I arrived about eleven o’clock in the morning at the city of Natal, situated upon the banks of the Rio Grande, or Potengi. A foreigner, who might chance to land first at this place, on his arrival upon the coast of Brazil, would form a very poor opinion of the state of the population of the country; for, if places like this are called cities, what must the towns and villages be; but such a judgment would not prove correct, for many villages, even of Brazil, surpass this city; the rank must have been given to it, not from what it was or is, but from the expectation of what it might be at some future period. The settlement upon rising ground, rather removed from the river, is properly the city, as the parish church is there; it consists of a square, with houses on each side, having only the ground floor; the churches, of which there are three, the palace, town-hall, and prison. Three streets lead from it, which have also a few houses on each side. No part of the city is paved, although the sand is deep; on this account, indeed, a few of the inhabitants have raised a foot path of bricks before their own houses. The place may contain from six to seven hundred persons. I rode immediately to the palace, as I had letters of introduction to the governor, from several of his friends at Pernambuco. He received me in the most cordial manner. He asked me for my passport, which I produced; it was scarcely opened, and he immediately returned it, saying, that he only did this, that all necessary form might be complied with. He said, that I should stay with him, and he would provide a house for my people. At one o’clock we dined, and one of his aide-de-camps was with us. In the afternoon, we walked down to the lower town. It is situated upon the banks of the river; the houses stand along the southern bank, and there is only the usual width of a street between them and the river. This place may contain from two to three hundred inhabitants, and here live the men of trade of Rio Grande. The bar of the Potengi is very narrow, but is sufficiently deep to admit vessels of 150 tons. The northern bank projects considerably, and for this reason, it is necessary that a ship should make for it from the southward. The entrance to the reef of rocks, which lies at some distance from the shore, also requires to be known, so that altogether the port is a difficult one. The river is very safe, when once within the bar; the water is deep, and quite still, and two vessels might swing in its breadth; but it soon becomes shallow, and in the course of a few miles is greatly diminished. I should imagine, that six or seven vessels might swing altogether in the harbour. The bars of rivers that are formed, as in this case, of sand, are, however, not to be trusted to, without good pilots, as they soon change their depth, and even their situation. When the tide enters, the northern bank is overflowed about one mile from the mouth of the harbour, and spreads