CHAPTER VI
A PROGRESSIVE STATE
It is a distance of three hundred miles from Rio to São Paulo, the second city in the republic, and the ride is very interesting, especially so for the first two or three hours. This time is taken by the railway line to climb over the ridge of mountains, which everywhere pass close to the shore. For some time after leaving the Central station in Rio, the train passes through the city and suburban towns, over which a good and frequent suburban service is run. Then a strip of rather low land gives the traveller a fairly good view of a Brazilian forest of small trees and undergrowth, matted together with parasites, and forming an almost compact mass of green in which many orchids may be seen. Fairly well cultivated fields are passed at intervals until the ascent begins at Belem, from which time there is very little cultivation. Some grand glimpses of mountain scenery are revealed as the train turns around bends and emerges from one or another of the numerous tunnels along the line. Mountains, hills and valleys, flowing streams and cascades, mingle in a panorama of wonderful beauty. At Barra do Pirahy the São Paulo road branches off from the line to Bello Horizonte, and gradually descends to lower levels.
Much of the land, as the slopes become less steep, has been cultivated in the past with coffee, but it is now abandoned. Dead, or nearly dead, coffee trees are still standing amidst the wild growth that has sprung up since the land was abandoned. This part of Minas Geraes was at one time regarded as one of the richest coffee sections in Brazil, and would be valuable land even to-day were it not for the improvident and wasteful methods of the average planter. The trees were planted too thick, and no effort made to place back in the soil any of the elements taken out. It was considered cheaper to buy virgin soil in a new location than to do anything to build up the land already owned. The same thing is seen in other parts of Minas Geraes and the state of Rio de Janeiro, the latter being the state in which was originally grown the famous “Rio” coffee.
The road follows the Parahyba River most of the way, sometimes on one bank and again on the other. The valleys become broader, although occasionally a cut is made through an interesting ridge. The towns are more numerous and larger during the last hundred miles. The Italian element grows more pronounced, and many Italians may be seen at the stations and on the trains. Ox teams drawing clumsy carts seem to be the principal conveyances for freight, and two-wheeled carriages of an antiquated type, which must have been the originals of the London hansom cabs, convey the passengers. At one station an old style automobile was sandwiched in between these two classes of vehicles, and it seemed strangely out of place, except that the automobile was as antiquated for that class of conveyances as the others were in their line.
Immense ant hills dot the landscape in many places. These hills are oftentimes from three to four or five feet in height, and look strangely like old-fashioned bee hives with their rounded tops. The red dust sifts in through the car windows in clouds. As the windows must be kept closed on this account, one is given a turkish bath under very disadvantageous circumstances. Furthermore, no matter how hot it is, the sweltering traveller is not permitted to remove his coat, as that is a breach of etiquette not allowed here. I tried it and was immediately requested very politely to put it on. You may expectorate on the floor as much as you like, but to remove your coat—“No, Senhor; it is against the rules of the company.”
The dust is caused by the red clay which is used as a ballast here because it is found all along the line, and is cheaper than stone. A few coffee fields are passed, and then we enter a valley many miles broad, and one has his first glimpse of really level land in Brazil. At length, after eleven hours’ ride, the train rolls into the Norte station of the City of São Paulo, and the carigadores begin their struggle for your luggage. Then, after being released from their clutches, you are turned over to the tender mercies of the cabman, and the traveller welcomes the comfort of a bath in his hotel to get rid of the dust of travel.
The city of São (pronounced Sah-o, with a nasal sound after the a) Paulo is the second city in the republic in population and commercial importance. It is situated on a plain with low hills upon the entire horizon. Its population is in the neighbourhood of three hundred and fifty thousand. Although little coffee is produced within fifty miles of São Paulo, yet it is the centre of that trade, and the great increase in the production has caused the wonderful growth of this city. It is more like an American city than any of the other Brazilian towns, because, in whatever direction one looks, the high smoke-stacks of some of the many factories may be seen. The suburbs are many and new, and everywhere are signs of building activity and the construction of public improvements. The growth of the city has really been marvellous. Twenty years ago São Paulo was a comparatively unimportant city of twenty-five thousand people. Now it has grown and broadened out until it covers a wide territory. Real estate values have increased until to-day real estate on Rua São Bento, or Rua Quinze de Novembro (15th of November), is almost as high as on the principal streets in similar towns of the United States. It has become the distributing and manufacturing centre for this, the most progressive state in the republic. The temperature of São Paulo may have something to do with the energetic character of the people. Although the latitude is not much different from Rio, its altitude of more than 2,000 feet renders the climate very agreeable. I was there in the middle of their summer, and, although the days were quite warm, the nights were delightfully cool, and blankets were very comfortable on one’s bed.
RUA DIREITA, SÃO PAULO.