MANAOS AND ITS NEIGHBORHOOD. 291 
more populous and central parts of Brazil, to meet recruits 
on the road, so-called volunteers, chained two and two by 
the neck like criminals, under an armed guard. When we 
first met a squad of men under these circumstances, on 
the Juiz de Fora road, we supposed them to be deserters, 
but the Brazilians who were with us, and who seemed 
deeply mortified at the circumstance, said that they were 
no doubt ordinary recruits, arrested without inquiry on the 
one side, or power of resistance on the other. They as- 
serted that this mode of recruiting was illegal, but that 
their chains would be taken off before entering the city, 
and no questions asked. A Brazilian told me that he had 
known an instance in which a personal pique against an 
enemy had been gratified by pointing out its object to the 
recruiting officer, who had the man at once enlisted, though 
a large family was entirely dependent upon him. Our 
informant seemed to know no redress for tyranny like 
this. 
The hospitality we have received in Brazil, the sympathy 
shown to Mr. Agassiz in his scientific undertakings, as well 
as our own sentiments of gratitude and affection for our 
many friends here, forbid us to enter into any criticism of 
Brazilian manners or habits which could have a personal 
application. Neither do I believe that a few months' resi- 
dence in a country entitles any one to a judgment upon 
the national character of its people. Yet there are certain 
features of Brazilian institutions and politics which cannot 
but strike a stranger unfavorably, and which explain the 
complaints one constantly hears from foreign residents. 
The exceedingly liberal constitution, borrowed in great 
part from our own, prepares one to expect the largest 
practical liberty. To a degree this exists ; there is no 
