Having disposed of the fresh eggs, &c., we set out for Epanema, and had considerable difficulty in ferreting out the paths in the absence of a guide who had engaged to conduct us to this place.
Some of the lands on this route of twenty miles were very good and yet were not under cultivation; while more inferior lands were planted in corn and cotton, with moderately good results.
In one instance, where the more fertile soil had been cleared and planted, the weeds and bushes had outgrown the corn, so as to lead to the abandonment of the crop; and it really looks as if the richness of the soil, which gives trouble to keep the land clear, becomes a reason for not cultivating it. There is a strange want of energy among the common people of this country; and whatever requires much labor, even to attain the best results, does not suit their habits.
In all this region, where coffee cannot be grown successfully, the planters are engaging in the culture of cotton, and with some there is quite a mania on the subject, so that breadstuffs are likely to be neglected as formerly with us.
We reached the iron-works at Epanema about 11 o’clock A. M., and the present superintendent, Senor Dom Joaquim de Sonsa Mursa, extended a cordial welcome to our party. His wife is a German lady, of fine appearance and much intelligence, who speaks English; and by her kind attention to our comfort made us feel quite at home. The large house was clean and neat in all its parts, and her table was very creditable to her skill as a housekeeper.
In looking around the old structures of this vast establishment for working iron, it is a matter of surprise that all should have been suffered to go to wreck. The gentleman who has now undertaken the restoration of the iron-works has a task imposed upon him which requires an energy and tact independent of scientific attainments; and there are practical difficulties which are not likely to be overcome while the place continues under the auspices of the Brazilian government.
There is a mountain of iron ore of superior quality which must furnish material to any desired extent for all future time. An inexhaustible supply of limestone is likewise near at hand to furnish the requisite flux, besides affording lime of an excellent quality. Sandstone is likewise found in abundance near the works, and is now being used to face the furnaces that are being refitted. In addition to these articles a quarry of slate or flagstone is located in close proximity.
There is also a large amount of good timber growing upon the mountain-slopes belonging to this property, which may be used for making charcoal to be employed in the furnaces.
The lands are of prime quality, being the best description of terra rocha upon the slopes adjacent to the vast reservoir of iron ore.
Under proper cultivation the soil here is suited to produce every thing to the best advantage; and would yield all the provisions that could be required by any number of operatives that would be necessary for the successful working of the place.