CLIMATE OF PARI 



23 



Bishop, the cathedral, the principal churches and con- 

 vents, all seemed constructed on a scale of grandeur far 

 beyond the present requirements of the city. Streets 

 full of extensive private residences built in the Italian 

 style of architecture, were in a neglected condition, weeds 

 and flourishing young trees growing from large cracks 

 in the masonry. The large public squares were over- 

 grown with weeds and impassable on account of the 

 swampy places which occupied portions of their areas. 

 Commerce, however, was now beginning to revive, and 

 before I left the country I saw great improvements, as 

 I shall have to relate towards the conclusion of this 

 narrative. 



The province of which Para is the capital, was, at the 

 time I allude to, the most extensive in the Brazilian 

 empire, being about 1560 miles in length from east to 

 west, and about 600 in breadth. Since that date — namely 

 in 1853 — it has been divided into two by the separation 

 of the Upper Amazons as a distinct province. It formerly 

 constituted a section, capitania, or governorship of the 

 Portuguese colony. Originally it was well peopled by 

 Indians, varying much in social condition according to 

 their tribe, but all exhibiting the same general physical 

 characters, which are those of the American red man, 

 somewhat modified by long residence in an equatorial 

 forest country. Most of the tribes are now extinct or 

 forgotten, at least those which originally peopled the 

 banks of the main river, their descendants having amal- 

 gamated with the white and negro immigrants ^ : many 

 still exist, however, in their original state on the Upper 

 Amazons and most of the branch rivers. On this ac- 

 count Indians in this province are far more numerous 



^ The mixed breeds which now form, probably, the greater 

 part of the population, have each a distinguishing name. 

 Mameluco denotes the offspring of White with Indian ; 

 Mulatto, that of White with Negro ; Cafuzo, the mixture of 

 the Indian and Negro ; Curiboco, the cross between the Cafuzo 

 and the Indian ; Xibaro, that between the Cafuzo and Negro. 

 These are seldom, however, well-demarcated, and all shades 

 of colour exist ; the names are generally applied only ap- 

 proximatively. The term Creolo is confined to negroes born 

 in the country. The civilized Indian is called Tapuyo or 

 Caboclo. 



