human
The independence of Brazil was proclaimed September 7, 1822; and on October 12th, he was crowned emperor as Dom Pedro I. He was arbitrary, and that made him so unpopular that he found it best to abdicate, which he did in 1831 in favor of his son, then only a child. That boy was crowned in 1841, at the age of fifteen, as Dom Pedro II.
gpt
Gold is to be found in Brazil, is it not, papa?
human
Yes, he said,
gpt
Petroleum also is obtained in one or two of the provinces, and there are valuable phosphate deposits on some of the islands,
human
Papa, asked Ned,
gpt
There are dangerous wild beasts--the jaguar being the most common and formidable. And there are other wild, some of them dangerous, beasts--the tiger cat, red wolf, tapir, wild hog, Brazilian dog, or wild fox, capybara or water hog, paca, three species of deer, armadillos, sloths, ant-eaters, oppossums, coatis, water-rats, otters and porcupines. Squirrels, hares and rabbits are plentiful. There are many species of monkeys, too, and several kinds of bats--vampires among them. On the southern plains, large herds of wild horses are to be found. Indeed, Brazil can boast a long list of animals. One writer says that he found five hundred species of birds in the Amazon valley alone, about thirty distinct species of parrots and twenty varieties of humming-birds. The largest birds are the ouira, a large eagle; the rhea, or American ostrich; and the cariama. Along the coasts or in the forest are to be found frigate birds, snowy herons, toucans, ducks, wild peacocks, turkeys, geese and pigeons. Among the smaller birds are the oriole, whippoorwill and the uraponga, or bell bird.
human
Those would be pleasant enough to meet, said Violet,
gpt
Yes, assented the Captain;
human
And they have big mosquitoes, too, you have told us, papa, said Elsie.
gpt
Many other bugs, too, I suppose?
human
Yes; big beetles, scorpions and spiders, many kinds of bees, sand-flies and musical crickets, destructive ants, the cochineal insect and the pium, a tiny insect whose bite is poisonous and sometimes dangerous.
gpt
Please tell us about the woods, papa,
human
Yes; the forests of the Amazon valley are said to be the largest in the world, having fully four hundred species of trees. In marshy places and along streams reeds, grasses and water plants grow in tangled masses, and in the forests the trees crowd each other and are draped with parasitic vines. Along the coasts mangroves, mangoes, cocoas, dwarf palms, and the Brazil-wood are noticeable. In one of the southern provinces more than forty different kinds of trees are valuable for timber. On the Amazon and its branches there are an almost innumerable variety of valuable trees; among them the itauba or stonewood, so named for its durability; the cassia, the cinnamon-tree, the banana, the lime, the myrtle, the guava, the jacaranda or rosewood, the Brazilian bread-fruit, whose large seeds are used for food, and many others too numerous to mention; among them the large and lofty cotton-tree, the tall white-trunked seringa or rubber-tree, which furnishes the gum of commerce, and the three or four hundred species of palms. One of those is called the carnaubu palm; it is probably the most valuable, for every part of it is useful, from the wax of its leaves to its edible pith. Another is the piassaba palm, whose bark is clothed with a loose fiber used for coarse textile fabrics and for brooms.
gpt
Why, papa, that's a very useful tree, was little Elsie's comment upon that bit of information.
human
Are there fruits and flowers in those forests, papa?
gpt
Yes; those I have already mentioned, with figs, custard-apples and oranges. Some European fruits--olives, grapes and water-melons of fine flavor are cultivated in Brazil.
human
If it wasn't for the fierce wild animals and snakes, it would be a nice country to live in, I think, she said;
gpt
Ah, is that so? Who shall say that you won't change your mind after a few weeks spent in Brazil?
human
You wouldn't want me to, I know, papa, she returned, with a pleasant little laugh,
gpt
Yes, my child, I do, he said. Then turning to his older passengers and addressing them in general,
human
I think, he said,