On the 17th of January, 1838, on returning from one of his fazendas, and when about half a league from the city he was fired at from behind some bushes; the shot only wounded him in the right shoulder. The assassins, for there were two, fled immediately, and one of them appeared among the first to congratulate the Barão on his arrival after so fortunate an escape. Parties were instantly despatched to scour the woods in pursuit of the delinquents, and a black man who was found hidden among some bushes, and who could not give a good account of himself, was taken to the city, and on being interrogated, confessed that although he was one of the parties, he did not fire the shot, the person who did so being one Joaquim Seleiro, a mulatto saddler, who lived in the house of the Barão. This man was said to be of a very vicious disposition, and of strong passions; and it was well known that a few days before the occurrence, he had been ill used in some manner by the Barão, without just cause. At the time he was denounced, he was leading a party in the woods in search of the assassins; and was not a little astonished on his return to find himself a prisoner. He strongly denied the crime of which few deemed him to be innocent; the laws of the country do not inflict the penalty of death for a mere attempt at murder: he was, therefore, committed to prison, where he died twenty-six days after the perpetration of that crime, under circumstances that have given rise to suspicious reports.
To those who are interested in the history of Brazil, a slight sketch of the life of so extraordinary a man as the Barão de Parnahiba, may not be uninteresting, as his name is intimately connected with the establishment of the independence of the northern provinces. His father was a native of the Azores, and was very poor when he arrived in Brazil, but he soon married a lady possessed of a small property; of the family resulting from this union, the subject of this notice was the eldest, being born in the year 1776. His only education consisted in learning to read and write, and in acquiring a slight knowledge of arithmetic. His first occupation was that of a cowherd (vaqueiro) to his father, who died when he was only twenty years of age, leaving him a fazenda worth about 1,500 cruzados (£200 sterling); during his childhood he was brought up by a godmother, who at her death left him another fazenda of nearly equal value. After his father’s death, not content with the occupation of vaqueiro, he began to purchase cattle with the view of taking them to Bahia for sale, to which place he continued to go every year, till about twenty-five years ago, although from that period up to the present, he has never failed to send annually a drove of cattle to the same market. Shortly after his father’s death he was enlisted, as was then the custom, into the cavalry militia; here he was soon advanced to the post of corporal which he held for a long time; he was next elevated to the rank of ensign, and about the same time was appointed treasurer of the national rents. Occupied in this manner, he continued till the period of the declaration of independence, when his name had acquired but little weight in the province, being better known for his cunning disposition and uncouth manners, than for any more eminent qualities. It was his custom to bestow gifts and attentions, and be very obsequious to all persons high in authority, such as governors, judges, &c., always providing men, horses, and provisions to bring them up from the coast. In this manner he ingratiated himself in their favour, and after their arrival was always their obedient servant; and without regard to their line of politics was ever a staunch supporter of their measures. He made it his endeavour on all occasions to gain the good opinions of the religious part of the community, by showing himself to be a great friend to all that belonged to the church, on which account he was anxious to be appointed director of its festivals, on which he did not hesitate to spend large sums, in this manner obtaining the good will and friendship of the priesthood.
At the time when Dom João the sixth gave the Constitution to Portugal, the larger provinces of Brazil were ruled by Governors General (Governadores Geräes), and the smaller by Governors only, the power of all being to a certain extent despotic. At this time the province of Piauhy was committed to the charge of Elias José Ribeiro de Carvalho, a native of Portugal, but immediately on the proclamation of the constitution in the mother country he was recalled, when the province fell to the care of a provisional government, consisting of six members, one of whom was the present president. It was during this time that a Major Fedié arrived at Oeiras from Rio de Janeiro, as commander in chief of the military force in the province, and who soon afterwards became notorious for his opposition to the cause of independence. It was also during the reign of this Governo Provisorio, as it was called, that Dom Pedro Primeiro proclaimed the independence of Brazil. It was of course a long time before the news of this great event, that had taken place in Rio, reached this far distant province, and when the accounts arrived Fedié, true to the fealty he owed João, who had sent him thither, and supposing it to be only a disturbance of short duration, firmly opposed its proclamation in the city of Oeiras; and as soon as he learned it had been supported in the Villa da Parnahiba, he collected all the troops and militia he could raise, and marched against the inhabitants of that place, notwithstanding that he received previously official notice from the newly declared central government in Rio, ordering him to proclaim the independence of the country in the city. At this time also, advices arrived from the provinces of Bahia and Ceará, both of which had followed the example of the capital, strongly urging the most influential persons in the province to adopt the same course in Piauhy, but all refused to do so, declaring themselves to be firm supporters of the constitution of Dom João.
At this time the influence of the Barão was so small that none of the letters were addressed to him, but the opportunity did not escape him, for by the same posts that carried the above answers, he sent notice to both places that he was willing, in conjunction with several of his friends, to give his warmest support, and proclaim the cause of independence. Shortly after the departure of Fedié for Parnahiba, the Barão received answers to his letters, and was urged to lose no time in carrying his proposal into effect, to which end he immediately apprehended the members of the provisional government, who were in Oeiras, and confined them in prison, together with others who were either known or suspected to belong to the opposite party. The inhabitants of Parnahiba learning that Fedié was on the march for that place, united themselves and advanced on the road to meet him; the encounter took place at Campo Maior, about half way between Oeiras and Parnahiba, where in a very short time Fedié completely defeated the other party and put them to rout. In the meantime the Barão was using every exertion to raise men to march against Fedié who was the most powerful opponent he had to dread. In order to give more weight to his authority, he first proclaimed himself president of the province; and under the pretence that Fedié was about to return to Oeiras, and that it was necessary to place them in security, he seized on the funds of the provincial treasury, which was said to be very rich at that time; but it is generally reported that the greater part of this treasure was never sufficiently accounted for: it is certain that at this time he laid the foundation of the great wealth which he at present possesses. He immediately sent advices to Rio de Janeiro stating what he had done, and in return Dom Pedro confirmed him in the presidentship, advanced him to the rank of colonel in the militia, and created his brother commander-in-chief in lieu of Fedié. The latter not wishing to return to Oeiras, where every one was now in arms against him, marched immediately to the Villa de Cachias, the most flourishing town in the interior of the province of Maranham, and which still remained loyal to the Portuguese cause. The imperial troops from Oeiras, having now united with those defeated at Campo Maior, together with about 2,500 more from the province of Ceará, headed by the president of Piauhy and his brother, marched to Cachias against Fedié, who with no more than 250 men maintained his position in that town for the long period of eleven months, and it was only when famine reduced them to the last necessity, that he capitulated, and was led back to Oeiras a prisoner. Thence he was conveyed to Rio, when he was liberated and sent to Portugal.
The march to Cachias was another fortunate circumstance, which it is said the president turned to good account, for as nearly all the inhabitants of that place were natives of Portugal, and consequently favourable to the union of the two countries, they were naturally considered by the Brazilians as enemies, and consequently treated as such in the worst possible manner, for they were murdered and robbed without mercy. To save their lives and property, many of them are said to have paid the president very handsomely for his protection, and in this manner he is believed to have amassed an immense sum of money. After his return from Cachias, the emperor raised him to the rank of a brigadier, and created him Barão de Parnahiba. The entire management of the affairs of the province was left in his hands, as it still is, and consequently all situations were filled up either by his own relations, or by persons belonging to his party. On the occasion of the coronation of the present emperor, he was created a viscount.
One of the great sources from which the provincial treasury above alluded to derives its income, is the profit resulting from the sale of cattle which are reared on thirty-three fazendas belonging to the crown. About the end of the seventeenth century, one Domingo Alfonso established a number of cattle-farms in different parts of the province, and at his death thirty of these were put into the hands of the Jesuits, on the condition that the profits should be applied to charitable purposes; when the Jesuits were expelled from the country, these fazendas, together with others they had purchased, became the property of the state. On an average about 3,000 head of cattle are sold annually; they are disposed of to the highest bidder, and although the price varies in different years, 6,000 reis (about fifteen shillings) may be taken as their mean value; were these properties well managed a much larger profit might be derived from them. Besides the salaries paid to three inspectors, amounting to 300,000 reis each, every fazenda is managed by a vaqueiro, whose income is derived from the fourth part of the cattle and horses annually reared. These situations are much sought after, as in the course of a few years, the persons who hold them save large sums of money, having no house-rent to pay, and being allowed to have all the profits resulting from the other produce of the farm, such as sheep, goats, pigs, cheese, &c.; to assist in looking after the cattle, the government provides them with slaves whom they are obliged to supply with food and clothing, the former being all produced on the farm, and the latter, which is both scanty and coarse, costing but a mere trifle.
Shortly after my arrival in Oeiras, some very serious disturbances took place in the neighbouring province of Maranham, which prevented me from following out my original plan of proceeding westward to the Rio Tocantins: I shall briefly notice the origin and progress of these disorders. In November 1838, the Prefect of Cachias sent four soldiers to apprehend a criminal in the Arraial da Chapada, about forty leagues distant. The brother of this individual, one Raimundo Gomez, a mestico, better known by the name of Cara preta (black face), and a party of nine other men whom he had engaged to assist him, disarmed the soldiers and sent them back; a greater number of soldiers was then despatched by the prefect to accomplish the same object, but by this time Raimundo had increased his band by a number of vagabonds who are never wanting in the interior, and who are always more ready to join in a disturbance, than to follow any regular employment; on this occasion the soldiers were again beaten back. In a short time, this band was greatly augmented by the desertion of slaves, by Indians and others, who now commenced a regular system of pillage, attacking the fazendas, and taking away whatever they pleased. As soon as the president of the province was informed of these circumstances, he despatched a troop of about three hundred soldiers to disperse these robbers, but by some mismanagement, after having encountered them at Chapada, their ammunition failed, and they were obliged to surrender themselves into the hands of Raimundo. The lieutenant-colonel who commanded them, and a captain were put to the sword, but the rest of the officers and soldiers had their lives spared, on condition that they consented to join the insurgents; and it is said that the greater part did so with good will. Raimundo thus strengthened, now regularly organized his party, appointing the officers he had captured his secretaries, as neither he nor any of his own partizans could read or write. It is pretty certain that about this time he entered into correspondence with a party in the city of Maranham, which being opposed to the monarchical form of government wished its overthrow; from this source it is said that both arms and ammunition were secretly supplied to Raimund’s troops.
They now took up their quarters at a place called Brejo, rapidly increasing in numbers, principally by runaway slaves from the large cotton plantations in the neighbourhood. In the month of April 1839, this united force amounted to about 5,000 men, the principal officer, besides Raimundo, being an old Indian, known by the name of O Balaio (the basket), from his having formerly gained a livelihood by making baskets, and selling them in the streets of Cachias. Being well armed, the rebel army, as it was called, marched to Cachias with the intention of taking it; at this time there were only about twenty soldiers in the town commanded by a lieutenant, but all the inhabitants rose in arms to defend it. The rebels besieged the place for about six weeks, allowing no provisions to enter, at the end of which time, the inhabitants being in a state of starvation, and unable to hold out longer, were obliged to capitulate on the 30th of June. The terms of this capitulation were, that all the military stores in the place, amounting to 5,000 stand of arms, and 800 barrels of gunpowder, should be delivered up, and a sum equivalent to seventy per cent. on the goods of each merchant and shopkeeper be paid immediately. The prefect and several other leading men in the town also, in terms of the capitulation, were declared prisoners, and kept in close confinement for several months.
As these disturbances took place principally to the north of Oeiras, I had still hopes of being able to proceed to the westward, but just as I was making preparations to leave, several persons arrived in Oeiras from Pastos Boms, a small town a little to the west of the Rio Parnahiba, exactly on the route I had intended to follow. I learned from them that a party of the rebels had been sent from Cachias to take that place, where five Portuguese and one Brazilian, who were known to be opposed to them, had been massacred, and their families robbed of all their property. News now reached Oeiras that Raimundo and his army, flushed with their success, were about to march from Cachias to take that city. The Barão de Parnahiba, who previously had been raising troops to send to the succour of Cachias, now redoubled his exertions, and the city became filled with rustic troops, undergoing the necessary process of drilling; these formed a very motley group, being of all sizes, of all colours, and variously dressed, most of them appearing in their leathern hats, jackets, and trowsers. As there were no symptoms that the rebels would soon make their threatened attack on Oeiras, about 600 of these troops were despatched early in the month of July, under the command of Major Clementino Martins, the baron’s nephew, to join others, ordered to march from Ceará and Pernambuco, to the succour of Cachias. As soon as the rebels received notice of this movement, a general sack of the town took place, by about a thousand men, who still remained there, on which occasion many of the inhabitants for the most part Portuguese were murdered. It was not till the month of January 1840, that Cachias was finally restored to order, and still later before peace was established in Pastos Boms and Brejo. In passing through a ravine near Cachias, that had been fortified by the rebels, Major Clementino and nearly all his troops were cut off. It was calculated that from the beginning to the end of this insurrection, more than 5,000 fell victims; this may be considered as an example of the outbreaks perpetually occurring in Brazil, which keep it in an almost continual state of disorder, and paralyse the energies of those who really wish well to their country.
Prevented in this manner from travelling westward, and unwilling to retrace my steps, I determined to proceed southward to Rio de Janeiro, through the great inland provinces of Goyaz and Minas Geräes, though but ill provided for such an undertaking, particularly in pecuniary matters, the state of the country rendering it impossible to receive money from the coast. I had, however, my profession to depend upon, and I knew that if much money could not be gained by it, a great deal of expense might be saved, for I had already experienced that, as a medical man, I was well received wherever I went. The country to the south-west being also in rather an unsettled state, I was strongly advised by the Barão de Parnahiba, as well as by other influential persons in Oeiras, not to pursue this proposed journey, as I should run a risk of losing my life by so doing; but my strong desire to pass through a hitherto unexplored country, determined me not to listen to their advice, and I immediately set about making arrangements for undertaking it.