Part 8

I should not neglect to mention the extensive cart traffic over the road, which constitutes the real income of the company, and has enabled it to pay the large dividend of 10 to 14 per cent. These carts are all of one pattern, with names and numbers on them, drawn generally by five mules, with a spare one attached. We were constantly meeting them going up and down, and whether they have got more into the way of it, or the mules are now better trained, we met with no such inconveniences as Mr. Hinchcliffe describes in his book, though the windings and turnings of the road are often of such a nature as to require a “bright look out,” and the use of a shrill whistle—the horn being only sounded on approaching the end of the journey. By means of the rail and coach, Rio morning papers are delivered at Juiz de Fora, a distance of 170 miles by rail and road, the same evening. Formerly it required a week to communicate between the two places. A large quantity of stone is collected along the road to keep it in order, and at certain distances are men breaking them in the most old fashioned manner possible. They are chiefly Portuguese immigrants.

I had not been at Petropolis for twenty years, during which time there has been a large increase of building and population, but I was sorry to learn that this prosperity is likely to be evanescent, in consequence of the soil suitable for cultivation by the German colonists being worn out, and still more by the Dom Pedro II. Railway turning the stream of traffic, which previously to its opening to Entre Rios had continued to flow from the mines through Petropolis and down the splendid mountain road, conveying goods and passengers to the Mauá Railway, and thence by steamer to Rio. Of course, the railway from Entre Rios to Rio de Janeiro, though longer as regards mileage, is quicker and more direct, with a saving in expense to travellers, even if produce and merchandise were conveyed at equal rates by the two roads, but it must be the interest of the country to keep both the roads open, as, in the case of accidental stoppage, the Petropolis one is always available. It is not unlikely that terms will be come to by the two companies so as to prevent injurious competition, as the country has had to pay large sums of money for the installation and maintenance of both roads.

I remained over Sunday at Petropolis, but it turned out a very wet day, and I was not able to go about much, or to take advantage of the splendid view there is from the top of the mountain down to the Bay of Rio de Janeiro. We started at 6.30 on Monday morning in a carriage with four mules, and descended amidst heavy rain and a dense mist, so that none of the beauties of the locality were visible. At the foot of the Serra, the railway train was waiting, and we soon reached the place of embarkation by steamer, arriving at Rio about 10.30, after a week's absence, during which I have acquired a better knowledge of the progress and resources of this part of the country than any other means of information could have supplied. As regards the great internal road on which I have dwelt so much, it is decidedly one of the marvels of Brazil.

RIO DE JANEIRO TO THE RIVER PLATE.

SECOND TRIP.

On my return to Rio on Saturday, the 11th of April I found the City of Brussels had arrived after a very quick passage from Falmouth of twenty days, and she was leaving next morning (Sunday) for the River; so I resolved to go by her and complete my visit, which had been so recently unfortunately interrupted. A difficulty occurred, owing to the police requiring me to give three days' notice in the public papers of my intention to leave, and they refused to _visa_ the passport I brought with me, though it had already served on other similar occasions. The only way to get over the obstacle was to take a surety to the police office, who would be responsible for any debts I might have contracted, and after driving backwards and forwards for some hours, at considerable trouble and expense, this requirement was satisfied. This absurd and vexatious system of passports is one of the old relics of barbarism which Brazil ought to do away with, and the sooner the better; nor is it any protection against roguery, as every one knows how easily such regulations are evaded in the latter case. Countries like Brazil ought to be as free as the air, and all possible facility given to travellers who only come for information or amusement, and have no business relations. Passports do not exist in the Great Republic of the North, and France has abolished them, so let us hope Brazil will follow in the wake, and evince equal liberality in dealing with passengers' luggage.

We were to leave at 8 a.m. on Sunday, but were detained for dispatches until ten, and finally passed the fort at 11 a.m., with a light wind but much swell, indicating a southerly wind, of which we got the benefit the next day. I may mention that the City of Brussels is a splendid new steamer of Tait's line, and made the first departure under their contract with the Belgian Government. At Antwerp a grand entertainment had been given to the authorities on the day of her departure, and on Saturday a party was entertained on board at Rio.

After encountering rather a strong southerly gale, we made the River on Thursday night, and came to an anchor off Monte Video early on Friday, the passage having been run in five days. It blew so hard, with so much swell on, that it was some time before we got on shore, on reaching which I went to my old quarters at the Gran Hotel Americano, meeting several old friends there. The aspect of Monte Video was greatly changed for the better since my last visit, when the cholera was making such fearful ravages and an air of activity pervaded the place, notwithstanding the sad tragedy which had occurred in the assassination of General Flores. Rumours of political troubles still prevailed, but there was nothing on the surface to indicate them, and the nightly gathering on the Plaza to hear the band had been resumed, although for some time after the murder of the President the Plaza was held by troops and guns planted at the corner of it.

A visit to Buchentall's quinta occupied the greater part of one day, and a delightful place it is, enclosed in spacious grounds, provided with choice trees, beautiful exotics, a large conservatory, and other glass houses; in fact, with everything which a cultivated taste can devise. There is a large kitchen garden attached, and quite a plantation of pear trees, loaded with splendid pears, for which Monte Video is famous. The stables and farm buildings are extensive, and, like the house, they are in the Swiss cottage style; they are tenanted by fine horses, valuable cows, and other descriptions of cattle. Everything is in perfect order. The view from the upper ground, at the back of the house, is very fine—the city, the harbour filled with shipping, and the mounts at its entrance, the waters of the La Plata glistening beyond in the sunlight. It is a bright, beautiful day, and certainly at this season the climate is very agreeable, so different from the intense heat experienced in the month of January. After leaving the quinta, we extended our drive, passing by many pretty country houses, some of peculiar but tasteful architecture, and stopped at a house on the road side, kept by a Frenchman, where we got an excellent cold luncheon and drove back to the city.

Expecting the steamer to sail the same night, we embarked before dark, but were disappointed, the cargo not being all discharged. We did not get away until next evening. Had we known this we might have seen the races, which took place the following morning, to see which I believe more than half the population turned out, the Custom House and public buildings being closed. South Americans are fond of excitement, though horse-racing is comparatively a new amusement for them, being chiefly got up by foreigners. Whilst at dinner on Monday afternoon, the wind, which had been blowing moderately from the north, suddenly veered round to the south, and soon after we left the harbour increased to a pampero, causing a nasty cross sea and a very disagreeable motion in the ship, which sent most of the passengers to bed early. It is not a very pleasant navigation in such weather, with banks lying in the way, and shallow water in many places, and we were glad when daylight came to find ourselves near the outer roads of Buenos Ayres. This exposed roadstead, having to lie so far from the shore, is a great drawback, rendering the expense of discharging and loading very heavy, but there is no help for it, nor any prospect of improvement in this respect. They have very fine boats and lighters, with first-rate boatmen, and, as a rule, accidents are rare, unless when the fierce pamperos drive everything before them.

This is my second visit to Buenos Ayres, after a lapse of 15 years, and, although from the sea no remarkable change appears to the eye, yet, after landing, the enormous increase of the city soon becomes apparent, about which I shall say more presently. The Mole and Custom House were new to me, as also the landing pier for boats—a very great convenience and improvement on the old carts, into which you had to get from the boat. The weather, which had been cool at Monte Video, became positively cold here, cloaks and great coats being the order of the day. It is now approaching the coldest season of the year, with some sharp frost at night, which has blackened the potatoes and other vegetables outside the city; and the sunny side of the street is decidedly preferable to the shady one, a very different state of things to that which existed when I was at Monte Video, in January, with the heat frequently above 90 degrees.

CITY OF BUENOS AYRES.

It is not an easy task to describe the great changes that have taken place in this city since my visit fourteen years ago. At the same time they are so remarkable as to require a special notice.

My views at that time were sanguine as to the progress of these River Plate countries, but they have been more than realised, notwithstanding political and other drawbacks. Suffice it to say that Buenos Ayres has nearly doubled in size since I was last here, and, although no public census that I am aware of has ever been taken, the population of the city and environs must almost have augmented in the same ratio. The difficulties of the roadstead remain, but a forest of masts, extending for many miles in the outer and inner roads, together with a considerable number of steamers (the latter particularly in the inner roads) meets the eye, and two piers, or moles, have been erected, one exclusively used for Custom House purposes, the other for boats and passengers, but a large portion of the traffic is still carried on by the carts which go alongside the boats with cargo or to take it away. Landing at the mole, a busy scene presents itself in the conveyance of passengers' luggage, which is taken charge of by the peons or porters, and carried for examination to the little depot at the entrance to the mole. Afterwards it is allowed to proceed in carts or carriages to its destination.

Being built in squares, the increase of the city is not very apparent until you get fairly into it; but the numerous two or three-storied houses, the large new hotels, the fine shops and warehouses, and the great movement in the street, all indicate a thriving place of business, which Buenos Ayres unquestionably is. Most of the streets running direct from the river are now three miles in length, and they cover an equal breadth, so it is easy to judge the extent of the ground covered; besides which, very many handsome quintas, or country houses, are to be seen in every direction outside the city. The streets generally are badly paved, and make very rough work for carts and carriages passing over them, but these manage to get along with considerable wear and tear of wheels and springs, as well as horses' feet, which, however, appear to be quite a secondary consideration. After the well-paved streets of Rio de Janeiro, both Monte Video and Buenos Ayres cut a very poor figure; but the worst feature is the absence of sewerage, and the refuse of the town is at times very offensive to the olfactory nerves, and destroys the appellative “good airs,” which is otherwise a characteristic of the place under ordinary circumstances, or as nature intended it to be. The inhabitants seem to have had a wretched municipal system; but for this there is no reason why the city should not be well drained, well paved, as well as properly lighted with gas, which latter is now the case.

Strangers have a choice of really very large and commodious hotels, and there are boarding and lodging houses of various kinds, but at seasons accommodation in them is very difficult to obtain, such is the constant increase of demand by visitors as well as by permanent residents; in fact, the requirements of the population are constantly overtaking the facilities of the city, and there appears to be no reasonable limit to its extension north, south, and west, the river facing eastward. The chief increase, however, has been westward, or in a straight line from the river frontage into the country. Owing to the necessities of an augmenting population, the price of building land in or near the city has been driven up to a very high figure, and rents, as a matter of course, are excessive. Increased population has been followed by enhanced luxury, which manifests itself in the style of architecture, in the splendid shops, in the number of private carriages as well as those for hire, but naturally this has been attended by an inflated expenditure. Living in Buenos Ayres is now quite as expensive as in London or Paris; perhaps more so as regards luxuries, the import duties on which are very heavy. Generally, Buenos Ayres is a dear place to live in. Amongst other new buildings is the large theatre called Colon, and a Music-hall, the latter erected by private subscription. It is lofty and light, tastefully decorated, and I believe very well filled when concerts are held there, being also occasionally used for dinners.

The busiest part of the city, commercially speaking, is down by the Custom House and on to the Boca, the latter the rendezvous of lighters conveying produce to the ships in the outer roads, as well as of small steamers bound up river, and I understand that 300 lighters are now engaged in this work, many of them of good size and decked over. It is in contemplation to deepen and enlarge the Riachuelo, as the stream alluded to is called, and a most useful work it will be, as it is almost the mainstay of the port. At the other extremity of the city, which borders on the Northern Railway, washing of clothes is carried on among the willow trees which border the river; it is quite a sight on a fine sunny day. On the high ground about and beyond the Retiro, numerous handsome villas have been erected and the Retiro itself has been planted with trees, forming a pleasant promenade. In addition to other improvements and conveniences, omnibuses now ply from the city in various directions, so that locomotion is greatly facilitated, and people can live out of the city without the trouble of keeping conveyances, if they object to this, or have not the means to maintain them. Commerce is extending rapidly, and the Custom House revenue has doubled itself within a very few years.

BUENOS AYRES TO COLONIA.—ESTANZUELLA.

The invitation of Mr. William White to spend a few days at his estancia took me over to Colonia, from which it is distant about 15 miles, amidst the beautiful undulating country of the Banda Oriental. Three to four hours is the time usually occupied in crossing the river, almost in a direct line from Buenos Ayres, and the steamer in which I embarked had very comfortable accommodation but few passengers on board. There was a small boat in opposition to the one I was in, and we arrived very close together.

Colonia is one of the oldest settlements in the River, being built upon a peninsula jutting out into the stream, with a snug little harbour, which is in course of improvement. The town presents a dilapidated and neglected appearance, which is accounted for by its having, until recently, been fortified, and made the head-quarters of different factions during the long civil wars. There is a large church, with three high towers, visible at a considerable distance, and a lighthouse for the protection of vessels passing, as several low islands are situated close to the harbour. Some good looking houses have lately been erected, and the site of a new town laid, but it will be many years before it is likely to assume any importance. I noticed an old gateway, with an inscription dated 1724 over it.

I found Mr. White's carriage waiting for me at Colonia. It was drawn by four horses, the road being heavy for a few miles, but after that we got into a good one,—a kind of beaten track over what is called the campo, and for the first time I realised the pleasurable feeling of travelling over a sea of land, if it can be so named, where, excepting an occasional _puesto_, or shepherd's hut, not a human habitation is to be seen. The undulations of the land are here very like the long roll of the ocean, by which it is supposed to have been formed, and you are at once in the midst of cattle, horses, and sheep, with grass and thistles growing everywhere, the thistles in many cases being masters of the situation.

It was getting foggy before we reached Mr. White's estancia, but the light of the moon assisted our course across an apparently trackless country. I found Mr. White's quinta a very pretty and comfortable residence, surrounded by trees and evergreens, all of which have been planted by the present owner. The whole place is in fact the creation of some ten years, showing what can be done in this country by a judicious application of capital and labour. The house and estate cover a space of some nine square miles, the former being built on an elevated spot, called “Monte” (or the “Mount,”) and occupying with grounds about 50 acres of good rich soil, overlooking an amphitheatre of hill and dale, which stretches as far as the eye can reach, with “puestos” or shepherds' cottages at regular distances, where the cattle and sheep are collected together at dusk and let out again at daylight. This is a most interesting process, which I have seen described, but it can only be realised personally. It is something like marshalling a scattered army and bringing them into a given square. The shepherds or peons go galloping about until the cattle and sheep are gathered together, when they all, as by a kind of instinct, find their way to the corral or fold. At dawn the following morning they are let out again and roam for miles over the estate. The arrangements at a good estancia like that of Mr. White's are very complete, and every one understands his work, but of course the eye of a master is required to see that the work is properly done. The stock on this estancia consists of about 30,000 sheep, upwards of 1,000 head of cattle, and some 100 horses.

My first day was employed in visiting several of the stations, and very agreeable it was cantering over the springy turf, clothed with grass and thistles, where the sheep and cattle were quietly feeding. Buttercups glittered in the sunshine, but we missed the modest daisies so familiar at home. We were on horseback five hours, and I returned to dinner highly delighted with all I had seen. The second day we took the carriage and a gun, as partridges are plentiful and innumerable flocks of doves. Paid a visit to the estancia of Mr. Giffard, about six miles distant in a direct line, but further by the course we had to take, partly over the open campo. Returning we came close upon some half-dozen ostriches and Mr. White shot at and wounded a very fine male; but it was a painful sight to see the struggles of the poor bird, and we were obliged to get one of the men from a neighbouring station to dispatch it with his knife. Many of these noble birds are still to be met with in the campo, where they are pursued by the natives for the value of the feathers. I was presented with a portion of the feathers of the ostrich killed as described. The third day we were again on horseback for several hours, with a boy carrying a gun and some refreshment. We rode along one of the running streams with which the campo is favoured, to look for some ducks, but the streams were very low, and we only succeeded in bagging one. These streams are invaluable for cattle, and the Banda Oriental in this respect is more fortunate than Buenos Ayres, and in consequence suffers less from drought. Finding game so scarce, the boy was sent home, and we cantered on to visit some of the other stations I had not yet seen, the weather throughout being beautifully fine, clear sunshine, with a bracing and most exhilarating breeze.

There are some curious collections of rocks mostly on the margins of the streams. Huge boulders, thrown up it would seem by some convulsion of nature, and between which trees and enormous cactuses have forced their way, in cases even splitting the stone, especially present a most singular appearance. About Mr. Giffard's quinta there is quite a large formation of this kind, and a collection of very fine ombu trees, several with immense trunks and evidently of great age.

To-day, the last of my visit, has been spent in riding about the quinta, watching the operation of lassoing and bringing into the corral a refractory bull and cow that had left their companions and roamed miles away. The dexterity of the peons, and the way they manage their horses on these occasions, is something wonderful, and fairly exhausts the strength of the animals.

This is the finest season of the year in these countries, and it is impossible to imagine anything more pleasing or more cheerful than the present aspect of the campo. The next two or three months constitute the winter season, which is rainy and cold. September and October (their spring) are generally fine. The heat of summer is, of course, considerable, but it is not so much felt in the open country, where a fresh breeze, as a rule, prevails; it is the towns that are most disagreeable at that period.

To-morrow, I return to Colonia, highly gratified with all I have observed, and with the kind hospitality I have experienced. As I have said, partridges are abundant, but they commonly go singly, and without a pointer they are difficult to follow. Mr. White, however, shot two brace close to his house, when we were walking out before breakfast, and several single ones on other occasions. They are prettily marked birds and delicate eating. He did not happen to have a suitable dog by him at the time. The shepherds all keep fine dogs, mostly of the retriever breed, to assist them in managing their flocks, and there were a good many attached to the house and out-buildings; one of the former, a Scotch terrier, and myself becoming very great friends.

TRIP ON THE CENTRAL ARGENTINE RAILWAY.