34 AN UNPRECEDENTED ORDER. 
should salute the fortress with one-and-twenty 
guns; and in order to remove all doubt that the 
compliment was designed for the Brazilian flag, 
he had brought one which, during the salute, 
he requested us to hoist at the fore-mast. 
New and unprecedented as this order was, 
from a state not yet acknowledged by our go- 
vernment, I determined, rather than risk any 
disagreement, to comply with it; and having 
fired the one-and-twenty guns, received from 
the fortress a similar number in return. Being 
very anxious not to lose the favourable season 
for doubling Cape Horn, I urged the Vice- 
Consul to expedite as much as possible the 
delivery of provisions and other necessaries to 
the ship; for this purpose, however, a delay of 
four weeks was required, and this time I deter- 
mined to employ in astronomical observations. 
M. Von Kielchen procured me for this purpose 
a convenient country-house, situated on the 
romantic little bay of Botafogo, of which I 
took possession on the following day, accom- 
panied by our astronomer, M. Preus; leaving 
the care of the ship to my officers. 
In the supposition that the history of Brazil 
