I have perhaps hardly said sufficient to give a correct idea of the inhabitants of the _fazendas_ or cattle estates. Unlike the Peons of the country in the vicinity of the river Plata, the Sertanejo has about him his wife and family, and lives in comparative comfort. The cottages are small and are built of mud, but afford quite sufficient shelter in so fine a climate; they are covered with tiles where these are to be had, or, as is more general, with the leaves of the Carnàûba. Hammocks usually supply the place of beds and are by far more comfortable, and these are likewise frequently used as chairs. Most of the better sort of cottages contain a table, but the usual practice is for the family to squat down upon a mat in a circle, with the bowls, dishes, or gourds in the centre, thus to eat their meals upon the floor. Knives and forks are not much known, and are not at all made use of by the lower orders. It is the custom in every house, from the highest to the lowest, as in former times, and indeed the same practice prevails in all the parts of the country which I visited, for a silver basin, or one of earthenware, or a _cuia_, and a fringed cambric towel, or one that is made of the coarse cotton cloth of the country, to be handed round, that all those who are going to sit down to eat may wash their hands; and the same ceremony, or rather necessary piece of cleanliness, takes place again after the meal is finished. Of the gourds great use is made in domestic arrangements; they are cut in two and the pulp is scooped out, then the rind is dried and these rude vessels serve almost every purpose of earthenware—water is carried in them, &c. and they are likewise used as measures. They vary from six inches in circumference to about three feet, and are usually rather of an oval shape. The gourd when whole is called _cabaça_, and the half of the rind is called _cuia_. It is a creeping plant, and grows spontaneously in many parts, but in others the people plant it among the mandioc.