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SOUTH AMERICA
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See also:SOUTH See also:AMERICA . The See also:early See also:physical See also:history of the South See also:American See also:continent as recorded in the rocks has been exten-Development sively obliterated or greatly obscured by the events of the of its later history. The early See also:land areas are supposed Continent, to be only approximately suggested by the See also:present exposures of See also:granite and gneisses. The largest of these old land areas is along the See also:east of the continent, extending with a few interruptions from the mouth of the Rio de la See also:Plata to within a See also:short distance of the mouth of the See also:Amazon See also:river. See also:North of the present Amazon valley and occupying the present See also:highlands of See also:Guiana, north-east See also:Brazil, and south-east See also:Venezuela was another one of these old land areas—a large See also:island or a See also:group of islands. A See also:chain of islands extended from the See also:Falkland Islands along what is now the entire See also:west See also:side of the continent. Upon these See also:ancient shores were laid down the sedimentary beds of the See also:Cambrian seas. At the See also:close of the Cambrian See also:period the continent was elevated, many of the former islands were joined together, and the See also:continental land See also:area was considerably enlarged. The See also:Silurian seas, however, still covered the See also:basin of the See also:Paraguay, extending from the Serra do See also:Mar on the Brazilian See also:coast to the See also:axis of the See also:Andes on the west, and covering at the same See also:time a considerable See also:part of the basin of the Rio Sao Francisco, filling the straits between the Andes and the Matto Grosso highlands and opening east through the region now occupied by the See also:lower Amazon valley. During the Devonian period there was a still further enlargement of the continent through See also:elevation and the joining of islands, and the disappearance of the old Silurian See also:sea in the basin of the Rio Sao Francisco on the east of the continent. In early Carboniferous times the sea still covered a narrow See also:belt throughthe lower part of the Amazon valley, and part of what is now the Andes lying south of the See also:equator. During See also:Permian times the basin of the Paraguay and the south-east coast of Brazil was covered with lagoons and swamps in which here and there See also:coal beds were laid down. At the close of this period molten lavas See also:broke through the See also:earth's crust and flowed over and buried large areas in what is now Paraguay and south Brazil.
There was a See also:general depression of the continent during the Cretaceous period and the ocean covered most of the continent as we now know it. The Serra do Espinhaco along the east coast of Brazil was above See also:water and the coast See also:line between the Rio de la Plata and Cape St Roque was little different from what it is at present. But through the highlands of Brazil from near See also:Pernambuco west there was a broad See also:sound containing many islands extending to the See also:base of the Andes and possibly connecting with the Pacific Ocean. In the extreme north there were also many islands, bays and sounds, while a continental See also:mass occupied the region of the See also:Antilles. To the south the See also:Atlantic Ocean filled most of the lower Paraguay basin and washed the eastern bases of the Andes. There was shallow-water connexion during this period between South America and See also:southern See also:India, through the See also:Antarctic regions, probably by way of See also:Australia.
In Early See also:Tertiary times See also:great changes took See also:place in the See also:geography of South America. The continent See also:rose much higher than its present elevation, the coast-lines were extended ocean-See also: The valleys of Rio Magdalena, Rio See also:Cauca and See also:Lake See also:Maracaibo were bays that covered large areas of adjacent territory. It was during the Tertiary period that the continent took on its most characteristic features. Volcanic activity culminated; the Andes rose from See also:low ridges and islands near sea-level to be one of the greatest See also:mountain systems of the globe. This elevation was partly due to the uplifting of the continent en masse, partly to faulting and folding of the rocks, and partly to the pouring out of lavas and the accumulations upon the See also:surface about vents of other volcanic ejectments. This volcanic activity was not confined to the See also:main range of the Andes, but extended into Venezuela and the islands along the north coast, to the plains of See also:Patagonia, the highlands of the See also:Parana basin and as far east as the islands of Fernando de Noronha. In See also:recent. times volcanic activity has greatly diminished over the continent and has entirely ceased along its eastern and north-eastern parts. The great elevation and depression of the continent deeply affected the See also:climate over certain large areas. For example, along the east coast, where winds blew on-See also:shore, the rainfall was greatly increased during the elevation, while the later depression brought about a corresponding diminution of the rainfall. In See also:Pleistocene times the south of the continent stood somewhat lower than it does at present, so that the ocean covered the plains of Patagonia and La Plata. During the glacial See also:epoch the south of the continent and as far north as See also:latitude 27° on the west coast was covered with glaciers that flowed down from the high mountain ranges. On the east side of the mountains the glaciers did not extend so far north as they did on the west side. The glaciers through the high Andes were also larger and longer than they are at present; there were no glaciers in the eastern or Brazilian portion of the continent. Physical Geography.—The South American continent rises abruptly from the ocean See also:floor along nearly all of its coast, but the steepness of the continental margin is more marked on the western than on the eastern side. From See also:Valparaiso to the See also:Isthmus of See also:Panama, a distance of 3000 m., the great Andes themselves are submarine but the upper or subaerial portions of mountains whose bases are 10,000 ft. below the surface of the Pacific See also:Relief. Ocean. South of Valparaiso the io,000-See also:foot See also:contour lies well out from the coast, but opposite the Straits of See also:Magellan it approaches within 15o m. of the coast-line. On the east side of the continent the See also:i000-foot contour passes to the east of the Falkland Islands showing that this group stands upon a submerged shelf or See also:shoulder of the continent. From the mouth of the Rio de la Plata northward the moo-foot submarine contour keeps at a distance of from 5o to 15o m. off the shore nearly to See also:Bahia, Brazil; from Bahia northward and around Cape St Roque this same contour is close inshore, and the ocean-floor sinks abruptly to a See also:depth of 5000 ft. North-west of Cape St Roque the continental shelf of shallow See also:waters widens until opposite the mouth of the Amazon the 1000-foot contour is 300 M. off the coast. The broad shelf follows along this part of the coast as far as the island of See also:Trinidad, west of which it narrows, though the islands along the See also:northern shores of Venezuela all stand upon and See also:form parts of this shallow continental shelf. See also:English See also:Miles o coo 500 zero QeOkgical See also:Information iimomdleta. See also:Quaternary Tertiary Basic See also:Lava, probably Mesozoic Sandstones of uncertain See also:age, with intercallations of BazioLaea in the South Mesozoic probably Trias See also:Jurassic and Triassic Coal-bearing shales with Cloesopteris 7~ . Palaeozoic Archean and metamorphosed Palaeozoic IMI Younger Volcanic Rocks ON Emecrlranca sc. The striking features of the land relief of South America are: (1) The great Andean mountain chain with its accompanying narrow See also:plain lying between it and the Pacific Ocean. (2) The Land Brazilian See also:plateau with the Serra do Mar and Serra do Relief. Espinhaco near the Atlantic and spreading westward and northward to the See also:heart of the continent. (3) The highlands of Guiana and Venezuela between the Orinoco and the mouth of the Amazon. (4) The lowlands that spread out along the three main lines of continental drainage, namely the Orinoco, the Amazon and the Paraguay basins. The physical features of the west coast are bold, and, in many parts, extremely picturesque. From Cape See also:Horn, where the peaks of the submerged southern end of the Andes form the islands of Tierra del Fuego to the Isthmus of Panama, the great See also:Cordillera follows the coast-line closely and at an even distance from it. The low coastal belt between the ocean and the mountains has an See also:average width of about 40 m., and on rare occasions, when the See also:weather is favourable, the mountains are visible from the sea nearly all the way from the Straits of Magellan to Panama. South of 41 ° S. the coast is characterized by a vast See also:system of fjords and islands, probably produced by the recent submergence of a mountain system and the consequent invasion of its steep-sided valleys by the ocean. Themany islands along this part of the coast, including Chiloe' W;dington and the Tierra del Fuego group itself are but the high portions of these mountains that have remained above water, while See also:Smyth Channel and the other sounds on the west coast and the Straits of Magellan 400 M. See also:long and 4 to 20 M. wide, are the submerged valleys. In Smyth Channel at many places the glaciers flow nearly or quite down to sea-level. Some of the islands are steep-sided, barren and uninhabited peaks rising to an elevation of 4000 ft. above sea-level. North of 41° S. the west coast is but little indented, and there are but few See also:good ports. Along the northern part of the continent from See also:Guayaquil to Panama the coastal belt is covered with tropical vegetation; but from a little south of Guayaquil to 3o° S. much of the coast is a sandy, arid and barren See also:alkali See also:desert. Across this arid belt flow the streams that descend from the high mountains, and along these are fertile valleys. Many of the smaller streams, however, do not reach the sea but dry up on their way across the arid coastal plain. The Cordillera is a broad See also:ridge upon which rise many great isolated peaks. Near its northern end the range divides: one See also:branch, the Western Cordillera, continuing northward near the coast ; the See also:Merida branch swings eastward and ends with the northern side of the island of Trinidad, while a third See also:division, the Sierra de Perija, runs north-ward between the valley of the Magdalena and Lake Maracaibo. The western slope of the main Cordillera is steep, and is scored by narrow steep-sided valleys; the eastern slope is usually more See also:gentle, and the valleys are less precipitous. Upon the Cordilleran ridge rise many of the highest peaks in the See also:world. The following are some of the most noted, with their elevations.' See also:Peak. See also:Country. Elevation. See also:Snow-line {approximate). See also:Aconcagua See also:Argentina ft. ft. 23,080 17,500 Mercedario Argentina 22,315 — Tupungato Argentina 21,550 — Illampu (Sorata) . . See also:Bolivia 21,500 — Illimani . . . . Bolivia 21,030 — Chimborazo . . . See also:Ecuador 20,545 16,700 Juncal . . . . See also:Chile 20,180 — See also:Cotopaxi . . . . Ecuador 19,613 15,500 Antisana . . . Ecuador 19,335 16,000 Cayambe . . . Ecuador 19,186 15,000 Tolima . . See also:Colombia 18,300 Misti See also:Peru 17,934 — Maipo Argentina 17,670 — Sierra de See also:Santa Marta Colombia 16,640 — Pichincha . . . . Ecuador 15,918 — The snow-line of the mountains is generally lower on the east than on the west side. Of the Andean peaks those of Cotopaxi, Tunguragua, Maipo and Sangai are the highest active volcanoes in the world. There are many glaciers in the Andes even beneath the equator itself ; and though these glaciers are small and mostly confined to the highest peaks, toward its southern end along Smyth Channel and in the Straits of Magellan, they are large and flow far down the slopes, and at several places enter the sea. The eastern side of the continent is in strong physical contrast with the western. North of the Strait of Magellan the coast is See also:flat as far as the northern part of Rio Grande do Sul. From latitude 29° 30' to 190 30' the Serra do Mar makes this the most picturesque portion of the east coast of South America. The mountains rise in many places directly from the seashore to an elevation of 2000 ft. In places these form See also:bare granite walls, while in others they are covered from base to See also:summit with the most luxuriant tropical vegetation. On this part of the coast are some of the finest and most beautiful harbours in the world, notably those of Rio de Janeiro, See also:Santos and See also:Victoria, formed by a depression that submerged the coastal valleys.
The range or group of mountain ranges known under the general name of Serra do Mar falls away toward the north and west in a gently sloping plateau commonly called the Brazilian highlands. On this Brazilian plateau the highest points of which the elevations are known are as follows:
Peak. Brazilian See also:State. Elevation.
Itatihya Rio de Janeiro ft.
9823
Itajdba or Temb~ Sao Paulo 7800
See also:Organ Mountains Rio de Janeiro 7321
Frade Espirito Santo 6770
Caraca See also:Minas Geraes 6412
Itambe Minas Geraes 5959
Itacolomf Minas Geraes 5748
Pyreneos See also:Goyaz 4536
North of latitude 20° the high mountains See also:swing inland and the coast is low as far as latitude 17° 25'; north of this the coast is
' Various authorities differ in their estimates of these elevations.
Pji
111//11111
bordered by a See also:wall of brightly coloured bluffs from 50 to 250 ft. high which continue with occasional interruptions to the mouth of the Amazon. About Cape St Roque the coast is covered with See also:sand See also:dunes. From the Abrolhos Islands northward to See also:longitude 37° west of Cape St Roque, there are many See also:coral reefs, some of them several miles off shore and many miles in length and breadth, while in other places they follow the coast-line for a See also:hundred miles or more with a few interruptions, now touching the shore, and now See also:standing out two or three miles from the land. Along the parts of the coast where the coral reefs occur are also reefs of hard See also:sandstone that are often mistaken for coral reefs. These See also: North of the mouth of the Amazon the coast is low, much of it is swampy, and all of it is See also:forest-covered as seen from the ocean. This low coast extends as far north and west as the headland north of the Gulf of Paria where the Merida or Venezuelan branch of the Andes reaches the sea. In southern Venezuela and Guiana and northern Brazil is a plateau commonly known as the Guiana highlands, above which rise several peaks. Peaks. Elevation. ft. Roraima . . 8740 See also:Ouida .. 8500 Maraguaca . . 8230 Turagua . . . 6000 This highland region is mostly forest-covered, but it contains also large areas of open grass-covered plains. Earthquakes occur throughout the entire length of the Andes; the shocks are sometimes of sufficient violence to do serious damage to cities and towns and to destroy many lives. Such disturbances are almost unknown along the Brazilian side of the continent. The eastern coast of South America has remarkably few islands, and these are mostly small, except Trinidad off the coast of Venezuela Islands. and the islands of the Marajo group in the mouth of the Amazon. Trinidad (area 1755 sq. m.) is separated from the continent by the Gulf of Paria. Along the northern edge of the island is a range of mountains about 3000 ft. high, which are geologically the eastern end of the See also:Cumana range of the Venezuelan mainland. On the south side of this island is the famous See also:pitch lake —the most extensive See also:deposit of See also:asphalt known. West and north of Trinidad, and lying farther off the coast, are several small islands of See also:historical See also:interest and commercial importance: See also:Tobago, See also:Margarita, Blanquilla and the See also:Curacao group. Off Cape St Roque (230 m.) is the small Fernando de Noronha group of volcanic islands. The main island has an area of only 12 sq. m. Though this island is separated from the mainland by a channel 13,000 ft. deep, it really stands upon the submerged corner of the South American continent. The Rocas is a small island 8o m. west of Fernando de Noronha. The Falkland Islands in See also:lat. 51 ° See also:cover an area of 6500 sq. m.; their shores are indented by long tortuous channels that have the See also:appearance of having been made by the depression of a hilly land surface. One of these channels separates the two main islands. Mt See also: Except at Obidos the Amazon is nowhere confined to a single channel, but it spreads over a vast See also:flood-plain and flows with a sluggish current through thousands of side channels that anastomose with each other, so that one unfamiliar with the stream cannot distinguish the main channel. At several places the river is so wide that one looking across it See also:sees a water See also:horizon as if at sea. Much of the region is more like a great fresh-water sea filled with islands than an See also:ordinary valley with a river See also:running through it. For the most part the land along the stream is low, flat, marshy and at times under water. At a few places, however, notably at Erere,487 Obidos, Velha Pobre, Paru, Paraua-quara and Almeirim table-topped hills are visible from the river. The See also:banks of the stream and of its side channels are everywhere covered with a dense forest. The valley, however, is not all forest-covered. From near the Oyapok on the Guyana frontier a See also:series of open grassy See also:campos, interrupted only by the wooded banks of streams, follow along the north side of the Amazon for about 500 M. and extend into British Guiana and the region of the headwaters of Rio See also:Branco. The upper Amazon basin opens broadly northward connecting with the Orinoco drainage across a low See also:watershed, while on the south it is separated by a low See also:divide from the Paraguay basin. The Orinoco rises in the highlands between Venezuela and Brazil, flows westward and north-ward around this elevated region and then flows eastward into the Atlantic. Along its lower course the banks of the stream are covered with dense forests; in its upper course the mountainous highlands are visible along its right See also:bank, while on its left are vast stretches of flat, treeless, grass-covered plains that extend to the foot-hills of the Cordillera de Merida. The main stream is navigable during a part of the See also:year for a distance of moo m. or more. Under the name of Rio de la Plata may be included the See also:Uruguay and the Paraguay, which enter the ocean through the La Plata See also:estuary, and the Parana which is the most important branch of the Paraguay. It is a noteworthy feature of the streams entering the Paraguay or La Plata basin that many of those flowing from the arid regions on the west are more or less brackish, while those from the See also:rainy forest-covered regions of Brazil are all fresh-water streams. The upper Paraguay is a sluggish stream winding through grass-covered plains dotted over with See also:palm trees. Above rise a few isolated peaks like so many islands in a great lake. The Gran See also:Chaco is a vast plain, almost perfectly flat, covered with See also:rank vegetation and much of it with water, lying along the west side of the Rio Paraguay in northern Argentina and in Paraguay. The Sao Francisco, the largest river that lies wholly in Brazil, rises in the highlands of Minas Geraes in latitude 21 ° and flows north-eastward parallel with the coast until it reaches latitude 9° 30' where it bends sharply to the right and enters the Atlantic. It flows entirely through a hilly or mountainous country. It is navigable along its lower course nearly to the falls of Paulo Affonso, 140 M. from its mouth, and also above the falls. In Colombia the Magdalena is a crooked muddy stream about 2000 M. long and navigable as far as Honda. Most of the lakes of South America are mountain lakes in the Andes or along its base. Lake Titicaca in Bolivia is, in respect of elevation and position, the most remarkable of its See also:size in the world. Its surface is 12,545 ft. above sea-level, Lakes. it has an area of nearly 5000 sq. m. and a maximum depth of 700 ft., and never freezes over. This lake discharges into a See also:marsh that is supposed to have no outlet. Lake See also:Junin or Chinchaicocha on the plateau east of See also:Lima has an See also:altitude of 13,380 ft., and covers an area of 200 sq. m. Along the eastern base of the Andes in southern Argentina is a series of lakes whose basins were probably made by the glaciers that formerly flowed down from the mountains on the west. There are many lakes, both large and small, scattered over the flood-plains of the great rivers of South America, but these are mostly phases of river development. Along the coast-lines there are also occasional lakes of brackish water produced by the depression of the coast and the closing of the open mouths of estuaries thus formed, or by sand barrier beaches thrown up by the sea. Such is Lagoa dos Patos in southern Brazil and many smaller ones on the Brazilian coast. Lake Maracaibo on the coast of Venezuela is a large narrow-necked See also:bay like those of Rio de Janeiro and Bahia, rather than a true lake. Flora.—The warm, wet, tropical portions of South America are especially favourable to the development of plant See also:life. This continent has therefore furnished an unusually large number of the world's useful See also:plants. Among these are several valuable See also:woods, See also:rubber-producing plants, See also:cotton, See also:potato, See also:tomato, mandioca, pineapple, See also:maize, See also:cinchona, ipecac, See also:vegetable See also:ivory, See also:coca, the See also:chocolate plant and Paraguayan See also:tea. Other tropical and sub-tropical plants such as See also:coffee, See also:sugar-See also:cane, oranges and bananas have been introduced and are extensively cultivated. The flora of the continent embraces a large number of See also:peculiar types that originated either in the highlands of Brazil or in the Andes. The flora of tha Amazon valley may be taken as the type of that of the moist tropical valleys. The forests are so dense, rank and matted with undergrowth as to be almost impenetrable. Palms are the most characteristic and beautiful trees, and reach their greatest development in the Amazon region. They take on a great variety of forms: some have trunks too ft. and more in height while others have no trunks at all, but See also:spring like tufts from the ground; some are two feet or more in See also:diameter, while others are as slender as a See also:lead See also:pencil. Bamboos grow to an enormous size and form dense thickets along certain streams. The shaded portions of the forests frequently abound in beautiful ferns, some of which are so small as to be almost microscopic, while others reach the dimensions of trees. For the most part the plants of the open campos have a stunted appearance and the See also:grasses are wiry and tough. A noteworthy feature of these tropical forests is that they are seldom made up of trees of a single See also:species or of but few species. In the high table-lands of southern Brazil, however, the araucarian See also:pine grows in beautiful forests as far north as See also:Barbacena in the highlands near the headwaters of Rio Sao Francisco. In the north-west of the continent the western slopes of the Andes are covered with a dense tropical vegetation, while on the east the slopes are comparatively bare. In the high mountains the flora is scanty and bears a general resemblance to that of the temperate regions; 6o% of the genera are like those of the temperate zones, but the species are peculiar to the Andes. In the south of the continent plant life is necessarily less tropical. Fauna.—The fauna of South America includes a large number of species but relatively a small number of individuals. With See also:local exceptions this seems to be true of all the forms of life within the tropical portions of that continent. The land mammals are nearly all small; the See also:tapir is the largest of them, and is found only in the northern two-thirds of the continent. There are many species of monkeys, all of them arboreal in their habits. The only See also:reptiles that are at all abundant are lizards, and in some places alligators. The alligators do not extend south of the La Plata region. Of See also:snakes only the See also:boa constrictor and the water boa are large, and these, like all other kinds, are not abundant. Certain ruminants having long woolly See also:hair are found only in the high Andes; these are the llamas, alpacas and vicunas. The See also:llama has been domesticated and is used for carrying small burdens. The See also:condor, the largest living See also:bird of See also:flight, inhabits the lofty Andes. The See also:insects of the highest mountains are related generically, but not specifically, to those of the temperate latitudes of North America—a fact understood by biologists to mean that there has been no See also:migration across the inter-mediate region since the glacial epoch. Owing to temperature and See also:climatic conditions the life forms of the high Andes, whether See also:animal or plant, are more nearly related to those of the lower regions to the south than to those of the lower regions to the north. The fresh-water See also:fish fauna of the Amazon region is the richest in the world. The See also:distribution of species shows that there has long been See also:direct communication between the drainage of the three great river systems, namely, the Orinoco, the Amazon and the Paraguay. Inhabitants.—At the time of the See also:discovery of the South American continent by Europeans, the races inhabiting it differed greatly among themselves in customs, See also:languages and See also:civilization. They had then generally See also:developed the arts of See also:spinning, See also:weaving and the manufacture of pottery, and locally were skilled in certain kinds of metallurgy, See also:sculpture, See also:architecture and See also:agriculture. These aboriginal peoples have necessarily been profoundly affected by the invasion of See also:European races and the importation of See also:African races, but in some localities their descendants still form the bulk of the See also:population, and the native American languages are still spoken. Immediately after the discovery of South America the western and northern portions of the continent and the region of the Rio de la Plata began to be colonized by Spaniards, while the eastern portion was colonized by the Portuguese. To these races were added Africans, for many years imported as slaves, especially into Portuguese territory. Of See also:late there has also been a large See also:immigration of Italians into Argentina and southern Brazil. In Argentina about 18% of the population is See also:foreign-See also:born, and of these 56% are See also:Italian, 22% See also:Spanish and ix % See also:French. In Chile only 2'3% of the population is of foreign See also:birth. Spanish is the See also:language of the country from the eastern end of Venezuela through all the northern and western parts of the continent and over a large past of the Paraguay basin. Throughout Brazil, which covers little less than See also:half of the entire continent, the language is Portuguese. South America is therefore pre-eminently a Latin continent ; its few British, Dutch and See also:German colonies See also:count for less in the great ensemble of its population than do the depleted aboriginal races themselves. See also:Political Geography.—The continent was first visited by Europeans in 1498, when See also:Columbus upon his third voyage touched Discovery. at the mouth of the Orinoco. Other navigators shortly followed and sailed along the northern and eastern coasts, and by 1509 the coast had been visited as far south as the Rio de la Plata. In 1513 See also:Balboa discovered the Pacific Ocean in the Gulf of Panama, and in 152o Magellan (properly Magalhaes) passed through the straits of Magellan and crossed the Pacific Ocean. Inland thn earliest explorations followed the Amazon river, but aside from the discovery of the size, course, and See also:character of the river and its immediate shores, they were of but little importance. Great impulse to exploration and development was given by the See also:silver mines of Peru and later by the discovery of See also:gold and diamonds in the highlands of Brazil. The early See also:settlement of South America by Europeans began shortly after the discovery of the continent. These settlements were originally colonies under the See also:control of See also:Spain and of See also:Portugal, and they remained for some time dependencies of the See also:mother countries. Eventually, however, they became See also:independent. For many years most of these countries were more or less disturbed by See also:internal dissensions and revolutions, but in See also:process of time, and as See also:industries and See also:commerce have become better established, the governments have become more See also:stable. The political divisions of the continent are best seen upon an ordinary See also:map, and verbal descriptions of them are therefore omitted. Brazil is the largest and most important single country. The bulk of the See also:remainder is divided into several Spanish-speaking republics that border the continent from Venezuela on the north to Patagonia on the south, while between Venezuela and the Brazilian frontier on the north-east are three comparatively small countries known as British Guiana, Dutch Guiana and French Guiana. These Guianas are the only places at which colonies under European control are established on the mainland of South America. There are, however, a few islands that belong to European countries, such as Trinidad, Tobago and the See also:Falk-land Islands to Great See also:Britain, and Curacao, Buen Ayre and Oruba to See also: The total gold production of all South America for the year 1895 was estimated at about $13,000,000. In 1729 or possibly a little earlier diamonds were also discovered in the gold districts of Brazil, and a fresh impetus was given to European immigration and to the importation of African slaves to See also:work the mines. From that time down to the discovery of diamonds in South See also:Africa Brazil was the leading producer of diamonds in the world. The diamonds are found in three widely See also:separate districts: in the state of Minas Geraes in the vicinity of See also:Diamantina, in the state of Bahia in the vicinity of Lenes, and on the headwaters of the Paraguay river in the state of Matto Grosso. The Bahia region also produces carhonados, or the See also:black diamonds used in the manufacture of See also:diamond drills. The best estimate possible places the See also:market value of the diamond production of Brazil from 1729 to 1885 at $100,000,000. Of late years Brazil has led the world in the production of See also:monazite, which occurs on the coast of Bahia in the form of See also:beach sands. In 1905 the output of See also:manganese by Brazil was second only to that of See also:Russia. There are enormous deposits of See also:iron ore in Minas and Sao Paulo, though but little developed at present. The agates of southern Brazil are famous. The forest industries are chiefly such as depend upon the natural products of tropical forests. They include the gathering of rubber, cacao, coca, ipecac, See also:balsam copaiva, cinchona bark, palm fibre (piassaba), brazil-nuts and Paraguay tea. Forests and The bulk of the world's See also:supply of cacao comes from Agric'dture. Ecuador, Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia. There is much See also:wood suited for See also:fine See also:cabinet work, but the facilities for supplying such woods are limited. The agricultural industries are chiefly those suited to tropical countries. Those that have reached the greatest development are the growing of sugar cane and the manufacture of sugar, and the growing and preparation for market of cotton, coffee and See also:tobacco. Sugar is made mostly near the sea-coast from near Rio de Janeiro northward along the eastern side of the continent. Cotton is grown in the interior from Bahia northward, while the See also:chief coffee-producing region is in the Brazilian states of Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas, Espirito Santo and Bahia. See also:Wheat is one of the chief agricultural products of the See also:Argentine See also:Republic. The ,most important See also:pastoral industries are in the region about the Rio de la Plata, where See also:wool growing and stock-raising have reached a marvellous development. The manufacturing industries are necessarily not so well developed as those of older countries. In the early history of Msarsfilothe South American colonies the See also:home countries were tyres. interested in the See also:building up of an export See also:trade, and manufacturing in the colonies was therefore discouraged, even by direct legislation, while trade with other than the See also:parent countries was prohibited. For some time after the See also:independence of the new countries, facilities for manufacture and transport were poor, while the lack of established commercial relations and facilities retarded their growth. The development of manufacturing industries has been more marked of late years, though internal development is still retarded by the lack of highways. The exterior commercial relations of South America were at first naturally and necessarily with Spain and Portugal. In time other Foreign European countries established relations with the rising Commence. South American cities, the relative importance of Spain and Portugal in South American commerce has greatly diminished, and the bulk of trade is now with other countries. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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