The place at which we had arrived is reckoned to be distant forty leagues from Natal; the league of the Sertam is never less than four miles, and is often much more; there are legoas grandes, legoas pequenas, and legoas de nada, or nothing leagues, which I have found quite long enough, notwithstanding their encouraging name. Pai Paulo may be about eight or ten leagues from Natal, which makes the travesia or barren-crossing, thirty or thirty-two leagues. We advanced at about three miles within the hour or rather more, and travelled from half-past five to ten in the morning, and in the afternoon from two, or half-past two, to six o’clock.
We had now reached again the habitations of man; there was still the same burnt-up appearance, but the wells were taken care of, the water was better, and grass, although it was dry, was still to be had. I intended to accompany the Major, part of the way to his home, or the whole, but it was necessary that I should be guided by circumstances,—by the accounts we heard of the state of the country;—we advanced in our usual manner, resting more at mid-day, traversing a dead flat, and passing two or three Fazendas, or cattle estates, each day, of which the live stock was looking very miserable, and the people half starved.
After being with the Major four days, since we had left the Seara-Meirim, I saw that it would not be prudent to proceed farther; the accounts from the interior were bad, and we arrived at one estate, of which the cattle were all dying, and the people intending, if there was no rain very soon, to leave their houses. I now judged myself to be distant from the coast not less than two hundred miles. We had advanced northward and westward, and were therefore not far to the southward of Açu, but were to the westward of it. I now resolved to make for it, for my horses might fail, and all the country was in so bad a state, that we might not have found others in a proper condition to go on with us; in fact, as I was not acting from orders, but merely for my own amusement, and as the guide was afraid of proceeding, I did not think I was authorized in persevering; if I had had orders for the purpose, the case would have been altered, and I must have run all hazards. Here, also, desertion was easier in the night, as the country was comparatively inhabited towards Açu—the difficulty was in advancing, and not in retreating.
Each cattle estate has a tolerably decent house, in which the owner or herdsman resides, and usually a few smaller habitations are scattered about upon the plain around it. The pens stand near to the principal house, and enable the travellers to distinguish immediately, although at some distance, the site of a Fazenda.
I heard of a strange custom existing in these parts of the country that are so thinly inhabited, which arises from this state of things. Certain priests obtain a licence from the bishop (of Pernambuco,) and travel through these regions with a small altar constructed for the purpose; of a size to be placed upon one side of a pack-saddle, and they have with them all their apparatus for saying mass. Thus with a horse conveying the necessary paraphernalia, and a boy to drive it, who likewise assists in saying mass, and another horse on which the priest himself rides, and carries his own small portmanteau, these men make in the course of the year between 150 and 200l.—a large income in Brazil, but hardly earned, if the inconveniences and privations which they must undergo to obtain it are taken into consideration. They stop and erect the altar wherever a sufficient number of persons who are willing to pay for the mass is collected. This will sometimes be said for three or four shillings, but at other times, if a rich man takes a fancy to a priest, or has a fit of extreme devotion upon him, he will give eight or ten mil reis, two or three pounds, and it does happen, that one hundred mil reis are received for saying a mass, but this is very rare;—at times an ox or an horse, or two or three, are given. These men have their use in the world; if this custom did not exist, all form of worship would be completely out of the reach of the inhabitants of many districts, or at any rate they would not be able to attend more than once or twice in the course of the year, for it must be remembered that there is no church within twenty or thirty leagues of some parts; besides, where there is no law, nor real, rational religion, any thing is better than nothing. They christen and marry, and thus preserve these necessary forms of religion, and prevent a total forgetfulness of the established rules of civilised society; a sufficient link is kept up to make any of these people, if they removed into more populous districts, conform to received ideas.
I left the Major[36] to pursue his journey homewards, whilst I retreated, or rather advanced, in a contrary direction, but a retreat it was from this inhospitable region. We found no change during that day, and if we had not met with a good natured herdsman, should have fared very badly for want of water, unless we had seen some other person equally well disposed. I asked him the way to the nearest estate, which he told me, and then I made enquiries about water, to which he answered, that unless I was acquainted with the place, I should not find the well, and this part of our conversation ended by his turning back to show it to me, regardless of thus increasing his journey four or five miles. I asked him when we arrived at the well to stay and dine with me, for although I had no great dainties to offer, still he carried only what provision his boroacas contained. These are small leathern bags, one of which hangs on each side of the saddle. He would not, however, dismount, and immediately turned his horse and went his way. My guide had remained behind, as his horse was rather lame, and now he joined us. We passed over some stony ground, and the well itself was situated among rocks, between two of which the horses passed and descended to it.
A Sertanejo.