Page:The naturalist on the River Amazons 1863 v2.djvu/432

 formerly were. My old favourite road, the Monguba avenue, had been renovated and joined to many other magnificent rides lined with trees, which in a very few years had grown to a height sufficient to afford agreeable shade; one of these, the Estrada de São José, had been planted with coco-nut palms. Sixty public vehicles, light cabriolets (some of them built in Pará), now plied in the streets, increasing much the animation of the beautified squares, streets, and avenues.

I found also the habits of the people considerably changed. Many of the old religious holidays had declined in importance and given way to secular amusements; social parties, balls, music, billiards, and so forth. There was quite as much pleasure-seeking as formerly, but it was turned in a more rational direction, and the Paraenses seemed now to copy rather the customs of the northern nations of Europe, than those of the mother-country, Portugal. I was glad to see several new booksellers' shops, and also a fine edifice devoted to a reading-room supplied with periodicals, globes, and maps, and a circulating library. There were now many printing-offices, and four daily newspapers. The health of the place had greatly improved since 1850, the year of the yellow fever, and Pará was now considered no longer dangerous to new comers.

So much for the improvements visible in the place, and now for the dark side of the picture. The expenses of living had increased about fourfold, a natural consequence of the demand for labour and for native products of all kinds having augmented in greater ratio than the supply, through large arrivals of non-productive