The principal reason of the better lot of the slave, compared to that of the miserable peasant, in the case in point, may perhaps partly be, that the purchase and keep of the one is expensive, while the other costs nothing.
The arrangements in the houses belonging to the proprietors of the fazendas are extremely simple.

The windows are unglazed, and are closed at night with wooden shutters.

In many instances, the outer roof is the common covering of all the rooms, which are merely separated from one another by low partitions, so that you can hear every word your neighbour says, and almost the breathing of the person sleeping next to you.

The furniture is equally simple: a large table, a few straw sofas, and a few chairs.

The wearing apparel is generally hung up against the walls; the linen alone being kept in tin cases, to protect it from the attacks of the ants.
In the country, the children of even the most opulent persons run about frequently without shoes or stockings.