142 A JOURNEY IN BRAZIL. 
in the market is by no means what one would expect it 
to be. To-night Mr. Agassiz goes off with a party of 
gentlemen on an excursion to some of the islands in the 
harbor. This first expedition in the neighborhood of Para, 
from which the Professor promises himself much pleasure, 
is planned by Dr. Couto de Magalhaes, President of the 
Province.* 
August 14f/i. We are very agreeably surprised in the 
climate here. I had expected from the moment of our 
arrival in the region of the Amazons to be gasping in a 
fierce, unintermitting, intolerable heat. On the con- 
trary, the mornings are fresh ; a walk or ride between 
six and eight o'clock is always delightful ; and though 
during the middle of the day the heat is certainly very 
great, it cools off again towards four o'clock ; the even- 
ings are delightful, and the nights always comfortable. 
Even in the hottest part of the day the heat is not dead ; 
there is always a breeze stirring. Mr. Agassiz returned 
this afternoon from his excursion in the harbor, more 
deeply impressed than ever with the grandeur of this 
entrance to the Amazons and the beauty of its many 
islands, " An archipelago of islands," as he says, " in an 
ocean of fresh water." He describes the mode of fishing 
of the Indians as curious. They row very softly up the 
* To Dr. Couto de Magalhaes Mr. Agassiz was indebted for unremitting 
attentions during our stay in the region of the Amazons. He never failed to 
facilitate the success of the expedition by every means in his power, and the 
large collections made under his directions during our sojourn upon the 
Upper Amazons were among the most valuable contributions to its scientific 
results. When he heard that Mr. Ward, one of our young companions, was 
coming down the Tocantins, he sent a boat and boatmen to meet him, and 
on his arrival in Para received him in his own house, where he remained his 
guest during his stay in the city. 
