Part 5

Well, the signal is given, and we are off, mounting an incline of about 1 in 10 for a distance of some 800 yards, where there is a curve, and we are shut out from the lower level of the line, steadily ascending the mountain, until we reach the first lift, about 1¼ miles. After a short delay, we were hooked on the second lift, and as we mount the scenery becomes grander, the shadows of the mountains deeper, and the work becomes heavier. I was surprised to find so many curves, which are an additional strain on the wire rope, as well as an additional risk, requiring close attention to the break, where we rode in order to have a good view of everything. Mr. Fox, engineer-in-chief, and Mr. Welby, locomotive superintendent, were with us, and we got down to look over Fairburn's splendid stationary engines, which are of 200 horse-power, embedded in a granite foundation, about 40 feet deep, with live boilers to each, three being generally used. The curves continue on the third lift, close to which, entering the fourth lift, is the wonderful viaduct across a chasm in the mountain, which makes your head giddy to look down. The bridge is certainly a great engineering achievement, resting on iron pillars with a stone foundation, the centre being nearly 200 feet deep. We are accustomed to great altitude of railway bridges at home and elsewhere, but there is a peculiar aerial look about this one which makes one glad to be over it. At one point in this fourth section is a fine view of a deep valley behind us, the opposite mountain one dense mass of forest, and the scene is inexpressibly grand. To have made the lifts straight would have necessitated frequent tunnelling and added another half million to the cost of construction. On reaching the top of the Serra, a distance of about five miles from its base, the break is detached, a locomotive takes hold of the six carriages which have come up in two lifts, and away we whisk for some time through a thickly wooded country, for a distance of about 48 miles, stopping at several stations. Some miles before reaching San Paulo are the Campos, or level plains, covered with a short grass, and rather swampy, but no cattle are to be seen, owing, I believe, to the number of insects which fasten on them, causing sores, and being otherwise injurious. It is, however, a great relief to the eye, after the dense forests passed through, to come upon plains.

From San Paulo the line passes on to Jundiahy, a distance of 44 miles, or a total length from Santos of 88 miles, the chief interest of course being centred in the gigantic works of the Serra. The San Paulo Railway is undoubtedly one of the grandest works yet made with English capital in Brazil, and it is destined to play a very important part in the future development of this fine province. Engineering mistakes have, undoubtedly, been made, and the want of a personal superintendence of the engineer-in-chief, at all events during the construction of the important works of the Serra, is amongst the complaints made by the Brazilian Government, as also the manner in which the contract was executed. It is also questionable whether another and less costly route could not have been selected to be worked by locomotives, instead of the old fashioned but dangerous lifts. However, for the present, this is mere matter of controversy or opinion. The railway is made, though far from being complete or perfect, and it is evident that a considerable expenditure has to be faced before sufficient traffic can be carried on to realise the expectations of directors and shareholders, few of whom know anything about the undertaking or are able to comprehend the difficulties it has still to pass through.

It is curious that the real traffic is only tapped at the extreme end of the line (Jundiahy), where only commences cotton growing, and the great coffee plantations are some 30 miles further on, to which district a private company is now trying to get the line extended. One advantage possessed by the existing company will be in having their mileage rate for the bulk of their traffic over the whole of the line, and of course it will be an additional advantage to present shareholders if the line should be continued to Campinas, which is, I believe, a large and thriving place, the abode of many wealthy proprietors. Passenger traffic can only be limited for some time to come, from the absence of a resident population along the line; at the same time it will naturally increase between Santos, San Paulo, and the upper part of the Province, particularly when the line is extended in that direction. The stoppage of the line is between San Paulo and Jundiahy, where the cuttings have given way to some extent, a contingency, I fear, they will always be exposed to, from the heavy rains which prevail, and I believe I am justified in adding, the imperfect manner in which some of them have been constructed. Whilst expressing my admiration at the courage and enterprise of the resident engineer and superintendent, who jointly succeeded in getting the line opened, I cannot conceal from myself the difficulties they have still to overcome in order to carry on an adequate traffic and get the line accepted by Government. One thing is very certain, that had a deputation of shareholders been sent out to look over the intended line before fairly concluding the contract for making it, they would have returned so scared and frightened as to have led to an immediate dissolution of the company, and San Paulo would hardly have had its railway in this generation, so far as English capital is concerned. I well remember the kind of awe with which I looked over the plans and sections of the line before it was commenced, nor has this effect been diminished by a personal inspection of the works up to this place. That the railway will be a grand thing for the province there can be no doubt, and this consideration ought to render the Government lenient towards a company which, apart from its other difficulties, has suffered so much by maladministration at home.

In describing the works of the Serra, I have omitted to allude to the double rails which are laid near approaches to the stationary engines, so that the trains can pass each other, which, of course, they are constantly doing, one up and the other down, on the several lifts. I was at a loss also to understand how they could work their goods traffic to a large extent with the amount of trains running. I now find the latter applies only to the passengers, and that produce is dealt with separately, collected at the top of the Serra, and sent down during the day, three waggon loads at a time, the waggons being collected together at the foot of the Serra, and taken on to the station at Santos as convenient. These arrangements necessitate a large amount of rolling stock and extra shed accommodation, which I believe is about to be supplied. Another feature in the works of the Serra is the loose kind of material they have had to go through instead of granite rock, which they expected, the former being apt to crumble away from the effects of rain, although latterly the road has stood very well in this respect. Some of the embankments crossing the gorges of the mountains are almost perpendicular, and involved a heavy amount of labour and expense. It is quite frightful to look down them. Of course the traffic of the Serra can only be worked from sunrise to sunset, but a large amount of produce can be brought down during that time.

I have now to record a trip over the remaining portion of the line to Jundiahy, the terminus. An announcement had been issued that traffic would be resumed over the whole line on the 2nd March, but a continuance of wet weather caused further and serious impediment, so I availed of the kindness of the officials, who were making a survey of the state of the works, to go to Jundiahy in the best manner circumstances would permit. We started about 8 a.m., on Tuesday, the 23rd March, in a carriage attached to the engine, having, amongst others, Mr. Aubertin, superintendent; Mr. Fox, engineer-in-chief; the fiscal, or Government engineer; the Postmaster-General, Captain Burton, and other persons, with some luggage belonging to them, and some small stores for the use of the line.

My impression was that I had seen the heaviest works on the line, but this was a great mistake, as I soon found out. The first few miles were not of much interest, but afterwards, as we approached the mountain scenery, the view became very fine,—the bold outline of the Jaraguay, a mountain where gold mines exist, but long since ceased working—deep gorges began to open out, and huge hanging forests towered above us, in their wildest and most primitive form. At the first station I got on the engine with Mr. Fox, and certainly it is difficult to imagine a country less adapted to a railway—making it against nature, as some one significantly observed. It is a succession of deep cuttings, high embankments, curves, and heavy gradients the whole distance, at times with an incline of 1 in 45, and only occasionally what may be termed a bit of straight road. It is really wonderful how people could be found to make such a railway in this country. Scarcely a human habitation to be seen along the whole distance, except the rough mud huts for persons connected with it; and about three stations between San Paulo and Jundiahy. The stations themselves are barely sufficient for the station master to live in, though probably adequate under present circumstances. At one of them (Belem) a small quantity of cotton was stored, having gone there direct, but no means of forwarding it on at present.

The ordinary mule road to Jundiahy crosses and runs parallel to the railway for some distance, and a wretched state it appeared to be in—deep mud holes and quagmires, through which the poor mules have to struggle.

I must now refer to some of our difficulties, resulting from the state in which we found the road. The first actual gap occurs some seventeen or eighteen miles from San Paulo, where the river current has carried away a large culvert, the rails and iron bowls (sleepers) attached to them hanging suspended for some twenty feet. They were at work rebuilding another culvert. We had to leave the carriage, cross the stream, and, walking some little distance, to get to another engine, which with a ballast truck was waiting there. On we went again, at times having to pull up or go slowly over slippery places, until we passed the tunnel, with water dripping from the roof. On the other side of the tunnel occurs the most serious stoppage, the whole side of a huge hill having apparently moved forward, the advanced portion of it blocking up the road. Some under current has raised the rails several feet in places, notwithstanding the immense piles of timber that have been driven in to prevent encroachment. The conclusion is that a mass of quicksands, swollen by the heavy rains, has forced its way under the hill side and under the bed of the railway. The labour here will be very great, by having to remove the falling mass, and the uncertainty is when the movement may subside. The “mountain in labour” has brought forth no “ridiculus mus” in this case. After walking past this obstruction, we again mounted on the ballast truck, and went along until we came to a place where the river had quite overflowed the rails, and the engine had to force its way through two or three feet of water, of course at a very slow and cautious pace; here they are raising the road so as to escape, if possible, future inundations. Once through this last impediment, we rattled along over a good hard bit of road at a good pace to Jundiahy, the end of our adventurous journey. The station is a little distance from the town, which stands on a hill, and after partaking of some solid refreshments, which we fortunately found ready at the Railway Hotel, in half an hour we were again on a ballast truck going through the same process of changing from one truck to another, walking over slippery ground, until we finally again joined the carriage on the opposite side of the broken culvert, before arriving at which a thunder storm came on, accompanied by torrents of rain, and most of us were thoroughly wet through. The storm continued nearly to San Paulo, but it is amongst the gorges of the mountains it comes down most furiously.

It is not my intention to comment further on the errors that have been made in the construction of this railway. No doubt obstacles had to be met at every step; nor can shareholders be supposed to know much about engineering details of this kind. They subscribe their money on the faith of a Government guarantee, believing in the estimates, and that of course the line will, under any circumstances, pay its working expenses. The late Mr. Brunel used to repudiate the existence of engineering difficulties. It was a mere question of money; but I think had he surveyed the intended line of the San Paulo Railway he would have said both these points were involved, the result being that the original estimates are greatly exceeded, and the works still require a considerable outlay before they can be permanently relied on. The thing certainly appears incredible, if it were not the fact, that to work a line consisting almost entirely of short curves and heavy gradients, the directors should have sent out rigid locomotives suited to a first-class English railway, without even bogie frames attached, causing great wear and tear to both engines and rails. I quite believe that with suitable locomotives the line may be safely and properly worked, and it seems exactly a case in point for such engines as Fairlie's. The question as to maintenance of way must always be a very important one; whether in such a mountainous country, subject at seasons to heavy rains and flooded rivers, and with a treacherous soil, the nature of the works is such as can be relied on, for unless this is the case, as the public journals of San Paulo justly observe, the real utility of the railway is destroyed. Coffee growers and cotton planters have been looking to it as a sure and certain means of getting their produce down to Santos, and unless this can be depended on they will have to resort to the old, cumbrous, and expensive mode of carrying it upwards of one hundred miles on the backs of mules as heretofore. It is a momentous question for this province whether or not they can depend on railway conveyance, which I think may fairly be looked for when the line becomes consolidated, but both shareholders and the Government must be prepared to make sacrifices of no common kind before this end is finally attained. That the officials and managers of the line in Brazil are doing all they can is very certain, and it is for the company or the shareholders to provide them with everything required to ensure the permanent success of the company. They entered into a solemn contract with the Brazilian Government and the Provincial Government here, which it is their duty to fulfil, no matter at what sacrifice, and the sooner the shareholders look their position in the face the better, instead of being guided entirely by directors, who could only appreciate their position if they came out in a body and personally inspected the line. One thing is very certain, that if it had not been for the great liberality of the Baron de Mauá in coming to the rescue of the concern, the works might never have been completed or the line opened.

THE CITY OF SAN PAULO.

If it appears a long time in reaching here after passing the wonders of the Serra, I was not disappointed either in the first peep at the city or by a more intimate acquaintance with it. One cannot help marvelling how the adventurous handful of men who originally penetrated the forests and founded these cities in South America had the courage and perseverance to do so; but I believe they availed, in many cases, of the Indian tracks, and doubtless of Indian assistance occasionally. The city has rather an imposing aspect as you wind round it to the station, being built on a ridge of high ground which overlooks the River Tieté—a stream rising in the neighbouring hills, and after traversing nearly the whole of the province, eventually finds its way to the Parana and the Paraguay. At the railway station sundry omnibuses and carriages were waiting to receive the passengers. We drove to the Hotel d'Italia, where a friend had taken rooms for us, and found ourselves tolerably comfortable in a large house rather the worse for wear, and, like most things in this country, allowed to get out of repair. During the construction of the railway it was the head-quarters of the engineering staff.

The first thing we did next morning was to pay our respects to the President of the Province, who received us very graciously. He is a man of a very expressive, benevolent countenance, and I believe he administers the affairs of the province in a most satisfactory manner—not the easiest of tasks in such troublous times as the present.

A ramble over the city impresses one favourably: good wide streets, paved with a material resembling macadam. It is obtained from one of the neighbouring hills, and forms a capital road. The sides are well made of large flags, much superior to those of Rio de Janeiro, although the pavement there is admirable. There are several fine churches, an extensive new public market, and, as a rule, the houses are well and substantially built. The shops are also numerous and well appointed with all the requisites for convenience and comfort suited to a city of 20,000 to 25,000 inhabitants. There are several national colleges here, with a number of young students, who help to enliven the place. The Province of San Paulo has always held a good position, from the enterprise and spirit of the people, the latter owing in some measure to the cool climate, which even now occasionally renders woollen clothing and blankets at night desirable, and a few months hence it will be positively cold, with ice in the morning. Previously to and since our arrival it has been raining so much that a vast tract of land bordering the Tieté is overflowed, and travelling must be very bad. We took a drive to the church of Nossa Senhora de Penha, a few miles distant, on elevated ground, from whence a good view of the city and surrounding country is obtained; but unfortunately rain came on, and we had only to make the best of our way home, the carriages nearly sticking fast in a quagmire. Otherwise the road is a pretty good one.

I may here allude to the kind hospitality of Captain and Mrs. Burton, which rendered our visit an exceedingly agreeable one. On the occasion of this visit to Nossa Senhora de Penha, a curious incident occurred. On our way out Mrs. Burton took a fancy to some geese which were quietly feeding by the roadside, and she determined to make a purchase of them on our way back, although it was raining heavily. After some bargaining the geese were bought, their legs were tied, and each of us took charge of one or more. They were quiet enough until we reached the city, where the people began to pelt us with wax water balls, as it was the Intrudo time, when such pastime is still carried on to a great extent in an old fashioned place like San Paulo. The geese became alarmed, struggled to release themselves, and after some difficulty and much amusement we got them safely disposed of in the yard attached to the Consulate. Geese are very plentiful in Brazil, but there is a prejudice against them amongst the natives as food, from an idea that they eat snakes and other vermin, but a few weeks good domestic feeding is calculated to do away with any objection of this sort, as we had occasion to find in the excellent quality of these very geese when we afterwards dined at the Consulate.

A ridge of mountains forms a background to the north-west of San Paulo, in some of which are gold mines that have been long abandoned, nor is the mineral wealth of the province at all developed. The railway may bring with it new enterprise of this kind, but it will be slow work.

I went over the San Bento Convent, where only one priest appears to reside in an enormous building, a portion of which has lately been fitted up with considerable taste. The church is also kept in good order, but it seems absurd for only one man to occupy such a building. The wealth of religious orders in Brazil is by no means insignificant, and it would be to the advantage of the country and of the people if this was made available for national purposes. Religion would be better appreciated, and the State would be able to form colonies in some of the richest lands of the Empire, which naturally enough fell into the hands of religious bodies.

It is said that the Tropic of Capricorn passes close to the city of San Paulo, but of course the exact spot cannot be defined. There is plenty of fruit and vegetables to be had, grapes are abundant and very cheap, good milk and fresh butter are easily obtainable, the cow going round to the houses in the morning with a bell attached to her, and generally the calf following. Indeed, a great many of the comforts and conveniences of life are to be found here which do not exist in other Brazilian towns, whilst the climate is infinitely superior. For many months of the year the thermometer ranges about 60°, and at times goes down to 40°; on the other hand it is sometimes very hot, but of short duration. This morning I saw a black boy in the street engaged in the occupation of shoeblack, with his little box and brushes very much after the London style. In fact there is a more general inclination to work when it is not so intensely hot. There goes the railway whistle, the train starting for Santos, and it will return about 3 p.m., bringing the passengers by steamer from Rio, which left there yesterday. There are two fast steamers a week between Rio and Santos, so the communication is well kept up.

The number of old fashioned waggons or carts on two solid wooden wheels, drawn by teams of oxen according to the weight carried, and the constant passage of them, and of mules and horses, the former with tinkling bells, all laden with country produce, indicate the nature of the traffic which existed prior to the opening of the railway, rendering the streets of the city a busy scene. The railway being closed between this and Jundiahy no doubt increases this traffic for a time, but it must always exist to a greater or a less degree, as everything for the consumption of the city has to be brought into it by these means. The bulk of the through traffic of coffee and cotton must, however, inevitably find its way on to the rails and be taken down the Serra, as it is impossible mules can compete with a railway for so great a distance. The troops of mules, horses, and carts assemble at shops or warehouses in streets where their business is carried on, their produce discharged, and a certain portion of the animals loaded back to their respective destinations. Hence the perpetual tinkling of bells and creaking of wheels; at the same time a number of carriages and tilburys are constantly in motion, conveying passengers about the city or outskirts, causing a degree of activity one would otherwise hardly expect to find.