THROUGH THE ATLANTIC 



mountains five thousand feet high, down their precipitous 

 sides, into the deep narrow valleys they bound, and again 

 up by a serpentine path often not wide enough for more 

 than a single horse. Frequently as I looked down the 

 steep precipice that bordered the road, a thousand feet or 

 more in depth, with nothing to prevent the horse from 

 walking off and taking the fatal plunge but his own good 

 knowledge of the roads and his firmness of step, I could 

 not avoid shuddering and hugged more closely to the 

 wall of rock on the other side." 



A brief stay was made at Porto Praya (St. lago) in the 

 Cape Verdes, and the next rendezvous was Rio. As the 

 Peacock crossed the equator, there was much of the usual 

 fun, especially because of the ignorance of one of the 

 officers who was now for the first time at sea. He was 

 made to believe that the equator was a visible line, and 

 expected to have a sight of it on passing. At Rio meas- 

 ures were taken to make extensive and indispensable 

 repairs. The Peacock, which afterwards came to grief, 

 had already showed its unfitness for the service on which 

 it was entering. The supplies, even of flour, were found 

 to be inferior. The rigging was poor. Somebody at 

 home, whose name is lost, had been guilty of gross negli- 

 gence; somebody, doubtless, of outrageous fraud. Much 

 time was lost in refitting, and during it some of the staff 

 made a study of the political state of Brazil, and others 

 made excursions. Dana was much impressed by the 

 characteristics of the negroes met everywhere through 

 the city. 



" Although very many of them are slaves, they appear 

 to be a grade higher than the negroes of our country. 

 This is owing to the political privileges the free blacks 

 enjoy. They are equally entitled with the whites to the 

 offices under government, and are treated in every way 

 as equals. There is nothing of that prejudice which color 

 excites with us, and black and white are seen mingling 

 together with only those distinctions of rank which must 



