Cuap. III. RELIGIOUS FESTIVALS. 45 
the expenses. It was considered that the greater the amount of money 
spent in wax-candles, fireworks, music and feasting, the greater the 
honour done to the saint. Ifthe Juiz was a rich man, he seldom:sent 
out alms-gatherers, but celebrated the whole affair at his own expense, 
which was sometimes to the extent of several hundred pounds. Each 
festival lasted nine days (a zovena), and in many cases refreshments for 
the public were provided every evening. In the smaller towns a ball 
took place two or three evenings during the novena, and on the last day 
there was a grand dinner. The priest, of course, had to be paid very 
liberally, especially for the sermon delivered on the Saint’s-day or 
termination of the festival, sermons being extra duty in Brazil. 
There was much difference as to the accessories of these festivals 
between the interior towns and villages and the capital; but little or no 
work was done anywhere whilst they lasted, and they tended much to 
demoralise the people. It is soon perceived that religion is rather the 
amusement of the Paraenses than their serious exercise. The ideas of 
the majority evidently do not reach beyond the belief that all the 
proceedings are, in each case, in honour of the particular wooden image 
enshrined at the church. The uneducated Portuguese immigrants 
seemed to me to have very degrading notions of religion. I have 
often travelled in the company of these shining examples of European 
enlightenment. They generally carry with them, wherever they go, a 
small image of some favourite saint in their trunks ; and when a squall 
or any other danger arises, their first impulse is to rush to the cabin, 
take out the image and clasp it to their lips, whilst uttering a prayer for 
protection. The negroes and mulattos are similar in this respect to 
the low Portuguese, but I think they show a purer devotional feeling ; 
and in conversation I have always found them to be more rational in 
religious views than the lower orders of Portuguese. As to the Indians, 
with the exception of the more civilised families residing near the large 
towns, they exhibit no religious sentiment at all. They have their own 
patron saint, St. Thomé, and celebrate his anniversary in the orthodox 
way, for they are fond of observing all the formalities ; but they think 
the feasting to be of equal importance with the church ceremonies. At 
some of the festivals, masquerading forms a large part of the proceed- 
ings, and then the Indians really shine. They get up capital imitations 
of wild animals, dress themselves to represent the Caypor and other 
fabulous creatures of the forest, and®act their parts throughout with 
great cleverness. When St. Thomé’s festival takes place, every em- 
ployer of Indians knows that all his men will get drunk. The Indian, 
generally too shy to ask directly for cashaca (rum), is then very bold ; 
he asks for a frasco at once (two and a half bottles), and says, if inter- 
rogated, that he is going to fuddle in honour of St. Thomé. 
In the city of Para, the provincial government assists to augment the 
splendour of the religious holidays. ‘The processions which traverse the 
principal streets consist, in the first place, of the image of the saint, and 
those of several other subordinate ones belonging to the same church ; 
these are borne on the shoulders of respectable householders, who 
volunteer for the purpose: sometimes you will see your neighbour the 
grocer or the carpenter groaning under the load. The priest and his 
