Part 13

The appointment of an English judge conservator, who is indeed a respectable man, and disposed to act with promptitude and justice, appears to be perfectly nugatory in cases of importance; and, although his decisions may have some influence with the other courts, they are by no means final or effectual; and the same delay takes place, under such circumstances as have been described, as if this office did not exist. The privilege of having a judge, whose salary of £500 a year is paid out of the contribution fund, would appear to be conceded to the English, without its producing any adequate advantage to them.

From the universal taste for British manufactures, the Brazil presents a great and decidedly increasing field for their consumption; and, although the merchants cannot get rid of the tedious practice in the judicial proceedings, they may, by a system of caution, in some instances, avoid it; and they have already adopted the plan of taking bills from the Portuguese on delivery of goods, which is, at all events, an acknowledgement of the debt. It is still farther to be wished that the increasing demand for English goods would determine the merchants not to part with their commodities under the real value. Competition is, unfortunately, a great obstacle to any unanimity amongst them in this respect, otherwise the Brazilians would have no alternative but to take their merchandise at any fair profitable price that might be determined upon. At present the importations of British goods annually to the Brazil may be estimated at near three millions sterling, one half of which may be computed to arrive at Rio, from whence returns are made in bills, coffee, sugar, hides, &c. and some cotton. Orders are sent to Bahia, Pernambuco, and Maranham, to ship some part of the return, principally in that article, from thence, for which they send specie, or bills upon the treasuries of those places, received from the government for stores supplied. At present two or three English houses at Rio de Janeiro furnish the government with the great bulk of its military and naval stores; but, at different periods, demands resulting from this connexion have met with serious delays in the liquidation, and in cases where the treasury has been under positive engagements by bills, great inconvenience has been sustained, and the parties compelled at last to wait personally upon the King, who has given directions for the payment of those overstanding securities.

The British merchants also labour under some inconvenience, originating in the misconstruction of or non-compliance with the actual intent of the convention for regulating the levying of the fifteen per cent. duty upon that portion of English goods not embraced by the _pauta_, and which latter instrument is additionally and injuriously partial in its operations, not being a fair standard by which the real value of the article the duty is to be paid upon can be designated. The avowed object between the two governments in this arrangement is, that the British merchant shall pay a duty of fifteen per cent. upon the fair value of the thing imported; but the _pauta_ enumerates a fixed value upon certain articles, without reference to the fluctuation of price, and the tide having uniformly of late years flowed downwards in this respect, goods have experienced a diminution from the average valuation of that instrument, consequently, the duty may amount to twenty-five or thirty per cent. in place of fifteen, upon their actual worth. But this is not the only objection to it as an inefficient medium for levying the duties. The _pauta_ determines the value of certain goods at one, two, or three prices, at the same time that a great variety of qualities exist in the same commodity, which gradations of value are yearly increasing, by the introduction of mechanical power and other improvements into our manufactures. Some printed cottons are worth upwards of two shillings per yard, others nine-pence or one shilling, with intermediate qualities. Cambric muslins bear greater disproportions of quality, yet the duties are exacted upon goods of this kind, worth one shilling per yard, at the same rate as those bearing twice the value. At Rio, where more fine goods are used, they pay the same duty as the merchants of Bahia and Pernambuco, where more of the lower quality of the same articles are imported; and, in consequence, the merchants of the latter place have been entirely precluded, during the last eighteen months, from despatching through the custom-house printed cottons and muslins of a low price, as the valuation they hold in the _pauta_ would have made the duty forty per cent. upon their real worth in lieu of fifteen per cent. Mr. Lempriere, the consul of Pernambuco, did not conceive it his duty to interfere in the matter; but it would appear that the captain-general and the judge of the custom-house, were either influenced by the diminution of customs collected, or by the representations of the merchants themselves, to accede to an arbitration. Messrs. Cockshott, Mitchel, and Todd, three very competent and highly-respectable merchants, were selected, on the part of the English, to meet three Portuguese merchants; and, in the month of January, 1820, during my stay at Pernambuco, the matter was, for the time being, amicably adjusted; but the nature of the _pauta_ will ever present great difficulties, and can never embrace the intended equitable duty upon the imports. The same objections have been raised at Bahia and other places. The arrangement above alluded to did not long continue in operation, in consequence of not receiving the sanction of the Brazilian government. The difficulty is now greatly augmented by the continued depression in British manufactures. Printed cottons, rated in the _pauta_ at seven milreas four hundred reas each piece, and upon which valuation the duty of fifteen per cent. must be paid, were not worth more than from three milreas two hundred reas to three milreas six hundred reas, in the Pernambuco market at the close of 1820. This produces a result so manifestly against the British merchant, that it must ultimately prove ruinous to him. Memorials have been presented to the Hon. Mr. Thornton, relative to these injurious consequences of the _pauta_, and the British merchants connected with the Brazil are in expectation that the attention of their government will be drawn to this important subject, when its wise and enlightened policy will no doubt obtain the desired relief.

There can be but one opinion that the convention, if it applied to imports generally, is the only just principle upon which this matter should rest, provided it were divested of the grievances just alluded to; for the accomplishment of which, the merchants of Bahia have been the first to present a memorial to the Brazilian court. It was understood, before I left Rio, that the measures which had been practised for the benefit of individuals, and not of the government, were ordered to be discontinued by his Majesty, as contrary to the letter and spirit of the convention. Having, however, referred to those practices, it may not be irrelevant to state one instance out of many that were communicated to me by the merchants at Rio de Janeiro. The obligations of the convention are, that the merchant shall give in an attested invoice of the value of the article, and if the government do not consider it a fair one, they have the option of taking the goods by paying ten per cent. upon the price. A merchant received a quantity of goods, which, had he despatched at the cost price, he would have sustained a serious loss, in consequence of the low ebb at which they then stood. In the course of twelve months, a demand arose for the article, and he gave in an invoice at the cost price to pay the duties upon. The _administratador_ of the custom-house finding, (no doubt from his agents,) that he could obtain a good profit, informed the merchant that the ten per cent. in addition to the price given in, would be paid, and the goods kept; consequently the merchant was deprived of any advantage he might have received from running the risk of retaining the goods for so long a time, without mentioning the loss of interest; besides, in those cases it has happened, that the goods have been previously sold by sample to a dealer, who insists upon their delivery, or a pecuniary allowance. The merchant above-mentioned ascertained that the goods were actually despatched through the custom-house by the very invoice he presented, and the duty paid only upon the value he gave in; demonstrating that the government derived no benefit from those proceedings, but that they were the result of intrigue among inferior officers, for their individual gain. I cannot conclude this important subject, without strongly recommending to the British government the expediency of effecting, if possible, a change in the levying the duty of fifteen per cent. as far as the _pauta_ applies, for it is obvious that an arrangement upon the principle of the convention can alone embrace the infinite gradations of value peculiar to every denomination of British manufactures sent to the Brazil.

It may be here observed, that in all serious difficulties the English prefer going direct to the King, rather than encounter the different ramifications of intrigue publicly known to exist in many departments of the state; and in all those applications his Majesty concedes a ready hearing; and, as far as depends upon himself, the English have, indeed, every reason to acknowledge his readiness to accede to all justly founded requests.

The custom-house door at Rio de Janeiro, is the rendezvous of the merchants, hitherto, not having the accommodation of an exchange. An edifice, however, was commenced by the government, upon a _prainha_, or small beach, behind the custom-house, and it was anticipated that this _praca do commercio_, of which I obtained a plan from the architect, would be completed early in the year 1820.

I was present when the foundation-stone of the first protestant church, in South America, was laid at Rio de Janeiro on the 12th of August, 1819. It is for the use of the English, who at present assemble in a room for divine service: the site is in the Rua dos Borbanes, near the convent of Ajuda, and adjoining the house of the Spanish Ambassador. Mr. Stevenson, the treasurer, and the committee for the management of the contribution fund, attended, together with a great portion of the resident English merchants, when a very animated and appropriate address was delivered by the Rev. Mr. Crane. Some coins of Great Britain, a glass bottle securely sealed up, and containing two or three English newspapers of the latest date, (14th of June,) a gazette of Rio de Janeiro, and a navy list, were deposited in the stone. This main stone was dedicated to St. George and St. John, in honour of the sovereigns of England and Brazil. Mr. Johnson, before-mentioned, is the architect, and a Portuguese the builder. Judging from the plan, the structure will be neat, and calculated to contain about five hundred persons, and many more if galleries are added at any subsequent period. The Spanish Ambassador, who was looking out of a window during the ceremony, had made an offer of part of the ground upon which his stables stood, it being deemed necessary to complete the ground-work, which offer was considered highly honourable to him and no obstacle was foreseen in forwarding this good work with all possible despatch. Three months afterwards, however, nothing further had been done, in consequence, I have heard, of the Portuguese dono of the ambassador’s premises, objecting to the transfer of the small portion of ground required, unless he was paid some exorbitant sum. I understand, that an application is to be made, through the medium of the Hon. Mr. Thornton, to the King upon the subject.

[Illustration:

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

THE RIO EXCHANGE, A PUBLIC TRAPICHE, A GRASS WAGON, & THE GALLOWS.]

Macacu, which has a church dedicated to St. Antonio, and a convent of lazy Franciscans, is pretty considerable, and was created a town by King Peter II. in 1697. It is situated upon elevated ground, on the left margin of the river of the same name, a little above the embouchure of the Guapiassu, and is about three leagues distant, in a direct line from the bay, and almost ten by the course of the river. Since the year 1808, this place has been the residence of a _Juiz de Fora_, whose jurisdiction also extends to the town of Mage. The population of Macacu, including its district, amounts to nine thousand souls.

Villa Nova, (de St. Joze d’ el Rey,) created a town in 1772, is two leagues to the south-west of Macacu, and a mile distant from the same river. St. Barnabe was its original name when a village, and its first inhabitants were Indians, with whose descendants a great many Portuguese are now intermixed. Those Indians are celebrated for making mats; a contiguous piece of ground supplying them with abundant materials.

About four miles to the eastward, is the parish of St. Joao d’Itaborahy, in a situation something elevated, with a fine aspect, and near the right bank of the river Vargé, which here takes the name of this parish, more commonly designated by the appellation of Tapacora. Mandioca, feijao, and sugar, are the principal productions, besides a small portion of rice, Indian-corn, and coffee.

The parish of Our Lady of Conceiçao[15] is six leagues east from Macacu, approximating the left margin of the small river Bonito; and the inhabitants are farmers of mandioca, feijao, Indian corn, sugar, and some rice.

Two leagues to the north-east of Macacu, betwixt the two small rivers of Pinto and Entulho, is situated the parish of Santissima Trinidade, (Holy Trinity,) in a fertile country, the productions of which are, notwithstanding, confined to the necessaries of life.

The parish of Tamby occupies an open country, near the left bank of the river Aldeia, about two miles south of Macacu, with a church of Our Lady of Desterro. About a mile to the east of the parish of Tamby, and within its district, is situated the port of Caixas, with a hermitage of Our Lady of Conceiçao, upon the right bank of the Aldeia not far from its confluence with the Macacu. This is the grand point from whence all the productions of the district of Tapacora, and the surrounding parishes, are embarked in boats for the capital, and more sugar is sent from hence than from all the other ports in the bay.

About two leagues to the south-east of Villa Nova, and not far from the bay, is the parish of St. Gonçalo d’Amarante, on the right bank of the small river of that name. Its dwellers produce a large quantity of farinha, feijao, and Indian corn, with the superabundance of which, as well as that of coffee, sugar, and casaçha, much specie is introduced into the district.

Mage, a middling town, with the title of countship, and in an agreeable situation upon the left bank of the river from which it derives its name, has some commerce, and a handsome parish-church of Our Lady of Piedade. It is about three leagues west of Macacu and one from the bay; and the river, which has here a wooden bridge, supplies the town with fish. In boats and craft of considerable burden, a large quantity of farinha, Indian corn, feijao, some sugar, rice, and a little coffee, are from thence exported. This place was erected into a town in the year 1789. An English gentleman has a country house near Mage, where parties occasionally go for the purpose of shooting, particularly snipes, which abound in the neighbouring morasses.

Four miles to the north-east of Mage, near the right bank of the river Guapymirim, is the parish of Ajuda, the soil of which is remarkably fertile, the inhabitants preferring the culture of mandioca, rice, and coffee, to the sugar-cane: they also export a great deal of wood.

Two leagues to the west of Mage, is the parish of St. Nicolau, upon the right margin of the Suruhy, consisting of a mountainous district of ten miles from north to south, and three in width, being partly planted with mandioca, rice, and coffee, but principally with the banana fruit, which introduces annually seventy thousand crusades, arising, it is said, from the industry of the whites, who exceed the number of negroes, but more likely from the properties of the soil and climate.

One league to the south-east of the port of Estrella is situated the parish of Our Lady of Guia, upon the borders of the bay, near the mouth of the small river of Pacobahyba, from whence are embarked various necessaries of life, its principal productions.

About four miles to the north-east of the port of Estrella is the parish of Our Lady of Piedade d’Inhumirim, situated at the angle of the confluence of the river of that name with the small river Cruz. Its parishioners are farmers of Indian corn and mandioca, which prosper abundantly. In this district is situated Mandioca estate, belonging to G. Langsdorff, Esq. the Russian consul-general, a delightful situation, and which he became possessed of in consequence of his pursuits as a naturalist leading him frequently into that part of the country. To accommodate a person, from whom he had received some civilities, with a certain portion of land to form a _rancho_, for the accommodation of mules and their drivers coming from the mines, he was induced to purchase the whole tract of land, in the possession of one individual, without any fine, and, from its peculiar adaptation to the produce of mandioca, he gave it that name. He paid under one thousand pounds for it, and its extent, which is estimated at ten square miles, he has not yet explored. He has already planted twenty thousand coffee-trees upon it, and the produce of mandioca in 1819 yielded near one thousand sacks of farinha, worth from eight to ten shillings per sack. The King has granted him the important privilege of allowing the neighbouring people, working upon his estate, an exemption from the militia duty, which, of course, induces a great many to offer their services upon moderate terms; so that, with the addition of about sixty slaves working upon it, the property is rapidly improving. He is building a house upon the estate. Mr. Langsdorff is respectably known to the literary world by the publication of his voyages. His pursuit in the obtainment of objects in natural history has been indefatigable, and in butterflies alone he has accumulated sixteen hundred different kinds.[16]

Some leagues from hence, upon the track leading to the mining districts, is situated the extensive establishment of Padre Corre, for shoeing mules, previously to their proceeding into the interior districts. In this trade the padre has accumulated a considerable sum: he grows a prodigious quantity of the finest peaches, and has the character of being exceedingly hospitable to strangers.

A league to the south-east of the port of Estrella is situated the parish of Our Lady of Pilar, upon the left bank of the river from which it derives its name, producing mandioca, Indian corn, rice, and vegetables, for which the soil is well adapted.

St. Maria of Marica was created a town by a law of the 26th May, 1814, with a civil jurisdiction, administered by two ordinary judges, (_juizes ordinarios_,) one of orphans, three magistrates, (_vereadores_,) an alcayde, a procurator of council, and two _almotaces_, or regulators of the market. It is small, but well situated, near the mouth of the little river Itapitiu, upon the margin of the lake from which it is named, and which well supplies it with fish. The church here, of Our Lady of Amparo, is the best in the province, with the exception of some in the metropolis, from whence it is distant about twenty-five miles to the eastward, and near thirty west of Cape Frio. The inhabitants cultivate sugar, mandioca, feijao, Indian corn, and some coffee.

The district of Cape Frio, named from the promontory where the coast changes its direction, is limited on the north, by the river Maccahé, which separates it from the district of Goytacazes, is washed on the east and south by the ocean, and comprises twelve leagues of territory, from north to south, and ten in the widest part from east to west. The country is generally uneven, and the valleys and plains, situated between mountains more or less elevated, are extremely deficient in good water. It produces mandioca, Indian corn, rice, vegetables, and sugar. Cattle, inconsiderable in number, are of a small size. Banana and orange trees, so abundant in various parts of the province, are here exceedingly rare, owing to the negligence of the inhabitants. The produce of indigo, which was formerly considerable, is at present trifling, although this district is well adapted for it. Cochineal was once an important branch of commerce; but the avaricious propensity of several individuals induced them to adulterate it by the addition of farinha. The government took a certain quantity of it, and paid the best price: but, discovering the fraud, declined having any more of it. The merchants of the capital followed this example, and at last the cultivation of it was totally abandoned. To the productions of the district already mentioned must be added, that of timber, which, with management and industry, would form one of the most lucrative and important. The woods are very extensive, abounding in an innumerable variety of trees, well adapted for the purposes of building, cabinet work, &c. Three qualities of the Brazil wood are met with here, of which that denominated _mirim_ is esteemed the best. The rivers St. Joao and Maccahé afford navigation for conveying those fine timbers to the coast. Besides the two last-mentioned rivers, there is the Una, which enters the ocean seven miles south of the first. In front of its embouchure is situated the small island of Branca.

The principal lakes in this district are the Araruama and the Sequarema; the first, twenty miles long, and eight at the widest part, is separated from the ocean by a bank in many parts of small elevation, and empties itself at the eastern extremity, by a channel, which at the mouth is fifty yards in width. Notwithstanding its waters are supplied by various rivers, they have a saline flavour, in consequence of its communication with the sea. It abounds with a variety of fish, and in some situations is many fathoms in depth, in others quite shallow. Various small bays on the southern side are formed by headlands, in which the operations of nature furnish considerable quantities of salt, almost without human aid. Nine places may be reckoned which are apparently destined by Providence for the production of this indispensable article; the whole is not however formed by the sea water, but by the aqueous flow of rain through the saltpetre or saline particles with which the earth is impregnated, subsequently acquiring the consistency of marine water, and which arrives at its ultimate crystalization, by the influential rays of the sun. The largest of the rivers which the lake Araruama receives are the Francisco Leite, which enters it at the western extremity, and the Mataruna, which is crossed by a bridge, and disembogues about four miles to the east of the other; between those streams, and at a short distance from the lake, is situated the parish of St. Sebastian, whose inhabitants are cultivators of mandioca, rice, feijao, a little sugar, and derive some profit from fishing.