TO VILLA DE ST. SALVADOR. 



77 



fazenda^ or at least the church belonging to it, was built by the 

 Jesuits. 



As we had to wait for a mule that was left behind, we were de- 

 tained here several days, which we employed in making excursions 

 in the adjacent country. A hunter, who was a native of Naples 

 in Italy, came to us in the venda, and shewed us the skin of a monkey 

 which lives in a certain part of the great forests, and is called by the 

 inhabitants mono. We long sought, but in vain, for these animals ; 

 in the sequel we were, however, more successful, and I found it to 'be 

 a species of the genus ateles* : this is the largest monkey in that 

 part of the country through which we travelled ; and its skin is used 

 by the hunters to protect the locks of their guns from the rain. 



The woods about Campos Novos, though not till you are at some 

 distance from Xhe fazenda^ are filled with animals of this kind. Our 

 hunters had killed several guaribcts or barhados. Speaking of this 

 remarkable animal, Mawe, who appears to be no great zoologist, 

 says, comically enough, (Travels, p, 133.) " They are described as long 

 bearded monkeys, which, when asleep, snore so loud as to astonish 

 the traveller." In the neighbouring marshes we found the beautiful 

 rose-coloured eggs of the marsh-snail, which Mawe has described by 

 the name of helix ampidlacea, hanging in clusters to the rushes and 

 blades of grass. This snail is very common in all the dried-up 

 marshes in Brazil. Its shell is of a dark oli\'e-green. In all the 

 woods M'hich we had hitherto traversed, we also found, pretty fre- 

 quently, the great land-snail, Mhich Mawe has represented as a 

 variety of the helix ovalis. The colour of this animal itself is a pale 



* Atelcs hypoxaiithvs, with long Yimhs, and a thick long tail ; hair yellowish grey; at the 

 root of the tail, often yellowish red ; face, flesh-coloured, with dark dots and spots ; the 

 whole length, from the tip of the nose to the end of the tail, 46 inches 8 lines. The thumb 

 of the hand or fore-foot is only a short rudiment : this constitutes a distinction between this 

 species and the arac/moides of Mr. Geoftroy, in which the thumbs are wholly wanting. 



