CHAPTER V.

CEARA.

PERNAMBUCO TO CRATO.

The Author leaves Pernambuco in a Coasting Vessel—Description

of the Voyage—Touches at Cape San Roque—Arrives at

Aracaty—Seaport of Province of Ceará—Town described—its

Trade—Whole Province subject to great droughts—Commencement of

Journey into the Interior—Passes Villa de San Bernardo—Arid

nature of the Country—Catingas—Arrives at Icó—Town

described—Journey continued—Villa da Lavra de Mangabeira—Gold

washings abandoned—Country begins to improve—Reaches the

Villa do Crato—Town described—Low state of morals among the

Inhabitants—Sugar Plantations—Mode of Manufacture—Coarse

kind of Sugar formed into Cakes called Rapadura, in which

state it is used throughout the Province—State of Cultivation

in the Neighbourhood—Productions of the Country—Serra de

Araripe—Different kinds of timber—Wild fruits—Wandering Tribes

of Gypsies frequent—Great religious Festival—Climate—Diseases.

On my return to Pernambuco from Maceio, Dr. Loudon kindly afforded me

the use of his country residence, he having removed into the town, and

I remained here from the end of April to the beginning of July. At the

time of going there, the rainy season had just set in, when I observed

the very striking effect which a few showers had already produced on the

vegetation. Three months before, I had left the whole herbage scorched

and withered while the trees had a brown and sickly appearance; now all

was fresh and verdant; grass and other herbaceous plants were covering

the face of the earth, and bursting into bloom; and the shrubs and trees

had assumed their summer dress, the deep green of the leaves harmonizing

well with their various coloured flowers. The rainy season is here

generally expected to commence about the middle or end of April, and

continues till about the middle of August. At first, the rains fall in

heavy showers, accompanied with thunder and lightning, but ultimately

they become more frequent, lasting for half or an entire day, or even

several successive days, with but very short intermissions; the longest

period I knew it to rain without cessation, being thirty-six hours. At

this season from the flatness of the country, the roads are so completely

flooded, that it is impossible to move out on foot; and the atmosphere is

so thoroughly saturated with moisture, that everything acquires a coating

of blue mould; even books get so damp, that, unless exposed to the first

sun-shine, they become musty and are spoiled.

As it was impossible to stir much abroad, I occupied myself with

arranging and packing my collections from Alagoas, in making preparations

for my inland journey, and in dissecting and examining the structure of

numerous animals found in the neighbourhood. I also made it my endeavour

to ascertain which was the best route for the journey I had in view.

Those who had visited the interior strongly recommended me to proceed by

sea to Aracaty, a town in the province of Ceará, about two and a half

degrees to the North of Pernambuco, and to start inland from that port,

the roads being rather better than those leading from other parts of the

coast, and horses cheaper. I therefore determined to adopt this plan,

and in the end found no cause to repent having done so. I received the

best information from two Portuguese merchants, named Pinto, who resided

at Icó, a large town in the interior of the province of Ceará, and who

had come to Pernambuco to purchase goods, which they are in the habit of

doing once in every two or three years: they were the most influential

people in that quarter, and I considered myself fortunate in making their

acquaintance. In order to convey their goods to Aracaty, they had hired

a small schooner, and accordingly I engaged a passage for myself and

servant in the same vessel. A few days before we sailed, I called with

Mr. Goring, H.B.M. Vice Consul, upon the Vice-President of the province,

Senhor Francisco de Paulo Cavalcante d’Albuquerque, (the President

being then absent at Rio,) with the view of obtaining my passport; we

were kindly received, but with less frankness than when I visited the

late President Camargo; Senhor Albuquerque is a man of considerable

property, and belongs to one of the first and oldest families in the

north of Brazil. Besides the passport, he sent me the next day letters of

recommendation to the Presidents of Ceará and Piauhy.

After a delay of several days, I embarked at noon on the 19th of July,

in the Maria Luiza, a schooner of about one hundred tons burden; she

was deeply laden, the cabin and deck, as well as the entire hold, being

crammed with goods. We had, altogether, seventeen passengers on board,

besides an equal number of negro servants or slaves; all brought much

luggage with them, so that the whole of the after-deck was completely

covered with trunks and packages heaped on each other, the only clear

space left being that requisite for the steersman; on each side were two

kennel-like boxes, which served as the sleeping berths of the two Pintos,

all the other passengers being obliged to make the best provision for

themselves upon deck in the open air, for there was no accommodation

whatever below, even for taking meals, every one, therefore, looked

out for the most convenient corner to sit or lie down in. I could find

no better quarters than those upon my own trunks, one of which being

much higher than the other, offered a miserably hard couch, on which

I was obliged to sleep at night. This was rendered still worse by the

bad weather, for no sooner had we quitted the harbour than it began

to rain heavily, from which no shelter could be obtained, except that

afforded by my poncho and umbrella, which did not long prevent me from

being completely drenched. The misery of my situation may therefore be

well imagined, and if some of my previous voyages were disagreeable,

this was wretched in the extreme. My suffering was much aggravated by

sea-sickness, from which I had always been quite free, but I experienced

much inconvenience from this cause during the first two days, arising

principally from too close contiguity to my fellow-passengers; under

any circumstances there is no malady that so entirely prostrates both

mind and body, but in my present position, sometimes exposed to the

burning rays of the sun, at others to heavy rains without the power

or means of sheltering myself from their influence, this feeling was

greatly aggravated. By the evening of the second day, I found myself so

much recovered as to be able to sit up, and on the following morning to

eat a little, my only food having been hitherto a few oranges, the most

grateful of all things to a sick person. Many of my companions did not

fare so well, as they continued to suffer till the end of the voyage.

For my passage and that of my black servant I paid twenty-six mil-reis,

about three pounds five shillings sterling, which included provisions.

These were regularly served out three times a day by the captain from

the top of the companion, and on these occasions, I was always greatly

amused at the scenes which took place; every one rushed forward for his

portion, and sometimes groups of twos, threes, and fours were to be seen

eating with their fingers out of the same dish. There were only a few

knives and forks, not nearly sufficient for the number of passengers, and

these fell always to the share of those first served. Our food consisted

for the most part of minced dried beef boiled with rice, to which was

added morning and evening a cup of tea, and at dinner a bottle or two of

miserable red wine.

One of my fellow-passengers was too remarkable a person not to be made

mention of; he was an active, slender little fellow, about thirty years

of age, rather well dressed, his physiognomy denoting a remarkable

development of the organ of language, a qualification which I found fully

confirmed in him; he seemed to be well known to the other passengers,

beguiled much of the tedium of the voyage by his amusing and extravagant

stories, for which he possessed great talent, and seldom have I listened

to one whose powers were greater in this respect. He was often called

upon for a song, on which occasion he was accompanied by a young man who

played well on the guitar. He told me that he was a native of Pernambuco

and had visited Lisbon, and all the sea-ports between Buenos Ayres and

Parà, and he described many of the adventures that befell him on several

of these occasions. In recounting these tales he generally seated himself

cross-legged on the companion, and as he proceeded, his listeners were

kept in one continued roar of laughter. The adventures of Gil Blas

were nothing compared with his, and it is not improbable that many were

manufactured for the occasion.

About noon of the second day we passed Cape St. Roque, and in the evening

came to anchor in a small bay inside the reef, within a short distance

of a suspicious-looking schooner, which I have no doubt came in here

to land a cargo of slaves, as there was no likelihood of her being in

this solitary place for any other purpose. Early next morning we again

got outside the reef, and continued our voyage, running before the S.E.

trades which were blowing very freshly at the time. The weather now

became much finer, and I could enjoy the cool fresh breeze, and observe

the nature of the coast, to which we often approached so closely as to be

within little more than gunshot of it; with the exception of a few white

sand hills, destitute nearly of vegetation, it appeared extremely flat.

About noon of the third day we made the bar of Aracaty, but as it was

then low water, and too shallow to allow us to enter, we had to stand off

till four P.M., when a pilot came on board who steered us into the smooth

deep water in the mouth of the river inside the bar, where we came to

anchor for the night, and were visited by a custom-house officer, who was

more particular in examining my luggage than that of any other passenger.

When this was finished, and I had exhibited my passport, I was allowed to

hire a boat to convey me to the town, situated twelve miles farther up

the river, as the vessel could not get up till the following day.

The river on which the town of Aracaty stands is called the Rio

Jaguaribe, and a little above the bar it is about a mile broad. For a

considerable distance the western bank is comparatively high, but the

eastern side is flat all the way up to the town. The lower part of the

western bank is rather thickly wooded with small trees, but on both sides

the shores are covered with mangroves. About a league and a half below

the town, great numbers of the Carnahuba palm (_Corypha cerifera_, Mart.)

makes its appearance. This palm, of which I afterwards passed through

immense forests, reaches to the height of from twenty to forty feet, and

besides being the most abundant, is one of the most beautiful of its

size. The stems of the younger plants are generally covered all over

with leaves, but as they get older the lower ones drop off, leaving only

a tuft at the top, which is so arranged as to form a perfect ball. The

leaves are fan-shaped, and not at all unlike those of the fan palm of the

south of Europe.

The town of Aracaty stands on the east side of the river, and consists

principally of one long broad street. It contains four fine churches,

and the houses are generally of two stories. The population amounts to

about 5000, the mass of whom are very poor. A considerable quantity of

dried beef was formerly prepared here for exportation to other parts of

Brazil, but this trade has fallen off very much, cotton and hides being

now the principal articles of export. Of the former about 5000 bags, or

25,000 arrobas of thirty-two pounds each, are exported annually, and of

the latter about 2000. But little cotton is cultivated near the coast,

the greater part of it, as well as the hides, being brought from the

interior; the transport of these is effected at the end of the rainy

season in large waggons, which are generally drawn by twelve oxen. During

the time of the rains, the roads are impassable, and in the dry season,

neither water nor grass can be procured for the cattle. The river runs

close to the town, and at the end of the rainy season, when I was there,

was somewhat less than a quarter of a mile broad; but during the height

of the rains, it often rises twelve feet above its ordinary level, and

then overflows the town. With the exception of a hill situated two and

a half leagues to the S.W. of the town, and which rises six or eight

hundred feet, and a few sand hills near the coast, the country all round

is so flat, that the horizon is about as level as that of the sea. The

houses are built of a frame-work made of the stems of the Carnahuba

palm filled up with brick. The stem of this useful tree is used by the

inhabitants for almost every purpose to which wood can be applied; it is

so durable that the lower part, particularly of the full grown stems,

lasts for many years, even when exposed to the weather; hence all the

enclosures for cattle are made of them, for which purpose they are

longitudinally split. The leaves are used for a variety of purposes,

such as thatch, pack-saddles, hats, &c.; they also yield a kind of wax,

obtained from the young leaves, which are covered with a glaucous bloom,

by shaking them after they have been detached from the tree. Each yields

about fifty grains of a whitish powder, and when a considerable quantity

of it has been obtained, it is put into a pot and melted over the fire.

Some years ago, a large quantity of this was sent to Lisbon, but was not

found to answer any useful purpose; by the Brazilians it is sometimes

used to adulterate common wax. In times of scarcity the young leaves are

chopped up, and given to horses and cattle to eat, and the people prepare

for themselves a kind of farinha from the inside of the young stems.

The rains generally begin here in February, and end about the beginning

of June. The whole province is sometimes liable to great droughts

(_seccas_), the last of which occurred in the year 1825, during which

no rain fell at all. The distress resulting from this calamity was very

great, and the people still speak of it with the utmost horror; nearly

all the horses and cattle were exterminated, and the loss of human life

was very great, it being estimated that 30,000 of the inhabitants of the

province perished. Great numbers of these died while attempting to reach

the coast; wild as well as domestic animals fell victims to the want of

water and food: these droughts have been observed to occur periodically.

Aracaty was, during my visit, supplied with water of tolerable quality

from a well near the town, but it was expected shortly to have an

excellent supply from a spring about a league distant; the individual who

undertook to procure this was Senhor Maya, a native of Gibraltar, who has

been settled for many years at Aracaty; having received a privilege from

government, he laid a brick channel for the water to run in, and as the

spring is considerably lower than the town, he was erecting a force-pump

for the purpose of raising it; the water from the well near the town, was

sold through the streets in small barrels carried on low carts, which

were often drawn by sheep. Senhor Maya expects to remunerate himself by

the sale of the produce of his labour, which will certainly, from its

superior quality, obtain preference.

As at Maceio, there is only one British merchant resident at Aracaty,

Mr. Miller, to whom I had letters from Pernambuco, and in whose house I

was hospitably entertained during the fortnight I remained here. I had

also letters to several respectable Brazilians, from whom I likewise

received many kind attentions, not the least of which were letters to

their friends in the interior. Besides making the necessary preparations

for my journey, I made a few excursions in the neighbourhood, and thereby

obtained specimens of most of the plants which were then in flower, among

these was a very pretty species of _Angelonia_ (_A. arguta_, Benth.).

As the Senhores Pinto were sending their goods to Icó in waggons, they

obligingly allowed me to despatch, by this opportunity, all the heaviest

portions of my luggage. I thus only required to purchase two horses at

Aracaty, and these, two of the best travelling ones that were to be had,

cost only four guineas each. Having agreed to accompany the Pintos to

Icó, we started on horseback from Aracaty, on the morning of the 3rd of

August, in the midst of a heavy shower of rain, which, however, soon

ceased. After riding through a dense forest of Carnahuba palms on a

perfectly level sandy road, we crossed the river at the distance of about

two leagues and a half from the town. The ford is called the Passagem

das Pedras, from the rocky nature of the bed of the river. These rocks

I found belonged to the gneiss series, with the strata nearly vertical,

the little inclination which they had, being towards the west in the

direction of the hill already alluded to, called the Serra d’Areré,

about half a mile distant. At nine o’clock we halted to breakfast in a

large shed (_rancho_) by the road-side, and there we remained till the

afternoon, for in travelling in the north of Brazil, where the heat is

very great, the animals are always allowed to rest during the middle

of the day, which is not the case in the south, where the whole day’s

journey is made at one stretch. The country during our morning’s ride

still continued flat, but in many places instead of being sandy, is

covered with gravel and boulders of various sizes, the largest of the

latter being about four feet in diameter, all more or less rounded,

and consisting of granite, gneiss, and quartz. The great mass of the

vegetation consisted of Carnahuba palms and a few small trees which

grew among them, the most common of which is a species of _Patagonula_,

called by the Brazilians _Pao branco_, from the white nature of its

wood, which is chiefly employed as fuel. As we passed along, we raised

numerous flocks of pigeons, some of which were not larger than sparrows,

while others were the size of our domestic ones; and sporting among the

leaves of the palms we observed several species of parrots and paroquets,

besides a variety of beautiful small birds, one species being very

numerous much resembling the common canary. The notes of these birds

were of course as varied as their kinds, that of the parrot tribe being

particularly disagreeable, not unlike that of the English rook, but the

sound which most particularly caught my ear, was the monotonous and

distinct cry of the Bem-te-ve, a bird about the size, shape, and colour

of the thrush. This name has been given to it from the resemblance of its

note to the Portuguese signifying “I see you well,” which it repeats in

quick succession. Resuming our journey at three o’clock in the afternoon,

and travelling through the same sort of country, we passed a small town

towards dusk, called Villa de San Bernardo, which is ten leagues from

Aracaty. It is built in the form of a square, the west side of which is

principally occupied with a handsome church; and as it stands in the

open plain (_vargem_) which is studded with occasional wide-spreading

_Zizyphus_ trees and Carnahuba palms, and as all the houses are

white-washed, it offers an imposing appearance when seen at a distance.

About half a league beyond this town, we stopped for the night at a small

house by the road-side; all the houses in this part of the country, which

are not actually in towns, have a large veranda (_copial_) in front, and

it is under this that travellers generally ask leave to rest for the

night, there being hooks fixed from which hammocks can be suspended. As

soon as the loads were taken off the cargo horses, and the saddles from

those we had ridden, they were sent to graze in the neighbourhood, where

they were left with their fore-feet strapped pretty closely together, in

order to prevent them from straying.

Early next morning by the light of a beautiful and clear moon we resumed

our journey, but had not gone more than two leagues when I was prevented

from accompanying my companions further by an awkward mistake made by my

servant. In the hurry of departure, in the place of one of my horses, he

had caught another of the same size and colour, belonging to some one

else, and it was not till daylight had fairly set in that the mistake

was discovered. I had now to call a halt, and getting my trunks, &c. put

under the veranda of an old house, I despatched Pedro in search of my

own animal. About two o’clock he returned bringing it with him, but as I

found myself somewhat indisposed I determined not to proceed further that

night. As there was no inhabited house near, we remained at the ruined

dwelling, which my health did not allow us to leave for two days. As the

road on which we proceeded is the highway to the interior of the province

of Ceará, as also to the middle parts of the province of Piauhy, many

travellers passed our encampment. Waggons loaded with cotton and hides

were going downwards, while others, as well as troops of horses, were

passing upwards loaded with European goods and salt, the latter being

a scarce and dear article in the interior. When afterwards I travelled

through some of the most desert and least inhabited parts of the inland

provinces, there were two articles which were always asked for on my

arrival at any habitation, first, gunpowder, and then salt; some of the

poor beings scarcely taste the latter from one year’s end to the other,

their animal food being preserved by simply drying it in the sun, after

it has been cut into thin slices. I had always to carry a stock of salt

with me, and not unfrequently it has cost me as much as three shillings a

pound, at the same time that I could purchase an entire fat ox for about

ten shillings. To the European who is accustomed to travel without need

of arms, and in comparative security, the appearance of the swarthy and

brigand-like travellers here met with, each armed with horse pistols,

sword, dagger, knife, and gun, afford no favourable idea of the morals

of these people. Murders and robberies are frequent among them, it being

seldom that the one is committed without the other, when they always

occur by treachery. From all I have seen and heard, I do not believe that

one instance can be recorded of a Brazilian boldly facing another and

asking him for his purse; one reason for this may be that each is aware

that the other is armed with a knife, and hence he avoids coming within

reach of it. Most of the very many murders which are committed in Brazil,

are the result either of jealousy or of political hatred.

It was not till the afternoon of the 6th that I found myself sufficiently

recovered to leave our solitary encampment, when we resumed our journey

at a slow pace till after eleven at night. The moon had risen about

six, and shone with a brilliancy such as I have seldom witnessed; this

together with the coolness of the evening, renders travelling after

sunset very agreeable, although to the naturalist it is not the most

profitable. During the whole of my extensive journies I made it a rule

never to travel at night, unless through a decidedly desert country, in

order that nothing of interest should be overlooked. The seven leagues

which we accomplished this evening was through a country of much the

same barren nature as that we had already gone over, with the exception

of one low range of hills covered with small trees and shrubs; on the

level portion scarcely anything was to be seen but Carnahuba palms, Pao

Branco, a _Zizyphus_, and a species of _Aspidospermum_, a small tree that

grows gregariously and to which the inhabitants give the name of Pereira;

the bark of it is very bitter, and its infusion is used to destroy

lice, and other vermin infecting cattle. We passed through several

large open gravelly spaces (_vargems_), nearly destitute of trees, and

the herbaceous vegetation that had sprung up during the rains was now

nearly parched up. The stillness of the night was only broken by the

cries of a small species of goatsucker (_Caprimulgus_), that was flying

about in great numbers. We rested for the night under the veranda of a

house close to the road-side, in approaching which we passed through a

flock of several hundred sheep, being the greatest number I have seen

collected together in any part of the country, but the excessive heat of

the climate had wrought a remarkable change in their appearance, their

skin being wholly destitute of wool and replaced by a short hair, not

unlike that of a cow. In the same manner goats lose the long hair natural

to them in cold countries, which proves how much the economy of animals

can suit itself to change of circumstances. On the following morning we

traversed a country still abounding with the elegant Carnahuba palm, and

numerous small fresh-water lakes, teeming with wild ducks and other kinds

of water-fowl, and arrived at a place where there are several houses near

to the Rio Jaguaribe, in the neighbourhood of which some small trees of

_Cochlospermum serratifolium_, DC., were beautifully in flower, their

large golden blossoms gleaming in the sun like oranges; here I found that

in consequence of the pack-saddles being too narrow, the back of the

cargo horse was so much galled, that it could no longer carry its load,

in consequence I was obliged to hire another from a person whom I met

going up to Icó with loads of salt, and who had some spare animals with

him. The weather being fine, I preferred taking up my quarters under the

shade of a broad-spreading wild fig tree standing some distance from any

habitation, although I was invited by the owner of one of the houses to

accept the accommodation it afforded.

As the person whose horse I had hired could not leave till the following

day, I was obliged, against my will, to await his convenience. Soon

after my arrival I sent Pedro to purchase some milk for breakfast, and

he returned with a large basinful, for which he said the people would

not take money; and in the course of the forenoon I had similar presents

sent to me from two other persons. During the season of the rains, and

for a few months afterwards, milk is very abundant, and of excellent

quality, but it is nowhere to be procured except in large towns, during

the last four or five months of the dry season. The inhabitants prepare

a little cheese, but have no idea of making butter; the milk remaining

after breakfast, for they milk their cows only in the morning, is allowed

to stand till night, when from the heat of the day it becomes curdled;

this dish, of which they are very fond, is generally sweetened with a

kind of unclarified sugar, to which they give the name of _Rapadura_,

and which is brought from the country above Icó; it is formed into cakes

about six inches long, three broad, and two thick; during a long time

I was obliged to use this as a substitute for sugar, but although at

first not very agreeable, I at length became so fond of it as to prefer

it to sugar itself, and such I found to be the case with the people in

this part of the country; I have repeatedly seen them make a meal of a

lump of this with a little farinha. The greater part of the inhabitants

of the district through which we were journeying, are rearers of cattle

(_criadores de gado_), but none of them possess such immense herds

as I afterwards found to exist in the provinces of Piauhy and Goyaz.

Provisions were here very cheap, in consequence of the small demand for

them; an ox could be purchased for about twenty-five shillings, and a

sheep or a goat for four or five; Pedro bought a fowl in fine condition

for about twopence halfpenny, and eight eggs for a penny. I observed

very few cotton plantations, as these people grow it only for their own

use; they also cultivate a little mandiocca, the root of which produces

a kind of cassava, well-known all over Brazil under the name of farinha;

this, together with dried beef (carne secca), forms their chief food;

the farinha is either used in its dry state, when it is much of the

consistence of saw dust, or is made up into a kind of pudding called

Pirão, by mixing it with boiling water, or with milk when that article is

abundant.

On the first day’s journey with our new companion we travelled about

seven leagues, five of which were accomplished in the morning, and two

in the evening. The Villa de Icó is in a southerly direction, bearing a

little to the west of Aracaty, the distance between them being about two

hundred and forty miles. The Senhors Pinto accomplished the journey in

five days and a half, but it took me three days longer; which delay I

did not regret, as I travelled more at my ease, and was enabled to make

collections by the way, that I could not have done had I accompanied

them. On this day’s journey I observed that the country was gradually

rising; where visible, the soil consisted of a reddish coloured clay,

but many large tracts were covered with gravel which gave them the

appearance of having been at one time the bed of an immense river. In

other places beds of gneiss, forming elevated ridges were seen cropping

out, the strata being nearly vertical. About half an hour after we began

our journey, we passed a large lake on the left side of the road, called

Lagoa grande; it is about a league long, and nearly as much broad, and

abounds in fish and wild duck. Carnahuba palms were now becoming less

frequent, but they were succeeded by a vegetation of a very opposite

character; in situations somewhat sandy, a dwarf kind of _Cassia_ often

occurs, as well as two or three species of _Croton_, but these, in common

with the herbaceous vegetation, were already much scorched up; in the

gravelly places the principal production is a beautiful erect species

of _Evolvulus_ about a foot high, with small leaves and numerous blue

flowers, giving it much the appearance of the common flax. On the more

elevated tracts, woods are seen consisting of low trees and shrubs,

principally a subarboreous species of _Mimosa_, and a _Combretum_; these

woods are nearly all deciduous, the heat and drought producing the same

effect on their foliage, as the cold in northern regions, these are

called by the inhabitants _Catingas_; no large trees are to be seen, but

in the more open parts of the country, a low wide-spreading species of

the _Chrysobalanaceous_ tribe is not uncommon, affording shade not only

to travellers, but to the cattle which pasture in those districts; it was

under one of these trees that we halted during the heat of the day, and

dined on part of a large green lizard that I shot the evening before.

The remainder of our journey was through a country very similar to that

just described; but a low evergreen _Zizyphus_ tree, and a few large

species of _Cactus_ now gave a different character to the landscape.

On the afternoon of the 12th the appearance of the country was still

further diversified by our approach to a mountain range about sixteen

leagues in length, running in a direction from S.W. to N.E.; this is

called the Serra de Pereira, a name derived from the number of trees

of that name said to grow on it. The appearance of this high land was

a great relief to the eye, after having been so long accustomed to a

nearly level country. On the same evening I saw for the first time a

troop of oxen with loads on their backs; there were about a dozen of

them, all large and well fed animals, going down to Aracaty with dried

hides; such a sight was afterwards not uncommon. The further we proceeded

inland, the greater appeared to be the effect of the drought; and in

consequence of this I added but little to my botanical collections; but

among the few plants that were in flower I observed a very fine species

of _Angelonia_ (_A. biflora_, Benth.) bearing long spikes of large bluish

coloured flowers, and which is now common in English gardens, raised

from seeds which I sent home. So little are the birds here annoyed by

man, that flocks of pigeons of various sorts, parrots, paroquets, &c.,

remained without stirring on the branches of the small trees under which

we passed; and cranes of different species as well as many other water

birds, did not move from the margins of the small lakes till the horses

nearly approached them; the same was nearly the case with two kinds of

ravens, called by the inhabitants Gavião and Gavião vermelho; these

latter exist in great numbers living upon what carrion they may pick up.

While we were resting during the heat of the day, I frequently took my

gun to shoot parrots and pigeons, which we stewed for dinner, and were

more relished than our usual fare of dried beef, although the flesh of

parrots is both brown, dry, and tough. Some of the pigeons, as before

observed, are not larger than sparrows, and one of these which frequently

alights on the roofs of houses, may be heard, particularly during the

morning, calling out most distinctly “Fogo pegou, Fogo pegou” for hours

together; in Portuguese this means “the gun missed fire,” an apparently

teazing exclamation of the bird, not unaptly applied to the guns of the

country people which seldom take effect. This I suspect is the same bird

that Waterton speaks of under the name of “Will-come-go.” Shortly before

we reached the Villa de Icó, we met a party of ladies and gentlemen, on

horseback, and I was not a little surprised to see the manner in which

the former were mounted, _en cavalier_, which, in nine cases out of ten,

is the way in which females travel in the interior.

On my arrival at Icó my friends the Pintos had kindly procured an

uninhabited house for my reception; in consequence of the breaking

down of the waggon which was bringing up my trunks, &c., and other

unforeseen causes, I was detained at this place three weeks, which I

the more regretted, as my time could be turned to no useful account,

in consequence of the drought that prevailed in the neighbourhood. The

town of Icó, one of the most important in the interior of the province

of Ceará, is situated in a plain on the east of the Rio Jaguaribe, which

here, however, takes the name of Rio Salgado; it is said to contain about

6000 inhabitants; the plain is one of considerable size, being bounded on

the east by the Serra de Pereira, and on the west by a much lower range

of hills. The town consists of three principal streets, running nearly

north and south, intersected by a number of smaller ones. The houses

are all built of brick, no timber of sufficient size being found in the

neighbourhood; with the exception of about half a dozen, they are all

of one story, and white-washed with a kind of chalk found abundantly in

the hilly country thirty leagues to the westward. The principal street

is broad, and contains some well-furnished shops; it presents four

handsome churches, a substantial jail, and a market-place, in which

fresh beef, dried beef, farinha, salt, rapadura, gourds, pine-apples,

melons, water-melons, oranges, and limes, are every day exhibited

for sale; the whole of these fruits are brought from a distance, the

immediate neighbourhood of the town producing nothing whatever, the whole

country being dry and arid, except during the wet season, which only

lasts about four months. At a short distance are seen a number of those

low deciduous woods called _Catingas_, but even these were destitute

of leaves, and there was nothing within sight deserving the name of a

tree; the river also, which during the rains is of considerable size,

judging from the appearance of its bed, was now dry in many places, deep

pools only being left here and there, abounding with several sorts of

fish, which, however, are soon exhausted. Notwithstanding the number

of inhabitants which this place contains, it cannot boast of a single

medical practitioner, but there are two apothecaries, whose shops

are well stocked with medicines. The greater part of the inhabitants

are shopkeepers, who supply the interior with articles of European

manufacture, receiving produce in return, which they send down to the

coast.

A few days after I arrived here I was visited by most of the respectable

inhabitants of the place, and as their calls were shortly returned, I

soon gained an extensive acquaintance. One of my most frequent visitors

was an old priest, who was very inquisitive regarding all that related to

England; one of his first questions was whether I was baptized or not,

and in what faith? and when I told him I was a Protestant, he replied,

“Ah! then you are a Pagan.” Such was his ignorance! and this I found to

prevail with nearly all the inferior priests I met in the interior of the

northern provinces, and I had great difficulty in convincing him that

the fundamental principles of our respective religions were alike; after

this, whenever I was interrogated as to my religious faith, I answered

by simply saying I was a Christian, which entitled me to respect. When

it became known that I was a medical man I had numerous applications

for advice. The most common complaints here, as elsewhere in Brazil,

are chronic disorders of the digestive organs, which often terminate in

dropsy and paralysis; dysentery, pleurisy, and ophthalmia are likewise

not unfrequent, particularly during the dry season, produced, no doubt,

by the great difference of temperature between night and day, which more

readily takes effect on these people owing to the very thin dresses which

they wear; in no case did I see flannel worn next the skin, which is the

best preventive against sudden change of temperature. One of my patients

was the wife of one of my Portuguese friends, who was attended by her

mother, and although her complaint was a dangerous malady of which she

afterwards died, the greatest source of regret her parent expressed was

the state of leanness to which her daughter was reduced, plumpness being

considered the chief point of beauty in the Brazilian fair. One of the

greatest compliments that can be paid a lady, is to tell her that she is

becoming daily fatter and more beautiful (_mais gorda e mais bonita_),

indeed the greater portion of them soon acquire a tendency to become so,

from the sedentary life they all lead.

After remaining about a fortnight I made preparations to leave Icó, as

I wished as soon as possible to get up to Crato, another town about

one hundred and twenty miles to the S.W., situated at the foot of the

mountains which divide the provinces of Ceará and Piauhy, where I was

assured I should meet with abundance to reward my researches, as the

general temperature was much cooler, and the country well watered with

small streams from the mountains. I purchased two additional horses,

engaged an experienced guide, and procured whatever was necessary

for the journey, when the following incident occurred to prevent my

departure. The day before that fixed for our journey, one of my new

horses disappeared from the pasture in which it was feeding, if, indeed,

a little dried up grass could be so called; as horse-stealing is a

very frequent crime in Brazil, I strongly suspected that some one had

made free with my animal, but I was assured it had only strayed into a

neighbouring _Catinga_ and would soon be found. I immediately despatched

Pedro and another man well acquainted with the country, in quest of it,

but after two days’ search they could bring me no satisfactory tidings.

Having lost all hopes of regaining it, I was about to purchase another,

when a man, who had been searching for two of his own stray animals,

told Pedro he had seen one answering the description of mine on the

Serra de Pereira, about three leagues distant; upon this Pedro and his

companion were again despatched in that direction, when they returned in

the evening bringing it with them; they found it on an elevated table

land feeding along with an immense number of the American Ostrich (_Rhea

Americana_). This was the first of a series of annoyances I met with

during my future travels, from my horses either straying or having been

stolen; an animal is frequently taken away by some one who wishes to

make a short journey, so that after a day or two it will be found in the

place whence it was taken; at other times they are removed and hidden

for a few days, for the purpose of claiming a reward; and though I was

frequently well assured of this imposition, I never refused to pay the

money, knowing I should otherwise be worse off. All being now again ready

for leaving Icó, I took leave of all my friends, who gave me their hearty

wishes for a prosperous journey. The evening before my departure many

little presents were sent for my use during the journey, such as little

jars of sweet-meats, biscuits of various sorts, prepared from ground

rice and Indian corn, roasted fowls, &c.; a custom I found to be almost

universal in the north of Brazil.

On the evening of the second day after leaving Icó, we arrived at the

Villa de Lavra de Mangabeira, which is about ten leagues distant. A

little beyond Icó the road becomes very rough, frequently ascending and

again descending over rocky paths, on which account it is no longer

serviceable for the transit of waggons, all further traffic into the

interior being now effected either on horseback or, strange as it may

appear, upon oxen. The diversity of hill and dale renders this part of

the journey less monotonous, and although the herbaceous vegetation was

much destroyed by the heat, the greater part of the trees, which are both

large and more numerous, still retained their leaves; the most abundant

tree that I observed was called by the inhabitants Aroeira; it is a

species of _Schinus_, perhaps _S. Aroeira_, St. Hil., and reaches to the

height of thirty or forty feet; as the stem grows very straight, it is

much used in house-building; at this time it was destitute of leaves, but

from the ends of its branches were suspended clusters of small fruit of

a dark colour, giving it very much the appearance of the European alder

when covered with its dark-brown catlins. The other trees consist chiefly

of large _Acacias_ and _Mimosas_, _Bignonias_ of considerable size

covered with yellow and rose coloured flowers, a _Triplaris_, and, the

most beautiful of all, a large _Jacaranda_, the wide-spreading branches

of which were densely covered with great panicles of beautiful large blue

flowers, not unlike those of the no less splendid _Gloxinia speciosa_;

among these sometimes appear a few solitary Carnahuba palms, but in

hollow sheltered places they often occur in groups; large _Cacti_ are not

uncommon, and we passed over some elevated open shrubby tracts abounding

in a species of _Krameria_.

The Villa de Lavra de Mangabeira is situated on the banks of the Rio

Salgado, and contains about eighty or a hundred houses, all small, and

many of them falling to decay. Gold is found in the neighbourhood, in a

dark coloured alluvial soil a little below the surface; from time to time

washings have been established, which have never yielded satisfactory

results; the most extensive of these was undertaken about two years

before my arrival. The president of the province and some others having

formed themselves into a company, sent for two English miners to conduct

the operations; they continued their labours to within two months

previously, when the work was abandoned. About a year afterwards I met

with one of these miners in a far distant part of the country, and from

him I learned that the gold exists in too small quantities to repay the

cost of its extraction; scarcity of water at times was also another

drawback. Here I found, growing in vast quantities on the sandy margins

of the river, a species of _Grangea_, which is a powerful bitter, used

by the natives as an infusion in dyspeptic cases in the same manner as

camomile, which, indeed, it much resembles, and to which they give the

same name (_macella_).

We left Lavra on the afternoon of the same day on which we arrived, and

halted for the night at a small house near the river. On the following

morning as we were advancing quietly, one of the horses struck its load

against a tree, by which means it was thrown off; thus disencumbered it

ran away at full speed among the trees, and was soon followed by the

remainder, who in like manner quickly rid themselves of their cargoes;

an hour was thus lost in recapturing and replacing the loads, and even

while this was doing, one of the animals laid down and began to roll,

first breaking the cords by which his burden was held on, and thus a

second time freeing himself. I mention this, as an instance of one of

the many annoyances to which a traveller in such countries is liable; in

these respects horses are more unmanageable than mules. In the northern

provinces of Brazil, however, the latter animals are very seldom seen,

notwithstanding they have been frequently tried, large troops of them

having been brought from the south. All being finally arranged, we

continued our journey, and about mid-day arrived at a house on the bank

of the river, near the road-side, where I asked permission as usual to

pass the middle of the day, but we were told we should meet with better

accommodation half a league further on; this was the first time I met

with a refusal, and I can only recollect one similar instance during all

my travels. After proceeding about a league without the appearance of

any house, we halted under some large trees close to the river, where I

determined to remain for the night, as the horses had undergone a long

morning’s journey. In the evening I took a walk in the neighbourhood,

but met with nothing new except a species of _Mikania_ clinging among

the branches of a _Mimosa_; and a few shells in the bed of the river.

Between this place and Lavra, the course of the river is very tortuous,

and being now very nearly dried up, I observed that the inhabitants

had planted melons, water-melons, gourds, &c. in it; bananas were now

beginning to be cultivated, and almost every house had its own little

cotton and tobacco plantation. Every where _Argemone Mexicana_, the

Cardo Santo of the Brazilians, grows in great plenty, the large yellow

poppy-like flowers being very beautiful; a handful of the leaves of

this plant, together with about a quarter of an ounce of the ripe seeds

infused, is used as a draught in jaundice. It was a beautiful evening

when I retired to my hammock, which was suspended between two trees,

but I had not been long asleep when I was awoke by a strange rattling

noise among the leaves, that I soon found to be caused by a heavy shower

approaching from the south, which shortly fell upon our encampment in

torrents; we were unprepared for such an occurrence, it being then the

height of the dry season, and were quickly drenched; my hammock soon

became too uncomfortable to lie in, so I got up, wrapt myself in my

poncho, and sat down on one of the pack-saddles by the extinguished fire;

unfortunately I had no umbrella to afford any shelter, having lost it two

days before, at a place where I had dismounted to collect some beetles.

The rain continued for about two hours, and not being able to go to bed

again, every thing being soaked, I was obliged to remain seated in this

position till daybreak, when, after arranging all our humid articles in

the best manner, we proceeded on our journey. The morning though cloudy

was dry, and there was a feeling of freshness in the atmosphere such

as I had not felt since we left the coast; we travelled for nearly a

league before we came to a house, so that instead of being only half a

league distant from where we were refused accommodation on the previous

day, I found it was nearly two; we went on two leagues further, without

meeting another habitation, so we halted during the middle of the day

beneath some large Jatobá (_Hymenæa_) trees. This part of the country

is very thinly populated; the greater part of the soil being of a

gravelly nature, is neither adapted for cultivation, even were water

abundant, nor for feeding cattle. It is besides very hilly, some of the

ranges being the highest we had yet passed over; from the top of one of

the elevations I obtained a fine view of the undulating thinly-wooded

country below; scattered here and there were to be seen large pink

or yellow _Bignonias_, or the azure-blossomed _Jacaranda_, raising

their magnificent diadems above the other denizens of the wood; and an

occasional plant of _Cochlospermum serratifolium_, loaded with its large

and beautiful yellow flowers, attracts the attention of the traveller.

The rocks which I observed during this ride were of a grey coloured

clay-slate.

We had not travelled more than half a league in the afternoon, when

we were again overtaken by rain, and although the shower lasted but

half an hour, it was so heavy, that in a short time water was rushing

over the roads, running like streams, and where they were of a clayey

nature, especially on the declivity of the hills, they became very

slippery. Having carried my poncho beneath my saddle, I put it on, when

my appearance caused no little astonishment to some countrymen who

passed us, that article of dress being quite unknown among them. It is,

however, far superior to their leathern jackets, which are not only

uncomfortably warm, by confining the natural exhalations from the body,

but soon become soaked in case of rain, and are long drying, whilst with

the poncho and my long boots I was nearly dry when the rain ceased.

The rocks seen in the latter part of this day’s journey were a rather

coarse-grained white sandstone, similar to those I met with on the coast

between the Rio de San Francisco and Pernambuco. In many places this

rock was exposed to a considerable extent, its only vegetation being

a few species of _Cactus_ and _Bromelia_. In the wooded portions, the

atmosphere was loaded with the rich perfume of the flowers of the Cashew

tree (_Anacardium occidentale_), which grew in great profusion. This

was the first time I met with this tree at any distance from the coast,

but I afterwards found it was not uncommon in the interior. The fruit,

however, or rather the thickened peduncle which forms the esculent part,

is small, not being much larger than a cherry. Towards dusk we halted at

a place where there were two houses, but we could not be accommodated in

consequence of two large troops having taken up their quarters before our

arrival. As the next habitation was nearly two leagues further, and as

the roads were said to be bad, I decided on remaining here and encamping

under a wide-spreading _Cæsalpinia_ which grew close by the road-side.

Shortly after I had arranged everything for the night, a permission

came from one of the houses to sling my hammock there, but I declined

this invitation, not considering it prudent to separate myself from my

luggage; this step was rendered the more necessary in consequence of a

quarrel between Pedro and the guide; the latter was recommended to me

as a very useful person for the journey, but he turned out to be a lazy

talkative fellow, quite the reverse of Pedro, who was both active and

intelligent. The quarrel originated from the guide’s refusing to attend

to some duty while the horses were unloading, and, notwithstanding my

interference, it ran so high that they threatened to stab each other,

the usual way of settling disputes in this lawless country; on taking

the horses to pasture they were still talking furiously, and I felt not

a little uneasy till they returned. The evening was dark and had all the

appearance of rain, but when the moon rose, it cleared up, and became a

beautiful night. My hammock and poncho were both too wet to sleep in, so

I had to lie down on the top of two trunks for my bed, with my saddle for

a pillow, near a large fire we had previously kindled.

On the following morning, the eighth of September, we continued our

journey, and at eleven o’clock halted under some trees by the river

side. Our route was through a richer country than any I had yet seen in

the province, it being well wooded with large trees, the greater part

of which were in leaf; near the houses, which appeared more numerous

than hitherto, grew large plantations of cotton, tobacco, sugar-cane,

and mandiocca. On the branches of a large tree by the road-side I

collected the first Orchideous plant I had seen during the journey; a

long round-leaved kind of _Oncidium_. The tree on which it grew was the

Umari (_Geoffroya superba_), but only on the under side of the branches,

the long leaves hanging down like so many whips, intermingled with its

large panicles of yellow flowers. It is called by the natives of the

Sertão “Rabo de Tatú,” from the resemblance of the leaves to the tail

of the armadillo. Shortly after we halted, I went out with my gun in

search of something for my dinner, but could find only parroquets, which

were very numerous, flying from tree to tree, and keeping up an almost

continual cry of Parroquet—Parroquet. I fired at some which were seated

on a tall tree, and one of those which fell being only wounded, kept up

a continued scream whenever I attempted to approach it; this being heard

by its companions, several hundreds of them again returned to the tree,

and having once more fired among them, they were again brought back by

the screams of the dying, nor did they cease to re-appear in the same

manner till I had killed more than was sufficient for us all to eat. On

the afternoon of this day we travelled about two leagues, and rested at

a small sugar plantation (Engenho de Rapadura). It being the day of San

Gonzalvo, the people were dancing and making merry before the house; I

obtained leave from the owner to let me pass the night in the mill, two

sides of which were open. On alighting from my horse I laid down my straw

hat, containing a silk pocket-handkerchief, on an old log of wood, close

to the owner of the mill, but in less than half an hour afterwards, when

all my things had been moved inside the boiling-house, the handkerchief

had disappeared: no one except my own men and the proprietor had been

near us, so that I had every reason to believe the latter had pilfered

it, but I did not think proper to take notice of it. This was not the

only theft committed here before the morning, for when the horses were

being loaded, Pedro discovered that a sack containing my large botanical

tin box, and a sheep-skin bag, containing all belonging to him, were not

to be found; it had been taken away from my luggage close to my hammock,

while we were asleep. The poor fellow, as might be expected, was greatly

annoyed at his loss, and it was fortunate, that previously to leaving

Icó I had removed a number of my most useful articles from the box to

one of my trunks; I had just discovered my loss, when the owner came

down to consult me concerning a complaint under which he laboured, but

I was too much exasperated to accede to his wishes; he expressed much

regret for our loss, and said it was the first time any traveller had

been pilfered who had put up at his house. We had not proceeded on our

journey more than a quarter of a league, when Pedro told me he would

return to the mill and endeavour to recover his clothes, from which I

could not dissuade him; the guide and I, therefore, went on alone, and at

a distance of three leagues, halted under the shade of a large tree near

some small houses. Pedro returned at two in the afternoon bringing his

bag with him, and my botanical box, but not the handkerchief; upon his

arrival, he took me aside, and told me that just before returning in the

morning, a thought struck him that our guide might have been the thief,

and if so, that the things would be hidden somewhere near the sugar-mill;

it was this conviction that induced him to return, and the result proved

that he was right, for, after an hour’s search, in which he was assisted

by the people of the place, he discovered my box hidden among some

bushes, and his bag buried under the earth at a little distance. I have

no doubt that the guide was the thief of all the articles, and had hidden

them until his return to Icó. He looked rather confused when Pedro

returned, and my first thought was to give him an immediate dismissal

without payment, but upon reflection I resolved to take no notice of

the matter, knowing the revengeful nature of these people; I was sorry,

however, for the incautious manner in which I had treated the proprietor

of the mill. The large tree under which we had rested was the first I had

seen of a kind that is very common about Crato; it is called Visgeira

by the inhabitants, and is the _Parkia platycephala_ of Bentham; it has

a very thick stem, and wide-spreading branches, which in some instances

nearly reach the ground; the wood is soft and brittle, and consequently

not of much value.

On the same evening, after a journey of two leagues and a half we reached

Villa de Crato; the road all the way was level and sandy, the country

on the south side was well wooded with large trees, while the north,

which is much flatter, was principally planted with sugar-cane, and

several houses were seen at very short intervals, each with a mill and a

boiling-house attached to it, for the purpose of converting the juice of

the cane into Rapadura. The Carnahuba is here replaced by another kind

of palm called Macahuba (_Acrocomia sclerocarpa_, Mart.), which rises

to about the same height, but has pinnated leaves, and a stem which,

instead of being the same thickness throughout, swells out considerably

above the middle, and is exactly the same species as one very common

about Pernambuco; along with this grows another species much resembling

the cocoa-nut in its height and foliage, but with a much thicker stem;

the nuts which are about the size of apples, are produced in large

clusters; it is a species of _Attalea_, and is here called Palmeira.

It is impossible to express the delight I experienced on entering this

comparatively rich and smiling district, after a ride of more than three

hundred miles through a country which at that season was little better

than a desert; the evening was one of the most beautiful I ever remember

to have seen, the sun was setting in great splendour behind the Serra

de Araripe, a long range of hills about a league to the westward of the

Villa, but the freshness of this region seemed to deprive its rays of

that burning heat which shortly before sunset is so oppressive to the

traveller in the lower country. The beauty of the night, the cool and

reviving feeling of the atmosphere, and the richness of the landscape, so

different from what I had lately seen, all tended to produce a buoyancy

of spirit such as only the lover of nature can experience, and which

I vainly wished might prove enduring, as I felt not only at ease with

myself, but “at peace with all below.”

It was dark before we entered the Villa, but I soon found the house of a

respectable shopkeeper, Senhor Francisco Dios Azede e Mello, to whom I

brought letters of recommendation. I was requested to enter the sitting

room, where I found myself in the midst of more than a dozen ladies,

all squatting on the floor on mats, and among them was the lady of the

house, who, as usual, put many questions to me respecting myself and

my country; I discovered that these visitors had come to condole the

lady on the loss of her husband’s father, who had died on the previous

day. Although within the more respectable houses in the Sertão, as the

interior is called, chairs are to be seen in their principal room, they

are seldom made use of, as the hammock (rede) is the favourite seat of

the women, who are seldom out of it except at meal-time; in it, as upon

the mat, they sit upright with their legs folded beneath them, and their

principal occupation during the day is smoking, eating sweet-meats, and

drinking cold water; it is generally slung so as to reach within about

a foot and a half of the ground, when it answers all the purposes of a

sofa, and often more than one person may be observed seated on the same

hammock; at night it is commonly preferred to a bed, for which purpose,

on account of its being much cooler, it is very generally used, and for

which I can vouch from my own experience, as for three years I seldom

slept out of one. They are generally made of a sort of strong cotton

cloth manufactured by the inhabitants, and are either white, or white and

blue, this colour being given by a dye which they prepare from a kind

of wild indigo plant that grows abundantly in the neighbourhood; they

are always made broader than long, which allows a person to lie in them

diagonally, and hence more horizontally than if they were narrower; they

have the advantage, however, of requiring no bedding, further than a thin

blanket for a covering in the cool season, or a sheet in hot weather.

Before I left Icó, one of the Pintos wrote to Senhor Mello asking him to

procure a house for me on my arrival in Crato, but the only one he could

obtain was a little dwelling attached to a shop, neither being in very

good condition: however, it answered my purpose very well for the time,

but I was obliged to look out for another residence in about six weeks,

when it was required to be pulled down, in order that a new one might be

erected in its stead; with some trouble I found two rooms which I hired

at the rate of about five shillings a month, and where I remained till I

left the place. My only furniture consisted of two chairs which Senhor

Mello had the kindness to send me, an old packing-box that served as a

table, and of course my hammock was my bed. The day after my arrival

at Crato a report was spread through the town that I was a travelling

merchant who had arrived there with goods for sale, and in the course

of the day I had numerous visits from ladies who wished to look over my

merchandize, and who were not a little astonished when I told them I had

none; this was not the only time I was mistaken for a merchant, indeed

after leaving Crato the same mistake occurred at almost every house and

village I arrived at, which is not surprising, as the number of people

who travel in the interior from house to house, and from town to town,

either selling European goods, or exchanging them for horses or cattle,

is very great.

The Villa de Crato is situated thirty-two leagues to the S.W. of

Icó, and nearly in the same parallel as Pernambuco, from which it is

distant in a direct line about three hundred miles; it is a small and

sufficiently miserable town, being one third the size of Icó. It is

very irregularly built, and the houses, with only one exception, are

of a single story; it contains two churches and a jail, but one of the

former has never been finished, and has remained so long in this state,

that it has all the appearance of one that has fallen into decay. The

jail is likewise in so ruined a state as scarcely to deserve the name

of a prison, although there are generally a few criminals confined in

it; it was guarded by two soldiers who performed their duty so easily,

that in passing I seldom saw them otherwise occupied than either in

playing cards or sleeping in the shade of the building; a serjeant

who was confined during my stay in this place for disobedience to his

officer, was known almost every night to get out by one of the windows,

which have only wooden bars, when after sleeping in his own house,

he returned to spend the day in prison. The whole population amounts

probably to about two thousand, the greater part of whom are either

Indians or their mixed descendants; the more respectable portion of the

inhabitants are Brazilians, who for the most part are shopkeepers; but

how the poorer races gain a livelihood I am at a loss to determine. The

inhabitants of this part of the province, who are generally known by

the Indian appellation of Caryrís, are celebrated throughout Brazil for

their lawless character; it formerly used to be, and still is, though

not to the same extent, a place of refuge to murderers and vagabonds of

all sorts from other parts of the country, and although it contains a

justice of the peace, a Juiz de Direito, and other officials of the law,

they possess but little power, and even if that little be exercised,

they run great risk of falling under the knife of the assassin; several

murderers were pointed out to me, who walked about quite openly. The

principal danger to which they are exposed, is from the friends of the

person they have murdered, who follow them to a great distance, and lose

no opportunity of seeking their revenge. The state of morality generally

among the inhabitants of Crato is at a very low ebb, card playing is

the principal occupation during the day, when in fine weather groups of

all classes, from those called the great people (gente grande) to the

lowest, may be observed seated on the pavement on the shaded side of the

street deeply employed in gambling; the more respectable generally play

for dollars, the poorer either for copper money, or more commonly make

use of spotted beans in lieu of counters; quarrels on these occasions

are of course very common, which are not unfrequently settled with the

knife. Scarcely any of the better class live with their wives: a few

years after their marriage, they generally turn them out of the house

to live separately, and replace them by young women who are willing to

supply their place without being bound by the ties of matrimony. In this

manner these people have two houses to keep up: among others who are

living in this condition I may mention the Juiz de Direito, the Juiz dos

Orfãos, and most of the larger shopkeepers; such a state of immorality

is not to be wondered at, when the conduct of the clergy is taken into

consideration, the vicar (vigario), who was then an old man between

seventy and eighty years of age, is the father of six natural children,

one of whom was educated as a priest, afterwards became president of the

province, and was then a senator of the Empire, although still retaining

his clerical title. During my stay in Crato he arrived there on a visit

to his father, bringing with him his mistress, who was his own cousin,

and eight children out of ten he had by her, having at the same time five

other children by another woman, who died in child-bed of the sixth.

Besides the vigario there were three other priests in the town, all of

whom have families by women with whom they live openly, one of them being

the wife of another person.

I lived about five months among these people, but in no other part of

Brazil, even during a much shorter residence, did I live on less terms

of intimacy with them or make fewer friends; besides Senhor Mello,

the only individual whose house I visited frequently, was another son

of the old vicar, Capitão João Gonzalvez, who was the proprietor of a

sugar (Rapadura) plantation, about two leagues below the town. I first

made his acquaintance from his having consulted me about his wife, who

was labouring under chronic ophthalmia; he was a man of an amiable

and excellent disposition, and I still look back with pleasure on the

hours spent in his house. The eyes of the lady improved much under my

treatment, and as she was very communicative and good-natured, we had

many long conversations about the manners and customs of our respective

countries. The family consisted of two daughters, one of whom was

married, and lived at a place I afterwards visited about sixteen leagues

distant, the younger one, a fine girl about sixteen years of age, was

very shy in making her appearance, so that I did not see her during my

first two or three visits; but as her mother afterwards told me, her

curiosity to see and speak with an Englishman, at length completely got

the better of her reserve, so that afterwards she always appeared when

I was there. She was then about to be married to a younger brother of

her sister’s husband, having been betrothed to him for many years: it is

indeed seldom that the daughters of respectable families are allowed the

power of choosing a husband for themselves, the parents always taking

care to make the arrangements in such cases.

At this plantation I had often an opportunity of seeing the manner in

which Rapadura is made; the expression and boiling of the juice are

performed at the same time; the mill is of very clumsy construction,

consisting of a frame-work containing three vertical wooden rollers

through which the cane is passed to express the juice, which is collected

in a receiver below, where it runs into a trough that had been hollowed

out of a large tree. The cane requires to be passed three times through

the mill before the whole of the juice is expressed: from this trough

a portion of the juice is conveyed from time to time into small brass

boiling pans, of which there were nine, all placed close beside each

other over small openings in the top of an arched furnace, and during the

different stages of the operation, as the evaporation proceeds, the juice

is poured from one pan into the other, till in the last it acquires the

desired consistency; it is then transferred into a large tub, hollowed

out of solid wood, called a Gamella, and allowed to cool for some time,

when it is finally run out into wooden moulds about the size and shape

of our common bricks, although some are made about half this size; after

being removed from the moulds, they are allowed to harden for some days,

when they are fit for the market; the larger size sell at Crato for about

a penny each, in Icó for three halfpence, and in Aracaty for twopence

each.

Sugar cane, mandiocca, rice and tobacco are the principal articles

cultivated in Crato. The ordinary tropical fruit trees grow in and around

the town, such as the orange, the lime, the lemon, the banana, the

mango, the papáw, the jack, the bread-fruit, and the cashew; grapes,

pine-apples, melons and water-melons are also commonly cultivated; these

fruits are sold very cheap, thus, oranges a penny per dozen, pine-apples,

large and of a fine flavour, twopence each, and large melons may be had

at the same price. The country gradually rises from Crato towards the

S.W. till it reaches the base of the Serra de Araripe, an elevated

table-land forming a semicircle round the undulatory plain in which

the town is situated; this Serra is from one and a half to two leagues

distant from Crato, and from the numerous springs that rise from its

base, may be attributed the great fertility of this part of the Sertão,

the small streams from which are diverted in a thousand directions

for the purpose of irrigation. At present but a small portion of this

fertile district is cultivated, although it would amply repay such

labour; the vicinity being but thinly peopled, and the habits of the

natives extremely indolent; with very little trouble they can raise all

that is necessary to support life, and seem to care for nothing beyond

this. Their dress is of the most simple description, and consequently

not expensive; when, however, the population becomes more numerous,

and civilization shall have multiplied their wants, this district will

assuredly prove a rich and valuable part of the province; the greatest

drawback to it is the want of any other than land communication with

the coast. The union of the little streams which flow from the Serra

de Araripe forms a rivulet that passes close to the town of Crato, and

affords an abundant supply of excellent clear water to the inhabitants at

all seasons; it offers also some deep pools that serve as bathing places,

a luxury in which they are very fond of indulging, especially during the

hot season.

During my residence at this place I made many excursions in the

neighbourhood, but the Serra de Araripe proved the best field for my

researches, I spent several days at different times, in exploring its

ravines, sides, and summit, every trip yielding me large supplies of

new and rare plants. The greater portion of the wooded districts around

Crato consists of deciduous trees and shrubs, forming what are called

Catingas, but in low moist localities, and along the base of the Serra, a

great many of the trees are evergreen; one of the most common denizens

of the Catingas is the _Magonia glabrata_, St. Hil., which is here truly

gregarious, covering large tracts for miles to the exclusion of almost

everything else; in general it is a tree from thirty to forty feet high,

but at full growth it often attains a much greater stature. Like many

of the other inhabitants of the Catingas, its flowers appear before the

leaves, they are in large panicles, of a greenish yellow colour, and of

very sweet scent. It is called Tingi by the natives, who apply it to

many useful purposes; an infusion of the bark of the root is employed

to poison fish, and that of the stem to cure old ulcers. The fruit is

a large dry triangular capsule filled with broad flat seeds, from the

kernels of which a kind of soap is manufactured; the manner in which they

make it is this. After having taken off the brown membrane which covers

the seeds, they are put into a tub of water to steep for some time, when

the cotyledons begin to swell and soften, the thin skin which still

covers them is easily taken off, and they are then put into a pot along

with a small portion of tallow; by boiling and stirring them they soon

form a homogeneous mass, which, when cool, is said to answer very well

for washing clothes. Another tree which grows in similar situations, is

a species of _Caryocar_, that presents a fine appearance when covered

with its large corymbs of yellow flowers; the fruit, which was not ripe

during my stay, is said to be excellent when cooked, and its hard wood

is of great use as timber in the construction of mills. The Visgeira,

already mentioned, and the Timbahuba, are also two large trees of the

neighbourhood; the latter belongs to the _Mimosa_ tribe, producing large

round heads of yellowish flowers, and a broad legume curved round so as

to resemble a horse-shoe. A kind of small deer that much frequents the

woods is very fond of this fruit, and is often watched for at night at

the season when the fruit falls, being discovered by the rattling noise

which the seeds make within the pod when trodden upon. The Jatobá, a

species of _Hymenæa_, is another large tree of common occurrence, as

also the Augelim, a large and beautiful species of the genus _Andira_;

two _Bignonias_ of considerable size are also common in the distant

woods, one with purple, the other with yellowish flowers, but owing to

the durability and hardness of their timber, which is much sought after

by the natives for the construction of mills and carts, they are not

allowed to attain any great size near the town of Crato. Besides these

there are many other trees of smaller size, among which may be mentioned

the Pao de Jangada (_Apeiba Tibourbou_), and one of frequent occurrence,

and conspicuous from its large prickly capsules; on the coast its wood

affords the material for the raft-boats before described, so commonly in

use there. A species of _Byrsonema_, a _Callisthene_, a _Gomphia_, and a

_Vitex_, are all remarkably beautiful when in blossom. When planks are

required in most, indeed I may say in all parts of the Sertão, there is a

sad waste of timber, for to obtain one an entire tree is chopped on both

sides until it is reduced to the exact size required.

A number of wild fruits are found in the Catingas, among these are the

Mangába, already spoken of as very common about Pernambuco, the Guava,

the Araça, and also, but only on the top of the Serra, a nearly allied

species called Marangaba; it is the _Psidium pigmeum_ of Arrudo, a shrub

from one to two feet high, the fruit of which is about the size of a

gooseberry, and is greatly sought after on account of its delicious

flavour, which resembles that of the strawberry. The woods in the

immediate neighbourhood of the town produce a fruit called Pusá, which

belongs to a new species of _Mouriria_ (_M. Pusá_, Gardn.); it is about

the size of a small plum, of a black colour, and resembles very much in

taste the fruit of the Jaboticaba (_Eugenia cauliflora_, DC.) of the

south of Brazil; when in season it is brought to the town and carried

through the streets for sale by the Indians. The Cashew is also very

common, but the eatable portion of the fruit is smaller and not so well

tasted as that which grows along the coast.

One day, near the Serra de Araripe, I passed an encampment of Gipsies

consisting of about a dozen men, women, and children; these people are

not uncommon in the interior of Brazil, for I either met with them,

or heard of them in almost every town I visited; they are generally

disliked by the common people, but are encouraged by the more wealthy,

as was the case on the present occasion, for they were encamped beneath

some large trees near the house of a major in the National Guards, who

is the proprietor of a large cane plantation at the foot of the Serra;

although of a darker colour, they have quite the same features as the

Gipsies of Great Britain, many both of the young men and women being very

handsome; they seldom come near the large towns of the coast, preferring

more thinly inhabited, and consequently more lawless districts; they

wander from farm to farm, and from village to village, buying, selling,

and exchanging horses and various articles of jewellery; like those of

Europe they are often accused of stealing horses, fowls, or whatever

they can lay their hands upon; the old women tell fortunes, in which

they are much encouraged by the young ladies of the places they visit.

Although they speak Portuguese like the other inhabitants of the country,

among themselves they always make use of their own language, always

intermarry, are said to pay no attention to the religious observances

of the country, nor to use any form of worship of their own; they are

called Ciganos by the Brazilians. Just about the time that the Gipsies

made their appearance near Crato, one of my horses was missed from its

pasturage, and it was strongly suspected they had carried it off, but in

this instance at least they were wrongly accused, for I have good reason

to believe that the person who made free with it, was a Fazendeiro who

was very anxious to purchase it from me only a day or two before it was

stolen, just as he was on the eve of returning from Crato to his Engenho

many leagues to the westward. As it had my own brand upon one of its

hind legs, and as it was well known about the neighbourhood that it had

disappeared, I was assured by the justice of the peace that it would

ultimately be found, and he was right, for about six weeks afterwards,

it was found in a wood about three leagues from the town, but instead of

being an animal in fine condition, it was now little better than skin

and bone. The person who took it was one Josè Pereira de Hollanda, a man

whose character was not held in much estimation, and by whom it had been

used to hunt down cattle on his estate.

During my stay in Crato the festival of our Lady of Conception was

celebrated; great rejoicings were kept up for nine days previously, the

expenses of which were defrayed by the different individuals appointed to

conduct it; during the whole period of the Novena, as it is called, the

few soldiers stationed in the town kept up an almost continued fire, both

day and night; so that with this, and the processions, illuminations, and

discharges of fireworks, and of small cannon in front of the church, the

Villa was one continued scene of uproar. As the last night was said to

be the finest of all, I went about seven o’clock to the church, before

which a number of flags were flying on poles, and two large bonfires

blazing; on the terrace before the sacred edifice, an immense crowd

had assembled, and about half a dozen soldiers were from time to time

discharging their muskets; at a little distance, a band of musicians

were playing, consisting of two fifers and two drummers, but the music

they produced was of the most wretched description; there was also a

display of fireworks quite in keeping with the music. The church inside

was brilliantly illuminated and almost full, but I was surprised to see

that nearly the whole of the congregation consisted of females; they were

all dressed in white, or at least with a white kind of mantilla over

the head and shoulders. On the following day a little before dusk, a

large procession, consisting entirely of men, passed through the various

streets, figures of the Virgin and her Son being carried in great pomp;

the three priests of the Villa, together with the Visitador, or deputy of

the Bishop, who was then on his usual triennial tour through the villages

and towns of the province, walked under a scarlet canopy. The whole

affair was wound up on the succeeding afternoon (Sunday) by exhibitions

on the tight-rope, and a dance of masqueraders, in front of the church.

The mean temperature of Crato is much lower than that of Icó; it is not

considered so healthy as the latter place, for the heat of the day is

nearly as great, although the nights are much colder. Ophthalmia is truly

endemic, and, during some part of the year, few escape its effects: I had

an attack which confined me to the house for several days. Many persons

suffering from the disease in its chronic state, consulted me, and I

gained no little reputation from having either cured or much alleviated

the symptoms in most of the cases that presented themselves, even when

the complaint had been of long standing; blindness is a very common

result, and nowhere have I seen a greater number of blind people than

in this district. Secondary syphilitic complaints are also very common,

and many are the miserable wretches which they have here produced; in

such cases, mercury is very seldom employed for the primary symptoms,

these being generally cured by a species of _Croton_, commonly known by

the name of Velame; it is used both externally and internally with some

effect, but under this treatment sooner or later the secondary symptoms

make their appearance, under some one or other of their protean forms.

A residence of but a short time in the interior of Brazil, would soon

convince those medical men who would cure these complaints without

mercury, of the danger of such treatment.