^HMHI 



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14. 



PADRE J0A1M RIBICIRC). 



a country-residence in Brazil to afford. I was 

 myself agreeably surprised at the change which 

 I had made from Jaguaribe. 



Among the visitors at the vicarage was Joam 

 Ribeiro Pessoa de Mello Montenegro, professor 

 of drawing to the seminary of Olinda, and the 

 friend and disciple of Dr. Manoel Arruda da 

 Camara. This priest, during his stay at Itama- 

 raca, crossed over to the mainland to say mass 

 at the village of Camboa every Sunday and holi- 

 day. I accompanied him on one of these occa- 

 sions, and we were paddled over in a canoe. 

 We entered the cottage of a man of colour, the 

 chief person of the place ; a hammock was 

 hanging in the room, and into this my compa- 

 nion threw himself, and three or four children 

 of the house quickly came to him, one or two of 

 whom he took into the hammock to play with. 

 The females made their appearance to greet 

 him upon his arrival ; he was a favourite seem- 

 ingly with all parties, great and small. Indeed 

 I never met with any one who possessed more 

 pleasing manners. He is generally beloved 

 wherever he is known, but by the lower orders 

 of people more especially, he is quite adored* 

 I was long acquainted with him, both before 

 and after the time of which I speak, and I never 

 heard him make use of a harsh word to an) 

 one ; his manner and his tones of voice always 

 indicated that goodness in him greatly predo- 



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