Narrative of the Circumnavigation of the Globe by the Austrian Frigate Novara Volume I Part 6

This act of vandalism against nature, which is confirmed by ancient and modern authors, is being avenged even at present, though centuries have pa.s.sed since the deed. The cedar, once a denizen of the island, is no longer to be found; and only the ceilings of the cathedral and of old houses, which are constructed of this costly material, show the magnitude which this n.o.ble tree formerly attained in the island. Of the dragon tree (_Dracaena Draco_), which was once the ornament of the forests of Madeira, there are at present, in the whole island, only six or seven specimens in existence, which are shown as curiosities to strangers. The Til-tree (_Oreodaphne f[oe]tens_), the Vinhatico (_Persea indica_), and the Folhado (_Clethra arborea_), formerly the most numerous representatives of the native flora, are likewise at present very rarely to be met with, and their places are occupied by plants and trees of the temperate zone, particularly the Spanish chestnut, the fruit of which furnishes the inhabitants with food, whilst the tree itself has served hitherto in the north of the island as a support to the vine. The destruction of the forests has, at the same time, considerably contributed to the modification of the climate in general, and to the diminution of humidity in particular. At the date of the discovery of the island, and a long time after, the Rio Socorridos, the largest river in the island, is said to have been so deep, as to float timber from the interior to the sea; at present this river is quite insignificant, and almost dried up.

The island remained for two centuries in the possession of the direct heirs of the original owners, and when at last, from want of legal successors, these privileges lapsed, the crown granted them to other favourites; but with some restrictions. The exclusive right to corn and saw mills was then entirely abolished, and the salt monopoly with other privileges was retained by the crown. The descendants of the first settlers had in the mean time acquired considerable property in land, whilst the cultivation of the sugar-cane, now very generally adopted, the introduction of negro slaves from Africa, and the foundation of large estates, contributed materially to the prosperity of the inhabitants. The ruins of many large buildings in various parts of the island are even now mute witnesses of the opulence of their former occupants.

This prosperous state of the island was, however, at the beginning of the last century, materially affected by the introduction of the so-called _vinculos_ or entails, which, introduced under the protection and in favour of the church, were a great burden upon the land. Frequently, rich proprietors left to the church portions of their incomes in order to have ma.s.ses said for the repose of their souls, and enc.u.mbered their lands with so many burdens, that only a small remainder fell to their heirs. So long as these claims were in existence the proprietors could not grant leases for a longer period than four years, nor impose fresh burdens on their lands. The union of several such vinculos was called a _morgado_ (entailed property). Under the severe but wise administration of the Marquis of Pombal, a law was pa.s.sed which forbade the future creation of morgados (unless the property yielded an income of 1200 piastres annually, and even then the special licence of the crown had to be obtained), declaring the whole system of entails "as contrary to the rights of property and the well-founded claims of the other members of the family." The law of Dom Pedro, dated the 4th February, 1802, was still more severe, as it allowed at the same time the abolition of single entails, the value of which was below 200 Spanish piastres annually, as well as that of every morgado, the annual value of which did not exceed the sum of 600 piastres. As, however, a great number of these entails exceed 200 piastres, these oppressive restrictions still weigh upon four-fifths of the land, notwithstanding the above-mentioned laws. Among the creditors who still have claims, there are three nunneries (which alone, of all other similar inst.i.tutions, outlived the revolution of 1821), the hospital of Funchal, and the Portuguese Government. The inst.i.tution of these vinculos and morgados produced a kind of feudal dependency between the cultivator of the estates (_caseiro_) and the landlord or holder of the morgado. On the occasion of his marriage, or the birth of an heir to the latter, the caseiro brought presents of such fruits as his land produced; when the landlord removed from the town into the country, the caseiro carried his litter and luggage; in conversation the caseiro addressed the landlord as _meu amo_ (my lord). The revolution of 1821 did away with many of these usages, and in various ways altered the relation between the caseiro and the landlord.

Another impediment to the improvement of agriculture, is the system of parcelling ground into small allotments, which has been continued up to the present time. The farms are in general extremely small. In the richer and more fertile parts of the island they rarely exceed an acre in extent, very often they are not half so large, and sometimes not even the tenth part of an acre. The late Conde de Carvalho, the proprietor of nearly one-third of the whole island, had upwards of eight thousand tenants.

Supposing that this mode of farming existed in the remaining two-thirds, there would be in Madeira 24,000 farmers, caseiros or tenants; or, taking the population at 100,000 souls, nearly every fourth inhabitant would be a tenant farmer. This state of things is not to be wondered at, considering that almost every day-labourer farms a small patch of ground, the extent of which is not greater than the ordinary size of a large garden bed, on which he grows vegetables, potatoes, figs, peaches, sugar-cane, and sometimes even grain.

In the north and west of the island, where agriculture has made more progress than in the south, rent is paid in money; generally, however, the system of paying in kind is still in existence, in which the harvest, (after deducting the _t.i.the_, which, at Madeira, belongs to the State and not to the church,) is divided between the landlord and the tenants.

According to this principle the landlord receives half of the produce of the ground, be it grain, sugar-cane, wine, fruit or vegetables, which are brought for sale, and not consumed on the farm itself. It sometimes happens, however, that the harvest is sold in a lump, while yet on the ground. Oxen are the only animals employed in agriculture. They are diminutive and singularly unsightly, but of a very powerful breed, and furnish very good meat for the table. They are generally fed in stalls, but in the mountainous districts they graze in open pastures. There are only a few badly-fed sheep on the island, so that the mutton is almost unfit for consumption. Pigs and fowls are in abundance, and the rearing of poultry is generally the princ.i.p.al means of living possessed by the peasantry. What is a.s.serted by some authors regarding wild rabbits and boars to be met with on the island, wants confirmation. The few rabbits we saw were perfectly identical with the European species (_Lepus cuniculus_), and lead to the supposition that rabbits as well as pigs, now found in a wild state here and there on the island, are only the progeny of those which have formerly been introduced from Europe.

The numerous open and walled water conduits (_levadas_), which are of considerable height, and lead to all parts of the cultivated land, are of particular importance. Each levada is placed under the superintendence of a committee, selected mostly from the landowners, who have a direct interest in them. Sometimes one person only, generally the most considerable landowner of the district, under the t.i.tle of _juiz da levada_, is entrusted with the control of the water, and receives for his services the use of the water during twenty-four hours. The right of using these levadas is very strictly guarded, and often leads to law proceedings. Every piece of ground within a district through which such a conduit runs, is ent.i.tled to the use of the water by turns, during a certain number of hours (generally not more than twenty-four). These turns are different, according to the extent of the district, from fifteen to forty days. The distribution of the water is entrusted to a so-called _levadeiro_, who places himself at the upper end of the land through which the water is to flow, and with an hour-gla.s.s in his hand measures--a modern Saturn--the time during which the owner is ent.i.tled to the use of the beneficent element. After the expiration of the fixed period, the water is made to pa.s.s on to the ground of another proprietor. These conduits, so extremely important to the farmer, were constructed partly at the expense of the Government, and partly by the contributions of the landed proprietors. Those who have no other t.i.tle may obtain the right to this privilege either by purchase or by government grant. For every twenty-four hours' use of the levadas 400 reis[16] are paid, which tax is employed to keep them in good order.

[Footnote 16: 1000 reis or milreis=to one Spanish piastre, or about 4s.

4d.]

The high roads of Madeira are, with but few exceptions, in a deplorable condition. They are generally laid with small pointed stones, and at numerous places they have an inclination of from 23 to 27 degrees. Every adult male native is obliged to pay annually one Spanish piastre, or to give five days' labour for their repair. On account of the bad condition of the roads in the interior of the island, most of the natural produce is conveyed from one place to another in boats, or, as is the case with wine, is carried to the harbour in skins and casks, on the backs of the inhabitants.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BRIDGE OVER THE RIBEIRO SECO.]

The first attempt at cultivation in Madeira was the planting of sugar-canes, introduced soon after the discovery of the island, through the instrumentality of Prince Henry of Portugal (son of John I.), which grew so abundantly, that for a considerable period the produce of the island sufficed for the supply of the whole kingdom of Portugal. In commemoration of this flouris.h.i.+ng epoch, as regards the cultivation of the sugar-cane, two sugar-loaves were introduced into the arms of the island.

In the year 1452 was erected the first sugar factory, near Machica, and at the end of the fifteenth century there existed as many as 120, in which slaves chiefly were employed. The Jesuit, Antonio Cordeyro, who wrote his _Historia Insulana Lusitana_ at the beginning of last century, makes mention of a considerable number of sugar factories, which had been erected in almost every part of the south coast. On the estate of the Genoese, Juan Esmeralda, half a league from Ribeiro do Taboa, there were annually manufactured 20,000 arrobas[17] of sugar. By degrees, however, the culture of the cane fell, into decay, whether through disease of the plant or its cheaper production in the Brazils and West Indies is not known, so that in the year 1840, only two sugar factories were at work in the whole island; and even these only produce mola.s.ses and rum, of which the latter, in the year 1856, amounted to 1500 pipes. The cultivation of the sugar-cane, however, has increased since the vine disease has fallen so heavily on the landowner. In the summer of 1857, there were eighteen factories again in activity on the island, though so late as 1855, the importation of sugar, for the consumption of the island, amounted to but 31,176 arrobas.[18]

[Footnote 17: One arroba = 32 arrateles or pounds. One pipe = 108 gallons.]

[Footnote 18: From 64 lbs. of sugar-cane are obtained 4 galls. of juice, and from 4 galls. of juice are made 8 galls. of rum. The average price was 2200 reis per gal. of sugar-juice. The rum of commerce (from 22 to 23 degrees) is sold at one Spanish piastre the gallon.]

The greatest elevation at which, in the south of the island, the sugar-cane can be grown, is, like that of the banana tree, about 1000 feet above the level of the sea. In the north, the cultivation of the cane would be remunerative only at those points where, as, for instance, at Fayal and San Jorge, ground and temperature are most favourable for it. To judge by the soil and climate, the cultivation of the cane in Madeira might, with care, even at the present time, prove advantageous. In the south-west part of Lousiana, where, in 1796, this plant was introduced exclusively for the manufacture of _Taffia_,[19] there exist at present as many as 1500 sugar factories, producing annually, on an average, 200,000 hogsheads of sugar. The planter of Madeira is not, as in Lousiana, obliged by the frost to cut the cane before it is ripe; there it ripens thoroughly, blooms in January, and is harvested in March.

[Footnote 19: A beverage resembling brandy in taste, much liked in the West Indies.]

The motive power of the sugar-mills is mostly water and steam. There are also a dozen large distilleries at work, possessing the most modern English improvements. An acre of land, planted with sugar-cane, is said to yield from 100 to 120 Spanish piastres, a result for the landowner more profitable than that arising from the cultivation of the vine, even in its best days.

As regards the culture of cotton, for which the climate and soil are peculiarly suitable, no attempt has as yet been made. The same remark applies to olive trees; though the Government ordered the latter to be planted so long ago as 1768. The cultivation of tobacco, however, is prevented from extending, being a government monopoly. As for wheat, it is not produced in sufficient quant.i.ty to meet one quarter of the consumption of the inhabitants. In the year 1854, wheat, to the amount of 216,918 bushels, was imported from the north of Africa alone, a quant.i.ty nearly twice as great as that which the island produces. Wheat and maize, or Indian corn, are also imported from the Azores, and some ports of the Mediterranean; an importation which is likely rather to increase than decrease.

The potato belongs to that small cla.s.s of vegetables which grow at considerable elevations, and, by proper irrigation and dressing of the ground, three harvests may be obtained in the course of the year.

The Inhame [not the Yam (_Dioscorea alata_) of the West Indies and South America, but a kind of grume (_Colocasia esculenta_)] grows in large quant.i.ties near to rivers and water conduits, where the ground is humid.

It is much sought for by the people, on account of its cheapness, though rather a coa.r.s.e kind of food, which, as Cordeyro navely says, "picao algum tanto na garganta" (scratches the throat).

Sweet potatoes (_Convolvulus edulis_, Lin.), water-melons, gourds, as well as all kinds of European garden vegetables, are found throughout the year in the market, though not of a particularly good quality. Oranges, lemons, bananas, guavas, pine-apples, figs, apricots, and peaches, are abundant during the summer season, and on higher ground even apple and pear-trees are to be met with.

On the "Desertas," three uninhabited little islands south-east of Madeira, and belonging to it, there grows on the rocks the orchilla (_Rocella tinctoria_), a species of lichen, celebrated for yielding a fine purple colour, much used in dyeing. Considering the great importance for industrial purposes of this lichen, it might, with some care, be advantageously grown in Madeira. Formerly there was a small quant.i.ty brought to market, and sold for 14,000 reis the quintal. At the present time the yield has entirely ceased, though it is found in large quant.i.ties in the neighbouring islands. It is considered not to be of such good quality as that of the Azores, where, as is the case with all lichens, that grow in more southern and warmer climates, it is of a better quality, and more highly esteemed.

The product, however, which hitherto has yielded the largest profit to the natives, and made the name of Madeira famous and familiar, even to those who do not profess a particular interest in the beauties of nature in this romantic island, is its _wine_. Though this article of exportation has, through the vine disease, entirely lost its former importance, yet it may be of some interest to take a glance at its history and culture, in order the better to comprehend the magnitude of the calamities that have overwhelmed the people of Madeira, in consequence of the bad vintages of the last seven years.

The vine was introduced from Cyprus, almost at the same time with the sugar-cane, under the auspices of Prince Henry of Portugal, in 1425, but its culture did not attain much importance till the beginning of the sixteenth century. Some authors even suppose that the wine of Madeira owes its reputation chiefly to those plants which were, at a much later date, imported by the Jesuits from Candia. This much is certain, that the produce grown on the estates of the Jesuits greatly surpa.s.sed in quality all others in the island, and maintained a higher price in the market even when those estates had changed hands. The grape ripens in the north at an elevation of 2700 feet, but such as are fitted for the manufacture of wine, grow only as high as the Curral das Freiras (2080 feet).

Hitherto four sorts of vines have been cultivated in the island, namely, the _Bual_ and _Tinta_, both of which were brought from Burgundy, the _Sercial_ from the Rhine, and the _Malvasia_ or _Malmsey_ from Candia.

There are four species of the last-mentioned, (_candila_, _roxa_, _babosa_, and _propea_); the delicious flavour of which by many people is considered to have a great similarity with the Hungarian _Tokayer_. The most esteemed sorts were grown west of Funchal, near Cama de Lobos, and Estreita. Excellent qualities were grown also at Santa Cruz, on the north side of the island, and the valleys near Ponta da Cruz; in general, however, the grape of the northern district proved to be of inferior quality, and was therefore only used in the manufacture of rum. In the north the vines were trained on chestnut trees, but in the south, as in Lombardy and the Tyrol, in festoons, supported by a kind of cane (_Arundo sagittata_), and tied up by a species of willow (_Salex rubra_), specially cultivated for that purpose.

Though nearly a fifth of the cultivated portion of the island was thus planted, yet the individual vineyards were but small in extent, the largest of them not exceeding three or four acres. In the wine-growing countries of Europe fresh plants are set at least every twenty years; but in Madeira they are allowed to remain in the ground so long as they yield any fruit. The native growers do not relish improvements; of all the agricultural implements which some English landowners, settled near Funchal, wished to introduce, the garden-rake alone was adopted by these enemies of innovation. The vineyards of Madeira were usually let out to farmers (_caseiros_), and rarely cultivated by the proprietors themselves.

The yield of an acre was estimated at from one to three pipes. In 1848 the cost of producing a pipe of Madeira amounted to from 12 to 40 Spanish piastres. In the same year the total production of the island amounted to 30,000 pipes, of which only 10,000 were exported, as the inferior sorts, not keeping well, are not suited for the foreign markets. Of the wines exported, half went to Russia and the Baltic provinces, the other, comprising the best kinds, were sent to England, the West Indies, and the United States. Up to the year 1851, when the last good vintage occurred, the price of a pipe varied from 12 to 14 Spanish piastres. So late as 1845, when the Danish corvette _Galatea_, on her voyage round the world for scientific purposes, put in at this island, the inferior sorts were so cheap that Captain Steen Bille considered it more profitable to supply the crew with wine mixed with water than beer. Since that time prices have become ten times higher, and the best quality now sells for from 110 to 150 a pipe, and will doubtless rise in proportion as the older stores are exhausted.

Though the yield of the vine had been decreasing, year after year, for a considerable time, yet the actual vine disease only made its appearance in 1852, when the leaves and fruit were covered with a kind of fungus (_Odium Tuckeri_),[20] like a white dust. The Portuguese Government sent a commission for the purpose of investigating the causes of the calamity.

The report[21] is not decisive on the point, whether the fungus is the real cause or only a symptom of the disease, nor does it offer any advice as to how it may be checked. Dr. Hermann Schacht,[22] who resided during a period of 18 months in the island, and has published a valuable treatise, states that the vine-disease appears there in the same form as in Germany, even as regards the season, which is soon after the blossom disappears. At first the young leaf is covered with a whitish matter, chiefly on its lower side; it then a.s.sumes a crumpled appearance, becomes spotted, and at last decays. The young diseased grape likewise becomes covered with a white dust, at first partially, and then entirely, the green skin by degrees a.s.suming a brown colour, the grape increasing at same time in size, until it as large as a currant, or a small cherry, when it becomes black, and perishes together with its diseased stock. In this decayed condition the grapes remain on the vine till late in the autumn. Dr.

Schacht was successful in arresting the progress of the disease in its earlier stages, by was.h.i.+ng all parts of the plant with a solution consisting of one part of glue to sixteen parts of water; an operation which had been likewise performed with good effect in the Royal hothouses of Sans-souci in Prussia. He rubbed the leaves and grapes infected by the fungus with this solution, and, where possible, dipped the grapes in it.

The solution very soon dried, and gave the grapes and leaves a glossy appearance. All that had once been operated upon in this way remained in a healthy condition, and even those affected by the fungus recovered beneath the crust, the operation thus seeming to afford a protection against the fungus. The practice of strewing the plant over with powdered sulphur, which was so much lauded, seems to be of little use. At Teneriffe, Dr.

Schacht found the fungus widely spread, notwithstanding the application of sulphur. Keeping the grape close upon the ground is also recommended as a protection against the disease, having proved very successful in the south.

[Footnote 20: Vide Botanical Gazette of 1852, page 9; of 1853, page 583; and of 1854, page 137;--Fulasne, "Sur le Champignon, qui cause la Maladie de la Vigne."--_Comptes Rendus_, vol. xxvii. 1853;--Dr. Schacht on Madeira, pages 52 to 58.]

[Footnote 21: Memoria primero sobre a mangra e doenza das vinhas nas ilhas da Madeira e Porto Santo, por Joao de Andrade Corvo. Lisbon. 1854.]

[Footnote 22: Madeira und Teneriffa mit ihrer Vegetation, &c. Von Dr. H.

Schacht. Berlin. 1859.]

The pecuniary loss sustained since the first appearance of the malady amounted in the autumn of 1852 to 1,137,990 Spanish piastres, 190,000,[23]

and after having waited in vain a period of five years, for a better state of things, the impoverished landowners entirely gave up cultivating the vine. A traveller who chances now to visit Madeira can scarcely believe that but a few years ago the greater portion of the island was covered with the plant. The cause of its disappearance must, however, not be ascribed entirely to the disease, but partly also to the utter neglect of its culture in favour of that of other products, so much so that of late it was scarcely possible to procure a sufficient quant.i.ty of grapes for invalids to whom they were medicinally prescribed. Moreover, the sugar plantations, which annually increase in extent, have contributed to the destruction of the vines, as the former require irrigation, which causes the roots of the latter to rot in the humid ground.[24]

[Footnote 23: The quant.i.ty of wine produced amounted, in the year 1851, to 10,374 pipes; in the following year (1852), only to 1413-1/2 pipes.]

[Footnote 24: The vine disease seems, however, to have been already prevalent in Madeira at a former period. In an old lease, referring to land or property in the west of the island, there is a clause to the effect that "In the event of the young grape being covered with mildew (_mangra_), the contract would be null and void." In Portugal also, the disease is said to have existed more than fifty years ago, though not to a great extent.]

The present situation of the people of Madeira claims alike the sympathies of the philanthropist and the attention of the political economist. We here behold a population of upwards of a hundred thousand souls, deprived at once of a product, which has been for more than three centuries the princ.i.p.al means of obtaining their living, and by which many an industrious grower made a considerable fortune.

The farmer of Madeira, accustomed for generations to this branch of industry, is now forced to apply his energies to another, on the fortunate selection of which will depend his welfare for the future, or at least for years to come.

Some of the wealthier growers have not entirely abandoned the culture of the vine, and have been a.s.sisted in their endeavours by the Consul of the United States in Funchal, the liberal-minded Mr. Marsh; experiments were made by engrafting and setting fresh and healthy plants, brought from the banks of the Ohio. They proceeded on the principle, that it is most advisable, and likely to be productive of the best success, to obtain young plants only from countries where the disease has never appeared. The choice fell upon the Isabella and Catawba grapes, which are indigenous to the United States; and, whatever may be the final success, the merit of transplanting, at a considerable expense, these two North-American grapes to Madeira, is due to Mr. Marsh. It is, however, a question, whether they will be able to replace those hitherto cultivated, the conditions of climate and soil being so different. As is well known, none of the European vines succeed in North America; and the two indigenous sorts, which are grown in great quant.i.ties on the banks of the Ohio and the Missouri, cannot stand a comparison with any of our finer kinds. The juice of the American grapes is best suited for the manufacture of what is called sparkling hock, which is very like the Austrian Schaumwein.

Some of the wealthier landowners formed an a.s.sociation for the purpose of introducing the culture of cochineal, to supply the place of that of the vine. Several plantations of nopal, or cactus, were laid out, and the first harvest was gathered in 1858. The nopal (_Opuntia cochinillifera_) is the only kind of cactus on which the cochineal insect breeds, and the south of the island, up to an elevation of 500 feet, the only part adapted for its cultivation. An attempt was made to introduce the culture of cochineal in the island by Senor Miguel de Carvalho, as far back as 1836.

But the indifference of the people, and their prejudices against innovation, as well as the limited spirit of enterprise possessed by the native merchants, rendered the attempt, in that instance, abortive. In consequence, however, of the vine disease, the idea of cultivating cochineal was resumed, without considering, as it would appear, the probable results in a mercantile point of view. At the time of our visit there were about thirty acres of land planted with cactus, and the "seed"

of the cochineal insect was expected from the Canary Islands. One cannot but think the notion of subst.i.tuting the cultivation of cochineal for that of the vine was not a lucky one, the large capital required, and the limited market for the article, holding out small chance of success. The entire consumption of cochineal in the whole world amounts to no more than about 30,000 quintals, and towards this quant.i.ty, Guatemala furnishes 15,000, the Canary Islands 6000, Mexico 8000, Java and the Philippine Islands together 1000 quintals. There is little prospect, therefore, that the cochineal culture of Madeira will ever become an important source of gain, or advantageously compensate for the loss of the vine. Few landowners in the island seem to possess sufficient means to withstand the chances and fluctuations to which its culture is subject. To ill.u.s.trate this, it may be mentioned, that during our visit to the highlands of Guatemala, in 1854, when the cochineal harvest was bad, the tercio (150 lbs.) of cochineal cost 140 Spanish piastres. In the following year, when it was unusually productive, the price declined to 80 piastres. A tercio of dried cochineal costs the grower, or nopalero, about 50 piastres; a nopal plantation must lie fallow every third year, being consequently only productive during two years. Have the landowners of Madeira considered all these disadvantages, and will they be able to bear all the drawbacks peculiar to the culture of cochineal? The climate and soil seem to hold out far greater advantages for the cultivation of the sugar-cane, coffee, cotton, and tobacco.

There are few spots on the earth's surface which possess a climate so delightful, and so little subject to extremes as Madeira, the mean annual temperature being 64 degrees Fahrenheit, or only 5 degrees higher than in the most southern parts of Europe. The lowest temperature during five years' observation was 50 degrees, the highest, 74. An invalid residing at Funchal, within his own doors, may always have a temperature not lower than 64, nor higher than 74 degrees. Violent siroccos occur in the course of the summer, which drive the thermometer up to 90 degrees in the shade; these storms, however, occur only twice or thrice a year, and rarely last longer than a couple of days. Dr. Renton, who lived in Madeira from 1825 to 1831, only once during all that time saw the thermometer marking 90 degrees, two hours after sunset. The rainy season, marked by west and south-west winds, begins at the end of September or the beginning of October. In November the weather clears up, and generally keeps fine till the end of December. At this period snow falls on the mountains, and rain at Funchal, accompanied by north-westerly winds, lasting till about the end of February, during which time the weather is wet. The remainder of the year is comparatively dry, the annual fall of rain at Madeira amounting, according to Sir James Clark,[25] to 36 inches, there being in all about 73 wet days,[26] whilst at Rome, for instance, it rains, on an average, during 117 days, though the amount of rain-fall is only 29 inches.

[Footnote 25: On the Sanative Influence of the Climate of Madeira. By Sir James Clark. London. 1841.]

[Footnote 26: The fall of rain, according to Dr. Hoberdon's observations, is, on a seven years' average, 3062 inches per annum. Dr. Mittermayr, from Heidelberg, states, on a three years' average, the rainy days to be 95 per year. Johnston, in his Physical Atlas of Natural Phenomena, states the fall of rain on an average to be 2982 inches, and the number of rainy days 100 per annum, viz. 48 in the winter, 17 in the spring, 4 in the summer, and 31 in the autumn.]

In some respects the winter is warmer at Madeira than the summer, owing to the north-westerly winds and the regular sea-breezes of that season, which keep the atmosphere continually at an even temperature; and hence the island is the favourite resort of consumptive patients during the winter season. England, which seems to possess the very unenviable privilege of furnis.h.i.+ng to the annual mortality in Europe the most numerous contingent of phthisical patients, provides this island likewise with the greatest number of this, the most to be pitied of all cla.s.ses of patients. The climate of Madeira will, however, be of little benefit in advanced and decided cases; although it seems to have a curative effect on young people in the first stage of the malady, as well as in cases where, being hereditary, its presence is merely apprehended.

The number of strangers who annually, during the winter, resort to Madeira for the benefit of their health, amounts to from 400 to 500, and the money thereby circulated in the island reaches the sum of about 30,000. The number of English alone in the year 1855 was 285. But in the winter of 1856-57, the English invalids who came to Madeira scarcely reached 100.

The reason of this was another calamity, the cholera, which suddenly made its appearance in Funchal on the 4th of July, 1856. Until this epoch, the island had been spared this devastating scourge of our time. The epidemic is said to have been introduced by a detachment of Portuguese troops, which shortly before had arrived from Lisbon, where cholera was then raging. The circ.u.mstances under which this epidemic appeared in Madeira leave little doubt of the correctness of this supposition, and seem to confirm the view of Professor Pettenkofer,[27] relative to the importation of the disease by s.h.i.+ps, and its propagation by human excrements, a theory advanced by this learned German physician in his famous work, with as much soundness as sagacity.

The first individuals attacked were four soldiers of the 1st battalion of infantry, and the first who fell a victim to the epidemic was a boatman, who had landed some of the soldiers from the steamer. He was attacked on the 7th of July, at 1 P.M., and nine hours afterwards was a corpse. A few weeks later the scourge had spread over the whole island, raging with fatal severity, in consequence of the poverty, distress, and helplessness of the inhabitants. We cannot forbear mentioning a phenomenon observed at the time of the first appearance of the pestilence by Major Dom Pedro de Azevedo, one of the most distinguished men in Funchal. According to the observations regularly made by him, during two years, with reference to the quant.i.ty of ozone[28] contained in the atmosphere, he found that, as long as the pestilence was raging, it scarcely amounted to 2, whilst, under normal circ.u.mstances, the quant.i.ty, according to the ozonometer of Schonbein, is said to reach 6 to 7.

[Footnote 27: Dr. Pettenkofer's Investigations and Observations on the Spread of Cholera. Munich. 1855.]