have been insurmountable, is that this is the lowest piece of land in the neighbourhood, and is opposite to the place upon which the sea is making the most rapid advances. Water too, for mixing the lime and sand, must have been conveyed from a considerable distance; but a spring of it gushed forth at the moment that one of the labourers was making preparations for the commencement of his work, and since the _capella-mor_, or principal chapel, has been built, all kinds of diseases are said to be cured. The fame of this most powerful lady has reached far and wide, and from the interior to the distance of 150 leagues, persons who were afflicted with disorders which had been considered incurable by human means, have come down to make their offerings to this avaritious personage, whose powerful intercession is not to be obtained unless she is in return well paid for her trouble.[91] As the road from the Sertam to the sea-shore was by Jaguaribe, I saw many of the travellers; I conversed with many wealthy persons, whose sole errand was to offer part of their possessions, upon condition of relief from the malady under which they suffered. The patrimony of this church is now considerable, from the numerous donations which have been made; some of these have been advanced on credit, the donors being fully confident of repayment in the manner which they desire; others have been made, owing to the persons who gave them having been really cured;—faith has done what medicine could not do. Such has been the reliance upon the efficacy of the prayers which were offered up, and upon the power of the Lady, that the probability of disappointment has never occurred to them; and when the disorder proceeds more from the imagination than from the body, I should suppose that a cure may be effected, much in the same manner that in other countries cures are said to be performed by medicinal waters; of which, although the qualities may be very excellent, yet the name may surpass the reality, in bringing about the desired end. The miracles of Our Lady of the O. are performed in three ways—by prayer from the patient,—by drinking the water of the spring or by application of some of it to the part affected—and by eating or outwardly applying, a small quantity of the salt which oozes from the wall against which the High Altar stands[92]. A village has risen up around the church, composed of huts for the sick, who have journeyed far from other districts. The business has completely succeeded, the money which was required for rebuilding the church has been obtained, and when I came away the concern was going on prosperously. I heard the remark made by some firm believers, that such was the sinfulness of the inhabitants of the vicinity, that the Lady had scarcely vouchsafed to perform any cures upon them. The wonderful stories of cures were always of persons who lived in remote districts; but I did meet with a few cases in which fancied illness from lowness of spirits was removed.