Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume III.djvu/229

 BRAZIL 223 last certainly existed in Brazil, as in North America, long before the conquest. The cli- mate along the coast from about lat. 24 S. to the N. limit, and in the valley of the Amazon, may be described as generally hot, though some parts are subject to sudden and violent atmospheric changes. In the valleys of the Parana and the Uruguay, as also on the high- lands, a cool and even a cold temperature pre- vails; and the climate of the whole empire, though for the most part moist, is in general healthy. In the north the wet season (whiter) begins regularly toward the end of November, and lasts till the middle of May ; during this period the rains are abundant and usually ac- companied by terrific thunder and lightning, and become more and more frequent and heavy as the end of the season approaches. On the Amazon, from Belem westward, rain falls almost every afternoon. At Belem there are but 60 days out of the year without rain. The thermometer in this region ranges from 98 to 68 F., while at Rio do Janeiro the average temperature is 75, and still lower toward the south. In the northern provinces, from June to December, the ventos geraea (general winds) blow steadily in the daytime from the north- east, and during the night from the east. The most common diseases are pulmonary consump- tion, intermittent fevers, and rheumatism. Goi- tre is extremely prevalent in Mines, parts of Bahia, and elsewhere, and is attributed to the saline impurities of the water. Leprosy is prev- alent along the banks of the Amazon, at Rio de Janeiro, and elsewhere ; it is said rarely to at- tack foreigners, and though generally reported to be incurable, statistics show that, in places where there are good physicians, it often yields to treatment, and permanent cures are effected. The soil of Brazil is as varied as its climate, being in some parts amazingly fertile, and bearing almost every known species of vege- table production; while in others it is dry, arid, and unfavorable to vegetation. As a rule, the lands surrounding the large and popu- lous cities are exceedingly rich and productive. The immense plains of the interior are for the most part covered with primeval forests, offer- ing inexhaustible quantities of timber adapted both for solid construction and for cabinet and ornamental works. Few countries in the world contain such a quantity of vegetable matter on their surface as the valley of the Amazon ; from a point about CO m. S. E. of Tabatinga, a circle may be drawn of 1,100 m. in diameter, the whole area of which is covered with one dense mass of arboreal vegetation. Nearly 400 different species were exhibited in the ex- posifao international at Belem in 1867; and Prof. Agassiz reports having seen at the same fair 117 different kinds of valuable woods cut from a piece of land not half a mile square, many of which were dark-colored veined woods, as beautiful as mahogany or rosewood, and susceptible of a high polish. Under the name of jacarandd or rosewood are known 118 VOL. in. 15 several species of wood, all very hard and compact, of a blackish red tinge. They flourish in Amazonas and the provinces N. of Rio de Janeiro generally, that of Espirito Santo being reputed of a fine quality, and forming the prin- cipal article of export from the Doce. The itauba or stonewood, found in great abundance in Amazonas, Para, Maranhao, and other north- ern provinces, often attains a height of 100 ft., with a trunk over 6 ft. in diameter ; all the best vessels of the Amazon country are con- structed of this wood, which is said to be more durable than teak. The copaiba (copaifera Quayanen&is or officinalu) and the pao Brazil or Brazil wood, the former valuable for its oil used in medicine and the arts, and also for its timber, the latter for its celebrated coloring matter, present a marked feature in the forest vegetation. The colossal pao d'arco or bow wood (tecoma speciosa) and macaranduba (mimmops elata) abound in the virgin forests N. of Rio ; the timber of both is exceedingly hard and extensively used in carpentry and cabinet making. From the latter is extracted by incision a whitish, sweet, savory fluid, com- monly used while in the liquid state as milk in tea and coffee ; after some hours it coagulates, forming a white, elastic mass resembling India rubber, when it is employed in the arts ; while the bark, very rich in tannin, is much used in dyeing. The total height of these trees, stem and crown, may be estimated at from 180 to 200 ft. ; the vast dome of their foliage rises above the other forest trees as does that of a cathedral above the other buildings in a city ; and logs 100 ft. long squared from these trees are not uncommon at the saw mills near Be- lem. The growth of buttress-shaped projections around the lower part of the stems, not only of the trees just mentioned, but of most of the larger trees, is a remarkable feature of the forest ; the buttresses, generally thin walls of wood, form spacious stall-like compartments, often capable of holding half a dozen persons, and serve as props to the enormous stems. Of the order of lecythidaceas there are some 40 species distributed among seven genera. Chief among these are the sapucaia (lecythis Ollaria), the fruit of which (sapucaia nuts) is closely allied to the Brazil nut, and is enclosed in a vase-like shell with a close-fitting lid, called a monkey cup, and the Bertholletia exceUa, a majestic tree forming whole forests, and producing the Brazil nut. The timber of these genera is especially valuable in construc- tions exposed to trying atmospheric action. To those already enumerated may be added the augico, vinhatico, caixeta, sucupira, canella, pao ferro (ironwood), cedro, perobal, goncalo aloes, bacuri, jiqnitiba, condnrfi, piquiu, bracu- tiara, and a host of others yielding timber suit- able for every purpose, besides an endless variety of fruits, resins, oils, dyes, &c. The chief ornament of the forest is the palm, which is here represented by from 300 to 400 species, all more or less useful to the aborigines, and