20 RIO DE JANEIRO. louap. I. 
trived to eke out a subsistence. At length they were discovered 
and a party of soldiers being sent, the whole were seized with th 
exception of one old woman, who, sooner than again be led int: 
slavery, dashed herself to pieces from the summit of the moun 
tain. Ina Roman matron this would have been called the nobl: 
love of freedom: in a poor negress it is mere brutal obstinacy 
We continued riding for some hours. For the few last mile 
the road was intricate, and it passed through a desert waste o 
marshes and lagoons. The scene by the dimmed light of thi 
moon was most desolate. A few fireflies flitted by us; and th 
solitary snipe, as it rose, uttered its plaintive cry. The distan: 
-and sullen roar of the sea scarcely broke the stillness of the 
night. 
April 9th.—We left our miserable sleeping-place before sun- 
rise. The road passed through a narrow sandy plain, lying 
between the sea and the interior salt lagoons. ‘The number of 
beautiful fishing birds, such as egrets and cranes, and the succu- 
lent plants assuming most fantastical forms, gave to the scene an 
interest which it would not otherwise have possessed. The few 
stunted trees were loaded with parasitical plants, among which 
the beauty and delicious fragrance of some of the orchidex were 
most to be admired. As the sun rose, the day became extremely 
hot, and the reflection of the light and heat from the white sand 
was very distressing. Wedined at Mandetiba; the thermometer 
in the shade being 84°. The beautiful view of the distant wooded 
hills, reflected in the perfectly calm water of an extensive lagoon, 
quite refreshed us. As the vénda* here was a very good one, and 
I have the pleasant, but rare remembrance, of an excellent din- 
|ner, I will be grateful and presently describe it, as the type of 
‘its class. These housés are often large, and are built of thick 
upright posts, with boughs interwoven, and afterwards plastered. 
They seldom have floors, and never glazed windows; but are 
generally pretty well roofed. Universally the front part is open, 
forming a kind of verandah, in which tables and benches are 
placed. The bed-rooms join on each side, and here the passenger 
may sleep as comfortably as he can, on a wooden platform, 
covered by a thin straw mat. The vénda stands in a courtyard, 
where the horses are fed. On first arriving, it was our custom 
* Vénda, the Portuguese name for an inn, 
