April, 1832. 



RIO DE JANEIRO. 



23 



it, as the type of its class. These houses are often large, and 

 are built of thick upright posts, with boughs interwoven, and 

 afterwards plastered. They seldom have floors, and never 

 glazed windows ; but are generally pretty well roofed. Uni- 

 versally the front part is open, forming a kind of verandah, 

 in which tables and benches are placed. The bed-rooms 

 join on each side, and here the passenger may sleep as com- 

 fortably as he can, on a wooden platform, covered by a thin 

 straw mat. The venda stands in a courtyard, where the 

 horses are fed. On first arriving, it was our custom to un- 

 saddle the horses and give them their Indian corn ; then, 

 with a low bow, to ask the senhor to do us the favour 

 to give us something to eat. " Any thing you choose, 

 sir,^^ was his usual answer. For the few first times, 

 vainly I thanked Providence for having guided us to so 

 good a man. The conversation proceeding, the case uni- 

 versally became deplorable. "Any fish can you do us 

 the favour of giving r^^ — "Oh! no, sir.^^ — "Any soup — 

 "No, sir.'' — "Any bread?'' — "Oh! no, sir."— " Any dried 

 meat ?" — Oh 1 no, sir." If we were lucky, by waiting a 

 couple of hours, we obtained fowls, rice, and farinha. It not 

 unfrequently happened, that we were obliged to kill, with 

 stones, the poultry for our own supper. When thoroughly 

 exhausted by fatigue and hunger, we timorously hinted that 

 we should be glad of our meal, the pompous, and (though 

 true) most unsatisfactory answer was, " It will be ready when 

 it is ready." If we had dared to remonstrate any further, we 

 should have been told to proceed on our journey, as being 

 too impertinent. The hosts are most ungracious and dis- 

 agreeable in their manners ; their houses and their persons 

 are often filthily dirty ; the want of the accommodation of 

 forks, knives, and spoons is common ; and I am sure no 

 cottage or hovel in England could be found in a state so 

 utterly destitute of every comfort. At Campos Novos, how- 

 ever, we fared sumptuously ; having rice and fowls, biscuit, 

 wine, and spirits, for dinner; coifee in the evening, and fish 

 with coffee for breakfast. All this, with good food for the 



