CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



carry us far beyond our limits. Generally speak- 

 ing, there is not on the globe a finer country, one 

 blessed with a more genial climate or a more 

 fertile soil ; more happily diversified with wood 

 and water, or with abundance of navigable rivers. 

 Nearly the whole of the most highly valued pro- 

 ductions of the earth are raised within its terri- 

 tory. The land rises by gentle gradations from 

 the shore to the interior, to the height of from 

 3000 to 6000 feet above the level of the sea. At 

 this elevation within the tropics, the climate is 

 temperate, and European fruits and grains are 

 raised in abundance. The intervening valleys 

 have a warmer temperature, and consequently are 

 extremely favourable to the growth of sugar, coffee, 

 cotton, and every description of tropical produce. 

 Magnificent forests overspread a great part of 

 the interior. The trees are closely interwoven 

 with brushwood and shrubs, and covered with 

 creeping-plants adorned with the most resplendent 

 flowers, thus imparting a peculiar and rich appear- 

 ance to the scenery. These forests abound in 

 valuable woods, adapted for every purpose to 

 which art can apply them. The climate in the 

 neighbourhood of the Amazon and in the northern 

 parts is hot, but moist ; in the southern regions, it 

 is temperate, and in general healthy. 



Brazil has considerable mineral treasures, 

 especially in gold and diamonds. Gold is found 

 in the beds of most of the rivers that rise in the ! 

 interior, and almost all the towns were founded by 

 men searching for gold. Next to gold, diamonds 

 form the staple of Brazilian mineral riches. They 

 were first accidentally discovered about 1730. 

 There are several large mines of nitre and iron, 

 but no silver is found. Salt is extremely abundant. 



Until recently, little was done to develop the 

 resources of this magnificent country ; but within 

 the last few years, advantage has been taken of 

 the vast capacity of the rivers for steam-naviga- 

 tion ; and six lines of railway, of the aggregate | 

 length of 410 miles, have been opened for 

 traffic. The yearly revenue of the country is 

 about ;i 8,000,000, and the public debt about | 

 ^70,000,000. The imports amount to .19,000,000, I 

 and the exports to , 22, 500,000. Great Britain 

 sends about one-half of the imports, and receives 

 about one-third of the exports. The other coun- 

 tries with which Brazil carries on trade are the 

 United States, France, Portugal, Germany, and 

 the Argentine Confederation. The articles of 

 export are raw cotton, sugar, coffee, cocoa, caou- 

 tchouc, tobacco, hides, gums, drugs, dye-woods, 

 hard-woods, and diamonds. The chief imports 

 are cotton, linen, and woollen fabrics, and iron 

 both wrought and unwrought. The high import 

 duties, amounting to 40 or 50 per cent, greatly 

 impede the development of commerce. 



The capital of Brazil is Rio de Janeiro (pop. 

 450,000), with one of the finest harbours in the 

 world. The other principal towns are Bahia 

 or St Salvador, the former capital (pop. 152,000), 

 situated on the Bay of All Saints ; Pernambuco 

 (pop. 100,000), and Para, on the southern branch 

 of the Amazon, about 80 miles from the ocean. 



GUIANA. 



This territory,, situated on the north-east coast, 

 between the mouths of the Orinoco and Amazon, is 

 divided into British, Dutch, and French Guiana. 



328 



British Guiana extends from the river Corentyn, 

 in 57, to the southern outlet of the Orinoco, 

 in 60 6' west long. Its inland limits have 

 never been formally defined, and large tracts 

 claimed by Britain are claimed also by Venezuela 

 and Brazil. The coast is flat, and from the sea 

 nothing is visible but the tops of the trees, which 

 seem to be growing out of the water. This alluvial 

 flat extends from ten to forty miles inland, and is 

 terminated by a range of sand-hills. Parallel with 

 these run several groups of hillocks, of moderate 

 elevation. Further into the interior, the country 

 is diversified with mountains and valleys. It has 

 three great rivers the Essequibo, the Berbice, 

 and the Demerara. The Essequibo, the largest of 

 these, is about 620 miles in length, and opens out 

 into an estuary eight miles broad, but, from the 

 number of rapids, it is only navigable for 50 miles 

 from its mouth. It receives several tributaries, 

 which irrigate an immense tract of country. To 

 the eastward, is the Demerara, navigable for 

 vessels of small size about 85 miles above George- 

 town. The Berbice is free for vessels drawing 

 twelve feet water about 105 miles, and for vessels 

 of seven feet draught 165 miles. The river Coren- 

 tyn, the boundary between the British and Dutch 

 possessions, is navigable 150 miles for vessels 

 drawing seven feet of water. There are also 

 several smaller streams, which, although not navi- 

 gable, are extremely useful in the irrigation of the 

 country. The fertility is kept up during the dry 

 season by heavy falls of dew. The soil is very 

 fertile, in some parts sandy, but growing abun- 

 dance of grass ; and in others it is a strong retentive 

 loam, so rich as to require no manure, and well 

 adapted for the cultivation of coffee, sugar, rice, 

 and other tropical produce. The coast is covered 

 with mangrove and curina bushes ; and in the 

 interior, extensive savannahs and thick forests 

 occur, the latter yielding valuable timber, drugs, 

 and dye-stuffs. 



British Guiana is divided into three counties 

 Demerara, Essequibo, and Berbice. These 

 colonies were first settled by the Dutch, captured 

 by the British in 1796, given up to the Batavian 

 Republic in 1802, retaken in 1803, and finally ceded 

 to this country at the general peace of 1814. The 

 settlements are all situated upon the banks of the 

 rivers from which they receive their name, extend- 

 ing along both sides, and generally as far inland 

 as the rivers are navigable. Each plantation has 

 a wharf or landing-place of its own, and canals 

 are cut into the land for the admission of boats, 

 and the draining of the surrounding country. For 

 50 miles along the sea-coast of the county of 

 Berbice, a huge embankment has been raised 

 against the sea, on which is a carriage-road 60 

 feet broad. A comparatively small portion of 

 Guiana is yet cultivated, and an immense field 

 for colonial industry still lies open. The staple 

 products consist of sugar, rum, coffee, and cotton ; 

 pine-apples and other fruits are produced in 

 abundance. The climate is genial and regular 

 throughout the year, the maximum heat being 90, 

 the minimum 74, and the mean temperature about 

 82. Two wet and two dry seasons constitute 

 the changes of the year. 



The area is 76,000 square miles, and the popula- 

 tion 193,491, principally coloured, but containing 

 also Dutch, English, Portuguese, Chinese, and a 

 great number of coolies from the East Indies. 





