76 WANDERINGS IN SOUTH AMERICA. 



From the Cape de Verd islands to the coast of 

 Brazil, you see several different kinds of gulls, which, 

 probably, are bred in the island of St. Paul. Some- 

 times the large bird called the Frigate Pelican, soars 

 majestically over the vessel, and the tropic bird comes 

 near enough to let you have a fair view of the long 

 feathers in his tail. On the line, when it is calm, 

 sharks of a tremendous size make their appearance. 

 They are descried from the ship by means of the dorsal 

 fin, which is above the Avater. 



On entering the bay of Pernambuco, the 



c j,f gate Peli " Frigate Pelican is seen watching the shoals 



of fish from a prodigious height. It seldom 



descends without a successful attack on its numerous 



prey below. 



As you approach the shore, the view is 

 charming. The hills are clothed with wood, 

 gradually rising towards the interior, none of them of 

 any considerable height. A singular reef of rocks runs 

 parallel to the coast, and forms the harbour of Pernam- 

 buco. The vessels are moored betwixt it and the 

 town, safe from every storm. You enter the harbour 

 through a very narrow passage, close by a fort built on 

 the reef. The hill of Olinda, studded with houses and 

 convents, is on your right hand, and an island thickly 

 planted with cocoa-nut trees adds considerably to the 

 scene on your left. There are two strong forts on the 

 isthmus, betwixt Olinda and Pernambuco, and a pillar 

 midway to aid the pilot. 



Pernambuco probably contains upwards 



Pernambuco 



of fifty thousand souls. It stands on a flat, > 

 and is divided into three parts ; a peninsula, an island, 

 and the continent. Though within a few degrees of 



