i6 A YEAR IN BRAZIL. 



general are much colder than the corresponding northern 

 latitudes. There are two principal islands— one ninety- 

 miles by fifty, the other ninety by forty-five— and several 

 smaller islands. It is a fully fledged English colony, and 

 the only inhabitants are natives of the British Isles, except 

 a few foreign servants and herdsmen from South America. 

 Sheep-raising is really the only occupation. The sheep are 

 killed for their skins, and melted down for tallow, the meat 

 being wasted ; so there is an opportunity either for a tinned- 

 meat factory, or for arranging to freeze the fresh meat and 

 then convey it to England. The best shepherds are mostly 

 Scotchmen, who get on very well and make money. They 

 have their passage out paid, and begin with ;^3 loj. per 

 month, with meat, house-room, and firing ; they are raised 

 to £i^ the third year, and ;^5 the fifth year. If they stay 

 five years, the return passage is paid. The climate is too 

 cold for growing wheat, and the wind beats everything 

 down. But the islands possess some of the finest harbours 

 in the world — and there are many of them — while some are 

 harbours within harbour, so that nearly all transport is 

 done by water. The islands were originally taken by the 

 Spaniards, then by the French, and lastly by the English. 

 There are no soldiers, only police, but a gunboat of the 

 South American squadron is generally cruising about. 



I should think it must be a very desolate place to live 

 in. Mr. Bertrand says that when he arrives (about July 

 15th) it will be the middle of winter, with snow and ice 

 everywhere. It is at least thirty days from England — a 

 bad voyage is six weeks. It has no trees, no wheat or corn ; 

 there are only some two thousand inhabitants scattered 

 about over different farms or holdings. The one town is 

 named Sandy, and the only wild animals are the remnants 

 of some Spanish bulls, which have now grown wild, and 



