The States of Maranhão, Santa Catharina, and Piauí, 1914
"The State of Maranhão, capital San Luiz, on an island in the Bay of San Luiz, is one of the earliest settled parts of Brazil..."
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From Brazil and the Brazilians by George James Bruce, 1914.
The State of Maranhão, capital San Luiz, on an island in the Bay of San Luiz, is one of the earliest settled parts of Brazil. There is one railway and many old roads running through the country. The population is just short of a million. The people are largely engaged in cotton and sugar-cane growing with spasmodic attempts at agriculture. Seringa-getting on the Tocantins River engages the attention of increasing numbers. The State is said to be extremely rich in minerals, as yet scarcely touched. There are several large country towns and numerous villages in the interior. The climate is extremely wet. A British steamship line trades regularly with the capital.
Santa Catharina is practically a German State in Brazil. It is on the coast between Parana and Rio Grande do Sul. The capital is Florianopolis, one of the pretty spots of the Republic, situated on an island in a beautiful bay. The island has been described as "a garden of beauty." The city on it is so well arranged as to add to the charm of the scene. Numerous small colonies of planters and agriculturists are settled in the interior, and there are a few cities with populations exceeding twenty thousand. Tobacco, sugar, wheat, and dairy produce are the main products of the State, but there are many others showing rapid increase. A remnant of the original Tamoyo Indians may be found in the extreme west of the State. A large number of the people are German, or of German extraction.
The State of Piauhy, settled almost entirely by Portuguese and those of Portuguese and Indian descent, is one of the most backward States of the Union. It has a small coast-line between Ceara and Maranhao. The port is Amarracao, used by coasting steamers. The capital is Therezina on the River Parnahyba. Camauba wax, seringa, and cotton are the chief exports. Recently there have been signs of a waking up in this very richly endowed State, and numerous public works are being put in hand. The mineral and other resources of the country have not yet been even scratched. The chief towns, Therezina and Parnahyba, are being equipped with modern public utilities, and have already many manufacturing businesses.
Bruce, George James. Brazil and the Brazilians. Dodd, Mead and Company, 1914.
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