September^
fweet pmdu<Sbuirs ate ptentifuh They bam lifcewife the
moft lovely, piercing, dark eyes-; in the captivatingtife o f
which they are b y no means unfidiled. Upon the whole,
the WxMnjea o f this muntry ate very engaging; -an! rendered
mofe fe |jy tkeir flee, eafy, and umreftrained maanef. Both
&ste». art :mtnmsly fond o f fufiering theif baby which is
black, to grow to a prodigious length. The ladies Wear it
plaited, and tied up in a kind o f club, of large lump ; a
mode o f harr^feiTmg that does not feem to correfpond with
their /delicate and feminine appea*aac& C)ufi@m, hoWeVer,
reconciles us "to .the moft p « ? fashions; and- • w£a» We
thought unbecoming, the Portuguese confidered as highly
pmamentah I was one day at a gentleman s hoafe, M whom
I expreifed my wonder at the prodigious tpsantityof hair
worn by thedadies;; adding, that f did not conceive it pof.
hble for it to be all of their own growth. The gentleman
allured me .that it was; and, -in order to convince me that
it was & , he called his wife, and untied her hair, which;
n<^with-flanding it was in plaits, dragged at le&ft t#o inches
®pon the .floor as flue walked along. I -offered myferviee
to tie, it ttp again; which was pobtely-accepted, and eon-
fidefed as a conapiiment by both. It has been faid that
the
(the Pórttiguèzse are a Jealous people; a difpöfitioh I never '1787.
could : perceive among any o f tho|e with Whom I had the
pleafure -of forming an acquaintance ; on the Contrary, they
feemed fenfitble of, and pleafed with, Cvéfykiftd of attention
paid tpthdir wives or daughters-.
The curremt coin he-rè Is the fameiaë that in Portugal, but
fiber as well as -gold is coined at this place, wdiëfe they have
an eiiablifked mint. The pieces of gold are #f various fi&es,
and have marked on them the number of tboufand fees they
are worth. The mofecommon coin is a 4^0 rèe- piece*, '
■ which palfes for 2. 6, though ftèt fe heavy as an
fSnglifh. gainst. The fiber pieces, called pétaèksi valvrê two
Shillings, are alfe marked with the number of tbCs they are
•Worth. Yaw-get ten ó f thefe in exchange for A gtónèa 5
and for a Spanifk dollar two petaeks, five vintin« aftd a half,
<whieh is About four feiHings and eight-peifeei Héte; as In
•Portugal, they have /five, ten, and twenty thoufand rCC
ptoses*»-i A ree k a nominal coin ; twenty make a V-kttiin,
value about three half-pence; ■ eight vintins make Örte feil-
ling ; apêtaCk is worth tWofbSlmgs, and bftlrefe there are
feme domfele pieces, value four feiMings fferling.
One morning, as I attended Mr. l l de Foiife, •furgeon ge1
neral