compensated for by the presence of tropical fruits not to be had elsewhere at any price,—enormous Pineapples, green and purple Abacatys (alligator pears), crimson Pitangas, Attas (fruta do Conde), Abios, Sapotis, Bananas of the choicest kinds and in the greatest profusion, and a variety of Maracujas (the fruit of the passion-flower).[83] The breakfast was gay, the toasts were numerous, the speeches animated, and long after the Senhoras had left the table the room still echoed with Vivas, as health followed health. At the close of the dinner there was a little scene which struck us as very pretty; I do not know whether it is a custom here, but, as it excited no remark, I suppose it may be. When the gentlemen returned to the house, bringing the music with them, all the waiters assembled in line before the door, decanter and glass in hand, to finish the remains of the wine with a toast on their own account. The head-waiter then stood in front of them and gave the health, first, of the persons for whom the banquet was given, followed by that of the President, all of which were answered with Vivas as they filled their glasses. Then one of the gentlemen stepping forward gave, amid shouts of laughter, the health of the head-waiter himself, which was drank in a closing bumper with perhaps more animation than either of the others. The afternoon closed with dancing, and at sunset the canoes assembled and we returned to the city, all feeling, I believe, that the festival had been a very happy one. It certainly was so for those to whom it was intended to give pleasure, and could hardly fail to be likewise for those who had planned and executed it. It will seem strange to many of my readers that Sunday should be chosen for such a fête; but here, as in many parts of continental Europe, even in Protestant districts, Sunday is a holiday and kept as such.