Evening star., 1922-09-10
BY FAITH HUNTER DODGE.

IL around the west shore of a
magnificent bay and climbing
- the slopes of rocky hills, the
city of Rio de Janeiro lies under sap
phire skies, her feet bathed in spark
ling green waters from the Atlantic,
her head wearing a halo of snowy
mist.
Paradoxical city of contrasts is Rio!
Her hills. brooding lionlike. receive
the chill winds of the cold ocean,
while down in the blstering heat of
busy thoroughfares pavements scorch
and lawns wither beneath the orange
glow of tropic sun.
Freed by the climate itself Of the
terrible struggle for existence. the
natives. nevertheless. swarm like bees
about their work, even the water
front being comparatively free from
idlers. Everywhere transformation
is going on. New gardens are being
laid out in tho suburbs. new trees
being planted. broken sea walls re-
built, roads widened, large hotels con-
structed and new houses going up in
one out Of every five city blocks.
penters and painters busy on the new
house next door-the house with the
pink tile roof and dark-red shutters.
These workmen are typical OF those I
see all over Rio. They are at work
at o'clock In the morning. stop for
coffee at 1880, but have no two
hours at noon or half hour for tea
in the afternoon: and for them. az
for every one else in Rio, except for
eigners. the Saturday afternoon
off"-as sacred an institution in
Buenos Aires as in London itself-is
utterly unknown. At work they have
no time for the amenities of CONVEX
sation and loafing, though singing
and whistling seem a part of their
task One of them at this moment is
whistling "Pastorale." Bolshevism
seems to me to have less apparent
hold here than in any large city
have visited since 1919. Undoubtedly
idlers. like the poor. are always with
us. but, like the horse. which has
become almost extinct in Rio. they
are rare specimens. Even the beg
sars are Industrious and when at
| work ply their trade strenuously.
The Brazilians are rivaling the
catalonians of Barcelona in their en-
ergetic pulling down Of old land
marks and building Of new streets
and suburbs-so much SO that a few
native pessimists are calling Rio a
"Penelope's tapestry. which the gov
ernment continually pulls down in
o-der 70 huild IN again"
ESS than twenty years ago the
IL Fifth avenue of Rio. the Avenida
Rio Branco. said to be as wide as the
best known avenues Of the old world
and more than a mile long, was open
ed from 2waterfront to waterfront,
necessitating the raEing Of hundreds
of residences. To be sure. not all the
owners Of those homes were willing
to have them torn down. but any one
who looks up the Avenida Rio Branco
today cannot consider any sacrifices
too great for so substantial ar i'm
provement
There Is one change going on. how
ever, which pulls hard at the heart
strings of every Lusitanian descend
ant of the Portuguese founders of
BraziD and causes expressions of
mourning among lovers OF Rios
charm everywhere. This is the
change being wrought in Sylvestre. a
sort of liaison officer between the
city and the heights OF Corcovado, a
favorite mecca for visitors. Today
r-ap< nm fropn Tho AvAoida pfo Tlr.noa
short trolley ride to Sylvestre's
forest-clad hill. to where the noun
tain cog road meets the trolley.
Trees, bushes. gnarled and twisted
roots and branches of the jungle and