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culinary purposes, large water-jars, and a variety of other utensils: 

 ornamented with some taste. The greatest proportion of the inha- 

 bitants consists in farmers and inferior husbandmen, who cultivate 

 small portions of land, on which they breed large stocks of pigs and 

 poultry for sale. With these the market is generally well-supplied, 

 and in the fruit-season is also stored with pines, grapes, peaches, 

 guavas, bananas, a few apples, and an enormous quantity of 

 quinces. 



Esculent plants are grown in great profusion and variety. Here 

 is a favourite bulbous root called the Cara, which is equal to the best 

 potatoe, and even more farinaceous ; it grows to about five inches 

 in diameter, and affords excellent food either boiled or roasted. 

 Here are fine cabbages, sallad-herbs, turnips, cauliflowers, arti- 

 chokes, and potatoes ; the latter, though very good, are little used ; 

 the sweet potatoe is in greater request among the natives. Maize, 

 beans, green-peas, and every species of pulse flourish amazingly* 

 Fowls are cheap ; we bought some at three-pence and sixpence 

 each ; small pigs from one to two shillings, and flitches of bacon, 

 cured after the mode of the country, at about two-pence per pound. 

 Turkies, geese, and ducks are abundant, and reasonable in price, 

 the latter are of the Muscovy breed, enormously large, some weigh- 

 ing ten or fourteen pounds. Here is a singular breed of cocks ; 

 they resemble the common English in plumage and shape, but they 

 crow very loud, and continue their last note for a minute or two. 

 When their voice is good, they are much esteemed, and are sent for 

 as curiosities from all parts of Brazil. The cattle are in general 

 good, considering that so little attention is paid to feeding them i 

 when their pastures are full of grass, they are tolerably fat, but when, 

 otherwise they become lean. A drove may be bought at 24s. or 

 30s. a head ; beef at about a penny or three-halfpence per pound. 

 The curriers have a singular method of blackening cow-hides and 

 calf-skins : when they have prepared them for that operation, they 

 search for some mud-hole at the bottom of a ferruginous stre^tum, 



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