Colonel Albuquerque, having arrived during the night, called to see us while awaiting the slow movements of our postilion; and I was pleased to find that he spoke some English, as did each of his three sons, who had gone a voyage on the Onward, with Captain Clark, who married their sister. The Colonel, thinking of our needs during the day, sent us a box containing a chicken, some Dutch cheese, biscuits, grapes, and a bottle of excellent port wine, which afforded a good repast on the beach. Though our acquaintance was slight, and he was merely sojourning here temporarily with his family, yet he extended that consideration to us which has characterized the bearing of all Brazilian gentlemen heretofore.
The Catholic priest had called to see us at our quarters, and gave us a passing call this morning, when proceeding on some professional duty in the vicinity of our rendezvous.
There is a large church besides the convent in this place. The buildings are chiefly in one straight row, and a few for a short distance on the opposite side, with a sorry and woe-be-gone population not exceeding twenty-five or thirty families, doing but little business.
The mules being at length in readiness we made a start with a team of four at 9 o’clock A. M., but only proceeded a short distance when the double-tree in front was broken, and it became necessary to proceed with but three mules. On reaching the beach the lead mule became unmanageable and ran into the sea, taking the others and cart so far that upon the return of the waves from the tide we were likely to go afloat, thus facilitating our transportation rather more than was desirable.
This trouble was corrected for the future by placing a man, who accompanied the driver, astride of the front mule, but the great difficulty of slow movement was not so easily overcome, though he was supplied with a pair of our spurs, and both these drivers plied the rod most vigorously upon the animals.
I counted the number of blows inflicted upon one of these beasts within five minutes at two different periods, and they averaged ten to the minute; which for five hours, the term of the trip, would make the round sum of three thousand lashes received by this mule.
Our postilions were German sailors and both spoke some English, so that we could communicate with them. After an interruption in our voyage by some derangement of the rigging, they both got into position for advancing, and Alberta Deyer, who was on the driver’s seat, called out to Lewis Thompson, who rode the front mule, “Now take your course south by half west, and make sail—vamos.” With these two high-pressure oscillating engines we made about three knots an hour; and for a time all of us were quite amused at the extraordinary proceedings of these fellows, but eventually it became a most serious matter, and nothing could urge our lazy and jaded beasts out of a walk. I remonstrated with the drivers not to inflict further punishment upon the animals, as the blood was already to be seen in various parts, not only from the spurs but from the heavy blows of the poles used by these athletic sons of the ocean.
At length we reached the point where the road turns from the beach, and it was questionable whether the mules could go any further; but it continued to rain, and it was desirable to remain under cover as long as any progress could be made in the cart.
We had gone however a very short distance when some mismanagement of our helmsman brought the wheels on one side almost into a very deep ditch, and the mule next to the ditch, with the instinct of self-preservation, which is characteristic of that animal, leaped with its fore feet over the tongue. There was imminent danger of being upset, and all hurried out, with our baggage in our hands, determined to proceed on foot. A bottle of rum had been got on the way, to counteract the soaking rain upon the drivers, and giving them another drink they were left to exercise their sailors’ ingenuity to avert shipwreck of their craft.
Walking nearly three miles we crossed the Bertioga again in a canoe, and upon reaching São Vincente[[25]] hired horses for one dollar and a half each, to ride eight miles, into Santos. It was very dark, and some of the road very rough, but all got through safely.