Morality, unfortunately, is not very general in the Brazils; one
cause of this may be traced to the manner in which the children are
first brought up. They are confided entirely to the care of blacks.
Negresses suckle them when they are infants, their nurses are
negresses, their attendants are negresses--and I have often seen
girls of eight or ten years of age taken to school, or any other
place, by young negroes. The sensuality of the blacks is too well
known for us to be surprised, with such a state of things, at the
general and early demoralization. In no other place did I ever
behold so many children with such pale and worn faces as in the
streets of Rio Janeiro. The second cause of immorality here is,
without doubt, the want of religion. The Brazils are thoroughly
Catholic--perhaps there are no countries save Spain and Italy, that
can be compared to them. Almost every day there is some procession,
service, or church-festival; but these are attended merely for the
sake of amusement, while the true religious feeling is entirely
wanting.

We may also ascribe to this deep demoralization and want of religion
the frequent occurrence of murders, committed not for the sake of
robbery or theft, but from motives of revenge and hatred. The
murderer either commits the deed himself, or has it perpetrated by
one of his slaves, who is ready to lend himself for the purpose, in
consideration of a mere trifle. The discovery of the crime need
cause the assassin no anxiety, provided he is rich; for in this
country everything, I was assured, can be arranged or achieved with
money. I saw several men in Rio Janeiro who had, according to
report, committed either themselves, or by the means of others, not
one, but several murders, and yet they not only enjoyed perfect