The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-05-28

THE FINE MARKETS OF RRAZrL AND
THEIR CURIOUS PRODUCTS.
The Carnauba Palm Lights, Feeds and
!. Clothes the PeOple-Something
About Catholicism I'm Brazil.
rcopyrisht, 1899. by Frank G. carpenter.I

" Aah
it? Still, it is the center of the universe to
$1,000 people. 1t Is the chief city of the
world to more than a million. 1t is the
capital of Ceara, and Ceara is one of the
most enterprising of the Brazilian states.
You would not think much of a person who
had never heard of Ohio. This is the con-
dition Of ninety-nine people out of every
hundred here. They would think you equal
ly ignorant that you had not heard of
Ceara.
Ceara Is as big as Ohio, but II has only
one-fourth as many people. 1t is situated
200 miles south of the equator. just below
the Amazonian forests and at the begin
ming of the highlands Of Brazil. 1t is a
land of plains and mountains. Some OF its
PEAKS are from 5000 to 5000 feet high and
some of it's plains are at times as bare as
the desert of Sahara.
] have stopped in Ceara to give you some
idea of the dry part of Brazil. In the
Amazon just north of here it rains more
than in any place else in the world. Here
it is often so dry that everything burns up
end the land has a famine. The soil OF
this region is 4 porous sand, which needs
water to make it produce crops, and its
prosperity depends entirely upon the rains.
The climate is, of course tropical. There
are two seasons. One is the winter, from
JIne until January, and the other the
summer, from January until June. In the
winter everything is dry and brown. About
December the rains begin, and with her
magic brush nature dabs the landscape
with luxuriant vegetation.
The hot sun, however, demands that she
have plenty of water to mix her colors. IL
there are not heavy rains there is a drought,
--l -,.oA 1roaro1t have n00nrr06 at fem
year intervals for a long time. In 1877 and
1878 Ceara was afflicted with a terrible
drought. succeeded by one Of the great
famines in history. Right here under the
shadow Of the equator, where everything
grows without cultivation, people suffered
because they could not get things to grow.
The famine was SO bad that during it one
half the whole population died. One hun
dred and fifty thousand people died on their
march from the interior 70 the sea coast.
| Smallpox and other diseases took away
$4,000 more, while 10000 died of fever and
beri-beri.
There is now another famine here, and the
people have been going north and south by
thousands. The ship which 1 shall take
from here to the Amazon is already loaded
with them. Thousands have gone to Rio de
Janeiro, and for months the ships departing
each way have been filled.
The government has interested itself in
the matter. and it is aiding the people to
places where they can get work. the
famine has not been nearly so bad as that
of 1878, but it has been bad enough.
A CIT OF UPPER BRAZIL.
Forteleza is a fair type of the cities of
upper Brazil. 1t lies right on the coast,
without a pier or a landing place to aid you
in getting from the ship to the shore. There
is practically no harbor to speak of. The
ship casts anchor far out and you approach
the shore in boats. When you get within
several hundred feet of 1t you are met by
half-naked men who hold out their arms TO
you and carry you in them on to the land.
The shore slopes so that the boats cannot
come further up and you have to depend
upon men. I have made the trip several
times and have always thanked my stars
that I was not dropped into the water, as
was the case with another passenger, a
Brazilian dandy dressed in white duck. His
white luck suit got a ducking and when he
reached the shore he madA me think of a
drowned cat-a white cat.
Fortelezan lies on a hill just above the
beach. We climbed up the hill over a cobble-
stone road, went by a beautiful park in
which were palm trees and tropical plants
and then went to a low, sky-blue building
known as the French Hotel. From this
point 1 made my tours over the city.
Forteleza is remarkably clean. Its streets
are we'll paved with clean cobbles and it's
houses look as though they had just re-
ceived a fresh coat OF kalsomine. The streets
cross ore another at right angles. They all
have narrow sidewalks, walled with these
clean. bright-colored houses. AS you look
down one side Of the street you have the
effect of a solid wall splashed with mashed
rainbows. Every house Is OF a different col
or and all colors are used.
The most of the houses are of one story.
Only the better classes can afford two.
Each house has one or two windows and a
door facing the street. Both windows and
door are covered with green shutters which
raise up instead of swinging back. The
shutters of the doors are divided in halves
at the height of your waist. The upper half
OF each door is usually raised just enough
for a woman or girl TO peep out. In many
of the windows there are two girls, but at
every window and every door there is one.
This is the condition on the sunny side
of the street. On the shady side the win
dow are open. the shutters raised up and
the women ndng out ana stare. Iney are
not. as a rule, pretty women, and many
have their hair hanging dow their backs.
The most are untidy and not a few wear
mother hubbards." Som have babies in
their arms ranging in ages from John
Rogers's youngest, who you know was at
the breast, TO as old as four years.
All OF these babies are naked. Their
mothers squat them before them on the
window sills and display them as though
baby nudity was the most natural thing
in the world. Indeed, there is no immodesty
in IL. Clothes are only a matter Of custom.
and in this hot climate one would be far
better off without them. Few of the chill
dren here up TO the age OF four wear any
thing. and I certainly envied them. 1t Is so
hot at midday that one wants TO get out Of
his skin and flesh and sit in the bones, but
for the sake of fashion We wrap ourselves
In sleeps wool and layers OF cotton and
| steam like teakettles.
IN THE MARKETS.
Among the most interesting places of the
small Brazilian cities are the markets.
] That OF Forteleza Is as fine as that OF any