American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1868-07-04
LETTER FROM BRAZIL.
The Difficulties to be EncOuntered By
the Fmigrant from the United
Stdte3-A CdRdM Statement.

My Dear Old Friend Il wrote
you last from Rio de Janeiro, in
which | informed you Of my departure
for this place, which we reached on
tho 18th of August. IIented a small
house in which | put my family un-
til | could look around at the. cOun-
try, and so far have only been from
disappointment to disappointment
The manner in which these gentle
men cOloniStS have deceived the peO-
pie is worse than criminal. They
write beautiful and howery deSclip.
tons OF the county, showing up all
OF the advantages, without ever men
tiOming a single obstacle to be en-
countered, or the privatiOnS that the
emigr mt will bave to undergo,
which are many indeed; admit the
lands to be all that they represent
There are many difficulties to en-
counter. In the first place, there
are no roads over which you can
travel to transport anything the
slightest distance from the river;
consequently there are no wagons or
carts for that purpose. In the town
of Santerem, near Hastings Colony.
where there is, Judge, population
of at least fifteen hundred souls,
there is only two small OX-carts, one
worked with one yoke Of oxen. the
other with a single OK in shafts; they
have but a road for about six miles
in the direction Of the colony, over
which they haul small portion Of
their baggage a part Of the way, and
then they have to carry it the rest OF
way on their backs up mountain,
agreeably to Hastings calculations,
2Sj feet above the level of the sea,
and so very steep that it is almost
impaSsabIe; and that is not all.
There is no water il many places for
miles around, unless they go in the
valleys for it, and the worst Of all is
there is nothing raised in the coun-
try to eat, on which our people can
labor; there is no such thing as
cornbread known; they only raise a
little corn for their poultry, and
never use it for bread there is no
flour in the country, only that which
is imported neither is there any
bacon or pork, but that which is i'm
ported. The working class live
chiefly on dried fish and farina, made
of a root called mandioca, a most un-
palatable dish TO my taste. There
arrived here, on the 9Th ult., 1lJ
emiGrants for that colony, and many
Of them in a destitute condition, and
among them some OF the liIst leSpeC-
tability-thcy are mostly from Ala.
bama and TenneSSee-many who
never did a days work in their lives,
and are now advanced in years, who
now have to 90 in the wild woods OF
heavy timber to cut their way
through against such heavy odds.
| can see nothing hut misery staring
them in the face, so much so that |
have with all my anergy quailed be
fore it. My dear friend, | am fear
FIJI that you may think | am home
sick, but | do assure yOu such is not
the case, for if | saw the least chance
of making ii living, | would willingly
engage in it, but such a thing has
not presented itself to me yet. We
have to labor under great
disadvantage from want of a
knowledge of the Portuguese Ian !
guage. The young men that are
with me cannot get anything to do
in consequence of it, and wages are /
so very low that it will not more than
board them. There are two of the /
boys working at this time at brick .
yard for Sl7 30 per month, and .
board themselves, which amount will /.
not more than board them. PrOvi. |.
Sions of every kind are very high.
Beef is of the most inferior quality;
such as we would not eat i'll the
United States is from II to II cents
per pound ; fresh pork % ceutS per
pound other fresh meat, they have
none; chickens are from 80 to -
cents apiece, according to size, and
eggs are worth > cents apiece; ; bacon
hams, which are brought from the
United States. are worth 40 cents
per pound, and lard 20 cents, which
is also imported; as likewise import
ed butter, which is worth 10 cents
per pound. There is not Il particle
of butter made here, and l never
have seen any milk. Yet | think it
could be had they would turn their
to it. | have not as yet
been able to find an improved place
that | was able to buy. The i'm
generally consist of
lwelling house, with a few acres of
cleared land without any fence)
which is planted IN cacoa and sugar {
zane; out of the cacoa they make |
and out of the cane they
make rum mostly. The places lie. ,
on the river, and all are /
subject to overflow. The houses are !
Mostly covered with tile, bur some '
ire covered with palm leaves. \ ;
yOod cacOa plantation is very valu- 5
lble; the trees are planted in rows. /
lbOut eight feet apart, so as TO form
/ dense shade to protect the fruit
@om the sun, which grows on the {
Iody of the tree from the ground up !
The young trees have to he shaded {
mtil they are two. years Old, to pre- &
-ent the sun from killing them; the '
rees grow from twelve to fifteen feet 5
ligh, and will produce from five to
en- pounds of fruit, which is now