Life in Brazil; or, A journal of a visit to the land of the cocoa and the palm

A writer on hydraulics and physics, Ewbank travelled to Brazil in 1846 to visit his brother, Joseph. ‘Ewbank visited only Rio de Janeiro, and being an excellent observer, he analysed “carioca” life with extraordinary perspicacity. Nothing escaped his attention and strong criticism. The religious life of the common people shocked him deeply. Of greater present day value are the observations he wrote on the popular arts, tools employed, national dishes, illnesses, the picturesque aspect of manners and customs, etc.; he reports all with asperity. The illustrations give very faithful renderings of the picturesque aspects of Brazilian life’ (Borba de Moraes). Borba de Moraes p. 296; Sabin 23313.