TO RIO DE JANEIRO. 



17 



committed, it seems, a great error, in approaching so near the coast, 

 here in the district of Pernambuco ; because such storms and tempests 

 always prevail in these parts during the winter season of the torrid 

 zone. The captain turned his ship as much as the wind would allow, 

 to stand out to sea, but was obliged continually to tack, and conse- 

 quently made but little progress. At length, about eight days after 

 our first sight of the land, the wind became rather better, and allowed 

 us to take a more favourable du'ection. The current of the sea was 

 several times measured, which was a necessary precaution, as we w^ere 

 so near the coast. Large water-fowl, gulls, and petrels, hovered 

 about us singly, but we had not the good fortune to shoot any of 

 them. At the same time, numbers of the physaUs swam about the 

 ship ; flying-fish sported before us ; and large whales spouted their 

 fountains into the air. 



On the 8th at noon, we again descried the Brazilian coast about 

 the Bay of All Saints. It presented to our view lofty mountains of 

 fine forms, over which hung dense masses of clouds. We saw flying 

 showers fall on them, while we at sea had a constant succession of 

 storms, rain, and contrary wind. As we had always to expect in 

 the evening the wind from the shore, we sailed towards it in the 

 day-time, and during the night again into the open sea ; in this 

 manner we had almost always a view of the coast. On the 10th the 

 weather was fine and the wind favourable. We had sailed past the 

 dangerous rocky islands called the Abrolhos (Open your eyes, ahra 

 OS olhos), and could now steer directly for Cabo Frio. In 22° 23' 

 south latitude, I observed a second kind of physalis, which is much 

 smaller than the usual kind, and has no red in its colour. It is 

 doubtless the same which Bosc has represented in the 2d volume of 

 his Histoire Naturelle des Vers, tab. 19- This animal appeared in 

 great numbers. The noon-day heat became more and more oppres- 

 sive in this latitude ; a single cup of tea immediately caused a violent 



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