1832.] RIO DE JANEIRO. 19 
CHAPTER II. 
Rio de Janeiro—Excursion north of Cape Frio—Great Evaporation—Slavery 
—Botofogo Bay—Terrestrial Planarize—Clouds on the Corcovado—Heavy 
Rain—Musical Frogs—Phosphorescent Insects—Elater, springing powers 
of—Blue Haze—Noise made by a Butterfly—Entomology—Ants—Wasp 
killing a Spider—Parasitical Spider—Artifices of an Epeira—Gregarious 
Spider—Spider with an unsymmetrical Web. 
RIO DE JANEIRO. 
April Ath to July 5th, 1832.—A few days after our arrival I 
became acquainted with an Englishman who was going to visit 
his estate, situated, rather more than a hundred miles from the 
capital, to the northward of Cape Frio. I gladly accepted his 
kind offer of allowing me to accompany him. 
April 8th.—Our party amounted to seven. The first stage 
was very interesting. The day was powerfully hot, and as we 
passed through the woods, every thing was motionless, excepting 
the large and brilliant butterflies, which lazily fluttered about. 
The view seen when crossing the hills behind Praia Grande was 
most beautiful ; the colours were intense, and the prevailing tint 
a dark blue; the sky and the calm waters of the bay vied with 
each other in splendour. After passing through some cultivated 
country, we entered a forest, which in the grandeur of all its 
parts could not be exceeded. We arrived by midday at Itha- 
caia; this small village is situated on @ plain, and round the 
central house are the huts of the negroes. These, from their 
regular form and position, reminded me of the drawings of the 
Hottentot habitations in Southern Africa. As the moon rose 
early, we determined to start the same evening for our sleeping- 
place at the Lagoa Marica. As it was growing dark we passed 
under one of the massive, bare, and steep hills of granite which 
are so common in this country. This spot is notorious from 
having been, for a long time, the residence of some runaway 
slaves, who, by cultivating a little ground near the top, con- 
