Chapter I: Voyage from England to Rio de Janeiro (14)

There are in Villa Rica twenty-five judicial appointments. The smelting house has sixteen official situations; the office of _Intendente_, which afforded annually five thousand two hundred and fifty crusades, independently of perquisites, has been discontinued here as well as in all similar establishments in the Brazil. In the treasury, besides the deputies already mentioned, there are sixteen other situations, the most lucrative of which is the _Escrivao Contador_, (the auditor of the treasury,) having three thousand crusades annually; and the smallest is that of _Continuo_, (a sergeant, or beadle,) not having more than one hundred and fifty milreas (about thirty-seven pounds.) There is also a tribunal entitled “Junta of the conquest and civilization of the Indians and navigation of the river Doce,” established in 1808. Its principal object is to promote agriculture upon the margins of that river, which, however, advances very slowly.

The inhabitants of Villa Rica, and of six parishes within its district, form two regiments of auxiliary cavalry, fourteen companies of whites, seven of mulattoes, and four of free blacks.

Eight miles to the west of Villa Rica is the arraial and freguezia of St. Bartholomew, famous for the large quantity of marmalade that is exported from it.

Ten miles to the north-west of Villa Rica is the freguezia or parish of Our Lady of Nazareth da Cachoeira, where the governors have a house of recreation, occasionally passing some days there in the amusement of shooting deer and partridges.

Twenty miles to the south-east of Villa Rica is the considerable arraial of Piranga, situated near the river of the same name, with a church of the Lady of Conceiçao, and a chapel of Rozario. The inhabitants cultivate the necessaries of life, and a large quantity of tobacco, to which the soil is very favourable.

In the vicinity of the river Piranga, within the district of the parish of St. Antonio d’Itaberava to the south of Villa Rica, is the large arraial of Catas Altas da Noruega, with a chapel of St. Gonçalo.

Marianna, originally the arraial of Carmo, until 1711, when John V. bestowed upon it a register of royal duties, and the name of Villa Leal do Carmo, (Loyal Town of Carmo.) It was created an episcopal city in 1745, by the same monarch, with the name of his consort. It is small, well supplied, and situated in a gently elevated country, near the right margin of the Ribeiro, or stream of Carmo, with the chapels of Our Lady of Rozario, St. Pedro, Santa Anna, St. Gonçalo, St. Francisco, for the mulattoes, and Mercez, for the creolian blacks; also two Terceira orders of Carmo and St. Francisco, whose chapel is elegant. There are two squares, and seven fountains of good water. The streets are paved, and the houses of stone. The municipal house is one of the best structures, and has water within it; the cathedral, dedicated to the Lady of Assumpçao, is more elegant than solid. The episcopal palace is handsome; the seminary spacious, the chapter is composed of fourteen canons, including the dignitaries of archdeacon, archpriest, chanter, and treasurer-mor, with whom twelve chaplains, and four young choristers officiate. The Juiz de Fora presides over the orphans and the senate, which has eleven thousand crusades of annual revenue. He fills other situations, and has, besides, twenty public officers under his inspection. All the inhabitants of Marianna are parishioners of the cathedral, and, with those of its surrounding twelve parishes, form two regiments of cavalry, twenty companies of infantry, (all whites,) ten of mulattoes, and five of free blacks. This city is eight miles east-north-east of Villa Rica; the intervening road is paved in parts, and bordered with many houses, having near it two arraials, and passes three stone bridges.

Eight miles to the north-east of Marianna, near the arraial of Antonio Pereira, (its founder,) in a rock at the end of a delightful valley, is a grotto formed by nature, and converted into a small chapel, dedicated to the Lady of Lapa, where every Sunday mass is chanted, and a festival takes place on the 15th of August. The roof, which is of calcareous stone, is overspread with stalactites, or crystallizations formed by the filtration of the water.

Fifteen miles north of the same city is the arraial and parish of Inficionado, which derived its name from the circumstance of the refuse of gold in melting being at first excellent, and becoming afterwards inferior, so that it acquired the name of Oiro Inficionado, (Infected Gold.) It is the native country of the poet, who was the author of the poem of _Caramuru_, “the Man of Fire,” a conspicuous character in the history of Bahia. Its church is dedicated to the Lady of Nazareth. The inhabitants raise the necessaries of life and cattle, and are miners.

Catas Altas de Matto Dentro, (profound searchings within the matto, or woods,) formerly a large and flourishing arraial, with a church of the Lady of Conceiçao, has fallen into decay with the decrease of gold. The deep mines, wrought for the extraction of gold, were the origin of its name. It is about eight miles from the preceding, and the inhabitants are agriculturists, including breeders of cattle and miners.

Nine miles from Catas Altas is the large, flourishing, and commercial arraial of St. Barbara, near the stream of the same name, having various religious structures, and promising considerable augmentation. The occupations of its inhabitants are similar to that of the last place.

Ten miles from St. Barbara is the arraial of Cocaes, with rich mines of gold, in the district of the parish of St. Joao do Morro Grande.

_Comarca of_ RIO DAS MORTES.

The comarca of Rio das Mortes, so called from the river which washes it, and equally known by the name of its head town, St. Joao d’el Rey, is bounded on the east by the comarca of Villa Rica; on the north by that of Sabara, from which it is separated by the serra Negra, and by the rivers Lambary and Andayha; on the west by the provinces of Goyaz and St. Paulo; and on the south by the latter and that of Rio de Janeiro. It is computed to comprise one hundred and seventy square miles. This comarca has many portions of land appropriated to the culture of mandioca, Indian corn, and legumes; likewise to plantations of sugar and tobacco, which are the most lucrative articles of exportation; in some places the cotton tree prospers, and in some of the southern districts considerable quantities of rye and wheat are raised. Cows are generally abundant, also sheep and hogs. Pork and cheese are important branches of export. There are auriferous grounds, which occupy a great many people in the working of them.

MOUNTAINS.--The principal are the serra of Lenheiro, in the vicinity of the town of St. Joao d’el Rey; of St. Joze, near the town of that name; of Lopo, not far from Cabo Verde; of Assumpçao, on the western part, between the Rio Grande and the Pardo; of Parida, which serves as a limit on the same side from the Rio Grande northward. In the southern part there is the extensive Mantiqueira, in parts bare and rocky, in others covered with wood. It contains the _Cachineze_ Indians, who are inconsiderable in number, stinted in growth, and timorous, and confine their hostility to robbing the neighbouring parishes of some cattle. The serra of Juruoca, which is a branch of the preceding, takes the name of a stone called _ayuru_, “parrot,” and _oca_, “stone,” and which stands upon it where there is a cataract seventy yards in height. The serra of Carrancas is situated between the Rio Grande and Verde. The serra of Letras, (or Letters,) a branch of the preceding, derives its name from a species of hieroglyphic, a natural curiosity, which is observed in the interior of a vast and curious cave, formed of divers eruptions or projections of a sandy stone, some of considerable elasticity with various kinds of plants which grow there. The pretended letters, owing their origin to ferruginous particles, are rude and illegible, and no more than a superstitious hierography, arising in the ignorance of the people, who attribute them to the hand of the apostle St. Thomas. Near it there is a hermitage dedicated to the same apostle. The serra of Vigia, so called from having served for a long time as a watch-tower to the sentinels of a band of runaway negroes, who had established themselves in that district, is twenty miles distant from St. Joao d’el Rey. The serra Cachambu is between the river Jacare and the Rio Grande.

RIVERS.--The Rio Grande, the largest of the comarca, dividing it into southern and northern, and having its origin upon the serra Juruoca, after gathering many small streams, flows at first northward, then north-west for a considerable space, and receives the large river Das Mortes, which rises in the serra of Oiro Branco, from whence it runs west, becoming large with the currents that join it by both margins. From this confluence, which is about seventy miles west of the town of St. Joao d’el Rey, the Rio Grande continues its course westward, increasing much to the boundary of the province, where it begins to serve as a limit between the provinces of Goyaz and St. Paulo; it is stored with a variety of fish.

The Sapucahy flows from the serra Mantiqueira, has numerous windings, and is enlarged by many other rivers, the largest of which is the Verde, that rises near the source of the Rio Grande, and, after having watered an extensive territory, pastured by large herds of cattle, runs north-west, and irrigates a similarly stocked and larger country in the province of St. Paulo, where it has its junction with the preceding.

Near the margin, and not far from the origin of the Mozambo, a branch of the Sapucahy, there are several wells of sulphureous water, some warmer than others, which have been found beneficial in certain diseases; and between the plains of the river Verde and Baepondy, near a rivulet which falls into the Verde, there are various mineral and vitriolic waters.

In this comarca originate the Pardo and Jaguary, which wash the northern part of the province of St. Paulo, the Paraupeba, Para, Lambary, Bambuhy, and the St. Francisco, which receives them: these are the principal rivers in the northern part.

The Camanducaya is a branch of the Sapucahy. The Jacuhy, Jacare, and Capivary are discharged into the Rio Grande, below the confluence of Das Mortes. The Peixe and the small Das Mortes enter the large Das Mortes; the latter twenty miles below St. Joao d’el Rey, and the other still further. The _doirado_, _mandin_, and _pracanjuba_ are the best fish in those rivers.

St. Joao d’el Rey, antecedently Rio das Mortes, is the head town of the comarca, and the residence of its ouvidor, who acts in other situations, and is also crown judge. It is one of the largest, and the most abundant places in the province, and is agreeably seated in a flat country, about two miles from the river that gave it the primitive name till 1712, when John V. gave it the present name and the title of a town. It has a church of the Lady of Pilar; two chapels dedicated to the Lady of Dores and Mercez; one to St. Pedro; others to St. Antonio, St. Caetano, St. Francisco, administered by the blacks; two Terceira orders of the Lady of Carmo and St. Francisco. The chapel of the latter is the finest in the whole province, and stands upon a large _praca_, or square. It has also an hospital, and two bridges of stone over the small channel of Tijuco, which divides the town into two portions; a Juiz de Fora, who is also head of the orphan establishment; an attorney general; a royal professor of Latin; a vicar-foraneo; and a smelting-house, with the same appointments as that of Villa Rica, excepting the _abridor dos cunhos_, (engraver of coins.) The judicial appointments are also the same.

This town has tolerably good houses, with paved streets. All the necessaries of life of the country are cheap. There are here white _tangerina_ oranges, which are not met with in any other part. The road, which leads to the Rio das Mortes, upon which there is another large bridge of wood, is bordered by _quintas_, or country houses. About the middle of this interval is the arraial of Matozinhos, with a chapel of Espirito Santo. In its suburbs are cultivated the cane, much Indian corn, some rye, a little mandioca, and cotton; and at a greater distance cattle are bred. Mining is the general occupation.

There are twelve chapels in its extensive environs, generally provided with chaplains, who are, with as many more coadjutors of the vicar, privileged to administer the sacraments in his jurisdiction. This town is nearly eighty miles to the south-west of Villa Rica, about the same distance south-south-west from Sabara, and upwards of two hundred north-west of Rio de Janeiro.

Eight miles to the north-north-west of St. Joao d’el Rey, and near the right margin of the Rio das Mortes, is the middling town of St. Joze, with the handsomest church in the province, dedicated to St. Antonio, a chapel of the Lady Rozario, and another of St. Joao Evangelista: it abounds with the necessaries of life, and is provided with good water. The inhabitants, and those of its wide district, who are well supplied with Catholic places of worship, raise much Indian corn, some barley, a diversity of fruits, cattle, and numerous herds of hogs, its principal riches. Some are miners.

Barbacena is a middling town, having a beautiful aspect, well situated in the proximity of the serra Mantiqueira, and three miles from the Das Mortes, with a church of the Lady of Piedade, a chapel of St. Francisco de Paula, two of the Lady of Rozario and Boa Morte. In its environs is the Brazilian pine; and the olive tree fructifies in some parts. The inhabitants raise cattle, and cultivate the most substantial lands with the most useful articles; some search for gold, and others are occupied in various branches of industry, with advantage to the place. It is thirty-five miles east-south-east of St. Joao d’el Rey, and fifty south-south-west of Villa Rica.

Quelluz, otherwise Carijos, is a town finely situated about thirty miles south-south-west of Villa Rica, fifty north-east of St. Joao d’el Rey, and three from the Congonhas, near the skirt of the serra of Oiro Branco. It has a church of Our Lady of Conceiçao, two hermitages of St. Antonio and Carmo. Cattle is the wealth of its inhabitants.

Tamandua is a middling town between two small streams, which are branches of the Lambary. It is well supplied with the provisions of the country, and has a church of St. Bento, two chapels of Our Lady of Mercez and Rozario, another of St. Francisco de Paula, with a fraternity, whose brothers enjoy extraordinary privileges. It is nearly ninety miles west of Villa Rica, fifty north-west of St. Joao d’el Rey, seventy south of Pitangui, and seventy west-north-west of Sabara. The inhabitants and those of its district are cattle breeders, farmers, and miners.

Campanha, properly the town of Princeza da Beira, is in a state of mediocrity, situated in a plain twelve miles from the Verde, with a church of St. Antonio do Valle de Piedade, (St. Anthony of the Valley of Piety,) two chapels of the Lady of Rozario and Dores, one of St. Sebastiao, and another of St. Francisco de Paula, with a brotherhood subject to the town of Tamandua. It has a Juiz de Fora, who is head of the orphans, a royal professor of Latin, and a vicar, and is nearly eighty miles south-west of St. Joao d’el Rey, and one hundred and fifty south of Pitangui. The inhabitants and those of its environs are miners, farmers of rye, wheat, Indian corn, tobacco, some mandioca, cotton, and sugar, and raise many cattle and hogs. In some situations are cultivated flax; and generally coarse woollens and cottons are manufactured.

St. Maria de Baepondy is yet a small town. The church is dedicated to Our Lady of Conceiçao, and the wealth of its inhabitants consists in tobacco, for which the soil is well adapted. It is fifty miles east of Campanha, and was created a town by a law of the 19th of July, 1814, when to its civil government were added two ordinary judges, one of orphans, three magistrates, two regulators of the market, two public scriveners, judicial and notarial, the first filling also the offices of escrivao of the town house, excise, and market, the other the office of escrivao of the orphans; there is also an alcaide and his escrivao.

St. Carlos de Jacuhy is situated near the origin of the river which lends it the name, has a church of the Lady of Conceiçao, and was created a town by the same law as Baepondy, with the same civil officers, to whom the parishioners of Cabo Verde became subject. It is near the boundary of the province of St. Paulo, and is abundant in cattle.

In this comarca are the following parishes:--St. Anna de Sapocahy, twenty-five miles from the river of the same name; the inhabitants cultivate legumes and are gold miners. Conceiçao de Camanducaya, fifteen to the right of the Jaguary; it exports hides. Carmo de Cabo Verde, near the river from which it takes the name; its parishioners cultivate cotton, some wheat, are miners, and export hides. St. Anna d’Itajuba, where wheat, rye, and Indian corn are cultivated. Pouzo-Alegre, whose inhabitants are agriculturists. St. Pedro d’Alcantara Oiro Fino, where there are hot springs; it is fifty miles from the town of Bragança, and cattle and wheat are its productions. Conceiçao das Laoras do Funil, sixty miles from St. Joao d’ el Rey; the inhabitants are agriculturists. Conceiçao de Pouzo Alto, fifty miles from the town of Campanha, where cotton and wheat are raised. Conceiçao da Juruoca St. Gonçalo, formerly a large and flourishing arraial, near twenty miles from Campanha; the inhabitants are miners and agriculturists.

_Comarca of_ SABARA.

This comarca is bounded on the north by the province of Pernambuco; on the west by that of Goyaz; on the south by the comarca of Rio das Mortes; and on the east by that of Serro Frio. It is three hundred and fifty miles from north to south, and more than two hundred and ten from east to west. It is watered by many rivers, the whole tributary to the St. Francisco, which traverses its southern part and separates it on the north from the comarca of Serro Frio. It abounds in pasturage and large herds of cattle, and has mines of various metals, diamonds, and other precious stones. It produces Indian corn, mandioca, rice, sugar, tobacco, legumes, cotton, various fruits, and in many parts plenty of game.

MOUNTAINS.--The serras of Marcella, Christaes, and Tabatinga, are the most elevated portions of the cordillera which limit it on the west. The serra of Jinipapo is in the vicinity of the confluence of the river Velhas; the serras Quatys and Araras in the centre of the western part. The serra Negra separates it from the comarca of Rio das Mortes for a considerable space, and is almost entirely of stone, having mines of good gold. The serra Lapa follows that of Oiro Preto to the north. The serra of Piedade extends nearly northward. Those of Saudade and Itucambira run north and south for a great extent, and at a considerable distance from the river Velhas, serving as limits between this comarca and that of Serro Frio.

RIVERS AND LAKES.--The river St. Francisco, which is the largest of the province, and receives a great part of its other rivers, rises in the vicinity of the serra of Canastra. After flowing a considerable space towards the north-east and gathering various small streams on both sides, it receives on the left the Bambuhy, which flows from the boundary and brings with it the Perdiçao, that originates in the serra Marcella: this is the first considerable stream that enlarges the St. Francisco. Twenty-eight miles lower it is joined on the right by the Lambary, which waters the extensive district of the town of Tamandua; as much further to the north it receives on the left the Marmellada, that flows from the serra Quatys. Eighteen miles lower the considerable river Para is incorporated with it, after running more than one hundred and forty miles from the south-east and passing the town of Pitangui. The Paraupeba follows, whose course is not less than two hundred and ten miles, its origin being near the town of Quelluz. The country through which it flows abounds with cattle.

Twenty-five miles below the confluence of the Paraupeba is that of the Andaya, which comes from the boundary, running along an extensive and moderately elevated cordillera, (whose southern portion is called Saudade and the northern Quatys,) and bringing with it the Funchal. This river, one hundred miles long, abounds with precious stones, amongst which there are many diamonds.

A little lower the Borrachuda, discharged also on the left, is not much inferior to the preceding, and runs like it along the western side of a cordillera called the serra Araras, which is parallel with the former.

Eighteen miles below, the considerable Abayte discharges itself on the same side, and is formed by two streams of the same name, that unite much above its mouth, whose origins are more than one hundred miles distant from each other; one comes from the south-west, the other from the north-west, and brings the waters of the small river Chumbo, that passes the base of a morro where there is a rich mine of lead, from which it takes the name. The intervening territory of the origins of the Abaytes is a wood, denominated the Matta da Corda, which invites the agriculturist, having various intervals of campinhas, where numerous herds of cattle graze, their owners living at a great distance.

Fifty miles further is the grand cataract of Pirapora, and fifteen beyond it the confluence of the large river Das Velhas, (Old Women,) originally Guaycuhy, which in the language of the aborigines signifies the same, and whose origin is in the vicinity of St. Bartholomew, six miles to the west of Villa Rica. It has a great number of falls, windings, and more than two hundred miles of course. The Parauna, the Pardo, and the Curmatahy, which unite with it on the right, and the Bicudo on the left, are its largest tributaries.

A little lower, the St. Francisco receives on the right the Jequetahy and the Pacuhy. Their adjacent lands are pastured by large cattle. Further on, the large Paracatu enters it on the left, the principal heads of which are the Escuro and the Prata, incorporated with the Arrependidos, which limits for some distance the two provinces. These rivers unite themselves a few leagues above the Corrego Rico, (Rich Channel) that passes near the town of Paracatu. Here it takes this name. Its largest tributary is the Preto, which issues from lake Feia, near the arraial of Coiros, in the province of Goyaz, and after having gathered a great number of small streams, joins the Paracatu on the left, almost at an equal distance from the confluence where it takes and that where it loses the name. A little below the Preto, on the opposite side, the Paracatu receives the Sonno, rich in precious stones, which brings the waters of the Almas, that joins it on the left. The Paracatu is navigable to a little below the Corrego Rico, and its crystalline waters are so light, that they float a considerable way above those of the river which receives them. Its lateral lands are abundant in cattle.

Twenty miles to the north, the St. Francisco receives, on the same side, the large Urucuya, navigable for a considerable distance. It originates on the boundary of Goyaz, is narrow and deep, having clear waters, which flow with such rapidity, that, on entering the St. Francisco, they at all times roll across, sensibly affecting the lands of its eastern margin. The St. Rita, joining on the right, and the Claro on the left, are its principal tributaries, both traversing sterile lands possessing cattle.

It is followed by the Acary, Pardo, Pandeiro, Salgado, Pindahyba, Itacaramby, and the Japore, the whole entering by the western margin. The Pandeiro has fine water, an extensive course, and traverses large woods of excellent timber with many cedars, where numerous colonies might be advantageously established, for the cultivation of their fertile soils.

A few leagues below the Japore, the important river Verde enters on the eastern side; and about the same distance further, the Carinhenha, which is large and navigable for a considerable extent. It rises in the chapadas of Santa Maria, near the limits of Goyaz; its crystalline waters, having a rapid current, flow for a considerable way without mixing with those of the St. Francisco after entering it.

We will finish the description of the noble St. Francisco when we treat upon the province of Pernambuco, which is bounded by this river from hence to the ocean. This very extensive river, as well as those mentioned which enlarge it, abound with fish, of which the _doirado_, _sorrubin_, _mandin_, and _piranha_, are the best.

Near the right margin of the St. Francisco, and eighteen miles below the confluence of the Bambuhy, is the lake Feia, of a circular form, about three hundred yards in diameter, of dark green water, and inhabited by the _sucury_ and _sucuriu_ snakes, and the alligator. No reptile or even bird approaches to drink its waters. About two miles to the north, there is another called Lake Verde, narrow, six miles long, and the haunt of the same horrible creatures. Both lakes are discharged into the St. Francisco. The _sucuriu_ and _sucury_ differ only in colour; the first is of a blackish hue, and the other grey: they have two large claws, or talons, near the extremity of the tail, with which they secure themselves to roots or the points of stones under the water, when they wish to seize any animal. The teeth are sharp pointed, and inclined towards the gorge, so that the prisoner cannot escape, although the monster wished to withdraw its hold. _Sucurys_ have been killed twenty yards long. These snakes are supposed to be a species of the _sucuriuba_ of other provinces.

Villa Real do Sabara, (Royal Town of Sabara) is the head of the comarca, and ordinary residence of its ouvidor, who also acts in other situations. It stands near the right margin of the Velhas, where this river receives the small stream that affords the town’s name, in a low situation, surrounded with mountains, and is large, flourishing, well supplied with meat, fish, and the common necessaries peculiar to the country. It has a church of the Lady of Conceiçao, a chapel of Our Lady of O, another of Rozario, and a numerous fraternity of blacks, two Terceira orders of Carmo and St. Francisco. There is a Juiz de Fora, who is head of the orphan establishment; a vicar; the usual professors of the first letters and Latin; and a smelting house for gold, the expenses of which are forty thousand crusades annually, having the same appointments as that of Villa Rica, with the exception of the engraver of stamps for coining, and the third founder. This town has a good fountain of excellent water in the street of Caquende, and four entrances from the cardinal points, all but one having wooden bridges; the eastern and southern are over the Sabara. The judicial officers are the same here as in the capital of the province; the annual revenue of the camara, or municipal body, is nine thousand crusades. The heat is here more intense in the hot months than in any other povoaçao in the province, arising, most probably, from its reflexion from the circumjacent mountains. A register for receiving the royal duties was, in 1712, established in this place, which is thirty-five miles north-north-west of Marianna, seventy north-east of Tamandua, near one hundred south-west of Villa do Principe, and seventy-five north-north-east of St. Joao d’ el Rey. The inhabitants, and those of six parishes within its district, (viz. Rio das Pedras, St. Antonio, Curral d’ el Rey, St. Luzia, Congonhas, and Rapozos,) comprising altogether forty-six thousand three hundred persons, are miners and farmers, and form two regiments of cavalry, one with eleven, and the other with eight companies, all whites; twenty companies of infantry; a regiment of eleven companies of mulattoes; and another of seven companies of _forro_, or free blacks. In the year 1788, the population of Sabara consisted of seven thousand six hundred and fifty-six persons, and eight hundred and fifty houses. In 1819, its inhabitants did not exceed nine thousand three hundred and forty-seven.

This comarca, which is nearly as large as England, does not, exclusive of the district of Paracatu, contain more than one hundred and thirteen thousand, three hundred and sixty-four souls. Senhor Gama, who was recently its ouvidor or governor, collected materials, during his triennial government, for a map of the comarca, which he presented to the minister of state at Rio de Janeiro, in expectation that his labours would at least have received some approbation; but the subject was treated with indifference. Senhor Gama subsequently made me a present of the map, an exact copy of which is here introduced. The signal of a standard upon the map points out those places rich in diamonds, which, by a strange policy, are rigidly preserved untouched as a resource for the government; and whenever they are worked, if the proceedings are conducted upon the same principle as the diamond grounds of Tijuco, will certainly not be a source of much revenue to the state.

SABARA.]

Senhor Gama related a circumstance which occurred during his ouvidorship here, that affords a tolerably strong evidence of the deep subtilty practised by some, at least, of the Brazilian holy fathers, for their personal benefit. A female, residing at no great distance from Sabara, whose mind was darkened by bigotry, and who was particularly rigid in all religious observances, no saint day passing without her exhibiting the utmost devotion, mortified herself in a peculiar degree on all occasions of fasting, and during Lent always refrained from eating, with such resolution, that she acquired the honour of being considered a saint. So strongly was her mind influenced by this delusion, that she communicated her self-working inspirations to two or three padres, who lived near. They immediately inflamed her wild imagination by their countenance, and gave public weight to the notion, by affirming that her soul would ascend to heaven on a certain day. Contributions were already talked of for forming an establishment to be dedicated to Santa Harmonica, the name of the female. The priests were, of course, to have the administration of the funds. Good Friday was the appointed day for the consummation of this important event. The machinery hitherto worked well, and her exhausted appearance, from continued fasting, warranted the conclusion that her dissolution was near. It was a subject of general interest, and being introduced where the ouvidor was present on the evening preceding the intended conclusion of the drama, he stated that he had not faith in any thing so ridiculous; and in the event of the female’s death, he would summon a species of inquest to be held upon the body. A friend or coadjutor of the priests was present: he left the party and hastened on horseback to communicate this determination of the ouvidor to the holy brothers. An effect very contrary to the expectation of her devoted worshippers was thus produced. She speedily recovered from her saintly indisposition, and remains, if not in mental, at least in bodily health to this day. It was ascertained to have been the intention of these priests, founded on the wicked purpose of deriving advantages from the contemplated establishment of Santa Harmonica, to have produced, by some means, a gradual exhaustion of life by the appointed time.

About twelve miles from Sabara there is a lake, two miles long and nearly one in width, whose crystalline and tepid waters, having been an antidote in many diseases, acquired it the name of the Holy Lake. In its centre there are various springs; and when not agitated, its surface is covered with a pellicle or thin skin of the colour of mercury, which disappears by blowing upon it, and leaves the lips silvered over of those who drink it. It is discharged at the northern extremity by an outlet into the river Velhas, which is five miles distant.

Fifteen miles north of Sabara, and a mile from the Velhas, is the large and flourishing freguezia or parish of Santa Luzia, ornamented with five Catholic temples, and whose inhabitants, amounting to thirteen thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven, are well supplied with its produce of agriculture, mines, and cattle.

Villa Nova da Raynha, created a town in 1714, but better known by its primitive name of Caethe, which in the Brazilian language signifies an impervious wood, is a middling place, well and agreeably situated in plain ground, near a small stream, ornamented with a handsome church dedicated to the Lord of Bom Successo, a chapel of the Lady of Rozario, and another of St. Francisco. There are fifteen judicial appointments here. The revenue of the camara is eight thousand crusades. The inhabitants, amounting to five thousand two hundred and seventy-one, are miners, breeders of cattle, and agriculturists; they respire a salubrious air, raise various European fruits, and form, with the three parishes of St. Miguel, St. Barbara, and St. Joao de Morro Grande, containing twenty-nine thousand inhabitants, seventeen companies of white militia, seven of mulattoes, and some squadrons of free blacks. It is twelve miles east-south-east of Sabara, and has in its suburbs good argils and potteries.

Pitangui is in a state of mediocrity, upon the right margin of the Para, three miles below the confluence of the St. Joao, and is well supplied with fish, meat, and all the agricultural productions of the country. It was erected into a town in 1715, has two hermitages, and a church of the Lady of Pilar; a Juiz de Fora, and an escrivao of the conductors of gold. The camara has three thousand crusades of revenue. This town is one hundred miles north of St. Joao d’el Rey, and nearly eighty west-north-west of Sabara. Its inhabitants, amounting to nineteen thousand eight hundred and sixty-one, and those of its widely extending district, (including only one other parish, Nossa Senhora das Dores, with one thousand four hundred and nineteen persons,) raise large quantities of cattle, horses, hogs, and sheep, and have extensive plantations of the cotton tree and cane, the rum from which is considered the best of the province. A rich mine of gold occasioned numerous disputes and deaths amongst its first dwellers, who were Paulista miners. There was amongst them one D. R. do Prado, who gratified his vile and avaricious feelings, by assassinating even those who did not offend him; such was the lawless state in which those primitive mining settlements were involved.

Paracatu do Principe is a middling town, famous for its mines, well and pleasantly situated upon an elevated plain, with straight and paved streets, having a church dedicated to St. Antonio da Manga, three hermitages of Our Lady of Abbadia, Amparo, and Rozario, another of St. Anna, and two good fountains. The houses are built of timber and earth, and include a royal school for Latin. This town is one hundred and forty miles from the St. Francisco, and about half a mile from the small stream of Corgo Rica, which after forty miles of course enters the Paracatu on the left, near the port of Bezerra. It has decayed much from its first flourishing condition; the people are peaceable, but indolent. Cattle and the produce of mines constitutes what wealth there is amongst them. The vine bears fruit in perfection twice a year. The pine-apple and orange are abundant and excellent. Around this place are an abundance of partridges, deer, and other game. The gold has a fine appearance, but below the proper degree of purity is of difficult extraction for want of water, and is not allowed to be searched for at any great distance. Diamonds having appeared in various parts is the reason of the working of mines being restricted to a few leagues round the town, upon which circuit are detachments to prevent the prescribed limits being passed for the purpose of mining. The district of the town comprises the main portion of the comarca, that is to say, all the territory lying westward of the river St. Francisco, from the Carynhenha to the Abayte. Near the confluence of the latter is the passage from Villa Rica to Goyaz, called Porto Real.

In 1744, when there was no other colony to the west of the St. Francisco but St. Romao, these mines were discovered, and made known to Gomez Freyre d’Andrade, governor of Rio de Janeiro, who ordered the country to be divided according to the prevailing custom. These mines attracted a great concourse of people here, and their affluence in gold led to the concurrence of a numerous party in the purpose of expelling the Indians, whom they at once drove from this extensive district. The inhabitants of Paracatu, and those of the parishes of its vast circuit, constitute one regiment of cavalry, seven companies of whites, three of mulattoes, and two of free blacks.

On the left margin of the river St. Francisco, almost at an equal distance between the mouths of the Urucuya and Paracatu, is the considerable arraial and parish of St. Romao, with a church dedicated to St. Antonio da Manga, a chapel of Our Lady of Rozario, and another of St. Francisco. It is the head of the julgado, with much commerce, being the depositary of various productions of the country, and of a large quantity of salt, which is conveyed by barks and canoes from the salterns of Pilao Arcado and its vicinity. The river at its greatest floods enters the streets of this place. Its inhabitants, even the females, are passionately fond of gambling. Melons and water-melons are very abundant.

The other parishes of the district of Paracatu are St. Anna dos Alegres, near the mouth of the river Catinga, a little above the river Somno; the Lady of Penha, near the Urucuya, a day’s voyage from the St. Francisco; Carynhenha, Andayha, and the Lady of Amparo do Salgado, with a chapel of Our Lady of Rozario, which is a flourishing arraial, and promising a considerable increase. It is five miles from the St. Francisco. The inhabitants raise cattle, sugar cane, and the cotton tree.

The district of Paracatu makes a part of the bishopric of Pernambuco.

There is yet within this comarca the arraial and julgado of St. Antonio do Curvello, otherwise Papagayo, well situated in a plain, refreshed with salubrious breezes, and near a small stream, which falls into the Velhas on the left. This is almost eighty miles from Sabara. The inhabitants of the julgado, amounting to eleven thousand five hundred and thirteen, are agriculturists and cattle breeders.

In June, 1815, the comarca of Sabara was divided into two, the St. Francisco serving as a medium limit to them. The northern, western, and southern limits of the new comarca are the same which till then constituted the circuit of the district of Paracatu, the head and only town of the newly created comarca, which took its name. At the same time was abolished the office of the Juiz de Fora, which had existed since it was created a town in 1798, the new ouvidor becoming the intendant of gold. By another law of the 4th of April, 1816, the julgados of Desemboque and Araxa were separated from the ouvidoria or district of Goyaz, and annexed to the ouvidoria of Paracatu.

_Comarca of_ SERRO FRIO.

The comarca of Serro Frio takes its name from a mountain, which of all others is the most celebrated for the riches which it contains. It is limited on the north by the province of Bahia, which also with that of Porto Seguro confines it on the east; on the south by the comarca of Villa Rica; and on the west by that of Sabara. It comprises nearly three hundred miles from north to south, and one hundred and eighty from east to west. The country is for the greater part very mountainous, and watered by numerous rivers, with extensive charnecas, or sterile lands, in the northern part, which only serve for the breeding of cattle. There are, however, generally portions of land, more or less considerable, appropriated to the culture of cotton, Indian corn, rice, mandioca, legumes, tobacco, some rye, and sugar. It is the richest in precious stones; and has mines of all the metals.

MOUNTAINS.--There is a grand cordillera, (a continuation of the Mantiqueira,) which does not always retain the same name, altitude, or direction, breaking in many parts, and stretching out various arms at divers points, traversing the comarca almost north and south. In the eastern part there is the serra of Esmeraldas; the serra Branca, which separates the comarca from that of Sabara for a considerable space, and afterwards inclines to the north-east to the limit of the province; the serra of Gram Mogol; that of Peixe Brabo; of Gurutuba, of Conceiçao, and of Almas.

RIVERS.--The principal are the Jequitinhonha, the Verde, the Pardo, the Mucury, the Arassuahy, the Sassuhy, the Corrente, and the St. Antonio.

The Jequitinhonha, so celebrated for the prodigious quantity of diamonds that has been drawn from its bed, rises in the serra of Serro Frio. After having described many windings, and watered an extensive country, it receives on the left the Itucambyrussu, which flows from the west, and traverses the serra of Gram Mogol. Having run for a considerable space, and inclining to the east, its waters are increased by the Vaccaria, which enters on the same side, and descends also from the serra of Gram Mogol, traversing _certams_[24] pastured by cattle. A few leagues below it is joined on the right by the Arassuahy, which is superior, and originates also in the Serro Frio, a little to the east of it, and brings the waters of the St. Antonio, the Itamarandiba, and the Setuval, with others smaller, whose heads are on the northern side of the serra Esmeraldas. Some leagues below the confluence of the Arassuahy, the Piauhy enters, coming from the south-west, through woods abounding with game that affords food to the savages. This river and its confluents abound with chrysolites, sapphires, crystals, _pingos d’agua_, and other precious stones. The Jequitinhonha gathers on the left the Hottinga, on the right the St. Java, and leaving the province flows north-east, forming a boundary to the ocean between the provinces of Porto Seguro and Bahia, where it is discharged under the name of the Belmonte. All these rivers are stored with the fish called _doirado_, _piampara_, _piau_, _piabanha_, _trahira_, _sorubin_, and _mandin_, called also _roncadore_.

The river Verde is large and flows through extensive certams abounding with cattle, which forms the wealth of many farmers, who live dispersed, principally in the vicinity of the southern portion of the serra of Gram Mogol. After a considerable course to the north, it receives on the right the Guaratuba, which originates near the northern portion of the last mentioned serra, and brings with it the Pacuhy, that issues from the serra Pranca, and joins it on the eastern side. Ten miles below the mouth of the Guaratuba, the Verde Pequeno (small) enters, which flows from the Morro da Chapeo, a portion of the serra Almas, taking a westerly course, and forming the northern division of the province. At this part the Verde runs with little variation to the west, and continues in the same direction till it joins the St. Francisco. These rivers water sterile districts, which will never become populous.

The Pardo forms itself in the vicinity of the serra Almas, runs south-east, gathering the Preto, which has its source in the serra Branca, inclines to the east, and enters the comarca of Ilheos, where it is discharged into the ocean by the name of Patype.

The Mucury, whose principal head springs to the south of the serra Esmeraldas, after receiving by the left margin the large and small Preto, and lower, the Todos os Santos on the right, enters the province of Porto Seguro, where it increases, and falls into the ocean. The territory which this river passes, (before leaving the comarca,) and its said tributaries, was formerly possessed by the _Macuni_, _Panhame_, _Capocho_, and _Machacary_ Indians. At the present day the ferocious _Aimbores_ are its wandering inhabitants.

The first river Preto, about ten miles above its mouth, gathers on the left the small stream of Americanas, formed by three rivulets issuing from the same serra. Near the central one was found in 1811, a beautiful _aqua-marina_, of more than fifteen pounds weight, and another of four pounds. The Sassuhy, the Corrente, and the St. Antonio, are tributaries of the river Doce, and flow through the most southern part of the comarca.

_On Stone by C. Shoosmith from a Sketch by Jas. Henderson._
_Printed by C. Hullmandel._

AN OFFICER OF CAVALRY IN MINAS GERAES, AND A HERMIT.]

Villa do Principe, the head of the comarca, and residence of its ouvidor, (who fills other offices,) is considerable, well supplied, and possesses a church of the Lady of Conceiçao, a chapel of the Lord of Matozinhos, another of St. Rita, three of the Lady of Purificaçao, Carmo, and Rozario. It is ill situated, has only one good street, and was erected into a town in the year 1714. It has a Juiz de Fora, a royal professor of Latin, and a smelting house for gold, with the same appointments as that of Sabara. This town is in the vicinity of the serra Lapa, two miles distant from the river Peixe, (a branch of the St. Antonio,) near one hundred north-east of Sabara, one hundred and ten north-north-east of Marianna, and three hundred and seventy almost north-west of Rio de Janeiro. The inhabitants are miners, and cultivators of Indian corn, legumes, cotton, and sugar; the whites constitute twenty-two companies of infantry, the mulattoes thirteen, and the free blacks six. The revenue of the vicarship amounts to twelve thousand crusades, and that of the camara to seven. In the whole of the comarca there are two regiments of cavalry, one of eight, and the other of nine companies.

Within the district of the last town, and at a distance of forty miles, is the large arraial and parish of Conceiçao, in whose environs is the serra of Gaspar Soares, abundant in iron mines, for the working of which a royal establishment is forming.

Bom Successo, better known by the name of Fanado, created a town in 1751, is well situated on elevated land, enjoying a fine climate, between two small streams that afford it the name, and uniting, enter the Arassuahy, which passes six miles distant to the north. It has a church dedicated to the “Chief of the Apostles,” chapels of the Lord of Bom Fim, of the Lady of Amparo, for the mulattoes, of Rozario, for the blacks, St. Anna, St. Joze, and St. Gonçalo; and a Terceira order of St. Francisco. It possesses a Juiz de Fora, and a royal professor of Latin. It has not one house of stone. The inhabitants follow the same occupations as those of the last town, and some work for precious stones. The general traders are the most independent. This place is two hundred and twenty miles north-east of Marianna, two hundred and ten, nearly in the same direction, from Sabara, one hundred and twenty-five north-north-east of Villa do Principe, and four hundred and fifty from Rio de Janeiro. In its extensive circuit there are various hermitages, namely, Piedade, Mercez, Penha, St. Joao, Prata, and Barreiras. Their numbers are expected to increase to the east and south as far as the river Doce, when the projected roads to the ports of Porto Seguro are made and frequented. The fertility of the territory, and the facility which proper measures may create for transporting produce to the ports, will most probably attract numerous colonies to this district, which, unquestionably, will become the best in the province, when the Aimbore Indians are subjugated.

Ten miles to the north of Bom Successo is the parish of St. Cruz da Chapada, near the river Capibary. The inhabitants scarcely raise any of the necessaries of life, but follow mining.

Fifteen miles to the north-east of the preceding, and twenty-five from Bom Successo, is the arraial of Agua Suja, (Dirty Water,) near the confluence of the stream of its name, with the Arassuahy, having a church dedicated to the Lady of Conceiçao. The inhabitants cultivate Indian corn, legumes, and cotton, and are gold miners. In its district are the parishes of St. Domingos, and Conceiçao, near the Sucuriu, whose parishioners raise the same articles, and work for gold and precious stones.

One hundred miles north of Bom Successo is the considerable arraial of Rio Pardo, at the confluence of the river from which it takes the name with the Preto, each having a bridge. The houses are in great part of adobe, and the church of taipa. Its inhabitants raise cattle, mandioca, Indian corn, rice, cotton, and a variety of fruits.

Two hundred and ten miles north of Sabara, one hundred and thirty west-north-west of Bom Successo, and one hundred and fifty north-north-west of Villa do Principe, is the famous arraial and julgado of Barra do Rio das Velhas, situated in a plain at the confluence of the river of its name, from whose floods it sustains considerable injury. It has a church of Bom Successo, and a chapel of Lord Jesus of Matozinhos, has much commerce, is well supplied with meat, fish, and fruit, and is the depositary of a large quantity of salt that arrives from the salterns of the river St. Francisco. Fevers, which reign here in the wet season, have driven away many inhabitants, and prevent this place from becoming one of the largest povoaçoes in the province. This arraial, that of Bom Successo, and others of the comarca, belong to the archbishopric of Bahia.

Two miles distant is the arraial of Porteira, with a chapel of the Lady of Bom Successo and Rozario. In it reside the vicar, and the officers of justice, in consequence of being a healthy situation.

Twenty miles further to the north, upon the margin of the St. Francisco, is the small and agreeably situated arraial of Estrema, with a hermitage of Conceiçao. It abounds with fish and meat. The fruit consists principally of oranges.

Within this comarca is the mountainous diamond district, fifty miles in diameter. The beautiful stones found here by Bernardo da Fonseca Lobo, in 1730, on being discovered to be diamonds, afforded this part of the comarca its designation. The value of these stones not being at first known, the district remained free till 1734, when an ouvidor of the province, who had resided at Goa, and had there acquired a knowledge of this most precious article, coming from Golconda, pronounced them diamonds.

J. F. d’Oliveira and F. F. da Sylva had the diamond contract in 1741, for three years, at the sum of nine hundred thousand crusades. By a letter of the 3d of April, 1743, the king ordered the provedor of the treasury of Villa Rica to superintend the diamond contract, with a sum not to exceed two hundred thousand crusades per annum. Some time having passed, the contract was publicly sold to some persons of the name of Caldeyras, who, in their operations, met with copious and rich supplies. The opulence thus acquired, led them to perpetrate crimes for which they were sent to Limoeiro, where they ended their days, their property being confiscated by the crown. This contract was granted anew, to J. F. d’Oliveira, with whom it remained till the end of 1771.

On the 1st of January, 1772, the diamond district came under the immediate management of the government. But diamonds alone do not constitute the riches and celebrity of this district; other precious stones concur in rendering it important, such as sapphires, emeralds, aqua-marinas, chrysolites, topazes, &c. All these stones are produced in the serras, from whence they descend to the rivers, with the waters of the copious thunder showers. This district also possesses mines of all the metals, the extraction of which is rigorously prohibited on account of the diamonds.