CRUZ DAS almas: a BRAZILIAN VILLAGE! — PIERSON 



91 



about 3 feet wide from the bottom of this excava- 

 tion out to a spot where the charcoal maker can 

 work on the same level as the pit floor. The pit 

 is then roofed over with brick in the form of a 

 dome. On the side immediately opposite the 

 trench, an opening about 12 inches square, called 

 the "chimney," is dug into the wall of the pit, from 

 the bottom up to the top. Midway on each of the 

 other two sides, at the top of the pit, small holes 

 about 8 inches in diameter, called haidnas, are cut. 

 Sticks of wood, beginning with the smaller 

 pieces and ending with the larger, are then stood 

 up around the sides of the forno, until it is filled, 

 when a fire is set at the "door" by the trench. As 

 soon as the fire is burning well, the "door" is closed 

 with dirt and sealed completely by applying 

 puddled earth to all spots where air might get 

 in. By opening and closing the "chimney" and 

 the ''baidnas,'" the amount of air to enter the forno 

 is regulated, and combustion, or "cooking" as it is 

 locally called, is thus controlled and forced to 

 proceed slowly. Wlien smoke no longer escapes 

 from the forno, all outlets are closed off completely 

 and the contents are left to smolder 3 more days, 

 after which the forno is opened and the newly 

 prepared charcoal removed with the aid of a 

 wooden rake and sacked. 



LUMBER 



There is a small sawmill in the community, lo- 

 cated on the fazenda that lies at the edge of the 

 village. It is sheltered in a brick building, about 

 30 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 17 feet high. Me- 

 chanical power is taken off the turbine which also 

 produces the electric power referred to else- 

 where,"^ by means of a series of axles and belts, 

 and made to operate either of two steel saws, one 

 of which is rectangular and is set vertically and the 

 other of which is circular. The former is a little 

 over 3 feet long and the latter is about 20 inches 

 in diameter. The machinery is placed underneath 

 a board floor on which the sawing is done. Lumber 

 of various sizes is produced from several different 

 woods, including the jacarandd, peroha, ced/ro, 

 canela, passuare, guatamhu, and piuva. 



VENDAS 



The village has three vendas, or stores in which 

 a variety of wares are sold, including alcoholic 



173 See Fuel and Light, p. 48. 



drinks. Villagers and farmers ordinarily pur- 

 chase needed items like salt, sugar, kerosene, and 

 matches at one of these stores. Farmers living 

 near the margin of the community may also make 

 part of their necessary purchases in whichever of 

 the three towns they happen to be nearest: Boa 

 Vista, Piracema, or Paratinga. Even those living 

 near the village, as well as villagers, purchase in 

 one of these towns most of their farm implements 

 and kitchen utensils which are factory-made, as 

 well as most of the cloth to make the family's 

 clothes and those remedies which are used, in ad- 

 dition to native herbs and magical means, in the 

 treatment of illness. 



The veTidas in the village, however, are more 

 readily accessible, and essentially contribute to 

 the community's subsistence. One venda is owned 

 and operated by a village leader, a cafuso widely 

 known and respected in the community ; a second, 

 by the son of the tax collector ; and the third, by 

 the only Japanese in the village, together with his 

 wife and family. As has been indicated, there 

 are also two iotegiiins where alcoholic and other 

 drinks ai'e sold, one of which has an extensive 

 stock and is much patronized. Bread is now sold 

 each da_y at the village bakery (as well as also in 

 the vendas and the iotequins) . A beef is butchered 

 on Friday afternoon, and the meat which is not 

 distributed on the spot is sold during the remain- 

 der of the day or that evening in a small shop 

 which otherwise remains closed during the week. 



The vendas are open each day from early in the 

 morning until as late in the evening as there are 

 customers, which, on weekdays, is about 8 or 8 : 30 

 o'clock. The iotequins, especially the principal 

 one, may stay open until an hour or so later. Ke- 

 cently, for a brief period, the vendas were closed 

 on Sundays by an order from the seat of the 

 municipio. This action was thought arbitrary by 

 both farmers and villagers, and indignant protests 

 were lodged. "Now I have to lose a whole day's 

 work," complained a farmer, "to go to the village 

 on Saturday, just because I can't buy what I need 

 when I'm there on Sunday." After 4 weeks the 

 order was rescinded and the vendas reopened with 

 special licenses to operate on Sundays. 



The stock of any one store, although varied, is 

 not large. Available in each of the three stores, 

 for example, in June 1948, were only the following 

 articles : 



