36 



VISIT TO A BRAZILIAN FAMILY. 



we left the church, and taking one family of our 

 party home, remained with them until a very late 

 hour. 



We were invited to pass the following Sunday 

 with this family, which consisted of the father 

 and mother, and a son and daughter ; they were 

 all Brazilians, and though the young lady had 

 never been from Pernambuco, her manners were 

 easy, and her conversation lively and entertain- 

 ing. Her complexion was not darker than that 

 of the Portuguese in general, her eyes and hair 

 black, and her features on the whole good ; her 

 figure small, but well shaped. Though I have 

 seen others handsomer, still this lady may be 

 accounted a very fair sample of the white Bra- 

 zilian females ; but it is among the women of 

 colour that the finest persons are to be found, 

 — more life and spirit, more activity of mind 

 and body ; they are better fitted to the climate, 

 and the mixed race seems to be its proper inha- 

 bitant. Their features, too, are often good, and 

 even the colour, which in European climates is 

 disagreeable, appears to appertain to that in 

 which it more naturally exists ; but this bar to 

 European ideas of beauty set aside, finer speci- 

 mens of the human form cannot be found than 

 among the mulatto females whom I have seen. 



We went to them to breakfast, which was of 

 coffee and cakes. Backgammon and cards were 

 then introduced until dinner time, at two o'clock. 



