Continuing our journey, we passed several negroes conveying their produce, consisting of fruit, vegetables, orchilla weed, &c. to the town for sale, upon asses, with panniers made from bullocks’ hides. The animals seemed in excellent condition, at which we were not a little surprised, from what we had seen of the sterility of the soil. A few cattle were also seen wandering over the plains, where barely a speck of verdure tinged the barren volcanic rocks, still the animals were sleek, and in tolerable condition; we therefore came to the conclusion that they were turned out to feed, or, what was much more likely, to view the country and fast during the day, and driven home to feed at night.
We pursued our dreary path, occasionally passing a few negro huts, and refreshing ourselves with some delicious goats’ milk. As we came upon the fertile portion of this valley, the change of scene was certainly most agreeable; the brown-parched soil which we had been so long previously alone regarding, now gave place to the verdant plantations of sugar-cane, manioc, and various European and tropical esculent vegetables, which gave a rich and animated character to the scene. The plantations were also interspersed with a great variety of tropical fruit trees, such as orange, lemon, guava plantain, tamarind, custard apple, &c. The tamarind trees were stunted, compared with the luxuriant and elegant growth of those trees in India; they were, however, laden with ripe fruit, whose powerful acid soon set the teeth on edge of such of our party as were induced to partake of them.
Several trees of the Boabab, or monkey bread-tree, (Adansonia digitata,) were now seen, and among them one was particularly conspicuous from its size, as also from a resemblance to the union of three trees. This tree was destitute of foliage, but that loss was compensated by the curious character it assumed, being covered with fruit pending from a long, twisted, spongy stalk, varying in length from one to two feet. This tree measured forty feet in circumference, and was about sixty feet high; the bark was smooth, and of a greyish colour; the termination of its larger branches is remarkable, from being abruptly rounded, and from these rounded extremities the smaller branches are given off, as may be seen in the accompanying drawing; this forms a very characteristic feature in the tree. The fruit, on the outer shell being broken, contained not the yellow pulp usually mentioned, but a white farinaceous substance enveloping the dark brown seeds, of an agreeable acidulated taste. This may proceed from the fruit being old. The fruit is of an oval form, usually six inches in length, and three or four in diameter; rough externally, and, when mature, of a brownish yellow colour; a dark red gum exuded from the outer part of the fruit.[8]
Some of the farms and plantations were in very fine and luxuriant condition, and this was an enjoyment to us after the arid country we had before seen, destitute almost of vegetation, and covered with loose stones. Of the feathered tribe, although not very numerous, a few were shot by one of the party, among which were two specimens of Halcyon senegalensis, and a fine hawk; quails and Guinea fowls (Numida meleagris, Linn.) were abundant, and several of the former were also shot; the crow and several species of Fringillæ were likewise seen. In the afternoon we returned to the town. The population consists for the most part of mulattos and negroes: fruit, including plantains, bananas, oranges, and pine-apples, was abundant, but not yet fully in season.
Among the very few decent houses in this paltry town, was one, the residence of a Don F. Melo, (who speculates in orchilla weed,) situated in the Plaza, which displays taste and neatness both in the exterior and interior of its arrangement: on the lower land, behind the house, he has laid out with much labour an extensive garden, well irrigated, and in which European and tropical vegetables, fruits, and elegant flowering plants, were thriving in luxuriance, and sufficiently proved that even in that sterile spot, industry and perseverance could surmount almost any difficulty. At the house of this gentleman, I had an opportunity of seeing some excellent specimens of the orchilla weed; this valuable production of the vegetable kingdom is indigenous to this and other islands of the group, as well as to Madeira, the Canaries, and the coast of Barbary; it is the Roccella tinctoria of botanists,[9] and is held in high estimation for the purplish dye it yields, and I believe, excepting the cochineal, is the only dye that possesses a mordant in itself. This lichen is of a gray colour, and those plants which are of the darkest hue, long and strong, are considered the best; it grows to a great length, but is rarely obtained so, as the natives gather it before it comes to any size, on account of its high value.
The quantity collected in one year, among the whole of this group of islands, was 537,600 lbs.; but sometimes a larger quantity is obtained, when, not having much work upon the plantations, the negroes can be employed for the purpose.[10] It is found on the steep rocks in the interior of the islands, and growing in the crevices; the finest orchilla is collected at the island of St. Antonio, where it grows in some places so inaccessible as to be only procured by lowering the gatherer down the cliffs by ropes. This lichen is exported only to Lisbon, there being an order from the Portuguese government to that effect, but quantities were often smuggled direct to some foreign port.[11]
Date palms were very numerous in the vicinity of the town, but did not appear to attain any high degree of perfection, or bear fruit, and were used, for what they alone seemed fit, as firewood.