BOTANICAL INFORMATION. 219 



medicines and strict rules for the treatment of the patient, 

 and recommending the poor suffering creature to the kind- 

 ness of the sympathizing Fazendeiros, we took our departure. 

 All their care, however, proved fruitless; for we received 

 some days afterwards, from a Tropeiro who travels on this 

 road, the sori'owful intelligence that Miguel had expired the 

 same day. This mournful circumstance probably gave rise 

 to the report that one of ourselves had thus perished, of 

 which the rumour quickly spread to Bahia and Minas, 

 whence, and from Maranhao, we subsequently received many 

 letters, expressive of friendly and anxious interest in our 

 welfare. 



North of the Serra Branca, the character of the vegetation 

 gradually changes ; passing from the Mimosa, to that which 

 is here called Agreste. We traversed beautiful green mead- 

 ows, [varedas) interspersed with Catinga woods, and came 

 to the Fazenda Cachoeira^ where we saw a very extensive 

 establishment appropriated to the rearing of cattle. Several 

 hundreds of cows and calves were just driven out of the 

 curral. Proceeding to the north, we entered the beautiful 

 woody plains, called Campos de Santa Isabella, where Joa 

 trees, casting their shadows far around, and groups oi Palms y 

 presented a most pleasing variety of landscape. Numerous 

 herds of black cattle lay basking in the shelter of these leafy 

 masses, which reminded us of the Linden trees of our native 

 land; and innumerable herons, with different kinds of ducks, 

 gave hfe and interest to the occasionally seen ponds, that 

 glanced between. In the evening we encamped near a busliy 

 pool, where a slave-dealer from Bahia had already bivouack- 

 ed with his troop of forty young blacks, which he had just 

 purchased, and was taking with him to Aldeas Attas. This 

 company of youthful Ethiopians, which consisted of both 

 sexes, gave themselves up, after the manner of their country, 

 to the most extravagant mirth, and in the open field excited 

 themselves, by lascivious dances, singing, shouting, and 

 mutual encouragement, to a height of almost Bacchanalian 

 frenzy. It was late at night ere the uproar became calm^ 



