CHAPTER III.

Continuation of the voyage.-The island of St. Catherine.Produce. People. Peculiar quality of the Ferns.

Arrival at Monte Video.-Change of temperature.—River La Plata.- Prepare for Pendulum operations on Rat Island.-Military operations going forward.-State of the fortress. Lieutenant Williams's adventure. - An awkward position. The Garrison in confusion. - A false alarm.-Excursion to a Quinta.

AFTER twelve days' stay at Rio Janeiro, we departed early in the morning of the 28th July, and were no sooner fairly at sea than we were enveloped in fog, the first we had experienced since leaving England. We had the advantage, however, of a smooth sea, the wind being light, from the north-east.

On our way to the southward we were fortunate in having fine weather, the days being remarkably clear, but the nights attended with copious dews, so heavy that the decks in the morning were as wet as if it had been raining all the previous night. The average

temperature of the day was 70°, and that of the night 64° of Fahrenheit.

At daylight on the 1st of August we were much gratified with the beautiful prospect presented by the island of St. Catherine, and the coast near it. A Brazilian brig-of-war, commanded by Captain Hayden, an Englishman, happened to be going to the anchorage, and we both ran down before a fine sea-breeze, and shortly found ourselves snugly at anchor in a safe and spacious bay formed by the island and the main land of South America. We had a visit from Captain Hayden as a matter of etiquette.

The island of St. Catherine is the acknowledged garden of the Brazils. There Nature deals out with an unsparing hand all her choicest treasures to supply the wants of man. The view from the anchorage is of the most interesting description. The island is about thirty miles in length; and rises in some parts abruptly, and in others gradually, to a considerable height. The sides of the hills are clothed with the most luxuriant foliage, which is broken here and there by cultivated patches of ground, enlivened with the whitewashed huts of the natives, appearing still whiter as they reflect

56

PRODUCE OF THE ISLAND.

the powerful rays of the sun. The shores of the island are much indented, forming little cheerful bays, some of which afford safe anchorage to ships from every wind. The island varies from two to five miles in breadth.

It is rather remarkable that, notwithstanding the richness of the country about St. Catherine, and the peculiar advantages in point of agriculture which this island possesses, there should be no large town near it. A mere assemblage of a few huts, hardly deserving the name of a village, is to be found at the bottom of one or two of the bays, while the island is scattered with them here and there. The village is protected by a fort named Anhatorim, which commands the entrance to the anchorage. The island produces every kind of tropical fruit and vegetables, but is mostly celebrated for its coffee and rice, the former of which is held in great estimation. Sugar, cotton, tobacco, and indigo, are extensively cultivated; and in addition to these, the natives prepare jerked beef, as well as bacon, for exportation.

The employment of the men consists either in cultivation or fishing, while that of the women is making cloth of the cotton, besides

POWER OF FERNS.

57

their domestic pursuits. The indigo serves them to dye with; the cassada root furnishes them with bread, flour, and starch; and the bark of shrubs is converted into twine. The women also employ themselves in making hats with a kind of sedge, which grows plentifully; and shoes are made of the raw hides of their cattle. We found the people remarkably civil; they live a very retired life, and have a more healthy appearance than the inhabitants of Rio Janeiro.

The shortness of our stay prevented our seeing much of them; and the few remarks I was enabled to make on subjects of natural history are reserved for another place. One remarkable circumstance which came under my observation I will mention. In the course of my ramble in the island, when gathering ferns, I was particularly struck by observing that each plant had formed for itself a bed of fine mould of several inches in depth and extent; beyond the circle of its own immediate growth was naked rock; and this appeared so general, that I could not help attributing the extraordinary circumstance to their power of decomposing the rock, their fibrous roots penetrating into

58

ANCHOR OFF MONTE VIDEO.

every crevice, and by expanding in growth, appearing to split it into the smallest frag

ments.

Artificial flowers of feathers are made there, and shells are even very tastefully employed for the same purpose, both of which were freely offered to us for sale at a moderate price, as well as the beautifully feathered skins of the toucan. While we stayed, the weather was cloudy, but very tranquil; the mean temperature of the air was 68°, and that of the sea 70° of Fahrenheit.

On the 6th of August we left the island of St. Catherine, and observed the light on Flores Island as we passed it rapidly with a strong north-east wind in the evening of the 15th. In fact, we entered the river La Plata, or Plate as it is commonly termed by sailors, in a thunder-storm; we found our way in safely, and came to an anchor a little before midnight off Monte Video. As we approached the river, a remarkable change was observed in the temperature of the atmosphere, and the thermometer indicated a decrease of 10°, and there was a decrease of 16° in that of the water. Our

approach to the river was also indicated by a