88 AMAZONIA AND LA PLATA. 



prising that the civilised populations dwelling on the ba7iks of the great river 

 have always submitted with reluctance to the Government of Rio de Janeiro. 



Apart from Amazonia, the rest of Brazil is divided into natural divisions less 

 clearly marked, although still offering some striking contrasts. The great oval 

 space in which are developed the twin rivers Araguaya and Tocantins, and which 

 about coincides with the State of Goyaz, constitutes one of these geographical 

 regions skirted eastwards by the main central range, which runs uorih and south 

 as far as the chief diverging point of the two fluvial systems. 



The projecting seaboard at Pernambuco serves as limit to another region, 

 which splits the great equatorial current into two streams flowing in inverse direc- 

 tions, and which separate the S. Francisco basin from the slope draining to the 

 Amazons Gulf. Here are grouped the States of Maranhao, Piauhy, Ceai-a, Rio 

 Grande do Norte, Parahyba, Pernambuco, and Alagoas, which, despite their 

 proximity to the equator, enjoy a relatively salubrious climate, at least on the 

 plains exposed to the sea breezes. They everywhere present the aspect of exten- 

 sive plateaux or sertaos of slight relief, thinly wooded, and inhabited mainly by 

 stock-breeders, who suffer much from the periodical droughts. 



Another natural division, including the two central and flourishing States of 

 Bahia and Minas Geraes, comprises nearly the whole of the S. Francisco basin 

 with some of the headwaters of the Parana. This may be regarded as the true 

 central region of the country, not only in its geographical position, but also as 

 regards its climate, flora, and inhabitants. The seaboard States following south 

 from the lower S. Franciscj — Sergipe, Bahia, Espirito Santo, Rio de Janeiro — 

 constitute the outer slope of the basin traversed by the S. Francisco, and in these 

 States are situated all the natural approaches, mountain passes, and river gorges 

 leading from the Atlantic to that inner basin. This coast zone presents a more 

 rapid seaward incline than that of the northern plateaux. The mountains are 

 loftier and approach nearer to the sea ; the rivers are more copious and swifter ; 

 the flora richer and more varied, thanks to the regular rains accompanying the 

 trade winds. But the climate seems less healthy, although here lies the old 

 capital, Bahia, one of ihe two largest cities in Brazil. 



Rio de Janeiro, the modern capital, occupies a distinct zone sharply limited on 

 the north by the deep Rio Parahyba valley. In the natural slope of the land 

 and the direction of its rivers, this part of Brazil is connected with the plateaux of 

 S. Paulo, although a large portion of its inhabitants has gravited towards the 

 Upper S. Francisco basin. 



West of Minas Geraes and of Goyaz, the State of Matto Grosso, which com- 

 prises the water-parting between the Amazons and Plate basins, constitutes 

 another physical zone, where the more open country, scattered clumps of trees, 

 and wooded river banks contrast with the vast Amazonian forests and grassy 

 plains of the plateau regions. Here the aborigines still hold their ground against 

 the European and half-caste settlers. 



On the other hand, South Brazil, traversed by the Parana, the Uruguay, and 

 their aflluents, has got rid of nearly all the indigenous tribes, and here Europeans 



