TRAVELS IN BRAZIL. 269 



resembles an enormous tower ; the mountain of 

 Coche d'Agoa, those of Lavras Novas,' the Serra 

 do Carassa, and many others lay extended at our 

 feet They appeared all of the same character as 

 Itacolumi, namely, as long extending ridges with 

 flat tops, and with verdant summits, here and there 

 steep, without any considerable bare walls of 

 rock. 



The sky was cloudy : the barometer, at one 

 o'clock in the afternoon, was at 23, 6.75, the ther- 

 mometer 16" R. ; whereas in Villa Rica the ba- 

 rometer was 25, 2, and the thermometer 22° R.* 



At this elevation profound silence and repose 

 reigned all around, uninterrupted by the motion 

 or cry of a bird ; even the noisy grasshoppers 

 do not penetrate here with their monotonous 

 notes. A simple modest vegetation enjoys the 

 Alpine coolness of this tract, t The mountain 



* According to the simple formula of De Luc, this gives for 

 the top of Itacolumi an elevation of 4618, and for Villa Rica 

 of 2948 Paris feet. Mr. Von Eschwege assigns to Itacolumi a 

 height of 5710 feet English (5355 Paris), and to the palace of 

 Villa Rica, which is certainly much more elevated than our 

 dwelling, 3760 English (3526.88 Paris) feet. 



f Of the plants growing on Itacolumi we will mention the 

 following: Barbacenia tricolor, bicolor, tomentosa, luzulaefo- 

 lia, ensifolia ; Vellosia abietina, taxifolia ; Psyllocarpus eri- 

 coides, laricoides (Mart. Gen. Nov. Bras. pi. 28.), thymbroides, 

 asparagoides ; Galium brasiliense ; Morinda obtusifolia ; De- 

 clieuxia rubioides, lysimachioides, cordigera, saturejoides, 

 vincoides, nob. ; Coccocypsilum pilosum ; Oxypetalum folio- 

 sum, erectum, strictum ; Ditassa mucronata (lb. pi. 31), retusa, 



