Page:EB1911 - Volume 04.djvu/466

 are by reason of their magnitude and peculiar character the most important in South America, though the per capita aggregate is less than that of Argentina. Although an agricultural country, Brazil does not produce all its own bread and meat, and the imports of wheat, wheat flour, rice, fish, jerked beef and preserved meats, lard, butter, beans, potatoes, packed fruits and vegetables, Indian corn and other food-stuffs, are surprisingly large. Since the creation of the republic, extreme protective measures have caused the creation of a large number of cotton factories and other manufactures, but these are able to supply only a part of the consumption, and the importation of cotton and woollen fabrics, silks, ready-made clothing, boots and shoes, &c., is large. Modern industrial development in some of the states has greatly increased the importation of machinery, electric supplies, materials for construction, coal, &c. Kerosene oil also figures among the principal imports, and beef cattle are imported for consumption by some cities. The exports cover a wide range of agricultural, pastoral and natural productions, including coffee, rubber, sugar, cotton, cocoa, Brazil nuts, maté (Paraguay tea), hides, skins, fruits, gold, diamonds, manganese ore, cabinet woods and medicinal leaves, roots and resins. Coffee and rubber, however, represent from 80 to 90% of the official valuation of all exports. High import duties are imposed by the national government and export duties by the states. The exchange of domestic products between the states is greatly restricted through lack of cheap transportation facilities, and by the suicidal imposition of import and export duties by the states, either for revenue or for the protection of home industries.

According to a summary for the six years 1901 to 1906, derived from official sources and published in the annual Retrospecto of the Jornal do Commercio, of Rio de Janeiro, the values of the imports and exports for those years (exclusive of coin), reduced to pounds sterling at the average rate of exchange (or value of one milreis) for each year, were as follows:—

Nearly 76% of the exports of 1906 were of coffee and rubber, the official valuations of these being: coffee 245,474,525 milreis gold (£27,615,884), and rubber (including maniçoba and mangabeira), 124,941,433 milreis gold (£14,055,911).

Brazil is essentially an agricultural country. No other country has been able to equal Brazil in the production of coffee, and under better labour conditions the country might compete with the foremost in the production of cane sugar, cotton and tobacco. Besides these it might easily excel in producing many of the tropical fruits for which there is a commercial demand. During the colonial period sugar cane was cultivated from Parahyba S. to the vicinity of Santos, and sugar was the principal export of the colony. Before the middle of the 19th century coffee became one of the leading exports, and its cultivation in the states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and Minas Geraes has been so increased since that time that it represents over four-fifths in value of the total export of agricultural produce. The principal sugar-producing states are Alagôas, Sergipe, Pernambuco, Bahia and Rio de Janeiro, and the production is between 200,000 and 300,000 tons, the greater part of which is consumed in the country. Cotton has been widely cultivated since early colonial days, principally in the northern Atlantic states. Tobacco is also widely cultivated, and the product of some states, such as Bahia, Minas Geraes and Goyaz, has a high local reputation for its excellence. Cacáu (cocoa) is cultivated extensively in the Amazon Valley and along the coast as far south as southern Bahia, and forms one of the leading exports. In 1906 São Paulo offered premiums for its cultivation in the state. Rice has been cultivated in places, but without much success, although the quality produced compared favourably with the imported article. Indian corn grows luxuriantly everywhere, but it does not mature well in the humid regions of the Amazon region and the coast. The product of the elevated inland regions is good, but the costs of transportation and the small profits afforded have prevented its extensive cultivation, and it is imported from the La Plata republics for consumption along the coast. Much has been said in regard to the production of wheat, and efforts have been made in various places to promote its cultivation. It was once cultivated in Rio Grande do Sul with some success, and it has been grown in Minas Geraes and São Paulo, but in no case have the returns been sufficient to give it a permanent standing among the productions of the country. The great majority of the people are unused to wheaten bread, using the coarse flour of the mandioca root instead, consequently the demand for wheat and flour is confined to the large cities, which can obtain them from Argentina more cheaply than they can be produced in the country. One of the most common and important productions of Brazil is mandioca (Manihot), of which there are two well-known species, M. utilissima and M. aipi. The first named, which is poisonous in its native state, is the cassava of Spanish America. From it is made farinha de mandioca, which is the bread of the common people of Brazil, and tapioca. The poison is extracted by soaking the bruised or grated roots in water, after which the coarse flour is roasted. Mandioca was cultivated by the natives before the discovery of America, and the wide area over which it has been distributed warrants the conclusion that the discovery of its value as a food and the means of separating its poisonous properties must have occurred at a very remote period. The peanut, or ground-nut (Arachis hypogaea), is another widely-cultivated plant, dating from pre-Columbian times. Very little attention has thus far been given to the cultivation of fruit for exportation, the exceptions being bananas for the Argentine and Uruguayan markets, and oranges and pineapples for European markets. The coast region from Ceará to Rio de Janeiro is adapted to the cultivation of a great variety of fruits of a superior quality. Ceará, Bahia, and Rio de Janeiro are celebrated for their oranges, and Pernambuco for its delicious pineapples. Tangerines, lemons, limes, grapes, guavas, figs, cashews or cajús (Anacardium occidentale), mangabas (Hancornia speciosa), joboticabas (Eugenia cauliflora and E. jaboticaba, Mart.), cocoa-nuts, mangos, fruitas de conde (Anona squamosa), plantains, &c. are produced in abundance and with little labour. In some parts of southern Brazil the fruits and vegetables of the temperate zone do well, but within the tropics they thrive well only at a considerable elevation above sea-level. Apples, peaches, quinces, raspberries, strawberries, &c., are produced under such conditions, but the flavour of their kind grown in colder climates is usually wanting. The vegetable productions are less numerous, but they include sweet potatoes, cabbages, cauliflower, lettuce, beans, peas, onions, garlic, tomatoes, okra, radishes, cucumbers, couve, chuchu (Sechium edule), and aipim (Manihot aipi). The white potato, known as “batata inglez” (English potato), is grown in elevated localities, but it deteriorates so greatly after the first planting that fresh imported seed is necessary every second or third year.

The pastoral industries, which date from early colonial times, have suffered many vicissitudes, and their development has failed to keep pace with the country’s growth in population. Horses are used to some extent for riding, but very little for carriage and draught purposes, consequently there has been no great incentive for their breeding. They are largely used and raised in Rio Grande do Sul, but in the warmer regions of the north only to a limited extent. The hardier mules are generally employed for draught, carriage, and saddle purposes in every part of the country, and their breeding is a lucrative industry in the southern states. Cattle-raising is the principal industry in Rio Grande do Sul, and receives considerable attention in Minas Geraes, Matto Grosso, Santa Catharina, Paraná, Piauhy and Rio Grande do Norte. It was estimated that there were 30,000,000 head of cattle in the republic in 1904, but the estimate was unquestionably too large. A very large part of the jerked beef consumed in Brazil is imported from Argentina and Uruguay, and some beef cattle also are imported. These importations at Rio de Janeiro in 1906 were 12,464,170 kilograms of jerked beef and 12,575 head of cattle. In the Rio Branco region of Amazonas and in Piauhy, where the national government has long been the owner of extensive cattle ranges, the industry is in a state of decadence. This is partly due to such pests as the vampire bat and bush ticks (carrapatos), and partly to the unprogressiveness of the cattlemen. Cattle-raising was once a flourishing industry on the island of Marajó, at the mouth of the Amazon, and it is followed to some extent at Alemquer and other points along the Amazon, but the cattle are small, and commonly in bad condition. In southern Bahia the industry has been nearly extinguished through increasing aridity and droughts, but in the state of Rio de Janeiro the planters are increasing their herds. Minas Geraes produces cheese, butter and milk, as well as beef cattle for neighbouring cities. Matto Grosso classifies cattle-raising as a principal industry, but under present conditions the accessible markets are too small for any large development. In Rio Grande do Sul, where it has attained its greatest development, about 400,000 beeves are slaughtered annually for the manufacture of jerked beef (xarque), beef extract, &c. Little attention has been given to sheep in Brazil except in the southern states, and even there the flocks are small. They were to be found in Ceará and Piauhy in colonial times, and small flocks are still to be seen in the latter state, but no use is made of their wool, and the market for mutton is extremely limited because of popular prejudices. Woollen manufactures have been established in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. The exportation of wool amounted to 1,130,160 &#8468; in 1906. Goats have been found highly profitable in many of the middle Atlantic states, where the long dry seasons render the campos unsuitable for cattle pasturage. The export of goat skins from these states is large. Swine do well in all parts of the country, especially in Minas Geraes, São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Paraná and Rio Grande do Sul, and domestic pork and lard are slowly supplanting the heavily-taxed foreign products.

Although the coast and river fisheries of Brazil are numerous and valuable, cured fish is one of the staple imports, and foreign products