62 



At Raiz da Serra the ascent of the mountain began, the train 

 being divided into sections with an engine behind each, and the 

 wheels running on cogs up a heavy grade. Here at the base 

 of the mountain, over an hour's ride from Rio, is the first place 

 one would care to stop, and it would be a good place to collect 

 plants that grow near sea-level. The ginger lily, or garland 

 flower, appeared here and grew along the track all the way to 

 the summit as it did between Santos and Sao Paulo, while the 

 ferns and small plants on the banks were like those on the sides 

 of Corcovado. 



Slowly up the mountain we climbed, the view becoming 

 finer and the scenery wilder as we ascended. Very few houses 

 appeared — only rocky slopes covered with an unbroken forest. 

 At Meio da Serra, where there is a factory, the collecting might 

 be good, but the train did not stop coming up. Near the sum- 

 mit much of the forest has been cleared, and there are scattered 

 houses marking the beginning of Alto da Serra, which really 

 connects with the town of Petropolis two miles further on. 



At Alto da Serra, 3000 feet above sea-level, I left the train 

 and went into the woods collecting, finding a number of very 

 interesting things; but, after a couple of hours, my meager 

 early breakfast began to fail me and I took a trolley car down 

 to Petropolis to hunt up a restaurant. The natural attractions 

 of this far-famed place are many, being surrounded by forest- 

 covered mountains at an elevation that insures a delightful 

 climate. There is also a dashing, clear mountain stream pass- 

 ing through the town, shaded with splendid trees and orna- 

 mented along both banks with Japanese lily-of-the-valley and 

 thousands of blue hydrangeas. 



I have driven around the town and seen its parks and gar- 

 dens, its hotel and charming villas, and the well-dressed people 

 leading an easy life; but my mind turns again to a comfortable 

 chalet forty miles away, perched up on the side of Corcovado, 

 and my watch tells me that the train will leave in a few minutes. 

 Soon I will see again the wonderful panorama stretching from 

 the summit of the Organ Mountains to the harbor of Rio, and, 

 if I had the time, I would walk the entire distance from the 

 top of the mountain to its base along the highway through the 

 forest, and botanize to my heart's content. 



