquim Paulo by name, who has a small estate about ten miles distant.
My first visit was made along with Mr. Heath, and as we arrived shortly
before dinner, we were invited to partake of that meal. This I was not
displeased at, as it gave me an opportunity of witnessing the internal
economy of a Brazilian country-house, never having been in one before.
The dinner was substantial and clean, but every dish was, according to
the custom of the country, highly seasoned with garlic. The table was
covered with a clean cloth, on one end of which was laid a heap of ground
cassava root (_Farinha de Mandiocca_), and on the other a heap of ground
Indian corn (_Farinha de Milho_). On one of these heaps was placed a
large dish of boiled black French beans (_Feijoens_), with a large piece
of fat pork (_Toucinho_) in the midst of them; while on the other was
laid a dish of stewed fowl. We had also roast pork and blood sausages.
From these dishes and heaps every one helped himself. As a vegetable
we had a dish of cabbage-palm (_Euterpe edulis_), which is very tender
and delicious, tasting not unlike asparagus. During dinner we were each
furnished with a cup of Lisbon wine; and after it we had various kinds
of sweet-meats. Besides ourselves, there were only our host and two of
his sons. Indeed, his wife and daughters I did not see till I had been
several times at the house. The two girls were rather pretty, but they
could neither read nor write. The father would not allow them to learn
either, from fear that they would take to the reading of novels, and the
writing of love-letters. He was himself a most inveterate huntsman, being
almost always in the woods in pursuit of game. He was a capital shot, and
had killed more tapirs with his own hand than any one in the vicinity.
I also visited occasionally a coffee plantation called Constantia, about
fifteen miles distant from Mr. March’s, belonging to M. De Luze, a
Swiss, who had been many years in the country. It is situated in a flat
valley surrounded by sloping hills, and is one of the most lovely spots
I have ever seen. In the neighbourhood of it there are two other coffee
plantations belonging to Germans, but they have all ascertained that the
elevation is too great for the successful cultivation of coffee. Since
then M. De Luze has sold his estate to Mr. March, and bought a larger
one, in a fine coffee country on the banks of the Rio Parahiba. In the
latitude of Rio, coffee does not succeed at a much greater elevation than
2,000 feet. At Mr. March’s the bush grows well, but it never ripens its
fruit properly.
The most distant journey I made, was to an estate about twenty miles
north of Mr. March’s Fazenda. About the middle of April, Mr. Heath
received a note from the lady to whom it belongs, Dona Rita Thereza da
Roza, asking him as a great favour to ride over and take me along with
him to see her little daughter, who a few days before had been attacked
with apoplexy and paralysis. On the following day it was our intention
to have gone, but heavy rains, which came on and flooded the rivers,
prevented us from starting till the succeeding day. Mr. March’s house
being at the south end of his estate, we had to pass along the whole
length of it, a distance of about eight miles. After leaving it our road
led over a very high hill; it was steep, and the soil being a kind of red
clay, was so slippery in consequence of the heavy rains which had lately
fallen, that our mules had considerable difficulty in getting up. The
declivity on the other side was nearly as bad. From this place the road
passed for the most part through large fields of Indian corn, which was
then nearly ripe for collecting, and several small patches of rice in the
moist flat places. When we arrived at the house of the lady, we learned
that the daughter had died the evening before. We were shown the body,
which had been put into a coffin, and placed in a neat little chapel
belonging to the estate, and in which it was to be buried. The interment
was to take place on the arrival of the Padre, who had to be brought from
a distance of forty-eight miles, and was hourly expected. The child was
only eight years of age, but had been long unwell. We had to remain to
dinner, and, as many relations and neighbours were present, the party
was a large one. Until dinner was ready, the eldest daughter, a rather
plain girl, was amusing herself by swinging to and fro in a hammock,
which was slung in one corner of the dining-room. As an instance of the
early age at which women marry in Brazil, I may mention that we were
informed by the lady herself, that she was married at ten years of age,
and was a mother before she had completed her eleventh year. She was then
forty-five years old, and had had no less than twenty-five births, ten
of which were miscarriages. We were received with much kindness, and she
expressed herself very grateful for my visit.
As the Organ Mountains rise to an elevation of about four thousand feet
above Mr. March’s house, I had long been desirous to spend a few days
among the high peaks, for the purpose of making collections of their
vegetable productions. The only botanists who had visited Mr. March’s
estate before me were Langsdorff, the celebrated voyager, and at
that time Consul-General for Russia in Brazil, Burchell, the African
traveller, and a German of the name of Lhotsky. The former explored the
vegetation in the neighbourhood of the Fazenda, during a stay of a few
weeks, about twelve or thirteen years before my visit; Mr. Burchell
remained six weeks, nine or ten years before; and Lhotsky, two or three
weeks only, about five years later. None of them botanized higher than
the level of Mr. March’s house, and the knowledge of this fact made me
the more anxious to explore a field which promised so much novelty. I
had fixed on the early part of April for going up, but the whole of that
month was so wet, that I was prevented at that time from putting my
design into execution. May, however, having set in fine, I started on
the morning of the 6th, accompanied by four negroes. One of them, “Pai
Felipe,” a creole upwards of sixty years of age, was to act as guide.
This old fellow was one of the most active, not only of blacks, but of
any individual of his years I have ever seen. From his infancy he had
been accustomed to the woods, and was one of the best hunters on the
estate. The other three were to carry provisions, and to assist in taking
home my collections. We entered the forest at about a mile to the north
of Mr. March’s house, and our road for that day was nearly due west. Two
years before, an English merchant from Rio ascended, from mere curiosity,
to within a few hundred feet of the summit, guided by the same old black
who accompanied me. For the first few miles we were able to keep the road
which he had made, but from the rapid growth of the bamboos and underwood
through which it had been cut, it was as difficult to force our way as if
no path had ever been made. Our progress was but slow, it being necessary
for one of the blacks to go on before in order to cut a pass. Some of
the bamboos were of immense size; I measured several about six inches in
diameter, and their height could not be less than eighty or a hundred
feet. The internodes are generally filled with water, obviously secreted
by the plant itself. Prince Maximilian, in his travels, speaks of this
fluid as forming a most delicious beverage to hunters and others in the
woods. I have frequently tasted it, but always found it so nauseous that
the most urgent thirst alone would compel me to drink it.
Near the entrance of the wood we passed a large species of _Copaifera_,
the lower part of the stem of which had been pierced for the purpose
of obtaining the balsam which those trees exude. For miles our route
lay nearly parallel with a small river, along the banks of which grew
some very large trees; among them I observed a species of _Laurus_,
and another of _Pleroma_, both in flower. The underwood consisted of a
great variety of shrubby _Melastomaceæ_, _Myrtaceæ_, _Rubiaceæ_, and
suffruticose species of _Begonia_. In other places elegant tree-ferns
abounded, their stems often covered with little delicate species of the
same tribe, or air-plants bearing beautiful flowers. Pretty herbaceous
ferns and handsome-flowered _Begonias_ were trodden down at every
footstep. The stems of the large trees were covered with _Bromelias_,
_Tillandsias_, _Orchideæ_, ferns, and a climbing species of _Begonia_.
Occasionally a large plant of _Cactus truncatus_ was to be seen hanging
from rocks or from the stem of some large tree, covered with hundreds of
beautiful pink blossoms. In crossing over a hill about five hundred feet
high, which stands in the valley we were now passing through, I found the
top of it literally covered with various kinds of Orchidaceous plants,
but with the exception of the beautiful little _Sophronites grandiflora_,
which was then in flower, all had been previously met with at a lower
elevation. It was here, likewise, that I first met with _Luxemburgia
ciliosa_, a fine shrub producing large corymbs of lemon-coloured flowers,
and belonging to the violet tribe. On this hill I likewise observed two
kinds of bamboo, different from the large kinds in the woods below. One
of them had the internodes considerably shorter in proportion to the size
of the plant, and was altogether much smaller. The other species was
still less, its stem not being more than half an inch in diameter, but
continuing of that thickness to a height of fifteen or twenty feet. The
getting through these was the most difficult part of our day’s journey.
At 4 o’clock P.M., we reached a place by the side of a small stream,
where I determined to remain for the night; and, while the blacks were
occupied in cutting wood for a fire and in preparing dinner, I took a
walk up the course of the little stream. As I estimated this spot to be
at an elevation of about 4,500 feet, I naturally expected a vegetation
different from that in the valley below. The first plant that attracted
my attention was what I imagined to be a fine individual of _Cereus
truncatus_, in full flower, hanging from the under side of the trunk of
a large tree that was bent over the stream, but on getting possession of
it, it proved to be a new, and, perhaps, a still more beautiful species.
I have named it _Cereus Russellianus_, in honour of His Grace the late
Duke of Bedford, one of the most liberal supporters of my mission to
Brazil: it has since been introduced to the hot-houses of England. A
little way further up the stream, by the side of a small waterfall,
and on a slanting bank near it, grew great abundance of a fine dark
red-flowered _Amaryllis_. This spot is one of the most charming I have
ever seen. The bed of the stream is about ten feet broad, but it is
only during heavy rains that the water covers this space; at this time
the stream was little more than perceptible. The water falls over three
successive shelves of granite, each about eight feet high, the faces of
which are covered with mosses. Along the stream at the bottom of the
fall there are several middle-sized trees, the branches of which are
festooned with the long branches of a _Fuchsia_, loaded with splendid
crimson flowers. By the side of the fall there are several bushes of a
large-flowered _Pleroma_, and, along with them, a few of a red-blossomed
_Esterhazya_, and a broad thick-leaved species of _Clusia_ (_C.
fragrans_, Gard.), loading the atmosphere with a delightful odour arising
from its large white blossoms; beneath these grow the _Amaryllis_, an
_Eryngium_, several _Tillandsias_, and many _Ferns_. Having gained the
upper part of the fall, I found a space, extending to a considerable
distance on each side and for some way up the mountain, destitute of
trees—nothing but bare portions of rock, with occasional masses of
low shrubs and herbaceous plants. Among the _Orchideæ_, the beautiful
_Zygopetalon Mackaii_ and the odoriferous _Maxillaria picta_ were not
the least common. Darkness now beginning to set in, I returned to the
encampment, where I found a large fire lighted; the evening was so fine
that I considered the erection of a hut unnecessary, and lay down about
eight P.M., on a few palm leaves by the fire, with my Poncho round me, to
pass the night.
When I arose next morning at daybreak, I found the thermometer at 46°.
While breakfast was preparing I again went out to botanize, but added
little more than a few Ferns to my collection of the previous evening.
Our journey to the place where we slept was of very gradual ascent; we
had now to commence the _ascent proper_ of the peaks. Leaving behind all
that was not actually necessary to be taken along with us, we began our
journey by passing the waterfall, and walking up the bed of the stream,
along the gently sloping face of a granite rock; the ascent of several
parts of this was rather difficult, having to crawl up on our hands
and knees; after half an hour’s hard work we reached a comparatively
flat wooded spot. On the steep part I collected, in moist places, an
_Eriocaulon_, a small _Sun-Dew_, and a new genus belonging to the
_Gentian_ tribe; among these grew also the curious _Burmannia bicolor_.
In passing through the wood above mentioned, I saw plenty of my new
_Cactus_ growing on the stems of the larger trees, whilst the rocks were
covered with _Gesnerias_, and different kinds of _Orchidaceous_ plants.
Emerging from the wood we encountered another steep rocky place, almost
entirely covered with a large pine-apple-like _Tillandsia_, above which
rose a few plants of a fine large scarlet-flowered shrubby _Salvia_ (_S.
Benthamiana_, Gardn.), and a pale-blossomed _Virgularia_. On a nearly
bare portion of the rock, grew several patches of a large herbaceous
plant, belonging to the tribe of the _Gentians_; it grows from a foot
to two feet high, with thick succulent glaucous leaves, the upper ones
connate, and from out of which proceed about half a dozen pedicels,
each bearing a single large flower, the calyx of which is much inflated
and tinged with purple; it is the _Prepusa connata_, Gardn. The only
previously known species was found by Martius, on a large mountain range
between the Diamond country and Bahia; a third was afterwards discovered
on the very summit of the Organ Mountains. Passing this place, we again
entered a wooded tract, where we found many Tapir paths, as we had
also done the day previous in the woods through which we passed, which
rendered our progress much quicker than it otherwise would have been,
as the branches above only require to be cut away to make a good road.
Judging from the abundance of the tracts which we here met with, the
Tapir must be a very common animal in this remote and solitary part of
the mountains; here they are as yet out of the reach of the hunter, who
commits great havock among those which inhabit the lower woods, and there
is also abundance of herbage to supply them with food. In passing through
this wood, one of the blacks shot a _Jacutinga_ (_Penelope Jacutinga_,
Spix), and I collected specimens of a few Orchidaceous plants, and a
large yellow-flowered _Senecio_.
Leaving the wood we came upon a slanting _Sphagnum_ bog, in which
grew some very alpine-looking shrubs; these consisted chiefly of a
Proteaceous-like _Baccharis_, a _Vaccinium_, an _Andromeda_, the
_Lavoisiera imbricata_, remarkable for its large flowers and small
leaves, and a _Pleroma_; among the moss, an _Eriocaulon_, and a handsome
_Utricularia_ with large cordate leaves and purple flowers, grew in
great profusion. Judging from the top of the mountain, we were now at
an elevation of nearly 6,000 feet. Leaving it, we commenced a very
steep ascent covered principally with low shrubs; we continued our way
for about an hour through this stunted vegetation, making but slow
progress, although we were much facilitated by having the path of the
Tapir to crawl up. By following this track we reached a point from which
a beautiful prospect of the low country was obtained, particularly to
the eastward, where, as far as the eye could reach, it was one mass of
conical-shaped hills, only one ridge rising to any considerable height
above the rest; the point we had attained was the summit of one of the
many peaks which form the upper range of the Organ Mountains. At about a
quarter of a mile distant stood what I then believed to be the highest
peak, and certainly not more than three or four hundred feet above us;
but between the two peaks lay a deep densely-wooded ravine. It being now
past two o’clock in the afternoon, it was too late to think of ascending
that day, so I determined to remain where we were for the night, and
attempt it next day, but the blacks refused to do so, on account of no
water being nearer than a little above where we had slept the previous
night. As I could not force them to remain, I was, much against my will,
obliged to abandon all idea of reaching the summit at this time. Not
having a barometer with me, I endeavoured to ascertain the boiling point
of water, but in doing so, broke the tube of the thermometer. Four years
later, during a visit of six days to the peaks, I was more fortunate;
of that excursion an account will be found in a subsequent part of the
present work. The summit of the peak on which we now were, was quite a
little flower-garden; a pretty _Fuchsia_, in full flower, was trailing
over the bare rocks; in their clefts grew a handsome _Amaryllis_, and
on all sides numerous flowering shrubs. The coolness of the air and the
stillness were quite refreshing; not a sound was to be heard; and the
only animals to be seen were a few small birds, so tame that they allowed
us to come quite close to them. After partaking of a slight repast we
commenced our downward journey, and reached our encampment just as night
was setting in. Next day, following the route by which we had come, we
arrived at the Fazenda about four o’clock in the afternoon, groaning
under our loads.
About a week after our return, I made another visit to the place where
we had formerly encamped; my object was to obtain additional specimens
of the many new plants which I had found in the neighbourhood. On this
occasion I was again accompanied by “Pai Felipe” and the other three
blacks; we left the Fazenda at eight o’clock in the morning, and reached
our sleeping place about three in the afternoon. On the following day
I occupied myself with making excursions in various directions; during
these walks I collected great plenty of _Cereus Russellianus_. This plant
offers a good example of nearly allied species representing each other
in different regions of the same mountain; during the many times that I
passed through the woods, on my journey to and from the peaks, I always
found _Cereus truncatus_ confined to the dense virgin forests below the
elevation of 4,500 feet, while from this point to nearly the summit of
the mountains, _Cereus Russellianus_ alone was seen, enjoying a more
open and a cooler region. The day was one of the most delightful that I
ever remember to have witnessed, quite like one of the finest days of
an English summer; the sky was clear and unclouded, and the atmosphere
being free from that haze which often, in the finest weather, renders the
view of distant objects indistinct, allowed us to obtain a perfect and
well-defined prospect of the high mountains far to the eastward. Having
got all my specimens put into paper, I lay down to sleep shortly after
seven o’clock, little dreaming what a miserable night I was to spend. I
had just fallen asleep by the fire, on my bed of palm leaves, when I was
suddenly aroused from my slumber by a deluge of rain pouring down; one
of those sudden and heavy thunder-storms, which are never witnessed in
temperate climes, was passing over us. Had we been in an open place, we
might have seen it approaching and been able to form some kind of shelter
before it came on, but the tops of the trees by which we were covered
prevented this. I never was out in such weather; the flashing of the
lightning, the rolling of the thunder, which was breaking immediately
over us, the roaring of the wind among the trees, and the falling of
rotten branches, all combined to render the scene terrific. In a few
minutes our large fire was extinguished, and the place swimming with
water; although I was covered with a thick Poncho, it was but a poor
protection for such a night. In half an hour the small stream beside us,
which during the day had only a few inches of water, came roaring down
like a cataract. To add to our misery, the night was pitch dark, so that
we could not see to remedy our situation. What a night I spent may be
imagined, when I mention that I sat from half-past seven in the evening
till nearly three o’clock in the morning, under an incessant deluge of
rain; a more perfect picture of patience, I flatter myself, could not
be witnessed. About three it began to abate, and being in a shivering
condition from the cold and wet, we made several attempts to kindle a
fire, but without success: everything was too wet to burn, and we were
therefore obliged to content ourselves without one. By seating myself
at the root of a tree, and leaning my back against it, I managed, at
four different times, to obtain about an hour’s sleep, but constantly
awoke cold and shivering. Never was I so glad as when the first rays of
daylight were seen streaming through the trees; and, as soon as we could
see, we lost no time in preparing to return home. Shortly after we did
start, it began to rain, and continued till we reached the Fazenda, at
two o’clock in the afternoon.
During the whole of my six month’s residence on the Mountains, the
cottages were generally crowded with visitors. There was, consequently,
much gaiety, it being seldom that an evening party was not held at one
or the other of them, where nearly the whole of the residents assembled.
Then there were frequent Pic-nic parties to different distant parts of
the estate, and, when the weather permitted, delightful evening rides. In
this manner many of my leisure hours, which otherwise must have passed
away very dully, were most agreeably spent. Indeed, I still look back
upon these few months as one of the most happy periods of my life, for
independently of those pleasant pastimes, I was daily occupied with a
favourite pursuit, and that, too, in a field which was all but new.