pernatural beings than the daughters of earth.

"These jewels," said the hermit, "were never polished by the hands of
men. They are fire-flies."

"Fire-flies!" exclaimed Martin and Barney simultaneously.

"Yes, they are living fire-flies. The girls very often catch them and
tie them up in little bits of gauze, and put them, as you see, on their
dresses and in their hair. To my mind they seem more beautiful far than
diamonds. Sometimes the Indians, when they travel at night, fix
fire-flies to their feet and so have good lamps to their path."

While Barney was expressing his surprise at this information, in very
racy language, they entered the village; and, mingling with the throng
of holiday-keepers, followed the stream towards the grand square.

The church, which seemed to be a centre of attraction, and was
brilliantly illuminated, was a neat wooden building with two towers.
The streets of the village were broad and straggling; and so luxuriant
was the vegetation, and so lazy the nature of the inhabitants, that it
seemed as if the whole place were overgrown with gigantic weeds. Shrubs
and creeping-plants grew in the neglected gardens, climbed over the
palings, and straggled about the streets. Plants grew on the tops of
the houses, ferns peeped out under the eaves; and, in short, on looking
at it, one had the feeling that ere long the whole place, people and
all, must be smothered in superabundant vegetation!

The houses were all painted white or yellow, with the doors and windows
bright green,--just like grown-up toys; and sounds of revelry, with now
and then the noise of disputation, issued from many of them.

It is impossible to describe minutely the appearance of the motley
crowd, through which our adventurers elbowed their way, gazing curiously
on the strange scene, which seemed to them more like a dream than
reality, after their long sojourn in the solitudes of the forest.
Processions headed by long-robed priests with flambeaux and crucifixes;
young girls in light costumes and long white cotton shawls, selling
sweet cakes of mandioca flour, and bonbons; swarthy Brazilians, some in
white jackets, loose cotton drawers, and straw-hats, others in brown
leather boots and ponchos; Negroes in short white drawers and shifts,
besides many without any clothing above their waists; Indians from the
interior, copper-coloured, and some of them, fine-looking men, having
only a strip of cloth about their loins;--such w