i8o Voyage of the Novara. 



sent on shore to bring back some officers. The sjstem of kid- 

 napping-, as is well known, flourishes in Rio, and many a ship 

 is said to have lost, in this way, from thirty to forty men. The 

 crimps, who make their living by this traffic in man, entice 

 young and robust sailors to desert by means of all imaginable 

 allurements and promises, making advances in money, and 

 leading them into a dissolute life, in order that, when after- 

 wards they find themselves in a desperate state, and without 

 resources, they maybe sold by the scoundrels to the captains 

 of vessels, as sailors, or, what is worse, as white slaves, to the 

 planters in the interior. This abominable trade is said to 

 be carried on, on a great scale, by an Italian, in Catumby 

 Grande, and though the Brazilian police is perfectly cognizant 

 of the haunts of the fellow, yet it seems not to be powerful 

 enough to put a stop to the nuisance. 



These incidents did not, however, interfere with our 

 departure at the specified hour, when we were towed out by 

 the tug steamer Perseveranciay which we had hired for £25. 

 Almost every large ship on leaving Rio is towed clear of the 

 bay, so as to avoid having to tack between the islands, or 

 perhaps have to anchor, so that the tug, which belongs to a 

 private individual, and accompanied us eastward as far as 

 the island of Razza, must be a source of considerable profit. 



On 31st August, at six a.m., we bade farewell to the 

 splendid harbour of Rio. We had fortunately reached Rio 

 after the visit of the yellow fever, but the almost continual 

 rainy weather had spoiled many an excursion, and deprived us 



