336 



SOCIETY. 



racks, in two parts of the city. The tree under which the sentinel stood, 

 in both cases, was the largest of the row. 



We saw, in a walk in the suburbs of the town, what we thought to 

 be a palm tree growing out of the crotch of a tree of a different species; 

 but, upon examination, it appeared that the tree, out of which" the palm 

 seemed growing, was a creeper, which, embracing the palm near the 

 ground, covered its trunk entirely for fifteen or twenty feet, and then 

 threw off large branches on each side. It may seem strange to call that 

 a creeper, which had branches of at least ten inches in diameter ; but 

 so it was. It is called in Cuba the parricide tree, because it invariably 

 kills the tree that supports it. (Har. Mag. January, 1853.) 



The most picturesque object, however, in Para was the ruins of an 

 old opera house near the palace. The luxuriant vegetation of the -coun- 

 try has seized upon it, and it presents pillar, arch, and cornice of the most 

 vivid and beautiful green. 



The society of Para is also agreeable. The men, I am sorry to say, 

 seem to be above work. Most of them are Hidalgos, or gentlemen ; 

 and nearly all are in the employ of the government, with exceedingly 

 small salaries. In the whole city of Para, I am told, there are not a 

 dozen Brazilians engaged in trade of any kind. The women are simple, 

 frank, and engaging in their manners, and very fond of evening parties 

 and dancing. ■ I attended a ball, which is given monthly by a society 

 of gentlemen, and was much pleased at the good taste exhibited in its 

 management. Full dress was forbidden. No one was permitted to 

 appear in diamonds ; and the consequence was, that all the pretty girls 

 of the merely respectable classes, as well as of the rich, were gathered 

 together, and had a merry time of it. 



But the principal charm of Para, as of all other tropical places, is the 

 Dolce far niente. Men, in these countries, are not ambitious. They are 

 not annoyed, as the more masculine people of colder climates are, to see 

 their neighbors going ahead of them. They are contented to live, and 

 to enjoy, without labor, the fruits which the earth spontaneously offers ; 

 and, I imagine, in the majority of cases, if a Brazilian has enough food, 

 of even the commonest quality, to support life, coffee or tea to drink, 

 cigars to smoke, and a hammock to lie in, that he will be perfectly 

 contented. 



This, of course, is the effect of climate. There was a time when the 

 Portuguese nation, in maritime and scientific discoveries — in daring 

 explorations — in successful colonization — in arts and arms — was inferior 

 to no other in proportion to its strength ; and I have very little doubt 

 but that the bold. and ambitious Englishman, the spirited and cos- 



