COMMERCE OF BRAZIL.
(STATISTICS LATELY ISSUED SHOW THE FOLLOWING COMPARATIVE RESULTS IN ROUND NUMBERS.)
1839 and 1844.—Average annual value of imports and exports, 13 millions sterling.
1845 and 1849.—Average annual value was 16 millions sterling, or an increase of 3 millions.
In this latter period the average yearly number of vessels employed was
| 10,694; | tonnage, | 1,937,944; | ||
| of which | 5,464 | ” | 953,654 | inw. |
| 5,230 | ” | 914,290 | outw. | |
| vessels, | 10,694 | tons, | 1,937,944 |
showing an average increase over the former period of 1839 to 1844 of
| vessels, | 34 | per cent. |
| tonnage, | 42 | ” |
Of the above figures, the imports averaged in value,
| 49 | per cent, | |
| exports, | 51 | ” |
| 100 |
During the same period, the proportions of foreign and coasting trade were:
| foreign imports and exports, | 76 | per cent. |
| coasting ” ” | 24 | ” |
| 100 |
Of the aforesaid total imports and exports,
| Great Britain figures for | 36 | per cent. |
| United States ” | 16 | ” |
| other parts of the world | 58 | ” |
| 100 |
And in the total value of imports,
| Great Britain | figures for | 50 | per cent. |
| France | ” | 10 | ” |
| United States | ” | 11 | ” |
| other parts | ” | 29 | ” |
| 100 |
Ditto in exports:
| Great Britain | ” | 24 | ” |
| United States | ” | 23 | ” |
| other parts | ” | 53 | ” |
| 100 |
The percentage of this commerce divided amongst the ports of Brazil, is as follows:
| Rio Janeiro, | 53 | per cent. |
| Bahia, | 17 | ” |
| Pernambuco, | 13 | ” |
| Other ports, | 17 | ” |
| 100 |
The value of imports and exports bearing about a relative proportion to these figures.
COFFEE, SUGAR, AND HIDES, EXPORTED FROM RIO JANEIRO, IN 1847, 1848, 1849, 1850, 1851, 1852, 1853.
The total number of bags and barrels of coffee exported from Rio Janeiro in 1847 was 1,650,300; in 1848, 1,706,544; in 1849, 1,451,715; in 1850, 1,392,361; in 1851, 1,993,255; in 1852, 1,899,861; and in 1853, 1,657,520. The total number of cases of sugar was, in 1847, 3,136; in 1848, 2,371; in 1849, 3,212; in 1850, 6,465; in 1851, 4,752; in 1852, 9,012; in 1853, 2,667. The total number of hides imported in 1847 amounted to 268,492; in 1848 to 348,947; in 1849 to 299,262; in 1850 to 195,706; in 1851 to 173,746; in 1852 to 210,223; and in 1853 to 75,852. In 1853 were also exported 21,808 boxes and barrels of coffee; 17,556 bags of sugar; 5,049 half-tanned hides; 222,577 ox and cow-horns; 1,050 pipes of rum; 25,825 rolls of tobacco; 9,935 bags of rice; 32,610 planks of jacaranda; 7,085 barrels of tapioca; and 71,680 lbs. of ipecacuanha. The shipments of coffee to the United States in 1853 were 853,023 bags against 960,850 in 1852, 996,552 in 1851, 638,801 in 1850, 634,565 in 1849, 806,907 in 1848, 729,742 in 1847, 727,263 in 1846, 551,276 in 1845, 534,689 in 1844, 543,239 in 1843, 357,278 in 1842, 427,096 in 1841, 296,705 in 1840, 344,833 in 1839, 265,656 in 1838, 127,032 in 1837, 313,934 in 1836, 264,721 in 1835, 171,737 in 1834, and 236,708 in 1833. These statements are made up from the vessels’ manifests, excepting coffee, which, from the beginning of 1834, is from the daily shipments at the Consulado. The yearly exportation of coffee was, in 1820, 97,500 bags; in 1821, 105,386; in 1822, 152,048; in 1823, 185,000; in 1824, 224,000; in 1825, 183,136; in 1826, 260,000; in 1827, 350,900; in 1828, 369,117; in 1829, 375,107; in 1830, 391,785; in 1831, 448,249; in 1832, 478,950; in 1833, 561,692; in 1834, 560,759; in 1835, 647,438; in 1836, 715,893; in 1837, 657,005; in 1838, 765,696; in 1839, 889,324; in 1840, 1,068,418; in 1841, 1,028,368; in 1842, 1,174,659; in 1843, 1,183,646; in 1844, 1,269,381; in 1845, 1,187,591; and in 1846, 1,522,434 bags.
BRITISH PRODUCE AND MANUFACTURES EXPORTED FROM THE UNITED KINGDOM TO BRAZIL, IN THE YEARS 1849, 1850, 1851, AND 1852.
| 1849. £ | 1850. £ | 1851. £ | 1852. £ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alkali | 8,369 | 10,591 | 13,213 | 11,752 |
| Apothecary wares | 6,994 | 8,858 | 7,272 | 10,667 |
| Apparel and slops | 21,189 | 28,475 | 45,891 | 49,290 |
| Arms and ammunition | 27,747 | 39,707 | 37,786 | 23,441 |
| Bacon and hams | 950 | 865 | 7,756 | 869 |
| Beef and pork | 402 | 70 | 353 | 12 |
| Beer and ale | 14,770 | 17,155 | 25,407 | 14,971 |
| Blacking | 1,889 | 1,510 | 1,532 | 966 |
| Books | 3,625 | 996 | 750 | 538 |
| Brass and copper manufactures | 32,596 | 36,324 | 45,346 | 47,212 |
| Butter | 82,889 | 65,279 | 88,857 | 96,861 |
| Cabinet and upholstery wares | 482 | 648 | 799 | 876 |
| Carriages | 821 | 386 | 300 | 388 |
| Coals, cinders, and culm | 23,036 | 20,320 | 26,118 | 24,248 |
| Cordage | 3,972 | 1,294 | 1,428 | 424 |
| Cotton manufactures | 1,516,137 | 1,546,570 | 2,016,086 | 1,891,374 |
| Cotton yarn | 2,025 | 1,041 | 173 | 191 |
| Earthenware | 35,278 | 41,268 | 54,588 | 90,359 |
| Glass | 10,432 | 11,277 | 15,320 | 10,866 |
| Hardware and cutlery | 80,389 | 80,973 | 108,406 | 104,129 |
| Hats | 463 | 325 | 1,326 | 1,376 |
| Iron and steel | 94,792 | 78,105 | 84,488 | 109,876 |
| Lead and shot | 11,457 | 18,967 | 11,793 | 11,703 |
| Leather | 10,016 | 11,002 | 11,716 | 18,332 |
| Linen manufactures | 131,412 | 157,054 | 295,925 | 250,243 |
| Machinery and mill-work | 14,817 | 29,001 | 23,715 | 18,816 |
| Musical instruments | 6,612 | 5,776 | 12,725 | 11,018 |
| Oil, linseed, rapeseed, and hempseed | 10,085 | 5,906 | 10,810 | 12,091 |
| Painters’ colours | 13,230 | 8,249 | 7,776 | 9,604 |
| Plate, jewellery, and watches | 8,948 | 7,966 | 15,115 | 22,016 |
| Saddlery and harness | 2,566 | 3,133 | 4,188 | 7,333 |
| Saltpetre | 9,518 | 5,446 | 5,860 | 4,326 |
| Silk manufactures | 14,554 | 14,295 | 23,624 | 24,709 |
| Soap and candles | 3,429 | 5,648 | 2,404 | 3,115 |
| Stationery | 3,532 | 4,248 | 7,085 | 6,293 |
| Tin and pewter | 16,049 | 12,552 | 21,084 | 12,310 |
| Umbrellas and parasols | 8,507 | 7,754 | 5,290 | 8,184 |
| Woollen manufactures | 180,599 | 223,002 | 446,062 | 511,690 |
| Miscellaneous | 30,137 | 33,001 | 37,323 | 41,915 |
| Total | 2,444,715 | 2,544,837 | 3,518,684 | 3,464,394 |
RIO STATISTICS.—EXTRACTED FROM RIO MERCANTILE JOURNAL, JANUARY, 1854.
IMPORT.
| Shipping, 1852.— | 793 | vessels | 198,053 | tons | } Conveying cargo. |
| ” 1853.— | 750 | ” | 186,984 | ” |
Besides a large number of vessels calling in, &c.
EXPORT.
| Shipping, 1852.— | 1173 | vessels | 448,851 | tons. |
| ” 1853.— | 1004 | ” | 387,470 | ” |
Of which 560 vessels with produce, 68 with foreign merchandise, and 139 with their inward cargoes; 15 in ballast had foreign destinations, 15 with their inward cargoes, 2 in port laden with produce, and 205 in ballast, proceeded to other parts of the empire.
COASTING TRADE FOR 1853.
| Import (exclusive of 341 steamboats) | 2094 | vessels | 207,872 | tons |
| Export (exclusive of 330 ditto) | 2036 | ” | 202,994 | ” |
JOINT-STOCK COMPANIES.
The amount of paid-up capital is £2,300,000 sterling.
CUSTOMS REVENUE FOR 1853.
12,479,437 reis, or about a million and a half sterling. The revenue in 1852 exceeded that of 1853 by about £250,000, owing to discouragements of trade by disputes amongst sellers and buyers; and the total revenue of 1852 exceeded that of 1847 and 1848 about 50 per cent. The Consulado revenue for 1853 was 2,208,059 reis, or about £250,000 sterling.
RETURN OF TRADE BETWEEN LIVERPOOL AND BRAZIL FOR THE YEAR 1853.
| Ports. | Number of Vessels. | Tonnage. |
|---|---|---|
| Pará | 11 | 2,058 |
| Maranham | 17 | 5,260 |
| Pernambuco | 40 | 10,506 |
| Bahia | 32 | 10,320 |
| Rio Janeiro | 84 | 25,502 |
| 184 | 53,646 |
QUANTITIES OF THE PRINCIPAL ARTICLES IMPORTED INTO THE UNITED KINGDOM FROM BRAZIL IN THE SAME YEARS.
| 1849. | 1850. | 1851. | 1852. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Annatto | cwts. | 462 | 648 | 596 | 1,188 |
| Capivi | ” | 363 | 344 | 574 | 955 |
| Cocoa | lbs. | 1,391,162 | 1,204,572 | 1,949,666 | 2,244,713 |
| Coffee | ” | 6,376,651 | 1,779,799 | 7,888,638 | 3,053,202 |
| Hides | cwts. | 207,199 | 157,003 | 150,585 | 94,733 |
| Horns | ” | 8,288 | 5,247 | 6,843 | 2,856 |
| India rubber | ” | 4,605 | 5,967 | 11,053 | 12,813 |
| Isinglass | ” | 515 | 610 | 547 | 352 |
| Ipecacuanha | lbs. | 5,126 | 1,638 | 13,554 | 14,703 |
| Rum | gallons | 1,139 | 33,952 | 20,712 | 1 |
| Sarsaparilla | lbs. | 6,220 | 12,247 | 17,810 | 16,517 |
| Sugar | cwts. | 561,660 | 362,686 | 720,424 | 289,999 |
| Tallow | ” | 23,925 | 4,559 | 5,246 | —— |
| Tapioca | ” | 6,960 | 10,989 | 11,442 | 6,288 |
| Wood, Brazil | tons | 329 | 12 | 57 | 135 |
| —— Fustic | ” | 589 | 669 | 438 | 382 |
| —— Rosewood | ” | 3,649 | 3,022 | 3,200 | 3,676 |
| —— Zebra | ” | 85 | 60 | 89 | 187 |
| Wool, cotton | lbs. | 30,738,133 | 30,299,982 | 19,339,104 | 26,506,144 |
BRAZIL COFFEE IMPORTED INTO THE UNITED STATES FOR THE YEAR 1853.
| Bags. | |
|---|---|
| New York | 225,985 |
| Boston | 3,293 |
| Philadelphia | 123,007 |
| Baltimore | 199,314 |
| New Orleans | 311,350 |
| Total | 862,949 |
Each bag consists of 5 arrobas, or 160lbs. English weight each, the gross value being upwards of £2,000,000.
Since the foregoing data were published, they have been summarised and annotated by a very competent authority in London, and the results issued for private circulation among Anglo Brazilians. The document so published presents, in a very succinct and comprehensive form, the financial status of the empire; and a further condensation of it, to suit these pages, cannot but be acceptable to such readers as the previous chevaux de frize of figures may repel from the perusal of what is really most interesting fiscal and instructive political facts.
The National Debt of Brazil dates from 1824, when the imperial government contracted a loan of 1,000,000l., 5 per cents, at the price of 75, in order to defray the expenses of the war of independence. In the following year, the government contracted a second loan of 2,000,000l., also 5 per cents, at the price of 85, with the further advantage of a year’s dividend, to provide for the expenses attendant on the suppression of the revolt in the northern provinces; and in consideration of the recognition of Brazilian independence by Portugal, they undertook the liability of the loan of 1,500,000l. 5 per cents., which the mother country had contracted at 87 in 1823. The expenditure was seriously increased by the subsequent war with Buenos Ayres, and scarcely was this brought to a conclusion when the government was led into fresh liabilities by the assistance which Dom Pedro I. gave the constitutional party in Portugal, on the usurpation of the crown of that country by his brother, Dom Miguel. In 1829, two 5 per cent. loans, 392,584l., were contracted at 54; and the Regency, ten years later, were compelled to contract another 5 per cent. loan of 312,512l. at 78, in order to meet the deficit in the revenue, which then embarrassed the government. During the usurpations of Dom Miguel, the payment of the dividends on the Portuguese loan of 1823 was suspended; but as soon as the authority of Donna Maria was established, her government provided for the arrears, and in 1842 a financial treaty was concluded between Brazil and Portugal, under which the former delivered to the Portuguese agents stock to the amount of 732,600l., which at 85, the price at which it was issued, was equal to 622,702l., the sum agreed to be paid by Brazil, in liquidation of this and all other claims.
The National Debt of Brazil, therefore, amounted in 1853 to 6,999,200l., the interest on which, throughout all the difficulties and embarrassments of the government, has been punctually paid, though, at times, the measures necessary to provide for its payment have been severely felt by the people. The several loans specified were contracted on the terms of a sinking fund, which were fully carried out until 1828, when the increased expenditure compelled the government to put a period to its operations. But as soon as the expiration of the commercial treaty with England in 1844 allowed the government of Dom Pedro II. to revise the tariff of customs duties, and by that means to obviate the pressure of a deficiency in the revenue, the provisions of the sinking fund were revived. The Portuguese loan was thus reduced to 954,250l., and in 1852 it was paid off by a new 4½ per cent. loan of that amount, contracted at 95. Reductions of the other loans have been effected in the same way, and the foreign debt of Brazil now stands at only 5,900,000l. Further reductions are being gradually effected, and if the provisions of the Sinking Fund continue to be carried out, as doubtless they will be, the time cannot be far distant when the foreign debt of the empire will be entirely liquidated.
Between 1836 and 1840 the deficiency in the revenue increased from 476,825,000 reis to 3,639,608,000 reis, and in consequence of the expenditure consequent on the rebellion in the province of Rio Grande do Sul, this deficiency continued to increase until 1844, in which year it amounted to 9,484,520,000. This deficit did not entirely disappear during the next three or four years, but in 1849-50 there was a surplus of 3,035,006,000 reis (341,438l.), in 1850-1 of 3,552,404,000 reis (399,645l.), in 1851-2 of 4,010,220,000 reis (451,149l.), in 1852-3 of 3,970,202,000 reis (446,647l.), and in 1853-4 of 3,528,934,000 reis (397,005l.). Since 1836 the revenue has increased from 13,024,749,000 reis to 35,290,691,000 reis, at which sum it may reasonably be estimated for some years. The expenditure has increased from 13,501,574,000 reis to 30,471,066,000, which increase has not only been at a slower rate than that of the receipts, but exhibits a progression from a deficiency to a surplus, and since 1844 it may be taken as representing an improvement in the administration, the growth of an efficient steam navy, and those numerous public works which have been referred to in preceding pages. The surplus revenue of the last five years has been the natural result of the fiscal reforms of 1844, which have extended commerce and promoted internal prosperity, at the same time that their success has paved the way for further and more extensive reforms in the same direction.
These accounts refer only to the imperial revenue, in addition to which each of the twenty provinces into which the empire is divided has its separate revenue, raised by its Provincial Assembly, and expended on local objects, the aggregate amount of which is about one-third that of the imperial revenue. This system causes the demands on the imperial treasury to be much fewer than in countries where the administration is centralised, and the entire expenditure is defrayed from the general revenue. The entire debt of Brazil does not much exceed three years’ revenue, and while the latter is yearly increasing, the former exhibits an annual diminution. This proportion between income and liabilities is such as few states can exhibit, and considering the almost illimitable resources of the country, and the commercial prosperity that is fast growing out of its adoption of a Free Trade policy, a debt of 12,362,290l. cannot be deemed a serious or burdensome charge. Indeed, when we look at the progress which has been made towards the diminution of the debt, in years when the facilities of the government for meeting its liabilities were much less than at present, there can be no doubt that it will in the course of a few more years be extinguished altogether, and thus enable the government to carry out farther reductions, and promote many schemes of improvement.
In concluding this summary of the commercial and social status of Brazil, I venture, before making any observations on the Plate, to solicit the attention of the reader to some very admirable remarks which appeared in an influential morning journal a few weeks ago, with the signature of ‘Braziliensis,’ explanatory of the precise relationship of the empire to the Oriental del Uruguay and to the Argentine states generally. A knowledge of this relationship is essential to an appreciation of what is called, often erroneously, the ‘River Plate Question;’ and, with the aid of the writer referred to, whose remarks I am about to epitomise, and a few explanatory addenda incorporated with them, the matter may be rendered transparent in a brief compass. First, as to the Uruguay, touching which republic Brazil is assumed by ill-informed politicians in England to have sinister designs. Now, Brazil, of all countries, has most interest in the peace and progress of Uruguay as an independent state. But it must not be overlooked that Brazil is a Platine state, just as much as Uruguay, as the Argentine Confederation, as Bolivia, or Paraguay. It is in Brazilian territories that the River Paraguay has its main source, that the River Uruguay rises, that the Parana begins to flow, and that these (with their tributaries) form the River Plate. All three are navigable in Brazil; each forms the natural access to great and rich provinces of that empire, which has, therefore, a deep interest in the free navigation of the upper waters of the Plate; and that interest is the key to her policy on the southern side of the empire. She has a plethora of land. What she wants is an increase to her free population: to European immigration all parties are directing earnest attention. Civilians, not soldiers of fortune, govern Brazil. The Emperor is a civilian; his ministers are civilians: there is nothing aggressive or ambitious in Brazilian policy. Law, order, commerce, and peace—not the sword—prevail. The army is small, not exceeding 65,000 men, of which the regular troops number 22,540 officers and privates (including 3,127 cavalry, and 3,582 artillery); the remainder are militia, and the whole are strictly obedient to the civil power. Like England, Brazil cultivates a naval force, and that never sways the destinies of the state in any country.
To save itself from the unlicensed soldiery of the Spanish provinces—from the savage Artigas—Monte Video sought and found admission into the Brazilian empire, and became its Cis-Platine province. The jealousies of the Spanish and Portuguese races (and Buenos Ayrean intrigues) produced revolt, and led to war between Brazil and Buenos Ayres for possession of the Banda. But this war was most unpopular in Brazil. Her native population did not regard the territory as worth fighting for, and the obstinacy of Dom Pedro I., in persevering against public opinion, was one cause of his downfall. Hostilities terminated by the creation of the independent Republic of Uruguay. But Lord Ponsonby’s treaty, by which it was accomplished, was one of preliminaries only. So little, however, did Brazil then care to intrigue in Uruguay, that, notwithstanding her material interests suffered from the want of definite arrangements, she was content, so long as Uruguay preserved the shadow of independence, to go on with provisional relations only. But Rosas first attacked and then subdued the independence of Uruguay; and then Uruguay became a source of danger, for it adjoins Rio Grande do Sul, in which serious disturbances had with difficulty been suppressed. These Rosas tried to revive. Its boundaries, too, were unsettled; and Oribe carried his incursions into Brazilian territories, levied enormous contributions on Brazilian subjects, and carried off 800,000 head of cattle. Nor was this all: the navigation of the Uruguay, Parana, and Paraguay was closed to Brazil, and commerce down the Plate, Brazil was allowed to have none. Still, whilst there was a chance that British and French intervention would remedy this state of things, she waited patiently. When those powers not only retired, but wholly failed, Rosas openly assumed the protectorate of Uruguay, and required Brazil to submit to the depredations of Oribe, his lieutenant. Brazil expelled the power of Rosas from Uruguay, then drove him from Buenos Ayres, but at once withdrew within its own frontiers, and, in the succeeding troubles, refused to interfere further than to give good and the same advice to all. Brazil had then the opportunity of annexing the Oriental State, and of again advancing her frontier to the Plate. In fixing the boundary line she has gained no territory; her pecuniary claims she has postponed until those of other countries are discharged; she has insisted on the free navigation of the rivers, not for herself only, but for all the countries they water; and when the government of Monte Video was lately oppressed by poverty, she consented to lend it 60,000 dols. a month, in order that it might preserve its independence. Brazil was no party to the recent change of presidents at Monte Video; and just as Brazil supported Giro himself when in power, as the head of the government de facto, so, in the interests of peace and independence, she now lends moral support to the present government.[58] She takes no part against Urquiza; she is neither his partisan nor that of Buenos Ayres in Argentine disputes; she has, indeed, tried to throw oil on their troubled waters; but, as that was not to be done, like England and France, Brazil now waits for their natural solution. She is the only South American state with a stable government, with a large and increasing commerce, with a growing surplus, with an augmenting population. She has secured the esteem of England by at last abandoning the slave trade, and she will not risk either her prosperity or her reputation by ambitious designs on Uruguay. [See chapter on the River Plate.] We have seen that she is most favourable to the free navigation of those rivers on her southern and eastern frontier, whose opening has so long been the desideratum of European and South American commerce; and we shall see presently that she is most wisely and energetically coöperating with an affluent company, composed of English, Brazilian, and Portuguese capitalists, for bringing the blessings of steam to bear upon the Amazon, the results of which proceeding it is entirely impossible to exaggerate.
Ten years ago the finances of Brazil were in very great embarrassment. Under all circumstances of distress and difficulty, Brazil had, indeed, paid, as she still continues regularly to pay, the interest on her debt, thereby honourably distinguishing herself from other South American, and not a few European states. But, at that time, her expenditure largely exceeded her income. Gradually Brazil has reversed this state of things; instead of a heavy deficit, she now has a steadily increasing surplus, has been able to reduce the rate of interest on part of her foreign debt, is slowly reducing its capital, and is in a position to compete in the money market of London with the most favoured European governments. Ten years ago Brazil was not a little embarrassed by the fiscal restrictions she had imposed on herself by her commercial treaties with other countries. Now she is free from all such embarrassments, has full powers over her own trading and financial system, and has no treaties at all with other states. Intermediately she raised for revenue purposes her tariff of Custom duties; but now that she has a surplus to dispose of, her Government is engaged in reducing those duties, to the enlargement, of course, of her commerce. The total funded domestic debt of the empire on the 31st of Dec. last amounted to 57,704,200,000 reis, and the funded debt of the province of Rio Janeiro to 3,940,000,000 reis. The total revenue for the present year, 1854, is estimated at about 32,353,000 milreis (£3,594,700), and the expenditure at about 29,633,706 milreis (£3,292,630). The income is chiefly derived from the ad valorem duty charged on all articles imported into Brazil, amounting in 1851-2 to £2,814,443; a low duty charged on the articles exported, amounting in the same year to £503,070; and rents, royalties on mines, &c. The estimated expenditure for 1853-4 is thus distributed: Ministry of the Interior, £412,355; Justice, £250,020; Foreign Affairs, £60,000; Marine, £452,138; War, £813,935; Finances, £1,304,162: total, £3,292,630.
Ten years ago the Brazilian navy was small: it is now rising into importance; its courage and capacity were lately seen in the Plate; many of its younger officers have been reared in the British service, and from British yards it is yearly adding to its steam flotilla. It now consists of 1 frigate of 50 guns, 5 corvettes, 5 brigs, and 9 schooners, carrying together 188 guns; and 4 smaller vessels, carrying together 27 guns; 10 steamers, mounting 36 guns; with various unarmed ships and steamers, and several others are building. The Brazilian army has established its reputation at once for success, bravery, and humanity. Ten years ago Brazil had little external influence; now Brazil is obviously at the head of South American states, and has a distinct and separate part assigned to her in the destinies of the human race. Then she had but slow and dilatory intercourse with Europe; now she has two monthly steam services from England—another is being established from Lisbon; and Rio Janeiro is now only a month’s distance from London and Paris.
Whilst London, Liverpool, and Lisbon are thus sweeping its coasts with steam, Manchester is lighting Brazilian cities with gas. Messrs. Peto and Jackson, (the members for Norwich and Newcastle-under-Lyne,) whose capital and connections are interlacing Canada and the British North American provinces with a magnificent net-work of railways, are also with other capitalists about to bring their vast resources and long practised experience to bear in a like manner in several of the Brazilian provinces, and doubtless with a like result within as brief a period as the circumstances of the country and the obstacles to be overcome will possibly permit. The Government is opening up new roads, clearing away impediments in rivers, and is arranging the internal improvement of the empire on a large and comprehensive system. A great and a happier future is opening on Brazil—one calculated to advance and extend moral improvement and political freedom, as well as to promote material comfort.
In thus recording the material prosperity and anticipating the progressive greatness of this magnificent empire, it affords me infinite gratification to be able to attribute to my distinguished fellow-townsman, Admiral Grenfell, the Brazilian consul-general[59] for England, a large and conspicuous share in consolidating the strength, and enhancing the reputation of Brazil, as eminent among the nations alike for the valour of its arms, the clemency of its counsels, and the magnanimity it has evinced in eschewing territorial aggrandisement which its bravery and sagacity might so readily have secured it. A more befitting preliminary to the subsequent chapter on the Amazon there could not be than a memoir of the gallant seaman to whose skill and bravery the retention of the principal Amazonian province is due, and to whose equally admirable conduct on a scarcely less trying occasion is also due an acceleration of the settlement of the affairs of the Plate, to a correct understanding of which, in their latter phases at least, a perusal of the annexed biographical data, gleaned from the most reliable sources, will greatly contribute.
WATERFALL OF ITAMARITY. DISTANT TWO DAYS’ JOURNEY FROM RIO JANEIRO.
NOTE TO THE ILLUSTRATION.
The cataract shown in the foregoing page consists, says Sir W. G. Ouseley, from whose portfolio it is copied, of a succession of three waterfalls, subsiding into rapids, and then continuing its course as a turbulent rocky brook, working its way among the hills of the Serra de Estrella. The falls of Itamarity are not near any high road, and have been seldom visited by Europeans. It is not possible to obtain a general view of all the falls. That in the Plate is taken from an insulated rock, standing opposite the second fall. The first fall has worked a basin in the rock, as in other similar sites, and, as usual, it is asserted by the natives to be of vast or fathomless depth. Below the isolated rock is a third fall of considerable size; but the rich and thick vegetation prevents much of it from being seen. On the morning that this sketch was taken, when a party visited the Falls, some negroes were sent on beforehand to cut away the underwood and parasites, and to fell trees in order to improviser a bridge for the nonce. The ligatures used in fastening the trees, and the sort of parapet railing, were made of the lianes or parasitical plants from the surrounding trees. They hang from the highest branches like ropes of various sizes, some little larger than whipcord, others of the circumference of a large cable; indeed, they are often thicker than a man’s body, and frequently form spiral and intricate knots, like the writhings of gigantic serpents, à la Laocoon. The profuse variety of growth and rapid vegetation in this part of Brazil is scarcely credible to Europeans. A very few weeks, or rather days, after this path had been opened, and the bridge constructed to enable the party to visit these Falls, strangers might have passed close to them, only made aware of their proximity by the loud roar of the falling waters, the hoarse sound of which, deadened and rendered deceptive by the close growth of the forest, would be but an indifferent guide, and hardly enable them to find any approach by which to obtain a view of the Falls. The negroes and country people have alarming stories or traditions respecting vast crocodiles, differing from the common sort in their nature and habits, and unlike the alligators of the rivers emptying themselves directly into the bay of Rio de Janeiro, at the foot of these mountains. They are said to be infinitely larger and more voracious than their relations near the salt water. These monsters, they affirm, inhabit the deep pools formed occasionally in the course of the mountain rivers. Poisonous snakes are asserted to be often found in these waters. The present existence of these crocodiles seems very apocryphal; nor are serpents so often met with, even by naturalists anxious to enrich their collections, as is generally supposed. The name of these Falls, ‘Itamariti,’ or ‘Itamarity,’ signifies in the Indian language (probably that of the Guarani tribe) ‘the shining stones,’ or ‘the rock that shines,’ doubtless so called from the glittering appearance of the large mass of rock, the face of which is worn smooth by the water. ‘Ita’ means stone or rock.
The old road over the Serra de Estrella, constructed when Brazil was a colony of Portugal, was, although much too steep according to modern ideas of engineering, infinitely better than the track dignified with the name of road, formerly leading to the Serra dos Orgaos. Being paved, it was at least safe and practicable. But the road recently opened to these heights is on vastly improved principles, and on a scale thought even unnecessarily large. The foundation and progress, however, of the new city of Petropolis, situated at the height of about 3,000 feet above the level of the sea, on this route, has doubtless called for the construction of a road wider and more convenient than those hitherto made in this part of the country. The Emperor has built a summer residence here, near the highest part of the road, and the court and many of the wealthier citizens of Rio Janeiro have followed the example, encouraged by his Imperial Majesty’s liberal allotment of land for dwelling-houses, hotels, &c. The idea of founding this mountain city as a retreat during the great heats originated with the late Emperor, Don Pedro I., who made grants of land, absolutely or conditionally, to different noblemen of his Court. He was not enabled, however, to carry into effect either his plan for a city, or the construction of a new road to and through the mountains. To the reigning Emperor belongs the credit of practically calling into existence this thriving and healthy settlement, of which the success is now beyond a doubt. Petropolis may now be regarded as like the Royal Sitios in Spain,—Aranjuez, La Granja, &c., to which the Court regularly removes at certain seasons. The temperature and climate are delightful, and the annual removal to this and the other Serras is sufficient to restore to health those who have suffered from the enervating heats of the summer in the low lands around the capital. European invalids especially derive great benefit during convalescence from a few weeks’ stay in these picturesque mountains. Many foreigners, particularly Germans, have settled at or near this city. To the naturalist, and more particularly to the entomologist and botanist, a sojourn in these Serras affords endless interest and employment. A railroad is now opened from Rio Janeiro to the foot of the hills, which promises great advantages to the new settlement.