e 



INTRODUCTION. ' 5 



woods and deserts of the interior, rude unknown barbarians, whom 

 they call Tapuyas; it is the latter that still exist in a state of na- 

 ture, and well deserve to be better known. Though we had some few 

 notices of these tracts of continuous forests on the coasts, in the 

 writings of the Jesuits and several old travellers, yet all their accounts 

 were extremely imperfect, and disfigured by a mixture of fable ; nei- 

 ther do they give us any information respecting the natural history 

 of the country. We knew, therefore, little or nothing of the original 

 inhabitants still living here in a savage state, much less of the animate 

 or inanimate creation in these regions, which, nevertheless, afford an 

 infinite diversity of new and remarkable objects, particularly for the 

 botanist and the entomologist. But the traveller must be prepared 

 before-hand to encounter numerous and severe hardships ; for in- 

 stance, want of provisions, of pasture for the beasts, difficulties in 

 conveying his collections of natural history, continued rains, damps, 

 and other inconveniences. 



The circumstance, however, which is most disagreeable to the tra- 

 veller in Brazil, is indisputably the total want of good maps. Arrow- 

 smith's IS full of errors ; nay, considerable rivers on the East coast are 

 omitted ; on the contrary, others are marked, where none exist ; and 

 thus the best map of Brazil that we at present possess is almost 

 useless to the traveller. In order to supply this deficiency, the Por- 

 tuguese government has lately given orders for an accurate survey of 

 the whole coast, pointing out exactly all the dangers that threaten the 

 navigator. This useful work is already begun, and two able naval 

 officers. Captain Jose da Trinidade and Antonio Sylveira de Araujo, 

 have surveyed the coast of Mucuri, S. Matthew, Vipoza, Caravellas, 

 to Porto Seguro and Santa Cruz. 



I am also indebted to the liberality and enlightened policy of the 

 Portuguese government, for being able to communicate to my coun- 

 trymen tliis account of a journey along the East coast, from the 23d 



