BRASIL. 
tered themfelves that one'or two campaigns would make 
them mailers of the reft of their enemies pofiellions in that 
part of America, when they were fuddenly checked by 
the revolution happening on the banilhment of Philip IV. 
and placing the duke of Braganza on the throne. After 
this, the Portuguefe, recovering their fpirits, foon drove 
the Dutch out of Bralil, and have continued mafters of it 
ever fince. 
The country of Bralil is divided into the following pro¬ 
vinces or captainlhips, viz. Paria, Maragnano, Siara, Rio 
Grande, Pareiba, Tamarica, Feniambucca, Seregippe, 
Bahia, Porto Seguro, F.fperito Santo, Rio de Janeiro, An- 
gra, St. Vincent, and Del Rey. The harbours are Pan.am- 
buco, All Saints, Rio Janeiro, the port of St. Vincent, 
the harbour of Gabriel, and the port of St. Salvador,; 
and, with refpeCt to rivers, there are a great number of 
noble ft reams, which unite with the rivers Amazon and 
Plata, belides others which fall into the Atlantic Ocean. 
The climate of Bralil has been defcribed by two eminent 
naturalifts, Pifo and Margrave, who obferved it with a 
philolophical accuracy, to be temperate and mild, when 
compared with that of Africa; they alcribe this chiefly 
to the refrefhing' wind's which blow continually from the 
lea. The air is not only cool, but chilly through the 
night, fo that the natives kindle a fire every evening in 
their huts. As the rivers in this country annually over¬ 
flow their banks, the foil in many places is extremely 
rich. The vegetable productions are Indian corn, fugar- 
canes, tobacco, indigo, hides, ipecacuanha, batfam, and 
Bralil-vvood chiefly ufed in dying. Here is alio yellow 
fuftic, and a beautiful fpeckl.ed wood made ufe of in ca¬ 
binet-work. Here are five forts of palm-trees, fonte cu¬ 
rious ebony, and a. great variety of cotton-trees. This 
country abounds in horned cattle, which are hunted for 
their hides only, twenty thoufund being fent annually into 
Europe. There is alfo plenty of deer, hares, and other 
game. Amongft the wild beafts are tigers, porcupines, 
janouveras, monkeys, floths, and the topiraflbu, a crea¬ 
ture between a bull and an afs, but without horns, and 
entirely harmlefs, whofe fleih is very good, and has the 
flavour of beef. There is an alrnoft numberlefs va¬ 
riety of fowl, both wild and tame. The remarkable birds 
are the humming-bird ; the hornbill, having a horn two 
■or three inches long growing out ot its forehead ; the 
gtiira, famous for' often changing its colour, being firft 
black, then alh-coloured, next white, afterwards fcarlet, 
and laft of all crimfon; which colours grow richer and 
deeper the longer the bird lives. Among the abundance 
of filh with which the feas, lakes, and rivers, of this coun¬ 
try, are ftored, is the globe-fifli, To called from its form, 
■which is fo befet with (pines that it bids defiance to all 
filh of prey. Bralil al£o breeds a great variety of ferpents, 
whole bite or fling is certain death. 
The gold and diamond mines, though of great extent, 
are but a recent difcovery ; they were firft opened in a 681., 
and have fince yielded above above five millions fterling 
annually, of which firm a fifth belongs to the crown. So 
plentiful are diamonds in this country, that the court of 
Portugal has found it neceftary to reftrain their importa¬ 
tion, to prevent too great diminution of their value. They 
are neither fo hard nor fo clear as thole of the Eaft Indies, 
The Brafihan diamonds are fold ten per cent, cheaper than 
the Oriental ones, fuppofing the weights equal. The larged 
diamond in the world was fent from Brafil to the king of 
Portugal; it weighs one thoufand lix hundred and eighty 
carats, or twelve ounces and a half, and has been valued 
at 56,787,5001. Some fkilful lapidaries, however, are of 
opinion that this fuppofed diamond is only a topaz, in 
which cafe a very great abatement inuft be made in its va¬ 
lue. The crown revenue ariling from this colony amounts 
to two millions fterling in gold, if we may credit fome late 
writers, befides the duties and cuftomson merchandife im¬ 
ported from that quarter. This, indeed, is more than a 
fifth of the precious metal produced by the mines; but, 
every other confequent advantage confidered, it probably 
35 * 
does not much exceed the truth. The extraction of the 
gold is neither very laborious nor dangerous in Brafil. It 
is fometimes on the furface of the foil, and this is the pu- 
reft kind ; and at other times it is neceftary to dig for it 
eighteen or twenty feet, but feldom lower. It is found 
in larger pieces upon the mountains and barren rocks than 
in the valleys, or on the borders of the river. Every man 
who difeovers a mine, muff give notice of it to the govern¬ 
ment. If the vein be thought of little confequence, it is 
given up to the public; if it be a rich vein, the govern¬ 
ment referve a portion of it to themfelves ; another fhare 
is given to the commandant, a third to the intendant, and 
t*vo (hares are fecured to the difeoverer. The miners are 
obliged to deliver to the king of Portugal a fifth part of 
all the gold which is extracted. 
St. Salvador is the capital of Brafil. This city has a 
noble, fpacious, and commodious, harbour, and is built 
on a high and deep rock, having the fea upon one fide, 
and a lake forming a crefcent on the other. The fituation 
makes it in a manner impregnable by nature, and the Por¬ 
tuguefe have befides added very ftrong fortifications. The 
trade of Brafil is very great, and increafes every year. 
The Portuguefe have opportunities of fapplying them- 
felves with (laves for their feveral works at a much cheap¬ 
er rate than any other European power that has fettlements 
in America, they being the only European nation that has 
eftablifhed colonies in Africa, from whence they import 
as many as 40,000 negroes annually. 
The exceflive confluence of people to the Brafil colo¬ 
nies, as well from other countries as from Portugal, not 
only enlarges the imports of gold, diamonds, fugar, to¬ 
bacco, bides, drugs, and medicines, bur, whatTs of infi¬ 
nitely more importance to Europe in general, the expor¬ 
tation of the manufactures of this hemifphere, of which 
the principal are the following: Great Britain fends wool¬ 
len manufactures, fuch as fine broad medley cloths, fine 
Spanifh cloths, fcarlet and black cloths, ferges, duroys, 
druggets, fagathies_, (balloons, camblets, and Norwich 
(luffs; black Colchefter bays, fays, and perpetuanas called 
long-ells; hats, (lockings, and gloves. Holland, Germany, 
and France, chiefly export fine hollands, bone lace, and 
fine thread ; (ilk manufactures, pepper, lead, block tin, 
and other articles, are alfo fent from different countries. 
Befides the particulars already fpecified, England likewife 
trades with Portugal, for the ufe of the Brafils, in copper 
and brafs, wrought and unwrought pewter, and all kinds 
of hardware; all which articles have fo enlarged the Po/- 
tuguefe trade, that, inlteadof twelve fhips ufually employed 
in the Brafil commerce, there are. now never fewer than 
100 fail of large veffels conftantly going and returning to 
thofe colonies. To all this may be added, that Brafil re¬ 
ceives from Madeira great quantity of wine, vinegar, and 
brandy; and, from the Azores, liquors to the amount of 
25,0001. per annum. Indeed, the commerce of Brafil 
alone is fufficient to raife Portugal to a confiderable height 
of naval power, as it maintains a conftant nurfery of fea- 
men. The fleets fail in the following order, and at the 
following fluted periods: that to Rio de Janeiro fets fail 
in January ; the fleet to Bahia, or the bay of AH Saints, 
in February; and the third fleet, to Feniambucca, in the 
month of March. 
The native Brafilians are about the fize of the Euro¬ 
peans, but not fo (tout. They are fubjeCt to fewer diftem- 
pers, and are long lived. They wear no cloatliing y the 
women wear their hair extremely long, the men cut their’s 
ihort; the women wear bracelets of bones of a beautiful 
white, the men necklaces pf the fame ; the women paint 
their faces, and the men their bodies. The food of the 
Brafilians is very fimple; they live upon fhell-fifh by the 
fea fide, along the rivers by fiftiing, and in the forefts by 
hunting; and, when thefe fail, they live upon caflava and 
other roots. They are extremely fond of dancing and 
other amufements. Every' Bfafilian takes as many wives 
as he choofes, and puts them-away when he is tired,of 
them. Travellers are received with diftinguiflied mark's 
