6 ENGLAND TO RIO DE JANEIRO CHAP. I 
contented ourselves with collecting as much as we could in 
the neighbourhood of the town, never going above three 
miles from it during our whole stay. 
The season of the year was undoubtedly the worst 
for both plants and insects, being that of the vintage, 
when nothing is green in the country, except just on the 
verge of small brooks, by which their vines are watered ; 
we made shift, however, to collect specimens of several 
plants, etc. 
The five days which we remained upon the island were 
spent so exactly in the same manner that it is by no means 
necessary to divide them. I shall therefore only say that 
in general we got up in the morning, went out on our 
researches, returned to dine, and went out again in the 
evening. On one day, however, we had a visit from the 
Governor, of which we had notice beforehand, and were 
obliged to stay at home; so that this unsought honour lost 
us very nearly the whole day, a very material part of the 
short time we were allowed to stay upon the island. We, 
however, contrived to revenge ourselves upon his Excellency 
by means of an electrical machine which we had on board ; 
for, upon his expressing a desire to see it, we sent for it 
ashore, and shocked him fully as much as he chose. 
While here we were much indebted to Dr. Heberden, 
the chief physician of the island, and brother to the physician 
of that name at London. He had for many years been an 
inhabitant of the Canaries, and of this island, and had 
made several observations, chiefly philosophical; some, how- 
ever, were botanical, describing the trees of the island. Of 
these he immediately gave us a copy, together with such 
specimens as he had in his possession, and indeed spared 
no pains to get for us living specimens of such as could be 
procured in flower. 
We tried here to learn what species of wood it is which 
has been imported into England, and is now known to cabinet- 
makers by the name of Madeira mahogany, but without 
much success, as we could not learn that any wood had 
been exported from the island by that name. The wood, 
