São Paulo
Hotels. The Sportsman, the Grand, the Majestic, the Albion.
After climbing the mountain side, an hour more over a rolling country brings one to the station called Luz, in the city of São Paulo, said to be the largest and most costly railway station in South America, and one of the finest in the world. The tracks are arranged below the street level, hence there are no grade crossings. This city, the second in Brazil, and with its about 400,000 inhabitants taking third position among the cities of South America, will be a surprise to most travelers. Located on the Tropic of Capricorn, its elevation gives it a healthful climate which in combination with other advantages has produced men awake to the spirit of progress and eager to develop the astonishing resources of this richly endowed State. The city is not only the capital and the seat of State Government, but a notable center of education and industry, and the home of many men of great wealth. It is an ancient city, going back to the middle of the sixteenth century, 1554, its name São Paulo, which had been previously applied to a Jesuit college here, being transferred to the new settlement by the Governor-General of Brazil, Mem de Sá. Though of greater age than any city in our own country, for three centuries it made small progress. In 1872 it was a town of 26,557 people. But within the last forty years it has shown amazing growth, which few of our cities can parallel, an increase of nearly fifteen fold. Although on the edge of the tropics, from its elevation of 3000 feet, it has a climate like that of Southern Europe. From the neighboring mountains it receives an excellent water supply, while its site on rolling ground affords excellent drainage facilities and in places a splendid outlook.
LUZ STATION, SÃO PAULO
MUNICIPAL THEATRE
The hotel accommodations are unfortunately inadequate for the rapid development and business of the city. They are fairly comfortable, though apt to be over-crowded. It is well if possible to engage a room in advance. The Sportsman’s Hotel on the rua São Bento is by some called the best; the Grand, the Albion, and the Majestic are not far distant. The prices are all about the same, from $3.50 to $5.00 a day, American plan. A new hotel is now being constructed, large and modern. The main streets of the business center, naturally the old part of the town, are rather narrow and not all checkerboard fashion as in most of the cities visited. This, no doubt, is due to the fact that the surface is irregular, with hills and valleys such that in one place a viaduct 800 feet long and 50 wide, called the Viaducto Chá, forms a curious street leading from the rua Direita over an old part of the town, once a tea garden, to a hill in the newer section, where the handsome Municipal Theater is situated. This imposing edifice, with streets on all sides, recently erected at a cost of a million dollars, compares with the best in Europe and surpasses any in the United States. The seating capacity is a trifle less than that of the Paris Opera House. The seats for the orchestra are, according to the Wagner system, placed below the general floor level.
The commercial center of the city, not far from the hotels mentioned, is a triangular plaza called Tiradentes. The rua São Bento, the Quinze de Novembro, and the Direita are the principal shopping and business streets. The Largo de Palacio is a square near by, on which is the fine Palace of Congress; the handsome Agricultural Building of the German style; the Treasury, covering 700 square meters, the work of a Brazilian architect, Ramos Azavedo; and the Judiciary Building of the Roman Doric order. Other noteworthy buildings are the Post Office, the Exchange, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Public Library. Some of the finest streets are the Avenidas Tiradentes, and the Rangel Bestana passing the Largo de Concordia with the always interesting Market Place, the ruas da Liberdade, Santo Amaro, da Consolação. The last three lead to the splendid Avenue Paulista, with shaded parkway along the center, the finest boulevard of the capital, on which are many of the handsomest residences. Of course the city has electric lights and cars, and many miles of fine asphalt pavements, though in the outskirts, on account of the city’s rapid growth, there may be a few streets yet unpaved, which should be avoided. Automobiles and fine carriages are numerous, and delightful drives may be taken to see the fine public buildings and the multitude of charming and splendid private residences. From a residential point of view few more attractive places will be found anywhere. The many churches one writer calls magnificent, another says only the modern ones are of artistic merit. The Cathedral, the churches of São Pedro, S. Gonçalo, and Remedios are among the most important.
YPIRANGA MUSEUM
HOTEL OF IMMIGRANTS, SÃO PAULO
Many of the fine buildings of the city are devoted to educational purposes. The city takes especial pride in its Polytechnic School, said to be the best in Brazil, in view of its fine laboratories, the practical character of the studies, and its imposing edifice opened in 1894. Instruction is given in architecture and in civil, industrial, agricultural, mechanical, and electric engineering. Also it has a School of Chemistry, with courses in dentistry and obstetrics. The Government maintains a Law School having a five years’ course. Its library of 50,000 volumes is free to the public. About the same size is the general Public Library. The fine large Normal School, overlooking the Praça da Republica, occupies a whole square near the center of the city. With a library of 12,000 volumes, with laboratories, museums, rooms for manual labor, gymnastics, and military exercises, it is said to be equal in equipment and installation to any in America. A kindergarten, equal to the best in any part of the world, occupies an annex. A Commercial School for training bookkeepers and tradesmen, is included in the educational system. A spacious building east of the Jardim Publico is occupied by the Lyceum of Arts and Trades, where various trades are taught, such as tailoring, carpentry, printing, and many others. This institution, with towards 1000 pupils, is supported by a private association. Especially noteworthy by Americans is the famous Mackenzie College, opened in 1892 on the corner of rua de São João and Ypiranga. Schools of lower grades were established in 1870 by Presbyterians, gradually becoming a complete graded system from kindergarten to high school. On this model the government schools were largely planned and on the floor of the Brazilian Congress the school system was said to have been the greatest factor in their educational development of the last twenty years. The college was the first of American fashion in Brazil. Coeducation is followed, though the girls live elsewhere. The Chamberlain Dormitory was erected in 1901 for the boys. The President of the College is Dr. H. M. Lane, and the institution is affiliated with the University of the State of New York.
One of the most important points of interest in São Paulo, though on the outskirts of the city, at the same time a monument and an institution of learning, is the Ypiranga, a splendid edifice erected in 1885 on the spot where, in 1822, the Independence of Brazil was proclaimed. As it is regarded as one of the finest structures in Brazil, the name of the artist, Caviliere Tomaso G. Bezzi, is given. The building, which fronts on a broad open space, houses a museum with treasures of historical and scientific interest, many curious and valuable relics, and fine paintings by Brazilian artists. The beautiful Park, the Jardim Publico or Jardim da Luz, will naturally be visited by every one. Directly opposite the Luz Station, created by Royal Charter in 1790, it was first opened in 1825. Adorned with a profusion of flowers, trees, a pretty lake, and other decorations, it is a delightful resort for resident and stranger.
Well worthy of a visit is the Hotel of Immigrants, a large establishment fitted up in the most sanitary and appropriate manner. Thousands of families from Europe are here welcomed annually, and entertained free of charge for a short period. A Government agent speaking their language meets the strangers on their arrival in Santos, and escorts them to this Hotel. Later they receive free transportation to wherever in the State they desire to go, and their interests are looked after by a board. This State is the only one with its own especial department of immigration and active propaganda.
High-grade institutions of a sanitary character are numerous in the city, as a Bacteriological, a Sero-therapic, a Pasteur, and various other Institutes. Fine large hospitals for general and special diseases, and for colonists of various nationalities, will be observed in an extended drive.
Coffee. If time permits, the tourist will surely enjoy a visit to a great coffee plantation. There are none in the immediate vicinity of São Paulo, but it is a pleasant journey of 80 miles to the city of Campinas, in the vicinity of which are fazendas galore. This is one of the oldest and most flourishing towns of the State, with a population of about 50,000, modern and prosperous, well paved and lighted, with good schools and a fine large Cathedral.
The State of São Paulo now furnishes one-fourth of the world’s coffee supply and this section is one of the largest producing districts in Brazil. Near Campinas, the great fazenda of Baron Geraldo de Rezende will charm the favored visitor. A magnificent house and gardens, with a splendid collection of rare orchids and 800 varieties of roses, are a not unnatural possession of the owner of half a million coffee trees. A much vaster estate but too remote for many travelers to inspect is that of the coffee king of the world, Col. Francisco Schmidt. Coming as a colonist to this state he has achieved a success of which one might well be proud. Of the 700,000,000 trees in the State, Col. Schmidt owns more than one per cent, 7½ million. On the various plantations live 8000 people, contented and prosperous; a school is provided for each village. The soil and climate of São Paulo are so well adapted to this industry that the crop is several times as heavy to the acre as in most other coffee growing countries. A family of three or four persons can take care of 10,000 trees and by cultivating other agricultural products at the same time could live on the proceeds.
COFFEE FAZENDA
COFFEE TREE
In 1817 the first shipment of coffee was made from Brazil, about 6000 bags; in 1906, 13 million bags were exported, 10 million being the average. The consumption of coffee in recent years has wonderfully increased. Though generally considered less injurious than tea, both should be utterly tabooed to children and young people. To persons of mature years who have not taken it earlier to their injury, its moderate use may not be harmful, in some cases may even be beneficial. In humid climates it seems to be used freely with less ill effects than in a dry and bracing air, where habitual stimulant of any sort may be undesirable.
Although famed for its coffee, São Paulo can produce almost anything else: rice, sugar, cotton, tobacco, tea, cocoa, wheat, corn, sweet potatoes, other vegetables, and fodder plants are among its products. Of these, the marmallade de cavallo, is called the most nutritious of fodder plants known.
From São Paulo to Rio the journey may be made by land or sea. If going by rail, one may be advised to take the night train, on the ground that there is nothing to see, that it will be dusty, and that the ride of 12 hours is a long and fatiguing day’s journey; the distance is about 310 miles. Also a day is thus gained to spend either at São Paulo or Rio. On the other hand, some persons who have made the trip by daylight speak of it with enthusiasm. In the early morning one passes on gentle slopes fields of glossy green coffee trees, groves of oranges, jungles of palms and bananas, with enormous clumps of feathery bamboo, and little towns on the hillsides. At the stations are women selling fruit, and negro boys with trays of tiny cups of black coffee, hot and sweetened. After a while an alluring stream is passed, with pleasant towns. Midday is hot and dusty. Farther on are reddish grassy slopes and in climbing the wooded ridge many cattle may be visible. Higher ascends the train, the valleys are blue below: delightful scenes are on every hand, mountains abrupt and fantastic appear. Yet ever there is soft rich verdure; at last comes swift descent towards a panorama of wonderful loveliness. At dusk the train rolls into Rio, where, says the Involuntary Chaperone, “All the dreams come true.”
CHAPTER XXIX
RIO DE JANEIRO—BAY AND CITY
Nearly all tourists, whether from the north or south, will arrive at Rio by water. Leaving Santos in the late afternoon, on a fairly swift steamer, one is liable, unless an early riser, to find the ship at anchor in the harbor when he comes on deck in the morning. But if never at other times eager to see the sun rise, or impatient to behold beauties which are permanent in character, let every one who has the smallest appreciation of glorious scenery be awake to enjoy the entrance into the harbor of Rio, which to many will be the culminating joy of the whole delightful journey. With the good fortune to approach at daybreak under propitious skies this magnificent harbor, unrivaled upon the globe, one will rejoice in a vision of splendor surpassing his highest conceptions of beauty, forever to be treasured among his choicest memories. One who is loath to lose his early morning nap may fancy that to view the spectacle towards sunset as one sails away homeward will answer just as well; but such is not the case. It is the morning light on the triple range of hills behind the city, which lies west of the entrance to the bay, that enhances the ever charming scene to a spectacle of unparalleled loveliness.
From a distance, if heaven send no veil of mist, will be seen on the landward side a row of incomparable titans guarding the city; islands also appear: on the right, a large flat rock, Ilha Raza, bears a lighthouse with double electric lights, red and blue, and if one is coming from the north, the Itaypu Point is rounded with the pretty little Father and Mother Islands near; approaching from Santos these appear farther away at the right. The lofty hills or mountains at the left attract the most attention. In the distant blue or purple, a gray bald head called Gavea is noticeable, a famous landmark of the harbor, in the profile of which some fancy a resemblance to Washington. While still outside the harbor we see other summits, the less known and less sharp peak of Andarahy, more distant, Tijuca and the Organ Mts., and nearer, at the right of Gavea, the world famed Corcovado Needle, with the city at its foot, or perhaps we should say head, since the point of the needle, the smaller end, is quite obviously above. Whatever else in Rio be neglected, the Corcovado must be known and visited. Other cities have boulevards, if less beautiful, fine buildings and parks; but there is one Corcovado in all the world. Still approaching the narrow harbor entrance we have glimpses of the city close to the portal, and notice that its suburbs even stretch to the ocean and along splendid beaches quite to the foot of Gavea; while on the opposite shore also are many dwellings. Long before, we have admired the celebrated Pão do Assucar (loaf of sugar), a striking and enormous conical rock over 1300 feet high, standing forth boldly into the channel entrance, which it guards upon the left, while opposite on the right a rough rock promontory, together with the Assucar, forms a splendid gateway.
Not merely rock protection has Rio but in these days of jealous strife she must needs possess grim fortresses also; on the right Imbuhy and Santa Cruz, on the left São João and Mallet. The multitude of peaks and heights around the city a Brazilian writer speaks of as “a lively guard produced by the contortions of a cataclysm.” To him everything seems dancing. In truth when the heavenly tints of sunrise are added to the wondrous shapes and hues of ordinary day, the picture has an unearthly beauty which no tongue or pen can describe.
As we pass the Assucar close at hand, we perceive that while the other rock faces are smooth, bare, and practically perpendicular, this side is rough and shows a bit of green, no doubt the slope where once the ascent was made, so the story goes, by a hardy Englishman who planted on the summit a British flag. A great hue and cry followed this daring act. A reward was offered to any one who would fetch the banner down. The bribe was vain, till at length the culprit, detected, himself removed the offending colors from the staff which long remained above.
Just beyond the Assucar, on the curving shore, we see a part of the fashionable residence district. On the edge of the first deep bay, a large building devoted to the Ministry of Agriculture may be distinguished, and close by, the Benj. Constant Institute and the National Hospital for the Insane. On the eastern shore of the bay is Jurujuba, the hospital for epidemic diseases, the pretty beach of Icarahy, then Nictheroy, a pleasant town, capital of the State of Rio; for the City of Rio de Janeiro is a Federated Capital like Washington.
This wonderful bay, opening towards the south, contains an extraordinary number of fascinating little ones of graceful outline, with which acquaintance should be made later. Attention is now directed to the wooded slopes and rock cliffs of the serried peaks and mountain ranges, to the smiling city, to the blue waters thickly sprinkled with ships, and dotted with islands. The bay has the name Guanabara, as well as the more familiar one, Rio de Janeiro; the former an Indian name, arm of the sea, now more frequently applied to the inner and larger portion of the gulf; the latter given by mistake when it was first visited January 1, 1502, by Gonzalo Coelho, who without sufficient exploration, supposing it to be the estuary of a great river, called it Rio de Janeiro, River of January. From this the people later were called Fluminenses or River Folk.
In 1531 the French took possession of the bay, to be driven out soon after by Alfonso de Sousa who erected a small fort. The French returning in 1555 under the command of Villegaignon effected an entrance to the bay, fortified an island and established a colony largely of Huguenots who maintained very friendly relations with the Indians; but in 1560, Mem de Sá, the Governor-General of Brazil in Pernambuco, which was earlier settled, established a fort on the peninsula in front of the Sugar Loaf, São João, and captured the island stronghold of the French, who, retreating to the mainland, there remained with the support of the Indians. In 1565 Estacio de Sá, nephew of Mem, arrived with reinforcements. After much fighting, concluded by a fierce battle between the Morros (hills) da Gloria and da Viuva, when the French and Indians were routed, the site of Rio fell into the possession of the Portuguese. On the death of Estacio from a wound received in the last battle, Mem de Sá founded a city which he called São Sebastião. This he left in charge of his nephew Correia de Sá on the Morro do Castello.
Once more, in 1710, the French returned. They entered the town, but in the streets were assaulted so fiercely that they capitulated. After their commander Du Clerc had been mysteriously assassinated, another French fleet arriving defeated the Portuguese; but after taking possession of the city later withdrew on receiving a heavy indemnity.
In 1762 or ’63 Rio was made the Capital of Brazil and the residence of the Viceroy in the place of Bahia; partly through the efforts of Gomes Freire de Andrade, Count of Bobadella. During his administration a notable work was achieved, the construction of the great aqueduct of Santa Theresa, by which water was brought from the Carioca River to the center of the city. It crossed a part of the town on a double archway, which now bears a tramway. Other improvements followed, including the draining of the great marshes, in the section near the present Mangue Canal. By the close of the eighteenth century Rio was not only the chief city of Brazil but the largest and most important of South America. Not so favorably located as to back country as some others, especially São Paulo, its fine harbor gave it commercial importance, greatly increased by the discovery of gold and precious stones in the State of Minas, as by this port most of the adventurers entered, thence following a long Indian trail.
When the Royal family arrived from Portugal in 1808 the city, the largest in South America, had forty-six streets, nineteen open squares, many churches, and the usual public buildings. Its growth, though continuous, has been hampered until the last decade by the unhealthfulness of the city, especially the scourge of yellow fever, also by wars, extravagance, and other troubles. With the reorganization of the finances of the country and the establishing of its credit during the Presidency of Dr. Campos Salles 1898-1902, the regeneration of the city under the later Presidents was made possible and the expenditure of $100,000,000 for improvements in the Federal District within the last ten years. On the most charming site imaginable a new and splendid city has been created which, still in the process of transformation, soon will even better compare with its uniquely beautiful surroundings.
To one entering the bay, which is nearly 100 miles in circumference, its great size is not apparent, as the large inner sea is cut off by points and islands in such a way that the shape and magnitude of the entire gulf is undisclosed. Its configuration as a whole is remarkably like that of the country, roughly triangular with the apex at the south. Among the numerous islands, three close to the shore may be particularly noticed: the Island Cobras with a fort where political prisoners have been confined; the Fiscal Island upon which is a pretty Gothic structure, headquarters of the Custom House inspectors, hence the name; and Villegaignon, named for its first settler, also bearing a fortress.
Your ship may sail past the greater part of the city to the new and splendid docks where you may step ashore at your ease, or pause at a common anchorage in front of the main business section of the city, where you have the advantage of landing at the Caes dos Mineiros close to the Custom House. All about are ships of every size and as usual of almost every nationality except our own. Once indeed I saw here the Stars and Stripes, floating above the deck of a schooner from Maine, on its annual visit to bring ice and apples from that cooler clime. Yachts and launches, pretty and plain, gasoline and rowboats flit about, among ships of larger size, at anchor or sailing, two of these probably the great Brazilian warships, the Minas, and São Paulo, a few years ago the scene of serious unpleasantness due to a marine insurrection.
The city, stretching for miles along the curving shore, presents a most attractive sight. With corresponding depth its size would be immense, but its width is barred, as effectively as is New York’s by its two rivers, by the high steep range which leaves small space between its foot and the sea; indeed, it thrusts forward several sharp projections quite into the water, and chains of modest hills over which the dwellings climb. Thus the city is subdivided into many sections, to which one may proceed only in a roundabout manner. Straggling in a charming way over the level patches of ground and part way up the lower slopes of some parts of the lofty rearward rampart, it affords room for a population now practically a million, with plenty of space for more. The second city in the Southern Hemisphere, the fifth in all America, though older than any in the United States, its modern growth and development have been brief and rapid.
But without more ado we must hasten ashore and have a closer look at the beauties spread before us. If at the docks, a few steps out, through the fine warehouses or around them, bring one to a broad splendid avenue where passing cars will in twenty minutes bear its occupants to the center of the city, and to the Alfandega or Custom House. Also carriages may be in waiting, a trifle dearer than in Buenos Aires, but with modest fees as compared with New York. From the anchorage, one must take a boat to the steps of the Caes dos Mineiros, where men and boys wait to conduct you to the Alfandega for the examination of baggage. This may be a tedious operation which a judicious tip is liable to accelerate. As the office is closed from 11 to 1, it is important to be early on shore, else you may be compelled to return in the afternoon for your heavy baggage, or even to wait until the next day. Officials and underlings are usually polite, but here often slow.