Chap. VI. CHANGES AT PAEA. 411 



it in 1848. The peculation had been increased (to 

 20,000) by an influx of Portuguese, Madeiran, and Ger- 

 man immigrants, and for many years past the provincial 

 government had spent their considerable surplus re- 

 venue in beautifying the city.* The streets, formerly 

 unpaved or strewn with loose stones and sand, were now 

 laid with concrete in a most complete manner ; all the 

 projecting masonry of the irregularly-built houses had 

 been cleared away, and the buildings made more uniform. 

 Most of the dilapidated houses were replaced by hand- 

 some new edifices, having long and elegant balconies 

 fronting the first floors, at an elevation of several feet 

 above the roadway. The large, swampy squares had 

 been drained, weeded, and planted with rows of almond 

 and casuarina trees, so that they were now a great 

 ornament to the city, instead of an eyesore as they 



* The revenue of the province of Pard, derived almost wholly from 

 high custom-house duties, had averaged for some years past about 

 £1000,000 sterling. The import duties vary from 18 to 80 per cent, 

 ad valorem ; export duties from 5 to 10 per cent., the most productive 

 article being india-rubber. 



The total value of exports for 1858 was £355,905 4s. 0d., employing 

 104 vessels of 29,493 total tonnage. More than half the foreign trade 

 was done with Great Britain ; the principal nations in order of amount 

 of import trade ranking as follows : — 



1. Great Britain. 



2. United States. 



3. France. 



4. Portugal. 



5. Hanse Towns. 



As most of the articles of consumption are imported and most of 

 those produced exported, the foreign trade of Para is larger, compared 

 with the internal trade, than it is in most countries. The insignifi- 

 cance of the trade of a country of such vast extent and resources 

 becomes very apparent from the totals here quoted. 



