The winds begin to shift here in April and September, and the seasons of the year (the dry and the wet) alter with them.  In April the southerly winds make their entrance on this coast, bringing in the wet season, with violent tornados, thunder and lightning, and much rain.  In September the other coasting trade at east-north-east comes in and clears the sky, bringing fair weather.  This, as to the change of wind, is what I have observed, but as to the change of weather accompanying it so exactly here at Bahia this is a particular exception to what I have experienced in all other places of south latitudes that I have been in between the tropics, or those I have heard of; for there the dry season sets in, in April, and the wet about October or November, sooner or later (as I have said that they are, in south latitudes, the reverse of the seasons, or weather, in the same months in north latitudes, whereas on this coast of Brazil the wet season comes in in April at the same time that it doth in north latitudes, and the dry (as I have said here) in September; the rains here not lasting so far in the year as in other places; for in September the weather is usually so fair that in the latter part of that month they begin to cut their sugarcane here, as I was told; for I enquired particularly about the seasons:  though this, as to the season of cutting of cane, which I was now assured to be in September, agrees not very well with that I was formerly told, that in Brazil they cut the cane in July.  And so as to what is said a little lower in the same page, that in managing their cane they are not confined to the seasons, this ought to have been expressed only of planting them; for they never cut them but in the dry season.

But to return to the southerly winds, which came in (as I expected they would) while I was here:  these daunted my ship’s company very much, though I had told them they were to look for them:  but they being ignorant as to what I told them farther, that these were only coasting winds, sweeping the shore to about 40 or 50 leagues in breadth from it, and imagining that they had blown so all the sea over, between America and Africa; and being confirmed in this their opinion by the Portuguese pilots of European ships, with whom several of my officers conversed much, and who were themselves as ignorant that these were only coasting tradewinds (themselves going away before them in their return homewards till they cross the Line, and so having no experience of the breadth of them) being thus possessed with a conceit that we could not sail from hence till September; this made them still the more remiss in their duties, and very listless to the getting things in a readiness for our departure.  However I was the more diligent myself to have the ship scrubbed, and to send my water casks ashore to get them trimmed, my beer being now out.  I went also to the governor to get my water filled; for here being but one watering-place (and