THAVELS IN BRAZIL. 



rwTidse counsels were extremely welcome to us ; his 

 iworthy son; Messrs. Prohaska, Trattinik, Host, Por- 

 tenschlag, Bredemeyer, Prechtl, Meissner, &c. ; all 

 lof whom testified ^reat interest in our enterprise. 

 iBu't what particularly auipated bur Courage and en- 

 thusiasm w^s the personal acquaintance of M. Fer- 

 dinand fiauer, the painter, who had accompanied 

 Captain Flinders on his voyage in the South Sea 

 ^nd to New Holland, and was then actually en- 

 gaged in pourtraying the strange forms of plants 

 cand animals of those remote regions. v - • 



We left Vienna on the 4th of March to repair 

 to Triest. At Gratz we visited the Johanneum, 

 founded by His Imperial Highness the Archduke 

 John of Austria. This excellent institution is 

 chiefly designed for the propagation of practical 

 iknowledge in the departments of natural history 

 and the arts, and is a noble monument of the 

 .esteem of its princely founder for the sciences. 

 J On this occasion we became acquainted with the 

 i professors Chrys. V. Vest and M. Fr. Mohs, 

 iknd if our time had permitted, would willingly 

 have explored the beautiful environs of the capital 

 of Styria, in compa,ny with those able enquirers ; 

 hnt circiinistance^ were imperious, and we 

 ihas(;ened away to visit the quicksilver mines of 

 cidria. We thought it would be very interesting 

 ^o obt^ain by personal inspectipn, a knowledge of 

 those mines, the produce of which must prove of 

 iincalculable benefit to Brazil, rich as it is in gold, 



