The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-09-03
[thc Amazon.

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IN our columns TINS corning will be found
one lnpors'hs anu nighly interesting infor-
nation in regard ~. the steam navigation of
ne Amazon an'. Its tributaries, the obstacles
I'D impealme;.ts to the successful operation of
'uch erterr,rise, and the means by which these
lin loities are proposed to be overcome. The
81 Atcment to which we call attention consists Of
extracts from an official report of Count Roz-
wadowski, Major of the engineer staff Of Brazil,
which we find published in some OF the latest
Rio Jnneiro papers, ard which we have trans
lated for the information Of eur readers. II is
pretty generally known to the American pub
lie that the imperial government Of Brazil
granted some few years since to the . Amazon
Navigation and Commercial Company" the sole
and exclusive right Of establishing and main
tanning lines OF steamers or that great river
and its afluents within the empire. The char
ter gives tbs monopoly, We believe, for fifty
years, the company being bound to plant on
both sides of the river sixty colonies, to con.
sist of three Thousand men each. It was on the
occasion of the first trip Of one of the companys
steame-s-the Marajo-trcm the city of Barra,
on The Rio Negro, to the town of Pauta, IN Peru,
that the report in question was prepared. The
route lay fer the most part, through the pro-
vince OF Silomoen--a region bordering on Peru,
and most deeply interested in the results Of
the enterprise; and it was to the President of
this province that the report was presented
A peIusal of the article in question will ena-
bic our readers TO Judge of the probabilities of
the Amazon Navigation and Commercial Com
pany's deriving large profits from the spccula-
ton, or even being able to carry out the I'M
dertakng to successful issue. In the first
place, the population is so sparse along the
whole extent Of country through which the
route of the Marcjo lay, that there is not a suf-
fcency of hands at the various landing places
toprepare and put on board fuel for the steamers.
On the first trip, the supply Of fuel was prov-
ded by the care of the government. To guard
against the delays and Interruptions that might
be caused by this want of hands, it is recon-
NEEDED as absolutely necessary for the COM
pany to establish agents and laborers of its
own at each of these landngs-tw twenty-five in
cumberland also to provide two boats at each,
to be laden with fuel and taken in tow by the
steamer, so as to avoid the delays of having it
put on board. 1t will be seen how largely such
an arrangement must augment the expenses Of
tie company. z
The second obsts Gle to the prosperous work
ing of the enterprise, arises from the same
thinness of population throughout the province,
and the utter absence Of any thing like agricV'-
tural OF other industrial pursuits among the
inhabitants. This is a difficulty not 50 easily
removed as the other. Without trade and COM
merce it is Impossible to suppose that the
steamers could be probably kept on the line
and it is not the work of one or ten or tifty
years-in those regions particularly, and with
an indolent race to operate upon-to intr )dnce
and permanently establish the various indus
trial occupations which render communities
wealthy and prosperous.
twas to obviate this palpable impeachment that
the company bound themselves to settle the
sixty colonies; but Eow they seem to shrink
from the vast expense which the importation of
10000 European immigrants would entail
upon them; and it is intimated that they will
evade that stipulation and conline themselves
merely to the attempt to establish manufac-
tories of various kinds in the country, by hold
ing out inducements to the immigration of per-
sons practically acquainted with them. This
is a speculation which will necessarily involve
large outlay of capital, and the result of il H.
to say the least, highly problematical. The
company, however, calculate on getting the
carrying business OF the large import and ex-
port trade of the nei ghboring republics of Peru,
Ecuador, New Granada, and Venezuela, which
has now to be transported across the Andes, on
its way to ard from the Atlantic. The aggre-
gate Of this trade is estimated at some thirty
three millions of dollars, and the impetus which
it would acquire through the increased facili-
ties for transportation would probably, in a
few years, raise the figure to fifty millions
If the Brazilian company were allowed to enjoy
this monopoly of navigating the Amazon,
doubtless the capital invested in the enter
prize would eventually bring large dividends
But the important question arises-Will Brazil
be able to make good her pretensions to the ex-
elusive control of the navigation Of the Amazon
to its mouth, over the equally strong rights Of
Peru, Venezuela, and the other republics bathed
by it, waters? That is question which will
soon be decided Peru has declared the navi-
cation CT the AA:azop, so far as her territory is
concerned, free to all nations and the point at
issue and on which mach diplomatic correspond
eDce has taken place, is; can Brazil Illustrate that
declaration by refusing access to the mouth of
the river because it is Comprised within her Dor
ders? 1t is known that some steamers have
already been sent from New York to take ad
vantage Of this wise and liberal decree of the
Peruvian government; and large bodies of Ame-
rican citizens have recently proceeded from
California to settle and establish colonies on
the banks of the Amazon aud its tributaries in