THE TROPICAL ZONE. 215 



grow vigorously there. What prosperity (he adds) would 

 result from the introduction of great forests, where every 

 stick, every pole or plank, is counted riches, and where the 

 sailor must commit himself to the stormy lake in a miserable 

 bark woven of rushes I" 



But let us pass on now to the other side of South 

 America, and see whether the same " miserable vegetation," 

 which characterizes its western coast in this Tropical Zone, 

 is repeated on the eastern. Taking a glance at the map 

 before we start on our fresh journey, we find that the line 

 which marks the northern limit of this zone passes through 

 the very heart of Brazil, and agreeable anticipations take 

 possession of us at the prospect which lies before us ; for 

 the Brazilian flora is perhaps the most beautiful in the 

 world, and the most beautiful part of the whole is that 

 which lies within the limits of the Tropical Zone. We 

 therefore propose to examine it somewhat in detail; for 

 after having been so long engaged in watching the gradual 

 development of perfection in vegetation, it is but fair that 

 we should enjoy at leisure the full-blown beauty which it 

 displays within the tropics. 



As we shall thankfully tread in the footsteps of some of 

 those great naturalists who have made known to us the 



