REMOVAL OF THE AUTHOR TO ITAMARACA.—THE ISLAND.—CONCEPTION AND PILLAR.—THE FESTIVAL OF OUR LADY OF THE ROSARY.—JOURNEY TO GOIANA.—THE TOQUE.—THE COW-POX.

A FEW days after I had sent the remainder of my people to Itamaraca, I gave up Jaguaribe to its owner, and rode to Recife, where I remained for some days.

I had been introduced several months before to the vicar of Itamaraca; and at the time that I crossed over to the island to agree with the owner of Amparo about my removal, I made a visit to this priest, and was received by him with the greatest cordiality. As the plantation of Amparo had no cottage unoccupied at that time, or indeed that was fit to be inhabited, I requested the vicar to obtain for me a house in the town, as it is called, of our Lady of the Conception, in which stands the parochial church of this extensive vicarage. He returned for answer, that excepting his own residence, of which he was willing to give up to me a portion, and the prison, no dwellings could be met with. However, he desired that I would send a person to speak to him; this I did, and on the man’s return, the offer of the prison was accepted.

As I had written to mention the day upon which it was my intention to arrive there, I was received by one of my people upon the shore of the main land; and the canoe which plies for the purpose of carrying passengers across, was ready to take me. The saddles were removed from the horses’ backs, we entered the canoe, and shoved off from the shore, the horses swimming by the side of it. The passage across, is, at this its narrowest part, about half a mile. On landing upon the island, we saddled the horses, and rode for about one quarter of a mile along a sandy path, which is bordered to the left by the water of the channel that runs between the island and the main, and on the right by coco-trees, until we reached a narrow creek, which is not fordable at high water and in this state we now found it. I left the horses to the care of Manoel, until they could be passed conveniently, whilst I followed the man who had come to receive me. We proceeded over the bridge which was constructed of loose beams, and scarcely safe even for foot passengers; immediately beyond it we passed by several cottages with mango trees before them, and then ascended the steep hill, upon the summit of which stands the town, built in the form of a square. We entered it at one corner, and near to my new habitation, which was a large stone building, much dilapidated, with one story above the ground floor. In the prosperous days of this settlement, when its rank in the province was considerable, this edifice was raised as a town-hall above, and prison underneath; but now that the decay of the place had rendered it unworthy of its former distinction, the building was no longer kept in repair, and was now almost in ruins.

The island of Itamaraca, which is in length about three leagues, and in breadth about two, is situated at the distance of eight leagues to the northward of Recife, and is entirely separated from the main land by a channel of unequal width, varying from one league to half a mile. The island does not contain any stream of water, but in the neighbourhood of the town water gushes from the hill wherever it is dug for. That which is obtained from the springs in the neighbourhood of Pillar, is not however good. Itamaraca is, perhaps, the most populous part of the province of Pernambuco, taken as a whole, the immediate vicinity of Recife excepted. It contains three sugar mills, which are well stocked with negroes; and many free persons likewise reside upon the lands belonging to them[100]. Besides the lands attached to these works, there are other considerable tracks which are subdivided among and owned by a great number of persons of small property. The shores of the island are planted with coco-trees, among which are thickly scattered the straw cottages of fishermen; and oftentimes are to be seen respectable white-washed dwellings, which are possessed by persons whose way of life is frugal, and yet easy. The salt-works upon the island are likewise one great source of its wealth; these are formed upon the sands which are overflowed by the tide at high water.

The long village of Pillar, situated upon the eastern side of the island, is at the present day the principal settlement, although that which is called the town of Conception, where I now resided, standing upon the S.E. side of the island, claims seniority, but its better times are gone by; its situation was considered inconvenient, others are at present preferred; and if the parish church did not stand here, and render necessary the presence of the vicar, the place would shortly be deserted. It has now a desolate neglected appearance, an unpleasant stillness, producing sensations of a very different description from those which are excited by the quietude of a place that has never witnessed busier scenes. Its site is the summit of the S.E. point of a high hill, which rises almost immediately from the water’s edge. The square, in which are situated the parish-church,—my new residence,—the vicarage, a low, long, white-washed building,—and about fifteen cottages, is very spacious; but large pieces of ground now remain unoccupied; the houses which stood upon them have been removed, or have been allowed to decay and fall, giving room to banana and tobacco gardens. The centre of the square was covered with brushwood, and a narrow path went along the four sides of it immediately in front of the houses, which afforded to the inhabitants the means of communicating with each other. There is one street branching from it and leading down towards the creek, over which I passed on my arrival; it is formed of small low huts, and is closed at the end farthest from the square, by a church, which is dedicated to our Lady of the Rosary, the patroness of negroes.

The harbour is good, and the entrance to it is commanded by an old fort, which is much out of repair; the garrison is scanty, and without discipline. On one occasion I took a canoe, and went down to the bar. I wished to sound, but my canoe-man begged that I would not, as it might bring him into trouble; and indeed we were in sight of the fort, and the commandant is jealous, being an elderly man and an advocate for the old system of exclusion. The entrance to the port is formed by an opening in the recife or reef of rocks which runs along the whole of this part of the coast. This opening is of considerable width, and its depth will admit of large vessels; but I could not obtain exact information upon the subject. From the main land on one side, and from the island on the other, two long sand banks jut out on each side of the channel, which separates Itamaraca from the continent. These banks are dry at low water, and at neap tides are not completely covered. They shoot out so far that they nearly reach to the reef. The bar is easily discovered from the sea, as it is immediately opposite to the channel or river into which it leads, and as there are breakers to the northward and southward, but none are to be seen at the place which is to be entered. Having entered the bar, some small breakers will be seen a-head, or rather towards the south side of the channel, unless the tide is out, and then the water is quite still. These breakers are farther in than the outermost point of the south sand-bank. They are formed by some rocks which lie at a considerable depth below the water’s edge. I tried to reach them with a pole of two fathoms in length, at low water during spring tides, but did not succeed; and my canoe-man said that he doubted whether another fathom and a half would touch them. The passage for large vessels is between these rocks and the north sand-bank, for the passage between them and the south bank only admits of small craft. I could not learn that there were any other rocks or banks than these which I have mentioned. The anchorage ground is opposite to the fort, and on the outside of it; but opposite to the town of Conception, which is farther in than the fort, there is considerable depth of water. Some parts of the ground are rocky, but others afford safe riding.

The magnificent prospect which may be enjoyed from the clumsy wooden balcony of the town-hall, compensates in some degree for the dismal state of the place in which it stands. In front is an extensive view of the sea, which is always enlivened by numerous jangadas and canoes sailing to and fro, and occasionally by the large craft that trade between Maranham and Recife, and by ships arriving from Europe or returning thither. To the right is the broad channel immediately below, and the bay which it forms on the opposite side, with the picturesque village of Camboa upon its shores, and the pointed hill of the Engenho Novo, covered with wood, rising behind it; but as this hill does not extend far, and rather rises in the form of a cone, the river IguaraÇu runs along the plain, and is now and then discovered, but oftentimes concealed, by the dark green mangroves; these however sufficiently point out its course, and lead the eye to the white specks which beautifully mark the site of the higher buildings of the town of IguaraÇu, peeping out among the vast expanse of wood of a lighter green, which reaches as far as the eye can compass. To the left is a narrow and deep dell, bounded on the opposite side by a ridge of rising ground of equal height with that upon which the town is situated. Behind is the flat plain, which runs along the hill to the distance of one league; it is in places much contracted and in others spreads widely.

The town of Conception was formerly fortified; the three sides upon which it is enclosed by the steep declivity to be ascended in reaching it, have been rendered still more precipitate, even than they would naturally have been, as they are cut perpendicularly to the height of twelve feet, presenting a wall of earth to those who ascend the hill, and as the soil is a stiff clay, and the passing and repassing not considerable, the paths which have been formed through the wall are still exceedingly steep. On the fourth side, entrenchments were made across the plain upon the summit of the hill; these were shewn to me; for it was necessary that they should be pointed out, as they were almost concealed by the brushwood; and even large trees which were growing in them. Upon one spot, on the quarter nearest to the sea, and now the site of a cottage, is still plainly to be discovered the situation of a fort, and a short time ago a gun, which appeared to be of six pounds calibre, was dug up.

The distinctions attending the rank of a town were removed some years past from hence to Goiana, and the only mark which Conception still possesses of its former importance, is the obligation by which the magistrates of Goiana are bound to attend the yearly festival to the Virgin at the parish church.

Itamaraca is one of the oldest settlements of the Portugueze upon the coast of Brazil. It was given to Pero Lopes de Souza, who took possession of it in 1531.[101] The Dutch made an attack upon it in 1630, and although they did not succeed in taking Conception, they built a fort which they called Fort Orange[102], and this is the fortress which now exists upon the island. However, in 1633, the Dutch “dispatched such a force as rendered resistance hopeless; the town of Conception was yielded to them, and with it the whole island[103].” In 1637, the Dutch deliberated, “whether the seat of government should be removed to the island[104].” This did not take place; the opinion of those who proposed the plan being over-ruled, but I cannot avoid thinking that it possesses many advantages of which Recife cannot boast. The port of Itamaraca may not admit of vessels of so much burthen as the PoÇo harbour of Recife, but the former is much more safe even than the Mosqueiro port. If Brazil was to be at war with any naval power, Recife might be destroyed with ease, whereas if a town had been erected upon the main land, opposite to the island, or upon the inside of the island, it could not be molested by shipping, for it would be necessary that a vessel should enter the channel before she could bring her guns to bear. Besides this advantage, Itamaraca and the neighbouring shores of the main land, enjoy those of wood and water in abundance, in the latter of which Recife is particularly deficient. In 1645, Joam Fernandes Vieira, the principal hero of the Pernambucan war, attacked the island, but did not succeed in dislodging the Dutch[105]. The Portugueze again attempted to regain possession of it in 1646; they crossed over at a place called Os Marcos[106], which is now a coco-tree plantation, and a large house is built upon it; the property belongs to a Portugueze cattle-dealer who resides chiefly at IguaraÇu. Opposite to Os Marcos is the shallowest part of the channel. The Portugueze did not gain their point entirely, “but the Dutch abandoned all their other posts to retire into the fort”[107], which was not surrendered to the Portugueze until the expulsion of the Dutch in 1654.[108]

I happened to arrive at Conception upon the day of the festival, the 8th of December, however as I had many matters to arrange, I did not see the ceremony in the church, but was invited to dine with the vicar. I went at two o’clock, and found a large party assembled, to which I was happy in being introduced, as it consisted of several priests who are the men of most information in the country, and of some of the first laymen of the island. The dinner was excellent and elegant, and the behaviour of the persons present was gentlemanly. I was placed at the head of the table, as being a stranger; and a friend of the vicar took the opposite end of it, whilst he himself sat on one side of me. I never met a pleasanter dinner-party, there was much rational conversation and much mirth, but no noise and confusion. The company continued together until a late hour, and indeed the major part of the priests were staying in the house.

The parish of Itamaraca has now for some years enjoyed the blessings which proceeded from the appointment of the present vicar, Pedro de Souza Tenorio. His merit was discovered by the governor, whom he served as chaplain, and by whose application to the Prince Regent was obtained for him his present situation. The zeal of the vicar, for the improvement of the districts over which he has controul is unremitted; he takes pains to explain to the planters the utility of the introduction of new modes of agriculture, new machinery for their sugar-mills, and many alterations of the same description which are known to be practised with success in the colonies of other nations; but it is not every novelty which meets with his approbation. It is no easy task to loosen the deep-rooted prejudices of many of the planters. He is affable to the lower ranks of people, and I have had many opportunities of hearing persuasion and entreaty made use of to many of his parishioners, that they would reform their habits, if any impropriety of behaviour in the person to whom he was speaking had come to his knowledge. His occasional extempore discourses on subjects of morality when seated within the railings of the principal chapel, delivered in a distinct and deep-toned voice, by a man of commanding person, habited in the black gown which is usually worn by men of his profession, were very impressive. He has exerted himself greatly to increase the civilization of the higher orders of people in his parish; to prevent feuds among them;—to persuade them to give up those notions of the connection between the patron and the dependant, which are yet too general; he urges them to educate their children, to have their dwellings in a state of neatness, to dress well themselves, their wives, and their children. He is a good man; one who reflects upon his duties, and who studies to perform them in the best manner possible. He has had the necessity of displaying likewise the intrepidity of his character; his firmness as a priest, his courage as a man, and he has not been found wanting. He is a native of Pernambuco, and has not degenerated from the high character of his provincial countrymen; he was educated at the university of Coimbra in Portugal.

From the state of society and government in Brazil, the individual character of the person who holds any office of importance makes a most wonderful difference, and indeed in some districts a man of an active mind with some wealth, but without any appointment, has more weight than a person of a contrary disposition, although the situation of the latter might give him great power, if he thought proper to exert himself.

I passed some portion of each day with the vicar and his party; the conversation never flagged, and I often thought how very superior the persons were with whom I associated, to any that my friends in England could suppose a country residence in Brazil to afford. I was myself agreably surprised at the change which I had made from Jaguaribe.

Among the visitors at the vicarage was Joam Ribeiro Pessoa de Mello Montenegro, professor of drawing to the seminary of Olinda, and the friend and disciple of Dr. Manoel Arruda da Camara. This priest, during his stay at Itamaraca, crossed over to the mainland to say mass at the village of Camboa every Sunday and holiday. I accompanied him on one of these occasions, and we were paddled over in a canoe. We entered the cottage of a man of colour, the chief person of the place; a hammock was hanging in the room, and into this my companion threw himself, and three or four children of the house quickly came to him, one or two of whom he took into the hammock to play with. The females made their appearance to greet him upon his arrival; he was a favourite seemingly with all parties, great and small. Indeed I never met with any one who possessed more pleasing manners. He is generally beloved wherever he is known, but by the lower orders of people more especially, he is quite adored. I was long acquainted with him, both before and after the time of which I speak, and I never heard him make use of a harsh word to any one; his manner and his tones of voice always indicated that goodness in him greatly predominated. A free mulatto man, of the name of Bertolomeu, once said to me in speaking of this priest, “If he sees a child fall, he runs and picks it up and cleans its face, and this he does not do, because any one is in sight to see him act in this manner, but because his heart so inclines him[109].” It is much to be lamented that his exertions have not been directed to obtaining a situation in which his excellent qualities might have a wider field for display; but he is satisfied with what has been given to him.

I was much surprised at the manner in which even the people of colour dress themselves to go to mass in all the villages; if the family is in a respectable way of life, the younger females wear on these occasions gowns of printed cottons, English straw bonnets, stockings also of foreign manufacture, and neat shoes which are made by workmen of the country. The young men appear in nankeen pantaloons, and jackets of printed cottons, shirts of cambric muslin, hats of English make, stockings and shoes. Indeed, of late years, since articles of dress have been cheap, and have come into general use,—since a subject of emulation has arisen, and the means of shewing it has been afforded, every hamlet sends forth its rival belles and beaux.

I was disappointed with a near view of Camboa; but the country behind it is picturesque, being formed of uneven ground, which is for the most part covered with wood; and cottages and mandioc lands are interspersed. The village consists of one street, composed of small dwellings. The inhabitants are mostly related to each other, and the free persons are of mixed blood. The clan is large, but there does not reside here any wealthy white man; they are a quiet, inoffensive people. The old man at whose house we staid whilst the neighbours assembled to hear mass, was respected by all the rest; he had the management of all their weighty concerns, as being the richest person of the place, though even his property was small; and as he was connected in natural or religious relationship with the major part of the inhabitants. When the priest and I went into the house, we found a large party sitting round a table and playing at cards, which these persons continued to do until the church-bell rang, and the priest went out to prepare for saying mass. The majority of the people of all classes, excepting Indians, have a great propensity to gaming.

There lived at this village formerly a poor man who died of consumption, dragging on for some time a miserable existence. The opinion is general in Pernambuco and other parts which I visited, that consumption is contagious; and from this notion, any person so afflicted is immediately separated from the rest of the family. A hovel is erected at a distance from any habitation, and the miserable patient is removed to it, and is shunned by every one, even receiving his food without the bearer approaching the hovel. I can conceive no situation more wretched than this,—to be in a weak and helpless state, and to be forsaken,—to be doomed to solitude, and to have, perhaps for years, no thoughts but those of death; nothing to relieve the mind, and to divert the attention. I know not, however, whether the opinion of contagion respecting this disorder is totally founded on prejudice, or whether there is some truth in it; for I have heard from persons who are not liable to hasty decisions, many stories which seem to indicate that there is some reason for the precautions which are taken. They are, doubtless, carried too far; they are insisted upon to a savage excess, which fails not to bring to the recollection the custom of some tribes of Indians, who forsake their aged, their infirm, and their dying kinsmen.

I frequently visited the plantation of Amparo, which is conducted in the manner which I had attempted at Jaguaribe; but here it was performed with more system. The owner of this place employed constantly great numbers of free workmen, of all casts; but the Indians formed the principal part of them, and as their master, I suppose, finds it impossible to keep them under due controul, (for the wish to do so he must of course have,) the disturbances which are raised upon the estate, and which are entered into at other places by his men are very numerous[110]. But this person would have done much service to the country in general, if he had managed to keep them in due order, for in that case he would have proved the possibility of the introduction of free men as daily labourers, without the opinion of their unruliness being unavoidable, having been adopted by great numbers of the planters. The state of Amparo is often mentioned as an objection to hired labourers, from the want of reflecting that in the instance in question, the evil proceeds not from the plan itself, but from its execution. It is too true that the lower orders of people are unruly, and upon slight provocations, murders have been committed; but does not this proceed from the propensity which the higher ranks shew to protect those who reside upon their lands? Thus they display their influence with men in office, when they plead for the pardon of a criminal, and feel a considerable degree of gratification,—of self-importance in the idea that an individual should have been preserved from punishment by their means, even though he had only been treated according to his deserts if he had not been screened. Where government exists in a state similar to that of Brazil, wealth will meet with few obstacles in the accomplishment of its purposes, whatever these may be.[111]

In the month of January, 1814, the vicar summoned me to accompany him to Pillar, to which I agreed with much pleasure. The master of the grammar school, Ignacio de Almeida Fortuna, who is likewise a priest, was of the party; he is a man of considerable talent and information. His advantages have been very few, for he has resided almost entirely upon this island; and yet his knowledge is far from being limited, and his love of it is unbounded. We crossed the narrow creek which has been already mentioned, and proceeded along a path under the shade of the coco-trees, until we made for the sands. The sea has made great encroachments for about two miles in this part of the island; we passed the mouths of two natural dikes, into which the tide enters with great rapidity, and is discharged again with increased velocity. After a ride of an hour and a quarter, we reached Pillar, which is distant from Conception, two leagues. This village is composed of several irregular streets, formed of small houses of various descriptions; they are constructed of brick, of mud, and of the coco-leaves. It is a place of some trade, and is likewise frequented by the small craft, which sail between Recife and Goiana. The inhabitants support themselves by their fisheries, by the hire of their jangadas and canoes, and lately, by the preparation of the outward husk of the coco-nut[112] for the manufactory of cordage, which has been recently established in the vicinity of Recife. The fishery of Pillar is of considerable importance. The largest portion of the fish which is caught upon this and the adjacent coast, is obtained by means of pens, that are generally constructed near to low water mark. Two spaces of greater or less magnitude are marked off, and stakes are driven into the sand at given distances in quadrangular form; to these stakes are fastened large mats (esteiras) of basket-work made of thick twigs. An aperture, constructed in a similar manner to that of a trap for catching mice, is left in the inclosure farthest from the shore, opening into the second or smaller inclosure, which has likewise an entrance on the land side, from which runs a fence of basket-work to high water mark. Thus the fish that come in contact with this fence naturally continue along it, in expectation of finding an opening by which to escape, until they unintentionally enter the pen. The jangadas also go out to sea, and fish with the hook and line, and many kinds of nets are used. Yet there is at times a great scarcity of fish, which is rendered by the ordinances of the Romish church an absolute necessary of life. I was introduced at Pillar to a Portugueze gentleman of great respectability, from whom I received in the sequel much civility; the vicar also made me acquainted with a gentlemanly Brazilian priest, who was a young and well-educated man. The former of these persons had been the Juiz Ordinario or Mayor of Pillar, in the year 1812. He had seen how dreadfully the want of due attention to the duties of this office had been felt on former years, and now he was determined to act in the manner which his situation required. He said, that in building great cities, the first public edifice which was or ought to be raised, was the prison; and therefore as Pillar was becoming daily of more importance, it was fit that it should have this requisite edifice. He ordered a number of trees to be cut down, and in a few days a roof was built of small but adequate dimensions, and supported by some of of these trees; the remainder of the timber was to form the walls of the building after the manner of a stockade. A rude door was likewise made, and a pair of stocks was put into the place. “Now,” he said, “Pillar will thrive.” He apprehended some unruly fellows with his own hands; he is a large and powerful man, and the requisite though dangerous task of arresting the men who created disturbances was performed by him with apparent unconcern, and as if he was occupied in any common occurrence of his life. Notwithstanding the acknowledged benefit which was produced by the administration of this man, such is the state of government, that interest was made to prevent his re-appointment to the office on the following year; and this influence was successful. He was too upright a man to be liked by those who wished to have upon their estates a number of turbulent dependants.

The inhabitants of the island had entered into a subscription for building a bridge over the creek near to the town; this work was undertaken through the zeal of the priests who resided in Itamaraca, and was about to be executed under the direction of the master of the grammar-school.

I was much surprised in the beginning of the month of February, at the arrival of a mulatto slave, who had absconded in November; he came alone, and without the customary note from some person of my acquaintance, requesting him to be forgiven. He ascended the steps of the place in which I resided, with perfect unconcern, and with his knife in view and a stick in his hand, begged to be pardoned. I desired that some food should be given to him, and he remained in the kitchen during the night. However, I could not help suspecting some evil intentions, for I knew he had been staying upon the estate of a man who bore me no good will. He went off, by my order, in the morning, to assist three free labourers in the work of cutting up some trees that had been felled. I followed him to the ground about ten o’clock, as was my usual custom. I called him to me, under the pretence of wishing to have the curb chain of my bridle loosened; he came, and then I put one hand upon his head, and with the other drew a pistol, at the same time desiring him to throw down his hatchet and his knife, which he did. Then I called to two of the freemen, that they might secure him. The mulatto’s hands were tied behind his back, and I followed him and his conductors to Amparo, from whence I wrote to my new friend at Pillar, forwarding the slave to that village. He was there placed in the stocks, until I could dispose of him, which I immediately entered into measures for effecting. I never saw him again. He was a bad fellow, and had twice attempted the life of the persons under whose orders he was placed. He had run away in November from having drawn his knife, and having threatened to stab the manager with it.

There is another road to Pillar, besides that by which the vicar had taken me; it is through a place called Engenho Velho (the old mill). Sugar works were formerly established here; but the lands are poor, and the large red ants upon them are so numerous, as to render their cultivation almost impossible; so much so, that scarcely any persons reside upon them. Many individuals of the lower classes, first obtaining leave from the proprietor, have attempted to rear crops of mandioc and maize upon them; but their exertions have seldom enabled any one to prevent the plantations from being destroyed by the ants. Huts are to be seen, out of which the inhabitants have been driven by these tormentors; the shelter which the roofs afford is convenient to the ants, and under them they like to form the chief entrances to their cities. I never saw any other situation in which this pest of Pernambuco[113] had so completely taken possession of the land. The hillocks under which they had formed their nests were innumerable; some of these were four feet in height, and ten or twelve in circumference; others were of less dimensions, and some of them might be larger.

Some ruins of the mill are still to be seen at Engenho Velho, and there is a pond near to them of considerable depth, of which tradition says, that great riches lie concealed at the bottom. I also heard of an old African negro, who has been manumitted, and now practised the arts of a Mandingueiro, in this neighbourhood. Among the lower orders of people I have heard his powers discussed. It is said, that he can cause the death of any one who is pointed out to him; the unfortunate person will linger for a long time, but his destruction is inevitable. This old man is likewise a fortune-teller, and is applied to in cases of unrequited love.

In March took place the yearly festival of our Lady of the Rosary, which was directed by negroes; and at this period is chosen the King of the Congo nation, if the person who holds this situation has died in the course of the year, has from any cause resigned, or has been displaced by his subjects. The Congo negroes are permitted to elect a king and queen from among the individuals of their own nation; the personages who are fixed upon may either actually be slaves, or they may be manumitted negroes. These sovereigns exercise a species of mock jurisdiction over their subjects which is much laughed at by the whites; but their chief power and superiority over their countrymen is shown on the day of the festival. The negroes of their nation, however, pay much respect to them. The man who had acted as their king in Itamaraca (for each district has its king) for several years, was about to resign from old age, and a new chief was to be chosen; he who had been fixed upon for this purpose was an old man and a slave, belonging to the plantation of Amparo. The former queen would not resign, but still continued at her post. The old negro who was this day to be crowned, came early in the morning to pay his respects to the vicar, who said to him in a jocular manner, “Well, sir, so to-day I am to wait upon you, and to be your chaplain.” About eleven o’clock I proceeded to the church with the vicar. We were standing at the door, when there appeared a number of male and female negroes, habited in cotton dresses of colours and of white, with flags flying and drums beating; and as they approached we discovered among them the king and queen, and the secretary of state. Each of the former wore upon their heads a crown, which was partly covered with gilt paper, and painted of various colours. The king was dressed in an old fashioned suit of divers tints, green, red, and yellow; coat, waistcoat, and breeches; his sceptre was in his hand, which was of wood, and finely gilt. The queen was in a blue silk gown, also of ancient make; and the wretched secretary had to boast of as many colours as his master, but his dress had evident appearances of each portion having been borrowed from a different quarter, for some parts were too tight and others too wide for him.

The expence of the church service was to be provided for by the negroes; and there stood in the body of the church a small table, at which sat the treasurer of this black fraternity, (irmandade) and some other officers, and upon it stood a box to receive the money. This was produced but slowly, much too slowly for the appetite of the vicar, who had not breakfasted, though it was now nearly mid-day, for he and his assistant priests were to chaunt high Mass. Therefore he approached the table, and began to expostulate with these directors, declaring that he would not go to the altar until every expence was paid. I was much amused to see him surrounded by the blacks, and abusing them for their want of punctuality in their contributions. There was soon an uproar in the church among the negroes; the vicar had blamed some of them, and now when he left them to themselves, they called each other to an account, and the consequences were, that many high and angry words passed between them in the church. It was a most entertaining scene to me and a few other persons, who stood by and heard what was going on. However, at last Their Majesties knelt down at the railing of the principal chapel, and the service commenced. As soon as this was over, the new king was to be installed; but as the vicar was hungry, he dispatched the matter without much ceremony; he asked for the crown, then went to the church-door,—the new sovereign presented himself, and was requested or rather desired to kneel down; the insignia were given to him, and the vicar then said, “Now, sir king, go about thy business.”[114]

As the king belonged to Amparo, the eating, drinking, and dancing were to be at that place; consequently, in a short time our town remained quite quiet, and I little thought that I should so soon be disturbed. About four o’clock in the afternoon, Francisco, one of my negroes, came running from Amparo, and he said that the people at that place were killing Manoel, who was fighting against a number of persons, by whom he had been attacked. I mounted my horse, and proceeded to the plantation with all possible haste. I found Manoel tied to the middle of a long cord, of each end of which one man had hold, and these persons were standing in opposite directions for the purpose of keeping the negro at a distance from any one. His face was covered with blood, and his cloaths were much torn. I rode up to him, and spoke to him; he turned round, as if to strike me; but when he discovered who it was, he cried out, “It is my master, and now I care for no one;” and then he again proceeded in his abuse towards those who had maltreated him. Francisco soon arrived, and I sent Manoel home with him. The overseer of the plantation (for the owner was not at home) chose to take umbrage at some of my people who now arrived, because they were armed. I told him that they were perfectly right in coming prepared for the worst, but that I felt quite confident that not one person present would think of insulting me or any other white man; and therefore I sent my people away; he said that I judged correctly of his feelings, and some others stepped forwards to confirm the words of the overseer. The negro who had acted improperly, had been provoked so to do by the behaviour of some of the free persons towards him; but the affair would not have occurred, if the overseer had done his duty, or if any man of weight and importance had been present.

About this time I agreed to take a cottage with a small piece of land attached to it, in the neighbourhood of Conception. It was situated upon a shelf of the hill, immediately below the town, and opposite to the village of Camboa. The break in the hill had only space sufficient to admit of the cottage in breadth, so that on either side it must be reached by an ascent or descent. The view from it differed little from that which was to be obtained from the town-hall; save that now to the left, the town and the church were to be seen half concealed among the banana plants and trees. All the lands in this neighbourhood were subdivided among persons of several casts. That which immediately joined mine on two sides belonged to the vicar, and on the third side it was inclosed by the channel, whilst on the fourth, a numerous family of free negroes possessed a small spot covered with coco-trees. These latter people had been much impoverished by the obstinacy of the chief of the family, now deceased, in maintaining a law-suit for many years, about the boundaries of his plot of land. As soon as I took possession, one of his sons wished to commence law proceedings with me, in spite of several awards which had been given against his father. I began to make a fence around the piece of land which I had taken, and he immediately did all in his power to prevent me from accomplishing my object; however, as he saw that whatever he said was of no avail, he set off to Goiana to seek redress by law. This I discovered accidentally in the evening. In the morning at four o’clock I mounted on horseback, and followed him to Goiana, accompanied by Fideles, a creole negro, in the place of Manoel who was disabled for some time by the occurrence which has been related.

I proceeded through the plantation of Amparo, and reached the spot at which passengers embark in the canoe that plies between the island and the main land. The tide was out, and we entered among the mangroves, through which a path has been made in the mud; it is dangerous to allow the horse to step out of this, as the slime is deep on either side. We stood at the water’s edge, just beyond the mangroves, and hailed the ferryman, until he shoved off and came towards the island. The mosquitos persecuted us unmercifully, during this delay, and it was with difficulty we prevented our horses from treading out of the path. The channel is here much broader than near to Conception; but there is a bank near to the centre of it, upon which, when the tide is out, the horses regain their footing; but still the passage is distressing to the beasts; however we reached the opposite bank in safety[115]. Here stands the village of Itapisuma, which consists of a long street, situated near to the water’s edge, and running parallel with the channel; it is composed of small low houses. A narrow path took us to the village of Pasmado, a distance of two leagues, where we entered the great cattle road; we crossed the river of Araripe, passed through the village of BÛ, and about mid-day stopped at the hamlet of FontÂÌnhas. Here I put up at a cottage, and on enquiry found that there was some dried meat to be sold at a neighbouring hut; some of this was purchased, and was cooked for me by the good woman of the cottage.

The people of Pasmado are famous for their proficiency in the working of iron. The knives which are made at that place are in great request all over the country, and although these are a prohibited article, as I have before mentioned, still they are made publicly at Pasmado, and indeed at many other places in the country.

Whilst I was at FontÂÌnhas, three armed men came to the door with a fourth person whom they had taken into custody, under a suspicion of his being a horse-stealer. It was proved that he had been seen in company with a man of this description, but he made it appear that he had been hired by him to assist in conducting some horses, without his having any knowledge of their being obtained irregularly, and therefore they set him at liberty. During the whole of my stay in Pernambuco, I only heard of two or three instances of houses being broken open, and scarcely of any murders that were not occasioned by quarrels, or had been committed in revenge; but cattle-stealing is common. I was in the constant habit of hearing of thefts of this description[116]. In the afternoon I reached Goiana, and on the following day presented my papers to the Juiz de Fora. As soon as I had accomplished the end for which I came, I returned to Itamaraca. Whilst I was at Goiana, an English merchant vessel, called the Elizabeth, had been on shore upon the south sand-bank of the harbour of Itamaraca. She had been chased by an English ship of war, under the supposition that she was an American, and the merchant vessel was also acting under the same idea regarding the pursuer. The master made for the harbour of Itamaraca and ran the vessel ashore; and the mistake under which both of them had been acting was not cleared up until the ship of war sent a boat on board. She floated at the height of the tide, and proceeded to Recife without much damage. Many of the people of Itamaraca put off in their jangadas, for the purpose of rendering every assistance in their power, and were very indignant at the crew refusing to admit any of them on board. This, I suppose, proceeded from the fear of being plundered, and of salvage being claimed, as occurs frequently upon the coast of Ireland in cases of distress. But far from any mischief being intended, I am confident that a mere trifle (a few gallons of rum for instance) would have satisfied those who went to offer to assist.

After my removal in April to the Toque, for so my new dwelling was called, I led a life of quietude; and to one who has not known other countries, and does not feel that a residence in Brazil is a species of banishment, it would be a life of great happiness. I went out young, and therefore had few unpleasant feelings of this kind to conquer, but when I reflect upon the line of life in which I had taken my station I am happy that I was removed. The climate, in particular, fascinates every one; the heat is scarcely ever disagreeable, and the power of the sun is rendered less perceptible by the freshness of the sea breeze; the coolness of the night too removes all lassitude, if any should have been felt. I have often sat at my door when the moon has been so clear as to render reading by her light, though somewhat irksome, still not difficult. When the night has been dark, I have watched the lights which were to be seen upon the sand-banks, that proceed from the land on each side of the entrance of the harbour; they were frequented at low water by numbers of persons in search of shell-fish. The appearance was singular, for the lights seemed to float upon the water.

The house in which I now dwelt was a long low building, situated, as I have before observed, upon a narrow break in a steep hill; it was constructed of timber and mud, and the eaves of the cottage were on one side about five feet from the ground, and on the other they were only three feet. The door and window were in the gable-end, and fronted the sea. The principal apartment was furnished with a few chairs, and a table, a trunk containing my books, and also a large chest, in which were deposited the farinha and the beans for the weekly consumption of the establishment; in one corner likewise stood a large jar of water, and upon a peg immediately above the jar was hung the usual ladle of the country;—this is formed of the half of the inner shell of a coco-nut, and has a long wooden handle fixed to it; some rich persons make use of silver cocos, as these ladles are called. The room which I have attempted to describe, two cabins or very small bed-chambers, and a kitchen included the whole building. At one side were erected a stable and two apartments, which remained unfinished when I came away. Behind the cottage was the shed which covered the apparatus for making the farinha; and yet farther back, in the same direction, the negroes had formed their huts of mud and coco leaves. I was now still nearer to the channel, and so immediately above it as to see every canoe or raft which passed to and fro. The land about the house was covered with brushwood and tall coco-trees, and there were likewise a few Acaju trees. However the small wood was soon cleared away, and the view on every side remained unobstructed.

The first business of the morning was to see that the people went out to work at the proper time; then the stable and other matters of the same kind were to be attended to; for in every thing which is to be done by slaves the master or his deputy must keep his eye as much upon what is going forwards as possible. After this I breakfasted, and then either read or wrote, or mounted my horse and rode to the spot upon which my people were at work. I dined about two o’clock, and afterwards sat in my hammock smoking; any of the secondary people, or of those in the lower ranks of life, would sometimes about three or four o’clock come to speak to me upon business, or to ask or communicate news, and so forth. Soon after four o’clock, I usually rode out again to see the work, and returned about five or half past. The remainder of the day-light was often expended in reading, and at times the vicar or some one else would come and sit with me until seven o’clock. Sun-set in retired situations usually produces melancholy feelings, and not less unpleasant was this period under the circumstances in which I was placed. The negroes were coming home straggling from their work, fatigued and dirty; the church-bell tolled dismally at intervals, that all Catholics should count their beads; the sea looked black, and the foliage of the trees became rapidly darker and darker as the sun sank behind the hills. There is scarcely any twilight in those regions; the light is in a few minutes changed into darkness, unless the moon has risen. Her light is not afforded gradually, but her power is perceived very shortly after the setting of the sun. In the evening I sat and smoked in the open air, and if it was at the time of spring tides, I had a fire made to windward, on account of the mosquitos, and of a very diminutive species of black fly, which is called maroÌm, and of which the bite is as painful as that of the mosquito; this last species of insect is there called morisoca. The maroim is usually to be seen near to mangroves. If these tormentors were too troublesome to be endured, or if I was so inclined, I would close my door and window, and read or write until ten or eleven o’clock, and then go to bed; but frequently I would lie down in my hammock, and rest in it unintentionally during the greater part of the night.

My time passed less pleasantly during the months of June and July, owing to the rain, and to the removal of the vicar to Recife during that period.

Through his persuasion, and from the gradual general disposition of the feelings of the people in favour of the measure, two boys, resident at Conception, were sent to Recife for the purpose of being inoculated with the cow-pox; as soon as they returned, the surgeon of IguaraÇu, a young man of considerable merit who had been educated at Lisbon, came over to the island to inoculate any persons who might be inclined to undergo the operation. Among the children it was almost general. Their parents and friends were told that the disorder was not infectious, and consequently no precautions were taken in separating those who were under its influence from the other inmates of the same cottage. Soon afterwards an elderly woman, the attendant of a child who had been inoculated, fell sick and died, and other persons were likewise afflicted with the same disorder. The infection spread, and ten or twelve persons died of it in the island. The evil indeed was only stopped by the inoculation of great numbers of the inhabitants. It was observed that none of the individuals who had been inoculated had been in danger, and therefore it was soon seen that the wisest plan was to undergo the operation. A few however were so much alarmed at the fate of some of their acquaintances, that they lived for many days in the woods, scarcely visiting any habitation of man in the dread of infection. It was proved that the small-pox did not exist at that time upon the island, for every enquiry was made,—much pains were taken by many persons of zeal and activity to certify that this was the case; and indeed when that dreadful malady appears in any neighbourhood the whole country round is alarmed, and every precaution is taken to prevent communication. Now, it was generally said that either the boys who had been sent to Recife were inoculated with the small-pox instead of the cow-pox, or that the cow-pox degenerated and became an infectious disease. The boys received the matter from a newly-imported negro, who had, it is true, been inoculated with the cow-pox, but he might have had the small-pox upon him at the time, though it had not made its appearance. It is from the newly arrived Africans, that the small-pox is often spread abroad, after the country has had a long respite from this much dreaded disorder. One man who resided near to Conception caught the disease and died; he had only sat for a short time in an outward room of a house in the interior of which some children were confined who had been inoculated.

The unfortunate result of this trial of the new disorder rivetted many persons in their prejudices against it; and others who had strenuously recommended its adoption began to stagger, and to fear that they had been deceived; however, as none of those who were inoculated had been in danger, the people did not appear to have taken a thorough dislike to it. To me this was a most anxious time; my establishment of slaves and free people consisted of twenty-five persons, of whom scarcely any had had the small-pox. They were too many to inoculate at once, and therefore I cut off all communication with my neighbours. This was done without much difficulty; Manoel was armed, and was ready to prevent any one from approaching the place, and this I could do without injustice, for the path led only to the house. I had several fierce dogs, which were all let loose on this occasion, notice being given to the neighbourhood of such a measure having been adopted.

Considerable zeal has been shewn by the supreme government of Brazil in the introduction of the cow-pox into the country. An establishment has been formed at Recife, consisting of a physician and two surgeons for the inoculation, free of expence, of all persons who apply for this purpose. The inoculation is expressly confined to the matter of the cow-pox. The establishment has not however, yet fixed upon any settled plan for having a constant supply of the matter, and therefore the medical men belonging to it are often obliged to remain inactive for several weeks at a time.