RIO DE JANEIRO AND ITS ENVIRONS. 



73 



wanderers had to eat. It seems hardly fair, having shared 

 their fatigues, that I should not also share their refresh- 

 ment and be invited to sit down at table with them. 

 Doing, therefore, as I would be done by, I shall give 

 our bill of fare, and take an opportunity of saying a word 

 at the same time of the characteristic Brazilian dishes. 

 In the first place we had black beans stewed with came 

 secca (dried meat), the invariable accompaniment of every 

 meal in Brazil. There is no house so poor that it does 

 not have its feijoes, no house so rich as to exclude this 

 homely but most excellent dish, a favorite alike with high 

 and low. Then there was chicken stewed with potatoes 

 and rice, almost as marked a feature of the Brazilian 

 cuisine as the black beans. Beside these, there were eggs 

 served in various ways, cold meat, wine, coffee, and bread. 

 Vegetables seem to be rare, though one would expect a 

 plentiful variety in this climate.* At Posse Mr. Agassiz 

 found a cordial co-operator in Mr. Charles Taylor, who 

 expressed a warm interest in his scientific researches, and 

 kept one of the collecting cans that he might fill it with 

 fishes from the neighboring rivers and streams. f 



Our kind friend Senhor Joao Baptista da Fonseca, 

 who was our guide and our host on this journey, had 

 neglected nothing which could contribute to the success 



* This observation was confirmed by our year's travel. The Brazilians care 

 little for a variety of vegetables, and do not give much attention to their culti- 

 vation. Those they do use are chiefly imported in cans from Europe. 



t On our return from the Amazons a year later we heard with great regret 

 of the death of Mr. Taylor For many months he took an active part in the 

 objects of the Expedition, being himself a good naturalist, and not only made 

 valuable collections for Mr. Agassiz, but also s&me admirable colored draw- 

 ings of fishes and insects, which it is hoped may be published at a future time 

 with the other scientific results of this journey. 

 4 



