388 RECOLLECTIONS OF BRAZILS. 



matic perfume of segars, such as Hudson or Friburg never dreamt of 

 in their philosophy. 



" Nox erat et fulgebat luna serena 

 inter minora sedera." 



It was indeed a lovely night ; the moon, the tropical moon, 

 sailed high and bright in the starry heavens. Nox had put on her 

 jewelled diadem ; and on her dark bosom shone resplendent the 

 southern cross while the smaller stars sparkled like diamonds 

 through the dark foilage of the cocoa-nut trees, as they waived their 

 graceful tops wafting towards us the aromatic perfumes ofthe neigh, 

 bouring orange groves. There reigned a delicious stillness, broken 

 occasionally by the distant notes of a guitar which danced wildly 

 sweet on the evening breeze as the chords of an GElean harp swept 

 by the wind. The softness of the hour had lulled the joyous mirth 

 of the party till the silence was interrupted by an old colonel of 

 cavalry.- " Si senhor } senhor si" he exclaimed, the invariable ejaculation 

 with which the Brazilian breaks the pause that will occasionally in- 

 terrupt the conversation, the mieux soutenue. " From what I have 

 heard, and from what I have read which, gentle reader, was mighty 

 little England must certainly be an extraordinary country ; but 

 nevertheless, it is one in which I could but exist twenty-four hours." 

 " And how so, Colonel?" I inquired; " we have ample means of 

 neutralizing the cold of our climate" for I confess I thought it was 

 to that he was alluding. " That is not what I mean. Estou Valente 

 no frio. I am capable of bearing an intense degree of cold." (I 

 much doubt if the old fellow had ever experienced a lower degree 

 than 70 in his life). " Then, my dear Colonel, in what consists 

 your objection to Old England ?" " Why, simply in this to the 

 incessant report of fire-arms/' " You must be jesting, surely ?" 

 " Not at all. You are the second Englishman who has ever 

 resided here and I have observed that the occupation of you both 

 has been that of firing at a mark from morning till night, from which, 

 I infer it is the usual pastime of the English, and a most detestable 

 one, too, it is ; for I have not had a comfortable siesta since your ar- 

 rival here." It is to be hoped the gallant Colonel was a better 

 soldier than this wide application of the ab uno disce omnes shewed 

 him to be a logician. 



I one morning shortly after this received the following laconic 

 epistle from the master of a Mulatto servant I had hired : 



" Senhor If you shoot my Mulatto, remember his price is 250 

 milrees." 



At the risk of being styled a barbarian, I cannot refrain from relating 

 the cause that produced this singular letter, illustrating as it does so 

 strongly the manners of the country. On the previous evening, in 

 order to amuse my friend the Padre Vigario with a pistol bullet, I 

 offered to strike a teacup out of the hand of my Mulatto servant, 

 a feat which, by dint of practice, I knew I could, without risk, at the 

 distance of twelve paces, accomplish and which was accordingly 

 done, to the great wonderment of the Padu, who, to my surprise, 

 insisted on me making the trial on him, but which I obstinately for 



