214 



TRAVELS IN BRAZIL. 



this medicine would be more powerful if the bark 

 of young trees were taken in preference, which 

 has hitherto not been the case 5 the ignorant peo- 

 ple employed to gather it having selected very 

 thick and woody pieces, which can be pulled off 

 without any trouble, to the finer bark of the young 

 trees and branches. Another plant, containing a 

 great quantity of bitter, is the Carqueja (Baccharis 

 genestelloides. Lam.), which does not, indeed, grow 

 here, but on the high mountains of Serra de Es- 

 trella. It is very often used by the Brazilians 

 against intermitting fevers, and seems much to 

 resemble, in its component parts, the Eupatorium 

 perfoliatum^ ^ which is frequent in North America. 

 It, however, differs from the pure bitters by the 

 considerable admixture of resinous and aromatic 

 parts. 



Another equally interesting excursion that we 

 used to make was to Tijuca, a place about a mile 

 from the city, which was formerly much frequented 

 by the inhabitants. The way is on the high road, 

 past the royal country-seat of S. Cristovao, which 

 was built after his majesty's arrival, and by im- 

 provements in the grounds has been made a very 

 agreeable retreat. The road lies between luxuriant 

 hedges of cactus, Ian tana, bougainvillia, cordia, 

 tournefortia and mimosa lebbek, above which 



* Bigelow, American Medical Botany, Boston, 1818, rol. i. 

 p. 33. 



