The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-09-25
BRAzIL'S PRODUCTS AND TRADE.
SPLENDID OPPORTUNITY FOR
AMERICAN CAPITALISTS.
Rapid Growth of the Coffee Industry
Causes of Over-production-
Good Time to Invest.

New York, Sept. PA special to the
Tribune from Washington says: Con-
sui General Seager, writing from Rio
Janeiro TO the state department in two
elaborate reports just made accessible,
gives some exceedingly valuable infor-
nation concerning Brazilian resources
and trade with the United States. The
consul general calls attention to the
profitable business that might be done
in the shipment Of Brazilian hardwood
to this country. He says the traffic is
now almost exclusively confined to
rosewood, but there are many other
fine woods in Brazil some of which are
much cheaper and even more beaut1-
full than the one mentioned.
Mining is neglected. 1t is confined to
a few English companies, although the
mineral wealth of Brazil is well known.
Coal, equal to the best, exists in Rio
Grande do Sui.
The sugar cane industry has not been
developed The production of cotton is
general. but decreasing. on the other
hand, coffee production has so increased
as to create difficulties which contrib
ute to the prevailing prices in Brazil.
The state OF Sac PaulO. which led all
other provinces of the empire, now de-
ponds upon the one specially of coffee
culture.
The grand total of receipts of the
coffee crop for the year ending June 80,
1898, was 10,690 113 bags of 132 pounds,
or 60 Kilograms, with some loosely es-
timated amounts besides. The ship
ments were II, OPS, 939 bags, estimated at
an average of $S.75 per bag. The value
of this export amounts to 500, $50. 716 OF
this quantity of coffee exported the
4 loao
The consul general traces the over
production. In the ten years prior to
1897 the market price afforded an eX-
traordinary profit to the planters, and
there was an enormous increase in the
area Of coffee plantations. Now these
additional millions Of trees are bearing.
For the next year a much smaller crop
is expected, because experience shows
that there will be a light yield after
two heavy consecutive ones The esti-
mates differ as to the crop of 1S9S-99.
The official places at at 100000. the
commercial at 5000 600 bags. Even the
highest estimates are over 1,5000 bags
less than the crop of 1898.
Mr.. Seager makes certain practical
suggestions. One is that time for in
vestments in Brazil is while things are
depressed. European capitalists, es-
pecially English, are investing now.
Financial and technical experts who
know the French and Portuguese Ian
guages should be sent A monthly or
weekly trade journal should be estab-
lished by Americans in Rio and pub
lished in the Portuguese language.
Recently English, Belgian and other
-sya6icates have bought coffee planta-
tons in Brazil. AS for the two former
special mention is made Of purchases
in Manas Ceres and Sac Paulo. A large
body of British merchants and capital
lists will visit Rio and Santos and travel
through the interior in October. The
attention of the United States business
men is called to the danger of their
securing a controlling influence over
the coffee trade betwee / Brazil and this
republic. The consul general endorses
the proposition of Mr.. Lippmann, who
furnished a part of his information, to
have syndicate organized in the Unit
ed States to establish permanent ex-
hibition of machines, models and sam
pies of various articles at Rio and at
PelOtaS.