Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1904-10-08

bic II was built IN 1896, and has since
been greatly enlarged and strengthen.
ed II holds a large garrison and IA
well equipped with modern cannon of
The most approved type Standing an
the foot Of two rocky peaks II Is farther
defended on the outside beach bv a
strong water battery, while the sum.
NIT above Is capped by the small but
impregnable Forte do Oica. The only
approach TO the Plco Notifications Ia
through the Santa Cruz fortress below
and that IN turn IL assallable only By
water.
Then there is the Fortaleka de Lar.
20, built upon partially shbmurged
rock near the narrow entrance.-the site
OF the first attempted setllament I'm
the River Of January" IT'S fortlnca.
ton, constructed nearly four hundred
years ago, possesses no great strength,
but Is position gives it immense adj.
vantage. In It's dugeons, followed out
OF the solid rock below sea level,
prisoners OF state used 10 be incarcer-
ated, and gruesome tales are told Of
how a part OF the punishment con-
sisted Of letting the water in at regular
intervals when the wretched prisoners
were Obliged to swim for their lives
or drown like rats I'm a hole. After
permission has been given by the auto
Gratis Of the customs house for free
practique with the shore the mails
are first disembarked, and then the
steamer proceeds TO the upper anchor
age where the passengers and their
luggage are discharged, Customs ON
Gals are at once put on board, who
remain night and day at their posts
until the steamer Is again ready for sea-
All baggage Is tent directly to the GUS
tom house. where passengers can claim
II at any time between nine a. m. and
two p, m, Nothing can be passed on
board without special permission. not
even your hand bag or shawl-strap. IL
Is wise plan 10 pack the few things
needed for a day or two into a grip
sack and leave the trunks 10 their fate
until you are established in hotel.
PASSPORTS NECESSARY.
one should remember that passports
are required, both ON entering and
leaving Brazil, and no steamship com
pany is permitted TO sell ticket 10 a
foreigner until his passport has been
vised at the central police
station. There is also a port regulation
which forbids any communication with
vessels In the harbor after eight p. m.
without special permit. Therefore. II
you have gone ashore merely for A
look about town and are unaduainted
with the Portuguese language, you
would better keep an eye on your
watch and not put faith IN the rosy
lights that linger long on the mountain
tops after the sun has disappeared.
unless you want 10 spend some UNI
comfortable hours in prison and re.
lulre the services Of the y. S. consul
10 get you out IN the morning and !
meanwhile the ship may sail away
without you The first place on shore !
that a foreigner generally seeks Is the !
establishment Of some money chang. |
pr, IN order to convert his American |
gold or English soverlgns, or the coin |
1f the last country he visited into |
The circulating medium" Of Brazil. |
And very much astonIshed will he be |
when the changer hands over huge |
pile OF metal--copper brass. iron and
1ickel-that looks like old pewter |
plates stove lids and the pOnderous
brass tags that landlords somtimes
attach TO door keys TO prevent them
rom being carried on in the pockets
" their patrons. A very few American
dollars exchange added, when con-
'erted into the currency OF this coun.
~ require a cart rather than a
pocket book IN which TO take Il away.
3raZil stil adheres to the absurd old
Portuguese sytem Of financial enumer-
ltion, IN which II takes 1000 refs 10
make what we call hali q dollar, the
word "reis" being the plural OF real.
When rels are az par 10 Of them are
worth about I've cents American
money. What a hard time OF II Brazil
an bookkeepers must have with the
ong lines OF figures which represent
he ordinary commercial transactions
\ banking or mercantile house. For
rea--the unit OF the none.
airy system IL written 0t00l, and Is
quail 10 the value Of one.twentleth Of
ne L. s. cent There Is no such coin
n circulation, the smallest being 10
els There Is a copper coin Of |
rels, nickel coin Of 100 refs.
nd another Of 200 refs. Next comes
he paper money In notes Of
900 rels. called mllrels. There are
9o.milrels fye, 10, 20, 30 50 and 100
lirels, numerically expressed this way
100000, Then there Is an imaginary
0mlnatlon named a centO, which