As I did not care to remain at Jundiahi, while the General was undergoing the transfer from his four-horse carriage to the mule, I came on in advance and reached the house of Mr. D. H. Sampson at Cachoeira about 9 o’clock. My kind friend here expressed his satisfaction at my return; and when informed that the rest of the party were on the way, he proceeded to order breakfast for all.
We soon heard the sound of the horn, which General Wood had carried with him throughout the tour, giving his signals for moving or stopping, and on various other occasions as his fancy dictated.
The entire party rested at Cachoeira until the afternoon, when the General and his party proceeded to an inn called Peru, twelve miles distant; and Mr. Bennaton remained with me for the night, under the hospitable roof of friend Sampson.
Sunday, November 19, 1865.
Rising before daylight, the French cook Philipe, who has charge of Mr. Sampson’s establishment, gave us a cup of coffee with bread and butter, and we mounted our mules for a direct ride of twenty-eight miles to São Paulo. The excellent mule which had been furnished me by Mr. Gephardt for the trip was placed at my service by Mr. Sampson for the ride to the city; and I feel under the greatest obligations to these gentlemen for their disinterested kindness to me in this and in other matters.
The spirit of accommodation manifested by Mr. D. H. Sampson, with his acts of generosity to myself and others who have come from the Southern States, makes us realize that the interest he has taken in our cause is extended to us; and for myself, I shall always feel grateful to him for his substantial favors, and his courteous attentions extended to me.
In following the grade of the railway we passed the termination of the iron rail twelve miles from the city of São Paulo, and learned from a man engaged on the road that there would be an interruption of some months, from a land-slide at the Serra de Santo having stopped the transportation of iron. This serra is likely to be a very serious obstacle to the success of the road, as even when in working order the inclined plane, with four stationary engines to draw up the cars, is an inconvenient arrangement, and not by any means free from danger. The effect of these repeated land-slides must be unfavorable to our prospects of making a settlement in the interior, and it thus becomes more important to ascertain whether some other locality may not prove more advantageous.
We reached São Paulo at noon, General Wood and his party having arrived an hour previously.
After breakfast and a bath, I walked down to give a letter to Mrs. Blackford from her husband, and to inquire for letters from my wife and friends. It was a great disappointment to find no letters here, nor at the post-office; and my only hope now is, that there may be letters for me at Rio de Janeiro, on my arrival there.
During the afternoon I was called upon at the Hotel da Europa by Senor João Ribeiro de Santos Carmargo, and at the same time General Wood was visited by Senor Dom Joaquim Antonio Pinto, Junr.